Government panel suggests Hepburn style romanization
The Council for Cultural Affairs included the suggestion in an advisory report submitted to culture minister Toshiko Abe the same day.
In 1954, the government released a Cabinet notice setting out the standard for the romanization system known as kunrei-shiki, in which the Japanese kana syllabary pronunciation of "chi" is spelled as "ti," and "fu" as "hu."
Even so, the Hepburn style, in which "chi" and "fu" are used, has become more common in society.
Referring to the submitted report, the government is expected to revise the Cabinet notice as early as within the current fiscal year, which ends next March, for the first time in some 70 years. It will gradually apply changes to textbooks and other materials.
The advisory council began considering a unified notation in 2022, to prevent confusion amid the two different romanization styles being used. In May 2024, then culture minister Masahito Moriyama consulted with the council on how the notation should be.
The report adopted descriptions such as "shi", "ji" and "tsu" in accordance with the Hepburn style.
In the case of a term that includes a tight sound, such as the Japanese word for an iron plate, "teppan", doubled consonants are used. A term with a prolonged sound, such as the Japanese word for mother, "kaasan," can be written with the macron symbol or by using doubled vowel characters.
Based on the principles suggested in the report, Japan's capital city of Tokyo will be written "Toukyou." Still, it specified that common notations, such as "Tokyo," do not require immediate changes.
Regarding personal and organizational names, the report noted that the notation should respect the wishes of those affected.
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