21-03-2025
Can we make it official? Language in the age of Trump.
Among the many things he has done since retaking office in January, U.S. President Donald Trump signed a 大統領令 (daitōryō-rei, executive order) making English the official language of the United States.
While more than 30 U.S. states have already taken similar steps, this marks the first time in history that the country will have a national language recognized at the federal level — and a good opportunity to look at how all of this 'translates' into Japanese.
At the heart of the discussion is the term 公用語 (kōyōgo, official language). The situation in the U.S. has been comparable to that in Japan, as neither country specifies an official language in its 憲法 (kenpō, constitution). The closest equivalent in Japan is article 74 of the 裁判所法 (saibansho-hō, Court Act), which simply states: 裁判所では、日本語を用いる (Saibansho dewa Nihongo o mochiiru, In court, Japanese is used).
The two countries are also comparable in that both have a 事実上公用語 (jijitsujō kōyōgo) or de facto official language. This is a common situation worldwide, particularly in countries where one language is clearly dominant. As with English in the U.S. and Japanese in Japan, there is often little need to make that language 法律上公用語 (hōritsujō kōyōgo, a de jure official language). Enter Trump 2.0.
As for Japan, the dominant role of Japanese can easily be understood from a widely discussed proposal by former Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi that recently marked its 25th anniversary. In January 2000, Obuchi suggested that English be granted the status of 第二公用語 (daini kōyōgo, second official language). Though this bold proposal never gained much traction, the very idea of having a 'second' official language implies the existence of a 'first' — Japanese, right?
But Japanese is not Japanese. A somewhat confusing distinction exists between 国語 (kokugo, the national language) and 日本語 (Nihongo, Japanese). Both essentially refer to the same thing, the Japanese language, but differ based on who is learning it.
The subject in which children attending a Japanese school are instructed is called 国語, whereas all non-native learners learn 日本語. This difference is also reflected in the two expressions 国語教育 (kokugo kyōiku, national language education) and 日本語教育 (Nihongo kyōiku, Japanese language education).
Signs around Tokyo are increasingly translated into English, Chinese and Korean script. |
PETER BACKHAUS
Put somewhat roughly, 国語 is understood to be reserved for natives, whereas 日本語 is for everyone else. Now the good news is that there are no recognizable differences in pronunciation, grammar or vocabulary between the two. So don't worry: If you properly know日本語, you shouldn't have any problems communicating with native speakers.
Speaking of which, the idea of tying a language to a place is also embedded in the term 母国語 (bokokugo), which literally translates as 'motherland tongue.' However, since your mother (and, hopefully, father) is arguably more important in early language acquisition than your country, many people now prefer the term 母語 (bogo, mother tongue), not just because it's shorter.
A similar option applies when counting languages. If you speak two of them, and are therefore バイリンガル (bairingaru, bilingual), you can either include the idea of 'nation' by calling them 二か国語 (ni-kakokugo, literally 'two countries' languages') or omit it and simply say２言語 (ni gengo, two languages).
The concept of 国語 has increasingly come under pressure due to its underlying assumption of a 'one nation, one language' model. Imported from 19th-century Europe, it was considered a necessary component for modernization and nation-building by language planners in Meiji Japan. Subsequent policies codified and promoted a standard language, or 標準語 (hyōjungo), based on the dialect spoken in and around Tokyo, at the expense of other linguistic varieties; monolingualism became the order of the day.
Fast forward to Reiwa Japan and the situation couldn't be more different. Since the 1980s, administrative agencies at both the national and local levels have been actively working to make Japan a more multilingual society. This push was initially driven by the arrival of foreign workers during the height of the bubble economy, followed by major sporting events such as the 2002 FIFA World Cup and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which — though ultimately held without live audiences due to COVID-19 — had already prompted extensive preparations for multilingual accessibility. More recently, the surge in inbound tourism has further accelerated efforts to provide information in languages other than Japanese.
The umbrella term for these initiatives is 言語サービス (gengo sābisu, language services). These include multilingual consultation hours, guidebooks and other printed materials, multilingual signage and public transportation announcements and a wide range of language support on the internet. The most commonly available 使用言語 (shiyōgengo, languages used) are English, Chinese and Korean, but there are many others depending on the medium, location and level of necessity.
And this is where Japan's trajectory diverges from that of the United States under Trump's second term. While his recent executive order signals a push toward linguistic homogeneity, Japan has moved in the opposite direction by becoming increasingly multilingual. And so far, no Trump-like figure has emerged to reverse this course.
