Kanazōshi
describes a type of printed Japanese book that was produced primarily in Kyoto between 1600 and 1680. The term literally means “books written in "kana"” ("kana" being the phonetic Japanese syllabary that is simpler to read and write than "kanji", or Chinese ideographs). The designation thus derives from the fact that the text of these books was written either entirely in "kana" or in a mixture of "kana" and "kanji". "Kanazōshi" are considered to be a transitional genre, bridging the gap between medieval romances and the first high point of Edo period (1600-1868) literature, the "ukiyozōshi" composed by Ihara Saikaku (1642–93). The genre comprises an unlikely assortment of essays, stories, travel guides for famous places, military chronicles, religious writings, and critical pieces. Despite the lack of uniformity in content, "kanazōshi" are classified as a distinct genre primarily based on the fact that they were the first literary works to be printed and widely circulated in Japan. Scholars also maintain that "kanazōshi" are generally of higher literary quality and more realistic than medieval forms, such as the "otogizōshi", that preceded them.
Q5287
Japanese
ORG
Q34600
Kyoto
LOC
Q187659
kana
Concept
Q82772
kanji
Concept
Q1159457
romances
Concept
Q184963
Edo period
Concept
Q82386
ukiyozōshi
Concept
Q352561
Ihara Saikaku
PER
Q35760
essay
Concept
Q1318295
stories
Concept
Q223638
travel guide
Concept
Q185363
chronicle
Concept
Q9174
religious
Concept
Q17955
critical
Concept
Q82440
otogizōshi
Concept
Q82375
Kanazōshi
Concept
1600-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1600
DATE
1680-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1680
DATE
+1600^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
1600
NUMBER
-1868^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
-1868
NUMBER
+1642^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
1642
NUMBER
+93^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
93
NUMBER
time period
follows
founded by
movement