Daijirin

 is a comprehensive single-volume Japanese dictionary edited by , and first published by in 1988. This title is based upon two early Sanseidō dictionaries edited by Shōzaburō Kanazawa (金沢庄三郎, 1872–1967), "Jirin" (辞林 "Forest of words", 1907) and the revised "Kōjirin" (広辞林 "Wide forest of words", 1925).
History.
Sanseido specifically created "Daijirin" to compete with Iwanami's profitable "Kōjien" dictionary, which was a longtime bestseller through three editions (1955, 1969, and 1983). Two other contemporary dictionaries directed at the "Kōjien" market share were Kōdansha's color-illustrated "Nihongo Daijiten" (日本語大辞典 "Great dictionary of Japanese", 1989) and Shōgakukan's "Daijisen" (大辞泉 "Great fountainhead of words", 1995, also edited by Akira Matsumura).
The first edition of "Daijirin" (1988) had 220,000 headword entries and included encyclopedic content in numerous charts, tables, and illustrations. While "Kōjien" was printed in black and white, Sanseido included 19 two-color illustrations for topics like the seasons (with "kigo"), linguistics (synonymy), and Japanese language ("Man'yōgana"). According to Matsumura's preface, the process of editing the first edition took over 28 years. 
The second edition (1995) increased the number of entries to 233,000 and augmented the number of illustrations (including 31 pages of full-color maps and charts). Sanseido published the second edition in printed, CD-ROM, e-book, and Web versions. They additionally bundled the so-called "Super" version "Sūpā Daijirin" (スーパー大辞林) CD-ROM with other Sanseido Japanese and English dictionaries, plus pronunciation sound files. In 1997, Sanseido published a reverse dictionary of the second edition, entitled "Kanji-biki, Gyaku-biki Daijirin" (漢字引き・逆引き大辞林, ), with two indexes. The first lists "kanji" by "on-yomi" and stroke count, the second indexes headwords both by first and last "kanji" (for example, it lists "jisho" 辞書 "wordbook; dictionary" under both "ji" 辞 "word" and "sho" 書 "book"). According to Sanseido, total sales of the first two editions totaled over one million copies in 2003.
The third edition (2006) added new headwords, such as the English loanword "intarakutibu" (インタラクティブ "interactive"), for a total of 238,000 entries. Japanese dictionary publishers have an ongoing dilemma, the increasing popularity of Internet and electronic dictionaries is decreasing the sales of printed ones. Kono (2007) notes, "According to Jiten Kyokai, an association of dictionary publishers, total annual sales of printed dictionaries, including popular Japanese and English, and specialized ones, such as technical dictionaries, halved to 6.5 million copies in the past decade." To promote the third edition, Sanseido launched a novel "Dual" service, the "Dyuaru Daijirin" (デュアル大辞林), allowing purchasers of the printed version to register for free online dictionary access. The online version is being regularly updated (currently including over 248,000 entries) and allows keyword searching for synonyms and related expressions. In 2006, collective "Daijirin" sales exceeded 1.5 million copies.
"Daijirin" is also available on the Internet. Sanseido's Web Dictionary offers Web and mobile phone subscription access to numerous dictionaries, including "E-jirin" (e辞林). Nippon Telegraph and Telephone's "Goo Lab" provides a server that allows free online searching of the second edition "Sūpā Daijirin". Yahoo also used to provide access to the second edition of the dictionary, but the service has since been discontinued.
Comparison with "Kōjien".
One of the biggest differences between "Daijirin" and "Kōjien" definitions is how they arrange meanings. A dictionary can arrange entries either historically with the oldest recorded meanings first (e.g., "Kōjien" and "Oxford English Dictionary") or popularly with the most common meanings first (e.g., "Daijirin" and "American Heritage Dictionary"). 
"Daijirin" entries encompass diverse vocabulary, including modern and classical Japanese words, scientific terminology, proper names, alphabetical abbreviations (like "NG" "no good; outtake, blooper"), and "yojijukugo" idioms. Some definitions include semantic notes distinguishing homonyms and synonyms. "Daijirin" usage examples range from classical texts like Man'yōshū to modern publications.
Tom Gally lists three advantages of "Daijirin",
Though "Koujien" is regarded by many in Japan as the authoritative dictionary and is the one most often cited by newspaper editorialists trying to make etymological points of questionable validity, I regard the best single-volume "kokugo" [Japanese language] dictionary to be "Daijirin". Designed to compete directly with "Koujien", "Daijirin" is different in one key way from its illustrious predecessor: whereas "Koujien" arranges the senses of its definitions in historical order, "Daijirin" puts the most common contemporary meanings first. The result, for a person reading modern Japanese, is that "Daijirin" is the most likely to list the intended meaning where it can be found easily.
The other two "Daijirin" advantages are semantically "more detailed" definitions and the "unusual, though not unprecedented" "kanji" and reverse-dictionary index. 
Baroni and Bialock describe "Daijirin",
This is the most up-to-date and attractive of the large single-volume "kokugo jiten". In this sense, it may overlap or even supersede "Kōjien" in neologism and "gairaigo". It also features illustrations and historical references, charts, and explanations of historic or complicated terms. It is visually easier to use, with "gojuon" headings clearly boxed off, and uses larger headings for more significant entries.
Faris writes,
In general the definitions in the "Daijirin" are fairly easy to read, while in many cases a non-native of Japanese would have more trouble reading "Kōjien" definitions, which often contain words more difficult than the one they are defining. There are also many cases where the "Daijirin" is simply more complete, and contains usage or definitions not given in the "Kōjien".
He compares the definitions for "abarenbō" (暴れん坊), literally meaning "rambunctious kid, wild child; bundle of energy" and figuratively meaning "abaremono" (暴れ者) "rowdy; hooligan; tough; maverick". 
Faris concludes that since, "The most popular use of this word is with regard to overactive children, so the "Daijirin" wins in this case."