The elusive concept of "map": Semantic insights into the cartographic heritage of Japan

Abstract

The history of Japanese cartography, not being well understood outside Japan, requires further attention for scholars who do not use Japanese, including expanding the existing body of foreign-language knowledge and further explanations. In this context, the present article examines the Japanese vocabulary for "ma" and sheds light on how the Japanese have viewed maps as artifacts. After a brief on the English word "map," the Japanese words which have functioned as generic terms for "map" are discussed in regard to their origin, meanings, and usage, as well as the cultural forces that influenced their coinage and/or mainstream adoption. Following this is a demonstration that even today the question of what word to use for "map" in Japanese has not been settled, there being three commonly encountered words, two of which have semantic defects and the third being recently derived from "map." The final section notes that the record indicates that the Japanese have not considered maps to be sufficiently distinct to require their own designation, as well as that content and an understanding of the relevant English vocabulary, not necessarily the Japanese, determine whether an artifact is a "map" or something else in English.