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| Figure 1: Kana Shodo as written in the Tale of Genji, the world's oldest novel (Source: The British Library) |
Typically when one reflects on human history the accomplishments and exploits of men are the focus, but women had a great deal of influence, power, and contributions to art/literature, religion, military conquests, human evolution, and more. Today’s blog post will expand the current blog posts concerning women in history, specifically addressing Kana Shodo (Figure 1), a native Japanese script that is slowly being revived thanks to the efforts of one woman. The history and meaning of Kana Shodo will be discussed, along with the revitalization efforts that are bringing attention to this lost script.
The term Kana Shodo translates to “woman’s hand” and it was derived from Kanji Shodo, the script imported from China, and manyougana, the oldest Japanese script that was also adopted from Chinese script. It began in the 10th century, and Japanese myth assigns the originator of this script to a Japanese priest. There is no historical evidence to back up this claim or identify who specifically invented this script. It was used primarily by women for personal correspondence (e.g. diaries or letters among women), the composition of love letters and important pieces of popular literature, as well as for secretive communications, such as planning assassinations and more.
The content of early Kana Shodo writings provides a rich glimpse into imperial Japanese life and culture, particularly from the women’s perspective. Kanji Shodo was considered the script of the Japanese male elite, thereby reserved for samurai, monks, and noblemen, and the texts written in this script often showcase the military, religious, and political interests of the Japanese. It was also prohibited to be learned and used by women, who wanted to express themselves through the written word. They therefore created Kana Shodo, a flowing, cursive like text that was meant to embody femininity and beauty. One of the key purposes of Kana Shodo was for women to court men. As it was taboo for women to speak with or show their faces to men women were left with writing letters, and it was a Japanese belief that the more beautiful the letter (in script and content) the more beautiful the woman. It is said that Japanese noble women would compete to create the newest Kana Shodo scripts, with the most feminine being adopted.
Kana Shodo also provided women an opportunity to break into male dominated fields, particularly literature. Women would write poems and novels in Kana Shodo, which became popular among not only women but men, too. In fact, the world’s first novel was written in Kana Shodo and by a female author. This, along with the desire to correspond back with women love interests, forced men to be able to read and write in Kana Shodo, although they were discouraged from writing in the script unless it was in correspondence to women. This did not stop them or women to use the script to plot political intrigue, such as assassination attempts.
In the 1900s the Japanese education system was formalized, and only 46 of the Kana Shodo characters were adopted into the formal written language. Approximately 300 characters and thousands of variant characters were lost as a result. They were not, however, forgotten. Master calligrapher Kaoru Akagawa became inspired by reading her grandmother’s writings, as well as historical texts written by Japanese women, and sought and continues to work to revive the lost characters. She cites that this is one of Japan’s own written languages, a true piece of their cultural identity, which means it should be saved and used more often over Kanji Shodo, which was brought in from Japan. She uses her fame as an artist and calligrapher to share her story, the Kana Shodo script, as well as Japanese culture with the world, all in an effort to revitalize Kana Shodo.
References
Akagawa, Kaoru. Kana-Artist and a Master of Kana Shodo, Kaoru Akagawa. 2010. Electronic. 3 June 2021.
Dearnley, Elizabeth. "Saving 'woman hand': the artist rescuing female-only writing." The Guardian 26 June 2019. Electronic.
Jozuka, Emiko. "The Japanese calligrapher who keeps a forgotten female ancient script alive." CNN Style 15 March 2020. Electronic.
10 comments:
I learned something new reading this article it states that "world’s first novel was written in Kana Shodo and by a female author". Also it states that "Kana Shodo was written by a women but they will never know because they never found proof or facts about a women writing it. I find it interesting how this was a language for women to communicate with men.
I really enjoyed this blog. It taught me a lot. I learned that The term “Kana Shodo” translates to “woman’s hand” and it was derived from Kanji Shodo, the script imported from China, and manyougana, the oldest Japanese script that was also adopted from Chinese script. I also enjoyed the part where Master calligrapher Kaoru Akagawa became inspired by reading her grandmother’s writings, as well as historical texts written by Japanese women, and sought and continues to work to revive the lost characters. I liked that part because i have a strong relationship with my grandmother and felt like i would do the same.
Josh w
I wish we would learn more about women in history and more things like this. It was really interesting reading about how women came together and created a whole text to communicate and express many things. Even when they were politically restricted, they still risked themselves to influence the government. Also the detail about how men based women’s physical beauty on their calligraphy is interesting.
-Alannah Wade
I really enjoyed reading this article. It sounds like women in China kept some type of secret code for them to communicate. I think that's amazing and I believe that we need one. I didn't know the term "Kana Shodo," means woman hands. Also, I didn't know that the author was a female. I wonder what made someone want to come up with these scripts and why.
AJ Moore
I really found this article interesting. As a woman myself I loved that they had their own dialect amongst themselves. I feel that women from untied states should have a dialect amongst ourselves as well. Cool Blog!
-Jasmine Hill
I really love this blog; it shows that women are creative and smart not only men. I really love how "Kana Shodo" translates as “woman’s hand”. Also in this blog, it said " it was a Japanese belief that the more beautiful the letter (in script and content) the more beautiful the woman." I actually don't agree with this sentence because beauty doesn't have to do with the letter. - Hiba Al-Hamami
I never knew this about Japanese writing or women's history. I remember learning about lady murasaki in school and wondering what life was like for a women writer in her time period. This gave me some useful insight in understanding the social aspects of her time.
-Gavin G
Japanese women had a special form of writing reserved just for love letters and other correspondence. Where as others wrote a different way. It would be hard to have to learn two ways to correspond.
Elaine Christopher
It is hard to believe that a society would allow women not to write at first wihtout forming their own way. Poems and love letters in the cursive and 'beautiful' form allow for the right partnership was thought to be the writing corresponded with the women. The first novel being by a female and education system from this is also very interesting.
Qwynn Marquez
The statement that women mostly utilized Kana Shodo for romantic and confidential letters illuminates the gender dynamics of the period. It shows how women used this script as a tool for communication and expression, particularly in settings where traditional gender norms were prominent. The post talks about how women used Kana Shodo as a means of attracting men since it was seen to be the epitome of femininity and beauty. This feature draws attention to the cultural significance connected to writing styles and how they influenced interpersonal interactions in that era.
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