ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a brief outline of the major steps in language modernization. It considers the situation in Japan prior to moves for language reform. All languages are at any given moment in a state of change and will continue to be so as long as their speakers continue to inhabit a constantly changing social milieu. Language must change, as long as people and their social mores continue to do so. The term ‘language modernization’ implies that some aspect of a particular language requires modification before it can meet the requirements of the society it serves. It is clear that language modernization ought to be one of the first tasks tackled, since upon its successful implementation depends the greater efficiency of such other vital adjuncts of social transformation as education and communications. Linguistic developments often reflect other non-linguistic social factors operating in a given society, and this is particularly noticeable in the area of the relationship between language and nationalism.
