Review of Chimei Jion Tenyorei by Motoori Norinaga

This article provides an overview and critique of Chimei Jion Tenyorei (地 名 字音転用例 Examples of Sino-Japanese Reading Diversion in Place Names; hereafter CJT) , one of the most important works of Motoori Norinaga in his study of jion readings (Sino-Japanese readings), published as a 46-page booklet in 1800.This study organizes and investigates the patterns of unconventional jion readings of kanji found in old place names in Japan, showing that these patterns were more systematic than previously thought.The author, Motoori Norinaga (1730-1801), was a Kokugaku (Japanese National Studies) scholar during the Edo period, and is often regarded as the one of most influential figures in this traditional academic area.Although his main purpose was to investigate Japan's indigenous philosophy, his scope of study ranged from philology and classical literature to graphology and many other related areas.The study of kanji usage in ancient Japanese texts was also one of his important academic topics, which he thought was necessary for understanding the philosophy of ancient Japan, his most important lifelong academic subject.This article first provides an overview of the study, followed by a discussion of its flaws, focusing on the author's assumption about the underlying phonological structure of jion in place names.Arguably, this problematic supposition stems from the fundamental ideology of the author's academic activities.