This book is one of the pioneering historical pragmatic studies of Japanese. It closely illustrates the usage and contributions of some Japanese discourse markers, and reveals their developmental history. The section on Synchronic Analysis explores the previously uninvestigated functions of some discourse markers used in Present Day Japanese. Moment by moment in on-going conversations, where culturally rigidly-defined interactional norms are highly valued, a specific marker is chosen and used by the speakers as their strategy, based on their quite subjective judgment. The section on Diachronic Analysis then demonstrates chronologically how the meanings and forms of the same markers have come into being. Results include some noticeable changes related to the strengthened intersubjectivity. This multi-dimensional study also discusses the relevance of findings to typological characteristics and productivity. Consideration is further given to why certain expressions (rather than others) become discourse markers and independent forms in Japanese.

Satoshi Kinsui, Osaka University:
Onodera’s study opens up the new field of historical pragmatics, superbly combining the methodology of recently developed discourse analysis and the fruitage of the traditional historical study of Japanese. The method and results shown in this book set up important guidelines for future studies in theoretical linguistics and traditional historical linguistics, because this book demonstrates to the former which historical data should be examined in what way, and it also informs the latter that conjunctions and interjections are not marginal, but instead constitute a fertile area of study.