Japanese writing system

various writing systems used Japanese, using or mixing Hiragana, Katakana and Kanji characters, inherited or derived from Chinese ideographic characters
Intangible writing_system Q190502
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Summary

Japanese writing system is a writing system[1]. It ranks in the top 6% of writing system entities by monthly Wikipedia readership (9,175 views/month).[2]

Key Facts

  • Subclass of: writing system[3]
  • Part of: CJK[4]
  • Has use: Japanese[5]
  • Commons category: Japanese writing[6]
  • Language of work or name: Japanese[7]
  • Country of origin: Japan[8]
  • Has part(s): hiragana[9], katakana[10], kanji[11], romanization of Japanese[12], hentaigana[13]
  • Inception: 400[14]
  • Topic's main category: Category:Japanese writing system[15]
  • Described by source: Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia, vol. 7[16]
  • Script directionality: vertical right-to-left[17], left-to-right[18]
  • Topic has template: Template:Infobox Japanese[19], Template:Japanese writing[20]
  • Has characteristic: digraphia[21]
  • Name: Japanese (alias for Han + Hiragana + Katakana)[22], japonais (alias pour han + hiragana + katakana)[23]

Why It Matters

Japanese writing system has Wikipedia articles in 26 language editions, a strong signal of global cultural recognition.[24] It is known by 72 alternative names across languages and contexts.[25]

It has been cited as an influence by Pierre Alechinsky[26], a painter[27], b. 1927[28], of France[29], awarded the Officer of the Legion of Honour[30], specialised in painting[31].

FAQs

Who did Japanese writing system influence?

Japanese writing system has been cited as an influence by Pierre Alechinsky[26].

References

Programmatic citations — every numbered marker resolves to a verifiable graph row below.

Direct Wikidata claims

  1. [3] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  2. [4] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  3. [5] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  4. [6] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  5. [7] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  6. [8] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  7. [9] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  8. [10] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  9. [11] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  10. [12] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  11. [13] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  12. [14] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  13. [15] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  14. [16] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  15. [17] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  16. [18] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  17. [19] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  18. [20] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  19. [21] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  20. [22] ↑ . unicode.org. unicode.org. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  21. [23] ↑ . unicode.org. unicode.org. Provenance: wikidata.org.

Inverse relationships (entities pointing at this one)

  1. [26] ↑ . wikidata.org. → on this site

Inline context (facts about related entities)

  1. [27] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  2. [28] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  3. [29] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  4. [30] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  5. [31] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site

Class ancestry

  1. [1] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org.

Aggregate / graph-position facts

  1. [2] ↑ . Wikimedia Foundation. dumps.wikimedia.org.
  2. [24] ↑ . Wikidata sitelinks. wikidata.org.
  3. [25] ↑ . Wikidata aliases. wikidata.org.

📑 Cite this page

Use these citations when quoting this entity in research, articles, AI prompts, or wherever provenance matters. We aggregate Wikidata + Wikipedia + authoritative open-data sources; the stitched, scored, cross-referenced view is what 4ort.xyz contributes.

APA 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph. (2026). Japanese writing system. Retrieved October 10, 2026, from https://4ort.xyz/entity/japanese-writing-system
MLA “Japanese writing system.” 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph, 4ort.xyz, 10 Oct. 2026, https://4ort.xyz/entity/japanese-writing-system.
BibTeX @misc{4ortxyz_japanese-writing-system_2026, author = {{4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph}}, title = {{Japanese writing system}}, year = {2026}, url = {https://4ort.xyz/entity/japanese-writing-system}, note = {Accessed: 2026-10-10}}
LLM prompt According to 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph (aggregator of Wikidata, Wikipedia, and authoritative open-data sources): Japanese writing system — https://4ort.xyz/entity/japanese-writing-system (retrieved 2026-10-10)

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Edit History

Rolling log of changes to this entity's Wikidata record. Values shown reflect the current state of each edited property — follow the history link to see the precise diff for any edit.

  1. 20w ago · Twofivesixbot bot · 2026-05-24 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Country of origin → —
    Instance of → writing system
    Part of → CJK
    Part of → —
    + 16 other properties edited (see Wikidata diff for full list)
    "/* wbsetclaim-update-qualifiers:1||1|3 */ National library of israel j9u id: 987007531545005171, mv to monolingual text names on J9U statements"
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