Construction of Full-Text Modern-Tanka Database

Abstract

A database of relevant texts that can be quickly and comprehensively searched is crucial in every field, including literary studies. However, the digital texts available for research in modern-tanka (i.e., a form of Japanese poetry) are insufficient. Additionally, text mining approach has not been used in Japanese literature studies. Thus, a database of modern-tanka texts with search interfaces as a data-curation environment is necessary. Accordingly, we constructed modern-tanka texts into a digital dataset and a full-text modern-tanka database that is now publicly available as the “Kindai Tanka Database.” In this article, we describe the database construction process, the functions of a database, and a modern-tanka case study.