Abstract
The study of the dissemination of Japanese in Japanese colonies and occupied territories before the end of WWII has greatly developed in the 1990s. The number of studies has increased, and intellectual exchanges with the history of thought, education and colonial management have deepened and we can witness the emergence of general works that cover a wide range of content. However, at present, those people in the former colonies who were the object of the policies are ageing and it has become essential that their memories and experiences be recorded. Also, it is desirable to compare these with the conditions of other than Japanese colonies and commence building up language policy accounts informed by sociolinguistic theories.
