The honorific system in the Miyara dialect is different from that in common Japanese. The humble word uyoohun has almost the same meaning as sashiageru in common Japanese. Basically, a speaker elevates the receiver to a higher position. Uyoohun has no shiten (speaker's empathy), so it does not have a ninshouseiyaku (personal restriction), unlike common Japanese, which does have the function of lowering the position of the giver. Because of this lack of shiten, uyoohun can position a giver as being equal in status to the receiver. This means uyoohun also has the function of elevating the giver. However, this function is weak, so I call this “the function of light respect for the giver.” In common Japanese, sashiageru cannot be used when the status of the receiver is lower or equal to that of the speaker, because the speaker is showing his or her respect for the receiver. However, uyoohun can be used in that relationship, but only if the receiver is of higher rank than the giver. I call this “the function of giving direction priority.” Even if the receiver includes the first person, uyoohun is allowed as long as the giving direction—from the lower giver to the higher receiver—is acknowledged. It is also prohibited to honor the first person in the Miyara dialect, as is true in common Japanese. But the first person is positioned in the hierarchy by age, so if the receiver is in a position of relatively higher status than the giver, the honor for the first person tends to be ignored. This is unacceptable in common Japanese because of the concept of self-honor.

Furthermore uyoohoorun, which is a compound word combining uyoohun with the suffix oorun, is used as an honorific word. Uyoohoorun positions both the giver and receiver as being of a higher rank. Even if the receiver includes the first person, uyoohoorun is allowed because the giver is placed very high, and one of the receivers is worthy of respect, so the honor for the first person can be ignored. I call this honorific rule “priority for the higher ranking person.”

This paper describes the personal pronominal system of a Japanese-lexifier creole, Yilan Creole. The data were collected from three generations of consultants in Tungyueh Village, Taiwan. The analysis indicates that, for the most part, the personal pronouns derive from an informal style of Japanese, which may reflect the social structure of the colonial context in which the creole emerged. The analysis also shows that Yilan Creole makes no distinction between bound and free pronouns, and does not mark case or style. The pronominal system does indicate number; plural pronouns are formed with a productive plural marker (-taci). There are also many clipped forms of plural pronouns. In addition, Yilan Creole first-person plural pronouns make an inclusive/exclusive distinction, which can be considered an influence from the substrate language, Atayal (Austronesian). Yilan Creole first-person singular pronouns also use forms derived from the adstrate language, Southern Min, in the dative and genitive cases. As well as providing a description of the Yilan Creole pronominal system, the paper draws on data of generational variation to clarify the process of change that led to the current system.

The Utai Densho (books of secrets of Noh songs), written during the late Muromachi and early Edo periods, include in some places kana syllabary charts that contain, in their rows and columns, pronunciation notations unique to the world of Noh songs. This paper closely examines these pronunciation notations and shows that they can be split into two general groupings.

One of these groupings is strongly influenced by Siddham studies, with columns showing ‘口’(mouth), ‘喉’(throat), ‘舌’(tongue), and ‘唇’(lips) and rows showing ‘上音’(high tones), ‘中音’(medium tones), and ‘下音’(low tones). The other grouping is that of the Jinkaishō school of Utai Densho, accepted as an authority beginning in the late Muromachi period, with columns showing ‘喉’, ‘舌’, ‘歯’(teeth), ‘腮’(jaw), ‘鼻’(nose), and ‘唇’and rows showing ‘ひらく’(open), ‘ほそむ’(narrow), and ‘すぼむ’(pucker).

Although the kana syllabary chart of the Jinkaishō school of Utai Densho and its pronunciation notations is neither cited directly in the Utai Densho nor in the academic writings of the Edo period, its influence can be found here and there. For example, the explanation of articulation under the ‘腮’(jaw) column is shared in a description in the Kenshuku-ryōkoshū (蜆縮涼鼓集), and in ascertaining the pronunciation of Japanese in the Edo period, the Jinkaishō school of Utai Densho may be considered to have had an influence that was not insignificant.