Kansai dialect
Japanese dialect
The Kansai dialect (関西弁・関西方言, Kansai-ben, Kansai hōgen; Japanese pronunciation: [kaɰ̃.sai.beɴ, kaɰ̃.sai hoː.ɡeꜜɴ, -ŋeꜜɴ, kaɰ̃.sai hoꜜː.ɡeɴ, -ŋeɴ]) is a group of Japanese dialects in the Kansai region (Kinki region) of Japan. In Japanese, Kansai-ben is the common name and it is called Kinki dialect (近畿方言, Kinki-hōgen) in technical terms. The dialects of Kyoto and Osaka are known as Kamigata dialect (上方言葉, Kamigata kotoba; or Kamigata-go (上方語)), and were particularly referred to as such in the Edo period.
The Kansai dialect is typified by the speech of Osaka, the major city of Kansai, referred to as Osaka-ben. It is characterized as more melodic and harsher by speakers of standard Japanese.
Background
Since Osaka is the largest city in the region and its speakers received the most media exposure over the last century, non-Kansai-dialect speakers tend to associate the dialect of Osaka with the entire Kansai region. However, technically, Kansai dialect is not a single dialect but a group of related dialects in the region. Each major city and prefecture has a particular dialect, and residents take some pride in their particular dialectal variations.
The common Kansai dialect is spoken in Keihanshin (the metropolitan areas of the cities of Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe) and its surroundings, a radius of about 50 km (31 mi) around the Osaka-Kyoto-Kobe area (see regional differences). This article mainly discusses variations in Keihanshin during the 20th and 21st centuries.
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