Encyclopedias
Many Japanese references works are available in the International and Area Studies Library, these reference works are for in library use only. Encyclopedias, Dictionaries, and Bibliographies are searchable via the library catalogue or by browsing the shelves at IAS..
- Wikipedia (Japanese)Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, in Japanese. A useful place to start for researching things in Japanese.
- North American Coordinating Council for Japanese Resources (NCC)The North American Coordinating Council for Japanese Resources has many resources for researchers and information about accessing Japanese collections
Kenkyusha's bilingual dictionary of Japanese cultural terms by
Call Number: PL679 .W33ISBN: 9784767490533Nihon bunka hyōgen jiten
Kenkyusha's bilingual dictionary of Japanese cultural terms
Encyclopedia of Contemporary Japanese Culture by ISBN: 0415143446Publication Date: 2001-12-14Offering extensive coverage, this Encyclopedia is a new reference that reflects the vibrant, diverse and evolving culture of modern Japan, spanning from the end of the Japanese Imperialist period in 1945 to the present day. Entries cover areas such as literature, film, architecture, food, health, political economy, religion and technology and they range from shorter definitions, histories or biographies to longer overview essays giving an in-depth treatment of major issues. With over 700 alphabetically arranged entries, this Encyclopedia will be an invaluable reference tool for students of Japanese and Asian Studies, as well as providing a fascinating insight into Japanese culture for the general reader. Suggestions for further reading, a comprehensive system of cross-referencing, a thematic contents list and an extensive index all help navigate the reader around the Encyclopedia and on to further study.
New Japanese-English character dictionary 新漢英字典 / 春遍雀來編. by Call Number: Reference Non-circulating PL679 .N49XISBN: 4767490405Publication Date: 1990Sengoshi daijiten = Encyclopedia of postwar Japan 1945-1990 戦後史大事典 by
Call Number: Reference Non-circulating DS889 .S4525ISBN: 4385154309Publication Date: 1991
Japanese Online Dictionaries
Apps for iOS and Android
- Japanese app provides E-J / J-E dictionary, search function, flashcards, and vocabulary lists.
Multi-Dictionary Websites (Japanese, English-Japanese, Japanese-English, etc.)
- Jisho: a great online dictionary that allows for look-up in English, Romaji, Japanese. It also has radical lookup.
- Kotobank コトバン: Kotobank is a free service that searches across many dictionaries and encyclopedias, good for looking up definitions, basic biographical and historical information, literature, people, places, and events.
- Wikipedia ウィキペディア: The Japanese Wikipedia (ウィキペディア日本語版, Wikipedia Nihongo-ban, literally “Wikipedia: Japanese-language version” is the Japanese-language edition of Wikipedia, a free, open-content encyclopedia
- goo online dictionaries: Japanese/Japanese Thesaurus/E-J/J-E/C-J/J-C goo辞書: 国語・類語・英和・和英・中日・日中・他
- Rikai 理解.com (Japanese to English, English to Japanese): Cut-and-paste and website translation with pop-up dictionary references.
- WWWJDIC: Online Japanese Dictionary Service
Kanji (Chinese Character) Dictionary Websites
- ハイパー漢字検索 (Lets you find meanings and pronunciations of a hard-to-read kanji from its components.)
- Jisho.org: Japanese Dictionary Allows you to search by radicals, drawing characters, or English / Japanese
Databases
- Oxford BibliographiesVarious bibliographies related to aspects of Japanese Studies. Includes Buddhism in Japan, Japanese Architecture, Japanese Cinema, amongst others
- Japan Knowledge This link opens in a new window
This link opens in a new window
Try this first! Access is available from computers with Illinois IP address. Use library’s proxy authentication for off-campus access. JapanKnowledge+ includes Japanese-Japanese dictionaries, classical Japanese dictionaries, multi-directional Japanese-English and other European/East Asian language dictionaries and encyclopedias.
- Japan Knowledge Reference WorksList of reference works cited in Japan Knowledge database. Useful link to see which reference works Japan Knowledge draws from.