Kanagawa dialect

The Kanagawa dialect, along with other dialects such as the Gunma, Saitama and Tama dialects, make up the wider West Kantō dialect. It is sometimes considered difficult to identify a dialect that is strictly unique to Kanagawa. This is due, in part, to its close similarity to other West Kanto dialects, particularly in areas that border other prefectures. For example, the southern Ashigara area shares features with east Shizuoka dialects, whilst the western part of the former Tsukui District, located in the far northwest of Kanagawa, possesses similarities with the Gunnai dialect of eastern Yamanashi Prefecture. Parts of the north of the prefecture that are proximate to the Tama Region of Tokyo or the more metropolitan special wards of Tokyo, share numerous traits with the dialects of these respective areas. Like many other parts of Japan, traditional dialects in Kanagawa are declining under the influence of standard Japanese. Owing to its proximity to Tokyo, this trend is even more notable in Kanagawa, especially in northern urban areas, such as Kawasaki, Sagamihara and Yokohama.

There is some general similarity in dialects spoken across the prefecture, with noticeable homogeny in phonology and pitch accent. There are greater recognised differences in grammar and vocabulary, however. Regionally, the largest differences are found in geographically separated areas, such as north and south of the Tanzawa Mountains or east and west of the Sagami River. In the case of the Sagami River, a notable exception is at its estuary (around Hiratsuka and Chigasaki) where areas on opposite banks have been connected historically via the Tōkaidō, leading to relatively fewer dialectal differences between them. Aside from north/south and east/west differences, there is notable variation in the Sagami Bay coastal area (also known as Shōnan), Miura Peninsula and the Ashigara region.  

Below are the dialect sub-divisions proposed in 1961 by Sukezumi Hino. (Kawasaki and most of Yokohama were treated separately as a ‘Tokyo/Yokohama dialect’).

• Northern - Tsukui District, Aiko District (north of Miyagase).
• Southern
  • Sagami River East
    • Sagamihara, Yamato, Kōza District, western part of Kotsuka Ward in Yokohama).
    • Miura Peninsula (parts of Miura District, Yokosuka, Miura City).
  • Sagami River West
    • Aiko District (south of Susugaya), Atsugi, Hadano, Hiratsuka, Naka District.
    • Ashigarakami District, Ashigarashimo District, Odawara.
  • Sagami Bay Coastal Dialect - Fujisawa, Chigasaki, Kamakura, Zushi, Miura Peninsula Sagami Bay area.

Phonology is typical for a West Kanto dialect, but less common traits exist in some areas.

• There is a strong tendency among speakers to merge the vowel sound ai (あい) to ē (えぇ). (For example: butai (ぶたい stage) → butē (ぶてぇ), kitai (きたい expectation) → kitē (きてぇ), omae (おまえ you) → omē (おめぇ).
  • In some areas, most notably Ashigara and Tsukui, ai may become yā (やぁ) instead (a shared trait with Shizuoka and Yamanashi dialects). (For example: kaeru (かえる frog) → kyāru (きゃーる).
• k- starting mora that lie within a word may become voiced. (For example: iku (いく to go) → igu (いぐ).
• r-starting mora may become n (ん) in certain situations. (For example: wakaranai (わからない I don't know) → wakannē (わかんねぇ), aru kara (あるから because it's there) → an kara (あんから)
• Along the Sagami Bay coastal area and on the Miura Peninsula, the phonemes je (じぇ) and she (しぇ) are sometimes used.

Generally, the prefecture has the Tokyo-standard pitch accent, although some deviation is found west of the Sagami River, where ‘three-beat’ nouns such as a-sa-hi (あさひ morning sun) that are usually front-mora stressed in standard Japanese may become middle-mora stressed (a-sa-hi → a-sa-hi ).^[1] There are also some examples of words that have an accent in standard Japanese becoming non-accented. This ‘non-accenting’ has also recently been observed in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area. Below are some examples of words that do not have a pitch accent in some Kanagawa dialects (stress is indicated by bold).