03/10/2024
Until not very long ago, literacy and the privilege of education were reserved almost exclusively for men. To simplify the pronunciation of complex Chinese characters（kanji), men devised a unique script called '男手' (otokode), modeled after the clean, sharp lines of wood and stone. This script was used to annotate Chinese characters with phonetic aids.
As literary works remained dominated by kanji, some noblewomen began pursuing education. Inspired by the fluid, graceful strokes of flowing water, women created their own script, '女手' (onnade), which developed from cursive Chinese characters. This script allowed them to write poetry and, when needed, annotate characters for pronunciation.
By the Edo period, '男手' had evolved into 'katakana,' while '女手' became 'hiragana.' In a male-dominated society, the masculine 'katakana' was the mainstream written form, used alongside Chinese characters, until the end of World War II. Meanwhile, the feminine 'hiragana' remained largely absent from royal documents.
After World War II, under the guidance of General Douglas MacArthur and GHQ, Japan's government underwent significant reforms. At the time, katakana was used in conjunction with Chinese characters, while hiragana often appeared in purely phonetic texts. The Allied forces hoped Japan would transition toward an alphabetic system using only kana.
As part of this effort, the GHQ introduced the 'Tōyō Kanji List,' simplifying over 2,000 Chinese characters in preparation for the eventual abolition of kanji. It also declared hiragana as the primary writing system, relegating katakana to the role of spelling foreign words, onomatopoeia, and colloquial expressions. Thus since 77 years ago, the elegant curves of hiragana fully replaced katakana in general usage, while 1,850 simplified kanji characters became standard.
However, the movement to abolish kanji met with strong public resistance, and these transitional policies have persisted to this day.
古代唯男人有讀書的權利與需要，為了幫大量艱澀的漢字簡單注音，男人們倣照木石的俐落線條，從常用漢字的偏旁創造出了獨特字體「男手（おとこで)」，幫助在艱深的漢字旁邊注音。
彼時的文書依然全是漢字，而有的貴冑千金也開始追求女學。女人們依照流水的柔美線條，在吟詩作對之間，把漢字草書逐漸寫成了特殊的字體「女手(おんなで)」，用來獨立書寫詩歌，必要時亦可幫其他漢字注音。
到了江戶時代，「男手」改名為「片假名」，「女手」改名為「平假名」。在男人主導的社會下，陽剛的「片假名」直到二戰結束都是與漢字並用的主流文字，陰柔的「平假名」一直上不了官方典雅文書的檯面。
二戰結束後，麥克阿瑟將軍領導的「同盟國最高司令官總指揮部（GHQ）」接管日本政權。當時，片假名是與漢字並用的，平假名常全文訓讀書寫（沒有漢字的注音文），而美軍將領們都希望日本逐漸走入純假名的文字系統。
因此在 GHQ 主導下，頒布了《當用漢字表》大幅簡化兩千個漢字寫法，為廢止漢字做準備，同時宣布以平假名為主要書寫文字，片假名改為拼寫外來語/狀聲/俗語用。故 77 年前開始，柔順線條的平假名，遂完全取代剛硬線條的片假名的功能，穿插在漢字中間並陳，1850 個常用漢字全改簡寫。
沒想到，廢漢字運動遭到民間強烈反彈，此些過渡時期的作法，就一直沿用至今了。
