Hi166-AA

Esguerra, Isabel Anastasia

I’m (literally) turning Japanese: The teaching of Nippongo in colonial sentiment

The Philippines was a colony of Japan from 1942-1945. As each colonizer took over the
country, they taught the Filipino people their national languages: Spanish, English, and as for the
occupation in context: the Japanese language. The Japanese language is called Nihongo, literally
meaning “Japan language” (Nihon-Japan; go- language), or as it was called during World War II:
Nippongo. In fact, “Nippon” was used more often than “Nihon” in the said period because of its
nationalist sentiment. This is why the Japanese taught Nippongo to the Filipinos- to ingrain into the
Filipino people that Japan’s rule is beneficial and necessary.

Japan seemed to intend to rule its empire the way it did its own nation. The themes of its
propaganda for the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere tended to highlight strengths of Japan such
as the unity of its citizens, and their synchronization as a unit. Thus, the Japanese propaganda materials
encouraged the people living in the nations of the Sphere to bridge together and cooperate as one
whole unit for the prosperity of the whole. The propaganda also emphasizes how Japan preserved its
own native culture, and that member nations of the Sphere should embrace their own Asian heritage-
free from “Anglo-Saxon” control and influence.1

Nippongo was integrated as a subject in the school curriculum, taught at various Filipino
communities, and materials especially for Filipino learners of the language were published and
circulated, such as guidebooks and periodicals. Schoolchildren, refugees, and the general Filipino
public alike were taught Nippongo using these. Among these materials was the periodical, the Manila
Shimbunsha, and several guidebooks on the Nihongo language written by the Japanese Propaganda
Corps especially for Filipino readers.

This essay will discuss how the Japanese forces used the teaching of Nippongo to the Filipinos
as an essential tool in getting the Republic of the Philippines to cooperate as a colony of Japan,
especially as member of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere.

The Philippines and the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere

1
Japanese Military Administration. New Order Short Essays, Manila. 1943.
 2 Map of Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere

The Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere was Japan’s vision for its expanding empire in
Asia. This was during World War II when Philippines was also one of the countries being colonized.
Japan conquered most of East and Southeast Asia This included Manchuria, parts of China, French
Indochina (what we now know as Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos), and even reached parts of India that the
British and the Dutch had controlled. Japan intended for this empire to cooperate so that all of the
member nations may prosper economically, and as much as possible, free from heavy Western
influence3. The Sphere intended for the Asia to be for the “Asiatics”, that it may return to their Oriental
heritage, and for citizens to be driven to dedicate their lives and work hard for their nation: a very
Japanese ideology. 4 Japan relies on most of East Asia for raw materials for production 5, thus when

2
Giles, Nathaniel. The Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere: The Failure of Japan's "Monroe
Doctrine" for Asia. East Tennessee State University: Johnson, 2015.
3
Japanese Military Administration. New Order Short Essays. Manila, 1943.
4
Japanese Military Administration. New Order Short Essays. Manila, 1943.
5
Ibid.
Japan recruited and colonized for the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere, they ought to take
advantage of the sphere’s resources, and to reinforce this by encouraging a cooperative spirit among
the nations.

The Greater East Asia Conference was held in Tokyo, on November 5-6, 1943.6 Relevant
prospects of the member nations of the Co-Prosperity Sphere attended the conference: most notably,
General Hideki Tojo and the then-President of the Philippines, Jose P. Laurel. The said conference
yielded a Joint Declaration, and it was published. The document contained the agreed upon principles
of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere, stated verbatim as follows:

● The countries of Greater East Asia through mutual cooperation will ensure the
stability of their region and construct an order of common prosperity and well-being
based upon justice.

● The countries of Greater East Asia will ensure the fraternity of nations in their region,
by respecting one another's sovereignty and independence and practicing mutual
assistance and amity.

● The countries of Greater East Asia by respecting one another's traditions and
developing the creative faculties of each race, will enhance the culture and
civilization of Greater East Asia.

● The countries of Greater East Asia will endeavor to accelerate their economic
development through close cooperation upon a basis of reciprocity and to promote
thereby the general prosperity of their region.

● The countries of Greater East Asia will cultivate friendly relations with all the countries
of the world, and work for the abolition of racial discrimination, the promotion of
cultural intercourse and the opening of resources throughout the world, and
contribute thereby to the progress of mankind. 7

The Philippines, in particular, was addressed in media such that the Co-Prosperity Sphere
would reconstruct the Philippine economy. 8Using the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere, the
Philippines was encouraged to cooperate because of the goods that the Philippines can produce for
the Sphere as a unit. Essays on a New Order as published by the Japanese Imperial Forces claim that
the American rule over the Philippines weakened the production of several key export goods. 9 These

6
Navarro, Raul. “Apat na Taong Pagsikat ng Nakapapasong Araw: Musika sa Filipinas sa Panahon
ng Hapon, 1942–1945.” Plaridel 14, no. 2 (2017). 1-24.
7
Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. Joint Declaration. Tokyo: Tokyo Conference. 1943.
8
Japanese Military Administration. New Order Short Essays. Manila, 1943.
9
Japanese Military Administration. New Order Short Essays. Manila, 1943.
include rice, coconuts, manila hemp, among others.10 It was calling for Filipinos to all exert effort in
improving their economy.11 Just like in Japanese culture, everyone is expected to participate so that the
nation can function well as a unit for the sake of the whole.

Psychological warfare by propaganda

The Japanese imperial forces restricted most of mass media. Only a few materials were allowed
to be circulated, and these materials were produced and distributed by the Japanese Propaganda
Corps. The materials circulated propagated the idea of a New Order, or a Shin Seiki, that the Philippines
may rise anew from the American Rule and cooperate as an Asian country as agreed upon in the
Greater East Asia Conference.

12Shin Seiki propaganda

10
Ibid.
11
Ibid.
12
Garcia, Mauro. Documents on the Japanese Occupation of the Philippines. Manila : Philippine
Historical Association, 1965.
13 Co-Prosperity Sphere Propaganda

Aside from visual propaganda, the Japanese Propaganda Corps also circulated a series of
pamphlets containing essays directly addressing the matters with words. Titles of these pamphlets and
their included essays were explicitly stated, such as “Filipinos Told Why They Should Cooperate With
Japan”, “Why Are The Japanese Forces So Strong?”, “Brilliant Feats of Greater East Asia War Within
Seven Months”, “The Philippines’ Role in the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere” among others.
These were to indoctrinate its readers more directly, and for the readers to be informed of the Japanese
forces’ rationale behind the Co-Prosperity Sphere.

All of the core principles and messages of the aforementioned propaganda will be inferred from
the Japanese language learning media, which we will discuss in the following section.

Propagandic sentiment in periodicals and guidebooks

The Manila Shimbunsha was a broadsheet written in Nippongo, English, and Tagalog all in the
same sheet. It was available to Filipino civilians, and was one of the few printed media allowed to freely
circulate. One of the publications under the Manila Shimbunsha was the Nippongo Weekly. It was an
8-page magazine that intended to aid its readers in learning Nippongo through its regular features
including: easy-to-read articles on Philippine-Japan relations, puzzles, Nippongo writing exercises, and
Nippongo vocabulary. It is also written in Nippongo, English, and Tagalog. The Nippongo was mostly
written in all katakana, the syllable-based Japanese writing system for borrowed or foreign words,
instead of the traditional kanji and hiragana. The use of mostly katakana made the texts easier for its
Filipino readers to comprehend, and thus it facilitated efficiency in learning basic Nippongo. The
magazine appeared to be presenting its content laced with propagandic undertones, as it was published
and funded by the Japanese Military Administration.

13
Japanese Military Administration. Japan’s Strength. Manila, 1943-1945.
 The front page of Nippongo Weekly’s very first issue on February 15, 1943 had the headline
on why Nippongo was important. Part of its content translates to “...so that those in Asia can understand
each other.”14 This phrase implies that the “people of Asia” will be under Japanese rule, thus it ought to
be that the empire has Nippongo propagated as a language to be used in the Philippines. Similar articles
on the study of Nihongo were frequently included in the magazine, and phrases to note in these articles
include “Ajia no kotoba”, which means Asia’s words (language) was going to be Nippongo. Another key
phrase was “Ajia no haha no kuni” meaning Asia’s mother country, referring to Japan. Oftentimes the
front page had an article or a photograph with a propagandic slogan below it, again in all three
languages for the sake of learning the language of Nippongo.

15Nippongo Weekly Front Page

Through the several issues, the magazine started featuring pictures of people wearing
traditional attires of their nation, a member of the sphere. This fosters more familiarity between and
among the nations in the Co-Prosperity Sphere.16 The following photograph features such traditional
attire on the front page of Nippongo Weekly:

14
Japanese Military Administration. “Nippongo Weekly”. Manila Shimbunsha. 1943-1945.
15
Ibid.
16
Japanese Military Administraion. “Nippongo Weekly”. Manila Shimbunsha. 1943-1945.
 17Nippongo Weekly Front Page

The slogan above translates to: “adults and children, both for Nippongo”. Thus, Nippongo was
taught and propagated not only in schools, but also among adults, hence the need for periodicals such
as these, and guidebooks. In relation to becoming a united Sphere, Kigensetsu was a small section that
talks about the nationalist spirit of Japan. If there’s any part of the magazine that directly talks about its
intentions with its readers, this is the section. It would talk about “...the heart and mind being united” for
the prosperity of the country.18 It says this is why Nippon (Japan) is a “splendid...noble country”. 19
Kigensetsu used flowery words to serve its intentions in inviting the reader towards cooperating with
Japan and the Co-Prosperity Sphere.

Another relevant section of the magazine would be the cultural features, written in simple
Japanese for its Filipino readers to easily understand, would be about Japanese icons such as cherry
blossoms and traditional weapons, among many others. It aided in making the Filipinos familiar with the

17
Ibid.
18
Ibid.

19
Ibid.
leader of the Sphere. Eventually there would regularly be features on other Co-Prosperity Sphere
Nations, such as Burma, Thailand, Manchukuo, among others, for the same objective of familiarity and
stewardship.

Another learning section in Nippongo weekly would be the comics, also written in simple
Nippongo as an exercise for its readers. As one can see in the photos below, the comics were also
consistent with the theme of a sphere of nations building each other up for a common prosperity, Take
for example, the following comic strip from one of the magazine’s issues:

20 Nippongo Weekly Comic Strip

The comic, panels reading right to left, had everyone around the main character saying
“Nihongo de hanashi wo shimashou”, meaning “let’s speak in Nippongo”. Agitated and pressured by
everyone talking in Japanese, the man opens a Nippongo book to learn the language himself. This tells
its readers that they will eventually be left out by their neighbors, peers, and eventually children if they
don’t learn to speak Nippongo.

20
Japanese Military Administraion. “Nippongo Weekly”. Manila Shimbunsha. 1943-1945.
 21 Nippongo Weekly Comic Strip

Another notable comic would be the man replacing “American English” with Nippongo as “Asia’s
language”, also one of the key messages in Japanese propaganda in the Philippines during World War
II.

Even more indoctrination is included in Nippongo Weekly was that a Japanese hymn or song
was featured in every issue. It would be a hymn of their military forces, a traditional Japanese folk song,
or anything similar. Hymns such as “Chichi wo anata wa tsuyokatta” (Father was strong). This greatly
implies how the Philippines was intended to be a colony of Japan, the parent nation. A “father” such
that he leads by example- in this case, the Philippines was to take influence from Japan’s traditions and
culture as a nation.

21
Japanese Military Administraion. “Nippongo Weekly”. Manila Shimbunsha. 1943-1945.
 The Nippongo Weekly had many other features and examples of colonialism in the context of
learning the Japanese language. Because aside from the Filipino readers being drawn to approval of
the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere, the Filipinos ought to learn Nippongo as well so that they
think and become more like Japan as a culture. That would have made the Filipinos easier to
indoctrinate and submit to the Japanese forces.

Several other language-learning publications for Filipino reader by the Japanese Propaganda
Corps were also laced with similar propagandic sentiment. There were guidebooks in learning
Nippongo, and even pamphlets as a companion for Nippongo lessons broadcasted on radio. They also
used Japanese cultural icons, stories, and even direct address. In the guidebook, Fundamental
Japanese for Filipinos, part of its foreword states that “You must have realized by now that you should
know more about this neighbor (Japan) than others, because he is the leader and liberator of the whole
Asiatic family”.22

Conclusion
Japan hoped to expand its empire to establish itself in light of not being granted equal rights in
peace conferences as the Americans, British, and the Dutch. Japan, already relying on East Asia for
trade, decided to create a whole unit of nations to stand up for themselves as a unit.() The Japanese,
with their culture of a homogenous, united spirit of nationalism, decided to use this as a framework for
conquering the member nations of what was the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. One of the
specific tools that the Japanese utilized for the Philippines to cooperate was by teaching the Filipinos
Nippongo. For the Filipinos to learn the Japanese language was not only for them to learn better from
the Japanese colonizers, but also to cooperate and submit to the Sphere’s colonial structure in the spirit
of common prosperity. Though short-lived, the method of the Japanese to conquer Philippines to be
part of its empire was relatively unique and powerful as psychological warfare tactics were used, even
in the context of teaching language. To indoctrinate a nation, creative measures can be implemented-
that even a mass media for light reading and entertainment can be a way to draw cooperation to target
audiences.

Bibliography

22
Japanese Propaganda Corps. Fundamental Japanese for Filipinos. Manila, 1942.
Garcia, Mauro. Documents on the Japanese Occupation of the Philippines. Manila : Philippine Historical
Association, 1965.

Giles, Nathaniel. The Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere: The Failure of Japan's "Monroe Doctrine"
for Asia. East Tennessee State University: Johnson, 2015.

Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. Joint Declaration. Tokyo: Tokyo Conference. 1943.

Japanese Military Administration. Japan’s Strength. Manila, 1943-1945.

Japanese Military Administraion. “Nippongo Weekly”. Manila Shimbunsha. 1943-1945.

Japanese Propaganda Corps. Fundamental Japanese for Filipinos. Manila, 1942.

Navarro, Raul. “Apat na Taong Pagsikat ng Nakapapasong Araw: Musika sa Filipinas sa Panahon ng
Hapon, 1942–1945.” Plaridel 14, no. 2 (2017). 1-24.