Language History:
The early history of Japanese remains shrouded in mystery; the earliest record of Japanese words is found in 3rd-century Chinese documents that make a few scattered references, and the earliest known text using what is known as “Old Japanese” dates to just the 8th century, and was written using Chinese characters.
Middle Japanese, dated from the 8th to 17th centuries, enjoyed heavy influence from both Buddhist and Chinese cultures in the earlier centuries, influences which altered the grammar and pronunciation of the language tremendously.
Modern Japanese is generally dated to begin in the 17th century and mainly saw a shift away from one dialect (based around the former capital city of Kyoto) to another (based around Tokyo) and an increase in loan words, especially after Japan opened its borders to trade in the mid-19th century.
