Searching the Library catalogue for Japanese titles

SOAS Library catalogue

Searching by romanization is recommended although searching by Japanese is possible. Some old cataloguing records do not contain the original Japanese script. The Japanese search has to use exact scripts of Kanji, hiragana, and katakana.

A. Japanese books are romanized with the modified Heppbern system. The following are a few of the more frequently encountered mistakes:

大江 Oe                  (not Ohe)
東京 Tokyo             (not Toukyou)
学習 Gakushu          (not Gakushyuu)
日中 Nitchu             (not Niccuu)

B. Japanese titles should be searched for with proper word divisions. Please try with as many divisions as possible if a title is not found in an online search. Examples of word divisions are:

兵庫県史 Hyogo  kenshi
日本文化は異質か Nihon  bunka  wa  ishitsu  ka
世界平和を考える Sekai heiwa o kangaeru
美術館へ行こう Bijutsukan e iko
日本史 Nihon shi  = 固有名詞+史 (with space)
女性史 Joseishi   = 普通名詞+史
日中関係 Nitchu kankei
中日辞典 Chu-Nichi kankei

C. ALA-LC Romanization Tables