L'IMPATTO DELL'INGLESE SULLA MUSICA GIAPPONESE Come e perché la lingua inglese influenza le canzoni giapponesi

The main purpose of this dissertation, concerning English loanwords in the Japanese language, was to answer a series of research questions: “What does this foregoing linguistic development consist of?” “How does it affect artistic expression?” “How is this linguistic coexistence experienced by ordinary people and music composers?” and “What has changed today according to the way of writing lyrics compared to a few years ago?”. In order to address such questions, I first carried out an historical research on the foundations of loanwords in Japan. Then, I conducted a linguistic and stylistic study on various lyrics of music pieces by Japanese artists with the aim of understanding the social dynamics of such a complex phenomenon. Furthermore, after my linguistic analysis, I performed a quantitative survey as a means to verify the actual results of my studies. The survey, was administered to ten young Japanese people, six girls and four boys between the ages of 20 and 28. The questionnaire is composed of eight questions concerning the changes in language and style in the Japanese music industry following the international invasion in the Asian music world. The answers showed the existence of two opposing sides: on the one hand, there are those who are favorable to this inclusion of Japanese artists in a world other than their own, to their amalgamation with the concept of "cultural hybrid" , where each of us is the result of a daily contact with several different cultures. On the other hand, there are those people who miss the old times when Japanese music was "exclusive property of Japanese fans" in which it did not feel the need to change in order to adapt to the outside world. This result is coherent with my studies as well as the words pronounced by the singer-songwriter Takahiro Moriuchi in the interview reported in this dissertation. The result of the interview, therefore, perfectly reflects the social framework of the modern days. Music, like any other social and cultural aspect, keeps its pace with the changing times, the needs and the relationships between people. This kind of study has already been carried out by other researchers in the past and will continue to be updated in the future with the passing of the years and the increase of the available modern resources. Comparing the various studies that have been conducted and that will be conducted in the future can make us realize the immense changes and developments regarded as the main characters of our reality.