Shin Meikai kokugo jiten
The , commonly called the "Shinmeikai" or affectionately the , is a popular Japanese dictionary published by Sanseidō. They also publish the analogous "Sanseido Kokugo Jiten" dictionary, a lexicographical sister that shares several of the same editors. This Japanese language reference work has frequently undergone revisions and republications. The first two editions were called the , and the six subsequent ones were published under the current "Shin" "New" name. The chief editors of the early versions were Kindaichi Kyōsuke (1882-1971), Kindaichi Haruhiko (1913-2004), Kenbō Hidetoshi (見坊 豪紀, 1914-1992), and most notably Yamada Tadao (山田 忠雄, 1916 -1996). The 6th edition, which contains some 76,500 entries, still lists Yamada as chief editor, but was edited by Shibata Takeshi (柴田武) and Sakai Kenji (酒井憲二). The "Shinmeikai kokugo jiten" is one of the most popular dictionaries among high-school students. According to Sanseido, all the editions have collectively sold over 19,500,000 copies. Following the death of Yamada Tadao, the "Shin meikai kokugo jiten" acquired a certain notoriety in Japan after the publication of the humorous bestsellers by Akasegawa Genpei (1996, "Mysteries of the "Shinkai-san"") and Suzuki Makiko (1998, "How to read the "Shinkai-san""). They revealed the idiosyncratic  nature of many dictionary definitions written by Yamada. In addition to providing a general definition of a word, this editor sometimes added personal commentaries reflecting his experience and philosophy, making the otherwise bland definitions an enjoyable and at times philosophical reading. For example, compare these definitions of "ren'ai" ( "love") in a common dictionary and the "Shinmeikai": "This is probably the best-selling and most well known of the smaller "kokugo" dictionaries," writes Gally (1999), "though its fame rests less on its authority than on the quirkiness of its definitions." Based upon Yamada's definitions, Gally describes him as "a misogynist  cynic who enjoyed eating fish (many of the definitions of fish names identify the particular fish as tasty, an opinion that may not be shared by all)."