History

From establishment to the present
The Phonetic Society of Japan was founded in 1926 under the name Onsei-gaku Kyokai. At the tenth anniversary (1935), its name was changed to Nihon Onsei-gaku Kyokai. Finally, right before its 25th anniversary (1946), it was renamed to its present name Nihon Onsei Gakkai (Phonetic Society of Japan).When the society was first established, its purpose was “to study the sounds of the Japanese language and languages spoken within Japanese territory” (from article 1 of the regulations of the society). Currently, the society’s purpose is “to promote the study of sounds in languages, and to foster communication and interaction among society members” (from article 2 of the regulations of the society).
List of past and present presidents of the society
1st president  Kazutoshi Ueda  October, 1926 October, 1937
2nd president  Izuru Shinmura  November, 1937 October, 1949
3rd president  Kaku Jinbo  November, 1949 October, 1957
4th president  Masao Onishi  November 1957 December, 1987
5th president  Teruo Hirayama  January, 1988 March, 1992
6th president  Miyoko Sugito  April, 1992 March, 1995
7th president  Tamotsu Koizumi  April, 1995 March, 1998
8th president  Hiroyuki Umeda  April, 1998 March, 2001
9th president  Ichiro Oshima  April, 2001 March, 2004
10th president  Shigeru Kiritani  April, 2004 March, 2007
11th president  Shosuke Haraguchi  April, 2007 March, 2010
12th president  Zendo Uwano  April, 2010 March, 2013
13th president  Hirokazu Sato  April, 2013 March, 2016
14th president  Satoshi Imaizumi  April, 2016 March, 2019
15th president   Kikuo Maekawa  April, 2019 March, 2022
16th president   Isao Ueda  April, 2022 March, 2025
History of the combined journal Onsei Kenkyu (Journal of the Phonetic Society of Japan)
When the society was established in 1926, the first issue of Onsei-gaku Kyokai Kaiho (The Bulletin) was published. The No. 76 issue (1950) was named Onsei Kenkyu. From the No. 77 issue, the publication was renamed to Onsei Gakkai Kaiho (The Bulletin). Publication of The Bulletin continued for 70 years until the No. 213 issue in 1996. In the meantime, the first volume of Onsei no Kenkyu (The Study of Sounds) was published in 1927. In 1997, The Bulletin and The Study of Sounds were combined into a new journal, Onsei Kenkyu or Journal of the Phonetic Society of Japan. Through the journal, the society continues to disseminate society activities and phonetics research in Japan to the world. The journal preserves the serial number of The Bulletin and the serial volume of The Study of Sounds. For example, Vol. 11, No. 1 of Onsei Kenkyu, published in April, 2007, is No. 244 of The Bulletin and Vol. 54 of The Study of Sounds. The impressive calligraphy of the title Onsei Kenkyu was drawn by the late Dr. Izuru Shinmura.
Foundation anniversary conventions in the past
10th anniversary convention Tokyo University of Foreign Studies (October 7, 1935)
25th anniversary convention Tokyo YMCA (November 23, 1950)
30th anniversary convention Aoyama Gakuin University (October 22, 1955)
40th anniversary convention Gakushi Kaikan (October 2, 1965)
50th anniversary convention Hotel New Otani (August 23 ,1976)
60th anniversary convention Hotel Century Hyatt (October 5, 1985)
70th anniversary convention Tokyo Metropolitan University (September 28-29, 1996)
80th anniversary convention Juntendo University (September 22-23, 2006)
90th anniversary convention Waseda University (September 17-18, 2016)
Past annual conventions of the Phonetic Society of Japan
1st Nov. 29, 1987 Sophia University (Tokyo)
2nd Oct. 1 – 2, 1988 Showa Women’s University (Tokyo)
3rd Sep. 30– Oct. 1, 1989 Komazawa University (Tokyo)
4th Sep. 29–30, 1990 Chiba University (Chiba)
5th Sep. 28–29, 1991 Osaka Shoin Women’s University (Osaka)
6th Oct. 3–4, 1992 Dokkyo University (Saitama)
7th Sep. 25–26, 1993 Gunma Prefectural Women’s University (Gunma)
8th Sep. 24–25, 1994 Doshisha University Tanabe Campus (Kyoto)
9th Sep. 30– Oct. 1, 1995 Meikai University (Chiba)
10th Sep. 28–29, 1996 Tokyo Metropolitan University (Tokyo)
11th Sep. 20–21, 1997 Kansai University of Foreign Studies (Osaka)
12th Sep. 26–27, 1998 Chuo University Surugadai Memorial Hall (Tokyo)
13th Sep. 25–26, 1999 Tohoku University (Miyagi)
14th Sep. 30– Oct. 1, 2000 Reitaku University (Chiba)
15th Sep. 29–30, 2001 Kobe Kaisei College (Kobe)
16th Sep. 28–29, 2002 Tokyo Woman’s Christian University (Tokyo)
17th Sep. 27–28, 2003 Kansai University (Osaka)
18th Sep. 25–26, 2004 Tokyo University of Foreign Studies (Tokyo)
19th Sep. 24–25, 2005 Prefectural University of Hiroshima (Hiroshima)
20th Sep. 30– Oct. 1, 2006 Juntendo University (Tokyo)
21th Sep. 22–23, 2007 Nagoya University (Aichi)
22th Sep. 14-15, 2008 Meikai University (Chiba)
23th Sep. 26-27, 2009 Kyushu University (Fukuoka)
24th Oct. 9-10, 2010 Kokugakuin University (Tokyo)
25th Sep. 24-25, 2011 Kyoto University (Kyoto)
26th Sep. 29-30, 2012 Daito Bunka University (Tokyo)
27th Sep. 28-29, 2013 Kanazawa University (Ishikawa)
28th Sep. 27-28, 2014 Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology (Tokyo)
29th Oct. 3-4, 2015 Kobe University (Hyogo)
30th Sep. 17-18, 2016 Waseda University (Tokyo)
31st Sep. 30-Oct. 1, 2017 Tokyo University (Tokyo)
32nd Sep. 15-16, 2018 Okinawa International University (Okinawa)
33rd Sep. 28-29, 2019 Seisen University (Tokyo)