Addressing someone without punctuation?


Before the introduction of the comma, how would the Japanese address one
another in a sentence such as- in English: "I am going to the store, John." By
starting a new line on the paper? Period mark? Double spaces? ...Xに対して?




The answer is nothing. Japanese does not have a special form for
[vocative](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vocative_case) other than nominative
(not many languages have), and before the introduction of punctuation, you can
just guess it from the context that it is an address. Even today, you hardly
see commas and periods in speech balloons of manga, that means you still have
to sometimes. And it is not very difficult (no match for Biblical Syriac that
you can't even tell question from declarative).

Classical Japanese had a particle よ like _O_ in "O captain!", that was used a
lot more commonly than today, but was far from obligatory. For example, below
is a page from a manuscript of 竹取物語
([source](https://opac.kokugakuin.ac.jp/library/lime/tkm9133111/pages/page040.html)),
the oldest known Japanese novel.

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/hMyT3.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/hMyT3.jpg)

In the line on the center of the right page, you see

> くるまをよせていざ **かぐや姫** きたなき所にいかで[か]…  
>  （るまよせさくや姫き所）  
>  _...pulled over (the coach, and said:) "Come, **Princess Kaguya** , why do
> you (have to be) in the unclean place..."_

and there is literally no punctuation at all.

The situation wouldn't change much either in English before the modern
orthography, for example, a medieval manuscript of _Beowulf_
([source](http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.aspx?ref=cotton_ms_vitellius_a_xv_f140r)):

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/48Z4O.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/48Z4O.jpg)

You see lines in upper half contain:

> ...ꝥ hie **þeoden min** ƿið þe moton  
>  _...that they, **my lord** , with you (at the) assembly..._

> geteoh ðinra gegn cƿida **glædman / hroðgar**...  
>  _...issue your reply, **gracious (man) Hrothgar**. ..._

all addressed with nominative, with no visible punctuation (the period-like
marks seen in the page denote verse lines).




The answer is nothing. Japanese does not have a special form for
[vocative](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vocative_case) other than nominative
(not many languages have), and before the introduction of punctuation, you can
just guess it from the context that it is an address. Even today, you hardly
see commas and periods in speech balloons of manga, that means you still have
to sometimes. And it is not very difficult (no match for Biblical Syriac that
you can't even tell question from declarative).

Classical Japanese had a particle よ like _O_ in "O captain!", that was used a
lot more commonly than today, but was far from obligatory. For example, below
is a page from a manuscript of 竹取物語
([source](https://opac.kokugakuin.ac.jp/library/lime/tkm9133111/pages/page040.html)),
the oldest known Japanese novel.

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/hMyT3.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/hMyT3.jpg)

In the line on the center of the right page, you see

> くるまをよせていざ **かぐや姫** きたなき所にいかで[か]…  
>  （るまよせさくや姫き所）  
>  _...pulled over (the coach, and said:) "Come, **Princess Kaguya** , why do
> you (have to be) in the unclean place..."_

and there is literally no punctuation at all.

The situation wouldn't change much either in English before the modern
orthography, for example, a medieval manuscript of _Beowulf_
([source](http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.aspx?ref=cotton_ms_vitellius_a_xv_f140r)):

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/48Z4O.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/48Z4O.jpg)

You see lines in upper half contain:

> ...ꝥ hie **þeoden min** ƿið þe moton  
>  _...that they, **my lord** , with you (at the) assembly..._

> geteoh ðinra gegn cƿida **glædman / hroðgar**...  
>  _...issue your reply, **gracious (man) Hrothgar**. ..._

all addressed with nominative, with no visible punctuation (the period-like
marks seen in the page denote verse lines).

