In the influence of western social science, we recognize the inner space of family as "private space" and outside of it as "public space". The word "public" was translated to the word "Ooyake" and " private" was to "Watakushi". But those Japanese words had already been existed before those western ideas came. So it seems to be natural that those words have a quite different meanings and functions in Japanese linguistic-also in social-signifying network. But those differences had never been treated as a serious issue. In this article, we are focusing on a thought of Japanese sociologist Dr. Kizaemon Ariga. He thought that Japanese social space would not be able to analysed simply with the western sociological tools. He thought that "Ooyake" and "Watakushi" have a reversible character. "Watakushi" means usually a family members and their relations and "Ooyake" means a householder. But when the house-holder is outside his "Ie (family)", he is recognized as "Watakushi" and social relationship as "Ooyake". They correspond to the range of social groups. Through this thought, we are able to have a possibility to make a new perspective of Japanese society.

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