The BCP is called "Kitōsho" () in Japanese. The initial effort to compile such a book in Japanese goes back to 1859, when the missionary societies of the Church of England and of the Episcopal Church of the United States started their work in Japan, later joined by the Anglican Church of Canada in 1888. In 1879, the "Seikōkai Tō Bun" (), Anglican Prayer Texts) were prepared in Japanese As the Anglican Church in Japan was established in 1887, the Romanized "Nippon Seikōkai Kitō Bun" () were compiled in 1879. There was a major revision of these texts and the first "Kitōsho" was born in 1895, which had the Eucharistic part in both English and American traditions. There were further revisions, and the Kitōsho published in 1939 was the last revision that was done before the World War II, still using the Historical kana orthography.