[Lingo] So happy I cried... writing japanese words

["Stephen J. Turnbull" <stephen@example.com>]

 > I've noticed something like this with other words but this
 > is the first time I've followed through to see what is going
 > on.  At this point I'm not sure even what question I'm
 > asking, but there is something here that doesn't make sense
 > to me.  Can you guys tell me what's going on here?

日本へようこそ！

 > Are there really 4 valid ways to write うれしなき with うれ
 > し泣き being the most popular but 嬉泣 being also very popular.

Depends on who you ask.  If you ask a real linguist they'll say yes.

 > What does 嬉泣 not showing up in dictionarys say about 嬉泣?

It says that there's actually a government standard that prescribes
the connecting kana.  <monomane geinojin="Dave Barry">I am *still* not
kidding.</monomane>

 > What does 嬉泣 being almost as popular as うれし泣き signify
 > if anything?

Real People don't pay attention to government standards.

 > What else is going on here?

"Nothing to see here, people, it's just a train wreck.  Please move
along."

More seriously, it might be interesting to look at patterns in use of
kanji in writings containing each "spelling".