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March 28, 2025
 

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LANGUAGE

A sign at Tokyo's Haneda Airport shows users the way to the monorail in four different languages.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Mar 22, 2025
Can we make it official? Language in the age of Trump.
The United States made English its main language, but in Japan things seem to be heading in a different way.
President Donald Trump’s order making English the official language of the country is unnecessary, as nearly 80% of people in the U.S. already speak it at home.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 14, 2025
America doesn’t need an official language
After all, what is our shared culture if not the mix of cultures — including languages — that make and remake America every day?
An electronic dictionary section at a mass retailer in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward in 2005
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 13, 2025
Electronic dictionary market shrinking in Japan
Sales of electric dictionaries are falling in Japan amid declining birthrates and widespread use of smartphone apps.
Chinese teacher Shuaib Ma (right) gives a Mandarin language lesson at a school in Riyadh.
WORLD
Mar 7, 2025
Mandarin lessons in Saudi schools show growing ties with China
Mandarin's entry into public schools is the latest sign of growing ties between Saudi Arabia and China.
According to the Cultural Affairs Agency, shodō is defined as the act of writing kanji and kana characters using traditional brushstrokes and techniques.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2025
Japan to again propose calligraphy for UNESCO heritage list
The government is expected to submit the fresh proposal to UNESCO by the end of the month.
U.S. President Donald Trump signs an executive order in the Oval Office in Washington on Tuesday. The U.S. president just signed another executive order on Saturday designating English as the official language of the United States.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 2, 2025
Trump designates English as official language of U.S.
The White House published an executive order by Trump which says it is "long past time" that English is declared as the nation's official language.
The roll-out of accent translation is part of a bigger push by Teleperformance to invest up to €100 million ($104 million) in AI partnerships this year.
BUSINESS / Tech
Mar 1, 2025
Teleperformance uses AI to ‘neutralize’ Indian accents among staff
The roll-out of accent translation is part of a bigger push by Teleperformance to invest up to €100 million ($104 million) in AI partnerships this year.
Students make speeches in Japanese at Linguist, a school in Irpin, near Kyiv, earlier this month.
JAPAN
Feb 21, 2025
Kyiv school seeks peace through language education
In 2024, the Japanese government provided about 1 million textbooks to Ukraine as grant aid through the Japan International Cooperation Agency.
A list with the file name "Prohibited words" has been circulating since at least last week in official work chats, according to two U.S. Food and Drug Administration scientists.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 21, 2025
White House says FDA memo banning 'woman' and 'disabled' made in error
The erroneous FDA list likely resulted from a misinterpretation of U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order against 'gender ideology,' a White House spokesman said.
One-third of elementary school students in Japan do not like learning English, according to a 2021 poll, an 8% rise since 2013. The pressure of taking proficiency tests is eroding children's engagement with studying English and its benefits.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 17, 2025
Japan’s English-language education doesn’t pass the test
An excessive focus on testing students' English ability is turning language learning into a chore, depriving children of the joy and opportunities of intercultural communication.
A map of the South China Sea is shown during a Philippine Coast Guard mission to the Second Thomas Shoal, claimed by both the Philippines and China. Each country has its own name for this area, signaling the use of toponyms to stake territorial rights.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 3, 2025
What’s in a name? In the South China Sea, a whole lot.
In the South China Sea, disputed territories have been given different names by the states vying for them. Will Trump's moves thousands of miles away validate this approach?
Roxana Oshiro and her husband gather their belongings in front of their house in Furukawacho, in Kobe's Suma Ward, after the Great Hanshin Earthquake in 1995.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Jan 17, 2025
The efforts to bridge the disaster information gap, 30 years on
Disaster information didn't reach many non-Japanese speakers after the Great Hanshin Earthquake struck. Thirty years later, has the situation improved?
Young Tibetan monks sit on a scooter as they arrive to take part in a protest march held to mark the 65th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising against Chinese rule, in the northern hill town of Dharamsala, India, on March 10, 2024.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 14, 2025
How China is erasing Tibetan culture, one child at a time
Education, especially in minority areas, is a politically sensitive topic. Tibetans who oppose the boarding schools risk imprisonment if they protest.
Students perform a play they produced during a Liberal Arts Japanese class at Aichi Prefectural Kariyahigashi High School, as teacher Tomohiko Hyodo (left) watches.
JAPAN / Society / Regional voices: Chubu
Jan 13, 2025
Aichi school uses theater to foster communication skills
Liberal Arts Japanese, designed to supplement conventional Japanese language studies, emphasizes practical skills in listening and speaking, the school says.
Otono Kuboki, a Japanese Canadian hair stylist for salon chain Sozo, is a key figure in the company's mission to elevate the viability of Japan's hairdressing industry to foreign residents.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jan 11, 2025
Can an international makeover help Tokyo salons meet foreign demand?
Sozo Education aims to train Tokyo’s next crop of stylists not just in English vocabulary related to hairdressing but in the diverse needs of foreign hair types.
Incorporating modern technologies into your Japanese classes might be a way to connect with younger students.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jan 3, 2025
Start the new year with a fresh approach to teaching Japanese
It’s important for language instructors to update their methods to best appeal to their younger students.
A birth notification document issued by Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward. Family registers, which record and certify citizens' familial relationships from birth to death, currently do not include the phonetic readings of names.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 2, 2025
Family registers to incorporate phonetic readings of names from end-May
Citizens who wish to register readings that differ from those listed on certificates of residence must notify municipal governments within a year.
The city of Kumamoto has seen a surge in the number of students from Taiwan, following the arrival of chipmaking giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and related businesses in Kumamoto Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 31, 2024
Kumamoto public schools respond to influx of Taiwanese students
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.'s arrival in Kumamoto has heightened the need to adapt to the needs of Taiwanese families.
Japan's 2024 Word of the Year, "futehodo," is a phrase tied to a Netflix show and highlights the broader decline in the cultural significance of such awards, with recent selections often seen as superficial or promotional.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 31, 2024
Japan’s 2024 word of the year has no rizz
Some critics wondered why the word of the year award was, essentially, functioning as advertising for a TV show that is still available on streaming.
The labor ministry conducted the survey on foreign workers, the first of its kind, in October to November last year.
JAPAN
Dec 26, 2024
Many foreign workers in Japan face high employment agency fees
The survey found that 14.4% of foreign workers in Japan are facing problems or difficulties at work.
Yellow sand blankets cities across Japan
The Meteorological Agency forecast the yellow sand to move away from eastern Honshu by 6 p.m. on Wednesday. But it will continue to cover parts of western Honshu and Shikoku until Thursday morning, it said.
Japan considers all possible options as Trump threatens new auto tariffs
Subaru cars awaiting export at a port in Yokohama on Thursday.
JR's 'futuristic' Takanawa Gateway complex set to open in Tokyo
The Gateway Park at Takanawa Gateway City on Tuesday
In the wake of several scandals, Fuji TV ‘emperor’ Hieda steps down
Hisashi Hieda, a 41-year veteran of Fuji TV’s board of directors and dubbed the broadcaster’s “emperor,” has stepped down.
Hanami season to have record ¥1.39 trillion economic impact on Japan
Cherry blossoms along a road in Tokyo on Tuesday. The 2025 cherry blossom season is expected to have an economic impact of around ¥1.39 trillion on Japan.
Recent spate of wildfires in Japan and South Korea linked to climate change
Smoke and flames rise from a wildfire in Andong, South Korea, on Tuesday.
Hanami season to have record ¥1.39 trillion economic impact on Japan
Cherry blossoms along a road in Tokyo on Tuesday. The 2025 cherry blossom season is expected to have an economic impact of around ¥1.39 trillion on Japan.
Tokyo Series proves to be big business for MLB — and Japanese companies
An advertisement featuring Shohei Ohtani in Tokyo.
New SDF command will be key for contingency planning, Australian commander says
A Maritime Self-Defense Force SH-60K "Super Auk" from JS Shiranui prepares to land on HMAS Brisbane during Exercise Malabar 2023 while off the coast of New South Wales, Australia.
Japanese wages likely to rise more than 5% again this year
Wages are set for another big increase this year as annual negotiations secure generous agreements.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

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By Anton L. Delgado

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Challenging spirit and teamwork keep ANA flying high
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