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November 22, 2024
 

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NIHONGO

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said Japan should develop its own generative AI.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 27, 2024
Nvidia to support development of AI based on Japanese language data
The move is seen helping local efforts to protect critical infrastructure and strengthen industrial competitiveness without relying on other countries.
Ami Yuasa performs in the b-girls breaking competition final during the Paris Summer Olympics earlier this month. She won gold in the event.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Aug 21, 2024
The victories, viral moments and vocabulary of Paris 2024
When following the Olympics in Japanese, knowing all the buzzwords that spring up could be a competition of its own.
Japan is divided into many different regions, sometimes distinguishing areas of the country by old borders or climate.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Aug 16, 2024
When it comes to Japan, do you know your 'Kanto' from your 'Kanto-koshin'?
Japanese people tend to travel to their hometowns around this time of year, and asking where they went is an easy conversation starter.
Yamakawa Shuppansha president Takeshi Nozawa holds the publisher's textbook on Japanese history — used in high schools across Japan — alongside the new English version in Tokyo on May 23.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 13, 2024
Publisher finds surprise audience after translating history textbooks
The English versions of Yamakawa Shuppansha's iconic textbooks appear to be popular among Japanese businesspeople looking to discuss history with their overseas peers.
A boy skateboards past Yanaka Cemetery in Tokyo’s Taito Ward. A perfectly peaceful spot the rest of the year, it becomes a place children may test their courage during the Bon holidays.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Aug 8, 2024
Japanese cities turn into ghost towns during the Bon holiday period
As people return to their hometowns to pay their respects to their ancestors, children may try to test their nerves with a "kimodameshi."
Two people in Tokyo walk past a poster meant to evoke a cooling feeling the summer heat.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 31, 2024
Sunscreen bans, UV-cuts and the language of summer skincare in Japan
Get to know Japanese terms for products that will help you protect your skin in the scorching sun.
A child gets a break from the heat thanks to a cooling mist machine at Sensoji temple in Tokyo.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 24, 2024
Whether it's the pool or the park, teach your kids how to be safe this summer vacation
Your children are likely to sneak out of the house for some fun while school is out. Make sure they know the importance of "squid sushi."
From left: Kan Kikuchi, Ryunosuke Akutagawa, Muto Chozo and Nagami Tokutaro
LIFE / Language
Jul 19, 2024
Dive into Akutagawa's world of creepy 'kappa' and prewar kanji
In order to read Japanese works written before the war, you'll need to watch out for the different roles hiragana play in addition to unfamiliar kanji.
A new rule of having prison officers use honorifics when addressing inmates sparked apprehension when it was introduced in April. Three months later, a prison officer said the rule helps avoid situations where older inmates might not feel comfortable being called by their names without honorifics by officers fresh out of school.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 15, 2024
Prison officers and inmates warm up to rule on use of honorifics
Since April, a new rule requires prison officers to use the honorifics san and kun when addressing inmates by their last names.
The Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale returns this weekend and features works by artists such as Yayoi Kusama.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 13, 2024
Got somewhere to be and need a friend? Better learn how to ask.
If you live in Japan long enough, you're bound to receive an invitation sooner or later. Make sure you know how to respond or how to ask in return.
With the vegan lifestyle becoming more popular in recent years, Japanese restaurants and inns have begun to offer more vegetarian options.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 4, 2024
Asking for food substitutions at a Japanese restaurant
If you're vegetarian, vegan or have some kind of allergy, then knowing how to ask about what you're eating is an essential skill to have.
People look at the election poster board at Kasai Rinkai Park in Tokyo. The board includes posters for each of the candidates running in that specific riding.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 28, 2024
Tokyo's election day is coming. Are you comfortable talking about politics in Japanese?
Even if you don't want to talk about politics, expressing your opinion on a particular topic is always a good skill to have in your daily life.
When describing meal times in his novel “No Longer Human,” Osamu Dazai refers to his family as being "jūikunin," which translates to "10 and change." By being vague, he diminishes the importance of the size of his family.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 21, 2024
Attempting the classics: Decoding Osamu Dazai’s sinister diction
A gritty realism and gut-wrenching plots were the mark of the "I-novel" push in the 20th century.
Dads in Japan tend to fall in one of two categories: "amatō," a person fond of sweets, or "karatō," a person fond of alcohol.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 14, 2024
Dads like sweets, but some like sweet words even more
Looking for a gift for Father's Day? It's said that Japanese dads fall into one of two categories: They like sweets or they like sake.
Artificial chemical scents that come from things like perfume or fabric softener can cause discomfort or even sickness for some individuals.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 7, 2024
Scents and sensitivity: Understanding ‘smell pollution’ in Japan
In the country's crowded urban areas, it is important to be aware of how your deodorant, perfume or fabric softener can affect others.
Hyappu Ishikawa (left) attends to children at the "Karafuru" Japanese language school in Nishio, Aichi Prefecture, in April.
JAPAN
Jun 3, 2024
How one Japanese city supports foreign students through community education
In the city of Nishio, public and private sectors collaborate with schools to support foreign students in Japanese language education and raise their school enrollment rates.
Whether you get your goosebumps from horror movies, the dark or even historical battle sites, there are lots of ways to express fear in Japanese.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
May 31, 2024
Using intransitive verbs to make Japanese ghost stories extra spooky
Since intransitive verbs don't need to take a subject, they are best at describing things that happen of their own accord.
Language support groups in Fukushima Prefecture are calling for the creation of a better environment for foreign children to learn Japanese.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Fukushima
May 27, 2024
With more foreign children, Fukushima struggles with language support
A number of children attending schools in the prefecture in fiscal 2023 were unable to fully understand Japanese.
The so-called グリーンカーテン ("gurīn kāten," green curtain) is a vertical garden you can create for your balcony to help provide shade from the summer sun.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
May 24, 2024
Get started on your at-home garden before the summer hits
Even if you live in a small Tokyo apartment, a garden isn't out of the question. Learn the Japanese needed to visit your local garden center.
Author Yukio Mishima accepts the Arts Festival Award in the drama category at the 20th Arts Festival Award Ceremony on Jan. 22, 1966.
LIFE / Bilingual
May 16, 2024
Unraveling the Japanese prose of Yukio Mishima
Achieving success at a young age, Yukio Mishima's creative use of compound verbs and kanji stand out in his writing.
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Ishiba aggravates his own political failures with diplomatic faux pas
Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba is greeted at the APEC summit in Lima by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday. The Japanese leader was criticized for remaining seated while meeting several world leaders at the event.
Japan's 3.31 million visitors in October set monthly record
Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in December 2023. Famous autumn leaf colors contributed to increased tourism demand last month from many markets across Asia, Europe and North America, the Japan National Tourism Organization has said.
Japan ranks last in romance satisfaction for second straight year
In a survey of 31 countries, Japan ranked last in terms of those who felt loved, with just 51% of respondents saying so.
Ruling coalition and DPP strike last-minute deal over economic policy
DPP policy chief Makoto Mahaguchi speaks at the party's policy gathering in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.
Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' gives deep deja vu
For “The City and Its Uncertain Walls,” translated into English by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami confronts the ghosts who won't leave him alone.
Japanese expats in Asia find community through rugby
The Taiwan Fivewoods celebrate their victory at the 2023 Asian Japanese Rugby Cup in December of last year.
In Fukushima, a weekend of prose, poetry and translation
Aomori-based writer JJ Carter presented on tabletop gaming as creative inspiration for building characters and narratives.
For Dr. Nakamats, aging is just experience in action
Though he didn't win the recent gubernatorial election in Tokyo, the 96-year-old Dr. Nakamats' run was seen as inspirational in Japan's aging society.

Podcast

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

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?
By Kathryn Wortley

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