National
NRA makes new reactor safety regimen official
The Nuclear Regulation Authority officially approves new safety requirements for reactors aimed at preventing disasters like the catastrophe at the Fukushima No. 1 power plant.
Language | BILINGUAL Jun 17, 2013
Thoughts of rice and Japanese men
by Kaori Shoji
If you’re like me or the men in my life, you probably broke down and wept for joy on June 4, when Japanese midfielder Keisuke Honda scored the goal that bagged Japan’s slot in the FIFA World Cup next year. At such sports events, ...
Language | BILINGUAL Jun 3, 2013
Shinto's kami and jinja seeking world acceptance
by Minoru Matsutani
Ise Jingu (伊勢神宮, Ise Jingu Shrine) has recently published a sasshi (冊子, booklet) in English, titled “Soul of Japan — An Introduction to Shinto and Ise Jingu.” The news was picked up by some Japanese media because the shrine used, for the first time, ...
Language | BILINGUAL May 27, 2013
Oyaji gyagu, more than just cheesy puns
by Mio Backhaus and Peter Backhaus
Stop me if you’ve heard this one. Two men aged around 50 enter a sushi restaurant. One orders a raincoat, the other a garage. What looks like the beginning of a “Monty Python” sketch is in fact the stuff of a most typical oyaji ...
Language | BILINGUAL May 20, 2013
Product names show language creativity at work
by Mark Schreiber
Recently I was asked to write a blurb for a new liquid plant-nutrient. As soon as I saw the name of the product, 早根早起 （Hayane Hayaoki), I smiled at this example of linguistic creativity.
Language | BILINGUAL May 13, 2013
It ain't easy being a bilingual girl
by Kaori Shoji
This bilingual thing … they say that it’s a both curse and a blessing. Watakushigotode kyōshukudesuga (私事で恐縮ですが, A thousand pardons for having the gall to talk about myself), but I think of it more like a stigma. It’s not the same for millenials — ...
Language | BILINGUAL May 6, 2013
Plan to introduce TOEFL to universities has its merits
by Minoru Matsutani
The media and kyōiku senmonka (教育専門家, pundits on education) have been voicing the pros and cons of the idea put forward by the Jiminto (自民党, the Liberal Democratic Party) to make TOEFL (Test of English as Foreign Language) mandatory for entrance exams at all ...
Language | BILINGUAL Apr 29, 2013
Bilingual beauty, straight and permed
by Peter Backhaus and Yuko Kunimatsu
Beauty must be a bilingual thing. At least that’s the impression one gets from looking at signs outside hairdressers, beauty parlors and similar types of businesses in Japan.
Language | BILINGUAL Apr 22, 2013
Ways to 'spell' Japanese out loud
by Mark Schreiber
I dial a number and ask to speak to my literary agent, Mr. Suzuki. “Moshi-moshi. Suzuki Masatoshi-sama oraremasuka?” “Sumimasen ga, okyakusama wa?” Literally “Excuse me, as for the guest?” That is the speaker’s polite way of asking “Who should I say is calling?” “Shuraibā ...
Language | BILINGUAL Apr 8, 2013
The life and times of the destitute girl
by Kaori Shoji
I was one of those suckers who thought that the seifu (政府, government) might get it right this time.
Language | BILINGUAL Apr 1, 2013
It's all change at Shibuya Station for the Toyoko Line
by Minoru Matsutani
On March 16, the platforms for the Tokyu Toyoko Line at Shibuya Station moved from the chijō nikai (地上二階, second floor) to the chika gokai (地下五階, fifth basement floor) to connect the Toyoko Line with the Tokyo Metro Fukutoshin Line.
Language | BILINGUAL Mar 25, 2013
Yoisho! A word to move mountains (and smaller things)
by Peter Backhaus
The man from next door says it. My mother-in-law says it. The guy in the grocery store says it. The nurse on TV says it. Seems like everyone says Yoisho! (よいしょ!) It’s one of those expressions that appear to be a common part of ...
Language | BILINGUAL Mar 18, 2013
Best to consult an expert before getting a cryptic kanji tattoo
by Mark Schreiber
“Mami,” I said, reading the kanji 「真実」tattooed on the bicep of the young man seated beside me last December, aboard a flight bound for Houston, Texas. “Is that the name of your Japanese girlfriend?” The mélange of emotions displayed on his face — a ...