Eighty-one-year-old Sachiko Miura wakes up at 6 a.m. every day to prepare breakfast at her newly renovated apartment located near a large supermarket, spa and a hospital in the suburbs of Japan's third largest city. After cleaning her room and doing her laundry, she takes ...

When Typhoon Hagibis struck Tokyo on Oct. 12, news emerged that three homeless people had been turned away from an emergency evacuation facility in Taito Ward. As the story spread, it varied in tone and content on social media. Some thought the persons refused ...

The BBC in October published a glowing encomium to Japanese cleanliness. "How," it asks, "does Japan stay so clean?" It's deeply ingrained, the report explains. Shinto purifies the body, Buddhism cleanses the mind, the tea ceremony sweeps the last speck of dust from the rustic ...

The baseball offseason has arrived and Chicago Cubs pitcher Yu Darvish has taken up a few extracurricular activities. The Osaka-born player has expanded his social media presence, with recent posts on Twitter —  poking fun at teammates and playfully roasting other starters — being picked ...

The United States asked Japan earlier this year to pay significantly more — about five times as much per year — to support U.S. forces stationed on the soil of its major Asian ally, government sources said Saturday. The request was delivered by John Bolton, ...

Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi has been chosen by Time magazine as one of the world's 100 rising stars who are expected to shape the future in various sectors. While noting that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is set to become the Asian nation's longest-serving leader, the ...

Legendary Japanese manga creator Leiji Matsumoto, known for "Galaxy Express 999" and many other works, collapsed Friday in Turin, Italy, but his condition has stabilized, a source close to him said Saturday. Suspected of having a stroke, Matsumoto, 81, underwent a computed tomography scan of ...

East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) gave the media a preview Saturday of platforms and other facilities at Takanawa Gateway, a new Yamanote Line station under construction in Tokyo that is slated to open next spring. Work to build the station, located between Shinagawa and ...

The first round of Daikyo-no-Gi grand banquets for Emperor Naruhito and guests who attended the Daijosai grand thanksgiving ceremony took place at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Saturday. The day's banquet, held after Daijosai was performed by the emperor from Thursday evening to early ...

Earlier this fall, it was revealed that 20 Kansai Electric Power Co. officials, including the chairman and president, received nearly ¥320 million in cash and presents between 2006 and 2018 from a powerful, and now deceased, former deputy mayor and political fixer in Takahama, ...

The government’s decision to finance the Daijosai ceremony with state funds draws criticism from experts, who claim the move was taken with undue speed in order to avoid reigniting controversy over the Constitution.

Messaging app provider Line Corp. and the company controlling Yahoo Japan Corp. are considering merging their operations by the end of 2020.

Sex crimes continue to be significantly underreported in Japan, as many of the victims did not consider their ordeal serious enough to report or did not know how to deal with it, a government survey found Saturday. Other common reasons victims didn't come forward were ...

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe faces fresh allegations that he used the annual cherry blossom-viewing party, a government-sponsored event, to entertain supporters and therefore violated the election law.

Another exceptional high tide swamped flood-hit Venice on Friday, prompting the mayor to order St. Mark's square closed after Italy declared a state of emergency for the UNESCO city. Mayor Luigi Brugnaro moved to shut the iconic square as the latest sea surge struck with ...

Too many economic forces were against them when they came of age.

Move over complicated bentos: Japanese recipes in the 2010s are all about making cozy, unfussy food that looks good online.

Architect Yoshihiro Takishita has a diverse collection of byōbu folding screens to suit every season or mood.

Taking an elective course on photography while studying business in California changed the whole course of Yoshi Shimizu's career.

Hideaki Sakai doesn't make it easy to find his diminutive premises. Hidden on the second floor of an anonymous building on a quiet backstreet on the "wrong" side of Shibuya, it is invisible from the street. You access it through an unmarked door next ...

The vertiginous open-air viewing platform atop the new Shibuya Scramble Square building may be the area's latest and tallest attraction. But the restaurant floors immediately below are also drawing long lines. What if you don't want to wait? Try your luck at La Coquina. There's ...

Japanese food experienced an international boom in the 2010s, and now you can find everything from ramen to egg sandwiches across the globe.

Drink makers are embracing grape-flavored booze this winter, but not all of them hit the mark.

Living toxin-free is difficult, but plotting a quick wellness getaway at a hotel with an ecologically conscious approach to delivering services is more than doable at Bio Hotels Japan.

The saga of the 47 ronin has inspired artists and imaginations for centuries. Now, this book by Hiroaki Sato seeks to shed new light on the origins of the conflict.

Keiko Sena's children's books, with their collage-like, simple illustrations, have been bestsellers for decades. This year, a special art exhibition celebrates the 50th anniversary of her first publication.

Samurai Japan did just enough against rival South Korea during what amounted to an entertaining dress rehearsal for the Premier12 final. Now the Japanese will head into the gold-medal game hoping practice makes perfect. Japan scored six runs in the third inning then had to overcome ...

Heavy favorite Yuma Kagiyama took the lead after the short program at the Japan Junior Championships at Shin-Yokohama Skate Center on Saturday night. The 16-year-old from Yokohama racked up a total score of 79.92 points to hold a comfortable advantage over Yuto Kishina (74.29) and ...

Point guard Tatsuya Ito provide a big spark for the Osaka Evessa in a pivotal stretch of the fourth quarter on Saturday afternoon. Ito's dynamic play coincided with Osaka's most dominant stretch of the game — a 13-0 run that began late in the third ...

Yokozuna Hakuho maintained his sole lead by beating rank-and-filer Takarafuji on Saturday, the seventh day of the Kyushu Grand Sumo Tournament. The Mongolian-born yokozuna defeated No. 3 maegashira Takarafuji (3-4) to improve to 6-1 in the day's final bout at Fukuoka Kokusai Center. Takarafuji fought aggressively ...

Diversity was on full display at the National Olympics Memorial Youth Center in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward on Saturday. The former site of the athletes' village from the 1964 Tokyo Olympics hosted the first training session for English speakers volunteering at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and ...

Raiden is often mentioned as the greatest rikishi never to reach yokozuna. Back when the Edo Period legend was dominating in the ring however, ozeki was the highest rank on the banzuke, with yokozuna still being an honorary title. There are many theories as to why ...

Kashiwa Reysol proved for the third time they are a hard team to keep down after clinching the J. League's second-division championship and earning promotion to J1 on Saturday. Reysol, relegated to the J2 this year, booked their first division return in one season, just ...

Pyeongchang Olympic silver medalist Evgenia Medvedeva claimed the lead after the women's short program at the Cup of Russia on Friday, while Satoko Miyahara placed sixth for the best showing by a Japanese skater. Medvedeva, the Russian two-time world champion, nailed a triple flip-triple toe ...

South Korea didn't just book a spot in the Premier12 final with its win over Mexico on Friday night. The South Koreans also booked a return trip to Japan for next year's Tokyo Olympics. South Korea responded to a sudden two-run deficit by exploding for seven ...