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July 12, 2025
 

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BUZZWORDS

Actor Sadao Abe accepts the 2024 U-Can New Word and Popular Phrase Award for ふてほど (futehodo), the abbreviated title for his series, “Futekisetsu nimo Hodo ga Aru!” (“Extremely Inappropriate!”).
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 12, 2024
How often do Japan's buzzwords make it into the vernacular?
We crown a new one every year, but trendy terms tend to disappear from public consciousness if they're related to pop culture.
Sadao Abe, who played the role of a time-traveling Showa Era teacher transported to present day in a popular TV drama, receives the 2024 buzzword of the year award for the word "futehodo," the nickname of the series.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 2, 2024
Japan’s 2024 buzzword of the year urges a reevaluation of past norms
“Futehodo” — a nickname for a TV drama that depicts the generational gap between the Showa and Reiwa eras — has been crowned the most trending word of 2024.
The topics nominated for this year’s buzzwords of the year ranged from new banknotes and Olympian quips to political scandals and rice shortages.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 5, 2024
From cat memes to Olympians with too much rizz, these are Japan's 2024 buzzword nominations
The buzzword of the year, along with the top 10 picks, will be decided from the 30 nominated terms on Dec. 2.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 15, 2023
Despite a taxing year, 2023's top kanji still draws questions
In a year of major crises around the world, Japanese voters pick the kanji for "zei," meaning "tax," based on a plan yet to be implemented.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 1, 2023
Japan’s 2023 buzzword of the year is all about winning
A.R.E — based on the Japanese word “are” (“that”) — took the top spot, after the Hanshin Tigers popularized the term as an indirect reference to victory.
The words of encouragement that star player Shohei Ohtani gave his teammates before their final game against the United States during the World Baseball Classic in March were among those nominated on Thursday to be the buzzwords of the year.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 2, 2023
Japan's 2023 buzzwords reflect light and dark sides of the year
From the year's scandals to its champions, the annual list of buzzword candidates highlights the nation's hope, fears and diversions.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 16, 2022
If you thought 2022 was a battle, this year's top kanji pick shows you weren’t alone
The kanji of the year for 2022 is used for wars and struggles, while this year's buzzwords referenced sports lingo and a Norwegian pop tune.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / Vocabulary Boost
Dec 16, 2022
Merriam-Webster’s word of the year is ‘gaslighting,’ and don't try to tell us there isn't a Japanese equivalent
Merriam-Webster saw a huge spike in people looking up the word “gaslighting” in 2022, and Japan is also no stranger to the concept.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 10, 2021
Sports, silent meals and 'Shut Up!': What Japan was talking about in 2021
The year's top buzzwords were announced to great fanfare, but the real word on everyone's lip last week was 'omicron.'
Japan Times
LIFE / Language
Dec 10, 2021
How do this year's English buzzwords translate into Japanese?
Collins Dictionary announced its 'Word of the Year' and technology-related terms came out on top.
JAPAN
Dec 1, 2021
Buzzwords in Japan 2021: Ohtani and Tokyo Olympics loomed large
The language of the pandemic, while still present, took a back seat to phrases and words inspired by Shohei Ohtani, Thomas Bach, Yoshiro Mori and other sports-related figures.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 8, 2020
Japan's 2020 buzzwords still contain a sense of whimsy in spite of trying times
At the start of the year it was expected that 2020's buzzwords would all be related to the Olympics. Oh, how quickly that can change.
JAPAN
Dec 1, 2020
Viral hit: 'Sanmitsu' — the 'Three Cs' — declared Japan's buzzword of 2020
The 'Three Cs” approach to the pandemic, popularized by Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike, refers to avoiding closed spaces, crowds and close-contact situations.
CULTURE
Dec 1, 2020
Amabie: Folklore apparition generated a big buzz in 2020
The long-haired, beak-faced amabie, which forecasts bountiful harvests and killer epidemics, has found itself in Japan's spotlight in recent months.
JAPAN
Dec 2, 2019
Japanese rugby's 'One Team' motto declared buzzword of 2019
"One Team," Japan's slogan for the 2019 Rugby World Cup, was picked as buzzword of the year on Monday after the Brave Blossoms thrilled fans with their historic advance to the top eight.
JAPAN
Nov 8, 2019
Japan's rugby, disasters and social change generate buzzwords in 2019
The 2019 Rugby World Cup, natural disasters and cashless payment inspired a large portion of the nominations for the annual buzzword of the year awards.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 3, 2018
'Sodanē': Japan uses top buzzword of 2018 to end year on a high note
After months of scandals in sports, politics — and society as a whole — the top buzzword of 2018, announced Monday, struck a strikingly positive tone as the year winds down.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language
Nov 19, 2018
'The Year Book of the Contemporary Society' celebrates the Japanese buzzwords that will lead us into the new year
What's that word, the one for when you like a person but are too shy to say so? Or how about the one you use when you visit Tokyo Disney? Well, one book has all the answers.
JAPAN
Nov 7, 2018
Japanese buzzwords of 2018 nominees reflect myriad influences and issues
Thirty candidates for buzzword of the year, announced Wednesday, highlight the numerous scandals that rocked Japan's amateur sports, the brutal summer of natural disasters as well as the country's response to the worldwide #MeToo movement against sexual harassment.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 1, 2017
Japan's top 2017 buzzwords powered by politics and Instagram
Japan's most popular buzzwords of the year reflect the scandals that rocked the political arena and the trend of people eager to shoot photogenic items for social media.
Tokyo hit by torrential rainfall at rush hour
People line up at Shibuya Station in Tokyo as they try to avoid the heavy rain on Thursday.
Foreign drivers in Japan to face tougher license conversion rules from October
According to the National Police Agency, there were 75,905 people who converted their foreign driver’s license to a Japanese one in 2024, up from 48,885 in 2019.
Chinese fighters came within 30 meters of Japanese spy aircraft, Tokyo says
A Chinese JH-7 fighter jet makes an near an Air Self-Defense Force YS-11EB surveillance aircraft over the East China Sea this week in this image released Thursday.
Air India crash report to offer peek into last seconds
Members of the Indian Army's engineering arm prepare to remove the wreckage of an Air India aircraft in Ahmedabad on June 14.
What Japanese politics could look like after Upper House election
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who heads the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (center) waves to attendees as he departs after delivering a campaign speech in Yokohama on Sunday.
New IG Arena set to dial down temperature at Nagoya Basho, in a good way
With IG Arena getting glowing early reviews as the Nagoya Basho’s replacement venue, it may be a while before fans wax nostalgic about the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium.
Once a niche, anime is now mainstream content for Netflix and other streaming services
Though Netflix remains the dominant choice globally for anime viewers, Amazon Prime Video has also invested heavily in anime, steadily adding titles to their catalogue.
NGOs condemn rise in anti-immigrant rhetoric ahead of Upper House vote
Sanseito head Sohei Kamiya holds a board that reads "Japanese First" in Tokyo on July 2. In a joint statement on Tuesday, eight human rights nongovernmental organizations described the far-right party's stance as "hate speech."
Japanese dancers find a home abroad at Houston Ballet
“Giselle” lead Yuriko Kajiya (center), performing with Connor Walsh as Albrecht, is one of six Japanese dancers at Houston Ballet.
From the Abes to the Ohtanis: How siblings shape athletic development
Olympic judoka Uta Abe (second from left) and Hifumi Abe (second from right) with their brother Yuichiro (center) and their parents. “I’m always consciously trying to be a good older brother,” Yuichiro said.

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