NEWSWORTHY
'Ghost kanji' lurk in the Japanese lexicon
Floating around the murky regions of digitized Unicode values are anywhere between 60 and 100 yūrei-moji — literally, "ghost characters" — haunting the Japanese kanji lexicon.
Sōgō shōsha: Thriving through adversity in postwar Japan
This is the fourth part of a new series of reports written by industry specialists. The first 12 articles are about Japanese general trading companies, or sōgō shōsha. To understand better the businesses the sōgō shōsha are involved in today, a look should be taken ...
Archaeologists find parts of booth belonging to 'Ramses the Great'
Egypt says archaeologists have uncovered parts of a booth with a seat that belonged to famous Pharaoh Ramses II, or "Ramses the Great," one of the longest ruling pharaohs in antiquity. Thursday's statement from the Antiquities Ministry says the artifacts were found during an excavation ...
Historical jury still out on Japan's Meiji Restoration
On July 27, 1853, the Tokugawa shogunate was in crisis. Shogun Tokugawa Ieyoshi passed away from what today is believed to be heat exhaustion at Edo Castle in the heart of Edo, present-day Tokyo. Abe Masahiro, the top samurai bureaucrat under the shogun, had an ...
South Korean lawmakers visit disputed islets amid Japanese opposition
A group of South Korean lawmakers from the country's ruling and opposition parties traveled to South Korea-controlled, Japan-claimed islets in the Sea of Japan on Monday amid opposition from Tokyo. The office of Lee Chan-yeol, chairman of the education committee in the National Assembly, confirmed ...
North Korea's box of bones: A mythical king and the dream of Korean unification
It's the stuff of an Indiana Jones movie: supernatural kings, ancient tombs, and government-backed archaeologists striving to harness the power of legend for a greater cause. On a divided Korean Peninsula, tales of King Dangun — the mythical founder of the first Korean kingdom more ...
Former Dutch Prime Minister Wim Kok, a trade unionist-turned-politician who inspired a new breed of pragmatic Social Democratic leaders who swept to power in Europe in the 1990s, has died at 80. Current Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said that Kok, who died Saturday, "was ...
Japanese Cabinet opts not to visit Yasukuni Shrine during Autumn Festival
The entire Cabinet along with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe refrained from visiting Tokyo's war-linked Yasukuni Shrine during this year's four-day autumn festival that ended Saturday. They apparently opted not to visit the shrine, regarded by many as a symbol of Japan's past militarism, because Abe ...
Japan and South Korean spat over use of wartime flag discussed at Singapore ministerial talks
Japan and South Korea remained at odds during bilateral ministerial talks over the weekend over Seoul's call for Tokyo not to fly the Rising Sun flag, which was also used during World War II, at a naval review held in South Korean waters earlier ...
Researchers seek records of whale meat cutting performance in Japan in the '70s and '80s
A whale research group seeks information about public performances in which small whales were cut up for meat in the 1970s and 1980s.
South Korea's Supreme Court has said it will rule on Oct. 30 on a damages lawsuit against Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp. filed by four victims of wartime forced labor under Japan's colonial rule. The Japanese government says all matters of assets and claims ...
Okinawa's Tamaudun ancient royal mausoleum to be listed as national treasure
The Tamaudun ancient royal mausoleum in Okinawa will become the second cultural asset in the prefecture to be listed as a national treasure. The Council for Cultural Affairs submitted recommendations Friday for the national treasure listing, as well as eight designations as important cultural properties, ...
