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October 08, 2025
 

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LANGUAGE

The Japanese government updated its English education guidelines in 2017 to emphasize communication over grammar and memorization. Public school teachers are incredibly busy, however, which means schools haven’t been able to implement changes uniformly. Private and alternative schools are attempting to remedy this.
LIFE / Language / Longform
May 27, 2024
The language of opportunity: Bilingual education is on the rise in Japan
Stuck with a reputation for poor English, Japan is pushing its next generation to be bilingual. Privately run schools are seeing the benefits.
An advisory panel to the education ministry will consider how the Japanese language should be transcribed into the Latin alphabet, including unifying different romanization styles currently in use.
JAPAN
May 15, 2024
Japan to review romanization system for first time in 70 years
The review is due to be submitted as early as next spring.
A screen shot shows the large-scale language model developed using the Fugaku supercomputer.
JAPAN
May 11, 2024
Japan team uses Fugaku supercomputer to develop language model for AI
The large language model unveiled Friday is expected to lead to research on generative AI tailored to domestic needs.
An education ministry survey has shown that the English proficiency of public junior and senior high school students in Japan is continuing to improve.
JAPAN
May 9, 2024
Japanese students' English proficiency is improving
The levels of English skills greatly varied depending on the region, according to the education ministry.
Interpreters of the European Parliament in Brussels on April 11
WORLD / Politics
May 8, 2024
Babel in Brussels: The shadow army of EU interpreters
Humming with different languages like a modern-day Tower of Babel, the European Union's institutions are the world's largest employer of interpreters.
A microscopic view of the SARS-CoV-2 virus particles.
WORLD / Science & Health
Apr 20, 2024
It’s taken 100 scientists two years to rename airborne viruses after COVID mistakes
While the discussion may seem trivial, terminology carries important economic and public health consequences.
Paolo Pasco, winner of the 2024 American Crossword Puzzle Tournament
LIFE
Apr 14, 2024
How Gen Zers made the crossword their own
A younger generation of constructors is using an old form to reflect their identities, language and world.
After Donald Trump secured the Republican nomination last week, the buzzword underwent an evolution as he outpaces incumbent President Joe Biden in a number of major polls.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 21, 2024
'What if Trump?' Moshitora reenters Japanese lexicon
The compact Japanese buzzword has resurfaced in local media reports as the ex-president rises through a number of polls.
The study used functional magnetic resonance imaging to examine brain activity.
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 12, 2024
Study of polyglots offers insight on brain's language processing
The brain's language network consists of a few areas situated in its frontal and temporal lobes.
Randolph-Macon College students pose with a monument to Taylor Anderson in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, on Jan. 23.
JAPAN
Mar 10, 2024
Tsunami victim's dream of becoming Japan-U.S. bridge realized
Taylor Anderson was one of the 33 foreign nationals killed in the March 2011 disaster.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs recently recommended that official romanization rules be switched from the Kunrei to Hepburn system.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 6, 2024
Romanization rules are changing. Why Kunrei won’t be missed.
Japan could soon change its romanization rules, opting for the more common Hepburn system. This would benefit Japanese people as much as foreigners.
When Fighters interpreter Shinju Sakuma set her mind on becoming a language liaison in sports, she picked a sport she enjoyed watching and an employer who thinks outside the box.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Feb 26, 2024
Rookie female interpreter provides voice for foreign baseball stars in Japan
Shinju Sakuma, who will graduate from Rikkyo University in Tokyo this spring, is believed to be the first female interpreter in NPB history.
Anastasiia Pelykh (left) and Daria Datsenko talk about their lives in Japan after evacuating from Ukraine during an interview in Kyoto earlier this month.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 19, 2024
Two years after invasion, Ukrainians in Japan forge their own paths
A pair of women have taken different paths, but echoed the same refrain: They want the war to end as soon as possible so they can see their families.
Foreign investors are seeking more English-language disclosure from companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
BUSINESS / Markets
Feb 6, 2024
Foreign investors want more English info from TSE firms
The TSE plans to make Prime firms release key information in Japanese and English simultaneously.
To mitigate China’s growing tech influence and establish a foothold in the budding artificial intelligence ecosystem, Taiwan budgeted some 17.4 billion New Taiwan dollars ($555.6 million) through 2026 to develop expertise and tools in the industry.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 26, 2024
Taiwan builds own AI language model to counter China’s influence
Taiwan is spending $7.4 million for a tool free of China’s political influence
The "wolf warrior" metaphor is used for Chinese diplomats who are known for aggressively making their country’s case on the world stage.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 16, 2024
Doves, pandas and dragons: Decoding the global political zoo
Animal metaphors help us reflect on the rich and varied landscape of foreign policy discourse.
The logo of language-learning app, Duolingo, on a smartphone
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 9, 2024
Duolingo cuts contractors by 10% amid AI content shift
The company said no full-time employees were affected by the cutback.
Participants in traditional Korean attire holds signs using the Korean Hangul script — used to document the language of the Cia-Cia ethnic group, which has no written form — on Buton island, Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia, on Oct. 14.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Dec 20, 2023
Indigenous Indonesians use Korean letters to save dialect
The language of the Cia-Cia ethnic group in southeast Sulawesi province's Baubau has no written form.
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.
Seihan Mori, chief priest of Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto, writes "zei" (taxes), which was chosen on Tuesday as the kanji of the year.
JAPAN
Dec 12, 2023
Talk of taxes spurs choice for Japan’s kanji of the year
The choice came as tax hikes and cuts were heavily covered in the news and discussed among policymakers.
‘We have drawn lessons,’ Indian Army chief says of brief clash with Pakistan
Indian Army chief Upendra Dwivedi waves as he arrives to attend the ceremonial reception of Defense Minister Gen Nakatani in New Delhi in May.
Japanese immunologist among three Nobel medicine prize winners
Shimon Sakaguchi, an immunologist and distinguished professor at Osaka University, attends a news conference after winning the 2025 Nobel Prize in medicine, in Osaka Prefecture on Monday.
Spanish tourist injured in latest bear attack
Shirakawago, a U.N. World Heritage site in Gifu Prefecture
Americans and Canadians unite in battling 'eating machine' carp
A Fisheries and Oceans Canada team patrols the Grand River in Dunnville, Ontario, in search of invasive grass carp specimens on Sept. 25.
Trump hails 'wisdom and strength' of Japan's incoming prime minister
Sanae Takaichi, the newly elected leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, gives a news conference after the LDP presidential election in Tokyo on Saturday.
Trump has his eyes on the prize — but a Nobel win looks unlikely
A protester holds a sign with an image depicting U.S. President Donald Trump and the words "Nobel" written on it, as supporters and family members of hostages who were kidnapped during the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Hamas, demonstrate to demand the immediate end of the war and the release of all hostages, outside the U.S. Consulate in Tel Aviv, on Sept. 2.
‘Takaichi trade’ stalls as political reality calls for wait-and-see approach
Tokyo stocks staged a powerful rally on Monday. On Tuesday, they rallied again, then retreated.
‘We have drawn lessons,’ Indian Army chief says of brief clash with Pakistan
Indian Army chief Upendra Dwivedi waves as he arrives to attend the ceremonial reception of Defense Minister Gen Nakatani in New Delhi in May.
How a family-run landscaper turned the Osaka Expo green
The team at Ryokukou Garden consists primarily of a single family, including Toshiki Tanisaki (second from right), who led the company's efforts at the Osaka Expo, Chikako Tanisaki (fifth from right), who performs daily maintanence at the expo, and Takeshi Tanisaki (fourth from right), who added a nursery to the family farm more than 50 years ago.
Eat your balloons: The culinary theater of Grant Achatz comes to Tokyo
Avant-garde chef Grant Achatz and his team from Alinea are in Tokyo for a three-week residency.

Podcast

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

Longform

Growing families are being priced out of Tokyo’s condo market, forced to choose between downtown convenience and suburban space.
Is living in central Tokyo still affordable?
By Alex K.T. Martin

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