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October 26, 2025
 

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NAMES

Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Jul 31, 2019
Passports, maiden names, brackets: Japan Foreign Minister Taro Kono wades into a minefield
When Foreign Minister Taro Kono wrote on Twitter that he would order his ministry to look into the contentious issue of maiden names on passports in response to a tweet in early June, he may not have been aware of the minefield he was about to step into.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Jul 31, 2019
Women in male-dominated Japan fight for their identity — starting with their names
The nation's women are going through an identity crisis.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
May 31, 2019
Moves are afoot to push media to switch Japanese name order in English, but will it work?
Some laugh it off as a First World problem. But others say the topic touches upon issues of identity, sovereignty and press freedom.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 25, 2019
Cybozu chief Yoshihisa Aono loses lawsuit at Tokyo court over right to use premarital name
A Tokyo court on Monday upheld a national law that forces couples to use the same surname upon marriage, rejecting claims over its unconstitutionality.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Sep 3, 2018
Getting to know Japan on a first-name basis
What's in a first name? In Japan, you'll find insights into societal change.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Aug 13, 2018
Japanese surnames: Among the usual suspects, you're bound to find some curveballs
How many Japanese surnames are there anyway? It's a tricky question, because the total depends on how you decide to count them.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 15, 2015
Most common name for company chiefs in Japan is Makoto Sato: survey
If your name happens to be Makoto Sato, the chances of you rising through the corporate ranks all the way to the top are probably higher than others.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Jul 29, 2013
Prove you're Japanese: when being bicultural can be a burden
Japanese are Japanese and foreigners are foreigners, and never the twain shall meet? In many aspects of daily life in this country, there is one way for the Japanese and another for the rest of us. Like it or not, that's just how it is. At least foreigners know where we stand.
SPORTS / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Mar 3, 2013
Many stories behind names for foreign players in Japan
While Japan and the rest of the baseball universe are deep in the World Baseball Classic fever, the conventional major league and Japanese teams are going about their business getting ready for their respective April 1 and March 29 opening days.
LIFE
Oct 11, 2009
Fake names were to the fore in many a rise from humblest to highest
Here's a beguiling irony: Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536-98), architect of Tokugawa Japan's rigid class structure and the author, in 1587, of a firm ban (not firmly enforced) on surnames for commoners, was himself born without a surname.
Japan Times
JAPAN / IN WITH THE NEW
Jun 5, 2003
Seiko Noda now a force in her own right — and name
Seiko Noda, a Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker in the House of Representatives, wrote in her elementary school composition class that her dream was to become a politician -- and ultimately prime minister.
Bear kills another person in Japan in record year for fatal attacks
Police investigate at the scene of a bear attack that killed one person and injured three others on Friday in the village of Higashinaruse in Akita Prefecture.
Tokyo launches English-language international school database
A screenshot of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's international schools portal site
New ‘immigration minister’ post signals Takaichi Cabinet’s priorities
Kimi Onoda, economic security minister and minister for harmonious coexistence with foreign nationals, arrives at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Takaichi focuses on economic and security concerns in first policy speech
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi delivers her first policy speech in the Lower House in Tokyo on Friday.
New tourism minister calls concentration of tourists in certain areas 'very serious'
Tourism minister Yasushi Kaneko holds a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Stars align for Kim-Trump meeting — but any talks will be on N.K. leader’s terms
A South Korean soldier stands next to a TV broadcasting a news report about a possible summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump, at the main railway station in Seoul on Wednesday.
New ‘immigration minister’ post signals Takaichi Cabinet’s priorities
Kimi Onoda, economic security minister and minister for harmonious coexistence with foreign nationals, arrives at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Number of suicide cases among students in Japan hits record high in 2024
The health ministry's Suicide White Paper for 2024 has found that numbers for both men and women peak at age 21, with “concerns over future career paths” being identified as the most likely cause.
The newly formed LDP-JIP coalition may not be as solid as it seems
Ruling Liberal Democratic Party President Sanae Takaichi and Japan Innovation Party leader Hirofumi Yoshimura sign a policy agreement between the two parties at the Diet in Tokyo on Monday.

Podcast

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

Longform

The byzantine process for converting a foreign driver’s license into a Japanese one entails mountains of paperwork and significant stamina — unless you're a lucky license holder from a country or region where these requirements are waived.
Driving in Japan isn’t hard. Getting the license is.
By Thu-Huong Ha and Mike Fu

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

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