The crime drama Tokyo Vice, starring Ansel Elgort and Watanabe Ken, has won rave reviews for its gripping portrayal of the Japanese criminal underworld. The second season of the series is out, and...

International streaming hits Shōgun and House of Ninjas both feature Japanese actors who are also involved behind the camera. Sanada Hiroyuki and Kaku Kento have shown a determination to present a...

Figure skater Hanyū Yuzuru, who announced his intention to turn pro at a press conference in July, put on his first self-produced ice show in November and December last year. The program was filled...

An increase of 4,000 meant that the number of centenarians in Japan topped 90,000 for the first time as of September 2022.

Figure skater Hanyū Yuzuru, who announced his intention to turn pro at a press conference in July, put on his first self-produced ice show in November and December last year. The program was filled...

An increase of 4,000 meant that the number of centenarians in Japan topped 90,000 for the first time as of September 2022.

Fictional portrayals of author Murasaki Shikibu and statesman Fujiwara no Michinaga often depict the two as intimates or even lovers. A new book seeks out the truth about these major historical...

Far from the madding tourist crowds, the little-known city of Kōchi is the birthplace of the samurai and politician Sakamoto Ryōma and the botanist Makino Tomitarō. Blessed with beautiful landscapes,...

Hashimuki Makoto’s followers are constantly commenting: “I’ve never seen Mount Fuji like this before.” This young photographer uses social media to communicate the appeal of this sacred peak to the...

Today the automotive sector’s attention is focused on electrification, but in the 1990s, the Japanese market saw a golden age of nimble and powerful gasoline-powered sports cars. These gained global...

Tokyo is among the first areas expected to see cherry blossoms in late March.

It is a popular sweet in winter, but Japanese people cannot agree on what to call it.

Japan’s ninja are famed for their covert activities over centuries of power struggles in the country, and were highly prized by Tokugawa Ieyasu. Professor Yamada Yūji of Mie University, who has been...

The JR Chūō Line bisects the Yamanote loop around central Tokyo and heads west from Shinjuku. The stops along its length offer unique charm and shopping, dining, and other attractions making them...

A list of 100 castles compiled by the Japan Castle Foundation highlights the country’s most culturally and historically significant fortresses.

The beauty of Mount Yoshino’s cherry blossoms leaves haiku poet Teishitsu speechless.

These Japanese proverbs encourage persevering, avoiding haste, or accepting one’s lot when there’s no way to change it.

A list of 100 castles compiled by the Japan Castle Foundation highlights the country’s most culturally and historically significant fortresses.

Japan’s television stations produce many live-action dramas, but very few are exported overseas, whether for unadapted rebroadcast or remake purposes. Among the issues are short seasons and low...

SL Hitoyoshi made its last journey in 2024.

Japan’s taiga drama are epic television series that put the spotlight on the country’s historical figures.

Traditional events observed in April include kanbutsue marking the birth of the Gautama Buddha, enjoying colorful and fragrant wisteria blossoms, and savoring the first bonito of the season.

A Ural owl at Obihiro Zoo in Hokkaidō caused a stir on social media when staff shared a video of the bird bump…

A list of 100 castles compiled by the Japan Castle Foundation highlights the country’s most culturally and historically significant fortresses.

International streaming hits Shōgun and House of Ninjas both feature Japanese actors who are also involved behind the camera. Sanada Hiroyuki and Kaku Kento have shown a determination to present a...

The Tokyo gubernatorial election will take place in July 2024, while Prime Minister Kishida Fumio’s term as Liberal Democratic Party leader is set to expire in October. Meanwhile, cultural icon Hello...

Japan’s ninja are famed for their covert activities over centuries of power struggles in the country, and were highly prized by Tokugawa Ieyasu. Professor Yamada Yūji of Mie University, who has been...

A decade on from 3/11, we review data on recovery work along the Sanriku Coast and other parts of the Tōhoku region and the lingering effects of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster.

Figure skater Hanyū Yuzuru, who announced his intention to turn pro at a press conference in July, put on his first self-produced ice show in November and December last year. The program was filled...

The 2024 Major League Baseball season will feature 11 Japanese players, including star Ohtani Shōhei along with newcomers Yamamoto Yoshinobu and Imanaga Shōta. The season marks 60 years since the...

Tenryūji, a famed Buddhist temple in Kyoto’s western Arashiyama district, is wildly popular with visitors for its elegant structures and gorgeous garden views.

The statue of Hachikō outside Shibuya Station in Tokyo remembers Japan’s most famous dog, renowned for his exceptional loyalty in waiting faithfully for his dead master to return for almost a decade....

Amid a labor shortage in Japan, the number of foreign workers rose above 2 million for the first time in 2023.

The myriad of Japanese kami run the gamut from heavenly and earthly deities of myth and legend to deified historical figures. An expert on mythology introduces the different types of gods that make...

In June 2023, Casio’s celebrated G-Shock watch obtained a rare trademark based on its form alone. With this, the watch line capped its four decades of popularity to date with recognition of its...

In June 2023, Casio’s celebrated G-Shock watch obtained a rare trademark based on its form alone. With this, the watch line capped its four decades of popularity to date with recognition of its...

Hashimuki Makoto’s followers are constantly commenting: “I’ve never seen Mount Fuji like this before.” This young photographer uses social media to communicate the appeal of this sacred peak to the...

The director Kitano Takeshi’s 2023 film Kubi, his nineteenth outing and his first in six years, features a star-studded cast and bold, often violent explorations of the political machinations of...

A familiar figure to visitors to Japanese shrines and temples, the long-nosed tengu is a supernatural being that inhabits mountainous areas. Tengu have wings that allow them to fly like birds, as...

In the Year of the Dragon, we introduce six Japanese shrines dedicated to the legendary creatures.

Japanese family crests known as kamon were first used by the aristocracy over a thousand years ago, but over time they were adopted by samurai, merchants, and many others. Today, there are thought to...

A soccer league in Tokyo for players aged over 80 draws senior footballers who, far from being ready to hang up their cleats, are looking to improve their skills as they continue their long sporting...

Hashimuki Makoto’s followers are constantly commenting: “I’ve never seen Mount Fuji like this before.” This young photographer uses social media to communicate the appeal of this sacred peak to the...

Seppuku is famous as a form of suicide by which samurai took responsibility and showed their sincerity. However, the reality did not generally match up to the legend, as seppuku changed in character,...

Japan is surrounded by sea, and more than 100 types of edible seaweed, including nori, wakame, and konbu, can be harvested along its coast. Tasty and reputed for supporting good health, seaweed has...

Alison Watts was selected as the first winner of the Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation Translation Prize for her translation of Hase Seishū’s The Boy and the Dog.

The original Shinkansen linked Tokyo and Osaka in 1964, and since then the network has grown to span Japan from Kyūshū to Hokkaidō, with its trains moving at ever-increasing speeds.

Japan’s television stations produce many live-action dramas, but very few are exported overseas, whether for unadapted rebroadcast or remake purposes. Among the issues are short seasons and low...

Japan’s traditional units of measurement for length and weight include the monme (3.75 grams), which has become an internationally recognized standard for weighing pearls.

A Japanese survey found that Yamagata was the major city with the highest annual spending per household on ramen, while Hamamatsu came top for gyōza.

A look at some of the major Japanese figures from literature, music, and other fields who passed away in 2023.

Japan invested ¥3.9 trillion in support for its semiconductor industry from fiscal 2021 to 2023, which is a greater proportion of its GDP than the United States or Germany.

A long-standing shop in the prefectural capital of Fukushima has been serving up its disk-shaped gyōza to hungry patrons for 70 years. A local group is trying to put the local specialty on the foodie...

Japan has the third highest solar capacity in the world behind China and the United States, but its formerly rapid growth has slowed considerably.

Japanese scientists Miyashita Hōmei and Nakamura Hiromi won the Ig Nobel Nutrition Prize for experiments including on how electrified chopsticks can make food taste salty. They believe related...

Water outages topped the list in a Japanese survey of worries in the event of disaster, but nearly half of respondents had not even prepared one day’s supply for emergency purposes.

The celebrated salaryman Shima Kōsaku made his appearance in 1983. Since then, the manga series that bears his name has charted the course of Japan’s business world, economy, and society for more...

Japan’s Mazda was once the world’s only automaker to use Wankel rotary engine tech in its cars. In late 2023 it released its first model in more than a decade to run on a rotary engine. Why the focus...

A competition for the title of best railway bentō crowned a boxed lunch by Hanazen of Akita Prefecture as king of ekiben.

A leading expert in the history of popular music sheds light on the achievement of postwar “Boogie Queen” Kasagi Shizuko and her regular collaborator Hattori Ryōichi, who infused an American musical...

TSMC and other Taiwanese chip makers are investing heavily in Japanese production bases in a strategy that dovetails neatly with Japan’s own ambitions for a semiconductor renaissance. The author...

The beauty of Mount Yoshino’s cherry blossoms leaves haiku poet Teishitsu speechless.

Japan’s satoyama are rural spaces where nature and people have traditionally coexisted through sustainable management of rice fields, ponds, mountains, woods, and meadows. Nature photographer...

Seen in formal situations like Buddhist prayer services or the tea ceremony, the traditional seiza way of sitting can be quite demanding. Here we introduce its history and related etiquette, as well...

Japan was tenth worldwide for total beer consumption in 2022, but considerably lower in drinking per capita.

Japan has partially lifted its ban on ride sharing, with services becoming available in parts of Tokyo, Kyoto, Kanagawa, and Aichi Prefectures.

Traditional events observed in May include a seasonal festival celebrating children, the opening of the leisure cruises on Tokyo’s Sumida River, and fireworks displays.

In the Year of the Dragon, we introduce six Japanese shrines dedicated to the legendary creatures.

A new set of Japanese banknotes featuring famous Japanese people and national icons will go into circulation from July 2024.

Kikuchi Kazuko’s distinctive approach to gymnastics rejects the idea of working hard to build muscle. Built on a close awareness of our own bodies, Kikuchi teaches a gentler way of remaining fit and...

Curry is a popular dish in Japan, made even more convenient when packaged in retort pouches that can easily be heated up in hot water.

Where did kami come from? Does it matter which god you pray to? What unusual shrines are there? Kokugakuin University Professor Hirafuji Kikuko answers our questions about Japanese gods.

Even in Japan, a country with more than 90,000 centenarians, the unflagging energy of 91-year-old food historian and longevity guru Nagayama Hisao has captivated the media. The ebullient super-ager—a...

Japanese scientists Miyashita Hōmei and Nakamura Hiromi won the Ig Nobel Nutrition Prize for experiments including on how electrified chopsticks can make food taste salty. They believe related...

There are many colorful, memorable Japanese proverbs and idioms connected with parts of the body, from head to feet.

Seven-Eleven opened its first store in Japan 50 years ago in 1974. It now has more than 20,000 outlets across the country.

There are many colorful, memorable Japanese proverbs and idioms connected with parts of the body, from head to feet.

A long-standing shop in the prefectural capital of Fukushima has been serving up its disk-shaped gyōza to hungry patrons for 70 years. A local group is trying to put the local specialty on the foodie...

In a survey, more than half of single Japanese men and women aged 18 to 29 said that they did not want to have children.

The 2020 BBC 100 Women list, introducing influential and inspiring women around the world, featured just one Japanese woman: Imada Miho, the owner and head brewer of the Imada Shuzō Honten sake...

Japanese family crests known as kamon were first used by the aristocracy over a thousand years ago, but over time they were adopted by samurai, merchants, and many others. Today, there are thought to...

Japanese family crests known as kamon were first used by the aristocracy over a thousand years ago, but over time they were adopted by samurai, merchants, and many others. Today, there are thought to...

Seppuku is famous as a form of suicide by which samurai took responsibility and showed their sincerity. However, the reality did not generally match up to the legend, as seppuku changed in character,...

Japanese family crests known as kamon were first used by the aristocracy over a thousand years ago, but over time they were adopted by samurai, merchants, and many others. Today, there are thought to...

A new set of Japanese banknotes featuring famous Japanese people and national icons will go into circulation from July 2024.

Ramen has come to be one of Japan’s top national cuisines, and has been evolving constantly in the process of becoming a global dish. Manga exploring these noodles and the culture around them shed...

Japan is currently suffering its worst avian influenza outbreak on record. As of January 10, more than 10 million birds have been culled, over 90% of which were egg-laying hens, leading to a spike in...

A US magazine specializing in Japanese gardens has selected the garden at the Adachi Museum of Art as its top choice for the twentieth straight year.

Where did kami come from? Does it matter which god you pray to? What unusual shrines are there? Kokugakuin University Professor Hirafuji Kikuko answers our questions about Japanese gods.

One of Japan’s leading experts on the Beatles takes us on a guided trip through John Lennon’s life after leaving the group, his links to Japan, and the perhaps surprising influence of Zen and haiku...