Among the words written in the above picture, "nemowashi", "emoji", "tsundoku", "mikan" ... which of the words in Japanese can be used overseas as it is?

In addition to the increase in the number of foreigners visiting Japan, due to the Japanese food boom and pop culture worldwide, many Japanese are now used as "common language" in the world. Japanese unique ideas and methods are evaluated as "Cool!"

So, this time, we will also have a conversation with foreigners. The answer of the opening quiz is after this!

About 500 Japanese words are included in the Oxford English Dictionary, which is considered to be the most prestigious in the world. Words ranging from traditional culture to food, lifestyle and business are listed in the dictionary as "English words".

So, when did Japanese come into English?

The history of Japanese being "exported" to Western Europe is surprisingly old and dates back to the middle of the 16th century. First of all, it was said that some Japanese were transmitted to European countries mainly by Christian missionaries, and since the beginning of the 17th century when Japan was isolated, Dutch merchants who were only allowed to trade in Europe. .

そのころ英語に取り入れられたのは、“bonze（坊主）”、“inro（印籠）”、“shogun（将軍）”、“tatami（畳）”、“samurai（侍）”、“zazen（座禅）”などごくわずか。

However, it was amazing that there were foreigners who knew the word “inro” on the other side of the sea when “Mr. Omon” was active.

Then, when the era of "shogun" ended, exchanges with foreign countries became popular after the opening of the country, and at the same time Japanese culture, food, etc. were communicated, many Japanese were being translated into English.

Especially interesting is "satsuma (Satsuma)". In English, it means the name of a certain food. Which of the following do you think?

(1) Sweet potato
(2) Black pig
(3) Wenzhou orange

正解は……？

It is "Wenzhou orange"! Now, Ehime and Wakayama come to mind when it comes to the production areas of Wenzhou oranges, but why is “satsuma”? I think (For the mystery of Wenzhou orange, Here Check out the articles! ).

Wenzhou mandarin was originally thought to be born in Kagoshima, and “after Seri-British, I sent a seedling from Satsuma to England as a sign of reconciliation,” or “When an American senior official visited Satsuma, Japan's I was impressed by the deliciousness and brought back the saplings, etc., etc. The pattern seems to have various origins.

今でもアメリカのアラバマ州やフロリダ州など温州みかんを栽培している地域には、“Satsuma”という地名が残っているんです。

Besides the words listed in the dictionary, there are also many Japanese languages that are now universal languages. Yes, it is a word about Japanese pop culture represented by manga, anime and fashion.

“manga（マンガ）”や“anime（アニメ）”はもちろん、“kawaii（カワイイ）”、“otaku（オタク）”、“cosplay（コスプレ）”、“emoji（絵文字）”などの言葉は、日本語のままで通じます。

It is not only in English-speaking countries that Japanese speaking “Mamama” is increasing.

中国では「宅（オタク）」「萌（萌え）」「現充（リア充）」「弾幕（動画サイトで流れてくるコメントのこと）」などの言葉が、若者を中心に普及しているそう。発音は違っても、漢字を見れば共通認識が持てるのが面白いですね。

In addition, in China, in recent years, the word "sorted ticket" or "good bag" has come to be used as a word.

In a word that was not originally in China, "sorted tickets" were spread from Japanese pop culture related event venues and were introduced in various places. And.

また、ネットショッピングが盛んな中国では、正月・旧正月などに限らずさまざまなオンラインショップでセールが行われます。その際、福袋が販売されたり、個人間でもフリマアプリで文房具などを詰めた福袋を売買するなど、日常的に楽しまれているようです。

As you can see in the case of China, there are quite a few cases where Japanese language has spread overseas along with its customs and systems.

たとえば、“KOBAN（交番）”。かつて「世界一治安が悪い」ともいわれたブラジルのとある町、日本の交番制度を取り入れたことで安全な町になったとか！これを参考に、今ではホンジュラスやエルサルバドルなど近隣諸国にも“KOBAN”の普及が進んでいるそう。

Even in business terms, “kaizen (improvement activities)” and “Kanban (Kanban method)”, which symbolize a Japanese-style business management system, have long been established.

In recent years, the word "nemawashi" (necessary), which is indispensable for doing business in Japan, seems to be spreading among overseas business people who have dealings with Japanese companies in particular.

また、日本人の精神や考え方を表す言葉もどんどん世界へ広まっています。

A typical example is "mottainai".

It was widely disseminated by Kenyan environmentalist activist Wangari Martai, who used the Nobel Peace Prize for peace to make this word a universal language representing the concept of "don't throw things away and cherish them."

ほかにも、“omtenashi（おもてなし）”や、「和を保つ」という時の“wa（和）”、さらには、飲食店のコースメニューなどによくある“omakase（おまかせ）”や買った本を読まずに積んでおく“tsundoku（積読）”など、私たちが普段なにげなく使っている言葉も、英語にはない概念として、じわじわと広がっています。

further! A "new language" has also been born that originates from Japanese.

For example, "kondo" is one of them. Do you understand this meaning ......?

"Kondo" means "make up". It seems like a totally irrelevant word, but here's the pin! If you came, I like the order.

The origin is Mariko Kondo, a cleaning up consultant. Because the method of how to get rid of Mr. Kondo's proposal in the world, including the United States and the United Kingdom, has aroused a repercussion, it is an English word that leads to “ま”. This may not be the case that many Japanese people do not know either.

If you look for a Japanese language that leads to "manma" overseas, you will see the goodness of Nippon that you have not noticed before. I would like to meet the increasing number of customers from overseas with the heart of "omotenashi".

* 1 Reference: "Rethinking Japanese-born English vocabulary" Sakae Owada Tokyo Bulletin of Seitoku University-Faculty of Humanities and Applied Psychology-No. 24 (2017)

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