TCJ Blog

Matsuri (Japanese festivals) take place throughout Japan all year round. During festival seasons, towns are filled with the sounds of taiko drums and flutes as people gather in a joyful atmosphere. Matsuri have a long history and deep cultural meaning, and this article explores Japanese festival culture.

Dogs bark with a “wan-wan,” and rain falls with a “shito-shito” sound. Japanese is a language where onomatopoeia is highly developed. We often add nouns or verbs to these onomatopoeic words, creating expressions rich in imagery and meaning. Today, we introduce some of these interesting Japanese words.

When Japanese hear the word “flower,” they think of cherry blossoms (Sakura) immediately. Why do Japanese love Sakura so much? This time, I would like to introduce you to the symbol of Japan, Sakura, and the Japanese words related to it.

Do you think Japan is a great sports country? Students of Japanese often tell me that “Japanese people all like baseball”. It is true that baseball has long been considered Japan’s national sport, but not everyone is interested in baseball. In addition to baseball and soccer, other popular sports include marathons, including ekiden (relay races), basketball, figure skating, and rugby, which is attracting attention for the 2019 World Cup. So what sports are popular in Japan? We will also introduce some sports that originated in Japan.

In Japan, as in many other countries, cities are illuminated with Christmas lights and filled with festive music during the winter season. However, rather than being observed as a Christian holiday, Christmas in Japan is primarily enjoyed as a seasonal event. In this article, we explore how Christmas is celebrated in Japan and what makes it unique in Japanese culture.