What are Japanese kanji?

Japan’s annual kanji has been released. A lot of things have happened in Japan this year, and a new emperor has ascended the throne. In addition, the New Year's title has been changed to "He Ling". This is the first time that Japan has won the annual title without reference to Chinese classical literature. So what is Japan’s kanji of the year?

Japanese Kanji of the Year: Order

Use one word to make a "year-end summary", which represents all the world affairs and social feelings in the past year. This is not only the charm of Chinese characters, but also reflects the unique connotation and quality of Eastern Confucian culture. On the afternoon of December 12, local time in Japan, Japan’s annual Chinese character was announced at Kiyomizudera Temple in Kyoto. The character “Ling” in Japan’s new year’s name “Herei” became the Chinese character of the year that reflects the world’s feelings towards Japan.

It is reported that in the annual Japanese Chinese character online selection, the annual Chinese character "spirit" stood out from 210,000 votes. "Herei" is New Year's Day in Japan this year. In addition to the country's hope that Japan's new emperor will ascend the throne in 2019 and Japan enters a new generation, the word "Herei" also means obeying the law, warning of the law, and evacuation orders.

The voting numbers for the 1st to 10th Chinese characters of the year are: preface, new, harmony, change, disaster, haze, water, wind, sky, and tax.

"This Year's Kanji" is an event started in 1995 by the Japan Kanji Proficiency Test Association.

Aims to convey the profound charm of Chinese characters to the public. At the end of each year, representative Chinese characters that reflect the world that year are collected from all over the country. Then every year on December 12, at Kiyomizu-dera Temple in Kyoto, Mori Kiyo no Kanji master wrote down the winning kanji of that year.

This day was chosen because the Chinese pronunciation of "2" is, which means "1()2()1()" = ""

I hope that people will do it at least once a year Can remember one of those excellent Chinese characters. After publication, a ceremony will be held at Kiyomizudera Temple. Thus, all the events of this year will be settled, ushering in a bright new year.

Japan’s Kanji of the Year over the years

Year: Disaster

It’s really a bit heavy to see “disaster” selected as the Kanji of the Year for 18 years.

In 2016, Japan experienced earthquakes in Hokkaido, Osaka, Shimane and other places, was hit hard by heavy rains in western Japan, typhoons No. 21 and No. 24, and suffered record-breaking heat.

However, it is said that natural disasters on a scale greater than those in previous years occur frequently, and the livelihood of people in the disaster-stricken areas has been seriously affected. However, it is these disasters that have greatly enhanced the Japanese people's awareness of disaster prevention. In the face of disasters, they not only learned to save themselves, but also learned to help each other. The word "disaster" is not only a summary of what has happened, but also their wish to avoid disasters in the coming year.

In addition, many universities, including Tokyo Medical University, have been exposed to scandals of reducing the number of female students admitted by lowering the scores of female candidates. The Japanese sports world has also been exposed to negative news such as coaches' harassment of athletes, corporal punishment, and improper use of government funds.

Coupled with the theft of virtual currency at the beginning of the year, it was really a year of natural and man-made disasters.

Year: North

Many major events related to the word "North" occurred in this year.

First, the ballistic missile launched by North Korea passed over Hokkaido. For a time, the nationwide instant alarm system sounded, and a tense atmosphere filled Japan.

In addition, just like in 2018, many places in Japan were affected by disasters in 2017, with heavy rains in northern Kyushu and typhoons in Hokkaido affecting crops the most.

A potato harvest failure occurred in Hokkaido, resulting in the suspension of production of many types of potato chips on the market. Some people hoarded large quantities of potato chips, increased their prices, and sold them online.

2016: Gold

Gold here doesn’t just mean money. For Japan, which is about to usher in the 2016 Tokyo Olympics, the 2016 Rio Olympics is an exciting competition for them.

At this Olympics, Japanese athletes won 12 gold medals, and the total number of medals set a new record in the country's history. The audience and athletes on the current TV screen were moved again and again. Such results also gave them full confidence in the 2008 home game.

However, the topic of "gold" finally turned back to the eyes of money

Putting aside the issue of money, Trump showed off his blond hair in the US election that year, and with a photo PPAP and Taro, whose golden leopard prints are popular all over the world, are equally eye-catching and have always been a "gold" man.

2015: An

What is dramatic is that 2015 is also the 70th anniversary of Japan’s defeat, and the issue of future peace and stability is thought-provoking.

Safety issues do not only exist in Japan, but comedians are also needed to save the scene.

An Cun, who became famous for his joke "Don't worry, I have clothes to wear", makes people laugh easily in various disturbing incidents.

2014: Taxation

Japan’s consumption tax has risen to 10% since October this year. The last increase was in 2014.

Japan’s consumption tax first appeared in 1989, when it was only 3%.

The consumption tax was raised to 5% in 1997 and remained there for 17 years until it was adjusted to 8% in 2014.

The increase in consumption tax makes buying goods in large quantities before the increase becomes a social phenomenon.

Recent growth like this has put great pressure on the livelihood of the Japanese people.

2013: Round

Meng might as well guess what the word "circle" means first.

Smart children may have guessed it. Yes, they represent the "five rounds," aka the Olympics. This year, several happy events happened in Japan, and it can be said to be a year of great spring breeze.

Among them, the whole country was most excited about Tokyo’s successful bid for the Olympic Games in 2008. The Japanese believe that this "wheel" means circle and is also a symbol of neon gold's unity and cooperation.

In the same year, Mount Fuji was listed as a World Cultural Heritage, and the Japanese national team was also selected to qualify for the 2014 World Cup.

This is all inseparable from the spirit of unity.

The Japanese team’s cheering circle is also used as one of the elements of its uniform design.

At the same time, various places are making their own efforts to rebuild after the Great East Japan Earthquake, and people can see that this warm power is constantly being passed on.

2012: Gold

Well, this is not your cute vision.

Yes, just like in 2016, the character "金" has already been selected as the Chinese Character of the Year. However, there are still differences between the two.

On May 21, over Japan, after 932 years, the largest observable spectacle - the Golden Sun annular solar eclipse reappeared.

In June of the same year, the last transit of Venus in the 21st century occurred, and in August, an unprecedented transit of Venus occurred.

In the same year, Tokyo's landmark building, the world's tallest freestanding radio tower "Sky Tree", was built and opened to the public.

In addition, for his research on somatic cell reprogramming technology, Shinya Yamanaka, then a professor at Kyoto University, won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine that year, which was a lot of good news.

2011: Tripping

This year, Japan suffered the 311 Great East Japan Earthquake, causing heavy casualties. Looking around the world, many disasters have occurred, such as the earthquake in New Zealand and the floods in Thailand. However, these natural disasters also closely connect people's hearts and form a bond.

In the face of disaster, people realize the insignificance and fragility of life, so they cherish the people around them even more and spend every day without regrets.

Disasters also allow friendship to cross borders. Not only did Japan help the East Japan region recover from the disaster, overseas countries also extended a helping hand.

2010: Heatstroke

As the name suggests, that year, Japan suffered a heat wave that was rare in history, and many people died of heatstroke in various places. According to statistics, there are as many as 1,731 cases nationwide.

In order to beat the heat, citizens buy a large amount of fruits and vegetables, which also leads to a sharp increase in the price of fruits and vegetables, which directly affects the lives of consumers.

Not only that, the intense heat has also affected animals in fishing grounds and mountains. Due to the lack of bait, there are reports of wild animals coming down the mountain in search of food from time to time, which makes people panic.

However, there were also gratifying things that year. On June 13, the asteroid probe Hayabusa launched three years later than expected. While the main body burned in the atmosphere, the insulated capsule containing the samples separated from the main body and landed in the Australian outback.

This miracle of safe return from the high temperature of the atmosphere has brought great encouragement to the Japanese people.

2009: New

This year, many "new" events and changes occurred in Japan.

Secondly, in 2009, the retired Ichiro Suzuki player set the first record in the history of the major leagues with 200 hits for 9 consecutive years.

In the same year, the H1N1 influenza broke out globally, and Japan also entered a state of high alert, launching a series of response measures and following up on the research and development of new drugs. It can be said that this year is a year when new things make Japan both look forward to and fearful.

It is reported that in order to strengthen the national recognition and grasp of traditional culture, Japan began to launch annual Chinese characters in 1995 to show the influence of major events that year. December 12th every year is "Chinese Character Day". On this day, at Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto, the abbot of Kiyomizu Temple personally wrote a large piece of paper, 1.5 meters high and 1.3 meters wide, and enshrined it in front of the Thousand-Armed Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva in the temple and displayed it in the temple for one year.

In 1995, the Great Hanshin Earthquake caused tens of thousands of casualties and was Japan's largest post-war disaster. "Earthquake" became the country's first "Chinese Character of the Year." Since then, Japan has selected the annual kanji every year to summarize the social conditions of that year. The Chinese character for Japan's era name in 2000 is "北", reflecting the Japanese people's concerns about the potato shortage in Hokkaido and the heavy rains in northern Kyushu.

In addition, Malaysia is a country with a strong Chinese cultural tradition. Since 2011, Malaysia has also had an annual Chinese character selection. The word "Zhuan" selected that year expresses Malaysians' experience of the global climate, international situation, national politics, economy, culture and education, people's ideological life, and their ideals for the future.

Recently, the results of the Malaysian Chinese Character of the Year selection were released, and the word "Zhao" was far ahead, and finally stood out as the Chinese Character of the Year. In this regard, Datuk Goh Heng Chan, chairman of the Malaysian Chinese Cultural Center and chairman of the Chinese Character Working Committee, said that the annual Chinese character is a disease summed up by all citizens after diagnosing the country's pulse. He believes that the word "deception" seems negative, but it also has a positive meaning. Wouldn’t it be a good thing to discover your problems earlier?