An emoji used to say it all. Now it might say too much.
Before 絵文字 and 顔文字 (kaomoji, emoticons) — the little faces we create with コロン (koron, colons), 括弧 (kakko, parentheses) and other such punctuation ;) — became ubiquitous in our communications, you always ran the risk that the person you were sending a text or email to wouldn't know if you were joking, sympathizing or celebrating the message you were trying to convey. 絵文字 and 顔文字 have been incredibly helpful in this regard.
So that's why July 17 has been dubbed 世界絵文字デー (Sekai Emoji Dē, World Emoji Day) by Emojipedia, a day to honor this graphic evolution in the way we communicate. Why July 17? Well, Emojipedia founder Jeremy Burge picked the date displayed on the 絵文字 representing a カレンダー (karendā, calendar).
The reason July 17 is the date on the カレンダーの絵文字 (karendā no emoji, calendar emoji) is because that's the date Apple initially announced its iCal, a predecessor to the Calendar app many of us use today. The first widely recognized set of 176 emojis was released not by Apple but by Japanese mobile phone operator NTT Docomo 26 years ago. The 12×12 pixel ドコモ絵文字 (Dokomo emoji, Docomo emoji) encouraged users to insert colorful pictograms into their emails as a way to replace entire words and add nuance at the 文末 (bunmatsu, end of a sentence).
British linguistics professor Vyvyan Evans said in a 2015 interview with the BBC that 絵文字はその驚異的な普及率と進化の速度 から、歴史上最も急速に広がった言語形態だ (Emoji wa sono kyōi-tekina fukyū ritsu to shinka no sokudo kara, rekishijō mottomo kyūsoku ni hirogatta gengo keitai da, Emoji is the fastest growing form of language in history based on its incredible adoption rate and speed of evolution). Here we are 10 years later with hundreds of ways to express ourselves.
However, while Japanese in their 30s and 40s still sprinkle 絵文字 into their messages, the style is now considered おばさん構文 (obasan kōbun, middle-aged women's style texting). This change in digital etiquette mimics other trends such as how 句点 (kuten, periods) can be seen as rude among young Japanese professionals and how a thumbs-up emoji can offend Gen Z texters overseas. Likewise, the custom of putting an emoji at the end of your Japanese texts is starting to fade.
Last April, a woman in her 30s shared a surprising experience related to 絵文字 and スタンプ (sutanpu, digital stickers) on the messaging app Line. She texted to celebrate her niece's スマホデビュー (sumaho debyū, smartphone debut) with a smiley 顔文字 and two red heart stickers. The response from her niece? 「落ち着いて 」 (ochitsuite, calm down) — with no 句点, emojis or stickers.
For digital native young people who constantly chat online, texts overloaded with 絵文字 can feel a bit over the top.
That being said, 絵文字は今や文章に遊び心を足すだけにとどまらず、返信代わりの手段としても使われています (Emoji wa ima ya bunshō ni asobigokoro o tasu dake ni todomarazu, henshin-gawari no shudan to shitemo tsukawarete-imasu, Emojis are now used not only to add humor to text but also as a substitute for replies).
In the above sentence, the structure ～にとどまらず (~ni todomarazu, not limited to~ but also) is used to imply the role of 絵文字 goes beyond adding personality to messages. It is derived from the negative form of the verb 留まる (tomaru/todomaru), which translates as to stop, to stay and not to exceed a boundary, as in 滞在先に留まる (taizai-saki ni todomaru, to stay at [one's] accommodation).
As an elder Millennial, I grew up meticulously decorating my email texts with pictures, but 絵文字 have since evolved from cute extras to communication essentials. In May, Line unlocked options for リアクション機能 (riakushon kinō, reaction features). This raised the number of choices there from six to more than 240,000, including both official and paid クリエイターズ絵文字 (kurieitāzu emoji, creator emoji) that are made by individuals and approved by LINE.
This リアクション機能 function is used 25 million times a day in Japan alone, with half of those users hitting the いいね (ii ne, like) option before the change. It's no wonder that いいね has now become a verb in Japanese: いいねする (ii ne suru, to give a like). Using an 絵文字 to react to something on most apps no longer results in a 通知 (tsūchi, notification) to the receiver, which is convenient when having a グループトーク (gurūpu tōku, group talk) with multiple members. However, if you're in a thread with only one other person, your friend may think, いいねだけでなく返信があればいいのに (Ii ne dake de naku henshin ga areba ii noni, It would be better to have a reply, not just a like).
The formal compound particle ～だけでなく (~dake de naku, not only~) works similarly to ～にとどまらず in this example. Just note that it often becomes ～だけじゃなく (~dake janaku) in everyday conversation.
For example, a couple of years ago, a now-deleted Reddit post drew mixed reactions by stating: 皆いいねだけじゃなくて他の絵文字も使うとか、「素晴らしい！」って返信すればいいのに (Minna ii ne dake janakute hoka no emoji mo tsukau toka, subarashii-tte henshin sureba ii noni, It'd be better if everyone didn't just hit like, but used different emojis or replied with 'Great!'). In this case, ～だけじゃなく is joined later in the sentence by the particle も (mo), too/also) to create the 'not only ... but also' structure.
According to Emojipedia, last year's three most-used 絵文字 were 嬉し泣きの顔 (ureshi naki no kao, face with tears of joy) — the Oxford Word of the Year 2015, 赤いハート (akai hāto, red heart) and 目がハートの顔 (me ga hāto no kao, face with heart eyes). This ranking reflects Japanese usage, too, however it's worth noting that the ぴえん (pien, pleading face emoji with big puppy dog eyes) is also quite popular in Japan. ぴえんは悲しい気分だけでなく感激の意味でも使われます (Pien wa kanashii kibun dake de naku kangeki no imi demo tsukawaremasu, The pleading face emoji is used not only to express sadness but also a sense of being deeply touched).
So make sure to give a thought to those little pictures on your phone this 世界絵文字デー, there's so much more available than just the いいねの絵文字 (ii ne no emoji, thumbs up emoji).
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Japan Times
11-07-2025
- Japan Times
An emoji used to say it all. Now it might say too much.
Can't find the right way to express nuance in a text? Then add on an 絵文字 (emoji). Before 絵文字 and 顔文字 (kaomoji, emoticons) — the little faces we create with コロン (koron, colons), 括弧 (kakko, parentheses) and other such punctuation ;) — became ubiquitous in our communications, you always ran the risk that the person you were sending a text or email to wouldn't know if you were joking, sympathizing or celebrating the message you were trying to convey. 絵文字 and 顔文字 have been incredibly helpful in this regard. So that's why July 17 has been dubbed 世界絵文字デー (Sekai Emoji Dē, World Emoji Day) by Emojipedia, a day to honor this graphic evolution in the way we communicate. Why July 17? Well, Emojipedia founder Jeremy Burge picked the date displayed on the 絵文字 representing a カレンダー (karendā, calendar). The reason July 17 is the date on the カレンダーの絵文字 (karendā no emoji, calendar emoji) is because that's the date Apple initially announced its iCal, a predecessor to the Calendar app many of us use today. The first widely recognized set of 176 emojis was released not by Apple but by Japanese mobile phone operator NTT Docomo 26 years ago. The 12×12 pixel ドコモ絵文字 (Dokomo emoji, Docomo emoji) encouraged users to insert colorful pictograms into their emails as a way to replace entire words and add nuance at the 文末 (bunmatsu, end of a sentence). British linguistics professor Vyvyan Evans said in a 2015 interview with the BBC that 絵文字はその驚異的な普及率と進化の速度 から、歴史上最も急速に広がった言語形態だ (Emoji wa sono kyōi-tekina fukyū ritsu to shinka no sokudo kara, rekishijō mottomo kyūsoku ni hirogatta gengo keitai da, Emoji is the fastest growing form of language in history based on its incredible adoption rate and speed of evolution). Here we are 10 years later with hundreds of ways to express ourselves. However, while Japanese in their 30s and 40s still sprinkle 絵文字 into their messages, the style is now considered おばさん構文 (obasan kōbun, middle-aged women's style texting). This change in digital etiquette mimics other trends such as how 句点 (kuten, periods) can be seen as rude among young Japanese professionals and how a thumbs-up emoji can offend Gen Z texters overseas. Likewise, the custom of putting an emoji at the end of your Japanese texts is starting to fade. Last April, a woman in her 30s shared a surprising experience related to 絵文字 and スタンプ (sutanpu, digital stickers) on the messaging app Line. She texted to celebrate her niece's スマホデビュー (sumaho debyū, smartphone debut) with a smiley 顔文字 and two red heart stickers. The response from her niece? 「落ち着いて 」 (ochitsuite, calm down) — with no 句点, emojis or stickers. For digital native young people who constantly chat online, texts overloaded with 絵文字 can feel a bit over the top. That being said, 絵文字は今や文章に遊び心を足すだけにとどまらず、返信代わりの手段としても使われています (Emoji wa ima ya bunshō ni asobigokoro o tasu dake ni todomarazu, henshin-gawari no shudan to shitemo tsukawarete-imasu, Emojis are now used not only to add humor to text but also as a substitute for replies). In the above sentence, the structure ～にとどまらず (~ni todomarazu, not limited to~ but also) is used to imply the role of 絵文字 goes beyond adding personality to messages. It is derived from the negative form of the verb 留まる (tomaru/todomaru), which translates as to stop, to stay and not to exceed a boundary, as in 滞在先に留まる (taizai-saki ni todomaru, to stay at [one's] accommodation). As an elder Millennial, I grew up meticulously decorating my email texts with pictures, but 絵文字 have since evolved from cute extras to communication essentials. In May, Line unlocked options for リアクション機能 (riakushon kinō, reaction features). This raised the number of choices there from six to more than 240,000, including both official and paid クリエイターズ絵文字 (kurieitāzu emoji, creator emoji) that are made by individuals and approved by LINE. This リアクション機能 function is used 25 million times a day in Japan alone, with half of those users hitting the いいね (ii ne, like) option before the change. It's no wonder that いいね has now become a verb in Japanese: いいねする (ii ne suru, to give a like). Using an 絵文字 to react to something on most apps no longer results in a 通知 (tsūchi, notification) to the receiver, which is convenient when having a グループトーク (gurūpu tōku, group talk) with multiple members. However, if you're in a thread with only one other person, your friend may think, いいねだけでなく返信があればいいのに (Ii ne dake de naku henshin ga areba ii noni, It would be better to have a reply, not just a like). The formal compound particle ～だけでなく (~dake de naku, not only~) works similarly to ～にとどまらず in this example. Just note that it often becomes ～だけじゃなく (~dake janaku) in everyday conversation. For example, a couple of years ago, a now-deleted Reddit post drew mixed reactions by stating: 皆いいねだけじゃなくて他の絵文字も使うとか、「素晴らしい！」って返信すればいいのに (Minna ii ne dake janakute hoka no emoji mo tsukau toka, subarashii-tte henshin sureba ii noni, It'd be better if everyone didn't just hit like, but used different emojis or replied with 'Great!'). In this case, ～だけじゃなく is joined later in the sentence by the particle も (mo), too/also) to create the 'not only ... but also' structure. According to Emojipedia, last year's three most-used 絵文字 were 嬉し泣きの顔 (ureshi naki no kao, face with tears of joy) — the Oxford Word of the Year 2015, 赤いハート (akai hāto, red heart) and 目がハートの顔 (me ga hāto no kao, face with heart eyes). This ranking reflects Japanese usage, too, however it's worth noting that the ぴえん (pien, pleading face emoji with big puppy dog eyes) is also quite popular in Japan. ぴえんは悲しい気分だけでなく感激の意味でも使われます (Pien wa kanashii kibun dake de naku kangeki no imi demo tsukawaremasu, The pleading face emoji is used not only to express sadness but also a sense of being deeply touched). So make sure to give a thought to those little pictures on your phone this 世界絵文字デー, there's so much more available than just the いいねの絵文字 (ii ne no emoji, thumbs up emoji).
NHK
06-07-2025
- NHK
Airlines to ask fliers to keep mobile batteries out of overhead bin
Japanese airline companies will ask their passengers not to put their mobile batteries away in overhead bins for fire safety. The companies and the transport ministry decided to implement the policy Tuesday for travelers who want to bring mobile batteries into cabins. Mobile batteries are used for devices such as smartphones and tablets. They contain lithium-ion batteries that experts say could catch fire when impacted by shocks. The ministry says such fires have occurred on airplanes. South Korean investigators say a passenger jet fire in January may have been caused by a mobile battery that ignited inside an overhead bin. In April, a mobile battery caught fire in a passenger plane that departed Honolulu, prompting the aircraft to make an emergency landing at Tokyo's Haneda Airport. The airlines will make announcements to passengers before and after boarding to ask them to keep mobile batteries close to them without putting them in overhead compartments. They will also be asked to place their devices within sight while charging. The ministry's official says if mobile batteries are kept close to their owners, any fires could be spotted and quickly extinguished.
The Mainichi
30-06-2025
- The Mainichi
/番外編5 三島由紀夫と過ごした下田
2025年は作家、三島由紀夫（1925～70年）の生誕100年に当たる。ゆかりの地では企画展やイベントなどが開かれているが、静岡県下田市もその一つ。三島は晩年の7年間の夏を家族と一緒にここで過ごした。三島の伝説が今も生きている場所の一つである。 ドナルド・キーンさんと三島との縁は深い。最初に会ったのは京都大学に留学していた1954年の秋。すでに三島は若手作家として頭角を現していた。キーンさんは古典文学の研究だけでなく、現代の作家との交流も始め出したころで、年齢も近かった分、気はあったようだ。本編25，31，44とは別の自伝で読んでみよう。 I first met Mishima Yukio in November 1954 when his play Iwashi Uri Koi no Hikiami was being presented at the Kabuki-za. It is difficult to remember now our conversation or even the impression he made on me because these early memories have long since yielded to fresher, stronger ones. When I see photographs taken of Mishima about that time Ieven wonder -- did he really look like that? The closely cropped hair, powerful body, and up-to-the-minute sports clothes were so much a part of Mishima's appearance (and for so long) that the slender young man with wavy hair in a yukata gently smiling from the back of the American translation of Sound of the Waves seems a stranger. I cannot recall a single instance during all the years of our friendship when we had difficulty finding a topic of conversation. We often disagreed, even on literary matters. I never shared, for example, his professed admiration for conspicuously bad taste, whether in comic books or yakuza movies. I had trouble in understanding even his tastes in modern literature, and could not take seriously his political opinions, which seemed just as paradoxical and implausible as his praise for bloodthirsty novels of the Taisho period. But such divergences of opinion made it easier, rather than more difficult to converse. [MEETING WITH JAPAN] 2人の性格は一見するとかなり違うタイプに思えるのだが、交流は足かけ17年にも及んだ。現代文学の研究対象として三島をとらえたキーンさんと、最良の翻訳者としてキーンさんに期待した三島。それぞれに仕事上での思惑もあっただろうが、それを上回る見えない縁があったに違いない。最後の夏となった1970年の出来事はこうだった。 In the summer of 1970 Mishima invited me to Shimoda, where he customarily spent August with his family. He normally wrote every day from midnight to six, slept from six to two, then went to kendo practice or some other gathering until it was time to return home and start writing again. He spent little time with his children, but he made up for the neglect by devoting the month of August to them. I almost canceled my trip to Shimoda because of a painful attack of gikkuri-goshi (slipped disk), but I was instinctively certain that Mishima had planned every moment of my stay in Shimoda from arrival to departure, and I could not bear to upset his plans. On the train I debated whether or not to mention my gikkuri-goshi, but when I saw him on the platform, sunburned and cheerful, I decided I would act like a samurai and keep the pain to myself. We had lunch at a sushi restaurant. Mishima ordered only the most expensive fish. Later I was able to guess the reason: he had no time to waste on lesser fish. That evening we were joined by the journalist Henry Scott Stokes, who later wrote a book about Mishima. Mishima took us to a restaurant where lobsters were served out of season. He ordered five dinners for the three of us. But when the five dinners appeared, he ordered two more, not satisfied with the quantity. I thought this was peculiar, but no doubt he wanted to be sure we would have our fill of lobster at our last meal together. The next day Mishima and I went to the hotel pool. He did not go in the water, but he was pleased to display his muscular body. We talked about his tetralogy The Sea of Fertility, which was approaching completion. He said he had put into the work everything he had learned as a writer, adding with a laugh that the only thing left was to die. I laughed too, but I must have sensed something was wrong. Violating our pledge not to discuss "sticky" matters, I asked, "If something is troubling you, why not tell me?" He averted his glance and said nothing. But he knew that three months later he would be dead. That night in his hotel room he put into my hands the manuscript of the last chapter of the fourth volume of the tetralogy. He said he had written it in hitoiki (one breath). He asked if I would like to read it, but I declined, supposing I would not understand it without knowing what had happened in preceding chapters. Although it was written in August, he would inscribe the date November 25 on the manuscript, just before heading for the Self-Defense Headquarters. I left Japan for New York in September. Departure time for the plane was ten in the morning, and I was greatly surprised when Mishima appeared to see me off. He was unshaven and his eyes were bloodshot. He probably had not slept that night. It still did not occur to me that his unusual behavior, both in Shimoda and at the airport, foreshadowed a calamity. After my plane left, Mishima went to the airport restaurant with other friends who had seen me off. He startled everyone by suddenly declaring that he refused to die a "stupid death." That was the last time I saw Mishima.
