Students studying Japanese as a second language in-country hits historic high, majority of teachers are unpaid volunteers.
Global interest in Japan and its culture, both modern and traditional, has never been higher. This is occurring, however, at the same time as another trend in which many are claiming that technology has turned a corner and we can now leave all sorts of previously human-intelligence functions to machines. AI can even communicate for us now, some claim, pushing automated translations as a solution to language barriers.
However, the important thing to remember about artificial intelligence is that it’s different from genuine intelligence. Especially when it comes to translating to or from a language as context-heavy as Japanese. Even when dealing with simple phrases, AI translation can get things wildly, and sometimes even violently, wrong.
So it’s very encouraging to know that more foreigners than ever are studying Japanese in Japan.
The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology recently released the latest iteration of its annual Survey on the State of Japanese Language Education, compiled from data collected in November of 2024 (which explains why “Speediness” isn’t part of the ministry’s lengthy name). The study found 294,198 foreign nationals enrolled in Japanese-as-a-second-language classes in Japan, the highest number ever and an increase of 31,028 over the previous year.
The number accounts for both foreigners on student visas in Japan as well as other classifications of residents, such as work, spousal, or refugee visas. The previous high, 277,857, came in 2019, followed by a severe dip during the pandemic, dropping down to 123,408 in 2021 through a combination of fewer new learners being able to enter Japan and foreign residents returning to their home countries during the economic instability of the period. Zooming out to a wider view of historic trends, the 294,198 learners of Japanese in Japan are nearly five times the 60,601 people who made up that demographic in 1990.
Number of Japanese language students in Japan
● 1990: 60,601
● 2017: 239,597
● 2018: 259,711
● 2019: 277.857
● 2020: 160,291
● 2021: 123,408
● 2022: 219,808
● 2023: 263,170
● 2024: 294,198
The study also found that there are a total of 2,669 institutions and facilities providing Japanese language instruction to foreigners, consisting of universities, junior colleges, high schools, accredited language schools, local governments and boards of education, international friendship societies, and volunteer organizations. This number is also significantly larger than it was a decade ago, but slightly down from its high in 2022.
Number of institutions and organizations offering Japan language instruction to foreigners in Japan
● 1990: 821
● 2017: 2,109
● 2018: 2,290
● 2019: 2.542
● 2020: 2,516
● 2021: 2,541
● 2022: 2,764
● 2023: 2,727
● 2024: 2,669
Crunching those numbers a little more, the number of university programs has gone down a bit, from 516 in 2017 to 481 in 2024, with rises in the number of language schools (from 466 to 648) and volunteer organizations (from 281 to 695) during the same period.
Foreigners on student visas accounted for roughly two thirds of the Japanese learners, with the others residents of other categories, the largest, 6.6 percent, being those working in Japan or accompanying a family member doing so. In terms of nationality, China was by far the largest source of learners, with 78,821, or 26.8 percent of the total. Nepal and Vietnam came next, with the U.S. being the highest western country on the list at 10th.
Country of origin of Japanese learners in Japan
1. China: 78,821
2. Nepal: 45,821
3. Vietnam: 33,547
4. Myanmar: 18,181
5. Sri Lanka: 10,230
6. Philippines: 9,389
7. Indonesia: 9,280
8. Korea: 7,929
9. Taiwan: 7,786
10. U.S.A.: 6,607
Also hitting a record high in the study is the number of Japanese teachers within the country providing instruction to foreigners, which has grown by roughly the same proportion, about 25 percent, as the number of students since 2017.
Number of Japanese-as-second-language teachers in Japan
● 1990: 8.329
● 2017: 39,588
● 2018: 41,606
● 2019: 46.411
● 2020: 41,755
● 2021: 39.241
● 2022: 44,030
● 2023: 46.257
● 2024: 50,309
However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that Japan will have enough teachers, should current trends continue. A key issue is that in the most recent survey, more than half of teachers of Japanese as a second language were in the 50s or older, with at least one in six 70 or older.
Age of Japanese-as-second-language teachers in Japan
● Under 20: 0.9 percent
● 20-29: 5.8 percent
● 30-39: 7.1 percent
● 40-49: 13.3 percent
● 50-59: 19.3 percent
● 60-69: 21.7 percent
● 70-79: 14/7 percent
● Unspecified: 17.3 percent
Not to discount the wisdom, experience, and vigor of older instructors, the heavy balance towards teachers over the age of 50 could be a sign that the industry is having trouble attracting younger applicants, which could create a problem in coming years if the talent pool isn’t restocked as older teachers eventually leave the workforce.
▼ “No, Mr. Tanaka, you need to rest!”
“But…my students…if I don’t go, who will save them from the terrors of the ‘so’ and ‘n’ katakana?”
However, that in turn raises the question of just how much of an “industry” teaching Japanese as a second language is in Japan. Out of the 50,309 teachers identified in the most recent study, the majority receive no salary at all, with 51.1 percent saying they teach on a volunteer basis. Only 13.6 percent said that teaching Japanese was their regular job, with the remaining 33.3 percent saying they teach on a supplementary or irregular basis.
That might sound like shameless labor exploitation, but it’s important to remember that the study included local community center and international friendship organization programs, many of which are free for students and take a relaxed approach that focuses more on grass roots cultural exchange and community outreach than serious scholarly pursuit. Less than 3.3 percent of instructors for university, junior college, or high school programs said they teach on a volunteer basis, and out of the 14.424 language school teachers, only 13, far below 0.1 percent, were volunteers. Conversely, it was local government and international friendship societies that had the highest proportions of volunteers, at 87.5 and 90.3 percent, respectively. Whether full and part-time compensated teachers are getting paid enough for their services is a question for another day, but at the very least it’s safe to say most, if not all, volunteer instructors aren’t really looking to make money off teaching in the first place. Volunteers making up a large proportion of the total number of teachers could also explain why so many are in their 50s or older, as many people become more active in local community programs in their post-retirement years.
▼ Mr. Tanaka isn’t in it for the money, he just likes meeting new people and being helpful.
That does still leave the potential problem of making sure enough new teachers are coming into the field, though, and also ensuring that the types of courses offered (relaxed community center lessons, intense university curriculums, and everything in between) are being made available proportionate to the needs of the student base.
Finally, we can’t discount the effect that exchange rates must be having on the situation. Coming to Japan on a student visa becomes much more viable when a weak yen means the savings you’ve built up in your home country will go much farther while you’re out of the full-time workforce, and should the yen rise up again, studying in the country will suddenly become much less viable for many people considering making the move.
For now, though, it’s great to see the international community showing such a strong interest in not only learning Japanese, but in immersing themselves in both the language and the culture by studying it in Japan.
Source: Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology via Yahoo! Japan News/Kyodo
Top image: Pakutaso (edited by SoraNews24)
Insert images: Pakutaso (1, 2, 3, 4)
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Howl’s Moving Castle antagonists hit the streets in the real world.
Studio Ghibli merchandise is largely dedicated to the heroes, heroines, and friendly allies from its films, but on occasion, the antagonists get to make their mark, and that’s what’s happening now with the release of a new Howl’s Moving Castle T-shirt from streetwear brand GBL.
The T-shirt evokes the world of Howl’s Moving Castle with dynamic images of the Witch of the Waste and her henchmen, known as “Gomu Ningen” (literally “Rubber Humans“) in Japanese or “Blob Men” in the English version of the movie.
The Witch of the West resides on the chest, in a pocket-esque design that sees her peering out of a window, just as she does when riding in her carriage.
On the side are the Blob Men, designed to look like they’re emerging from within the seam, and to make their appearance even more realistic, they’re carefully printed on the material before it’s sewn together.
▼ Rubber printing is used to give them a glossy look.
The attention to detail continues inside, where the tag is designed to look like the curse from the Witch of the Waste.
Made from 100-percent cotton, the T-shirt is comfortable to wear and available in five sizes from S to XXL.
For a relaxed style, pair the shirt with wide pants, overalls, or denim. For a clean look, slacks or skinny pants are recommended.
However you wear it, all eyes will be on the Blob Men, in the hopes that they won’t fully escape from the confines of the shirt seam.
Priced at 8,800 yen (US$56.39), the shirt can be purchased at GBL stores and online, where you can also pick up a Howl’s Moving Castle stole to add even more characters to the look.
Source, images: Donguri Kyowakoku
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Bathhouse just north of Tokyo provides rubber Psyduckies, Ditto sauna stones, and other sights and scents to soothe tired Trainers.
The focus of the Pokémon Sleep mobile game/wellness app is, of course, promoting good sleep habits, but that’s all in the service of helping people feel good both mentally and physically. In that sense, Pokémon Sleep shares the same goals as hot spring baths and saunas, which brings us to a collaboration between the game and Japan’s Yunoi Soka Health Center bathhouse.
On Wednesday, Yunoi Soka, as we’ll call it for short, kicked off its Sauna and Sleep event. Inspired by data from Pokémon Sleep players showing that they experienced deeper, more restful sleep by having a sauna session before hitting the sack, Sauna and Sleep brings a bunch of Pokémon touches to the facility’s interior design. Artwork and posters of snoozing Pocket Monsters can be found throughout the building, including a pair of Pikachu noren cloth curtains that you’ll pass through on your way to the men’s or women’s baths.
▼ And yes, the Pikachu on the women’s bath noren is a girl, which you can tell from the heart-shaped tip of its tail.
Posters showing Pokémon scrubbing before their soak in the tub are in place, as is a giant illustration of Snorlax, the Pokémon who catches the most Zs of all.
Instead of rubber duckies, some of the baths have rubber Psyduck(ies)…
…and Snorlax shows up again in the wash buckets.
During the event, Yunoi Soka’s sauna rooms will lay out Poké Ball-style mats to lounge on, as well as sauna stones shaped like Geodude and Ditto. Two special sauna scents have been created for the event, inspired by the Greengrass Isle and Cyan Beach locations from the Pokémon Sleep game.
Yunio Soka Health Center is located in the town of Soka, Saitama Prefecture, which doesn’t get a lot of tourism traffic. However, the town is direct neighbors with Tokyo, so getting there from the capital is pretty easy. From Tokyo’s Oshiage Station, where the Skytree is located, it’s just a 20-minute train ride to Soka Station, and from there you can hop on a free shuttle bus that’ll whisk you to the bathhouse in 12 minutes.
The Pokémon Sleep Sleep and Sauna collaboration is scheduled to run until December 17.
Location information
Yunoi Soka Health Center / 湯乃泉草加健康センター
Address: Saitama-ken, Soka-shi, Kitaya 2-23-23
埼玉県草加市北谷2-23-23
Open 10 a.m.-8 a.m.
Website
Source, images: PR Times
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We need to tell you to take a look before the new slang of today outruns us all… eh ho eh ho…
As you advance in years, it is easy to start marveling at how the world keeps changing, from technology to popular culture. Perhaps one of the most rapidly evolving things is language, with new generations utilizing words in different ways to those in the past, or inventing completely new words. That does mean, however, that it is easy to get shipwrecked by the neverending waves of change, and be left bewildered by the barrages of “rizz”, “skibidi”, and “cap”.
The Japanese language also sees constant evolution, with new words and phrases appearing frequently. Releasing a summary of the year’s newly-coined terms, along with their origins and uses, is an annual tradition of publisher Jiyukokuminsha, which is great for anyone who is left wondering about why so many kids are talking about Labubu and Myaku-Myaku (the Osaka-Kansai Expo mascot) in what is known as The Year Book of the Contemporary Society.
Earlier this month, the latest installment of the series for the year 2026 was released, bringing with it a list of 30 different words that have been nominated for entry to the Shingo Ryukogo Taisho (New Words and Buzzwords Awards), with the top word set to be decided at the start of December. Let’s take a look at a selection of five of our favorite ones for this year.
1. Eh Ho Eh Ho / エッホエッホ
This phrase originates from a photo of a running baby barn owl by Dutch photographer Hannie Heere, which when people saw it, conjured up an image of the owl saying “Eh ho eh ho” as it runs, as if it is huffing and puffing. Starting off on Twitter, it then became viral on TikTok as people paired it up with marching animations and comedic clips, usually in the form of “Eh ho eh ho.. I have to tell everyone that [a little piece of trivia].” This trivia can sometimes be something well known, which adds to the comedic value that this little owl is desperately running to tell everyone something that they already know.
▼ In this clip they are saying they need to tell people the beloved children’s character Anpanman’s head is filled with tsubu-an (coarse red bean paste), which is a fact that anybody who knows about the character is likely to know.
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2. Otetsutabi / おてつたび
The term otetsutabi refers to a short-term holiday service that is recently growing in popularity among young people and on social media. It combines the two words of otetsudai (“help” or “assist”) and tabi (“journey”) and refers to a program where travelers will temporarily work for a local business in a rural area, usually for two to seven days. In exchange for the help they provide, the traveler will receive a wage, accommodation, and opportunities to meet locals and experience the area, while still getting time to explore and sightsee around the region.
Included activities could be assisting at a farm, helping out in travel accommodations or other tourism facilities, or seasonal work like fruit picking and snow-related tourism assistance. This idea of otetsutabi is not limited to Japanese nationals, but seeing as participants are receiving money, even if it is just for a couple of days, a valid work or working-holiday visa is required.
3. Bijyu ii jan / ビジュイイじゃん
Bijyu ii jan is a line from the idol group M!LK’s song titled “Ii jan”. Bijyu ii jan essentially means “Your visuals look great, don’t they?”, and the phrase became popular due to the catchy impact of a dramatically modulated section of the song. Recently, people have been using it to compliment others’ appearances, which is most probably meant literally rather than the image that I get from the music video in that “you look great, but it’s certainly a little… different between that and what you normally would opt for.”
▼ The line features around 1:14, but the video is best viewed from the start for the shock factor of the transition.
4. Ni ki / 二季
Ni ki, or “two seasons”, is something that has been cropping up more frequently in social commentary these days, referring to how the extreme seasonal weather shifts have led the country to feel more like Japan only has summer and winter now. It has been a long held belief, and a source of pride for many Japanese people, that the country has four very distinct seasons, each with its own charm that shapes a lot of Japan’s cultural life. So, it’s understandable that quite a few people are anxious about the changing climate and how it will affect various aspects of their lives, but there are some who are doing their best to adapt to the changes.
5. Chokominto yori mo a・na・ta / チョコミントよりもあ・な・た
This phrase originates from a song by Japanese idol group AiScReam called “Ai♡Scream!”. The section of the song it comes from is a call-and-response where a member of the group asks another about what flavor of ice cream they like, to which the answer is “more than mint chocolate… you”.
Due to the playful and flirtatious delivery, and subsequent parodies by many famous K-pop artists like Twice and Aespa, the line is now being used as a way to jokingly express affection. In Japan, mint chocolate flavor is the favorite of many people, so to say you like someone more than that… well… you might as well just start picking out an engagement ring now.
My personal favorite that I have been hearing from students recently would have to be Chappii / チャッピー, a cute nickname for ChatGPT, although I’m not sure how I feel about how familiar they are with it to feel like giving it a nickname. With only a couple of days left to go until the announcement, we’re eager to see which of these terms will be crowned this year’s number one.
Source: Nominee List, Book Press Release, Otetsutabi Website
Top image: Pakutaso
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Soon, you could have a pod that washes your body for you in your home bathroom.
When you straight-up name your organization “Science,” you’d better be prepared to make some pretty high-tech things, and the Osaka-based bathroom fixture company did just that when they created the Mirai Ningen Sentakki, which translates to “Future Human washing Machine.” Officially dubbed the “Human Washer in the Future” in English, it’s a 2.3-meter (7.5-foot) long pod in which you lie down, close the lid, and lay back and relax while the machine washes you like a piece of laundry, minus the spin cycle.
It’s exactly the sort of unbridled, pie-in-the-sky creativity that visitors to the Expo 2025 world’s fair in Osaka wanted to see, and following the immensely satisfied response, last month Science announced that its human washing machines would be coming to hotels…and now comes the follow-up that they’re coming to homes, too, as the machines will also be offered for sale to the general public, and through one of Japan’s major home electronics stores.
Starting next month, a Mirai Ningen Sentakki will be on display at electronics retailer Labi’s Ikebukuro Main Branch in downtown Tokyo. Visitors won’t just be able to look at this piece of sci-fi-style tech, but they’ll be able to try it out, too, as demonstrations will be offered, though as at Expo 2025, participants will probably be asked to wear bathing suits, not hop in nude like they would when actually using it to bathe. The full cycle takes about 15 minutes, during which the human washing machine also plays a series of relaxing images and tranquil music pieces. As the pod’s nozzles spray soap and water to wash and rinse the occupant, it also performs biometric scans to gauge their health, so the washing is just one service the machine performs.
This obviously isn’t going to be a budget upgrade pitched to cost-conscious consumers, and Labi’s parent company Yamada Holdings is estimating a price tag of somewhere around 60 million yen (US$400,000), and it’s unclear whether or not that includes shipping and installation. The demonstration/trial at Labi, however, appears to be free (though reservations will likely be required), so there’s still a way to experience the Human Washer in the Future in the present without deep pockets or a time machine of your own.
The Mirai Ningen Sentakki is scheduled to go on display from December 25.
Source: Jiji via Yahoo! Japan News
Top image: PR Times
Insert image: PR Times
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