Japanese Glossary

anime

animation, cartoons

bento

box lunch or meal, served in compartmentalized container

cha

tea (by default, green tea, although many other types are available, some of which don't employ tea leaves. Green tea is green because the leaves are steamed, rather than roasted). Usually preceded with the honorary o- prefix: ocha

chapatsu

"tea hair" - many Japanese kids bleach their hair slightly (some, a lot)

dotaku

bronze, bell-shaped objects from antiquity, their usage unknown

Edo

what Tokyo was called prior to the Meiji Restoration ¹

gomi

rubbish

hashi

chopsticks (waribashi are disposable chopsticks)

kanji

Chinese characters (the Japanese use a subset, augmented by two additional sets of their own characters which are phonetic)

kawaii

Cute (More info)

manji

backwards swastika, Buddhist temple symbol

Meiji Era

1868 - 1912 (reign of first modern emperor, Matsuhito)

minshuku

family-run lodgings, like a B & B or Zimmer Frei.

noren

Curtains hanging in front of a shop's entrance, indicating that it's open for business - they're usually navy blue with white markings. (Not to be confused with the paper-thin sheets of dried seaweed called nori.)

oden

foods simmered in a soy and kelp stock for several hours; traditional winter side-dish

ofuru

the Japanese bath - no soap allowed! All washing's done outside, the bath-water's only for soaking.

omiyage

souvenirs

ryokan

a traditional Japanese inn ²

sakura

cherry blossoms

Shichifukujin

the seven deities of good fortune ³

shinkansen

super-express "bullet train"

Shitamachi

Old town, downtown - the older area of Tokyo, distinct from the "high town" (the latter is now encircled by the Yamanote line)

shoji

latticed, paper-covered window or sliding door (fusuma are opaque shoji)

tanuki

racoon-dog

tatami

woven rice-straw mat used as flooring in traditional Japanese interiors, corresponding with a single sleeping space (6 feet by 3 feet)

torii

Shinto gate, usually painted the red-orange color called vermilion - there's (at least) one at the entrance to every Shinto shrine. A few of these shrines have so many, walking through them's like being in a corridor.

toro

fatty tuna belly meat

Ukiyo-e

wood block prints, "floating world pictures"

Yamato

"Land of Great Harmony" - traditional name for Japan

yukata

unisex cotton kimono - one of the amenities supplied at any Japanese hotel, along with the towels and a disposable toothbrush - every guest gets one (and at hot springs resorts they even wear 'em outside). To prevent theft, now they usually have the hotel's name worked in to the (traditionally white and navy blue) design.