In what’s become something of an annual tradition here on Gakuran.com, I’m back again analysing the Japanese words of the year – new lingo and hot terms from Japan. In addition to their annual compendium, the ‘Fundamentals of Modern Terminology’, Jiyu Kokuminsha publishes the list of buzzword nominees every year around this time and then […]

One of the lesser-known but fascinating parts of Japanese culture is that of the Ama pearl divers. Ama (海女 in Japanese), literally means ‘woman of the sea’ and is recorded as early as 750 in the oldest Japanese anthology of poetry, the Man’yoshu. These women specialised in freediving some 30 feet down into cold water […]

Have you ever wanted to buy certain products from Japan but found it difficult to do so? You may not have realised, but there is a special space occupied by companies whose mission it is to help you do exactly that! Tenso.com is the largest and most trusted service to help you buy the things […]