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While rental businesses may seem unusual from an international perspective, they reflect unique aspects of Japan's society.
Food
As bear populations expand and attacks increase, Japan is looking to turn an environmental challenge into a culinary…
Culture
In a Ginza basement, Bar Lupin has poured drinks since 1928 for Dazai Osamu, Ango, and other Japanese…
Society
To fight scalpers, the Pokémon Company will use Japan's My Number national ID to verify buyers of its…
Sex & Nightlife
What are happening bars? What actually "happens" in one? And the bigger question as a foreigner in Japan:…
Insider
Few prominent figures or politicians in Japan are willing to talk about the negative impact the law has…
Culture
If you have one of these cards and don't want to lose the balance - and the card…
Women
A con cafe worker's tweet about stabbing a groper's hand with a safety pin on her morning commute…
Insider
Yuzuki Asako's former publisher has a history of running inflammatory columns. The latest was the last straw for…
Sex & Nightlife
The groups have made a killing by recruiting financially vulnerable women. Ordinary Japanese travelers are feeling the blowback.
Travel
A Tokyo Shimbun and Kyodo analysis of 2025 smartphone-location data finds seven prefectures account for 72 of Japan's…
Travel
APA Hotels in Japan are ubiquitous and affordable. Behind the cheap prices lies an aggressive business strategy and…
Some overseas fans of Japanese music say the hassle is proof that "Japan hates foreigners." The truth is more complicated.
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Tired of the crowds in Osaka City? Enjoy some fresh air, a slower pace of life, and local…
Who's making Shibuya a worse place to live? The ward rolls out a new fine targeting not just…
Learn about the different types of kimono styles and how to tell serious, traditional shops apart from the…
Kiyosumi-Shirakawa is one of Tokyo's quietest neighborhoods, where Edo history, a Mitsubishi-built stroll garden, contemporary art, and Japan's…
What are happening bars? What actually "happens" in one? And the bigger question as a foreigner in Japan:…
Touts and scouts in Kabukicho say they feel they're in the middle of a crackdown. Will this new…
The incident highlights the shift in sex-related businesses in Japan - and the precarious situation of sex workers.
The groups have made a killing by recruiting financially vulnerable women. Ordinary Japanese travelers are feeling the blowback.
As bear populations expand and attacks increase, Japan is looking to turn an environmental challenge into a culinary…
Want to eat sushi like they ate it during the time of the shogun? A shop in Shinjuku…
7-Eleven Japan's new 810-gram, 1,595-calorie frozen 'G-Type Ramen' recreates a Jirō-style gut-punch at home. I ate the whole…
Is pouring miso soup onto rice bad manners? It is in modern Japan. But this "cat food" was…
In a Ginza basement, Bar Lupin has poured drinks since 1928 for Dazai Osamu, Ango, and other Japanese…
Plans for Muslim burial grounds in Japan face local resistance and racist threats as the country's Muslim population…
Why more people in Japan are forsaking YouTube and TikTok videos and crafting their own magazines by hand.
Japan joins a worldwide trend of limiting your social network as the cost of having friends becomes prohibitive.
TBS announcer Yamamoto Erika kept her name by choosing common-law marriage over a legal one - but she'll…
If the show's producers were hoping to grab a negative reaction from women, they didn't succeed. But it…
The term "pink tax" hasn't trended much in Japan. That changed recently as women went online to compare…
Two recent cases highlight how the system in Japan is set up to protect, not the victims of…
In English, words are rarely deleted from dictionaries. So why in 2021 did a Japanese dictionary publisher give…
It's a phrase that confuses Tokyoites. But to many in the Kansai region, it's a daily expression rooted…
How do you refer to yourself in Japanese? For most women, it’s some variant of "watashi." But for…
Many foreign residents in Japan want to learn Japanese. But reports show a majority feel they're not getting…
The Internet is calling for blood in the brutal murder of a 17-year-old girl. But prosecutors are following…
On June 5, 2026, Japan's Supreme Court issued its first-ever ruling on a question most Westerners don't know…
Japan may soon fit stalkers with GPS ankle monitoring devices that would alert their victims when the offender…
The man allegedly forced her to do papa-katsu (sugar-babying), arranging meetings with men and keeping most of the…
There are too many deer in Nara Park. To remedy the situation, it seems at least a few…
Tokyo is becoming hard to afford for more people, with the cost of a one-bedroom home reaching record…
Right-wingers in Japan claim that the country is becoming more unsafe due to immigrants. The data doesn't back…
Traveling and moving to Japan is about to get a lot more expensive, thanks to a proposed set…
A new Nikkei survey finds that roughly one in five Japanese manga artists and illustrators say generative AI…
Some overseas fans of Japanese music say the hassle is proof that "Japan hates foreigners." The truth is…
One prominent journalist argues the youth market is slipping away. Others say they've heard this false cry before.
Planck Stars isn't a group to shy away from controversy. Indeed, it seems to be reveling in its…
The data shows people aren't just moving online - they're not watching content from traditional broadcast networks at…
Japan's anime and manga industries are growing wary of the impact of GenAI on their bottom line -…
Before Mario, Nintendo sold hanafuda cards to the yakuza. Read the 400-year forbidden history of the flower cards…
The company took pains to reassure its Japanese customer base that information about their masturbatory habits was safe.
NHK's 2026 morning drama Kaze, Kaoru modeled one of its heroines on a woman most people in Japan…
The Tatsumi Geisha were the first female geisha of Japan. And they owe their existence to a woman…
The city of Sapporo cleared a display that denies the legal status of the Ainu - and that…
Japan's most ruthless and efficient ruler believed a good diet was the key to success. Here's how he…
To fight scalpers, the Pokémon Company will use Japan's My Number national ID to verify buyers of its…
A gym chain in Japan has come under fire from women for not enforcing gender restrictions - and…
Japan's "War on Christmas" is a viral online claim framed as an attack on Japanese culture. Just one…
The two companies say the decisions have nothing to do with population decline. Indeed, there are signs the…
Award-winning author Li Kotomi won a small but symbolic ruling against a lawyer who had been involved in…
While Tokyo’s cherry blossoms had all but disappeared from the trees, Japan’s most iconic trees had just gone…
As Japan's Supreme Court prepares to hear a pivotal case on marriage equality, a local advocacy group launches…
An Osaka High Court ruling found that Japan's gender-binary family register violates Article 14 of the Japanese Constitution.…
Featured
Want an alternative to Duolingo now that they're firing workers and resorting to AI slop? Here's a much…
Culture
Purikura photo booths remain popular in Japan. But if you're an unaccompanied male, odds are you won't be…
Food
Looking to pack on muscle while in Japan? Why the country's largest combini chain may just be your…
Culture
Most foreigners reported experiences with a "gaijin hunter". But the reality of these interactions is more complicated than…
Society
Would you hire a stranger to be your spouse or your parent? For some in Japan, the rental…
Featured
How the case of Furuta Junko led Japan's press to break the rules, and citizens to question the…
Japanese Language
Japanese is fraught with unspoken rules and meanings. For example: how should people refer to their husbands?
Japanese Language
Reading Japanese menus can be tricky, as you'll often find many kanji you don't encounter elsewhere. Here's a…
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A majority of voices are clamoring for Japan to criminalize prostitution buyers. Here’s why the country's sex worker…
Japan finally has its first female Prime Minister. But that isn't translating into victories for ordinary Japanese women.
The rules and agreements meant to help save women from the worst abuses aren't helping, as clubs have…
A survey of 3,000 women found 58% identified with the phenomenon. But it's the label that has people…
A plan to shutter four of Kiyose City's six libraries angered citizens so much that it gave the…
Few prominent figures or politicians in Japan are willing to talk about the negative impact the law has…
Yuzuki Asako's former publisher has a history of running inflammatory columns. The latest was the last straw for…
Princess Aiko is very popular. Many wouldn't mind her becoming Empress. But critics say the polls are misleading.…
