KY and Other Top Japanese Buzzwords this Year

I come out of JLPT-study-retirement to let you know about the list of 60 words that have been on everyone’s minds in Japan during the past year.

A panel of judges will choose the year’s grand prize winner and top 10 buzzwords from these 60 nominees. The final results will be announced on December 3

We’ll try to get you the results of the final judgement for top buzz words.

Among words that stood out to me were Oshiri kajiri mushi (butt-biting bug), Gabai (I’m a Saga-ken boy and this is a word from the local dialect), sonna no kankei nee (that don’t matter!) and umu kikai which is:

2. Child-bearing machines [umu kikai - 産む機械]: Health minister Hakuo Yanagisawa sparked a controversy when he referred to women as “child-bearing machines” in a January speech about Japan’s declining birthrate.

Pink Tenticle has them all; I really recommend checking out the whole list. Quite possibly one of the simplest ways to refresh yourself on Japanese pop-culture and current events that you could do, and Edo did a good job of describing them all.