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The Kanji Vector Graphics (KanjiVG) project
https://kanjivg.tagaini.net/, posted 22 Feb by peter in free graphics japan language learning
KanjiVG (Kanji Vector Graphics) provides vector graphics and other information about kanji used by the Japanese language. For each character, it provides an SVG file which gives the shape and direction of its strokes, as well as the stroke order. Each file is also enriched with information about the components of the character such as the radical, or the type of stroke employed.
It is very easy to create stroke order diagrams, animations, kanji dictionaries, and much more using KanjiVG. See Projects using KanjiVG for a growing list of applications of the KanjiVG data.
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I know Japanese. Why can’t I read signs in Hokkaido?
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2022/10/07/language/know-japanese-cant-read-signs-hokkaido/, posted 7 Oct by peter in japan language travel
As mentioned earlier, this is because most of Hokkaido’s Japanese place names are derived from アイヌ語. There was a conscious effort by 和人 in the 19th century to map out Hokkaido with Japanese place names under assimilation policies of the Edo Period (1603-1868).
Not all Ainu place names were rendered into Japanese in the same way, however. Some took the sound of the Ainu name, some took the meaning and some were shortened. For example, 札幌 is shortened from “sat poro pet” (dry, big river). 旭川 (Asahikawa), on the other hand, comes from a name misheard by 和人 as “cup pet” (morning sun river), but is thought to have had a different original name like “cuk pet” (autumn river). The misheard meaning was translated into 旭 (asahi, morning sun) combined with 川 (kawa, river).
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Rice Paddy Art Features Two Beautiful Women from Art History
https://www.spoon-tamago.com/2022/07/27/inakadate-rice-paddy-art-mona-lisa/, posted Jul '22 by peter in art culture food japan
Inakadate, the village in northern Japan’s Aomori prefecture famous for their rice paddy art, today unveiled their latest creation. The seeds of their labor, which were planted in June, have now grown and filled out the canvas, rendering versions of Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa” and Seiki Kuroda’s “Lakeside,” which depicts his wife Taneko Kaneko.
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Dual citizenship in Japan
https://features.japantimes.co.jp/dualcitizenship/, posted Jun '22 by peter in japan law travel
Japan's Nationality Act asks young adults with multiple citizenships to choose one country, but it appears that not everyone does. Many choose to live in the gray zone. Similarly, many Japanese seeking a life abroad are required to give up their Japanese passport. How long can Japan look the other way?
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Japanese Typewriters
https://blog.gatunka.com/2009/09/30/japanese-typewriters/, posted Jul '21 by peter in history japan language toread
With several thousand characters to contend with, how were the Japanese able to use typewriters before the advent of digital technology? The answer is the kanji typewriter (和文タイプライター or 邦文タイプライター), which was invented by Kyota Sugimoto in 1915. This invention was deemed so important that it was selected as one of the ten greatest Japanese inventions by the Japanese Patent Office during their 100th anniversary celebrations in 1985. Here are some photos of that first model. (Photos courtesy Canon Semiconductor Equipment.)
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What you can learn from Japan's seven-minute miracle
https://www.disruptingjapan.com/what-you-can-learn-from-japans-seven-minute-miracle/, posted 2021 by peter in business entrepreneurship japan management people
Almost every change Yabe-san introduced risked decreased efficiency and quality of service in the short term. Having the cleaners distracted from their jobs by talking with passengers, decreasing measurement and oversight. Even making the cleaning crews more visible to the customers went against the hospitality and travel best practices which hold that this kind of work is to take place out of sight and all friction for the customer is to be removed.
But everything Yabe-san did increased the possibilities for human connection. Not the usual, scripted staff-customer communication or the usual manager-staff meetings, but inefficient, unnecessary communication not directly related to completing the task at hand.
Rather than managing for control and compliance, he was managing for transparency and connection.
Internally this not only resulted in a skyrocketing of morale but an outpouring of creative ideas. The Tessei staff not only came up with innovations that improved their own jobs, but helped design the shape of the bins on the new Hokuriku Shinkansen Line, and they came up with the idea for the nursery and baby areas in Tokyo Station.
And, of course, it was this feeling of human connection that resulted in passengers cleaning up after themselves because they did not want to create extra work for someone they had just seen working so hard.
It led to people realizing that we are all on this train together. Yes, it eventually made processes more efficient and less expensive, but more importantly, it actually made life a little bit better for everyone involved.
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11 different ways to say “father” in Japanese
https://soranews24.com/2020/06/21/11-different-ways-to-say-father-in-japanese/, posted 2020 by peter in culture japan language
Well, actually, there are a ton of different ways to say “father” in Japanese, and what better day to take a look at them than today?
"Today" being yesterday, the third Sunday in June, or Father's Day (父の日).
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This is Akihabara’s best hidden food vending machine: The Mansei meat sandwich machine!
https://soranews24.com/2019/11/18/this-is-akihabaras-best-hidden-food-vending-machine-the-mansei-meat-sandwich-machine/, posted 2020 by peter in food japan todo tokyo travel
Not so long ago, we found out that Tokyo’s Akihabara Station has a bank of vending machines stocked with a huge array of delicious milk-based drinks, with all sorts of fruit, tea, and coffee flavorings to tempt you. But while those are great for quenching your thirst or satisfying your sweet tooth, what about when you’re feeling hungry?
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Watch a kabuki classic at home: National Theatre uploads Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura for free【Video】
https://soranews24.com/2020/04/09/watch-a-kabuki-classic-at-home-national-theatre-uploads-yoshitsune-senbon-zakura-for-free%e3%80%90video%e3%80%91/, posted 2020 by peter in culture free japan kabuki online theater
Japan’s National Theatre has risen to the occasion after the cancellation of Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura (Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry Trees), which was originally scheduled to open for audiences in Tokyo on March 3 of this year. Instead, the performance, sans audience, will be posted to the theatre’s online YouTube channel. In fact, the play, split into three videos, is available for viewing right now, and will be free to watch to your heart’s content until April 30, 3:00 p.m. JST.
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ことばドリル | NHK for School
https://www.nhk.or.jp/kokugo/drill/origin/drills.html, posted 2020 by peter in education free injapanese japan language online
Japanese language exercises aimed at school children but also great for non-native learners like me. For me it didn't work in Firefox, which is my preferred browser, but this could possibly be because of my paranoid privacy-enhancing browser extensions.