A
Ageha – Japanese fashion magazine.
Aidoru – idols – media personalities considered particularly cute or kawaii.
Aikyou – coquettish behaviour – equivalent of aegyo in Korea.
Akiba – abbreviation for “Akihabara,” Tokyo’s famous electronics, gaming, kawaii and nerd culture district.
Angelic Pretty – Japanese fashion company specializing in Lolita fashion and based in the department store Laforet Harajuku.
Anime – a shortened form of the English word ‘animation’ referring to Japanese cartoons.
Anpanman – cute manga aimed at elementary school children.
Yosan Line Anpanman Train, Shikoku, Japan.
B
Baby, The Stars Shine Bright – Japanese fashion house focused on kawaii clothing.
Bigaku – sense of beauty.
Burikko – child-like appearance and demeanor.
Chopper in Akihabara
C
Cat Street – fashionable shopping street in Shibuya, Tokyo.
Chiba-kun – Chiba Prefecture mascot.
Character Trains – are cute trains with carriage liveries and interiors based on anime and manga motifs.
Chopper – is the cute mascot of the Hakujuji family care products company.
Ciao – shojo manga magazine.
Cool Japan – term used to encompass Japan’s soft power expressed through anime, manga and (kawaii) cute fashion.
Cosplay – cosplay (costume play) is the fetish for dressing as Japanese anime or manga characters. Read more on cosplay
Cute – kawaii.
D
Dear Daniel – Hello Kitty’s childhood friend and later her boyfriend.
Decora – fashion style characterized by wearing lots of brightly-colored decorations on oneself and one’s accessories such as bags and smart phones.
Dojin – (Doujin) refers to a group with shared interests.
Dojinshi – are works, often anime, manga, hentai etc, published by dojin groups.
Domo-kun – official mascot of Japan’s public broadcaster NHK.
Doraemon – popular robotic cat manga character created in 1969 by manga drawing duo Fujiko Fujio.
E
Egg – influential Japanese women’s fashion magazine.
Eiga – the Japanese word for film or movie. Read more on eiga
Ekichoken – “Station Master Doggy,” is the cute mascot of the Chiba Prefecture branch of JR.
Enjo kosai – ‘compensated dating’; a euphemistic term for schoolgirl prostitution with older men.
Ero-kawaii – erotic kawaii, a mix of sexy and cute.
F
Fairy-kei – sub genre of Lolita fashion style.
Fujoshi – lit. “rotten girl” – a term for female fans of yaoi (“boy love”) anime, manga and other literature.
G
Gals – urban fashion tribe.
Ganguro – fashion tribe that favors a heavily tanned look and bleached hair. Originated in the 1990’s in Shibuya and Ikebukuro.
Gashapon (gatchapon) – capsule toys bought from a machine. Read more on Gashapon
Gei-no-jin – TV “talent” or star.
Gloomy Bear – kimo-kawaii character – a huge pink bear with blood-stained nails.
Gothic-Lolita – a sub-genre of Lolita emphasizing the Gothic look.
Gundam – legendary Japanese animated science fiction phenomenon.
Hello Kitty Roadworks, Tokyo, Japan.
Hello Kitty Roadworks
H
Hamtaro – manga character from the 1990’s.
Hatsune Miku – a 16-year-old girl with long, turquoise hair first developed as synthesizer Vocaloid software.
Hello Kitty – cute cat character created by Sanrio. Hello Kitty has no mouth and lives in London.
Hello Panda – Japanese biscuit associated with kawaii culture.
Hi-Chew – cute Japanese candy.
Hikonyan – popular character representing the city of Hikone in Shiga Prefecture.
Hime – princess – slang for spoilt girl.
Hina Matsuri – Doll Festival held in March and known for its cuteness.
I
Idol – aidoru – media personalities (talento) considered particularly cute or kawaii.
Ikebukuro – geek culture and cosplay shopping district in Tokyo. Read more about Ikebukuro
J
JoJo – character mascot of the Toyama Fire Brigade.
J-pop – Japanese pop music often featuring young idol singers, boy-bands and girl-bands such as Morning Musume, AKB48 etc.
Joshi kosei – high school girls.
Manga inspired kimono at Takashimaya Department Store, Tokyo, Japan.
Manga inspired kimono at Takashimaya Department Store, Tokyo
K
Kabuki – highly-stylized traditional Japanese theater developed from the 17th century onwards which has an influence on contemporary Japanese fashion. Read more on kabuki
Kanebo – Japanese cosmetics company.
Kappa – mythical frog-like evil sprite.
Karaoke – lit. ’empty orchestra’ – singing along to to your favorite tunes on a mic often in karaoke boxes. Read more on karaoke
Kashu – singer.
Katakana – Japanese syllabary of angular characters often considered childlike and therefore cute Read more about katakana
Kawaii – (可愛) cute, loveable, adorable and the appreciation of cuteness in Japanese society and fashion. Read more on the culture of cute.
Kayokyoku – popular songs.
K-Books – popular chain of stores selling dojinshi.
Keitai (denwa) – the Japanese term for mobile, or cell, phones. keitai rental
Keroppi – 1980’s kawaii frog character by Sanrio.
Kewpie – Kewpie dolls are kawaii icons in Japan.
Kimo-kawaii – gross-cute typified by the character Gloomy Bear.
Kimono – traditional Japanese dress worn by both men and women. kimono products
Koara no Machi – (Koala’s March) cute cookie in the shape of a koala.
Kodomo – child.
Kogal – a contraction of kokosei gyaru (high school gal) – a type of kawaii fashion based on the Japanese school uniform with very short skirts and loose socks.
Koneko ji – “kitten writing” – cute school girl handwriting.
K-pop – Korean popular music with a large following in Japan. Read more on K-pop.
Kumamon – massively popular character representing Kumamoto Prefecture. Kuma is “bear” and “mon” local slang for “man”.
L
Lolicon – Lolita complex.
Lolita – fashion style based on Victorian and Rococo era clothes to achieve a cute, doll-like look.
Loose Socks – school girl socks that crossed over into kawaii fashion.
Lolita in Omotesando, Tokyo, Japan.
Lolita fashion in Omotesando
M
Mamba – aka yamamba – sub-tribe of ganguro.
Mamegoma – cute seal characters produced by San-X.
Mamezo-kun – “Bean Boy”.
Mandarake – chain of stores specializing in both dansei-muke and josei-muke dojinshi, used manga of all genres including porn, figurines and cosplay accessories.
Maneki Neko – cute ceramic beckoning cats thought to bring good fortune, especially for businesses, as the cats are believed to attract customers with their beckoning paw. Maneki neko products
Manga – Japanese comic books, as popular with adults as with children. manga products
Matsuri – a traditional Japanese festival. Read more on matsuri
Meido kissa – maid cafe (see Akihabara).
Mickey Mouse – important kawaii icon in Japan along with Minnie Mouse.
Miffy – imported kawaii icon from Holland.
Moe – strong affections (sometimes sexual) towards Japanese anime and manga characters.
My Melody – cute rabbit character by Sanrio.
Akihabara Glam Biker, Tokyo, Japan.
Akihabara Glam Biker, Tokyo
N
Naruto – popular manga and anime created by Kishimoto Masashi.
Netsuke – carved fastener made from wood or ivory, a precursor of kawaii culture.
Nico Nico Douga – Japanese video sharing site.
Ningyo – doll.
Noh – a masked, highly stylized form of classical Japanese theater developed in the 14th century and subsequently refined to its present minimalism. Seen as an influence on Japanese fashion trends such as ganguro.
O
Obi – an embroidered sash for a kimono.
O-josan – lit. “princess” – young woman of conservative taste.
OL – abbreviation for ‘Office Lady’ – a female office worker.
Omukai Jizo – kawaii jizo made from plastic balls placed in plant pots.
Onnagata – man playing woman’s role in kabuki.
Otaku – nerdy hobbyist obsessed by manga, anime, gaming or other sub-cultures.
P
Pikachu – kawaii character from Pokemon.
Pokemon – (Pocket Monsters) video game developed for the Gameboy in the 1990’s by Nintendo.
Popteen – monthly teenage fashion magazine.
Purikura – shortened form of “purinto kurabu” – teenage mug shots. Read more on purikura
Q
Q.E.D. – detective manga, created by Motohiro Kato.
R
Retoro – “retro.”
Rilakkuma – compound word from “relax” and “kuma” meaning bear – a cute soft, toy bear.
Romaji – a system of transcribing the Japanese language in to the Latin alphabet. Read more about romaji
Satoko-chan and Sato-chan, cute mascot characters of the Sato Pharmaceutical company in Japan..
Satoko-chan and Sato-chan
S
Sailor Moon – popular shojo (teenage girl) manga series.
Sakura – cherry blossom is pink – the ultimate kawaii color.
Sanrio – company behind the Hello Kitty phenomenon and other cute products.
Satoko-chan and Sato-chan – cute mascot characters of the Sato Pharmaceutical company in Japan.
Sempai – one’s elder and therefore superior at school or work.
Sensei – teacher, master.
Shibui – austere sense of beauty.
Shibuya – Tokyo district and center of Japanese youth culture. Read more on Shibuya.
Shin-jinrui – lit. “new human species” media term for empty-headed, consumer-orientated youth.
Smapho – abbreviation for “smart phone.”
Stich – Disney character incorporated into the Japanese kawaii pantheon.
Sweet Lolita – a sub genre of Lolita with more lace, ribbons and bows.
T
Tarepanda – kawaii character produced by San-X.
Teineigo – polite language.
Temomin – the cute mascot of a chain of massage clinics in Japan. temomi means “massage” in Japanese.
U
Ume – plum.
V
Visual kei – style in J-pop with fashion emphasis on over-the-top hair styles, outrageous costumes and make-up.
W
Wa – harmony also prefix to denote Japanese.
Wabi Sabi – a basic concept of Japanese aesthetics, stressing unpretentiousness, plainness, earthiness, and satisfaction with imperfection.
X
X-Japan – influential Visual-kei band in Japan.
Yuru kyara in Tokyo, Japan.
Yuru kyara in Tokyo
Y
Yabai – can be translated as dangerous or risky but often used by youth in the sense of “dodgy” or “weird.”
Yaoi – aka Boys’ Love or BL, a genre of male-male romance in anime and managa that appeals to a mostly female fan set.
Yokai – Japanese monsters – often associated with Mizuki Shigeru’s influential manga and anime, most notably GeGeGe no Kitaro.
Yosakoi – Yosakoi is group formation dancing to fast-paced modern electronic music, but is based on earlier folk dances from Kochi in Shikoku.
Read more on yosakoi
Yukata – thin cotton gown.
Yuru kyara – lit. “soft or loose characters” often adopted by a town or city as their mascot or “character” such as the hugely popular Kumamon in Kumamoto.
Z
Zentai – full body Cosplay suits.
Zettai ryoiki – Japanese fashion term referring to the gap of exposed thigh between loose socks and a mini-skirt.
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