Promotional sign for Japan Self-Defense Forces auxiliary, with men drawn in a super deformed style.

Since the 1970s, cuteness (可愛さ, kawaisa^?) has become a prominent aspect of Japanese popular culture, entertainment, clothing, food, toys, personal appearance, behavior, and mannerisms. Foreign observers often find this cuteness intriguing and sometimes strange because the Japanese employ it in a vast array of situations and demographics where, in other cultures, it would be considered incongruously juvenile or frivolous (for example, in government publications, public service warnings, office environments, military advertisements, and commercial airliners, among many others). Image File history File linksMetadata Furenjieitai. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Furenjieitai. ... The Japan Self-Defense Forces ), or JSDF, are the military forces in Japan that were established after the end of World War II. The force has not been engaged in real combat but has been engaged in some international peacekeeping operations. ... Ryu drawn in a super deformed style, from the arcade game Pocket Fighter, known as Super Gem Fighter: Mini Mix in the United States. ... The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, also called The Seventies. ... Knut, a young polar bear at the Berlin Zoo, has been referred to in news media as cute.[1] Cuteness (in the American English form of the word, the British English form of cute meaning clever, shrewd, or sly - stemming from the word acute) is a kind of attractive beauty... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Japanese fashion consists of a mixture of both traditional and modern styles. ... Designer toys is a term used to describe toys and other collectables that are produced in limited editions (as few as 50 or as many as 2000 pieces) and created by artists and designers. ...

Prevalence

An All Nippon Airways Boeing 747 in Pokémon livery.

Cute elements can be found almost everywhere in Japan, from big business to corner markets and national government, ward, and town offices.^[1][2] Many companies, large and small, use cute mascots to present their wares and services to the public. For example: Image File history File links ANA Boeing 747-400 (JA8962), in Pokemon special colours, landing at London (Heathrow) airport. ... Image File history File links ANA Boeing 747-400 (JA8962), in Pokemon special colours, landing at London (Heathrow) airport. ... All Nippon Airways Co. ... The Boeing 747, sometimes nicknamed the Jumbo Jet,[4][5] is a long-haul, widebody commercial airliner manufactured by Boeing in the United States. ... The official Pokémon logo. ...

• Pikachu, a character from Pokémon, adorns the side of three All Nippon Airways passenger jets.
• Conan, protagonist of the series Detective Conan.
• Asahi Bank used Miffy (Nijntje), a character from a Dutch series of children's picture books, on some of its ATM cards.
• Monkichi, a cute monkey character, can be found on the packaging for a line of condoms^[3]
• All 47 prefectures have cute mascot characters
• The Japan Post "Yū-Pack" mascot is a stylized mailbox.^[4]
• The Japan Post also uses other cute mascot characters, for example, on stamps.
• Some police forces in Japan have their own moe mascots, which sometimes adorn the front of koban (police boxes).

Cute merchandise is extremely popular in Japan. The two largest manufacturers of such merchandise are Sanrio (manufacturers of "Hello Kitty") and San-X (manufacturers of "Kogepan", "Nyan Nyan Nyanko" and "Rilakkuma"). This character merchandise is a hit with Japanese children and adults alike.^[5][6] Pikachu ) are one of the 493 fictional species of Pokémon creatures from the multi-billion-dollar[1] Pokémon media franchise—a collection of video games, anime, manga, books, trading cards, and other media created by Satoshi Tajiri. ... The official Pokémon logo. ... All Nippon Airways Co. ... Jimmy Kudo, shown in his regular form (top) and his Conan Edogawa form (bottom) Jimmy Kudo, known as Shinichi Kudo ) in the original Japanese anime and manga, is the main character of the anime and manga Case Closed, known in Japan as Detective Conan (名探偵コナン Meitantei Conan). ... Resona Holdings, Inc. ... Miffy Celebrates Fifty Years Miffy is a picture book character in the form of a small female rabbit drawn by Dick Bruna. ... Monkichi is a fictional monkey character created by the Japanese Company Sanrio. ... The prefectures of Japan are the countrys 47 sub-national jurisdictions: one metropolis (都 to), Tokyo; one circuit (道 dō), Hokkaidō; two urban prefectures (府 fu), Osaka and Kyoto; and 43 other prefectures (県 ken). ... Millie, once mascot of the City of Brampton, is now the Brampton Arts Councils representative. ... Japan Post ) is a public corporation in Japan offering postal and package delivery services, banking services, and life insurance. ... The properties that make a character moe are often difficult to define but easy to recognize. ... This koban is a landmark in the Ginza district of Tokyo A kōban (交番) is a Japanese police box. ... Sanrio Co. ... Hello Kitty by Sanrio. ... San-X ) is a Japanese company that specializes in the creation, production and marketing of goods featuring anime-style anthropomorphic characters such as Kogepan, Nyan Nyan Nyanko and Afro Ken. ...

Cute can be also used to describe a specific fashion sense^[7][8] of an individual, and generally includes clothing that appears to be made for young children, outside of the size, or clothing that accentuates the cuteness of the individual wearing the clothing. Ruffles and pastel colors are commonly (but not always) featured, and accessories often include toys or bags featuring anime characters.^[9] For other uses, see Fashion (disambiguation). ...

Perception in Japan

As a cultural phenomenon, cuteness is increasingly accepted in Japan as a part of Japanese culture and national identity. Tomoyuki Sugiyama, author of "Cool Japan", believes that "cuteness" is rooted in Japan's harmony-loving culture, and Nobuyoshi Kurita, a sociology professor at Musashi University in Tokyo, has stated that "cute" is a "magic term" that encompasses everything that's acceptable and desirable in Japan.^[10] Japanese culture and language Japans isolation until the arrival of the Black Ships and the Meiji era produced a culture distinctively different from any other, and echoes of this uniqueness persist today. ... Look up cool in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Musashi University (武蔵大学) is a university in Tokyo, Japan. ...

On the other hand, those skeptical of cuteness consider it a sign of an infantile mentality.^[10] In particular, Hiroto Murasawa, professor of beauty and culture at Osaka Shoin Women’s University asserts that cuteness is "a mentality that breeds non-assertion ... Individuals who choose to stand out get beaten down."^[10] For other uses, see Osaka (disambiguation). ... // A Japanese proverb (ことわざ kotowaza) may take the form of: a short saying (言い習わし Ä«narawashi), an idiomatic phrase (慣用句 kanyōku), or a four-character idiom (四字熟語 yojijukugo). ...

Influence on other cultures

Cute merchandise and products are especially popular in some parts of east Asia, such as China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.^[11] For other uses, see Asia (disambiguation). ...

In some Asian and western cultures, the Japanese word for cute (kawaii, 可愛い) has joined a number of other Japanese words borrowed by overseas fans of Japanese pop culture often in the wrong context. While the usage is almost entirely limited to the otaku subculture, it has been used by American singer Gwen Stefani, who gave kawaii a brief mention in her Hollaback Girl music video.^[12] The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... Popular culture, or pop culture, is the vernacular (peoples) culture that prevails in a modern society. ... Otaku ) is a derisive Japanese term used to refer to people with obsessive interests in manga, anime or hentai. ... In sociology, anthropology and cultural studies, a subculture is a set of people with a set of behaviors and beliefs, culture, which could be distinct or hidden, that differentiate them from the larger culture to which they belong. ... For other uses, see Singer (disambiguation). ... Gwen Renée Stefani (born October 3, 1969) (pronounced [1]), is an American singer, songwriter, fashion designer and occasional actress. ... Hollaback Girl is a pop song written by singer Gwen Stefani and Pharrell Williams for Stefanis debut solo album Love. ...

The influence of cuteness and manga has also been adopted by several North American businesses.^{[citation needed]}

See also

• Japanese popular culture
• Japanese fashion
• Kobe Collection
• Beauty
• Chibi
• Bishōjo
• Super deformed
• Cuteness
• Lolita fashion
• Moe (slang)
• Wabi-sabi
• OS-tan

This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Japanese fashion consists of a mixture of both traditional and modern styles. ... The Kobe collection ) is a fashion event has been held in Kobe, Japan and other cities during spring and autumn every year since 2002; over 30 brands and some have participated. ... For beauty as a characteristic of a persons appearance, see Physical attractiveness. ... It is realy supposed to be spelled chibbie and it means awesom This article is about the Japanese word Chibi. ... The bishōjo style of drawing uses large, limpid eyes for increased cuteness, as in the character of Nyū from Elfen Lied. ... Ryu drawn in a super deformed style, from the arcade game Pocket Fighter, known as Super Gem Fighter: Mini Mix in the United States. ... Knut, a young polar bear at the Berlin Zoo, has been referred to in news media as cute.[1] Cuteness (in the American English form of the word, the British English form of cute meaning clever, shrewd, or sly - stemming from the word acute) is a kind of attractive beauty... A lolita in Harajuku, Tokyo. ... The properties that make a character moe are often difficult to define but easy to recognize. ... A Japanese tea house which reflects the Wabi-Sabi aesthetic Wabi-sabi (in Kanji: 侘寂) represents a comprehensive Japanese world view or aesthetic centred on the acceptance of transience. ... A group image of the OS-tans. ...

References

Notes

is the 109th day of the year (110th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 273rd day of the year (274th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 109th day of the year (110th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 109th day of the year (110th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 109th day of the year (110th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 109th day of the year (110th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 109th day of the year (110th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 109th day of the year (110th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Associated Press, or AP, is an American news agency, the worlds largest such organization. ... is the 109th day of the year (110th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 109th day of the year (110th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Other references

• Asia Times: The cat who turned kawaii into cash (book review)
• Backwash.com: Grrl Wanders
• Kawaii-Inc.: For cute graphics

• Chanpon: Hello Kitty has no mouth
• International Herald Tribune: Tokyo's fantasy cafés
• New York Times: The Cute Factor
• Sociologist Sharon Kinsella's analysis of the origins of kawaii
• Taipei Times: How 'kawaii'!
• Time Asia: Young Japan: She's a material girl
• Kawaii Culture (a regular column at Tokyopop)
• UCLA: Anime's 'Transnational Geekdom'
• What is the effect of the Fantabulous Kawaii Gizmos, Wireless Privacy Daemons & Orientalism
• Japanese Cybercultures
• Shiokawa, Kanako. "Cute But Deadly: Women and Violence in Japanese Comics". Themes and Issues in Asian Cartooning: Cute, Cheap, Mad and Sexy. Ed. John A. Lent. Bowling Green, Kentucky: Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1999. 93–125. ISBN 0-87972-779-9.
• "You are doing burikko!:Censoring/scrutinizing artificers of cute femininity in Japanese," Laura Miller in Gender, and Ideology: Cultural Models and Real People, edited by Janet Shibamoto Smith and Shigeko Okamoto, Oxford University Press, 2004. In Japanese.
• TheAge.Com: "Japan smitten by love of cute"
• Love for cute has Japan engrossed in soul-searching on kitty, beauty, art