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Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
ese
children's song
A children's song may be a nursery rhyme set to music, a song that children invent and share among themselves or a modern creation intended for entertainment, use in the home or education. Although children's songs have been recorded and studied ...
composed in 1959 and is well known there. Its lyrics were written by and the music was composed by .
The name Satchan is a diminutive form of the name
Sachiko
is a feminine Japanese given name that means "''child of bliss''." It also means "''happiness''" when it is written with the kanji characters 幸子. One common short form of the name is ''Sachi''.
People
* Sachiko, Princess Hisa (久宮祐子 ...
and is used mostly for young girls as opposed to older ones. Diminutive forms such as these can—but do not always—carry a comical connotation, so "Satchan" isn't merely a name like "Jenny;" it can be more like "Jenny girl" or "Jenny pie." Unlike in the English-speaking world, however, diminutive forms of children's names are used more often than not when referring to or speaking to children.
History
According to the
lyricist
A lyricist is a songwriter who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment.
Royalties
A lyricist's income ...
Hiroo Sakata, recalling his childhood, it was about a neighborhood girl nicknamed "Satchan". Ms. was in Sakata's class; she eventually moved away (referenced in the song as "...going far away" in the third verse). According to Megumi Ōnaka, Sakata had his first crush on Kikuta.
The reference to the banana in the second verse was over the health episode Sakata experienced himself. When younger, Sakata's body was weak; when he tried to eat more than half of a banana, he would feel nauseous and could not finish the rest.
As a note, the lyricist and the composer were cousins.
Popular culture
Due to the popularity of this children's song, several different
urban legend
An urban legend (sometimes contemporary legend, modern legend, urban myth, or urban tale) is a genre of folklore comprising stories or fallacious claims circulated as true, especially as having happened to a "friend of a friend" or a family m ...
s and
spoofs associated with this song have sprung up in Japan. In one version, an additional fourth verse alludes to Sat-chan being a leg-less ghost. In another version, additional verses up to the tenth were composed.
In the autumn of 2006, a memorial stone inscribed with the lyrics of this children's song was dedicated at the South
Osaka
is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...
Kindergarten.
External links
* (Japanese)''
Background information on Satchan* (Japanese)''
* (Japanese)''
{{Authority control
1959 songs
Japanese-language songs
Japanese children's songs
Songs about children