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''Kawaii'' is a Japanese cultural phenomenon which emphasizes
cuteness Cuteness is a type of Physical attractiveness, attractiveness commonly associated with youth and Human physical appearance, appearance, as well as a scientific concept and analytical model in ethology, first introduced by Austrian Ethology, etho ...
, childlike innocence, charm, and simplicity. ''Kawaii'' culture began to flourish in the 1970s, driven by
youth culture Youth culture refers to the societal norms of children, adolescents, and young adults. Specifically, it comprises the processes and symbolic systems that are shared by the youth and are distinct from those of adults in the community. An emphasis ...
and the rise of cute characters in
manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...
and
anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...
(comics and animation) and
merchandise Merchandising is any practice which contributes to the sale of Product (business), products ("merch" colloquially) to a retail consumer. At a retail in-store level, merchandising refers to displaying products that are for sale in a creative w ...
, exemplified by the creation of
Hello Kitty , also known by her real name , is a fictional character created by Yuko Shimizu, currently designed by Yuko Yamaguchi, and owned by the Japanese company Sanrio. Sanrio depicts Hello Kitty as a British anthropomorphized white cat with a red ...
by
Sanrio is a Japanese entertainment company. It designs, licenses, and manufactures products focusing on the ''kawaii'' ("cute") segment of Japanese popular culture. Their products include stationery, school supplies, gifts, and Fashion accessory, a ...
in 1974. The ''kawaii''
aesthetic Aesthetics (also spelled esthetics) is the branch of philosophy concerned with the nature of beauty and taste, which in a broad sense incorporates the philosophy of art.Slater, B. H.Aesthetics ''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy,'' , acces ...
is characterized by soft or pastel (usually pink, blue and white) colors, rounded shapes, and features which evoke vulnerability, such as big eyes and small mouths, and has become a prominent aspect of
Japanese popular culture Japanese popular culture includes Cinema of Japan, Japanese cinema, Japanese cuisine, cuisine, Television in Japan, television programs, anime, manga, Video gaming in Japan, video games, Music of Japan, music, and doujinshi, all of which retain ol ...
, influencing entertainment (including toys and idols), fashion (such as Lolita fashion), advertising, and product design.


Etymology

The word ''kawaii'' originally derives from the phrase ''kao hayushi'', which literally means "(one's) face (is) aglow," commonly used to refer to flushing or blushing of the face. The second morpheme is
cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymological ancestor in a common parent language. Because language change can have radical effects on both the s ...
with ''-bayu'' in '' mabayui'' (眩い, 目映い, or 目映ゆい) "dazzling, glaring, blinding, too bright; dazzlingly beautiful" (''ma-'' is from ''me'' "eye") and ''-hayu'' in ''omohayui'' (面映ゆい) "embarrassed/embarrassing, awkward, feeling self-conscious/making one feel self-conscious" (''omo-'' is from 面 ''omo'', an archaic word for "face, looks, features; surface; image, semblance, vestige"). Over time, the meaning changed into the modern meaning of "cute" or "pretty" , and the pronunciation changed to ''kawayui'' and then to the modern ''kawaii''. It is commonly written in
hiragana is a Japanese language, Japanese syllabary, part of the Japanese writing system, along with ''katakana'' as well as ''kanji''. It is a phonetic lettering system. The word ''hiragana'' means "common" or "plain" kana (originally also "easy", ...
, , but the
ateji In modern Japanese, principally refers to kanji used to phonetically represent native or borrowed words with less regard to the underlying meaning of the characters. This is similar to in Old Japanese. Conversely, also refers to kanji used s ...
, , is also frequently used. The
romanized In linguistics, romanization is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and transcription, ...
kanji are logographic Chinese characters, adapted from Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script, used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are ...
in the ateji literally translates to "able to love/be loved, can/may love, lovable." Various modern Standard Japanese words have related meanings such as the adjectival noun かわいそう ''kawaisō'' (often written with ''ateji'' as 可哀相 or 可哀想) "piteous, pitiable, arousing compassion, poor, sad, sorry" (etymologically from 顔映様 "face / projecting, reflecting, or transmitting light, flushing,
blushing Blushing or erubescence is the reddening of a person's face due to psychological reasons. It is normally involuntary and triggered by emotional stress associated with passion, embarrassment, shyness, fear, anger, or romantic stimulation. S ...
/ seeming, appearance"). Forms of ''kawaii'' and its derivatives ''kawaisō'' and ''kawairashii'' (with the suffix ''-rashii'' "-like, -ly") are used in modern dialects to mean "embarrassing/embarrassed, shameful/ashamed" or "good, nice, fine, excellent, superb, splendid, admirable".


History


Precursors

The notion of “kawaii” is traditionally traced back to
Sei Shōnagon , or , was a Japanese author, poet, and court lady who served the Empress Teishi (Sadako) around the year 1000, during the middle Heian period. She is the author of . Name Sei Shōnagon's actual given name is not known. It was the custom amon ...
’s
The Pillow Book is a book of observations and musings recorded by Sei Shōnagon during her time as court lady to Fujiwara no Teishi, Empress Consort Teishi during the 990s and early 1000s in Heian-period Japan. The book was completed in the year 1002. The wor ...
between 900s-1000s, where in the section on “Pretty things”, she mentions several things that clearly fit the modern notion of cuteness (e.g., a face of a child drawn on a melon; ). Kawaii culture is an off-shoot of Japanese girls’ culture, which flourished with the creation of girl secondary schools after 1899. This postponement of marriage and children allowed for the rise of a girl youth culture in shōjo magazines and
shōjo manga is an editorial category of Manga, Japanese comics targeting an audience of adolescent girls and young adult women. It is, along with Shōnen manga, manga (targeting adolescent boys), Seinen manga, manga (targeting young adult and adult men ...
directed at girls in the pre-war period.


Cute handwriting

In the 1970s, the popularity of the kawaii
aesthetic Aesthetics (also spelled esthetics) is the branch of philosophy concerned with the nature of beauty and taste, which in a broad sense incorporates the philosophy of art.Slater, B. H.Aesthetics ''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy,'' , acces ...
inspired a style of writing.Kinsella, Sharon. 1995. "Cuties in Japan

accessed August 1, 2009.
Many teenage girls contributed to the development of this style; the handwriting was made by writing laterally, often while using
mechanical pencil A mechanical pencil or clutch pencil is a pencil with a replaceable and mechanically extendable solid pigment core called a "lead" . The pencil lead, lead, often made of graphite, is not bonded to the outer casing, and the user can mechanically e ...
s. These pencils produced very fine lines, as opposed to traditional
Japanese writing The modern Japanese writing system uses a combination of logographic kanji, which are adopted Chinese characters, and syllabic kana. Kana itself consists of a pair of syllabaries: hiragana, used primarily for native or naturalized Japanese ...
that varied in thickness and was vertical. The teenage girls would also write in big, round characters and add little pictures to their writing, such as hearts, stars, emoticon faces, and letters of the Latin alphabet. These pictures made the writing very difficult to read. As a result, this writing style caused a lot of controversy and was banned in many schools. During the 1980s, however, this new "cute" writing was adopted by
magazines A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...
and
comics a Media (communication), medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of Panel (comics), panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, Glo ...
and was often key to packaging and advertising products, especially toys for children or “cute accessories”. From 1984 to 1986, studied the development of cute handwriting (which he called Anomalous Female Teenage Handwriting) in depth. This type of cute Japanese handwriting has also been called: , meaning "round writing", , meaning "kitten writing", , meaning "comic writing", and , meaning "fake-child writing". Although it was commonly thought that the writing style was something that teenagers had picked up from
comics a Media (communication), medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of Panel (comics), panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, Glo ...
, Kazuma found that teenagers had created the style themselves, spontaneously, as part of an ‘underground trend’. His conclusion was based on the observation that cute handwriting predates the availability of the technical means for producing rounded writing in comics.


Use in Japanese language

Usage of Kawaii in Japanese is general and can be used in a variety of situations to describe aesthetics, to give a compliment, or to add a pleasantry or salutation to a conversation.


Cute merchandise

, author of ''Cool Japan'', says cute fashion in Japan can be traced back to the
Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...
with the popularity of
netsuke A is a miniature sculpture, originating in 17th century Japan. Initially a simply-carved button fastener on the cords of an box, later developed into ornately sculpted objects of craftsmanship.Yuji Yamashita (2014), ''Meiji no saimitsu kogei'' ...
.''TheAge.Com:'' "Japan smitten by love of cute" http://www.theage.com.au/news/people/cool-or-infantile/2006/06/18/1150569208424.html Illustrator Rune Naito, who produced illustrations of "large-headed" (''nitōshin'') baby-faced girls and cartoon animals for Japanese girls' magazines from the 1950s to the 1970s, is credited with pioneering what would become the culture and aesthetic of kawaii. Because of this trend, companies such as
Sanrio is a Japanese entertainment company. It designs, licenses, and manufactures products focusing on the ''kawaii'' ("cute") segment of Japanese popular culture. Their products include stationery, school supplies, gifts, and Fashion accessory, a ...
came out with merchandise like
Hello Kitty , also known by her real name , is a fictional character created by Yuko Shimizu, currently designed by Yuko Yamaguchi, and owned by the Japanese company Sanrio. Sanrio depicts Hello Kitty as a British anthropomorphized white cat with a red ...
. Hello Kitty was an immediate success and the obsession with cute continued to develop in other areas as well. More recently, Sanrio has released kawaii characters with deeper personalities that appeal to an older audience, such as
Gudetama Gudetama, stylized in all lowercase () is a fictional character created in 2013 by Amy, the nom de plume of for Sanrio, and is a perpetually tired, apathetic anthropomorphic egg yolk. The name "Gudetama" is a portmanteau or blend word of the ...
and Aggretsuko. These characters have enjoyed great popularity as fans are drawn to their quirks as well as their cute aesthetics. The 1980s also saw the rise of cute idols, such as
Seiko Matsuda , known professionally as , is a Japanese singer-songwriter, known for being one of the most popular Japanese idols of the 1980s. Since then, she has continued to release new singles and albums, go on annual summer concert tours, perform at wi ...
, who is largely credited with popularizing the style. Women began to emulate Seiko Matsuda and her cute fashion style and mannerisms, which emphasized the helplessness and innocence of young girls. The market for cute merchandise in Japan used to be driven by Japanese girls between 15 and 18 years old.


Aesthetics

, in his work ''Kawaii Syndrome'', claims "cute" and "neat" have taken precedence over the former Japanese aesthetics of "beautiful" and "refined".Shiokawa. "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. . As a cultural phenomenon,
cuteness Cuteness is a type of Physical attractiveness, attractiveness commonly associated with youth and Human physical appearance, appearance, as well as a scientific concept and analytical model in ethology, first introduced by Austrian Ethology, etho ...
is increasingly accepted in Japan as a part of
Japanese culture Japanese culture has changed greatly over the millennia, from the country's prehistoric Jōmon period, to its contemporary modern culture, which absorbs influences from Asia and other regions of the world. Since the Jomon period, ancestral ...
and national identity. , author of ''
Cool Japan refers to the aspects of Japanese culture that non-Japanese people perceive as " cool". After the success of " Cool Britannia," the Japanese government started using the phrase. The Cool Japan strategy is part of Japan's overall brand strategy, ...
'', believes that "cuteness" is rooted in Japan's harmony-loving culture, and , a sociology professor at
Musashi University is a university in Tokyo, Japan. The university grew out of the leading boys private high school, Musashi Junior and Senior High School, first established by businessman Nezu Kaichirō in 1922. The university has faculties of economics estab ...
in
Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
, has stated that "cute" is a "magic term" that encompasses everything that is acceptable and desirable in Japan.Quotes and paraphrases from:


Physical attractiveness

In Japan, being cute is acceptable for both men and women. A trend existed of men shaving their legs to mimic the
neotenic Neoteny (), also called juvenilization,Montagu, A. (1989). Growing Young. Bergin & Garvey: CT. is the delaying or slowing of the physiological, or somatic, development of an organism, typically an animal. Neoteny in modern humans is more signif ...
look. Japanese women often try to act cute to attract men. A study by Kanebo, a cosmetic company, found that Japanese women in their 20s and 30s favored the "cute look" with a "childish round face". Women also employ a look of innocence in order to further play out this idea of cuteness. Having large eyes is one aspect that exemplifies innocence; therefore, many Japanese women attempt to alter the size of their eyes. To create this illusion, women may wear large
contact lens Contact lenses, or simply contacts, are thin lenses placed directly on the surface of the eyes. Contact lenses are ocular prosthetic devices used by over 150 million people worldwide, and they can be worn to correct vision or for cosmetic ...
es,
false eyelashes False eyelashes are a cosmetic enhancement attaching synthetic or natural fibers to the eyelids to give the natural eyelashes a fuller, more dramatic look. They are available in various lengths, thicknesses, and curvatures. History In 1882, He ...
, dramatic eye makeup, and even have an East Asian blepharoplasty, commonly known as double eyelid surgery.


Idols

are media personalities in their teens and twenties who are considered particularly attractive or cute and who will, for a period ranging from several months to a few years, regularly appear in the mass media, e.g. as singers for
pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...
groups, bit-part actors, TV personalities (''
tarento Television personalities in Japan, known as in Japanese, are celebrities who regularly appear in mass media in Japan, especially as panelists on variety shows. During the Golden Age of Hollywood, bankable stars in the United States were descri ...
''), models in photo spreads published in magazines, advertisements, etc. (But not every young celebrity is considered an idol. Young celebrities who wish to cultivate a rebellious image, such as many rock musicians, reject the "idol" label.)
Speed In kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude of the change of its position over time or the magnitude of the change of its position per unit of time; it is thus a non-negative scalar quantity. Intro ...
,
Morning Musume , formerly and commonly known as and colloquially referred to as , is a Japanese girl group, holding the second highest overall single sales (of a female group) on the Oricon, Oricon charts as of February 2012, with the Oricon record of most to ...
,
AKB48 AKB48 (pronounced ''A.K.B. Forty-Eight'') is a Japanese idol musical girl group named after the Akihabara area in Tokyo, where the group's theater is located. AKB48 has sold more records than any other female musical act in Japanese history. AK ...
, and
Momoiro Clover Z is a Japanese idol girl group, commonly abbreviated as MCZ or . The four members of MCZ are known for energetic performances, incorporating elements of ballet, gymnastics, and action movies. MCZ is notable for being the first female group to ho ...
are examples of popular idol groups in Japan during the 2000s & 2010s.


Cute fashion


Lolita

Lolita fashion is a very well-known and recognizable style in Japan. Based on Victorian fashion and the
Rococo Rococo, less commonly Roccoco ( , ; or ), also known as Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and dramatic style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpte ...
period, girls mix in their own elements along with gothic style to achieve the porcelain-doll look. The girls who dress in Lolita fashion try to look cute, innocent, and beautiful. This look is achieved with lace, ribbons, bows, ruffles,
bloomers Bloomers, also called the bloomer, the Turkish dress, the American dress, or simply Victorian dress reform, reform dress, are divided women's garments for the lower body. They were developed in the 19th century as a healthful and comfortable a ...
,
apron An apron is a garment worn over other clothing to cover the front of the body to protect from liquids. They have several purposes, most commonly as a functional accessory that protects clothes and skin from stains and marks. However, other typ ...
s, and ruffled
petticoat A petticoat or underskirt is an article of clothing, a type of undergarment worn under a skirt or a dress. Its precise meaning varies over centuries and between countries. According to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'', in current British E ...
s.
Parasols An umbrella or parasol is a folding canopy (building), canopy supported by wooden or metal ribs that is mounted on a wooden, metal, or plastic pole. It is usually designed to protect a person against rain. The term ''umbrella'' is traditionall ...
, chunky Mary Jane heels, and Bo Peep collars are also very popular. Sweet Lolita is a subset of Lolita fashion that includes even more ribbons, bows, and lace and is often fabricated out of pastels and other light colors. Head-dresses such as giant bows or bonnets are also very common, while lighter make-up is sometimes used to achieve a more natural look. Curled hair extensions, sometimes accompanied by eyelash extensions, are also popular in helping with the baby doll look. Another cute fashion with some crossover in "sweet Lolita" is Fairy Kei. Themes such as fruits, flowers, and sweets are often used as patterns on the fabrics used for dresses. Purses often go with the themes and are shaped like hearts, strawberries, or stuffed animals. '' Baby, the Stars Shine Bright'' is one of the more popular clothing stores for this style and often carries themes. Mannerisms are also important to many Sweet Lolitas. Sweet Lolita is sometimes not only a fashion but also a lifestyle. This is evident in the 2004 film ''
Kamikaze Girls , is a 2002 Japanese novel written by Novala Takemoto. The story centers on the unlikely friendship between Momoko Ryugasaki, a "Rococophile" and lolita, and Ichigo "Ichiko" Shirayuri, a (juvenile delinquent). A live-action film adaptation ...
'' where the main Lolita character, Momoko, drinks only tea and eats only sweets. Gothic Lolita, Kuro Lolita, Shiro Lolita, and Military Lolita are all subtypes, also, in the US Anime Convention scene Casual Lolita.


Decora

Decora is a style that is characterized by wearing many "decorations" on oneself. It is considered to be self-decoration. The goal of this fashion is to become as vibrant and characterized as possible. People who take part in this fashion trend wear accessories such as multicolor hair pins, bracelets, rings, necklaces, etc. By adding multiple layers of accessories to an outfit, the fashion trend tends to have a childlike appearance. Some individuals may find the exaggerated childlike elements of the kawaii aesthetic to be off-putting or inauthentic. Others, however, appreciate the positivity, innocence, and lightheartedness associated with the kawaii style. It also includes toys and multicolor clothes. Decora and Fairy Kei have some crossover.


Fairy Kei

Fairy Kei is a youthful style based on 1980s fashion that evokes a dreamy, nostalgic feeling. Outfits are made up of pastel colors, angels, toys and generally cute motifs and elements and accessories from Western toy lines of the 1980s and early 1990s, such as
Polly Pocket Polly Pocket is a toy line of inch-tall dolls and accessories sold by Mattel. The line was founded and designed by Chris Wiggs in 1983 and was first sold to the public in 1989. Between 2012 and 2018, it was not sold in the US in 2012 and decli ...
,
My Little Pony ''My Little Pony'' (''MLP'') is a toy line and media franchise developed by American toy company Hasbro. The first toys were developed by Bonnie Zacherle, Charles Muenchinger, and Steve D'Aguanno, and were produced in 1981. The ponies feature ...
,
Strawberry Shortcake Strawberry shortcake may refer to: * Strawberry shortcake (dessert), a shortcake served with strawberries * Strawberry Shortcake, a cartoon character and franchise created by American Greetings ** Strawberry Shortcake (TV series), ''Strawberry Sho ...
,
Rainbow Brite ''Rainbow Brite'' is an American media franchise by Hallmark Cards, introduced in 1984. The animated ''Rainbow Brite'' television series first aired in 1984, the same year Hallmark licensed Rainbow Brite to Mattel for a range of dolls and othe ...
, Popples,
Lady Lovely Locks ''Lady Lovely Locks and the Pixietails'' is a character property created by American Greetings subsidiary Those Characters from Cleveland (creators of Strawberry Shortcake, Care Bears and Popples among others) in the mid-1980s which soon expa ...
,
Barbie Barbie is a fashion doll created by American businesswoman Ruth Handler, manufactured by American toy and entertainment company Mattel and introduced on March 9, 1959. The toy was based on the German Bild Lilli doll, Bild Lilli doll which Hand ...
, Wuzzles, and
Care Bears Care Bears are multi-colored bears, painted in 1981 by artist Elena Kucharik to be used on greeting cards from American Greetings. They were turned into plush teddy bears and featured in ''The Care Bears in the Land Without Feelings'' (1983) and ...
. Pastel-colored hair is common, although natural hair is also popular, and hairstyles are usually kept simple and decorated with anything cute or pastel; bows are a common theme. Some common items used in a Fairy Kei coordinate include vintage sweaters, cardigans, varsity jackets, tutus, mini skirts, tights, over-the-knee socks, sneakers, and tea party shoes. The term "Fairy Kei" originated from the magazine called ''Zipper'' (despite a common belief that Sayuri Tabuchi avuchi the owner of Tokyo fashion store ''Spank!'', was the accidental creator of the style).


Kimo-kawaii/Yami-kawaii

Kimo-kawaii, also known as "creepy-cute" or "gross-cute" in Japanese, has a unique look by combining Kawaii aesthetics with stylistic elements of horror and macabre. The style emerged in the 1990s when some people lost interest in cute and innocent characters and fashion. It is usually achieved by wearing creepy or gross clothes or accessories with a stronger emphasis on dark themes and colors. Yami-kawaii or "sickly-cute", emerged in the mid-2010s to emphasize themes of mental health, vulnerability, and emotional darkness through fashion. In contrast to Kimo-kawaii, the style uses black, deep purple, and gray colors on teardrops, broken hearts, pill capsules, and other melancholic motifs.


Kawaii men

Although typically a female-dominated fashion, some men partake in the kawaii trend. Men wearing masculine kawaii accessories is very uncommon, and typically the men cross-dress as kawaii women instead by wearing wigs, false eyelashes, applying makeup, and wearing kawaii female clothing. This is seen predominately in male entertainers, such as Torideta-san, a DJ who transforms himself into a kawaii woman when working at his nightclub. Japanese pop stars and actors often have longer hair, such as
Takuya Kimura is a Japanese actor, singer, and radio personality. He is regarded as a Japanese icon after achieving success as an actor. He was also a popular member of SMAP, one of the best-selling boy bands in Asia. In the media, he is known as a huge hea ...
of
SMAP was a Japanese boy band, composed of Masahiro Nakai, Takuya Kimura, Goro Inagaki, Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, and Shingo Katori. The group was created in 1988 by music producer Johnny Kitagawa, founder of Johnny & Associates, originally as a six-p ...
. Men are also noted as often aspiring to a neotenic look.


Products

The concept of ''kawaii'' has had an influence on a variety of products, including candy, such as Hi-Chew,
Koala's March Koala's March () is a bite-sized cookie snack with a sweet filling. The cookies are produced by Lotte. History The product was first released in Japan in 1984, to celebrate the arrival of the first koalas to the country. The snack originally ...
, and
Hello Panda Hello Panda is a brand of Japanese biscuit, manufactured by Meiji Seika. It was first released in Japan during 1979. Each biscuit consists of a small hollow shortbread layer, filled with crème of various flavors. On some biscuits there are print ...
. Cuteness can be added to products by adding cute features, such as hearts, flowers, stars, and rainbows. Cute elements can be found almost everywhere in Japan, from big business to corner markets and national government, ward, and town offices.''Bloomberg Businessweek'', "In Japan, Cute Conquers All"
.
Many companies, large and small, use cute mascots to present their wares and services to the public. For example: *
Pikachu Pikachu (; Japanese: , Hepburn: ) is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's ''Pokémon'' media franchise, and the franchise's mascot. First introduced in the video games ''Pokémon Red'' and ''Blue'', it was created by Atsuko N ...
, a character from ''
Pokémon is a Japanese media franchise consisting of List of Pokémon video games, video games, Pokémon (TV series), animated series and List of Pokémon films, films, Pokémon Trading Card Game, a trading card game, and other related media. The fran ...
,'' adorns the side of ten ANA passenger jets, the Pokémon Jets. *
Asahi Bank () is the holding company of , the fifth-largest banking group in Japan as of 2012. It is headquartered in the Kiba area of Koto, Tokyo. The main operating entities of the group are Resona Bank, a nationwide corporate and retail bank headq ...
used
Miffy Miffy (, pronounced ) is a fictional rabbit appearing in a series of picture books drawn and written by Dutch artist Dick Bruna. The original Dutch name, ''Nijntje'', is a shortening of the diminutive ''konijntje'', "little rabbit". The first ...
(Nijntje), a character from a
Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...
series of children's picture books, on some of its ATM and credit cards. * The
prefectures of Japan Japan is divided into 47 prefectures (, , ), which rank immediately below the national government and form the country's first level of jurisdiction and Administrative divisions of Japan, administrative division. They include 43 prefectures pro ...
, as well as many cities and cultural institutions, have cute
mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, sports team, university society, society, military unit, or brand, brand name. Mascots are als ...
characters known as
yuru-chara is a Japanese term for a category of mascot characters; usually created to promote a place or region, event, organisation or business. They are characterized by their '' kawaii'' (cute) and unsophisticated designs, often incorporating motifs th ...
to promote tourism.
Kumamon Kumamon is a mascot created by the government of Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It was created in 2010 for a campaign created to draw tourists to the region after the Kyushu Shinkansen line opened. Kumamon subsequently became nationally popular, an ...
, the
Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture t ...
mascot, and
Hikonyan is a mascot created by the city government of Hikone, Japan. He was created in 2007 to mark the 400th anniversary of the founding of Hikone Castle. The character design is derived from a legend concerning '' maneki-neko'' and Ii Naotaka, the 3 ...
, the city of
Hikone is a city located in Shiga Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 111,958 in 49,066 households and a population density of 570 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Hikone is located in central Shig ...
mascot, are among the most popular. * The
Japan Post was a Japanese statutory corporation that existed from 2003 to 2007, offering postal and package delivery services, Retail banking, banking services, and life insurance. It is the nation's largest employer, with over 400,000 employees, and ru ...
"Yū-Pack" mascot is a stylized mailbox; they also use other cute mascot characters to promote their various services (among them the Postal Savings Bank) and have used many such on postage stamps. * Some
police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...
forces in Japan have their own '' moe'' mascots, which sometimes adorn the front of
kōban A is a small neighborhood police station found in Japan. The term also refers to the smallest organizational unit in a modern Law enforcement in Japan, Japanese prefectural police force. Small kōban buildings, staffed by uniformed officers at ...
(police boxes). *
NHK , also known by its Romanization of Japanese, romanized initialism NHK, is a Japanese public broadcasting, public broadcaster. It is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television licence, television license fee. NHK ope ...
, the public broadcaster, has its own cute mascots. Domokun, the unique-looking and widely recognized NHK mascot, was introduced in 1998 and quickly took on a life of its own, appearing in
Internet memes An Internet meme, or meme (, ''MEEM''), is a cultural item (such as an idea, behavior, or style) that spreads across the Internet, primarily through social media platforms. Internet memes manifest in a variety of formats, including images, v ...
and fan art around the world. *
Sanrio is a Japanese entertainment company. It designs, licenses, and manufactures products focusing on the ''kawaii'' ("cute") segment of Japanese popular culture. Their products include stationery, school supplies, gifts, and Fashion accessory, a ...
, the company behind
Hello Kitty , also known by her real name , is a fictional character created by Yuko Shimizu, currently designed by Yuko Yamaguchi, and owned by the Japanese company Sanrio. Sanrio depicts Hello Kitty as a British anthropomorphized white cat with a red ...
and other similarly cute characters, runs the
Sanrio Puroland , also known as ''Hello Kitty Land'', is an indoor theme park located in Tama New Town, Tokyo, Japan. Opened on December 7, 1990, it hosts attractions, live shows, shopping outlets, and restaurants dedicated to List of Sanrio characters, Sanrio ...
theme park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, and events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central theme, often fea ...
in Tokyo, and painted on some
EVA Air EVA Airways Corporation ( ; ) () is an international airline headquartered in Taoyuan City. It is one of the two largest airlines in Taiwan along with state-owned China Airlines. The privately owned airline operates passenger and dedicated c ...
Airbus A330 The Airbus A330 is a wide-body airliner developed and produced by Airbus. Airbus began developing larger A300 derivatives in the mid–1970s, giving rise to the A330 twinjet as well as the Airbus A340 quadjet, and launched both designs along ...
jets as well. Sanrio's line of more than 50 characters takes in more than $1 billion a year and it remains the most successful company to capitalize on the cute trend. * Kawaii Future bass, a subgenre of
Future bass Future bass is a style of electronic dance music which developed in the 2010s that mixes elements of dubstep and EDM Trap music (EDM), trap with warmer, less abrasive rhythms. The genre was pioneered by producers such as Rustie, Hudson Mohawke, ...
. ''Cute'' can be also used to describe a specific fashion sense''Time Asia'': "Arts: Kwest For Kawaii". Retrieved on 2006-04-19 from http://www.time.com/time/asia/arts/magazine/0,9754,131022,00.html . of an individual, and generally includes clothing that appears to be made for young children, apart from 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.


Non-''kawaii'' imports

There have been occasions on which popular
Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...
products failed to meet the expectations of ''kawaii'', and thus did not do well in the Japanese market. For example,
Cabbage Patch Kids Cabbage Patch Kids are a line of cloth dolls with plastic heads first produced by Coleco Industries in 1982. They were inspired by the Little People soft sculptured dolls sold by Xavier Roberts as collectibles. The brand was renamed 'Cabbage ...
dolls did not sell well in Japan, because the Japanese considered their facial features to be "ugly" and "grotesque" compared to the flatter and almost featureless faces of characters such as Hello Kitty. Also, the doll
Barbie Barbie is a fashion doll created by American businesswoman Ruth Handler, manufactured by American toy and entertainment company Mattel and introduced on March 9, 1959. The toy was based on the German Bild Lilli doll, Bild Lilli doll which Hand ...
, portraying an adult woman, did not become successful in Japan compared to Takara's Licca, a doll that was modeled after an 11-year-old girl.


Industry

Kawaii has gradually gone from a small
subculture A subculture is a group of people within a culture, cultural society that differentiates itself from the values of the conservative, standard or dominant culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures ...
in Japan to an important part of Japanese modern culture as a whole. An overwhelming number of modern items feature kawaii themes, not only in Japan but also worldwide. And characters associated with kawaii are astoundingly popular. "Global cuteness" is reflected in such billion-dollar sellers as ''
Pokémon is a Japanese media franchise consisting of List of Pokémon video games, video games, Pokémon (TV series), animated series and List of Pokémon films, films, Pokémon Trading Card Game, a trading card game, and other related media. The fran ...
'' and Hello Kitty.Roach, Mary. "Cute Inc." Wired Dec. 1999. 01 May 2005 https://www.wired.com/wired/archive/7.12/cute_pr.html "Fueled by Internet subcultures, Hello Kitty alone has hundreds of entries on
eBay eBay Inc. ( , often stylized as ebay) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that allows users to buy or view items via retail sales through online marketplaces and websites in 190 markets worldwide. ...
, and is selling in more than 30 countries, including
Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
,
Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
, and
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
." Japan has become a powerhouse in the kawaii industry and images of Doraemon, Hello Kitty,
Pikachu Pikachu (; Japanese: , Hepburn: ) is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's ''Pokémon'' media franchise, and the franchise's mascot. First introduced in the video games ''Pokémon Red'' and ''Blue'', it was created by Atsuko N ...
,
Sailor Moon is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Naoko Takeuchi. It was originally serialized in Kodansha's Shōjo manga, ''shōjo'' manga magazine ''Nakayoshi'' from 1991 to 1997; the 60 individual chapters (later reorganized into ...
, and
Hamtaro ''Hamtaro'', known in Japan as , is a Japanese manga and storybook series created and illustrated by Ritsuko Kawai about a hamster. The manga was serialized in Shogakukan's ''Shōgaku Ninensei'' (''Second Grade'') magazine in April ...
are popular in mobile phone accessories. However, Professor Tian Shenliang says that Japan's future is dependent on how much of an impact kawaii brings to humanity. The
Japanese Foreign Ministry The is an executive department of the Government of Japan, and is responsible for the country's foreign policy and international relations. The ministry was established by the second term of the third article of the National Government Organiz ...
has also recognized the power of cute merchandise and sent three 18-year-old women overseas in 2018 in the hopes of spreading Japanese culture around the world. The women dress in uniforms and maid costumes that are commonplace in Japan. Kawaii manga and magazines have brought tremendous profit to the Japanese press industry. Moreover, the worldwide revenue from the computer game and its merchandising peripherals are closing in on $5 billion, according to a
Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto. It develops, publishes, and releases both video games and video game consoles. The history of Nintendo began when craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi ...
press release titled "It's a Pokémon Planet".


Impact upon other cultures

In recent years, Kawaii products have gained popularity beyond the borders of Japan in other East and Southeast Asian countries and are additionally becoming more popular in the US among
anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...
and
manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...
fans as well as others influenced by Japanese culture. Cute merchandise and products are especially popular in other parts of
East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...
, such as
mainland China "Mainland China", also referred to as "the Chinese mainland", is a Geopolitics, geopolitical term defined as the territory under direct administration of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War. In addit ...
,
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
,
Macau Macau or Macao is a special administrative regions of China, special administrative region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). With a population of about people and a land area of , it is the most List of countries and dependencies by p ...
,
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
and
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
, as well as
Southeast Asian Southeast Asia is the geographical southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Australian mainland, which is part of Oceania. Southeast Asia is ...
countries including the
Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
,
Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
,
Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...
, and
Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
. Sebastian Masuda, owner of 6%DOKIDOKI and a global advocate for kawaii style, takes the quality from Harajuku to Western markets in his stores and artwork. The underlying belief of this Japanese designer is that "kawaii" actually saves the world. The infusion of kawaii into other world markets and cultures is achieved by introducing kawaii via modern art; audio, visual, and written media; and the fashion trends of Japanese youth, especially in high school girls. Japanese kawaii seemingly operates as a center of global popularity due to its association with making cultural productions and consumer products "cute". This mindset pursues a global market, giving rise to numerous applications and interpretations in other cultures. The dissemination of Japanese youth fashion and "kawaii culture" is usually associated with the Western society and trends set by designers borrowed or taken from Japan. With the emergence of China, South Korea and Singapore as global economic centers, the Kawaii merchandise and product popularity has shifted back to the East. In these East Asian and Southeast Asian markets, the kawaii concept takes on various forms and different types of presentation depending on the target audience.


In East Asia and Southeast Asia

Taiwanese culture, the government in particular, has embraced and elevated kawaii to a new level of social consciousness. The introduction of the A-Bian doll was seen as the development of a symbol to advance democracy and assist in constructing a collective imagination and national identity for Taiwanese people. The A-Bian dolls are kawaii likeness of sports figure, famous individuals, and now political figures that use kawaii images as a means of self-promotion and potential votes. The creation of the A-Bian doll has allowed Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian staffers to create a new culture where the "kawaii" image of a politician can be used to mobilize support and gain election votes. Japanese popular "kawaii culture" has had an effect on Singaporean youth. The emergence of Japanese culture can be traced back to the mid-1980s when Japan became one of the economic powers in the world. Kawaii has developed from a few children's television shows to an Internet sensation. Japanese media is used so abundantly in Singapore that youths are more likely to imitate the fashion of their Japanese idols, learn the Japanese language, and continue purchasing Japanese oriented merchandise. The East Asian countries including China, Taiwan, South Korea, and Thailand either produce kawaii items for international consumption or have websites that cater for kawaii as part of the youth culture in their country. Kawaii has taken on a life of its own, spawning the formation of kawaii websites, kawaii home pages, kawaii browser themes and finally, kawaii social networking pages. While Japan is the origin and Mecca of all things kawaii, artists and businesses around the world are imitating the kawaii theme.Rutledge, B. (2010, October). I love kawaii. ''Ibuki'' Magazine. 1–2. Retrieved from: http://ibukimagazine.com/lifestyle-/other-trends/212-i-love-kawaii Kawaii has truly become "greater" than itself. The interconnectedness of today's world via the Internet has taken kawaii to new heights of exposure and acceptance, producing a kawaii "movement". The Kawaii concept has become something of a global phenomenon. The aesthetic cuteness of Japan is very appealing to people globally. Things like Sanrio, My Melody, Gudetama and more are some popular kawaii things. The wide popularity of Japanese kawaii is often credited with it being "culturally odorless". The elimination of exoticism and national branding has helped kawaii to reach numerous target audiences and span every culture, class, and gender group. The palatable characteristics of kawaii have made it a global hit, resulting in Japan's global image shifting from being known for austere
rock gardens A rock garden, also known as a rockery and formerly as a rockwork, is a garden, or more often a part of a garden, with a landscaping framework of rocks, stones, and gravel, with planting appropriate to this setting. Usually these are small ...
to being known for "cute-worship". In 2014, the ''
Collins English Dictionary The ''Collins English Dictionary'' is a printed and online dictionary of English. It is published by HarperCollins in Glasgow. It was first published in 1979. Corpus The dictionary uses language research based on the Collins Corpus, which is ...
'' in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
entered "kawaii" into its then latest edition, defining it as a "Japanese artistic and cultural style that emphasizes the quality of cuteness, using bright colors and characters with a childlike appearance".


Criticism


Academic social critiques

In his book ''The Power of Cute'', philosophy professor Simon May talks about the 180 degree turn in Japan's history, from the violence of war to ''kawaii'' starting around the 1970s, in the works of artists like
Takashi Murakami is a Japanese contemporary artist. He works in fine arts (such as painting and sculpture) as well as commercial media (such as fashion, merchandise, and animation) and is known for blurring the line between High art, high and low arts. His wo ...
, amongst others. By 1992, ''kawaii'' was seen as "the most widely used, widely loved, habitual word in modern living Japanese." Since then, there has been some criticism surrounding ''kawaii'' and the expectations of it in Japanese culture. Natalia Konstantinovskaia, in her article "Being Kawaii in Japan", says that based on the increasing ratio of young Japanese girls that view themselves as ''kawaii'', there is a possibility that "from early childhood, Japanese people are socialized into the expectation that women must be ''kawaii.''" The idea of ''kawaii'' can be tricky to balance – if a woman's interpretation of ''kawaii'' seems to have gone too far, she is then labeled as '' burikko'', "a woman who plays bogus innocence." In the article "Embodied Kawaii: Girls' voices in
J-pop J-pop (often stylized in all caps; an abbreviated form of "Japanese popular music"), natively known simply as , is the name for a form of popular music that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the 1990s. Modern J-pop has its roots in trad ...
", contemporary music researchers argue that female J-pop singers are expected to be recognizable by their outfits, voice, and mannerisms as ''kawaii'' – young and cute. Any woman who becomes a J-pop icon must stay ''kawaii'', or keep her girlishness, rather than being perceived as a woman, even if she is over 18.


Superficial charm

Japanese women who feign kawaii behaviors (e.g., high-pitched voice, squealing giggles) that could be viewed as forced or inauthentic are called ''burikko'' and this is considered
superficial charm Superficial charm (or insincere charm) is the social act of saying or doing things because they are well received by others, rather than what one actually believes or wants to do. It is sometimes referred to as "telling people what they want to h ...
."You are doing ''urikko''!: Censoring/scrutinizing artificers of cute femininity in Japanese," Laura Miller in ''Japanese Language, Gender, and Ideology: Cultural Models and Real People'', edited by Janet Shibamoto Smith and Shigeko Okamoto, Oxford University Press, 2004. In Japanese
plushies
/ref> The
neologism In linguistics, a neologism (; also known as a coinage) is any newly formed word, term, or phrase that has achieved popular or institutional recognition and is becoming accepted into mainstream language. Most definitively, a word can be considered ...
developed in the 1980s, perhaps originated by comedian .


See also

* Aegyo * Burikko *
Chibi (style) ''Chibi'', also known as ''super deformation'' (''SD''), is an art style originating in Japan, and common in anime and manga where characters are drawn in an exaggerated way, typically small and chubby with stubby limbs, oversized heads, and ...
*
Ingénue The ''ingénue'' (, , ) is a stock character in literature, film and a role type in the theater, generally a girl or a young woman, who is endearingly innocent. ''Ingénue'' may also refer to a new young actress or one typecast in such role ...
*
Kawaii metal Kawaii metal (also known as cute metal, J-pop metal, or kawaiicore) is a musical genre that blends elements of heavy metal and J-pop that was pioneered in Japan in the early 2010s. The genre combines both Eastern and Western influences that appe ...
, Kawaii bass (
Music genre A music genre is a conventional category that identifies some pieces of music as belonging to a shared tradition or set of conventions. Genre is to be distinguished from musical form and musical style, although in practice these terms are sometim ...
) *
Moe (slang) , sometimes romanized as ''moé'', is a Japanese word that refers to feelings of strong affection mainly towards characters in anime, manga, video games, and other media directed at the ''otaku'' market. ''Moe'', however, has also gained usage ...
* Nekonomics *
Yuru-chara is a Japanese term for a category of mascot characters; usually created to promote a place or region, event, organisation or business. They are characterized by their '' kawaii'' (cute) and unsophisticated designs, often incorporating motifs th ...


References


Further reading

* * * * * * * {{Japan topics, state=collapsed Concepts in Japanese aesthetics Culture of Japan Japanese fashion Japanese popular culture Japanese words and phrases Nerd culture