The Kanji 和（Wa) means harmony and also stands for the country of Japan 和（WA)の国（Kuni) . Please take a look through some informative announcements and interesting stories and shown by the JOI staff and Support Team.
The word for new year in Japanese is (正月, shōgatsu) . But Japanese people often refer to it with the honorific prefix "O". So they call it "Oshōgatsu". This is because a new year, and the period leading up to and following the new year is regarded as a spiritual time.
The opening match for Japan in the Qatar World Cup was against Germany. And the hero of the match was Takuma Asano, who plays in the Bundesliga. Was this the "hidden advantage"?
The Japanese language has 3 writing methods. Hiragana, Katakana and Kanji. The most difficult of these is Kanji. This is a nostalgic look back at one of Momii sensei's blogs.
Have you heard of Otsukimi (お月見) ? It is a Japanese autumn tradition that has some roots in the Chinese lunar calendar and the mid-autumn celebrations. This is a quick explanation of the tradition.
Have you heard of the Japanese word Mottainai (もったいない)? Do you remember the environmental impact created by Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai? Read more to find out.
