previous
next

All posts tagged Kumamon

  • 1 - 1 of 1
  • Dec 26, 2012
    1:31 PM

    The Life and Times of Japan’s Mascots

    By Miho Inada and Daisuke Wakabayashi
    Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

    Kumamon, the mischievous black bear mascot, is not only the face of Japan’s Kumamoto prefecture; he’s also the face of a movement. No other “creature” captures the craze surrounding Japan’s mascot boom as the rosy-cheeked bear.

    His name is a combination of two words: “Kuma” is short for Kumamoto and “Mon” represents the local dialect that uses that word for the standard Japanese word for “things,” or “mono.” The bear was created in March 2010 to draw in tourists ahead of the 2011 opening of a new bullet train stop in the capital city of the southern Japanese prefecture. His popularity surged after he won the title of Japan’s most popular mascot in an online poll last year. He didn’t partake in this year’s poll.

  • « Previously in Kumamon
  • Next in Kumamon »

Fukushima Watch

  • The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident in 2011 sparked broad debate on radiation, health and safety. Fukushima Watch contributes to that debate, with sharp, easy-to-understand commentary on things nuclear and energy-related in Japan.

About Japan Real Time

  • Japan Real Time is a newsy, concise guide to what works, what doesn’t and why in the one-time poster child for Asian development, as it struggles to keep pace with faster-growing neighbors while competing with Europe for Michelin-rated restaurants. Drawing on the expertise of The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires, the site provides an inside track on business, politics and lifestyle in Japan as it comes to terms with being overtaken by China as the world’s second-biggest economy. You can contact the editors at japanrealtime@wsj.com

    • Japan Real Time on Twitter
    • Japan Real Time on Facebook

Latest Stories from WSJ Asia

From Dow Jones Newswires

Partner Center
An Advertising Feature