Kogals (コギャル): A Japanese Valley Girl

The etymology is ambiguous but probably comes from a combination of two words: high school (kōkō; 高校) and girl.

Known for perpetually wearing short miniskirts, fake tans and traveling in packs, this subculture of young Japanese women are often found around trendy shopping centers—their natural habitat. As soon as kogals began popping up in large urban areas in the late 90s (identifiable by their uniform love of Burberry scarves and Louis Vuitton handbags) cultural critics quickly decried their materialism. The media followed suit, interpreting their dyed hair and constant cell phone chattering as signs of drug use and sex work. But kogals kept hiking up their skirts, gluing their long socks in place and throwing back their heads—and screaming kawaii the whole time.

Tegami (手紙): A letter

Today, writing letters shares rank with cranking up the gramophone or tipping the milkman. Important only after receiving a present, replying to a grandparent and interviewing for a job, the pen-and-paper variety has quickly eroded from email to text. The Japanese, however, buck this trend. Though they love to email and text, high esteem still shrouds the traditional letter. Along with stationary megastores and mandatory calligraphy class in school, the Japanese employ dozens of words to specifically describe the function of a letter and to whom it is addressed. But my favorite is tegami because its meaning is inveterate, etched in kanji. The first character means hand and the second, paper. The perfect reminder for all those who can’t quite remember how they survived before E-vite.

Tatami, 畳

Traditional Japanese flooring made of woven straw and trimmed with cloth.

You know what tatami is. Made popular as sandal soles and coasters in the last 5 years, this ubiquitous Japanese material actually has a long history.

Once only used by Japanese elite, by the end of the 17th century tatami covered the floors of most Japanese houses. In fact, tatami is so essential in a Japanese home that rooms are measured, not in inches or centimeters but in mats (called jō). The shape of tatami mats is strictly regulated though regional differences exist—mats from the west of Japan are slightly larger from eastern varieties. But before you go slapping down mats over your linoleum floor, familiarize yourself with the strict rules governing the placement of tatami. Three corners can never touch and laying a grid pattern is worse than breaking a mirror. But if you want a taste before you invest, there is nothing in the rulebook about having a little tatami inside your shoes.

Word of the week: ズボン

Zu-Bo-N; pants or trousers

Learning Japanese is hard. Three alphabets, verbs at the end of sentences, and English words stretched like taffy. McDonald’s becomes ma-ku-do-na-ru-do’s; a ballerina becomes a ba-ra-ri-na. And pants become zu-bo-n. Zubon? That doesn’t sound anything like pants.

It shouldn’t, for the Japanese love of appropriating words does not stop with English. Instead, they turned to the French word for underskirt or briefs—jupon—altering both the pronunciation and the function.

Sugoi (SU-GOY)

The singularly most useful word in Japanese, it means “Wow!”, “That’s terrific!”, or “That’s terrible!”, thereby describing any situation. Even if you don’t speak a lick of Japanese, sugoi is an acceptable response to 99% of situations. For example:

Situation #1: You’re served the most delicious looking sushi.
Response: Sugoi!
Meaning: That looks great!

Situation #2: It’s the most delicious sushi you’ve ever tried.
Response: Sugoi!
Meaning: This is fabulous!

Situation #3: The check comes up to $500.
Response: Sugoi!
Meaning: Grab your bag and let’s make a run for it!

asobi – A-SO-BEE – play. A testament to the inherent playfulness of Japanese culture, unlike in English, this word is used to describe fun socializing activities for children and adults alike.

Design at Play items will be on display at the Felissimo Design House through Saturday.

Today begins a new feature here at Japan C: Japanese Word of the Day. Be sure to check back every day for new words!

youkoso (YŌ-KO-SO – usually followed by an exclamation mark)

This greeting means 'welcome' and conveys the sentiment of it's nice to see you. Drop by Japan C for a warm youkoso from our staff.

I like to think of myself as fairly stylish. Maybe I don't live up to New York City standards, but I'm not too shabby either. The pinnacle was when I attended a seminar in rural Virginia where everyone (mostly Canadians) admired my "NYC wardrobe" and I was dubbed the "Carrie Bradshaw of the Woods."

The low point was a few years prior when I met my boyfriend's father - a very dapper, traditional Japanese man. I bought a vintage kimono for the occasion that I believed was very subtle in color and design. I wore it robe-style over a simple black dress, sure that he would be impressed by my fusion of "East meets West." At dinner that night, he commented to my future husband, "That kimono Cathy's wearing looks like an old lady's." Ouch.

Fashion missteps aside, I still love traditional Japanese materials. Lucky for me, there's a trend in Japan known as Jiba that takes traditional manufacturing methods & materials and uses them to create modern products. Notebooks are made with handmade paper and traditional bookbinding techniques, gift cards are adorned with elaborate paper cords shaped into loops and pinecones, wallets are made using traditional dyed cloth from Kyoto, which gives it an organic feel, and vintage kimonos are re-designed to make elegant bags, coin purses, and girly hair ornaments. Jiba cleverly blends the quality of traditional craftsmanship with the charm of vintage fabrics and materials, expressed in a modern design that is stylish and youthful, and not at all like an old lady's.

Limited quantities of exclusive Jiba products will be on sale at at the Japan C exhibition at the Felissimo Design House (10 West 56th Street, NYC) until Saturday.