Small le er for big problem

Tokyo – A written character that evokes everything people in Japan were urged to avoid this year – crowds, confined spaces and close contact with others – was yesterday voted the country’s top linguistic symbol of 2020.

Although new infections have recently hit record highs, Japan has seen a small coronavirus outbreak overall and did not impose a strict lockdown like those seen elsewhere in the world.

Instead, residents were strongly advised to use their own judgment and steer clear of situations described as “mitsu” – meaning dense, crowded and close – to limit the spread of the disease.

The social distancing message quickly gained a tongue-in-cheek popularity, with the Tokyo governor’s call inspiring viral comic strips, techno remixes and even a video game.

Now, mitsu has been chosen as the character of the year in an annual public ballot organised by the Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation. It took 14% of over 208 000 votes.

Last year’s top character was “rei”, used in the word “Reiwa”, the name of the new imperial era. –