internet_buzzword_awards
Table of Contents
Internet Buzzword Awards
The Internet Buzzword Awards (ネット流行語大賞, Netto Ryūkō-go Taishō) is an annual contest, launched by “Future Search Brazil”,1) to discover the most popular buzzwords of that year. This began in 2007 and has been housed by “Gadget Communications” since 2009.2)
History
The first contest in 2007 gathered 3,723 votes,3) while the second contest in 2008 gathered 43,352 votes.4) For 2009, “Gadget Communications” started housing the annual contest at “getnews.jp” and they would collaborate with Niconico Douga to increase awareness,5) which it did as the third contest in 2009 gathered a total of 188,427 votes.6)
For 2011, the poll was split into “Original Version” (本家版) and “Joint Version” (共同版) where a committee would regulate the results, but the first place vote remained the same.7) This voting form was kept the following year.8) Then in 2013, they would finally introduce the Anime Buzzword Awards (アニメ流行語大賞, Anime Ryūkō-go Taishō) as a separate contest from the regular buzzword awards.9)
Comparison to the New Word and Buzzword Awards
The contest have been compared to a similar, long-running contest: the New Word and Buzzword Awards which has been managed by Jiyu Kokuminsha since 1984. However, it's been argued that this version of the contest is different for its scope on the internet's uniqueness, plus it offers online slang from websites like 2channel, Niconico Douga, and Twitter.
List of Results
| Year | Place | Buzzword | Recipient(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 1 | アサヒる asahiru | The Asahi Shimbun | |
| “asahi” (verb) After Shinzo Abe's initial resignation as prime minister in 2007, one columnist said “abesuru” (アベする), like "busshuru" (ブッシュする), has become a buzzword. However, this claim was mere speculation and, in turn, users turned “asahi” (アサヒる) into a verb for “fabricate facts”, “relentlessly criticize”, etc. |
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| 2 | スイーツ(笑) Suītsu (Emi) | |||
| “sweets lol” At the time, it became popular to generalize confections and sugary foods as “sweets” in Japan, especially in women's magazines. For some reason, this emerged as a sorta ironic insult as a means to ridicule trendy generalizations. |
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| 3 | ゆとり Yutori | MEXT | ||
| “Yutori” The Japanese equivalent of “Millennial” as an insult. The name comes from Yutori education which were curriculum guideline reforms meant to ease issues with the sudden modernization of education after the Sputnik crisis. |
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| 4 | ニコニコ動画 Niconico Douga | Niconico Douga | ||
| “Niconico Douga” At the time, Niconico Douga was a brand new Japanese video sharing website. |
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| 5 | Nice boat. Naisu bōto | School Days | ||
| “Nice boat.” On September 18, 2007, the final episode of School Days was abruptly pulled for violent content as there was news of a patricide that day, so it was delayed and a montage of European scenery was shown instead. |
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| 2008 | 1 | あなたとは違うんです Anata to wa chigaun desu | Yasuo Fukuda | |
| “I am different from you.” On September 1, 2008, Yasuo Fukuda announced his resignation as prime minister and a Chugoku Shimbun reporter asks how his sudden resignation, right after Shinzo Abe's resignation, will affect the Liberal Democratic Party. Fukuda responds by saying that he's different as he sees himself objectively. |
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| 2 | ～ですね、わかります ~desu ne, wakarimasu | The Idolmaster | ||
| “~, understood.” It's believed that this came from a 2channel thread about The Idolmaster, but some say it's much older. This phrase is used when you're repeating an answer to confirm it, but some people will attach the wrong answer as a joke. |
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| 3 | ゆっくりしていってね！！！ Yukkuri shite itte ne!!! | Touhou Project | ||
| “Take it easy!” At the time, Yukkuri exploded in popularity on text boards. There's a lot more information on the aforementioned Yukkuri page, so check that out. |
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| 4 | 毎日変態新聞 Mainichi Hentai Shimbun | Mainichi Shimbun | ||
| “Daily Pervert News” In 2008, there was an aggressive campaign against the WaiWai column in the English version of the Mainichi Shimbun as it picked up sensationalist stories from tabloids, and critics claimed that they perpetuated racist stereotypes about Japanese women being sexual deviants. |
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| 5 | わしが育てた Washi ga sodateta | Senichi Hoshino | ||
| “I've trained” When Senichi Hoshino said “the Chunichi players I've trained” on a talk show in 2006, he uses “washi” (わし) as a first-person pronoun which is rare for him. |
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| 2009 | 1 | ※ただしイケメンに限る Tadashi ikemen ni kagiru | ||
| “※ But he has to be handsome.” A phrase that pokes fun at women describing their ideal partner. |
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| 2 | どうしてこうなった Dōshite kō natta | まんじぇろ Manjero |
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| “How did this happen?” A user named “Manjero” (まんじぇろ) streaming Gokuu Densetsu on Peercast began to panic when he accidentially revealed that he was using an emulator. For some reason, text artwork was made referencing this and it caught on, even though it's an unremarkable story with an everyday phrase. |
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| 3 | 裸になって何がわるい Hadaka ni natte nani ga warui | Tsuyoshi Kusanagi | ||
| “What's wrong with going naked?” On April 23, 2009, Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, a Japanese entertainer and SMAP member, was arrested at 3am for public indecency while being intoxicated. |
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| 4 | こまけぇこたぁいいんだよ!! Koma ke kota iindayo!! | Murder License Kiba & Black Angels | ||
| “Don't worry about the details!” The mangaka, Shinji Hiramatsu, explaining how a character in Black Angels is alive in the Murder License Kiba and Black Angels crossover, when he was shot to death in the original work. |
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| 5 | 政権交代 Seiken kōtai | Hatoyama Cabinet | ||
| “Regime change” In the 2009 Japanese general election, the incumbent Liberal Democratic Party lost to the Democratic Party of Japan by a landslide. |
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| 2010 | 1 | そんな装備で大丈夫か？ Sonna sōbi de daijōbu ka? | Sawaki Takeyasu | |
| “You sure that's enough armor?” A phrase in the Japanese trailer for El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron that was shown at E3 2010. The game wasn't even out yet. |
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| 2 | 流出（sengoku38） Ryūshutsu (sengoku38) | Masaharu Isshiki | ||
| “leak (sengoku38)” A reference to the leaked video of the 2010 Senkaku boat collision incident that was uploaded to YouTube on November 4, 2010. |
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| 3 | 〜イカ? / 〜ゲソ ~Ika? ~Geso | Squid Girl | ||
| “-ika?”, “-geso” Squid Girl's sentence ending particles. |
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| 4 | 本田△ Honda sankakkē | Keisuke Honda | ||
| “Honda triangle.” (“Honda-san is cool.”) An internet pun. A triangle is called a “sankakkei” (三角形) in Japanese, so “Honda-san kakkē” (本田さんかっけい, lit. “Honda-san is cool”) becomes “Honda sankakkei” (本田△, lit. “Honda triangle”). Not to be confused with HND△. |
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| 5 | ＼どや／ ＼Doya／ | |||
| “＼Doya／” The term for a triumphant or smug expression. A “doya face” (ドヤ顔 / どや顔, doya gao). It started out as Kansai dialect, but spread nationwide by 2010. |
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| 2011 | Joint | 1 | ポポポポーン Popopopōn | Ad Council Japan |
| “Popopopo~n” Following the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, many companies had withdrew their commercials and the unused airtime would be filled with Ad Council Japan's PSAs which were inappropriately upbeat. They were played so much that a specific PSA about greetings had became a meme. |
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| 2 | なでしこJAPAN Nadeshiko Japan | Japan women's national football team | ||
| “Nadeshiko Japan” When Japan won the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup Final, the team was nicknamed “Nadeshiko Japan” as a play on yamato nadeshiko. |
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| 3 | 僕と契約して、○○になってよ! Boku to keiyaku shite, ￮￮ ni natte yo! | Puella Magi Madoka Magica | ||
| “Make a contract with me and become a[n] ○○!” Kyuubey's infamous catchphrase, usually in the context of magical girls. |
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| 4 | マル・マル・モリ・モリ Maru Maru Mori Mori | Kaoru to Tomoki, Tamani Mook | ||
| “Maru Maru Mori Mori” The theme song for the 2011 television drama, Marumo no Okite. |
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| 5 | ヤシマ作戦 Yashima Sakusen | Neon Genesis Evangelion | ||
| “Operation Yashima” The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster prompted TEPCO and Tohoku Electric Power to urge citizens to conserve energy and Twitter users began a Neon Genesis Evangelion inspired hashtag. In the anime, citizens were asked to conserve energy so the Eva Unit-01 could use a powerful rifle. |
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| Original | 1 | ポポポポーン Popopopōn | Ad Council Japan | |
| “Popopopo~n” Please refer to the previous description for this term. |
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| 2 | ただちに影響はない Tadachini eikyō wanai | Yukio Edano | ||
| “No immediate effects.” Yukio Edano was tasked with addressing the nuclear disaster and stated that there were “no immediate effects” which amused many. |
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| 3 | セシウムさん Seshiumu-san | Tōkai Television Broadcasting | ||
| “Mr. Cesium” On August 4, 2011, one local show poked fun at the nuclear disaster with a graphic indicating that “Mr. Cesium” had won suspicious, contaminated rice. The joke was “too soon” and set off an uproar over broadcasting ethics. |
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| 4 | わけがわからないよ Wake ga wakaranai yo | Puella Magi Madoka Magica | ||
| “I just don't get it.” A phrase that Kyuubey utters after he explains the soul gems in Episode 6. |
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| 5 | オワコン Owakon | |||
| “Finished content” Internet slang for anime, manga, shows, games, and such that have gone out of style or past their prime. Naturally, it's supposed to provoke people. |
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| 2012 | 1 | ステマ Sutema | 2ch /news/ | |
| “Stealth marketer” There was a whole stealth marketing incident on 2channel's /news/ board that created paranoia among /news/ and a mass migration to /poverty/. |
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| 2 | (」・ω・)」うー！(／・ω・)／にゃー！ Ū! Nyā! | Haiyore! Nyaruko-san | ||
| “(」・ω・)」 Ooh! (／・ω・)／ Nya!” The theme song for Haiyore! Nyaruko-san's first season, which is actually titled “The Sun Burns The Chaos” (太陽曰く燃えよカオス, Taiyō iwaku moeyo kaosu). Let's ＼(・ω・)／ nya! |
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| 3 | ┌（┌ ＾o＾）┐ホモォ… Homo… | |||
| “┌（┌ ＾o＾）┐ Homo…” A sort of Twitter creature that makes fun of fujoshi. |
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| 4 | ナマポ Namapo | Welfare in Japan | ||
| “Welfare” “Seiho” (生保) can be short for “seimei hoken” (生命保険, lit. “life insurance”) or “seikatsu hogo” (生活保護, lit. “public assistance”), but the former is more common so the kun'yomi reading became internet slang for the latter. However, be warned that “namapo” can be an insult for “welfare recipient” too. |
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| 5 | (震え声) Furue-goe | |||
| “(trembling voice)” Internet slang that usually comes at the end of the sentence to indicate that the preceding sentence should be read with a trembling voice. |
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| 2013 | Internet | 1 | いつやるの？ 今でしょ！ Itsu yaru no? Imadesho! | Osamu Hayashi |
| “When will you do it? Right now!” A phrase that comes from prep school commercials. |
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| 2 | 激おこぷんぷん丸 Geki oku punpun maru | |||
| “Really Angry Punpun Maru” This comes from a Twitter graphic about stages of anger. |
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| 3 | 倍返しだ！ Bai-gaeshida! | Hanzawa Naoki | ||
| “Double the payback!” Naoki Hanzawa's catchphrase in the drama. |
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| Anime | 1 | にゃんぱすー Nyanpasu~ | Non Non Biyori | |
| “Meowning” Renge Miyauchi's greeting in the anime. |
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| 2 | 駆逐してやる Kuchiku shite yaru! | Attack on Titan | ||
| “I'll kill them all!” Eren Yeager's vow for revenge against the giants. |
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| 3 | 俺はフリーしか泳がない Ore wa furī shika oyoganai | Free! | ||
| “I only swim freestyle.” Haruka Nanase's response to Rin Matsuoka inviting him to do a relay race with him in an upcoming tournament back in elementary school. |
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| 2014 | Internet | 1 | STAP細胞はありまぁす Sutappu-saibou wa arimaasu | Haruko Obokata |
| “STAP cells do exist!” Haruko Obokata, a stem cell biologist, claimed that STAP cells were easy to make. However, scientists were unable to replicate her results, and there was a whole scandal leading to her degree being revoked. |
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| 2 | ンァッ! ハッハッハッハー! この日本ンフンフンッハアアアアアアアアアアァン! アゥッアゥオゥウアアアアアアアアアアアアアアーゥアン! コノヒホンァゥァゥ……アー！ 世の中を……ウッ……ガエダイ！ Na! Hahahahā! Kono nihonnfunfunfun haaaaaaaaaaan! Au auouuaaaaaaaaaaaaaauan! Kono hihon auau…… ā! Yononaka o….. u… gaedai! | Ryutaro Nonomura | ||
| “Nahahahaha! This Japan– ahuhuhaaaaaaaaaaa! Aaauaaaaaaaaahhh! This Japan– ahahh… ah! I wanted to change society!” On July 2, 2014, a Japanese municipal assemblyman sobbed hysterically at a news conference where he was questioned for misusing taxpayer funds. |
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| 3 | ダメよ〜ダメダメ Dame yo~ dame dame | Nippon Elekitel Rengo | ||
| “You musn't!” “No, no!” The comedy duo's standard routine. |
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| Anime | 1 | レロレロレロレロ Rerorerorerorero | Jojo's Bizarre Adventure | |
| “Rerorerorerorero” The sound of Kakyoin Noriaki licking a cherry in a bizarre manner. |
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| 2 | もんげー Mongē! | Yo-kai Watch | ||
| “Mongē!” Komasan's cry. |
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| 3 | 妖怪のせいなのね Yōkai no seina no ne | Yo-kai Watch | ||
| “It's a youkai's fault.” The first ending theme of Yo-Kai Watch. |
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| 2015 | Internet | 1 | 五郎丸 Gorōmaru | Ayumu Goromaru |
| “Goromaru” (pose) It's a pose where he clasps his hands together, but has his index fingers sticking out like a ninja. A variation of Jonny Wilkinson's pose. |
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| 2 | ぱよぱよちーん Payopayochīn | Former F-Secure Japan employee | ||
| “Payopayochin” Naomi Kubota, marketing manager for F-Secure Japan at the time, would tweet this phrase out an anonymous Twitter account, affiliated with an anti-racist or anti-xenophobic group, and doxed people for supporting Toshiko Hasumi's “racist” drawing of a Syrian refugee girl. She was fired after an investigation and the buzzword would be weaponized against leftists by right-wing netouyo. |
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| 3 | ISIS / イスラム国 Aishisu, Isuramu Koku | |||
| “ISIS” (“ISIL”), “Islamic State” In January 2015, the Islamic State captured and proceeded to behead two Japanese hostages. Meanwhile, people on 2channel's /news4vip/ board tried to make a non-offensive moe anthropomorphism of them. |
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| Anime | 1 | あ...ありのまま 今 起こった事を話すぜ！ A-arinomama ima okotta koto o hanasu ze! | Jojo's Bizarre Adventure | |
| “I-I'll tell you exactly what just happened!” Jean Pierre Polnareff reacting to DIO's powers, except it's actually DIO using his stand, The World, to stop time and move him down a few steps. |
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| 2 | 例の紐 / 紐神様 Rei no himo / Himo kami-sama | Danmachi | ||
| “That ribbon”, “Ribbon god” A blue ribbon holds up Hestia's breasts. Known as the “boob ribbon” in English. |
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| 3 | 鉄火丼 Tekka-don | Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans | ||
| “Raw Tuna Rice Bowl” Pun on “Tekka-dan” (鉄華団, lit. “Iron-Flower Brigade”). |
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| 2016 | Internet | 1 | PPAP / ペンパイナッポーアッポーペン Pīpīēpī / Pen Painappō Appō Pen | Daimaou Kosaka |
| “PPAP (Pen-Pineapple-Apple-Pen)” A viral single by the comedian. |
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| 2 | ポケモンGO Pokemon Gō | Niantic | ||
| “Pokémon GO” Around this time, Pokémon GO was really popular upon release, though it had a lot of issues that Niantic was slow to address. |
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| 3 | 保育園落ちた日本死ね Hoikuen ochita, Nihon shine! | Hatena Anonymous Diary | ||
| “Nursery denied! Fuck Japan!” On February 15, 2016, one mother anonymously ranted, concerned that her child might be put a nursery school's waiting list and possibly having to quit her job to ensure that the child is taken care of. This had a significant impact on plans to fix Japan's declining birth rate since it meant that the current conditions were unfit for a baby boom and silent protests ensued. |
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| Anime | 1 | たった今、好きになった Taidama, suki ni natta | Hibike! Euphonium | |
| “Just now, I fell in love with it.” In Season 2, Kumiko Oumae asks Mizore Yoroizuka if she still hates competitions and she responds with this. |
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| 2 | ガルパンはいいぞ Garupan wa īzo | Girls und Panzer der Film | ||
| “GaruPan is good!” The film industry did well in 2015 and Mad Max: Fury Road kept trending on Twitter, but people had a hard time describing it. As an unintentional side effect, it also affected people's ability to describe Girls und Panzer der Film. |
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| 3 | 今日も一日がんばるぞい Kyō mo ichinichi ganbaru zoi | New Game! | ||
| “I'll do my best today too!” Aoba Suzukaze's catchphrase. A panel from the manga was also a huge meme on Futaba Channel. |
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| 2017 | Internet | 1 | Nintendo Switch Nintendō Suitchi | Nintendo |
| “Nintendo Switch” Nintendo followed up the Wii U's poor performance with a new console called the Nintendo Switch on March 3, 2017. |
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| 2 | 72時間ホンネテレビ Nanajuuni jikan hon'ne terebi | Goro Inagaki, Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, Shingo Katori | ||
| “72 Hour Truth Televison” The former SMAP members did a 72 hour broadcast where they answered questions from social media. Goro Inagaki made a blog, Tsuyoshi Kusanagi (previously known for public indecency) made an Instagram account, and Shingo Katori made a YouTube channel. |
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| 3 | このハゲーーー！ Kono hage! | Mayuko Toyota | ||
| “This baldy!!!” In 2017, a politician named Mayuko Toyota reportedly abused her secretary by hitting him, calling him bald, and telling him to die. She later withdrew from the Liberal Democratic Party. The victim later asked for the charges to be dropped, but it did bring light to rampant abuse of Diet secretaries. |
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| Anime | 1 | ドーン！ Dōn! | The Laughing Salesman | |
| “Dōn!” Fukuzō Moguro's catchphrase. |
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| 2 | わーい！ / たーのしー！ / すごーい！ Waī!, Tānoshī!, Sugoī! | Kemono Friends | ||
| “Wow!”, “Fun!”, “Amazing!” Serval's catchphrases. |
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| 3 | 止まるんじゃねぇぞ… Tomarun jane zo… | Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans | ||
| “Don't stop…” Orga Itsuka's final words upon death. It's a dramatic scene, but the shot of him with his left index finger raised kinda became a meme. However, it's not hard to understand why some feel like it's the equivalent of kicking a corpse. |
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| 2018 | Internet | 1 | バーチャルYouTuber / VTuber Bācharu Yūchūbā | YouTube |
| “Virtual YouTubers” At the time, Virtual YouTubers started to really become mainstream. |
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| 2 | 平成最後の◯◯ Heisei saigo no ◯◯ | |||
| “Heisei's Last ◯◯” The Heisei era was coming to a close, as Japan prepared for an imperial transition, so people started joking about things that'd be the last of its era. |
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| 3 | 大迫半端ないって Ōsako hanpanai tte | |||
| “Ōsako is incredible” Back in 2008, Yuya Osako scored 10 goals in a high school tournament and the opposing team's captain, Takahiro Nakanishi, would tearfully praise him. During the 2018 FIFA World Cup, it'd be revived once Yuya Osako scored the game-winning goal in the Columbia vs. Japan match. |
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| Anime | 1 | 安室透 Amuro Tōru | Detective Conan: Zero the Enforcer | |
| “Tōru Amuro” (“Rei Furuya”) A character in Detective Conan that exploded in popularity, as the movie focused on him, and he was really popular with women. |
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| 2 | 安室の女 Amuro no onna | Detective Conan: Zero the Enforcer | ||
| “Amuro's Woman” Fans of the aforementioned character from Detective Conan. There was this whole campaign where fans kept buying tickets for the movie, hoping to bump its box office revenue to ¥10 billion. |
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| 3 | さてはアンチだなオメー Sate ha anchi da na omē | Pop Team Epic | ||
| “So, you're an anti, huh?” In the Japanaese internet, “anti” essentially means “hater”. |
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| 2019 | Internet | 1 | NHKをぶっ壊す NHK o bukkowasu | Takashi Tachibana |
| “Destroy the NHK!” The party slogan for the single-issue NHK Party, opposing the television license fees. Recently, it has become a populist party. |
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| 2 | N国党 / NHKから国民を守る党 Enu kokutō, Enueichikē kara kokumin o mamoru tō | Takashi Tachibana | ||
| “N-koku”, “The Party to Protect the People from NHK” A self-explanatory political party whose name stood from 2013 to 2020. The party has undergone several name changes since then. |
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| 3 | 上級国民 / 上級無罪 Jōkyū kokumin, Jōkyū muzai | |||
| “Upper Class”, “Upper Innocence” On April 19, 2019, a runaway car killed 2 and injured 9, but Kozo Iizuka, the 87-year-old driver who was a retired senior bureaucrat, wasn't arrested because of a technicality. Some people believed he got special treatment, thus the buzzword, and he'd eventually be sentenced for five years in 2021. |
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| Anime | 1 | ゴマすりクソバード Gomasuri kuso bādo | Kemono Friends 2 | |
| “Goddamn Bootlicking Bird” This comes from Batta's fan comic where the protagonists try to guess what the “G.” in G. Road Runner means. |
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| 2 | シャミ子が悪いんだよ Shamiko ga warui nda yo | Machikado Mazoku | ||
| “This is your fault, Shamiko…” This comes from Iberiko Yuki's fan comic and soon became a meme. |
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| 3 | イキリ鯖太郎 Ikiri Sabatarō | Fate/Grand Order - Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia | ||
| “Sabataro Ikiri” Derogatory nickname for the male FGO protagonist. It emerged in a 2channel thread on /livejupiter/ after the first episode aired. |
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| 2020 | Internet | 1 | 鬼滅の刃 Kimetsu no Yaiba | Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba |
| “Demon Slayer” A finished manga that recently got an anime adaptation and a movie. It got really popular and saw record-breaking sales. |
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| 2 | 密です! Mitsudesu! | Yuriko Koike | ||
| “It's crowded!” During the COVID-19 pandemic, you'd hear people say to avoid crowds and practice social distancing. Yuriko Koike, the Governor of Toyko at the time, repeated this phrase to reporters a couple of times back in April 2020. For some reason, it spawned a couple of games and illustration. |
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| あつ森 / あつまれ どうぶつの森 Atsumori / Atsumare Dōbutsu no Mori | Animal Crossing: New Horizons | |||
| “AtsuMori” (“ACNH”), “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” During the COVID-19 pandemic, people were hooked to Animal Crossing: New Horizons during the “stay home” orders. |
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| 4 | コロナ / 新型コロナウイルス / COVID-19 Korona, Shingata Koronauirusu, COVID-19 | |||
| “Corona”, “Novel Coronavirus”, “COVID-19” The COVID-19 pandemic struck down hard in 2020 and it was unavoidable. |
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| Anime | 1 | ◯◯の呼吸 ◯◯ no Kokyū | Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba | |
| “◯◯ Breathing” There are multiple “breathing styles” that the swordsmen in Demon Slayer use when slaying demons, so the fans would joke and make up breathing styles like “fujoshi breathing”, “pig breathing”, etc. |
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| 2 | 全集中 Zenshūchū | Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba | ||
| “Total Concentration” This term is usually said before the breathing style being used is announced. |
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| 3 | 煉獄さん200億の男 Rengoku-san 200-oku no Otoko | Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba the Movie: Mugen Train | ||
| “Purgatory, 20 Billion Men” Mugen Train had broke ¥20 billion in Japanese box office revenue in 24 days, later surpassing records set by Spirited Away in 2001. |
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| 2021 | Internet | 1 | ウマ娘 Uma Musume | Uma Musume Pretty Derby |
| “Uma Musume” A multimedia franchise about horse girls who are also idols. |
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| 2 | 男の人っていつもそうですね…! 私たちのことなんだと思ってるんですか!? Otoko no hito tte itsumo sōdesune…! Watashitachi no koto nanda to omotterun desu ka!? | Zombie no Afureta Sekai de Ore Dake ga Osowarenai | ||
| “Men are always like that…! What do you think we are!?” This adult novel got a manga adaptation, but a certain scene was advertised so much that it became a meme. The scene is about a moral dilemma, but the advertisement clips it out of context to make you think the man demanded sex. |
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| 3 | 立憲共産党 Rikken-kyōsantō | Constitutional Democratic Party | ||
| “Constitutional Communist Party” The Constitutional Democratic Party was criticized for limited cooperation with the Japanese Communist Party against the Liberal Democratic Party, who've dominated Japanese politics for so long, so chairman Jun Azumi responded to criticism saying they're not the “Constitutional Communist Party” on Twitter. |
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| Anime | 1 | モルカー / PUI PUI Morukā, Pui Pui | Pui Pui Molcar | |
| “Molcar” (モルカー), portmanteau of “molmot” (モルモット, lit. “guinea pig”) and “car”, was a viral stop-motion anime that was about guinea pig cars. | ||||
| マフティー構文／「やってみせろよ、マフティー！」「何とでもなるはずだ！」「ガンダムだと！？」 Mafutī kōbun, “Yatte misero yo, mafutī!”, “Nan to demo naru hazuda!”, “Gandamuda to!?” | Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway's Flash | |||
| “Mafty Syntax”, “You show him, Mafty!” “This has to work out somehow!” “A Gundam!? The second trailer for Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway feature these lines from Gawman, Hathaway and, Lane, then the main theme loudly plays. |
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| 3 | ひよってるやついる？ Hiyo-tteru yatsu iru? | Tokyo Revengers | ||
| “Is there anyone scared?” The original dialogue actually uses the kanji “hiyote” (日和る), meaning “on the fence” or “wait and see”, then people changed the meaning of “hiyote” (ひよる) to “scared” which turned it into a motivational quote with a dash of irony. |
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| うまぴょい Umapyoi | Uma Musume Pretty Derby | |||
| “umapyoi” (verb) A made-up verb meaning “jump” in the Umapyoi Densetsu song. This would become a euphemism for befriending an idol to the point of unlocking the “hot spring” trip with them. Sexual depictions is heavily discouraged, therefore… |
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| 5 | ○○に反省を促すダンス ○○ ni hansei o unagasu dansu | Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway's Flash | ||
| “Dance that demands reflection on ○○” For some reason, KXVO's viral “Pumpkin Dance” from 2006 was set to the theme song for Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway's Flash. |
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| 2022 | Internet | 1 | おとわっか Oto Wakka | Final Fantasy X |
| ”Oto Wakka“ A viral MAD video of Final Fantasy X that depicted Wakka being gay for Tidus. However, it was arguably insulting towards actual LGBT people, similar to Inmu, and Square Enix had the video taken down. |
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| 2 | ○○確定な ○○ kakuteina | Shūkan Bunshun | ||
| “Confirmed ○○” Hayato Sakamoto, an NPB player and known playboy, saw controversy after allegedly telling a woman to get an abortion after impregnating her, leading to her suicide attempt. In the leaked text messages, Sakamoto reportedly sent the weird text: “ketsu na ana kakute” (けつなあな確定, lit. “confirmed asshole”). |
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| 3 | ガーシー議員 / ガーシー砲 Gāshī-giin, Gāshī-ho | GaaSyy | ||
| “Senator GaaSyy”, “GaaSyy Gun” A former YouTube personality that reported on entertainment industry rumors (e.g. Johnny Kitagawa scandal) who ran for the populist NHK Party and won a seat on the House of Councillors while residing in the United Arab Emirates. He was later expelled as he failed to attend the sessions, revoking legal immunity that he technically had, and was eventually arrested. |
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| Anime | 1 | ウタ Uta | One Piece Film: Red | |
| “Uta” The film's main antagonist. Most of her backstory is explained within the film, so it's more of an indicator of how well the film was recieved. |
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| 2 | さかなー Sakanā | Lycoris Recoil | ||
| “Fish~” In Episode 4, Takina does a fish pose and says “sakana” to cheer up Chisato. This went viral on Twitter and YouTube as it was easy to understand. |
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| アーニャ、しってる Ānya, shitteru | Spy × Family | |||
| “Anya knows.” A phrase that's associated with Anya's smug, knowing face. Jump Comics also made a few Spy × Family commercials with Anya saying this. |
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| 4 | ダブスタクソ親父 Dabusuta kuso oyaji | Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury | ||
| “Shitty double standards father” Miorine Rembran yells this at Delling Rembran, her father and main antagonist. For some reason, Delling became an internet meme. |
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| 2023 | Internet | 1 | 増税メガネ Zōzei megane | Fumio Kishida |
| “Tax hike glasses” Fumio Kishida, the bespectacled prime minister at the time, faced severe criticism and low approval ratings as people feared that his stances on defensive spending and other areas will allegedly cause an increase in taxes. |
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| 2 | Colabo問題 Colabo mondai | Colabo | ||
| “Colabo problem” Colabo, a support group for displaced women including runaways, has been facing severe criticism and harassment by right-wing conservatives who accuse the organization of allegedly misusing funds since 2021. |
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| ちょんまげ小僧 / ひき肉です Chonmage kozō, Hikinikudesu | Tyonmage Kozou | |||
| ”Chonmage Boys“, “It's Hikiniku” A group of junior high schoolers on YouTube whose short-form videos exploded in popularity when they expanded to TikTok. |
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| 4 | 教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育死刑死刑死刑死刑死刑死刑死刑死刑死刑教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育教育 Kyōiku(×18) Shikei(×9) Kyōiku(×18) | BigMotor | ||
| “Education(×18) Death Penalty(×9) Education(×18)” Kōichi Kaneshige, the former vice president of BigMotor and the founder's son, reportedly sent this childish rant to employees over Line, which eventually leaked and became a meme. The “education” part likely refers to his tendency to boast about his MBA degree as a way to demean and humiliate managers. You can find several videos detailing the BigMotor scandal under his rule, such as this or this, so I'm not going in detail here. |
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| Anime | 1 | 君は完璧で究極のゲッター Kimi wa kanpekide kyūkyoku no gettā | Oshi no Ko & Shin Getter Robo vs Neo Getter Robo | |
| “You are the perfect and ultimate Getter.” People noticed that Oshi no Ko's opening, “Idol” by YOASOBI, sounds similar to Shin Getter Robo vs Neo Getter Robo's opening, “STORM” by JAM Project. Shortly after, there were mashups demonstrating this, then the fanbases had crossed over despite the two being very different. |
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| 2 | サトシ引退 Satoshi intai | Pokémon Ultimate Journeys | ||
| “Ash retires” (“Satoshi retires”) After 26 years, the Pokémon anime finally had Satoshi/Ash retire, replacing him with entirely new protagonists in Pokémon Horizons. |
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| 3 | やめなさい！ Yamenasai! | Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury | ||
| “Stop it!” In Episode 12, Suletta uses the Aerial to casually crush a Dawn of Fold soldier threatening Miorine, then Miorine voices feeling mortified. This was a very controversial ending to the first season as the franchise isn't new to murder, yet Sutella's actions are unique, and their relationship hit a minor snag. |
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Notes
- The awards were mistranslated as “Net Buzzword Grand Prix” or “Net Buzzword Awards” back then.
External links
- Internet Buzzword Awards and Anime Buzzword Awards - The tags on GetNews.
- Internet Buzzword Awards on Japanese Wikipedia
- Internet Buzzword Awards on Niconico Encyclopedia
1)
“Future Search Brazil” (未来検索ブラジル, Mirai Kensaku Burajiru) is an IT company that was established in April 10, 2003 that's best known for 2channel's search engine when the website was under Hiroyuki. Its name is a pun on “Future Century Brazil” (未来世紀ブラジル, Mirai Seiki Burajiru), the Japanese name for the 1985 film Brazil. It also specializes in advertising and online distribution.
2)
“Gadget Communications” (ガジェット通信, Gajetto Tsūshin) is a news site that was founded by “Future Search Brazil” on September 30, 2008 and has been operated by their subsidiary, the “Tokyo Industrial Newspaper Company” (東京産業新聞社, Tokyo Sangyō Shinbun-sha). It originally reported on “digital home appliances” (“gadgets”), but then it became a general news site.
3)
"ネット流行語大賞に「アサヒる」" (December 14, 2007). ITmedia.
4)
"ネット流行語大賞2008結果発表、金賞は福田元首相の「あなたとは違うんです」" (December 1st, 2008). Gadget Communications.
5)
"ネット流行語大賞2009・ケータイ流行語大賞2009まとめ". Gadget Communications.
6)
"【Ｗｅｂ】ネット流行語大賞２０１０決定 １位は「そんな装備で大丈夫か？」" (December 2, 2010). MSN.
7)
"ネット流行語大賞2011(本家版)結果発表！金賞「ぽぽぽぽ～ん」銀賞「ただちに影響はない」銅賞「セシウムさん」" (December 1, 2011). Gadget Communications.
8)
"【速報】9万人が選んだ『ネット流行語大賞』 金賞はアノ言葉" (December 7, 2012). Gadget Communications.
9)
"『ネット流行語大賞 2013』『アニメ流行語大賞 2013』をそれぞれ発表！ それぞれの今年の大賞は？" (December 2, 2013). Gadget Communications.
internet_buzzword_awards.txt · Last modified: 2024-09-23 00:24:07 by 127.0.0.1