Changes in Japan in the Last Fifteen Years, by Noah Smith

Changes in Japan in the Last Fifteen Years. Noah Smith. Mar 2018, https://twitter.com/Noahpinion

1/I have been coming to Japan since 2002.

Since that time, the country has changed enormously. Year-to-year the changes are small, but looking back, they really add up.

Here are some of the things that have changed.

2/One of the biggest changes is diversity. Especially in Tokyo.

Thanks to the tourism boom, the place is jam-packed with non-Japanese people. But that's not nearly all of it.

3/There are non-Japanese people working everywhere in Tokyo. Latin American chefs in yakitori restaurants. Swedish clerks in clothing stores. Indian staff in electronics stores. Chinese exchange students behind cash registers. Chinese salary workers in company offices.

4/Foreign languages are commonplace.

In 2002 people were impressed that I could speak a few sentences of Japanese. Now, people are just relieved.

5/The second big thing that has changed is gender roles.

In 2002, housewives were still the norm. Now they're increasingly uncommon.

6/In 2002, "office ladies" would flood lunch restaurants while male salarymen stayed at their desks.

Now, the OLs are mostly gone.

7/Furthermore, there is now open discussion of sexism in Japanese society, whereas 15 years ago there was very little.

8/A third big change is where people live.

15 years ago, there were tons of "parasite singles" living with (and living off of) their parents into their 30s.

Now, there are few. A lot of young people have moved out, and a substantial fraction have gotten roommates.

9/In addition to these three big changes, there have been many minor changes.

With the fall in youth idleness, there are fewer bands, fashion kids,  and other young people engaged in such lifestyles.

10/Styles in Tokyo are plainer and more conservative. A few people still dress wild, but "miniskirt and knee boots" has been replaced with "jeans and sneakers" among normal folks.

Osaka is still more flamboyant.

11/Both Tokyo and Osaka are denser and more built-up. Construction continues apace.

12/Startups and entrepreneurship are more common.

There is a tech entrepreneur class here that didn't exist 15 years ago.

13/America's mystique has mostly worn off. Now it's Japan that has the mystique, with boatloads of American tourist kids racing down the street yelling "OMG I'm in Japan!"


14/Half-Japanese kids are starting to become more visible among groups of schoolkids. Mostly half-white but also some half-black. And I'm sure lots of half-Chinese or half-Korean or half-Vietnamese kids I didn't even notice.


15/In general, Japan has changed in ways I'd expect from globalization and economic liberalization.

The one thing that hasn't changed: the prices.

I can still get a Lipton milk tea in any convenience store for 105 yen!

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