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It's interesting how "hikikomori" got into common English usage, and now this Japanese word is being used to describe South Korean youths. I would have expecte
by omoikane 4y ago
It's interesting how "hikikomori" got into common English usage, and now this Japanese word is being used to describe South Korean youths. I would have expected Koreans to have their own word for this condition.
- akiselev 4y agoIt's a wonderful peak into how languages might have evolved in the past. One day a bard is passing through some village or other and, having recently traveled to the far east, tells stories of the reclusive hikikomori of Japan. A young fella at the tavern hears the stories and is inspired to grow up to be a bard himself so he too can travel to the far east. But! He goes a little too far south and - mistaking the Yellow Sea for the Sea of Japan - swims across to the Korean peninsula bringing an invasive new word in his pocket.
- seoulmetro 4y agoObviously they do as it is just as common in South Korea as Japan. I have never heard of the word hikikomoro before. It's definitely not in common English usage at all. Otaku is what I hear in Korea. Recluse is English.