JapanNewbie

Marriage Hunting – Japanese Slang and Society

Posted on 24. May, 2009 @ 12:51 pm by harvey in Culture, Society Views: 1,117

That says “konkatsu”. This word isn’t in your dictionary, but if you’ve been studying Kanji for quite some time and know a bit about Japanese society you can probably guess what it means. By the way, “konkatsu” was nominated for the 2008 流行語大賞, if you’re into that sort of thing.

I’ll explain this “konkatsu” slang phrase while sharing some information about modern Japanese society and teaching you the joy of Kanji.

If you’ve ever looked for a job in Japan or been around Japanese people doing the same, you’ve probably heard the phrase, “syusyoku katsudou”. This phrase means “job hunting”. More literally, it’s the activities that one engages in to find employment.

This “syusyoku katsudou” phrase is often shortened to simply, “syukatsu” (就活).

Now, to get back to this mysterious “konkatsu phrase.” This isn’t an official word or phrase, but it is popular in Japan at the moment (seems to have been around since late 2008). Especially with the “around 30” female crowd.

You can image that the following phrase would exist (it does, but it is also slang).

From what we know of the kanji in “syusyoku katsudou” this would be the activities that one engages in to get married. Or, to be more direct, to find a partner for marriage.

Now we shorten that, as Japanese love to do… and we get…

There it is! “konkatsu!” Another important related phrase is “konkatsucyuu” 婚活中 which refers to someone who is in the process of “konkatsu.”

Of course, 婚活 doesn’t only apply to women, but to men as well.

So let’s take a look at some “konkatsu” stuff in the wild.

This video explains that the “konkatsu” phrase came about because of the increasing number of young people who cannot get married. Note, these are not people who don’t want to get married, they’re people who want to get married but just can’t successfully seal the deal!

The main reasons for this, according to the video, are the high number of financially unstable young people, and a perception difference of what marriage should be all about among Japanese men and women.

A survey done with 135 single women between the ages of 25 and 35 revealed that almost 40% of them wanted to marry a guy with a salary of 6,000,000 yen a year (about 60,000 USD at 100 yen to 1 USD… which isn’t the case anymore, but I’m lazy). The reality is that only 3.5% of young men actually have salaries that exceed that amount! Come on ladies! Your standards are too high!

Also, many women want to become full-time housewives after tying the knot, but with the tough economy more and more men want their wives to work.

“Konkatsu”, the act of actively looking for a marriage partner, includes a variety of activities including…

Taking active steps to improve yourself (積極的な自分磨き)
- Like learning to walk and sit in a chair in an attractive way.

Meeting people (出会い)
- Like at a wine drinking club (after all, people who like wine seem rich).
- There is a singles bar in Roppongi where you go alone and ask the staff to invite someone you notice in the bar to come drink with you. You know, if you don’t have the guts to talk to them yourself.
- There is also a place that specializes in hooking バツイチ (people who have been divorced once) up together.

Wow. That video explains a lot!

Here we have a video of the “konkatsu bra.” Features include a konkatsu count down timer. An apron on the front to show that the lady can cook (important for marriage). A handkerchief with the important profile information of that lady, you know, blood type, age, stuff like that. A place to keep a pen so you can jot your info down at any time… and other things.

There you have it. More “konkatsu” that you’ll ever need. Anyone here “konkatsucyuu” 婚活中? Maybe we can set up a JapanNewbie 婚活クラブ。

- Harvey

Tags: japan, japanese, marriage, slang, Society