Japanese V Sign
20-09-2008
www.dannychoo.com Views 291
You see it in Anime, J-Drama and in many photos where Japanese folks are being photographed - the Peace Sign or V-sign.
I see many poking fun at the Japanese who find it uncool or strange that the they should do such a gesture. So why do they do it?
So where does the V-sign come from? According to Wikipedia, the earliest confirmed usage of the V-sign was by Winston Churchil during World War II - the V-sign meaning "Victory." The Japanese Wikipedia for the entry Peace Sign [ピースサイン] however says that there is a theory that the two fingers mean that two nuclear bombs where dropped on Japan meaning that peace is near...
The V-sign was used by president Nixon to express victory and the sign was also used by protesters against the Vietnam War.
During the 1972 Winter Olympics in Japan, skater Janet Lynn (who was also a peace activist) was photographed by the Japanese media doing the V-sign. Although the V-sign was already recognized in Japan, it was apparently these photos of Lynn that popularized the use of the V-sign.
The Japanese entry in Wikipedia does not mention Lynn at all and instead says that the V-sign took off in the 80's when usage of the V-sign was used when kids were having their photos taken.
Whatever the origin, folks in Japan like to do the peace sign - I especially like it when the cute girls do a horizontal version of the V-sign next to their eye - kawaii!
The photos below were taken from Flickr by doing a search for "ピース" ("Peace" in Japanese), "Japan Peace Sign" and "Japan V Sign" using a Creative Commons filter - look for more photos from these photographers using those queries.
Kirainet just happens to have a post up on the V-sign too - check it out.
By Danny Choo on 2008/09/20 16:32
You see it in Anime, J-Drama and in many photos where Japanese folks are being photographed - the Peace Sign or V-sign.
I see many poking fun at the Japanese who find it uncool or strange that the they should do such a gesture. So why do they do it?
So where does the V-sign come from? According to Wikipedia, the earliest confirmed usage of the V-sign was by Winston Churchil during World War II - the V-sign meaning "Victory." The Japanese Wikipedia for the entry Peace Sign [ピースサイン] however says that there is a theory that the two fingers mean that two nuclear bombs where dropped on Japan meaning that peace is near...
The V-sign was used by president Nixon to express victory and the sign was also used by protesters against the Vietnam War.
During the 1972 Winter Olympics in Japan, skater Janet Lynn (who was also a peace activist) was photographed by the Japanese media doing the V-sign. Although the V-sign was already recognized in Japan, it was apparently these photos of Lynn that popularized the use of the V-sign.
The Japanese entry in Wikipedia does not mention Lynn at all and instead says that the V-sign took off in the 80's when usage of the V-sign was used when kids were having their photos taken.
Whatever the origin, folks in Japan like to do the peace sign - I especially like it when the cute girls do a horizontal version of the V-sign next to their eye - kawaii!
The photos below were taken from Flickr by doing a search for "ピース" ("Peace" in Japanese), "Japan Peace Sign" and "Japan V Sign" using a Creative Commons filter - look for more photos from these photographers using those queries.
Kirainet just happens to have a post up on the V-sign too - check it out.
By Danny Choo on 2008/09/20 16:32
Comments:Login or Register to leave a comment!
2008 TV Anime DVD/Blu-ray Grand Sales Ranking- 2008 has seen a huge variety of anime released, and the difficult question of assessing their success can approached in all sorts HLJ Black Friday Flat Shipping Rate Promo-Today is Black Friday and that means the start of many great deals and shopping for those that celebrate Thanksgiving. Our dear Race Queen Miku-Vocaloid Race Queen set now available for pre-order. Due out in December and retails for 3000 yen. Comes with Miku, Luca, Rin and Pierce Brosnan Angry About Japanese Whaling- Sea Shepherd Advisory Member Pierce Brosnan appears on Jane Velez-Mitchell’s “ISSUES,” a CNN opinion Sexy Hatsune Miku Cosplay by Kanda Midori- Virtual idol sensation Hatsune Miku receives a particularly lovely cosplay portrayal, by legendary cosplayer Kanda Midori: