Globalization is defined as: “the act or process of globalizing: the state of being globalized; especially: the development of an increasingly integrated global economy marked especially by free trade, free flow of capital, and the tapping of cheaper foreign labor markets (http://www.merriam-webster.com).” Now when I first read this I thought to myself, “Oh crap. I know nothing of Japan and America’s actual economic ties; just the ties existing between pop culture, customs, and traditions. Luckily enough, the term globalization can also be applied to the spreading of ideas, languages, and pop culture.

Now that is something I can work with. I experience this cultural globalization in Japan in my everyday life here in Japan and back home. It’s kind of interesting to see how cultural aspects of both countries have become a norm in the other. For a really loose example in language, the Japanese word samurai has entered the English lexicon as well familiar terms such as sumo, tofu, and otaku. Japan has done the same adopting and modifying words to create examples such as apaato (apartment), konbini (convenience store), and suupaa (supermarket). 

Globalization in Stations?

As far as pop culture goes, my teacher a while back brought to light a great example of how globalization has increased (or at least changed) within the past few decades. In a previous post I mentioned popular icons in America from Japan: Mario, Pikachu, and Goku to name a few big ones. “That’s not the Japan I know,” she exclaimed, rebutting my remark. But with the rise of Nintendo in America during the 90’s, coinciding with the rise in popularity of anime, these have become household names. Another fellow peer also remarked (paraphrased), “It took me forever to realize Digimon was from Japan as a kid,” furthering just how globalized Japanese media has become to the point where we don’t even recognize it as being ‘different’ or having separate origins.

In contrast, in Japan it’s easy to spot a McDonald’s on the corner of a street. Ask a student their favorite American singer and you’ll usually hear Lady Gaga mentioned at some point. On a more subtle level, it’s interesting to see how food has also become integrated to the point where when visiting a class of students, I was asked if I had ever had the Japanese snack, caramel popcorn.

Of course, a lot of this does tie into economics. As our ties between the two countries grow, so will the amount of imports and exports. In a way, this in itself is an exchange of cultures increasing the amount of globalization.