Japan bans baby names like Pikachu and Kitty

**Neil** (0:00)
Have you signed up to our Learning English newsletter yet?

**Beth** (0:03)
Get weekly updates about our latest programmes, tips for learning and quizzes, all from our BBC Learning English presenters.

**Neil** (0:12)
Follow the link in the notes for this episode to sign up. From BBC Learning English, this is Learning English from the News, our podcast about the news headlines.

**Beth** (0:22)
In this programme, Japan changes law to stop baby names like Pikachu and Kitty.

**Neil** (0:33)
Hello, I'm Neil.

**Beth** (0:34)
And I'm Beth.

**Neil** (0:35)
In this programme, we look at one big news story and the vocabulary in the headlines that will help you understand it.

**Beth** (0:41)
You can find all the vocabulary and headlines from this episode as well as a worksheet on our website, bbclearningenglish.com.

**Neil** (0:50)
So, let's hear more about this story.

**Beth** (0:58)
So, Japan has changed the law to stop people naming their babies things like Pikachu and Kitty.

**Neil** (1:05)
New rules have come in on the pronunciation of Kanji. Those are the Chinese characters used as one of the three forms of Japanese writing.

**Beth** (1:13)
The change is designed to prevent unofficial pronunciations of the Kanji characters.

**Neil** (1:19)
In recent times, these unusual interpretations of the characters have allowed people to call their kids names seen as strange or silly by the authorities.

**Beth** (1:28)
And our first headline is about this. It's from The Guardian in the UK. Japan introduces rules to put outlandish baby names to bed.

**Neil** (1:40)
And that headline again from The Guardian. Japan introduces rules to put outlandish baby names to bed. First of all, the word outlandish. Now, that describes something strange or unusual, such as calling your child Pikachu. But we're interested in this expression put something to bed. Because we're talking about babies, Beth, I can sense that this is some kind of joke.

**Beth** (2:04)
OK, but hang on before we get to the joke. So let's start with the meaning. If you say that you have put something to bed, you mean you've dealt with a difficult situation successfully.

**Neil** (2:17)
So for example, I had a bit of a disagreement with one of my neighbours about where they leave their rubbish bins for collection. But we got together and discussed it and we put it to bed.

**Beth** (2:27)
OK, so you successfully dealt with the issue and now it's not a problem. Well, that's good, Neil, because you don't want to be fighting with your neighbours.

**Neil** (2:35)
Exactly. So, Beth, can you work out why in this headline and with this story, the expression put something to bed is a bit of a joke?

**Beth** (2:44)
Yes, it's a joke because we're talking about a dispute here between the Japanese authorities and people who give their kids outlandish names, and the dispute has been put to bed, resolved through new laws, and the story is about babies.

**Neil** (3:00)
Yes, and babies sleep a lot and need, literally, to be put to bed.

**Beth** (3:05)
Exactly. OK, Neil, let's put this section to bed and get a recap of the vocabulary.

**Neil** (3:14)
We've had put something to bed, deal with a problem successfully.

**Beth** (3:20)
For example, the company put to bed threats of strikes by offering workers a big pay rise.

**Neil** (3:29)
This is Learning English from the News, our podcast about the news headlines. Today we're talking about a new law in Japan designed to stop people giving their babies unusual names, like Pikachu.

**Beth** (3:42)
In recent times, parents in Japan have been choosing names for their babies, which have been seen as more individual and creative than traditional names. The new law aims to prevent that.

**Neil** (3:54)
The names are described in Japanese language as kira kira, which means shiny or glittery.

**Beth** (4:00)
And it's this idea that we're going to look at in our next headline.

**Neil** (4:05)
Our headline from Euro Weekly? You can't call your baby that. Japan limits the choice of baby names to stop flashy ones.

**Beth** (4:14)
And that headline again from Euro Weekly? You can't call your baby that. Japan limits the choice of baby names to stop flashy ones.

**Neil** (4:24)
So the word we're going to discuss is flashy. What does flashy mean, Beth?

**Beth** (4:29)
OK, well the word flashy is an adjective, but it helps to look at the root of this word flash. Neil, what is a flash?

**Neil** (4:37)
Well, a flash is a short moment of bright light, like on an old-fashioned camera. And, Beth, what happens when you see a flash?

**Beth** (4:46)
Well, it attracts attention, so you have to look in the direction of the flash to see what just happened.