NHK WORLD-JAPAN

Join us as we explore Sendagaya, an area nestled between Shinjuku and Harajuku. It's home to sports facilities, venues for Noh theater and the board game shogi, and hundreds of apparel makers.

Ichiko Aoba puts distinctive, whispery vocals over floating, classical guitar melodies. We explore why her music captivates listeners around the world, despite being sung in Japanese.

Discover the stories behind renowned Japanese products alongside our reporter.This time: motorized conveyor rollers.

Fukuoka's summer festival, Hakata Gion Yamakasa, features huge floats decorated with elaborate dolls. We meet Nakamura Hiromine, a fourth-generation doll maker fusing this tradition with modern ideas.

Crisp, hot, and delicious Japanese gyoza! How did gyoza come to be so beloved in Japan? Taste the delicious truth for yourself!

This episode looks at leaf-cutter ants that grow food, and shake their bodies to communicate through vibrations. Plus, humans might grow spare teeth.

Tokyo Skytree, one of Japan's most famous tourist attractions, is equipped with a variety of countermeasures against disasters. We'll go behind the scenes to explore the tower's advanced technologies.

Episode 3 of this series on COP30 in Brazil looks at AMOC, an ocean current in the Atlantic. It transports warm water to the north, but melting ice threatens to stop it entirely.

Oku-Izumo is home to an ancient technique for making the steel used in Japanese swords. We meet a blacksmith who has inherited the tradition, and enjoy local scenery presented in time-lapse images.

Inoue Hiroko is the president of an NGO that has been running exchange programs for young people from Israel, Palestine, and Japan for 20 years. She talks about their goals and her hope for peace.

Gojinjo Taiko is a wild, powerful performance by masked drummers. It originated 400 years ago, when villagers disguised themselves as oni (demons) to scare away a warlord's army.

Workers at a sawmill use the latest tools and their honed skills to prepare the building blocks of Edo life: long, narrow beams, bamboo stems and leftover wood stacked as high as buildings.

Ichiko Aoba puts distinctive, whispery vocals over floating, classical guitar melodies. We explore why her music captivates listeners around the world, despite being sung in Japanese.

Discover the stories behind renowned Japanese products alongside our reporter.This time: motorized conveyor rollers.

Fukuoka's summer festival, Hakata Gion Yamakasa, features huge floats decorated with elaborate dolls. We meet Nakamura Hiromine, a fourth-generation doll maker fusing this tradition with modern ideas.

Join us as we explore Sendagaya, an area nestled between Shinjuku and Harajuku. It's home to sports facilities, venues for Noh theater and the board game shogi, and hundreds of apparel makers.

Crisp, hot, and delicious Japanese gyoza! How did gyoza come to be so beloved in Japan? Taste the delicious truth for yourself!

Ichiko Aoba puts distinctive, whispery vocals over floating, classical guitar melodies. We explore why her music captivates listeners around the world, despite being sung in Japanese.

Discover the stories behind renowned Japanese products alongside our reporter.This time: motorized conveyor rollers.

Inoue Hiroko is the president of an NGO that has been running exchange programs for young people from Israel, Palestine, and Japan for 20 years. She talks about their goals and her hope for peace.

The Kawanishi Dainenbutsu Kenbai dance tells the story of restless souls being guided to the Pure Land by the Buddha, in the form of a monkey. In 2022, it became UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.

In the Edo period, childbirth was a community affair, with the mother-to-be attended by a midwife and the women in her life. It was also characterized by unique customs and superstitions.

This episode focuses on how precision engineering and selective breeding are being used to reduce pollen and bring relief to millions of hay fever sufferers.

Fukuoka's summer festival, Hakata Gion Yamakasa, features huge floats decorated with elaborate dolls. We meet Nakamura Hiromine, a fourth-generation doll maker fusing this tradition with modern ideas.

Join us as we explore Sendagaya, an area nestled between Shinjuku and Harajuku. It's home to sports facilities, venues for Noh theater and the board game shogi, and hundreds of apparel makers.

Ichiko Aoba puts distinctive, whispery vocals over floating, classical guitar melodies. We explore why her music captivates listeners around the world, despite being sung in Japanese.

Discover the stories behind renowned Japanese products alongside our reporter.This time: motorized conveyor rollers.

Crisp, hot, and delicious Japanese gyoza! How did gyoza come to be so beloved in Japan? Taste the delicious truth for yourself!

Rising temperatures are changing marine life. Sushi chains introduce unfamiliar fish, and researchers seek to breed species that can endure higher temperatures. This time, living with a warming sea.

Our bodies are home to trillions of bacteria that influence our physical health and mental well-being. We explore Japan's relationship with fermented foods and "chokatsu" or gut-related activities.

Visit one of Japan's engineering marvels, an auto and train bridge spanning six islands, and meet the dedicated crew working to keep it as good as new for the next 200 years.

Rising temperatures are changing marine life. Sushi chains introduce unfamiliar fish, and researchers seek to breed species that can endure higher temperatures. This time, living with a warming sea.

Our bodies are home to trillions of bacteria that influence our physical health and mental well-being. We explore Japan's relationship with fermented foods and "chokatsu" or gut-related activities.

Visit one of Japan's engineering marvels, an auto and train bridge spanning six islands, and meet the dedicated crew working to keep it as good as new for the next 200 years.

Rising temperatures are changing marine life. Sushi chains introduce unfamiliar fish, and researchers seek to breed species that can endure higher temperatures. This time, living with a warming sea.

In 2025, Otani Akira's book "The Night of Baba Yaga" won the UKs prestigious Dagger prize for crime fiction in translation-a first for a Japanese author. She shares the inspiration behind her work.

Yoshida Ryusei, an October matsuri, features rockets called ryusei that are made by local teams and carry community prayers high in the sky. Team members pour heart and soul into their efforts.

In the Edo period, childbirth was a community affair, with the mother-to-be attended by a midwife and the women in her life. It was also characterized by unique customs and superstitions.

Our bodies are home to trillions of bacteria that influence our physical health and mental well-being. We explore Japan's relationship with fermented foods and "chokatsu" or gut-related activities.

The JR Joban Line, severely damaged by the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, fully reopened in 2020. See how station areas in Fukushima Prefecture are being redeveloped along the restored route.

Rising temperatures are changing marine life. Sushi chains introduce unfamiliar fish, and researchers seek to breed species that can endure higher temperatures. This time, living with a warming sea.

Visit one of Japan's engineering marvels, an auto and train bridge spanning six islands, and meet the dedicated crew working to keep it as good as new for the next 200 years.

In 2025, Otani Akira's book "The Night of Baba Yaga" won the UKs prestigious Dagger prize for crime fiction in translation-a first for a Japanese author. She shares the inspiration behind her work.

The highlight of Onabare is nerikomi, which involves the careful wielding of a long, heavy pole. This follows the parade of a portable shrine through the streets with performances along the way.

A group of anglers stand in a fast-moving, undulating river at the foot of a rugged cliff. They use "drifting mosquito hooks" to fish for a summer delicacy that was a favorite of the Edo townspeople.

Our bodies are home to trillions of bacteria that influence our physical health and mental well-being. We explore Japan's relationship with fermented foods and "chokatsu" or gut-related activities.

The JR Joban Line, severely damaged by the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, fully reopened in 2020. See how station areas in Fukushima Prefecture are being redeveloped along the restored route.

Rising temperatures are changing marine life. Sushi chains introduce unfamiliar fish, and researchers seek to breed species that can endure higher temperatures. This time, living with a warming sea.

Visit one of Japan's engineering marvels, an auto and train bridge spanning six islands, and meet the dedicated crew working to keep it as good as new for the next 200 years.