Kokusai kekkon (international marriage) is a popular option for Japanese who want to marry someone from outside their home country, and currently about 7% of registered marriages in Japan are between Japanese and foreigners. While most of the statistics come from Japanese men marrying women from places like China or South Korea, there are plenty of Japanese females marrying foreigners from the West. Japanese females often have a rose-colored view of what it must be like to be married to an American, and my wife’s friends often speak enviously of her for marrying an American, saying things like, “I’ll bet your husband does the dishes every night.” I’m also assumed to hold doors and chairs, cook an occasional romantic meal, and say “I love you” as I head out the door to work every morning, unlike Japanese men who (it is generally thought) never express their feelings. Children produced by such a marriage must surely be kawaii, just like having your own living Licca-chan doll. Licca is a popular fashion doll in Japan — way more popular than Barbie here — who is half-Japanese, half-French, probably considered by most Japanese to be the “ideal” child. Of course, there are benefits for Japanese who marry gaijin, but challenges too (just ask my wife). As always, your milage may vary.
International marriage is increasingly popular in Japan.
