I often write about the latest wacky social trends to take root in Japan, since I know I’ll never run out of material to report on. Like the phenomenon known as bento danshi, or men who take an interest in making healthy and economical bento lunches. If you’ve been paying attention to the products J-List has been adding to our site every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, you may have noticed an increase in the historically-themed traditional items we’ve been carrying, from the bento boxes decorated with samurai crests on them to other interesting traditional Japanese products we add to the site regularly. This is largely due to the recent popularity of Japanese history among females, a phenomenon known as rekijo or “history girls.” I’ve always thought that Japanese have a deeper connection to their own history than we have in the U.S. at least, which you can see in the popularity of jidai geki period dramas on television. But the boom in history among females that’s been going on over the couple few years — no doubt helped by casting handsome actors like Gackt or Masaharu Fukuyama into major roles — has been fascinating to watch.
Japan’s “History Girls” have fallen in love with Japan’s past.
