Japanese language searches for Harajuku at highest point ever…
Japanese searches for the term Harajuku are at their highest point ever. While the percentage of global internet searches for the romanized word Harajuku has been decreasing, searches for its Japanese equivalent (red in the graph below) have surged. They have almost tripled since their low point in February 2010. This month (May 2015), Japanese searches for Harajuku reached their highest point since Google started providing this data in 2004. The two opposing trends have been emerging since 2010.
Generally, the Japanese interest in Harajuku appears to be driven by business interests. The number of foreign tourists visiting Japan are at record heights. This February some 1,387,000 people visited Japan from abroad, the highest number for a single month ever, and a year on year increase of 57.6%. Many of these visitors put Harajuku on their list of places to visit and the area is crowded for foreigners these days. As a result many new businesses are set up in the Harajuku area, and there are lots of news articles about these developments.
Still no easy answers for what is really hidden behind these Google trends. These graphs give little insight. They are interesting trends though and deserve attention.
Harajuku is known internationally as a center of Japanese youth culture and fashion. Shopping and dining options include many small, youth oriented, independent boutiques and cafés, but the neighborhood also attracts many larger international chain stores with high-end luxury merchandisers extensively represented along Omotesando.
Harajuku is the common name given to a geographic area spreading from Harajuku Station to Omotesando, corresponding on official maps of Shibuya ward as Jingūmae 1 chōme to 4 chōme. In popular reference Harajuku also encompasses many smaller backstreets such as Takeshita Street and Cat Street spreading between Sendagaya in the north to Shibuya in the south.
I noticed one more interesting thing. Japanese searches for Harajuku inspired pop singer Kyary Pamyu Pamyu’s name (blue in graph below) surged at about the same time as the increased interest in Harajuku. Interestingly, searches for her name collapsed also at the same time that searches for Harajuku went down. Although searches for Harajuku have now rebounded, searches for Kyary Pamyu Pamyu have not. Did her meteoric rise have something to do with the surge of interest in Harajuku? Or was Kyary riding on the coattails of the renewed interest in Harajuku?
Harajuku is the common name given to a geographic area spreading from Harajuku Station to Omotesando, corresponding on official maps of Shibuya ward as Jingūmae 1 chōme to 4 chōme. In popular reference Harajuku also encompasses many smaller backstreets such as Takeshita Street and Cat Street spreading between Sendagaya in the north to Shibuya in the south.
 |
| Kyary Pamyu Pamyu |
I noticed one more interesting thing. Japanese searches for Harajuku inspired pop singer Kyary Pamyu Pamyu’s name (blue in graph below) surged at about the same time as the increased interest in Harajuku. Interestingly, searches for her name collapsed also at the same time that searches for Harajuku went down. Although searches for Harajuku have now rebounded, searches for Kyary Pamyu Pamyu have not. Did her meteoric rise have something to do with the surge of interest in Harajuku? Or was Kyary riding on the coattails of the renewed interest in Harajuku?
 |
| きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ Kyarī Pamyu Pamyu |
Generally, the Japanese interest in Harajuku appears to be driven by business interests. The number of foreign tourists visiting Japan are at record heights. This February some 1,387,000 people visited Japan from abroad, the highest number for a single month ever, and a year on year increase of 57.6%. Many of these visitors put Harajuku on their list of places to visit and the area is crowded for foreigners these days. As a result many new businesses are set up in the Harajuku area, and there are lots of news articles about these developments.
Still no easy answers for what is really hidden behind these Google trends. These graphs give little insight. They are interesting trends though and deserve attention.
.jpg)
0 commentaires:
Enregistrer un commentaire