The Chinese character meaning "north" was selected as kanji, or Chinese character of the year that best summarizes the year's national mood in Japan, the country's Kanji Aptitude Testing Association announced in Kyoto on Tuesday, local media reported.
According to the Kyoto-based organization, the selection was based on votes cast by the general public. "North" won 7,104 of the 153,594 votes received in total this year.
The reasons for choosing "north" included concerns over the missile tests conducted by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) within the year, and the deadly rain in northern part of the Kyushu main island this summer, according to the organization.
The kanji-of-the-year selection event has been held annually since 1995. Last year, the Chinese character "kin" meaning gold or money was selected as kanji of the year.
