1990s

№ 020 リストラ risutora English said “restructuring.” Japanese heard “you’re fired.” A euphemism that lost its disguise within a few years. 1990s № 019 プリクラ purikura A photo-sticker machine’s brand name that became the word itself — and an early rehearsal for the selfie age. 1990s № 018 アムラー amurā Fans who dressed like the singer Namie Amuro, named with an English “-er” stuck onto her name. The suffix outlived the boom. 1990s № 017 コギャル kogyaru Tanned high-school girls who ruled 1990s Shibuya — and bent the Japanese language to their will. 1990s № 007 チョベリバ cho-beri-ba One Japanese prefix stacked on two English words: “super very bad.” Schoolgirls built it; adults never caught up. 1990s № 006 アッシー asshii In the bubble years, a man with a car could be reduced to one body part: the legs. 1990s