BBC News Review日本禁止使用皮卡丘和小猫等婴儿名字

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From BBC Learning English,
this is Learning English from the News, our podcast about the news headlines.
In this programme,
Japan changes law to stop baby names like Pikachu and Kitty.
Hello, I'm Neil.
And I'm Beth.
In this programme, we look at one big news story
and the vocabulary in the headlines that will help you understand it.
You can find all the vocabulary and headlines from this episode,
as well as a worksheet on our website, bbclearningenglish.com.
So let's hear more about this story.
So Japan has changed the law to stop people naming their babies things
like Pikachu and Kitty.
New rules have come in on the pronunciation of kanji.
Those are the Chinese characters used as one of the three forms
of Japanese writing.
The change is designed to prevent unofficial pronunciations
of the kanji characters.
In recent times,
these unusual interpretations of the characters have allowed
people to call their kids names seen as strange or silly by the authorities.
And our first headline is about this.
It's from The Guardian,
in the UK. Japan introduces rules to put outlandish baby names to bed.
And that headline, again from The Guardian: Japan introduces rules
to put outlandish baby names to bed.
First of all, the word outlandish, now that describes something strange
or unusual, such as calling your child Pikachu.
But we're interested in this expression put something to bed.
Because we're talking about babies,
Beth, I can sense that this is some kind of joke.
OK, but hang on before we get to the joke.
So let's start with the meaning.
If you say that you have put something to bed,
you mean you've dealt with a difficult situation successfully.
So, for example, I had a bit of a disagreement with one of my neighbours
about where they leave their rubbish bins for collection.
But we got together and discussed it and we put it to bed.
Ah, OK. So you successfully dealt with the issue and now it's not a problem.
Well that's good, Neil, because you don't want
to be fighting with your neighbours.
Exactly. So, Beth, can you work out why in this headline
and with this story, the expression put something to bed is a bit of a joke.
Yes, it's a joke because we're talking about a dispute, here between
the Japanese authorities and people who give their kids outlandish names,
and the dispute has been put to bed, resolved through new laws.
And the story is about babies.
Yes. And babies sleep a lot and need literally to be put to bed.
Exactly. OK, Neil, let's put this section to bed
and get a recap of the vocabulary.
We've had put something to bed,
deal with a problem successfully.
For example,
the company put to bed threats of strikes
by offering workers a big pay rise.
This is Learning English
from the News, our podcast about the news headlines.
Today we're talking about a new law in Japan
designed to stop people giving their babies unusual names like Pikachu.
In recent times,
parents in Japan have been choosing names for their babies,
which have been seen as more individual and creative than traditional names.
The new law aims to prevent that.
The names are described in Japanese language
as Kira Kira, which means shiny or glittery.
And it's this idea that we're going to look at in our next headline.
Our headline from Euro Weekly.
You can't call your baby that...
Japan limits the choice of baby names to stop "flashy" ones.
And that headline again from Euro Weekly.
You can't call your baby that...
Japan limits the choice of baby names to stop "flashy" ones.
So the word we're going to discuss is flashy.
What does flashy mean, Beth?
OK, well, the word flashy is an adjective,
but it helps to look at the root of this word flash.
Neil, what is a flash?
Well, a flash is a short moment of bright light,
like on an old fashioned camera.
And that's what happens when you see a flash?
Well, it attracts attention.
So you have to look in the direction of the flash to see what just happened.
That's right. So something that is flashy is something that attracts.
So what sort of things can be described as flashy?
Well, if someone has a very expensive watch or car,
one that seems to be worn or driven mainly to attract attention,
We can say that it's flashy.
We can also describe a person as flashy if they behave
or present themselves in a way that makes people look at them.
And a note we often shorten flashy to just flash.
That's a flash watch you're wearing, Beth.
Oh, well, I thought you'd notice it, Neil.
Well, I did.
We've had flashy, which describes something expensive
or designed to attract attention.
For example, the singer arrived at the awards ceremony in a flashy car.
This is Learning English from the News from BBC Learning English.
We're talking about new rules on the pronunciation of Japanese characters,
which will prevent parents choosing unusual and flashy names
for their babies.
We've been hearing about a current trend in Japan
of giving babies unusual names.
The authorities say it can be hard to know how to pronounce these names,
and can also cause the children embarrassment in later life.
Our next headline is about official attempts to stop this trend.
So let's have our next headline which comes from South China Morning Post.
Don't do it:
Japan takes aim at baby names like 'Nike'
with new rules on kanji readings.
That headline, again from the South China Morning Post.
Don't do it:
Japan takes aim at baby names like 'Nike' with new rules on kanji readings.
So this headline says that the rules take aim at baby names like Nike.
And we're looking at the expression take aim at.
Now, if you take aim at something literally,
you try to hit it either by throwing or kicking something
or pointing a weapon at something you want to hit.
So a football player will take aim at the goal
when they're taking a free kick.
Or a soldier with a gun will take aim at an enemy soldier.
But here we're talking metaphorically.
Yes we are. The Japanese authorities are taking aim at this new trend
for baby names like Pikachu and Nike.
They are attacking the trend as if they are aiming a gun at it.
And we see this expression commonly when talking about official attempts
to deal with problems or criticise something seen as bad.
Yes. So, for example, we might hear the government has taken aim
at unemployment by offering young people training opportunities.
We've had to take aim at something,
try to deal with an issue or criticise something.
So, for example, she took aim at her rival for the job promotion
by pointing out all his weaknesses.
That's it for this episode of Learning English from the News.
We'll be back next week with another news story.
And don't forget to follow us on social media.
Just search for BBC Learning English.
Thanks for joining us and goodbye. Goodbye.
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