‘Kin’, or gold, picked as kanji character of 2024 in Japan
The kanji for ‘kin’, meaning gold or money, has been chosen as the symbol of the outgoing year in Japan, with the solemn ceremony held at the Buddhist Pure Water Temple in the ancient Japanese capital of Kyoto, TASS reports
The choice of the kanji for ‘gold’ is due to the success of Japanese athletes at the Paris Olympics, the high-profile scandal over financial reporting irregularities in the country’s Liberal Democratic Party, and the inscription of the Sado Island Gold Mines on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Local experts speculated on the eve of the ceremony that it was ‘gold’ that would be the symbol of the year, as in Olympic years the choice often falls on this character.
The symbol of the year was inscribed on a sheet of rice paper measuring 130 by 150 centimetres by the abbot of the temple, monk Seihan Mori. This tradition has been in place since 1995, and this year is the thirtieth. More than 221,000 people participated in the nationwide vote.
