Kokushobi: My vote for word of the year for 2026

Ok, I know we’re only one-third of the way through the year, and things can change. World War III could occur, a new pandemic, hell, even aliens could visit (or invade) Earth. Any of these would make my suggestion seem ridiculous. But assuming a typically normal year (i.e. under the mad political reality we now live in), I submit my vote for word of the year: kokushobi.

A few weeks back I read in Bloomberg how the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) chose a new word for days with a maximum temperature of 104°F (40°C) or higher: kokushobi, or “Cruelly Hot Day.” Why? According to the press release, “The Japan Meteorological Agency will use this term to effectively call for vigilance against significantly high temperatures.”

This comes after over 478,000 people (in conjunction with experts offering their opinions) voted to help decide the term. 203,000 people chose kokushobi. The next most-voted-for term was Super Hot Day (chōmōshobi) at 66,000 votes, and then Scorching Hot Day (gokushobi) at 26,000. Number 8, receiving 9,000 votes, was also interesting: Hot Hot Day (nesshobi). Oh, it’s a hot hot day! But that’s not very clear whether it’s dangerous or just a reflection on or celebration of the weather—feeling hot hot hot!

But the bigger point here is that Japan (and many parts of the world) are literally adapting to the new climate reality—institutionally and even linguistically. It is now necessary to have terms to warn people of dangerous heat to protect them, that is, at least in countries where denial is not normalized.

Climate Denial as an Adaptation?

Unfortunately, climate denial is also becoming a leading adaptation to climate change—just not a healthy one. Late last week there was a 1-2 punch in U.S. political news. First House Republicans questioned the review of evidence of climate change by the National Academies, claiming their rapidly produced findings were “predetermined” (though in reality the climate science is just well developed and the report drew off other recent comprehensive reports). Then, a day later, the Trump Administration dismissed the entire 25-person National Science Board, which oversees the National Science Foundation. None of this is surprising. The first article notes that three House Republicans leading the questioning have collectively received over half a million dollars in campaign donations from oil companies and Trump, well his actions and his campaign deal with oil executives reveal his corruption. By casting doubt on and even shutting down America’s ability to do climate science, then there won’t be conflict with their opinions and the reality (except of course that climate research is global, but let’s ignore that inconvenient truth).

Here’s the most interesting part: A recent study in Environmental Research and Communications found that while almost all Democratic political elites (elected leaders, staffers, judges, etc.) surveyed accept the scientific consensus on climate change, more than half of Republican political elites surveyed do not—and perhaps worse, nearly one-third believe in “a climate-related conspiracy theory.” The study concludes this is not because they’re stupid, or lack a scientific mind, or are more predisposed to conspiracies (maybe because they drank too much fluoride as children?), but because denying climate change is part of the in-group cultural expectations (what the article calls “partisan identity”). I had read about that in conservative church communities (i.e. it’s safer to just deny climate change than be ostracized from one’s community) but the fact that to be accepted as a Republican you kind of have to go along with climate denial is quite disturbing (I’d hypothesize that the 50% who don’t deny are mostly in the Northeast where moderate Republicans maintain their own subculture). It also suggests, as with slavery/abolition, it might not be possible to resolve this schism, at least not without one side truly winning and the other losing.

Electrostates/Petrostates/Denier-states/States of Acceptance?

There has been talk of the dichotomization of the world into Petrostates (U.S., Russia) and Electrostates: China and the EU. Electrification is clearly key to the future (particularly when combined with reducing growth to remain within planetary limits), but fossil fuel interests will work tirelessly to impede the shift in countries dominated by the fossil fuel industry. That’s leading to states that are actively derailing climate negotiations, but it also seems to be leading to a bolder sub-group of states that not only accept but push for bolder climate action. For example, 50 countries are currently gathered in Colombia to discuss an orderly transition away from fossil fuels. I’m not holding my breath for any radical outcomes but one can see how the world is dividing into those trying to stop the descent into madness, and those who, whether intentionally or not, are accelerating it. No matter who wins, because of climate momentum, we’re going to experience many more kokushobi in the future. Whether we’ll be prepared or not, that’s up for debate.

Bonus section: Crafting a Kata for Kokushobi

Whenever I hear a cool new Japanese word, I can’t help but imagine a karate kata for it. Like “Red Leaf,” “Wind through the Pines,” or “Parting of the Clouds,” kata typically convey beautiful nature terms. Of course, “Cruelly Hot Day” isn’t as artful as most karate kata names. Kanku Dai, for example, means “viewing the sky” with the opening move looking up at the sun through a triangle made of your thumbs and fingers, suggesting everything from reflecting on a new day and our own smallness in relation to the universe to escaping a bear hug or blocking and striking your opponent.

Cruelly Hot Day is lacking that artfulness but it has potential in embedding themes of heat and exhaustion into the kata. Some falls, perhaps a drunken kata aspect? Perhaps a maximization of power with a minimization of energy to avoid heat exhaustion? Maybe a very cruelly brutal attack like a throat strike? It certainly would be fun to design as part of JMA’s outreach and promotion of this new term, perhaps inviting the leading karate schools of the nation to compete over who can create the best Kokushobi kata. I’m not suggesting it should become one of the eight standardized black belt kata, or anything like that, but it could be one more way to fully engage with the word and help develop its broader value and place in Japanese (and global) culture.