Japanese Mascots

Oh!-kun is the mascot of the Okayama Broadcasting Company. His website, here, is undergoing maintenance, but Oh!-kun has a profile here. TV commercials, wallpapers, screensavers and icons can be downloaded here. Oh!-kun’s name in Japanese is OH!くん.

Paper-kun is the mascot of the Saga Shimbun newspaper. He likes the color blue, girls and summer. Paper-kun’s profile is here. His name in Japanese is ぺーぱくん.

Yumenta is the mascot of the Fukuoka Broadcasting Corporation. There are Yumenta wallpapers here and some merchandise here. His name in Japanese is ゆめんた.

Bun-chan is the mascot of the Hokkaido Shimbun newspaper. There is a gallery of Bun-chan pictures drawn by local children here. His name in Japanese is ぶんちゃん.

Kahopyon is the mascot of the Kahoku Shimpo newspaper in the city of Sendai. He uses his long ears to gather news for the paper’s readers. Kahopyon’s profile is here. His name in Japanese is かほピョン.

Beep-kun is the mascot of the Yamaguchi Asahi Broadcasting Company. His profile is here; scroll down the page for two wallpapers. Beep-kun’s name in Japanese is ビープくん. Many thanks to Ruthie for the tip.

Sorajiro is the mascot of the Nihon TV station’s weather forecast. His personality is “fairly positive” and there is some Sorajiro merchandise here. His name in Japanese is そらジロー.

Newske is the mascot of the Kochi Shimbun newspaper in Shikoku. He describes himself as “male… maybe” and his official birthday of 01 September 04 coincided with the paper’s centenary. Newske’s website is here and his name in Japanese is にゅーすけ.

Gozura-kun is the mascot of the Chukai cable TV company. A mixture between a swallow and a fish, his design was selected from 1200 proposals sent to the company by members of the public, in order to celebrate Chukai’s tenth anniversary. Gozura-kun’s profile is here and his name in Japanese is ゴズラくん.

Doredore is the mascot of the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper. He was designed by the Studio Ghibli film animation studio. 164,548 people contacted the paper to suggest a name for the character when he was launched in 2004, thirteen of whom suggested Doredore. A brief profile is here and his name in Japanese is どれどれ.

Ryu-chan is the mascot of the Ryukyu Shimpo newspaper in Okinawa. He was born on Newsnojima (News Island) and stars in his own exercise video on Youtube, here. Ryu-chan’s profile is here. His name in Japanese is りゅうちゃん.

Lappy is the mascot of the 12th International Animation Festival in Japan, to be held in Hiroshima in August 2008. His name commemorates the main themes of the festival, “Love & Peace” and “Happy”. Lappy’s profile is here and his name in Japanese is ラッピー.

Domo-kun is the mascot of the NHK broadcasting organisation and is pictured with Mr Usaji the rabbit. He often causes trouble by daydreaming, but dislikes apples. Domo-kun’s own website is here. His name in Japanese is どーもくん.