Do they say "fashion" outside of Japan? I looked into how it's called in different countries.

Two posts ago, I wrote about the etymology of the Japanese word "ryuko" (trend/fashion).

In that post, I touched upon the fact that the English word "fashion" originated from a Latin word meaning "to make." That sparked a new question in my mind.

"To begin with, do people in countries other than Japan call fashion 'fashion'?"

Since English is often treated as a global lingua franca, I had a vague feeling that "fashion = fashion" was a universal term. But what is the reality? This time, I looked into how "fashion" is referred to in major world languages.

In French, it is called "mode"

First, let's look at France, which can be called the home of fashion.

In French, fashion is called "mode." You may have heard the terms "mode-kei" or "mode fashion" in Japanese, and these are derived directly from this French word.

"Mode" comes from the Latin word "modus" (method, style). While the English word "fashion" is derived from "to make," the French word "mode" comes from the meaning of "way or style."

Interestingly, the word "mode" also exists in English, but as a daily term for "fashion" in English-speaking countries, "fashion" is basically used. "Mode" is rooted as the central term for fashion in countries and regions with French roots.

The Italian "moda" and Spanish "moda" are also words derived from the same Latin "modus." In other words, in Latin-based language countries like France, Italy, and Spain, "mode"-related words are used instead of the English "fashion."

In Chinese, it is "shishang" and "shizhuang"

In neighboring Chinese, different expressions are used.

In Chinese, the words "shishang" and "shizhuang" are used to mean fashion. As you can tell from the use of the character "shi" (time), they contain the nuance of "at that time" or "fitting for the era."

"Shizhuang" is mainly used to refer to "fashionable clothes or trendy clothing," while "shishang" is used as a broader term referring to "fashion" or "trends" themselves.

By the way, the Chinese word corresponding to the Japanese "ryuko" is "liuxing," which uses the same kanji as Japanese. Since the word was originally transmitted from Chinese to Japan, this is natural, but seeing the commonality of the kanji makes me feel the linguistic connection in East Asia.

In Korean, it is "paesyeon," a loanword from English

In the case of Korean, it follows a different pattern.

The word for fashion in Korean is "paesyeon." As you can see, this is a so-called "loanword" that applies the English word "fashion" directly to Hangul pronunciation.

Korean has its own native word, "ot," which refers to clothing itself, but when referring to the concept of "fashion" itself, the loanword from English, "paesyeon," is used.

Considering that Japanese also uses the katakana word "fashion" as is, Korean and Japanese take a similar approach in this regard. It may be surprisingly common for countries outside the English-speaking world to adopt English pronunciation directly as a word to express the concept of "fashion" itself.

In German, it's "Mode"

In German-speaking regions, just like in French, the word "Mode" is used.

Germany is geographically close to France, and there is a history of mutual influence in fashion culture. Therefore, it is thought that the French word "mode" was adopted into German and became established.

The English "fashion" and the "mode/moda" used in French, Italian, Spanish, and German—it is an interesting point that even within Europe, the words used are divided between the English-speaking world and other Latin and Germanic language regions.

Why are the words so different depending on the country?

What we notice after looking at this is that while the "concept" of fashion itself is universal, the "words" used to refer to it differ significantly based on each country's linguistic roots.

The English-speaking world uses "fashion," countries with roots in French use "mode-related" terms, and countries like South Korea and Japan have established loanwords from English as they are. The current diversity in terminology is the result of each country incorporating this concept in the most natural way within their own linguistic system.

Considering that fashion culture itself was not born in just one specific country, but developed through the intertwining histories of multiple nations—such as French haute couture, British tailoring, and American ready-to-wear—it might be natural in a sense that the terminology is not unified.

The reason Japan chose the word "fashion"

Finally, let's return to the topic of Japan.

In Japan, as Western clothing culture was introduced after the Meiji era, the English word "fashion" became established as a katakana loanword. The French word "mode" also remains in some forms, such as "mode-kei fashion," but "fashion" is overwhelmingly used as the primary word in daily life.

This is thought to be related to the very strong influence of American culture in post-war Japan. In the flow of American English being incorporated into Japanese across many fields—music, movies, and lifestyle—the word "fashion" likely became established quite naturally.

Summary: Even if the names are different, the underlying feeling is the same

Looking into it, I found that even in the single word "fashion," the linguistic background and historical connections of each country are strongly reflected.

Whether it is "fashion" in English-speaking countries, "mode/moda" in French and Latin-speaking regions, or loanwords from English in South Korea and Japan—even if the names are different, the desire to express "the form of dress that people seek in that era" is common to all language regions.

It was a theme that made me feel once again that even if the words are different, the desire to express oneself through clothing and to wear the atmosphere of the times remains unchanged all over the world.