The Japan Bowl is a Japanese language competition created by the Japan-American Society of Washington DC in 1992. It uses a quiz bowl format to test the knowledge of Japanese culture, society, daily life, history, geography, and current events. This year, for the first time ever in Canada, Ontario Japan Bowl took place on November 2, 2017 at Huron University College in London, Ontario. The event was held as a trial during the school cultural event “Japan Day.” It brought together some 100 guests including university students, faculty and local high school students. The audience enjoyed the team-match which consisted of three representative teams from Huron senior Japanese language students. The event was very successful and participants enjoyed it. Here are some students’ comments.

“I thought it was a nice friendly competition, and a good way to learn some facts about Japan.”

“I enjoyed the event. I liked how it was competitive yet we still had fun with others.”

It's truly believed that the Japan Bowl will encourage young people to study Japanese language culture and this will help the Canada-Japan relationship eventually. The first Ontario Japan Bowl will be held in March 2018.

Sample Question (2017 Ontario Japan Bowl)

Question: In Japan’s medieval period, what title was given to the supreme ruler of the military government? 
A. Samurai B. Shogun C. Ninjya
Answer: B. Shogun