Japan’s New Era Name in English is the Same as the Theme Song of a Hentai Game

As we all know, Japan has entered a new era and the next emperor has been revealed. But it turns out that this new era’s name, Reiwa, with the two kanji characters 令和 which mean “orderly harmony” in English, may actually have a connection with a theme song for a porn game released over a decade ago.

The first kanji has an esoteric meaning of “beautiful”, and this is the definition that the Japanese government was going for, according to the official statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, reported SoraNews24. With this, they asked Reiwa to be defined as “beautiful harmony.”

However, in 2006, anime voice actress and singer Yui Sakibara recorded a song of the same title that was used for the opening of “Buraban! – The Bonds of Melody -” – a hentai game.

The game allows the players to take on the role of a transfer student at a new school. He helps the female members of the school’s brass band to improve their skill. However, as the story progresses, things begin to shift from a simple helping out to something lewd.

Many who have played the game before were surprised by this news and even the singer herself, Sakibara, expressed the same reaction in her tweet. She said, as translated by SoraNews24, “I can’t believe ‘Reiwa’ has been designated ‘beautiful harmony!’”

まさかの「令和」の英訳が「Beautiful Harmony」に…っ❗✨
そして皆さん↑と言えば榊原ゆいの曲と気づいて下さってるw❗
ありがとうございます✨
「Beautiful Harmony」は、私の持ち曲の中でも、今でも人気な色褪せない名曲ですよ～✨#令和 #令和に乗っかる #BeautifulHarmony https://t.co/vwm0728Wad

— 榊原ゆい (@YuiSakakibara) April 3, 2019