“Kokushobi”: Japan announces new name for days hotter than 40°C

Japan now has a special name for days that are 40C or hotter, Euronews writes.

‘Kokushobi’ translates as cruelly hot, brutally hot or severely hot.

It is the first time the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) has been forced to introduce a new term for weather forecasts since 2007, when ‘mōshobi’ (extremely hot day) was introduced for days over 35C.

Summer 2025 was Japan’s hottest summer since records began in 1898, with average nationwide temperatures 2.36C above average.