In recent years, Japan's kawaii culture has exploded in popularity. WSJ's Eric Bellman speaks with author Manami Okazaki about how cuteness has gained a global fanbase.

In Japan, ‘cute’ is a big deal. Their own word for it, kawaii (“ka-why-ee”), is more of an ethos than an adjective. Shops and billboards are filled with big-eyed fluffy figures.

TOKYO--Hello Kitty turns 50 on Friday ... Part of the confusion stems from a misunderstanding of “kawaii,” which is Japanese for “cute” but also connotes a lovable or adorable essence.

Inspired by #SQkawaii Sounds Album and Highlighting the Women of Final Fantasy. Tokyo, Japan — Square Enix announced that starting today, March 12, it will hol ...

Before moving to Tokyo in ... his genre as Kawaii Metal (or ‘Cute Metal’), which mixes some elements from heavy metal and J-Pop. One of the pioneers of this genre is a Japanese idol trio ...

So naturally, he had to travel to their hometown of Tokyo to discover ... Bunny Bissoux. "Kawaii" means cute - but as Bunny explained, anything can be cute in Japan. She took us through the ...