A Tale of Two Bidens
US President Joe Biden has an important week ahead of him, but somewhere in Japan’s Kumamoto prefecture, a local leader feels as though he is the star of the show.
Yutaka Umeda, the mayor of the town of Yamato, has become an internet sensation after people discovered that the characters in his name can also be pronounced as “Jo Baiden,” the Washington Post reported.
Under the Japanese Kanji writing system – which originates from China – characters have a myriad of phonetic readings.
In the mayor’s case, his first name “Yutaka” can be read as “jo,” while his last name – pronounced “ume” and “da” – can also be read as “bai” and “den.”
After Biden’s November election victory, Umeda told local media then that he wasn’t aware of their connection until his family told him that his name was causing a stir on social media.
“It feels as though I’ve also won the election,” Umeda said in November.
The mayor added that despite their different roles, he believes that he and Biden share a passion for wanting to do the best for their countries.
But Biden is not the only US politician with links to Japan based on his name.
Former President Barack Obama shares a name with two towns named “Obama,” each in separate prefectures.
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