近日，日本汉字能力检定协会（the Japan Kanji Aptitude¹ Testing Foundation）在京都市的清水寺公布了最能反映2021年世态民情的年度汉字。

 

The Japanese kanji for kin², meaning gold, was voted character of the year on Monday in honor of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which were delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

日本汉字“金”当选年度汉字，以纪念因新冠疫情延期一年举办的东京奥运会。

 

评选组织方表示：

 

The Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics became bright news, a ray of light for a society that had been in the dark, suffering from the coronavirus pandemic for a long time.

东京奥运会和残奥会成为振奋人心的新闻，为长期受新冠疫情困扰、深处黑暗当中的社会带来一丝光亮。

 

今年在223773张投票中，有10422票选择了“金”字。

 

This is the fourth time for the character to come out on top in the voting, following its selection³ in 2000, 2012, and 2016—all Olympic years.

这是“金”字第四次当选年度汉字，此前曾在2000年、2012年和2016年当选，而这些年份都是奥运会的举办年份。

 

Voting for the kanji takes place via postcard, in person at bookstores and libraries, and on the internet. The winning kin barely⁴ edged out the second-place finisher this year, taking 10,422 votes to the 10,304 received by rin, meaning “ring”—another Olympic-inspired choice that was the winner in 2013, the year when Tokyo was tapped to host the 2020 games.

年度汉字的评选可以通过明信片、亲自前往书店或图书馆，以及在线等方式投票。“金”字以10422票的微弱优势击败同样与奥运会有关的“轮”字，成功当选。“轮”字获得的票数为10304票。2013年东京获得奥运会主办权的那一年，“轮”字曾经当选为年度汉字。

 

日本的年度汉字自1995年开始评选以来，今年已经是第27次进行。

 

The top kanji character last year was mitsu, which means dense⁵, crowded and close, describing the three situations people in Japan were urged to avoid in order to prevent infection.

去年的年度汉字是“密”，即“密接、密集”的“密”，指日本民众为防止感染尽量避免“密闭场所、密集人群、密切接触”的情形。

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