A Japanese village that fills the vacancy of young people with dolls is a hot topic.
According to Sky News on the 28th (local time), a village in southern Nonoichi, Japan, where fewer than 60 residents live, has created human-like dolls and filled all over the village to overcome the loneliness and fear of residents.
As young people living in the village increasingly left for large cities for jobs or education, only those over the retirement age remain in the village.
The elderly began making dolls using old clothes, cloths, and mannequins to heal the loneliness that came after their neighbors or loved ones left.
Dolls were placed throughout the village as well as the residents’ houses. Children’s-sized dolls were also placed in school classrooms that closed a few years ago, including swings and scooters.
“Now the number of dolls in the village has exceeded the number of people,” said 88-year-old village resident Hisayo Yamazaki.
Japan has the highest proportion of people aged 65 or older in the world, according to data released by Japan’s National Statistical Office ahead of the “Elderly Respect Day” last month. Although Japan’s population is declining, the number of people aged 65 or older is an all-time high of 36.25 million, accounting for 29.3% of the total population.
The total population fell for the 15th consecutive year in 2023, with the number of newborns at a record low of 730,000, but the death toll hit a record high of 1.58 million, according to data from Japan’s Interior Ministry.
SOPHIA KIM
US ASIA JOURNAL
