The typical Japanese citizen goes through 43 masks per year. Initially a personal public health decision, daily mask wearing became a social etiquette standard and then a fashion accessory.

Flu or not, Japan loves its masks. “Rather than being based on any hard scientific evidence, it’s passed into the culture,” Lomax said.

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, most Japanese had little problem with wearing a mask unlike the stubborn resistance found in many parts of Europe and the United States.

Japanese trend-setters can now protect against the coronavirus in luxurious style with opulent masks adorned with diamonds and pearls for a cool ¥1 million ($9,600) each. Cox Co.'s Mask.com chain ...

But in Asia, there has been an underlying cultural narrative as to why people wear masks. "Face mask culture" in Asia originated in Japan, as the country grappled with the Spanish flu outbreak in ...

The Cultural Coalition's 4th annual Mask Alive Festival in Mesa celebrates use of masks in cultural ceremonies. ... who has studied Japanese, Mexican, Alaskan and Balinese mask-making techniques, ...

Japanese people, basically, don't like other (Japanese) people. Hence the masks, the convenience store automatons, the sour "leave-me-alone" faces on the subways, and yes, even the low birthrate.

The USC Aiken Etherredge Center opens its 38th year of its Cultural Series on Sunday, Sept. 10. This year's theme is Bringing the World to Aiken. The season opening performance ...