Moomins Multiplied: How Finnish art became popular in Japan

Memo #371

By:Hyung Gu Lynn – hlynn [at] mail.ubc.ca

The Moomin stories by Tove Jansson are landmark works of Finnish children’s literature/art. But Japan is the largest market for Moomin goods in the world and has served as a second home since the late-1960s. The Moomins’ popularity in Japan can be explained through several multiplicities, rather than through stereotypical depictions of Japan as uniquely disposed to like “cute/ kawaii” things.

First, there is a singular canon of works – the nine original books by Tove Jansson (the related artwork is housed at the Tampere Art Museum). But there are multiple layers of meaning and multiple characters in the texts. The books can be read simply as charming children’s stories or deeper reflections on the meaning of existence and nature of reality. A 2014 survey of Moomin fans in Japan indicated that the most popular character was not Moomin himself (third), but Little My, an anarchic little girl, and Snufkin, a seasonal peregrinator with a strong commitment to personal freedom.

Second, there has been multi-generational exposure. The books were quickly translated from their original Swedish to Finnish, but the first Japanese versions were not published until 1964-65, with additional titles translated in 1968-69 by Onodera Yuriko. This was followed by a 1969-70 TV animation series that took many liberties with the stories and the characterizations, but was very popular. Several subsequent Japanese translations have been published, resulting in a consistent level of exposure to the Moomins for around fifty years for those in their 50s and over in Japan).

Third, the Moomins are multi-media. Moomin Characters implemented in 2008 a policy to anchor all depictions of the Moomins to the original books and art. But there are also TV adaptations, films, picture books, and comics (by Tove Jansson and her brother, Lars) that are available in Japanese. The Moomins also adorn objects popular such as Finnish high-end porcelain and blankets, as well as the Moomin Cafes operated by Benelic. There also plans to open a theme park, Metsä, based on the Moomin stories to open in 2017 in Hannō City in Saitama Prefecture.

There are other factors, such as the Moomins’ role in the imagined utopia that Finland has become in public discourse within Japan. And it may be that a secret algorithm will reveal the requisite roundness-to-sharpness ratio for a character to gain traction in the Japanese market. In the meantime, analyzing multiple sources seems a productive path for explaining the popularity of the Moomins in a faraway land.

About the Author:

Hyung-Gu Lynn is the AECL/KEPCO Chair in Korean Research at the Institute of Asian Research and the Department of Asian Studies, University of British Columbia, where he also serves as Editor of the academic journal Pacific Affairs as well as the Asia Pacific Memo.

Visit the Official Moomin Site. Image Caption: Moomin Shop, London (Credit: Hyung-Gu Lynn)

Read more about our interview with Moomin Characters Ltd. Managing Director Roleff Kråkström. Image Caption: Moomin Characters Ltd. office (Credit: Hyung-Gu Lynn)

Links

• Helsinki City Library – “Did Tove Jansson translate the Moomins stories and names to Finnish herself?” (Finnish). Helsingin kaupunginkirjasto – “Onko Tove Jansson itse kääntänyt muumi-hahmojensa nimet suomeksi?”
  *I am grateful to Dr. Outi Luova and her daughter, Ella Wahlbeck, for finding and translating the information on the Swedish to Finnish translation.

• Hideko Mitsui, “Moomintroll and Finland in Japan’s Social Imaginary,” Antropologi: Jourîial of the Finnish Anthropological Society, 37, no. 1 (2012): 5-21.

• Cobus van Staden, “Mutations in Moominvalley: Globalization, Capitalism and the Cultural Identity of Fiction,” in Eija Niskanen, ed., Imaginary Japan: Japanese Fantasy in Contemporary Popular Culture (Turku: International Institute for Popular Culture, 2010), 26-29.

• Onodera Yuriko, On the Banks of the Baltic Sea: A Military Attaché’s Wife’s Pacific War (Tokyo: Kyodo Tsushin, 1985). (Japanese). 小野寺百合子『バルト海のほとりにて – 武官の妻の大東亜戦争』東京: 共同通信社, 1985.

• Nihon Research Center, 2014 Survey of Characters: Part 3 Famous Japanese and Overseas Characters. (Japanese). 日本リサーチセンター『全国キャラクター調査 2014』Part3: 日本と海外の有名キャラクター編.

• “The No. 1 reason for the Moomins’ popularity – World View” 2014.06.04. (Japanese) 「ムーミン」人気の理由1位は「世界観」—人気No.1キャラは「リト ルミイ」2014.06.04.

• Boel Westin, Tove Jansson: Ord bild liv (Stockholm: Albert Bonniers, 2007). (Swedish). Published in English as Boel Westin, Tove Jansson: Life, Art, Words (London: Sort of Books, 2014).

Related Memos:

See our other memos on Japan and Finland.