Japanese Business Glossary

デリバティブ取引 (deribateibu torihiki) refers to "derivative trading" in Japanese. Derivatives are financial instruments whose value is derived from the performance of underlying assets, such as stocks, bonds, commodities, currencies, interest rates, or market indexes.

In derivative trading, investors engage in contracts like futures, options, swaps, and forwards to speculate on or hedge against changes in the value of these underlying assets. This type of trading can provide opportunities for significant profits but also involves considerable risk due to the leverage and complexity of the instruments.

相続放棄 (souzoku houki) is a Japanese term that translates to "renunciation of inheritance" or "disclaimer of inheritance." It refers to the legal act by which an heir formally declines their right to inherit assets, debts, or obligations from a deceased person's estate.

This process must be carried out through a formal declaration to the family court within three months of becoming aware of the inheritance. The decision to renounce inheritance is often made to avoid inheriting debts or to simplify the distribution of the estate among other heirs.

Souzoku houki is an important legal option for individuals who wish to avoid financial liabilities or potential disputes that might arise from accepting an inheritance. Once an inheritance is renounced, the heir cannot later claim any part of the estate.

別版 (beppan) is a Japanese term that translates to "separate edition" or "different version." It refers to an edition or version of a publication, product, or document that differs from the original or main edition.

This term is commonly used in publishing, where beppan might indicate a special edition of a book, magazine, or newspaper that contains unique content, such as additional articles, exclusive interviews, or special illustrations. In the context of software or digital products, beppan could refer to a version of a program or application that includes specific features or modifications not found in the standard release.

範疇 (hanchuu) is a Japanese term that translates to "category" or "classification." It refers to a specific class or group into which items, concepts, or phenomena are organized based on shared characteristics or criteria.

Hanchuu is commonly used in various fields such as science, philosophy, and everyday life to systematically categorize and understand complex information. For example, in biology, living organisms are classified into different hanchuu such as species, genus, and family. In philosophy, hanchuu might refer to different categories of thought or existence.

締日 (shimebi) is a Japanese term that translates to "closing date" or "cutoff date." It refers to a specific date set for finalizing accounts, transactions, or any regular periodical process.

In a business context, shimebi is often used to indicate the date by which all transactions must be recorded for that particular accounting period, such as monthly or quarterly. For instance, companies may have a shimebi for processing payroll, closing sales for the month, or finalizing expense reports.

別 (betsu) is a Japanese term that translates to "separate," "different," or "distinct." It is used to indicate that something is set apart or distinguished from others.

In various contexts, betsu can refer to items, categories, or groups that are not the same or are treated individually. For example, 別々 (betsu betsu) means "separately" or "individually," while 別の (betsu no) means "another" or "different."