Why do I get a second button at the graduation ceremony?

Graduation ceremony season is over, and now it's entrance ceremony season. What memories do you have of graduation ceremonies?

At junior high school or high school graduation ceremonies, some women may have received the second button on their school uniform from the man they admired.

It's a sight that can be called a ``standard'' graduation ceremony.

But why is there a second button at the graduation ceremony?

I (reporter) also put on a uniform for the first time in 12 years and pursued the bittersweet mysteries of youth.

(Osaka Broadcasting Station Nandennan Reporting Team Director Keiyasu Izumiya / Reporter Bartenstein Nagaoka Kai)

Graduation ceremony tradition 2nd button

In March, the graduation season, I spoke to people passing by and asked them about their memories of the graduation ceremony.

“I asked him to please press the second button!”

``Not just the button, I'll give you the thing on the back of it as well.I don't have enough, so I'll give you the popular girl.''

Each of them has memories surrounding the second button.

So, if you ask me why we exchange the second button...

Husband: "I don't know."

Wife: "You've never received one, so you don't understand."

Husband: "(bitter smile)"

Everyone seems to have no idea why, so I decided to find out when it started.

What is the origin of the second button?

The first place our reporting team visited was a 70-year-old school uniform store in Sakai, Osaka.

If it's a long-established store, you might be able to get some clues.

I asked him exactly when he started receiving the second button.

"I've seen scenes like that in dramas, but I don't really know much about them."

Further investigation revealed some promising clues.

I heard that there was an expert in Nara who was knowledgeable about uniforms, so I headed there right away.

We spoke with Katsuhiko Sano, who used to work as a researcher for a school uniform manufacturer and currently serves as a consultant for the Japan Uniform Council.

I took the opportunity to meet him in my uniform, and Mr. Sano responded immediately.

``The one you're wearing is a size 185A.''

Just by looking at him, the reporter (Nagaoka) guessed the size and model of the uniform he was wearing.

“This seems like a good opportunity!”

The expectations of the reporting team were high.

Mr. Sano, who is conducting his own research on the history of uniforms, says that the origin of the second button may be an anecdote he heard during his research.

Here is Sano's explanation.

The story is said to be about a male student in Osaka at the end of the war.

He secretly admires the wife of his brother who is fighting on the battlefield.

While he is still harboring his secret feelings, he eventually receives a summons.

``I want you to at least remember me.''

The last thing he handed her was the second button.

In other words, the theory is that the second button was not something that women received in the first place, but was originally something that men gave to women.

Katsuhiko Sano

: ``Back then, metal was precious, and the only important thing I wore was a metal button.For my younger brother, the most important thing was the button, and the second most important thing was the button. Maybe the button is close to the heart, or close to how you feel.''

Why did the second button culture spread?

We can now see the origin of the culture of exchanging second buttons at graduation ceremonies.

So, why has this culture become so widespread in various places?

As the research progressed further, it became clear that the presence of hit songs may have had an influence.

The second button began appearing in the lyrics of hit songs in the 1980s.

One of the representative songs is "Graduation" sung by Yuki Saito.

The lower class students beg for

the button on the chest of their uniform, and

they run away scratching their heads,

even though they're really happy.

It is said that this song, which was performed at a graduation ceremony and expressed the heartfelt feelings for a loved one, captured the hearts of young people at the time.

Hideyuki Suehiro, a record store clerk in Osaka's Naniwa Ward who is well versed in popular songs from the 1980s, believes that this song may have established the concept of women receiving a second button.

Hideyuki Suehiro, a record shop clerk, said,

``I think the second button interaction was popular.I think this song was a boom, and I think it made a wide range of people aware of the second button.''

We ask “that person” who started the second button boom

How was this song born?

If you've come this far, I'd like to ask you directly! So, this time, I requested an interview with the lyricist Takashi Matsumoto, who wrote the lyrics.

Then, he happily agreed to an interview.

According to Matsumoto, he was asked to write the lyrics for this song with the theme of ``graduation,'' and the music was added later.

The lyrics are said to be based on Matsumoto's own experience at a graduation ceremony.

Lyricist Takashi Matsumoto:

``The graduation ceremony of the junior high school I attended was around the time of the Tokyo Olympics, so it's quite old.Back then, it was customary to raise the second button.I was the one who ran away in embarrassment. Well, the lyrics, ``You're running away while scratching your head,'' are about myself.''

Mr. Matsumoto, why did you decide to use this episode as lyrics?

Lyricist Takashi Matsumoto:

``When I explain my emotions, like ``sad'' or ``happy,'' people don't understand.That's why I wanted to express it in a very specific way. These are the lyrics that I came up with after thinking about how I could express my feelings through a small object.I don't think everyone remembers the classroom they were in when they graduated.It's probably something that not only people in Japan but people all over the world have experienced. Graduation ceremonies always come once a year, and each time people sing and listen to them, so thanks to you, the songs remain. "Youth never ends."

2nd button culture Is it no longer there?

This is how the culture of receiving a second button spread.

A 30-year-old reporter (Nagaoka) has been reporting on the idea that this culture is still continuing as a matter of course, but it seems that things are changing a little, including changes in the uniform itself.

As times change, the so-called "gakuran" uniforms and tight-collared uniforms are decreasing, and blazers are becoming mainstream, and as a result, changing the second button is becoming less popular.

So what are today's graduates doing?

The culture of gifting gifts along with feelings to loved ones at graduation ceremonies continued in a different form.

In March, the graduation season, social media was flooded with videos of young people giving bouquets of flowers to each other on behalf of the second button.

About five years ago, a video of people giving flowers as a surprise at a graduation ceremony went viral on social media, and the trend has exploded since then.

Not only a pattern of male to female, but also a pattern of female to male or same-sex couples.

In the Reiwa style, relationships are diverse, including not only lovers but also close friends and parents.

In response to this boom, flower shops in Suita City, Osaka, are also flooded with orders during graduation ceremonies.

Flower shop Shunya Mori:

``It's my first time buying flowers!'' People place orders for me, so I think it's kind of emotional as I make them.''

On this day, high school students who were preparing for their graduation ceremony came to pick up the bouquets they had ordered.

``It's a present for my mother, but I wonder if she'll like it.'

' ``Her Tanabata wish was for blue roses. I hope it will be a memory for her the rest of her life.''

The man who gave her a bouquet of flowers at her graduation ceremony later sent her a nice photo.

It looks like the surprise was a huge success.

The second button culture for graduation ceremonies has its origins in wartime episodes and spread throughout the country along with hit songs.

Even though the format has changed in the Reiwa era, graduation ceremonies will always remain special, once-in-a-lifetime opportunities.

I felt that the culture of conveying one's feelings to loved ones would continue to be passed down.

(Broadcast on “Hotto Kansai” on March 5th)