![]() ![]() 42 – shi-ni, can mean, when written死に, “to death.” 49 – shi-ku can mean “death and suffering” ((死苦).Īnd yet the number 4219 you might well find, though one of its Japanese readings, shi-ni-i-ku, can mean “going towards death” (死に行く).Ī Japanese license plate bears a locality and a small number topping a hiragana character and up to four large digits below. Its Japanese reading, shi, is homophonous with the character shi (死), meaning “death.” But try spotting, just for fun, the next time you’re caught in traffic, a plate whose last two digits are 42 or 49. It’s a wonder the number 4 appears on license plates. ![]() If license plates could only talk! The tales they’d tell would beguile many a helpless, fuming paralysis in traffic jams such as the New Year ones just past.Īctually, says Shukan Post (Jan 1-5), they do tell tales, though interpreting them takes some skill, a little background information, and maybe a lot of imagination.
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