「イクメン」や「イクジイ」を知っていますか。どちらも「イク」は、育、育てるという漢字から来ています。

Do you know Japanese words "Ikumen (イクメン)" and "Iku jii (イクジイ)?"  Both of them came from the Japanese character Iku, 育, meaning rearing children, growing a plant, or so on.

昨日10/18、育児に熱心な有名人やタレントを表彰する「イクメン・オブ・ザイヤー」が発表され、表彰式が行われました。

Yesterday on October 18, an awards ceremony was held in honor of celebrities and personalities who work hard on child rearing. But they look great. The event was called "Iku men of the year 2012."

イクメンやイクジイは、育児に熱心な男性を指す、最近できた言葉です。イクメンは、数年前から出現し、イクジイは本当に最近から聞かれるようになり、まだ多くの人が知らないかもしれません。また、ジイというのは、じいさんという言葉から来ています。

The Japanese buzz words of Ikumen and Ikujii intend nice males who are earnest over child rearing. Iku men, the word popped up several years ago, are mostly fathers. On the other hand, Iku jii was more recently and additionally emerged and includes an elder generation of grandfathers. Jii, coming partly from Jiisan, means old men.

このウェブページ（http://sankei.jp.msn.com/entertainments/news/121018/ent12101818480017-n1.htm）に、表彰式のことや写真つきで、このニュースが載っているのですが、どの人も、日ごろから子供のことが好きなんだろうなぁと思わせる感じの人ばかりです。左の３人は、イクメンで、一番右の人は、イクジイです。

You'll find how the ceremony was held at the news page of http://sankei.jp.msn.com/entertainments/news/121018/ent12101818480017-n1.htm, along with a photo in Japanese text. Each person on the picture looks happy and surely loves their kids. Three men on the left are Iku men nice fathers declared "Ikumen of the year," while the rightmost middle-aged man was given the title of "Iku jii of the year (best grandfather)."

イクメンやイクジイという言葉は、最近できて、特にイクメンという言葉は、若い人にとっては普通の言葉になりつつあります。男性が育児をすることが、かっこいいという、社会にもっとなってほしいです。

Even though these two words Ikumen and Ikujii were newly invented, especially Ikumen now becomes a common word among young parents. I hope more people will think that childrearing by fathers is a cool thing.

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Postscript --- According to the official website of Ikumen the Year 2012 (http://ikumen-of-the-year.com/ ), it defines Ikumen as "males that actively involved in child-rearing."