高校生対象日本語クイズコンテスト
2025 Pacific Northwest Japan Bowl
Join high school students and their supporters from across Oregon and Washington in the largest regional quiz competition on Japanese language and culture! In the morning, student teams of two or three answer quiz questions on language and culture, including history, arts, geography, society, and pop culture. After lunch, students have time to visit college booths, network with students from other schools, and enjoy a cultural performance. In the afternoon, finalists test their knowledge on verbal skills, kanji, idioms, and other expressions. JASO submits the Level 3 and Level 4 champion teams to the National Japan Bowl, and flies the teams to Washington, D.C. to compete.
Read this year’s press releases here:
2025 PNW Japan Bowl Results
Level 2
1st Churchill High School (OR)
2nd International School of Beaverton (OR)
3rd Woodinville High School (WA)
Level 3
1st Westview High School (OR)
2nd Woodinville High School (WA)
3rd Bothell High School (WA)
Level 4
1st Sunset High School (OR)
2nd Bothell High School (WA)
3rd International School of Beaverton (OR)
Read about the 2025 Japan Bowl experience from the Level Four and Level Three champions:
Additional PNW Japan Bowl resources:
2025 National Japan Bowl on April 4 & 5
Sunset High School and Westview High School represented the Pacific Northwest in the National Japan Bowl in Washington, D.C. Please enjoy some of the photos and read about the experience from this year’s competitors.
2024 Westview High School – Level 3
2025 Sunset High School – Level 4
PNW Japan Bowl Official Mascot
Students are cheered on by the Pacific Northwest Japan Bowl’s mascot: Iina (いいな) the beaver. Iina’s name was inspired by the Chinuk Wawa word for beaver, which is ina. Chinuk Wawa is an indigenous language spoken by members of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, who have lived for centuries in Oregon’s Willamette Valley from the Cascades to the Coast Range. To learn more about the language and culture of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, you can visit the Chachula Museum in Grand Ronde or their informative website here.
The word iina is also frequently used in Japanese. It means something like “I wish” and expresses the speaker’s longing for something to happen. The team behind the Pacific Northwest Japan Bowl wished for all who attended the Japan Bowl to become more curious about the rich cultures of Japan and the Pacific Northwest.
GOLD SPONSORS
SILVER SPONSORS
BRONZE SPONSORS
SUPPORTERS
Mr. Kihachiro Nishiura
2023 Kakehashi Project Experience
