Sumehara (スメハラ), smell harassment

[thomas]

In my first week in Japan, over 20 years ago, I was told I was smelly - a casual statement that profoundly shocked me back then. While it was dietary in my case ("butter and meat"), the Indian lady below was told her perfume felt a bit strong.

Anusha, an Indian woman currently living in Japan, recently shared a surprising cultural lesson that's drawing attention online. In an Instagram post titled "Today I learnt something surprising in Japan," she detailed an everyday experience that offered deep insight into Japanese social etiquette, particularly around the use of perfume. According to Anusha, a colleague casually mentioned that her perfume felt "a bit strong", even though she believed it was pretty mild. This opened up a new cultural perspective: in Japan, strong personal fragrances are often considered inconsiderate in public spaces, such as offices or trains. The term for this is sumehara, short for smell harassment, referring to situations where overpowering scents disturb others.

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"Back home, perfume is a form of self-expression," Anusha reflected in her post. "In Japan, though, it's seen more as a matter of consideration for shared spaces." She ended her message with a piece of advice for anyone planning to travel or settle in Japan: choose light, understated fragrances to avoid troubling those around you. "It may seem like a small thing," she added, "but it makes daily life here far smoother."

Her words struck a chord with many readers, especially those familiar with adjusting to life across cultures, as the discussion underscored how even seemingly minor personal habits can reveal deeper social values. One commenter shared, "I'm susceptible to scents and suffer constant migraines, nausea or allergic reactions on buses or in shopping centres. I live in England, and here nobody considers it a problem. Japan is wonderful in that way." Another remarked, "Completely normal in Japan. Best to learn these things before you go." A third agreed, writing, "I can easily believe this. It comes from empathy and civic sense. We shouldn't do things in public that make others ill. Strong perfume can give some people terrible headaches or nausea."

https://www.ndtv.com/offbeat/sumehara-smell-harassment-in-japan-indian-womans-cultural-shock-9223964

I haven't worn perfume in over two decades, eat no more butter and barely eat any meat. I hope I've blended in olfactorily.

 

[Grandpa Frank]

Boy would I upset some noses , LOL. My farts can peel the paint off the wall most days.

 

[salyavin]

Even here in the US I occasionally run into some person who smells like they poured a whole bottle of perfume on themselves, it is not pleasant to me. They are less than a percent of the population I encounter though.
Yea diet does affect our smell. On consideration of the shared space and smell. I am sure we half century plus people all remember the Japanese would often light up and make the shared space more smelly. Until fairly recently we had smoking cars on trains, I would encounter it in restaurants, I have ended up with a hotel room a smoker was in previously as that was what was available and had lingering smell. Somehow Japanese got a pass for smoking for a long time. Now things are changing.

 

[Ukigumo]

Batta kusai? Interestingly I've notice Japanese people have a distinctive, unpleasant breath odour…presumably from consumption of large amounts of polyunsaturated fat from fish. If a country's social norm is to be odourless, then one should conform; it's polite, it's right.

There are people who come to my gym who smell of various perfumes. It's noticeable, it's quite pleasant to get a waft of it as they walk by and it's preferable to the smell of perspiration!

When I used to do on call, at night, we had a nursing officer, Mr Juggaroo, who must've bathed in aftershave.We could actually trace the route he took on his night rounds in the hospital from the trail of his aftershave! We could even tell if he'd used a phone on a ward because the handset reeked of his fragrance

 

[thomas]

It is my impression that young Japanese use perfume more copiously. Interestingly, it's always the same three brands.

Japan's youth break tradition by embracing perfume

Once seen as ostentatious, an imposition on others, and unnecessary in a culture that famously enjoys bathing, perfumes and scents are finally trending among young Japanese.

www.dw.com

 

[Ukigumo]

It is my impression that young Japanese use perfume more copiously. Interestingly, it's always the same three brands.

Japan's youth break tradition by embracing perfume

Once seen as ostentatious, an imposition on others, and unnecessary in a culture that famously enjoys bathing, perfumes and scents are finally trending among young Japanese.

www.dw.com

Which brands, thomas?

Sí seems to be the 'bubblegum' youth's favourite over here; very sweet smelling.

In my youth, my best friend and I used to go to Boots the chemist's in Manchester city centre's Market Street and sniff and mrmorise the women's popular fragrances. Then when we're out on the town, chatting up the ladies, we'd say, "Is the Rive Gauche by Yves Saint Laurent, you're wearing?" It's was our opening gambit

I can still recognise that decade's fragrances with a little frisson...Poison, Eden, CK One, Eternity etc but those still wearing them have faded much like their perfumes...

 

[thomas]

Which brands, thomas?

I really couldn't tell; they just smell the same and are all over Shibuya and Shinjuku, where I head for work several times a week.

Sí seems to be the 'bubblegum' youth's favourite over here; very sweet smelling. In my youth, my best friend and I used to go to Boots the chemist's in Manchester city centre's Market Street and sniff and mrmorise the women's popular fragrances. Then when we're out on the town, chatting up the ladies, we'd say, "Is the Rive Gauche by Yves Saint Laurent, you're wearing?" It's was our opening gambit I can still recognise that decade's fragrances with a little frisson...Poison, Eden, CK One, Eternity etc but those still wearing them have faded much like their perfumes...

In my youth, I was partial to Davidoff. I'm unsure whether that brand still exists. It's definitely not wafting around the youngsters of Tokyo.

 

[Ukigumo]

I really couldn't tell; they just smell the same and are all over Shibuya and Shinjuku, where I head for work several times a week.




In my youth, I was partial to Davidoff. I'm unsure whether that brand still exists. It's definitely not wafting around the youngsters of Tokyo.

I think there are several varieties of Davidoff; it's still rather lovely.

Have you noticed a disconnect between the Japanese disliking perfumes and yet having no objections to the strong smell of incense wafting out of shrines temples and retail outlets for example? One is objectionable and one is just fine because 'it's us imposing our tradition, in our country upon you, an inbound'.

 

[thomas]

This

and this ...

... these are traditional fragrances that serve a purpose and/or are culturally accepted. Perfume and cologne are selfish, impose on others and are a blatant expression of self-importance and vain individualism. I guess.

 

[Grandpa Frank]

Not sure why , but smelling good here was popular in the late 60's and 70's. I still have half bottles of:
Adidas
Aspen
British Sterling
Canoe
English Leather
Hai Karate
Jade East
Santa Fe
Stetson
And going back to the 50's , Old Spice.

 

[Grandpa Frank]

As a child , my grandmother and others had little log cabins you put incense in and smoke came out the chimney that made the whole house smell like a Christmas tree. At some fancy Catholic funerals , a Priest walks down the church aisle swinging a big jar of smoking incense. I always wonder if it was a thing from the old days to hide the smell of the dead body.

 

[Ukigumo]

I used to have a girlfriend who lived in student accommodation which consisted of a very old, deconsecrated church; it hadnt been used for worship in many decades and the main area was a lecture theatre. When I left the place, late at night I had to descend a spiral staircase to the exit and sometimes I could smell frankincense, sometimes faintly and sometimes more obviously. It used to freak me out becayse, surely, frankincense hadn't been used in there in decades!

 

[salyavin]

Not sure why , but smelling good here was popular in the late 60's and 70's. I still have half bottles of:
Adidas
Aspen
British Sterling
Canoe
English Leather
Hai Karate
Jade East
Santa Fe
Stetson
And going back to the 50's , Old Spice.View attachment 131634

haha for just a moment I read that as foreigners
English Teacher
Karate otaku
etc. haha

 

[mdchachi]

Have you noticed a disconnect between the Japanese disliking perfumes and yet having no objections to the strong smell of incense wafting out of shrines temples and retail outlets for example? One is objectionable and one is just fine because 'it's us imposing our tradition, in our country upon you, an inbound'.

Shrines/temples are not mobile. It's easy to avoid them. Not sure what kind of shops you're talking about unless you mean the ones selling incense near shrines and temples.

I didn't take a picture but yesterday at Donki I noticed they were selling scented oils in wine scents. Something like this:

It's good if you want to keep the smell and memories going after you've had a party with tipsy guests spelling red wine on your nice carpet.