ABSTRACT
Many of the concepts widely used in political and legal discourse in Japan today find their roots in the influences arising from internationalization since the modernization of the state in the Meiji era. For instance, kojin (individual) and or kojinshugi (individualism) are concepts invented in that era. Surprisingly, however, the word puraibashii (privacy) did not enter widespread usage in the academic world until the latter half of the 1950s and among the public until 1961, when a lawsuit was filed against a famous novelist and his publisher for the invasion of privacy. The plaintiff used the word puraibashii in his suit. Legal scholars, who have conducted research into the development of the right to privacy in Anglo-American law, have tried to translate the term into Japanese, but as yet, no commonly accepted translation exists. In other words, we have been unable to invent a new Japanese word acceptable to the public.
