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My Japanese mom always thought it was weird to put peoples names to destructive forces like hurricanes. I think she said in Japan use some numbering system (might be as simple as incrementing, I don't remember).



The US did this for a long time -- only numbering storms. In 1953 they switched to a list of names, female only. Then 25 years later to male and female names. It is kinda weird, and if they're destructive enough the name is retired. I think the idea is that people would pay more attention to human names in the warning process as the hurricanes approach land.


I could definitely see the support response to a major storm being better when it's easier to communicate and identify a specific storm.


When I was 7, my family's Japanese foreign exchange student was being introduced to me. She bursted out laughing saying my nick name Dev Dev sounded like "fart fart" or "fat fart".

Had the nickname fart fart until my sister moved out of the house.

Maybe you could confirm, but ChatGPT tells me in Japanese Debu colloquially and offensively means "fat" or "chubby", and Bu is an onomotapoeia for a fart noise, like "prrt" in English.




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