For decades crossword puzzle cluemeisters have  been interested in the Rim of continents, countries and islands surrounding the Pacific Ocean.  Interest in this area of the world seems to be at a definite peak right now, so it suggests itself as an appropriate subject for a column.  With such a wealth of possible material, time and space tell me that limiting the column to a few of the Asian countries is the wisest route to follow initially, so let's see what we come up with for Japan, Korea, China, and Vietnam.
 

ASIA...With a land mass of nearly 17 million square miles this is the largest of the earth's continents and therefore obviously deserves its reputation as the most favored of all continents in crosswords.  Usually clued by a simple and direct "continent," we have also seen the clue writers spread their wings a bit with identification such as "where the Gobi is" and "where Bhutan is."  One of my favorites is a recent one... "China setting."  We could also include Gobi as a somewhat frequently-used word, but since we are dealing with the Pacific Rim here, we'll pass it up for now.

Our most familiar tie to Asia is probably Japan, so that seems to be a good place to start.
 

EDO...When the clue is "Tokyo, once" or "formerly Tokyo" or some variation thereof, we are being asked to supply the original name of Japan's capital.  I don't know when or how the name change came about, but if you click on either the high-lighted name above or on the picture of  the section of a panel depicting 17th century life in Edo, you can magnify these panel sections and enjoy a fantastic tour of Tokyo in the 1600s...when it was still known as Edo..
 
 
 
 

OBI...What puzzle solver hasn't come upon a clue for this standard kimono accessory at one time or another?  Most often a simple "sash" will suffice, but for variation we have also been treated to clues such as "sash for Cio-Cio-San," "'Shogun' apparel," and even (are you ready for this?) "Japanese middle manager."  You can access a veritable fashion show of obis with your trusty little mouse by clicking on either the high-lighted word above, or on the lovely picture of an obi shown here.
 
 

ZEN...It's a "Buddhist sect" or a "Buddhism branch," and it might also be termed (clued, that is) as "self-enlightenment."  Originating in India, it spread to many Asian countries including Japan, where it has millions of followers and is exceeded in popularity there only by Shintoism.

SAKE...Whether identified as a "Tokyo beverage" or "Japanese rice drink," this colorless alcoholic potion has become as identifiable with Japan as vodka is with Russia, a point not overlooked by the puzzle makers, considering its frequency of use (as a puzzle word, that is, not as a drink).  It is usually rather ceremoniously served warm.

ENOLA...Most of its clues say only "_____ Gay," perhaps expanding a bit in some crosswords to "WWII bomber, _____ Gay."  For over 50 years now Enolahas been one of the most often used words in crosswords, and its popularity continues, probably due in part to the controversy which occured in 1995 with the establishment of a Smithsonian Museum exhibit featuring the restored B-29 bomber which had dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima.  Extensive press coverage relating to the controversy informed younger generations of Americans of the name of that bomber, Enola Gay.  Click on the picture of the exhibit to take you to the Smithsonian's website on the subject, and then click on the following high-lighted words to learn more about the controversy.

The next leg of our journey takes us to...

KOREA...This "Eastern peninsula" has also been labeled "a country divided" and "1950s Asian war location." From 1950 into the 1970s it appeared in puzzles quite regularly since the U.S. "police action" involvement in a Korean Civil War made Americans very much aware of its existence.  Korea, along with "South Korea's capital," SEOUL, are included in crosswords today nearly as often as they were during the two decades immediately following the Korean War.
 

YALU...The same can't be said for this "No. Korean border river," however.  Despite its popularity as a puzzle word all the way into the 1980s, it seems to have nearly disappeared from crosswords since then.  It does remain the border river between North Korea and China, however, so it seems appropriate to include it here before moving on to our next  Pacific Rim country which is China.

CHINA... Occasionally we see a reference to it as an "Asian country," but more often than not it shows up as "dinnerware," or some variation on that particular theme.  And as to other references relating to this ancient civilization, this is where the cluemeisters seem to take a turn to the philosophical.

TAO...Clued as everything from "early Chinese philosophy" and "6th cent. B.C. Chinese philosophy" to the NYTimes indication that it is the "path for Confucius," it fits so neatly into crosswords that it remains a continuing subject for the puzzle composers.

YIN and YANG...No longer politically correct since yin is often defined as feminine and weak whereas yang, we are told, means masculine and strong.  There are, of course, many other definitions for each of the words, and the clue writers manage to avoid all controversy by calling yin "yang's partner," and yang "the opposite of yin."

MAO...During the past 50 years or so, "- - - Tse-Tung" has appeared many, many times in crossword puzzles.  In 1921 he was one of the founders of the Chinese Communist party and in 1949 he founded the People's Republic of China.  For approximately the next three decades he was China's leader, and along with Marx and Lenin considered to be a leading theorist of Marxian communism.  Looking to find new clues for such a useable puzzle subject, the NYTimes came up with "former Peking name."

TAEL...With a variety of clues such as "old Chinese money of account" (NYTimes) and "Far East weight" (LATimes), we can be most grateful for recent web pages which help us to understand what they may be talking about.  Stephen Tai's essay on this legendary saddle-shaped silver Chinese currency (the piece shown here is a 50-tael silverpiece dating from 1702) in use in China into the early 20th century.  That essay  is most informative in helping to explain the whole history of thetael. Just click on the high-lighted word.

As we can see on the map just below, the Pacific Rim takes us directly from China into Vietnam.
HANOI...This "Asian capital" has its following in crosswords, and is also known as the "Red River city."  There was a time back in the 1960s and 1970s when we were all very much aware of  Vietnamand there were  names and places in the news which  turned up quite frequently in puzzles.  It was a time when names like Danang and Ho Chi Minh might appear in a puzzle along with Saigon, since this was long before Saigon became Ho Chi Minh City.  It's not too late.  If we can use "Tokyo, once" for Edo, why not "Ho Chi Minh City, once" for Saigon?
 
 

TET...As a "Vietnamese holiday" or "Vietnamese New Year"  this is still in fairly steady use today.  Veterans of the Vietnam war are more likely to relate it to the infamous Tet Offensive of February 1968 which some historians  now consider to be the turning point of the war, the time when the United States began looking for ways to pull out of their involvement in this conflict.

That's it for now.  As indicated by the Pacific Rim map at the top of the Page, we could go on with other locations practically forever, but if we were also talking about Alaska, Russia, the Philippines, Borneo, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Peru, Columbia, Central America, Mexico and the Western Rim of the United States, it seems fairly evident that we might end up with enough material for a year of columns.

If you are into online crosswords, and have a Java-powered browser, you might like to try Timothy Parker's Universal Crossword.  Just click on the logo below.

Copyright 1998 C. Schnebel
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