In fact, this is not the first time that Japanese government officials have proposed a bachelor tax. In 2004, a member of the Liberal Democratic Party suggested taxing single people to promote marriage, but the proposal ended up with nothing definite.

事實(shí)上，這并非日本政府官員第一次提出征收“單身稅”（Bachelor Tax），早在2004年，日本自民黨就曾經(jīng)提出過(guò)向單身人士征稅的議案，意圖促進(jìn)單身男女盡快結(jié)婚，不過(guò)最后還是不了了之。

為何日本政府對(duì)單身如此不友好？

2010年，日本NHK電視臺(tái)播出的紀(jì)錄片《“無(wú)緣社會(huì)”——32000人無(wú)緣死的沖擊》給出了其中的答案。

NHK's documentary highlights the dilemma facing Japan's economy due to the number of childless couples and an aging population. In Japanese society, more and more young people choose to live alone. These young people not only have no life partners, but also reject the idea of engaging in normal social life.

這部在日本社會(huì)引起熱議的紀(jì)錄片講述了日本陷入少子、高齡化帶來(lái)的經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展困境。目前的日本社會(huì)里越來(lái)越多的年青人選擇獨(dú)身生活，他們不僅沒(méi)有伴侶，且無(wú)法融入正常的社交生活。

With a higher unemployment rate and lower pensions, these young people are facing the threat of dying alone.

面臨高失率和養(yǎng)老金不足的威脅，這些年輕人對(duì)“無(wú)緣死”——一個(gè)人孤獨(dú)地死去而沒(méi)有任何親友發(fā)現(xiàn)的恐懼加深。

According to NHK's report, every year 32,000 Japanese people die alone. Japan's "Choose the Future Committee" estimates that if this situation continues, within 100 years the Japanese population will be less than half of what it is today.

根據(jù)NHK報(bào)道，日本每年都有32000人“無(wú)緣死”，如果這種情況繼續(xù)惡化，那么根據(jù)日本“選擇未來(lái)委員會(huì)”的測(cè)算，100年后日本人口將只剩下現(xiàn)在的一半不到了。

在日本，單身與否與國(guó)家的經(jīng)濟(jì)有著密切聯(lián)系。日本首相安倍晉三為振興日本經(jīng)濟(jì)提出的“三支箭”經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展目標(biāo)中，將與國(guó)民結(jié)婚、生育息息相關(guān)的“構(gòu)筑夢(mèng)想的育兒支援”作為其第二支箭，國(guó)民婚育率與國(guó)家經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展掛鉤。

Is "being single" a factor that effects the economy? For Japan, the answer may be yes. But there is another voice saying that the increasing single group stimulates the development of emerging industries like the Internet, entertainment, film and television. The term "single economy" was created due to this phenomena.

單身真的會(huì)影響經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展嗎？對(duì)于日本來(lái)說(shuō)，答案也許是肯定的。但也有另一種聲音認(rèn)為，單身的增多刺激了互聯(lián)網(wǎng)、娛樂(lè)、影視以及其他新興產(chǎn)業(yè)的出現(xiàn)和發(fā)展，“單身經(jīng)濟(jì)”一詞應(yīng)運(yùn)而生。

Alibaba released a report on "Empty Nester Youth in China" on May 3. The report shows that China has more than 50 million single "empty nester" young people.

5月3日，阿里巴巴發(fā)布了《中國(guó)空巢青年圖鑒》，數(shù)據(jù)顯示我國(guó)的單身空巢青年人數(shù)已經(jīng)超過(guò)5000萬(wàn)。

This group consists of singles from 20 to 39 years old. They enjoy shopping online, eating take-away food and ordering on-site services. They watch movies and travel alone.

這群20到39歲之間的空巢青年，喜歡網(wǎng)購(gòu)，經(jīng)常點(diǎn)外賣、線上預(yù)約服務(wù)。他們一個(gè)人看電影、一個(gè)人旅行。

"The singles usually have more disposable income and tend to focus more on self spending." According to the report "Marketing the single consumers - China 2024", released by British market consulting firm Mintel, 61% of the single consumers are interested in movies and TV shows, followed by travel (56%) and fitness (48%).

“單身人士通常擁有更多的可支配收入，傾向于關(guān)注自我和把錢花在自己身上。” 英國(guó)市場(chǎng)咨詢公司英敏特最新報(bào)告《針對(duì)單身消費(fèi)者的營(yíng)銷——中國(guó)2024》顯示，六成（61%）單身消費(fèi)者最感興趣的領(lǐng)域是電影、電視劇，其次是旅行（56%）和運(yùn)動(dòng)健身（48%）。

"16% of China’s urban population now lives alone, according to the Boston Consulting Group. The trend has been accompanied by a profound change in people’s perceptions of remaining single: the concept is no longer stigmatized, singles “dine, travel and pursue activities by themselves".

波士頓集團(tuán)也在其報(bào)告中說(shuō)：“如今中國(guó)16%的城市人口獨(dú)自一人生活。這種趨勢(shì)還伴隨著人們對(duì)于保持單身的觀念的巨大改變，單身觀念不再受鄙夷。這也意味著單身人士會(huì)‘自己就餐、自己旅游、自己從事各種活動(dòng)’”。

事實(shí)上，單身問(wèn)題也并非現(xiàn)代社會(huì)的產(chǎn)物，從公元前的西漢王朝到古羅馬，政府和國(guó)家就為國(guó)民“找對(duì)象“的問(wèn)題操碎了心。從古至今，各個(gè)國(guó)家都想了哪些辦法解決單身問(wèn)題呢？

古羅馬

The Lex Papia Poppaea was introduced in 9 AD to encourage marriage. Penalties were imposed on those who were celibate and married people who had no children.

公元9年古羅馬頒布了《巴比亞波培亞法》，該法律對(duì)對(duì)公民的單身狀況進(jìn)行了相關(guān)規(guī)定，根據(jù)法律，獨(dú)身和已婚不育的夫婦，都需要受到懲罰。

中國(guó)

古代中國(guó)的法令法規(guī)里，對(duì)老百姓的終身大事一樣有規(guī)定：

《漢書(shū)?惠帝紀(jì)》記載，公元前189年，劉盈下令：“女子年十五以上至三十不嫁，五算。”（Unmarried women from 15 to 30 need to pay taxes five times higher than married ones.）

意思是大齡剩女（15-30歲）們需要多交常人5倍的稅賦；南北朝時(shí)期的《宋書(shū)?周朗傳》中也說(shuō)到：

“女子十五不嫁，家人坐之。”（Families members of the women who do not marry after 15 years old have to be imprisoned.）

意味15歲還不能嫁人的女孩，家里人也要跟著坐牢。

In 1695, the English parliament passed The Marriage Duty Act or Registration Tax, which imposed a tax on childless couples, widowers and bachelors over the age of 25. It was primarily used as a revenue-raising mechanism for the war on France.

1695年，英國(guó)議會(huì)通過(guò)了“婚姻與注冊(cè)稅法”， 法律不僅規(guī)定了25歲以上的單身人士需要納稅，就連無(wú)子女的夫婦和喪偶個(gè)人也需要繳納稅款，主要目的用于征集英國(guó)對(duì)法戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)的款項(xiàng)。

新加坡：男女約會(huì)政府買單

新加坡是世界上人口出生率（birth rate）最低的國(guó)家，新加坡政府公開(kāi)招標(biāo)并表示，希望通過(guò)企業(yè)策劃特別優(yōu)惠活動(dòng)，并由政府為速配成功男女提供約會(huì)開(kāi)銷。

韓國(guó)：政府組織全國(guó)相親大會(huì)

在韓國(guó)，全國(guó)相親大會(huì)（blind date）也是由韓政府這個(gè)最不像媒人的媒人組織，政府對(duì)單身潮的焦慮可見(jiàn)一斑。2010韓國(guó)保健福祉部年開(kāi)始推廣全國(guó)相親大會(huì)，場(chǎng)面非常壯觀。

而我國(guó)的單身大軍更是驚動(dòng)了“團(tuán)中央”，今年5月，團(tuán)中央發(fā)話了：

“共青團(tuán)將通過(guò)媒體和各組織開(kāi)展教育，幫助青年樹(shù)立正確婚戀觀、家庭觀；聯(lián)合社會(huì)青年組織多開(kāi)展便于青年交往的活動(dòng)，為他們結(jié)交朋友創(chuàng)造更多的機(jī)會(huì)和條件；協(xié)調(diào)和推動(dòng)司法部門來(lái)規(guī)范婚介服務(wù)，打擊虛假欺騙行為，幫助青年人找到合適伴侶。”

所以，單身的朋友們，團(tuán)中央都在給我們撐腰呢，你還擔(dān)心啥？

In fact, this is not the first time that Japanese government officials have proposed a bachelor tax. In 2004, a member of the Liberal Democratic Party suggested taxing single people to promote marriage, but the proposal ended up with nothing definite.

事實(shí)上，這并非日本政府官員第一次提出征收“單身稅”（Bachelor Tax），早在2004年，日本自民黨就曾經(jīng)提出過(guò)向單身人士征稅的議案，意圖促進(jìn)單身男女盡快結(jié)婚，不過(guò)最后還是不了了之。

為何日本政府對(duì)單身如此不友好？

2010年，日本NHK電視臺(tái)播出的紀(jì)錄片《“無(wú)緣社會(huì)”——32000人無(wú)緣死的沖擊》給出了其中的答案。

NHK's documentary highlights the dilemma facing Japan's economy due to the number of childless couples and an aging population. In Japanese society, more and more young people choose to live alone. These young people not only have no life partners, but also reject the idea of engaging in normal social life.

這部在日本社會(huì)引起熱議的紀(jì)錄片講述了日本陷入少子、高齡化帶來(lái)的經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展困境。目前的日本社會(huì)里越來(lái)越多的年青人選擇獨(dú)身生活，他們不僅沒(méi)有伴侶，且無(wú)法融入正常的社交生活。

With a higher unemployment rate and lower pensions, these young people are facing the threat of dying alone.

面臨高失率和養(yǎng)老金不足的威脅，這些年輕人對(duì)“無(wú)緣死”——一個(gè)人孤獨(dú)地死去而沒(méi)有任何親友發(fā)現(xiàn)的恐懼加深。

According to NHK's report, every year 32,000 Japanese people die alone. Japan's "Choose the Future Committee" estimates that if this situation continues, within 100 years the Japanese population will be less than half of what it is today.

根據(jù)NHK報(bào)道，日本每年都有32000人“無(wú)緣死”，如果這種情況繼續(xù)惡化，那么根據(jù)日本“選擇未來(lái)委員會(huì)”的測(cè)算，100年后日本人口將只剩下現(xiàn)在的一半不到了。

在日本，單身與否與國(guó)家的經(jīng)濟(jì)有著密切聯(lián)系。日本首相安倍晉三為振興日本經(jīng)濟(jì)提出的“三支箭”經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展目標(biāo)中，將與國(guó)民結(jié)婚、生育息息相關(guān)的“構(gòu)筑夢(mèng)想的育兒支援”作為其第二支箭，國(guó)民婚育率與國(guó)家經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展掛鉤。

Is "being single" a factor that effects the economy? For Japan, the answer may be yes. But there is another voice saying that the increasing single group stimulates the development of emerging industries like the Internet, entertainment, film and television. The term "single economy" was created due to this phenomena.

單身真的會(huì)影響經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展嗎？對(duì)于日本來(lái)說(shuō)，答案也許是肯定的。但也有另一種聲音認(rèn)為，單身的增多刺激了互聯(lián)網(wǎng)、娛樂(lè)、影視以及其他新興產(chǎn)業(yè)的出現(xiàn)和發(fā)展，“單身經(jīng)濟(jì)”一詞應(yīng)運(yùn)而生。

Alibaba released a report on "Empty Nester Youth in China" on May 3. The report shows that China has more than 50 million single "empty nester" young people.

5月3日，阿里巴巴發(fā)布了《中國(guó)空巢青年圖鑒》，數(shù)據(jù)顯示我國(guó)的單身空巢青年人數(shù)已經(jīng)超過(guò)5000萬(wàn)。

This group consists of singles from 20 to 39 years old. They enjoy shopping online, eating take-away food and ordering on-site services. They watch movies and travel alone.

這群20到39歲之間的空巢青年，喜歡網(wǎng)購(gòu)，經(jīng)常點(diǎn)外賣、線上預(yù)約服務(wù)。他們一個(gè)人看電影、一個(gè)人旅行。

"The singles usually have more disposable income and tend to focus more on self spending." According to the report "Marketing the single consumers - China 2024", released by British market consulting firm Mintel, 61% of the single consumers are interested in movies and TV shows, followed by travel (56%) and fitness (48%).

“單身人士通常擁有更多的可支配收入，傾向于關(guān)注自我和把錢花在自己身上。” 英國(guó)市場(chǎng)咨詢公司英敏特最新報(bào)告《針對(duì)單身消費(fèi)者的營(yíng)銷——中國(guó)2024》顯示，六成（61%）單身消費(fèi)者最感興趣的領(lǐng)域是電影、電視劇，其次是旅行（56%）和運(yùn)動(dòng)健身（48%）。

"16% of China’s urban population now lives alone, according to the Boston Consulting Group. The trend has been accompanied by a profound change in people’s perceptions of remaining single: the concept is no longer stigmatized, singles “dine, travel and pursue activities by themselves".

波士頓集團(tuán)也在其報(bào)告中說(shuō)：“如今中國(guó)16%的城市人口獨(dú)自一人生活。這種趨勢(shì)還伴隨著人們對(duì)于保持單身的觀念的巨大改變，單身觀念不再受鄙夷。這也意味著單身人士會(huì)‘自己就餐、自己旅游、自己從事各種活動(dòng)’”。

事實(shí)上，單身問(wèn)題也并非現(xiàn)代社會(huì)的產(chǎn)物，從公元前的西漢王朝到古羅馬，政府和國(guó)家就為國(guó)民“找對(duì)象“的問(wèn)題操碎了心。從古至今，各個(gè)國(guó)家都想了哪些辦法解決單身問(wèn)題呢？

古羅馬

The Lex Papia Poppaea was introduced in 9 AD to encourage marriage. Penalties were imposed on those who were celibate and married people who had no children.

公元9年古羅馬頒布了《巴比亞波培亞法》，該法律對(duì)對(duì)公民的單身狀況進(jìn)行了相關(guān)規(guī)定，根據(jù)法律，獨(dú)身和已婚不育的夫婦，都需要受到懲罰。

中國(guó)

古代中國(guó)的法令法規(guī)里，對(duì)老百姓的終身大事一樣有規(guī)定：

《漢書(shū)?惠帝紀(jì)》記載，公元前189年，劉盈下令：“女子年十五以上至三十不嫁，五算。”（Unmarried women from 15 to 30 need to pay taxes five times higher than married ones.）

意思是大齡剩女（15-30歲）們需要多交常人5倍的稅賦；南北朝時(shí)期的《宋書(shū)?周朗傳》中也說(shuō)到：

“女子十五不嫁，家人坐之。”（Families members of the women who do not marry after 15 years old have to be imprisoned.）

意味15歲還不能嫁人的女孩，家里人也要跟著坐牢。

In 1695, the English parliament passed The Marriage Duty Act or Registration Tax, which imposed a tax on childless couples, widowers and bachelors over the age of 25. It was primarily used as a revenue-raising mechanism for the war on France.

1695年，英國(guó)議會(huì)通過(guò)了“婚姻與注冊(cè)稅法”， 法律不僅規(guī)定了25歲以上的單身人士需要納稅，就連無(wú)子女的夫婦和喪偶個(gè)人也需要繳納稅款，主要目的用于征集英國(guó)對(duì)法戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)的款項(xiàng)。

新加坡：男女約會(huì)政府買單

新加坡是世界上人口出生率（birth rate）最低的國(guó)家，新加坡政府公開(kāi)招標(biāo)并表示，希望通過(guò)企業(yè)策劃特別優(yōu)惠活動(dòng)，并由政府為速配成功男女提供約會(huì)開(kāi)銷。

韓國(guó)：政府組織全國(guó)相親大會(huì)

在韓國(guó)，全國(guó)相親大會(huì)（blind date）也是由韓政府這個(gè)最不像媒人的媒人組織，政府對(duì)單身潮的焦慮可見(jiàn)一斑。2010韓國(guó)保健福祉部年開(kāi)始推廣全國(guó)相親大會(huì)，場(chǎng)面非常壯觀。

而我國(guó)的單身大軍更是驚動(dòng)了“團(tuán)中央”，今年5月，團(tuán)中央發(fā)話了：

“共青團(tuán)將通過(guò)媒體和各組織開(kāi)展教育，幫助青年樹(shù)立正確婚戀觀、家庭觀；聯(lián)合社會(huì)青年組織多開(kāi)展便于青年交往的活動(dòng)，為他們結(jié)交朋友創(chuàng)造更多的機(jī)會(huì)和條件；協(xié)調(diào)和推動(dòng)司法部門來(lái)規(guī)范婚介服務(wù)，打擊虛假欺騙行為，幫助青年人找到合適伴侶。”

所以，單身的朋友們，團(tuán)中央都在給我們撐腰呢，你還擔(dān)心啥？