Sagot :
The word literally means “ten thousand years,” and it has long been used in Japan to indicate joy or a wish for long life. Japanese World War II troops typically yelled it in celebration, but they were also known to scream, “Tenno Heika Banzai,” roughly translated as “long live the Emperor,” while storming into battle.
The crowds, waving thousands of paper Japanese flags, broke into full-throated cheers of ''banzai,'' a traditional call for long life that literally means ''10,000 years. ... ''Tenno Heika, banzai,'' they shouted, referring to Hirohito in customary fashion.