June 24, 2022
Soon after announcing the name of this venture, Osaka found herself in hot water with Swahili speakers. This is a language spoken by 200 million people, and as it turns out, Hana Kuma means "woman with no vagina" in Swahili. In Osaka's native Japanese, the phrase means "Flower Bear," and it's clear that the name was quite personal to her.
Despite this, Osaka was still subjected to jokes and ridicule over the name. There were plenty of memes to go around, and one person even said "Woke up to HanaKuma trending, only to realize it is a media station started by tennis star Naomi Osaka. And it is Kenyans who have taken it their global responsibility to spread the world and loudly wonder about it."