Photo= The Kanji of the Year is "An"

The kanji character for "An," which means safety or security, was selected as "Kanji of the Year," or the character best representing the social trends in 2015, and was announced by the Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation on December 15 at Kiyomizu-dera Temple in Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto.

Seihan Mori, the chief priest, wrote the character with a supersized brush on "Echizen washi," a type of Japanese paper, that measured 1.5 meters long and 1.3 meters wide, on the "Kiyomizu no Butai," or the temple's terrace.

The second place character was "Baku," or explosion, while third place was "Sen," or war.

This is the 21st anniversary of "Kanji of the Year" which began in 1995. Last year "Zei," or tax, was selected due to the consumption tax being raised to eight percent, as well as the frequent rumors about Diet members' "politics and money" scandals.