お辞儀 (Japanese bowing)

The Japanese gesture of bowing (お辞儀, おじぎ), used for greetings, thanks, apologies, and acknowledgements. A graded social act: 会釈 (small nod, ~15°), 敬礼 (polite bow, ~30°), 最敬礼 (deepest bow, ~45°). Different bow depths and durations signal different levels of formality and sincerity. The お prefix is a fossilized politeness marker now inseparable from the word; children are taught the form early, and the gesture remains universal across business, retail, and personal life.