is a Japanese name meaning “wish” or “hope” or “heart of hope”. Depending on the context, it can also mean ‘desire’, or ‘
expectation’. Before Nozumi was launched, Hikari was the fastest model of Shinkansen. In the Japanese language, “hikari” means ‘light’. It was a very good name for the fastest Shinkansen at that time. But,
unfortunately, the new model recorded a faster speed than Hikari. So, it needed something faster than light as its name. Then, Japanese people started wondering: what could be faster than light? This question sounds a bit difficult. But, they reached to the answer. After the contest for
the best name, the new model was named Nozumi which means ‘hope’ in Japanese.