What does the “V-J” in V-J Day mean in the context of Japan’s 1945 surrender?

The “V-J” in V-J Day means “Victory over Japan.”

The abbreviation parallels V-E Day, meaning Victory in Europe, which marked Nazi Germany’s surrender in May 1945. V-J Day commemorated Japan’s defeat and the end of World War II in the Pacific. In the United States, the term commonly referred to 14 August 1945, when President Harry S. Truman announced Japan’s acceptance of the Allied surrender terms in Washington, D.C.

The date can cause confusion because Japan’s announcement arrived on 15 August in Japan and many other countries because of time-zone differences. The formal surrender ceremony took place later, on 2 September 1945, aboard USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. Both 15 August and 2 September have been called V-J Day in different contexts, but the phrase itself consistently expands to “Victory over Japan.”

The “J” does not mean “Japan’s victory” or “victory in Japan”; it identifies the defeated Axis power.