What does the “V-J” in V-J Day stand for in the 1945 victory celebrations?

“V-J” in V-J Day stands for Victory over Japan.

The term describes Allied celebrations marking Japan's acceptance of surrender terms at the end of World War II. In the United States, President Harry Truman announced the news on 14 August 1945, while many countries observed celebrations on 15 August because of the international time difference.

The formal surrender ceremony still lay ahead. Japanese representatives signed the Instrument of Surrender aboard USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay on 2 September 1945. Consequently, V-J Day can refer either to the public announcement in August or, in some historical contexts, to the later formal conclusion.

The name parallels V-E Day, or Victory in Europe Day, which marked Germany's surrender in May 1945. V-J Day ended the last major theater of World War II, although some Japanese military personnel continued fighting for months or years because they had not received, or refused to accept, the surrender order.