The 'Ohio in Japan' or 'Ohayo' meme plays on the phonetical similarity between the American state of Ohio and the Japanese morning greeting 'Ohayō'. While the two words share a nearly identical sound, their meanings are entirely different, leading to endless puns about the Midwestern state's influence on the world. This meme gained massive traction alongside the 'Only in Ohio' trend, where users joked about the state being a surreal or dystopian wasteland. In these memes, travelers or anime characters react with confusion or suspicion when hearing a polite 'Ohayō,' sparking a cross-cultural blend of internet brainrot humor and linguistic coincidence that continues to thrive on platforms like TikTok and Reddit.