Why isn't there Umami translation in English?

Why isn’t there an English translation for the Japanese term “umami”?

The concept “umami” exists in various countries worldwide, for some reason in the West, the basic concepts of taste: acidity, sweetness, saltiness and bitterness were never recognized. While similar terms like “savory taste” is used to describe such flavors, the meaning is slightly different.

In a recent conversation with a French-American wine sommelier, I’m sure my choice of words weren’t the best when I stated to him, “umami is a very valued taste by the Japanese and refers to the compatibility between Japanese sake and the food,” to which he responded rather crossly, “every country has their own version of ‘umami’ that they cherish. The only difference is that there isn’t a single term that best defines that taste in their vocabulary.” Of course, I am also aware of the various umami flavors found worldwide, which made me wonder why such terms don’t exist.

One possibility is due to the term originating from “dashi,” or soup. Dashi is a concentration of flavors, a unique form of soup stock considered unique worldwide. Compared to soup stock in China and the West, where flavors are extracted from “extraction of umami flavors from broiling” meat and vegetables for a long period of time, dashi is a unique Japanese method of extracting flavors in a short period of only several minutes until the water broils. Contrary to the rich and high-calorie soup stock made in the West, the Japanese soup stock is mild, yet uniquely rich in flavor.
One basic concept in Japanese cuisine is to “capitalize on the flavors of each food ingredient,” which is why the soup stock is not flavored as much as possible to best enhance the ingredients as the basic method of preparation. Therefore, dashi = umami was long recognized as a “taste” in its own right. However, in the West, soup stock was recognized as a base to which many condiments (salt, pepper, spices, butter, etc.) are to be added, so the umami of the soup stock as a “taste” in itself was never recognized.

Flavors such as “umami” and “koku” (‘richness,’ this term unfortunately doesn’t exist in the English language either) are not only limited to compatibility with Japanese sake, but also extends to compatibility with wine as well. Next time, I want to expand more about the compatibility between “umami” and sake.