Some of the same things that make Japanese culture so accommodating, fascinating, and wonderful to be involved with can also pose challenges to people who want to learn Japanese. For people learning Japanese, it can help to be prepared for these challenges and have some insight about what to do to overcome them.

Japanese Will Try to Use English

For short time visitors to Japan, or people who are not interested in learning the language, the willingness of many Japanese people to use English can come as a great relief. In fact, many people will try to use English even when spoken to in Japanese. This can be a huge source of frustration for Japanese learners who want to try their best to use it.

As someone who wants to speak Japanese, there are several things you can do. First, it’s important to remember that most people are using English because they think it’s the courteous, friendly thing to do. As soon as you let them know you’d like to practice your Japanese, some of them will be so strict that they won’t even revert to English when you’re floundering.

In shops and stores, the best thing to do is be insistent. Remember that the clerks mean no harm when they respond in English to Japanese, but it’s important to hold your ground and continue to speak Japanese. It may be some consolation when they are responding in English to what you said in Japanese because at least it shows that they understood what you said!

Compliments and Feedback on Your Japanese Skills

Sometimes people in Japan are so happy to see someone from another country attempt to master their language, they will compliment you in excess of your actual skill. I know of people who have been turned off of Japanese after they were complimented on their poorly spoken Japanese. One friend said, “Why should I bother learning the right way to say something if they’ll compliment me for saying “Arigato” which everyone knows anyway?”

It can be a bit demotivating to be complimented in such a way. This is related to the problem of feedback as well. People will also very kindly tell you how well you speak Japanese even if you know you are making mistakes. As stated above, this all comes from a very good place and people mean well, however, they often don’t have many other non-Japanese friends to compare. In that sense, based on their experience, your Japanese may be quite good.

One thing you can do to get more accurate and useful feedback about your speaking is to be specific. When a chance arises during a conversation, repeat your last sentence and ask if you’d said it correctly. Ask for sample sentences for new words. Ask them how they would have said the same thing.

Other Challenges Presented by Japanese Culture

One other challenge that Japanese culture poses to people seeking to learn Japanese is that there are a slew of terms, vocabulary, and situations that are uniquely Japanese. There are many simple vocabulary words – foods, animals, household items that are uncommon in other countries and so may not be defined very well in dictionaries.

There are also single words that express concepts that may require complete sentences in English. The reverse is also true. One example of this is the word “Yappari” which can best be described as meaning “as expected” but is used far more frequently in Japanese than in English. With different intonations, this simple term can be used to show either a positive or negative feeling about a result, and may even be used to imply that something was inevitable.

In addition to what is mentioned above, it is helpful to remember that although everyone in Japan is different, there are a lot of ideas shared by people raised in Japan. When asked to draw the hands on a clock, an overwhelming majority of people raised in Japan will draw them indicating 3 o’clock. The reason? This is the traditional time for oyatsu or a snack… and possibly the first time that many kids actually teach themselves to recognize. It is this kind of cultural consistency that can be daunting, but also a lot of fun for people to experience and accept when learning Japanese.

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