Japanese Culture For Foreigners: 19 Insider Secrets You Need To Know

You might think Japanese is a hard language to learn.

But what about Japanese culture?

Becoming “culturally fluent” in Japan can be both challenging and fascinating.

Luckily, you're in the right place!

I've curated 19 of the most curious, unique, and downright helpful insights into Japanese culture and traditions from around the web, so you're guaranteed to avoid any faux-pas, and sure to leave a meaningful impression on your next trip to the Far East!

By the way, if you want to learn Japanese fast and have fun while doing it, my top recommendation is Japanese Uncovered which teaches you through StoryLearning®. 

With Japanese Uncovered you’ll use my unique StoryLearning® method to learn Japanese naturally through story… not rules. It’s as fun as it is effective.

The course even includes Japanese culture lessons in each module so you can immerse yourself in Japanese life and learn to understand the country and its people as well as the language.

If you’re ready to get started, click here for a 7-day FREE trial.

Japanese Customs

1. Master The Simple Art Of Bowing 

Bowing may seem like a simple enough gesture, but did you know there is more than one way to bow in Japan?

There are standing bows and there are sitting bows.

Knowing when to bow, and the appropriate way to bow, in any given situation is another simple way to demonstrate your fluency in Japanese culture. Tofugu breaks it down for you so you can master bowing in any situation.

2. Get the Gesture Right Every Time 

As you might expect, bowing isn't the only kind of non-verbal communication in Japan!

There are loads of common Japanese gestures for any number of situations:

• Giving and receiving a gift
• Calling someone over to you
• Saying excuse me when walking through crowd

Check out this Tofugu article to discover the 30 of the most common gestures in Japan!

3. Don't Be Shocked – It's Perfectly Normal In Japan!

There is some behaviour which can be startling to foreigners… despite being completely normal in Japan!

The first few times I received an elbow in the neck on a Tokyo rush hour train was something of a shock!

This Japan Talk article will help you become acquainted with the kind of normal behaviour in Japan, which you might be surprised about at first!

Japanese Language

4. How To Answer The Phone In Any Situation

Moshi moshi is one of the most common ways to say “hello” when answering the phone in Japanese.

But did you know it's not always the best way?

Show your Japanese friends and colleagues you really know your stuff by reeling off these alternatives in exactly the right situation. Tofugu breaks it down for you in this helpful article.

5. Learn Some Cool Words Unique To Japanese!

Age-otori – when you look worse after a haircut!

Sometimes there are words that just don't translate back into our native language.  This Boredpanda article highlights 7 interesting Japanese words that don't translate into English.

6. Onomatopoeia? It Sounds Like…

Onomato-whata?

In English we see onomatopoeia in comic books.  A classic example, is bam! It's nothing more than a word derived from the sound it makes: meow, crack, tweet, fizzy.

There are thousands of onomatopoeia in Japanese and using them can really add to the richness of your language, bring out your personality, and your cultural savviness.

Tofugu has the ultimate guide on onomatopoeia, but if you'd like a more concise overview you can also check out RocketNews24 or Nihonshock.

Food In Japanese Culture

Food is a central part of Japanese culture, and being familiar with Japanese customs around food and dining is an excellent way to demonstrate your cultural savviness!

7. Onomatopoeia For Meal Time

Sure, English has crunchy.

But Japanese uses onomatopoeia to describe the varying degrees of crunchiness!

For the most common food related onomatopoeia check out this mental floss article for some inspiration! 

8. Wait For Itadakimasu To Start Eating  

Children in Japan learn to say itadakimasu before every meal. It's a way to express appreciation for the food you are eating and to show respect for those you are dining with.

Traditionally, itadakimasu is said once everyone is at the table and it's the signal that you may start eating.

Iromegane provides a great overview of how this custom originated its importance to Japanese family culture today.

9. Not To Be Rude, But You Should Be Slurping Your Noodles!

Many cultures have very strict standards of etiquette that look down upon being loud, and especially eating audibly, at the dinner table.

You might be surprised to find in this Japan Talk article customs that may seem rude are actually perfectly acceptable, or even encouraged, in Japan.

10. Basic Chopstick Etiquette

You might be scared by the thought of making a fool out of yourself with poor chopstick technique in Japan!

But actually, the Japanese are often forgiving when it comes to chopstick etiquette, as Japan Talk reminds us.

However, that shouldn't be a reason to discard simple chopstick etiquette. It can earn you brownie points for your Japanese cultural savviness and help you blend in with the locals!

11. Practice Good Chopstick Technique 

If you have trouble holding and using your chopsticks correctly – Kotaku has an excellent step-by-step article that will show you how to use chopsticks like a pro!

12. Nail Your Sushi Vocabulary

You've had sushi before.

But you won't be surprised to hear there's much more to sushi in Japan than the salmon, tuna and shrimp rolls you're used to in the West!

For example, try to identify these…

• Sushi: Maki, Gunkan, Temaki, Nigiri, Sashimi, Chirashi
• Ingredients: Hamachi, Nori, Tak, Tamago, Tobiko, Unagi, Wasabi, Shoyu

If you struggled, this complete guide to sushi by Take Lessons has you covered…

13. Know The Dos And Don'ts Of Sushi

If you visit Japan and decide to sample the local sushi, you'd better be sure you're doing it right!

Did you know you shouldn't combine the ginger with your sushi?

Make sure you don't commit any more sushi faux-pas, and check out this article for more sushi dos and don'ts!

Japanese People

14. Were You Wrong About Geisha?

Some people have the mistaken impression that a geisha is a prostitute. In fact, this is not true.

A geisha is trained in traditional Japanese art such as dance, music, calligraphy, and poetry.

As Inside Japan details in their informative article, a geisha is often hired as a professional entertainer, which is what geisha means: “entertainer”.

15. Pay A Visit To A “Cat Island”

In Aoshima island, cats outnumber people by six to one.

What's more, these so-called “Cat Islands” are becoming increasingly popular tourist destinations. So, time to revise your Japan itinerary? 🙂

The Atlantic reveals all in this article.

Japanese Popular Culture

16. Spend The Night In A Capsule Hotel

Japan opened its first capsule hotel in 1979 to accommodate the short stay business traveller.  It's like going to the gym in that you get a locker to store your things and you have access to private, but shared showers.

Just as you might imagine from the name – you sleep in a private capsule. Gizmag provides pictures and a concise overview of what capsule hotels in Japan are all about.

17. Friendly Toilets

“A gentler wash for your behind.” 

How confident are you that you'd guess the right button?

To prevent any nasty surprises, Surviving In Japan has you covered with this step-by-step guide to using Japanese Toilets.

18. Delve Into The World Of Japanese Anime

Japanese anime has blown up around the world.

If you're into it, great!

Even if you're not, learning a bit about this Japanese cultural staple might be a great way to understand youth culture a little better..

For the best articles on Japanese anime around, look no further than Danny Choo!

19. Lose Yourself In The Magical World Of Ghibli

Studio Ghibli is one of Japan's national treasures. So much so that it deserves its own section in this post!

With dozens of magical worlds to ignite your imagination, and animated characters who have captured the imagination of entire generations… there's an endless amount to discover here.

Luckily, Mike has created his very own Ghibli Guide to tell you everything you need to know!

Japanese Culture FAQ

Immerse Yourself In Japanese Culture With Japanese Uncovered

These 19 cultural tips will help you immerse yourself into Japanese culture more easily. But there's nothing quite like knowing how to speak and understand Japanese to bridge the culture gap, right? But how do you go from beginner to intermediate level fast?

If you'd like to speed up your Japanese learning journey, without spending all your time pouring over grammar books, then I've got something for you.

It's Japanese Uncovered, my story-based course, that will help you go from Japanese beginner or false beginner to intermediate while immersing yourself in a compelling story.

Instead of learning grammar rules and ending up translating in your head when you speak, your learning takes place as you read and listen to the story.

It's the same process I used to learn Italian in 3 months from home, by just listening to and reading compelling content. I've distilled that method into a comprehensive course where I help you discover Japanese through story.

If you’re ready to get started, click here for a 7-day FREE trial.

I hope this post has piqued your curiosity about Japanese culture, and answered a few questions at the same time!

If you're learning Japanese, you should also check out this post: 42 Insane Japanese Language Hacks

Main Image: Kaybee

Olly Richards

Creator of the StoryLearning® Method

Olly Richards is a renowned polyglot and language learning expert with over 15 years of experience teaching millions through his innovative StoryLearning® method. He is the creator of StoryLearning, one of the world's largest language learning blogs with 500,000+ monthly readers.

Olly has authored 30+ language learning books and courses, including the bestselling "Short Stories" series published by Teach Yourself.

When not developing new teaching methods, Richards practices what he preaches—he speaks 8 languages fluently and continues learning new ones through his own methodology.