Why the Japanese like being Japanese
As part of their 104th Ranking Research, DIMSDRIVE Research asked 5,003 members of its monitor group why it was good that they were born Japanese. This poll was conducted towards the end of November.
When I first read this I laughed out loud at the item ranked second, and I think everyone else who has lived in Japan will raise at least a wry smile when they see probably the most groan-worthy stereotypical nihonjinron-like answer.
If I had to choose the top reasons why I’m happy that I was born Scottish, I’d probably choose the Scottish socialistic (with a small ’s’) character, the great outdoors, our football team that can inspire both laughter and tears, something to do with our culture and heritage, and, of course, that I wasn’t born English.
Q: What thing makes you think you’re glad you were born Japanese? (Sample size=5,003, free answer)
Rank Thing Votes 1 Delicious food 1,085 2 The passage through the four seasons 664 3 Peace 636 4 Good public order 333 5 Economically rich 157 6 Hot springs 121 7 The good Japanese national character 91 8 Characteristic culture 72 9 Can speak Japanese 69 10= Free country 55 10= Bountiful natural landscape 55 Q: What thing makes you think you’re glad you were born Japanese? (Sample size=5,003, by sex, free answer)
Rank Men
N=2,584Votes Rank Women
N=2,419Votes 1 Delicious food 500 1 Delicious food 585 2= The passage through the four seasons 321 2 The passage through the four seasons 343 2= Peace 321 3 Peace 315 4 Good public order 175 4 Good public order 158 5 Economically rich 87 5 Economically rich 70 6 Hot springs 63 6 Hot springs 58 7 The good Japanese national character 50 7 The good Japanese national character 41 8 Characteristic culture 48 8= Can wear kimono 39 9 Bountiful natural landscape 38 8= Can speak Japanese 39 10 Free country 36 10= Can soak in the bath tub 24 10= Characteristic culture 24 Looking at the breakdown by age for other interesting choices, they included being a gun-free society, having kotatsu and tatami in houses, having Mount Fuji, and the concept of wabi-sabi, something I’ve never really understood!
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Ken Yasumoto-Nicolson said,
December 20, 2006 @ 23:38
How do you feel about the add “Asian Men and White Girls” on the top of your page?
Ken Y-N said,
December 21, 2006 @ 09:00
Hey - that’s not me who posted that comment!
But anyway, blame Google! I’ve ticked the box in AdSense (at least I think I did!) that said No Adverts for Adult Sites, but that is perhaps just a dating or matchmaking site? Please feel free to report it to Google if you feel it is inappropriate - I don’t see that ad from my PC, so I can’t comment any further, sorry.
Shari said,
December 21, 2006 @ 09:44
FWIW, I don’t see the ad either.
This is a very interesting poll and, yes, I was as amused as you with answer #2. I was actually a little puzzled by the “speak Japanese” answer as I don’t quite understand why this would be something favorable per se. If you live in a country, you speak it’s language. It doesn’t matter what country it is. Perhaps the Japanese have a love of their language that I’m not understanding which goes above and beyond the way I regard speaking English.
Ken Y-N said,
December 21, 2006 @ 13:16
Hi Shari,
Yes, the “speaking Japanese” one is perhaps a bit confusing. Japanese is interesting and from a linguistic point of view unique (I think), and it has the propeties of vagueness and indirectness, etc.
There’s maybe a chicken-and-egg situation - did the national character develop from the language or the character from the language?
Japan Probe -Japan News & Culture Blog » Blog Archive » Japan News for December 21, 2006 said,
December 21, 2006 @ 17:24
[…] -Why do the Japanese like being Japanese? What Japan Thinks has poll results. […]
JMR said,
December 21, 2006 @ 17:44
I am the managing editor for a Tokyo-based English magazine and I often struggle to write an interesting Tokyo’s Top 10 section every month. I think this website is great and although I cannot independently verify the information, I will continue reading. Well done!
Shari said,
December 21, 2006 @ 21:11
My former boss (an Aussie) had a novel (and no doubt tongue-in-cheek) explanation for Japanese vagueness. He said it probably developed during the era when angering your master might result in loss of one’s head. Being vague was a good way to make sure that you never said anything that could be construed as insulting.
Seriously though, I also have pondered the “chicken and the egg” idea regarding language.
Ken Yasumoto-Nicolson said,
December 21, 2006 @ 23:17
Come on Ken, we all know it is you. Google is just a dump algorithm, how it could smell the xenophobic, anti-Japanese breath of your writings?
Ken Y-N said,
December 21, 2006 @ 23:58
Hurrah, I’ve got myself a stalker! And if you have something against my writings, please give me some specific instances rather than just random insults.
Ken Y-N said,
December 21, 2006 @ 23:59
JMR, thanks for the comment!
Shari, great explanation! I’ll have to remember that one.
Ippoippo » Missing 6th Sense said,
December 22, 2006 @ 01:55
[…] Ahhh, seems there’s a large proportion (well, in this less than scientific study anyway) of Japanese seem to think Japan is the ONLY country in the world that has 4 seasons! As the author of the post on the linked website said, it’s a bit of running joke amoungst foreigners resident in Japan. […]
Garrett said,
January 4, 2007 @ 08:46
What’s most striking is how few of the answers have anything to do with being Japanese as opposed to being any other given nationality. Every once in a while, when I see something such as this survey, I wonder if we live in an oddly non-contemplative society.
Man, I wish I could experience four seasons, but, sadly, I have evolved to experience only, um, less than that.
Jef said,
January 22, 2008 @ 10:06
Hi… always enjoy reading this page.
I have one comment about the four seasons thing… I agree, it caused me some bemusement at first, but I think the main point of the so called uniqueness of the Japanese four seasons, is perhaps how balanced they are. In Canada, we certainly we have four seasons, but it’s more of a four seasons in one day/month style, as opposed to the smooth flow of spring into summer into fall into winter into spring in Japan.
That being said, I still don’t know where rainy season fits into it all…
Drew said,
January 22, 2008 @ 14:33
The seasons here are balanced? Wow, I always felt, here in Tokyo at least, that there were exactly 2 seasons, with maybe a week of buffer in between them… Shorts and T-Shirts from April until October, then a one-week break, then overcoats and scarves from November to March.
Chris said,
March 14, 2008 @ 18:25
If you’ve ever tried to learn Japanese as a second language you understand why being raised in it is a good thing.
Out here in the inaka there are definitely 4 distinct season whereas I suspect that in places like Hokkaido there are probably only two: Winter and not winter.
I was surprised that Many beautiful natures didn’t make it higher on the list, then I remembered they cover everything in concrete in this country.
Twenty reasons why Japan and Japanese are great » 世論 What Japan Thinks said,
July 6, 2008 @ 10:47
[…] previously presented another survey on why the Japanese like being Japanese, and this one too will no doubt induce groans and eye-rolling within my […]
tori said,
August 26, 2008 @ 16:30
I think that when they said they are glad to be born Japanese because they can speak Japanese, it is because they have some idea of how difficult it is for speakers of other languages to master Japanese? I’m very grateful to be American, because of English being my first language I won’t have to struggle to learn it.