– Vol.10 –
ARC teacher Mimi Sensei will answer your questions regarding Japanese language.
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「East Japan」has its center in Tokyo, while「West Japan」is Osaka, and the differences between these 2 regions don’t limit to the language, events and habits, but so much more.
For example, surnames. The 2 most common surnames in Japan are “Suzuki” and “Sato”, but actually this is true for East Japan. In Western Japan, we find more “Yamamoto” and “Tanaka”. Also, regarding food culture, it’s well-known that the taste of the dipping sauce of the udon, the tsuyu, is strong in the East, while it is weak in the West.
If you ask the question “if you say meat, what meat do you think of?” to a Japanese person in the East, they will reply “pork”, but if you ask the same question in the West, they will answer “beef”. Isn’t it interesting?
Another funny trait is the way people from eastern and western Japan stand on escalators. In Kanto, people stand on the left and let others pass on the right, while in Kansai, people stand on the right and let the left side open for people to pass.
As you can see, you can experience the “ibunka” (different cultures) also within the same country!
