Japanese (S), Japanese (P)

[Nick_Burman]

Hi all,

 

Here in the West there is a perception that Japan is an uniform nation, whose people from Hokkaido to Okinawa act and behave all in the same way. My question is, are there regional variations in the actions, behaviour and way of thinking of the Japanese from one region to the other? For instance, one feels that folks in Kyushu are somewhat more laid-back than their kin in Kanto. What about interregional (good humored) jostling? Here in Brazil Paulistas (those who live in the state of São Paulo) call the Cariocas (citizens of Rio, but by definition of the whole state) lazy, while the Cariocas claim that the Paulistas don't know what women are. Anything along these lines?

 

 

Cheers NB

[bikkuri bahn]

This is a big, complex topic, as in any nation.  Suffice to say, the perception (or stereotype) you mentioned about uniformity is just that, and has been misused and utilized for arguments of "inferiority of the other", and self-congratulation. Despite seemingly uniformity on the surface, there is much diversity when you dig deeper.  Just think, why are there so many dialects and food types/cuisines in Japan, on such a "small island country"?? It's because people have strong regional identities and traditions (Japan was for most of its history, a group of fiefdoms, remember)

 

Describing the differences would take up volumes of books, but here is a tiny snippet, taken from NIck's examples:

 

Good humored jostling: Kanto vs. Kansai- this is THE biggest rivalry in Japan- economically, in food, in sports, in entertainment, in personalities, in trains (books have been written about the differences in philosophy of operation).  Too complex and rich to describe here.  Maybe others can chip in.

*BTW, people in Hokkaido, as a cold-climate people tend to be more reticent,and also tend to dislike Kansai people for their brashness (rudeness) and loud voices.  I guess it's good training for dealing with Chinese (mainland) tourists though :)

 

*another thing about Kansai-jin I personally notice- they are some of the slowest walkers in Japan- heaven help you if you are stuck behind a pair of Kansai ladies yammering away on a narrow, crowded subway passage when you have to catch a train!

 

As for Kyushu, I don't know about laid-backness.  But I do know men in Kyushu are more traditional in terms of attitudes towards women (teishukanpaku-or "husband who rules the roost")- you will see men walking about with their wives 1 or 2 meters behind- not all mind you, but occasionally.  You will almost never see this in Hokkaido- in fact, a Hokkaido woman will likely not tolerate such treatment (Hokkaido women have some of the highest divorce rates in Japan; they are also some of the heaviest smokers).

 

Other forum members living in Japan likely have their own anecdotes.

Edited July 12, 2013 by bikkuri bahn

[Kabutoni]

Just picked up my Residence Card, so I'm now officially living in Japan. Hurray!

 

Now, I don't have much experience with people from outside of the Kantō area, so I'll refrain from the comparisons between different (larger) areas. As most of you know, I'm from the Netherlands originally. A very small country where the dialect changes every 10 minutes of travel, as does the attitude of the people. Obviously here in the Kantō region, there are also generalising differences between regions.

 

Please beware that all is written in a sense of humour and not to be taken too seriously!

 

A few examples: the people from the Shitamachi area in Tōkyō are seen as petty business owners and rough blue-collar workers. This stems from the origin of the area, as this is traditionally a low-lying area (prone to flood) with cheap rents and old buildings. Nowadays this area is looked upon with some kind of nostalgia, since the streets, prices and atmosphere remind many Japanese of a gone-by era (1970s and early 1980s). Many TV-travel programs feature parts of Shitamachi, like Katsushika, Adachi, Kita-ku, Arakawa, etc. in their programs. Quite a number of actors and famous people are from Shitamachi areas, like Takeshi "Beat" Kitano for example.

 

Another example is the Saitama area, which is mostly seen as a very boring and residence-only place. Despite having a lot of tourist destinations like Kawagoe and the Chichibu area, it is largely seen as peripheral by many.

 

An anecdote that has befallen my family recently is the plans of the parents-in-law to move near our place. The area where my wife is from (central Ibaraki), is a large and laid-back rural area with small tourist destinations, like Mt. Tsukuba, Motegi and Machiko as a few small examples. Now, their plan is to move near our place in Sagamiono, but me and my wife think this is not a good idea at all! It's not the fact they'll be close by, but we worry about their survival here. The atmosphere is much more of a fast-paced one than in their hometown, even though this is a residential area, and there is hardly any nature around (except for some tiny parks).

 

So, there are interregional differences as Bikkuri wrote, but also intra-regional differences. Japan is much like any other country that tries to profile itself as 'one'. As long as there are different people with different attitudes, it's extremely hard to create a form of national unity. Yes, there is a form of national unity in Japan, but that is only with national efforts or achievements (like in the Netherlands and many other countries).

 

What I do know well is that most people in Japan don't really think much of people from Kyōto, since people find them to act snobby (especially here in the Kantō), et vice versa where people from Kyōto see others as not having any sense of traditions.