70 Japanese Gestures

Japanese is considered to be an extremely difficult language to learn. The writing system is made up of over 100 phonetic symbols in addition to thousands of Chinese characters. It is often said that it takes till the age of 10 for a Japanese child to master the language. Many people are of the belief that Japanese keep body action to a minimum when speaking, yet over 120 gestures are commonly used. Even after eliminating those that will probably no longer be in use by the end of the next decade, 70 still remain. These are presented here. It is an uncomfortable fact that, at present, there are many Japanese who are not proficient in English. Communicating with words may be difficult but why not start with gestures? Great insight into the culture and lifestyle of Japan can be had from understanding its gestures. Many gestures have been influenced by the West and introduced through foreign movies. However, there still are many interesting gestures considered unique to Japan. (by Hamiru.aqui)

GENERAL GESTURES // These gestures are used in daily life and are popular with both adults and children:-

1 // Bowing [Ojigi]　

Lower your head. A movement when greeting someone. This is a practice that is not seen in Western countries, though it is very often observed in Japan. It is believed to have its roots in China, where it indicates a degree of respect or gratitude to another person. Though Japan does not have the custom of shaking hands, bowing can be looked upon as similar to the Western handshake. It seems that, in general, people bow more politely when bidding goodbye than when meeting someone. When bidding goodbye to an older or higher ranked person, to wait with your head bowed until the person turns his or her back, or until the door closes, is a form of showing respect to that person.

2 // Yes. No. [Hai. Iie.]

As in the West, in Japan, one nods when saying “yes” and shakes the head sideways when saying “no”. However, depending on the question, there are times when the English “yes” and “no” seem to be interchanged.

(i.e.) “Aren’t you going? – “Yes” (nodding the head) = (“Yes, I am not going”). In the West, this question would be answered with a “No” and shake the head: “No, I’m not going.”

3 // Itadakimasu / Gochisousama

Place both palms together and lightly bow your head. Itadakimasu is said before eating a meal, make sure your chopsticks are still on the chopstick rest. Gochisousama is said after eating the meal, both phrases are said while you lightly bow your head.

4 // Me [Watashi]

Put your index finger on the tip of your nose. In Western countries, people joint to their chests when indicating themselves, but in Japan, people point to their nose. When indicating others or other things one points with index finger to the center of the object or the person being indicated. When indicating the person one is talking to directly, the index finger is pointed at his or her nose to indicate “you”. They gesture may offend a Westerner, but to the Japanese, it is not considered rude at all. For young people these days, pointing to the nose has become an outdated gesture, and influenced by movies, they have started to point to their chests. Nonetheless, pointing to the person one is talking to is still a common Japanese gesture.

5 // Come over here! [Kocchi ni oide] / Go away! [Acchi ike]

- Come over here! [Kocchi ni oide] – With the back of your hand facing upward, shake your hand downward toward yourself. Some people use both hands to gesture to a child.

- Go away! [Acchi ike] – With the back of the hand facing upward, shake your hand as if trying to shake something off.

Sometimes, the “come over here” gesture may be misunderstood as “go away”. The two can be difficult to distinguish, but a nodding of the head, and the fact the person is looking at you and laughing, will make it likely that “come here” is meant. A person saying “go away” will often not make eye contact.

6 // Calm down [Ochi tsuite]

Move both hands up and down while saying “maaa maaa maaa” with your palms facing the ground. This conveys that one wants a person to calm down, cool his or her temper, or not be so frantic. Maaa maaa maaa must be said together with the hand motion. Otherwise, people will not understand what you are trying to say. It may be best to remember the “maaa maaa maaa” and the hand motion as one set.

7 // I’m going to pass in front of you [Mae wo tourimasu]　

Round the back slightly, place one hand up with your fingers together and the thumb up, then gently move your hand up and down when passing in front of someone. It is basically considered impolite to directly pass in front of someone. This gesture can be taken as an apology when passing in front of someone and obstructing his view, for example, in a store aisle. In Western culture, this gesture is very similar to saying “excuse me” when passing in front of someone. You will make a positive and favorable impression with this gesture and may find people striking up a conversation with you.

8 // I don’t know [Shiranai] / That’s wrong [Chigau]

Shake your upright hand near your mouth with your thumb closer to your face. There are times when the head is shaken at the same time. In that case, the head and hand will move in opposite directions. When this gesture is seen, for example, when asking directions, it simply means the person does not understand English or he or she is unable to assist you. One is advised to simply go and ask another person.

9 // Thank you [Katajikenai]

With your thumb facing toward your face, move your hand upright to a point in front of your face. It is the same gesture made by a sumo wrestler who has won as he accepts his prize money. It is an expression derived from the handheld sword. Often it is used by men as an abbreviated form of expressing appreciation. In Japan, there is a custom to pour drinks for one’s guests. When the host sees his guest’s glass is nearly empty, he will come over to refill it. Then, the guest will make this gesture to show appreciation instead of saying “thank you” in words.

10 // Do you want to go eat? [Shokuji]

Pretend to hold a rice bowl in one hand and bring a pair of chopsticks to your mouth with the other hand. Repeat the hand motion of bringing a chopstick to your mouth several times. Sometimes, only chopstick motion is used with two fingers acting as a chopstick. When you see someone looking at you and making this gesture, it means he is asking you have already eaten or would you like to go eat together. Japan is the only country in Asia where spoons are not often used for eating. The Japanese custom is to eat with a rice bowl and chopsticks. Of course when Western dishes are eaten, Japanese will use a fork and spoon. At a formal Japanese dinner, chopsticks only are used. For your additional information, It is not considered impolite to drink soup directly from the bowl. You should also remember to always hold the rice bowl by supporting it with one hand underneath it.

11 // Wait a moment [Chotto matte]

Show the palm of one hand to the other person. It also means to wait there. Both hands are used at times. In the West, gestures meaning “wait” often involve raising your index finger. However, in Japan, showing the palm of one hand or both palms to the other person is the basic gesture. If the Western-style gesture for wait is made in Japan, the Japanese would think of it as “1”, as in No.1. If a child grabs your finger when you point it upward to signify the Western “wait”, you will now be aware that it’s because the child thinks you are starting a game.

12 // Seiza / Agura

The proper way to sit in a tatami room is in the seiza position, which is sitting on your knees with your legs tucked under you. In a formal setting, you would continue sitting in the seiza position. But once the greetings have been made and the atmosphere becomes relaxed, you may unfold and cross your legs, in the seating position Japanese call “agura”. The host may sometimes say, “Please put yourself at ease.” In which case, you would thank him before assuming the agura seating position. Agura was considered a man’s seating position from the time when Japanese dressed mainly in kimono. Sitting in the agura position was considered bad manners for women. Unless in the company of close friends, it may be better for women to sit with legs unfolded, but to one side. Sitting in the seiza position for hours is painful even for many Japanese. The legs fall asleep and you may not be able to stand without help. There are various ways to survive long hours of seiza sitting. The most popular one is to cross your toes. Ask a Japanese friend for tips. You will be surprised to find out how many different ways there are.

13 // Tapping the shoulder [Kata wo tataku]

When you want to let someone know he has dropped something, or you want him to notice that you want to talk to him, or when you’re meeting someone and approaching him from behind, tap the person on his shoulder two or three times to make him aware of your presence or to request his attention. The same thing is done when you want to point something out to hi, for example, “Look over there!” you would tap the person on his shoulder before saying what you have to say.

14 // Hot [Atsui]

When you’ve touched something hot like a hot pot, grab the earlobe with the thumb and index finger. This comes from the fact that the earlobe has the lowest body temperature compared to other body parts. Please don’t think of this gesture as meaning someone has lost a pair of earrings.

15 // To laugh [ Warau]

Covering the mouth when laughing. In the old days in Japan, for a man to show his teeth indicated weakness or that he was joking. To show one’s teeth when laughing was considered bad manners. There used to be custom where married women painted their teeth black (ohaguro). To have white teeth forever meant that the woman had missed her chance to marry. Japanese hide their mouths when laughing because of this custom. However, in present day Japan, there are many who do this in order to hide poor tooth alignment or because they feel embarrassed about something.

16 // Let’s put that subject aside [Sono hanashi wa oitoite]

The gestures looks like one is moving a box from in front of one’s self to the side. It is a gesture used when changing the subject or saying, “Let’s put that subject aside and change the topic.”

17 // I agree! [Nattoku!]

Hit the palm of one hand with a closed fist. This gesture can also be done by hitting your thighs. In that case, be sure to slap your thighs hard enough for the sound to be heard. This gesture may look similar to a “want to fight” gesture in the West. Don’t worry if you see someone directing this gesture at you. There is no need to move away. No one wants to start a fight with you. In fact, it is quite the opposite. They are just agreeing with what you say!