How Good Are The Japanese At English? | Street Interview 

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The two boys’ thinking, answers and mindsets are intelligent and matured. Very promising individuals.

This was fun, lol. The young dude with the glasses who rated his English a 7 was spot on. His friend that rated himself an 8 lied. He spoke English at a 10 level for a learner!

I agree with the guy that said that the "Japanese perfectionism" gets in the way of English learning. When I was an exchange student in Hokkaido many years back I noticed that the fear of failure and the need to do things perfectly (even though you are a beginner) was very strong in the Japanese students I befriended. I sat in on my friend's English class where the Canadian teacher really tried his best to make the students comfortable enough to try and say even just a few sentences, but nobody wanted to speak in front of the others. Everyone was too afraid of making mistakes in pronunciation, afraid of looking stupid infront of the teacher and others in the class. The problem with language learning is that you kinda have to make mistakes in order to get better. Then there's also the big issue of using Katakana to learn English. The Japanese alphabets cannot be used to correctly translate the sounds used in English and yet they still use it when learning. It would be better if they started learning English in kindergarten together with the ABCs. Sorry for the long rant. ^^;

I am japanese. First of all i wanna say my English is super bad. So i am trying my best to write this comment. We can't speak good English because when we were in public schools we just memorized vocabulary. No attempt to learn grammar or real sentences. Japanese grammar also VERY different from english. Our Japanese society and culture is also very different. We don't play many non-japanese games or watch as much non-japanese TV as most other countries do. Also don't forget, the same applies to non japanese people. You guys also struggle learning Japanese right. So also same. Sorry for using too much also. Hmmm i wanna explain more but my english is very limited. I wish i knew English.

“Ninja, so cool!” He’s right, ninjas are cool

one thing I experienced in Japan is that regardless of their english ability, a lot of them are actually doing their best to communicate with you when u need help (sign language, google translate, etc.), it's their effort that matters, and that's what makes travelling in Japan a very delightful experience even though there are language barriers.

When I was at the university, I used to tutor many Japanese students on English lessons. They kept requesting me rather than go to any of available tutors. Why? I am deaf, and communicate through writing back and forth with them. This way, they felt more confident when writing than when speaking, and they also kept the written communication for the future referral. Over the time, they gave me lot of beautifully wrapped presents as the token of their appreciation.

It really depends on where you go. Younger people in Tokyo (especially Roppongi, Shinagawa, Bunkyo area) can speak English relatively well. If you talk with older people in, say, Tokushima, then you will need a miracle to be able to communicate in English.

The language barrier never stopped me from visiting Japan. It is a kind country. I can't wait to visit soon!

2:03 She speaks English quite naturally and even using the word "like" every other word. It really makes me wonder where she learns English from.

I went to Japan in 2019 with my son. We had a great experience while in Japan. Although not many spoke English we it forced us to learn and speak few Japanese words to get around and communicate. I think it’s more respectful for foreigners to learn their culture and language. It’s also good if they learn English.

The two that said "7 and 8" and then they speak really good english! I think they can give themselves more credit, lol Esp the one that said 8. They were amazing haha. The person who said "I cant find anything fun in Japan" made me laugh 😆

It's been quite a long time (20+ years) since I visited Japan but I was impressed by how many people knew English, although their pronunciations needed work. That's understandable since there are sounds in English and Japanese that are not in the others' language. I had a few students (high school/college?) that wanted to practice their English with me. I was happy to help since my Japanese was non-existent (except for hello, goodbye and how much). The people were so helpful. I remember taking the train to Kamakura and was confused as to which platform I needed to go to and a young woman took me by the arm and physically walked me to the correct one. Even if she had directed me in English, I would've been so confused since I had to go up/down and right/left. It took some minutes out of her day to direct me but I was very thankful for her assistance.

When I visited Japan, I used English to communicate with them. I found that their English abilities have been much better nowadays ( I was also there visiting with my family in the early 90s, some of them weren't able to speak English, so we had to find assistance). Not only their young people, their elder people were also able to speak English to help. However, many of their big shops, like BIC Camera, have people who can speak English and Chinese, and Korean. That makes tourists' shopping easier. So many of their shops have people who can aid you in Chinese. And, many of their restaurants have menus in many languages.😀 In conclusion, their English have been getting better as Japan is a country where many foreigners love to go.

The “7 and 8” boys did greater than their self-rating, and the woman who mentioned “shrines and temples” spoke well. Props also to the long-haired man in black who gave an intelligent response.

loved the answers and humility from them. i liked what the girl said about learning japanese as well. i relate to them, though, because back in our school, we have a mandatory language class**. mandarin for elementary and middle school; nihongo for high school. nothing really stuck to me except the basics (ones you use as a tourist and convos). we learn and deliver better if we are immersed in an environment where using the language is a way to survive/get on with life. ** i'm from a multilingual country, so that language class is basically learning our 4th language.

I was in Japan on May 2023, and sadly this is a real issue there. Most of the people (even the younger ages) don't speak English which makes the trip there a little bit difficult. But they are so helpful with you, no matter the language gap and one way or another you will communicate.

Japanese people are so modest, they often undersell themselves. I visit Japan for its culture, food and hospitality!

A long time ago, I used to do Uber driving to make money. There were times when I'd pick up Japanese tourists and other nationalities and sometimes, they didn't speak English that well. During those times, I tried to speak what little Japanese I learned from anime and Japanese movies lol! Then they would cheer up and we'd all be happy. Then sometimes we'd end up talking about anime and then we'd find common shows we loved growing up haha! I agree with the people in the interview. It's hard to learn a language if you only use it in a school setting. A school setting is different from a real life scenario. For example, there are many times where people would say things differently in real life than what is taught in schools. It's better to learn from both school and real conversations or media. English isn't my native tongue, but as a kid, all the books I read, the video games I played, all the cartoons and movies I watched, were usually in English. I learned 90% of the English language from comics, movies, and video games, while school taught me the technical stuff about it. I'm sure I'm not 100% perfect when it comes to the English grammar, but hey, it's functional enough lol! When it comes to trying to learn a different language and you're watching a show using that language, I think it's better to watch the subbed version. This way, you can at least read the translation while hearing the actual words and then you can copy the way it's being said. If you can pronounce the words and reproduce the tones, the inflections of a phrase, then you have a better chance at being understood by someone who speaks it as their native language. I think it would be interesting to find out how many people in the US and other parts of the world can speak super basic Japanese just because they keep watching subbed anime and movies lol! I think the results would be surprising, especially when it comes to the younger generation who are being exposed to Japanese anime and movies almost every day.

I feel like technology has made incredible advancements in recent years to help address this issue. Something like having Google Translate easily accessible on a smart phone is something of a pipedream back 30-40 years ago. From the camera feature to the conversation feature these tools can go a long way in helping to communicate.

In my personal experience it is near impossible learning a language if you only learn it in school. I am sure the schools could still do a better job to improve the basics but one has to actively try and learn on their own aswell. I am from germany and was always bad at english in school and was almost scared of english classes (didn't want to randomly get picked and not know what to say infront of the entire class) but then I started consuming a lot of english media mainly watching Twitch streams and am really glad I found a streamer I could understand quite easily (Lirik) and watching him daily improved my english A LOT. I would spend quite a lot of days hearing more english than my own language and since it was only listening there was no pressure on me. It has been 7 years or so since I started actively learning english on my own but I definitely think even after a year I was already close to my current level of fluency (like 75% probably). I can highly recommend learning english because it 1. allows you to speak to a ton of people you otherwise couldn't and 2. also opens the door for a lot of media you otherwise couldn't watch/understand.

As someone who just came back from a trip to Tokyo, definitely don't be discouraged about traveling there if you don't know any Japanese. The only Japanese I knew was please and thank you. But most people will understand at least very basic English, combined with your body/hand gestures to understand what you're talking about. And even if they don't understand you, they will try their best to help you. Pretty much everyone you encounter will be a nice and kind soul.

I've only been to Japan twice, but I've noticed most of them can't speak English and would speak Japanese to me when I had no idea what they were saying. They were the absolute friendliest people though, and went far out of their way to help me when I asked for directions. Japan is an amazing country with amazing people.

Simple answer: Japanese people don't need to speak English. In Japan, you can live without having to rely on English. For example, in many countries, when studying at university, you study in English instead of your own language, or rely on English to a large extent, but in Japan, all studies can be done in Japanese. This is actually a great thing, because our language is so well developed. Japan is the only country in Asia, along with Thailand, that was not colonised by the West, so it has developed without much Western influence.

Why do Japanese struggle to speak English? The guy at 8:09 nailed it. He’s focused on people taking the responsibility to study and work on speaking. The Japanese people in general don’t put an emphasis on speaking. I lived in Japan for about 5 years after college and I’ve visited almost every year in the past 20 years. In fact, I was just there for about 3 weeks from late November to the middle of December. I hate to say it, but the average Japanese persons English speaking level is appallingly bad, to the point of being non-functional. One of the people interviewed at the end said Japanese people are very kind and you’ll get positive feedback, which is very true. It’s just that if you speak in normal English at a regular speed, they’ll understand nothing. You’ll have to speak slowly like the interviewer did. And if they do understand your question, the average person will likely be nearly unable to communicate with you in words. They’ll likely communicate with gestures, or maybe in one or two word answers in heavily accented English. I studied Japanese in college before I went there and I was obsessive about speaking Japanese everyday. It was unbelievably difficult and at times humiliating, but after a year or so I became pretty fluent. And I still speak it fluently 30 years later.

Even if it is not perfectionism, they actually do not have to learn English. Japan is a country with a population of more than 120M, has an influential currency, and has a strong market that consumes and money returns to rapidly domestic economy.(Ya, Japan also needs someplace to export their goods and talk to foreign buyers, but they are not as desperate as their neighbors.) People in such countries learn other languages only when they have to find what they need abroad. Likewise, only those who have the reason and opportunity(Abroad Job or Study) to continue to use English in Korea can speak English better than others. People who will get a job here and live here need to study English only for higher SAT and Language test scores Because that's the reality.

He immediately said ninjas. So cool. I loved his answer 🤣🤣🤣

Japanese does not need to study English. They can develop their own advanced technology, create many typical dishes, compose a variety of films, comics.... People should study Japanese to learn those things from them.

From my experience of living in Japan, i think that Japan's problem is using katakana, bc it forces them to speak Japanglish. Otherwise, they'd have to learn to speak proper English, like everyone else, and their communications skills would be much better.

I haven't been to Japan. My father has. He mentioned that this country has left a vivid impression. They are well-mannered, very clean and hygienic and neat. When they do something, they tend to do it by thinking of others.

Don't worry Japanese! We as foreigners also struggle in learning your very complicated language.

1:36 I cracked our laughing when she said dEsTineEsHON in the most japanese accent

Some of the people speaks English well some of them just shy, no worries guys, if you guys so passionate about learning English, you guys can speak English by practicing everyday, i'm an English learner too, love japan from Indonesia.❤️🇯🇵

9:50, best part!

While advanced English is necessary if someone wants to study or work in English speaking countries, I don't think random people on the street needs to feel embarrassed if they couldn't speak English. I also agree with what the lady said in 5:18. I don't think it is too much to ask for a foreigner to learn basic Japanese if they want to live in Japan for an extended period of time.

This made me love and appreciate more my job as an English teacher. This video broaden my perspective on how Japanese people view the English language. I believe that Japan will improve immensely in terms of their English knowledge in the coming years.

The questions (and answers) were interesting but I think it would have been better to just ask pretty basic tourist questions, like “Where is the nearest metro station?” or “What’s a good restaurant around here?” Then we’d have a better idea of how well those who were less proficient in English might (or might not) answer-and it would give those English speakers who are thinking of visiting Japan an idea of the extent to which they can get away with just speaking English.

Why do I always think of Engrish in anime 😂

I believe the sentence structures are very different japanese vs english. I'm a filipino and it is easy for us to learn english because the language structure is similar.

What made me really interested in learning English are video games. Consuming media in the language really helps. I found that reading books, watching shows, and playing games in English is what really pushed my proficiency from passable/conversational to near full fluency. I was taken aback that during college, when asked about speaking in English that very few actually were able to think in English as I thought it was the norm. I'm currently learning Japanese in my own way in my free time. It's proving difficult due to the difference in the alphabet and lack of time to do so. I'm trying to actively study the alphabet hiragana and katakana first and foremost, while passively learning words phonetically or in romaji form at the same time.

When I was traveling with my family in Hokkaido back in July 2018, it seriously wasn't easy whenever we wanted to interact with the locals as none of us actually knew Japanese. Personally, I'm very limited to the most basic greetings. Whenever the thought of visiting mainland Japan (this is where I'd like to go if I do revisit the country) comes to mind, I feel reluctant about going to Japan again because of my non-existent Japanese proficiency. At some point, I have to know some Japanese if I want to stand any chance of going about in Japan sufficiently smoothly.

Wow thanks for this! I'm actually planning on going to tokyo in 22 days so this was helpful!

I'm honestly not too surprised. If Japan is like South Korea, then most people will study English grammar for exam purposes in school. So it's very rare (from what I understand) that people in South Korea (and presumably Japan) that people will be able to have a conversation in English; at least not fluently or comfortably. The thing is, this is similar to learning a foreign language in the US. Many of us will (for example) have Spanish classes in middle school that teaches the very basics. Then in high school, you often have a choice of a foreign language course you can take. So unless you (for example) visit said country for a country and stay for a while, or regularly interact with people that speak said language, it'll be difficult to master a language; at least to the point where you can have a conversation, read signs & menus, etc.

I like visiting Japan because there are many choices for shopping and everyone is usually polite and nice! Also it is convenient in the city😁

I had to speak my lousy Japanese almost everywhere I went in Fukuoka, Oita and Tokyo last month. If someone responded in English that was ok, but I never expected it except at tourist information centres and major attractions, airports or some staff at Tokyo Disneyland. Bearing I worked as an English instructor twenty years ago, things are the same, it’s practically a language spoken by enthusiasts and more often than not those folks aren’t working in customer frontline roles. As people say, ‘This is Japan.’ The mentality will never change.

It's Google Translate. sorry. I have had English classes since junior high school. I am in high school now. We have English every day. But Japanese and other subjects are also important. Japanese is a culture that we should cherish. The Japanese language is very deep, and there are subjects of old languages ​​such as ancient and kanbun. There are expressions that can only be expressed in Japanese. Of course, there are some expressions that can only be expressed in English ^-^

Ok I'm only 1:45 in but the dude who tried really hard to understand the english question about 'why Japan is a popular travel destination' only to then answer with 0 hesistation 'Ninjas! So cool!' already won the video 😁😁😁 Edit: Most interviewed People trying really hard but having a hard time. That one girl 'I refute the premise of the question! I don't think Japan is that fun!' What a flex 😄😄

come and test the pedestrians on the street of Shanghai, that would be so much fun!

the guy who said "Don't worry", so cute. I mean, like he still try to speak in English for comforting the foreigners.

If I traveled to Japan, I wouldn't expect the Japanese to speak English and would welcome the lucky surprise if I ran into someone who did speak English.

Nice vid. My experience was that plenty of Japanese people can speak English, and an English speaker could get by just fine thanks to English signage. That said, knowing a little bit of Japanese went a looong way. If you're spending the time, money, and energy to visit, you might as well dedicate some to the language basics.

Haha, this was so much fun. I’m Japanese and I can say with confidence that our English level is honestly portrayed in this video or maybe even worse😂 We need to do something about it!!!

When I was traveling Japan, I really had no idea how I should order foods everytime I was in a bar. I would say Japanese people won't understand even if I speak way too slowly.

I love Japan and definitely one of the countries I want to visit. For me Japan is a beautiful country. I also love anime and some of the Japanese songs especially from anime. Also, the respectful and kind Japanese people, when I was in high school I was able to meet some Japanese students and they're fun to be with. Ohayu! 😍 If given a chance to visit Japan, I will try my very best to learn Nihongo and learn about Japan's culture and ways so that once I visit Japan, I will be able to show respect.

2:39 literally my complete opinion of Japan. 😂

Japanese people are really helpful even if they cannot understand or communicate in English. 4 years ago I stayed at a ryokan in a slightly rural area of Kyoto and even though the obaasans and ojiisans in the neighbourhood don't speak English and I, a Filipino, speak broken Japanese they still helped me when I ask for directions and shop owners treated me well.

I hope you can also do this type of interview for Filipinos back in the Philippines. Do interview around high end places. I noticed that interviews in PH are always on common streets and PH has a diverse people. It would be nice to hear interviews from people from different societal classes since there is a gap between societal classes in the Philippines.😊

2:07 I think she doesn’t know about Japan because Japan in fact is so popular. Just from the fact that Japan is so different from other countries, it becomes too attractive for foreigner.

You should look into the way English is taught in Japanese public schools to know the reason why people can't speak English. I don't think the government actually wants people to be global citizens and be connected to the world. That's not really the goal of English education in Japan. (Just my opinion. Please be kind if you disagree 😇) Japanese can most likely tell you the meaning of written English sentences because that's all we do in public schools. Asian Boss, I suggest you bring a high school English textbook used in Japanese public schools and ask people to tell you what is says in Japanese. That would be interesting.

I love Japan! Plain and simple! ❤️🇯🇵

Before the Covid, I used to visit Japan two times every year for my vacation. What attracts myself about Japan is: 1) Short flight time from Shanghai to Japan compares to US or Europe. 2) Japan is quite safe. 3) Japanese food is much better than the food in western counties. 4) service is good 5) Clean

Please do this in China and Korea.

Thank you! I will be going to Japan in March and this helped!

Yup I agree with the first answer: Ninja is so cool! 😂😂😂

I think it would be good to see this question asked to Japanese people outside of Tokyo ;)

Let's talk about them wearing t shirts with English words and phrases they don't understand the meaning of . 🤣

9:58 the guy who said “don’t worry” hahaha! 😂

"Why do you think Japan is such a popular travel destination for foreigners?" "Ninja. So cool."

Many Japanese in the comment section say that they don't need to learn English because they want to safeguard their culture and language. I'm not very good at speaking English, but I'm trying hard to improve. Learning English does not mean betraying one's culture, it means opening up to the world to interact with other people and cultures. Not knowing English nowadays means being isolated from the rest of the world

I believe that if I travel to Japan, or any other country, I need to learn the native language out of respect. If they wish to speak to me in English, I would definitely be happy to do so.

In the textbooks used in Japanese junior high schools, stories about endangered species and peace are written in English. They are not suitable for communication. Many students study English for exams. (I'm sorry because I'm using Google Translate.)

The guy in the black mask is SO my type 😍

I hope and pray to be able to visit Japan some day. I have always loved their country ❤

I am from india 🇮🇳 and I don't think english is required in Japan .They should speak their own language unlike in india ,speaking in english is considered as a good thing compare to our own language

Japanese people be like “my English is so bad” and then start reciting Shakespeare whereas when I say “my japanese bad” I mean my best effort at formulating a coherent sentence is “忍者が好き”

Japanese students learn English in a very mechanical way. After learning, they don't immediately apply it to become proficient, instead they pick up books to read to practice. Knowledge piles up and then is forgotten, or confused. I started learning English when I was 33 years old and I studied until the beginning and practiced until then so I never forgot it. About 3 months after studying, I met a British person to talk for about an hour. I understood everything they say, they understood everything I say.

Japan is so funnnnn!

1:40 they nailed it

Insightful documentary. Thank you.

街頭インタビューなのにめっちゃ英語喋れる人いるやん、道歩いてて見つかるこんな人？特に中高生らしき学生二人は若いのにちゃんと話せててすごい。綺麗なおねーさんもとても流暢。 Japanese English skills are really bad compared to other Asian countries. Actually no one speak english around me. We can live without English. Our beautiful but small world.

We also need to remember that Japanese and English have two completely different fundamentals. Japanese is an SOV language while English is an SVO language. A lot of people often think learning language is "just memorize, bro". No, you have to completely rewire the way you think. That's certainly how i did when i first learned Japanese. Not to mention, English grammar is also more complex than Japanese grammar. Japanese grammar is pretty straight up: Past tense, Present tense, Future tense. That's it, only 3. While English also has that, then you got slapped with Past Continuous, Simple Past, Present Continuous, simple present, etc. I'm pretty good at conversing in English but to this day i still don't know what on earth was all that for. Like Past Continuous is such an oxymoron. Is it already in the past or is it still happening in the present ? If it's still in the present, why do we even use past tense ?

i’m japanese i think my english level 10 but i don’t understand first question😂 so i should spend a lot of time study english!

rachel looks like pretty beauty, even though wears mask. she can also speak flency english, but still a subtle japenese accent i can hear.

I wonder why most English speaking Canadians can't speak French despite having French lessons from elementary school through to and including high school. I'm Canadian. I can count on one finger the number of English speaking Canadians I know who can speak French. I know countless Japanese who can speak English. What is preventing Canadians from learning to speak French. I suggest that it's the same as what is preventing many Japanese from learning to speak English...a lack of need/interest.

The girl that said there are no fun places in Japan, there’s a plethora of things to do in Japan. From Disneyland, to Tokyo, Kyoto, etc. exploring Japan is endless and don’t get my started on their food! 2:05

Honestly, it’s pretty amazing that so many of them knew as much English as they did! In America, we really only speak English 😢

Great efforts! Learning English is difficult for those whose mother tongue is a symbol-based language auch as Japanese, Mandarin, or Arabic. (Hindi speakers are somewhat of an exception since their countries use English as a national language.) But the excessive use of the word "like" drives me up the wall sometimes. This is a bad habit learned from English native speakers.

These guys are so lovely. I know very little Japanese but I hope I can at least communicate a little when I visit this June.

The two boys have amazing English and incredible insight into the question posed to them

Great video and interviews!

As someone with an education background and lots of teaching experience wow these questions are hard as heck for your average English learner. Only advanced learners will not struggle with it. Props to those who understood these difficult questions and answered to their best abilities.

"I don't think Japan is a fun place, I an not find any fun place in Japan, I only find shrine and temple." lmao from my experience, every location turns into a dull place when you live there long enough...

That smile says it all :) 03:07

Man, where was the lady at 2:04 and the guys at 2:26 when I was there? I only met single -word answer peeps (minus one). The guy at 3:10 is what every foreigner wants. We're not going to tease you for grammar (Hell, look at the US), but the fact that you try means everything!

When I visited Japan, I was really surprised that many Japanese people really can't speak English. In this video, some people said people in Tokyo are not so bad at using English. But as per my experience, you almost can't find any fluent speaker even at expensive hotels. In the hotel I stayed, I was asking about bills but no one at from hotel side understood what I was asking. I was trying to show my google translate to let them understand, but they didn't want to be helped and kept trying to understand by themselves. I think people working as a receptionist should accept the technologies for smoother communication when they can't speak English.

I'd love to visit Japan, I'm a big history dork! I know VERY BASIC CHINESE and basic French. I attempt to learn "please, thank you,and bathroom! When I visit a country

This is an eye opener, please do one for Koreans too, would really like to know.

Should do “How good the American at Japanese” Approach average American and ask them how good is their Japanese.

Why don't Japanese need English? Because Japan as a country has very limited relations with those English-speaking countries.. Japan is just only an ally of the United States and the United Kingdom, and a quasi-ally of Australia. As you can see, Japan is a standard Asian nation, and does not have a deep relationship with English-speaking countries.