How I Know If Someone's From Japan

How can you tell if one group in a crowd of hundreds is from your home country?  I was at a ski resort in Tahoe earlier today, taking a burger-and-chili-fries break, studying a Japanese family sitting at a table in front of me. They were far enough away that I couldn't hear what they were saying, but two tiny signs told me that they were Japanese, not Chinese or Korean.

Anyone who's been asked if they can tell the difference between the three dominant East Asian races has probably taken—or should take—the All Look Same quiz. It's really hard. I always score pretty badly on it. But that's because the biggest indicators of Japanese, Korean, or Chinese are not the facial features, but much more nuanced things like the way their jeans are tapered, or the way they ask for the bill at a restaurant.

Back to the family at the ski resort. It was a mom, a baby, a dad, and another younger woman, presumably an aunt. The dad was talking to the aunt while buckling his ski boots. At one point, he looked up from his boot-buckling and did a slight shake-of-the-head-nod type of thing. That gesture, albeit so small and subtle, was so Japanese! And then I looked over at the mom and the baby. The mom was holding the baby up to her face and talking to him. At one point, she did this thing where she gave the baby a little boost and made a facial expression that was so distinctly Japanese.

In this particular situation, I had very little else to go by. They were all wearing ski gear, which made clothing analysis obsolete, and I was too far away to tell what or how they were speaking. But I knew, because of these two little things.

If you have any stories about how you've been able to tell whether someone is from your home country/culture, please share!

Comments

[Jenanime]

I took this a long time ago. It's fun. I hope others get a little education from taking the quizzes.

[mom]

After all these years, the only way I can tell is when I hear them talking.

[Javatrader]

We always argue about that over here and I often boast about how good I am at it. Often we will place bets and then scoot in closer to listen in on the conversation to settle the bet.
There are definitely distinctive japanese mannerisms that are easy to spot, my favorite being the bowing into the phone. Another obvious one is the covering of the mouth by women when they laugh. Often when I come back from a Japan trip I find myself doing alot of these things:
1. Bowing to the person in the car opposite me that I either let pass or turn in front of me.
2. Saying sumimasen alot, especially in crowded stores and restaurants.
3. Grunting agreement into a phone.

[msgilligan]

I'm Irish-American (with greater than 50% Irish DNA and the rest being Western European) and was visiting Ireland. I was in a pub with live music and had left my obviously American ski jacket on a hook by the door. I was not wearing tennis shoes and the rest of my outfit wasn't distinctively American. Because of the loud music, there was very little conversation. I was hoping I might be mistaken for a local.

There was a break in the music and the man next to me leaned over and said, "So, are you American or Canadian?"

I said, "American. How did you guess?" He said that I was just a little too tall and a little too dark-skinned. (I'm very fair-skinned by any American standard.)

So, in Ireland, I have a chance to be tall, dark, and handsome ;) But apparently, I can't blend in with the natives. Maybe if I move from California to Seattle before the next Ireland trip...

[msgilligan]

p.s. When I met you, Lisa, I was surprised that you were born in Japan.