Names and cultural references are a big part of any language. What are some names and references I should be familiar with so I can survive in Japan? Here's what I got so far:

-Being able to read the most common surnames and distinguishing them from normal words in conversation
-Names of celebrities
-Knowing the names of (some of) the prefectures and wards in Tokyo (?)
-Maybe historical references?

Like anywhere else, only people who care about celebrities know about celebrities. You don't need to go out of your way to memorize them. It's not much use just knowing names anyway.

Learning the locations of all the prefectures and common names is indeed very useful.

If you're inclined, reading about the Japanese economy can't hurt.

http://www.manythings.org/japanese/signs/ might help with signs. They take some getting used to.

http://www.neverland.to/kanji/gate.html
http://www.kagawa-u.ac.jp/kagawa-u_eng/e...microwave/
Shows common words on microwaves, AC, etc.

Also, be familiar with common toilet button vocab before you go, and what Japanese toilets are like, or you may be in for a shock when you get there:
http://japantravelmate.com/japanese-toil...n-washlet/

dizmox Wrote:Like anywhere else, only people who care about celebrities know about celebrities. You don't need to go out of your way to memorize them. It's not much use just knowing names anyway.

This is true for the most part, but there are household names in any culture, so they inevitably come up in conversation. Half the jokes in shows like Family Guy and South Park, as well as UK panel shows, rely on celeb references. You could easily be the one guy at the izakaya table not laughing if you're not familiar with any of them.

I agree it's not worth going out of your way to memorise them though. Just watching TV shows, especially variety shows that feature celebrities, should do the job. You can learn a lot about Japanese culture from those kind of shows anyway.

[Zgarbas]

(I am so glad I'm not the only one who worries about stuff like this).

Some shows that keep getting referenced in what I watch is: Doraemon, Sazae-San, Kinpachi sensei, and the occasional childhood-defining shows (original Gundam and the like), but the later would obviously vary.
I think the only history that pops up on a regular basis is the Meiji restoration, though I've seen lots of references to the Battle of Sekigahara and a bit of other Sengokujidai events in shows.

Also there's an anki deck with names of prefectures and wards. So many names, so hard to memorize >.<

Javizy Wrote:

dizmox Wrote:Like anywhere else, only people who care about celebrities know about celebrities. You don't need to go out of your way to memorize them. It's not much use just knowing names anyway.

This is true for the most part, but there are household names in any culture, so they inevitably come up in conversation. Half the jokes in shows like Family Guy and South Park, as well as UK panel shows, rely on celeb references. [...]

I agree it's not worth going out of your way to memorise them though. Just watching TV shows, especially variety shows that feature celebrities, should do the job. You can learn a lot about Japanese culture from those kind of shows anyway.

There's no need to watch variety shows any more than there is a need to watch Kamen Rider if you're not interested in that kind of thing though.

Quote:You could easily be the one guy at the izakaya table not laughing if you're not familiar with any of them.

This is silly, you're not going to be laughing about something you forced yourself to watch. Lots of people don't even watch TV.

There is so much cultural information to potentially learn that I wouldn't worry about it if I were you. It really is the least of your worries while your general language level is low. As your level gets higher you start picking up on some of the bits and pieces that are relevant to your life/circles. Also there is nothing wrong with not knowing a certain place name, celebrity etc. I'm sure you haven't memorised all this stuff for your own country. For instance, I'm australian, but am clueless about cricket, small town names, history etc.

dizmox Wrote:There's no need to watch variety shows any more than there is a need to watch Kamen Rider if you're not interested in that kind of thing though.
...
This is silly, you're not going to be laughing about something you forced yourself to watch. Lots of people don't even watch TV.

I haven't watched TV for years, and I have no interest in celebrity magazines or tabloids, but there are names that are inescapable if you're part of a culture, whether for good, bad or outright evil reasons (think Jordan and Peter Andre).

Nobody's saying you have to do anything, but if someone asks how he can familiarise himself with Japanese culture, variety shows are a great place to start. The guests are usually famous and rarely the same twice, so you get to actually see a large number of well-known Japanese, as well as hear the kind of jokes people might make using cultural references.

I've been in situations where somebody has said 'Uh, he's just like Xさん', and the only one who didn't laugh is me. I don't think it says anything about people's interests. It's not particularly important, and there are certainly more useful things to focus on, but it does remind me that I'm a foreigner.