Name: Sounds of Japan that 99% Foreigners Can’t Name All
Uploaded: 2025-07-18T18:25:58.000Z
Duration: 13 min 20 s
Description: Thousands of YouTube videos with English-Chinese subtitles! Now you can learn to understand native speakers, expand your vocabulary, and improve your pronunciation...

Basic passive voice

So I wanted to change things up a little bit and do this fun little video As many of you know, I've lived in Japan for many years now And one thing I've grown to love is Japan's own unique sounds Some of these I didn't recognize until many years after living here And then didn't know the purpose until many years after this So we're gonna play a little quiz game I'm gonna play 10 uniquely Japanese sounds And we're gonna see if you can recognize where these sounds are played and their purpose I would say that all Japanese should know these sounds I'm gonna start with the easiest sounds and get progressively more difficult So let me know how you score in the comments Which one stumped you because I really want to see how everyone does All right, number one We're gonna start off easy So feel free to pause and replay as many times as you need Ready?

Reflexive pronouns

Okay, this sound came from a Japanese Family Mart convenience store Everyone in Japan goes to convenience store And I would say that even tourists go here when they come to Japan So this is probably one of the easier ones Interestingly, the door entrance chime was made by Panasonic And it was one of its default sounds Family Mart simply made this sound standard at all of their convenience stores nationwide The music itself was created by Yasushi Inada A conductor who used to work for Matsushita Denki Formerly Panasonic There we go Starting off easy, right?

Adverbs of manner

Number two This one is slightly more challenging The answer to this one is that it's a Japanese store song Indicating that the store is closing Found all over Japan in places like department stores, supermarkets, etc Its name is Hotaru no Hikari Old long sign And it's a Christmas song known around the world But in Japan, it's heard in many larger size stores Used at the end of the day to let their customers kindly know that it's time to go home When I hear this song, I kind of get into panic mode Because especially when I just got to the store I'm like, oh my god, I gotta finish my shopping It's not done So it is a little bit stressful But what can you do?

You gotta go home Number three This one might be a gimme But let's see Yakiimo Okay, did you get that?

Well, if you speak any Japanese at all Then maybe this one was rather easy But if you don't speak any at all This one might be kind of hard Well, the sound is actually coming from the Yakiimo roasted sweet potato song Usually played in the winter by a truck vendor Cruising the neighborhood, selling their warm sweet potatoes The Japanese version of the ice cream truck on cold days These Yakiimo trucks actually became popular Since they could move to high traffic areas in the winter Where people wanted warm snacks And this song itself was made in Tokyo Based on the vague idea of the original Yakiimo song There were many variations But before the 60s, when the cassette tape became popular The version became standard For some reason, when I hear this song I kind of feel a little bit cold and also hungry at the same time Number four Let's try this one I'll give you a clue This song is not the Don Quixote song Which everyone already knows I thought that one would be too easy This song is actually from Yodobashi Camera Which plays non-stop And the melody was adapted from the song Battle Hymn of the Republic The founder Terukazu Fujisawa himself wrote the lyrics And since the main store was at Shinjuku West Exit He incorporated the Yamanote train line and Chuo train line in the lyrics So people could know where the store was located For me, it's just as catchy as the Don Quixote song Where they both forever just get stuck in your head At least for the day Number five Let's see if you've heard this one before Three, two, one So this one varies from area to area But it's basically Japan's afternoon go-home song It's played on the loudspeakers throughout the neighborhood Including parks In my Tokyo neighborhood, it plays at 5 p.m. every day Signaling everyone that it's getting late And it's time to make your way home Interestingly, it serves another purpose It's a daily test to ensure the proper working order Of the neighborhood's emergency system Used for major earthquakes or any other major disaster events That need warning Even in the event of a power outage The system can continue to broadcast using its own battery So this is one of those sounds that I recognized early on But didn't know what it was for until much, much later I'm just glad that this sound is actually pretty calming You know what one of the sounds I love the most coming from Japan?

It's the sound of my Sakurako box arriving at my front door As a sponsor of this video They allow anyone to experience Japan through the comfort of their own home And once I've got it in my hands I can't wait to open up this lovely Japanese artisan snack box It's always unique to the month itself The special theme this month is the seasons of sakura You know, to celebrate Japan's blooming cherry blossoms It's always a cool surprise to see what items I get Like the sakura daifuku, umesenbei, sakura manju, etc But my first taste this month Is gonna be these brown buttery strawberry waffle cookies Oh yeah, and I also got this sakura tea to pair with the snacks And even this sakura sake glass With all these delicious themed snacks It's like having a hanami picnic in my own house And apparently this time if you sign up for a multi-month plan You get a special sakura bonus item So get your own box today Or even gift a loved one and experience Japan from the comfort of your own home Check the links below and use my code PAOLO and get $5 off your first order Number six Okay, so these sounds should be getting a little bit harder to recognize But let's see So this one is Japan's standardized morning calisthenics song Known as Rajo Taiso If you've watched a lot of my day in life videos Which I'm hoping you have Then you've probably got this one correct Originally created to promote health awareness The Tokyo Broadcasting Station started broadcasting this one in 1928 Which quickly spread as a morning assembly routine in elementary and middle schools For many Japanese, the experience of doing these calisthenics Every morning as an elementary school student And getting their card stamped is a shared memory Personally, I don't think I would have minded too much If I had to do this when I was in the US growing up Number seven So pay close attention to this one Two Did you get that?

Well, this sound is the emergency earthquake warning sound That's played on every single Japanese mobile device throughout Japan To warn you that an earthquake is about to occur It's pretty crazy if you're in a large office or just with a lot of people Because everyone's phone is just going off It's pretty insane Even crazier is that it usually sounds several seconds before the earthquake hits Obviously, you'll only experience this one if you've been in an earthquake in Japan So if you've never been in one This one might have been a little bit harder to guess Fun little fact though You can actually turn it off on your phone But most Japanese just have their phones at the default So everyone pretty much hears it Personally, I just have it turned on Number eight Okay, so I don't know if this one is easy or hard So you guys just let me know in the comments So is this sound easy or hard?

Anyway, this sound is the bell sound at all Japanese schools From elementary school all the way to high school And it's used to signal the beginning and the end of class It's known as the Kinkon Kankon bell sound And modeled after the sound of Big Ben Originally, a loud bell sound was used But after World War II, it became unpopular Because it reminded people of wartime alarms Hence, the more cheerful time signal was invented Strangely, although I didn't go to school here from K through 12 I actually thought this sound was the same sound that I had in the US But I don't know, I may be wrong Maybe I just lived here too long that I think it is But yeah, you guys tell me Number nine This one you might have heard before But do you know what it's for?

Well, I didn't know for a long time Got it?

Well, this sound is made by traditional nighttime fire prevention patrols Hinoyojin Yomawari Historically, these patrols were conducted by local community members Such as neighborhood associations, volunteer groups, and fire brigades Especially during winter months When the risk of fire incidents increased due to dry air Participants would walk through residential areas Chanting phrases like Hinoyojin, beware of fire And striking wooden clappers known as Hyoshigi To alert residents of potential fire hazards Back in the day, many Japanese homes were made of wood So houses catching fire was quite common Every time I hear this sound, I'm always like Man, it's gonna be another cold ass winter here in Japan And number 10 All right, this is the final sound How many have you gotten correct so far?

So for this one, I'm gonna give you a clue But you also have to tell me what this sound is for The clue is that you hear this sound 108 times And for those of you who are 9 for 9, let's go!

Okay, you got it So this sound is from Japan's traditional bell ringing ceremony Known as Joya no Kane Held at temples across the country From the night of December 31st, New Year's Eve To the early hours of January 1st, New Year's Day It's said that the bell is struck 108 times To rid people of the 108 earthly desires within them And there you go I hope you had fun with this video Like I said, I really wanted to change things up Want to do something more fun Maybe get you guys involved Hope you guys did like it Let me know in the comments I also wanted to share that I officially have a spot in Tokyo To sell my Paolo from Tokyo premium Kaminari hot sauce It's a dedicated vending machine in Shibuya Right next to the Mandarake shop near Tokyo Hands You can get my original hot sauce as well as umami ocean here The best part is that it's open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week The location address is on my website paolofromtokyohotsauce.com I'll leave a link in the description of the video Check the find shop section of the website for all the info Also as many of you know The online shop has been sold out for a while now But we are back in stock with a limited batch So get your hot sauce now while supplies last Or just come to Shibuya and get it at my vending machine That said, thank you guys for watching the video Appreciate all of you And if you guys want to see more videos like this Or anything related to Japan Hit that subscribe button and the bell button I'll catch you guys in the next one