为什么学习日语比学习中文更受欢迎？你为什么选择学习日语？
正文翻译
Why is learning Japanese much more popular than Chinese? Why have you chosen that way?
为什么学习日语比学习中文更受欢迎？你为什么选择学习日语？
Why is learning Japanese much more popular than Chinese? Why have you chosen that way?
为什么学习日语比学习中文更受欢迎？你为什么选择学习日语？
评论翻译
Hello. I want to preface this by saying I am not learning Japanese. I am a Polish native speaker who speaks English (however terribly) and is planning to eventually learn Italian.
r/languagelearning does not allow posts regarding one specific language, so I thought I might post here. I hope I don't offend anybody, I am just curious. I can already see some people might be infuriated without any reason, I just want to know, though.
It appears to me that Japanese learning is much more popular than learning Chinese. I do wonder, why?
Like, from what I know (I don't speak either) both Chinese and Japanese are extremely difficult to learn for a native speaker of an Indo-European language. However, Chinese has like 10 times as many native speakers. So if you invest all that time into learning Chinese, you are likely to be able to speak to many times as many people.
On top of that, China has nukes and is more likely to become a superpower.
I wonder, why exactly is Japanese learning more popular?
Why have you chosen Japanese instead of Chinese? What drove you to it? Do you think Japanese more useful?
大家好，我想先说明一下，我没有在学日语。我是一个以波兰语为母语的人，会说英语（不过说得很糟糕），并计划以后要学习意大利语。
r/语言学习板块不允许发表关于一种特定语言的帖子，所以我想我可以在这里（学习日语板块）发表。我希望我没有冒犯任何人，我只是很好奇。我已经看到有些人可能会毫无理由地被激怒，不过我还是想知道。
在我看来，学习日语要比学习中文要受欢迎得多。我确实想知道，为什么？
据我所知（这两种语言我都不会说），对于以印欧语系为母语的人来说，中文和日语都非常难学。然而，中文的母语使用者是其10倍之多。因此，如果你把所有的时间都投入到学习中文上，你就有可能和许多倍的人交谈。
除此之外，中国拥有核武器，更有可能成为一个超级大国。
我想知道，究竟为什么日语学习更受欢迎？
为什么你选择了日语而不是中文？是什么驱使你选择了它？你认为日语更有用吗？
r/languagelearning does not allow posts regarding one specific language, so I thought I might post here. I hope I don't offend anybody, I am just curious. I can already see some people might be infuriated without any reason, I just want to know, though.
It appears to me that Japanese learning is much more popular than learning Chinese. I do wonder, why?
Like, from what I know (I don't speak either) both Chinese and Japanese are extremely difficult to learn for a native speaker of an Indo-European language. However, Chinese has like 10 times as many native speakers. So if you invest all that time into learning Chinese, you are likely to be able to speak to many times as many people.
On top of that, China has nukes and is more likely to become a superpower.
I wonder, why exactly is Japanese learning more popular?
Why have you chosen Japanese instead of Chinese? What drove you to it? Do you think Japanese more useful?
大家好，我想先说明一下，我没有在学日语。我是一个以波兰语为母语的人，会说英语（不过说得很糟糕），并计划以后要学习意大利语。
r/语言学习板块不允许发表关于一种特定语言的帖子，所以我想我可以在这里（学习日语板块）发表。我希望我没有冒犯任何人，我只是很好奇。我已经看到有些人可能会毫无理由地被激怒，不过我还是想知道。
在我看来，学习日语要比学习中文要受欢迎得多。我确实想知道，为什么？
据我所知（这两种语言我都不会说），对于以印欧语系为母语的人来说，中文和日语都非常难学。然而，中文的母语使用者是其10倍之多。因此，如果你把所有的时间都投入到学习中文上，你就有可能和许多倍的人交谈。
除此之外，中国拥有核武器，更有可能成为一个超级大国。
我想知道，究竟为什么日语学习更受欢迎？
为什么你选择了日语而不是中文？是什么驱使你选择了它？你认为日语更有用吗？
culturedgoat
Japan built up a big wave of export culture from about the mid-80s, which has continued to present-day (arguably peaking around the late-90s/early-2000s, and somewhat overshadowed by Korean pop-culture - the hallyu wave - these days). This - Japan’s “soft power” - enticed many to visit the country, and study the language and culture.
Japanese also has a longer, more established history of being taught as a foreign language - with more plentiful high-quality resources from which to learn.
China still struggles with export culture, and when I started learning Mandarin, over a decade ago, the teaching materials and learning resources were overly-academic, and unrefined. It’s come a long way since then - and acquired learners all over the world - but I’d say it still has some catching up to do with Japanese…
日本从大约 80 年代中期开始掀起了一股文化出口浪潮，一直持续到今天（可以说在 90 年代末/2000 年代初左右达到顶峰，最近在某种程度上被韩国流行文化--韩流--所掩盖了）。这种——日本的“软实力”——吸引了许多人访问该国，学习其语言和文化。
日语作为一门外语被教授的历史也更长、更成熟——有更丰富的优质资源可供学习。
中国仍然在出口文化上挣扎，当我十多年前开始学习普通话时，教材和学习资源过于学术化，而且没有提炼。从那时起它已经走了很长一段路 - 并在世界各地获得了学习者 - 但我想说它仍然需要追赶日语...
Japan built up a big wave of export culture from about the mid-80s, which has continued to present-day (arguably peaking around the late-90s/early-2000s, and somewhat overshadowed by Korean pop-culture - the hallyu wave - these days). This - Japan’s “soft power” - enticed many to visit the country, and study the language and culture.
Japanese also has a longer, more established history of being taught as a foreign language - with more plentiful high-quality resources from which to learn.
China still struggles with export culture, and when I started learning Mandarin, over a decade ago, the teaching materials and learning resources were overly-academic, and unrefined. It’s come a long way since then - and acquired learners all over the world - but I’d say it still has some catching up to do with Japanese…
日本从大约 80 年代中期开始掀起了一股文化出口浪潮，一直持续到今天（可以说在 90 年代末/2000 年代初左右达到顶峰，最近在某种程度上被韩国流行文化--韩流--所掩盖了）。这种——日本的“软实力”——吸引了许多人访问该国，学习其语言和文化。
日语作为一门外语被教授的历史也更长、更成熟——有更丰富的优质资源可供学习。
中国仍然在出口文化上挣扎，当我十多年前开始学习普通话时，教材和学习资源过于学术化，而且没有提炼。从那时起它已经走了很长一段路 - 并在世界各地获得了学习者 - 但我想说它仍然需要追赶日语...
tech6hutch
I can’t say I actually know of any Chinese shows, but I think most people could name at least one Japanese show.
我说不出来有什么中国节目，但我想大多数人至少能说出一个日本节目。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
I can’t say I actually know of any Chinese shows, but I think most people could name at least one Japanese show.
我说不出来有什么中国节目，但我想大多数人至少能说出一个日本节目。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
poliver1988
Soft power.
It has the biggest animation/comics industry in the world. (No equivalent in China)
It has second biggest game industry in the world. First one being global/English oriented. (No equivalent in China, and China has strict rules and censorship when it comes to videogames)
It has revered world popular influential cinematography. (Hong Kong as well, but whether it is China is debatable)
Second biggest music industry.
A lot of people appreciate Japanese culture/history/cuisine.
It is also a first-world country that is vastly different from Western ones. It used to be worlds 2nd biggest economy. Words Made in Japan mean quality. Made in China means cheap knock-off. Many of household electronic brands are Japanese. Also many of car makes are Japanese. Unlike with Chinese, you don't get Japanese economic migrants (hence mostly Chinese people working in Japanese restaurants in USA/UK)
It's also home to many martial arts like karate, aikido, kendo and many other ones.
软实力。
它拥有世界上最大的动画/漫画产业。(中国没有类似的产业)
它拥有世界上第二大的游戏产业。排第一的是全球/英语导向的。(在中国没有类似的产业，而且中国在电子游戏方面有严格的规定和审查制度。）
它有受人尊敬的世界流行的有影响力的电影制作。(香港也是如此，但是否属于中国则有待商榷)
第二大音乐产业。
很多人欣赏日本文化/历史/美食。
它也是一个与西方国家有着巨大差异的第一世界国家。它曾经是世界第二大经济体。日本制造一词意味着质量。中国制造意味着廉价的山寨货。许多家用电子品牌是日本的。许多汽车制造商也是日本人。与中国人不同的是，你不会看到有日本经济移民（大多数中国人在美国/英国的日本餐馆工作）。
它也是许多武术的发源地，如空手道、合气道、剑道和许多其他的武术。
Soft power.
It has the biggest animation/comics industry in the world. (No equivalent in China)
It has second biggest game industry in the world. First one being global/English oriented. (No equivalent in China, and China has strict rules and censorship when it comes to videogames)
It has revered world popular influential cinematography. (Hong Kong as well, but whether it is China is debatable)
Second biggest music industry.
A lot of people appreciate Japanese culture/history/cuisine.
It is also a first-world country that is vastly different from Western ones. It used to be worlds 2nd biggest economy. Words Made in Japan mean quality. Made in China means cheap knock-off. Many of household electronic brands are Japanese. Also many of car makes are Japanese. Unlike with Chinese, you don't get Japanese economic migrants (hence mostly Chinese people working in Japanese restaurants in USA/UK)
It's also home to many martial arts like karate, aikido, kendo and many other ones.
软实力。
它拥有世界上最大的动画/漫画产业。(中国没有类似的产业)
它拥有世界上第二大的游戏产业。排第一的是全球/英语导向的。(在中国没有类似的产业，而且中国在电子游戏方面有严格的规定和审查制度。）
它有受人尊敬的世界流行的有影响力的电影制作。(香港也是如此，但是否属于中国则有待商榷)
第二大音乐产业。
很多人欣赏日本文化/历史/美食。
它也是一个与西方国家有着巨大差异的第一世界国家。它曾经是世界第二大经济体。日本制造一词意味着质量。中国制造意味着廉价的山寨货。许多家用电子品牌是日本的。许多汽车制造商也是日本人。与中国人不同的是，你不会看到有日本经济移民（大多数中国人在美国/英国的日本餐馆工作）。
它也是许多武术的发源地，如空手道、合气道、剑道和许多其他的武术。
nmshm
Hong Kong is part of China, but it's Cantonese that is overwhelmingly used there, so Mandarin is almost useless for experiencing its culture
香港是中国的一部分，但那里绝大多数人使用的是粤语，所以普通话对体验其文化几乎没有作用。
Hong Kong is part of China, but it's Cantonese that is overwhelmingly used there, so Mandarin is almost useless for experiencing its culture
香港是中国的一部分，但那里绝大多数人使用的是粤语，所以普通话对体验其文化几乎没有作用。
FullCandyCorn
So I can watch anime without subtitles of course
当然是为了可以在没有字幕的情况下看动画。
So I can watch anime without subtitles of course
当然是为了可以在没有字幕的情况下看动画。
kyousei8
Pretty much replace anime with any media.
Like I just want to play video games without needing translations. I can think of like 3 native Chinese language video games if I try really hard, and I've already played two of them. I don't care about any of the reasons in OP's post.
几乎可以用任何媒体代替动漫。
就像我只想在不需要翻译的情况下玩电子游戏。如果我非常努力地想，我可以想到3个以中文为母语的视频游戏，而且我已经玩过其中的两个。我并不关心OP帖子中的任何理由。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
Pretty much replace anime with any media.
Like I just want to play video games without needing translations. I can think of like 3 native Chinese language video games if I try really hard, and I've already played two of them. I don't care about any of the reasons in OP's post.
几乎可以用任何媒体代替动漫。
就像我只想在不需要翻译的情况下玩电子游戏。如果我非常努力地想，我可以想到3个以中文为母语的视频游戏，而且我已经玩过其中的两个。我并不关心OP帖子中的任何理由。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
araiderofthelostark
OP
What are those? Just curious.
哪3个游戏？有点好奇
OP
What are those? Just curious.
哪3个游戏？有点好奇
MarioEatsGrapes
Genshin Impact and Pokémon Unite maybe?
可能是原神和宝可梦大集结？
Genshin Impact and Pokémon Unite maybe?
可能是原神和宝可梦大集结？
kyousei8
Detention, Muse Dash, and Genshin. I've played the first two. I'm not interested in the third but if I was, I would probably play it in Japanese (as opposed to English) since it "feels" like a Japanese game.
是“返校”、“喵斯快跑”和原神我已经玩了前两个。我对第三部不感兴趣，就算如果我感兴趣，我可能会用日语玩（而不是英语），因为它"感觉"像一个日本游戏。
Detention, Muse Dash, and Genshin. I've played the first two. I'm not interested in the third but if I was, I would probably play it in Japanese (as opposed to English) since it "feels" like a Japanese game.
是“返校”、“喵斯快跑”和原神我已经玩了前两个。我对第三部不感兴趣，就算如果我感兴趣，我可能会用日语玩（而不是英语），因为它"感觉"像一个日本游戏。
nicocal04
That is, if you haven't played it or not much at least.
It feels very Chinese, specially because of Liyue, its gods and myths, geography and the Lantern Festival. I like to play it in Chinese, specially at these times of the year.
可以说你没有玩过，或者至少没怎么玩过。
它给人的感觉非常中国化，特别是因为漓月，它的神灵和神话，地理和元宵节。我喜欢用中文玩它，特别是在每年的这些时候。
That is, if you haven't played it or not much at least.
It feels very Chinese, specially because of Liyue, its gods and myths, geography and the Lantern Festival. I like to play it in Chinese, specially at these times of the year.
可以说你没有玩过，或者至少没怎么玩过。
它给人的感觉非常中国化，特别是因为漓月，它的神灵和神话，地理和元宵节。我喜欢用中文玩它，特别是在每年的这些时候。
Danxs11
I think that it comes from exposure to culture. Japan did far better job at exporting their culture abroad, thus making people more keen to learn their language. Similar thing with Korea.
For me, I was interested in East Asian cultures in general, both Japanese and Chinese. I chose Japanese because it just sounds nice in my opinion (also previously mentioned exposure to the culture). Chinese doesn't sound bad, but sometimes it may sound kind of funny.
Also I think thay it is much harder to read Chinese, since all of their writing is in Chinese characters. With Japanese it's only about 40% while the other 60% is kana, which is relatively easy to learn. Japanese is also easier to pronounce. It has many sounds similar to Polish. (I am also Polish)
我认为，这来自于对文化的接触。日本在向国外输出其文化方面做得很好，从而使人们更热衷于学习他们的语言。韩国也有类似的情况。
对我来说，我对东亚文化感兴趣，包括日本和中国。我选择日语是因为在我看来它听起来好听（也是之前提到的对文化的接触）。中文听起来不坏，但有时听起来可能有点好笑。
此外，我认为阅读中文要难得多，因为他们所有的文字都是汉字。而日语只有大约40%，其他60%是假名，相对来说比较容易学习。日语也更容易发音。它有许多声音与波兰语相似。(我也是波兰人)
I think that it comes from exposure to culture. Japan did far better job at exporting their culture abroad, thus making people more keen to learn their language. Similar thing with Korea.
For me, I was interested in East Asian cultures in general, both Japanese and Chinese. I chose Japanese because it just sounds nice in my opinion (also previously mentioned exposure to the culture). Chinese doesn't sound bad, but sometimes it may sound kind of funny.
Also I think thay it is much harder to read Chinese, since all of their writing is in Chinese characters. With Japanese it's only about 40% while the other 60% is kana, which is relatively easy to learn. Japanese is also easier to pronounce. It has many sounds similar to Polish. (I am also Polish)
我认为，这来自于对文化的接触。日本在向国外输出其文化方面做得很好，从而使人们更热衷于学习他们的语言。韩国也有类似的情况。
对我来说，我对东亚文化感兴趣，包括日本和中国。我选择日语是因为在我看来它听起来好听（也是之前提到的对文化的接触）。中文听起来不坏，但有时听起来可能有点好笑。
此外，我认为阅读中文要难得多，因为他们所有的文字都是汉字。而日语只有大约40%，其他60%是假名，相对来说比较容易学习。日语也更容易发音。它有许多声音与波兰语相似。(我也是波兰人)
JesusForTheWin
Interesting you say that because Chinese speakers only use about an extra 1000 more or so Chinese characters than the Japanese. However, when starting Chinese it is certainly a lot more intimidating.
你这么说很有意思，因为说中文的人只比日本人多用了1000个左右的汉字。然而，当开始使用中文时，它肯定是更令人生畏的。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
Interesting you say that because Chinese speakers only use about an extra 1000 more or so Chinese characters than the Japanese. However, when starting Chinese it is certainly a lot more intimidating.
你这么说很有意思，因为说中文的人只比日本人多用了1000个左右的汉字。然而，当开始使用中文时，它肯定是更令人生畏的。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
Danxs11
I think that extra 1000 is not "only". Its 50% more than there are standard kanji. Still, I don't doubt Chinese is not that much harder than Japanese (and in some aspects it may be even much easier). Writing about Chinese characters usage, I meant that Japanese is easier to comprehend for someone used to an alphabet because of kana. Because of that, as you mentioned, Japanese looks less intimidating than Chinese.
我认为，不仅仅是多了额外的1000个。它比标准日语汉字的数量多了50%。不过，我并不怀疑中文并不比日语难多少（在某些方面甚至可能更容易）。在写到汉字的使用时，我的意思是，由于假名的存在，日语对一个习惯于字母的人来说更容易理解。正因为如此，正如你所提到的，日语看起来没有中文那么令人生畏。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
I think that extra 1000 is not "only". Its 50% more than there are standard kanji. Still, I don't doubt Chinese is not that much harder than Japanese (and in some aspects it may be even much easier). Writing about Chinese characters usage, I meant that Japanese is easier to comprehend for someone used to an alphabet because of kana. Because of that, as you mentioned, Japanese looks less intimidating than Chinese.
我认为，不仅仅是多了额外的1000个。它比标准日语汉字的数量多了50%。不过，我并不怀疑中文并不比日语难多少（在某些方面甚至可能更容易）。在写到汉字的使用时，我的意思是，由于假名的存在，日语对一个习惯于字母的人来说更容易理解。正因为如此，正如你所提到的，日语看起来没有中文那么令人生畏。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
JesusForTheWin
Yeah I think we are both in agreement.
By the way, we Chinese learners welcome you to study Chinese if you want! Or you can start by learning classical Chinese first (and skip the pronunciation).
是的，我想我们的想法是一致的。
顺便说一句，如果你愿意，我们中文学习者欢迎你来学习中文! 或者你可以先从学习古典汉语开始（跳过发音）。
Yeah I think we are both in agreement.
By the way, we Chinese learners welcome you to study Chinese if you want! Or you can start by learning classical Chinese first (and skip the pronunciation).
是的，我想我们的想法是一致的。
顺便说一句，如果你愿意，我们中文学习者欢迎你来学习中文! 或者你可以先从学习古典汉语开始（跳过发音）。
ArguablyCanadian
Chinese having 10 times the number of native speakers doesn't make it 10 times more useful, you're not going to speak to 1 billion Chinese speakers. Usefulness of a language is driven by individual goals. Learning Chinese is really only useful if you want to work with Chinese people, live in China, or you're just interested in China. The exact same thing can be said about Japanese.
So why is Japanese more popular? It's more conducive to people's interests. Japan has spent decades accumulating soft power by exporting cultural products (you can read this as anime is popular). People are more interested in Japan and it's a nicer place to live than China in terms of living standards, so more people want to go there. Hence, learning Japanese is more useful to more people.
中文有10倍的母语使用者并不意味着它有10倍的用处，你不可能和10亿个讲中文的人说话。一门语言的有用性是由个人目标驱动的。如果你想和中国人一起工作，在中国生活，或者你只是对中国感兴趣，那么学习中文就真的有用。日语的情况也是如此。
那么为什么日语更受欢迎呢？它更有利于人们的利益。日本花了几十年时间通过出口文化产品积累软实力（你可以把这理解为动漫很受欢迎）。人们对日本更感兴趣，而且就生活水平而言，日本的生活环境比中国好，所以更多的人想去那里。因此，学习日语对更多人来说更有用。
Chinese having 10 times the number of native speakers doesn't make it 10 times more useful, you're not going to speak to 1 billion Chinese speakers. Usefulness of a language is driven by individual goals. Learning Chinese is really only useful if you want to work with Chinese people, live in China, or you're just interested in China. The exact same thing can be said about Japanese.
So why is Japanese more popular? It's more conducive to people's interests. Japan has spent decades accumulating soft power by exporting cultural products (you can read this as anime is popular). People are more interested in Japan and it's a nicer place to live than China in terms of living standards, so more people want to go there. Hence, learning Japanese is more useful to more people.
中文有10倍的母语使用者并不意味着它有10倍的用处，你不可能和10亿个讲中文的人说话。一门语言的有用性是由个人目标驱动的。如果你想和中国人一起工作，在中国生活，或者你只是对中国感兴趣，那么学习中文就真的有用。日语的情况也是如此。
那么为什么日语更受欢迎呢？它更有利于人们的利益。日本花了几十年时间通过出口文化产品积累软实力（你可以把这理解为动漫很受欢迎）。人们对日本更感兴趣，而且就生活水平而言，日本的生活环境比中国好，所以更多的人想去那里。因此，学习日语对更多人来说更有用。
willarin
“China has nukes.” I, too, consult a world map of nuclear powers when choosing what to learn.
For me, I moved to Japan (a choice in itself to be sure), so it was never a question. Hobbyists are drawn to cultural factors that make them interested in a language. I don’t think it’s a mystery, because it’s also certain that learning Chinese has become more popular as its soft power and influence has increased.
“中国有核武器。” 在选择学习内容时，我也会参考核大国的世界地图呢。
对我来说，我搬到了日本（这本身就是一个选择），所以这从来都不是问题。爱好者被文化因素所吸引，使他们对一种语言感兴趣。我觉得这不是什么神秘的事情，因为也可以肯定的是，随着中国软实力和影响力的增加，学习中文变得更加流行。
“China has nukes.” I, too, consult a world map of nuclear powers when choosing what to learn.
For me, I moved to Japan (a choice in itself to be sure), so it was never a question. Hobbyists are drawn to cultural factors that make them interested in a language. I don’t think it’s a mystery, because it’s also certain that learning Chinese has become more popular as its soft power and influence has increased.
“中国有核武器。” 在选择学习内容时，我也会参考核大国的世界地图呢。
对我来说，我搬到了日本（这本身就是一个选择），所以这从来都不是问题。爱好者被文化因素所吸引，使他们对一种语言感兴趣。我觉得这不是什么神秘的事情，因为也可以肯定的是，随着中国软实力和影响力的增加，学习中文变得更加流行。
level 2
JesusForTheWin
Well no wonder everyone learns Engish once they know of America's amazing nukes.
难怪每个人一旦知道了美国惊人的核弹数量之后都会去学习英语。
JesusForTheWin
Well no wonder everyone learns Engish once they know of America's amazing nukes.
难怪每个人一旦知道了美国惊人的核弹数量之后都会去学习英语。
ivan_422
Since when owning a nuke or not have become a factor of choosing which countries’ language to learn?
从什么时候开始，拥有核弹与否成了选择学习哪个国家语言的因素了？
Since when owning a nuke or not have become a factor of choosing which countries’ language to learn?
从什么时候开始，拥有核弹与否成了选择学习哪个国家语言的因素了？
CariolaMinze
Because I love Japanese culture and find it way more interesting. Been to Japan once and loved it. Working for a Japanese company now. Will probably never be really good in Japanese but even small progress (recognising Kanji or words) is making me happy!
因为我喜欢日本文化，觉得它更有趣。去过一次日本，很喜欢那里。现在在一家日本公司工作。我的日语可能永远不会很好，但即使是很小的进步（认识新的汉字或单词）也让我很开心
Because I love Japanese culture and find it way more interesting. Been to Japan once and loved it. Working for a Japanese company now. Will probably never be really good in Japanese but even small progress (recognising Kanji or words) is making me happy!
因为我喜欢日本文化，觉得它更有趣。去过一次日本，很喜欢那里。现在在一家日本公司工作。我的日语可能永远不会很好，但即使是很小的进步（认识新的汉字或单词）也让我很开心
Avionic7779x
Just because Chinese has more native speakers doesn't mean much. If that was the case, why would I bother with either when Hindi is even easier than those two to learn? Many people learn Japanese because Japanese culture in recent decades has exploded in the West, and with that spike in popularity, more people want to learn about the culture and language. Japanese is a very useful language, especially since they are the 3rd largest economy in the world, and are the primary "gateway" if you will to Asia for western business (sans Hong Kong), since relations with the CCP are icy at best and it's incredibly hard to expand there. Also what does owning nukes have literally anything to do with learning a language lol? In that case why doesn't everyone learn Russian, Hindi, Urdu, Traditional Korean and French? But mainly, most people learn because they have an intrest in Japanese culture (and I'm sure Chinese would have a similar spike if a certain organization didn't absolutely destroy Chinese culture and made it a crime).
中文有更多的母语使用者并不意味着什么。如果是这样的话，印地语甚至比这两种语言更容易学习，我为什么还要去学这两种语言呢？许多人学习日语是因为近几十年来，日本文化在西方爆发，随着这种受欢迎程度的飙升，更多的人想要学习这种文化和语言。日语是一门非常有用的语言，尤其是因为他们是世界第三大经济体，而且是西方商业进入亚洲的主要"门户"（香港除外），因为西方与中国的关系非常一般，在那里扩张是非常困难的。另外，拥有核弹与学习语言有什么关系呢？这么说的话，为什么每个人不学习俄语、印地语、乌尔都语、传统朝鲜语和法语？所以说主要是大多数人学习是因为他们对日本文化感兴趣（如果某个组织没有破坏中国文化并将其定为犯罪，我相信中文也会有类似的高峰）。
Just because Chinese has more native speakers doesn't mean much. If that was the case, why would I bother with either when Hindi is even easier than those two to learn? Many people learn Japanese because Japanese culture in recent decades has exploded in the West, and with that spike in popularity, more people want to learn about the culture and language. Japanese is a very useful language, especially since they are the 3rd largest economy in the world, and are the primary "gateway" if you will to Asia for western business (sans Hong Kong), since relations with the CCP are icy at best and it's incredibly hard to expand there. Also what does owning nukes have literally anything to do with learning a language lol? In that case why doesn't everyone learn Russian, Hindi, Urdu, Traditional Korean and French? But mainly, most people learn because they have an intrest in Japanese culture (and I'm sure Chinese would have a similar spike if a certain organization didn't absolutely destroy Chinese culture and made it a crime).
中文有更多的母语使用者并不意味着什么。如果是这样的话，印地语甚至比这两种语言更容易学习，我为什么还要去学这两种语言呢？许多人学习日语是因为近几十年来，日本文化在西方爆发，随着这种受欢迎程度的飙升，更多的人想要学习这种文化和语言。日语是一门非常有用的语言，尤其是因为他们是世界第三大经济体，而且是西方商业进入亚洲的主要"门户"（香港除外），因为西方与中国的关系非常一般，在那里扩张是非常困难的。另外，拥有核弹与学习语言有什么关系呢？这么说的话，为什么每个人不学习俄语、印地语、乌尔都语、传统朝鲜语和法语？所以说主要是大多数人学习是因为他们对日本文化感兴趣（如果某个组织没有破坏中国文化并将其定为犯罪，我相信中文也会有类似的高峰）。
yNetto
It is not just about being useful or not. People have various reasons for learning a language. Many Japanese learners have a passion for Japanese culture, whether it be pop culture such as anime, manga, dorama, games, or work-related reasons. If one is only looking for opportunities for work or the number of people they can communicate with, then learning Chinese may seem like a better choice. However, it is important to remember that learning a language is not only about work or studies.
这不仅仅是有用与否的问题。人们学习一门语言有各种原因。许多日语学习者对日本文化充满热情，无论是流行文化，如动漫、漫画、电视剧、游戏，还是与工作有关的原因。如果一个人只是为了寻找工作机会或能与之交流的人数，那么学习中文似乎是一个更好的选择。然而，重要的是要记住，学习一种语言不仅仅是为了工作或学习。
It is not just about being useful or not. People have various reasons for learning a language. Many Japanese learners have a passion for Japanese culture, whether it be pop culture such as anime, manga, dorama, games, or work-related reasons. If one is only looking for opportunities for work or the number of people they can communicate with, then learning Chinese may seem like a better choice. However, it is important to remember that learning a language is not only about work or studies.
这不仅仅是有用与否的问题。人们学习一门语言有各种原因。许多日语学习者对日本文化充满热情，无论是流行文化，如动漫、漫画、电视剧、游戏，还是与工作有关的原因。如果一个人只是为了寻找工作机会或能与之交流的人数，那么学习中文似乎是一个更好的选择。然而，重要的是要记住，学习一种语言不仅仅是为了工作或学习。
TeaTimeSubcommittee
It's actually not, there's just a bias in your perception, probably because the reasons to learn Japanese are more to do on culture and entertainment as well as the perception we have on the west about both countries.
But if you just look even at the Wikipedia page for languages by number of speakers, you'll realise it's not even close with Chinese having about 198 mil L2 speakers while Japanese barely has 0.1 mil.
In short it might be more popular because around you Japan is more popular, but worldwide it's not the case at all.
其实事实并非如此，你的看法有偏差，可能是因为学习日语的原因更多的是文化和娱乐，以及我们在西方对这两个国家的看法。
但是，如果你看一下维基百科上关于语言使用人数的页面，你就会发现这根本不可能，中文有大约1.98亿的二级使用者，而日语几乎没有达到10万。
简而言之，它可能更受欢迎，因为在你周围日本更受欢迎，但在世界范围内，情况完全不是这样的。
It's actually not, there's just a bias in your perception, probably because the reasons to learn Japanese are more to do on culture and entertainment as well as the perception we have on the west about both countries.
But if you just look even at the Wikipedia page for languages by number of speakers, you'll realise it's not even close with Chinese having about 198 mil L2 speakers while Japanese barely has 0.1 mil.
In short it might be more popular because around you Japan is more popular, but worldwide it's not the case at all.
其实事实并非如此，你的看法有偏差，可能是因为学习日语的原因更多的是文化和娱乐，以及我们在西方对这两个国家的看法。
但是，如果你看一下维基百科上关于语言使用人数的页面，你就会发现这根本不可能，中文有大约1.98亿的二级使用者，而日语几乎没有达到10万。
简而言之，它可能更受欢迎，因为在你周围日本更受欢迎，但在世界范围内，情况完全不是这样的。
makhanr
These numbers are really suspicious. It's likely Chinese has more learners than Japanese but it can't be 2000x more. There is a ton of Chinese who speak Mandarin as their 2nd or 3rd dialect, I wouldn't be surprised if this article actually counted them. 100'000 L2 speakers of Japanese is also extremely low, unless it only considers those fluent in the language.
Proficiency test participation should be a better estimate of popularity as a foreign language. It's hard to find stats for HSK but it looks like it had 6.8 mln participants in 2018. JLPT had about 1.2 mln in the same year.
这些数字真的很让人怀疑。中文的学习者可能比日文多，但不可能多出2000倍。有大量的中国人把普通话作为他们的第二或第三方言，如果这篇文章真的算上了他们，我也不会感到惊讶。10万名日语二级使用者也太低了，除非它只考虑那些能流利使用的人。
参加能力测试应该是对作为外语的受欢迎程度的更好估计。很难找到HSK的统计数据，但看起来它在2018年有680万名参与者。JLPT在同一年有大约120万人次。
These numbers are really suspicious. It's likely Chinese has more learners than Japanese but it can't be 2000x more. There is a ton of Chinese who speak Mandarin as their 2nd or 3rd dialect, I wouldn't be surprised if this article actually counted them. 100'000 L2 speakers of Japanese is also extremely low, unless it only considers those fluent in the language.
Proficiency test participation should be a better estimate of popularity as a foreign language. It's hard to find stats for HSK but it looks like it had 6.8 mln participants in 2018. JLPT had about 1.2 mln in the same year.
这些数字真的很让人怀疑。中文的学习者可能比日文多，但不可能多出2000倍。有大量的中国人把普通话作为他们的第二或第三方言，如果这篇文章真的算上了他们，我也不会感到惊讶。10万名日语二级使用者也太低了，除非它只考虑那些能流利使用的人。
参加能力测试应该是对作为外语的受欢迎程度的更好估计。很难找到HSK的统计数据，但看起来它在2018年有680万名参与者。JLPT在同一年有大约120万人次。
TeaTimeSubcommittee
You're probably right, the first issue I noticed is that it takes all varieties of Chinese into one, so it most definitely has some inflated numbers, and it also probably has some outdated numbers for Japanese (Although I found the 121k figure in many other sites) I couldn't find anything on the metrics used to get to those numbers, and I wouldn't be surprised if it tried to only look at people passing the JLPT N1 overseas or something in that regard.
That being said the gap is so massive that I still think it leans in that direction, it's not unusual to find people who try Mandarin for business, not to mention most learners are probably in SEA, where China has a more important precence, so I do believe that Japanese is much more notorious for the western world than it actually is being actively learned.
你可能是对的，我注意到的第一个问题是，它把所有的中文种类都归为一个，所以它肯定有一些夸大的数字，它也可能用的是一些已经过时的日语数字（我在许多其他网站上发现了“12万”的数字），我找不到任何关于用来得出这些数字的指标，如果它只是来自海外通过了JLPT N1的人或类似的东西，我也不会感到惊讶。
虽然如此，但差距如此之大，我还是认为它说明了某种倾向。找到尝试用普通话做生意的人并不罕见，更不用说大多数学习者可能是在东南亚，在那里中国占有重要的先机，所以我确实相信日语在西方世界的名声比它实际被积极学习的程度要大得多。
You're probably right, the first issue I noticed is that it takes all varieties of Chinese into one, so it most definitely has some inflated numbers, and it also probably has some outdated numbers for Japanese (Although I found the 121k figure in many other sites) I couldn't find anything on the metrics used to get to those numbers, and I wouldn't be surprised if it tried to only look at people passing the JLPT N1 overseas or something in that regard.
That being said the gap is so massive that I still think it leans in that direction, it's not unusual to find people who try Mandarin for business, not to mention most learners are probably in SEA, where China has a more important precence, so I do believe that Japanese is much more notorious for the western world than it actually is being actively learned.
你可能是对的，我注意到的第一个问题是，它把所有的中文种类都归为一个，所以它肯定有一些夸大的数字，它也可能用的是一些已经过时的日语数字（我在许多其他网站上发现了“12万”的数字），我找不到任何关于用来得出这些数字的指标，如果它只是来自海外通过了JLPT N1的人或类似的东西，我也不会感到惊讶。
虽然如此，但差距如此之大，我还是认为它说明了某种倾向。找到尝试用普通话做生意的人并不罕见，更不用说大多数学习者可能是在东南亚，在那里中国占有重要的先机，所以我确实相信日语在西方世界的名声比它实际被积极学习的程度要大得多。
gr1user
Learning Russian would be far more useful than Italian, also easier for a Slav. So why would you waste your time on Italian?
学习俄语比意大利语更有用，对斯拉夫人来说也更容易。那么，你为什么要把时间浪费在意大利语上呢？
Learning Russian would be far more useful than Italian, also easier for a Slav. So why would you waste your time on Italian?
学习俄语比意大利语更有用，对斯拉夫人来说也更容易。那么，你为什么要把时间浪费在意大利语上呢？
ZitroneGnom
I hope this is irony...
我希望这是一种讽刺......
I hope this is irony...
我希望这是一种讽刺......
Iryanus
My interests are purely personal, not really rationally motivated. I would also like to learn Latin, for example, and the amount of native speakers there is zero ;-)
For various reasons (which, of course, let's be honest, include manga&anime, but are not limited to them) I like Japan quite a bit since late childhood, while I don't feel the same for China. Don't get me wrong, I know China also has a rich history and interesting culture, but the same is true for many countries. You cannot like them all the same.
Additionally, chances are that I will in my life, speak to a lot less than a million native speakers, so it makes no difference if there are a billion or less of them. Admittedly, for my job it would be minimally better the learn Chinese - my (European) company has an office in Hong Kong - but since I don't do anything sales- or customer-related, that would be so extremely minimal that it doesn't matter.
我的兴趣纯粹是个人的，并不是真的出于理性的动机。例如，我也想学习拉丁语，但这种语言的母语者数量是零;-)
由于各种原因（当然，说实话，其中包括漫画和动画，但不限于此），我从小就很喜欢日本，而对中国则没有这种感觉。不要误会我的意思，我知道中国也有丰富的历史和有趣的文化，但许多国家也是如此。你不可能都一样地喜欢它们。
此外，在我的生活中，我很可能会与不到一百万的母语人士交谈，所以即使有十亿或更少也没有什么区别。诚然，对于我的工作来说，学习中文会有一点微小的好处--我的（欧洲）公司在香港有一个办事处--但由于我不做任何与销售或客户有关的事情，这种好处将是极其微小的，所以并不重要。
My interests are purely personal, not really rationally motivated. I would also like to learn Latin, for example, and the amount of native speakers there is zero ;-)
For various reasons (which, of course, let's be honest, include manga&anime, but are not limited to them) I like Japan quite a bit since late childhood, while I don't feel the same for China. Don't get me wrong, I know China also has a rich history and interesting culture, but the same is true for many countries. You cannot like them all the same.
Additionally, chances are that I will in my life, speak to a lot less than a million native speakers, so it makes no difference if there are a billion or less of them. Admittedly, for my job it would be minimally better the learn Chinese - my (European) company has an office in Hong Kong - but since I don't do anything sales- or customer-related, that would be so extremely minimal that it doesn't matter.
我的兴趣纯粹是个人的，并不是真的出于理性的动机。例如，我也想学习拉丁语，但这种语言的母语者数量是零;-)
由于各种原因（当然，说实话，其中包括漫画和动画，但不限于此），我从小就很喜欢日本，而对中国则没有这种感觉。不要误会我的意思，我知道中国也有丰富的历史和有趣的文化，但许多国家也是如此。你不可能都一样地喜欢它们。
此外，在我的生活中，我很可能会与不到一百万的母语人士交谈，所以即使有十亿或更少也没有什么区别。诚然，对于我的工作来说，学习中文会有一点微小的好处--我的（欧洲）公司在香港有一个办事处--但由于我不做任何与销售或客户有关的事情，这种好处将是极其微小的，所以并不重要。
2751333
I don't know where this assumption comes from. As someone who has learned/is continually learning to speak both: Chinese has a much bigger learning base of learners worldwide. Probably one of the most common languages people pick up to learn. Japanese isn't even close.
我不知道这个假设从何而来。作为已经学习/正在不断学习说这两种语言的人：中文在全球范围内拥有更大的学习基础。可能是人们选择学习的最常见的语言之一。日语还差得远呢。
I don't know where this assumption comes from. As someone who has learned/is continually learning to speak both: Chinese has a much bigger learning base of learners worldwide. Probably one of the most common languages people pick up to learn. Japanese isn't even close.
我不知道这个假设从何而来。作为已经学习/正在不断学习说这两种语言的人：中文在全球范围内拥有更大的学习基础。可能是人们选择学习的最常见的语言之一。日语还差得远呢。
efugeni
Russian native here
began studying Japanese as a hobby, and as an extracurricular activity at my uni in Siberia which was taught by a visiting Japanese linguist who was conducting his research there, and teaching Japanese part time
aside from anime that played a big role too, i simply liked how Japanese sounded more compared to alternatives
我是俄罗斯人
开始学习日语是一种爱好，也是我在西伯利亚的大学里的一项课外活动，大学里有一位访问的日本语言学家在那里进行研究，他还兼职教日语。
动画片也起了很大的作用，另外我单纯喜欢日语与其他语言相比听起来更有感觉。
Russian native here
began studying Japanese as a hobby, and as an extracurricular activity at my uni in Siberia which was taught by a visiting Japanese linguist who was conducting his research there, and teaching Japanese part time
aside from anime that played a big role too, i simply liked how Japanese sounded more compared to alternatives
我是俄罗斯人
开始学习日语是一种爱好，也是我在西伯利亚的大学里的一项课外活动，大学里有一位访问的日本语言学家在那里进行研究，他还兼职教日语。
动画片也起了很大的作用，另外我单纯喜欢日语与其他语言相比听起来更有感觉。
InxKat13
Because I'm in school to be an illustrator who works for animation and games. Japan is actually a pretty big part of those industries, so I feel like it's a useful language to learn. Plus as an artist, kanji is actually fun for me to learn and easy to remember.
因为我在学校是一名从事动画和游戏工作的插画师。日本实际上是这些行业的重要组成部分，所以我觉得这是一种有用的语言来学习。另外，作为一名艺术家，日文汉字对我来说其实很有趣，也很容易记住。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
Because I'm in school to be an illustrator who works for animation and games. Japan is actually a pretty big part of those industries, so I feel like it's a useful language to learn. Plus as an artist, kanji is actually fun for me to learn and easy to remember.
因为我在学校是一名从事动画和游戏工作的插画师。日本实际上是这些行业的重要组成部分，所以我觉得这是一种有用的语言来学习。另外，作为一名艺术家，日文汉字对我来说其实很有趣，也很容易记住。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
hyouganofukurou
1, Japanese has a much easier pronunciation than Chinese for English speakers.
2, imo Japanese has easier grammar but some English speakers might find Chinese easier in terms of that. I would say neither are that difficult coming from English.
3, there are more people interested in Japanese content and culture than Chinese (anime, manga, the country itself etc.).
As for me personally, I like kanji in Japanese so much I started learning mandarin...
1，对于讲英语的人来说，日语的发音比中文容易得多。
2，我认为日语的语法更容易，但有些说英语的人可能会发现中文在这方面更容易。我想说的是，这两种语言对英语来说都不难。
3，与中文相比，有更多人对日本的内容和文化感兴趣（动漫、漫画、国家本身等）。
就我个人而言，我非常喜欢日本的汉字，所以开始学习普通话......
1, Japanese has a much easier pronunciation than Chinese for English speakers.
2, imo Japanese has easier grammar but some English speakers might find Chinese easier in terms of that. I would say neither are that difficult coming from English.
3, there are more people interested in Japanese content and culture than Chinese (anime, manga, the country itself etc.).
As for me personally, I like kanji in Japanese so much I started learning mandarin...
1，对于讲英语的人来说，日语的发音比中文容易得多。
2，我认为日语的语法更容易，但有些说英语的人可能会发现中文在这方面更容易。我想说的是，这两种语言对英语来说都不难。
3，与中文相比，有更多人对日本的内容和文化感兴趣（动漫、漫画、国家本身等）。
就我个人而言，我非常喜欢日本的汉字，所以开始学习普通话......
Artexie1
i domt think japanese has easier grammar
我不认为日语的语法更容易。
i domt think japanese has easier grammar
我不认为日语的语法更容易。
fr0styp4ncakes
If you like japanese kanji more... u should look at traditional chinese... they tell more of the meaning of the words
如果你更喜欢日本汉字……你应该看看繁体中文……它们能体现更多单词的意思
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
If you like japanese kanji more... u should look at traditional chinese... they tell more of the meaning of the words
如果你更喜欢日本汉字……你应该看看繁体中文……它们能体现更多单词的意思
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
misshonimposshiburu
I was bored.
Just out of pure interest I decided it would be some Asian language (choice between Chinese, Korean and Japanese)
I was consuming Japanese media anyway, so why not do that in their language?
Kind of a minor one, but because of easier pronunciation
Because of writing system! I wanted to try and make sense of these quirky pictures they call words (that's a reason why not Korean)
So yeah, as I said, it all started because I was bored, so I didn't really put much thought into it and didn't have much hopes.. But then it just snowballed, I got to like the process of learning, I like to find new kanji (chinese characters used in Japanese) and I'm just having a good time! And that's mainly because it is all self learning, I don't have any exams to look up to, no deadlines, no pressure.
Also I definitely plan to try Chinese as well, but maybe later
1/ 我很无聊。
2/ 出于纯粹的兴趣，我决定学习一些亚洲语言（在中文、韩文和日文之间选择）
3/ 既然我都在消费日本媒体，那为什么不学习他们的语言呢？
4/ 一个不是很重要的原因，因为发音更容易
5/ 因为书写系统！我想试着理解这些他们称之为文字的古怪图片（这就是为什么没选韩语的原因）
所以，是的，就像我说的，这一切都是因为我很无聊才开始的，所以我并没有真正考虑太多，也没有抱太大希望。但后来它就像滚雪球一样，我开始喜欢学习的过程，我喜欢寻找新的汉字（日语中使用的汉字），而且我玩得很开心！这主要是因为这都是自学，我没有任何考试，没有截止日期，没有压力。
我也肯定打算尝试中文，但也许以后吧
I was bored.
Just out of pure interest I decided it would be some Asian language (choice between Chinese, Korean and Japanese)
I was consuming Japanese media anyway, so why not do that in their language?
Kind of a minor one, but because of easier pronunciation
Because of writing system! I wanted to try and make sense of these quirky pictures they call words (that's a reason why not Korean)
So yeah, as I said, it all started because I was bored, so I didn't really put much thought into it and didn't have much hopes.. But then it just snowballed, I got to like the process of learning, I like to find new kanji (chinese characters used in Japanese) and I'm just having a good time! And that's mainly because it is all self learning, I don't have any exams to look up to, no deadlines, no pressure.
Also I definitely plan to try Chinese as well, but maybe later
1/ 我很无聊。
2/ 出于纯粹的兴趣，我决定学习一些亚洲语言（在中文、韩文和日文之间选择）
3/ 既然我都在消费日本媒体，那为什么不学习他们的语言呢？
4/ 一个不是很重要的原因，因为发音更容易
5/ 因为书写系统！我想试着理解这些他们称之为文字的古怪图片（这就是为什么没选韩语的原因）
所以，是的，就像我说的，这一切都是因为我很无聊才开始的，所以我并没有真正考虑太多，也没有抱太大希望。但后来它就像滚雪球一样，我开始喜欢学习的过程，我喜欢寻找新的汉字（日语中使用的汉字），而且我玩得很开心！这主要是因为这都是自学，我没有任何考试，没有截止日期，没有压力。
我也肯定打算尝试中文，但也许以后吧
taiyousea
Japanese was simply more accessible to me when I was a teenager 10+ years ago, so I latched on and never let go.
There is a massive amount of Chinese content available now that wasn't available on American platforms a decade ago, a ton of great C-dramas on Netflix, manhwa, C-pop, and the extremely wonderful Hello Chinese app. I do fully believe that knowing Chinese will be politically essential in the coming decades, but it interferes with my Japanese level in that hànzì can often have entirely different meanings from their kanji equivalents.
I definitely want to learn Chinese someday. It's a vast and rich culture and the country has such a beautiful geography. However, it just so happened that Japanese got to me first!
10多年前，当我还是青少年的时候，日语对我来说更容易接触到，所以我抓住了这个机会，一直没有放手。
现在有大量的中文内容是十年前美国平台上没有的，Netflix上有大量优秀的中国电视剧，还有漫画、C-pop，以及极其出色的Hello Chinese应用程序。我完全相信，在未来几十年里，懂中文在政治上将是必不可少的，但这会影响我的日语水平，因为汉字通常与日语汉字的含义完全不同。
我肯定希望有一天能学习中文。它是一个广阔而丰富的文化，而且这个国家有如此美丽的地理环境。然而，恰好是日语先吸引了我。
Japanese was simply more accessible to me when I was a teenager 10+ years ago, so I latched on and never let go.
There is a massive amount of Chinese content available now that wasn't available on American platforms a decade ago, a ton of great C-dramas on Netflix, manhwa, C-pop, and the extremely wonderful Hello Chinese app. I do fully believe that knowing Chinese will be politically essential in the coming decades, but it interferes with my Japanese level in that hànzì can often have entirely different meanings from their kanji equivalents.
I definitely want to learn Chinese someday. It's a vast and rich culture and the country has such a beautiful geography. However, it just so happened that Japanese got to me first!
10多年前，当我还是青少年的时候，日语对我来说更容易接触到，所以我抓住了这个机会，一直没有放手。
现在有大量的中文内容是十年前美国平台上没有的，Netflix上有大量优秀的中国电视剧，还有漫画、C-pop，以及极其出色的Hello Chinese应用程序。我完全相信，在未来几十年里，懂中文在政治上将是必不可少的，但这会影响我的日语水平，因为汉字通常与日语汉字的含义完全不同。
我肯定希望有一天能学习中文。它是一个广阔而丰富的文化，而且这个国家有如此美丽的地理环境。然而，恰好是日语先吸引了我。
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