What Japanese Finger Counting Looks Like
Countries around the world have different gestures when they count with their hands. Have you ever wondered how the Japanese count with their fingers? Here is a short tutorial on what Japanese hand counting looks like.
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Along with this video, there are photos and explanations below to guide you!
1
2
3
4
5
As seen in the above photos, the gestures for counting from 1 to 5 is very simple, and are the same in many other countries.
However, it gets a bit tricky from 6, so make sure you're paying attention!
6
Open up one of your hands as you would when indicating 5. Make a 1 with your other hand and place it on the palm of the first hand.
7
Again, make a 5 with one hand, then make a 2 with your other hand and place it on the palm of the first hand.
8
Make a 5 with one hand and 3 in the other, placing it on the palm of the first hand.
9
Make a 5 with one hand and 4 in the other, placing it on the palm of the first hand.
10
For 10, spread out all the fingers on both of your hands.
Were there any surprises? Is the way they count in Japan different from your country?
In Japanese, there are different counters to add after a number depending on what kind of object you're talking about, which can get very confusing! But now that you know how to indicate numbers by gesturing with your hands, you can get around without having to learn the Japanese words for each number or those tricky counters!
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The information in this article is accurate at the time of publication.
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