1. Always Joking and Friendly

People in Kansai love comedy. Funny people are usually popular ones too. Many are easygoing and quick to engage with strangers, making it easy for them to make new friends.

2. Standing on the Right Side of the Escalator

In Kansai, people stand on the right side of the escalator and leave the left side open. This is the opposite of Kanto, including Tokyo, where people stand on the left and leave the right side open. Globally, the Kansai way seems to be in the minority, or first of all, is it only Japan that has rules on which side of the escalator people can stand?

3. Owning a Takoyaki Maker in Every Household

Both my house and my daughter’s house (where she lives alone) have a Takoyaki maker, and we often hold “Tako-pa” (takoyaki parties). Besides the standard octopus filling, we also add shrimp, cheese, konnyaku (a jelly-like food), sausages, and mochi. Personally, I love adding konnyaku.

4. Frequent Use of Onomatopoeia in Conversations

One challenge in Kansai is that it can be hard to understand what people say due to the heavy use of onomatopoeia.

For example, if you ask someone the direction, they would tell you:

「そこをバーと行って、シュッと曲がって、ヒュッと入ったらあるわ。」

(If you go “baa” there, turn “shu” and enter “hyu”, then you’ll see)

バー; Baa = Onomatopoeia “straight”
シュッ; Shu = Onomatopoeia “quickly”
ヒュッ; Hyu = Onomatopoeia “swiftly”

This stems from the cultural difference between Osaka’s merchant culture and Tokyo’s samurai culture. In Kansai, successful business relied heavily on communication skills, leading to the frequent use of expressive language like onomatopoeia.

5. Boasting About How Cheaply They Bought Something

In Kansai, people love to brag about how cheaply they bought something. In contrast, in Kanto, people tend to boast about how much they spent. This difference also reflects the influence of Osaka’s merchant culture versus Tokyo’s samurai culture.

6. Exaggerating and Repeating Words Twice

People in Kansai often exaggerate to make things more entertaining. For example, even if there is only a small amount of blood, someone might say,

「血がドバッと出た」”The blood gushed out (doba).”

They also frequently repeat words for emphasis, like:

「めちゃめちゃ」 “Mecha-mecha (super super)”
「かまへん、かまへん」 “Kamahen, kamahen (It’s fine, it’s fine)”
「せやで、せやで！」 “Seya de, seya de! (That’s right, that’s right)”
「しゃーない、しゃーない」 “Sha-nai, sha-nai (It can’t be helped)”
「はよ、はよ！」 “Hayo, hayo! (Hurry, hurry!)”

I often find myself saying a word twice—I wonder why?

By the way: 「めっちゃ・めちゃ」 “Meccha/mecha” (Very/Extremely) has almost become standard Japanese now.

7. Ending Conversations with 「知らんけど ‘shirankedo’」 (I Don’t Know Though)

Even when they speak as if they know something, people in Kansai often add “shiran kedo” to the end of their sentences to avoid taking responsibility of ensuring credibility, or to invite a humorous retort; they might be waiting for you to react with 「知らんのかいな！？」(You don’t know!?)

And there you have it—seven characteristics of Kansai people. 知らんけど…