Link: Approaching a Total of Four Million People―Who Learns Japanese Language in the World?

The Japan Foundation has been conducting surveys on Japanese-language education worldwide since 1974. The 2012 survey covered 203 countries, with the results recently published in the "Survey Report on Japanese-Language Education Abroad 2012".

Japanese-language education is now present in 136 countries, with a total of approximately 3.99 million learners. Compared to 2009, there has been a notable increase in the number of learners, institutions, and teachers globally.

The survey targeted schools and institutions that teach Japanese as a language, excluding other forms of casual learning. Despite this, the actual number of people studying Japanese is likely much higher than reported.

Over the past 33 years, the number of Japanese learners has grown 31.3 times. The number of institutions and teachers has also seen significant increases, reflecting the global expansion of Japanese-language education.

The top reasons for studying Japanese are "interest in the language," "communication in Japanese," and "interest in manga, anime, J-Pop, etc." Japanese pop culture plays a key role in attracting learners worldwide.

East Asia and Southeast Asia account for 82.5% of all Japanese learners globally. China, Indonesia, and Korea alone make up nearly 70% of the worldwide total, highlighting the concentration of Japanese-language education in these regions. #

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Yoooo, this is a quick note on a link that made me go, WTF? Find all past links here.