Three Favourite Japanese Jokes
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The worst job interview I ever had started with the interviewer asking me to tell him a joke.
I sat there flustered for a while before mumbling something about a man walking into a bar. The interviewer rolled his eyes.
I didn't get the job.
Sitting in a smokey cafe after the interview I remembered The Michael Jackson Joke which is probably the best beginner-Japanese joke of all time. I should've told him that one! Although he probably would have rolled his eyes at that too...
They say explaining a joke is like dissecting a frog - you understand it better but the frog dies in the process. So with that in mind, here are my three favourite, brilliant, terrible Japanese jokes.
The Michael Jackson Joke
「マイケルジャクソンの好きな色は何ですか。」
「青」
Maikeru Jakkuson no sukina iro wa nan desu ka.
Ao!
"What's Michael Jackson's favourite colour?"
"Blue."
You have to really commit to the punchline for this one. You can even tell the question in English and the punchline in Japanese, as long as the person you're speaking to knows the Japanese word ao.
I once told The Michael Jackson Joke to a friend while standing at a traffic light in Nagoya and a stranger in front of us burst out laughing. True story.
↓ (Skip to 1:05)
2. The Hawaiian Dentist Joke
「どうしてハワイ人は歯医者に行かないの？ 」
「歯はいいから！」
Doushite Hawaii jin wa haisha ni ikanai no?
Ha wa ii kara.
"Why don't Hawaiians go to the dentist?"
"Because their teeth (=ha) are good (=ii)"
My friend Kendal sent me this one last week. ありがとうケンダル！
3. The Panda Joke
パンダの好きな餌は？
パンだ。
Panda no sukina esa wa?
Pan da.
"What's a panda's favourite food?"
"Bread (=pan)"
Pandas and puns are probably two of my favourite things. This joke has both.
What's your favourite Japanese joke? Have you ever told a joke in a job interview? Let me know in the comments!
First published 10 Feb 2017
Updated 31 March 2020
Like many people in the UK, I studied French in school. I liked French. I thought it was really fun to speak another language, to talk with people, and to try and listen to what was going on in a new country. (Still do!)
When I was 14 we went on a school exchange to the city of Reims, in northeastern France. I was paired with a boy, which I’m sure some 14-year-olds would find very exciting but which I found unbearably awkward. He was very sweet and we completely ignored each other.
That was nearly 20 years ago, and I didn’t learn or use any more French until, at some point in lockdown, I decided on a whim to take some one-to-one lessons with online teachers. Here are some things I learned about French, about language learning, and about myself.