Foreign people in Tokyo want Easy Japanese, survey says

Many foreign people who live in Tokyo want to read information in Easy Japanese. This is the result of a survey^*1 by the Tokyo Tsunagari Foundation^*2, a public foundation in Tokyo, the capital of Japan. The foundation published a short version of its report on May 7, 2025.

The survey asked 373 foreign people who live in Tokyo. All of them came to Japan less than five years ago, and their Japanese was at a beginner level (N4 to N5^*3). The foundation asked them questions from March 1 to March 14, 2025.

Easy Japanese is Japanese with simple words and short sentences. It is made for people who are still learning the language. Most people in the survey knew about it. In all, 91.7 percent^*4 said they had heard of Easy Japanese.

The survey asked, "If there was a flyer^*5, which language would you want to read it in?" Easy Japanese was the top answer, with 41.3 percent. English came second, with 35.9 percent. Normal Japanese, the kind written for Japanese people, was third, with 15.3 percent.

The survey also asked about important information. Of the people asked, 71.3 percent said it would be better if important information came with an explanation in Easy Japanese. When the people who said such an explanation is necessary are added, the number is about 80 percent.

The short version of the report is on the foundation's website.

1. *1 survey: asking many people the same questions to learn what they think
2. *2 foundation: a group that uses money to help people or do useful work
3. *3 N4 to N5: the two easiest levels of the Japanese language test
4. *4 percent: a number out of 100; 50 percent means half
5. *5 flyer: a sheet of paper with information, given to many people