When introducing yourself, sharing your country of origin is a common, friendly conversation starter. Similarly to English, there are two main ways to express this in Japanese: saying “I come from [Country]” or stating your nationality, “I am [Adjective].”
This guide will teach you both essential structures and even show you how to talk about where you were born versus where you grew up, giving your introductions a natural, personalized touch.
Method 1: Stating Your Country of Origin
The first and most direct way to state where you come from is by using the phrase that means “I come from…”
The Core Structure: Country + から来ました(kara kimashita)
Use the name of your country followed by the phrase から来ました (kara kimashita).
- から (kara) means “from.”
- 来ました (kimashita): This is the past tense of the verb 来る (kuru), meaning “to come.”
Click here to hear how to pronounce から来ました.
Example: if you are from the United States, you would say: アメリカから来ました (Amerika kara kimashita)
The Importance of Skipping the Subject
As English speakers, we’re often tempted to start the sentence with 私は (Watashi wa), that we translate to “I am,” but it’s better and feels more natural to skip it.
While starting with 私は is grammatically correct, using the pronoun “I” too often in Japanese can give the impression that you are self-centered. Therefore, it’s culturally more appropriate to skip the subject when it is obvious who you are talking about.
Method 2: Stating Your Nationality
Next, the second common way to express your origin is by stating your nationality, which is often done using a simple formula.
The Core Structure: Country + 人です (jin desu)
To say “I am [Nationality],” you will use the name of your country followed by 人です (jin desu).
- 人 (じん / jin): This character (read as hito by itself) means “human” or “person.” When attached to a country name, it forms the corresponding nationality.
Example: if you are from England, you would say: イギリス人です (Igirisu-jin desu)
List of a few countries
To start practicing, here is a list of 10 countries. Remember to use the Katakana spelling for foreign names. If yours is not in the list below, you can look it up on Google Translate.
- アメリカ (Amerika) — America (also used for the United States)
- イギリス (Igirisu) — England
- カナダ (Kanada) — Canada
- フランス (Furansu) — France
- ロシア (Roshia) — Russia
- スペイン (Supein) — Spain
- ドイツ (Doitsu) — Germany (from the German Deutsch)
- 日本 (Nihon / Nippon) — Japan
- 中国 (Chūgoku) — China (literally “Middle Country”)
- 韓国 (Kankoku) — South Korea
Click here to hear how to pronounce 日本人です.
Combining Birthplace and Where You Grew Up
In addition, if you were born in one place but grew up in another, Japanese allows you to be very precise.
To say “I was born in [Place],” you use: [Place]+で 生まれました (de umaremashita).
- で (de): A particle that indicates the place where an action (in this case, being born) took place.
- 生まれました (Umaremashita): The past tense of the verb 生まれる (umareru) meaning “to be born.”
Born and Raised
On the other hand, if you want to express that you were born and raised in the same place, you can any of these two phrases:
- [Place] 生まれ育ちです ([Place] umare sodachi desu).
- 生まれも育ちも[Place] です (Umare mo sodachi mo [Place] desu).
A Split Origin Introduction
If you want to say, “I was born in [Place A] but grew up in [Place B],” you can link the clauses as such:
- [Place A] 生まれで、[Place B] 育ちです ([Place A] umare de, [Place B] sodachi desu)
Example: if you want to say “I was born in New York, but I grew up in LA,” you’ll say: ニューヨーク生まれで、ロサンゼルス育ちです。 (Nyū Yōku umare de, Rosanzerusu sodachi desu).
Best Phrase to Share Your Origin
Alternatively, if you’re looking for a slightly different nuance, you can use a term that means “I am originally from.”
- [Place] 出身です ([Place] shusshin desu)
This phrase uses the noun 出身 (shusshin), which means “origin,” and is a very common way to state your birthplace or hometown. It’s concise and widely used.
Click here to hear how to pronounce 出身です.
Putting It All Together: Naturally Introduce Yourself
The flexibility of these phrases, from the direct から来ました (kara kimashita) to the concise 人です (jin desu) and the useful 出身です (shusshin desu), shows you just how much Japanese values context. By skipping the unnecessary “I” and using the formula that best fits your situation, you’re not just sharing information; you’re engaging in natural, polite conversation. Now you have all the tools to introduce yourself fully: greeting, name, and origin. Great job on taking this step!
Ready for the next lesson?
Let’s study how to ask “Where are you from” in Japanese!