Self-Introduction & Personal Information
Lesson 2: Country and Nationality
くにとこくせき — Where You Are From
⏱️ About 25 minutes ／ 📊 Level: Beginner (N5) ／ 🗣️ Speaking + Reading
Before You Start
After you say your name, the next natural step is to say where you are from. In this lesson, you’ll learn how to say your country, your nationality, and where you live now — three phrases that appear in almost every self-introduction.
What you’ll learn:
- Say where you came from — 〇〇から来ました
- Say your origin — 〇〇出身です
- Say your nationality — 〇〇人です
- Ask where someone is from — どこから来ましたか / どちらの出身ですか
- Say where you live now — 〇〇に住んでいます
- Know country and nationality names for 13+ countries
1. Key Phrases ／ きほんのフレーズ
2. Country and Nationality ／ くにとこくせき
Add 人 after the country name to make the nationality. Pattern: Country + 人 = Nationality
| Country | Nationality | English |
|---|---|---|
| アメリカ | アメリカ人 | American |
| インド | インド人 | Indian |
| ベトナム | ベトナム人 | Vietnamese |
| フィリピン | フィリピン人 | Filipino |
| ブラジル | ブラジル人 | Brazilian |
| 中国 | 中国人 | Chinese |
| 韓国 | 韓国人 | Korean |
| 日本 | 日本人 | Japanese |
| イギリス | イギリス人 | British |
| フランス | フランス人 | French |
| ドイツ | ドイツ人 | German |
| カナダ | カナダ人 | Canadian |
| オーストラリア | オーストラリア人 | Australian |
3. Phrase Notes ／ ポイント
何人ですか can mean two different things depending on context: (1) “What nationality are you?” and (2) “How many people?” — When used in a self-introduction context, it means nationality. When used at a restaurant, it means number of people.
4. Polite & Natural ／ ていねい・カジュアル
| Polite | Natural / Simple | English |
|---|---|---|
| どちらの出身ですか。 | どこから来ましたか。 | Where are you from? |
| 〇〇出身です。 | 〇〇から来ました。 | I am from 〇〇. |
| 今、どこに住んでいますか。 | どこに住んでいますか。 | Where do you live now? |
💡 For beginners, 〇〇から来ました and 〇〇人です are the most useful and natural starting phrases.
5. Conversation Practice ／ かいわ
💬 Conversation 1 — Where Are You From?
💬 Conversation 2 — Nationality
💬 Conversation 3 — Country and Name
💬 Conversation 4 — Where You Live
6. Vocabulary ／ たんご
| Japanese | Romaji | English |
|---|---|---|
| 国 | kuni | country |
| 出身 | shusshin | hometown / origin |
| 人 | jin | person / nationality suffix |
| どこ | doko | where |
| どちら | dochira | where (polite) |
| 住んでいます | sunde imasu | live / am living |
| 日本 | Nihon | Japan |
| 名古屋 | Nagoya | Nagoya |
| 東京 | Tookyoo | Tokyo |
| そうですか | soo desu ka | I see. / Is that so? |
7. Check Your Understanding ／ クイズ
Think about each question first. The answer and explanation are shown below each one.
〇〇から来ました = “I came from 〇〇.” から = from. 来ました = came.
Add 人 after the country to make the nationality: フィリピン + 人 = フィリピン人. This works for almost every country.
どちら = where (polite). 出身 = origin. Together: “Where are you from?” This is the polite version of どこから来ましたか.
8. Match the Phrase ／ れんしゅう
Match each Japanese phrase with its correct English meaning. Check your answers below.
9. Choose the Best Response ／ れんしゅう
Choose the best response for each situation. Answers are shown below each one.
When asked “Where did you come from?” reply with your country using 〇〇から来ました.
何人ですか = “What nationality?” → Answer with 〇〇人です.
When asked “Where do you live?” reply with 〇〇に住んでいます.
🚀 Mini Mission
Today’s mission: Say your country, nationality, and where you live now.
Try saying:
＿＿＿＿＿ 人です。
今、＿＿＿＿＿ に住んでいます。
Practice with your teacher, a classmate, or in front of a mirror.
📘 Review ／ まとめ
In this lesson, you learned how to say your country, nationality, and where you live. The three most important patterns are:
〇〇人です。(I am 〇〇 nationality.)
〇〇に住んでいます。(I live in 〇〇.)
💡 Use 〇〇から来ました to say where you came from. Use 〇〇人です for nationality. Use 〇〇に住んでいます for where you live now.
FAQ
Want to Practice with a Teacher?
Talking about where you are from feels natural only when you say it to a real person. Practice your self-introduction with a professional teacher — start with a free trial lesson.
Online or in-person — both available on request.