Aizuchi: Why it's impolite NOT to interrupt people in Japanese

In Japan, you don't wait quietly for a conversation to finish. Be polite - chime in! This is the story behind aizuchi, why Japanese speakers talk back so much more often.

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~ Briefly ~
I'll start with a personal story of how my sensei peppered feedback with filler words as we practiced. That was my jumping off point for learning more about Japanese aizuchi.

Compare a sample conversation in English and Japanese. Learn the history behind the term "aizuchi" and how it went from conversing about ironworking to conversing about conversing. After that, come to see how aizuchi work in Japanese, including a quick tour through the research. Finally, I'll consider the back-and-forth conversation building this communication strategy allows and end with a remark on what aizuchi means to me as I reflect back on my sensei's encouragement.

~ Credits ~
Art, animation and narration by Josh from NativLang

My sources doc with credits for images, music, fonts, sounds and sources for claims made:

aizuchi,backchanneling,filler words,fillers,japanese conversations,japanese language,language,linguistics,animation,