Thanks Around the World

If you grew up in the United States, chances are you’re pretty accustomed to hearing (and giving) verbal expressions of gratitude. By some counts, Americans say “thank you” more than 2,000 times per year. But in many other countries, non-verbal expressions of thanks — or even no thanks at all — is the norm. For example, in Japan, it’s customary to give gifts, while in China, showing respect is known as an expression of gratitude. Meanwhile, the Inuit often provide gifts of meat with no gratitude expected, and Tamil South Indians have no word for “thank you” in their language.