What sports are popular in Japan?


こんにちは, みなさん!

I was just wondering if this sentence structure is correct when asking 'what
(thing) is popular in (place)?'

The example I've chosen is 'what sports are popular in Japan?'

My attempts:

  1. どんなスポーツは日本で人気がありますか。

  2. 日本ではスポーツが人気がありますか。 (Not sure about repeating the 'が' particle)

Also, could you use this structure for questions like: 'What bars are popular
in Tokyo?' 'What food is popular in Spain?' Etc.

Thanks in advance guys!

よろしくお願いします!




I would personally probably say in most contexts:

> 日本ではどんなスポーツが人気がありますか。

to mean "In Japan, what kinds of sports are popular?".

Your first sentence is slightly incorrect, as you shouldn't use は when the
topic is undefined (you don't know which sports are popular), and so making
minimal edits should read:

> どんなスポーツ **が** 日本で人気がありますか。

Your second sentence is grammatically fine, but means something different: "In
Japan, are sports popular?" -- you might just get a yes/no answer to that
question, whereas the first suggestion above should elicit a more detailed
response.

The same structure can be used for other similar questions too. For example:

> 中国ではどんな化粧品が人気がありますか。

would mean "What sorts of cosmetics are popular in China?". Just change the
noun and location of interest!

You might have to change the question word you use when it comes to more
specific questions. Your question "Which bars are popular in Tokyo" would
probably not be well understood if using どんなバー, as that would elicit responses
about the _types_ of bar that are popular (e.g. a hostess bar vs a hotel bar
vs a sports bar). If you are looking for specific information about which bar,
rather than what kind of bar, is popular, you would be better off using どのバー
or どちらのバー.




I would personally probably say in most contexts:

> 日本ではどんなスポーツが人気がありますか。

to mean "In Japan, what kinds of sports are popular?".

Your first sentence is slightly incorrect, as you shouldn't use は when the
topic is undefined (you don't know which sports are popular), and so making
minimal edits should read:

> どんなスポーツ **が** 日本で人気がありますか。

Your second sentence is grammatically fine, but means something different: "In
Japan, are sports popular?" -- you might just get a yes/no answer to that
question, whereas the first suggestion above should elicit a more detailed
response.

The same structure can be used for other similar questions too. For example:

> 中国ではどんな化粧品が人気がありますか。

would mean "What sorts of cosmetics are popular in China?". Just change the
noun and location of interest!

You might have to change the question word you use when it comes to more
specific questions. Your question "Which bars are popular in Tokyo" would
probably not be well understood if using どんなバー, as that would elicit responses
about the _types_ of bar that are popular (e.g. a hostess bar vs a hotel bar
vs a sports bar). If you are looking for specific information about which bar,
rather than what kind of bar, is popular, you would be better off using どのバー
or どちらのバー.

