Japanese language education in Thailand formally dates back to the 1960s, when Thai universities began to establish Japanese language courses. A 2006 survey by the Japan Foundation found 1,153 teachers teaching the language to 71,083 students at 385 institutions; the number of students increased by 29.5% compared to the 2003 survey. As of 2024, according to the Japan Foundation, 194,366 people were learning Japanese in Thailand.
Standardised testing + JLPT examinees in ThailandYearCityExaminees by Level L1 L2 L3 L4 Total 2009 Bangkok 958 2,993 4,591 4,952 13,494 Chiang Mai 65 315 597 964 1,941 Songkla 4 35 78 261 378 Khon Kaen 12 129 379 435 955 Total 1,039 3,472 5,645 6,612 16,7682008 Bangkok 754 2,704 4,356 5,037 12,851 Chiang Mai 64 239 639 910 1,852 Songkla 1 18 80 220 319 Khon Kaen 8 94 316 406 824 Total 827 3,055 5,391 6,573 15,8462006 Bangkok 700 1949 3100 3900 9649 Chiang Mai 52 202 628 1021 1794 Songkhla 4 37 89 291 4632005 Bangkok 633 1616 2416 3456 8121 Chiang Mai 56 164 409 1120 1749 Songkhla 7 41 122 293 4632004 Bangkok 434 1280 1940 2719 6373 Chiang Mai 35 170 333 798 1336 Songkhla 2 33 94 180 3092003 Bangkok 380 1188 1773 2735 6076 Chiang Mai 27 151 273 746 11972002 BangkokData missing Chiang MaiData missing2001 Bangkok 211 681 1198 1774 3864 Chiang Mai 18 61 157 303 5392000 Bangkok 194 696 960 1338 3188 Chiang Mai 15 70 130 238 4531999 Bangkok 152 544 811 1174 2681 Chiang Mai 24 45 120 205 394 1998 Bangkok - - - - 2175 Chiang Mai - - - - 289
The Japanese Language Proficiency Test is offered in three cities in Thailand; at first, it was just offered in Bangkok and Chiang Mai, but an additional test site was added in Songkhla in 2003. The Level 4 examination, aimed at beginning students with 150 contact hours of construction, is the most widely attempted; numbers of examinees decrease at higher levels. The number of examinees nearly quintupled between 1998 and 2006. Bangkok is the only city in Southeast Asia in which JETRO's Business Japanese Proficiency Test is offered. In 2006, 232 candidates attempted the examination; their performance, measured by the proportion of examinees who were assessed as having each of the six possible levels of business Japanese proficiency, was similar to the average for examinees in all countries outside Japan. Thai students formed 13% of all candidates attempting the examination outside Japan.
See also Japanese as a foreign language Education in Thailand Language education
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