What is the difference between culture and tradition? Is there a difference between the two?

What is the difference between culture and tradition? Is there a difference between the two?

These two words are often used interchangeably, but they each carry different and important meaning.

We live in a truly connected world. You can access any culture you like with a swipe of your finger. You can learn about traditions you may never experience firsthand. But without understanding their meanings, you may end up culturally appropriating and offending, even if your intentions are to honor them.

Tradition vs. Culture: Why The Japanese Remove Their Shoes

Around 2,300 years ago, Japanese people began to wear shoes to aid in rice cultivation. They wore them to keep their feet dry during the long, humid, and wet days they spent outside. And so, before entering the house each evening, they would remove their shoes to avoid bringing any dirt inside.

But cleanliness was only part of the reason. Another came down to manners, and how they considered their house a sacred place.

It’s suggested the origin of this came from the raised floor storehouse used to house the rice paddies during the Meiji period. The amount of rice paddy you collected represented power, so bringing dirt into the storehouse after a long day was seen as an insult to the work you did.

A tradition began that’s still practiced throughout modern-day Japan. Not just in people’s homes, but in certain restaurants, schools, temples, and even tea ceremonies. The tradition has become a part of Japanese culture.

What is Culture?

Culture is the collective

For the most part, culture looks at the big picture. It’s a general term that represents the whole. It includes everything from the food you eat to the TV shows you watch, as well as art, language, fashion, dance, and more.

When you think of the Japanese culture, for instance, certain foods, movie genres, dances, art, and language likely come to mind. Culture is what brings an entire group of people together. It not only represents what you do but also what you believe. It’s deep-rooted into your personality and behavior, often resulting in shared morals and values. It’s a shared sense of community identity.

In short, culture is everything a certain group of people has amassed throughout their history. It’s a way of life that you learn through immersion as you experience it each and every day.