Hi, everyone! Last week in my blog, I talked about the signs of the Zodiac (which is えと in Japanese, or 干支). Those are based on when a person is born, and they can show what kind of character or personality each person might have. But here in Japan, there is another popular way to find out about people's personality: knowing which BLOOD TYPE they have!
Our blood type is decided based on what blood type our parents have. For example, if your mother and father both have "O" type, then you (and all your brothes & sisters) will have "O" type as well. People's blood types are important for hospitals to know. That's because if someone has a serious accident, the doctors might need to give blood to that person. The kind of blood has to match, or the person can perhaps die. But many Japanese also believe that certain blood types have a certain type of personality.
This picture shows a typical "A" blood type person: hard-working and very detailed. But these people often are really sensitive and worry a lot. I have the "A" blood type, and this personality definitely seems to match me most of the time!
The photo above shows our image of people with "B" blood type. They are often friendly and easy-going. However, they can sometimes be a little bit selfish because they are not afraid to give their opinions (even if that might hurt other people).
"AB" blood types are usually complicated people. They might be an artist, like shown in the picture here. They tend to be creative and curious. Maybe they like learning many different things, so some of them are labeled as "geniuses" because they are very intelligent. But others may be seen as kind of "crazy" at times. My wife is an "AB" person!
Lastly, "O" blood types are considered natural leaders (like the man in the photo above). Many Japanese prime ministers have had that blood type. People with "O" type are seen as optimistic and good team-players. But sometimes they might seem too confident in themselves, or not interested in certain things that many other people feel are important. So they are not always well-liked by everyone.
So, what do YOU believe? Are blood types a good way of learning about what kind of person we are??
- Peter 
