To burp or not to burp

Have you ever been in a dilemma of whether to ‘let it out’ or not? Shirin Mehrotra gives you a heads up on burping etiquettes in different countries.

India: We Indians are loud and so are our dakaars (burps). We like a huge, audible appreciation after a rich and spicy meal. Nobody will mind your burp in India except for a few snobs. Just don’t do it in your girlfriend’s face.

Japan: The Japanese are quiet liberal when it comes to slurping but you can’t geppu. Yes, that cute word means burp in Japanese and its considered rude on their dining table. But you can bring the bowl close to your mouth and empty the content using chopsticks.

China: When dining among Chinese, you can just let yourself go. Slurp your soup, lay back and let it out. A small satisfactory burp means that you liked the food. However, do not pour your drink yourself and remember to leave a little food on the plate.

France: The French are pretty stringent about their table manners. Roter or vomir is a strict no-no but if you accidentally do so, a polite ‘excusez-moi’ might save you. They are a bit lenient regarding clearing up the plate. You are allowed to take a piece of bread and wipe the sauce on the plate but just once.

Italy: The Italians don’t like their rutto (burp) to be heard and you might get some distasteful glances if you make any noise. Which is surprising since Italians are known to be loud.

UK: While dining with the Brits you might have to mind your belch among other things. However, in few regions it’s a tradition to burp after meal.

Canada: If you want to thank your chef in Canada you should burp. And, it may sound bizarre but burping is a sport here. All you need to do is be a part of the World Burping Association and burp your way to glory.

Germany: According to the tradition, Germans considered it highly impolite if their guests did not burp. It’s a way of telling the host that you are satisfied. This idea came from the German priest and religious reformer Martin Luther who used to say, “Warum pfurzet und ruelpset ihr nicht, hat es euch nicht geschmecket?” which translates to, “Why don’t you farteth and burpeth? Didn’t you fancy the meal?”