To offend someone is not so much of a difficult task these days. Just post your opinion online, and wait for people to roast you with all the abuses they have studied up until now. But there exist certain surprising ways to offend people in other countries. One of the most common ways is to misunderstand the culture of a specific country, and then getting bashed by them for not knowing it. Not having a prior knowledge of languages and communication norms can also make things interesting for you. Still, apart from these, other surprising ways to offend are still a choice.
1. Nodding
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If you nod your head in Bulgaria, you’re saying “No”. But if you’re shaking your head side-to-side, then it’s a “Yes”. So practice hard before going to that country.
2. Stop
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Lifting your palm straight up is quite a common action for saying “Stop”, but not in Greece. It’s a big insult there. Back in the old era, people used their palms to smear poop and charcoal on criminal’s faces.
3. Cross Arms
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In Finland, people take crossing arms as an extreme act of arrogance done purposefully. Sure it could mean rude in other countries as well, but it wouldn’t start a fist fight though. I mean, yes.
4. Refusing Food
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In most Arab countries, it’s extremely rude to refuse food. Even if you aren’t hungry or thirsty. If that’s the case, I can bet no one would get mad at me over there, ever.
5. Devil Horns
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In most of the countries though, devil’s horns are quite common in rock concerts. However, don’t ever try using these in Portugal and Brazil where this sign means that someone’s wife hasn’t been faithful *ahem*.
6. Tip
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While it’s all good to tip the waiters and bartenders in certain parts of the world, it is considered as an act of extreme rudeness in Japan and South Korea. They take tipping as an insult.
7. Gifts
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If you’re in Japan or China, don’t ever accept the gift on the first go. People might think you’re rude and greedy. They have a culture where one is required to reject the gift several times before accepting it.
8. Don’t Pat
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In Thailand, it’s a big NO to pat someone on their head. That’s because Buddhists believe that head is where our soul lives and it’s not good to pat someone’s soul.
9. Thumbs Up
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While it may mean “Yeah, Good” “Great” “I’m Good” etc in other countries, doing a thumbs up in Australia might get you in trouble. It means “Up your bum” over there.
10. Being Late. Err.. On Time
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Generally, yes generally, people get offended when we arrive late to a place. But in Argentina, it is somewhat rude to be on time. It’s almost taken as if you’re earlier than expected.
