Japanese people don't like the number 4. "Shi" is how you say "4" in Japanese. It is unlucky because "死-shi-death" sounds the same as "4-shi-four." Even in apartments and hotels, there aren't often any rooms with the number 4. We don't build rooms 104, 204, etc. Room 3 is often right next to room 5. The place where room 4 is located is often empty, a linen room, or a common space. People say that Japanese people are not religious, but there are a lot of superstitions.

Japanese people don't like number 4. In Japanese, 4 is read as "shi". It is unlucky because "死-shi-death" and "4-shi-four" have the same sound. Even in apartments and hotels, it is common that there are no rooms with 4. We don't build rooms 104, 204, etc. In many cases, room 3 is next to room 5. The place where room 4 is located is often empty, a linen room, or a common space. Japanese people are said to be non-religious, but there are many superstitions.