Alrighty folks and folkesses! You might have been wondering what all this fuss is about with the launch of Twitter lists. What? You haven’t?? Why then you m’boy have been sleeping under a rock! Here’s the top Japan and Japanese-related people to follow on Twitter in a one handy list!

But first, wanna know more about Twitter lists?

A little more on Twitter Lists

So in case you really, truly have been living under a moss-infused luminescent-fungi covered rock, here is the low-down on the new Twitter lists feature: The Twitter Blog.

But you don’t really want to read all that do you? So here’s the deal – you can now create lists of twitterers based on your own criteria. Have you ever felt like you were following too many people and couldn’t keep up? Or perhaps there were people you really wanted to follow, but they just *have* to say something every 3 minutes and it clogs up your nice, usable twitter stream.

Yes? Well now, all of that is over! Of course, we can’t stop people tweeting too much (well, we technically could, but it wouldn’t work well in practice), so the next best thing is to allow you to sort them into groups based on however you feel! And you don’t have to follow them individually!

Have a group of budding entrepreneurs that you really want to keep tabs on every now and then, but don’t want them swamping your twitter stream with their latest fund-raising event? No problem! Add them all into one list and dip your toes in whenever you feel like it!

Mashable has tried to separate twitter lists into 4 types: Staff directories, Specific information, News streams and Events. I’m sure we can think of more if we try, but that’s not the point – the freedom to organise the world how you want is!

The top Japan people to follow on Twitter

Okay, so here it is. The ultimate (ever-growing) list of Japan peeps to follow on Twitter! How dare I sound overzealous and pompous! There are many other great Japan-related lists out there being created, so why should you follow my list??

In short, because I’m influential (at least according to one indexing algorithm ^^;). (Major ego-boost alert). According to Wefollow as of 4th November 2009, I am the 5th most influential twitterer within the ‘Japanese’ category. Our very own rotten Tofugu is 3rd!

Hah. Maybe all the fame and glory is getting to me ^^;. But in all seriousness folks, if you are interested in Japan or Japanese, I’ve added a lot of wonderful people to my list. You could do a lot worse in starting off your Japanese twitter experience.

And the best part is that you don’t have to start following all these people immediately! All you need to do is follow my list and look at it whenever you please. You can follow it and view it right here:

http://twitter.com/gakuranman/japan

Then, as you discover new and interesting people, you can follow them individually, gradually building up your own, unique Twitter experience :).

I also recommend Tofugu’s list for J-bloggers. More of the same, but shorter and specific to (mainly) foreign bloggers writing about Japan. You can find his rocking list right here:

http://twitter.com/list/tofugu/japan-bloggers

And finally, let me say that this isn’t a popularity contest. I’m not out to create social classes on Twitter. If you have a genuine interest and tweet or blog regularly about Japan and I’ve missed you out, please leave a comment telling me and I’ll add you to the list! ^_^

Oh, and if you fancy following me, in all my bioluminescent failing glory, please go right ahead. I won’t bite:

Follow Gakuranman on Twitter!