How necessary is it to learn the language of the country you...

It is not necessary to learn the language of the country that we are going to work. My experience tells that you will learn the language of the country that you are going to work in the process of working there. I happens depending up on how friendly or amicably you live with the local people.

It is necessary to learn the language in the country you are working. I is a must to learn a few which are necessary for informal communication. This will make your first few days easier. For example taking a cab and pointing out directions.

I agree that it is desirable to learn the local language but it may not be necessessary. I managed to live in a small city in Japan for a year and a half while only being able to speak a few words.

I feel that learning even a little of the country one wants to reside and work in, probably will help more than someone with no knowledge of it at all. Of course while there, I´d assume that one learns regardless, but I know I´d personally feel a little bit more confident if I had some prior knowledge before getting there.

I´m hoping to work in Japan someday, so I´m trying to learn as much as I can.

I believe learning about the country you are going to helps to know where you are going, how far are you from the closest large city, or where is the closest hospital, etc, but I dont think is necessary to learn the language just a few words to get along is helpful, many times the locals speak broken English and you learn from them and they learn from you

Absolutely learn some of the language of the place you live even if English speakers can be found everywhere. You´ll need some survival language in case you meet someone who doesn´t have any foreign language skills - often taxi drivers qualify. So directions - go right, go left, go straight, stop. Of course you will need greetings and the ability to order in a restaurant and buy things. But most people in every country appreciate the effort to learn their language as it shows respect. Occasionaly you will come across people who are not patient when you miscombobulate your words, those that are ignorant of the language learning process, but what can you do, ignore them and don´t be deterred. One thing I learned along the way is that if you like the culture and find the language interesting, you are more likely to learn the language. If you have an attitude as many expats do, then it makes it harder to learn for some reason. So those expat gripe sessions we are all famous for participating in actually cut our own throats to a certain degree - but they are great for letting off steam!