Culture
• Japan’s population was approximately 125–126 million (125–126 million people, or 12.5–12.6 crore), although it has been declining in recent years.
Geographically, these 47 prefectures are commonly grouped into eight major regions:
Japanese culture is a distinctive blend of ancient traditions and modern technology.
Shinto and Buddhism are the two major religious traditions in Japan. Their influence can be seen in many aspects of everyday life, cultural practices and ceremonies.
The kimono, Japan’s traditional garment, is worn on special occasions. Japanese cuisine is internationally renowned, particularly sushi, sashimi and ramen.
Japanese temples, castles—such as Hirosaki Castle—calligraphy and pottery represent a cultural heritage that has developed over many centuries.
Japan is an island nation in East Asia, located in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, approximately 150 kilometers from the Korean Peninsula at its nearest point. It consists of more than 6,500 islands, of which the four largest are Honshu, Hokkaido, Shikoku and Kyushu. Honshu is the largest and most central of these islands. It contains major Japanese cities, including modern-day Tokyo and Kyoto, which served as the imperial capital for much of Japan’s history. Japan’s famous and sacred mountain, Mount Fuji (Fujisan), is also located on Honshu.
Many of Japan’s smaller islands are sparsely populated or uninhabited. Much of the country is mountainous, which means that a large proportion of the population lives in coastal plains and urban areas, particularly around Tokyo and Osaka. Only a relatively small share of Japan’s land is suitable for cultivation. Japan has limited mineral resources and is frequently affected by earthquakes, typhoons and other natural disasters. Despite these challenges and its limited natural resources, Japanese society has developed a strong appreciation for aesthetics, traditional arts and craftsmanship.
Reliable information about Japan’s earliest history is limited. Written historical records began to emerge in the eighth century CE, when Japan adopted and adapted Chinese writing through cultural contacts with the Asian mainland, including the Korean Peninsula. Consequently, the precise dates when the ancestors of modern Japanese people arrived on the islands and developed a distinct culture cannot be established with complete certainty. One of the earliest important written references to Japan appears in Chinese historical records dating to the third century CE, including accounts of the people and political communities of the Japanese archipelago.
According to traditional Japanese mythology, the country’s first emperor, Emperor Jimmu (Jimmu Tennō), was descended from the Sun Goddess. Traditional accounts place his accession to the throne in 660 BCE. However, this date belongs to legend rather than established historical fact, and Emperor Jimmu’s historicity has not been confirmed. Archaeological evidence indicates that people inhabited the Japanese islands as early as approximately 30,000 BCE. Japan subsequently passed through various prehistoric periods, including the Paleolithic period, followed by the Jomon period, which is associated with early pottery-making communities.
The population of the Japanese archipelago developed through complex waves of migration and interaction among different communities. These included populations associated with the Korean Peninsula and other parts of East and Southeast Asia. Over time, incoming groups interacted with earlier inhabitants, sometimes displacing them and sometimes assimilating with them. The Ainu are among the Indigenous peoples of Japan. They have a distinct cultural and linguistic heritage and historically inhabited Hokkaido and other northern areas. Their population figures vary depending on the definition and method of counting used, and their cultural traditions remain an important part of Japan’s heritage.
The Ainu are one of Japan’s Indigenous peoples, most of whom have traditionally lived on the island of Hokkaido in the country’s far north. The period from prehistoric times to the emergence of written records in Japan has been divided by historians and archaeologists into the following eras.
The Jōmon Period was named after the distinctive cord-marked pottery discovered at archaeological sites from this era. The word Jōmon refers to the rope-like patterns found on these vessels. The people of this period primarily relied on hunting, fishing, and gathering for their livelihood. They used stone tools and lived in close association with their natural environment.
The Yayoi Period followed the Jōmon Period. According to some historical accounts, people from mainland Asia migrated to Japan between approximately 1,000 and 800 BCE, bringing new technologies, agricultural practices, and cultural traditions. Many modern Japanese people are considered descendants of both the Jōmon populations, who inhabited the Japanese archipelago earlier, and later migrants associated with the Yayoi culture. These populations arrived through different routes and at different times, and their interaction contributed to the formation of Japanese society.
The Yayoi people introduced or helped expand the use of iron tools, agriculture, silk production, glassmaking, and new architectural techniques. Over time, agricultural communities grew in population and became more numerous than many of the earlier hunter-gatherer communities. Yayoi communities gradually developed political authorities and regional states. According to accounts preserved in early Chinese historical records, including the Book of Han, Japan—then known in Chinese sources as Wa—was divided into numerous local political entities. A later Chinese historical account indicates that by around 240 CE, the polity known as Yamatai had emerged as a prominent political power.
The term Kofun refers to the large burial mounds constructed in Japan from around the middle of the third century to the early seventh century. These tombs gave the period its name. During this era, Japan gradually moved towards greater territorial and political unity under the leadership of the Yamato polity (大和). For this reason, the period is sometimes also referred to as the Yamato Period. The Yamato polity developed into a powerful political federation, with its centre in the Kinai region of central Japan. The rulers of Yamato are associated with the emergence of the imperial dynasty, which continues to this day. Japanese emperors traditionally trace their lineage to this imperial house.
The Yamato rulers expanded their authority not only through military campaigns but also through negotiations and agreements with local chieftains. As their influence grew, they strengthened political unity across larger parts of the Japanese archipelago. China eventually recognised the status of some Yamato rulers and established formal diplomatic contacts with them. Chinese historical records mention five rulers of Wa, often referred to by historians as the Five Kings of Wa.
Increasing contact with China exposed the Japanese to Chinese ideas, customs, traditions, and political institutions.
During the sixth century, craftsmen and specialists in knowledge and the arts from China and, particularly, the Korean Peninsula played an important role in introducing continental technologies and administrative expertise to Japan. According to historians, the Yamato polity also experienced prolonged and intense competition with rival political groups. One of these was associated with Izumo (出雲), a region and political centre in western Japan.
The period from approximately 538 to 1185 CE is commonly described as Japan’s classical period. It is generally divided into three major eras.
The Asuka Period is traditionally dated from around 538 CE, when Buddhism was introduced to Japan from the Korean Peninsula. From that time onward, Buddhism developed alongside Shinto (神道), Japan’s indigenous religious tradition.
Shinto, whose name is commonly translated as “the way of the kami,” is Japan’s indigenous religious tradition. A central feature of Shinto is reverence for nature and the spiritual forces believed to inhabit it. Shinto traditions include the worship of numerous kami, or sacred beings and spiritual powers, associated with natural phenomena, places, ancestors, and other aspects of existence. Amaterasu, the sun goddess, occupies a particularly important position in Japanese mythology and the traditional beliefs surrounding the imperial family.
The period takes its name from Asuka, an area in present-day Nara Prefecture where the imperial court was based during much of this era. In the 580s, the Buddhist-supporting Soga clan (蘇我氏) gained considerable political influence and dominated the government for several decades. One of the most prominent advocates of Buddhism was Prince Shōtoku (聖徳太子), who exercised considerable political influence from the late sixth century into the early seventh century. In 607 CE, Japanese diplomatic missions were sent to China to study its culture, institutions, and civilisation.
Prince Shōtoku is traditionally associated with the adoption of governing principles influenced by Chinese political philosophy, particularly the teachings of Confucius. He is also associated with the Seventeen-Article Constitution, a set of principles intended to guide government officials and members of the political elite.
In 645 CE, the Soga clan lost power, and political reforms were initiated by the group associated with the future Fujiwara family and other court leaders. These changes became known as the Taika Reforms (大化の改新). Under the reforms, land and taxation arrangements were reorganised, with the state seeking greater control over land distribution and agricultural production. The principal objective was to strengthen the central government and establish a more centralised system of administration influenced by Chinese models. Because of these reforms, the Asuka Period is also closely associated with the Taika Reform era.
During this period, Japanese leaders continued sending diplomatic and scholarly missions to China to learn about Chinese writing, politics, art, and religion. In 672 CE, a dispute over imperial succession led to a civil conflict. Subsequent administrative and legal reforms, including the Taihō Code of 701, helped consolidate the legal framework and establish a more structured system of central and provincial government. These reforms drew considerable inspiration from Chinese administrative practices. One of the most remarkable architectural achievements associated with the Asuka Period is Hōryū-ji Temple (法隆寺). Its surviving wooden structures are widely recognised among the oldest extant wooden buildings in the world.
In 710 CE, Japan established its first permanent capital at Heijō-kyō (平城京), in present-day Nara. The city was designed with considerable influence from Chang’an, the capital of China’s Tang Dynasty, located in present-day Xi’an. The establishment of the capital gave the period its name: the Nara Period. During this era, Japan continued to draw knowledge and inspiration from Chinese civilisation. Confucianism (儒教), which had already influenced Japanese thought, also played a role in the development of political and social institutions.
Parks, Buddhist temples, and pagodas were constructed, while art, literature, and scholarship flourished. Japanese poetry, particularly waka (和歌), developed as an important literary form, and the production of written historical and literary works expanded. The Nara Period also witnessed efforts to reconcile Buddhist traditions with Shinto beliefs and practices. Rather than remaining entirely separate, the two traditions increasingly interacted within Japanese religious life. This was an important period in the development of Japan’s government, religion, and culture. However, towards its end, epidemics and famines severely affected the population and created significant social and economic difficulties.
In 784 CE, the capital was moved from Nara to Nagaoka-kyō. However, after only eleven years, the capital was relocated again.
In 794 CE, Emperor Kanmu established a new capital at Heian-kyō, in present-day Kyoto, approximately 28 miles north of the former capital at Nara. The move gave the period its name: the Heian Period. Kyoto remained Japan’s imperial capital for more than a thousand years, until the imperial court moved to Tokyo in the modern era. The Heian Period is widely regarded as a golden age of Japanese court culture and literature.
With the support and influence of the powerful Fujiwara aristocratic family, Japanese culture increasingly developed its own distinctive character. Rather than simply reproducing Chinese models, Japanese court society adapted or abandoned certain continental practices and placed greater emphasis on local traditions. The Japanese writing system also evolved. Alongside the continued use of Chinese characters, Japanese syllabic scripts—particularly hiragana and katakana—developed and became important tools for expressing the Japanese language in writing. This development contributed significantly to the growth of vernacular literature.
Many aspects of Chinese-style administration were gradually modified or abandoned. Political power increasingly came to be exercised by the Fujiwara aristocracy, their appointed representatives, and hereditary court officials, while the emperor and imperial court remained central to the political order. The Heian Period is especially famous for its aristocratic lifestyle, refined court etiquette, literature, poetry, painting, and other arts. Among the upper classes, an appreciation of literature and the fine arts was regarded as an important mark of education, sophistication, and social standing.
One of the important literary works of this period was The Tale of Genji, written around 978 by a woman named Murasaki Shikibu. It is regarded as the world’s first psychological novel.
After 1000 CE, a feudal system similar to that of medieval Europe emerged in Japan over the following one and a half centuries. Under this system, feudal lords controlled local territories, while samurai served as warriors and protectors. Local rulers collected taxes from the people living in their domains.
A major struggle for power took place between the Minamoto and Taira clans. After defeating the Taira, Minamoto no Yoritomo established his authority and was appointed shogun in 1192. Although the emperor remained the symbolic head of Japan, real political and military power increasingly rested with the shogun. Yoritomo established his headquarters in Kamakura, which became the centre of military government.
After Yoritomo’s death, the Hōjō clan gradually assumed control of the shogunate and exercised power behind the scenes. During this period, Japan faced two major Mongol invasions, in 1274 and 1281, under the leadership of Kublai Khan. The Japanese successfully resisted both invasions. However, the cost of defending the country placed considerable financial pressure on the government. These difficulties, combined with the weakening of central authority, contributed to the growing influence of powerful regional lords known as daimyo.
In 1333, Emperor Go-Daigo led a revolt against the Kamakura shogunate. Ashikaga Takauji later emerged as a powerful figure and established the Ashikaga shogunate. Japan subsequently experienced a period of political division known as the Northern and Southern Courts. The country was eventually reunified in 1392 under Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. However, the shogunate gradually weakened as regional lords gained greater independence. In 1467, the Ōnin War broke out, plunging Japan into prolonged civil conflict. This marked the beginning of the Sengoku period, which lasted from 1467 to 1568 and was characterised by warfare among rival feudal lords.
During this turbulent era, piracy also became a problem in Japanese coastal waters. In 1543, Portuguese traders arrived in Japan, introducing firearms to the country. The Japanese soon began manufacturing firearms locally. Christian missionaries subsequently arrived and began spreading Catholicism, leading some Japanese people to convert to Christianity.
One of the most influential figures in Japan’s unification was Oda Nobunaga. In 1568, he entered Kyoto and established his influence over the imperial capital. He worked to weaken rival military powers, including Buddhist institutions that maintained their own armed forces. Nobunaga made significant progress towards unifying Japan, but he died in 1582 before completing the task.
Following Nobunaga’s death, Toyotomi Hideyoshi continued the campaign to unify the country. He consolidated political authority and introduced measures to strengthen control over the population. Hideyoshi ordered the disarmament of peasants and other commoners, restricting their possession of weapons. In 1587, he also issued an order banning Christian missionaries from Japan, although Christianity did not disappear immediately.
By 1590, Hideyoshi had brought most of Japan under his control.
In 1592, he launched a military invasion of Korea, intending to use it as a route towards conquering China. The campaign encountered strong resistance and failed to achieve its ultimate objective. Following Hideyoshi’s death in 1598, Japanese forces withdrew from Korea.
The era associated with the unification efforts of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi is known as the Azuchi-Momoyama period. It was a crucial transitional phase in Japanese history, marking the decline of prolonged feudal warfare and the emergence of a more unified political order.
Following Hideyoshi’s death, a succession struggle broke out. Tokugawa Ieyasu, a warrior who had previously been one of Hideyoshi’s allies, defeated the remaining opponents at the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 and established control over a unified Japan. In 1603, he received the title of shogun, became the country’s ruler, and founded the Tokugawa shogunate. He moved the administrative centre eastward to the small town of Edo, present-day Tokyo.
Although local lords retained administrative authority in their respective territories after Japan’s unification, Ieyasu introduced rules and regulations to ensure their obedience. This proved to be an important step towards restoring central government authority in Japan. It also helped establish the rule of law in place of rule by the sword.
One of Ieyasu’s important policies concerned Western traders, particularly Christian missionaries. Their growing influence, criticism of traditional Japanese beliefs, and occasional interference in local politics caused concern among the authorities. In 1612, fearing a possible religious uprising by Christians, Ieyasu banned Christianity in Japan. Ieyasu died in 1616, but the Tokugawa shogunate he established remained in power until 1867, ruling Japan for the next 268 years. This period brought a prolonged era of relative peace and stability, during which trade and culture flourished.
After Ieyasu’s death, his successors continued to persecute Christians intermittently over the following two decades. In 1637, a rebellion broke out in southern China involving peasants, many of whom were Christians. The Japanese government responded by deciding to take severe measures against Christians. Many were brutally killed or expelled from the country, and all Japanese people were required to follow Buddhism. These policies eventually led to the suppression of Christianity in Japan.
The suppression of Christianity was part of a broader policy aimed at preventing the influence of foreign ideas and customs. Although European trade had been profitable for Japan, the Tokugawa shogunate eventually decided that European traders, along with Christian missionaries, should also be expelled. In 1639, Shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu closed Japan’s borders to most foreigners and adopted a policy of isolation from the outside world. Trade with Western countries was terminated, and only the Chinese and the Dutch among the Europeans were permitted to conduct trade through the port of Nagasaki.
Under this policy, Japan remained largely closed to Europe for the next two centuries. On the one hand, the country fell behind Europe in science, technology, and military development. On the other hand, the policy helped Japan maintain peace and stability for an extended period. The policy also benefited Japanese merchants. Domestic peace, educational reforms, and the growth of the internal economy enabled cities to develop more rapidly than rural areas. Japanese culture became particularly rich and creative during this era, producing outstanding works of art, literature, and architecture.
Buddhist monks developed a distinctive religious school known as Zen, which had a profound influence on Japanese culture compared with other forms of Buddhism. The Japanese word “Zen” is associated with meditation, through which practitioners seek to attain mental clarity and spiritual insight. For more than 200 years, attempts by other countries to establish trade with Japan were largely unsuccessful. However, in 1853, a small American naval fleet arrived at a Japanese port and demanded that the country open its ports to American merchants. In 1854, Japanese leaders signed an agreement granting the United States the requested trading rights. Similar agreements were subsequently concluded with Britain, France, Russia, and the Netherlands. These developments brought Japan’s policy of isolation and its long period of seclusion to an end.
Following the establishment of trade with Western
countries, the Japanese came to recognise the need for certain changes.
The Meiji era (1868–1912) was a revolutionary period in Japanese history. The feudal system was abolished, and in 1890, Japan adopted a new constitution modelled on Western systems. Under the constitution, a parliament, known as the Diet, was established and given authority over important decisions.
Unlike China, Japan focused on modernising itself along Western lines. To organise and train its citizens, Japan hired thousands of engineers, technicians, and experts in the army and navy from Western countries. In addition to developing military equipment, the government promoted industries producing chemicals, cement, iron, steel, silk, and cotton goods. These industries generated revenue that was used to modernise the country.
By 1890, Japan’s major cities and towns had been connected by telegraph and railway networks. Agricultural production doubled, education was made compulsory, and old feudal laws were revised to meet the requirements of the industrial age. The government also organised study tours to Europe to help Japanese officials and intellectuals understand Western democratic systems. Alongside economic development, Japan focused on modernising its army and navy. As a result, it became strong enough to reclaim certain privileges that Western powers had secured in Japan through unequal treaties during the 1850s.
Japan became the most developed country in Asia and emerged as an industrial power seeking to expand its sphere of influence. As its strength grew, Japan increasingly adopted an imperialist policy. Its motives included not only economic needs but also the desire to demonstrate national superiority and military power.
China became Japan’s first major target for expansion. Following the war between China and Japan in 1894, Japan established control over Korea, which had traditionally been allied with China. Japan then turned its attention towards Manchuria, a northeastern region of China. Russia also sought influence over Manchuria, leading to war between Russia and Japan in 1904. Contrary to expectations, Japan inflicted a series of defeats on Russia. As a result, Japan gained control over Russia’s commercial interests in southern Manchuria, bringing the region increasingly under Japanese influence.
Under the peace settlement, Port Arthur and the southern half of Sakhalin Island came under Japanese control. Korea was turned into a Japanese protectorate and effectively became a state under Japanese domination. Most importantly, Japan secured recognition as a major world power.
Following the death of Emperor Meiji, Emperor Taishō ascended the throne as Japan’s 123rd emperor. His reign lasted from 1912 to 1926. During this period, the First World War broke out in 1914. Japan joined the Allied powers and declared war on Germany. Japanese forces occupied German possessions and colonies in China and the Pacific. After the war, the Treaty of Versailles recognised Japan’s control over former German possessions in the region, while Japan also maintained its influence in Manchuria and southern Sakhalin.
The First World War disrupted international trade among European countries, leaving them unable to export textiles, machinery, chemicals, and other goods to the rest of the world as before. Under these circumstances, demand for Japanese products increased. Japanese merchants and investors became wealthier and rapidly expanded their investments. Thousands of factories were built, and Japanese textile exports grew substantially. Investors and industrialists acquired modern machinery and advanced techniques from abroad to improve production quality. As a result, several major companies emerged and came to control a significant share of the country’s wealth.
During the 1920s, Japan introduced several democratic reforms, a period commonly known as Taishō Democracy. However, these democratic developments were increasingly overshadowed by growing militarism and expansionism. Japan experienced considerable domestic unrest after 1920. Poor economic conditions intensified political instability, and several politicians, including a prime minister, were assassinated.
Neither parliament nor the civilian government had effective control over the military. Even the emperor was unable to exercise decisive control over it. In practice, the military increasingly held the reins of government rather than elected civilian leaders. When the global economic crisis deepened following the Great Depression of 1929, Japan’s military leadership believed that establishing a colonial empire across the Pacific was the solution. The military leadership was accountable to the emperor rather than to elected political leaders and favoured an aggressive policy similar to those pursued by Germany and Italy.
Following this approach, the Japanese army occupied Manchuria, a northeastern region of China, in 1931, despite an existing peace agreement with China. Japan subsequently established a puppet government there. In 1937, Japan launched a major offensive in China, occupying Beijing and other northern cities before capturing Nanjing, the Chinese capital at the time. Over the following six months, Japanese forces killed approximately 200,000 Chinese people. Despite these atrocities, Chinese resistance continued.
During the Second World War, Japan was allied with Germany and Italy. In December 1941, Japan attacked the American naval fleet at Pearl Harbor, bringing the United States directly into the war. By the middle of 1942, Japanese forces had occupied colonies belonging to the Netherlands, Britain, France, and the United States across the western Pacific and Southeast Asia. However, in 1945, Japan lost these occupied territories, and the United States dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, forcing Japan to surrender. Following its defeat, Japan remained under direct American occupation for seven years.
During this period, a new democratic constitution was drafted for Japan. A parliamentary system of government was established, featuring a bicameral legislature. Although the emperor’s position was retained, his role was restricted to that of a constitutional and largely ceremonial head of state. One of the constitution’s most important provisions was Article 9, under which Japan renounced war as a sovereign right and committed itself to the principles of peace. The provision also restricted the country’s use of military force, although its interpretation and application evolved over time. After these arrangements were established, the United States and 47 other countries signed a formal peace treaty with Japan, officially restoring its sovereignty.
The United States and Japan, once bitter enemies, became allies. Japan’s economy subsequently began to grow rapidly. Through the development of industries such as steelmaking, shipbuilding, automobiles, and electronics, along with agricultural reforms and the tireless efforts of its people, Japan achieved remarkable economic progress within a relatively short period. Despite being surrounded by water and facing frequent earthquakes, as well as the devastation caused by atomic bombing during the Second World War, Japan rebuilt itself into one of the world’s leading economic powers.
