|
World
> Asia > Japan > Japan
Country Information
 |
Japan is an island country,
lying off the eastern coast of Asia in the western Pacific Ocean.
(More Information)
Its four main islands are Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku,
and Kyushu. It is separated from China by the China Sea and from
South Korea, North Korea, and Russia by the Sea of Japan (East Sea).
Japan is divided in eight regions:
Hokkaido, Tohoku , Chubu, Kanto, Kinki, Chugoku, Shikoku, Kyushu-okinawa
|
| |
Area: 145,883 sq mi
(377,835 sq km).
Population (2002 est.): 127,347,000.
Capital: Tokyo.
Language: Japanese (official).
Religions: Shintō, Buddhism, and Christianity.
Currency: yen |
|
Japan Travel Information
|
| |
|
|
Japan country Information |
Japan
Cuisine |
|
History,
Geography, Government, Economy |
|
|
|
|
|
Japan Regions |
|
|
Hokkaido,
Chubu,
Kinki,
Shikoku,
Tohoku,
Kanto, |
|
|
Chugoku,
Kyushu - Okinawa |
|
|
|
|
|
Popular Destinations in Japan |
Japan Hotels |
| Hiroshima, Kyoto, Miyajima, Nagasaki, Nara,
Osaka,
Sapporo,
Tokyo,
Akita, Yokohama ... |
|
|
|
|
|
Monuments of Japan |
Wildlife in Japan |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Hill Stations of Japan |
Train Travel in Japan |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Japan Adventure |
Japan Culture |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Wildlife in Japan |
Japan Beach Tour |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Japan Religion |
Airline in Japan |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Japan Spices |
Photos of Japan |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Weather of Japan |
Japan Car Rental |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| World Heritage Monuments
Japan
|
Map of
Japan |
The Japanese overwhelmingly are
a single Asian ethnic group. . Situated in one of Earth's most geologically
active zones, Japan experiences volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. Mountain
ranges cover more than four-fifths of its land surface; its highest mountain is
Mount Fuji. The nation's economy, one of the world's biggest, is based largely
on manufacturing and services; exports include electronic and electrical
equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, and iron and steel products. The
government's involvement in banking results in unique cooperation between the
public and private sectors. Japan is one of the world's principal seagoing
nations, with an important marine fishing industry. It is a constitutional
monarchy with two legislative houses; its chief of state is the emperor, and the
head of government is the prime minister. Japan's history began with the
accession of the legendary first emperor, Jimmu, in 660 BC. The Yamato court
established the first unified Japanese state in the 4th–5th centuries AD; during
this period, Buddhism arrived in Japan by way of Korea. For centuries Japan
borrowed heavily from Chinese culture, but it began to sever its links with the
mainland by the 9th century. The Fujiwara family held sway through the 11th
century. In 1192 Minamoto Yoritomo established Japan's first bakufu , or
shogunate (see Kamakura period). The Muromachi period (1338–1573) was marked by
warfare among powerful families. Unification was achieved in the late 1500s
under the leadership of Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu.
During the Tokugawa period, beginning in 1603, the government imposed a policy
of isolation. Under the leadership of the emperor Meiji (1868–1912), it adopted
a constitution (1889) and began a program of modernization and Westernization.
Japanese imperialism led to war with China (1894–95) and Russia (1904–05) as
well as to the annexation of Korea (1910) and Manchuria (1931). During World War
II Japan attacked U.S. forces in Hawaii and the Philippines (December 1941) and
occupied European colonial possessions in Southeast Asia. In 1945 the U.S.
dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and Japan surrendered to Allied
powers. U.S. postwar occupation of Japan led to a new democratic constitution in
1947. In rebuilding Japan's ruined industrial plant, new technology was used in
every major industry. A tremendous economic recovery followed, and Japan became
one of the world's wealthiest countries. It was able to maintain a favourable
balance of trade despite an economic recession that began in the early 1990s.
|
