Header Photo: Daigoji Temple Japan (n.d). Daigoji Temple Japan [Web Photo]. Retrieved from http://www.dlctravel.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Daigoji-Temple-Japan.jpg on September 10, 2015
Japan's Early Settlements
Japan is a world power, but every country has it start. In early times, Japan was not always an island because southern Japan was connected to Korea while the north part of Japan was connected to Siberia by a land bridge which allowed people to travel across to get to Japan. The Stone Age people came to Japan in about 35,000 BC. This is known due to the items that were left behind from them. Approximately about 10,000 BC, the original people created a new culture known as Jomon. Jomon lived in Japan from about 10,000 BC to about 300 BC. They were known as hunters, gatherers, and fishermen when they were getting their food. The name of Jomon people came from the pottery that they did during their time in Japan. Their pottery was made by hand without a wheel and their pottery can be traced back to the mainland of Asia in eastern Siberia. Throughout their time in Japan, there was always abundance of food all around the country. In the last hundred years, Jomon noticed that the food was less abundant and the climate around was changing. The climate has cooled and now the population was starting to decline rapidly. As everyone started to form their own personal groups and their differences upon the region changed pronounced which made their culture to change. Jomon’s started to change and number of inhabitants began to decline quickly to where the culture no longer existing.
The next group of settlers of Japan is the Yayoi. They brought the ways of working with iron and bronze to Japan. Yayoi also brought agriculture and domesticated rice, which was grown in swamp water during this time. Yayoi’s brought new technologies to Japan that was never seen previously. Social class, language, and religion are the only evidence that can be traced back to these people. They did not have a technique of writing or a system of currency. Their technique of writing came years later in about 538-710 A.D. Yayoi were skill hunters and farmers which were to maintain the food supply.
Over the years after Yayoi, Japan has period of people going through the country. Chinese people came over to Japan. They brought a structured language which was an idea taken from them to form the Japanese language. Religion was established during the Asuka which was called Buddhism. The Chinese introduced the ruler called an emperor. Politics and government structure was introduced to from idea the Chinese. A tax system was introduced from Chinese’s system. Japan’s government, language, religion, and tax system were heavy influenced by the Chinese people that came from there. Samurai Warriors were type military fighters. Shoguns were military governors which ran the first government in Japan. Korean also came over to Japan which were part of the Yayoi Culture.
People came to Japan from other places in Asia such as Korea, and China. Japan during the time of its beginning was offering people the plentiful fruits and tasteful seafood from the waters that surround the island. This could mean that from the diffusion theory brought by Jared Diamond that plants and animals from Korea and China could survive in Japan based the climate in the area of Japan. In Guns, Germs, and Steel, Jared Diamond describes that people travels from different places in their countries to different one because of their climate. Japan from their beginning to today has experienced different climates through its history. Japan has cool summer in the northern part, semiarid in the southern part, and Mediterranean in the middle part.
Japan is made up of four large and small islands. The large island’s names are Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu, and Shikoku while the small island is named Okinawa. Japan experiences four seasons and the islands have different changes during the spring, summer, fall, and winter times. Each part of Japan experiences different climates throughout the country which gives the people in the country a way to get out the uncomfortable areas. Some areas in Japan like upper part of Honshu to Kyushu experiences burning summers from Pacific winds which hit the area. While the side that lies near the Sea of Japan experiences a great deal of rain and snow while other areas have subtropical climate. Japan lies on a fault line so the country encounters many earthquakes and tsunamis. The country also encounters other disasters like typhoons and volcanic eruptions.
The next group of settlers of Japan is the Yayoi. They brought the ways of working with iron and bronze to Japan. Yayoi also brought agriculture and domesticated rice, which was grown in swamp water during this time. Yayoi’s brought new technologies to Japan that was never seen previously. Social class, language, and religion are the only evidence that can be traced back to these people. They did not have a technique of writing or a system of currency. Their technique of writing came years later in about 538-710 A.D. Yayoi were skill hunters and farmers which were to maintain the food supply.
Over the years after Yayoi, Japan has period of people going through the country. Chinese people came over to Japan. They brought a structured language which was an idea taken from them to form the Japanese language. Religion was established during the Asuka which was called Buddhism. The Chinese introduced the ruler called an emperor. Politics and government structure was introduced to from idea the Chinese. A tax system was introduced from Chinese’s system. Japan’s government, language, religion, and tax system were heavy influenced by the Chinese people that came from there. Samurai Warriors were type military fighters. Shoguns were military governors which ran the first government in Japan. Korean also came over to Japan which were part of the Yayoi Culture.
People came to Japan from other places in Asia such as Korea, and China. Japan during the time of its beginning was offering people the plentiful fruits and tasteful seafood from the waters that surround the island. This could mean that from the diffusion theory brought by Jared Diamond that plants and animals from Korea and China could survive in Japan based the climate in the area of Japan. In Guns, Germs, and Steel, Jared Diamond describes that people travels from different places in their countries to different one because of their climate. Japan from their beginning to today has experienced different climates through its history. Japan has cool summer in the northern part, semiarid in the southern part, and Mediterranean in the middle part.
Japan is made up of four large and small islands. The large island’s names are Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu, and Shikoku while the small island is named Okinawa. Japan experiences four seasons and the islands have different changes during the spring, summer, fall, and winter times. Each part of Japan experiences different climates throughout the country which gives the people in the country a way to get out the uncomfortable areas. Some areas in Japan like upper part of Honshu to Kyushu experiences burning summers from Pacific winds which hit the area. While the side that lies near the Sea of Japan experiences a great deal of rain and snow while other areas have subtropical climate. Japan lies on a fault line so the country encounters many earthquakes and tsunamis. The country also encounters other disasters like typhoons and volcanic eruptions.
Work Cited:
Ancient Japan History. (n.d.). Ancient Japan History. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://www.mapsofworld.com/world-ancient-history/japan.html
Department of Asian Art (2002, October). Jomon Culture (ca. 10,500–ca. 300 B.C.). Retrieved from http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/jomo/hd_jomo.htm on September 10, 2015.
Early Japan (until 710). (n.d.). Early Japan. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2131.html
History of Japan. (n.d.). History of Japan. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=ab84
History of Japan. (2012, January 3). History of Japan. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://arthistoryworlds.org/history-japan/
Japanese Translation Service. (n.d.). History of Japan. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://www.japanesetranslationservice.org/japanese-translation-service/about-japan/history-of-japan
Japan Fact Sheet: Geography and Climate. (n.d.). Japan’s Geography and Climate. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://web-japan.org/factsheet/en/pdf/e01_geography.pdf
Szczepanski, K. (n.d.). Japan | Facts and History. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://asianhistory.about.com/od/japan/p/ProfileJapan.htm
World Climate Map. (n.d.). World Climate Map. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://www.theodora.com/maps/new9/world_climate_map-large.jpg
Ancient Japan History. (n.d.). Ancient Japan History. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://www.mapsofworld.com/world-ancient-history/japan.html
Department of Asian Art (2002, October). Jomon Culture (ca. 10,500–ca. 300 B.C.). Retrieved from http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/jomo/hd_jomo.htm on September 10, 2015.
Early Japan (until 710). (n.d.). Early Japan. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2131.html
History of Japan. (n.d.). History of Japan. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=ab84
History of Japan. (2012, January 3). History of Japan. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://arthistoryworlds.org/history-japan/
Japanese Translation Service. (n.d.). History of Japan. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://www.japanesetranslationservice.org/japanese-translation-service/about-japan/history-of-japan
Japan Fact Sheet: Geography and Climate. (n.d.). Japan’s Geography and Climate. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://web-japan.org/factsheet/en/pdf/e01_geography.pdf
Szczepanski, K. (n.d.). Japan | Facts and History. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://asianhistory.about.com/od/japan/p/ProfileJapan.htm
World Climate Map. (n.d.). World Climate Map. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://www.theodora.com/maps/new9/world_climate_map-large.jpg
Map of Japan
Citation: The map shows the cities in Japan. The names of the islands are in gray colored font. The map also shows the physical features of Japan such as the rivers, mountains, and bodies of waters. This may have been hard to travel in the early years due to the hard landscapes.
Work Cited:
Japan's Map of Cities. (n.d.). Japan’s Map of Cities. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://www.globalsherpa.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/japan-map-cities-korea-china-russia.gif
Citation: The map shows the cities in Japan. The names of the islands are in gray colored font. The map also shows the physical features of Japan such as the rivers, mountains, and bodies of waters. This may have been hard to travel in the early years due to the hard landscapes.
Work Cited:
Japan's Map of Cities. (n.d.). Japan’s Map of Cities. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://www.globalsherpa.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/japan-map-cities-korea-china-russia.gif
Japan’s Agriculture
Citation: Map displays the different crop that grows in Japan. In early history, rice was brought into Japan from a different Asian country when settlers were entering the country. Work Cited: Japan's Agriculture. (n.d.). Japan’s Agriculture. Retrieved September 10, 2015, from http://www.pecad.fas.usda.gov/highlights/2012/08/Japantrip/images/map_000.jpg |
Additional Websites to Check Out For More Information about Early Japan:
http://www.mapsofworld.com/world-ancient-history/japan.html
This website discusses more in depth about the different periods of life from the early settlements to groups of people in the 19th Century.
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/jomo/hd_jomo.htm
This website elaborates more in detail about the Jomon Culture and the phrases of the Culture.
Population Pyramids
In 1955, Japan population show that the highest is for male that are 5-9 years old at 6.3% while the females that are 5-9 years old at 6.1%. People’s life expectancy is about 80-84 year old. The fertility rate is high which means couples are having children.
In 2015, Japan population show that the highest is for male in 40-44 age group at 3.9 % while the females in 65-69 group at 3.9%, but the 65-69 age group for male is at 3.6% while the females in the 40-44 age group is at 3.8%. The fertility rates has dropped in comparison to the population in 1955. The life expectancy is about 95-99 year old which has increase in 60 years.
Work Cited: Population Pyramid. (n.d.). Retrieved October 12, 2015, from http://populationpyramid.net/japan/