Source: MAPS IN MINUTES™ © RH Publications (1997)

A country occupying an archipelago off the coast of east Asia. It stretches about 2400 km (1500 miles) from Hokkaido in the north-east through Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu to the Ryukyu Islands in the south-west. Japan is separated from China to the south-west by the East China Sea, from Siberia and Korea to the west by the Sea of Japan, and from the islands of Sakhalin and the Kuriles to the north and north-east by the Sea of Okhotsk and the Nemuro Strait.

Physical

The deeply indented coastlines are surrounded by many smaller islands, with the Inland Sea forming an important constituent of the country. The islands curve along the edge of the Eurasian plate, one of the Earth’s geologically most active zones, creating almost perpetual earthquake and much volcanic activity. Mountains cover two-thirds of Japan’s surface, and the rivers are generally unsuited for navigation. Generally the climate varies from the long Hokkaido winter of deep snow to subtropical conditions of the south, influenced by the Kuroshio and the Tsushima Currents. During the seasonal periods of heavy rainfall and typhoons, flooding becomes a major problem.

Economy

The Japanese economy is the third-largest in the world, its success having been built on phenomenal export-led growth following World War II. However, the period since 1990 has seen relative decline, with persistent deflation and poor growth. Japan is among the world’s largest producers of vehicles, electronic equipment, machine tools, metals, ships, chemicals, textiles, and processed food; principal exports include vehicles, semiconductors, and iron and steel products. There are gas fields around the main island of Honshu and some oil reserves, but Japan is short of mineral and energy resources and is the world’s third-largest importer of oil. There is a substantial nuclear energy capacity, but its future is in doubt following a nuclear accident at Fukushima in 2011. Only one-sixth of Japan’s land can be farmed or is habitable; agriculture is dominated by rice cultivation, in which Japan is self-sufficient, but over half of food needs must be met by imports.

History

Originally inhabited by native Ainu, the Japanese themselves are thought to be descendants of people who migrated from various areas of mainland Asia. By the 5th century ad the Yamato clan loosely controlled much of Japan and began to establish imperial rule. The developing state was much influenced by Chinese culture. Buddhism was introduced in the 6th century and, after a brief conflict, coexisted with the Japanese religion, Shinto. In the 7th century Prince Shotoku was partially successful in establishing an administrative system based on that of Sui China. However, by the 9th century the Fujiwara family had gained control over the imperial court and its power was undermined.

The growing strength of feudal lords and of Buddhist monasteries resulted in civil war for most of the 12th century, the ultimate victor being Minamoto Yoritomo, who in 1192 became the first shogun and established a military administration (see shogunate). From then effective power lay with the shogun rather than the emperor. Yoritomo’s Kamakura shogunate was replaced in 1333 by the Ashikaga shogunate, but its rule was one of prolonged civil strife. In the late 16th century three warriors, Oda Nobunaga, Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu, broke the power of the feudal lords (daimyo), and Ieyasu’s Tokugawa shogunate provided stable but repressive rule until the restoration of the emperor in 1868.

Europeans had begun to trade with Japan in 1542 and Catholic missionaries, including Matteo Ricci, made numerous converts. The Tokugawa shogunate excluded all foreigners in 1639, except for a few Dutch and Chinese at Nagasaki, and proscribed Christianity. During the 18th and 19th centuries the wealth and power of merchants began to increase and Japan extended its influence over the northern island of Hokkaido.

In the first half of the 19th century Tokugawa power was gradually undermined by economic problems, insurrection, and the arrival of Western trading and naval expeditions, most notably those of the US Commodore Perry (1853–54). The shogunate’s failure to resist foreign penetration served as the catalyst for armed opposition, which in 1868 finally succeeded in replacing the shogunate with a new regime led formally by the emperor Meiji Tenno (the Meiji Restoration). In the succeeding decades feudalism was dismantled and a centralized state created which was dedicated to the rapid modernization of society and industrialization. Japan’s new strength brought victory in the Sino-Japanese War (1894–95) and the Russo-Japanese War (1904–05), and established it as the dominant power in north-east Asia. Japan fought on the Allied side in World War I, but thereafter its expansionist tendencies led to a deterioration in its diplomatic position, most notably vis-à-vis the USA. In the inter-war period, expansionist-militarist interests gradually gained power within the country, and, after the occupation of Manchuria (1931) and the creation of Manchukuo (1932), full-scale war with China was only a matter of time. The Sino-Japanese War finally broke out in 1937, and, having already allied itself with Germany and Italy in the Anti-Comintern Pact, Japan finally entered World War II with a surprise attack on the US fleet at Pearl Harbor in December 1941. Initially overrunning the colonial empires of south-east Asia at great speed, Japanese forces were eventually held and gradually driven back (the Pacific Campaigns). In September 1945, after the dropping of two atomic bombs, Japan was forced to surrender and accept occupation. A new Japanese Constitution was introduced, and full independence was formally returned in 1952. Japan embarked on another period of rapid industrial development, to become one of the major economic powers in the world. Its relations with China and south-east Asian countries improved, but the large imbalance in its favour in its trade with Western nations (particularly the USA), resulted in economic instability. The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) held office continually throughout these years, surviving numerous financial scandals. In the early 1990s Japan’s economy suffered in the global recession. The government was defeated in a vote of no confidence in 1993 and a general election was called in which the LDP split and lost its overall majority. The opposition formed a seven-party coalition and ejected the LDP from office for the first time since its formation in 1955. The new government, led by Morihiro Hosokawa, introduced a system of single-seat constituencies and legislators elected by proportional representation; this was implemented by the end of 1994. Hosokawa resigned and coalition governments followed, during which the LDP gradually regained its leading role: it recovered the premiership in 1996 and its majority in the lower house of parliament in 1997. To mark the 50th anniversary of the end of the Pacific War, the government issued an official apology for Japan’s actions during the conflict. A large economic stimulation package was also unveiled in an attempt to bring the Japanese economy out of its longest recession since 1945. However, Japan was affected by the financial crisis in the rest of south-east Asia in 1997–98 and economic stagnation continued into the 21st century. The reformist Junichiro Koizumi became Prime Minister in 2001 and limited structural reform followed. Koizumi retired in 2006 and his government was followed by several short-lived cabinets amid declining LDP popularity. The opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) won a decisive victory in the 2009 election, but struggled to tackle the challenges resulting from the 2011 tsunami in northern Honshu which killed over 15,000 people and caused great damage, including radioactive leaks from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station. The DPJ was swept out of power by the LDP in 2012. The new Prime Minister, Shinzō Abe, increased government spending and adopted other policies designed to stimulate economic growth. However, the recovery weakened in 2014 and the country returned to recession. In late 2014, Abe called early elections which saw the LDP returned with a larger majority. He increased defence expenditure and in 2015 parliament approved legislation that would allow Japanese troops to fight overseas. Claims over disputed islands to the north (with Russia) and in the East China Sea (with China) have increased tensions in the region. A meeting in 2016 with Russia’s President Putin did nothing to resolve their dispute over the Kuril islands, while, immediately after he took office in January 2017, President Trump withdrew the USA from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade agreement strongly advocated by Abe as a way of boosting the Japanese economy. Abe called a snap election in October 2017 and easily saw off a fragmented opposition despite scandals over cronyism and personal corruption allegations. In August 2020, Abe announced his resignation due to ill health. He was succeeded by Yoshihide Suga.

In a break with tradition, it was announced in late 2017 that Emperor Akihito would abdicate in April 2019 because of ill health. Crown Prince Naruhito succeeded him. The new imperial era, "Reiwa", began on 1 May.