Download Japan


The student will
demonstrate knowledge
of civilizations and
empires of the Eastern
Hemisphere and their
interactions through
regional trade patterns
by:

Describing Japan, with
emphasis on the impact of
Shinto and Buddhist
traditions and the
influence of Chinese
culture

Questions



How has Japan’s
geography influenced its
development?
How did Chinese culture
influence Japan?
Why were Shinto and
Buddhism important to
the development of
Japanese culture?


Chain of islands between
Sea of Japan & the Pacific
Ocean
Four large islands
(Hokkaido, Honshu,
Shikoku, & Kyushu)


Mountains cover ¾ of
Japan


3900 smaller islands
Valleys between mountains
are fertile (rice)
Sea is also a main source of
food

Advantages


Southern Japan enjoys mild climate
with plenty of rainfall
Being surrounded by water offered
protection from outsiders.
 Japan’s development was influenced
by the proximity to China

Disadvantages

Mountainous
 Only 15% of land is suitable for
farming


Lack of natural resources
Natural disaster threats
 Typhoons, earthquakes, and tidal
waves

Japan a collection of
hundreds of clans



The Yamato

Not a unified state
Practiced early form of
Shinto religion

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No complex rituals or
philosophy
Based on respect for the
forces of nature and
worship of ancestors
Believed in kami
 The divine spirits that
dwelled in nature
By 5th century, the
Yamato clan established
itself as the leading clan
 Claimed to be descended
from sun goddess,
Amatersu

By 7th century called
themselves the 1st
emperors of Japan
 Lacked real power but
never overthrown



About 500
Around same time
agriculture improved
dramatically
Chinese influences begin
to appear

Buddhism


Brought to Japan by
Korean travelers

 Imperial court accepted in
mid-700s

By 8th century had
spread throughout Japan
 Appreciated its teachings
Combined both Shinto
and Buddhist beliefs
Shinto – ancient Japanese
religion focusing on rituals
of cleanliness, loyalty to
family, respect to ancestors,
valuing nature, &
worshipping the emperor.
 Associated with Imperial family
 No scriptures but ceremonies that
are a part of daily life
and the beauty and mystery
of its ceremonies and art

Buddhism is declared the
state religion of Japan in
594 C.E.

Confucianism from
China

Prince Shotoku 607 C.E.



Converted to Buddhism
Sent “missions” to China
to study Chinese
civilization 1st hand
Sent several groups over
a 200 year period, during
the Tang Dynasty

Taking Chinese ways but
modifying them

Example:
 Japan didn’t adopt civil
service exams but they did
adopt a tradition of
inheriting status through
family tradition
 Officials were educated sons
of nobles
 As Tang Dynasty declined in
China, Japan turned away
from that model
 Asserted Japanese identity
 Japanese culture would bloom


1st brought by Korean
travelers
Pictographic Writing
(kanji) - one character
represents a meaning

By 900, Japanese simplified
kanji to make kana
(“borrowed letters”). Kana
includes Hiragana &
Katakana.

Simpler set of letters based on
sounds

Chinese building
Architecture
Japanese building

Other areas of
influence

Government
 Modeled Japanese
government on China’s
 Planned a strong central
government


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Examination system failed
Noble families retained power
Art
 Painted landscapes like
Chinese artists

Everyday living
 Cooking, gardening, drinking
tea, and hairdressing

Japanese capital moved to
Heian (Kyoto) in 794 C.E.

Many noble families
moved as well
 Capital moved away from
influence of Buddhist priests


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Led to creation of highly
refined court society
Japan broke off much of
their Chinese contacts
By 1000 C.E. Japan was
isolated from China and
Korea

Court

Elegant and sophisticated
culture
 Fairy-tale atmosphere
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Elaborate rules of dress
Heian women produced
important works of
literature
 Diaries, essays, poetry
 Pillow Book, written by Sei
Shonagon 900s A.D.
 Court manners, Amusements
 Décor , dress

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Women had a certain
level of equality
Laws made it clear that
women were still
subordinate to men


Men could still divorce
women for not bearing
children, talking to
much, or severe illness
Played an active role in
society

Aristocratic women
were prominent at
court


Writers
painters

Lady Murasaki


Best know writer
Tale of Genji, world’s
first full-length novel
 Adventures of Prince
Genji and his son
 Full of romance, but
haunted by sadness
 Love does not last

Most of Heian period the
Fujiwara family held real
power


By 11th century power of the
central government and family
declined
Large families living away
from capital set up private
armies

Marked beginning of feudal
system
 Farmers and small landowners
traded parts of their land to strong
warlords in exchange for protection

Daimyo – a local warrior-lord in
Japan during the samurai era

Since warfare was
common, each lord
surrounded himself with
loyal warriors called
samurai


“one who serves”
Lived according to a code
called Bushido
 “way of the warrior”

In late 1100s the two most
powerful clans fought for
power

1192 C.E. the emperor gave a
Minamoto leader named
Yoritomo title of Shogun
 Shogun – head of the military
government of Japan during
the samurai era
 Powers of a military dictator
 Officials, judges, armies, and
roads under his authority
 Pattern continued until 1868
C.E.
 Local lords still held great
power

Military Training
Archery
Fencing (kendo style)
Horsemanship
Alternative Weapons
(metal fans or wood staffs)
 Martial Arts
 Valued accuracy without
thinking
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Mental Training
Self-Control (endure pain
& suffering)
 To think they were already
dead.
 Alertness (as a “6th sense”)


Bushido – code that samurai
lived by ~ “the way of the
warrior”
Includes the need to be
honest, fair, and fearless.
 Loyalty to their lord
 Personal Honor
 Price for failing to meet the
code was seppuku

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Educated in writing and
calligraphy.

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Matsuo Basho – a samurai
who invented the haiku
Tea Ceremony – performed
in a certain way (step by
step)

Defined as a ritual
suicide by cutting the
stomach with a knife or
sword


Also known as harakiri
Performed when
disgraced, to protest an
injustice, or when
sentenced to death

Kublai Khan launched
invasion in 1274

Typhoon wrecked
Mongol fleet
 1281, Mongols tried again
but again a typhoon hit!


Called kamikaze or divine
winds
Reinforced the Japanese
sense that were a people
apart who enjoyed the
special protection of the
gods