History of Japan ImageMetadata File history File links Satsuma-samurai-during-boshin-war-period. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...
Paleolithic Jomon period Yayoi period Kofun period Asuka period Nara period Heian period Kamakura period Kemmu restoration Muromachi period Nanboku-cho period Sengoku period Azuchi-Momoyama period Nanban trade Edo period Late Tokugawa shogunate Meiji period Meiji Restoration Taishō period Japan in WWI Shōwa period Japanese expansionism Occupied Japan Post-Occupation Japan Heisei
Economic history Educational history Military history Naval history
Glossary The Japanese Paleolithic ) covers a period from around 100,000 [citation needed] to 30,000 BCE, when the earliest stone tool implements have been found, to around 12,000 BCE, at the end of the last Ice-age, which corresponds to the beginning of the Mesolithic Jomon Period. ... The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Jomon Period. ... The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Yayoi Period. ... The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Yamato period. ... The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Yamato period. ... The Nara period ) of the history of Japan covers the years from about AD 710 to 784. ... The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Heian Period. ... The Kamakura period (Japanese: 鎌倉時代, Kamakura-jidai; 1185–1333) is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance of the Kamakura Shogunate; officially established in 1192 by the first Kamakura shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo. ... The Kemmu Restoration (建武の新政; Kemmu no shinsei) was a period of Japanese history that occurred from 1333 to 1336 AD. It marks the three year period between the fall of the Kamakura shogunate and the rise of the Ashikaga shogunate, when Emperor Go-Daigo attempted to re-established Imperial control (but... The Muromachi period (Japanese: 室町時代, Muromachi-jidai, also known as the Muromachi era, the Muromachi bakufu, the Ashikaga era, the Ashikaga period, or the Ashikaga bakufu) is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. ... The Nanboku-cho period (Japanese: 南北朝時代, nanbokuchō-jidai, South and North courts period), also known as the Northern and Southern Courts period, spanning from 1336 to 1392, was a period that occurred during the early years of the Muromachi period of Japans history. ... The Sengoku period (Japanese: 戦国時代, Sengoku-jidai) or Warring States period, was a period of civil war in the history of Japan that spans from the middle 15th to the early 17th centuries. ... The Azuchi-Momoyama period (Japanese: 安土桃山時代, Azuchi-Momoyama-jidai) is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1568 to 1600. ... The Namban trade(Japanese: 南蛮貿易, nanban-bōeki, southern barbarian trade) or The Nanban trade period (Japanese: 南蛮貿易時代, nanban-bōeki-jidai, southern barbarian trade period) in Japanese history extends from the arrival of the first Europeans to Japan in 1543, to their near-total exclusion from the archipelago in 1650, under... The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Edo Period. ... The Late Tokugawa Shogunate (Japanese: Bakumatsu) is the period between 1853 and 1867 during which Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy called sakoku and modernized from a feudal shogunate to the Meiji government. ... The Meiji period ) denotes the 45-year reign of Emperor Meiji, running from 8 September 1868 (in the Gregorian calendar, 23 October 1868) to 30 July 1912. ... The Meiji Restoration ), also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, or Renewal, was a chain of events that led to a change in Japans political and social structure. ... The Taishō period (Japanese: 大正時代, Taishō-jidai, period of great righteousness) is a period in the history of Japan dating from 30 July 1912 to 25 December 1926. ... Japan participated in World War I ) from 1914-1917, as one of the major Entente Powers, played an important role in securing the sea lanes in South Pacific and Indian Oceans against the Kaiserliche Marine. ... The Shōwa period (Japanese: 昭和時代, Shōwa-jidai, period of enlightened peace) was the time in Japanese history when Emperor Hirohito reigned over the country, from December 25, 1926 to January 7, 1989. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... At the end of the Second World War, Japan was occupied by the Allied Powers. ... History of Japan Paleolithic Jomon Yayoi Yamato period ---Kofun period ---Asuka period Nara period Heian period Kamakura period Muromachi period Azuchi-Momoyama period ---Nanban period Edo period Meiji period Taisho period Showa period ---Japanese expansionism ---Occupied Japan ---Post-Occupation Japan Heisei Following the end of the Allied occupation in 1952... It has been suggested that Updated Japan News be merged into this article or section. ... The history of education in Japan dates back at least to the sixth century, when Chinese learning was introduced at the Yamato court. ... The military history of Japan is characterized by a long period of feudal wars, followed by domestic stability, and then foreign conquest. ... The naval history of Japan traces back to early interactions with states on the Asian continent at the beginning of the medieval period, and reached a peak of activity during the 16th and 17th century at a time of cultural exchange with European powers during the Nanban trade period. ... This is the glossary of Japanese history including historical figures, events, places, policies and others. ...

The Eco history of Japan is one of the most studied for its spectacular growth, first in the period from the late twentieth century that saw Japan become a world power and then again after the devastation of the Second World War when the island nation rose to become the world's second largest economy. Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ...

First contacts with Europe (16th century)

Main article: Nanban trade period

Rennaissance Europeans were quite admiring of Japan when they reached the country in the 16th century. Japan was considered as a country immensely rich in precious metals, mainly owing to Marco Polo's accounts of gilded temples and palaces, but also due to the relative abundance of surface ores characteristic of a volcanic country, before large-scale deep-mining became possible in Industrial times. Japan was to become a major exporter of copper and silver during the period. The Nanban Trade Period (Jp:南蛮貿易時代, Lit. ... By Region: Italian Renaissance Northern Renaissance -French Renaissance -German Renaissance -English Renaissance The Renaissance was a great cultural movement which brought about a period of scientific revolution and artistic transformation, at the dawn of modern European history. ... Marco Polo (September 15, 1254 – January 8, 1324) was a Venetian trader and explorer who, together with his father Niccolò and his uncle Maffeo, was one of the first Westerners to travel the Silk Road to China (which was then called Cathay) and visited the Great Khan of the Mongol...

The Samurai Hasekura Tsunenaga in Rome in 1615, Coll. Borghese, Rome.

Japan was also perceived as a sophisticated feudal society with a high culture and a strong pre-industrial technology. She was more populated and urbanized than any Western country (in the 16th century, Japan had 26 million inhabitants against 16 million for France and 4.5 million for England). She had Buddhist “universities” larger than any learning institution in the West, such as Salamanca or Coimbra.^{[citation needed]} Prominent European observers of the time seemed to agree that the Japanese "excel not only all the other Oriental peoples, they surpass the Europeans as well" (Alessandro Valignano, 1584, "Historia del Principo y Progresso de la Compania de Jesus en las Indias Orientales). Download high resolution version (416x613, 130 KB)Hasekura in Rome. ... Download high resolution version (416x613, 130 KB)Hasekura in Rome. ... Japanese samurai in armour, 1860s. ... Hasekuras portrait during his mission in Rome in 1615, by Claude Deruet, Coll. ... Events June 2 - First Récollet missionaries arrive at Quebec City, from Rouen, France. ... Nickname: The Eternal City Motto: SPQR: Senatus PopulusQue Romanus Location of the city of Rome (yellow) within the Province of Rome (red) and region of Lazio (grey) Coordinates: Region Lazio Province Province of Rome Founded 21 April 753 BC Mayor Walter Veltroni Area    - City 1,500 km²  (580 sq mi... Peasants plowing in front of a castle, French manuscript c. ... A replica of an ancient statue found among the ruins of a temple at Sarnath Buddhism is a philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama, a prince of the Shakyas, whose lifetime is traditionally given as 566 to 486 BCE. It had subsequently been accepted by... The University of Salamanca (Spanish Universidad de Salamanca), located in the town of Salamanca, west-northwest of Madrid, is the second oldest university in Spain (the first one is the university of Palencia, now disappeared), and one of the oldest in Europe. ... The University of Coimbra (Portuguese: Universidade de Coimbra) is a Portuguese public university in Coimbra, Portugal. ... Alessandro Valignano, circa 1600. ...

Early European visitors were amazed by the quality of Japanese craftsmanship and metalsmithing. This stems from the fact that Japan itself is rather poor in natural resources found commonly in Europe, especially iron. Thus, the Japanese were famously frugal with their consumable resources; what little they had they used with expert skill. Her copper and steel were the best in the world, her weapons the sharpest, her paper industries were unequaled. General Name, Symbol, Number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Atomic mass 55. ...

Trade with Europe

The cargo of the first Portuguese ships (usually about 4 smaller-sized ships every year) arriving in Japan almost entirely consisted of Chinese goods (silk, porcelain). The Japanese were very much looking forward to acquiring such goods, but had been prohited from any contacts with by the Emperor of China, as a punishment for Wakō pirate raids. The Portuguese (who were called Nanban, lit. Southern Barbarians) therefore found the opportunity to act as intermediaries in Asian trade. 16th century Japanese pirate raids. ...

A Portuguese carrack in Nagasaki, 17th century.

From the time of the acquisition of Macao in 1557, and their formal recognition as trade partners by the Chinese, the Portuguese Crown started to regulate trade to Japan, by selling to the highest bidder the annual "Capitaincy" to Japan, in effect conferring exclusive trading rights for a single carrack bound for Japan every year. The carracks were very large ships, usually between 1000 and 1500 tons, about double or triple the size of a large galleon or junk. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1038x958, 165 KB) Summary A Portuguese Nanban carrack, 17th century. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1038x958, 165 KB) Summary A Portuguese Nanban carrack, 17th century. ... The Santa Maria at anchor by Andries van Eertvelt, painted c. ... Nagasaki (Japanese: 長崎市, Nagasaki-shi  , long peninsula) is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture in Japan. ... Events Spain is effectively bankrupt. ... The Santa Maria at anchor by Andries van Eertvelt, painted c. ... A Spanish galleon A galleon was a large, multi-decked sailing ship used primarily by the nations of Europe from the 16th to 18th centuries. ... The Junk is a Chinese sailing vessel. ...

That trade continued with few interruptions until 1638, when it was prohibited on the ground that the ships were smuggling priests into Japan. Events March 29 - Swedish colonists establish first settlement in Delaware, called New Sweden. ...

Portuguese trade was progressively more and more challenged by Chinese smugglers on junks, Japanese Red Seal Ships from around 1592 (about ten ships every year), Spanish ships from Manila from around 1600 (about one ship a year), the Dutch from 1609, the English from 1613 (about one ship per year). The Junk is a Chinese sailing vessel. ... A 1634 Japanese Red seal ship, incorporating Western-style square and lateen sails, rudder and aft designs. ... Events January 30 - The death of Pope Innocent IX during the previous year had left the Papal throne vacant. ... The City of Manila (Filipino: Lungsod ng Maynila), or simply Manila, is the capital of the Philippines. ... 1600 was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Tuesday of the 10-day slower Julian calendar). ... // Events April 4 – King of Spain signs an edit of expulsion of all moriscos from Spain April 9 – Spain recognizes Dutch independence May 23 - Official ratification of the Second Charter of Virginia. ... Events January - Galileo observes Neptune, but mistakes it for a star and so is not credited with its discovery. ...

The Dutch, who, rather than "Nanban" were called "Kōmō" (Jp:紅毛, lit. "Red Hair") by the Japanese, first arrived in Japan in 1600, onbard the Liefde. Their pilot was William Adams , the first Englishman to reach Japan. In 1605, two of the Liefde's crew were sent to Pattani by Tokugawa Ieyasu, to invite Dutch trade to Japan. The head of the Pattani Dutch trading post, Victor Sprinckel, refused on the ground that he was too busy dealing with Portuguese opposition in Southeast Asia. In 1609 however, the Dutch Jacques Specx arrived with two ships in Hirado, and through Adams obtained trading privileges from Ieyasu. William Adams (September 24, 1564–May 16, 1620), also known in Japanese as Anjin-sama (按針様: anjin, pilot; sama, a Japanese social title) and Miura Anjin (三浦按針: the pilot of Miura), was an English navigator who went to Japan and is believed to be the first Briton ever to reach Japan. ... 1605 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 10-day slower Julian calendar). ... Pattani (or Patani in Malay spelling) may refer to the town Pattani in southern Thailand the Pattani Province the region Pattani, which includes the above province. ...

The Dutch also engaged in piracy and naval combat to weaken Portuguese and Spanish shipping in the Pacific, and ultimately became the only westerners to be allowed access to Japan from the small enclave of Dejima after 1638 and for the next two centuries. Dejima, also Deshima (出島, literally protruding island) in modern Japanese, Desjima in Dutch, often latinised as Decima, was a fan-shaped artificial island in the bay of Nagasaki that was a Dutch trading post during Japans self-imposed isolation (sakoku) of the Edo period, from 1641 until 1853. ... Events March 29 - Swedish colonists establish first settlement in Delaware, called New Sweden. ...

Edo period

A Japanese-made clockwatch of the 18th century, or Wadokei.Then time changed in the season because from sunrise to sunset made 12 hours and from sunset to sunrise made 12 hours

The beginning of the Edo period coincides with the last decades of the Nanban trade period, during which intense interaction with European powers, on the economic and religious plane, took place. It is at the beginning of the Edo period that Japan built her first ocean-going Western-style warships, such as the San Juan Bautista, a 500-ton galleon-type ship that transported a Japanese embassy headed by Hasekura Tsunenaga to the Americas, which then continued to Europe. Also during that period, the bakufu commissionned around 350 Red Seal Ships, three-masted and armed trade ships, for intra-Asian commerce. Japanese adventurers, such as Yamada Nagamasa, were active throughout Asia. Download high resolution version (464x640, 138 KB)Clockwatch of the mid-Edo period, 18th century Japan. ... Download high resolution version (464x640, 138 KB)Clockwatch of the mid-Edo period, 18th century Japan. ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... Two separate foliot balances allow this 18th century Japanese clock to run at two different speeds to indicate unequal hours. ... The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Edo Period. ... The Nanban Trade Period (Jp:南蛮貿易時代, Lit. ... San Juan Bautista (“St John Baptist”) (originally called Date Maru, 伊達丸 in Japanese) was one of Japans first Japanese-built Western-style sail warships. ... A Spanish galleon A galleon was a large, multi-decked sailing ship used primarily by the nations of Europe from the 16th to 18th centuries. ... Hasekuras portrait during his mission in Rome in 1615, by Claude Deruet, Coll. ... A 1634 Japanese Red seal ship, incorporating Western-style square and lateen sails, rudder and aft designs. ... Portrait of Yamada Nagamasa c. ...

In order to eradicate the influence of Christianization, Japan entered in a period of isolation called sakoku, during which its economy enjoyed stability and mild progress. The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Seclusion. ...

Economic development during the Edo period included urbanization, increased shipping of commodities, a significant expansion of domestic and, initially, foreign commerce, and a diffusion of trade and handicraft industries. The construction trades flourished, along with banking facilities and merchant associations. Increasingly, han authorities oversaw the rising agricultural production and the spread of rural handicrafts. Face-to-face trading interactions among on the New York Stock Exchange trading floor Economics or oeconomics is the study of human choice behaviour. ... This article is about the business concept. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Applied art. ... Cranes are essential in large construction projects, such as this skyscraper In project architecture and civil engineering, construction is the building or assembly of any infrastructure on a site. ... For other uses, see Bank (disambiguation). ... The Han ) were the fiefs of feudal clans of Japan that were created by Toyotomi Hideyoshi and existed until their abolition in 1871, three years after the Meiji Restoration. ...

By the mid-eighteenth century, Edo had a population of more than 1 million and Osaka and Kyoto each had more than 400,000 inhabitants. Many other castle towns grew as well. Osaka and Kyoto became busy trading and handicraft production centers, while Edo was the center for the supply of food and essential urban consumer goods. (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... View on downtown Osaka from Umeda Sky Building Osaka )   is the capital of Osaka Prefecture and the third-largest city in Japan, with a population of 2. ... This article is about the city Kyoto. ... A castle town is a kind of town or city where residents live surrounding the castle at the center. ...

Rice was the base of the economy, as the daimyo collected the taxes from the peasants in the form of rice. Taxes were high, about 40% of the harvest. The rice was sold at the fudasashi market in Edo. To raise money, the daimyo used forward contracts to sell rice that was not even harvested yet. These contracts were similar to modern futures trading. Species Oryza glaberrima Oryza sativa Rice is two species of grass (Oryza sativa and Oryza glaberrima) native to tropical and subtropical southern & southeastern Asia and in Africa. ... Rice brokers, which arose in the Edo period (1603-1867) of Japanese history, were the forerunners to Japans banking system. ... Edo (Japanese: 江戸, literally: bay-door, estuary, pronounced //), once also spelled Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo. ... It has been suggested that forward price be merged into this article or section. ... A futures contract is a form of forward contract, a contract to buy or sell an asset of any kind at a pre-agreed future point in time, that has been standardised for a wide range of uses. ...

During the period, Japan progressively studied Western sciences and techniques (called rangaku, literally "Dutch studies") through the information and books received through the Dutch traders in Dejima. The main areas that were studied included geography, medicine, natural sciences, astronomy, art, languages, physical sciences such as the study of electrical phenomena, and mechanical sciences as exemplified by the development of Japanese clockwatches, or wadokei, inspired from Western techniques. Rangaku (蘭学) or Dutch Learning was the method by which Japan kept abreast of Western technology and medicine in the period when the country was closed to foreigners, 1641-1853, because of the Tokugawa shogunates policy of national isolation (sakoku). ... Dejima, also Deshima (出島, literally protruding island) in modern Japanese, Desjima in Dutch, often latinised as Decima, was a fan-shaped artificial island in the bay of Nagasaki that was a Dutch trading post during Japans self-imposed isolation (sakoku) of the Edo period, from 1641 until 1853. ... Two separate foliot balances allow this 18th century Japanese clock to run at two different speeds to indicate unequal hours. ...

Meiji period

Since the mid-nineteenth century, when the Tokugawa government first opened the country to Western commerce and influence, Japan has gone through two periods of economic development. The first began in earnest in 1868 and extended through World War II; the second began in 1945 and continued into mid-1990s. In both periods, the Japanese opened themselves to Western ideas and influence; experienced revolutionary social, political, and economic changes; and became a world power with carefully developed spheres of influence. During both periods, the Japanese government encouraged economic change by fostering a national revolution from above and by planning and advising in every aspect of society. The national goal each time was to make Japan so powerful and wealthy that its independence would never again be threatened. The Tokugawa shogunate or Tokugawa bakufu (徳川幕府) (also known as the Edo bakufu) was a feudal military dictatorship of Japan established in 1603 by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family until 1868. ... Combatants Major Allied powers: United Kingdom France Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Major Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Charles de Gaulle Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Chiang Kai-Shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tojo Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian...

In the Meiji period (1868-1912), leaders inaugurated a new Western-based education system for all young people, sent thousands of students to the United States and Europe, and hired more than 3,000 Westerners to teach modern science, mathematics, technology, and foreign languages in Japan (O-yatoi gaikokujin). The government also built railroads, improved roads, and inaugurated a land reform program to prepare the country for further development. The Meiji period ) denotes the 45-year reign of Emperor Meiji, running from 8 September 1868 (in the Gregorian calendar, 23 October 1868) to 30 July 1912. ... World map showing Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is one of the seven traditional continents of the Earth. ... The o-yatoi gaikokujin (Japanese: お雇い外国人 — hired foreigners, foreign employees) were foreign specialists, engineers, teachers, mercenaries and more, hired to assist in the modernization of Japan. ... This is the top-level page of WikiProject trains Rail tracks Rail transport refers to the land transport of passengers and goods along railways or railroads. ... This page is related to transport; you may be looking for the 2002 Bollywood movie Road. ...

To promote industrialization, the government decided that, while it should help private business to allocate resources and to plan, the private sector was best equipped to stimulate economic growth. The greatest role of government was to help provide the economic conditions in which business could flourish. In short, government was to be the guide and business the producer. In the early Meiji period, the government built factories and shipyards that were sold to entrepreneurs at a fraction of their value. Many of these businesses grew rapidly into the larger conglomerates that still dominate much of the business world. Government emerged as chief promoter of private enterprise, enacting a series of probusiness policies, including low corporate taxes. A conglomerate is a large company that consists of divisions of often seemingly unrelated businesses. ... Capitalism generally refers to a combination of economic practices that became institutionalized in Europe between the 16th and 19th centuries, especially involving the right of individuals and groups of individuals acting as legal persons (or corporations) to buy and sell capital goods such as land, labor, and money (see finance... Corporate tax refers to a direct tax levied by various jurisdictions on the profits made by companies or associations. ...

Militarism

Before World War II, Japan built an extensive empire that included Taiwan, Korea, Manchuria, and parts of northern China. The Japanese regarded this sphere of influence as a political and economic necessity, preventing foreign states from strangling Japan by blocking its access to raw materials and crucial sea-lanes. Japan's large military force was regarded as essential to the empire's defense. Combatants Major Allied powers: United Kingdom France Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Major Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Charles de Gaulle Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Chiang Kai-Shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tojo Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian... Korea (Korean: 한국 or 조선, see below) is a geographic area, civilization, and former state situated on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia. ... Manchuria (Manchu: Manju; Traditional Chinese: 滿洲; Simplified Chinese: 满洲; pinyin: Mǎnzhōu, Russian: ) is a vast territorial region in northeast Asia. ...

Rapid growth and structural change characterized Japan's two periods of economic development since 1868. In the first period, the economy grew only moderately at first and relied heavily on traditional agriculture to finance modern industrial infrastructure. By the time the Russo-Japanese War began in 1904, 65% of employment and 38% of the gross domestic product (GDP) was still based on agriculture, but modern industry had begun to expand substantially. By the late 1920s, manufacturing and mining contributed 23% of GDP, compared with 21% for all of agriculture. Transportation and communications had developed to sustain heavy industrial development. Combatants Imperial Russia Empire of Japan Commanders N/A N/A Strength 500,000 Soldiers 400,000 Soldiers Casualties 134,817+ KIA/POW, 170,000 MIA etc. ... IMF 2005 figures of total GDP of nominal compared to PPP. Absolute, not adjusted for population. ... Manufacturing, a branch of industry which accounts for about one-quarter of the worlds economic activity, is the application of tools and a processing medium to the transformation of raw materials into finished goods for sale. ... This article is about mineral extraction. ... The Ximen station, one of the stations of Metro Taipei. ...

During World War I, Japan used the absence of the war-torn European competitors on the world market to advance its economy, generating a trade surplus for the first time since the isolation in the Edo period. Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nicholas II Aleksei Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Herbert Henry Asquith Douglas Haig John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna Armando Diaz Woodrow Wilson John Pershing Franz... Balance of trade figures are the sum of the money gained by a given economy by selling exports, minus the cost of buying imports. ... The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Edo Period. ...

In the 1930s, the Japanese economy suffered less from the Great Depression than most of the other industrialized nations, expanding at the rapid rate of 5% of GDP per year. Manufacturing and mining came to account for more than 30% of GDP, more than twice the value for the agricultural sector. Most industrial growth, however, was geared toward expanding the nation's military power. The Great Depression was an economic downturn which started in 1929 and lasted through most of the 1930s. ...

Postwar period

World War II wiped out many of the gains Japan had made since 1868. About 40% of the nation's industrial plants and infrastructure were destroyed, and production reverted to levels of about fifteen years earlier. The people were shocked by the devastation and swung into action. New factories were equipped with the best modern machines, giving Japan an initial competitive advantage over the victor states, who now had older factories. As Japan's second period of economic development began, millions of former soldiers joined a well-disciplined and highly educated work force to rebuild Japan. Japan's colonies were lost as a result of World War II, but since then the Japanese have extended their economic influence throughout Asia and beyond. Combatants Major Allied powers: United Kingdom France Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Major Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Charles de Gaulle Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Chiang Kai-Shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tojo Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian... A factory worker in 1940s Fort Worth, Texas. ...

Occupation

The United States occupation of Japan (1945-52) resulted in the rebuilding of the nation and the creation of a democratic state. United States assistance totaled about US$1.9 billion during the occupation, or about 15% of the nation's imports and 4% of GNP in that period. About 59% of this aid was in the form of food, 15% in industrial materials, and 12% in transportation equipment. United States grant assistance, however, tapered off quickly in the mid-1950s. United States military procurement from Japan peaked at a level equivalent to 7% of Japan's GNP in 1953 and fell below 1% after 1960. A variety of United States-sponsored measures during the occupation, such as land reform, contributed to the economy's later performance by increasing competition. In particular, the postwar purge of industrial leaders allowed new talent to rise in the management of the nation's rebuilt industries. Finally, the economy benefited from foreign trade because it was able to expand exports rapidly enough to pay for imports of equipment and technology without falling into debt, as had a number of developing nations in the 1980s. At the end of the Second World War, Japan was occupied by the Allied Powers. ... For other uses, see Democracy (disambiguation). ... Measures of national income and output are used in economics to estimate the value of goods and services produced in an economy. ...

Rebuilding

The early postwar years were devoted to rebuilding lost industrial capacity: major investments were made in electric power, coal, iron, steel, and chemical fertilizers. By the mid-1950s, production matched prewar levels. Released from the demands of military-dominated government, the economy not only recovered its lost momentum but also surpassed the growth rates of earlier periods. Between 1953 and 1965, GDP expanded by more than 9% per year, manufacturing and mining by 13%, construction by 11%, and infrastructure by 12%. In 1965 these sectors employed more than 41% of the labor force, whereas only 26% remained in agriculture. For delivered electrical power, see Electrical power industry. ... Coal Coal (IPA: ) is a fossil fuel extracted from the ground by underground mining or open-pit mining (surface mining). ... General Name, Symbol, Number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Atomic mass 55. ... For other uses, see Steel (disambiguation). ... spreading manure, an organic fertilizer Fertilizers (British English fertilisers) are compounds given to plants to promote growth; they are usually applied either via the soil, for uptake by plant roots, or by foliar feeding, for uptake through leaves. ...

Japan's highly acclaimed postwar education system contributed strongly to the modernizing process. The world's highest literacy rate and high education standards were major reasons for Japan's success in achieving a technologically advanced economy. Japanese schools also encouraged discipline, another benefit in forming an effective work force. A typical Japanese classroom Education has been and is an important issue in Japanese society. ... World literacy rates by country The traditional definition of literacy is considered to be the ability to read and write, or the ability to use language–to read, write, listen, and speak. ...

The mid-1960s ushered in a new type of industrial development as the economy opened itself to international competition in some industries and developed heavy and chemical manufactures. Whereas textiles and light manufactures maintained their profitability internationally, other products, such as automobiles, ships, and machine tools assumed new importance. The value added to manufacturing and mining grew at the rate of 17% per year between 1965 and 1970. Growth rates moderated to about 8% and evened out between the industrial and service sectors between 1970 and 1973, as retail trade, finance, real estate, information, and other service industries streamlined their operations. Sunday textile market on the sidewalks of Karachi, Pakistan. ... For the magazine called automobile, see Automobile Magazine. ... Italian ship-rigged vessel Amerigo Vespucci in New York Harbor, 1976 A ship is a large, sea-going watercraft. ... In commerce, a retailer buys goods or products in large quantities from manufacturers or importers, either directly or through a wholesaler, and then sells individual items or small quantities to the general public or end user customers, usually in a shop, also called store. ... Finance studies and addresses the ways in which individuals, businesses, and organizations raise, allocate, and use monetary resources over time, taking into account the risks entailed in their projects. ... Real estate is a legal term that encompasses land along with anything permanently affixed to the land, such as buildings. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... The tertiary sector of industry, also called the service sector or the service industry, is one of the three main industrial categories of a developed economy, the others being the secondary industry (manufacturing and primary goods production such as agriculture), and primary industry (extraction such as mining and fishing). ...

Oil crisis

Japan faced a severe economic challenge in the mid-1970s. The world oil crisis in 1973 shocked an economy that had become virtually dependent on foreign petroleum. Japan experienced its first postwar decline in industrial production, together with severe price inflation. The recovery that followed the first oil crisis revived the optimism of most business leaders, but the maintenance of industrial growth in the face of high energy costs required shifts in the industrial structure. At the height of the crisis in the United States, drivers of vehicles with odd numbered license plates were allowed to purchase gasoline only on odd-numbered days of the month, while drivers with even-numbers were limited to even-numbered days. ... Pumpjack pumping an oil well near Sarnia, Ontario Ignacy Łukasiewicz - inventor of the refining of kerosene from crude oil. ...

Changing price conditions favored conservation and alternative sources of industrial energy. Although the investment costs were high, many energy-intensive industries successfully reduced their dependence on oil during the late 1970s and 1980s and enhanced their productivity. Advances in microcircuitry and semiconductors in the late 1970s and 1980s led to new growth industries in consumer electronics and computers, and to higher productivity in pre-established industries. The net result of these adjustments was to increase the energy efficiency of manufacturing and to expand so-called knowledge-intensive industries. The service industries expanded in an increasingly postindustrial economy. For the physical concepts, see conservation of energy and energy efficiency. ... A semiconductor is a solid whose electrical conductivity can be controlled over a wide range, either permanently or dynamically. ... Consumer electronics is electronic equipment intended for use by everyday people. ... Computer industry is a collective term used to describe the whole range of businesses involved in developing computer software, designing computer hardware, the manufacture of computer components and the provision of information technology services. ...

Structural economic changes, however, were unable to check the slowing of economic growth as the economy matured in the late 1970s and 1980s, attaining annual growth rates no better than 4 to 6%. But these rates were remarkable in a world of expensive petroleum and in a nation of few domestic resources. Japan's average growth rate of 5% in the late 1980s, for example, was far higher than the 3.8% growth rate of the United States. Despite more petroleum price increases in 1979, the strength of the Japanese economy was apparent. It expanded without the double-digit inflation that afflicted other industrial nations (and that had bothered Japan itself after the first oil crisis in 1973). Japan experienced slower growth in the mid-1980s, but its demand-sustained economic boom of the late 1980s revived many troubled industries. Accumulated GDP growth for various countries. ... Rainforest on Fatu-Hiva, Marquesas Islands Natural resources are naturally occurring substances that are considered valuable in their relatively unmodified (natural) form. ... The supply and demand model describes how prices vary as a result of a balance between product availability at each price (supply) and the desires of those with purchasing power at each price (demand). ... In economics, the term boom and bust refers to the movement of an economy through economic cycles due to changes in aggregate demand. ...

Factors of growth

Complex economic and institutional factors affected Japan's postwar growth. First, the nation's prewar experience provided several important legacies. The Tokugawa period (1600-1867) bequeathed a vital commercial sector in burgeoning urban centers, a relatively well-educated elite (although one with limited knowledge of European science), a sophisticated government bureaucracy, productive agriculture, a closely unified nation with highly developed financial and marketing systems, and a national infrastructure of roads. The buildup of industry during the Meiji period to the point where Japan could vie for world power was an important prelude to postwar growth and provided a pool of experienced labor following World War II. The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Edo Period. ... Part of a scientific laboratory at the University of Cologne. ... This page is about the sociological concept. ...

Second, and more important, was the level and quality of investment that persisted through the 1980s. Investment in capital equipment, which averaged more than 11% of GNP during the prewar period, rose to about 20% of GNP during the 1950s and to more than 30% in the late 1960s and 1970s. During the economic boom of the late 1980s, the rate still hovered around 20%. Japanese businesses imported the latest technologies to develop the industrial base. As a latecomer to modernization, Japan was able to avoid some of the trial and error earlier needed by other nations to develop industrial processes. In the 1970s and 1980s, Japan improved its industrial base through technology licensing, patent purchases, and imitation and improvement of foreign inventions. In the 1980s, industry stepped up its research and development, and many firms became famous for their innovations and creativity. Invest redirects here. ... In politics, a capital (also called capital city or political capital — although the latter phrase has a second meaning based on an alternative sense of capital) is the principal city or town associated with a countrys government. ... A Watt steam engine in Madrid. ... It has been suggested that Licensing (strategic alliance) be merged into this article or section. ... A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a state to a patentee (the inventor or assignee) for a fixed period of time in exchange for the regulated, public disclosure of certain details of a device, method, process or composition of matter (substance) (known as an invention) which... Imitation is an advanced animal behaviour whereby an individual observes anothers behaviour and replicates it itself. ... The phrase research and development (also R and D or R&D) has a special commercial significance apart from its conventional coupling of scientific research and technological development. ...

Japan's labor force contributed significantly to economic growth, not only because of its availability and literacy but also because of its reasonable wage demands. Before and immediately after World War II, the transfer of numerous agricultural workers to modern industry resulted in rising productivity and only moderate wage increases. As population growth slowed and the nation became increasingly industrialized in the mid-1960s, wages rose significantly. However, labor union cooperation generally kept salary increases within the range of gains in productivity. World literacy rates by country The traditional definition of literacy is considered to be the ability to read and write, or the ability to use language–to read, write, listen, and speak. ... A wage is a compensation which workers receive in exchange for their labor. ... Human population increase from 10,000 BC – 2000 AD. Population growth is change in population over time, and can be quantified as the change in the number of individuals in a population per unit time. ... A union (labor union in American English; trade union, sometimes trades union, in British English; either labour union or trade union in Canadian English) is a legal entity consisting of employees or workers having a common interest, such as all the assembly workers for one employer, or all the workers...

High productivity growth played a key role in postwar economic growth. The highly skilled and educated labor force, extraordinary savings rates and accompanying levels of investment, and the low growth of Japan's labor force were major factors in the high rate of productivity growth. In common usage, saving generally means putting money aside, for example, by putting money in the bank or investing in a pension plan. ... Invest redirects here. ...

The nation has also benefited from economies of scale. Although medium-sized and small enterprises generated much of the nation's employment, large facilities were the most productive. Many industrial enterprises consolidated to form larger, more efficient units. Before World War II, large holding companies formed wealth groups, or zaibatsu, which dominated most industry. The zaibatsu were dissolved after the war, but keiretsu—large, modern industrial enterprise groupings—emerged. The coordination of activities within these groupings and the integration of smaller subcontractors into the groups enhanced industrial efficiency. Economies of scale characterizes a production process in which an increase in the number of units produced causes a decrease in the average fixed cost of each unit. ... Wall Street, Manhattan is the location of the New York Stock Exchange and is often used as a symbol for the world of business. ... Zaibatsu , lit. ... A keiretsu lit. ... A subcontractor is an individual or in many cases a business that signs a contract to perform part or all of the obligations of anothers contract. ...

Japanese corporations developed strategies that contributed to their immense growth. Growth-oriented corporations that took chances competed successfully. Product diversification became an essential ingredient of the growth patterns of many keiretsu. Japanese companies added plant and human capacity ahead of demand. Seeking market share rather than quick profit was another powerful strategy.

Finally, circumstances beyond Japan's direct control contributed to its success. International conflicts tended to stimulate the Japanese economy until the devastation at the end of World War II. The Russo-Japanese War (1904-5), World War I (1914- 18), the Korean War (1950-53), and the Second Indochina War (1954-75) brought economic booms to Japan. In addition, benign treatment from the United States after World War II facilitated the nation's reconstruction and growth. Combatants Imperial Russia Empire of Japan Commanders N/A N/A Strength 500,000 Soldiers 400,000 Soldiers Casualties 134,817+ KIA/POW, 170,000 MIA etc. ... Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nicholas II Aleksei Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Herbert Henry Asquith Douglas Haig John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna Armando Diaz Woodrow Wilson John Pershing Franz... Combatants United Nations: Republic of Korea  Australia  Belgium Canada  Colombia Ethiopia  France Greece  Netherlands  New Zealand  Philippines South Africa  Thailand  Turkey  United Kingdom United States Medical staff:  Denmark  India  Italy  Norway  Sweden Communist states: Democratic People’s Republic of Korea People’s Republic of China  Soviet Union Commanders Syngman Rhee... Combatants Republic of Vietnam United States Republic of Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand The Philippines National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam Democratic Republic of Vietnam People’s Republic of China Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea Strength US 1,000,000 South Korea 300,000 Australia 48,000...

1980s

Throughout the 1970s, Japan had the world's second largest gross national product (GNP)—just behind the United States— and ranked first among major industrial nations in 1990 in per capita GNP at US$23,801, up sharply from US$9,068 in 1980. After a mild economic slump in the mid-1980s, Japan's economy began a period of expansion in 1986 that continued until it again entered a recessionary period in 1992. Economic growth averaging 5% between 1987 and 1989 revived industries, such as steel and construction, which had been relatively dormant in the mid-1980s, and brought record salaries and employment. In 1992, however, Japan's real GNP growth slowed to 1.7%. Even industries such as automobiles and electronics that had experienced phenomenal growth in the 1980s entered a recessionary period in 1992. The domestic market for Japanese automobiles shrank at the same time that Japan's share of the United States' market declined. Foreign and domestic demand for Japanese electronics also declined, and Japan seemed on the way to losing its leadership in the world semiconductor market to the United States. GNP redirects here. ... Per capita is a Latin phrase meaning for each head. ... A recession is usually defined in macroeconomics as a fall of a countrys real Gross Domestic Product in two or more successive quarters of a year. ... For other uses, see Steel (disambiguation). ... Cranes are essential in large construction projects, such as this skyscraper In project architecture and civil engineering, construction is the building or assembly of any infrastructure on a site. ... In economics, the distinction between nominal and real numbers is often made. ... Automakers are companies that produce automobiles. ... The field of electronics comprises the study and use of systems that operate by controlling the flow of electrons (or other charge carriers) in devices such as thermionic valves (vacuum tubes) and semiconductors. ... A semiconductor is a solid whose electrical conductivity can be controlled over a wide range, either permanently or dynamically. ...

Unlike the economic booms of the 1960s and 1970s, when increasing exports played the key role in economic expansion, domestic demand propelled the Japanese economy in the late 1980s. This development involved fundamental economic restructuring, moving from dependence on exports to reliance on domestic demand. The boom that started in 1986 was generated by the decisions of companies to increase private plant and equipment spending and of consumers to go on a buying spree. Japan's imports grew at a faster rate than exports. Japanese postwar technological research was carried out for the sake of economic growth rather than military development. The growth in high-technology industries in the 1980s resulted from heightened domestic demand for high-technology products and for higher living, housing, and environmental standards; better health, medical, and welfare opportunities; better leisure-time facilities; and improved ways to accommodate a rapidly aging society. This reliance on domestic consumption also became a handicap as consumption grew by only 2.2% in 1991 and at the same rate again in 1992. The supply and demand model describes how prices vary as a result of a balance between product availability at each price (supply) and the desires of those with purchasing power at each price (demand). ... Research is often described as an active, diligent, and systematic process of inquiry aimed at discovering, interpreting, and revising facts. ... ... People participating in summer luge as a form of recreation, in the Vosges. ...

During the 1980s, the Japanese economy shifted its emphasis away from primary and secondary activities (notably agriculture, manufacturing, and mining) to processing, with telecommunications and computers becoming increasingly vital. Information became an important resource and product, central to wealth and power. The rise of an information-based economy was led by major research in highly sophisticated technology, such as advanced computers. The selling and use of information became very beneficial to the economy. Tokyo became a major financial center, home of some of the world's major banks, financial firms, insurance companies, and the world's largest stock exchange, the Tokyo Securities and Stock Exchange. Even here, however, the recession took its toll. In 1992, the Nikkei 225 stock average began the year at 23,000 points, but fell to 14,000 points in mid-August before leveling off at 17,000 by the end of the year. Manufacturing, a branch of industry which accounts for about one-quarter of the worlds economic activity, is the application of tools and a processing medium to the transformation of raw materials into finished goods for sale. ... This article is about mineral extraction. ... Classical economics distinguishes between three factors of production which are used in the production of goods: Land or natural resources - naturally-occurring goods such as soil and minerals. ... By the mid 20th century humans had achieved a level of technological mastery sufficient to leave the surface of the planet for the first time and explore space. ... Tokyo , literally Eastern capital)   is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, the home of the Japanese Imperial Family, and the de facto[1] capital of Japan. ... For other uses, see Bank (disambiguation). ... Insurance, in law and economics, is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of catastrophic financial loss. ... Nikkei 225 (日経平均株価, 日経225) is a stock market index for the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE). ...

The Evolving Occupational Structure

As late as 1955, some 40% of the labor force still worked in agriculture, but this figure had declined to 17% by 1970 and to 7.2% by 1990. The government estimated in the late 1980s that this figure would decline to 4.9% by 2000, as Japan imported more and more of its food and small family farms disappeared. Bales of hay on a farm near Ames, Iowa A farm is the basic unit in agriculture. ...

Japan's economic growth in the 1960s and 1970s was based on the rapid expansion of heavy manufacturing in such areas as automobiles, steel, shipbuilding, chemicals, and electronics. The secondary sector (manufacturing, construction, and mining) expanded to 35.6% of the work force by 1970. By the late 1970s, however, the Japanese economy began to move away from heavy manufacturing toward a more service-oriented (tertiary sector) base. During the 1980s, jobs in wholesaling, retailing, finance, insurance, real estate, transportation, communications, and government grew rapidly, while secondary-sector employment remained stable. The tertiary sector grew from 47% of the work force in 1970 to 59.2% in 1990. Wholesaling consists of the sale of goods/merchandise to retailers, to industrial, commercial, institutional, or other professional business users or to other wholesalers and related subordinated services (WTO - World Trade Organization). ... Drawing of a self-service store. ... Finance studies and addresses the ways in which individuals, businesses, and organizations raise, allocate, and use monetary resources over time, taking into account the risks entailed in their projects. ... Insurance, in law and economics, is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of catastrophic financial loss. ... Real estate is a legal term that encompasses land along with anything permanently affixed to the land, such as buildings. ... The Ximen station, one of the stations of Metro Taipei. ...

Timeline

• Meiji Restoration - beginning of rapid growth
• WWII and subsequent occupation of Japan
• April 25, 1971 : End of the Gold Standard.
• September 22, 1985 : Plaza Accord.
• December 26, 1989 Nikkei 225 average peaks at 37,189
• 25 April 1997 : Nissan Mutual Life Insurance goes bankrupt.
• July 1997: Start of the Asian financial crisis.
• September 18, 1997 : Yaohan goes bankrupt.
• Post 2000, Bank of Japan begins Quantitative easing strategy.

The Meiji Restoration ), also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, or Renewal, was a chain of events that led to a change in Japans political and social structure. ... Combatants Major Allied powers: United Kingdom France Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Major Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Charles de Gaulle Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Chiang Kai-Shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tojo Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian... History of Japan Paleolithic Jomon Yayoi Yamato period ---Kofun period ---Asuka period Nara period Heian period Kamakura period Muromachi period Azuchi-Momoyama period ---Nanban period Edo period Meiji period Taisho period Showa period ---Japanese expansionism ---Occupied Japan ---Post-Occupation Japan Heisei The Surrender of Japan Japan surrendered to the Allies... April 25 is the 115th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (116th in leap years). ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1971 calendar). ... This article is on the monetary principle. ... September 22 is the 265th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (266th in leap years). ... 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Plaza Accord was an agreement signed on September 22, 1985 by the then G-5 nations (France, West Germany, Japan, the United States and the United Kingdom). ... December 26 is the 360th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, 361st in leap years. ... 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Nikkei 225 (日経平均株価, 日経225) is a stock market index for the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE). ... April 25 is the 115th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (116th in leap years). ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Nissan Mutual Life Insurance Company (日産生命保険相互会社) was a Japanese company that went bankrupt on April 25, 1997. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Asian financial crisis was a financial crisis that started in July 1997 in Thailand and affected currencies, stock markets, and other asset prices in several Asian countries, many considered East Asian Tigers. ... September 18 is the 261st day of the year (262nd in leap years). ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Yaohan (Japanese: 八百半; Chinese: 八佰伴) was a Japanese retail group. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... The Bank of Japan has its headquarters in this building in Tokyo. ... There are very few or no other articles that link to this one. ...

See also

• Bank of Japan
• Economy of Japan
• History of Japan
• Japan
• Keiretsu - a distinctive Japanese way in which firms are related

The Bank of Japan has its headquarters in this building in Tokyo. ... The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article Japan#Economy. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A keiretsu lit. ...

Reference

• This article contains material from the Library of Congress Country Studies, which are United States government publications in the public domain. - Japan