Country Notebook

JAPAN

Overview

Japan is a constitutional democracy with a Symbol Emperor System. The total area of the country is 377,873 square kilometers and the capital, also the city with the largest population, is Tokyo. The Japan island arc belongs to the Ring of Fire—the geographic term for a row of volcanoes located in the Pacific Basin

Cultural Analysis

Location Japan consists of several thousands of islands, of which Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku are the four largest.

Climate Due to the large North South extension of the country, the climate varies strongly in different regions. The climate in most of the major cities, including Tokyo, is temperate to sub tropic and consists of four seasons.

Topography

The Japanese islands are covered by mountains, most of them heavily forested, and crisscrossed by short, swift rivers.

Geographical Setting

Cultural Analysis

Social Institutions

Modern Family Most families in Japan today are nuclear families, such as we have here in the United States and in North American generally. That is to say that a married couple lives together with their children, perhaps with one grandparent.

Traditional Family The traditional Japanese family, known in Japanese as i.e., is a very complex kinship unit, a very complex kind of a family system. It's multigenerational; it's an extended family

Cultural Analysis•Education•Education•Education•Education

Education

Cultural Analysis•Political System

Political System

Unquestionably Japan is a democratic country, but it is a very different kind of democracy to that prevailing in most of Europe in countries like France and Germany

THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH Japan is a constitutional monarchy (like Britain) where the power of the Emperor is very limited

THE JUDICIAL BRANCH The Supreme Court is the highest court in the land. The Chief Justice is appointed by the Emperor following selection by the Cabinet. Fourteen other judges are selected and appointed by the Cabinet

Cultural Analysis

Legal System

Federal court operates in every state (some states have several federal districts) to hear:

Disputes between citizens of different states

Matters of federal law or U.S. constitution

Bankruptcy, copyright, or admiralty cases

11 circuit courts oversee district courts

Supreme court over all circuits

Cultural Analysis

Federal courts continuedtax cases and claims against the government are handled by a special district court

Administrative agencies have their own U.S. circuit court for appeals of rulings and decisions

Legal System

Cultural Analysis

Religion

Buddhism

6th Century

Migrated from the Korean peninsula

Six sects of Nara Buddhism

Both Buddhism and Shinto formed

one religion

Cultural Analysis

Shinto

Religion

Means way of God

Originated in prehistoric times

Largest and Native Religion

During 18th and 19th century

independent sects formed

Merged with Buddhism

Cultural Analysis

Aesthetics

The modern study of Japanese aesthetics in the

Western sense only started a little over two

hundred years ago. The Japanese aesthetic is a

set of ancient ideals that include wabi , sabi and

yogun

Cultural Analysis

Aesthetics

Wabi-sabi

Wabi and sabi refers to a mindful approach to everyday life. Over

time their meanings overlapped and converged until they are

unified into Wabi-sabi, the aesthetic defined as the beauty of

things "imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete".

Shibui

Shibui means simple, subtle or unobtrusive. It means

that things are more beautiful when they speak for

themselves when they aren't loud and in your face.

Cultural Analysis

Aesthetics

Yugen

Yugen states that life is boring when all the facts are

known. Something should be held back — the mystery.

Ensou

Ensou is a zen concept. It is often represented by a

circle. It can mean infinity or nothingness. It's a little

hard to explain. You need to spend a lot of time

meditating to really get it.

Kawaii

Kawaii is cute. Some argue it's a new Japanese aesthetic.

Others say kawaii has always been part of Japanese

culture.

Cultural Analysis

Language

Official Language

Japanese is believed to be linked to the Altaic

language family, which includes Turkish,

Mongolian and other languages, but also shows

similarities to Austronesian languages like

Polynesian.

Cultural Analysis

Language

Writing

The Japanese writing system consists of three

different character sets: Kanji (several

thousands of Chinese characters) and Hiragana

and Katakana (two syllabifies of 46 characters

each; together called Kana).

Economic Analysis

Population