JAPAN

Geography  Japan is made up of islands that are really undersea mountains and volcanoes.  Only about 20% are flat coastal plains, and that where the majority of the population resides.  Rely on the sea for their food.

The Ainu  A culture that developed in Japan, possibly moved to Japan from eastern Russia (Siberia).  Spoke a different language, looked different than other eastern Asian cultures.  After fighting, and losing, battles for land, they were driven to the island of Hokkaido, where the language and culture eventually almost disappeared.

Clans  The people, who became known as the Japanese, primarily lived in small fishing villages ruled by clans (extended families)  Everyone else in the village had to obey and respect the members of the clans.  Head of the clan is the chief. The chief and both political power and religious duties.  Descended from the Kami, or nature spirits

Shinto  Eventually the rituals of the first Japanese developed into the religion, Shinto.  Everything in nature has kami (spirits), which help them live and protect them from harm.  Build shrines and perform ceremonies asking for blessings from the kami  Approximately 80% of the Japanese population practice some form of Shinto.

Influence from China and Korea  Initially, being a series of islands apart from the rest of Asia, Japan had very little influence from them.  500s Japan decided to send representatives to learn from China and Korea about their cultures.  WRITTEN LANGUAGE  Began writing in Chinese, and speaking in Japanese. Used Chinese character to eventually develop their own written language.  Chinese was official language of Japanese government for a while.

Influence from China and Korea  Philosophy  Prince Shotoku, acting as regent for his aunt, Empress Suiko, sent scholars to China to bring back ideas from Chinese society.  Confucianism taught Japanese about how families should behave (wives obey husbands, children obey parents and older brothers)  Religion  Prince Shotoku was a Buddhist, and wanted to spread the religion around, which showed up from Korea 50 years before.  Built a grand Buddhist temple, Shitenno-Ji

Heian Japan  Emperor Kanmu moved the Japanese capital to Heian (Kyoto) in 794, and this marked a new period of Japanese history known for its art, literature, beauty, and the rise of the Samurai class.

Nobility  The Nobles who followed the emperor to Heian created an imperial court, to serve and advise the emperor.  Lived away from poorer citizens, lived life of privilege.  Loved beauty and elegance, supported the arts.  This period marked a “golden age” of arts n Japan.

Heian Fashion  Wore silk robes and kimonos, and accessorized in gold jewelry.  Women’s gowns often 12 layers of silk that were cut to show off all of the different layers at once.  Carried decorative fans that were painted with flowers, trees and birds; and had long silk cords and flowers attached.  Dress indicated their social status

Heian Literature  While most men wrote in Chinese, Heian women wrote in Japanese, and took great care in choosing their words to be as beautiful as possible.  Women wrote in diaries about their lives in court.  Most of the greatest works of early Japanese literature were done by women.

Lady Murasaki Shikibu  One of the greatest writers in Japanese history  Noble and servant to Empress Akiko  Wrote The Tale of Genji, often considered the world’s first full-length novel, and one of the best.  About a prince, Genji, and his quest for love.  Colorful characters that seem real, language is clear and simple, but elegant  Japanese court-life described in great detail; especially in regards to customs and attitudes.

Poetry  Most popular forms of Japanese poetry during the Heian period were “Kanshi” and “Waka” (both referenced in The Tale of Genji).  Structure outlines how many syllables each line can have  Nobles held parties where they would take turns writing and reading poetry to each other.

Visual Art  Most popular forms: painting, architecture and calligraphy  Paintings: bright, bold colors.  Often illustrate stories, show nature scenes or court life.  Frequently painted on doors and furniture rather than paper.

Calligraphy  Calligraphers spent hours copying poetry carefully in their decorative writing to make them look as beautiful as they sounded.

Architecture  The Heian admired Chinese architecture, and modeled their city after the Chinese capital, Chang’an.  Chinese styles modeled in their temples, especially.  Featured wooden frames with ends that curved slightly upward, and thatched roofs (straw-like).  Wood left unpainted and natural Byodo-in Temple, 1053

Architecture  Other buildings were preferred to have simple, airy designs; made with wood and tiled roofs.  Large, open spaces inside  Surrounded them with elegant ponds and gardens. Traditional Japanese teahouse (Kamakura and Muromachi periods)

Performing Arts  Roots of Japanese drama came out of the Heian period  Musicians, jugglers, plays and acrobats.  Most popular plays mimicked other people.

Performing Arts Noh  Plays developed into “Noh” dramas in the 1300s,  Usually based on stories from traditional literatue, with a supernatural being transformed into a human as a hero, and narrating the story  Integrates masks, dance, and costumes; requires highly trained actors  Still popular in Japan today.

Japanese Buddhism  Many of the nobles in Heian loved to incorporate elaborate rituals into their religion, though most Japanese didn’t have the same time or money to do so.  PURE LAND BUDDHISM  Popular with the common people  Chanted Buddha’s name over and over to achieve an enlightened state

Japanese Buddhism  ZEN BUDDHISM  Believed that neither faith nor good behavior led to wisdom.  Those seeking wisdom must practice self-discipline, meditation, and quiet thinking.

Samurai and Shoguns  Outside of Heian, powerful nobles began to fight each other and rebels over land.  Land was destroyed, farming became more difficult; more peasants became bandits and thieves.  Japanese rulers seemed unaware of what was going on outside of their court.  The Daimyo (landowners) began to hire Samurai to protect their property.

Samurai  Samurai “to serve”= trained professional warriors  Wore light armor  Fought with swords and bows  Usually came from noble families; inherited position from fathers

Samurai  Required to serve their lord, and therefore be loyal to the emperor.  Few lords could afford to supply armor and weapons for their samurai, and therefore paid them in land or food.  Only most powerful samurai received land, and they profited from the peasants who worked the land and paid them in money or food.  Samurai who did not receive land were paid in food– usually rice.

Leadership Changes in Japan  Many nobles outside of Heian were unhappy with how the country was being ran, and many clans decided to start fighting for power.  After about 30 years of fighting, the Minamoto clan won.  Minamoto no Yoritomo, the leader of the clan, took the title “Shogun”  A shogun is a military general who rules in the emperor’s name.  Emperor officially became only a figurehead in Japan, rather than having much real power.

Samurai Under the Shogunate  With a shogun in charge, Samurai became more important to Japanese society.  Commoners must respect Samurai; possible punishment of death if they didn’t  Samurai could not take part in activities that were considered beneath them, such as theatre, trade and commerce.

Bushido Code  Samurai Code of Rules– “The Way of the Warrior”  Must be brave and honorable warriors  Men and women of samurai families learned to fight, although only women went into combat  Women could protect home  Live simple and disciplined  Participated in peaceful rituals that required concentration  Many were Zen Buddhists, requiring self-discipline and meditation

Bushido Code  Honor was most important to a Samurai  Most important to their sense of honor is loyalty to their lord, or Daimyo.  If they lost honor, they were expected to commit suicide in a ritual called Seppuku  Though the samurai are not part of Japanese society today, the values of Bushido and the Samurai (especially of loyalty and honor) are still very important in Japan.

Problems Face Japan Society  Foreign Invasion  The Mongols invaded from China, under Kublai Khan’s leadership in  Nobles and army were able to defeat the Mongols with the help of a storm that sank many of their ships.  This happened again in 1281 when the Mongols invaded a second time with twice the amount of warriors.  Japan called the storm “kamikaze” or “divine wind”  Many nobles unhappy with the lack of credit they were given.

Problems Face Japan Society  Internal Rebellion  The emperor began to fight the Shogun for control of government  Daimyo also began to fight the Shogun for power  By 1400s, the shoguns lost most of their power, but the emperor was also still just a figurehead  Each Daimyo controlled his own territory, collected their own taxes, and left no powerful central authority.

Japan’s Reunification  Oda Nobunaga  Powerful leader that sought to reunify Japan  Introduced guns to Japan (from Portuguese traders), and easily defeated opponents.

Japan’s Reunification  Tokugawa Ieyasu continued Oda’s efforts to unify Japan in  Made shogun by the Emperor in 1603  Ruled all of Japan from his capital, Edo (Present- day Tokyo)  The Tokugawa Shogunate lasteduntil  Period of trade with many other countries, Christain missionaries arrived in Japan.

Isolation  Shogun in the 1630s feared the open contact with the rest of the world.  Closed Japan off from the rest of the world.  Banned guns for fear of peasants defeating Samurai  This isolation and limitied technology stretched the Samurai period until the 1800s.