|RNational holiday:|N Foundation Day, February 11.
|RNature and climate:|N A 3 800 km long, bent chain of four big and more than 3 900 small islands between the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan.Almost all the islands are very mountainous. More than 80% of the area are mountainous with more than 580 peaks reaching more than 2 000 m.a.s.l. Highest peak is the holy mountain Fuji, an extinct volcano, reaching 3 776 m.a.s.l. 30 volcanoes are still active. Earthquakes are frequent.
The great distance between the southern and northern parts makes great differences in vegetation. In south there are rainforests and in the north defoliating forests.
As Japan in centuries have been very densely populated the fauna is threatened. there are bears, deers, wild boars and many species of birds, but many species are extinct.
The climate is a tempered monsoonclimate and warm streams in the Ocean give a much warmer climate than continents on the same latitude. Average temperature in January between +4 and +6°C in the southern parts and between -6 and -10°C in the northern parts. In July 25°C in the southern parts and +16°C in the north.
Percipitation between 1000 and 2500 mm, most on the south and east sides of the islands.
|RPeople:|N 99% Japanese. A small ethnic group, the Ainos, still live in the interior of Hokkaido and is probably a remainder of an aboriginal population.
|REconomy:|N 8% of the labour force is occupied in agriculture, 32 % in manufacturing and mining and 43% in services and trade.
Japan is very densely populated and the topography makes it difficult to cultivate vast areas. Most important crops are rice, fruits, mulberry trees (for silk), potatoes,sugar, tea and tobacco. Grain and meat must imported.
Japan is the world's largest producer of silk.
Fishing is very important and Japan is world leader in fishing and have highly mechanized and effective fishingboats for fishing in the oceans all over the world.
Japan have many minerals but most of them are not worth extracting. Most important are chromium, lead, silver, gold, limestone and sulphur.
The industrial production is second biggest in the world, only beaten by the USA.
Manufacturing is very highly developed and is world leading in many fields. Japan is the world's biggest producer of cars, cameras and electronical equipment.
For many years Japan have exported much more than they import which has put a strain on the relations to many other countries, especially the EC and the USA. Japan has been forced to accept more import.
|RHistory:|N According to old legends the sun goddess created Japan and from her the emperors were allegedly descended. Jimmu Tenno, the first emperor, ascended the throne in in 660 BC. This year was the start of the Japanese calender up to 1945.
However, the first peasants settled in Japan about 200 BC. Earlier the people were hunters and fishers. During the 4th century BC the Yamato-chiefs founded the first historical dynasty. At this time the contacts with the mainland increased and in the mid 6th century Korean missionaries introduced Buddhism and Chinese writing.
All the small realms of Japan were united in 645 and in 710 the emperors established the first permanent capital at Nara. The empire was administrated in a feudal way with strong local vassals. The emperor was both administrative and religious leader.
The 8th and 9th centuries were culturally prosperous and from the 9th century Chinese influence increased.
In the 12th century the power of the emperors decreased as the provincial military aristocracy, the samurai, grew stronger. In 1185 the Minamoto family seize powers and in 1192 Minamoto no Yositomo received the whole Japan as enfeoffment from the emperor. He appointed himself Shogun, generalissimo.
After this followed centuries of prosper but in the late 16th century a period of internal disintegration started, which made it possible for portuguese and Chinese traders to settle in Japan.
In 1590 the country was once again united and in the early 17th century it was, once again, organized feudally. From 1635 the Japanese people were prohibited to go abroad and all foreign trade was prohibited. Only the port of Nagasaki was open for a limited trade with China and the Netherlands.
In this way the Japanese society remained unchanged until the mid 19th century.
The USA had long tried to open trade with Japan and in 1853 they sent a fleet under Commodore Matthew C Perry with an ultimate: Trade or war. An agreement on trade was signed in 1854 and in e few years trade agreements were also signed with Great Britain, the Netherlands and Russia.
Many Japanese people disapproved of this opening towards the rest of the world. Finally, in 1868, with the help of young radical samurai, a new emperor was installed, given full administrative powers and the shogunal government ended.
Now followed a period of rapid modernization of the whole society. Feudalism was abolished, military, industrial, commercial and social modernization started and a new constitution in 1889 created a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary government. And Japan became an imperialist power. It won the Sino-Japanese war 1894 to 1895 and defeated Russia in 1904 to 1905. In this way Japan became the dominant power in east Asia. Korea was made a colony in 1910.
In World War I Japan joined Great Britain and made vast territorial as well as economical gains.
With the international depression in the 1920:ies ultranational groups around the young emperor gained power and in 1931 they started a war against China without consent from the government.
In 1937 they started a new war against China without consent from the government. This time Mongolia and the northeastern part of China was rapidly conquered.
Japan joined Germany in World War II and in 1940 Japan conquered all French colonies in east Asia. In 1941 Japan attacked USA at Pearl Harbour. At first Japan gained great success and conquered most Pacific islands as well as vast areas in China, the Far East and Indonesia.
But in August 1945 the USa attacked the towns Hiroshima and Nagasaki on the Japanese main island with nuclear bombs and Japan surrendered immediately.
After the war Japan was occupied by the USA. In 1951 a peace treaty between Japan and the USA was signed and 1952 Japan became an independent country. Japan joined the UN in 1956.
After the war Japan has led e friendly policy towards the USA, but not played a role in international politics. The economic development since the war has been impressing and Japan is now one of the greatest economic powers. Since the late 1980:ies Japan has been more active in international politics.
