Japan Facts

Introduction

While I wouldn't call it totally necessary, knowing a few "Japan Facts", especially if you're going there, definitely isn't a bad thing. While I don't know how useful it is to know the Japanese population (other than to prepare yourself for the ridiculously crowded morning trains in Tokyo), knowing things about the climate and geography should definitely come in handy. And while most of you (hopefully all of you) know the Japanese flag, I wanted to include it anyway.

Location and Geography:

Japan is an island a bit smaller than California located in the East Asia. Japan's neighbors include China, Korea, and Russia. Japan is divided into 47 prefectures some of the most famous including Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto.

Japan is mostly mountainous and has a large number of dormant (and some active) volcanoes. Every once in a while there are typhoons that hit Japan and Tsunamis aren't a stranger either.

Japan has a tropical climate down south and it changes to a cool temperate climate up north. Most of Japan has a very distinct four seasons (the Japanese are very proud of it too). In Tokyo, summer is usually hot and muggy with a rainy season in June and Winter is dry and moderately cold. Spring and autumn fit well in between and are the most friendly times of the year as far as temperature comfort goes.

Even though it's smaller than California, coming in at 127,288,419 (July 2008 est.), Japan boasts the 5th largest population in the world. It also has the world's second longest life expectancy (behind Andorra). Largely a homogeneous society, Japanese make up 98% of the population with Korean coming in second. There is some worry about the shrinking and aging population though.

Japan is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary government. The current emperor, Akihito,inherited the throne in 1989 and began what is called the "Heisei" period (In Japan it's common use when writing your birth date. 1989 is Heisei 1. The period before was Showa). The current Prime Minister is Yasuo Fukuda of the Liberal Democratic Party. The prime minister is appointed by the diet, which is a bit like the Japanese version of the U.S. congress. There are two houses, the Upper and Lower that work to pass laws. The judicial branch is the Supreme Court. The capital of Japan, Tokyo, is also home to the Imperial Family.

Japanese Religion:
Japan's main religions are Shinto, Japan's native religion and Buddhism, which was brought over from China. There is also a Christian population and a small amount of people identifying themselves with other religions. See the Japanese Religion page for more information.

Japanese Schools:
Japanese schools have a pretty unique and well set system. Japan is said to have a 99% literacy rate. As a student of Japanese, I find that pretty amazing. Japanese students are usually required to wear the traditional uniform from middle school onwards. There are entrance exams for both high school and college (middle school sometimes as well). Japanese students usually attend extra school called "Juku" to help prepare for exams. However, it has been said that Japanese universities are far too easy and laid back after the students pass the entrance exam.

Japanese Flag:
The Japanese flag, called Hinomaru, is a red circle in the middle of a white background. The red represents a sun without its rays.

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