Questions tagged [japan]

An island country in the western Pacific, located east of the Asian mainland.

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1 answer
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Why do the Japanese sing Ode to Joy during the Japanese New Year?

During the New Years days, the Japanese have a curious custom where they perform Beethoven's 9th symphony. This has produced some stunning sights on youtube But there's nothing particularly festive ...
4 votes
2 answers
2k views

Why couldn't the Ottoman Empire modernise at the same time as Meiji Japan did? [closed]

It appears to me that Japan modernised during the late 19th century to come to a level of advancement comparable to Western powers was, unlike Ottoman Empire Japan had universal compulsory education ...
26 votes
3 answers
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Are there incidents of ronin travelling outside Japan as soldiers of fortune?

There are time periods where large numbers of ronin flocked to Edo, and roamed the Japanese countryside looking for some source of income; generally during and right after the Senegoku period and ...
16 votes
4 answers
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Why would anyone from Japan be in Northern India in early 1900s?

I am trying to write a fictional history novel. Can someone tell me why a young man from a wealthy, samurai family from Japan would be in Northern India in the early 1900s (after WW1, before WWII). ...
16 votes
3 answers
27k views

What does the eighth samurai crest / symbol in this picture signify?

I would like to ask you all to explain the meaning of the 8-th symbol in this picture*: I would like to also know what are those symbols? Thank you very much. * Source: http://www.samurai-store.com/...
4 votes
1 answer
373 views

Before ww2, why did Japan allow Chinese students to study military science?

In 1917, Cheng Fangwu and his friends were openly anti-Japan; yet in Japan they were free to elect whatever major they liked. Cheng studied steel making, guns, ballistics and torpedoes but later ...
2 votes
1 answer
377 views

What evidence is there of tank-vs-tank combat in Asia during the second world war?

It has been known that the Japanese army during the Second World War did not value tanks highly and as such they were not always used effectively and had significantly worse characteristics than ...
2 votes
1 answer
7k views

How did British aircraft fare against Japanese aircraft during the Second World War? [closed]

It goes without saying that both the Supermarine Spitfire used by the UK and the Japanese Mitsubishi Zero are iconic fighter aircraft of the Second World War. But how did these aircraft fare when they ...
12 votes
2 answers
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Was the last Japanese surrender after WWII in the 1970s?

Wikipedia in its article on the Surrender of Japan, claims: Some Japanese holdouts, especially on small Pacific Islands, refused to surrender at all (believing the declaration to be propaganda or ...
16 votes
4 answers
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At what age did samurai children start going into battles in the Sengoku era?

Exactly as the title says, from what age did a child of a samurai start to join his father in battles? I suspect it is when the child was considered an adult, but what age was considered an adult ...
8 votes
1 answer
351 views

When did Russia learn about the Philippines and the Japanese and Spanish presences there?

The Japanese and Spanish did business in the Philippines from the 12th and 16th centuries respectively. In Russia, Vasili III became aware that the Spanish had reached America after his envoys ...
2 votes
2 answers
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When did Emperor Hirohito gave an address about suicides and non-productive jobs?

I heard in a conversation I got with a friend of a friend before, that during World War II apparently Emperor Hirohito of Japan, gave an address to his people after a long time in which talked about ...
4 votes
2 answers
653 views

What was the nature of the Japanese presence in China in the later stages of World War II?

I am trying to understand Japanese punitive expeditions in China such as the Three Alls Campaign and retaliation for the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo. In each case, the Japanese largely retaliated against ...
12 votes
4 answers
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Why didn't the Japanese develop air defenses after the bombing of Tokyo?

So, I was reading some WWII questions, and a couple of them mentioned the bombing of Tokyo. I had never heard of it before, so I decided to read up on it. What I don't understand about it is Japan's ...
3 votes
1 answer
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Were the Japanese aware of Desmond Doss's actions?

I read about the amazing story of Desmond Doss and wonder if the Japanese at all aware, during the Battle of Okinawa of the extent of his actions at the time? I know a few individual Japanese would ...
13 votes
0 answers
729 views

Was Heisuke Yanagawa really censored out in photos, and why?

Heisuke Yanagawa (柳川 平助) was an IJA Lieutenant General who commanded one of the main armies in the Battle of Nanking. He would have been one of the generals photographed marching into Nanking. I've ...
7 votes
4 answers
2k views

Why did Japan fail to interfere with shipping from America to Vladivostok from 1941-1945?

Throughout World War II, the United States was able to supply Russia with food and many crucial war materials, such as aluminum, via Russia's Pacific port, Vladivostok. Japan steadfastedly refused to ...
3 votes
2 answers
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Were the Nazis actually ever horrified of anything that the Imperial Japanese Army did or vice-versa?

While reading Rationalwiki page on the Rape of Nanjing part of the article really stood out to me: …such as hanging people by their tongues on iron hooks or burying people to their waists and ...
34 votes
2 answers
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Why did Meiji government consider switching from Japanese to English?

During the Meiji restoration, the Meiji govenment sought to switch Japan's national language from Japanese to English. Who and why advocated that? Ultimately, why was it unsuccessful? Source: ...
58 votes
2 answers
18k views

Why does Japan use the same type of AC power outlet as the US?

Does it have something to do with the US taking part in aiding reconstruction of the country after WWII? I've tried googling around for an answer, but every site I find simply states the outlet style, ...
1 vote
4 answers
2k views

Did Japan ever attack Vladivostok in WW2? Why or why not?

That's a screenshot from Battlefield Season 4 Episode 3. I added the location of Vladivostok. In all my readings, I have never found a Japanese attack on Vladivostok during or right before WW2. You ...
9 votes
1 answer
462 views

Did Japanese castaways land in Spanish California?

George Lensen's "The Russian Push Toward Japan" says on p. 261: In 1815 the transport Pavel under the command of Navigator's Apprentice Srednii left Okhotsk with six Japanese castaways, three of ...
3 votes
1 answer
436 views

What effects did World War II have on Japanese animation industry?

I was recently looking up the effects of the world war on Japanese Animation Industry after I made the following observations It is quite common to see German names in Japanese Anime which could be ...
3 votes
2 answers
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Was Nobunaga the founder of 3 lines of riflemen formation?

During Battle of Nagashino, Oda Nobunaga ordered his riflemen to make three lines and shoot in a certain order, that is the first line will shoot, followed by the second line. While the second line ...
8 votes
1 answer
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Who started the "katana is the soul of the Samurai" meme?

Samurai used to be defined by their ability to use horses and bows in the early history of Japan. This moved to using the sword, first tachi then katana. Within the Tokugawa period, the katana ...
11 votes
6 answers
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What were Chiang Kai-shek's biggest strategic blunders during the Second Sino-Japanese war?

Just as it is often said that Operation Barbarossa is Hitler's biggest strategic blunder (either the whole thing, its timing or execution), what were Chiang Kai-shek's biggest strategic blunders in ...
5 votes
1 answer
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Why do schools in Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea use the Westminster Quarters as school chime?

Today, I read about the Westminister Quarters, the chime used by Big Ben in Westminster, London. In that article, I see this assertion: Most schools in Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea play the ...
3 votes
0 answers
217 views

What are the circumstances that lead to Kondou being the sole Shinsengumi leader?

After the assassination of Serizawa Kamo, this left Kondou and Tonouchi as the remaining faction leaders. From what I understand, Tonouchi knew or even helped Kondou get rid of Serizawa but, then, ...
78 votes
12 answers
34k views

Why, in the US, is Japanese brutality ignored compared with the Nazi brutality in WW2?

Instead of accepting too much of what I have read in my textbooks, I have read up a bit about WW2 on my own and have always pondered, why in the USA is the brutality and actions of the Japanese during ...
15 votes
1 answer
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How could it be that 80% of townspeople were farmers during the Edo period in Japan?

I've read in the book "A modern history of Japan" by Andrew Gordon and other articles, that most of the Japanese townspeople were farmers(about 80% I suppose) during the Edo period. But according to ...
5 votes
0 answers
137 views

How did life for commoners in Okinawa change with the Satsuma invasion?

In 1609, the kingdom of Ryukyu which covers what is today known as Okinawa, was invaded by the Japanese Satsuma clan. How did this affect the everyday life of commoners (Everybody not noble or a ...
10 votes
4 answers
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Did land based airpower give the Americans a decisive advantage at the Battle of Midway?

This question was inspired by another (on a different SE site) about the Avalon Hill board game. As told in many American history books, the battle of Midway featured four Japanese heavy carriers vs. ...
4 votes
1 answer
334 views

Why did this post card not allow communication with Japan?

In this postcard posted in Canterbury on 21 July 1908 (I assume) it is marked that: This space may be used for communication for Inland Postage and Foreign Countries, except Japan. Why?
11 votes
1 answer
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What are the origins of the Shinto religion?

Shinto's recorded history is typically dated to the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, but most sources suggest that oral traditions go back much further than this. What evidence is there to support this - ...
4 votes
1 answer
349 views

Whereabouts of the ancient Korean cannon in Kamchatka

... [Davidov and Chvostov] fell with glee upon two junks and burned them to the water's edge. Finally they found a ten-pounder brass cannon which seemed a fitting trophy to take home. It was, by some ...
26 votes
5 answers
5k views

Which WW2 belligerents provided military brothels?

Did any of the other belligerents of WW2 besides Japan and Germany provide their troops with authorized military brothels?
9 votes
5 answers
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Was Japan really part of the Axis?

I recall in history class learning that the Japanese could have attacked the USSR in the 1940s and potentially split Stalin's forces - which presumably would have been more useful for the Nazis than ...
2 votes
1 answer
329 views

How did Japan get so many Nobel Prizes?

Japan in the last 80 years has earned nearly 30 Nobel Prizes, which is more than any other Asian country (at least two of which dwarf it in terms of population). In the 21'st century, only the United ...
11 votes
4 answers
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In WW2, how long could a submarine stay submerged if it wasn't moving?

For a submarine in the WW2-era, how long could it stay submerged if it was not running its engine? This is a question of crew size, oxygen, food/water, and CO2 scrubbers, and maybe other stuff I'm not ...
8 votes
1 answer
3k views

In WW2, why didn't Japan invade Macau?

Macau was a Portuguese Colony right next door to Hong Kong. Why didn't Japan invade it during WW2? Japan did invade Hong Kong, and they did invade Portuguese Timor too. Yet I am not even sure if ...
1 vote
1 answer
331 views

What was the postage from Japan to US in 1945?

I was wondering how many postage stamps it would require to send a letter from Japan to the US (and vice versa) around 1945, and during the occupation? And perhaps you might know what the stamps ...
0 votes
1 answer
300 views

Did Japan have secret films about going into the US in the 40s?

This film (narrated by Ronald Regan) was produced in the 40s. It discusses detailed planning for an air mission into an area in Japan. Did Japan have similar fims in the time period to aid them in ...
19 votes
3 answers
4k views

Did Truman really believe that Hiroshima was a military base?

Harry Truman claimed, in his July 25, 1945 diary entry, that: I have told [Stimson] to use [the first nuclear bomb] so that military objectives and soldiers and sailors are the target and not women ...
0 votes
2 answers
265 views

What anti-Japanese guerrilla units were active in Manchuria from 1944-1945?

I am writing a historical fiction novel with a North Korean protagonist joining anti-Japanese guerrilla forces in Manchuria in 1944. I understand that major anti-Japanese resistance in Manchuria was ...
-1 votes
1 answer
180 views

Did the citizens of US really back the declaration of war on Japanese Empire as it was implied by F.D. Roosevelt in his Pearl Harbor Speech? [closed]

December 7th, 1941, was the date that was to live in infamy, as mentioned by F.D. Roosevelt in his Pearl Harbor speech. Overall, the speech was quite straightforward in its goal: assurance to the ...
4 votes
1 answer
298 views

Is there any economic history account of the role of Japan's precious metal deposits in the roles of the country's early industrialization?

The Japanese archipelago is generally scarce in natural resources, but Japan has a large deposit of precious metals in the Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine, and a few other mines, to a smaller extent. Japan ...
6 votes
2 answers
950 views

Were US decision makers aware of the destructiveness of the Bomb of Nagasaki?

The bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were dropped on August 6th and 9th respectively. According to this answer, the second bomb was tested once. Must I assume that US leaders were well aware of the ...
7 votes
3 answers
813 views

Did Imperial Japan persecute Slavic people, as European fascists did?

Over the interwar period, fascist governments in Europe heavily promoted anti-Slavic propaganda. In Germany, they were labelled as Untermensch alongside the Jews, and in Italy, Slavic media, languages,...
2 votes
3 answers
661 views

What is this 120 yr old Japanese tool?

I bought this from an antique shop in Japan. Beside the price tag it said it was 120 years old. The shop owner didn't speak much English. All he kept saying was "boat" and kept making a motion like ...
11 votes
5 answers
4k views

Was the attack on Pearl Harbor totally unexpected?

According to "British Intelligence in the Second World War: Security and Counter-Intelligence", by Francis Harry Hinsley and C.A.G. Simkins, Tricycle, a British double agent, complained that the FBI ...

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