Questions tagged [japan]
An island country in the western Pacific, located east of the Asian mainland.
282
questions
10
votes
4answers
643 views
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 ...
6
votes
1answer
861 views
How did East Asia circa 1500 produce cosmetics?
For a work of fiction, I need to know how one would produce cosmetics from the available products at those times (circa 1500).
I imagine I would need
- beeswax, which was probably widely available
- ...
3
votes
2answers
795 views
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 ...
-1
votes
3answers
781 views
Why did Japan never “apologize” enough for World War 2?
Although Japan kept "apologizing" for atrocities committed during World War 2 for more than 70 years, the apologies were deemed "not sincere enough" by the victims.
This stands in huge contrast with ...
3
votes
0answers
488 views
When did Easter Island start to become such a frequent participant in Japanese Comics?
I recently came across a lot of questions on Anime and Manga Stack Exchange by this user who is the
curator of an exhibition on Easter Island in popular culture (http://www.moaiculture.com)
I ...
53
votes
2answers
11k 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, ...
6
votes
1answer
350 views
Did Anza find evidence of a Japanese wreck?
Through the age of sail Japanese sea drifters involuntarily crossed the Pacific. The sengokubune ship which tended to lose its rudder in storms and drift nearly endlessly. Several made it to North ...
2
votes
1answer
245 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 ...
2
votes
2answers
360 views
Did Midway provide the strategic opportunity Japan sought? [closed]
We all know that the Battle of Midway was a disaster for the Japanese Empire, and a turning point of the Pacific War. Events did not turn out as the IJN had hoped. But the result by no means was a ...
1
vote
0answers
416 views
Did a sumo referee ever actually commit ritual suicide over a reversed decision?
The sport of Sumo wrestling has picked up quite a few traditions during its long history. One of these traditions is that the tate-gyoji, the two most senior referees, wear a knife. This knife ...
2
votes
1answer
224 views
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 ...
1
vote
0answers
175 views
Where do the ethics of shounen anime come from?
shonen, or shounen (少年) anime (shows like Naruto, Dragon Ball, My Hero Academia, etc.) all (for the most part) realize a certain set of values, which are usually central to their plots and which the ...
14
votes
1answer
8k views
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 ...
14
votes
4answers
3k views
Why did WWI include Japan?
WWI mainly developed in Europe. It only included the USA because Germans attacked a US ship. What did Japan have to do with Europe?
2
votes
1answer
250 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 ...
0
votes
1answer
131 views
Can someone give me the history on this Japanese Crest symbol
What is the History and meaning of the symbol #23 (丸に七曜) in this image?
5
votes
1answer
331 views
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 ...
1
vote
1answer
210 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
1answer
254 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 ...
-1
votes
1answer
160 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 ...
5
votes
1answer
267 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 ...
8
votes
3answers
514 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,...
0
votes
2answers
219 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 ...
4
votes
1answer
288 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?
2
votes
3answers
449 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 ...
0
votes
0answers
91 views
After the Japanese declaration of War, what happened to the Japanese Embassy in Washington DC? [duplicate]
The Japanese Declaration of War against the UK and USA was given on 1941 Dec 7. This happened in Washington DC via the Japanese Embassy.
I would like to know what happened to that embassy and the ...
6
votes
3answers
740 views
What were the flaws in the U.S. Strategic Bombing Survey?
According to this source, "Some historians have identified flaws in the [U.S. Strategic Bombing] survey, based on contemporary evidence." I have unsuccessfully searched the internet for these ...
27
votes
7answers
9k views
Was Japan known to be a potential threat to the USA in the 10 year period prior to 1941
In the years leading up to the Pearl Harbor attack, did non-military Americans see Japan as a potential threat to the USA?
21
votes
1answer
5k views
Was there a Japanese equivalent of the Gestapo during WW2
Colonial Japanese rule on occupied territories has been described as harsh as has been their treatment of prisoners of war. In some cases, this was not a fleeting occupation but one lasting years or ...
2
votes
2answers
662 views
Why couldn't the Ottoman Empire modernise the way Meiji Japan did? [closed]
What makes it appear to me that Japan modernised to come to a level of advancement comparable to Western powers was, unlike Ottoman Empire
Japan had universal compulsory education
the level of ...
11
votes
1answer
1k views
How many pens were used by MacArthur to end the final chapter of World War II and where are they now?
General Douglas MacArthur counter-signs the Japanese instrument of surrender as Supreme Allied Commander aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, September 2, 1945. Standing behind him are Generals ...
39
votes
4answers
12k views
When/how did Harry Truman give the order to bomb Hiroshima?
Am I correct in assuming that Truman and only Truman had the authority to order the bombing of Hiroshima? After all, it was the very first A-bomb and procedures may not have been formalized yet. It ...
-2
votes
1answer
285 views
Why did the GHQ not promote English during the occupation? [closed]
I wonder why GHQ did not force Japanese people to use the English language during the occupation, or at least add English to one of its official languages, much like Hong Kong under occupation by UK. ...
22
votes
2answers
5k views
Why did the Japanese withdraw from Siberia in 1922?
According to Wikipedia the Japanese were the de facto leaders of the foreign anti-Bolshevik intervention in Siberia during the Russian Civil War. The other foreign powers pulled out by 1920, ...
1
vote
1answer
382 views
Why do people not talk about Tokyo fire bombing during WW2? [closed]
I was wondering why Hiroshima and Nagasaki are remembered as some of the most devastating attacks during WW2; but, the Tokyo firebombing March 9, 1945—which caused more casualties and was a really ...
5
votes
1answer
274 views
Why is the Jewel Voice Broadcast called that?
I can't seem to find out the reason behind the naming of the audio Jewel Voice Broadcast.
I learned that this broadcast was the first instance of the Emperor directly communicating to masses. I can ...
9
votes
1answer
693 views
Are records on the meetings of the Japanese war council during 1945 publicly available?
There is lately some interest to the question of the Japanese surrender in august 1945 and the motivations of the Japanese government for doing so and doing it in the way they did. E.g. it is voiced ...
3
votes
0answers
106 views
How did Heian Era Japanese Clans work? (esp. Taira vs. Minamoto)
Wikipedia tells me that certain children of emperors were demoted (removed from the royal lineage) and assigned to Taira as well as Minamoto "clans" during the Heian period.
How did this work?
Was ...
27
votes
3answers
7k views
Why were there so few American deaths in the Bataan Death March?
There was estimated to be 500-650 American deaths during the Bataan death march while there was estimated to be 5,000 to 18,000 Filipino deaths, according to Wikipedia. I can't wrap my head around why ...
0
votes
1answer
222 views
What light machine guns did the imperial Japanese army use in ww1?
I would love to more about Japanese weaponry in the Great War and, more specifically, about their use of light machine guns, and did they use things like a c96 Mauser or a Madsen LMG. Also, did they ...
10
votes
2answers
659 views
Why were so few Koreans enlisted in the Japanese Army before conscription was introduced in 1944?
Citing two sources, the article Korea under Japanese rule gives the following figures showing that very few Koreans who volunteered for enlistment into the Japanese army 1938 – 1943 were actually ...
7
votes
1answer
909 views
Did imperialist Japan ever want to annex Hawaii because of the Japanese minority living here?
Hawaii had been colonized by Japanese people during the 19th century, before it became an American territory. There was an estimated 40% of Japanese in Hawaii in 1900 and 43% in 1920; thus we can ...
8
votes
1answer
764 views
Why did Japan commit atrocities against natives populaces after “liberating” them during WW2?
The propaganda Japan used during World War 2 when conquering China and Southeast Asia was Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere
. I suppose that to mean that they would want to be seen as a liberator,...
10
votes
2answers
1k views
Distinguish Mitsubishi G6M1-L2 and G4M1 aircraft in this picture
Here is a picture of Bataan 1 and Bataan 2:
Wikipedia:
Bataan 1 and Bataan 2 were two demilitarized Japanese bomber/transport aircraft that carried the first surrender delegations from Japan to Ie ...
6
votes
2answers
333 views
Was the end date of Soviet-Japanese Border War the direct reason of starting Soviet invasion on Poland in 1939
The end date of the Soviet-Japanese Border War oddly coincides with the beginning date of the Soviet invasion on Poland in 1939. Was the end date of the Soviet-Japanese Border War the direct reason of ...
6
votes
2answers
325 views
Where was Emperor Hirohito during the Kyūjō incident?
Where was Emperor Hirohito during Kyūjō incident ? Did he came in physical contact with the rebels, did they actually tried to dissuade him from surrender ?
8
votes
1answer
514 views
Couldn't Japan have solved the problem of drifting at sea?
The Edo period shogunate received annual tributes from local clans, on the order of the rice to feed a thousand people. The sengokubune ships used on this route were suited for calm inland waters, ...
8
votes
2answers
408 views
What caused the long lasting of peace in during the Heian Period?
I see the Heian Period of Japan described as being an era of long lasting peace. For example, the Met Museum says:
In Kyoto, the court enjoyed a relatively long period of peace and political ...
4
votes
2answers
288 views
Did the House of Representatives during Meiji Era exercise their powers?
Currently, I am researching into the Imperial Diet of Japan during the Meiji Era. It has been established by historians that the House of Representatives were granted some form of power, such as the ...
22
votes
2answers
5k views
Was Hiroshima targeted because its mountains would “rebound the explosion back into the city for more damage”?
In English class, while analyzing the anti-war themes of a book, my teacher brought up something that I had never heard before and honestly significantly doubt the accuracy of. She said that:
...
