Questions tagged [japan]
An island country in the western Pacific, located east of the Asian mainland.
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What is the historical explanation for september-july school year systems vs. april-march systems?
I've heard from colleagues and on-line sources that the Japanese school system starts the school year on 1st of april and I've heard the same used to be true in Germany. In Belgium, where I live, I ...
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To what extent is the flora and fauna on Guadalcanal edible?
At the battle of Guadalcanal,, the initial wave of 11,000 Americans were stranded with something like two weeks' worth of food (five days worth of "landed" rations, nine days worth of ...
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Why were the Marines so badly outnumbered at the critical point at Guadalcanal?
Prior to the battle of Guadalcanal,, the Americans had landed 11,000 men on the island in August, 1942. This compares to the 5,000 or so men that the Japanese had on the island by the first week of ...
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What was the political context of the Japanese “North Ezo” explorations?
Mamiya Rinzō explored Sakhalin in 1808. This seems to have been the culmination of a series of explorations, which started in the 1770's, and in which the Japanese discovered much of the northern ...
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What are the hay effigies in this Japanese movie?
I am moving this question from Movies.SE in hope of getting the answer here
The movie The Blind Swordsman Zaitochi (2003) takes places somewhere in a small town in Japan, probably around the 19th ...
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What did the Japanese military do to maintain their fighting edge during the Edo era/Bakufu (1603-1868)?
After Tokugawa unified Japan, it entered a long era of militarized peace 1603-1868, with very limited warfare, a severely isolationist attitude and strict limits to weaponry (guns were essentially ...
asked Jul 29 at 18:07
Italian Philosophers 4 Monica
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What is the source of “the three most useless things in the world are the Great Wall, pyramids, and the Yamato”?
I watched 'Naval Legends: Yamato' yesterday, and it included a phrase that was attributed to the crew of the ship: "The world's three most useless things are the Chinese Great Wall, Egyptian ...
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How dangerous was it to be a coast watcher during the Pacific War?
The movie, South Pacific featured two "coast watchers" as heroes, the American, Lt. Joseph Cable, and the Frenchman, Emil de Becque, who observed, and reported on Japanese naval movements. ...
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Did the Japanese use native Camellia species before Camellia sinensis was introduced from China?
According to Wikipedia the first known references to tea occured in the 9th century, when Buddhist monks introduced tea, a drink made from Camellia sinensis to Japan.
The Camellia variety sinensis is ...
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Why was the wording on war in Japan's postwar constitution so much stronger than in Germany's or Italy's?
From Hathway and Shapiro (2017):
The Allies supervised the drafting of new constitutions for each of the Axis powers and enshrined the prohibition on war into each state’s own governing documents. ...
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What is the Diet when referring to Post-War Japan? [closed]
I'm currently doing a study on America's influence on Post-War Japan and it mentions a lot about a group called 'The Diet' and I can't find any information on who they actually are. Can anyone help ...
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What was the main purpose in Japan trying to capture the Dutch East Indies oil fields intact?
The Dutch East Indies campaign saw Japan try to capture the Dutch East Indies oilfields intact, i.e. before the local troops destroyed them:
After these main objectives in Borneo were completed, the ...
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How did himuros operate for storing and transporting ice in Heian Japan?
I'm trying to learn more about himuros (ice houses) and ice transportation in 1000 AD Japan. Does anyone have good articles, or can describe in more detail what they looked like, and how ice was ...
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Were taiko drums used to determine village sizes?
Were taiko drums used to determine village size? If so, when was this practice in use?
In 'Full Circle', Michael Palin says that the taiko drums were used to determine village sizes in pre-industrial ...
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1answer
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Which crown features on the Japanese Order of the Precious Crown?
The Order of the Precious Crown features a crown on its badge. I cannot determine which crown this is.
The order was founded in 1888 by Emperor Meiji, who I cannot find depicted wearing or with any ...
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What was Higo domain's relevance with respect to the Meiji Restoration and later (internal) politics?
Normally, when the Meiji Restoration is considered, the "victors" are listed as Satsuma, Chōshū, and Tosa. This materialised in Satsuma and Choshu leading Imperial Japan's Army while Satsuma and Tosa ...
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Was it possible for a young Japanese woman to end up enslaved in Great Britain in the mid-1600s?
I'm inspired to ask this by the horror visual novel The Letter, which chiefly regards a haunted building called the Ermengarde mansion, in the fictional English town of Anslem, near the equally-...
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Did the leaflets from the US to Hiroshima/Nagasaki civilians on bombing cities reduce the civilian casualties of the two nuclear bombs in August 1945?
I read on Wikipedia
Various leaflets were dropped on Japan, three versions showing the names of 11 or 12 Japanese cities targeted for destruction by firebombing. The other side contained text stating ...
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2answers
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What is the origin and significance of karahafu (唐破風)?
The karahafu (唐破風) is perhaps the most instantly recognisable Japanese architectural feature, yet it's origins are not well established in Western literature. Folk etymology suggests that the style ...
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Did the Japenese consider the atomic bomb no worse than any other bomb? [duplicate]
I read another article asserting that the US needlessly dropped the atomic bombs on Japan, but this one had a different spin: the Soviets had already defeated the Japanese. It basically lays out the ...
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How did Soviet soldiers resist tanks during the battle of Shumshu?
During the battle of Shumshu, it is claimed in the Wikipedia article that forces ratio was as follow:
Japan side: 8 500 personnel (combatant and non combatant?) and 77 tanks
Russian side: up to 9 000 ...
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2answers
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Why did animation become so huge in Japan compared to other countries?
I'd like a general explanation of the historical/cultural reasons that have made anime in Japan so big.
There's clearly disproportion between the Japanese population (I doubt that at any moment since ...
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2answers
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How did Japan build an extensive rail network in Greater Tokyo?
Their rail network is like a spider web and also wondering how most of the lines are at-grade or eleveted excluding Tokyo Metro/Toei Subway lines, even though the suburbs are very dense with buldings. ...
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Why the Ottoman Empire failed to match Europe whereas Japan managed to? [duplicate]
It seems as if the overall result of the numerous 'reforms' instituted to 'develop and revive' the heavily declining Ottoman Empire eventually was nothing more than to imitate European lifestyle in ...
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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 ...
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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).
...
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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 ...
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1answer
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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 ...
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2answers
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If the Allies had invaded Japan in 1945, would they have been fighting the “weakest” Japanese troops?
Sources such as Basil Collier's "The Second World War: A Military History" list the Japanese forces during the war as being 6 million. My understanding is that the background of these troops is ...
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How long did it take for Japanese high command to believe 1 bomb could destroy a city? [closed]
In 1776, had a man walked into the Continental Congress and told the Founding Fathers that the city of Boston seemed to be "gone". A few days prior, as he approached Boston, in the distance he'd seen ...
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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 ...
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2answers
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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 ...
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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 ...
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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 ...
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2answers
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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, ...
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1answer
272 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 ...
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2answers
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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 ...
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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 ...
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1answer
297 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 ...
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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 ...
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1answer
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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 ...
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4answers
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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?
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1answer
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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 ...
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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?
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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 ...
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1answer
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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 ...
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1answer
265 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 ...
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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 ...
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1answer
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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 ...
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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,...
