JAPANFrom Isolation to Adaptation

ORIGIN OF JAPAN

Izanagi and Izanami Two divine beings who created the island of

Japan Created Kami: Thousands of God’s that ruled

Japan This is the base of Shinto religion Two Deities had a daughter named

Amaterasu (Sun God) The Emperor of Japan was considered a

descendent of the Sun God

SOME FACTS

Japan could fit inside in Alberta, with lots of room left over

127 Million people 12 million in the year 1600 Mountains and steep valleys cover 80% of

Japan 18% of land is flat enough to farm Places with the highest number of people are

on the coast

What does all of this tell us about what kind of place Japan is?

WHY ARE WE STUDYING JAPAN?

Aztecs: We saw an isolated culture come into sudden contact with another culture

We learned about the worldviews of the Spanish and the Aztecs and what happened when they met

Japan was an isolated country for hundreds of years

Had its own distinct worldview and culture After hundreds of years they made contact

with the rest of the world We want to see how their world view changed,

and how they changed other world viewss

GEOGRAPHICALLY ISOLATED Closest country is China, 185km of ocean away Travel was very difficult Travel from Europe was next to impossible

Thousands of years ago, Japan first began to develop its culture by borrowing from the Chinese

Elements of religion, language, food and entertainment were modified by the Japanese

Example: Kanji Buddhism Kabuki

KANJI

HIRAGANA (WA SU ME)

KATAKANA

GEOGRAPHY How did Japan’s geography shape people’s

beliefs and values?

Japan’s beautiful natural landscape has always been a great source of pride

Japan experiences four distinct seasons Celebrations and rituals bring in each season

and are an important part of Japanese life Ex. Cherry Blossoms

New Beginnings Beauty Shortness of beauty and life

SHINTO

The ancient religion of Japan Love of nature is most important aspect Harmony with nature Kami take the form of objects in nature,

mountains etc. Amaterasu is the most important Kami Shinto has no founder and no laws! VIDEO!

However, Japan has inherited many Buddhist beliefs and traditions!

MATSURI FESTIVAL

This festival is held to please and celebrate the Kami

WHEN NATURE HITS BACK!

There are hundreds of Earthquakes in Japan every year Once a decade a huge one hits Earthquakes and underwater volcanoes also

create giant waves called Tsunami (harbour wave)

Typhoons are powerful storms that bring strong winds, rain and lightning

TWO THINGS HAPPENED TO THE PEOPLE BECAUSE OF ALL THE DISASTERS

They became stoic Stoic: someone who controls their emotions

and endures difficult experiences with patience

Japanese are seen as a stoic people in all aspects of life

Adaptation to sudden change became important to Japanese life Recovered from disasters and wars very quickly

RESOURCES AND CLIMATE

Japan has very few natural rescources However, they were completely self sufficient

for over 400 years. NO TRADE Warm, wet climate and good soil allowed for

long growing seasons Island: lots of fishing

RICE

Rice was the main food in Japan Growing rice is very hard When their was a lack of rain,millions would die in a famine Rice was used for their money system, and

taxing

Rice has become a cultural symbol for Japan

HOMOGENOUS SOCIETY

Canada: Mulitcultural or Heterogenous Japan: Homogenous Japanese: a great unified family with

common values and beliefs See themselves as having the same nature

and character The geographic factor that contributed the

most was the sea Everyone live on the coast and developed

similar ways of life Isolation kept immigrant from joining society