Capital of Japan
The capital city of Japan is Tokyo. Japan (日本) is an island country of East Asia. It is located between the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, East China, Russia and the Korean peninsula. Known as “The Land of the Rising Sun”, it is one of the greatest economic powers in the world.
The capital city of Japan consists of four main islands: Honshū, Hokkaidō, Kyūshū and Shikoku, which make up 97% of the total area of the country, and for another 6,848 adjacent smaller islands. It has a population of 127 million people, the tenth largest in the world. The Tokyo metropolitan area, which includes the capital city of Tokyo and surrounding prefectures, is the largest urban area in the world in terms of population, housing more than 30 million people. It is the second most populous country in East Asia, after China.
The capital city of Japan islands of Japan were inhabited from the upper Paleolithic period. The first written mentions happened briefly in books of history of China of century I. The influence of the outside world followed by long periods of isolation has characterized the history of Japan. Since a constitution was adopted in 1947, Japan’s form of government has been that of a constitutional monarchy, with an emperor and an elected parliament, known as the Diet.
Interesting facts about Tokyo
History
According to the legend described in Kojiki and Nihonshoki, Japan was founded in the 7th century BC. C. by the Emperor Jinmu. During the 5th and 6th centuries, the Chinese calligraphic system and Buddhism were introduced along with other Chinese customs across the Korean peninsula or directly from China. The emperors were official rulers, but the true power generally remained in the hands of powerful noble courts, regents or shogunes (military governors).
During the sixteenth century, merchants from Portugal, the Netherlands, England and Spain came to Japan and founded Christian missions. In 1549, the Spanish Jesuit missionary San Francisco Javier came to Japan to preach Christianity after landing in Kagoshima, Kyūshū, taking advantage of Portuguese trade routes. At the beginning of the seventeenth century, the shogunate began to suspect the Christian missions, considering them precursors of a military conquest by European forces and, as a measure of protection, ordered the closure of Japan to all relations with the outside world except for restricted contacts with Chinese and Dutch merchants in the city of Nagasaki. This isolation lasted for 251 years, until 1854,
Government
The government is decentralized, being able to distinguish between the central government and the local. Japan is a constitutional monarchy, in which people over the age of 20 can vote in universal suffrage. In practice, it is a partial or parliamentary democracy, the people do not vote for a president, but for the members of Parliament and they, in turn, vote for a Prime Minister among one of them. The length of time that a prime minister remains in office depends on how long he can maintain the support of the majority of parliament, lasting for many years or just a few months. Unlike other democracies, such as the United States or the United Kingdom, where three strong parties co-exist that alternate in power, Japan had until the 2009 elections a dominant party (the Liberal Democratic Party) that coexisted with other smaller parties with no real options to propose to its own prime minister. This situation seems to have changed after the general elections of 2009, where the Democratic Party obtained a clear victory obtaining 300 seats of the 480 available, more than enough to provoke an alternation of power.
Territorial organization
Japan is comprised of 8 regions (Hokkaidō, Tōhoku, Kantō, Chūbu, Kinki, Chūgoku, Shikoku and Kyūshū and Okinawa) grouping 47 prefectures: a metropolitan district (都; To), Tokyo; A province (道; Dō), Hokkaidō; Two urban prefectures (府; Fu), Osaka and Kyoto; And 43 rural prefectures (県; Ken). In Japanese, this territorial division is commonly called Todōfuken (道 府 県 県).
This division was established by the Meiji government in 1871 and is known as the abolition of the Han system. Although some 300 prefectures were initially created, this number declined to a total of 47 in 1888. The Local Government Act of 1947 granted More political power to the prefectures, providing them with the capacity to choose governors through local elections. In 2003, Prime Minister Jun’ichirō Koizumi proposed the union of prefectures in 10 regions that would have more autonomy than the current prefectures.
Geography
Japan is a stratovolcanic archipelago composed of 374,744 km² of islands and 3,091 km² of water and made up of more than six thousand islands that extend along the East Asian coast of the Pacific Ocean and in the archipelagos of Ryukyu, Izu and Ogasawara. According to the 2005 census it has 127.55 million inhabitants. The country is located northeast of China and Taiwan (separated by the East China Sea), slightly east of Korea (separated by the Sea of Japan) and south of Siberia, Russia. The four main islands, from north to south, are Hokkaidō, Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu. The island of Okinawa (600 km southwest of Kyushu) follows in magnitude. About 73% of the country is mountainous, each island has its mountain range. The highest mountain is Mount Fuji (Fujisan), 3,776 m high and followed by Kitadake, with 3,193 m high. Because there is so little flat land in Japan, many hills and slopes are harvested in full for cultivation. As it is located in an area of much volcanic activity there are frequent tremors of small magnitude and occasional volcanic activity for which the country is highly prepared.
Weather
It is a rainy country and with a high humidity, it has a temperate climate with 4 different well defined seasons, thanks to the distance that it is with respect to the equator. However the northern climate is mildly cold (Hokkaidō) with strong summers and heavy snowfall in winter, the center of the country is hot, wet summers and short winters and in the slightly subtropical south (Kyūshū) with long, hot summers and Humid and mild winters. The climate is sometimes affected by the seasonal winds produced by the cyclonic and anticyclonic centers that form on the continent and in the Pacific (anticyclone or Hawaiian cyclone)
Fauna and Flora
The fauna comprises 132 species of mammals, 583 species of birds and 66 species of reptiles, batrachians and fish. There are still black and brown bears, foxes and deer. The only primate is the red-faced ape (the Japanese monkey) that populates the entire territory of Honshu.
The great variety of Japanese vegetation (about 17,000 species) is due to climate and relief. Forests cover 67% of the country’s surface and are mostly composed of lush and coniferous trees: chestnuts, beeches, maples, tuyas, red pines and larches, along with birches and ash trees. To the west dominates a forest of conifers that grow next to bamboos, magnolios and green chestnut trees. White and red plums, early flowering cherry trees, as well as bamboo and pines have become traditional symbols of the country.
Demography
Japan is currently experiencing a drop in its birth rate (1.3 children per woman), caused among other reasons by the high cost of raising and educating a child. If we add to this the fact that it has the third place in the world’s longest-lived population (82.07 years), the combination of fewer births with later deaths, fears the viability of its pension system and The future availability of sufficient labor. In 2005 for the first time the number of Japanese declined, as fewer births were recorded than deaths.
Shoshika (化 化) is a word of recent coinage (1990s), whose translation could be “decline in the number of children” and is currently used to refer to this increasing lack of infants in Japanese society.
In response to this problem, the government has raised the retirement age, but the continuity of this decline of the population is expected for the next decades. In addition, in 1999 it strengthened laws against discrimination against women at work. In turn, it launched three projects: Angel Plan, New Angel Plan and One More Proposal, all aimed at making it easier for women to work and be mothers at the same time. But these measures conflict with the strong tradition that governs Japanese society.
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Culture
Geisha with traditional kimono
Japanese culture has evolved considerably in recent years, from the original country of Jōmon culture to its contemporary culture, which combines the influences of Asia, Europe and the United States. Traditional arts include crafts (ikebana, origami, ukiyo-e, dolls, lacquers, pottery), performances (bunraku, Kabuki, Noh, rakugo), traditions (tea ceremony, budō, architecture, gardens, And kitchen.
Religion
The Japanese incorporate the traits of many religions into their daily lives in a process known as syncretism. The Japanese streets are decorated in the parties of Tanabata, Obon, Halloween and Christmas. A popular prayer when you have problems is “Kami-sama, Hotoke-sama, dōka otasuke kudasai.” (‘God and Buddha, help me somehow, please’), which seems to imply a syncretistic belief. Many people, especially those belonging to younger generations, feel that religions are part of the traditional culture.
Buddhism is the majority religion; Shintoism was the official religion of the country until the 7th century and is currently the second religion in number of followers. Due to the historical influence of China, there are also Confucian, Taoist, etc. Christianity is also practiced, mainly in its forms of Protestantism and Catholicism, although it is a minority religion.
In addition to their religions, Japanese superstitions are widespread in Japan and are used to teach
Sports
Traditionally, it is considered the fight style sumo as the national sport as it is one of the most popular sports among spectators. Martial arts such as judo, kendo and karate are also widely practiced and enjoy a considerable number of spectators in the country. After the Meiji Restoration, many western sports were introduced and began to spread in the education system.97 The Japanese Professional Baseball League was established in 1936 and today is the most popular sport in the country. In 2006 he won the first baseball championship, the World Baseball Classic, returning to win the classic also in 2009 against Korea in a tight end, which extended to Extra innings.
Since the establishment of the Professional Football League in 1992, the football association has also acquired numerous followers. He also hosted the Intercontinental Cup between 1981 and 2004 and co-hosted the 2002 World Cup with South Korea. The Japan Soccer Team is also one of the best football teams in Asia, winning the Asian Cup four times.
Golf is also popular, as is motor racing and Formula Nippon. In 1997 Honda completed the Twin Ring Motegi in order to take the IndyCar Series to Japan, in addition Formula 1 travels frequently to Japan for the Grand Prix that is celebrated in that country, generally in Suzuka, but also has passed The MotoGP FIM World Championship also makes its raid for the Pacific Grand Prix at the Twin Ring Motegi, often also going to Suzuka, but after the death of Japanese rider Daijiro Kato in 2003 the category left To participate there.
The best participation of Japan in the Olympic Games was in 2004 when it obtained 37 medals. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics he also had a remarkable performance with nine golds, six silver and ten bronze medals, being eighth in the medal only behind China, the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia and South Korea. In addition, Japan hosted the Asian Games of 1958 and 1994.
Society
The young people have suffered an intense revolution due to the pressure of the school, family, and education code, very strict. Thus, some imitate the young of western culture and its aspect tries to be similar to the manga and the anime. However, the influence of Western culture among Japanese youth has been declining steadily since the mid-1990s.
Older people are very traditional and usually follow the code of conduct that is based on respect for family and work. These are some of the reasons that have led to such a youthful revolution. However, it is important to note that the so-called revolution only affects 5-10% of the youth, since the rest respects and admires the traditional culture.
It is one of the industrialized countries where the death penalty is still maintained. In fact, the application of the death penalty has been revived in Japan; In 2007, 9 persons were executed by hanging, and 15 in 2008.
Gastronomy
Japan’s cuisine as national cuisine has evolved over the centuries because of many political and social changes. In the Old Age most of the cuisine was influenced by Chinese culture. The kitchen changed with the advent of the middle Ages, which marked the beginning of an abandonment of elitism with the rule of the shogunate. At the beginning of the Modern Age great changes occurred that introduced Western culture in Japan.
The modern term “Japanese food” (nihon ryōri, 日本 料理) or washoku (食 食, washoku) refers to such traditional-style food, similar to what existed before the end of the national isolation of 1868. In a broader sense The word could also include foods whose ingredients or ways of cooking were subsequently introduced from abroad, but have been developed by Japanese who have made them theirs. Japanese food is known for its emphasis on seasonality of food (旬, shun), quality and presentation of its ingredients.
There are many opinions on what is fundamental in Japanese cuisine. Many think that sushi or the elegant stylized meals of the formal kaiseki originated as part of the tea ceremony. Many Japanese, however, think of the everyday food of Japanese people – especially that which existed before the end of the Meiji Era (1868-1912) or before World War II. Few modern urban Japanese know their traditional cuisine.
