In the wars of Sengoku Japan, shinobi served as covert agents gathering intelligence, spreading misinformation, and sabotaging...
Japan
Explore Japan from ancient court society and warrior government through Tokugawa rule, imperial expansion, wartime destruction, postwar reconstruction, and contemporary culture. These histories follow the people and institutions that shaped the archipelago’s changing place in the world.
During World War II, Japan’s government tightly controlled news, radio, and propaganda to shape public perception, sustain...
In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the Japanese Imperial Army intertwined with State Shinto, fusing militarism, emperor...
In medieval Japan, seppuku framed voluntary death as ritual honor, revealing how violence, loyalty, and morality intertwined...
Japan is in the midst of a recurrent boom in yōkai, supernatural creatures of Japanese popular culture...
‘Wabi’ and ‘sabi’ are Japanese words with long histories. By Dr. Paul S. AtkinsProfessor of JapaneseUniversity of...
Tea became popular with Zen Buddhist monks as it was thought to aid meditation and ward off...
In medieval Japan, healing might mean taking medicine, undergoing an exorcism, or avoiding inauspicious days. By Dr....
They can best be described as ‘literary histories’ that combined some factual information with much fiction. Introduction...
Shinto and Buddhist ideas about interconnectedness have deeply influenced Japan, shaping centuries-old rituals and stories. Introduction The...
As central authority collapsed, powerful warrior families fought each other for land and power. Introduction Fortifications of...
Nature and the seasons have played a vital role as a source of inspiration in the arts...
Mori wanted to be a “serious writer” – which, to him, meant getting published. Introduction Eighty years...
Exploring the civilization of Japan from about 500 to 1700 C.E. Introduction Together, the Japanese islands make...
The ‘horse-rider theory’ (kibaminzokusetsu) was proposed by the historian Egami Namio in 1948. Introduction The ‘horse-rider theory’...
The study of the Paleolithic period in Japan did not begin until quite recently: the first Paleolithic...
Buddhism, Shintoism, and Neo-Confucianism and how the Tokugawa state used these religions to their advantage. The Tokugawa...
The technology of printing had advanced rapidly as it became available to commercial publishers in the seventeenth...
The era of the samurai lasted for 700 years, until the emperor was restored to power in...
Introduction The culture of medieval Japan was rich and varied due to exchanges with other Asian peoples....
The world has become enchanted with a three-legged mermaid called Amabie, said to help fight plague. Last...
Trees were utilized in building construction and for ceremonial ornaments and daily implements. Introduction The Jomon period...
Examining press reviews and accounts of the Japanese Village in London from newspapers and periodicals in 1885....
There was new development toward life-likeness and a form of idealized realism. Kamakura Period (1185-1333): New Aesthetic...
The arts of Japan are profoundly intertwined with the country’s long and complex history. Introduction Japan’s arts...
Feudalism (hoken seido) began to be widespread in Japan from the beginning of the Kamakura Period (1185-1333...
Himeji Castle united beauty and military engineering through white-plastered walls, deceptive passageways, fortified gates, massive stonework, and...
After the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, central authority fell to Tokugawa Ieyasu, and the Shogunate began....
Downtown Tokyo in the 1920s / Creative Commons During the 1920s, Soviet cultural authorities sought to develop...
Nanjing Jinling Arsenal 1865, built by Li Hongzhang / Wikimedia Commons In the 19th century, after a long...