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3 days ago · Japan - Culture, Traditions, Etiquette: Contemporary Japanese society is decidedly urban. Not only do the vast majority of Japanese live in urban settings, but urban culture is transmitted throughout the country by a mass media largely concentrated in Tokyo.
- Geography and Landscapes
- Urbanisation and Space
- Nihonjinron and Diversity
- Regional Identity and Differences
- Ethnic and Linguistic Composition
- Nationality and Citizenship
- Historical Transitions and Current Attitudes
- Social Stratification and Education
- Uchi-Soto Groups and Hierarchy
- Face
There are five main island groups that form Japan: Hokkaidō, Honshū, Shikoku, Kyūshū and Okinawa (also known as Ryūkyū Islands). Each region is geographically, historically and culturally distinct, particularly the northernmost island of Hokkaidō and the southernmost island cluster of Okinawa. Japan’s climate is generally monsoonal, governed by wet...
Many of Japan’s cities have an extensive history that can still be seen through architecture and city layouts. For instance, the old imperial capitals of Kyōto and Nara have largely retained their historical layout as a castle town. Almost all major cities were heavily damaged during World War II, which led to reconstruction of older structures, as...
Japan and its culture has often been portrayed as ‘unique’ and ‘homogenous’ in public discourse, often to evoke a sense of nationalism.4 This rhetoric, in turn, has informed many foreign stereotypes by outsiders. These ideas imply that Japanese people and society are completely homogeneous, and that the cultural characteristics that define the coun...
Cultural diversity is highly noticeable across the different regions of Japan, each of which have their own distinct identity, cultural practices and traditions. Japan is divided into forty-seven prefectures (local government areas) that form the basis of these regional identities. Each prefecture varies in terms of size and political structure, an...
Japan is a fairly ethnically and linguistically homogeneous society, with the majority of the population being ethnic Japanese (Yamoto). Similarly, the official and most commonly spoken language is Japanese (Nihongo). Spoken and written forms of Japanese are standardised throughout the country, largely due to the creation of a national education sy...
Nationality and citizenship status is a common focal point in Japan’s public discourse due to the lack of official data on . The Japanese census does not record data on the ethnic composition of the population, but rather by nationality. This means that all Japanese citizens (naturalised or by ancestry) are recorded as “Japanese”, regardless of the...
Imperial Japan and World War II
Historical events that occurred over the last century have had profound cultural, societal, political and economic effects throughout the whole of Japan. In 1868, the Meiji Restoration instated imperial rule over Japan, marking the beginning of the historical Japanese empire (referred to as the ‘Empire of Japan’ or ‘Imperial Japan)’. This was a time known for massive reforms, such as rapid industrialisation and the end of the societal dominance of the warrior class (samurai). The state was he...
Post-War Rebuilding
The casualties of the Pacific War were enormous for all countries and regions involved. Estimates suggest three million Japanese people, including up to 800,000 civilians, were killed due to military action, and hundreds of thousands more from disease and starvation.37 Approximately 30% of Japan’s entire urban population lost their homes, and 66 Japanese cities saw 40% of their built-up areas destroyed.38 The cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki also suffered the lasting damage caused by the atom...
Pacifist Attitudes
One area of reform that continues to influence contemporary Japanese society is the demilitarisation of the country. Article 9 of the Constitution states that Japan has forever renounced war as a sovereign right of the nation, international disputes would not be settled through threat or the use of force, and armed forces with war potential will not be maintained.40 These constitutional reforms to Japan’s military and the introduction of a pacifist foreign policy approach was widely welcomed...
Japan has experienced rapid economic growth since overhauls to its economic structure in the post-war era. Today, it is the third largest industrialised market economy,47 and one of the world’s leading countries in manufacturing (particularly automobiles, electronics, machinery and tools, optical and precision equipment, and chemicals).48 Japan als...
Social hierarchies play an important role in Japanese culture, often influencing social behaviour and communication. People tend to be highly attentive to the social status and relation of the person they are speaking with, as this dictates the honorific expressions and levels of respectful speech (keigo)used in Japanese conversation. Similarly, et...
Behaviour and communication in Japan tends to be informed by the concept of face (menboku). As a concept found in many Asian cultures, ‘’ refers to a person’s reputation, pride and honour, and can be saved or lost depending on the circumstances. As such, individuals tend to act and communicate in a deliberate manner and with in order to maintain th...
Apr 5, 2018 · Japanese work culture is very different from an American office environment, from the etiquette of after-work drinks to employee-employer relations.
Feb 24, 2022 · The word simply means “living in Japan” but is most commonly used to refer to ethnic Koreans and their descendants who remained after being brought to Japan during the occupation of Korea from...
- Maintain Harmony / Avoid Conflict. Japan is well known to be a group-oriented society, and like other such societies, avoiding conflict is key to maintaining good relationships in business, both within and outside your organization.
- Hard work is valued (so don’t be, or at least don't look, lazy) In Japan hard work is highly valued. It is a so called “masculine”, competitive society and working long hours is considered normal (while labor laws call for a 40-hour work week, according to a 2016 government study over 25% of Japanese companies demand at least 80 hours of overtime per month).
- Japan is conservative. As a conservative society generally, Japan and its companies have many rules and processes designed to limit risk. It can, therefore, take a lot of time for decisions to be made or for things to change.
- Process is as important as results. Related to #3 above, process is very important in Japan, equal to results (or even more so in some cases). You may feel good about a result you achieved, but if the process for getting there wasn’t correct, be prepared to hear about it from your boss.
1 day ago · Insofar as a social class system does persist, it does not have the ethnic basis that can exist in multiracial societies, since the Japanese regard themselves as belonging to a single ethnic group.
Japan has a fascinating and multifaceted culture; on the one hand it is steeped in the deepest of traditions dating back thousands of years; on the other it is a society in a continual state of rapid flux, with continually shifting fads and fashions and technological development that constantly pushes back the boundaries of the possible.
