Geography Research Paper Japan

The fact that Japan is a mountainous country has had made a significant impact on the Japanese culture throughout history. The landscape of Japan has influenced the development of its society and has contributed to the culture in many ways. Although the topography of Japan is mostly covered with volcanic mountains and has constrained the farming land, it has suitable land with extremely fertile soil and high productivity. The land has contributed to the development of agriculture and has aided the farmers in cultivating the food. Under favorable environment condition and the beautiful landscape Japanese farmer was able to provide food by hunting, fishing, or though agriculture. The landscape has also influenced the culture in innovating something

In today world, the United States and Japan have a strong political, economic and military relationship. The United States considers Japan to be one of its closest allies and partners. Both countries are strong economic and political superpowers that help run the world. Both countries also support the preservation of political and economic freedoms as well as the support of human rights. However, despite modernization and American influence, the Japanese way of life is still vastly different than that of America. Although both countries operate and function in similar ways the overall foundation of both countries is different.

Japan is an island country in eastern Asia. Japan has a population of 123.7 million people. Japan is one of the leading industrialized countries in the world. Japanese history can be understood in specific periods of change and reform. These periods are known as eras. They go like this, first comes the Jomon, then Yoyai, the Tomb Period, the Introduction of Buddhism, Taika Reform, Nara, Heian, Kamakura , Kemmu Restoration, Ashikaga (Muromochi), Feudal/Warring Era, Unification, Tokugawa (Edo), Meiji Restoration and Meiji, Taisho, Showa, and then, finally, contemporary Japan (Heinrich 2009). These eras typically delineate the reign of different royal families. With each new emperor came new traditions, and subsequently, new law as well.

For centuries, Japan went through different political transformations and iron fisted rulers which shaped its present standing, starting from a nation of regionally independent governments to a more unitary system. However, since the birth of their first political models, Japan has strongly maintained their hierarchical system which still dominates their bureaucratic organization today.

Japan is one of the world’s most successful democracies and largest economies. The U.S and Japanese alliance is one of the cornerstones of modern society. Which has led to more fundamental and regional stability and prosperity for both countries. The alliance is based on shared vital interests and values. Both countries support preservation and promotion of political and economic freedoms as well as the support for of human rights. This paper is focused on the comparison between U.S and Japan.

Japan runs under a Constitutional Monarchy, however, like the US, they do have 3 branches of government. One of the main similarities between the US and Japan is the supreme court. Both supreme courts are the highest law of the land, and both assume very similar powers, such as judicial reviews, and declaring acts unconstitutional. Also similar to the United States, the National Diet, Japan’s legislature has two houses, the House of Councillors, and ironically, the House of Representatives. Japan’s legislature assumes many of the same powers as the US Congress, as it has the ability to make laws and control the national budget. Unlike the US, the National Diet has the power to select the Prime Minister of Japan with a majority ruling. A main difference between the US and Japan is the executive branch. Japan has a national emperor, however, the emperor assumes no real political power and is merely a figurehead. The political head of the executive branch is the Prime Minister, who has very similar powers as the President of the United States. In terms of powers granted to the government, in Japan, they are almost all granted to the national governments. Unlike the United States, the 47 prefectures (states) of Japan have little to no power, meaning most of the power of the Japanese government is coming straight from the capital,

Japan is made up of four major islands along with over six-thousand minor ones that cover approximately 234,890 square miles. The four islands are Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu, with the Pacific Ocean facing the entire eastern and southern coastline. On the north and west side is the Sea of Okhotsk, the Sea of Japan, and the East China Sea. With Japan being surround by the ocean the Japanese life is always oriented toward the ocean with the currents converge offshore create fertile and varied fishing grounds.

Japan is a small island nation that is divided into 4 main islands and many more smaller islands. In geographical terms, it is a chain of island also known as an archipelago. The four larger islands are, Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu, and Hokkaido. The total area of Japan is 142,000 square miles, which makes it smaller than the state of California. Most of the islands are mountainous, the remnants of dormant volcanos and glacial retreat, that are in turn, covered by vast forests with swift flowing rivers that eventually lead into the Pacific Ocean. Because of key terrain features, only 15 percent of the island can be used for the cultivation of crops. In Japan, there are only a handful of navigable rivers because of the steep and rugged terrain that

Once Japan was able to start modernizing, the new leaders that were in power had a priority to start to change the politics. To change the politics they first

Japanese geography consists of four major islands; Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu and other interesting facts that make up the geography of Japan. Hokkaido is the most northern and second largest of the main islands It is underdeveloped because it is cold, mainly forests, and farthest away form the other islands. Honshu is the largest and most civilized. Tokyo is the nation’s capital, and is located on this island. In Yokohama, there is a major port, Kyoto, an important cultural center, and Kobe is the city of the chief commercial and industrial center, All these cities are located in Honshu. The smallest island is Shikoku, bordered around both the Pacific Ocean and the Inland Sea. The island opposite from the Hokkaido, is Kyushu, the

The nation of Japan lies in the North Pacific Ocean, East of the Korean Peninsula and China. Slightly smaller than the U.S. state of California, it has a total area (land and water) of 377,915 square miles and is divided into four primary islands: Hokkaido, Kyushu, Honshu, and Shikoku. Japan is divided into 47 administrative divisions called prefectures. Japan was “founded” in 660 B.C. when Emperor Jimmu declared Japan as a sovereign Imperial nation. Until the Meiji Restoration in 1890, Japan operated under the Shogunate rule, which involved the rule of a hereditary dictator. The Meiji Constitution provided a constitutional monarchy instead of pure Imperial dictatorship. The Modern State of Japan began on May 3, 1947, which marked the formation of a new Japanese Constitution, an amendment to the Meiji Constitution.

Japan is an asian country that is comprised of 6,852 islands off of the eastern coast of the asian mainland. This accumulation of islands is known as a stratovolcanic archipelago. An archipelago is a cluster of islands that are usually volcanic and occurs in subduction zones. Japan is in the crossroads of four different tectonic plates - the Pacific plate, the Philippine plate, the Eurasian plate and the North American, and due to the plate movement and subduction of all these plates land mass has been created. The subduction of the Pacific plate resulted in Japan being pulled away from mainland asia and created what is known as the Japan Sea. Of the 6,852 islands Japan is made up of four of them make up over 97% of Japans

The History of Japan plays a big factor in understanding its culture. Japan is located in Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula. Japan has many concerning natural hazardous features as well as environmental problems that effects agriculture as well as economy and population. Japan’s government and civil law system reflect those of German and Anglo-American structures. Learning about the people and society of Japan can be easily accomplished by understanding their religious structure, social structure, languages they speak and interest they uphold.

Japan is an island nation that is located across the Japanese Sea. Japan consists of the islands of Hokkaiodo, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu (Yamada & Kurashige, 2003). The landscape of Japan is seventy-one percent mountainous ("Population Demographics," 2007). Japan is a small country that is situated in the northern temperate zone. Japan experiences the four seasons similar to that of North America. Japan experiences typhoons which are a lot stronger than their sister hurricanes in the Atlantic (Yamada &

In 8000 BCE, a small nation emerged in East Asia, in the Pacific Ocean. It has grown to an archipelago made out of over 6,000 islands, with 4 main islands. These islands have a tropical climate in the south and a temperate climate in the north. The land is mountainous and rocky, with volcanic or seismic activity almost every day. It began as a place full of hunters and gathers. Then in 300 BCE, rice production rose and allowed these groups to form a conglomerate nation known as Japan. After the nation was formed, Japan went through a multitude of wars (both civil and foreign), movement of the capital city, changes in governmental systems, rise and fall of dynasties, creation or introduction of religions, and improvement of technology and