Japan

language - Japanese

Major religions - Shintoism, Buddhism

Life expectancy - 81

years (men),
87 years (women)
Currency - yen

in the second
half of the 20th Century after the
Devastation

of the Second World War.

Its role in the international community is
considerable. It is a major aid donor,
and a source of global capital and credit.

stretches over 3,000 km from the Sea of Okhotsk to

the Philippine Sea in the Pacific Ocean. The five main islands, from north to south, are Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu and Okinawa.
Together they are often known as the Japanese archipelago.

agricultural, industrial or residential use. As a result, the habitable

zones, mainly located in coastal areas, have extremely high population densities. Japan is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. Approximately 0.5% of Japan's total area is reclaimed land (umetatechi). Late 20th and early 21st century projects include artificial islands such as Chubu Centrair International Airport in Ise Bay, Kansai International Airport in the middle of Osaka Bay, Yokohama Hakkeijima Sea Paradise and Wakayama Marina City.

from north to south. Japan's geographical features divide it into

six principal climatic zones: Hokkaido, Sea of Japan, Central Highland, Seto Inland Sea, Pacific Ocean, and Ryukyu Islands. The northernmost zone, Hokkaido, has a humid continental climate with long, cold winters and very warm to cool summers. Precipitation is not heavy, but the islands usually develop deep snowbanks in the winter.

northwest winter winds bring heavy snowfall. In the summer, the

region is cooler than the Pacific area, though it sometimes experiences extremely hot temperatures because of the foehn. The Central Highland has a typical inland humid continental climate, with large temperature differences between summer and winter seasons, as well as large diurnal variation; precipitation is light, though winters are usually snowy. The mountains of the Chūgoku and Shikoku regions shelter the Seto Inland Sea from seasonal winds, bringing mild weather year-round.
The main rainy season begins in early May in Okinawa, and the rain front gradually moves north until reaching Hokkaido in late July. In late summer and early autumn, typhoons often bring heavy rain.

is the family in other societies. It is based on

the line of descent and adoption. Ancestors and offspring are linked together by an idea of family genealogy, which does

not mean relationships based on mere blood inheritance and succession, but rather a bond of relationship inherent in the maintenance and continuance of the family as an institution.
In any given period of history, all family members have been expected to contribute to the perpetuation of the family, which is held to be the highest duty of the member.

to succeed to the headship of the family lives with

his parents after his marriage. He assumes the headship and has to take care of the parents when they have become aged. In addition, he is responsible for the support of bokei member and directs the labor of family members in the management of the household. Couples in successive generations live together under the same roof.

of the deceased’s property; and the inheritance of property itself

has a distinctive meaning, which reflects the institutional demands of the family. Succession in Japan means katokusozoku, or succession to family headship.When the patriarch has no offspring at all, he often adopts both a boy as his successor and a girl as the successor’s wife.

of
the Japanese population subscribe
to Shinto as its indigenous religion

(syncretism with Buddhism,
shinbutsu-shūgō).Many of them
practice both Shinto and Buddhism; they can either identify with both religions or describe themselves as non-religious or spiritual, despite participating in religious ceremonies as a cultural tradition. Nevertheless, the level of participation remains high, especially during festivals and occasions such as the first shrine visit of the New Year. Taoism and Confucianism from China have also influenced Japanese beliefs and customs.

in 1549. Today, fewer than 1% to 2.3% are Christians,

most of them living in the western part of the country. Some Western customs originally related to Christianity (including Western style weddings, Valentine's Day and Christmas) have become popular as secular customs among many Japanese.
Islam in Japan is estimated to constitute about 80–90% of foreign born migrants and their children.

Virtually every Japanese municipality has at least one temple, while

large cultural centers like Kyoto have several hundred.

first language. Japanese writing uses kanji (Chinese characters) and two

sets of kana (syllabaries based on cursive script and radical of kanji), as well as the Latin alphabet and Arabic numerals. Public and private schools generally require students to take Japanese language classes as well as English language courses.

Yonaguni), also part of the Japonic language family, are spoken

in the Ryukyu Islands chain. Few children learn these languages, but in recent years the local governments have sought to increase awareness of the traditional languages. The Okinawan Japanese dialect is also spoken in the region. The Ainu language is moribund, with only a few elderly native speakers remaining in Hokkaido.

and commercial media in keen competition.
Five TV companies, including public

NHK, run national terrestrial networks. Most of NHK's funding comes from licence fees. Many millions of viewers subscribe to satellite and cable pay TV.
News, drama, variety shows and sport - especially baseball - have big audiences. Imported TV shows are not widely shown, but Western influences are apparent in domestic TV fare.

their millions, boosted by afternoon and evening editions. Some charge

for online access.
Journalists "find it hard to fully play their role as democracy's watchdog because of the influence of tradition and business interests", says Reporters Without Borders (RSF). But in recent years, online media and weekly news magazines have adopted a more aggressive form of political reporting, More than 118 million people were online by the end of 2018, comprising 93.5% of the population (InternetWorldStats).
Line, co-developed by Japan and Korea, is by far the leading social and messaging application. YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram are widely used.

English-language pages
Mainichi Daily News - English-language pages
Sankei Shimbun - daily
Nikkei

Asian Review - English-language pages
The Japan Times - English-language


News agency/internet
Kyodo - English-language pages
Japan Today - online news, in English

Television
NHK - public, operates General TV, Educational TV. NHK World is a global English-language network
TV Asahi - national, commercial
Fuji TV - national, commercial
Nippon TV (NTV) - national, commercial
Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS) - national, commercial
Radio
NHK - public, operates news/speech-based Radio 1, cultural/educational Radio 2, classical music-based FM Radio, external service Radio Japan
Inter FM - Tokyo commercial music station
J-Wave - Tokyo commercial music station
Tokyo FM - Tokyo commercial network
TBS Radio - operated by Tokyo Broadcasting System