Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia and is sometimes referred to as the "Land of the Rising Sun". About 70% to 80% of the country is forested and it is a country of over three thousand islands extending along the Pacific coast of Asia. Japan is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. Hot springs are numerous and have been developed as resorts.

References:
http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/fourth_world/22057/2
http://worldfocus.org/blog/2010/02/22/japans-indigenous-ainu-people-struggle-to-keep-way-of-life/9780/

Books:

CultureShock! Japan P Sean Bramble

Culture and Customs of Japan Noriko Kamachi

Introduction to Japanese Culture Daniel Sosnoki

Culture Wise Japan David Leaper

Culture

Arts and Literature

Some various forms of arts are the flower arranging, pottery and ceramics, Japanese paintings, calligraphy, Japanese paper, bamboo, Japanese drama, puppet plays and traditional music.

Waka (Japanese poems)

Poetry is the oldest form of literature in Japan as it is regarded the most sublime form of recording human feelings.
Other forms of literature are Kanshi (Chinese poems), Renga (Link Verses), Haiku (shortest form of poetry), diaries, essays, Waka in Modern language and popular fiction.

Cuisine and diet

Since ancient times, these food have been the mainstray of the Japanese diet. They are rice, raw fish such as sashimi, noodles, soybean paste and soy sauce.

Below is what a typical Japanese meal will consist of:

Breakfast
Traditional breakfast required cooking rice, making miso soup, grilling dried fish and slicking pickled vegetables.

Lunch

Bento is the most common for eating away from home.

Dinner
Traditional concept of a dinner is a meal made up staple food and accompanying dishes.

Religion and spirituality

The spirit of Zen Buddhism is present in contemporary Japan. Other religious forms of spirituality are the shrines, Good Luck Charms, The Red- Bibbed Deity and The Samurai Code.


Household religion
Every family has an ancestral altar in the house where they offer prayer at the altar everyday.

Rituals for the dead
A funeral is rite for sending the deceased to the other world.

Traditions

Clothing

Men's Kimono

Very few men wear kimono in public nowadays except for those who perform some sort of traditional art. The men's formal Kimono is lustrous silk in black where the only decoractions is the family crest in white.

Women's Kimono

There are more variety of Kimono for women than for men, and more women wear kimono than men do.

Formal occasions

Unmarried young woman- Furisode in various colours

Married woman- Tomesode of black silk crepe with family crest in five spots

Less formal occasions

Married and unmarried women of all ages- Homogi, same kind of silk as the furisode or tomesode, comes in various colours with designs from shoulder to the hem.

Tea Ceremony

The classical tea ceremony had orginated in the 13th century when Zen Buddhist monks pass the tea cup among themselves in an effort to stay alert for their religious duties. In the teahouse the guest kneels in silence on the tatami mats facing the tea kettle. The host then eners the tea ceremony utensils and arranges them in an artistic and harmonious pattern. The same bowl is shared by all the participants, adding to the effect of a shared event. When the tea bowl is passed, the guest raises it and drinks all of the liquid. A simple ceremony may last for about twenty minutes.

Indigenous groups

The Ainu People

The Ainu are indigenous people living in Japan and Russia whereby "Ainu" means "human." Most of them live in the northern island of Hokkaido and are believed to descend from people who lived in Japan as early as 13,000 years ago. Their culture is distinct from mainstream Japanese society as they live by hunting, fishing, farming, and selling crafts to tourists.

In the 19th century, Japan banned the Ainu language, seized their land, and outlawed their hunting and religious practices. These centuries of oppression, racism, and forced assimilation policies have contributed to the annihilation of the Ainu culture. Modern socialization and the fear of marginalization has led recent generations to deny their Ainu identity.

Also, due to the intermarriage over the years with the Japanese, the concept of a “pure Ainu” is no longer feasible. Today the Ainu language is almost completely extinct. Also, it is not known how many Ainu live outside Hokkaido.

However, in June 2008, Japan’s parliament passed a resolution that formally recognized the Ainu as an indigenous people with a distinct language, religion and culture. Today, the Ainu have their own cultural institutions and are working with the Japanese government to maintain their unique heritage.

Languages

About 99% of the population speaks Japanese as their first language as it is their national language. In addition to Japanese, a group of six languages (known as the Ryukyuan languages) is spoken in and around Okinawa and the other Ryuku Islands in Southernmost Japan. In most cases, however, people speak standard Japanese. The second most important language in japan is English where school children and many adults learn it.

Communicating in Japanese
Japanese is the standard spoken language when Japan became a centralized nation state with a new capital in Tokyo. The Japanese are not tonal but it is essential to stretch the vowels and hit the double consonants where necessary.

Communicating in English
Be conscious and choose simpler words and make simpler sentences if you are speaking to a Japanese in English as you might be in for a rude awakening if you’ve got it in your head that all Japanese can speak English fluently. Do that note that more Japanese learn American English and it is basic courtesy to ask them “Do you speak English?” in Japanese before you start to do so. Generally speaking, most Japanese can read English better than they can listen to it so it might be worthwhile for you to keep a small pad and pen in your pocket!

Written language
The Japanese adopted the Chinese writing system despite the fact that the languages of china and Japan belong to different families of language.

Mode of education

In Japan there are both public and private schools which are licensed as educational facilities by the Ministry of Education.

Education is divided into six year of elementary schooling (shougakkou), three years of secondary school (chuugakkou) and three years of college (koutougakkou). The school calendar follows the same April- March calendar. A child who will be seven years old between 1st April of one year and 31 March of the next is expected to enrol in first grade of elementary school.

Like every other normal education system, there is a pecking order to universities. Each university administers its own entrance examination. Universities are limited by the Education Ministry as to how many student they can accept. Once admitted, however it is still not guaranteed that the student will be able to freely choose his own major as The Education Ministry makes the decision as to how many engineers Japan needs, how many businessmen and so on.

Graduate students are then expected to work closely with theit assigned faculty member, supporting him in interfaculty disputes and even allowing him to adopt their research as his own.

Types of Leisure Programmes

Holidays and Festivals

Family celebrations includes birthday celebrations, engagement parties, Christmas and New Year, weddings and funerals.

Japan also boasts a wide range of traditional festivals (matsuri) as well as many world class exhibitions. Some major matsuri in Japan are Doll Festival, Hanima (Cherry Blossom viewing), Setsubun (Celebration of New Season), Hana matsuri IBuddha's birthday), Natsu- matsuri (Summer festival), Aki- matsuri (autumn festival), Haru- matsuri (spring festival), Fuyu0 matsuri (winter festival) and the Moon- viewing festival.

Sports

The various type of sports that the Japanese does are Sumo, baseball, football, golf, winter sports such as skiing as snowboarding, basketball, ice hockey, volleyball, judo, martial arts, motorsports, rugby, table-tennis and tennis.

Leisure

The Japanese engage in various leisure actitives such as drinking, going to clubs and pubs, theatre and opera, museums and art galleries and retail therapies.