The People: history, language, and fame
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In this section there is information about the people of Japan. It contains helpful sites that detail the history and Language of this country. There are even a few sites that give you information on Famous individuals of Japan.
image found from this website: metropolis.co.jp/tokyo/511/feature.asp
Brief History of the People
"Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries are referred to as Nikkeijin.The Japanese language is the mother tongue of the majority of the world's Japanese. It is a Japonic language that is usually treated as a language isolate, although it is also related to the Okinawan language (Ryukyuan). The Japanese language has a tripartite writing system based upon Chinese characters. Domestic Japanese people use primarily Japanese for daily interaction. The adult literacy rate in Japan exceeds 99%;however, this may not accurately reflect functional literacy rates due to the complex nature of the Japanese writing system." (Wikipedia search:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_people). The origins of this invidual culture is interesting too. Here is what I found when I searched for the origins of this culture:
The Ainu People are the considered to be the worlds oldest pottery making culture. They originated from the Upper Paleolithic Period, 14th millennium BCE. Their sub-name Jonmon means “cord-impressed pattern,” which is one of the characteristics of their pottery. They were a hunting-gathering group and had some primitive sense of agriculture. They relied mainly one fish for Protein. It is very likely that this group migrated over from Northern Asia or Central Asia. Next were the Yayoi people.(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_people).
Yayoi people
"Around 400-300 BCE, the Yayoi people began to enter the Japanese islands, intermingling with the Ainu. Most modern scholars say that the Yayoi emigrated from the southern part of the Korean Peninsula to northern Kyushu, though it has also been proposed that they came from southeastern China. The Yayoi brought wet-rice farming and advanced bronze and iron technology to Japan. Although the islands were already abundant with resources for hunting and dry-rice farming, Yayoi farmers created more productive wet-rice paddy field systems. This allowed the communities to support larger populations and spread over time, in turn becoming the basis for more advanced institutions and heralding the new civilization of the succeeding Kofun Period.(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_people)."
for more information on japanese living styles and people go to this site: Japanese lifestles hompage. It was very helpful to look at in order to understand the Japanese People as a culture and as individuals.
The Language of Japan
These images were found: http://library.thinkquest.org/06aug/01884/Oriental%20Styles.htm, www.britannica.com/eb/art-53522/Kanji-characters/
For the people of Japan, Language is a form of Identity. It is an exclusive language that is spoken within the home and within the country. There are many different dialects and writing styles which is one of the reasons that this language is so hard to learn. One word or one object can have many words describing it. This does not sound too far removed from our own Language, but it is ten times more difficult to learn. Many Japanese people find the language, mainly the writing aspect a great challenge. There are three styles of written Language the first is kanji. This is the more difficult of the two styles mainly because it contains thousands upon thousands of characters(which is what they call the symbols of that they make when the write). The second is kana, which is slightly easier to learn because it does not have as many characters. The last type of written Language is hiragana, which from what I understand tends to be in the middle as far as it's level of difficulty. I have talked with many asian speaking individuals and I have many Japanese friends, and all of them have told me that this is not a language that one can just sit down and and master within a short time spand. It takes years to master and patience.
Click here for a great site about Japanese language
Language source homepagewhen you get to the site scroll down to the bottom. click on language and then look at the top of the new page and click on Japan
Famous Japanese Individuals
these images were found at:http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Ichiro-Suzuki-3D-Poster-Posters_i1354689_.htm, http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k240/zeonsoul/BlogPics/utada.jpg,http://men.stareastasia.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/ken-watanabe-pic-0001.jpg, http://blog.pucp.edu.pe/media/615/20070604-L'arc~en~Ciel.jpg, http://www.transpacificradio.com/2007/07/06/in-defense-of-ex-defense-minister-kyuma-and-his-a-bomb-remark/
This is an image of the famous Baseball player, Ichiro Suzuki. He is a Japanese outfielder for the Seattle Mariners Major League Baseball team. He was born October 22, 1973, in Toyoyama, Nishikasugai, Aichi Prefecture, Japan (wikipedia search). Next to him on the right hand side is the famous singer Utada Hikaru. She is best noted in the US for her songs in the video game Kingdom Hearts. The man in the picture next to her is Ken Watanabe who is known in the US for is acting performances in the following hit movies: The Last Samurai, Memoirs of a Geisha, Batman Begins and Letters from Iwo Jima. Underneath the first three famous individuals is the famous band L'Arc-en-Ciel, who is mainly known through their lead singer Hyde- he often makes appearences in Japanese movies and soap operas. Next to L'Arc-en-Ciel is the former Prime Minister of Japan Junichiro Koizumi, just acting a little silly while giving a speech on the need for reform in Japan-- one can only hope that is speech was affective.
If you are interested in learning more about some famous individuals in Japan then look at this site that I found. It has categories that you can choose from such as: musicians, sports figures, writers, and culture leaders. The sites URL address is this: http://www.cc.kyoto-su.ac.jp/information/famous/index.html
these images were found at:http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Ichiro-Suzuki-3D-Poster-Posters_i1354689_.htm, http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k240/zeonsoul/BlogPics/utada.jpg,http://men.stareastasia.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/ken-watanabe-pic-0001.jpg, http://blog.pucp.edu.pe/media/615/20070604-L'arc~en~Ciel.jpg, http://www.transpacificradio.com/2007/07/06/in-defense-of-ex-defense-minister-kyuma-and-his-a-bomb-remark/
This is an image of the famous Baseball player, Ichiro Suzuki. He is a Japanese outfielder for the Seattle Mariners Major League Baseball team. He was born October 22, 1973, in Toyoyama, Nishikasugai, Aichi Prefecture, Japan (wikipedia search). Next to him on the right hand side is the famous singer Utada Hikaru. She is best noted in the US for her songs in the video game Kingdom Hearts. The man in the picture next to her is Ken Watanabe who is known in the US for is acting performances in the following hit movies: The Last Samurai, Memoirs of a Geisha, Batman Begins and Letters from Iwo Jima. Underneath the first three famous individuals is the famous band L'Arc-en-Ciel, who is mainly known through their lead singer Hyde- he often makes appearences in Japanese movies and soap operas. Next to L'Arc-en-Ciel is the former Prime Minister of Japan Junichiro Koizumi, just acting a little silly while giving a speech on the need for reform in Japan-- one can only hope that is speech was affective.
If you are interested in learning more about some famous individuals in Japan then look at this site that I found. It has categories that you can choose from such as: musicians, sports figures, writers, and culture leaders. The sites URL address is this: http://www.cc.kyoto-su.ac.jp/information/famous/index.html