Big History 2: Japan

Soramitsu: Historical-geographical tour of Nara from the Air
Provides detailed aerial maps of and info about the historic Nara district of Japan.

The history of Japan encompasses the history of the islands of Japan and the Japanese people, spanning the ancient history of the region to the modern history of Japan as a nation state. Following the last ice age, around 12,000 BC, the rich ecosystem of the Japanese Archipelago fostered human development.

Stable living patterns began to appear in Japan with the arrival of the Jomon people around 10,000 B.C.

Based on archaeological evidence, between 35,000 B.C. and 30,000 B.C, these Homo sapiens- sapiens had migrated to the Japanese islands from eastern and southeastern Asia. There they had well-established patterns of hunting and gathering and stone tool making. Stone tools, inhabitation sites, and human fossils from this period have been found throughout all the islands of Japan.

Before the 200s BCE, Japan was sparsely populated with people who were still using stone tools and living by hunting, fishing and gathering food that grew wild. Then, in the 200s, on Japan’s major southern island, Kyushu, people with iron and bronze tool making and wet-rice agriculture appeared.

Certainly one of the most vibrant and influential cultures in the later twentieth century has been Japan.

Although Japan's culture developed late in Asian terms and was much influenced by China and later the West, its history, like its art and literature, is special among world civilizations. As some scholars have argued, these outside influences may have "corrupted" Japanese traditions, yet once absorbed they also enriched and strengthened the nation, forming part of a vibrant and unique culture.