How did Japan come into being?

Japan was called "Yamato country" in ancient times. China called Japan "Japan" in ancient times. In the second half of the 7th century, "Japan" became the national title. At the end of 19, it was called "Great Japanese Empire". After World War II, it was changed to its present name. Japan, located in the east of Asia, is an arc-shaped archipelago in the northwest Pacific Ocean, consisting of four islands, namely Kyushu, Shikoku, Honshu and Hokkaido, and thousands of small islands. The east and southwest are bordered by the Pacific Ocean, while the west and north are bordered by the East Sea of China, the Sea of Japan and the Sea of Okhotsk, just separated by water from China, North Korea and the Soviet Union. The total area is more than 370,000 square kilometers. Population 12055 million (1985), and the basic residents are Yamato nationality. Buddhism and Shinto, the national religion, are prevalent. Ordinary Japanese, the capital Tokyo.

Ancient Japan (to the end of 12) Stone Age Japan Paleolithic Age, also known as "pottery-free age" or "pre-pottery age". Its upper limit has not yet been determined. It is estimated that it is about 200,000-300,000 years ago. Its lower limit is about 654.38+0 million years ago. The Paleolithic Age in Japan and the Paleolithic Age in the Asian continent were parallel. Japanese Neolithic culture is called rope pattern culture, which is named after the rope pattern on pottery. The upper limit is about 9500 years ago or 1000 years ago (4500 years ago), and the lower limit is from the 3rd century BC to the 2nd century BC.

After the rope pattern era, Japan entered the Yayoi era from the 3rd century BC to the 2nd century BC, that is, the era of stone and stone combination. The culture of this era is called Yayoi Culture, which is named after the pottery unearthed in Yayoi Town, Tokyo (now bunkyo-ku, Tokyo), and its lower limit is in the 3rd century. In the Yayoi era, Chinese mainland's rice cultivation techniques and metal cultures such as bronzes and ironware were introduced into Japan through Korea.

Primitive clan commune Japan's Stone Age was the stage of matriarchal clan commune, and the rope-grain age was its prosperous period. The population in the late and late rope-grain period is estimated to be12 ~150,000. Most people live in primitive houses called "vertical caves" and make a living by hunting and fishing. Society is in the stage of gathering economy. Bows and arrows are used for hunting, and hooks and nets are used for fishing. Hunting grounds, fishing grounds and main production tools are owned by commune members. All members of society have equal rights, practice the same production and distribution, regardless of wealth. After entering the Yayoi era, the patriarchal clan commune gradually replaced the matriarchal clan commune, and the original commune system tended to collapse. The formation of Japanese races and nations Up to now, few human bone fossils have been unearthed in Japanese archaeology. 193 1 year, a human lumbar bone fossil was found in Muhai, west eight, Akashi City, Hyogo Prefecture, and was later named "Akashi Ishihara". /kloc-in 0/950, some human bones were found near Ge Sheng-machi, a rock city; At 1957, in Niuchuan Town, Toyohashi City, Aichi Prefecture; On1958; And in 19 1, in Mitsui-CHO, Ginza Prefecture, Shizuoka Prefecture. Based on this, it is speculated that human beings existed in the Japanese archipelago in Pliocene. Regarding the formation of Japanese races and nations, it is generally speculated in academic circles that the earliest inhabitants of Japan came to the Japanese archipelago through two routes: North Asia and South Asia. After a long period of mixed blood, a Japanese nation with the same language and customs was formed before the Yayoi period.

The emergence of class and country is the beginning of Japanese civilization history. Due to the emergence of rice farming, especially the introduction of advanced production technologies such as bronzes and ironware, social productive forces have developed by leaps and bounds. In the mid-yayoi period, Japan made a transition from primitive commune society to slave society. According to China's Hanshu, about 1 second half of the century BC, more than 100 small tribes ruled by village leaders appeared in the Japanese archipelago. These tribes regularly send people to pay tribute to Le Lang County, which was established by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty in North Korea. After long-term merger, more than 30 large-scale tribes were formed in the 2nd and 3rd centuries. According to the Records of the Later Han Dynasty and Biography of the Three Kingdoms and Japanese People, the evil Mattel Kingdom appeared from the end of the 2nd century to the beginning of the 3rd century. The evil Matai ruled about 30 tribes and became the leader of the tribal alliance. It has ruling institutions, rich and poor, and class differences. Japan's slavery society was a vulgar country in the early days. In 239, the queen of this country, Ji Meizi, sent a special envoy to Luoyang, China. Wei Mingdi named her "Pro-Wei Ri King" and awarded her a gold seal and a purple ribbon. His successor □ Empress and (Taihe) also sent envoys to pay tribute to the Western Jin Dynasty.

The ancient grave era in the 4th-7th century A.D. and the reign of Japanese kings in previous dynasties are called the ancient grave era in Japanese history. It was named after the ruling class built a large number of "ancient graves" at that time. There are various shapes of tombs, among which the most distinctive round tombs are the symbol of slave owners' kingship. In the early days, the largest ancient tombs were concentrated in the Yamato area of Guinea. This kind of slave owner kingship is called "Yamato Court" in Japanese history, that is, "Yamato State". Its ruler is the ancestor of the Japanese royal family. From the second half of the 4th century to the 5th century, the distribution area of ancient tombs gradually expanded, which indicated that Yamato gradually realized the unification of its territory from east to west. Yamato is a slave country famous for its surname system and ministerial system. Under the rule of the Japanese king, the central and local bureaucratic ruling institutions were initially established. Since the second half of the 4th century, in order to plunder slaves and wealth, Yamato countries began to expand to the south of Korea. Since the second half of the 6th century, due to the development of patriarchal clan system, the contradiction between the ruling class and the people and within the ruling class in Yamato has become increasingly acute. Coupled with the failure to invade the Korean peninsula, the kingship of slave owners is facing a crisis. At the beginning of the 7th century, Shoto Kutaishi, the regent who pushed the ancient female emperor, formulated the Twelve Orders of the Crown and Article 17 of the Constitution to suppress aristocratic families and innovate politics. It is to promote the reform of ancient dynasties. Externally, Japan actively carried out diplomacy with China, and sent envoys to the Sui Dynasty four times (600, 607, 608, 6 14) to actively absorb China culture. At this point, the foreign title of the Japanese king was changed to Emperor.

In 592, after the establishment of the ancient emperor system and the legal society and the promotion of the ancient female emperor to the throne, the imperial capital was called the Asuka period because it was in the land of birds (592 ~ 710); In 7 10, after Yuan Ming Di (in the reign of 707 ~ 7 15) moved his capital to Hiraijing (now Nara), the Nara era (7 10 ~ 794) began (see Japanese Hiraijing (Nara) site). In 794 AD (784), Emperor Kanmu (in 78 1 ~ 806) moved his capital to Pingan Jing (now the capital of Beijing), and the 400 years since the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate in1/92 are known as the Heian period. During these 600 years, Japan was under the supreme power of the emperor. For more than 200 years since 630, in order to learn advanced culture, laws and regulations from China, Japan sent envoys to the Tang Dynasty 19 times, and actually arrived 13 times. This has played an important role in promoting the reform in ancient Japan. In 645, the Japanese carried out a series of political reforms by imitating the legal system of the Tang Dynasty in China. Dahua reform completed the unfinished business of promoting the reform of ancient dynasties, established a set of bureaucratic ruling institutions with legal system from the central government to the local government, abolished hereditary aristocracy, and established a highly centralized slave owner's royal rule, that is, the ancient emperor system. It took more than half a century to complete the statutory system. The Dabao Law, enacted in 70 1 year and implemented in the following year, consolidated the reform achievements from big to new in the system. The national system established after Dahua reform was called law-making country in history; As far as social organizations are concerned, it is called a society ruled by law. The essence of innovation has always been debated in academic circles. Many historians in China regard it as a "top-down feudal social change".

Since the first half of the 8th century, due to the lack of land, the state has been forced to allow private land reclamation. In 723, the "Three-in-One Law" was promulgated, stipulating that paddy fields newly built in ditches and ponds should be allowed to be privately owned by three generations; All paddy fields reclaimed by the original ditch and pond are allowed to be used by our generation. In 743, the Law of Forever Private Ownership of Reclaimed Land was promulgated, allowing cultivated land to be privately owned forever. So the real private territory began to appear. With the improvement of social productivity, the Japanese manor system has been developing continuously; After entering the 10 century, the written law system tends to decline and change. On the basis of great social and economic changes, from the middle of the 9th century to the second half of the 20th century, the aristocratic political system, the so-called "social official politics", dominated. Later, the imperial power represented by Emperor Yitaifang expanded, and the politics of customs clearance was replaced by the administration of the academy. At the same time, the emerging samurai forces that accompanied the growth of the manor entered the historical stage in the 10 century. The core of samurai power is the local manor owner, which gradually evolved into a feudal military serf owner. Yuan Ping and his wife, known as "Wu Jia Liang Dong", launched a fierce struggle for state power after working for the royal family. This struggle continued until the end of 12.

Ancient economy and culture Since the second half of the 4th century, immigrants from China and North Korea have been coming to Japan, bringing advanced culture and production technology and promoting the development of Japanese social productive forces. In the 500-600 years since the reform of Dahua, the social economy has made remarkable progress. Iron farm tools have been widely used in agriculture, the intensification of paddy field farming has been improved, water conservancy has been developed, and the cultivated land area has been increasing. The sericulture industry was encouraged by the government, and handicraft production was also developed. At the same time, culture is becoming more and more prosperous. Following the introduction of Chinese characters and Confucian classics in the 4th and 5th centuries, Buddhism was introduced into Japan from Baekje in the 6th century, which promoted the formation and development of ancient Japanese culture, and three famous cultures appeared successively: the bird culture was the original Buddhist culture centered on temples from the end of the 6th century to the first half of the 7th century; In the second half of the 7th century, Baifeng culture was influenced by Indian culture through the Tang Dynasty in China. Tian Ping culture in the 8th century was deeply influenced by China culture in the Tang Dynasty. In addition to Buddhist art, there are also the compilation of national history such as ancient books and Japanese chronicles, as well as the compilation of famous poetry collections such as Huaifengzao and Ye Wan Collection. In the early days of Ping 'an, in addition to Buddhist culture, it was deeply influenced by Confucianism in Tang Dynasty academically and culturally. At the same time, two sets of Japanese phonography, Hiragana and Katakana are used. Subsequently, "national culture" was founded, and literary masterpieces such as Collection of Ancient and Modern Harmony Songs and Tale of Genji appeared.

Medieval Japan (12 end ~ 1868)

During the 400 years from the end of 12 to the end of 16, Japanese society was in the stage of feudal formation and development. It is characterized by the establishment and development of shogunate politics, the coexistence of imperial court and martial regime, and the continuous weakening of imperial power. 1 192, Yuan Laichao (1147 ~1199) was appointed by the imperial court as a general to conquer foreign countries, and established a shogunate in Kamakura, which created a precedent for military regime. 1333, the court nobles headed by Go Daigo (reigned 13 18 ~ 1339) overthrew the Kamakura shogunate by force. The following year, we changed to Yuan Jianwu. History is called "Jianwu Zhongxing". 1336, the samurai giant Zuji (1305 ~ 1358) invaded Kyoto and established the Muromachi shogunate. Go Daigo fled to Yoshino. Since then, the Southern and Northern Dynasties have lasted for more than half a century. 1392, the northern and southern dynasties negotiated peace, and the Ashikamuromachi shogunate unified the whole country.

The establishment of the system of famous neighboring countries and the people's struggle

From Kamakura era to Muromachi era, the feudal system continued to develop, and the centralized rule of the shogunate gradually moved towards feudal decentralization. During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, the manor system tended to decline, forming a system that defended the name and dominated the whole country. Ren Ying's rebellion broke out in 1467 (the first year of Ren Ying), and then there was a century-long separatist period from 1568, which was called the Warring States Period. The Weiming State system evolved into the Weiming State system in the Warring States Period. In the process of the formation and evolution of the big-name state system, various social contradictions intensified and various forms of struggle broke out. Among them, there are "moral riots" in which farmers oppose the oppression of landlords and the exploitation of usury by businessmen, and "China riots" in which domestic warriors compete for territory; There is also the "eternal violent resistance" of farmers to the lords through religious beliefs.

Economy and Culture in Kamakura and Muromachi Times

In the Kamakura era, there were two cropping patterns of rice and wheat in paddy fields and two or three cropping patterns of wheat and beans in dry land. With the progress of agricultural technology, the area of cultivated land has expanded. Tea imported from China is very popular, and cotton imported from North Korea is also planted. Handicraft industry and transportation industry flourished. The development of production has promoted the development of commerce and the rise of cities, and the trade with China, North Korea and other places has also developed day by day.

Culturally, from the middle of the12nd century to the13rd century, under the influence of the Song and Yuan Dynasties in China, a new samurai-centered culture emerged. A series of new Buddhist sects have sprung up like mushrooms after rain, and Zen is especially respected by samurai (see the color portraits of Japanese samurai). There appeared "Wushan Literature" centered on Wushan Zen Forest in Kyoto and Kamakura. Shinto, as the national religion of Japan, laid the foundation. China's "Zhuzi Studies" has been paid attention to. Literary forms such as couplet and energy strategy are on the rise, and tea ceremony (tea tasting) and flower path (flower arrangement) are also becoming increasingly popular.

At the end of the Warring States period, the unified country and Zhifeng regime, the famous military commander Nobuyuki Oda overthrew the Muromachi shogunate in 1573, and the country began to move towards reunification. Nobunaga's successor, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, completed the great cause of national reunification on 1590. The rule established by Noguchi Oda and Toyotomi Hideyoshi was a Wushi regime without shogunate, which was called "Zhifeng regime" in history. Zhifeng era is also called "Antu Taoshan era".

In the process of national reunification, Toyotomi Hideyoshi carried out a nationwide "land inspection" (1582 ~ 1598, known as "land inspection" in history); Issue "Knife Hunting Order" (1588) to collect weapons from farmers; Fix the status of samurai and peasants and implement "separation of soldiers and peasants"; In order to prevent the invasion of western colonial forces, Christianity was banned. Through the "land inspection", Toyotomi Hideyoshi centralized control of the national land, completely abolished the ownership of manor land and replaced it with the ownership of feudal warrior lords. Under the manor system, the small sharecroppers who are exploited layer by layer can stand on their own feet like yeomen. Toyotomi Hideyoshi tried to conquer China (Ming Dynasty), so he falsely spread it to North Korea, and launched two aggressive wars against North Korea in 1592 and 1597, both of which ended in failure.

During the Bong regime, Japan began to contact with the West and European culture was introduced to Japan. After 1543, Portuguese and Spanish came one after another to trade with Japan. 1549, the Spanish Jesuit Francis Chabli Ou (1506 ~ 1552) spread Christianity in Japan. From 1582 to 1590, the Catholic name of Kyushu also sent envoys to Europe.

Curtain-vassal rule system 1603, Tokugawa Ieyasu was appointed as a general to conquer foreign nationalities, and set up a shogunate in Edo (now Tokyo), also known as "Tokugawa shogunate". The ruling system of the Edo shogunate was called the "Mufan System" in history. In order to centralize power and control vassals, the shogunate not only promulgated relevant laws, but also implemented the pilgrimage system. In order to ban Catholicism and prevent the invasion of western colonial forces, the decree of locking the country was issued in the 1930s of 17, and the policy of locking the country was implemented for more than two centuries from 1853.