What was the situation of people-to-people exchanges between China and Japan in ancient times?

This question is too broad. In fact, the exchanges between China and Japan in different periods are different and each has its own characteristics. There are few records about the situation among the people, and we can only give a brief description based on the general situation at that time.

The earliest records of Sino-Japanese exchanges can be traced back to the Qin and Han Dynasties. According to legend, Qin Shihuang sent people to search for the fairy island in order to seek the elixir of immortality. Xu Fu was one of them, and he may have arrived in Japan. There is a stone tablet in Shingu City, Waka Prefecture, Japan, with the words "Tomb of Qin Xufu" on it. "Book of the Later Han" records that in the second year of Emperor Jianwu's reign (AD 57), the Eastern Han government established diplomatic relations with the Wonu Kingdom.

However, since the technical conditions for taking a boat to Japan from the sea were not yet available at this time, envoys from both sides mostly traveled through the Korean Peninsula, and then sailed to Japan through the Korean Strait or along the coast. The cultural exchanges at this time were brought to Japan by Chinese immigrants, and were mostly one-way cultural exports.

The Sui and Tang Dynasties were a peak period of Sino-Japanese exchanges. During this period, both official envoys and private individuals came to China. The prosperous national power of the Tang Dynasty attracted envoys from various countries, and Japan also wanted to learn from the Tang Dynasty and become stronger. At this time, Japan was in the late Yamato period, the Nara period and the early Heian period. Shipbuilding and navigation technology are also sufficient to achieve direct sea crossing.

Therefore, Japan sent a large number of Tang envoys, overseas students, and studying monks to China more than a dozen times. Such as the famous Abe Nakamaro, Kibi Masabi, etc. China also had Jianzhen's eastward journey, bringing Vinaya Buddhism, architecture, handicraft skills, etc. to Japan. However, it can be seen from the records that the people traveling between China and Japan at this time were still mainly official envoys and monks, and there were relatively few other civilians.

In the Song and Yuan Dynasties, overseas trade developed unprecedentedly, and most maritime navigation routes also passed through Japan, making transportation between Japan and Japan much more convenient. Therefore, exchanges during this period became more diverse and were no longer limited to official envoys and monks, but included many businessmen engaged in overseas trade. China exported more silk fabrics, porcelain, medicinal materials, books, etc. to Japan, and Japan also shipped its own mercury, sulfur, wood, pearls, etc. to China.

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the maritime ban policy was promulgated, and Japan was in the Warring States Period. The tribute trade with China could not satisfy all forces, so many samurai, ronin, and pirates committed crimes along the coast of our country. Ming suffered from this, and it was not until Qi Jiguang took charge of the fight against the Japanese that the Japanese problem was solved. After Japan entered the shogunate rule, it also imitated China's practice of seclusion. Since then, Sino-Japanese exchanges have been greatly reduced and basically severed.

It can be seen that the people-to-people exchanges between China and Japan in ancient times were very limited and were affected by various factors such as war situations, national political situations, technological development, and economic development. National interests are the fundamental trend of national diplomatic activities, and this has been true in ancient and modern times.