The Rise of Japan

The Rise of Japan

Textbook pages 548 - 561

Geography of Japan

• Japan is an archipelago, which means a chain of islands

• To the west of of Japan is the continent of Asia, to the east lies the Pacific Ocean

• A ridge of volcanic mountains runs the length of the island chain.

• Japan is so mountainous than less than 15% of its land can be farmed

Multiple Choice

Japan is a(n)

• peninsula

• mainland

• archipelago

Early History

• People first have thought to arrive in Japan 11,000 years ago. They survived by hunting and fishing

• By 250 BC, a new group had appeared called the Yayoi. They wove cloth and worked with bronze and iron

• Their most important achievement was introducing the technique of growing rice.

• Rice became Japan's most important crop

Multiple Choice

What technique did the Yayoi introduce to Japan?

• growing rice

• fishing

• pottery making

• hunting

The Yamato Clan

• by 200 AD, clans ruled Japan

• A clan is a group of people with a common ancestor

• From the 200s to the 400s, warlike clans competed for land and power

• The winner was the Yamato clan

• Yamato emperors ruled and they became the world's oldest ruling family

• Today's rulers in Japan trace their family ancestry back to the Yamato clan

Rise of the Fujiwara

• Emperors began losing power

• A noble family called the Fujiwara began running the country

• They rose to power by having their daughters marry emperors.

• By the 800's the Fujiwara was in almost complete control of the government

• Most of the Fujiwara were good rulers. Japan remained unified and the nobles owned their own land.

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Multiple Choice

How did the Fujiwara began gaining power?

• Having their sons fight the emperors

• Having their daughters marry emperors

Feudalism in Japan

• Feudalism was a social system in which landowners granted people land or other rewards in exchange for military service or labor

• Landowners, warriors, and peasants served one another's needs

• The landowner or daimyo would promise to protect the peasants in exchange for a share of the crops they harvested

• Samurai were specially trained warriors that worked for the daimyo

Multiple Choice

What were samurai?

• peasant workers

• landowners

• specially trained warriors