Hokkaido was formerly known as Ezo  Yezo  Yeso  or Yesso.
According to Matsuura  the name was thought up because the Ainu called the region Kai.
In contrast to the island of Honshu  Hokkaido saw an absence of conflict during this time period.
From the Middle Ages  the people in Hokkaido began to be called Ezo.
Hokkaido subsequently became known as Ezochi  蝦夷地  lit.
The disputes eventually developed into war.
Takeda Nobuhiro killed the Ainu leader  Koshamain  and defeated the opposition in 1457.
The Matsumae family s economy relied upon trade with the Ainu.
They held authority over the south of Ezochi until the end of the Edo period.
There were numerous revolts by the Ainu against the feudal rule.
The last large scale resistance was Shakushain s revolt in 1669–1672.
In 1789  a smaller movement known as the Menashi–Kunashir rebellion was crushed.
Meiji Restoration     Hokkaido was known as Ezochi until the Meiji Restoration.
Ezochi was subsequently put under control of Hakodate fu  箱館府   Hakodate Prefectural Government.
Kuroda Kiyotaka was put in charge of the venture.
Capron  frustrated with obstacles to his efforts returned home in 1875.
In 1876  William S. Clark arrived to found an agricultural college in Sapporo.
His parting words   Boys  be ambitious!
can be found on public buildings in Hokkaido to this day.
The agency was absorbed by the Ministry of Land  Infrastructure and Transport in 2001.
The center of the island is mountainous  with volcanic plateaux.
Hokkaido is 83 423.84 km2  32 210.12 sq mi  which make it the  second largest island of Japan.
By Japanese reckoning  Hokkaido also incorporates several of the Kuril Islands.
Hokkaido Prefecture is the largest and northernmost  Japanese prefecture.
The island ranks 21st in the world by area.
It has the lowest population density in Japan with just 64.5 km2  160 sq mi   2016 .
By population it ranks 20th globally.
Sapporo is the largest city of Hokkaido and 5th largest in Japan.
Flora and fauna      There are three populations of the Ussuri brown bear found on the island.
There are more brown bears in Hokkaido than anywhere else in Asia besides Russia.
The Hokkaido brown bear is separated into three distinct lineages.
There are only eight lineages in the world.
Those on Honshu died out long ago.
Seismic activity     Like many areas of Japan  Hokkaido is seismically active.
Parks        designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO on 2005 07 14.
Twelve prefectural natural parks  道立自然公園 .
Hokkaido is one of eight prefectures in Japan that have subprefectures  支庁 shichō .
The island tends to have isolated snowstorms that develop long lasting snowbanks.
Hokkaido celebrates its winter weather at the Sapporo Snow Festival.
The island has two core cities  Hakodate in the south and Asahikawa in the central region.
Hokkaido has nearly one fourth of Japan s total arable land.
Hokkaido also accounts for 22  of Japan s forests with a sizable timber industry.
The prefecture is first in the nation in production of marine products and aquaculture.
Cities such as Muroran were primarily developed to supply the rest of the archipelago with coal.
Transportation     Hokkaido s only land link to the rest of Japan is the Seikan Tunnel.
One of the airlines  Air Do was named after Hokkaido.
The Hokkaido Shinkansen takes passengers from Tokyo to near Hakodate in slightly over four hours.
There is a fairly well developed railway network  but many cities can only be accessed by road.
The sports teams listed below are based in Hokkaido.
Politics          Governor     The current governor of Hokkaido is Harumi Takahashi.
She won a fourth term in the gubernatorial election in 2015 with centre right support.
Assembly     The Hokkaido Legislative Assembly has 100 members from 47 electoral districts.
Let the Sea Make a Noise  A History of the North Pacific from Magellan to MacArthur.
Aomori is one of Japan s 60 core cities and the core of the Aomori metropolitan area.
The name is generally considered to refer to a small forest on a hill which existed near the town.
This forest was often used by fishermen as a landmark.
A different theory suggests the name might have been derived from the Ainu language.
The large scale of these settlements revolutionized theories on Jōmon period civilization.
These were merged into the short lived Hirosaki Prefecture in July 1871.
It was later designated as a city on 1 April 1898.
The Ōu Main Line running along the Sea of Japan coast opened in December 1894.
The 8th Division of the Imperial Japanese Army were stationed in Aomori from 1896.
Much of the town burned down in a large fire on 3 May 1910.
The port facilities were expanded in 1924  and the city received its first bus services in 1926.
Japan Air Transport began scheduled air services from 1937.
The 28–29 July bombing claimed 1 767 lives and destroyed 88  of the city.
In the post war period  Aomori was rebuilt as the local political and commercial center.
The Tsugaru Line railway opened between Aomori Station and Kanita Station in 1951.
Aomori Airport was opened in 1964 in nearby Namioka.
The city was connected to Tokyo by highway in 1979 with the opening of the Tōhoku Expressway.
Construction began on a new airport within the city of Aomori in 1982.
Aomori s landmark pyramidal Aomori Prefecture Tourist Center opened in 1986.
The new airport was completed on 19 July 1987.
The average annual temperature in Aomori is 10.1 °C  50.2 °F .
The average annual rainfall is 1 285 millimeters  50.6 in  with September as the wettest month.
Due to this fog  flights to Aomori Airport are often cancelled.
Demographics    A person living in or from Aomori is referred to as an Aomorian.
Economy    Aomori serves as the regional commercial center for central Aomori Prefecture.
The city also contributes 10 members of the 48 member Aomori Prefectural Assembly.
There are daily flights to Tokyo  Osaka  Nagoya and Sapporo.
There are also international flights to Seoul–Incheon and Tianjin.
Railways     Aomori Station has been the main station of the city since 1891.
The Tōhoku Shinkansen opened in 2010 with a new terminal at Shin Aomori Station.
It takes about four hours to go by ferry from Aomori to Hakodate.
The prefecture also operates eight special education schools for the handicapped.
From 17 25 March 2007  Aomori hosted the World Women s Curling Championships 2 .
Other parks in the city include the centrally located Aoimori Park and Aoimori Central Park.
Besides this  major attractions of Aomori include ruins  museums  and mountains.
The Hakkōda Mountains have good locations for trekking with hot spas  onsen   such as Sukayu Onsen.
Iwate Prefecture  岩手県  Iwate ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu.
These rocks are said to have been thrown down into Morioka by an eruption of Mt.
According to the legend  there was once a devil who often tormented and harassed the local people.
Even now after a rainfall  it is said that the devil s hand print can still be seen there.
He was especially inspired by the town of Hiraizumi.
Kanzan in what is now Hiraizumi.
Over 1 000 soldiers drowned that day.
Many a stout warrior gave up the fight to join his family again.
Finally on 15 April 802 the Emishi leaders More and Aterui surrendered with some 500 warriors.
This act of cruelty enraged the Emishi leading to another twenty or more years of fighting.
After the surrender numerous forts were built on the Chinese model along the Kitakami River.
Aomori Prefecture is to the north and Miyagi Prefecture is to the south.
The Ōu mountains on the west still contain active volcanoes such as Mt.
It is the fourth longest river in Japan and the longest in Tōhoku.
The forests of the prefecture are another valuable resource.
Recently  though  there has been a push to restore the original beech forests in some areas.
As of March 2011  the prefecture produced 3.9  of Japan s beef and 14.4  of broiler chickens.
This is also the only census to record more males than females.
In 1935  Iwate s population surpassed a million reaching 1 045 793.
In 1960  the population of the prefecture reached its all time high before or since at 1 449 207.
The census of 1950 saw the most births in the prefecture with 45 968 reported.
Since then there has been an almost steady decline to 10 344 births in 2007.
The greatest number of deaths were reported in 1945 with a total of 32 614.
The number of deaths declined steadily until 1980 when the fewest deaths were recorded  9 892.
Since then the number of deaths has increased gradually to 14 774 in 2007.
On 14 November 1230  volcanic activity was reported.
In 1662 Morioka and its suburbs were hit by a large flood leaving 1 000 dead.
Volcanic activity was reported on Mt.
In 1700  a tsunami from the 1700 Cascadia earthquake struck Iwate Prefecture.
No records from North America exist  but the event was reconstructed using Japanese records.
There was also widespread destruction of houses and shops.
In Nanbu han alone  49 594 people starved to death in the famine of 1755.
Severe famines continue from 1783 to 1787 and again from 1832 to 1838.
Cholera outbreaks occurred in August 1879  in Miyako and Kuji.
In April 1884  there was another outbreak of cholera in Kamaishi.
In September 1886  cholera outbreaks throughout Iwate left 312 dead.
On 15 June 1896  at 7 32 am  a magnitude 8.5 earthquake struck offshore.
18 158 people died in Iwate alone while some 10 000 homes were destroyed.
There was a widespread crop failure due to violent storms in September 1902.
Only 32 900 tons of rice were produced in Iwate  just 30  of the previous year s harvest.
People were reduced to eating straw  acorns and roots.
This is the fifth worst earthquake in Japan since 1923.
In August 1957  there was volcanic activity on Mt.
There was volcanic activity on Mt.
At 8 43 am on 14 June 2008  Iwate was struck by a 7.2 magnitude earthquake.
The epicenter was about 8 kilometres  5.0 mi  underground in Ichinoseki City.
The highest run up of water was measured at over 38 metres  125 ft .
The Akita Shinkansen starts at Morioka Station and connects to locations in Akita Prefecture.
There is a large JR freight yard and maintenance facility in Yahaba.
Mr. Miyagi is a fictional karate master from Okinawa  Japan in The Karate Kid film series.
However  he is called Keisuke Miyagi at the start of The Next Karate Kid.Mr.
Miyagi was inducted into the Fictitious Athlete Hall of Fame in 2015 in the Contributor Category.
Fumio Demura was the inspiration for the character.
Fictional biography          Early life     Miyagi was born on June 9  1925  in Okinawa  Japan.
During this time  Miyagi joined the U.S. Army and received the Medal of Honor.
While in the Army  he taught his commanding officer  Lieutenant Jack Pierce  the art of karate.
Death     Mr. Miyagi died on November 15  2011  as revealed in the Cobra Kai web series.
When Daniel realizes that Miyagi saved him  he asks to be taught karate.
Miyagi initially declines  wanting instead to prevent the bullying entirely.
For his part  Miyagi agrees to teach Daniel.
Miyagi then begins training Daniel in earnest  and the two develop a deep friendship.
Six months later  Miyagi receives a letter informing him that his father is dying.
While traveling to Okinawa  Miyagi recounts to Daniel his unfortunate history with Sato and Yukie.
Once at the village  Miyagi and Daniel are welcomed by Yukie and her niece  Kumiko.
Yukie also reveals that she never married because of her love for Miyagi.
Sato  out of respect for his teacher  gives Miyagi three days to mourn before their fight.
However  Sato shows up with bulldozers  threatening to destroy the village if Miyagi flees again.
Miyagi rescues Sato and they hide in a nearby pillbox with Chozen and other village folk.
Sato assists Daniel himself  after which he disowns Chozen  Chozen runs out into the storm.
They later attend an Obon festival at the castle near the village.
A vengeful Chozen takes Kumiko hostage and challenges Daniel to fight to the death.
Miyagi offers Daniel the choice to stay at his house for a time.
Daniel uses his college funding to help Miyagi open up a nursery shop for bonsai trees.
Barnes then snaps the tree in half.
Seeing what he has become  Daniel apologizes to Miyagi and Jessica soon afterward.
Miyagi intervenes and defends Daniel  agreeing to train him once more.
The two repair their friendship and replant the now healed bonsai tree.
As Julie is preparing for her high school prom  Miyagi teaches her to dance and buys her a dress.
While Julie attends the prom  Miyagi goes bowling with the Buddhist monks.
Eric s car is set on fire and Eric is saved by Julie and Miyagi.
The fiasco ends when Miyagi challenges Colonel Dugan to a fight and easily defeats him.
He frequently appears in flashbacks using clips from the first 3 movies.
Alongside the marker is a bonsai tree.
Daniel sadly obliges  feeling he has tainted his mentor s legacy.
During Daniel s trip to Okinawa  Mr. Miyagi appears in several flashbacks.
References         External links    Daniel and Mr. Miyagi auditions  1983
Akita Prefecture  秋田県  Akita ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu.
Akita is the capital and largest city of Akita Prefecture.
Other major cities include Yokote  Daisen  and Yurihonjō.
Akita Prefecture formed the northern half of the historic Dewa Province with Yamagata Prefecture.
Governance of the region shifted hands several times.
Throughout this period  it was classified as part of Dewa Province.
This has led many young people to migrate to Tokyo and other large cities.
Its population also has the lowest percentage of children  at 11.2 .
This decline  combined with an aging population  has been concerning for rural communities.
Ono no Komachi is a famous example of an Akita bijin.
Akita Bank Red Arrows  women s basketball team.
Prestige International Aranmare Akita  women s basketball team.
These are popular with tourists from all over Japan.
In addition  numerous seasonal festivals  matsuri  offer a glimpse of rural or traditional Japan.
Kakunodate  known as the little Kyoto  features many preserved samurai houses.
The house is now a museum and gallery of medical illustrations and traditional crafts.
History     The aboriginal Ezo  蝦夷  people once inhabited the area now known as Yamagata.
Demographics    As of October 2014  Yamagata Prefecture had a population of 1 131 000.
The prefecture also has one of the oldest populations in Japan.
In February  a snow lantern festival is held in Yonezawa at the Uesugi Shrine.
Hundreds of candle lit lanterns light pathways dug into the snow around the shrine.
Yonezawa is also the site of the Uesugi Festival  上杉祭り  uesugi matsuri  in mid spring.
The permanent collection consists of three types of art  Japanese and Asian  regional  and French.
Special exhibitions are held periodically.
Sports     The sports teams listed below are based in Yamagata.
The site was designated a National Historic Site of Japan in 2000.
It was built in 1160 and it is a National Treasure.
The temple  including the paradise garden is an Historic Site.
Contemporary period     This region of Japan is also known as Michinoku and Ōshū.
This resulted in increased recorded radiation levels across Japan.
Fukushima city is located in the Fukushima Basin s southwest area and nearby mountains.
Mount Bandai is the highest mountain in the prefecture with an elevation of 1 819 m  5 968 ft .
The mountainous Aizu region has scenic lakes  lush forests  and snowy winters.
Thanks to Fukushima s climate  various fruits are grown throughout the year.
These include pears  peaches  cherries  grapes  and apples.
Objects made are usually dishes  vases and writing materials.
The Adachigahara plain lies close to the city of Fukushima.
They are carved wooden dolls  with large round heads and hand painted bodies.
The history behind the festival and events is over one thousand years old.
There is also a traditional Taiwanese dragon dance  or Ryumai  performed by Taiwanese visitors.
Bird watching crowds are not uncommon during migration season here.
The area is popular with hikers and skiers.
It was preserved along with some of Noguchi s belongings and letters as part of a memorial.
Fukushima Gyu is the prefecture s signature beef.
It is a local cuisine from the northern parts of Fukushima Prefecture.
The baked good has a milky red bean flavor center wrapped in a buttery dough.
The name means “People who drink mothers’ milk  in Spanish.
It is produced by the Sanmangoku Company.
Creambox is prefecture s second famous confection.
It is a sweet bread with a thick milk bread and white milk flavored cream.
It is sold in Koriyama City at many bakery and school purchases .
The selling price is usually around 100 yen  and in some rare cases  the dough is round.
The Fukushima Prefecture Sake Brewers Cooperative is made up of nearly 60 sake breweries.
The Japanese government created the Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize in his honor.
History     Ibaraki Prefecture was previously known as Hitachi Province.
In 1871  the name of the province became Ibaraki.
It also has a border on the southwest with Saitama Prefecture.
Hitachi is a world wide company as well as a city name where the company was founded.
Ibaraki is an agricultural prefecture  producing food crops that are used throughout the country.
As of March 2011  the prefecture produced 25  of Japan s bell peppers and Chinese cabbage.
Demographics    Ibaraki s population is decreasing more rapidly than any other prefecture.
Ibaraki is famous for the martial art of Aikido founded by Ueshiba Morihei  also known as Osensei.
However  the standard pronunciation is  Ibaraki .
Winters are arid with dry winds  while summers are humid with frequent thunderstorms.
The population of Tochigi as of November 2010 is approximately 2 005 096.
Located in the center of the prefecture is the largest open plain in the Kantō region.
Tochigi is the 20th largest prefecture in Japan with a total area of 6 408.09 square km.
Saint Francis Xavier introduced Ashikaga to the world as the best university in Japan.
In the early 17th century  Japan was unified by the shōgun Tokugawa Ieyasu.
The establishment of the Nikkō Tōshō gū in 1617 brought Nikkō to national attention.
By 1884  however  the capital was transferred to Utsunomiya.
Geography     The chief city of Utsunomiya is famous for its many gyoza specialist shops.
Rice  vegetables  and livestock are produced in the region.
Approximately 55  of Tochigi is covered by forests.
Below is an alphabetical list of some of the universities located in Tochigi.
This encompasses Rinnō ji  Nikkō Tōshō gū  Mount Nantai  and Futarasan Shrine.
The Kegon Falls  also in Nikkō  is popular with tourists.
From east to west spans Route 50  connecting southern Tochigi with Ibaraki and Gunma Prefectures.
Shinkansen runs from Tokyo Station to Oyama in south Tochigi in 43 minutes.
To the east and west  the Mito and Ryōmō Lines connect Tochigi to Ibaraki and Gunma.
Freight is served by the Utsunomiya Freight Terminal.
Gunma Prefecture  群馬県  Gunma ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu.
In the past  Gunma was joined with Tochigi Prefecture and called Kenu Province.
This was later divided into Kami tsu ke  Upper Kenu  Gunma  and Shimo tsu ke  Lower Kenu  Tochigi .
The area is sometimes referred to as Jomo  上毛  Jōmō .
The modern Japanese army gunned down farmers with new repeating rifles built in Japan.
The farmers in Gunma were said to be the first victims of the Murata rifle.
To the north are Niigata and Fukushima prefectures  while to the east lies Tochigi Prefecture.
To the west lies the Nagano Prefecture  and the Saitama Prefecture is to the south.
Major rivers include the Tone River  the Agatsuma River  and the Karasu River.
For this reason  the wind changes into the kara kaze.
More traditional industries include sericulture and agriculture.
Gunma s major agricultural products include cabbages and konjacs.
Also  the city of Ōta is famous for car industry  notably the Subaru factory.
Culture    Gunma has a traditional card game called Jomo Karuta  上毛かるた .
Kiyoshi Ogawa  a Kamikaze pilot who led the attack on the USS Bunker Hill was born in Gunma.
Melody Roads     As of 2018  Gunma is home to eleven of Japan s over thirty Melody Roads.
Each is of a differing length and plays a different song.
Tourism    Gunma has many hot spring resorts and the most famous is Kusatsu Onsen.
Another draw to the mountainous Gunma is the ski resorts.
Chichibu Province was in western Saitama.
Saitama District  Saitama gun  was one of Musashi s 21 ritsuryō districts.
During the Edo period  many fudai daimyōs ruled small domains within the Saitama area.
The prefectural capital  Urawa in North Adachi  remained a town until 1934.
The Great Heisei mergers of the 2000s pushed the number below 70.
It became the prefecture s first  and so far only  designated major city in 2003.
At 3 797.75 km2  it ranks as the ninth smallest prefecture.
The eastern border with Chiba Prefecture is defined by the Edo River.
The latter are mainly surrounded by alluvial flood plains.
Most of the land is contained in Chichibu Tama Kai National Park.
The area to east of the basin consists of relatively low mountains.
Circular routes were constructed as bypasses to avoid congestion in central Tokyo.
National highway Routes 4  16  and 17 are important routes in Kantō region.
The Musashino serves as a freight bypass line as well as a passenger line.
The Tsukuba Express line crosses the southeastern corner of the prefecture.
A wheelchair using version of Kobaton also exists.
China  officially the People s Republic of China  PRC   is a country in East Asia.
It is the world s most populous country  with a population of around 1.4 billion in 2019.
Since then  China has expanded  fractured  and re unified numerous times.
In the 3rd century BCE  the Qin reunited core China and established the first Chinese empire.
The Qing Empire  China s last dynasty  suffered heavy losses to foreign imperialism.
China was invaded by the Empire of Japan during World War II.
The name Zhongguo is also translated as  Middle Kingdom  in English.
The PRC is sometimes referred to as the Mainland to distinguish the ROC from the PRC.
The succeeding Shang dynasty is the earliest to be confirmed by contemporary records.
King Zheng of Qin proclaimed himself the First Emperor of the Qin dynasty.
His dynasty also conquered the Yue tribes in Guangxi  Guangdong  and Vietnam.
Han China gradually became the largest economy of the ancient world.
At its end  Wei was swiftly overthrown by the Jin dynasty.
In the south  the general Liu Yu secured the abdication of the Jin in favor of the Liu Song.
However  it was devastated and weakened by the An Lushan Rebellion in the 8th century.
In 907  the Tang disintegrated completely when the local military governors became ungovernable.
However  the military weakness of the Song army was observed by the Jurchen Jin dynasty.
In 1127  Emperor Huizong of Song and the capital Bianjing were captured during the Jin–Song Wars.
In the early years of the Ming dynasty  China s capital was moved from Nanjing to Beijing.
The Chongzhen Emperor committed suicide when the city fell.
The ill fated anti foreign Boxer Rebellion of 1899–1901 further weakened the dynasty.
Puyi  the last Emperor of China  abdicated in 1912.
China emerged victorious but war ravaged and financially drained.
In 1950  the People s Liberation Army captured Hainan from the ROC and incorporated Tibet.
China developed an independent industrial system and its own nuclear weapons.
The Chinese population increased from 550 million in 1950 to 900 million in 1974.
Elder Deng Xiaoping took power in 1978  and instituted significant economic reforms.
China adopted its current constitution on 4 December 1982.
In 2013  China initiated the Belt and Road Initiative  a global infrastructure investment project.
The COVID 19 pandemic broke out in Wuhan  Hubei in 2019.
China s landscapes vary significantly across its vast territory.
Other major rivers include the Xi  Mekong  Brahmaputra and Amur.
To the west sit major mountain ranges  most notably the Himalayas.
The understory of moist conifer forests may contain thickets of bamboo.
In higher montane stands of juniper and yew  the bamboo is replaced by rhododendrons.
China has over 10 000 recorded species of fungi  and of them  nearly 6 000 are higher fungi.
China is the country with the second highest death toll because of air pollution  after India.
There are approximately 1 million deaths caused by exposure to ambient air pollution.
Greenhouse gas emissions by China are the world s largest  as is renewable energy in China.
China s total area is generally stated as being approximately 9 600 000 km2  3 700 000 sq mi .
China borders 14 nations  more than any other country except Russia  which also borders 14.
The PRC is one of the world s only socialist states explicitly aiming to build communism.
The electoral system is pyramidal.
In 2019  China had the largest diplomatic network in the world.
By 2016  China was the largest trading partner of 124 other countries.
China became a member of the World Trade Organization  WTO  in 2001.
China has a significant trade surplus with the United States  its most important export market.
China maintains healthy and highly diversified trade links with the European Union.
As of 2020  China currently has a disputed land border with only India and Bhutan.
The report provided evidence that this gap is being made up by executed prisoners of conscience.
China has the second biggest military reserve force  only behind North Korea.
According to the World Bank  China s GDP grew from  150 billion in 1978 to  13.6 trillion by 2018.
China is also the world s largest exporter and second largest importer of goods.
1 manufacturer since 2010  after overtaking the US  which had been No.
China is the second largest retail market in the world  next to the United States.
Additionally  its development is highly uneven.
Its major cities and coastal areas are far more prosperous compared to rural and interior regions.
Economists also expect China s middle class to expand to 600 million people by 2025.
China has a high level of economic inequality  which has increased in the past few decades.
In 2018 China s GINI index was 0.467  according to the World Bank.
Chinese mathematicians were the first to use negative numbers.
In 2017  China spent  279 billion on scientific research and development.
According to the OECD  China spent 2.11  of its GDP on research and development  R D  in 2016.
Chinese tech companies Huawei and ZTE were the top 2 filers of international patents in 2017.
China also became the world s largest publisher of scientific papers in 2016.
In 2013  China successfully landed the Chang e 3 lander and Yutu rover onto the lunar surface.
In 2019  China became the first country to land a probe—Chang e 4—on the far side of the moon.
The Belt and Road Initiative could be one of the largest development plans in modern history.
By 2018  China had more than 1 billion 4G users  accounting for 40  of world s total.
Combined  the three operators had over 3.4 million 4G base stations in China.
With an annual ridership of over 1.1 billion passengers in 2015 it is the world s busiest.
Since 2000  the growth of rapid transit systems in Chinese cities has accelerated.
China has over 2 000 river and seaports  about 130 of which are open to foreign shipping.
The ongoing South–North Water Transfer Project intends to abate water shortage in the north.
The population growth rate for 2013 is estimated to be 0.46 .
China used to make up much of the world s poor  now it makes up much of the world s middle class.
In 2016  the one child policy was replaced in favor of a two child policy.
However  these scholars have been challenged.
The 2010 census found that males accounted for 51.27 percent of the total population.
The 2010 census recorded a total of 593 832 foreign nationals living in China.
Languages      There are as many as 292 living languages in China.
Korean is spoken natively along the border with North Korea.
Sarikoli  the language of Tajiks in western Xinjiang  is an Indo European language.
Chinese characters are romanized using the Pinyin system.
Tibetan uses an alphabet based on an Indic script.
Uyghur is most commonly written in Persian alphabet based Uyghur Arabic alphabet.
Zhuang uses both an official Latin alphabet script and a traditional Chinese character script.
Urbanization      China has urbanized significantly in recent decades.
Shanghai is China s most populous urban area while Chongqing is its largest city proper.
In 2010  27 percent of secondary school graduates are enrolled in higher education.
However  there remains an inequality in education spending.
In 1949  only 20  of the population could read  compared to 65.5  thirty years later.
Healthcare in China became mostly privatized  and experienced a significant rise in quality.
By 2011  the campaign resulted in 95  of China s population having basic health insurance coverage.
Both have improved significantly since the 1950s.
Culture     Since ancient times  Chinese culture has been heavily influenced by Confucianism.
Examinations and a culture of merit remain greatly valued in China today.
Literature      Chinese literature is based on the literature of the Zhou dynasty.
Hu Shih and Lu Xun were pioneers in modern literature.
Mo Yan  a xungen literature author  was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2012.
All of them are featured by the precise skills of shaping  heating  colorway and flavoring.
Generally  China s staple food is rice in the south  wheat based breads and noodles in the north.
And the bean products  such as tofu and soy milk  remain as a popular source of protein.
Chinese pop  C Pop  includes mandopop and cantopop.
Chinese rap  Chinese hip hop and Hong Kong hip hop have become popular in contemporary times.
Fashion      Hanfu is the historical clothing of the Han people in China.
The qipao or cheongsam is a popular Chinese female dress.
The hanfu movement has been popular in contemporary times and seeks to revitalize Hanfu clothing.
Sports      China has one of the oldest sporting cultures in the world.
There is evidence that archery  shèjiàn  was practiced during the Western Zhou dynasty.
Basketball is currently the most popular spectator sport in China.
In 2011  Shenzhen in Guangdong  China hosted the 2011 Summer Universiade.
As of 2021  the prefecture has an estimated population of 	13 960 236.
By the mid 18th century  Edo was one of the most populous cities in the world at over one million.
In 2019  it hosted 36 of the Fortune Global 500 companies.
Edo was first fortified by the Edo clan  in the late twelfth century.
In 1457  Ōta Dōkan built Edo Castle.
In 1590  Tokugawa Ieyasu moved from Mikawa Province  his lifelong base  to the Kantō region.
When he became shōgun in 1603  Edo became the center of his ruling.
After 265 years  the Pax Tokugawa came to an end.
The city was divided into Yamanote and Shitamachi.
The city of Tokyo was officially established on May 1  1889.
The 1970s brought new high rise developments.
In the 1980s  real estate prices skyrocketed during a real estate and debt bubble.
Tokyo still sees new urban developments on large lots of less profitable land.
The most prominent is the Odaiba area  now a major shopping and entertainment center.
These plans have been controversial within Japan and have yet to be realized.
Tokyo was supposed to be the first Asian city to host the Olympic Games twice.
The average elevation in Tokyo is 40 m  131 ft .
Its administrative structure is similar to that of Japan s other prefectures.
It is headed by a publicly elected governor and metropolitan assembly.
Its headquarters is in Shinjuku Ward.
The special wards use the word  city  in their official English name  e.g.
It is often called the  political center  of the country.
Collectively  these are often known as the Tama area or Western Tokyo.
Much of this area is mountainous and unsuitable for urbanization.
Lake Okutama  on the Tama River near Yamanashi Prefecture  is Tokyo s largest lake.
The district is composed of three towns  Hinode  Mizuho and Okutama  and one village  Hinohara .
The Izu Islands are a group of volcanic islands and form part of the Fuji Hakone Izu National Park.
The Izu Islands are grouped into three subprefectures.
Izu Ōshima and Hachijojima are towns.
The remaining islands are six villages  with Niijima and Shikinejima forming one village.
Local populations are only found on Chichi Jima and Haha Jima.
The islands form both Ogasawara Subprefecture and the village of Ogasawara  Tokyo.
There are also artworks and statues at several places in the park.
There is also a zoo in the park  and the park is a popular destination to view cherry blossoms.
Particularly active are offshore regions and to a lesser extent Chiba and Ibaraki.
Volcanic eruptions     Mount Fuji is about 100 km  62 mi  southwest of Tokyo.
There is a low risk of eruption.
Kanagawa had 16cm to 8cm ash and Saitama 0.5 to 0 cm.
If the wind blows north east it could send volcanic ash to Tokyo metropolis.
The affected areas would need to be evacuated.
Important rivers are Edogawa  Nakagawa  Arakawa  Kandagawa  Megurogawa and Tamagawa.
In 1947 Typhoon Kathleen struck Tokyo  destroying 31 000 homes and killing 1 100 people.
In 1958 Typhoon Ida inflicted 400mm rain in 1 week which flooded streets.
A huge system of dams  levees and tunnels was constructed.
The purpose is to manage heavy rain  typhonic rain  and river floods.
It took 13 years to build and was completed in 2006.
During floods  excess water is collected from rivers and drained to the Edo River.
Snowfall is sporadic  but does occur almost annually.
Tokyo also often sees typhoons every year  though few are strong.
Annual precipitation has ranged from 879.5 mm  34.63 in  in 1984 to 2 229.6 mm  87.78 in  in 1938.
Tokyo has experienced significant warming of its climate since temperature records began in 1876.
The climates of Tokyo s offshore territories vary significantly from those of the city.
Cityscape    Architecture in Tokyo has largely been shaped by Tokyo s history.
Environment    Tokyo has enacted a measure to cut greenhouse gases.
In the same year  a total of 779 foreign nationals were recorded as residing in Tokyo.
Economy     Tokyo has the largest metropolitan economy in the world.
The farmland is concentrated in Western Tokyo.
Tokyo Bay was once a major source of fish.
Most of Tokyo s fish production comes from the outer islands  such as Izu Ōshima and Hachijō Jima.
It is also one of the largest wholesale food markets of any kind.
It is located in the Toyosu area of Kōtō ward.
However  its airspace has been under the US military s exclusive control after World War II.
There are up to 62 electric train lines and more than 900 train stations in Tokyo.
Therefore  Japan constructed airports outside Tokyo.
Japan s flag carrier Japan Airlines  as well as All Nippon Airways  have a hub at this airport.
Haneda Airport on the reclaimed land at Ōta  offers domestic and international flights.
JR East is also responsible for Shinkansen high speed rail lines.
The Metropolitan Government and private carriers operate bus routes and one tram route.
To build them quickly before the 1964 Summer Olympics  most were constructed above existing roads.
Other transportation includes taxis operating in the special wards and the cities and towns.
Education     Tokyo has many universities  junior colleges  and vocational schools.
Tokyo has many theaters for performing arts.
These include national and private theaters for traditional forms of Japanese drama.
Noteworthy are the National Noh Theatre for noh and the Kabuki za for Kabuki.
Symphony orchestras and other musical organizations perform modern and traditional music.
Many different festivals occur throughout Tokyo.
The last features a parade with elaborately decorated floats and thousands of people.
Cuisine in Tokyo is internationally acclaimed.
As of 2017  227 restaurants in Tokyo have been awarded  92 in Paris .
Football clubs in Tokyo include F.C.
Basketball clubs include the Hitachi SunRockers  Toyota Alvark Tokyo and Tokyo Excellence.
Tokyo hosted the 1964 Summer Olympics  thus becoming the first Asian city to host the Summer Games.
In 2016  it was to be replaced by the New National Stadium.
Some Hollywood directors have turned to Tokyo as a backdrop for movies set in Japan.
Tokyo was also a founding member of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group.
Kamakura in central Sagami was the capital of Japan during the Kamakura period  1185–1333 .
After the Meiji period  many foreigners lived in Yokohama City  and visited Hakone.
At Kamakura  the total death toll from earthquake  tsunami  and fire exceeded 2 000 victims.
Total Casualties amounted to more than several thousand.
The population as of September 1  2014  is estimated to be 9.1 million.
Kanagawa became the second most populous prefecture in 2006.
Topography     Topographically  the prefecture consists of three distinct areas.
The mountainous western region features the Tanzawa Mountain Range and Hakone Volcano.
The hilly eastern region is characterized by the Tama Hills and Miura Peninsula.
The Sagami River flows through the middle of the prefecture.
The mountain range is lower in height southward leading to Hadano Basin to the Ōiso Hills.
Cities      Nineteen cities are located in Kanagawa Prefecture.
The board of education also directly operates most of the public high schools in the prefecture.
Hakone Ekiden Course—from Tokyo to Hakone  108.0 km  mostly on Japan National Route 1 and Route 15.
Lake Sagami—hosted canoeing and rowing for the 1964 Summer Olympics.
The main team in the Japanese manga and anime series Slam Dunk  Shohoku  is from Kanagawa.
The Japanese anime and  manga series Area no Kishi takes place in Kanagawa  mostly Kamakura.
The Japanese anime and  manga series Hamatora takes place in Kanagawa  mainly in Yokohama.
Yokohama Burning  The Deadly 1923 Earthquake and Fire that Helped Forge the Path to World War II.
It faces the Sea of Japan and Sado Island.
The total area is 726.45 square kilometres  280.48 sq mi .
Niigata s city government was established in 1889.
Mergers with nearby municipalities in 2005 allowed the city s population to jump to 810 000.
On April 1  2007  it became the first government designated city on the Japan Sea coast of Honshu.
Toponymy    The place name  Niigata  was first recorded in 1520  Eisho 17 .
Its name in kanji can be translated as 新  new   潟  lagoon   市  city .
However  as there is no record about the origin of the name  this had led to several theories.
First  Niigata  was a large lagoon at the mouth of the Shinano river.
Second it was an inland bay at the river s entrance.
Third it was the name of a village that stood on an island within the estuary.
According to the Nihon Shoki  a fortress was built in the area in AD 647.
The area prospered beneath the rule of Uesugi Kenshin during the Sengoku Period.
Niigata annexed Nuttari in 1914.
A devastating fire in 1955 destroyed much of the downtown area  but eventually the city recovered.
The Niigata Thermal Power Station Unit 1 started operation in July 1963.
In 1964  the old canals that flowed throughout the city were filled in to make way for more roads.
The line was extended to Tokyo in 1991.
Big Swan Stadium in Niigata City hosted three games during the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
In May 2008  the city hosted the 2008 G8 Labor Ministers Meeting.
The Shinano River and Agano River flow through the city.
Numerous wetlands  such as the Fukushimagata wetlands  can be found within the city limits.
However  Niigata City does receive much precipitation  mostly in the form of rainfall.
It handles some international destinations as well as many domestic ones.
Railway     The largest station in Niigata City is Niigata Station.
Approximately 37 000 passengers use the station daily.
The Jōetsu Shinkansen  which terminates at Niigata Station  provides daily service to Tokyo.
These lines serve Myoko  Itoigawa  Akita  Sakata  and Aizuwakamatsu.
It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28  1937  1937 08 28 .
Toyota is also a market leader in hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.
Corporate governance     Toyota is headquartered in Toyota City  Aichi.
The main headquarters of Toyota is located in a four story building in Toyota.
As of 2006  the head office has the  Toyopet  Toyota logo and the words  Toyota Motor .
Vinod Jacob from The Hindu described the main headquarters building as  modest .
Its Nagoya office is located in Nakamura ku  Nagoya.
Looms were built on a small production line.
Its first vehicles were the A1 passenger car and the G1 truck in 1935.
The Toyota Motor Company was established as an independent company in 1937.
In April 1936  Toyoda s first passenger car  the Model AA  was completed.
The company continued to be supported by the state.
In 1949 the Bank of Japan  the central bank of the country  bailed out the company.
The so called  chicken tax  of 1964 placed a 25  tax on imported light trucks.
The factory was the old General Motors Fremont Assembly plant that had been closed for two years.
It is currently the site of Tesla  Inc. s assembly plant.
Bases in Indiana  Virginia  and Tianjin were also set up.
At the time  the UFJ was one of the largest shareholders of Toyota.
A youth oriented marque for North America  Scion  was introduced in 2003.
The company has also found recent success with its smaller models—the Corolla and Yaris.
The company plans to consolidate its corporate functions in Melbourne by the end of 2017.
The workforce is expected to be reduced from 3 900 to 1 300.
Toyota never agreed to be at fault for the problem.
More than 7 million vehicles are potentially affected in the United States.
The airbags were manufactured by Takata automotive manufacturing.
Toyota is offering a free repair to all affected vehicles worldwide.
The logo made its debut on the 1989 Toyota Celsior and quickly gained worldwide recognition.
The three ovals in the new logo combine to form the letter  T   which stands for Toyota.
In countries or regions using traditional Chinese characters  e.g.
Hong Kong and Taiwan  Toyota is known as  豐田 .
In countries using simplified Chinese characters  e.g.
These are the same characters as the founding family s name  Toyoda  in Japanese.
1983–present  Now You re Really Moving!
2000–2013  Fun to Drive  Again.
1979–1993  Who could ask for anything more?
Toyota s managerial values and business methods are known collectively as the Toyota Way.
Many businesses worldwide have adopted a similar approach to manufacturing.
The result is the development of the Toyota Production System.
It displaced GM and became the world s largest automobile maker for the year 2008.
The world headquarters of Toyota is located in its home country in Toyota City  Japan.
Toyota brands include Scion and Lexus and the corporation is part of the Toyota Group.
Toyota has a large market share in the United States  but a small market share in Europe.
It also sells vehicles in Africa and is a market leader in Australia.
Since the recession of 2001  it has gained market share in the United States.
Toyota s brand sales had risen 9.2  largely on demand for Corolla and Camry sedans.
The difference in performance was largely attributed to surging demand for fuel efficient vehicles.
In November 2006  Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas added a facility in San Antonio.
It sold 9.528 million vehicles globally despite a 11.3  drop in sales due to the covid pandemic.
This includes subsidiaries Daihatsu and Hino Motors.
The company invested  4 billion in a robotics and AI research institute to create safer vehicles.
For vehicle assembly  Toyota would use plants in Thailand  Indonesia  Argentina  and South Africa.
Its production engineering and manufacturing headquarters is located in Georgetown  Kentucky.
Its second assembly operation in Woodstock  Ontario  began manufacturing the RAV4 late in 2008.
In these assembly plants  the Camry and the Tundra were manufactured  among others.
At its peak in October 2007  Toyota manufactured 15 000 cars a month.
Cumulative sales of the Prius in Japan reached the 1 million mark in August 2011.
The 5 million hybrid sales milestone was reached in March 2013.
The 15 million milestone was reached in January 2020.
Global cumulative sales of Lexus brand hybrids reached the 500 thousand mark in November 2012.
The 1 million sales milestone was achieved in March 2016.
Toyota made 600 Prius plug in demonstration vehicles for lease to fleet and government customers.
France  the UK  and Germany had the largest fleets with 150 PHEVs.
The United States is the country market leader with 42 320 units delivered through April 2016.
Unlike the first generation model  it is available in all 50 states.
Sales in Japan started on February 15  2017.
As of mid 2012  there were almost 500 units still in use.
In May 2010  Toyota launched a collaboration with Tesla Motors to create electric vehicles.
The lithium metal oxide battery and other power train components were supplied by Tesla Motors.
Four years later  Toyota  along with Daimler  began to unwind its position in Tesla.
Production was limited to 2 600 units during a three year period.
As of 31 December 2015  a total of 2 340 RAV4 EVs were sold in the U.S. to retail customers.
The iQ EV eQ was scheduled to be released in both countries in December 2012.
The range is estimated at 100 km  62 mi   and it has a top speed of 60 km h  37 mph .
It will formally debut at the 2019 Tokyo Motor Show and will go on sale in Japan in late 2020.
Toyota also built a FCHV bus based on the Hino Blue Ribbon City low floor bus.
The Toyota FCV R fuel cell concept car was unveiled at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show.
Toyota said the car was planned for launch in about 2015.
Toyota expects to become a leader in this technology.
Sales in Japan began on December 15  2014  at a price of ¥6 700 000   US 57 400 .
Initially  the Mirai will only be available in California.
Vans include the Innova  Alphard Vellfire  Sienna  and others.
Several small cars  such as the xB and tC  were sold under the Scion brand.
Other crossovers include the Raize  Urban Cruiser.
Other SUVs include the Rush  Prado  FJ Cruiser  4Runner  and Sequoia.
It was followed in 1954 by the RK  renamed in 1959 as the Stout  and in 1968 by the compact Hilux.
It was criticized as being too small to appeal to the traditional American full size pickup buyer.
Another popular full size truck essential  a V8 engine  was never available.
In 1999 for the 2000 model year  Toyota replaced the T100 with the larger Tundra.
It also added the V8 engine that the T100 was criticized for not having.
These concerns were addressed with an even larger 2007 redesign.
A stronger V6 and a second V8 engine among other things were added to the option list.
As of early 2010  the Tundra has captured 16  of the full size half ton market in the US.
The all new Tundra was assembled in San Antonio  Texas  US.
Toyota assembled around 150 000 Standard and Double Cabs  and only 70 000 Crew Max s in 2007.
Luxury type sedans produced under the Toyota brand included the Century  Crown  and Crown Majesta.
A limited edition model produced for the Emperor of Japan was the Century Royal.
Toyota branded luxury vehicles tend to be Japan only.
Motorsports     Toyota has been involved in many global motorsports series.
They also represent their Lexus brand in other sports car racing categories.
Toyota enjoyed success in all these motorsports categories.
TRD also made Lexus s performance division  F Sport .
Toyota Technological Institute founded the Toyota Technological Institute at Chicago in 2003.
Robotics      In 2004  Toyota showcased its trumpet playing robot.
Toyota also played a part in the development of Kirobo  a  robotic astronaut .
In 2017  the company introduced T HR3  a humanoid robot with the ability to be remotely controlled.
The robot can copy the motions of a connected person.
The project is expected to break ground in 2021  and will be called  Woven City.
Environmental record    Toyota implemented its fifth Environmental Action Plan in 2005.
The money will be used to fund environmental programs at the park.
The proposal would reduce California s 2025 fuel efficiency standard from about 54.5 to 37 MPG.
This shift by Toyota away from fuel efficiency damaged the company s reputation as a green brand.
Production and sales numbers    Note Japan production numbers 1937 to 1987.
Geography     Ishikawa is on the Sea of Japan coast.
The prefecture also has some islands  including Notojima  Mitsukejima  Hegurajima.
Kutani ware  Kutani yaki  is a bright colored glaze like Chinese porcelain.
Ohi teaware  Ōhi yaki  is a pottery with a style unique to Kanazawa.
Nyotaimori or naked sushi is said to have originated in Ishikawa Prefecture.
Kaga mizuhiki is ribbon like decoration made from glued Japanese paper  washi .
Kaga inlay crafts  Kaga zōgan  are made with a combination of thin flat and thread metal inlays.
Abare Festival is reputed the most  fierce  festivals of Noto  Ishikawa.
Tourism     The most popular destination in Ishikawa is Kanazawa.
Tourists can get to Ishikawa by plane via either the Komatsu or Noto airports.
Kyōka Izumi  author of novels  short stories  and kabuki plays  from Kanazawa.
He gained fame as a baseball player while attending high school in Kanazawa.
Daisuke Nakata  a trampolinist who has competed in the Olympics in the past  is from Ishikawa.
Suzuki  Buddhist philosopher and popularizer of Buddhism in the West was born in Kanazawa.
born in 1988  is a racewalker born in Nomi  Ishikawa prefecture.
Fukui Prefecture  福井県  Fukui ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū.
Buildings for the Fukui Prefectural government were built on the site of the castle.
The province lays within Japan s  Snow country .
It has 14 reactors  the most of any prefecture.
Eihei ji is a temple offering training and education to Buddhist monks.
Founded by Dogen Zenji in 1244  Eiheiji is located on a plot of land covering about 33 hectares.
Myōtsū ji s Three storied Pagoda and Main Hall are National Treasures of Japan.
Fukui is home to Maruoka Castle  the oldest standing castle in Japan.
Residents of Fukui Prefecture have a distinctive accent  Fukui ben.
Fukui has long been a center for papermaking in Japan  along with Kyoto .
Awara is a famous onsen in the north of the prefecture.
From these remains it can be assumed that the people of Sone Hill had great influence.
During the Heian period  Kai Province was created in this area.
From this base  he attempted to unify and control Japan.
The province was renamed Kōfu Prefecture in 1869 and then Yamanashi Prefecture in 1871.
At the end of 2013 construction was already well advanced as far as Fuefuki.
The prefecture is landlocked  with high mountains surrounding the central Kōfu Basin.
Mount Fuji and the Fuji Five Lakes region is located on the southern border with Shizuoka.
Land cultivated for agriculture is mainly restricted to the lower elevations of the Kōfu basin.
Given the area s volcanic activity  natural hot springs  or onsens  are found in abundance.
Some of the more well known are Shimobe Onsen  Isawa Onsen and Yamanami Onsen.
Fujiyoshida Fire Festival  marks the end of the summer climbing season on Mount Fuji.
League Division 1 association football  soccer  team is based in Kōfu.
The team s home ground is the Yamanashi Chuo Bank Stadium.
Nagano is categorized as a core city of Japan.
Zenkō ji was established in its current location in 642 AD.
The location of Zenkō ji is approximately 2 kilometers from the present day central Nagano Station.
The area suffered from flooding in 1742  and from a destructive earthquake in 1847.
Nagano was elevated to city status on April 1  1897.
It was the first city founded in Nagano Prefecture and the 43rd city in Japan.
In 1999  Nagano was designated as a core city  中核市  Chūkakushi   a category of Japanese city.
As of 2019  Nagano was the southernmost host of the Winter Olympic Games.
The Nagano Olympic Commemorative Marathon is held annually to commemorate the occasion.
One important legacy of the Games was an improved transportation network.
Asahi Danchi now includes private sector housing as well as housing for government employees.
It is the highest peak of Togakushi mountain range.
It is one of the hundred famous mountains of Japan and is also known as Togakushi Fuji.
Takatsuma is the highest point in Nagano City.
The lowest point is located in the Asano area of Toyono  327.4 meters above sea level.
Mount Togakushi  1 904 m  is located in Nagano City.
Daibou Pass  1 055 m  is located in Nagano City  on the border of Togakushi and Kinasa  Nagano.
It is a monogenetic volcano that was active approximately 200 000 years ago.
Mount Dizuki  733 m  is located on the northwest side of Nagano City.
Mount Minakami  659 m  is a lava dome in Matsushiro in Nagano City.
Lake Nojiri is found in Shinano.
The city was noted in the Meiji period for its silk industry.
After World War II  an electronics industry was established.
Obuse is home to a Hokusai museum  and Gansho in  a Buddhist temple  has a ceiling painted by him.
The ruins of Ueda Castle are an important historical site in the city.
During the Nara period  several important Man yōshū poems were set here.
Obasute Station  a switchback station is located here.
Ōmachi is approximately 40 kilometers west of Nagano.
The Hida Mountains  also called the Japanese Northern Alps  with 3000m peaks surround Ōmachi.
The area was part of the holdings of Matsumoto Domain during the Edo period.
Omi is approximately 30 kilometers southwest of Nagano Station.
The town is in the Hijiiri Highlands  and Hijiri Kōgen Station is located here  as is Kitayama Dam.
Most of the area was under the control of Matsumoto Domain during the Edo period.
Ikusaka is approximately 50 kilometers southwest of Nagano  in the center of Nagano Prefecture.
Two dams  Ikusaka Dam and Taira Dam are found here.
The area of present day Ikusaka was part of the holdings of Matsumoto Domain during the Edo period.
Ogawa is approximately 20 kilometers west of Nagano.
It is listed as one of The Most Beautiful Villages in Japan.
It is an important agriculture center  primarily rice cultivation.
Most of Hakuba is located in Chūbu Sangaku National Park.
Otari is located approximately 55 kilometers northwest of Nagano Station.
The city is surrounded by five mountains.
The university has two campuses  named for their location in Nagano  Miwa Campus and Gocho Campus.
The university has an affiliated Center for Social Innovation Initiatives.
Nagano Prefectural College  is a 2 year prefectural college in the Miwa area of Nagano City.
The predecessor of the school was founded in 1929.
It became the 4 year university  The University of Nagano  in April 2018.
Nagano Prefectural College will close when its final students graduate in March 2020.
It has a sister school  Seisen University located in Tokyo.
Nagano University of Health and Medicine opened in 2015 in the Kawanakajima area of Nagano.
It has a Faculty of Nursing and a Faculty of Health Science for rehabilitation.
In addition  the city has four special education schools.
The coming of the 1998 Winter Olympics saw important changes to the transportation systems.
Long distance highway bus services depart from the East Exit of Nagano Station.
There is also a daily bus to Narita Airport.
Regardless of where you board or disembark  the fare is 150 yen.
It s HQ and one of its factories are in the Toyono area of Nagano City.
Another of its factories is in neighboring Suzaka.
In 2001  Nishina joined the Toyota Industries group.
Saikou ji  a Jōdo shū  Jōdo Buddhism  temple  approximately 1 kilometer west of Zenkō ji.
Miwa Shrine  likely started in the 9th century  is located near Hongō Station.
The area has historical buildings  lodgings  shops  and restaurants.
Also nearby is the Sakuma Zozan Shrine.
Zozan was a 19th Japanese scholar  scientist  and linguist who advocated the opening up of Japan.
Construction began in November 1944 and continued until Japan s surrender on August 15  1945.
The Nagano City Museum is here.
Chibikko Ninja mura  Kids Ninja Village   Togakushi  from late April to late November.
Both are National Historic Sites.
Nagano Olympic Commemorative Marathon  an IAAF Bronze Label Road Race  takes place in mid April.
AC Nagano Parceiro is a Japanese football club based in Nagano that represents Nagano in J3 League.
Boaluz Nagano are a futsal team in the F. League.
They play at the White Ring  arena .
It has been designated a core city by the national government.
Gifu also hosts many festivals and events throughout the year.
Gifu has active relationships with six sister cities.
The total area of the city was 203.60 square kilometers  78.61 sq mi .
It was during Nobunaga s reign of power that the area finally received its modern name.
The area continued to prosper once Gifu became a central location along the Nakasendō.
Kanō had many traditional industries  which helped improve Gifu s overall industrial strength.
Its sister cities also take part in these events.
During World War II  Gifu also served as the base for the creation of Japan s fire balloons.
Modern history     In the years following the wars  tragedy struck Gifu once again.
Gifu recovered  however  through the establishment of various local industries.
It is also the main city of the Gifu region of the prefecture.
The Nagara River cuts the city in half  running from the northeast to the southwest.
The average annual temperature in Gifu is 15.5 °C.
The average annual rainfall is 1799 mm with September as the wettest month.
The temperatures are highest on average in August and lowest in January.
Gifu s estimated population  as of July 2011  is 412 895.
This is comparable to the population of the prefecture and of Japan as a whole.
Throughout Japan  only 21  are over the age of 65 and 13.6  are younger than 15.
The average age of city residents is 43.37.
The mayor serves a four year term.
The city legislature has 38 seats.
No members of the city council are selected through at large election.
The lower floors will be used as offices or shops for targeted services such as medical care.
Industry    Gifu s first major industry was textiles.
For a long period of time it rivaled Tokyo and Osaka as a leader of the Japanese fashion industry.
One such industry is manufacturing.
Many shops throughout the city produce these goods.
The most well known local industries  though  are traditional Gifu Lanterns and Umbrellas.
Museums     The largest of the city supported museums is the Gifu City Museum of History.
It often hosts special exhibits  though  providing a broader field of information to its visitors.
There are two other museums in Gifu Park  too.
Both festivals include street vendors  flea markets  and floats paraded through the city.
Twice each year  there is a Tejikara Fire Festival.
Half naked men ring bells and carry shrines and other devices that shoot off large sparks.
Twice a year  Gifu plays hosts to two large fireworks festivals.
The second  the Nagara River National Fireworks Display  occurs on the first Saturday of August.
All of the facilities are equipped for night events.
Next to Memorial Center is the Nagaragawa Sports Plaza  a sports science and training center.
Next to Gifu Park is Mount Kinka  which serves as one of the main symbols of Gifu.
Nagaragawa Onsen is a popular indoor location.
This collection of onsen and ryokan inns is located along the Nagara River in central Gifu.
Its many springs have a high iron content  considered beneficial for a variety of ailments.
North of the Nagara River is Mount Dodo and Matsuo Pond.
Mount Dodo is the tallest mountain in the city  rising 418 m  1 371 ft .
Inside the castle are many artifacts from its past.
The castle s citadel ruins are designated a National Historic Site.
It was also used as a meeting place for the cultural and social elite from Kyoto.
A stone monument near Seibi High School marks the castle s location.
The city is also home to seven of the Mino Thirty three Kannon.
Dōsan took advantage of this temple s support as he began his domination of Mino Province.
Zuiryō ji was also built by Myōchin and is currently undergoing restoration.
It contains the tombs of Shigeyori  Myōchin  and Gokei Kokushi.
The Buddha and its 13.7 meter  45 foot  bamboo frame took 38 years to build.
A statue of Hanako was erected at the temple in 2004.
Hanako spent most of her later years in Gifu s Nishizono chō  just east of Yanagase.
Education     Gifu has 48 nursery schools and 43 kindergartens available for children.
There are also three private combined junior senior high schools.
The largest of these is Gifu University  the city s national university  which includes a hospital.
Gifu Women s University  a private women s university founded in 1968 is also a four year school.
The JR Tōkaidō Main Line runs through and the Takayama Main Line begins at JR Gifu Station.
Municipal bus service first began in Gifu in 1949.
Today  Gifu Bus Co.  Ltd. provides service within the city  as well as connections to other cities.
Its highway buses connect the city with Gujō  Osaka  Kobe  Kyoto and Shinjuku in Tokyo.
Gifu Bus also connects Nagoya with Gujō  Seki  Mino and Shirakawa gō.
All bus lines pass through JR Gifu Station.
Another option for travel within Gifu is via bicycle.
The city has instituted a bike rental program to increase tourism within the city.
In the west  the prefecture extends deep into the Japan Alps.
League  are known as the Shizuoka Derby.
After the Meiji Restoration  Owari and Mikawa were united into a single entity.
The Expo 2005 World Exposition was held in Seto and Nagakute.
The highest spot is Chausuyama at 1 415 m  4 642 ft  above sea level.
Cities      Thirty eight cities are located in Aichi Prefecture.
139 540 residents  nearly 2  of the population  are of foreign nationality.
Aichi Prefecture has many wonderful beaches.
Mie Prefecture  三重県  Mie ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu.
Transport networks  including the Tokaido and Ise Roads  were built.
Pilgrimages to Ise Shrine also became very popular.
Traditionally  though  the Iga region of Mie is considered to have always been a part of Kansai.
The remaining 10.3 percent are not classified.
The Ise Plain has a relatively moderate climate  averaging 14 to 15 °C  57 to 59 °F  for the year.
Mie also produces tea  beef  cultured pearls and fruit  mainly mandarin oranges.
Tsubaki Grand Shrine   Japan s oldest Shinto shrine.
Yunoyama Onsen   Famous onsen near Yokkaichi that sits atop Mount Gozaisho.
Nagashima Spa Land   One of the largest amusement parks in Japan  located in Kuwana.
Saikū   Site of Heian Imperial residence  with modern museum and reconstructed Heian building.
The first prefectural assembly was elected in March 1879 and convened in April.
As in all prefectures except Okinawa  the governor of Mie is directly elected since 1947.
The prefectural assembly has 51 members.
Both prefectural elections in Mie are currently held as part of unified local elections.
Shiga Prefecture  滋賀県  Shiga ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu.
Omi was a neighbor of Nara and Kyoto  at the junction of western and eastern Japan.
During the period 667 to 672  Emperor Tenji founded a palace in Otsu.
In 742  Emperor Shōmu founded a palace in Shigaraki.
In those times  Ninja were active in Kōka  See also Kōga ryū .
After the battle  Ieyasu made Ii Naomasa a new lord of Sawayama.
Naomasa established the Hikone Domain  later famous for Ii Naosuke.
Besides the Hikone Domain  many domains ruled Omi such as Zeze.
With the abolition of the han system  eight prefectures were formed in Omi.
They were unified into Shiga Prefecture in September 1872.
Lake Biwa  Japan s largest  is located at the center of this prefecture.
It occupies one sixth of its area.
The Seta River flows from Lake Biwa to Osaka Bay through Kyoto.
This is the only natural river that flows out from the lake.
Most other natural rivers flow into the lake.
There were many lagoons around Lake Biwa  but most of them were reclaimed in 1940s.
Plains stretch to the eastern shore of Lake Biwa.
Mount Ibuki is the highest mountain in Shiga.
Economy     Cultivated areas occupy nearly one sixth of the prefecture.
Rice is the principal crop  over 90 percent of the farmlands are rice fields.
Most farms are small  producing only a slight income.
Most farmers depend on income from other sources.
Eastern Shiga is famous for cattle breeding and southeastern Shiga is famous for green tea.
On Lake Biwa  some people are engaged in fishery and freshwater pearl farming.
The lake s western and northern shores are more rural and resort oriented with white sand beaches.
In recent years  many Brazilians settled in Shiga to work in nearby factories.
25 040 foreigners live in Shiga and 30  of foreigners were Brazilians as of December 2016.
Toyosato and Higashiomi are known to a mecca of Goshu ondo.
In Kōka  a ninja house is preserved as a visitor center.
Cuisine     Since ancient times  Shigans have eaten fish from Lake Biwa.
The most famous lake food is fermented sushi of crucian carp  鮒寿司  funa zushi .
It retains the ancient style of sushi and has a pungent odor.
Shiga is also famous for high quality wagyū  Ōmi beef.
The Hikone Domain presented beef as medicinal food to shōguns.
Mass media     Biwako Broadcasting broadcasts local TV programs.
NHK has a broadcasting station in Otsu.
Shiga is the only prefecture which has no regional newspapers.
Kyoto Shimbun is a de facto regional newspaper of Shiga.
It is easy to go to Ōtsu from Kyoto and Osaka by high speed trains.
Shiga s most prominent feature is Lake Biwa.
The western shore has white sand beaches  popular among Kyotoites during the summer.
Most of the original eight views are now almost gone or changed from centuries ago.
In Ōtsu  the Ōtsu Prince Hotel s Top of Otsu restaurant provides views of the lake and city.
The Michigan paddlewheel boat offers lake cruises.
The castle tower is well preserved and has many cherry trees.
The neighboring city of Nagahama has tourism in addition to its hikiyama festival.
Higashiomi  formerly Yōkaichi  city holds a Giant Kite Festival every May along the riverbank.
Ordinary people are invited to pull the rope that sends the kites aloft.
Two bridges span southern part of Lake Biwa.
He is also active as the first Cultural Ambassador for Shiga.
Sister states    Shiga has cooperative agreements with three states.
In 794  Kyoto  then known as Heian kyō  was chosen as the new seat of Japan s imperial court.
The modern municipality of Kyoto was established in 1889.
Kyoto is considered the cultural capital of Japan and a major tourist destination.
Name    In Japanese  Kyoto was previously called Kyō  京   Miyako  都   or Kyō no Miyako  京の都 .
Kyoto is also sometimes called the thousand year capital  千年の都 .
During the Ōnin War  the shugo collapsed  and power was divided among the military families.
The city has not seen such widespread destruction since.
Hideyoshi also built earthwork walls called odoi  御土居  encircling the city.
The subsequent move of the emperor to Tokyo in 1869 weakened the economy.
The modern city of Kyoto was formed on April 1  1889.
The construction of Lake Biwa Canal in 1890 was one measure taken to revive the city.
Kyoto became a city designated by government ordinance on September 1  1956.
In 1997  Kyoto hosted the conference that resulted in the protocol on greenhouse gas emissions.
Kyoto sits atop a large natural water table that provides the city with ample freshwater wells.
In 1947  it went back to being 3rd.
By 1960 it had fallen to 5th again  and by 1990 it had fallen to 7th  in 2015 it is now 9th.
Summers are hot and humid  but winters are relatively cold with occasional snowfall.
The legislative city assembly has 67 elected members.
Together  they make up the city of Kyoto.
Like other cities in Japan  Kyoto has a single mayor and a city council.
Kyoto has been  and still remains  Japan s cultural center.
The government of Japan is relocating the Agency for Cultural Affairs to Kyoto in 2021.
The  Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto  are listed by the UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
Other sites outside the city are also on the list.
Kyoto is renowned for its abundance of delicious Japanese foods and cuisine.
Many jidaigeki  action films featuring samurai  were shot at Toei Uzumasa Eigamura.
Actual film shooting takes place occasionally  and visitors are welcome to observe the action.
Courtesans performing duties at Tokyo were referred to as  Edokko   bourgois .
Tourists are hugely fond of Kyoto  contributing significantly to its economy.
Sake brewing is Kyoto s traditional industry.
Gekkeikan and Takara Holdings are major sake brewers headquartered in Kyoto.
Encompassing ¥10.12 trillion  Kyoto MEA has the fourth largest economy in the country in 2010.
Kyoto University is considered to be one of the top national universities nationwide.
Some buses go further  make stops at major hotels and terminals in the downtown area.
Buses      Kyoto s municipal bus network is extensive.
Private carriers also operate within the city.
Many tourists join commuters on the public buses  or take tour buses.
Cycling     Cycling is a very important form of personal transportation in the city.
The geography and scale of the city are such that the city may be easily navigated on a bicycle.
There are five bicycle rental stations and 21 EcoStations in central Kyoto.
Because of the large number of cyclists  permitted bicycle parking areas can be difficult to find.
Bicycles parked in non permitted areas are impounded.
The Kyoto Jukan Expressway connects the city to northern regions of Kyoto Prefecture.
The Daini Keihan Road is a new bypass  completed in 2010  to Osaka.
They link to the other subway line  the Tōzai Line  at Karasuma Oike.
At Shijō Karasuma  the subway station is named Shijō  whereas Hankyu s station is called Karasuma.
All the stations are located in the city proper.
This line runs from the southeastern area of the city  then east to west  i.e.
All the stations except Rokujizō are located in Kyoto.
The trip from Tokyo takes about two hours and eighteen minutes.
From Hakata in Fukuoka  Nozomi takes you to Kyoto in just over three hours.
There are a number of rivers  canals and other navigable waterways in Kyoto.
Lake Biwa Canal was a significant infrastructural development.
Tourism     Kyoto contains roughly 2 000 temples and shrines.
The site was designated as World Heritage in 1994.
The first is the Aoi Matsuri on May 15.
The October 22 Jidai Matsuri  Festival of the Ages  celebrates Kyoto s illustrious past.
Sanga Stadium by Kyocera is its home stadium.
Many foreign scholars  artists and writers have stayed in Kyoto over the centuries.
Siyun sai Rin siyo Hayashi Gahō  1652   Nihon Ōdai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
In 1889  Osaka was officially established as a municipality.
Osaka is a major financial center of Japan.
Etymology    Ōsaka means  large hill  or  large slope .
The older kanji  坂  is still in very limited use  usually only in historical contexts.
The Uehonmachi area consisted of a peninsula with an inland sea  Seto Inland Sea  in the east.
It is estimated that the ruins contain 2 000 year old debris between the Jōmon and Yayoi period.
Four of these mounds can be seen in Ōsaka  in which important members of the nobility are buried.
They are located in the southern districts of the city and date back to the 5th century.
The port of Naniwa tsu was established and became the most important in Japan.
Trade with other areas of the country and the Asian continent intensified.
Four of these mounds can be seen in Ōsaka  in which important members of the nobility are buried.
They are located in the southern districts of the city and date back to the 5th century.
Sumiyoshi Taisha Grand Shrine was founded by Tamomi no Sukune in 211 CE.
Shitennō ji was first built in 593 CE and the oldest Buddhist temple in Japan.
Toyotomi Hideyoshi constructed Osaka Castle in its place in 1583.
Osaka Castle played a pivotal role in the Siege of Osaka  1614 1615 .
Its popular culture was closely related to ukiyo e depictions of life in Edo.
From being the capital of the economy and finance  it became a predominantly industrial center.
Osaka was the industrial center most clearly defined in the development of capitalism in Japan.
It became known as the  Manchester of the Orient .
Like its European and American counterparts  Osaka displayed slums  unemployment  and poverty.
The factories were rebuilt and trade revived.
The city occupies a larger area  about 13   than any other city or village within Osaka Prefecture.
The city rarely sees snowfall during the winter.
Spring in Osaka starts off mild  but ends up being hot and humid.
The average starting and ending dates of the rainy season are June 7 and July 21 respectively.
Summers are very hot and humid.
The Midōsuji boulevard runs through Semba and connects Kita and Minami.
Osaka numbered roughly 200 bridges by the Edo period  and 1629 bridges by 1925.
There were 1 280 325 households with approximately 2.1 persons per household.
The population density was 11 836 persons per km2.
The council elects its president and Vice President.
Toshifumi Tagaya  LDP  is the current and 104th president since May 2008.
Tōru Hashimoto  former governor of Osaka Prefecture is the 19th mayor of Osaka since 2011.
Below is a list of governmental offices housed in Osaka.
There were 692 996  50.6   votes against and 675 829  49.4   votes supported it.
the installation of new kind of thermal power generation to secure non nuclear supply of energy.
Osaka s GDP per capita  Nominal  was  59 958.
Many major companies have since moved their main offices to Tokyo.
It jumped up nine places from 11th place in 2008 and was the eighth most expensive city in 2007.
However  it was not ranked in the top ten places of the list in 2013.
Keihanshin has a GDP of approximately  953.9 billion in 2012  16th largest in the world .
Osaka Kobe has a GDP of  681 billion  2015   which is a bit more than Paris or Greater London.
Many of them are concentrated in the wards of Chuō  10 468 shops  and Kita  6 335 shops .
Shōtengai are seen across Japan  and Osaka has the longest one in the country.
The stores along the arcade include commodities  clothing  and catering outlets.
Osaka is known for its food  in Japan and abroad.
Osaka is known for its fine sake  which is made with fresh water from the prefecture s mountains.
At Osaka Shochiku za  close to Namba station  kabuki can be enjoyed as well as manzai.
The Hanjō tei opened in 2006  dedicated to rakugo.
The theatre is in the Ōsaka Tenman gū area.
Umeda Arts Theater opened in 2005 after relocating from its former 46 year old Umeda Koma Theater.
The theater has a main hall with 1 905 seats and a smaller theater drama hall with 898 seats.
The Hall was opened with a concert by the Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra  which is based in the city.
Osaka jō Hall is a multi purpose arena in Osaka jō park with a capacity for up to 16 000 people.
The hall has hosted numerous events and concerts including both Japanese and international artists.
The Bolshoi Ballet and the Philharmonia are among the many that were welcomed on stage in the past.
The hall has closed at the end of 2008  planned to re open in 2013 in a new facility.
The annual Osaka Asian Film Festival takes place in Osaka every March.
Its exhibits cover the history of Osaka from pre history to the present day.
There are two J.League clubs  Gamba Osaka  plays its home games at Suita City Football Stadium.
Another club Cerezo Osaka  plays its home games at Yanmar Stadium Nagai.
The city is home to Osaka Evessa  a basketball team that plays in the B.League.
Evessa has won the first three championships of the league since its establishment.
Kintetsu Liners  a rugby union team  play in the Top League.
Their base is the Hanazono Rugby Stadium.
The Osaka GP is the only IAAF games annually held in Japan.
In July 2012 the first Japan Bandy Festival was organised.
However major film productions are uncommon in the city.
Most major films are produced in nearby Kyoto or in Tokyo.
The Ad Council Japan is based in Osaka.
NHK has also its regional station based in the city.
As of February 2009  the city is fully covered by terrestrial digital TV broadcasts.
Its supervisory organization on educational matters is Osaka City Board of Education.
Likewise  public high schools are operated by the Osaka Prefectural Board of Education.
As a result  until 1991 the Osaka area had no schools catering to expatriate children.
Japan s World Cities  Tokyo  Osaka  Nagoya or Tokaido Megalopolis?
Hyōgo Prefecture  兵庫県  Hyōgo ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu.
There the capital remained for five months.
Himeji Castle  a UNESCO World Heritage Site  is in the city of Himeji.
In 2020 Hyōgo became one of the worst affected prefectures for the COVID 19 virus in Western Japan.
On Awaji Island  Hyōgo borders the Pacific Ocean coastline in the Kii Channel.
Awaji is an island that separates the Inland Sea and Osaka Bay  lying between Honshu and Shikoku.
Summertime weather throughout Hyōgo is hot and humid.
Akō District would be defunct if the merger was successful.
Hyōgo is a part of the Hanshin Industrial Region.
SPring 8   a synchrotron radiation facility  is in Harima.
Sports     The sports teams listed below are based in Hyōgo.
Takeda Castle in Asago is often referred to locally as the  Machu Picchu of Japan .
The matsuba crab and Tajima beef are both national delicacies.
It also administers the Electoral College.
Since 1964  the NHPRC has awarded some 4 500 grants.
NARA s mission also includes resolving FOIA disputes between Federal agencies and requesters.
The program was originally scheduled to end in 2007.
Records include paper documents  microfilm  still pictures  motion pictures  and electronic media.
However  records from other sources may still be protected by copyright or donor agreements.
Census records are among the most frequently requested at NARA  with the oldest entries from 1790.
These records often contain information such as addresses and names of family members.
The newest unrestricted census is from 1940 and was released to the general public in April 2012.
The subsequent census from 1950 will be released in 2022.
This includes naturalization records and vital records that reveal extensive personal data.
These events are free of charge and are designed for interested individuals of any skill level.
Materials from past Genealogy Fairs are available on the National Archives website.
Archival Recovery Teams     Archival Recovery Teams investigate the theft of records.
Federal government agencies pay a yearly fee for storage at the facility.
WNRC also offers research services and maintains a small research room.
A joint venture with Google will digitize and offer NARA video online.
Our new strategic plan emphasizes the importance of providing access to records anytime  anywhere.
This is one of many initiatives that we are launching to make our goal a reality.
A new teaching with documents Web site premiered in 2010 and was developed by the education team.
The site features 3 000 documents  images  and recordings from the holdings of the Archives.
It also features lesson plans and tools for creating new classroom activities and lessons.
Besides censoring language  the changes altered the meaning of some protest signs.
Further reading     Sixty Ton Statue Is Carved from a Single Slab of Stone .
Ten Ton Door Made of Bronze is Thirty Five Feet High .
History     Present day Wakayama is mostly the western part of the province of Kii.
Many bridges and houses were destroyed.
In 2017  Wakayama is ranked 40th by population in Japan with a population of 944 320.
Tomogashima  a cluster of four islands  is part of the prefecture.
As of 2016  Wakayama made up about 70 percent of Japanese domestic production of Japanese apricots.
Tourism    Wakayama Prefecture has hot springs such as Shirahama  Kawayu  and Yunomine Onsen.
Etymology    The word  Tottori  in Japanese is formed from two kanji characters.
The first  鳥  means  bird  and the second  取 means  to get .
Early residents in the area made their living catching the region s plentiful waterfowl.
The imperial Prince Homatsu wake was unable to speak  despite being 30 years of age.
Yukuha Tana presented the swan to the emperor.
Homatsu wake no Mikoto played with this swan and at last learned to speak.
Therefore  Yukaha Tana was liberally rewarded  and was granted the title of Tottori no Miyakko.
Numerous kofun tumuli from the Kofun period  250 – 538  are located across the prefecture.
The Tokugawa shogunate installed the Ikeda clan at Tottori Castle.
Geography     Tottori is home to the Tottori Sand Dunes  Japan s only large dune system.
The prefecture is also a major producer of rice.
Language    Historically  the region had extensive linguistic diversity.
Many of them are grouped with Western Japanese  and include the Chugoku and Umpaku dialects.
Sports     The sports teams listed below are based in Tottori.
It was enacted in 1968 to celebrate the 100th year from the first year of the Meiji Era.
The Shinto god Ōkuninushi was believed to live in Izumo  an old province in Shimane.
Izumo Shrine  which is in the city of Izumo  honors the god.
At that time  the current Shimane prefecture was divided into three parts  Iwami  Izumo  and Oki.
That lasted until the abolition of the han system took place in 1871.
Middle Ages     During the Muromachi period  Izumo and Oki were controlled by the Kyogoku clan.
However  in 1566 Mōri Motonari conquered Izumo  Iwami  and Oki.
Later that year  Oki became part of Tottori.
In 1876  Hamada Prefecture was merged into the Shimane Prefecture.
Also  Tottori Prefecture was added in the same year.
Geography    Shimane Prefecture is situated on the Sea of Japan side of the Chūgoku region.
Another major landform is the Shimane peninsula.
Also  the peninsula created two sea water lakes  Lake Shinji and Nakaumi.
The island of Daikon is located in Nakaumi.
Off the main island of Honshū  the island of Oki is in Shimane prefecture as well.
The island itself is in the Daisen Oki National Park.
Towns and villages     These are the towns and villages of each district.
The number of towns and villages greatly decreased during the mergers.
However  they hold about one third of the prefecture s population.
Mergers          Climate    The prefecture has a sub tropical climate.
Winter is cloudy with a little snow  and summer is humid.
The average annual temperature is 14.6 °C  58.3 °F .
It rains almost every day in the rainy season  from June to mid July.
The highest average monthly temperature occurs in August with 26.3 °C  79.3 °F .
Transportation          Airports      Three airports serve Shimane.
The Iwami Airport has two flights each day to Haneda and Osaka and 2 arrivals.
Oki Airport has scheduled flights to Osaka and Izumo Airports.
Izumoshi and Matsue stations are the major stops in the prefecture.
Hamada Expressway forks from the Chūgoku Expressway at Kita Hiroshima and stretches to Hamada.
The manufacturing industry has the second number of employees with 49 000 workers.
Otherwise  over two thirds of the population is on the coastline.
The reason is that the Chūgoku Mountains make the land inland harder to inhabit.
The capital  Matsue  has the smallest population out of all the 47 prefectural capitals.
Shimane has also the largest percentage of the elderly.
Sanbe Tamatsukuri Onsen      Prefectural symbols    The prefectural flower is the mountain peony.
On the island of Daikonjima  they were grown from at least the 18th century.
The total area is 789.88 square kilometres  304.97 square miles .
The city is famous as the setting of the Japanese fable  Momotarō .
Okayama became the political and economical capital of Bizen Province.
The next year  Kobayakawa Hideaki came to Okayama and became the feudal lord of Okayama Domain.
Hideaki died in 1602  however  ending the Kobayakawa line.
Ikeda Tadatugu  who was the feudal lord of Himeji Domain  became the next lord of Okayama.
After this time  Okayama was ruled by the Ikedas until the latter part of the 19th century.
The Korakuen Garden was developed by the fourth feudal lord  Ikeda Tsunamasa.
Okayama became the capital of Okayama Prefecture.
In 1889  Okayama City was founded.
Okayama became one of the most important places in western Japan for transportation and education.
When World War II began  Okayama city had a Japanese Army base camp.
On June 29  1945  the city was attacked by the US Army Air Forces with incendiary bombs.
Almost all the city was burned  and more than 1700 people were killed.
Okayama suffered terrible damage in the war  losing more than 12 000 households.
In 1972  the San yō Shinkansen began service between Shin Ōsaka and Okayama stations.
Two years later  Shinkansen service was extended to Hakata.
The city became a core city in 1996 and a designated city on April 1  2009.
The city is bounded on the south by the Inland Sea.
Since Okayama became a designated city in 2009  the city has been divided into four wards  ku .
Climate    Okayama has a mild climate in comparison to most of Japan.
It has the most rain free days  less than 1mm of precipitation  of any city in Japan.
It is ranked as the second driest and the fourth sunniest city in the Chūgoku region.
Okayama is often called  Land of Sunshine  because of its low number of rainy days per year.
White peaches and grapes are cultivated in the mountainous  northern part of the city.
Greater Okayama  Okayama Metropolitan Employment Area  has a GDP of US 63.1 billion as of 2010.
The main industries are machine tools  chemicals  foodstuffs and printing.
Kōnan  a district in the southern part of the city  is the most developed industrial zone.
Omotechō has many covered shopping arcades.
Culture     Okayama Castle and Kōraku en are Okayama s most notable attractions.
It was destroyed by bombing in 1945 during World War II but reconstructed in 1966.
Kōrakuen was constructed by Ikeda Tsunamasa over 14 years  and completed in 1700.
Several of the abbots of major monasteries in Kyoto are from Sōgen ji.
Cuisine     Okayama has several traditional dishes.
Barazushi  ばらずし   a dish made with sushi rice  contains fresh fish from the Seto Inland Sea.
Media      The Sanyo Shimbun is the local newspaper serving the greater Okayama area.
There are six television stations serving the Okayama area and part of Kagawa Prefecture.
Three FM and three AM radio stations also serve the region.
TV StationsRadio Stations       Sports     Okayama has many sports teams.
In 2009  Fagiano Okayama FC gained promotion to the J.
Okayama was the birthplace of the 31st Yokozuna  Tsunenohana Kan ichi  in 1896.
He won 10 championships  8 during his time as a Yokozuna.
Tramway     Okayama has kept an operational tram system since the Meiji period.
As of June 1  2019  the city had an estimated population of 1 199 391.
Kazumi Matsui has been the city s mayor since April 2011.
Hiroshima was founded in 1598 as a castle town on the Ōta River delta.
In 1889  Hiroshima officially gained city status.
The Hiroshima Peace Memorial  a UNESCO World Heritage Site  serves as a memorial of the bombing.
Hiroshima Castle was quickly built  and in 1593 Mōri moved in.
Terumoto was on the losing side at the Battle of Sekigahara.
From 1619 until 1871  Hiroshima was ruled by the Asano clan.
About 500 German prisoners of war were held in Ninoshima Island in Hiroshima Bay.
There were no such air raids on Hiroshima.
However  a real threat existed and was recognized.
Fewer than 10  of the casualties were military.
By the end of the year  injury and radiation brought the total number of deaths to 90 000–166 000.
The population before the bombing was around 345 000.
About 70  of the city s buildings were destroyed  and another 7  severely damaged.
Film shot by Japanese cameramen in Hiroshima and Nagasaki after the bombings was confiscated.
Hiroshima Prefecture suffered more than 3 000 deaths and injuries  about half the national total.
The river s six channels divide Hiroshima into several islets.
Precipitation occurs year round  although winter is the driest season.
Demographics     In 2017  the city has an estimated population of 1 195 327.
Before World War II  Hiroshima s population had grown to 360 000  and peaked at 419 182 in 1942.
Following the atomic bombing in 1945  the population dropped to 137 197.
By 1955  the city s population had returned to pre war levels.
The Hiroshima Prefectural Art Museum opened in 1968 and is located near Shukkei en gardens.
The Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art  which opened in 1989  is located near Hijiyama Park.
Festivals include Hiroshima Flower Festival and Hiroshima International Animation Festival.
Hiroshima Gokoku Shrine is within the walls of the castle.
Other attractions in Hiroshima include Shukkei en  Fudōin  Mitaki dera  and Hijiyama Park.
The amount of cabbage used is usually 3 to 4 times the amount used in the Osaka style.
It starts piled very high and is generally pushed down as the cabbage cooks.
Sports      Hiroshima has several professional sports clubs.
After adopting their current name in 1992  the club won the J.League in 2012 and 2013.
The city s main women s football club is Angeviolet Hiroshima.
Members of the Central League  the club won the Japan Series in 1979  1980 and 1984.
The Woodone Open Hiroshima was part of the Japan Golf Tour between 1973 and 2007.
It publishes both morning paper and evening editions.
Service between Koi Nishi Hiroshima and Tenma cho was started up three days after the bombing.
By 1995 almost all campuses were relocated to Higashihiroshima.
History     Yamaguchi Prefecture was created by the merger of the provinces of Suō and Nagato.
The Ouchi clan imitated the city planning of Kyoto.
As a result  Yamaguchi came to be known as the  Kyoto of the West   and Ouchi culture flourished.
Sue Harutaka defeated the 31st ruler of the Ouchi clan.
Yamaguchi was ruled as part of the Mōri clan domain during the Sengoku period.
Mōri Terumoto was then defeated by Tokugawa Ieyasu in the battle of Sekigahara in 1600.
There is a large fireworks festival in summer.
Another attraction is the Kintai Bridge in the town of Iwakuni.
This five arched wooden structure is considered a symbol of Western Honshū.
Hagi City is in the north of Yamaguchi.
The usual color of Japanese post boxes is red  but in Hagi they are painted green or brown.
The Hagi Museum is modeled after a traditional samurai residence.
The exhibits are detailed and realistic  and are changed every year.
The permanent collection is data about Hagi s history and collections about Takasugi Shinsaku.
It was developed during the Seinan Rebellion that broke out in 1877.
Soldiers cooked wild grass and meat on hot tiles.
Now it is a local dish of Yamaguchi people.
Shinji Mikami  Video Game designer  the God father of the survival Horror genre of video games.
His live action film Shiki Jitsu features scenes set in his hometown of Ube.
Sister districts    Yamaguchi Prefecture has alliance with the following five districts.
Governor     The current governor of Yamaguchi is former MIC bureaucrat Tsugumasa Muraoka.
In the 2015 election  the LDP won a majority.
Liberal Democrats form several parliamentary groups together with independents.
History     Until the Meiji Restoration  Tokushima Prefecture was known as Awa Province.
At the time  it included the Awa region to the south and the Awaji Island regions as well.
In 1873 it further incorporated the region currently occupied by Kagawa Prefecture in its borders.
The Washi no Mon gate to Tokushima Castle is destroyed by fire.
1946 December  – The Nankai earthquake occurs  causing vast damage throughout the prefecture.
1947 May       – Naruto City is inaugurated.
1949 May       – Tokushima University is created.
1951 June      – Komatsushima City is inaugurated.
1958 May       – Anan City is inaugurated.
1959 April     – Shikoku Hoso begins TV broadcasts.
1960 May       – A tsunami caused by a quake in Chile causes damage in the prefecture s south.
1961 July      – The Lesser Naruto Bridge is opened in the Lesser Naruto Straits.
1963 April     – The Tokushima Municipal Culture Center is completed.
1963 July      – A new thermal electric power plant is created in Anan.
1967 January   – Construction of the Tokushima Airport terminal is completed.
1970 August    – Construction of the Koboke Dam on the Yoshino River is terminated.
1972 January   – Use of a railway connecting the towns of Itano and Kamiita is terminated.
1972 July      – Construction of Route 11 over the Yoshino River Ohashi is completed.
1973 April     – A railway is opened connecting the Mugi and Kaifu regions.
1974 October   – Tokushima born Takeo Miki is elected as Prime Minister of Japan.
1975 March     – Construction of the Ikeda Dam over the Yoshino River is completed.
1981 October   – The National University Naruto Kyoiku Daigaku is opened.
1982 August    – Ikeda Highschool takes first place in the 64th National Baseball Championships.
1985 March     – Use of the Komatsushima trainline is stopped.
1985           – The Onaruto Bridge  connecting Tokushima and Hyogo Prefectures  is completed.
1989 May       – The 40th National Planting Festival is held in the Kamiyama Shirin Park.
1990 January   – Plans for a seaside park in Tokushima City are called off.
1991 June      – Plans for a resort in the Kurozo Marsh in Ikeda cho are called off.
1992 March     – A railway is opened connecting the Kaifu and Kamoura regions.
1993 August    – Route 55 is extended from Komatsushima City down to Anan City.
1993 October   – The East Shikoku Autumna Athletics Festival is held.
1993 October   – Construction of Asty Tokushima is completed.
2000 October   – Construction of the Hosokawauchi Dam over the Naka River is terminated.
2001 August    – The 13th National Agricultural Youth Exchange takes place.
2002 March     – Governor Toshi Endo is arrested under charges of bribery.
2002 October   – The Prefectural Calligraphy Hall is opened.
2003 June      – The Komatsushima factory for Toyobo is shut down.
2004 October   – Yoshinogawa City is inaugurated.
2004 October   – The 28th National Planting Festival is held in Kamiyama s Shirin Park.
2005 March     – Mima City and the towns of Tsurugi and Naka are inaugurated.
2005 April     – Anan City is inaugurated  and the South District Administration Bureau is created.
2006 March     – Miyoshi City and Higashi Miyoshi Town are inaugurated.
2006 March     – The towns of Minami and Kaiyo are inaugurated.
2006 April     – The West District Administration Bureau is created.
2006 May       – The Tokushima Red Cross Hospital shifts location.
2007 May       – The sports stadium Aguri Anan Stadium is opened.
2007 October   – Tokushima becomes home for the 22nd National Culture Festival.
Geography     The Sanuki Mountains run along the northern border of the prefecture.
Much of the remaining land is used for vegetables and flowers.
Japanese indigo is only produced here.
Industrial development continues around the Tokushima and Naruto districts.
To combat this  the local Tokushima government now sends the  Fresh!
Further  the sports teams listed below are based in Tokushima.
Kagawa Prefecture  香川県  Kagawa ken  is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku.
The Sanuki Mountains run along the southern border.
Kagawa is currently the smallest prefecture  by area  in Japan.
Kagawa is a relatively narrow prefecture located between the mountains of Shikoku and the sea.
In 2008  there were over 700 udon restaurants in this prefecture alone.
Olives and olive related products have also come to be recognized as Kagawa foods.
Waste organic matter from olive pressing is used as feed for cattle and the Yellowtail Amberjack.
Other local specialties include wasanbon sugar sweets  sōmen noodles and shōyu soy sauce.
Rare sugar researches are thriving and have discovered mass production culture enzymes.
Native creator Sōichirō Yamamoto was also raised in Tonosho Town.
Ehime Prefecture  愛媛県  Ehime ken  is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku.
History     Until the Meiji Restoration  Ehime Prefecture was known as Iyo Province.
The westernmost arm of Ehime  the Sadamisaki Peninsula  is the narrowest peninsula in Japan.
Ikata Nuclear Power Plant produces a large portion of Shikoku Electric Power.
Education         Sports     The sports teams listed below are based in Ehime.
It has been used for over two thousand years.
These are anime set in Ehime Prefecture.
It was based on his experience in Matsuyama.
Movies  dramas  and manga are published based on the novel.
The shooting was done at a high school  university  and library in Ehime.
The drum stand is lifted by about 150 men.
Hot Springs     There are Hot Springs in Ehime Prefecture.
Dōgo Onsen appears in the Nihon Shoki.
This Hot Spring has three public baths  the main building  Tsubaki no Yu  and Asuka no Yu.
Sora to Mori is a combined warm bath facility.
There are hot springs  restaurants  and body care.
Nibukawa Onsen is a hot spring located in Imabari.
The source originates from the crevices of the Inugawa Valley in this hot spring town.
Language     Iyo dialect is a Japanese dialect spoken in Ehime Prefecture.
Nanyo is influenced by the Kyushu dialect  and Chuyo and Toyo are influenced by the Kinki dialect.
Kōchi is the main city of the prefecture with over 40  of its population.
Geography and climate     The area of Kōchi has three distinct geographic sections.
The plain is bounded by mountains to the north and a range of hills to the south and west.
The highest point in Kōchi is Kuishi yama at 1 176 metres  3 858 ft .
The castle site was chosen by Lord Yamauchi Kazutoyo in 1601.
The city takes its name from that of the castle.
The city was incorporated on April 1  1889.
On April 1  1998  the city was designated as the first core city on Shikoku.
On January 1  2008  the town of Haruno  from Agawa District  was also merged into Kōchi.
On July 3  1945 at 6 22 PM  JST  129 Aircraft took off to bomb Kōchi.
The current mayor  since 2003  is Seiya Okazaki.
Events     Kōchi s most famous festival is the Yosakoi which is held in August.
The total number of dancers is in the thousands.
Its three lines with historic cars service the major north–south and east–west axes of the city.
The city also has an extensive bus network.
JR s central station in Kōchi is Kōchi Station.
Kōchi Ryōma Airport in nearby Nankoku serves Kōchi.
Temples 30  Zenrakuji  and 33  Sekkeiji  are also in the city.
Nearby on the grounds is the Sakamoto Ryōma Memorial Museum.
Tsutomu Seki  born 1930  is an astronomer who has discovered a number of comets and asteroids.
Kusunose Kita  1836–1920  was an advocate for Women s rights in Japan  particularly in Kochi.
It is the most populous city on the island  followed by Kitakyushu.
It is the largest city and metropolitan area west of Keihanshin.
The city was designated on April 1  1972  by government ordinance.
As of 2015  Fukuoka is Japan s sixth largest city  having passed the population of Kobe.
In July 2011  Fukuoka surpassed the population of Kyoto.
It has been thought that waves of immigrants arrived in Northern Kyushu from mainland Asia.
Central Fukuoka is sometimes still referred as Hakata which is the name of the central ward.
Kublai Khan first sent an envoy to Japan to make the Shogunate acknowledge Khan s suzerainty.
This initial invasion was compromised by a combination of incompetence and severe storms.
Kublai sent another envoy to Japan in 1279.
At that time  Hōjō Tokimune of the Hōjō clan  1251–1284  was the Eighth Regent.
When Hakata and Fukuoka decided to merge  a meeting was held to decide the name for the new city.
In 1911  the college is renamed Kyushu Imperial University and established as a separate entity.
1910  Fukuoka streetcar service begins.
1975  The city absorbed the town of Sawara.
1975  Sanyō Shinkansen high speed railway reaches Hakata station.
1989  Asian Pacific Exposition is held.
1997  The 30th annual meeting of the Asian Development Bank was held in Fukuoka.
21st century     2005  Fukuoka subway Nanakuma Line started operations.
As of October there have been 99 deaths due to Covid in Fukuoka prefecture.
It is located 1 100 km  684 mi  from Tokyo.
Fukuoka and Busan are sister cities.
Roughly 40  of the year is cloudy.
Spring is warm and sunnier  with cherry blossoms appearing in late March or early April.
Summers are humid and hot  with temperatures peaking around 37 °C  99 °F .
Wards    Fukuoka has 7 wards  ku .
The total area is 343.39 square kilometres  132.58 sq mi .
Fukuoka is Japan s youngest major city and has Japan s fastest growing population.
It is also the largest startup city in Japan  and is the only economic zone for startups.
Fukuoka has the highest business opening rate in Japan.
Large companies headquartered in the city include Iwataya and Kyushu Electric Power.
Most of the region s heavy manufacturing takes place in the nearby city of Kitakyushu.
The GDP in Greater Fukuoka  Fukuoka Metropolitan Employment Area  was US 101.6 billion in 2010.
The port of Hakata and Fukuoka Airport also make the city a key regional transportation hub.
It is one of six in Japan.Fukuoka is one of the more affordable cities in Japan.
Fukuoka has a diverse culture and a wide range of cultural attractions.
The same survey in 2018 ranked Fukuoka at number 22.
Nearly 200 international conferences are held each year in Fukuoka.
It was closed in September 2009.
Ōhori Park is also the location of one of Fukuoka City s major art galleries.
Yatai  street stalls  serving ramen can be found in Tenjin and Nakasu most evenings.
Itoshima  to the west of Fukuoka city  has recently become a very popular tourist destination.
It is claimed to be the largest statue of a reclining Buddha in the world.
There is a newly opened Kyushu National Museum in nearby Dazaifu.
Fukuoka Asian Art Museum – contains art from various countries of Asia.
Festivals      Fukuoka is home to many festivals  matsuri  that are held throughout the year.
Of these  the most famous are Hakata Dontaku and Hakata Gion Yamakasa.
Tens of thousands line the streets to cheer on the teams.
Hakata Dontaku      Hakata Dontaku  博多どんたく  is held in Fukuoka City on May 3 and 4.
Since it was restarted in the 12th year of the Meiji era it has been known as Hakata Dontaku.
HKT 48 have their own Theater at Nishitetsu Hall.
Fukuoka is home to a professional football team  Avispa Fukuoka.
Annual sporting events include   The All Japan Judo Category Championships are held in early April.
Defunct  The November tournament of professional Sumo is held at the Fukuoka Kokusai Center.
Fukuoka International Women s Judo Championships from 1983 to 2006.
The city established the Asian Pacific City Summit in 1994.
It consists of 26 Asia Pacific cities.
The Asian Pacific Children s Convention was established in Fukuoka in 1988.
The total area is 405.86 km2  156.70 sq mi .
His followers who remained behind converted a number of daimyōs.
The most notable among them was Ōmura Sumitada.
The Portuguese also brought with them many goods from other Asian countries such as China.
It became a refuge for Christians escaping maltreatment in other regions of Japan.
In 1587  however  Toyotomi Hideyoshi s campaign to unify the country arrived in Kyūshū.
Portuguese traders were not ostracized  however  and so the city continued to thrive.
In addition  the Dutch and English presence allowed trade without religious strings attached.
Thus  in 1614  Catholicism was officially banned and all missionaries ordered to leave.
Consequently  Nagasaki became a major center of what was called rangaku  or  Dutch Learning .
During this period  Nagasaki was designated a  shogunal city .
Various Chinese merchants and artists sailed between the Chinese mainland and Nagasaki.
Nagasaki became a treaty port in 1859 and modernization began in earnest in 1868.
Nagasaki was officially proclaimed a city on April 1  1889.
When the plane reached Kokura at 9 44 a.m.  10 44 am.
The first plutonium bomb was tested in central New Mexico  United States  on July 16  1945.
The pace of reconstruction was slow.
The first simple emergency dwellings were not provided until 1946.
New structures were also raised as memorials  such as the Atomic Bomb Museum.
Nagasaki remains primarily a port city  supporting a rich shipbuilding industry.
Nagasaki lies at the head of a long bay that forms the best natural harbor on the island of Kyūshū.
The main commercial and residential area of the city lies on a small plain near the end of the bay.
Two rivers divided by a mountain spur form the two main valleys in which the city lies.
Apart from Kanazawa and Shizuoka it is the wettest sizeable city in Japan.
August is the warmest month of the year.
On January 24  2016  a snowfall of 17 centimetres  6.7 in  was recorded.
In addition  the Nagasaki Electric Tramway operates five routes in the city.
The Nagasaki Expressway serves vehicular traffic with interchanges at Nagasaki and Susukizuka.
In addition  six national highways crisscross the city  Route 34  202  206  251  324  and 499.
Demographics    On August 9  1945 the population was estimated to be 263 000.
Sports    Nagasaki is represented in the J.
Kunchi  the most famous festival in Nagasaki  is held from October 7–9.
Greater Kumamoto  熊本都市圏  had a population of 1 461 000  as of the 2000 census.
As of 2010  Kumamoto Metropolitan Employment Area has a GDP of US 39.8 billion.
It is not considered part of the Fukuoka–Kitakyushu metropolitan area  despite their shared border.
The city was designated on April 1  2012  by government ordinance.
Afterwards  Kiyomasa built Kumamoto Castle.
After Kiyomasa died in 1611  his son  Tadahiro  succeeded him.
In 1632  Tadahiro was removed by Tokugawa Iemitsu and replaced with the Hosokawa clan.
The current administrative body of the City of Kumamoto was founded on April 1  1889.
On October 6  2008  the town of Tomiai  from Shimomashiki District  was merged into Kumamoto.
There is significant precipitation throughout the year  especially during June and July.
The castle was assaulted during the Satsuma Rebellion and sacked and burned after a 53 day siege.
It was during this time that the tradition of eating basashi  raw horse meat  originated.
This traditional wooden mansion has a fine Japanese garden located on its grounds.
The team now uses the larger KKWing Stadium in Higashi Ward.
Other notable sites     Miyamoto Musashi lived the last part of his life in Kumamoto.
He penned the famous Go Rin no Sho  The Book of Five Rings  whilst living here.
Many local festivals are held in or near the arcades.
Cultural venues include the Kumamoto Prefectural Museum of Art and Kumamoto Prefectural Theater.
Government    Kazufumi Ōnishi has been the city s mayor since December 2014.
Transport     Local public transport is provided by the Kumamoto City Transportation Bureau.
Trams run to a few suburbs near the downtown area.
The JR Kumamoto station provides rail links to Japan s extensive rail network.
Kumamoto Airport is located in nearby Mashiki.
Sports    Roasso Kumamoto in J.League is the local football club.
Kumamoto Volters of the basketball B.League are based in Kumamoto.
Sporting events     The Kumamoto Castle Marathon is a yearly event in Kumamoto City.
It was established in commemoration of Kumamoto becoming a designated city in 2012.
The city also hosted the 1997 World Men s Handball Championship.
Sister cities    Kumamoto City is twinned with the following cities.
Ōita Prefecture  大分県  Ōita ken   is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū.
From this time that whole area became known as  Toyo no kuni   which means  Land of Abundance .
It shall be known as Okita Kuni!
Okita Kuni  meaning  Land of the Great Fields   later came to be written as  Ōita .
The region became well known for the money lending industry based out of Hita.
Funai was a very internationalized city which engaged in trade and exchange with other nations.
Sōrin dreamed of creating a Christian nation  he was baptized and given the name  Don Francisco .
He also worked in a hospital and had a good knowledge of astronomy.
He hand made an astronomical globe that was passed down through many generations.
Miura Baien is considered one of Ōita s three sages along with Hoashi Banri and Hirose Tansō.
In 1832 he was made Minister for the Feudal Lord to fix the financial problems of the Hiji clan.
Banri Hoashi is considered one of Ōita s three sages along with Miura Baien and Hirose Tansō.
Ōita s current governor Katsusada Hirose is a descendant of Tansō Hirose.
In Edo period Japan  education was limited to samurai families and the rich.
Both are in Mameda Town  about a 10 minute walk from Hita Station.
Tansō Hirose is considered one of the Oita s three sages along with Miura Baien and Hoashi Banri.
Fukuzawa Yukichi grew up in the Nakatsu domain and is pictured on the 10 000 yen bill.
The university now educates in a range of fields and produces influential and prominent alumni.
Geography    Ōita Prefecture is on the north eastern section of the island of Kyūshū.
There are several other tectonic lines running from east to west through the prefecture.
Mount Kujū  九重山  is surrounded by highlands called the Kujū Highlands and the Handa Highlands.
Ōita s coastal waters contribute to a prosperous fishing industry.
Kabosu are available year round but peak season for taste and quality is from August to October.
Kabosu are rich in vitamin C and contain beneficial acids  such as citric acid.
Kabosu have been produced in the Taketa and Usuki areas for many years.
Ōita s dried shiitake rank number one in Japan in production quantity and quality.
Shiitake are said to be beneficial in the prevention of high blood pressure and arterial sclerosis.
Ōita also ranks number one in Japan for the amount of limestone production.
Bungo beef is a well known local product. .
Demographics    As of October 1  2008  Ōita s total population was 1 201 715.
Culture    Oita is in the northeast corner of the island of Kyushu.
There are many festivals throughout the year to pray for healthy harvests and abundant crops.
Fukiji Temple is in Bungo Takada.
The information on it tells of the relationship between Usa Shrine and its branch shrine Mirokuji.
Oita s Hachiman Kohyo Shrine is in Nakatsu City.
These they fired in a cooperative kiln  kyōdō noborigama .
Mankoji Temple which was founded in 1352 is a place for practicing zen meditation.
Old samurai residences throughout the prefecture are points of architectural interest.
Arata Isozaki is a world renowned architect who is from Oita.
It takes place over 10 days and includes recitals and also lessons.
Applicants are accepted from within Japan and from several Asian countries.
Sports     The sports teams listed below are based in Oita.
It was started in 1981 to commemorate the International Year of Disabled Persons.
The city s ryokans and public onsen are amply supplied by the same volcanic source.
Visitors particularly relish the effects of burial in steaming hot volcanic sands.
Near the marine park  Mount Takasaki Monkey Park rises steeply from the shoreline.
Other attractions of Ōita Prefecture include the Sanrio theme park Harmonyland.
Hachimen was home to the popular music festival  Concert on the Rock.
The natural surroundings make it one of the most picturesque rock festivals in the world.
The event has since been discontinued.
The event went from March 4 to 13.
The event also took place in the Kyushu Prefecture.
Saiki Printing Co.      External links    https   www.discover oita.com
Miyazaki co founded Studio Ghibli in 1985.
The films were met with critical and commercial success in Japan.
The business allowed his family to remain affluent during Miyazaki s early life.
In 1944  when Miyazaki was three years old  his family evacuated to Utsunomiya.
After the bombing of Utsunomiya in July 1945  Miyazaki s family evacuated to Kanuma.
The bombing left a lasting impression on Miyazaki  who was aged four at the time.
After graduating from Eifuku  he attended Ōmiya Junior High School.
He  fell in love  with the movie s heroine and it left a strong impression on him.
Miyazaki graduated from Gakushuin in 1963 with degrees in political science and economics.
Career          Early career      In 1963  Miyazaki was employed at Toei Animation.
He also worked on Gulliver s Travels Beyond the Moon  1964 .
In 1972 and 1973  Miyazaki wrote  designed and animated two Panda!
Zuiyō Eizō continued as Nippon Animation in July 1975.
In his role at Telecom  Miyazaki helped train the second wave of employees.
They were broadcast from November 1984 to May 1985.
The novel was published by Tokuma Shoten in June 1983  and dramatised for radio broadcast in 1987.
In November 1980  a proposal was drawn up to acquire the film rights.
Miyazaki drew the episodes primarily in pencil  and it was printed monochrome in sepia toned ink.
Miyazaki resigned from Telecom Animation Film in November 1982.
Miyazaki initially refused  but agreed on the condition that he could direct.
Takahata enlisted experimental and minimalist musician Joe Hisaishi to compose the film s score.
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind was released on 11 March 1984.
It is often seen as Miyazaki s pivotal work  cementing his reputation as an animator.
It was lauded for its positive portrayal of women  particularly that of main character Nausicaä.
In April 1984  Miyazaki opened his own office in Suginami Ward  naming it Nibariki.
Laputa was released on 2 August 1986.
It was the highest grossing animation film of the year in Japan.
The simultaneous production was chaotic for the artists  as they switched between projects.
While the film received critical acclaim  it was commercially unsuccessful at the box office.
Kadono was unhappy with the differences between the book and the screenplay.
Kiki s Delivery Service premiered on 29 July 1989.
The film featured anti war themes  which Miyazaki would later revisit.
On Your Mark premiered as a short before Whisper of the Heart.
Despite the video s popularity  Suzuki said that it was not given  100 percent  focus.
The landscapes in the film were inspired by Yakushima.
Miyazaki supervised the 144 000 cels in the film  about 80 000 of which were key animation.
Miyazaki realised that he had not created a film for 10 year old girls  and set out to do so.
He decided to produce the film about a female heroine whom they could look up to.
After six months  Studio Ghibli resurrected the project.
It was released on 20 November 2004  and received widespread critical acclaim.
In Japan  the film grossed a record  14.5 million in its first week of release.
It remains among the highest grossing films in Japan  with a worldwide gross of over ¥19.3 billion.
Miyazaki s next film  Ponyo  began production in May 2006.
Miyazaki aimed for the film to celebrate the innocence and cheerfulness of a child s universe.
He intended for it to only use traditional animation  and was intimately involved with the artwork.
He preferred to draw the sea and waves himself  as he enjoyed experimenting.
Ponyo features 170 000 frames—a record for Miyazaki.
The main character  Sōsuke  is based on Gorō.
The female lead character s name  Naoko Satomi  was borrowed from Hori s novel Naoko  菜穂子 .
Miyazaki was awarded the Academy Honorary Award at the Governors Awards in November 2014.
It was screened exclusively at the Studio Ghibli Museum in July 2017.
He is also working on an untitled samurai manga.
Miyazaki is critical of capitalism  globalization  and their effects on modern life.
He believes that  a company is common property of the people that work there .
Personal life    Miyazaki married fellow animator Akemi Ota in October 1965.
The couple have two sons  Gorō  born in January 1967  and Keisuke  born in April 1969.
Miyazaki s dedication to his work harmed his relationship with Gorō  as he was often absent.
Gorō watched his father s works in an attempt to  understand  him  since the two rarely talked.
The city was officially founded on April 1  1889.
A statue was erected outside the train station as a tribute to them.
Kagoshima was also the birthplace of Tōgō Heihachirō.
A single B 29 was lost to unknown circumstances.
Just outside the city is the early Edo Period Sengan en Japanese Garden.
The total area is 547.58 km2  211 sq mi .
All areas were merged into Kagoshima City on 1 November 2004.
Culture          Food     Kagoshima Prefecture has a distinct and rich food culture.
Satsuma age      Satsuma age  or deep fried fish cake  comes in great variety in Kagoshima.
Sweets      There are many types of sweets produced in Kagoshima Prefecture.
While visiting Kagoshima  one may notice labels reading Honkaku shōchū  本格焼酎 .
Another type of shōchū is Kokutō shōchū  黒糖焼酎   shōchū distilled with brown sugar .
Kurozu also comes in different flavors such as grape  orange  ume plum  etc.
though the most popular flavor by far is apple.
The farms are open to visitations and often offer tours.
Kagoshima is home to Kagoshima United.
They play their home games at Kagoshima Kamoike Stadium.
Also during this period  many Gusukus  similar to castles  were constructed.
The dead  of all nationalities  are commemorated at the Cornerstone of Peace.
The Ryukyu independence movement was an Okinawan movement that clamored against the U.S. rule.
According to the Melvin Price Report  by 1955  the military had displaced 250 000 residents.
Most of the weapons were alleged to be stored in ammunition bunkers at Kadena Air Base.
By 1969  over 50 000 American military personnel were stationed on Okinawa.
United States Department of Defense began referring to Okinawa as  The Keystone of the Pacific .
Evacuations of residents took place over a wide area for two months.
A strong emotional response has emerged from certain incidents.
As a result  the media has drawn renewed interest in the Ryukyu independence movement.
A protest gathered hundreds of people.
This opposition grew in July 2016 after the construction of six new helipads.
Okinawa s inhabited islands are typically divided into three geographical archipelagos.
Fauna     The dugong is an endangered marine mammal related to the manatee.
Iriomote is home to one of the world s rarest and most endangered cat species  the Iriomote cat.
The region is also home to at least one endemic pit viper  Trimeresurus elegans.
Coral reefs found in this region of Japan provide an environment for a diverse marine fauna.
The sea turtles return yearly to the southern islands of Okinawa to lay their eggs.
Gyokusendo is an extensive limestone cave in the southern part of Okinawa s main island.
Climate     The island experiences temperatures above 20 °C  68 °F  for most of the year.
The islands of Okinawa are surrounded by some of the most abundant coral reefs found in the world.
The world s largest colony of rare blue coral is found off of Ishigaki Island.
Snowfall is unheard of at sea level.
There is also a sizable mainland Japanese minority in the prefecture.
The overall ethnic identity of Okinawa residents are rather split.
One of the Ryukyuan languages is spoken in Kagoshima Prefecture  rather than in Okinawa Prefecture.
These languages are in decline as the younger generation of Okinawans uses Standard Japanese.
Standard Japanese is almost always used in formal situations.
There is a radio news program in the language as well.
Cultural influences     Okinawan culture bears traces of its various trading partners.
One can find Chinese  Thai and Austronesian influences in the island s customs.
Karate is thought to be a synthesis of Chinese kung fu with traditional Okinawan martial arts.
Okinawan culture also features the eisa dance  a traditional drumming dance.
They are particularly well known for consuming purple potatoes  aka  the okinawan sweet potatoes.
Okinawans are known for their longevity.
Karate      Karate originated in Okinawa.
Over time  it developed into several styles and sub styles.
On Okinawa  the three main styles are considered to be Shōrin ryū  Gōjū ryū and Uechi ryū.
Shuri Castle in Naha is an UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Nakamura House  ja 中村家住宅  沖縄県   is an original 18th century farmhouse in Kitanakagusuki.
Roofs are typically red in color and are inspired by Chinese design.
The agency directly operates several public high schools including Okinawa Shogaku High School.
The U.S. Department of Defense Dependents Schools  DoDDS  operates 13 schools total in Okinawa.
Seven of these schools are located on Kadena Air Base.
Okinawa has many types of private schools.
Some of them are cram schools  also known as juku.
As of 2012 the bases accounted for 4 or 5 percent of the economy.
Uechi Kanbun was the founder of Uechi ryū  one of the primary karate styles of Okinawa.
Sato Eisaku was a Japanese politician and the 61st  62nd and 63rd Prime Minister of Japan.
While he was premier in 1972  Okinawa was returned to Japan.
Takuji Iwasaki  was a meteorologist  biologist  ethnologist historian.
Japan is divided into 47 administrative prefectures and eight traditional regions.
In 1937  Japan invaded China  in 1941  it entered World War II as an Axis power.
The characters 日本 mean  sun origin .
Clay vessels from the period are among the oldest surviving examples of pottery.
In 784  Emperor Kanmu moved the capital  settling on Heian kyō  modern Kyoto  in 794.
After Yoritomo s death  the Hōjō clan came to power as regents for the shōguns.
Go Daigo was defeated by Ashikaga Takauji in 1336  beginning the Muromachi period  1336–1573 .
When open war broke out  Ieyasu defeated rival clans in the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600.
The Edo period gave rise to kokugaku   national studies    the study of Japan by the Japanese.
Geography     Japan comprises 6852 islands extending along the Pacific coast of Asia.
The Ryukyu Islands  which include Okinawa  are a chain to the south of Kyushu.
The Nanpō Islands are south and east of the main islands of Japan.
Together they are often known as the Japanese archipelago.
As of 2019  Japan s territory is 377 975.24 km2  145 937.06 sq mi .
Japan has the sixth longest coastline in the world at 29 751 km  18 486 mi .
It has the 17th highest natural disaster risk as measured in the 2016 World Risk Index.
Japan has 111 active volcanoes.
In the summer  the region sometimes experiences extremely hot temperatures because of the foehn.
The Ryukyu and Nanpō Islands have a subtropical climate  with warm winters and hot summers.
Precipitation is very heavy  especially during the rainy season.
The main rainy season begins in early May in Okinawa  and the rain front gradually moves north.
In late summer and early autumn  typhoons often bring heavy rain.
Responding to rising concern  the government introduced environmental protection laws in 1970.
Japan is the world s fifth largest emitter of carbon dioxide.
In 2020 the government of Japan announced a target of carbon neutrality by 2050.
Japan s legislative organ is the National Diet  a bicameral parliament.
The Constitution of Japan  adopted in 1947  is the oldest unamended constitution in the world.
The main body of Japanese statutory law is called the Six Codes.
Military      Japan is the second highest ranked Asian country in the Global Peace Index 2020.
Japan maintains one of the largest military budgets of any country in the world.
As of 2019  Japan s labor force consisted of 67 million workers.
Japan has a low unemployment rate of around 2.4 percent.
Around 16 percent of the population were below the poverty line in 2017.
Its main exports are motor vehicles  iron and steel products  semiconductors and auto parts.
Japan ranks highly for competitiveness and economic freedom.
It is ranked sixth in the Global Competitiveness Report for 2015–2016.
Only 11.5  of Japan s land is suitable for cultivation.
Because of this lack of arable land  a system of terraces is used to farm in small areas.
Japan s small agricultural sector is highly subsidized and protected.
Japan has sparked controversy by supporting commercial whaling.
Japan s industrial sector makes up approximately 27.5  of its GDP.
For inbound tourism  Japan was ranked 11th in the world in 2019.
However  video gaming in Japan remains a major industry.
The space probe Akatsuki was launched in 2010 and achieved orbit around Venus in 2015.
Japan s plans in space exploration include building a moon base and landing astronauts by 2030.
The largest domestic airport  Haneda Airport in Tokyo  was Asia s second busiest airport in 2019.
Nuclear power was down from 11.2 percent in 2010.
Japan lacks significant domestic reserves and has a heavy dependence on imported energy.
Access to an improved water source is universal in Japan.
About 98  of the population receives piped water supply from public utilities.
In 2019  92  of the total Japanese population lived in cities.
The capital city Tokyo has a population of 13.8 million  2018 .
A growing number of younger Japanese are not marrying or remain childless.
Japan s population is expected to drop to around 100 million by 2050.
Today  1  to 1.5  of the population are Christians.
Almost all children continue their education at a three year senior high school.
The two top ranking universities in Japan are the University of Tokyo and Kyoto University.
Health      Health care is provided by national and local governments.
Another significant public health issue is smoking among Japanese men.
The Shrines of Ise have been celebrated as the prototype of Japanese architecture.
The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter is considered the oldest extant Japanese narrative.
In its literary forms  Japanese philosophy began about fourteen centuries ago.
Buddhism has profoundly impacted Japanese psychology  metaphysics  and esthetics.
Performing arts      Japanese music is eclectic and diverse.
Many instruments  such as the koto  were introduced in the 9th and 10th centuries.
Noh is one of the oldest continuous theater traditions in the world.
Isagiyosa  潔さ  is a virtue of the capability of accepting death with composure.
Cherry blossoms are a symbol of isagiyosa in the sense of embracing the transience of the world.
Seafood and Japanese rice or noodles are traditional staples.
Traditional Japanese sweets are known as wagashi.
Ingredients such as red bean paste and mochi are used.
Beer has been brewed in Japan since the late 17th century.
Japan is a world renowned powerhouse of animation.
Sports      Traditionally  sumo is considered Japan s national sport.
Baseball is the most popular spectator sport in the country.
Japan s top professional league  Nippon Professional Baseball  was established in 1936.
The country co hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup with South Korea.
Japan is the most successful Asian Rugby Union country and hosted the 2019 IRB Rugby World Cup.
Little is known of the language s prehistory  or when it first appeared in Japan.
Sentence final particles are used to add emotional or emphatic impact  or make questions.
Nouns have no grammatical number or gender  and there are no articles.
Verbs are conjugated  primarily for tense and voice  but not person.
Japanese equivalents of adjectives are also conjugated.
Very little is known about the Japanese of this period.
Old Japanese      Old Japanese is the oldest attested stage of the Japanese language.
Through the spread of Buddhism  the Chinese writing system was imported to Japan.
The end of Old Japanese coincides with the end of the Nara period in 794.
Based on the Man yōgana system  Old Japanese can be reconstructed as having 88 distinct syllables.
The Kojiki has 88  but all later texts have 87.
The distinction between mo1 and mo2 apparently was lost immediately following its composition.
Man yōgana also has a symbol for  je   which merges with  e  before the end of the period.
kwa  and palatalised  kya  consonants are added.
Intervocalic  ɸ  merges with  w  by the 11th century.
Early Modern Japanese gradually evolved into Modern Japanese during the 19th century.
As a result  many elderly people in these countries can still speak Japanese.
The meanings of the two terms are almost the same.
Hyōjungo or kyōtsūgo is a conception that forms the counterpart of dialect.
Hyōjungo is taught in schools and used on television and in official communications.
It is the version of Japanese discussed in this article.
The two systems have different rules of grammar and some variance in vocabulary.
Dialects      Dozens of dialects are spoken in Japan.
Some even differ in vowel and consonant inventories  although this is uncommon.
Within each type are several subdivisions.
Dialects of Tōhoku and North Kantō are associated with typical farmers.
The imperial court also seems to have spoken an unusual variant of the Japanese of the time.
Young people mostly use Japanese and cannot understand the Ryukyuan languages.
Okinawan Japanese is a variant of Standard Japanese influenced by the Ryukyuan languages.
As it stands  only the link to Ryukyuan has wide support.
However  some of these allophones have since become phonemic.
This type of cluster only occurs in onsets.
Consonant length  gemination  is also phonemic.
The stresses differentiate the words.
The basic sentence structure is topic–comment.
For example  Kochira wa Tanaka san desu  こちらは田中さんです .
kochira   this   is the topic of the sentence  indicated by the particle  wa.
As a phrase  Tanaka san desu is the comment.
This sentence literally translates to  As for this person   it  is Mr. Ms.
The topic is zō  elephant   and the subject is hana  nose .
In Japanese  the subject or object of a sentence need not be stated if it is obvious from context.
A single verb can be a complete sentence  Yatta!
I   we   they   etc  did  it ! .
For instance  one does not say in English   The amazed he ran down the street.
Japanese often use titles of the person referred to where pronouns would be used in English.
人人  hitobito  usually written with an iteration mark as 人々 .
Words for people are usually understood as singular.
Thus Tanaka san usually means Mr. Ms.
A group described as Tanaka san tachi may include people not named Tanaka.
For others that represent a change of state  the  te iru form indicates a perfect aspect.
For example  kite iru means  He has come  and is still here    but tabete iru means  He is eating .
In the formal register  the question particle  ka is added.
For example  ii desu  いいです   It is OK  becomes ii desu ka  いいですか。   Is it OK? .
Negatives are formed by inflecting the verb.
Plain negative forms are i adjectives  see below  and inflect as such  e.g.
Pan o tabenakatta  パンを食べなかった。   I did not eat bread .
The word da  plain   desu  polite  is the copula verb.
This comes into use because only i adjectives and verbs can carry tense in Japanese.
For example  Neko ga iru  There s a cat   Ii kangae ga nai   I  haven t got a good idea .
and has been productive in creating modern slang words.
tobidasu  to fly out  to flee   from tobu  to fly  to jump    dasu  to put out  to emit  .
形容動詞 keiyōdōshi  or na adjectives  which are followed by a form of the copula  usually na.
For example  hen  strange  変なひと hen na hito  a strange person .
Examples include ookina  big   kono  this   iwayuru  so called  and taishita  amazing .
The grammatical function of nouns is indicated by postpositions  also called particles.
These include for example   が ga for the nominative case.彼がやった。Kare ga yatta.
に ni for the dative case.田中さんにあげて下さい。 Tanaka san ni agete kudasai  Please give it to Mr.
It is also used for the lative case  indicating a motion to a location.
日本に行きたい。 Nihon ni ikitai  I want to go to Japan.
However  へ e is more commonly used for the lative case.パーティーへ行かないか。 pātī e ikanai ka?
を o for the accusative case.何を食べますか。 Nani o tabemasu ka?
literally   As for me  sushi is good.
As for Mr. Ikeda  he is forty two years old.
Others in the group may also be of that age.
Absence of wa often means the subject is the focus of the sentence.
It is Mr. Ikeda who is forty two years old.
Strangers will also speak to each other politely.
For example  the  san suffix   Mr   Mrs.  or  Miss   is an example of honorific language.
Most nouns in the Japanese language may be made polite by the addition of o  or go  as a prefix.
Such a construction often indicates deference to either the item s owner or to the object itself.
Most Japanese people employ politeness to indicate a lack of familiarity.
This occurs regardless of age  social class  or gender.
A small number of words have come into Japanese from the Ainu language.
Words of different origins occupy different registers in Japanese.
Today most borrowings are from English.
This is when the history of Japanese as a written language begins in its own right.
Over time  a writing system evolved.
However  because of hiragana s accessibility  more and more people began using it.
Japanese students begin to learn kanji from their first year at elementary school.
As for kanji for personal names  the circumstances are somewhat complicated.
Names containing unapproved characters are denied registration.
For this reason  hiragana are appended to kanji to show verb and adjective conjugations.
Hiragana used in this way are called okurigana.
The JLPT is offered twice a year.
The Heian period is considered a golden age of classical Japanese culture.
After seizing power  Yoritomo set up his capital in Kamakura and took the title of shōgun.
Eventually  Japan descended into a period of civil war.
Japan s attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 led to war with the United States and its allies.
Since the Lost Decade of the 1990s  economic growth has slowed.
Early humans likely arrived on Japan by sea on watercraft.
Jōmon pottery is generally accepted to be among the oldest in East Asia and the world.
The onset of this wave of changes was  until recently  thought to have begun around 400 BCE.
The Yayoi technologies originated on the Asian mainland.
The migration theory is supported by genetic and linguistic studies.
Calculations of the population size have varied from 1 to 4 million by the end of the Yayoi.
Yamatai was said to have been ruled by the female monarch Himiko.
It is commonly accepted that the tomb was built for Emperor Nintoku.
Many of the powerful local clans who joined the Yamato state became known as the uji.
Their government devised and implemented the far reaching Taika Reforms.
The Reform began with land reform  based on Confucian ideas and philosophies from China.
It is now the oldest wooden structure in the world.
There was also a serious attempt to overthrow the Imperial house during the middle Nara period.
The Fujiwara clan furthermore consolidated its power.
The imperial court was thus deprived of the tax revenue to pay for its national army.
The central government began to use these two warrior clans to suppress rebellions and piracy.
The court thus temporarily reasserted its authority in northern Japan.
During this war  the Taira clan led by Taira no Kiyomori defeated the Minamoto clan.
The outcome of this war led to the rivalry between the Minamoto and Taira clans.
Yoritomo and his retainers thus became the de facto rulers of Japan.
The older institutions remained intact in a weakened form  and Kyoto remained the official capital.
Behind the scenes  Yoritomo s wife Hōjō Masako became the true power behind the government.
This had permanent negative consequences for the shogunate s relations with the samurai class.
Discontent among the samurai proved decisive in ending the Kamakura shogunate.
Fewer famines and epidemics allowed cities to grow and commerce to boom.
Zen Buddhism spread widely among the samurai class.
Takauji rebelled after Go Daigo refused to appoint him shōgun.
Go Daigo responded by fleeing to the southern city of Yoshino  where he set up a rival government.
Henceforth  the shogunate kept the emperor and his court under tight control.
This started in 1467 when the Ōnin War broke out over who would succeed the ruling shogun.
Some of the most powerful daimyōs of the era were Uesugi Kenshin and Takeda Shingen.
One enduring symbol of this era was the ninja  skilled spies and assassins hired by daimyōs.
The three Portuguese traders on board were the first Europeans to set foot in Japan.
Soon European traders would introduce many new items to Japan  most importantly the musket.
By 1556  the daimyōs were using about 300 000 muskets in their armies.
In 1549 the Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier disembarked in Kyushu.
In 1564  he faced a rebellion instigated by the Buddhist clergy and Yokoseura was destroyed.
By 1579  Nagasáqui already had four hundred houses  with some Portuguese married.
When open war broke out  Ieyasu defeated rival clans in the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600.
Commerce flourished  including considerable trade with China and Korea.
He had the famous Kinkaku ji or  Temple of the Golden Pavilion  built in Kyoto in 1397.
Nobunaga was the daimyō of the small province of Owari.
Nobunaga was renowned for his strategic leadership and his ruthlessness.
He equipped his armies with muskets and trained them with innovative tactics.
Hideyoshi avenged Nobunaga by crushing Akechi s uprising and emerged as Nobunaga s successor.
Nevertheless  it took time for the Tokugawas to consolidate their rule.
Ieyasu led the Siege of Osaka that ended with the destruction of the Toyotomi clan in 1615.
Even so  the daimyōs continued to maintain a significant degree of autonomy in their domains.
Geisha  a new profession of entertainers  also became popular.
The samurai class claimed to follow the ideology of bushido  literally  the way of the warrior .
Peasant unrest grew and government revenues fell.
The US government aimed to end Japan s isolationist policies.
The two domains went on to form an alliance.
It instituted comprehensive tax reform and lifted the ban on Christianity.
The Japanese adopted the Gregorian calendar  Western clothing  and Western hairstyles.
One leading advocate of Westernization was the popular writer Fukuzawa Yukichi.
The leaders of this movement included Itagaki Taisuke and Ōkuma Shigenobu.
Schools nationwide instilled patriotic values and loyalty to the emperor.
In 1902 Japan signed an important military alliance with the British.
Japan next clashed with Russia  which was expanding its power in Asia.
Japan thus laid claim to Korea as a protectorate in 1905  followed by full annexation in 1910.
The phenomenal industrial growth sparked rapid urbanization.
The population rose from 34 million in 1872 to 52 million in 1915.
The Meiji government responded with harsh suppression of dissent.
In February 1936 young radical officers of the Imperial Japanese Army attempted a coup d état.
They assassinated many moderate politicians before the coup was suppressed.
Japan s expansionist vision grew increasingly bold.
These ambitions led to the outbreak of the Second Sino Japanese War in 1937.
This brought the US into World War II on the side of the Allies.
These destroyed over half of the total area of Japan s major cities.
This was the first nuclear attack in history.
Other major goals were the demilitarization and democratization of Japan s government and society.
The cabinet became responsible not to the Emperor but to the elected National Diet.
In 1968  the Ogasawara Islands were returned from US occupation to Japanese sovereignty.
Japanese citizens were allowed to return.
Okinawa was the last to be returned in 1972.
Yoshida was one of the longest serving prime ministers in Japanese history.
The Korean War  1950–1953  was a major boon to Japanese business.
MITI sought successfully to promote manufacturing and heavy industry  and encourage exports.
Life expectancy rose and Japan s population increased to 123 million by 1990.
Ordinary Japanese people became wealthy enough to purchase a wide array of consumer goods.
Banks found themselves saddled with insurmountable debts that hindered economic recovery.
Stagnation worsened as the birthrate declined far below replacement level.
The 1990s are often referred to as Japan s Lost Decade.
Japan s system of lifetime employment largely collapsed and unemployment rates rose.
Japan will become the first Asian country to host the Olympics twice in the country.
The new date for the Olympics are scheduled from July 23 to August 8 2021.
Social conditions    Social stratification in Japan became pronounced during the Yayoi period.
Over 90  were commoners  who included farmers  merchants  and artisans.
Hideyoshi s land survey of the 1590s further entrenched the status of men as dominant landholders.
A History of Japan   Revised Edition .
Side dishes often consist of fish  pickled vegetables  and vegetables cooked in broth.
Seafood is common  often grilled  but also served raw as sashimi or in sushi.
Seafood and vegetables are also deep fried in a light batter  as tempura.
Apart from rice  staples include noodles  such as soba and udon.
Japanese cuisine  particularly sushi  has become popular throughout the world.
Terminology    The word washoku  和食  is now the common word for traditional Japanese cooking.
warming stone   is tied with the Japanese tea ceremony.
The kaiseki is considered a  simplified  form of honzen ryōri  本膳料理  lit.
main tray cooking    which was formal banquet dining where several trays of food was served.
There is also the homophone kaiseki ryōri  会席料理  lit.
This may be accompanied by a clear or miso soup and tsukemono  pickles .
This is done even in Japanese homes.
Placing main dishes on top of rice and  soiling  is also frowned upon by old fashioned etiquette.
However  an exception is the popular donburi.
tea bowl   doubles as a word for the large tea bowls in tea ceremonies.
History     Rice is a staple in Japanese cuisine.
Wheat and soybeans were introduced shortly after rice.
During the Kofun period  Buddhism became the official religion of the country.
Therefore  eating meat and fish was prohibited.
In 675 AD  Emperor Tenmu prohibited the eating of horses  dogs  monkeys  and chickens.
In the 8th and 9th centuries  many emperors continued to prohibit killing many types of animals.
During this period  chopsticks were introduced to Japan.
Initially  they were only used by the nobility.
The general population used their hands  as utensils were quite expensive.
Spices were rare to find at the time.
Spices like pepper and garlic were only used in a minimalist amount.
In the absence of meat  fish was served as the main protein  as Japan is an island nation.
Fish has influenced many iconic Japanese dishes today.
In the 9th century  grilled fish and sliced raw fish were widely popular.
Sushi thus became a popular snack food and main entrée  combining fish with rice.
During the Edo period  mid 15th century   sushi without fermentation was introduced.
The feast contained food that had a lot of European emphases.
For the first time in a thousand years  people were allowed to consume meat in public.
After this New Years feast  the general population from Japan started to consume meat again.
Seasonality means taking advantage of the  fruit of the mountains   山の幸  yama no sachi  alt.
bounty of the sea   as they come into season.
The consumption of whale and terrapin meat were not forbidden under this definition.
Despite this  the consumption of red meat did not completely disappear in Japan.
Several of the monks were killed during the break in attempt  and the remainder were arrested.
On the other hand  the consumption of meat was accepted by the common people.
Gyūnabe  beef hot pot   the prototype of Sukiyaki  became the rage of the time.
Western restaurants moved in  and some of them changed their form to Yōshoku.
A major exception is the deep frying of foods.
Words such as tempura or hiryōzu  synonymous with ganmodoki  are said to be of Portuguese origin.
These are typically the only seasonings used when grilling or braising an item.
Examples of such spices include ginger and takanotsume  鷹の爪  red pepper.
A sprig of mitsuba or a piece of yuzu rind floated on soups are called ukimi.
Shichimi is also a very popular spice mixture often added to soups  noodles and rice cakes.
A tosazu  土佐酢   Tosa vinegar   adds katsuo dashi to this.
Shira ae  白和え  adds tofu  bean curd  in the mix.
The style is minimalist  extolling the aesthetics of wabi sabi.
Like the tea ceremony  appreciation of the diningware and vessels is part of the experience.
An exception is shōjin ryōri  精進料理   vegetarian dishes developed by Buddhist monks.
However  the advertised shōjin ryōri at public eating places includes some non vegetarian elements.
The sect in Japan was founded by the priest Ingen  d. 1673   and is headquartered in Uji  Kyoto.
Rice     Rice has been the staple food for the Japanese historically.
While rice has a long history of cultivation in Japan  its use as a staple has not been universal.
Noodles     Japanese noodles often substitute for a rice based meal.
There are also other  less common noodles.
It may have toppings  but they are called gu  具 .
are added to the noodles  besides the broth dip sauce.
The word nuuhara  ヌーハラ  from  nuudoru harasumento   noodle harassment  was coined to describe this.
Sweets     Traditional Japanese sweets are known as wagashi.
Ingredients such as red bean paste and mochi are used.
More modern day tastes includes green tea ice cream  a very popular flavor.
Almost all manufacturers produce a version of it.
Kakigōri is a shaved ice dessert flavored with syrup or condensed milk.
It is usually sold and eaten at summer festivals.
A dessert very popular among the children in Japan are dorayaki.
They are sweet pancakes filled with a sweet red bean paste.
They are mostly eaten at room temperature but are also considered very delicious hot.
Beverages          Tea     Green tea may be served with most Japanese dishes.
Beer       Beer production started in Japan in the 1860s.
Beer and its varieties have a market share of almost 2 3 of alcoholic beverages.
Side dishes for sake are particularly called sakana or otsumami.
As of 2014  Japan has some 1500 registered breweries  which produce thousands of different sakes.
Shōchū is produced everywhere in Japan  but its production started in Kyushu.
Wine     A domestic wine production exists since the 1860s yet most wine is imported.
The total market share of wine on alcoholic beverages is about 3 .
On the other hand  Kansai region foods are lightly seasoned  with clear udon noodles.
Behind these  each okazu is served on its own individual plate.
Pickled vegetables are often served on the side but are not counted as part of the three okazu.
Only men are supposed to sit cross legged.
The formal way of sitting for both sexes is a kneeling style known as seiza.
In the home  the most important guest is also seated farthest away from the entrance.
If there is a tokonoma  or alcove  in the room  the guest is seated in front of it.
When saying itadakimasu  both hands are put together in front of the chest or on the lap.
Itadakimasu is preceded by complimenting the appearance of food.
Before touching the food  it is polite to compliment the host on his artistry.
Chimaki  steamed sweet rice cake   Tango no sekku and Gion Festival.
Hamo  a type of fish  often eel  and sōmen  Gion Festival.
Sekihan is red rice  which is served for any celebratory occasion.
This is called toshi koshi soba  ja 年越しそば   literally  year crossing soba  .
The average Japanese person eats curry at least once a week.
Today  many of these imported items still hold a heavy presence in Japan.
Restaurants that serve these foods are called yōshokuya  洋食屋   Western cuisine restaurants  .
Many are served alongside rice and miso soup  and eaten with chopsticks.
Okonomiyaki      Okonomiyaki is a savoury pancake containing a variety of ingredients.
Tonkatsu      Tonkatsu is a breaded  deep fried pork cutlet.
Curry      Curry was introduced to Japan by the British in the Meiji period.
This can be eaten during dinner most of the time.
Outside Japan     Many countries have imported portions of Japanese cuisine.
These key nations or region are Taiwan  Hong Kong  China  Singapore  Thailand and Indonesia.
It is one of the most popular styles of sushi in the US market.
Popular items are sushi  sashimi  and teriyaki.
Two of the first Japanese restaurants in the United States were Saito and Nippon.
The meal would be served with steamed rice and Japanese  soup.
Canada     In Canada  Japanese cuisine has become quite popular.
Sushi and sashimi takeout began in Vancouver and Toronto  and is now common throughout Canada.
Izakaya restaurants have surged in popularity.
United Kingdom      Japanese food restaurant chains in the UK include Wagamama  YO!
Taiwan     Japan and Taiwan have shared close historical and cultural relations.
Dishes such as sushi  ramen  and donburi are very popular among locals.
Taiwan has adapted many Japanese food items.
It is popular as a night market snack and as an ingredient for oden  hot pot and lu wei.
Thailand     In Southeast Asia  Thailand is the largest market for Japanese food.
This is also contributed to the fact that Indonesia has large numbers of Japanese expatriates.
The main concern is the halal issue.
In some cases  Japanese cuisine in Indonesia is often slanted to suit Indonesian taste.
As a result the foods served there have been adapted to suit Indonesians  taste.
Today  okonomiyaki and takoyaki are popular street fare in Jakarta and other Indonesian cities.
The Philippines have been exposed to the influences from the Japanese  Indian and Chinese.
The cities of Davao and Metro Manila probably have the most Japanese influence in the country.
In the Philippines  Halo halo is derived from Japanese Kakigori.
As of 2021  the prefecture has an estimated population of 	13 960 236.
By the mid 18th century  Edo was one of the most populous cities in the world at over one million.
In 2019  it hosted 36 of the Fortune Global 500 companies.
Edo was first fortified by the Edo clan  in the late twelfth century.
In 1457  Ōta Dōkan built Edo Castle.
In 1590  Tokugawa Ieyasu moved from Mikawa Province  his lifelong base  to the Kantō region.
When he became shōgun in 1603  Edo became the center of his ruling.
After 265 years  the Pax Tokugawa came to an end.
The city was divided into Yamanote and Shitamachi.
The city of Tokyo was officially established on May 1  1889.
The 1970s brought new high rise developments.
In the 1980s  real estate prices skyrocketed during a real estate and debt bubble.
Tokyo still sees new urban developments on large lots of less profitable land.
The most prominent is the Odaiba area  now a major shopping and entertainment center.
These plans have been controversial within Japan and have yet to be realized.
Tokyo was supposed to be the first Asian city to host the Olympic Games twice.
The average elevation in Tokyo is 40 m  131 ft .
Its administrative structure is similar to that of Japan s other prefectures.
It is headed by a publicly elected governor and metropolitan assembly.
Its headquarters is in Shinjuku Ward.
The special wards use the word  city  in their official English name  e.g.
It is often called the  political center  of the country.
Collectively  these are often known as the Tama area or Western Tokyo.
Much of this area is mountainous and unsuitable for urbanization.
Lake Okutama  on the Tama River near Yamanashi Prefecture  is Tokyo s largest lake.
The district is composed of three towns  Hinode  Mizuho and Okutama  and one village  Hinohara .
The Izu Islands are a group of volcanic islands and form part of the Fuji Hakone Izu National Park.
The Izu Islands are grouped into three subprefectures.
Izu Ōshima and Hachijojima are towns.
The remaining islands are six villages  with Niijima and Shikinejima forming one village.
Local populations are only found on Chichi Jima and Haha Jima.
The islands form both Ogasawara Subprefecture and the village of Ogasawara  Tokyo.
There are also artworks and statues at several places in the park.
There is also a zoo in the park  and the park is a popular destination to view cherry blossoms.
Particularly active are offshore regions and to a lesser extent Chiba and Ibaraki.
Volcanic eruptions     Mount Fuji is about 100 km  62 mi  southwest of Tokyo.
There is a low risk of eruption.
Kanagawa had 16cm to 8cm ash and Saitama 0.5 to 0 cm.
If the wind blows north east it could send volcanic ash to Tokyo metropolis.
The affected areas would need to be evacuated.
Important rivers are Edogawa  Nakagawa  Arakawa  Kandagawa  Megurogawa and Tamagawa.
In 1947 Typhoon Kathleen struck Tokyo  destroying 31 000 homes and killing 1 100 people.
In 1958 Typhoon Ida inflicted 400mm rain in 1 week which flooded streets.
A huge system of dams  levees and tunnels was constructed.
The purpose is to manage heavy rain  typhonic rain  and river floods.
It took 13 years to build and was completed in 2006.
During floods  excess water is collected from rivers and drained to the Edo River.
Snowfall is sporadic  but does occur almost annually.
Tokyo also often sees typhoons every year  though few are strong.
Annual precipitation has ranged from 879.5 mm  34.63 in  in 1984 to 2 229.6 mm  87.78 in  in 1938.
Tokyo has experienced significant warming of its climate since temperature records began in 1876.
The climates of Tokyo s offshore territories vary significantly from those of the city.
Cityscape    Architecture in Tokyo has largely been shaped by Tokyo s history.
Environment    Tokyo has enacted a measure to cut greenhouse gases.
In the same year  a total of 779 foreign nationals were recorded as residing in Tokyo.
Economy     Tokyo has the largest metropolitan economy in the world.
The farmland is concentrated in Western Tokyo.
Tokyo Bay was once a major source of fish.
Most of Tokyo s fish production comes from the outer islands  such as Izu Ōshima and Hachijō Jima.
It is also one of the largest wholesale food markets of any kind.
It is located in the Toyosu area of Kōtō ward.
However  its airspace has been under the US military s exclusive control after World War II.
There are up to 62 electric train lines and more than 900 train stations in Tokyo.
Therefore  Japan constructed airports outside Tokyo.
Japan s flag carrier Japan Airlines  as well as All Nippon Airways  have a hub at this airport.
Haneda Airport on the reclaimed land at Ōta  offers domestic and international flights.
JR East is also responsible for Shinkansen high speed rail lines.
The Metropolitan Government and private carriers operate bus routes and one tram route.
To build them quickly before the 1964 Summer Olympics  most were constructed above existing roads.
Other transportation includes taxis operating in the special wards and the cities and towns.
Education     Tokyo has many universities  junior colleges  and vocational schools.
Tokyo has many theaters for performing arts.
These include national and private theaters for traditional forms of Japanese drama.
Noteworthy are the National Noh Theatre for noh and the Kabuki za for Kabuki.
Symphony orchestras and other musical organizations perform modern and traditional music.
Many different festivals occur throughout Tokyo.
The last features a parade with elaborately decorated floats and thousands of people.
Cuisine in Tokyo is internationally acclaimed.
As of 2017  227 restaurants in Tokyo have been awarded  92 in Paris .
Football clubs in Tokyo include F.C.
Basketball clubs include the Hitachi SunRockers  Toyota Alvark Tokyo and Tokyo Excellence.
Tokyo hosted the 1964 Summer Olympics  thus becoming the first Asian city to host the Summer Games.
In 2016  it was to be replaced by the New National Stadium.
Some Hollywood directors have turned to Tokyo as a backdrop for movies set in Japan.
Tokyo was also a founding member of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group.
In 1889  Osaka was officially established as a municipality.
Osaka is a major financial center of Japan.
Etymology    Ōsaka means  large hill  or  large slope .
The older kanji  坂  is still in very limited use  usually only in historical contexts.
The Uehonmachi area consisted of a peninsula with an inland sea  Seto Inland Sea  in the east.
It is estimated that the ruins contain 2 000 year old debris between the Jōmon and Yayoi period.
Four of these mounds can be seen in Ōsaka  in which important members of the nobility are buried.
They are located in the southern districts of the city and date back to the 5th century.
The port of Naniwa tsu was established and became the most important in Japan.
Trade with other areas of the country and the Asian continent intensified.
Four of these mounds can be seen in Ōsaka  in which important members of the nobility are buried.
They are located in the southern districts of the city and date back to the 5th century.
Sumiyoshi Taisha Grand Shrine was founded by Tamomi no Sukune in 211 CE.
Shitennō ji was first built in 593 CE and the oldest Buddhist temple in Japan.
Toyotomi Hideyoshi constructed Osaka Castle in its place in 1583.
Osaka Castle played a pivotal role in the Siege of Osaka  1614 1615 .
Its popular culture was closely related to ukiyo e depictions of life in Edo.
From being the capital of the economy and finance  it became a predominantly industrial center.
Osaka was the industrial center most clearly defined in the development of capitalism in Japan.
It became known as the  Manchester of the Orient .
Like its European and American counterparts  Osaka displayed slums  unemployment  and poverty.
The factories were rebuilt and trade revived.
The city occupies a larger area  about 13   than any other city or village within Osaka Prefecture.
The city rarely sees snowfall during the winter.
Spring in Osaka starts off mild  but ends up being hot and humid.
The average starting and ending dates of the rainy season are June 7 and July 21 respectively.
Summers are very hot and humid.
The Midōsuji boulevard runs through Semba and connects Kita and Minami.
Osaka numbered roughly 200 bridges by the Edo period  and 1629 bridges by 1925.
There were 1 280 325 households with approximately 2.1 persons per household.
The population density was 11 836 persons per km2.
The council elects its president and Vice President.
Toshifumi Tagaya  LDP  is the current and 104th president since May 2008.
Tōru Hashimoto  former governor of Osaka Prefecture is the 19th mayor of Osaka since 2011.
Below is a list of governmental offices housed in Osaka.
There were 692 996  50.6   votes against and 675 829  49.4   votes supported it.
the installation of new kind of thermal power generation to secure non nuclear supply of energy.
Osaka s GDP per capita  Nominal  was  59 958.
Many major companies have since moved their main offices to Tokyo.
It jumped up nine places from 11th place in 2008 and was the eighth most expensive city in 2007.
However  it was not ranked in the top ten places of the list in 2013.
Keihanshin has a GDP of approximately  953.9 billion in 2012  16th largest in the world .
Osaka Kobe has a GDP of  681 billion  2015   which is a bit more than Paris or Greater London.
Many of them are concentrated in the wards of Chuō  10 468 shops  and Kita  6 335 shops .
Shōtengai are seen across Japan  and Osaka has the longest one in the country.
The stores along the arcade include commodities  clothing  and catering outlets.
Osaka is known for its food  in Japan and abroad.
Osaka is known for its fine sake  which is made with fresh water from the prefecture s mountains.
At Osaka Shochiku za  close to Namba station  kabuki can be enjoyed as well as manzai.
The Hanjō tei opened in 2006  dedicated to rakugo.
The theatre is in the Ōsaka Tenman gū area.
Umeda Arts Theater opened in 2005 after relocating from its former 46 year old Umeda Koma Theater.
The theater has a main hall with 1 905 seats and a smaller theater drama hall with 898 seats.
The Hall was opened with a concert by the Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra  which is based in the city.
Osaka jō Hall is a multi purpose arena in Osaka jō park with a capacity for up to 16 000 people.
The hall has hosted numerous events and concerts including both Japanese and international artists.
The Bolshoi Ballet and the Philharmonia are among the many that were welcomed on stage in the past.
The hall has closed at the end of 2008  planned to re open in 2013 in a new facility.
The annual Osaka Asian Film Festival takes place in Osaka every March.
Its exhibits cover the history of Osaka from pre history to the present day.
There are two J.League clubs  Gamba Osaka  plays its home games at Suita City Football Stadium.
Another club Cerezo Osaka  plays its home games at Yanmar Stadium Nagai.
The city is home to Osaka Evessa  a basketball team that plays in the B.League.
Evessa has won the first three championships of the league since its establishment.
Kintetsu Liners  a rugby union team  play in the Top League.
Their base is the Hanazono Rugby Stadium.
The Osaka GP is the only IAAF games annually held in Japan.
In July 2012 the first Japan Bandy Festival was organised.
However major film productions are uncommon in the city.
Most major films are produced in nearby Kyoto or in Tokyo.
The Ad Council Japan is based in Osaka.
NHK has also its regional station based in the city.
As of February 2009  the city is fully covered by terrestrial digital TV broadcasts.
Its supervisory organization on educational matters is Osaka City Board of Education.
Likewise  public high schools are operated by the Osaka Prefectural Board of Education.
As a result  until 1991 the Osaka area had no schools catering to expatriate children.
Japan s World Cities  Tokyo  Osaka  Nagoya or Tokaido Megalopolis?
In 794  Kyoto  then known as Heian kyō  was chosen as the new seat of Japan s imperial court.
The modern municipality of Kyoto was established in 1889.
Kyoto is considered the cultural capital of Japan and a major tourist destination.
Name    In Japanese  Kyoto was previously called Kyō  京   Miyako  都   or Kyō no Miyako  京の都 .
Kyoto is also sometimes called the thousand year capital  千年の都 .
During the Ōnin War  the shugo collapsed  and power was divided among the military families.
The city has not seen such widespread destruction since.
Hideyoshi also built earthwork walls called odoi  御土居  encircling the city.
The subsequent move of the emperor to Tokyo in 1869 weakened the economy.
The modern city of Kyoto was formed on April 1  1889.
The construction of Lake Biwa Canal in 1890 was one measure taken to revive the city.
Kyoto became a city designated by government ordinance on September 1  1956.
In 1997  Kyoto hosted the conference that resulted in the protocol on greenhouse gas emissions.
Kyoto sits atop a large natural water table that provides the city with ample freshwater wells.
In 1947  it went back to being 3rd.
By 1960 it had fallen to 5th again  and by 1990 it had fallen to 7th  in 2015 it is now 9th.
Summers are hot and humid  but winters are relatively cold with occasional snowfall.
The legislative city assembly has 67 elected members.
Together  they make up the city of Kyoto.
Like other cities in Japan  Kyoto has a single mayor and a city council.
Kyoto has been  and still remains  Japan s cultural center.
The government of Japan is relocating the Agency for Cultural Affairs to Kyoto in 2021.
The  Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto  are listed by the UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
Other sites outside the city are also on the list.
Kyoto is renowned for its abundance of delicious Japanese foods and cuisine.
Many jidaigeki  action films featuring samurai  were shot at Toei Uzumasa Eigamura.
Actual film shooting takes place occasionally  and visitors are welcome to observe the action.
Courtesans performing duties at Tokyo were referred to as  Edokko   bourgois .
Tourists are hugely fond of Kyoto  contributing significantly to its economy.
Sake brewing is Kyoto s traditional industry.
Gekkeikan and Takara Holdings are major sake brewers headquartered in Kyoto.
Encompassing ¥10.12 trillion  Kyoto MEA has the fourth largest economy in the country in 2010.
Kyoto University is considered to be one of the top national universities nationwide.
Some buses go further  make stops at major hotels and terminals in the downtown area.
Buses      Kyoto s municipal bus network is extensive.
Private carriers also operate within the city.
Many tourists join commuters on the public buses  or take tour buses.
Cycling     Cycling is a very important form of personal transportation in the city.
The geography and scale of the city are such that the city may be easily navigated on a bicycle.
There are five bicycle rental stations and 21 EcoStations in central Kyoto.
Because of the large number of cyclists  permitted bicycle parking areas can be difficult to find.
Bicycles parked in non permitted areas are impounded.
The Kyoto Jukan Expressway connects the city to northern regions of Kyoto Prefecture.
The Daini Keihan Road is a new bypass  completed in 2010  to Osaka.
They link to the other subway line  the Tōzai Line  at Karasuma Oike.
At Shijō Karasuma  the subway station is named Shijō  whereas Hankyu s station is called Karasuma.
All the stations are located in the city proper.
This line runs from the southeastern area of the city  then east to west  i.e.
All the stations except Rokujizō are located in Kyoto.
The trip from Tokyo takes about two hours and eighteen minutes.
From Hakata in Fukuoka  Nozomi takes you to Kyoto in just over three hours.
There are a number of rivers  canals and other navigable waterways in Kyoto.
Lake Biwa Canal was a significant infrastructural development.
Tourism     Kyoto contains roughly 2 000 temples and shrines.
The site was designated as World Heritage in 1994.
The first is the Aoi Matsuri on May 15.
The October 22 Jidai Matsuri  Festival of the Ages  celebrates Kyoto s illustrious past.
Sanga Stadium by Kyocera is its home stadium.
Many foreign scholars  artists and writers have stayed in Kyoto over the centuries.
Siyun sai Rin siyo Hayashi Gahō  1652   Nihon Ōdai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
Ropes have tensile strength and so can be used for dragging and lifting.
Rope is thicker and stronger than similarly constructed cord  string  and twine.
Synthetic fibres in use for rope making include polypropylene  nylon  polyesters  e.g.
Twaron  Technora and Kevlar  and acrylics  e.g.
Some ropes are constructed of mixtures of several fibres or use co polymer fibres.
Wire rope is made of steel or other metal alloys.
Rayon is a regenerated fibre used to make decorative rope.
In metric systems of measurement  nominal diameter is given in millimetres.
Use     Rope has been used since prehistoric times.
Winches and capstans are machines designed to pull ropes.
Such ropes are of kernmantle construction  as described below.
Oppositely   static  ropes have minimal stretch and are not designed to arrest free falls.
They are used in caving  rappelling  rescue applications  and industries such as window washing.
Any rope bearing a GUIANA or CE certification tag is suitable for climbing.
Keeping them away from sharp rock edges is imperative.
Rock climbing ropes are designated as suitable for single  double or twin use.
A single rope is the most common  and is intended to be used by itself.
Smaller diameter ropes are lighter  but wear out faster.
Double ropes are thinner than single  usually 9 mm and under  and are intended for use in pairs.
This adds security in situations where a rope may get cut.
Egyptian rope dates back to 4000 to 3500 BC and was generally made of water reed fibres.
Starting from approximately 2800 BC  rope made of hemp fibres was in use in China.
The cable length was thus set by the length of the available rope walk.
This is related to the unit of length termed cable length.
This allowed for long ropes of up to 300 yards long or longer to be made.
By the late 18th century several working machines had been built and patented.
The handedness of the twist is the direction of the twists as they progress away from an observer.
Thus Z twist rope is said to be right handed  and S twist to be left handed.
Twisted ropes are built up in three steps.
First  fibres are gathered and spun into yarns.
A number of these yarns are then formed into strands by twisting.
The strands are then twisted together to lay the rope.
One property of laid rope is partial untwisting when used.
This can cause spinning of suspended loads  or stretching  kinking  or hockling of the rope itself.
Normal right laid rope should be coiled clockwise  to prevent kinking.
Coiling this way imparts a twist to the rope.
Rope of this type must be bound at its ends by some means to prevent untwisting.
Nylon is chosen for its strength and elastic stretch properties.
However  nylon absorbs water and is 10–15  weaker when wet.
It has somewhat better UV resistance  and is more abrasion resistant.
The strands can interlock with either twill or plain weave.
It is not as round as twisted rope and coarser to the touch.
This construction exposes all fibres as well  with the same drawbacks as described above.
Due to its excellent energy absorption characteristics  it is often used by arborists.
It is also a popular rope for anchoring and can be used as mooring warps.
This type of construction was pioneered by Yale Cordage.
Endless winding is pioneered by SmartRigging and FibreMax.
To prevent kinking it is usually coiled.
There is no substitute for a properly made whipping.
Serious inspection should be given to line after that point.
However  the use to which a rope is put affects frequency of inspection.
Ropes may be flemished into coils on deck for safety   presentation  and tidiness.
Care should be taken around lines under load.
Terminology     Rope  is a material  and a tool.
A line may get a further distinction  for example sail control lines are known as “sheets”   e.g.
A halyard is a line used to raise and lower a sail  typically  with a shackle on its sail end.
Other maritime examples of “lines” include anchor line  mooring line  fishing line  marline.
Common items include clothesline and a chalk line.
In some marine uses the term rope is retained  such as man rope  bolt rope  and bell rope.
Strunk  P.  Abels  J. Das große Abenteuer 2.Teil  Verlag Karl Wenzel  Marburg  1986.
It also administers the Electoral College.
Since 1964  the NHPRC has awarded some 4 500 grants.
NARA s mission also includes resolving FOIA disputes between Federal agencies and requesters.
The program was originally scheduled to end in 2007.
Records include paper documents  microfilm  still pictures  motion pictures  and electronic media.
However  records from other sources may still be protected by copyright or donor agreements.
Census records are among the most frequently requested at NARA  with the oldest entries from 1790.
These records often contain information such as addresses and names of family members.
The newest unrestricted census is from 1940 and was released to the general public in April 2012.
The subsequent census from 1950 will be released in 2022.
This includes naturalization records and vital records that reveal extensive personal data.
These events are free of charge and are designed for interested individuals of any skill level.
Materials from past Genealogy Fairs are available on the National Archives website.
Archival Recovery Teams     Archival Recovery Teams investigate the theft of records.
Federal government agencies pay a yearly fee for storage at the facility.
WNRC also offers research services and maintains a small research room.
A joint venture with Google will digitize and offer NARA video online.
Our new strategic plan emphasizes the importance of providing access to records anytime  anywhere.
This is one of many initiatives that we are launching to make our goal a reality.
A new teaching with documents Web site premiered in 2010 and was developed by the education team.
The site features 3 000 documents  images  and recordings from the holdings of the Archives.
It also features lesson plans and tools for creating new classroom activities and lessons.
Besides censoring language  the changes altered the meaning of some protest signs.
Further reading     Sixty Ton Statue Is Carved from a Single Slab of Stone .
Ten Ton Door Made of Bronze is Thirty Five Feet High .
.jp is the Internet country code top level domain  ccTLD  for Japan.
It is administered by the Japan Registry Services.
In April 1989  the junet admin group began formally registering .jp domain names.
.jp registrations are only allowed if the registrant has a physical address in Japan.
prefecturename .jp  reserved for the prefectural government city.
cityname .jp  reserved for cities designated by government ordinance city. cityname .
prefecturename .jp  reserved for towns vill. villagename .
In 2008  a preliminary application was made.
Varied accounts indicate the duration of the earthquake was between four and ten minutes.
Extensive firestorms and even a fire tornado added to the death toll.
the Kantō Massacre  has been documented.
Fires started immediately after the earthquake.
Some fires developed into firestorms that swept across cities.
Many people died when their feet became stuck on melting tarmac.
These winds caused fires to spread rapidly.
The RMS Empress of Australia was about to leave Yokohama harbour when the earthquake struck.
It narrowly survived and assisted in rescuing 2000 survivors.
Over 570 000 homes were destroyed  leaving an estimated 1.9 million homeless.
Evacuees were transported by ship from Kantō to as far as Kobe in Kansai.
The damage is estimated to have exceeded 1 billion USD  or about   15 billion today .
Postquake violence      Ethnic Koreans were massacred after the earthquake.
Anti Korean sentiment was heightened by fear of the Korean independence movement.
Independent reports said the number of dead was far higher  ranging from 6 000 to 10 000.
Army and police personnel colluded in the vigilante killings in some areas.
About 700 Chinese  mostly from Wenzhou  were killed.
A monument commemorating this was built in 1993 in Wenzhou.
Proposed sites for the new capital were even discussed.
Schools and public and private organizations host disaster drills.
The embargo was targeted at nations perceived as supporting Israel during the Yom Kippur War.
Oil started to replace coal as a preferred fuel source.
In 1920  American oilfields accounted for nearly two thirds of global oil production.
In 1945  US production had increased to just over two thirds.
Critics called it the  drain America first  policy.
In 1973  Nixon announced the end of the quota system.
The five founding members of OPEC were Venezuela  Iraq  Saudi Arabia  Iran and Kuwait.
Shortly thereafter  Britain followed  floating its pound sterling.
The other industrialized nations followed suit with their respective currencies.
The result was a depreciation of the dollar and other industrialized nations  currencies.
Because oil was priced in dollars  oil producers  real income decreased.
After 1971  OPEC was slow to readjust prices to reflect this depreciation.
From 1947 to 1967  the dollar price of oil had risen by less than two percent per year.
OAPEC demanded a complete Israeli withdrawal from all territories beyond the 1949 Armistice border.
Effectiveness of embargo    The embargo lasted from October 1973 to March 1974.
Night of October 8—Israel goes on full nuclear alert.
Kissinger is notified on the morning of October 9.
United States begins to resupply Israel.
This followed similar Soviet moves to supply the Arab side.
October 17—OAPEC oil ministers agree to use oil to influence the West s support of Israel.
They recommended an embargo against non complying states and mandated export cuts.
Libya immediately proclaims an embargo on oil exports to the US.
Saudi Arabia and other Arab oil producing states follow the next day.
October 26—The Yom Kippur War ends.
November 5—Arab producers announce a 25  output cut.
A further 5  cut is threatened.
November 23—The Arab embargo is extended to Portugal  Rhodesia and South Africa.
December 25—Arab oil ministers cancel the January output cut.
Saudi oil minister Ahmed Zaki Yamani promises a ten percent OPEC production rise.
January 7–9  1974—OPEC decides to freeze prices until April 1.
January 18—Israel signs a withdrawal agreement to pull back to the east side of the Suez Canal.
February 11—Kissinger unveils the Project Independence plan for US energy independence.
March 5—Israel withdraws the last of its troops from the west side of the Suez Canal.
May 31—Diplomacy by Kissinger produces a disengagement agreement on the Syrian front.
Effects          Immediate economic effects      The effects of the embargo were immediate.
OPEC forced oil companies to increase payments drastically.
The oil exporting nations began to accumulate vast wealth.
Much went for arms purchases that exacerbated political tensions  particularly in the Middle East.
It came in the form of an embargo and production cutbacks from the Arab states.
The weapon was aimed at the United States  Great Britain  Canada  Japan and the Netherlands.
Production was eventually cut by 25 .
Macroeconomic problems consisted of both inflationary and deflationary impacts.
OPEC member states raised the prospect of nationalization of oil company holdings.
As other OPEC nations followed suit  the cartel s income soared.
Saudi Arabia undertook a series of ambitious five year development plans.
The biggest began in 1980  funded at  250 billion.
Other cartel members also undertook major economic development programs.
State governments asked citizens not to put up Christmas lights.
Oregon banned Christmas and commercial lighting altogether.
The EEC was unable to achieve a common policy during the first month of the embargo.
It issued a statement on November 6  after the embargo and price rises had begun.
It was widely viewed as pro Arab  supporting the Franco British line on the war.
OPEC duly lifted its embargo from all EEC members.
The price rises had a much greater impact in Europe than the embargo.
Heath asked the British to heat only one room in their houses over the winter.
The UK  Germany  Italy  Switzerland and Norway banned flying  driving and boating on Sundays.
Sweden rationed gasoline and heating oil.
Predictably  old oil was withdrawn from the market  creating greater scarcity.
The rule also discouraged development of alternative energies.
The rule had been intended to promote oil exploration.
Scarcity was addressed by rationing  as in many countries .
In other states  lines at gasoline stations were common.
With the inflation of the 1970s  the price was too low to encourage the search for new reserves.
America s natural gas reserves dwindled from 237 trillion in 1974 to 203 trillion in 1978.
The price controls were not changed  despite president Gerald Ford s repeated requests to Congress.
The prior rules were restored in 1976.
A higher percentage of cars offered more efficient four cylinder engines.
Domestic auto makers also began offering more fuel efficient diesel powered passenger cars as well.
Although not regulated by the new legislation  auto racing groups voluntarily began conserving.
Investment shifted to industries such as electronics.
Japanese auto makers also benefited from the crisis.
This triggered a drop in American auto sales that lasted into the 1980s.
Arab oil producers linked any future policy changes to peace between the belligerents.
To address this  the Nixon Administration began multilateral negotiations with the combatants.
They arranged for Israel to pull back from the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights.
United States      America s Cold War policies suffered a major blow from the embargo.
NATO      Western Europe began switching from pro Israel to more pro Arab policies.
This change strained the Western alliance.
71  of its imported oil came from the Middle East in 1970.
It received a 5  production cut in December  causing a panic.
By December 25  Japan was considered an Arab friendly state.
The response of the Nixon administration was to propose doubling arms sales.
Vacillations in alignment often resulted in greater support from the respective superpowers.
The oil crisis pushed West European car buyers away from larger  less economical cars.
The most notable result of this transition was the rise in popularity of compact hatchbacks.
Buyers looking for larger cars were increasingly drawn to medium sized hatchbacks.
United States       Before the energy crisis  large  heavy  and powerful cars were popular.
By 1971  the standard engine in a Chevrolet Caprice was a 400 cubic inch  6.5 liter  V8.
American Motors sold its homegrown Gremlin  Hornet and Pacer models.
Mitsubishi rebranded its Forte as the Dodge D 50 a few years after the oil crisis.
Mazda  Mitsubishi and Isuzu had joint partnerships with Ford  Chrysler  and GM  respectively.
By 1985  the average American vehicle moved 17.4 miles per gallon  compared to 13.5 in 1970.
Economical imports succeeded alongside heavy  expensive vehicles.
By 1977  GM s full sized cars reflected the crisis.
Additionally  its own member nations were divided.
Adjusted for inflation  oil briefly fell back to pre 1973 levels.
This  sale  price was a windfall for oil importing nations  both developing and developed.
Exploration in the Caspian Basin and Siberia became profitable.
Cooperation changed into a far more adversarial relationship as the USSR increased its production.
The divisions within OPEC made concerted action more difficult.
As of 2015  OPEC has never approached its earlier dominance.
The King of Oil  The Secret Lives of Marc Rich.
Painter  David S.  2014   Oil and geopolitics  The oil crises of the 1970s and the cold war.
Security Studies 25.2  2016   214–257.
Saudi dove in the oil slick  The Guardian.
Why Oil Prices Go Up  The Past  We Pushed Them  Foreign Policy.
The 1998 Winter Olympics were succeeded by the 1998 Winter Paralympics from 5 to 14 March.
These were the final Winter Olympic Games under the IOC presidency of Juan Antonio Samaranch.
There were 2 176 athletes from 72 nations  competing in 7 sports and 68 events.
These Games saw the introduction of curling  snowboarding  and women s ice hockey.
Azerbaijan  Kenya  Macedonia  Uruguay  and Venezuela made their Winter Olympic debuts.
Ski jumper Kazuyoshi Funaki won two gold medals and one silver for host nation Japan.
The Czech Republic won the gold medal in the men s ice hockey tournament.
Host city selection     In 1932  Japan won the rights to host the 1940 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
Several Japanese cities  including Nagano  prepared a bid.
Sapporo was chosen  however  the games never took place because of World War II.
Other Japanese cities that were bidding were Asahikawa  Yamagata  and Morioka.
After the first round of voting  Nagano led  with Aosta and Salt Lake City tied for last.
Aosta was eliminated in a run off against Salt Lake City.
In June 1995  Salt Lake was chosen as the host of the following 2002 Winter Olympics.
Although nothing illegal was ever done  gifts to IOC members were considered morally dubious.
In addition  more than 100 000 tickets were reserved for children.
The most expensive venue was M Wave  which hosted the long track speed skating events.
Television rights were worth 35.4 billion  and marketing earned 31.3 billion.
Ticket sales were worth 10.5 billion.
These combined to make transportation an important challenge for the organizing committee.
Similarly  Tokyo used cherry blossoms in its logo for its candidature for the 2020 Summer Olympics.
They consisted of four owlets  Sukki  Nokki  Lekki and Tsukki  also called Snowlets.
The names were chosen from more than 47 000 suggestions.
In addition to the official poster  a separate poster was created for the opening ceremony.
The number of tickets sold was 1 149 615  which represented 89.4  of available tickets.
Including people connected to the Games  the total number of spectators was 1 275 529.
Tickets sales were a success in Japan with a reservation list of 6 million.
For the most popular sports  a lottery was used.
Tickets sold for alpine skiing totaled 166 092  for ski jumping  96 000  and speed skating  93 000.
By contrast  only 56.6  of the 146 000 available tickets for cross country skiing were sold.
Average cost for Winter Games since 1960 is US 3.1 billion  average cost overrun is 142 .
Big Hat  named for its shape  was the principal site of ice hockey.
Aqua Wing Arena was the second ice hockey arena at the Games.
Shaped like a wing  it had a capacity of 6000 during the Olympics.
After the Games  it was modified into an interior swimming pool.
Aqua Wing is approximately 5 kilometers from Nagano Station.
Its closest stations are Kita Nagano Station and Asahi Station.
M Wave  used for speed skating  is the first indoor  long track speed skating venue in Japan.
It was built to accommodate 10 000 spectators.
White Ring  which is used as a public gymnasium  is approximately 6 kilometers from Nagano Station.
Hakuba village is situated 50 kilometers west of the city of Nagano.
Hakuba hosted three Olympics sites.
Alpine skiing s Downhill  Super G and Combined were situated at Happo one Resort.
The site has a capacity of 20 000 spectators.
The ski jumping stadium can accommodate 45 000 spectators.
Snow Harp Kamishiro was built for cross country skiing and Nordic combined.
It includes three tracks of 4.8  4.8  and 7.8 kilometers  6 meters wide.
The stadium is another 1.2 kilometers.
In total  Snow Harp has 19 kilometers of tracks.
Nozawa is approximately 50 kilometers north of Nagano.
At Nozawa Onsen  the stadium was built around six existing tracks.
Two tracks  of 4 kilometers and 7 kilometers  were used for the Games.
The site can accommodate 20 000 spectators.
Kanbayashi Snowboard Park was the site of the half pipe events.
The track is 120 meters long and 15 meters wide  with walls of 3.5 meters.
The Spiral  which held the sledding events  was the first artificially refrigerated track in Asia.
It is 1700 meters long  with a difference in height of 114 meters and 15 turns.
The venue was built as a multi purpose venue.
Its ice surface is 60 meters by 30.
Its maximum capacity is 1 924 spectators.
Along with the construction of the village  Imai Station was opened in 1997.
Temporary restaurants and shops were also available during the Games.
The Village was open from 24 January to 25 February 1998  and accommodated 3 200 people.
It was open from 4 to 16 February 1998.
The members of the IOC stayed athletes the Kokusai 21 Hotel in downtown Nagano.
In total  the Olympic family included 18 350 people.
On 22 December  the flame was transported to Japan by airplane.
The start  on 6 January  was from Okinawa  Kagoshima  and Hokkaido.
These three committee members then lit a torch held by Juan Antonio Samaranch.
A group of 5.5 million people took part in relay activities.
In addition  each relay was followed by two groups of 11 vehicles and more than 20 people.
The shape of the torch represented a traditional Japanese torch called taimatsu.
It was built with aluminum  was 55 centimeters long  and weighed 1.3 kilograms.
The exterior of the torch was painted silver  to represent winter.
Runners were blue and white uniforms symbolizing the color of the games and of snow.
The number in parentheses represents the number of athletes participating in official events.
This was 16 days and included three weekends.
Two sports  curling and snowboarding were added to the program  as was women s ice hockey.
This increased the number of sports to seven  and the number of disciplines to 14.
Of these  the men s downhills was delayed five days.
In all  167 200 people attended the medal ceremonies  which were held at 7 00 p.m. each night.
Music and dance performances took place before the medal presentations.
The gold  silver  and bronze medals each measured 80 mm in diameter and 9.7 mm in thickness.
This was followed by a performance from the Japanese singer Anri.
Juan Antonio Samaranch declared the Games closed  and the cauldron was extinguished.
A total of 15 countries won at least one gold medal and 18 nations won two or more medals.
In total  205 medals were distributed.
German female athletes won 22 of the country s 29 medals.
Finally  Kazakhstan won its first Winter Olympics medal by a female athlete.
The six events were the sprint  individual  and relay  for both men and women.
In all  183 athletes took part  including 96 men and 87 women from 32 different countries.
Her gold medal was the first ever Bulgarian gold medal at a Winter Olympics.
Her time was 54 52.0  with only one target missed.
The first men s event  the 20 km individual race  took place on 11 February.
The Belarusian Alexei Aidarov was 30.1 seconds behind the Norwegian  and won the bronze.
The two events were the two man and four man  for men only.
In all  156 athletes took part from 28 different countries.
This was the first time in Olympic bobsleigh history that there were ties for the medal positions.
The first time since the 1968 Winter Olympics did more than four countries win bobsleigh medals.
In the four man event  bad weather restricted the competition to three runs only.
Two teams  were awarded bronze medals after completing the three runs in 2 40.06.
In the gold medal game  Switzerland shocked Canada by winning 9–3.
Canada only lost to the Dordi Nordby team from Norway  and Sweden s only loss was to Canada.
In the gold medal game  Canada defeated Denmark by a score of 7–5.
Finland defeated Canada for the Bronze medal by a score of 3–2.
The first women s ice hockey world championship  a biennial tournament  took place in 1990.
The tournament included six teams playing in a one group round robin tournament.
In the round robin tournament  the Americans finished first  with the Canadians second.
Team Finland defeated Team China 4–1 for the bronze medal.
There were three events  men s single  women s single  and doubles.
Germany won all three gold medals  one silver  and one bronze.
The United States won one silver and one bronze.
Italy and Austria rounded out the medal table.
The first event with 24 lugers was the men s singles.
Each athlete completed four runs over two days  8 and 9 February.
Hackl raced in a newly designed luge and aerodynamic shoes.
Several team protested but these protests were rejected.
Angelika Neuner of Austria won the bronze  0.474 seconds behind the gold medalist.
The two race doubles competition  which in theory were open to females  consisted of 17 male pairs.
The event took place 13 February.
Medals were awarded in four events  men s and women s singles  pair skating  and ice dance.
The exhibition gala took place on 21 February.
Russia won five medals  including three gold and two silver.
The USA won one gold and one silver.
Canada won one silver  with China and Germany each winning one bronze.
A total of 18 nations were representing among the skaters.
South Korea won six medals  including three gold.
Canada won four medals  including two gold.
Host Japan won one gold and one silver  and China won five silver and one bronze medal.
The 14th ranked Japanese skater Takafumi Nishitani beat the Olympic record in the 500m semi finals.
In the final  he led from the start and won the gold medal with a time of 42.862 seconds.
The Canadian Marc Gagnon  who was in second place  fell with two laps remaining.
Kim won with a time of 1 32.375  0.053 seconds ahead of the silver medalist.
The Canadian Éric Bédard won the bronze  .223 seconds further behind.
The Japanese team won the B Final with a time that was five seconds faster than the gold medalists.
Charest was disqualified and Wang  angry  never finished the race.
Chun won the race with a time of 1 42.776 seconds.
Yang Yang  A  was disqualified for using her elbow to try to block Chun.
Yang Yang  S  won the silver  0.567 seconds behind the gold medalist from South Korea.
Won Hye kyung  also of South Korea  won the bronze a further 0.18 seconds behind.
The Canadian team won bronze with a time of 4 21.205.
In all  eight countries won medals.
The Netherlands won 11 medals  including five gold and four silver.
Canada  host Japan  and the USA also won multiple medals.
Twelve Olympic records and five World records were established at the Games on the ice at M Wave.
Gianni Romme and Marianne Timmer  both of the Netherlands  each won two gold medals.
The Nagano Olympics were the first where athletes wore clap skates.
Shimizu was the smallest skater at the Games  1.62m tall.
The 500m was run over two races for the first time at these Games.
The 1500m was won by Norwegian Ådne Søndrål with a world record time of 1 47.87.
Søndrål was 0.26 and 0.65 seconds ahead of two Dutch skaters  Ids Postma  and Rintje Ritsma.
Finally  in the 10 000m  three Dutch skaters won medals.
Her teammate  Susan Auch  finished second.
Both were coached by Susan s brother  Derrick Auch.
Tomomi Okazaki  of host Japan  won the bronze medal.
In the 1500m  Dutch skater Marianne Timmer won gold with a world record time of 1 57.58.
In the 1000m  Timmer won gold again  with a time of 1 16.51.
Witty won silver  0.26 seconds behind  and Le May Doan won bronze with a time of 1 17.37.
The German skater Franziska Schenk  one of the favorites  fell during the second lap.
In the 3000m  German skaters won all three medals.
Prokasheva s medal was the first medal by a female Kazakh athlete at any Winter Olympics.
Austria won 11 medals  including three gold.
Germany also won three gold  and six medals in total.
In all  228 athletes  including 126 men and 102 women  from 37 countries took part.
It was the third consecutive Games that freestyle skiing events took place.
The four events  men s and women s moguls and aerials  involved 110 athletes from 25 countries .
The United States won three gold medals.
Athletes from Finland won a silver and a bronze medal.
Six other countries took home either one silver or one bronze medal.
In men s moguls  the American Jonny Moseley was first after the qualifications.
Moseley easily won the final with a score of 26.93.
Lahtela was .93 points behind  and Mustonen was another .24 points behind.
The Canadian  Jean Luc Brassard  gold medalist from the 1994 Winter Olympics  finished in fourth.
The Frenchmen  Sébastien Foucras  and the Belarussian  Dmitri Dashinski  were second and third.
She was the first female Japanese Olympic champion.
The German  Tatjana Mittermayer scored 24.62 points and won the silver medal.
The Norwegian  Kari Traa  won the bronze with a score of 24.09 points.
In women s aerials  American Nikki Stone won the gold medal with a score of 193.00 points.
In all  53 athletes from 14 countries  took part in the two events  individual and team.
Finland won both silver medals.
France and Russia each won one of the bronze medals.
The first event was the individual competition that took place on 13 and 14 February.
In all  there were 48 athletes.
At the Hakuba Ski Jumping Stadium  Vik led after the first two jumps.
He was followed by the Russian Valeri Stoliarov.
The race was skied in the rain.
Vik led throughout and finished with a 27.5 second lead over second place.
Eleven nations took part in the team event on 19 and 20 February.
At Nagano  the team was enlarged to four athletes who completed a 4x5 kilometer relay.
The Norwegians quickly took the lead and never looked back.
The French team  sixth after the jumps  won the bronze medal ahead of the Austrians.
In all  68 athletes from 19 countries participated.
For the first time  the top 30 jumpers qualified for the second round.
Host Japan won the most medals  including two gold in the large hill and large hill team.
Finland  Germany  and Austria rounded out the medal table.
Kazuyoshi Funaki from Yoichi  Hokkaido in Japan won two gold and one silver for the host country.
The normal hill jumps took place on 11 February in front of 45 000 spectators.
The Japanese  who had dominated the 1997–98 FIS Ski Jumping World Cup season  were the favorites.
After a delay caused by strong wind  Soininen took the lead with only Harada still to jump.
A sidewind blew when Harada jumped  and only managed 84.5 meters to finish in fifth place overall.
On 15 February  the large hill jump competition took place.
60 000 spectators gathered at Hakuba Ski Jumping Stadium.
He jumped into first place and won the gold medal with 272.3 points overall.
It was the first Japanese gold medal in ski jumping since the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo.
He was measured manually to be 136 meters.
He also had good points but only managed to win the bronze medal with 258.3. meters.
Soininen won the silver with a combined score of 260.8 points.
Again  in 1998  the Japanese were the favorites.
The team event took place on 17 February.
The start was slowed by 30 minutes because of heavy falling snow.
The first two Japanese jumpers  Okabe at Hiroya Saitō  jumped Japan into first place.
Okabe jumped 137 meters  which was an Olympic record.
Saitō followed this with a good jump.
Harada was next  and like Okabe  jumped 137 meters.
This was the first Winter Olympics with snowboarding events.
Athletes from Germany won two medals  including one gold.
Athletes from Switzerland  France  and Canada also won gold medals.
During the second race  the event was temporary delayed because of snow and fog.
It was the first time in Olympic history that an athlete was disqualified for marijuana.
The women s giant slalom was delayed one day because of a snowstorm.
Ruby won the second race  with Blanc missing the last gate and falling.
Ruby s combined time was 2 17.34.
In the halfpipe  the Norwegian Stine Brun Kjeldaas won the qualification round.
This money was split 60–40 between NAOC and the IOC.
Downloadable PDF  Volume 1  Volume 2  Volume 3  Appendix  retrieved on 17 January 2010.
Italy won the tournament  claiming their fourth World Cup title.
Germany defeated Portugal 3–1 to finish in third place.
The final attracted an estimated audience of 715.1 million people.
Three rounds of voting were required  each round eliminating the nation with the fewest votes.
On the very day of the vote  a hoax bribery affair was made public  leading to calls for a re vote.
He abstained  citing  intolerable pressure  on the eve of the vote.
The sum of 6.7 million Euro was later demanded back by Dreyfus.
The DFB announced they would consider seeking legal action against Der Spiegel.
Qualification     198 teams attempted to qualify for the 2006 World Cup.
Australia qualified for the first time since 1974.
Twelve stadia were selected to host the World Cup matches.
A cross denotes an indoor stadium.
FIFA announced the base camps for each participating team.
Each participating national association had to confirm its 23 player squad by 15 May 2006.
The seeds comprised Pot A in the draw.
Pot D contained unseeded teams from the CONCACAF region and Asia.
Teams were awarded three points for a win  one point for a draw and none for a defeat.
The teams coming first and second in each group qualified for the Round of 16.
Finals tournament     The finals tournament of the 2006 World Cup began on 9 June.
In total  64 games were played.
No player managed to score a hat trick in this tournament.
No other player scored more than three goals.
Results          Group stage       All times are Central European Summer Time  UTC 2 .
Germany went on to win the Group A after edging Poland and breezing past Ecuador 3–0.
Group C       Both Argentina and Netherlands qualified from Group C with a game remaining.
The Dutch picked up 1–0 and 2–1 victories over Serbia and Montenegro and Ivory Coast  respectively.
They fought hard against the Portuguese  but went down 2–0.
Their last game against Angola ended in 1–1 draw.
Daniele De Rossi was suspended for 4 games following his sending off against the United States.
The Brazilians won all three games to qualify first in the group.
Their 1–0 win against Croatia was through a goal late in the first half by Kaká.
Croatia and Japan went out of the tournament without a single win.
The successive rounds were  round of 16  quarter finals  semi finals  and final.
There was also a play off to decide third fourth place.
Scores after extra time are indicated by  aet   and penalty shoot outs are indicated by  pen. .
England struggled against Ecuador but won 1–0 thanks to a David Beckham free kick.
Brazil won 3–0 against Ghana  in a game which included Ronaldo s record 15th World Cup goal.
Der Spiegel reported that the match may have been influenced by an Asian betting syndicate.
Portugal defeated the Netherlands 1–0.
France eliminated Brazil 1–0 to advance into the semi finals.
His first goal beat the Portuguese goalkeeper Ricardo with pace over his head.
Marco Materazzi then levelled the scores in the 19th minute following an Andrea Pirlo corner.
Extra time produced no further goals and a penalty shootout followed  which Italy won 5–3.
In total  147 goals were scored by 110 players  with four of them credited as own goals.
Italy s Andrea Pirlo won the most Man of the Match awards  with three in total.
Berlin  Fanmeile  located at pedestrianized Straße des 17.
For the first time in German history an event scored more visitors than Oktoberfest.
The visitors  expectations regarding Fan Fests were fulfilled.
This continued a development already observed during the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
A study by the University of Marburg suggested a slight rise in national pride.
Additionally 93  of those interviewed found the international football fans to be agreeable.
Among them is the Belgian 20 euro Germany 2006 FIFA World Cup Coin.
The tournament was hosted by Japan and held from August 19 to September 3  2006.
Pau Gasol also became the first Spaniard to win the MVP award.
Argentina qualified as the champion of the 2004 Olympics.
The draw for the 2006 World Championship was held in Tokyo on 15 January 2006.
The Medal Rounds were played at Saitama.
Russia returned in the final of 1994 and 1998.
Final rankings     Teams that were eliminated at the round of 16 are officially tied for 9th.
Teams that were 5th at their preliminary rounds are officially tied for 17th.
Teams that were 6th at their preliminary rounds are officially tied for 21st.
The final bidding dossiers had to be handed over before 1 August 2007.
On 30 October 2007  the FIFA Executive Committee voted to assign the tournament to Germany.
Twelve cities were chosen for the official bidding dossier handed over to FIFA in August 2007.
Borussia Park in Mönchengladbach and Frankfurt s Commerzbank Arena hosted the semi finals.
The total capacity of the nine venues is roughly 330 000.
Besides Team Great Britain  Europe had two additional qualifiers for the Summer Olympics.
Sweden followed as UEFA s second team with its win against Australia.
The exception to this was UEFA  which used its own qualifying tournament.
One qualification spot was determined by a play off between a UEFA and CONCACAF team.
This is Mexico s first appearance since 1999 and France s first appearance since 2003.
On 25 January 2009  Jones opened the committee offices and named her OC team.
Aside from Wolter  four department heads were named.
Each host city except for Berlin also named two city ambassadors.
The mascot was developed by the Frankfurt agency GMR Marketing.
Each city series includes tickets for all games of that particular host city.
The prices ranged from €30 to €415.
Single tickets for all matches were first sold starting 15 September 2010.
The prices of individual tickets range from €10 to €200.
The same city series ticket can be used by different people for different games.
Budget and sponsors     The tournament s budget has been set at €51 million.
Aside from Deutsche Bahn  the sponsors are identical with those of the 2010 U 20 Women s World Cup.
Media coverage     The television coverage of the tournament was unprecedented.
Across Europe  all games were available on Eurosport in 34 countries and territories.
The final was shown live on BBC Three.
In addition 32 assistant referees and three fourth officials were selected.
She was provisionally suspended by the FIFA until the B sample result was known.
The group draw was staged in Frankfurt  Germany  on 29 November 2010 at the Congress Centrum.
Teams are awarded three points for a win  one point for a draw and none for a defeat.
All times are in the CEST time zone  UTC 2 .
The successive rounds are the quarter finals  semi finals  and the final.
There is also a play off to decide third and fourth place.
Homare Sawa of Japan won the Golden Boot award for scoring five goals.
Many electrical generators ran out of fuel.
The loss of electrical power halted cooling systems  causing heat to build up.
The heat build up caused the generation of hydrogen gas.
Early estimates placed insured losses from the earthquake alone at US 14.5 to  34.6 billion.
On 11 July 2016  the USGS further upgraded the earthquake to 9.1.
The aftershocks will thus taper off in time  but could continue for years.
The break caused the sea floor to rise by several metres.
Analysis showed that this earthquake consisted of a set of three events.
Other major earthquakes with tsunamis struck the Sanriku Coast region in 1896 and in 1933.
Three other prefectures—Fukushima  Ibaraki and Tochigi—recorded an upper 6 on the JMA scale.
In Russia  the main shock could be felt in Yuzhno Sakhalinsk  MSK 4  and Kurilsk  MSK 4 .
The aftershock at 06 25 UTC could be felt in Yuzhno Kurilsk  MSK 5  and Kurilsk  MSK 4 .
Those areas of Japan closest to the epicenter experienced the largest shifts.
These are expected changes for an earthquake of this magnitude.
Nearby Haneda Airport  built mostly on reclaimed land  was not damaged.
The Survey team had several GPS monitors located near the scene of the earthquake.
The GPS station located nearest the epicenter moved almost 4 m  13 ft .
Its epicenter was underwater  66 km  41 mi  off the coast of Sendai.
It caused some damage in Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures and at least 150 people were injured.
It is believed that the early warning by the Japan Meteorological Agency  JMA  saved many lives.
The system s software was subsequently modified to handle this kind of situation.
Thousands of lives were lost and entire towns were devastated.
Warnings were issued and evacuations were carried out in many countries bordering the Pacific.
Although the tsunami affected many of these places  the heights of the waves were minor.
The actual height prediction varied  the greatest being for Miyagi at 6 metres  20 ft  high.
The tsunami inundated a total area of approximately 561 square kilometres  217 sq mi  in Japan.
A 4 metre high  13 ft  tsunami hit Iwate Prefecture.
Wakabayashi Ward in Sendai was also particularly hard hit.
At least 101 designated tsunami evacuation sites were hit by the wave.
The sea walls in several cities had been built to protect against tsunamis of much lower heights.
Also  many people caught in the tsunami thought they were on high enough ground to be safe.
The committee advised that future policy should be to protect against the highest possible tsunami.
Also largely destroyed was Rikuzentakata  where the tsunami was three stories high.
Near Ōarai  people captured images of a huge whirlpool that had been generated by the tsunami.
Fishing equipment was scattered on the high cliff above the bay.
This calculation is  in turn  based on the maximum amplitude of the seismic wave.
This resulted in an underestimation of the tsunami s height in initial reports.
Problems in issuing updates also contributed to delays in evacuations.
At 07 30 UTC  PTWC issued a widespread tsunami warning covering the entire Pacific Ocean.
Russia evacuated 11 000 residents from coastal areas of the Kuril Islands.
In the Philippines  waves up to 0.5 m  1 ft 8 in  high hit the eastern seaboard of the country.
Some houses along the coast in Jayapura  Indonesia were destroyed.
However  in Guam some roads were closed off and people were evacuated from low lying areas.
Peru reported a wave of 1.5 m  4 ft 11 in  and more than 300 homes damaged.
As a result  the communities in question are now more susceptible to flooding during high tides.
A few cases of suicide are also included.
Overseas     The tsunami was reported to have caused several deaths outside Japan.
One man was killed in Jayapura  Papua  Indonesia after being swept out to sea.
Fifteen ports were located in the disaster zone.
All 15 ports reopened to limited ship traffic by 29 March 2011.
A total of 319 fishing ports  about 10  of Japan s fishing ports  were damaged in the disaster.
Eight people were missing and four bodies were discovered by the morning.
Reportedly  some locals had attempted to repair leaks in the dam before it completely failed.
The reservoir at one concrete gravity dam suffered a small non serious slope failure.
All damaged dams are functioning with no problems.
Four dams within the quake area were unreachable.
By 21 March 2011  this number fell to 1.04 million.
Rolling blackouts began on 14 March due to power shortages caused by the earthquake.
By 21 March 2011  the number of households in the north without electricity fell to 242 927.
Overall electricity consumption during July and August was also 14  less than in the previous year.
It was extinguished after ten days  injuring six people  and destroying storage tanks.
Higashidōri  also on the northeast coast  was already shut down for a periodic inspection.
It was not as bad as the Chernobyl disaster  but worse than the Three Mile Island accident.
In February 2019  there were 42 operable reactors in Japan.
There may be a need to replace the contaminated soil.
Many radioactive hotspots were found outside the evacuation zone  including Tokyo.
Food products were also found contaminated by radioactive matter in several places in Japan.
Transport      Japan s transport network suffered severe disruptions.
Many sections of Tōhoku Expressway serving northern Japan were damaged.
The expressway did not reopen to general public use until 24 March 2011.
In the hours after the earthquake  some train services were resumed.
Most Tokyo area train lines resumed full service by the next day—12 March.
Eleven airliners bound for Narita were diverted to nearby Yokota Air Base.
Services on Akita Shinkansen resumed with limited numbers of trains on 18 March.
Within Japan  only a few websites were initially unreachable.
Stone monuments at the UNESCO World Heritage Site  Shrines and Temples of Nikkō were toppled.
Cargo contained yellowtail jack fish  a species that lives off the coast of Japan  still alive.
KGW estimates that more than 1 million tons of debris still remain in the Pacific Ocean.
Strong in the Rain  Surviving Japan s Earthquake  Tsunami and Fukushima Nuclear Disaster.
Ghosts of the Tsunami  Death and Life in Japan s Disaster Zone.
What Have Religious Groups Done After 3.11?
What Have Religious Groups Done After 3.11?
Each would receive half of the voting power to elect the new president.
He will remain on until a successor is chosen.
31 August – Party officials announce the election will be held on 14 September 2020.
2 September – Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga officially announces his candidacy.
8 September – Campaign officially began.
The candidates held a joint press conference.
9 September – The first of two public debate between the leadership candidates was held.
12 September – The second public debate between the leadership candidates was held.
14 September – The election was held  Yoshihide Suga wins on the first ballot with 377 votes.
Bidding process     The three candidate cities were Tokyo  Istanbul  and Madrid.
The applicant cities of Baku and Doha were not promoted to candidate status.
The final vote was a head to head contest between Tokyo and Istanbul.
Tokyo was selected by 60 votes to 36  gaining at least the 49 votes required for a majority.
Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike criticized Bailey s comment as inappropriate.
On 18 March  the IOC repeated its opposition to a delay or cancellation.
The total loss amount will not become clear until the Games have actually taken place.
Seiko Hashimoto was chosen to succeed him.
The original plans to build a retractable roof were also scrapped.
Three of these venues were originally constructed for the 1964 Summer Olympics.
A ban was also imposed for the 2019 Rugby World Cup  which Japan also hosted.
The names were chosen by the people who had applied to be volunteers at the Games.
The average ticket price is ¥7 700  with half the tickets being sold for up to ¥8 000.
In the list below  the number of events in each discipline is noted in parentheses.
The design is meant to  express a refined elegance and sophistication that exemplifies Japan .
The Games  bid slogan is Discover Tomorrow  Japanese  未来（あした）をつかもう  romanized  Ashita o tsukamō .
While ashita literally means  tomorrow   it is intentionally spelled as mirai  future .
Its fictional characteristics include the ability to teleport.
Someity s name also refers to the English phrase  so mighty .
The mascots are expected to help finance the Tokyo Games through merchandizing and licensing deals.
In France  these will be the last Games whose rights are primarily owned by France Télévisions.
In Australia  they will be aired by the Seven Network.
This will be the second tournament under the new cycle  which started in 2019.
It is expected that there will be 32 teams in the tournament.
Spain will be the defending champions  having beaten Argentina in the 2019 final.
On June 1  2017  FIBA confirmed the list of candidates for the hosting of the World Cup.
The local organizing committee for the city s hosting was also formed during the same event.
The Smart Araneta Coliseum hosted the 1978 FIBA World Championship.
The PhilSports Arena hosted the 2011 FIBA Asia Champions Cup.
The Philippine Arena has a 55 000 seating capacity  and is poised to host the World Cup Final.
There will be one venue each in Japan and Indonesia.
If so  Indonesia will make their FIBA Basketball World Cup debut.
Draw    The final draw will take place in Manila in March 2023.
Format    Similar to the 2019 edition  the tournament will be played in three stages.
The top two teams from each group will then advance to the second group stage.
The top two teams from groups I to L will qualify for the final knockout phase.
In 2011  it was a part of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup.
Since 2012  the race has been a part of the FIA World Endurance Championship.
Cars      The race has approximately 60 competitors.
No more than two doors are allowed  open cockpit cars do not require doors.
A prize is awarded to the winner of each class  and to the overall winner.
The number of classes has varied over the years  but there are now four.
Both of these classes use the LM GTE  or  Le Mans Grand Touring Endurance  regulations.
This practice was later banned.
The rule applies only if the air temperature is at least 32 Celsius  89.6 F .
This was an attempt by the ACO to help increase efficiency and reliability.
Drivers are allowed to get out of the car and be replaced by another driver during refuelling.
Those rules are also in application in the FIA World Endurance Championship.
This is usually followed by a fly over featuring jets trailing blue  white and red smoke.
Gurney shook the bottle and sprayed everyone nearby.
Friday serves as a day of rest and a parade of all the drivers through Le Mans is held.
In 1984 and 2007  the start time was moved ahead to 15 00 due to the conflicting election .
14 years later  the race began at 14 30 because of the race being in September.
This is known to have caught out the Ford team in 1966.
Miles had already won the other two endurance races at Sebring and Daytona.
Cars must complete 70 percent of the distance covered by the overall winner to be classified.
The starting drivers stood on the opposite side of the front stretch.
Another method for speeding up the start was developed by Stirling Moss.
His car was waiting with first gear already engaged.
When he jumped in  he switched the starter on without depressing the clutch.
Privateer John Woolfe died in an accident on the first lap of that race  Ickx won.
The traditional Le Mans start was changed for 1970.
Cars were still lined up along the pit wall  but the drivers were already inside and strapped in.
At the dropping of the French tricolor  the drivers started their engines and drove away.
It consists of both permanent track and public roads that are temporarily closed for the race.
To comply with this  two chicanes were added to the 6 kilometre long  3.7 mi  straight.
Due to heavy traffic in the area  the public roads are not as smooth or well kept.
Workers have to assemble and dismantle safety barriers every year for the public sections.
1949 was also Ferrari s first victory  the 166MM of Luigi Chinetti and Peter Mitchell Thomson.
John Wyer s Mirage won in 1975  while Jean Rondeau s self titled chassis took 1980.
Originally running the effective 956  it was later replaced by the 962.
Only Cadillac and Audi remained  and Audi easily dominated with the R8.
They finished 2nd and 3rd in 2003 behind Ferrari.
Although not the first diesel to race  it was the first to win at Le Mans.
Aston Martin entered the LMP1 category  but still raced in GT1 with private teams.
Audi returned with the new R15 TDI  but Peugeot prevailed in its first overall win since 1993.
The 2010 running reaffirmed the race as a test of endurance and reliability.
The 2011 and 2012 races were marred by a series of accidents.
Neither driver was injured  nor were any spectators.
The third Audi entry driven by Marcel Fässler  André Lotterer  and Benoît Tréluyer won the race.
Driver Anthony Davidson suffered two broken vertebrae but was able to exit the car himself.
Toyota won the race again in 2019 and 2020.
2020 also saw the race held behind closed doors for the first time  due to the COVID 19 pandemic.
Some innovations were incorporated into the common automobile.
As the years went on  bodywork became all enveloping  while at the same time lighter.
Extended bodywork would usually concentrate on the rear of the car  usually being termed long tail.
Aerodynamics reached its peak in 1989  before the Mulsanne Straight was modified.
Although the engines offered great power  they were hot and fuel inefficient.
Rotary engines were banned by the ACO following Mazda s win.
Ethanol fuel appeared in 1980 in a modified Porsche 911  leading to a class win.
Alternative biological fuel sources returned again in 2004 with Team Nasamax s DM139 Judd.
In 2008  biofuels  10  ethanol for petrol engines and biodiesel for diesel engines  were allowed.
Cars with KERS were allowed to race in 2009 under specific classification rules.
Since 2010  they were able to compete for points and the championship.
Disc brakes were first seen in 1953 when the Jaguar C Type raced at Le Mans.
By the late 1990s  reinforced carbon carbon brakes were adopted for better stopping power.
Since 2000 Audi has dominated the event  winning 13 times in 15 years of participation.
Audi and Team Joest have had two hat tricks  the first being in 2000  2001  and 2002.
In 2018  Toyota became only the second Japanese marque to win  following Mazda in 1991.
Mazda is also the only company to win with a rotary engine.
Three drivers stand apart for their number of victories.
The largest one was in 1955  when 83 spectators and driver Pierre Levegh were killed.
The accident led to safety regulations in all motorsports for both driver and spectator protection.
The 1980s was a decade where some of the race s worst ever accidents occurred.
The resulting explosion was so violent that the woods next to the track caught fire.
The car landed on its roof and was destroyed  but Nielsen escaped without injury.
The fuel tank exploded and the car burned to the ground but Cobb escaped without injury.
Mark Webber was the unlucky driver whose car flipped on both occasions.
In 2011  two horrific accidents occurred to two of the three factory Audis in the LMP1 class.
In the eleventh hour of the race  another accident occurred  this time to the No.
1 car driven by Mike Rockenfeller  when he had contact with another Ferrari GT car.
The Ferrari also ended up in the barrier  flipping and coming to a halt on its roof.
This was given a limited cinema release  but is now available on DVD.
In addition  Eurosport provided live streaming on its website to subscribers.
In Australia in 2012  Ten Sport showed the race live and in full online.
Broadcast from the circuit for the full 24 hours  it allows fans to listen to radio commentary.
The classes are based on the era in which the cars would have competed.
Drivers are required to have an FIA International Competition license.
This event also includes a large Concours d Elegance and auction.
The disease spread rapidly throughout northern Kyushu that year  and persisted into the next.
The disease continued to ravage Japan in 737.
All levels of society were affected.
Highly affected were construction and farming  especially rice cultivation.
It is the second oldest continental football championship in the world after Copa América.
Thereafter  it has been held every four years.
The Asian Cup has generally been dominated by a small number of top  teams.
Initially successful teams included South Korea  twice  and Iran  three times .
Israel won in 1964 but were later expelled and have since joined UEFA.
Australia joined the Asian confederation in 2007 and hosted the Asian Cup finals in 2015.
It was only a four team tournament  a format that also existed for 1960 and 1964.
Dominance has swung between the East and West so far.
By the end of 1990s  the tournament has begun to be professionalized.
In addition  a fourth substitution was allowed during extra time.
The first trophy came in a form of a bowl with circular base.
It was 42 centimeters tall and weighs 15 kilograms.
The trophy was redesigned  adding more silver and reduce the black base to just a thin layer down.
It is 78 centimeters tall  42 centimeters wide  and weighs 15 kilograms of silver.
The trophy is modeled over lotus flower  a symbolically important aquatic Asian plant.
Five petals of the lotus symbolize the five sub confederations under the AFC.
This trophy has a handle on each side  unlike its predecessor.
As a result  North Korea s home matches were moved to Shanghai.
Low attendances     Low crowds have also been another problems for the AFC Asian Cup.
Vietnam joined in 1995  Laos and Myanmar in 1997 and Cambodia in 1999.
AFTA now comprises the ten countries of ASEAN.
This is known as the Common Effective Preferential Tariff  CEPT  scheme.
ASEAN members have the option of excluding products from the CEPT in three cases   1.
Rule of origin    The CEPT only applies to goods originating within ASEAN.
The general rule is that local ASEAN content must be at least 40  of the FOB value of the good.
This has led to inconsistent rulings by ASEAN national authorities.
Disagreements may result between the national authorities.
Again  the ASEAN Secretariat may help mediate a dispute but has no legal authority to resolve it.
This information would then be shared with all other ASEAN national customs authorities.
ASEAN members may seek mediation and good offices consultations.
Details of the AANZFTA agreement are available online.
The Enthronement Ceremony took place on 22 October 2019.
Akihito s younger son  Prince Akishino  is his brother s heir presumptive.
This meant the Imperial Household Law was changed for the first time since 1949.
He was replaced by Prince Hitachi  the Emperor s 82 year old younger brother.
In the ceremony  Emperor Naruhito wore the sokutai and Empress Masako wore the jūnihitoe.
Officials and dignitaries     The enthronement was attended by nearly 600 foreign delegates.
2016     July  Emperor Akihito leaks to the press his wishes to retire.
13 July  NHK reports his wishes to the public.
8 August  The Emperor makes address to the public on television and radio implying the above wish.
19 May  The Cabinet of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe introduces the abdication bill.
2 June  The abdication bill passes the House of Representatives  Lower House .
9 June  The abdication bill passes the House of Councillors  Upper House .
November  The Cabinet suggests that 30 April 2019 will be a good date.
3 April  White Paper on official ceremonials is issued by the committee.
14 February  A survey was listed out for suggestions about Naruhito s era name.
21 April  Local elections happen in Japan.
Akihito becomes the first Jōkō since 1840.
This ceremony also takes place in the Hall of Pines.
Private ceremonies are listed as  Private .
State acts are listed as  Public .
Return of the domains    The second phase in the abolition of the han came in 1869.
In 30 years  all bonds for samurais were reimbursed.
These are often hereditary monarchies.
In ancient Mesopotamia  many rulers of Assyria  Babylonia and Sumer were absolute monarchs as well.
Korea under the Joseon dynasty and short lived empire was also an absolute monarchy.
James VI and I and his son Charles I tried to import this principle into Scotland and England.
This law consequently authorized the king to abolish all other centers of power.
Most important was the abolition of the Council of the Realm in Denmark.
Absolute monarchy lasted until 1814 in Norway  and 1848 in Denmark.
He was the supreme judicial authority.
He could condemn people to death without the right of appeal.
It was both his duty to punish offenses and stop them from being committed.
From his judicial authority followed his power both to make laws and to annul them.
His actions largely originated the militaristic streak of the Hohenzollerns.
They became known as Junkers  from the German for young lord  junger Herr .
Frederick William crushed this revolt in 1662  by marching into the city with thousands of troops.
A similar approach was used with the towns of Cleves.
Russia       Until 1905  the Tsars and Emperors of Russia governed as absolute monarchs.
Ivan the Terrible was known for his reign of terror through oprichnina.
The years between 1789 and 1809  then  are also referred to as a period of absolute monarchy.
See also         References         Further reading    Anderson  Perry.
Power and Faction in Louis XIV s France.
Although different in name  they are functionally the same.
The Chinese character from which this is derived means  county .
The Chinese character from which this is derived means  capital .
Fu      Osaka Prefecture and Kyoto Prefecture are referred to as an  urban prefecture   府  fu .
This was also a historical usage of the character in China meaning circuit.
It acts as part of the greater administration of the state and as part of a self government system.
The Classical Chinese character from which this is derived means commandery.
However the city entities are further categorized.
The Special wards of Tokyo are also considered to be municipal divisions.
Designated cities are also subdivided into wards.
This category was established by the Local Autonomy Law  article 252 clause 26.
Like other contemporary administrative units  they are defined by the Local Autonomy Law of 1947.
Town      A town  町  chō or machi  is a local administrative unit in Japan.
Geographically  a town is contained within a prefecture.
Village      A village  村  mura  sometimes son  is a local administrative unit in Japan.
Geographically  a village s extent is contained within a prefecture.
Kabul is the capital and largest city.
Humans lived in what is now Afghanistan at least 50 000 years ago.
The Greco Bactrian Kingdom became the eastern end of the Hellenistic world.
In 1747  Ahmad Shah Durrani established the Durrani Empire with its capital at Kandahar.
Afghanistan is a unitary presidential Islamic republic.
The country has high levels of terrorism  poverty  child malnutrition  and corruption.
Historically  the ethnonym Afghān was used to refer to ethnic Pashtuns.
The last part of the name    stan  is a Persian suffix for  place of.
An Indus Valley site has been found on the Oxus River at Shortugai in northern Afghanistan.
There are several smaller IVC colonies to be found in Afghanistan as well.
The region at the time was referred to as Ariana.
Much of it soon broke away from them and became part of the Indo Greek Kingdom.
They were defeated and expelled by the Indo Scythians in the late 2nd century BCE.
They were followed by the Kidarites who  in turn  were replaced by the Hephthalites.
They were replaced by the Turk Shahi in the 7th century.
Much of the northeastern and southern areas of the country remained dominated by Buddhist culture.
The Zunbils and Kabul Shahi were first conquered in 870 CE by the Saffarid Muslims of Zaranj.
Later  the Samanids extended their Islamic influence south of the Hindu Kush.
Mongols and Babur       In 1219 AD  Genghis Khan and his Mongol army overran the region.
The destruction caused by the Mongols forced many locals to return to an agrarian rural society.
He defeated Gurgin Khan and established his own kingdom.
The Afghan dynasty was ousted from Persia by Nader Shah after the 1729 Battle of Damghan.
Soon after  the Persian and Afghan forces invaded India.
After his death  they rebelled and divided up the provinces of the empire between themselves.
He was known as the Iron Amir for his features and his ruthless methods against tribes.
He died in 1901  replaced by his son Habibullah Khan.
A key force behind these reforms was Mahmud Tarzi  an ardent supporter of the education of women.
The institution of slavery was abolished in 1923.
Khan s wife Queen Soraya Tarzi was a figure during this period.
Road links in the north played a large part in a growing cotton and textile industry.
On a per capita basis  Afghanistan received more Soviet development aid than any other country.
Afghanistan had  therefore  good relations with both Cold War enemies.
The situation in the country deteriorated under Amin and thousands of people went missing.
Several failed reconciliations and alliances occurred between different leaders.
By 2000 the Northern Alliance only controlled 10  of territory  cornered in the north east.
On 9 September 2001  Massoud was assassinated by two Arab suicide attackers in Panjshir Valley.
The majority of Afghans supported the American invasion of their country.
The Taliban began an insurgency to regain control of Afghanistan.
ISAF forces also began to train the Afghan National Security Forces.
Following 2002  nearly five million Afghans were repatriated.
The NATO led Operation Resolute Support was formed the same day as a successor to ISAF.
More than 38 000 of those killed have been civilians .
There is no coastline  as Afghanistan is landlocked.
Most of the highest points are in the east consisting of fertile mountain valleys.
Forests exist in the corridor between Nuristan and Paktika provinces  and tundra in the north east.
The country s highest point is Noshaq  at 7 492 m  24 580 ft  above sea level.
Despite having numerous rivers and reservoirs  large parts of the country are dry.
The endorheic Sistan Basin is one of the driest regions in the world.
A 2010 earthquake left 11 Afghans dead  over 70 injured  and more than 2 000 houses destroyed.
Biodiversity      Several types of mammals exist throughout Afghanistan.
Snow leopards  Siberian tigers and brown bears live in the high elevation alpine tundra regions.
The Marco Polo sheep exclusively live in the Wakhan Corridor region of north east Afghanistan.
Endemic flora include Iris afghanica.
The colder high elevation regions are composed of hardy grasses and small flowering plants.
About 23.9  of them are urbanite  71.4  live in rural areas  and the remaining 4.7  are nomadic.
The current population growth rate is 2.37   one of the highest in the world outside of Africa.
This population is expected to reach 82 million by 2050 if current population trends continue.
Ethnic groups      Afghanistan s population is divided into several ethnolinguistic groups.
The ethnicities are represented on the table on the right.
Generally the four major ethnic groups are the Pashtuns  Tajiks  Hazaras and Uzbeks.
Some Afghans retain some ability of Russian  which was taught to public schools during the 1980s.
The CIA Factbook variously estimates up to 89.7  Sunni or up to 15  Shia.
The agreement ended months long political deadlock in the country.
Each province is the size of a U.S. county  having a governor and a capital.
Each district is represented by a district governor.
Its main purpose is to train the Afghan National Security Forces.
The ANP consists of two primary branches  the Afghan Uniformed Police and the Afghan Border Police.
Kidnapping for ransom and robberies are common in major cities.
Every year hundreds of Afghan police are killed in the line of duty.
Afghanistan is also the world s leading producer of opium.
The perpetrators of these crimes are the families of the victim.
With implementing Sharia law offenders can face death.
Its GDP per capita is  2 024  PPP .
It has  2.8 billion in external debt.
Similar development projects have also begun in Herat  Mazar e Sharif  and other cities.
It holds an observer status in SCO.
It is also one of the world s top producers of cannabis.
Access to biocapacity in Afghanistan is lower than world average.
This means they use just under double as much biocapacity as Afghanistan contains.
As a result  Afghanistan is running a biocapacity deficit.
Overall the figure stands at 98.7 .
However electricity is not always reliable and blackouts happen  including in Kabul.
In recent years an increasing number of solar  biomass and wind power plants have been constructed.
Power is managed by the Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat  DABS  Afghanistan Electricity Company .
Important dams include the Kajaki Dam  Dahla Dam  and the Sardeh Band Dam.
Tourism      Tourism is a small industry in Afghanistan due to security issues.
Nevertheless  some 20 000 foreign tourists visit the country annually as of 2016.
Tourism peaked in 1977  the year before the start of political instability and armed conflict.
The cities of Herat  Kandahar  Balkh  and Zaranj are also very historic.
The Minaret of Jam in the Hari River valley is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The sector employs at least 120 000 people nationwide.
It is the only land route that connects Central Asia to the Indian subcontinent.
Several mountain passes allow travel between the Hindu Kush in other areas.
Traveling by bus in Afghanistan remains dangerous due to militant activities.
Airlines from a number of countries also provide flights in and out of the country.
Including domestic airports  there are 43.
Bagram Air Base is a major military airfield.
These lines are used for freight only and there is no passenger service.
About 125 kilometers  78 mi  of the line will lie on the Afghan side.
Taxis are yellow in color and consist of both cars and auto rickshaws.
In rural Afghanistan  villagers often use donkeys  mules or horses to transport or carry goods.
Camels are primarily used by the Kochi nomads.
Bicycles are popular throughout Afghanistan.
There are over 16 000 schools in the country and roughly 9 million students.
Of this  about 60  are males and 40  females.
Over 174 000 students are enrolled in different universities around the country.
About 21  of these are females.
The Afghan Defense University was constructed near Qargha in Kabul.
The Afghan National Security Forces are provided with mandatory literacy courses.
The average life expectancy is estimated to be around 60 years.
Some of the other leading hospitals in Kabul include the Jamhuriat Hospital and Jinnah Hospital.
In spite of all this  many Afghans travel to Pakistan and India for advanced treatment.
Disability rate is also high in Afghanistan due to the decades of war.
It was reported recently that about 80 000 people are missing limbs.
Family is the mainstay of Afghan society and families are often headed by a patriarch.
There are various Afghan tribes  and an estimated 2–3 million nomads.
Afghan culture is deeply Islamic  but pre Islamic practices persist.
Child marriage is prevalent in Afghanistan  the legal age for marriage is 16.
Men would typically work on the fields  joined by women during harvest.
About 15  of the population are nomadic  locally called kochis.
Another popular dress is the chapan which acts as a coat.
The karakul is a hat made from the fur of a specific regional breed of sheep.
The Mazari hat originates from northern Afghanistan.
However  many of its historic monuments have been damaged in modern times due to the civil wars.
The two famous Buddhas of Bamiyan were destroyed by the Taliban  who regarded them as idolatrous.
Carpets have been produced in the region for thousands of years and traditionally done by women.
Every province has its own specific characteristics in making rugs.
Since the 1900s  the nation began to use Western techniques in art.
Radio Television Afghanistan  originating from 1925  is the state public broadcaster.
The first Afghan newspaper was published in 1873  and there are hundreds of print outlets today.
By the 1920s  Radio Kabul was broadcasting local radio services.
It has been claimed that Afghanistan is among the biggest markets for the Hindi film industry.
The rubab is the country s national instrument and precurses the Indian sarod instrument.
During this time female artists also started appearing  at first Mermon Parwin.
The dance is considered part of Afghan identity.
Kabuli palaw is the national dish of Afghanistan.
The nation s culinary specialties reflect its ethnic and geographic diversity.
Afghanistan is known for its high quality pomegranates  grapes  and sweet melons.
Literature      Classic Persian and Pashto poetry are a cherished part of Afghan culture.
One of the poetic styles is called landay.
A popular theme in Afghan folklore and mythology are devs  monstrous creatures.
Khushal Khan Khattak of the 17th century is considered the national poet.
It occurs every year at the vernal equinox.
Sports      Sport in Afghanistan is managed by the Afghan Sports Federation.
Cricket and association football are the two most popular sports in the country.
Afghanistan s sports teams are increasingly celebrating titles at international events.
Its basketball team won the first team sports title at the 2010 South Asian Games.
In 2012  the country s 3x3 basketball team won the gold medal at the 2012 Asian Beach Games.
It won the ACC Twenty20 Cup in 2007  2009  2011 and 2013.
The team eventually made it and played in the 2015 Cricket World Cup.
The Alokozay Kabul International Cricket Ground serves as the nation s main cricket stadium.
Domestically  cricket is played between teams from different provinces.
The Afghanistan national football team has been competing in international football since 1941.
The country also has a national team in the sport of futsal  a 5 a side variation of football.
In 2002  traveler Rory Stewart reported that dogs were still used for wolf hunting in remote areas.
It was set up in 1968 to promote Japanese arts and culture.
The agency s budget for FY 2018 rose to ¥107.7 billion.
Each was provided a lifetime annual pension of ￥2 million and financial aid for training disciples.
As of April 2018  it is led by the Commissioner for Cultural Affairs  Ryohei Miyata.
The agency is based in the Chiyoda Ward of Tokyo.
Japan has the highest proportion of elderly citizens of any country in the world.
The country is experiencing a  super aging  society both in rural and urban areas.
In 1948  Japan legalized abortion under special circumstances.
Japan s population began to decline in 2011.
Aging dynamics     In 1950  Japan s population of people above 65 years was only 4.9 .
High life expectancy     Japan s life expectancy in 2016 was 85 years.
The life expectancy is 81.7 for males and 88.5 for females.
As of 2016  the TFR was 1.41 children born woman.
About 40  of Japan s labor force is non regular  including part time and temporary workers.
Young men in this group are less likely to consider marriage or to be married.
Virginity and abstinence rates     In 2015  1 in 10 Japanese adults in their 30s were virgins.
Conversely  women with lower income were more likely to have had intercourse.
With many nursing homes in Japan  the demand for more caregivers is high.
Japan s government has spent almost half of its tax revenue trying to recover from their debt.
According to IMF  Japan has a 246.14 debt percentage of GDP making it the highest public debt.
The decline in the working population is impacting the national economy.
It is causing a shrinkage of the nation s military.
The growing number of retirement age people has put strain on the national pension system.
Most Japanese cities have a shortage of daycare centers and no transit services for children.
In early 2000  Nagareyama had an exodus of young people.
Men and women are usually occupied with jobs during daytime.
The children are shuttled with buses to daycare centers.
Local seniors help shuttle the children.
The result is over the past 13 years  2006 2019  the population has grown over 20 .
85  of children have more than one sibling.
Young children are expected to outnumber elderly in the future.
People in Nagareyama have a strong local network  with a friendly neighborhood.
There are also many local events and community spaces where children and elderly interact.
There s a summer camp for children while their parents work during holidays.
These family friendly approaches lured young working parents from Tokyo to Nagareyama.
There were 15 732 births and 12 157 deaths according to the Ministry of Health  Labour and Welfare.
The average age of marriage is lower in Okinawa at 30 years for men and 28.8 years for women.
It s considered normal to marry and then have children.
This is despite Okinawa having less welfare for children compared to other regions in Japan.
It s not unusual for women in their 40s to have children.
1 in 20 babies born at the Nanbu Tokushukai Hospital are conceived via IVF.
Living in Okinawa is less stressful due to lower incomes and lower living costs.
Raising a child is less expensive and fewer students attend university in Okinawa.
Working in Okinawa is more laid back.
Pediatrician  Chuken Miyagi said there s a culture of mutual help and support called yuimaru.
Okinawa has increasing numbers of ikumen  fathers who are actively involved in child rearing.
However  Japan is strict when accepting refugees into their country.
Only 27 people out of 7 500 refugee applicants were granted into Japan in 2015.
However  Japan provides high levels of foreign and humanitarian aid.
This allowed immigrants to apply for asylum and begin work six months after the application.
However  it did not allow foreigners without valid visas to apply for work.
The same increase took 61 years in Italy  85 years in Sweden  and 115 years in France.
India s population is aging exactly like Japan  but with a 50 year lag.
In order to support farming the Japanese government issued farmers massive grants.
Politician influence    Farmers have received much political support in Japan.
In 2001  China exported vegetables with pesticide residues to Japan.
In 2004  bird flu was found in import from Thailand  Indonesia  etc.
In 2008  dumplings imported from China were found to be poisoned.
There were cases of unsafe food found in Japan as well.
Mad cow disease was found in Japanese beef in 2001.
The slogan for the program was  Everybody  let s increase the Food Self Sufficiency Ratio! .
To provide a source of credit  farmers can group together funds that can be loaned out to members.
They spread later to North America and the other continents.
They have become one of the tools of agricultural development in emerging countries.
Farmers also cooperated to form mutual farm insurance societies.
Also related are rural credit unions.
They were created in the same periods  with the initial purpose of offering farm loans.
Some became universal banks such as Crédit Agricole or Rabobank.
By 1905  dairy cooperatives were the main organisational structure in the industry.
In 2001 these two cooperatives  together with the New Zealand Dairy Board  merged to form Fonterra.
The other main agricultural co operatives in New Zealand are in the meat and fertiliser industries.
Canada     In Canada  the most important cooperatives of this kind were the wheat pools.
These farmer owned cooperatives bought and transported grain throughout Western Canada.
By the 1990s  most had demutualized  privatized   and several mergers occurred.
Now all the former wheat pools are part of the Viterra corporation.
Successful implementation of the Anand model has made India the world s largest milk producer.
The shareholders include all farmers  small and large  supplying sugarcane to the mill.
Agriculture is the science  art and practice of cultivating plants and livestock.
The history of agriculture began thousands of years ago.
Pigs  sheep and cattle were domesticated over 10 000 years ago.
Plants were independently cultivated in at least 11 regions of the world.
Genetically modified organisms are widely used  although some are banned in certain countries.
Food classes include cereals  grains   vegetables  fruits  oils  meat  milk  fungi and eggs.
Wild grains were collected and eaten from at least 105 000 years ago.
Sheep were domesticated in Mesopotamia between 13 000 and 11 000 years ago.
Sugarcane and some root vegetables were domesticated in New Guinea around 9 000 years ago.
Sorghum was domesticated in the Sahel region of Africa by 7 000 years ago.
Cotton was domesticated in Peru by 5 600 years ago  and was independently domesticated in Eurasia.
In Mesoamerica  wild teosinte was bred into maize by 6 000 years ago.
Scholars have offered multiple hypotheses to explain the historical origins of agriculture.
Ploughs appear in pictographs around 3 000 BC  seed ploughs around 2 300 BC.
In India  wheat  barley and jujube were domesticated by 9 000 BC  soon followed by sheep and goats.
Cattle  sheep and goats were domesticated in Mehrgarh culture by 8 000–6 000 BC.
Cotton was cultivated by the 5th–4th millennium BC.
Water powered grain mills were in use by the 1st century BC  followed by irrigation.
By the late 2nd century  heavy ploughs had been developed with iron ploughshares and mouldboards.
Cocoa was being domesticated by the Mayo Chinchipe of the upper Amazon around 3 000 BC.
The turkey was probably domesticated in Mexico or the American Southwest.
The Mayas used extensive canal and raised field systems to farm swampland from 400 BC.
Coca was domesticated in the Andes  as were the peanut  tomato  tobacco  and pineapple.
Cotton was domesticated in Peru by 3 600 BC.
Animals including llamas  alpacas  and guinea pigs were domesticated there.
Wild foods including wild rice and maple sugar were harvested.
A system of companion planting called the Three Sisters was developed on the Great Plains.
There is evidence of  intensification  across the whole continent over that period.
Types     Pastoralism involves managing domesticated animals.
Another patch of land is selected and the process is repeated.
This practice is used in Northeast India  Southeast Asia  and the Amazon Basin.
It is intensively practiced in Monsoon Asia and South East Asia.
It is practiced mainly in developed countries.
Recent mainstream technological developments include genetically modified food.
In the same countries today  the figure is less than 10 .
The service sector overtook the agricultural sector as the largest global employer in 2007.
Annual cultivation is the next phase of intensity in which there is no fallow period.
This requires even greater nutrient and pest control inputs.
Natural fibers include cotton  wool  hemp  silk and flax.
Specific crops are cultivated in distinct growing regions throughout the world.
Production is listed in millions of metric tons  based on FAO estimates.
Nutrient inputs can be chemical inorganic fertilizers  manure  green manure  compost and minerals.
Some farmers use irrigation to supplement rainfall.
Careful selection and breeding have had enormous effects on the characteristics of crop plants.
In contrast  the average wheat yield in countries such as France is over 8 t ha.
For some  GMO crops cause food safety and food labeling concerns.
Currently a global treaty  the Biosafety Protocol  regulates the trade of GMOs.
Herbicide tolerant crops are used by farmers worldwide.
These crops resist damage by insects.
Pesticides kill insects  plants and fungi.
By comparison  all transportation emits 13.5  of the CO2.
It also generates 64  of the ammonia emission.
Through deforestation and land degradation  livestock is also driving reductions in biodiversity.
Estimates of the amount of land transformed by humans vary from 39 to 50 .
Climate change      Climate change and agriculture are interrelated on a global scale.
The vast majority of this energy input comes from fossil fuel sources.
Direct consumption includes the use of lubricants and fuels to operate farm vehicles and machinery.
Indirect consumption includes the manufacture of fertilizers  pesticides  and farm machinery.
Commodities are generally reported by production quantities  such as volume  number or weight.
See also         References         Cited sources    Acquaah  George  2002 .
ISBN 978 0 86720 871 9.CS1 maint  multiple names  authors list  link  Needham  Joseph  1986 .
A forest is an area of land dominated by trees.
It does not include land that is predominantly under agricultural or urban land use.
Roughly 80 percent of the world’s forest area is found in patches larger than 1 million hectares.
Forests provide ecosystem services to humans and serve as tourist attractions.
Forests can also affect people s health.
Land use definitions are based upon the primary purpose that the land serves.
For example  a forest may be defined as any land that is used primarily for production of timber.
Such definitions typically define a forest as an area growing trees above some threshold.
The precise origin of Medieval Latin foresta is obscure.
These hunting forests did not necessarily contain many  if any  trees.
Unlike forest  these are all derived from Old English and were not borrowed from another language.
Archaeopteris quickly spread throughout the world  from the equator to subpolar latitudes.
Archaeopteris was deciduous  dropping its fronds onto the forest floor.
The shade  soil  and forest duff from the dropped fronds created the first forest.
The shed organic matter altered the freshwater environment  slowing it down and providing food.
Layers      A forest is made up of many layers.
The main layers of all forest types are the forest floor  the understory and the canopy.
The emergent layer exists in tropical rainforests.
Decay on the forest floor forms new soil and provides nutrients to the plants.
The forest floor supports ferns  grasses  mushroom and tree seedlings.
Canopy is formed by the mass of intertwined branches  twigs and leaves of the mature trees.
The crowns of the dominant trees receive most of the sunlight.
This is the most productive part of the trees where maximum food is produced.
The canopy forms a shady  protective  umbrella  over the rest of the forest.
Types      Forests can be classified in different ways and to different degrees of specificity.
Boreal forests occupy the subarctic zone and are generally evergreen and coniferous.
Each category is described as a separate section below.
These forests are composed entirely  or nearly so  of coniferous species  Coniferophyta .
However  under some conditions  e.g.
They occur principally in areas of transition from forested to non forested landscapes.
This vegetation is variously called open taiga  open lichen woodland  and forest tundra.
Savannas maintain an open canopy despite a high tree density.
A full grown tree produces about 100 kg of net oxygen per year.
Therefore  they are necessary to mitigate climate change.
For example  a research from 2017  show that forests induce rainfall.
If the forest is cut  it can lead to drought.
Humans have generally decreased the amount of forest worldwide.
This gain is due especially to reforestation in China and Russia.
There is an estimated 726 million ha of forest in protected areas worldwide.
These typically need to be close to where the children live  for practical logistics.
Canada      Canada has about 4 020 000 square kilometres  1 550 000 sq mi  of forest land.
About eight percent of Canada s forest is legally protected from resource development.
In 1935 there was only 1 757 000 hectares of forest  today this has increased by more than 150 .
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This article incorporates text from a free content work.
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The first forests – Discovery 2008 .
The World s 10 Most Threatened Forest Hotspots .
It was further declined to 23.5  in 1965  11.9  in 1977  and to 7.2  in 1988.
Farmers became mass producers of rice  even turning their own vegetable gardens into rice fields.
Historically and today  women farmers outnumber male farmers.
Land shortage    The most striking feature of Japanese agriculture is the shortage of farmland.
However  the land is intensively cultivated.
Intercropping is common  such crops are alternated with beans and peas.
Livestock    Livestock raising is a minor activity.
Throughout the 1980s  domestic beef production met over 2  of demand.
Beef cattle are mostly concentrated in western Honshu  and on Kyushu.
Hogs  the oldest domesticated animals raised for food  are found everywhere.
Those bans were lifted in 2006.
Forestry    Two thirds of land of Japan is forest.
40  of the forests in Japan are planted forests  such as cedar and cypress.
Nowadays  many planted forests are too dense and need thinning.
Forestry composes 0.04  of Japan s GDP.
Coastal fisheries had smaller catches than northern sea fisheries in 1986 and 1987.
As a whole  Japan s fish catches registered a slower growth in the late 1980s.
Japan also has greatly advanced the techniques of aquaculture or sea farming.
These fish and shellfish are caught after they grow bigger.
Japan is also one of the world s few whaling nations.
Currently Japan conducts  research whaling  for minke whales in the oceans surrounding Antarctica.
The fisheries in Japan are governed by the Japanese Fisheries Agency.
The Resources Management Department plans the continuous development of Japan s fisheries.
After the Meiji Restoration  Owari and Mikawa were united into a single entity.
The Expo 2005 World Exposition was held in Seto and Nagakute.
The highest spot is Chausuyama at 1 415 m  4 642 ft  above sea level.
Cities      Thirty eight cities are located in Aichi Prefecture.
139 540 residents  nearly 2  of the population  are of foreign nationality.
Aichi Prefecture has many wonderful beaches.
Only the Hokkaido variant survives  the last speaker of Sakhalin Ainu having died in 1994.
Hokkaido Ainu is a moribund language  though attempts are being made to revive it.
There are few consonant clusters.
The Ainu language also has a pitch accent system.
Generally  words containing affixes have a high pitch on a syllable in the stem.
Nouns can cluster to modify one another  the head comes at the end.
Verbs  which are inherently either transitive or intransitive  accept various derivational affixes.
Ainu does not have grammatical gender.
Like incorporation  applicatives have grown less common in the modern language.
Ainu has a closed class of plural verbs  and some of these are suppletive.
Ainu has a system of verbal affixes  shown below  which mark agreement for person and case.
the affixes do not differ by case .
There is also a Latin based alphabet in use.
The Ainu Times publishes in both.
Other phonemes use the same character as the IPA transcription given above.
An equals sign     is used to mark morpheme boundaries  such as after a prefix.
Its pitch accent is denoted by acute accent in Latin script  e.g.  á .
This is usually not denoted in katakana.
Batchelor wrote extensively  both works about the Ainu language and works in Ainu itself.
He was the first to write in Ainu and use a writing system for it.
This is a list of special katakana used in transcribing the Ainu language.
Basic syllables           Diphthongs     Final  ɪ  is spelled y in Latin  small ィ in katakana.
Final  ʊ  is spelled w in Latin  small ゥ in katakana.
Large イ and ウ are used if there is a morpheme boundary with イ and ウ at the morpheme head.
Yukar was memorized and told at get togethers and ceremonies that often lasted hours or even days.
Japan was becoming more industrialized and globalization created a threat to Japanese land.
Two thirds of Ainu youth do not know that they are Ainu.
Also  Yamato linguists teach Ainu and train students to become Ainu instructors in university.
The Ainu Association of Hokkaido is the main supporter of Ainu culture in Hokkaido.
In 2016  a radio course was broadcast by the STVradio Broadcasting to introduce Ainu language.
The well known Japanese fashion magazine s name Non no means  flower  in Ainu.
People of many differing demographics are often encouraged to take part in the contest.
Internet applications for endangered languages  A talking dictionary of Ainu .
Bunrui Ainugo hōgen jiten  An Ainu dialect dictionary with Ainu  Japanese  and English indexes .
In 1264  the Ainu invaded the land of the Nivkh people.
The Ainu formed a society of hunter gatherers  surviving mainly by hunting and fishing.
Takeda Nobuhiro killed the Ainu leader  Koshamain.
Another large scale revolt by Ainu against Japanese rule was the Menashi Kunashir Battle in 1789.
From 1799 to 1806  the shogunate took direct control of southern Hokkaidō.
Meiji Restoration and later     In the 18th century  there were 80 000 Ainu.
Sjöberg quotes Baba s  1890  account of the Japanese government s reasoning  ...
Second ... it offered a solution to the unemployment for the former samurai class ...
Some historians noted that the Ainu language was still an important lingua franca in Sakhalin.
Many live in Sambutsu especially  on the eastern coast.
Ainu also identify themselves as Utari   comrade  or  people  in the Ainu language .
Official documents use both names.
The park will serve as base for the protection and promotion of Ainu people  culture and language.
Upopoy in Ainu language means  singing in a large group .
They refused the offer by Russian officials to move to new reservations in the Commander Islands.
Finally a deal was reached in 1881 and the Ainu decided to settle in the village of Yavin.
In March 1881  the group left Petropavlovsk and started the journey towards Yavin on foot.
Four months later they arrived at their new homes.
Another village  Golygino  was founded later.
As a result of intermarriage  the three ethnic groups assimilated to form the Kamchadal community.
This order was revoked after two decades.
As of 2015  the North Kuril Ainu of Zaporozhye form the largest Ainu subgroup in Russia.
There is no evidence of living descendants of the Kamchatka Ainu.
2018  suggest that haplogroup D originated somewhere in Central Asia.
He suggests that there were multiple waves into Eastern Eurasia.
2006  found that about 25  of tested Ainu men belonged to haplogroup C M217.
2009  who have cited Tajima et al.
This agrees with the references to the Ainu as a merger of Okhotsk and Satsumon referenced above.
Two received the Order of the Golden Kite  granted for bravery  leadership or command in battle.
I thought they must be Germans in disguise.
Vovin has characterised the language as  almost extinct .
Most Ainu people speak either the Japanese language or the Russian language.
As of 2019 it is typically written either in katakana or in the Latin alphabet.
Culture     Traditional Ainu culture was quite different from Japanese culture.
The women tattooed their mouths  and sometimes the forearms.
The soot deposited on a pot hung over a fire of birch bark was used for colour.
The sleeves ended at the wrist or forearm and the length generally was to the calves.
Ainu culture considers earrings  traditionally made from grapevines  to be gender neutral.
The house of the village head was used as a public meeting place when one was needed.
The men used chopsticks when eating  the women had wooden spoons.
Capital punishment did not exist  nor did the community resort to imprisonment.
Beating was considered a sufficient and final penalty.
Hunting      The Ainu hunted from late autumn to early summer.
Ezo deer were a particularly important food resource for the Ainu  as were salmon.
They also hunted sea eagles such as white tailed sea eagles  raven and other birds.
The Ainu hunted eagles to obtain their tail feathers  which they used in trade with the Japanese.
The Ainu hunted with arrows and spears with poison coated points.
They obtained the poison  called surku  from the roots and stalks of aconites.
The recipe for this poison was a household secret that differed from family to family.
They also used stingray stingers or skin covering stingers.They hunted in groups with dogs.
At that time  bears were weak because they had not fed at all during their long hibernation.
Ainu hunters caught hibernating bears or bears that had just left hibernation dens.
When they hunted bear in summer  they used a spring trap loaded with an arrow  called an amappo.
The Ainu usually used arrows to hunt deer.
Also  they drove deer into a river or sea and shot them with arrows.
For a large catch  a whole village would drive a herd of deer off a cliff and club them to death.
Fishing      Fishing was important for the Ainu.
Spears called  marek  were often used.
Other methods were  tesh  fishing   uray  fishing and  rawomap  fishing.
Many villages were built near rivers or along the coast.
Each village or individual had a definite river fishing territory.
Outsiders could not freely fish there and needed to ask the owner.
Ornaments     Men wore a crown called sapanpe for important ceremonies.
Sapanpe was made from wood fibre with bundles of partially shaved wood.
This crown had wooden figures of animal gods and other ornaments on its centre.
Ninkari was a metal ring with a ball.
Matanpushi and ninkari were originally worn by men.
Furthermore  aprons called maidari now are a part of women s formal clothes.
However  some old documents say that men wore maidari.
Some glass balls came from trade with the Asian continent.
The Ainu also obtained glass balls secretly made by the Matsumae clan.
Housing      A village is called a kotan in the Ainu language.
The average number of families was four to seven  rarely reaching more than ten.
When the Japanese moved to other fishing grounds  Ainu kotan were also forced to accompany them.
The length lay east to west or parallel to a river.
The Ainu have regarded this window as sacred and have been told never to look in through it.
A house had a fireplace near the entrance.
The husband and wife sat on the fireplace s left side  called shiso  .
Children and guests sat facing them on the fireplace s right side  called harkiso .
The house had a platform for valuables called iyoykir behind the shiso.
An altar  nusasan  faced the east side of the house  rorunpuyar .
Traditions     The Ainu people had various types of marriage.
When the betrothed reached a marriageable age  they were told who their spouse was to be.
There were also marriages based on mutual consent of both sexes.
The parents chose her spouse from men who visited her.
If the woman ate the rest  she accepted his proposal.
If she did not and put it beside her  she rejected his proposal.
He sent her a small engraved knife  a workbox  a spool  and other gifts.
Children were raised almost naked until about the ages of four to five.
Even when they wore clothes  they did not wear belts and left the front of their clothes open.
Subsequently  they wore bark clothes without patterns  such as attush  until coming of age.
Children were called by these  temporary  names until the ages of two to three.
They were not given permanent names when they were born.
Some children were named based on their behaviour or habits.
Women were also considered adults at the age of 15–16.
When women reached age 12–13  the lips  hands and arms were tattooed.
When they reached age 15–16  their tattoos were completed.
Thus were they qualified for marriage.
These sticks are called inaw  singular  and nusa  plural .
They are placed on an altar used to  send back  the spirits of killed animals.
Ainu ceremonies for sending back bears are called Iyomante.
Converts have been scorned as  Nutsa Ainu   Russian Ainu  by other members of the Ainu community.
It now is run exclusively by Ainu and operates mostly independently of the government.
In short  nearly all of the plaintiffs  claims were recognized.
One such committee operated in the late 1990s  and its work resulted in the 1997 Ainu Culture Law.
Therefore  the exact number of Ainu people is unknown.
However  multiple surveys were conducted that provide an indication of the total population.
According to a 2006 Hokkaido Agency survey  there were 23 782 Ainu people in Hokkaido.
According to a 1971 survey  there were 77 000 survey results.
There is also a survey that the total number of Ainu living in Japan is 200 000.
However  there s no other survey that supports this estimate.
A 1988 survey estimated that the population of Ainu living in Tokyo was 2 700.
According to a 2017 survey  the Ainu population in Hokkaido is about 13 000.
That amount continues to decrease.
Many who claim Ainu heritage are multiracial.
The character Fredzilla from Big Hero 6 is of Ainu descent.
Usui Horokeu  also known as Horohoro  from Shaman King  is a member of an Ainu tribe.
Ainu  is a playable nation in the game Europa Universalis IV.
A coming of age film  Ainu Mosir  2020   was released in Japan on 17 October 2020.
As of October 1  2010  it had a population of 291 838.
The principal city of the area is Aizuwakamatsu.
The area encompassed by the province reverted to Mutsu some time between 722 and 724.
Although never an official province in its own right  Aizu has a very strong regional identity.
He is best known for introducing Pestallozian teaching methods to Japan and educational reform.
Mission    Akatsuki is a Japanese orbiter mission currently studying the planet Venus.
This larger orbit takes 10 days to complete instead of the originally planned 30 hours.
The solar arrays provide over 700 W of power while in Venus orbit.
The total mass of the spacecraft at launch was 517.6 kg  1 141 lb .
It is the first spacecraft to use a ceramic  silicon nitride  retrofire thruster.
The high gain antenna is flat to prevent heat from building up in it.
Instruments    The scientific payload consists of six instruments.
Finally  the 1.65 μm filter was used during the cruise phase to study the zodiacal light.
Names and messages were printed in fine letters on an aluminium plate and placed aboard Akatsuki.
The probe was found to be in safe hold mode  spin stabilized state with ten minutes per rotation.
JAXA stated on 8 December that the probe s orbital insertion maneuver had failed.
However  the thrust was only about 40 newtons  9.0 lbf   which was 10  of expectations.
A total delta v of 243.8 m s was imparted to the spacecraft.
Akatsuki has enough fuel to continue operating for at least 2 more years as of November 2019.
In September 2017 JAXA scientists named this phenomenon  Venusian equatorial jet .
By 2017  the science team published 3D maps on the Venus atmosphere structure.
He succeeded to the Chrysanthemum Throne upon the death of his father  Emperor Showa  Hirohito .
Upon his abdication due to his age and declining health  he became Emperor Emeritus.
He was succeeded by his eldest son  Naruhito.
A new era  Reiwa  令和   was established when his son  Emperor Naruhito  acceded to the throne.
Akihito was heir apparent to the Chrysanthemum Throne from the moment of his birth.
In June 1953 Akihito represented Japan at the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in London  the UK.
Crown Prince Akihito and Crown Princess Michiko made official visits to thirty seven countries.
Later in 2011 he was admitted to hospital suffering from pneumonia.
Initially there was low enthusiasm for the relationship between the couple.
The engagement ceremony took place on 14 January 1959  and the marriage on 10 April 1959.
Rumors also speculated that his mother  Empress Kōjun had opposed the engagement.
It was the first trip by a Japanese monarch to a World War II battlefield abroad.
Under Japan s male only succession law  Princess Aiko is not eligible for the throne.
An abdication within the Imperial Family has not occurred since Emperor Kōkaku in 1817.
As of 2006 this order is аbolished.
The list includes all the visits made up to 31 December 2017.
Akita Prefecture  秋田県  Akita ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu.
Akita is the capital and largest city of Akita Prefecture.
Other major cities include Yokote  Daisen  and Yurihonjō.
Akita Prefecture formed the northern half of the historic Dewa Province with Yamagata Prefecture.
Governance of the region shifted hands several times.
Throughout this period  it was classified as part of Dewa Province.
This has led many young people to migrate to Tokyo and other large cities.
Its population also has the lowest percentage of children  at 11.2 .
This decline  combined with an aging population  has been concerning for rural communities.
Ono no Komachi is a famous example of an Akita bijin.
Akita Bank Red Arrows  women s basketball team.
Prestige International Aranmare Akita  women s basketball team.
These are popular with tourists from all over Japan.
In addition  numerous seasonal festivals  matsuri  offer a glimpse of rural or traditional Japan.
Kakunodate  known as the little Kyoto  features many preserved samurai houses.
The house is now a museum and gallery of medical illustrations and traditional crafts.
The Triple Entente was made up of France  Britain  and Russia.
As the war progressed  each coalition added new members.
Japan joined the Entente in 1914.
Japan joined the Entente by declaring war on Germany on 23 August  then Austria on 25 August.
This confusion arguably persists today.
These controlled their own domestic policies and military expenditure but not foreign policy.
As a result  aggressive nationalism or Revanchism was one of the few areas to unite the French.
Idrisid Emirate of Asir     The Idrisid Emirate of Asir participated in the Arab revolt.
Some Andorran volunteers participated in the French Foreign Legion.
The Powers officially recognized this status through the 1916 Treaty of Bucharest.
The Romanian Navy possessed the largest warships on the Danube.
The first one launched was Lascăr Catargiu  in 1907.
The monitors took part in the Battle of Turtucaia and the First Battle of Cobadin.
Vlaicu III was also captured and shipped to Germany  being last seen in 1942.
The Austro Hungarian offensive at Oituz also failed.
At any one time  the various forces were much smaller.
Only a fraction of them were frontline combat troops.
The numbers do not reflect the length of time each country was involved.
The Triple Entente was made up of France  Britain  and Russia.
As the war progressed  each coalition added new members.
Japan joined the Entente in 1914.
Japan joined the Entente by declaring war on Germany on 23 August  then Austria on 25 August.
This confusion arguably persists today.
These controlled their own domestic policies and military expenditure but not foreign policy.
As a result  aggressive nationalism or Revanchism was one of the few areas to unite the French.
Idrisid Emirate of Asir     The Idrisid Emirate of Asir participated in the Arab revolt.
Some Andorran volunteers participated in the French Foreign Legion.
The Powers officially recognized this status through the 1916 Treaty of Bucharest.
The Romanian Navy possessed the largest warships on the Danube.
The first one launched was Lascăr Catargiu  in 1907.
The monitors took part in the Battle of Turtucaia and the First Battle of Cobadin.
Vlaicu III was also captured and shipped to Germany  being last seen in 1942.
The Austro Hungarian offensive at Oituz also failed.
At any one time  the various forces were much smaller.
Only a fraction of them were frontline combat troops.
The numbers do not reflect the length of time each country was involved.
Estimates run around 10 000 for the northern variety and 2 000 for the southern  Setouchi  variety.
In addition  several isoglosses do group Northern and Southern Amami together.
This can rarely be observed in Okinawan dialects.
A marked isogloss is the vowel systems.
Another term  shimaguchi  simaɡuci   is absent from Osada s dictionary.
He thought that the dialect of one s home community was better referred to as shimayumuta.
Final consonants are usually the result of eliding high front vowels.
Elision is partly conditioned by pitch accent.
mi⎛miː   ear  2.3    ha⎛ɾiː   needle  2.4  and  ha⎛ɾuː   spring  2.5 .
ɨ  and  ɘ  are generally transcribed  ï  and  ë  in the literature.
ɘ  mostly derives from a merger of  ae and  ai  and so is usually long.
Its phonemic romanization was designed by Hattori Shirō.
He also supervised the early compilation process.
This dictionary is partially available online as the Amami Dialect Dictionary  1 .
Sani is known as a language island.
Shodon  A Dialect of the Northern Ryukyus Shigehisa Karimata  1995–1996.
Shodon  A Dialect of the Northern Ryukyus Yuto Niinaga  2009.
How Do We Describe Demonstratives in Yuwan Ryukyuan?In JapaneseShigehisa Karimata  1995–1996.
Phonological characteristics of Northern Amami dialects Nobuko Kibe  2011.
As with other Shinto kami  she is also enshrined in a number of Shinto shrines throughout Japan.
Why should we not produce someone who shall be lord of the universe?
They then together produced the Sun Goddess  who was called Oho hiru me no muchi.
Their final child  the fire god Kagutsuchi  caused Izanami s death  as in the Kojiki .
This act upset Amaterasu  causing her to split away from Tsukuyomi  thus separating night from day.
In all these various matters his conduct was rude in the highest degree.
The Sun Goddess  not knowing this  went straight there and took her seat.
Accordingly the Sun Goddess drew herself up  and was sickened.
Then Takamanohara shook as the eight hundred myriad deities laughed at once.
Inside the cave  Amaterasu is surprised that the gods should show such mirth in her absence.
Ame no Uzume answered that they were celebrating because another god greater than her had appeared.
He  however  again demurs and suggests that his son Ninigi be sent instead.
Continuing their journey  the army soon found themselves stranded in the mountains.
Soon enough  the bird appeared and led Iwarebiko and his men to safety.
He then established his palace capital at Kashihara and ruled therein.
It is a secluded and pleasant land.
Accordingly an Abstinence Palace was built at Kaha kami in Isuzu.
This was called the palace of Iso.
It was there that Ama terasu no Oho kami first descended from Heaven.
This incident explains the sword s name   Grass Cutter  .
Thus the Kusanagi stayed in Owari  where it was enshrined in the shrine of Atsuta.
After Chūai s death  Jingū performed divination to ascertain which gods had spoken to her husband.
There is a possibility she may have been a consort to a sun god.
Some telling stories place Tsukuyomi as her husband.
Siblings     Amaterasu has many siblings most notably Susanoo and  Tsukiyomi.
New shrine buildings are built at a location adjacent to the site first.
The building materials taken apart are given to many other shrines and buildings to renovate.
The Hinokuma shrines were used to worship the goddess by the Ama people in the Kii Provinces.
It  however  was usually seen as the worshiping of Japan itself  rather than Amaterasu.
Most of these colonial and oversea shrines were destroyed after WWII.
Animals range in length from 8.5 micrometres  0.00033 in  to 33.6 metres  110 ft .
They have complex interactions with each other and their environments  forming intricate food webs.
The scientific study of animals is known as zoology.
Historically  Aristotle divided animals into those with blood and those without.
Dogs have been used in hunting  while many terrestrial and aquatic animals were hunted for sports.
The biological definition includes all members of the kingdom Animalia.
In colloquial usage  the term animal is often used to refer only to non human animals.
Animals are eukaryotic and multicellular.
With very few exceptions  animals respire aerobically.
This may be calcified  forming structures such as shells  bones  and spicules.
These fuse to form zygotes  which develop via mitosis into a hollow sphere  called a blastula.
In most other groups  the blastula  undergoes more complicated rearrangement.
In most cases  a third germ layer  the mesoderm  also develops between them.
Animals have evolved numerous mechanisms for avoiding close inbreeding.
Interactions between animals form complex food webs.
Almost all multicellular predators are animals.
Phylogeny     Animals are monophyletic  meaning they are derived from a common ancestor.
Animals are sister to the Choanoflagellata  with which they form the Choanozoa.
Non bilaterian animals      Several animal phyla lack bilateral symmetry.
Among these  the sponges  Porifera  probably diverged first  representing the oldest animal phylum.
Animals in both phyla have distinct tissues  but these are not organised into organs.
They are diploblastic  having only two main germ layers  ectoderm and endoderm.
The tiny placozoans are similar  but they do not have a permanent digestive chamber.
They also have a gut that extends through the basically cylindrical body from mouth to anus.
Most appear to belong to two major lineages  the  protostomes and the deuterostomes.
The basalmost bilaterians are the Xenacoelomorpha.
Protostomes and deuterostomes       Protostomes and deuterostomes differ in several ways.
In deuterostomes  the anus forms first while the mouth develops secondarily.
Echinoderms are exclusively marine and include starfish  sea urchins  and sea cucumbers.
The deuterostomes also include the Hemichordata  acorn worms .
All of these have a body divided into repeating segments  typically with paired appendages.
The ecdysozoans also include the Nematoda or roundworms  perhaps the second largest animal phylum.
These groups have a reduced coelom  called a pseudocoelom.
These two groups have long been considered close relatives because they share trochophore larvae.
Marine fish of many species are caught commercially for food.
A smaller number of species are farmed commercially.
Chickens  cattle  sheep  pigs and other animals are raised as livestock for meat across the world.
Animals have been hunted and farmed for their fur to make items such as coats and hats.
Animals have been used to create vaccines since their discovery in the 18th century.
Poison dart frogs have been used to poison the tips of blowpipe darts.
However  the most kept pet species are mammals  namely dogs  cats  and rabbits.
A wide variety of terrestrial and aquatic animals are hunted for sport.
Animals including insects and mammals feature in mythology and religion.
The signs of the Western and Chinese zodiacs are based on animals.
However  it was based on erroneous  unscientific observations about the nature of reality.
The debate defined the field of research of a new science  anthropology.
Their religion was animism  the belief that natural species and objects had souls.
Seven comments from other academics were provided in the journal  debating Bird David s ideas.
This  he felt  would result in anthropology abandoning  the scientific project.
Shamans are said to treat ailments illnesses by mending the soul.
The shaman operates primarily within the spiritual world  which in turn affects the human world.
Scholars of Christian animism include Mark I. Wallace.
Moreover  some religions are both pantheistic and animistic.
As a result  animism puts more emphasis on the uniqueness of each individual soul.
The Kalash people of Northern Pakistan follow an ancient animistic religion.
Korean shamanism  also known as Mu or Muism  has many animist aspects.
The elements     Various animistic cultures also comprehend stones as persons.
Art and literature     Animist beliefs can also be expressed through artwork.
See also         References          Sources     Abram  David  1996 .
Animism  Revisited  Personhood  Environment  and Relational Epistemology .
Lamphun s Little Known Animal Shrines  Animist traditions in Thailand  .
The Nazi regime saw signing of the Anti Comintern Pact as a  litmus test of loyalty .
It was placed under the leadership Dr. Adolf Ehrt  de .
Under Ehrt s leadership  the Comintern was denounced as  godless  in reference to its atheism.
This created a rivalry between the two services.
German historian Bernd Martin dubbed the Washington Naval Conference the  Japanese  Versailles .
Japan left the League of Nations as a result of the Lytton Report in February 1933.
Furthermore  China was the biggest trade partner for German businesses in Asia.
Instability in France     The domestic situation in the French Third Republic was unstable.
The cabinet of Léon Blum  supported by France s popular front  had taken the reins in June 1936.
Historian Carl Boyd interprets this as a reference to the contact with Ōshima established via Hack.
Such a  no aid  agreement was easier to fit into each country s respective grand strategies.
He was sceptical of the Dienststelle s semi official state within the German foreign service.
Only then was the draft shown to ambassador Mushakoji.
Its length was reduced to 5 years  down from 10 as had originally been planned.
Two additional protocols were signed  one of which was public.
The other  which was specifically aimed against the Soviet Union  was secret.
The initial length of the treaty was specified to be five years.
This was part of the German government s attempt to forge a tighter cultural relationship.
Hitler shared that same impression.
Italy would end up joining the pact in November 1937.
However  despite the government s scepticism  the Privy Council had given its unanimous consent.
Alarmed by the Anti Comintern Pact  the USSR had cut down sales to and purchases from Japan.
In the House of Commons  the Anti Comintern Pact became a subject of debate multiple times.
Entry of Italy  6 November 1937     On 6 November 1937  Italy joined the Anti Comintern Pact.
This was prevented by the intervention of Japanese diplomats around Shigenori Tōgō.
The Pact of Steel s capabilities were commented on by Ciano as  real dynamite .
Germany and the Soviet Union signed the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact in August 1939.
Weizsäcker complained to the Wehrmacht high command about this incident.
As a result of the diplomatic shakeup  Japan retreated out of Ribbentrop s anti British designs.
This came to pass as part of the Tripartite Pact of 27 September 1940.
This would not majorly change until 7 December 1941  when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.
Soon after  on 13 December  the country declared war on the United Kingdom and the United States.
Tsar Simeon II s regents were executed.
It joined the Anti Comintern Pact in November 1941.
Denmark takes up no military obligations.
Anti communist action in Denmark should be limited to police operations.
The treaty should be limited to Danish territory.
This damaged the international reputation of the Danish civilian government.
It had submitted its signature to the treaty ahead of time  on 22 November.
After serious considerations  the Kai shek administration refused.
They were unwilling to align with Japan without a retreat of Japanese forces from China.
This war became reality in the following year.
The Chinese government stalled for time and did not give a definitive answer to the proposal.
These demands were designed by Germany to be rejected.
Portugal was of interest as a possible member state  especially after Spain joined.
In response  the Axis Powers executed the Invasion of Yugoslavia on 6 April.
Lambert  Margaret  et al.  eds.
Die letzten Wochen vor Kriegsausbruch  9.
U.S.S.R. and Japan to Improve Trade Relations .
Zeitschrift für Politik   Europäische Einheit im Zeichen des Antikominternpaktes .
New York City  HarperCollins e books.
Austrian and Habsburg Studies  eBook ed. .
Deutschland in der italienischen Literatur seit dem Ende des Zweiten Weltkrieges  in German .
Zur Vorgeschichte des deutsch japanischen Kriegsbündnisses .
Japan und die sowjetische Nationalitätenfrage am Vorabend und während des Zweiten Weltkrieges .
Germany s diplomatic relations with Japan 1933 1941.
Aomori Prefecture  青森県  Aomori ken  is a prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku region.
The prefecture s capital  largest city  and namesake is the city of Aomori.
The relics found there suggest that the Jōmon period began about 15 000 years ago.
Around 3 900 BCE settlement at the Sannai Maruyama Site in the present day city of Aomori began.
The settlement of Sannai Maruyama ended around 2300 BCE due to unknown reasons.
The region  known then as Michinoku  was inhabited by the Emishi.
The eruptive activity peaked on 17 August.
Nanbu Mitsuyuki built Shōjujidate Castle in what is now Nanbu  Aomori.
The port was expanded under the rule of the Andō clan.
They traded heavily with the Ainu in Ezo.
The conflict was put down after the Nanbu intervened at the behest of the shogunate.
The Andō also were involved with controlling the fringes of Ezo  splitting their attention.
During the Muromachi  the Nanbu slowly began edging the Andō out of present day Aomori Prefecture.
The port settlement would fall into disrepair under the Nanbu.
One faction under Ōura Tamenobu asserted their control over the Hirosaki Domain.
His clan  originally the Ōura clan  大浦氏  Ōura shi   was of uncertain origins.
Afterwards  he sided with Tokugawa Ieyasu during the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600.
However  the Tsugaru soon switched course  and briefly became a member of the Ōuetsu Reppan Dōmei.
It became a town in 1889 and then a city in 1898.
On 3 May 1910  a fire broke out in the Yasukata district.
Fanned by strong winds  the fire quickly devastated the whole city.
The conflagration claimed 26 lives and injured a further 160 residents.
Hachinohe Airfield was occupied until 1950  and was called Camp Haugen.
Radio Aomori made its first broadcast in 1953.
Four years later  the first fish auctions were held.
The tunnel s opening to rail traffic saw the end of the Seikan Ferry rail service.
In March 2011  a magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck the east coast of Japan.
The southeastern coast of Aomori Prefecture was affected by the resulting tsunami.
Buildings along harbors were damaged along with boats thrown about in the streets.
It faces Hokkaido from across the Tsugaru Strait.
It borders Akita and Iwate in the south.
The islets of Kyūroku jima in the Sea of Japan are the prefecture s westernmost point.
The Shimokita and Tsugaru Peninsulas enclose Mutsu Bay.
Lake Towada  a lake that sits in a volcanic caldera  straddles Aomori s boundary with Akita.
Also within the park  the Oirase River flows east towards the Pacific Ocean from Lake Towada.
It has four distinct seasons with an average temperature of 10 °C  50 °F .
Demographics    A person living in or from Aomori Prefecture is referred to as an Aomorian.
As of 2017  the prefecture had a total population of 1.28 million residents.
Accounting for just over 1 percent of Japan s total population.
Only neighboring Akita Prefecture lost more citizens than Aomori.
In 2017  23 529 people moved out of Aomori  while 17 454 people moved to the prefecture.
In the same year the prefecture had a density of 130.9 people per square kilometer.
The peninsula is also home to the inactive Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant.
Agriculture     Aomori Prefecture is a leading agricultural region in Japan.
With the decline of the samurai  Gonohe s horses continued to be bred for their meat.
Tourism      Tourism has been a growing sector of Aomori Prefecture s economy.
This influx of foreign tourists has led to the construction of more hotels in Aomori.
Major draws to the prefecture are its historic sites  museums  and national parks.
In 2006  the production of aged black garlic began in Aomori Prefecture.
The prefecture has since become the largest producer of the superfood in Japan.
Summer and autumn hold many distinct festivals with bright lights  floats  dancing and music.
Arts and literature     Aomori Prefecture has produced several writers and artists.
Sōsaku hanga artist Shikō Munakata was born in Aomori.
Much of his art was inspired by the prefecture s natural qualities and distinctive culture.
Five venues across the prefecture held 51 different events.
The prefecture has produced some professional athletes.
Yoshisada Yonezuka from the town of Nakadomari was a martial arts instructor for USA Judo.
He coached the team in the 1988 and 1992 Summer Olympics.
The club was disbanded in 2013.
Several national highways pass through the prefecture.
The ports at Aomori and Hachinohe both serve cruise ships and ferry lines.
Additionally  a ferry line operates between Ōma and Hakodate.
Several private universities are also located in Aomori Prefecture.
In all the prefecture allocated 130.3 billion yen towards education in 2018.
In 1966  the prefecture designated the hiba  Thujopsis dolabrata  as its prefectural tree.
In 1987  the Japanese halibut was designated as the prefectural fish.
The most widespread variants are the Tsugaru dialect  Nanbu dialect  and Shimokita dialect.
Due to this negativity speakers of Tōhoku dialects will often hide their accents.
Motoko later started a journal  that focused on the values of middle class women.
In these six spaceflights  twelve people walked on the Moon.
Apollo ran from 1961 to 1972  with the first crewed flight in 1968.
Budget cuts forced the cancellation of three of these.
The crew returned to Earth safely by using the lunar module as a  lifeboat  for these functions.
Apollo set several major human spaceflight milestones.
It stands alone in sending crewed missions beyond low Earth orbit.
Even some NASA employees doubted whether Kennedy s ambitious goal could be met.
The mission module was determined to be useful only as an extra room  and therefore unnecessary.
MSFC designed the heavy lift class Saturn launch vehicles  which would be required for Apollo.
And they may well ask  why climb the highest mountain?
Why  35 years ago  fly the Atlantic?
... We choose to go to the Moon.
It was renamed by the US Congress in honor of Lyndon Johnson soon after his death in 1973.
Debus was named the LOC s first Director.
Construction began in November 1962.
These would be assembled into a single spacecraft in Earth orbit.
Lunar Surface Rendezvous  Two spacecraft would be launched in succession.
Propellant would have to be transferred from the automated vehicle to the crewed vehicle.
Wiesner blurted out  No  that s no good  in front of the press  during a presentation by von Braun.
Some documents prove this theory was discussed before and after the method was chosen.
Parachutes were carried to slow its descent to splashdown.
A high gain S band antenna was used for long distance communications on the lunar flights.
On the extended lunar missions  an orbital scientific instrument package was carried.
The service module was discarded just before reentry.
The module was 24.6 feet  7.5 m  long and 12.83 feet  3.91 m  in diameter.
Also  there was no provision for docking with the lunar module.
It consisted of separate descent and ascent stages  each with its own engine.
The ascent stage contained the crew cabin  ascent propellant  and a reaction control system.
This was changed by the time human flights began.
The first flight with a live S IV was launched from LC 37.
Saturn IB      The Saturn IB was an upgraded version of the Saturn I.
Its capability grew to 103 600 pounds  47 000 kg  for the later advanced lunar landings.
Half of the 24 walked on the Moon s surface  though none of them returned to it after landing once.
One of the moonwalkers was a trained geologist.
All missions were commanded by Gemini or Mercury veterans.
The Block I crew positions were titled Command Pilot  Senior Pilot  and Pilot.
The Block II crew positions were titled Commander  Command Module Pilot  and Lunar Module Pilot.
Slayton replaced him with Chaffee.
The initial assembly of AS 501 had to use a dummy spacer spool in place of the stage.
First  the crew noticed a strange odor in their spacesuits which delayed the sealing of the hatch.
The astronauts were asphyxiated before the hatch could be opened.
NASA immediately convened an accident review board  overseen by both houses of Congress.
Two S II engines shut down prematurely  but the remaining engines were able to compensate.
In the summer it had become clear that the LM would not be ready in time.
This would keep the program on track.
The decision was not announced publicly until successful completion of Apollo 7.
The astronauts returned safely on July 24.
That s one small step for  a  man  one giant leap for mankind.
Man  that may have been a small one for Neil  but that s a long one for me.
They made two EVAs totaling 7 hours and 45 minutes.
By 1971  the decision was made to also cancel missions 18 and 19.
This time the mission was successful.
In over 18 hours of EVA  they collected about 77 kilograms  170 lb  of lunar material.
The crew was commanded by John Young  with Ken Mattingly and Charles Duke.
Some of the returned samples are of impact melt  materials melted near an impact crater.
The final fiscal year of Apollo funding was 1973.
Astronauts would continue to use the CSM as a ferry to the station.
Perhaps the wistfulness is caused by the sense of simple grandeur in those Apollo missions.
Apollo stimulated many areas of technology  leading to over 1 800 spinoff products as of 2015.
By 1963  Apollo was using 60 percent of the United States  production of ICs.
Arabic numerals are the ten digits  0  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8 and 9.
They were modified into Arabic numerals later in North Africa.
Arabs were also using the Eastern Arabic numerals  ٠١٢٣٤٥٦٧٨٩  in other areas.
Gerbert studied in Barcelona in his youth.
See G.F. Hill  The Development of Arabic Numerals in Europe for more examples.
By the mid 16th century  they were in common use in most of Europe.
They are encoded in ASCII at positions 0x30 to 0x39.
These positions were inherited in Unicode.
EBCDIC used different values  but also had the lower 4 bits equal to the digit value.
The provinces and the capital have their own constitutions  but exist under a federal system.
The earliest recorded human presence in modern day Argentina dates back to the Paleolithic period.
The Inca Empire expanded to the northwest of the country in Pre Columbian times.
The country has its roots in Spanish colonization of the region during the 16th century.
Currently  it is ranked 61st in the world.
She was overthrown in 1976 by a military dictatorship.
The 1826 constitution included the first use of the name  Argentine Republic  in legal documents.
Francisco de Aguirre founded Santiago del Estero in 1553.
Londres was founded in 1558  Mendoza  in 1561  San Juan  in 1562  San Miguel de Tucumán  in 1565.
Juan de Garay founded Santa Fe in 1573 and the same year Jerónimo Luis de Cabrera set up Córdoba.
Garay went further south to re found Buenos Aires in 1580.
As new president of the Confederation  Urquiza enacted the liberal and federal 1853 Constitution.
Its railway mileage rose from 503 to 31 104 km  313 to 19 327 mi .
He enacted social and economic reforms and extended assistance to small farms and businesses.
Argentina stayed neutral during World War I.
Perón quickly managed climb the political ladder  being named Ministry of Defence by 1944.
He was later released under mounting pressure from both his base and several allied unions.
He also engaged in a campaign of political suppression.
Eva Perón  his wife who played a critical role in the party  died of cancer in 1952.
As the economy continued to tank Perón started losing popular support.
Arturo Frondizi from the UCR won the 1958 general election.
Perón was banned from running but Peronist party was allowed to participate.
The presidential elections were won by Hector Cámpora  Perón s puppet candidate.
Cámpora s months of government were beset by political and social unrest.
Over 600 social conflicts  strikes  and factory occupations took place within a single month.
Perón won the election with his then wife Isabel Perón as vice president.
Perón suffered a final heart attack on Monday  1 July 1974 and died at 13 15.
After his death  Isabel Perón  his wife and Vice President  came into office.
She served as President of Argentina from 1974 until 1976  when she was deposed by the military.
Most were victims of state terrorism.
Onganía shut down Congress  banned all political parties and dismantled student and worker unions.
In 1969  popular discontent led to two massive protests  the Cordobazo and the Rosariazo.
The terrorist guerrilla organization Montoneros kidnapped and executed Aramburu.
He expelled Montoneros from the party and they became once again a clandestine organization.
Nevertheless  the junta stayed in power.
This led to the Falklands War with the United Kingdom and an Argentine surrender on 14 June.
Reynaldo Bignone replaced Galtieri and began to organize the transition to democratic rule.
He pardoned the officers who had been sentenced during Alfonsín s government.
The 1994 Constitutional Amendment allowed Menem to be elected for a second term.
The December 2001 riots forced him to resign.
Though he managed tepid economic recovery  inflation rates remained high.
He ran for re election in 2019 but lost to Alberto Fernández  the kirchnerist candidate.
The only tree like plant native to the pampa is the evergreen Ombú.
The climate of Argentina is changing with regards to precipitation patterns and temperatures.
Following a transition that began in 1983  full scale democracy in Argentina was reestablished.
Government      Argentina is a federal constitutional republic and representative democracy.
The seat of government is the city of Buenos Aires  as designated by Congress.
Seats are apportioned among the provinces by population every tenth year.
At least one third of the candidates presented by the parties must be women.
The Judicial is independent of the Executive and the Legislative.
The City of Buenos Aires is divided into communes.
The Anarchy of the Year XX completed this process  shaping the original thirteen provinces.
Jujuy seceded from Salta in 1834  and the thirteen provinces became fourteen.
La Pampa and Chaco became provinces in 1951.
Misiones did so in 1953  and Formosa  Neuquén  Río Negro  Chubut and Santa Cruz  in 1955.
It has three components  although two are nominal because they are not under Argentine sovereignty.
Military service is voluntary  with enlistment age between 18 and 24 years old and no conscription.
Access to biocapacity in Argentina is much higher than world average.
This means they use half as much biocapacity as Argentina contains.
As a result  Argentina is running a biocapacity reserve.
To deter it and support the peso  the government imposed foreign currency control.
In 2013 there were 161 airports with paved runways out of more than a thousand.
Aeroparque  in the city of Buenos Aires  is the most important domestic airport.
Science and technology      Argentines have received three Nobel Prizes in the Sciences.
Argentine research has led to treatments for heart diseases and several forms of cancer.
René Favaloro developed the techniques and performed the world s first coronary bypass surgery.
Argentina s nuclear programme has been highly successful.
Nuclear facilities with Argentine technology have been built in Peru  Algeria  Australia and Egypt.
Juan Maldacena  an Argentine American scientist  is a leading figure in string theory.
Space research has also become increasingly active in Argentina.
The country s capital city  Buenos Aires  is the most visited city in South America.
There are 30 National Parks of Argentina including many World Heritage Sites.
Demographics     The 2010 census counted 40 117 096 inhabitants  up from 36 260 130 in 2001.
Argentines usually refer to the country as a crisol de razas  crucible of races  or melting pot .
However  mass European immigration did not have the same impact in the whole country.
As in the United States  they are considered white.
A minority are Muslims  albeit the largest Muslim community in the Americas.
Northeast Zone  Misiones  Corrientes  Chaco   Formosa provinces   54  European and 46  others.
Languages      The de facto official language is Spanish  spoken by almost all Argentines.
Guaraní  by 200 000 people  mostly in Corrientes  where it is official de jure  and Misiones.
Wichí  by 53 700 people  mainly in Chaco where  along with Kom and Moqoit  it is official de jure.
Some districts have incorporated it as an educational language.
The provinces of Córdoba and Santa Fe  and the city of Buenos Aires have 3 million each.
In 2010 the literacy rate was 98.07 .
In 2010 38.5  of people over age 20 had completed secondary school.
in 2013 there were 47 national public universities across the country  as well as 46 private ones.
In 2010 7.1  of people over age 20 had graduated from university.
In the last decades the role of the private sector has grown across all educational stages.
Culture     Argentina is a multicultural country with significant European influences.
The other big influence is the gauchos and their traditional country lifestyle of self reliance.
Finally  indigenous American traditions have been absorbed into the general cultural milieu.
Short stories such as Ficciones and The Aleph are among his most famous works.
Tango enjoys worldwide popularity nowadays with groups like Gotan Project  Bajofondo and Tanghetto.
Some of its interpreters  like Atahualpa Yupanqui and Mercedes Sosa  achieved worldwide acclaim.
The romantic ballad genre included singers of international fame such as Sandro de América.
In this stage  in 1786  a tragedy entitled Siripo had its premiere.
La Ranchería theatre operated until its destruction in a fire in 1792.
It was the nation s longest continuously operating stage.
In 2013 about 100 full length motion pictures were being created annually.
The most popular sport is football.
It has also won 14 Copas América  7 Pan American Gold Medals and many other trophies.
It has also conquered 13 South American Championships  and many other tournaments.
Argentina hosted the Basketball World Cup in 1950 and 1990.
Rugby is another popular sport in Argentina.
The Argentine Polo Championship is the sport s most important international team trophy.
The Constitution came into effect on May 3  1947  following World War II.
The right of belligerency of the state will not be recognized.
The source of the pacifist clause is disputed.
Hitoshi Ashida made this tenor.
SCAP did not object to this amendment.
The new agency was directly headed by Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida.
This has had broad implications for foreign  security and defense policy.
Anything at or below that level does not constitute war potential.
Given these circumstances  some have viewed Article 9 as increasingly irrelevant.
It has remained  however  an important brake on the growth of Japan s military capabilities.
They advocate minimal defense spending  and emphasize economic growth.
Japan s ability to  engage in collective defense  has been argued.
The law allowed Japan to support the U.S. military on foreign territory.
... Japan should be strong enough to defend herself.
This is based on a LDP draft of changes for the law in 2012.
English translation  The Army as a permanent institution is abolished.
It does not  however  forbid a standing military.
International reaction to this move was mixed.
His rule began in 1338  beginning the Muromachi period of Japan  and ended with his death in 1358.
First  he kept his cool in battle and was not afraid of death.
Second  he was merciful and tolerant.
Third  he was very generous with those below him.
Life     His childhood name was Matagorō  又太郎 .
Soon after  Nitta Yoshisada joined their cause  and laid siege to Kamakura.
This ended the Kamakura shogunate  as well as the Hōjō clan s power and influence.
Takauji put down the rebellion and took Kamakura for himself.
Takauji defeated Yoshisada in the battles of Sanoyama and Mishima.
Takauji then allied himself with the clans native to Kyūshū.
His Buddhist name was Tojiinden Niyama Myogi dai koji Chojuji dono  等持院殿仁山妙義大居士長寿寺殿 .
1354 – Takauji flees with Go Kōgon  Kitabatake Chikafusa dies.
1358 – Takauji dies.Takauji s son Ashikaga Yoshiakira succeeded him as shōgun after his death.
His grandson Ashikaga Yoshimitsu united the Northern and Southern courts in 1392.
Nihon Ōdai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
On the other hand  the Imperial court was no longer a credible threat to military rule.
The authority of the local daimyō greatly expanded from its Kamakura times.
This situation reached its peak under the rule of the third shōgun  Ashikaga Yoshimitsu.
However  Yoshiaki was only a puppet of Nobunaga.
Initially  Yoshiaki fled to Shikoku.
Afterwards  he sought and received protection from the Mōri clan in western Japan.
ISBN 978 0 674 01753 5.CS1 maint  ref harv  link  von Klaproth  Julius  1834 .
Nipon o daï itsi ran  ou Annales des empereurs du Japon.
It is somewhat arbitrary and has moved since its first conception in classical antiquity.
This is the convention used by Roman era authors such as Posidonius  Strabo and Ptolemy.
The border between Asia and Europe was historically defined by European academics.
Tatishchev announced that he had proposed the idea to von Strahlenberg.
The latter had suggested the Emba River as the lower boundary.
The English word comes from Latin literature  where it has the same form   Asia .
One of the first classical writers to use Asia as a name of the whole continent was Pliny.
These records are administrative and do not include poetry.
They were used in trades  such as cloth making  and usually came with children.
Chadwick suggests that the names record the locations where these foreign women were purchased.
There is a masculine form  aswios.
This name  Assuwa  has been suggested as the origin for the name of the continent  Asia .
Kazuo Ogura and Tenshin Okakura are two outspoken Japanese figures on the subject.
Classical antiquity      Latin Asia and Greek Ἀσία appear to be the same word.
Roman authors translated Ἀσία as Asia.
The Romans named a province Asia  located in western Anatolia  in modern day Turkey .
There was an Asia Minor and an Asia Major located in modern day Iraq.
By it he means Anatolia and the Persian Empire  in contrast to Greece and Egypt.
Many of these are geographic  Doris  Rhodea  Europa  Asia.
The civilizations in Mesopotamia  the Indus Valley and the Yellow River shared many similarities.
Other innovations  such as writing  seem to have been developed individually in each area.
These areas remained very sparsely populated.
The center and the peripheries were mostly kept separated by mountains and deserts.
In the 17th century  the Manchu conquered China and established the Qing dynasty.
Geography and climate     Asia is the largest continent on Earth.
Asia is generally defined as comprising the eastern four fifths of Eurasia.
The Gobi Desert is in Mongolia and the Arabian Desert stretches across much of the Middle East.
The Yangtze River in China is the longest river in the continent.
The Himalayas between Nepal and China is the tallest mountain range in the world.
Main regions      There are various approaches to the regional division of Asia.
The following subdivision into regions is used  among others  by the UN statistics agency UNSD.
It is moist across southeast sections  and dry across much of the interior.
Some of the largest daily temperature ranges on Earth occur in western sections of Asia.
Southwestern sections of the continent are hot.
.Some shifts are already occurring.
This ended in 2010 when China overtook Japan to become the world s second largest economy.
It is forecasted that India will overtake Japan in terms of nominal GDP by 2025.
By 2027  according to Goldman Sachs  China will have the largest economy in the world.
Asia has three main financial centers  Hong Kong  Tokyo and Singapore.
The increased use of outsourcing has assisted the rise of India and the China as financial centers.
Individual main routes have emerged from this.
A far smaller part of the goods traffic runs via South Africa to Europe.
Last year Asia had toppled Europe.
Its present life expectancy is 25 years longer than in the 1970s.
Languages      Asia is home to several language families and many language isolates.
Most Asian countries have more than one language that is natively spoken.
China has many languages and dialects in different provinces.
Asian mythology is complex and diverse.
In total  there are 14.4–17.5 million  2016  est.
In Armenia  Georgia and Asian Russia  Eastern Orthodoxy is the predominant religion.
Mecca  Medina and Jerusalem are the three holiest cities for Islam in all the world.
Iran is the largest Shi a country.
Lotus Temple is a big Baháʼí Temple in India.
Indian philosophy includes Hindu philosophy and Buddhist philosophy.
The religions of Hinduism  Buddhism  Jainism and Sikhism originated in India  South Asia.
In East Asia  particularly in China and Japan  Confucianism  Taoism and Zen Buddhism took shape.
As of 2012  Hinduism has around 1.1 billion adherents.
The faith represents around 25  of Asia s population and is the largest religion in Asia.
However  it is mostly concentrated in South Asia.
Buddhism has a great following in mainland Southeast Asia and East Asia.
Taoism is found mainly in Mainland China  Taiwan  Malaysia and Singapore.
He is also the writer of the national anthems of Bangladesh and India.
Ebadi is the first Iranian and the first Muslim woman to receive the prize.
She is a Buddhist and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991.
He is the first Chinese citizen to be awarded a Nobel Prize of any kind while residing in China.
Sir C.V. Raman is the first Asian to get a Nobel prize in Sciences.
Japan has won the most Nobel Prizes of any Asian nation with 24 followed by India which has won 13.
Dr. Yunus received his PhD in economics from Vanderbilt University  United States.
Most notable was the Nobel Peace Prize  presented in Oslo  Norway on 10 December 1989.
Charles Scribner s Sons  2002 .
Ten months later  12 Asia Pacific economies met in Canberra  Australia  to establish APEC.
Meeting locations     The location of the meeting is rotated annually among the members.
Member economies     APEC currently has 21 members.
To this end  a new Trade Facilitation Action Plan has been endorsed.
In May 2010 Russia joined the scheme  thus completing the circle.
His ideas convinced the APEC Business Advisory Council to support this concept.
At the APEC summit in Beijing in 2014  the three plans were all in discussion.
An annual conference is usually held in the host economy for that year.
These business leaders represent a wide range of industry sectors.
The first four annual meetings were attended by ministerial level officials.
The annual Leaders  Meetings are not called summits.
Meeting developments     In 1997  the APEC meeting was held in Vancouver.
Chile became the first South American nation to host the Leaders  Meeting in 2004.
The 2005 Leaders  Meeting was held in Busan  South Korea.
APEC leaders at the summit urged the European Union to agree to reduce farm subsidies.
Peaceful protests against APEC were staged in Busan  but the meeting schedule was not affected.
Concerns about nuclear proliferation in the region was discussed in addition to economic topics.
The APEC Australia 2007 Leaders  Meeting was held in Sydney from 2–9 September 2007.
A tradition has the leaders dressing to reflect the culture of the host member.
The introduction of Buddhism marked a change in Japanese society.
It was proposed by fine arts scholars Sekino Tadasu  関野貞  and Okakura Kakuzō around 1900.
Sekino dated the Asuka period as ending with the Taika Reform of 646.
Okakura  however  saw it as ending with the transfer of the capital to the Heijō Palace of Nara.
Some remained twenty years or more  many of those who returned became prominent reformers.
Ritsu  律  was a code of penal laws  while ryō  令  was an administrative code.
Land was no longer hereditary but reverted to the state at the death of the owner.
Taxes were levied on harvests and on silk  cotton  cloth  thread  and other products.
A corvée  labor  tax was established for military conscription and building public works.
Fujiwara no Kamatari became the first in a long line of court aristocrats.
Ritsuryō system      The ritsuryō system was codified in several stages.
The Ōmi Code  named after the provincial site of Emperor Tenji s court  was completed in about 668.
The Taihō Code did not address the selection of the sovereign.
Kanroku also came from Baekje  and was a tutor to Prince Shōtoku  counseling him politically.
When Japan allied with Baekje  the Goguryeo priests left Japan.
The basic administrative unit was the county  and society was organized into occupation groups.
From 600 to 659  Japan sent seven emissaries to Tang China.
Some remained twenty years or more  many of those who returned became prominent reformers.
The edict also regulated size and shape of kofun by classes.
As a result  later kofun  though much smaller  were distinguished by elaborate frescoes.
This ban was renewed throughout the Asuka period  but ended with the Heian period.
The pest animals  deer and wild boar  were not affected by this ban.
Influence of Taoism     Taoism was also introduced during the Asuka period.
Kudara Kannon at Hōryū ji is the most prominent Buddhist sculpture from this period.
This includes works by several remarkable poets such as Princess Nukata and Kakinomoto no Hitomaro.
Waka  和歌   Japanese song   also emerged as a new form of poetry at this time.
600  Yamato state sends the first official Japanese mission to China since 478.
607  Prince Shōtoku builds the Buddhist temple Hōryūji in Ikaruga.
645  Soga no Iruka and his father Emishi are killed in the Isshi Incident.
670  The first family registry  庚午年籍  Kōgo Nenjaku  was compiled.
689  The Asuka Kiyomihara Code was proclaimed.
694  The imperial capital is moved to Fujiwara kyō  in present day Kashihara city.
701  The Taihō Code was proclaimed.
705  The Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan is founded.
It survives to become the oldest known hotel business still in operation  as of 2019.
708  The first Japanese coin  和同開珎  Wadōkaichin  was minted.
Japan ignored the ultimatum and the war continued.
Most of the dead were civilians  although Hiroshima had a sizable military garrison.
America s reserves of manpower were running out.
In April 1945  American forces landed on Okinawa  where heavy fighting continued until June.
Nearly 99 percent of the 21 000 defenders of Iwo Jima were killed.
The 1945 rice harvest was the worst since 1909  and hunger and malnutrition became widespread.
U.S. industrial production was overwhelmingly superior to Japan s.
The operation had two parts  Operation Olympic and Operation Coronet.
Most were immobile formations for coastal defense  but 16 were high quality mobile divisions.
Casualty predictions varied widely  but were extremely high.
Consideration was also given to using biological weapons against Japan.
Air bases were developed  and B 29 operations commenced from the Marianas in October 1944.
These bases were easily resupplied by cargo ships.
The XXI Bomber Command began missions against Japan on November 18  1944.
It was the deadliest bombing raid of the war  at a cost of 20 B 29s shot down by flak and fighters.
By May  75 percent of bombs dropped were incendiaries designed to burn down Japan s  paper cities .
By mid June  Japan s six largest cities had been devastated.
According to Yuki Tanaka  the U.S. fire bombed over a hundred Japanese towns and cities.
Japanese fighters and anti aircraft guns had difficulty engaging bombers flying at high altitude.
This prompted preliminary research in the United States in late 1939.
Two types of bombs were eventually developed  both named by Robert Serber.
On April 5  1945  the code name Operation Centerboard was assigned.
The 509th Composite Group s 393d Bombardment Squadron was equipped with 15 Silverplate B 29s.
The blast would create effective damage.
Due to rivers it is not a good incendiary target.
Stimson then approached President Harry S. Truman about the matter.
Truman agreed with Stimson  and Kyoto was temporarily removed from the target list.
Groves attempted to restore Kyoto to the target list in July  but Stimson remained adamant.
On July 25  Nagasaki was put on the target list in place of Kyoto.
Arthur Compton later recalled that   It was evident that everyone would suspect trickery.
An atomic bomb was an intricate device  still in the developmental stage.
Its operation would be far from routine.
We could not afford the chance that one of them might be a dud.
On the contrary  it would make the Japanese ready to interfere with an atomic attack if they could.
Allied prisoners of war might be moved to the demonstration site and be killed by the bomb.
Even with the warnings  Japanese opposition to the war remained ineffective.
Robert Jay Lifton wrote that it was July 27  and Theodore H. McNelly wrote that it was July 30.
Leaflet sorties were undertaken on August 1 and August 4.
Stimson therefore had to obtain British permission.
The observing planes will stay several miles distant from the point of impact of the bomb.
Additional bombs will be delivered on the above targets as soon as made ready by the project staff.
Further instructions will be issued concerning targets other than those listed above.
The target will be a purely military one.
All they could do was send a strongly worded signal to Wilson.
The projectile was completed on June 15  and the target insert on July 24.
Magnesium was chosen because it does not act as a tamper.
The city was a communications center  a key port for shipping  and an assembly area for troops.
The center of the city contained several reinforced concrete buildings and lighter structures.
A few larger industrial plants lay near the outskirts of the city.
The city as a whole was highly susceptible to fire damage.
At the time of the attack  the population was approximately 340 000–350 000.
Residents wondered why Hiroshima had been spared destruction by firebombing.
More realistic city officials had ordered buildings torn down to create long  straight firebreaks.
These continued to be expanded and extended up to the morning of August 6  1945.
The aircraft arrived over the target in clear visibility at 31 060 feet  9 470 m .
An alert was given and radio broadcasting stopped in many cities  among them Hiroshima.
The all clear was sounded in Hiroshima at 00 05.
It broadcast a short message which was picked up by Enola Gay.
It read   Cloud cover less than 3 10th at all altitudes.
It released the equivalent energy of 16 ± 2 kilotons of TNT  66.9 ± 8.4 TJ .
The weapon was considered very inefficient  with only 1.7 percent of its material fissioning.
It is estimated that as many as 20 000 Japanese military personnel were killed.
U.S. surveys estimated that 4.7 square miles  12 km2  of the city were destroyed.
As in other Japanese cities  the firebreaks proved ineffective.
Akiko Takakura was among the closest survivors to the hypocenter of the blast.
The hospitals were destroyed or heavily damaged.
Only one doctor  Terufumi Sasaki  remained on duty at the Red Cross Hospital.
The attack killed 3 243 troops on the parade ground.
The city is in a state of near total destruction.
He tried to re establish his program by using another telephone line  but it too had failed.
This was a widely broadcast speech picked up by Japanese news agencies.
Four hours later  word reached Tokyo of the Soviet Union s official declaration of war.
Parsons agreed to try to do so.
Assembly F 33 was expended testing the components and F 31 was designated for the August 9 mission.
This fuel would still have to be carried all the way to Japan and back  consuming still more fuel.
Observers aboard the weather planes reported both targets clear.
Instead  Hopkins was flying 40 mile  64 km  dogleg patterns.
Before leaving the rendezvous point  Sweeney consulted Ashworth  who was in charge of the bomb.
Additionally  the Yahata Steel Works intentionally burned coal tar  to produce black smoke.
The messages were found by military authorities but not turned over to Sagane until a month later.
The resulting explosion released the equivalent energy of 21 ± 2 kt  87.9 ± 8.4 TJ .
Big Stink spotted the explosion from a hundred miles away  and flew over to observe.
Bockscar flew on to Okinawa  arriving with only sufficient fuel for a single approach.
He could see heavy air traffic landing and taking off from Yontan Airfield.
The number two engine died from fuel starvation as he began the final approach.
He also noted its  Victor  number as 77  which was that of Bockscar.
Some 17 000–22 000 others who worked in other war plants and factories in the city died as well.
Casualty estimates for immediate deaths vary widely  ranging from 22 000 to 75 000.
At least 35 000–40 000 people were killed and 60 000 others injured.
In the days and months following the explosion  more people died from their injuries.
There were 24 Australian POWs in Nagasaki  all of whom survived.
The Nagasaki Arsenal was destroyed in the blast.
The trains were still running  and evacuated many victims to hospitals in nearby towns.
At Los Alamos  technicians worked 24 hours straight to cast another plutonium core.
Although cast  it still needed to be pressed and coated  which would take until August 16.
Therefore  it could have been ready for use on August 19.
The full cabinet met at 14 30 on August 9  and spent most of the day debating surrender.
Anami conceded that victory was unlikely  but argued in favour of continuing the war nonetheless.
The meeting ended at 17 30  with no decision having been reached.
A second cabinet meeting was held at 18 00.
The meeting commenced at 23 50.
On August 12  the Emperor informed the imperial family of his decision to surrender.
Hirohito simply replied   Of course.
Leslie Nakashima filed the first personal account of the scene to appear in American newspapers.
It was classified  secret  for the next 22 years.
Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker said  I think it s dreadful of the Americans to have done it.
The ABCC became the Radiation Effects Research Foundation  RERF   on April 1  1975.
Almost all cases of leukemia over the following 50 years were in people exposed to more than 1Gy.
The Japanese government has recognized about 650 000 people as hibakusha.
Double survivors     Perhaps as many as 200 people from Hiroshima sought refuge in Nagasaki.
double explosion affected people   nine of whom claimed to be in the blast zone in both cities.
He was seriously burnt on his left side and spent the night in Hiroshima.
He was the first officially recognized survivor of both bombings.
He died on January 4  2010  at the age of 93  after a battle with stomach cancer.
About 5 000–8 000 Koreans were killed in Hiroshima and another 1 500–2 000 died in Nagasaki.
Most issues were eventually addressed in 2008 through lawsuits.
The population increased from 83 000 soon after the bombing to 146 000 in February 1946.
In 1949  a design was selected for the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park.
The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum was opened in 1955 in the Peace Park.
Hiroshima also contains a Peace Pagoda  built in 1966 by Nipponzan Myōhōji.
Stimson talked of saving one million casualties.
Such ordinary fission bombs would henceforth be regarded as small tactical nuclear weapons.
By 1986  the United States had 23 317 nuclear weapons  while the Soviet Union had 40 159.
As of 2020  Japan has not signed the treaty.
Documents on the Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb .
Correspondence Regarding Decision to Drop the Bomb .
The attack led to the United States  formal entry into World War II the next day.
Of the eight U.S. Navy battleships present  all were damaged  with four sunk.
Japanese losses were light  29 aircraft and five midget submarines lost  and 64 servicemen killed.
The relationship between the two countries was cordial enough that they remained trading partners.
Tensions did not seriously grow until Japan s invasion of Manchuria in 1931.
Over the next decade  Japan expanded into China  leading to the Second Sino Japanese War in 1937.
The  Southern Operation  was designed to assist these efforts.
An invasion of the Philippines was also considered necessary by Japanese war planners.
By 1941  U.S. planners expected to abandon the Philippines at the outbreak of war.
Because of this decision  Japan proceeded with plans to take the oil rich Dutch East Indies.
However  his recommendation was not acted upon.
Objectives     The Japanese attack had several major aims.
First wave dive bombers were to attack ground targets.
When the fighters  fuel got low they were to refuel at the aircraft carriers and return to combat.
Reconnaissance aircraft flights risked alerting the U.S.  and were not necessary.
The five I boats left Kure Naval District on November 25  1941.
The midget may have entered Pearl Harbor.
Both of its torpedoes were missing.
However  the attack began before the notice could be delivered.
The final part is sometimes described as a declaration of war.
Six planes failed to launch due to technical difficulties.
This post had been in training mode for months  but was not yet operational.
The operators  Privates George Elliot Jr. and Joseph Lockard  reported a target.
A total of 353 Japanese planes in two waves reached Oahu.
Thirteen of the forty torpedoes hit battleships  and four torpedoes hit other ships.
The famous message   Air raid Pearl Harbor.
The defenders were very unprepared.
Four planes failed to launch because of technical difficulties.
One was tasked to attack Kāneʻohe  the rest Pearl Harbor proper.
American casualties and damage      Ninety minutes after it began  the attack was over.
In total  2 403 Americans were killed  and 1 143 were wounded.
Eighteen ships were sunk or run aground  including five battleships.
So everyone is about 17 or 18 whose story is told there.
An additional six firefighters were wounded from Japanese shrapnel.
This made the nine men the only non military firefighters to receive such award in U.S. history.
Already damaged by a torpedo and on fire amidships  Nevada attempted to exit the harbor.
She was deliberately beached to avoid blocking the harbor entrance.
California was hit by two bombs and two torpedoes.
The disarmed target ship Utah was holed twice by torpedoes.
West Virginia was hit by seven torpedoes  the seventh tearing away her rudder.
Oklahoma was hit by four torpedoes  the last two above her belt armor  which caused her to capsize.
Maryland was hit by two of the converted 16  shells  but neither caused serious damage.
Cassin slipped from her keel blocks and rolled against Downes.
The light cruiser Raleigh was holed by a torpedo.
The light cruiser Honolulu was damaged but remained in service.
The repair vessel Vestal  moored alongside Arizona  was heavily damaged and beached.
The seaplane tender Curtiss was also damaged.
Almost none were actually ready to take off to defend the base.
Of these  three were shot down.
The location of the American carriers remained unknown.
West Virginia  hit by two bombs  seven torpedoes  sunk  returned to service July 1944.
California  hit by two bombs  two torpedoes  sunk  returned to service January 1944.
Nevada  hit by six bombs  one torpedo  beached  returned to service October 1942.
Tennessee  hit by two bombs  returned to service February 1942.
Maryland  hit by two bombs  returned to service February 1942.
4 dead  including floatplane pilot shot down .
Ex battleship  target AA training ship      Utah  hit by two torpedoes  capsized  total loss.
Cruisers     Helena  hit by one torpedo  returned to service January 1942.
Raleigh  hit by one torpedo  returned to service February 1942.
Honolulu  near miss  light damage  remained in service.
Shaw  hit by three bombs  returned to service June 1942.
They patched holes  cleared debris  and pumped water out of ships.
Navy divers worked inside the damaged ships.
Modern writers have continued to note parallels between the attacks  albeit more dispassionately.
Congress obliged his request less than an hour later.
Congress issued a declaration of war against Germany and Italy later that same day.
As a result  the UK declared war on Japan nine hours before the U.S. did.
The attack was an initial shock to all the Allies in the Pacific Theater.
Further losses compounded the alarming setback.
As I turned and twisted in bed the full horror of the news sank in upon me.
Over this vast expanse of waters Japan was supreme and we everywhere were weak and naked.
On March 4  regulations under the Act were adopted to evacuate Japanese Canadians.
The aircraft was further damaged on landing.
While the attack accomplished its intended objective  it turned out to be largely unnecessary.
However  this conspiracy theory is rejected by mainstream historians.
It is the largest country in Oceania and the world s sixth largest country by total area.
Australia s capital is Canberra  and its largest city is Sydney.
The country s other major metropolitan areas are Melbourne  Brisbane  Perth  and Adelaide.
On 1 January 1901  the six colonies federated  forming the Commonwealth of Australia.
Australia is the oldest  flattest  and driest inhabited continent  with the least fertile soils.
It has a landmass of 7 617 930 square kilometres  2 941 300 sq mi .
It is considered a regional power and has the world s thirteenth highest military expenditure.
Terra Australis still saw occasional usage  such as in scientific texts.
Several famous early cartographers also made use of the word Australia on maps.
In December 1817  Macquarie recommended to the Colonial Office that it be formally adopted.
In 1824  the Admiralty agreed that the continent should be known officially by that name.
The latter two both derive from Dorothea Mackellar s 1908 poem  My Country .
These people were the ancestors of modern Indigenous Australians.
Recent archaeological finds suggest that a population of 750 000 could have been sustained.
Thousands more died as a result of frontier conflict with settlers.
The Northern Territory was excised from South Australia in 1911.
South Australia was founded as a  free province —it was never a penal colony.
By 1850  Europeans still had not entered large areas of the inland.
Australians took part in many of the major battles fought on the Western Front.
Of about 416 000 who served  about 60 000 were killed and another 152 000 were wounded.
As a result  Australia s demography  culture  and self image were transformed.
The Australia Act 1986 severed the remaining constitutional ties between Australia and the UK.
This exclusive economic zone does not include the Australian Antarctic Territory.
Mount Augustus  claimed to be the world s largest monolith  is located in Western Australia.
At 2 228 metres  7 310 ft   Mount Kosciuszko is the highest mountain on the Australian mainland.
The northernmost point of the east coast is the tropical Cape York Peninsula.
At the heart of the country are the uplands of central Australia.
These factors cause rainfall to vary markedly from year to year.
Much of the northern part of the country has a tropical  predominantly summer rainfall  monsoon .
The south west corner of the country has a Mediterranean climate.
Australia has at least 755 species of reptile  more than any other country in the world.
Besides Antarctica  Australia is the only continent that developed without feline species.
Australia is also one of 17 megadiverse countries.
Government and politics     Australia is a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy.
However  Commonwealth laws prevail over state laws to the extent of the inconsistency.
The head of the government in each state is the Premier and in each territory the Chief Minister.
Macquarie Island is part of Tasmania  and Lord Howe Island of New South Wales.
Australia has pursued the cause of international trade liberalisation.
The 2005–06 budget provides A 2.5 billion for development assistance.
In 2018  Australia overtook Switzerland and became the country with the highest average wealth.
Australia s poverty rate increased from 10.2  to 11.8   from 2000 01 to 2013.
The country was ranked third in the United Nations 2017 Human Development Index.
Total government debt in Australia is about A 190 billion—20  of GDP in 2010.
Data released in mid November 2013 showed that the number of welfare recipients had grown by 55 .
This means they use half as much biocapacity as Australia contains.
It also estimated that there are 774 000  17.7   children under the age of 15 that are in poverty.
In 2018 the average age of the Australian population was 38.8 years.
Some remote Indigenous communities have been described as having  failed state  like conditions.
General Australian serves as the standard dialect.
A considerable proportion of first  and second generation migrants are bilingual.
About 110 others are spoken exclusively by older people.
The remaining 9.7  of the population did not provide an adequate answer.
The collection of stories that it contains shaped Aboriginal law and customs.
Aboriginal art  story and dance continue to draw on these spiritual traditions.
Life expectancy in Australia in 2014–2016 was 80.4 years for males and 84.6 years for females.
Ranked second in preventable causes is hypertension at 7.6   with obesity third at 7.5 .
Australia introduced universal health care in 1975.
Australia has an adult literacy rate that was estimated to be 99  in 2003.
The OECD places Australia among the most expensive nations to attend university.
Early colonial artists showed a fascination with the unfamiliar land.
The national and state galleries maintain collections of local and international art.
Its first recipient  Patrick White  went on to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1973.
Australian Booker Prize winners include Peter Carey  Thomas Keneally and Richard Flanagan.
At the beginning of the 20th century  Nellie Melba was one of the world s leading opera singers.
Ballet and dance are represented by The Australian Ballet and various state companies.
Each state has a publicly funded theatre company.
Vegemite  pavlova  lamingtons and meat pies are regarded as iconic Australian foods.
Australian wine is produced mainly in the southern  cooler parts of the country.
Australia is unique in that it has professional leagues for four football codes.
Nationally  other popular sports include horse racing  basketball  and motor racing.
Australia made its inaugural appearance at the Pacific Games in 2015.
In June 2020  Australia won its bid to co host the 2023 FIFA Women s World Cup with New Zealand.
It is the largest country in Oceania and the world s sixth largest country by total area.
Australia s capital is Canberra  and its largest city is Sydney.
The country s other major metropolitan areas are Melbourne  Brisbane  Perth  and Adelaide.
On 1 January 1901  the six colonies federated  forming the Commonwealth of Australia.
Australia is the oldest  flattest  and driest inhabited continent  with the least fertile soils.
It has a landmass of 7 617 930 square kilometres  2 941 300 sq mi .
It is considered a regional power and has the world s thirteenth highest military expenditure.
Terra Australis still saw occasional usage  such as in scientific texts.
Several famous early cartographers also made use of the word Australia on maps.
In December 1817  Macquarie recommended to the Colonial Office that it be formally adopted.
In 1824  the Admiralty agreed that the continent should be known officially by that name.
The latter two both derive from Dorothea Mackellar s 1908 poem  My Country .
These people were the ancestors of modern Indigenous Australians.
Recent archaeological finds suggest that a population of 750 000 could have been sustained.
Thousands more died as a result of frontier conflict with settlers.
The Northern Territory was excised from South Australia in 1911.
South Australia was founded as a  free province —it was never a penal colony.
By 1850  Europeans still had not entered large areas of the inland.
Australians took part in many of the major battles fought on the Western Front.
Of about 416 000 who served  about 60 000 were killed and another 152 000 were wounded.
As a result  Australia s demography  culture  and self image were transformed.
The Australia Act 1986 severed the remaining constitutional ties between Australia and the UK.
This exclusive economic zone does not include the Australian Antarctic Territory.
Mount Augustus  claimed to be the world s largest monolith  is located in Western Australia.
At 2 228 metres  7 310 ft   Mount Kosciuszko is the highest mountain on the Australian mainland.
The northernmost point of the east coast is the tropical Cape York Peninsula.
At the heart of the country are the uplands of central Australia.
These factors cause rainfall to vary markedly from year to year.
Much of the northern part of the country has a tropical  predominantly summer rainfall  monsoon .
The south west corner of the country has a Mediterranean climate.
Australia has at least 755 species of reptile  more than any other country in the world.
Besides Antarctica  Australia is the only continent that developed without feline species.
Australia is also one of 17 megadiverse countries.
Government and politics     Australia is a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy.
However  Commonwealth laws prevail over state laws to the extent of the inconsistency.
The head of the government in each state is the Premier and in each territory the Chief Minister.
Macquarie Island is part of Tasmania  and Lord Howe Island of New South Wales.
Australia has pursued the cause of international trade liberalisation.
The 2005–06 budget provides A 2.5 billion for development assistance.
In 2018  Australia overtook Switzerland and became the country with the highest average wealth.
Australia s poverty rate increased from 10.2  to 11.8   from 2000 01 to 2013.
The country was ranked third in the United Nations 2017 Human Development Index.
Total government debt in Australia is about A 190 billion—20  of GDP in 2010.
Data released in mid November 2013 showed that the number of welfare recipients had grown by 55 .
This means they use half as much biocapacity as Australia contains.
It also estimated that there are 774 000  17.7   children under the age of 15 that are in poverty.
In 2018 the average age of the Australian population was 38.8 years.
Some remote Indigenous communities have been described as having  failed state  like conditions.
General Australian serves as the standard dialect.
A considerable proportion of first  and second generation migrants are bilingual.
About 110 others are spoken exclusively by older people.
The remaining 9.7  of the population did not provide an adequate answer.
The collection of stories that it contains shaped Aboriginal law and customs.
Aboriginal art  story and dance continue to draw on these spiritual traditions.
Life expectancy in Australia in 2014–2016 was 80.4 years for males and 84.6 years for females.
Ranked second in preventable causes is hypertension at 7.6   with obesity third at 7.5 .
Australia introduced universal health care in 1975.
Australia has an adult literacy rate that was estimated to be 99  in 2003.
The OECD places Australia among the most expensive nations to attend university.
Early colonial artists showed a fascination with the unfamiliar land.
The national and state galleries maintain collections of local and international art.
Its first recipient  Patrick White  went on to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1973.
Australian Booker Prize winners include Peter Carey  Thomas Keneally and Richard Flanagan.
At the beginning of the 20th century  Nellie Melba was one of the world s leading opera singers.
Ballet and dance are represented by The Australian Ballet and various state companies.
Each state has a publicly funded theatre company.
Vegemite  pavlova  lamingtons and meat pies are regarded as iconic Australian foods.
Australian wine is produced mainly in the southern  cooler parts of the country.
Australia is unique in that it has professional leagues for four football codes.
Nationally  other popular sports include horse racing  basketball  and motor racing.
Australia made its inaugural appearance at the Pacific Games in 2015.
In June 2020  Australia won its bid to co host the 2023 FIFA Women s World Cup with New Zealand.
The automotive industry in Japan is one of the most prominent and largest industries in the world.
In the 1970s Japan was the pioneer in the use of robotics in the manufacturing of vehicles.
Infiniti  Acura  and Lexus are luxury brands of Nissan  Honda and Toyota.
From 1924 to 1927  Hakuyosha Ironworks Ltd. built the Otomo.
Toyota  a textile manufacturer  began building cars in 1936.
Most early vehicles  however  were trucks produced under military subsidy.
Isuzu  Yanmar and Daihatsu initially focused on diesel engine development.
Cars built in Japan before World War II tended to be based on European or American models.
The 1917 Mitsubishi Model A was based on the Fiat A3 3 design.
This model was considered to be the first mass produced car in Japan  with 22 units produced.
General Motors established operations in Osaka in 1927.
Chrysler also came to Japan and set up Kyoritsu Motors.
Instead by 1939  the foreign manufacturers had been forced out of Japan.
Thereafter passenger cars dominated the market.
Japanese car designs also continued to imitate or be derived from European and American designs.
The first of this new era  actually launched in 1958  was the Subaru 360.
It was known as the  Lady Beetle   comparing its significance to the Volkswagen Beetle in Germany.
The keis were very minimalist motoring  however  much too small for most family car usage.
These small family cars took a bigger and bigger share of an already expanding market.
All vehicles sold in Japan were taxed yearly based on exterior dimensions and engine displacement.
This though  was still only the beginning.
Passenger car exports rose from 100 000 in 1965 to 1 827 000 in 1975.
Why Aren t U.S. Cars Popular in Japan? .
The first step was the treaty signed by Germany and Italy in October 1936.
Italy joined the Pact in 1937 and Hungary and  Francoist Spain Spain   joined in 1939.
He believed that Italy could expand its influence in Europe by allying with Germany against France.
In 1933  Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party came to power in Germany.
His first diplomatic visitor was Gömbös.
Hitler had advocated an alliance between Germany and Italy since the 1920s.
Hitler responded in contempt to Mussolini that he intended  to throw Dollfuss into the sea .
The meeting did not proceed amicably.
Several weeks after the Venice meeting  on 25 July 1934  Austrian Nazis assassinated Dollfuss.
The Tripartite Pact was signed by Germany  Italy  and Japan on 27 September 1940  in Berlin.
The Axis championed a number of variants on fascism  militarism  and autarky.
Thus the Allied powers outnumbered the Axis powers by 2.7 to 1.
The GDP of the Allied powers was  1 798 billion.
Declarations of neutrality must be ignored .
The pressure of the reparations on the German economy led to hyperinflation during the early 1920s.
In 1923 the French occupied the Ruhr region when Germany defaulted on its reparations payments.
Germany renounced the Versailles treaty and remilitarized the Rhineland in March 1936.
The new Slovak State allied itself with Germany.
After the war  Quisling and other collaborators were executed.
Quisling s name has become an international eponym for traitor.
Relations between Italy and France deteriorated with France s refusal to accept Italy s demands.
France responded to Italy s demands with threatening naval manoeuvres as a warning to Italy.
In March April 1939 Italian troops invaded and annexed Albania.
Germany and Italy signed the Pact of Steel on May 22.
By 1939 military expenditures by Britain and France far exceeded what Italy could afford.
By March 1940  Mussolini decided that Italy would intervene  but the date was not yet chosen.
His senior military leadership unanimously opposed the action because Italy was unprepared.
Some areas in Northern Italy were liberated from the Germans as late as May  1945.
Mussolini was killed by Communist partisans on 28 April 1945 while trying to escape to Switzerland.
On 12 July 1941  they proclaimed the  Kingdom of Montenegro  under the protection of Italy.
In less than 24 hours  that triggered a general uprising against the Italians.
Within three weeks  the insurgents managed to capture almost all the territory of Montenegro.
Drljevic was expelled from Montenegro in October 1941.
Montenegro then came under full direct Italian control.
With the Italian capitulation of 1943  Montenegro came directly under the control of Germany.
In Africa       Italian East Africa was an Italian colony existing from 1936 to 1943.
Libya was an Italian colony existing from 1912 to 1943.
On 7 December 1941 Japan declared war on the United States and the British Empire.
Japan entered into conflict against the Chinese in 1937.
The Japanese also fought skirmishes with Soviet–Mongolian forces in Manchukuo in 1938 and 1939.
Japan sought to avoid war with the Soviet Union by signing a non aggression pact with it in 1941.
War with the United States was being discussed within the Japanese government by 1940.
So I will fight the best I can.
Doubtless I shall die on board Nagato  his flagship .
Meanwhile Tokyo will be burnt to the ground three times.
Konoe and others will be torn to pieces by the revengeful people  I  shouldn t  wonder.
With the European powers focused on the war in Europe  Japan sought to acquire their colonies.
In 1940 Japan responded to the German invasion of France by occupying northern French Indochina.
The Vichy France regime  a de facto ally of Germany  accepted the takeover.
The allied forces did not respond with war.
This cut off Japan s supply of scrap metal and oil needed for industry  trade  and the war effort.
They also invaded Malaya and Hong Kong.
The Pacific War lasted until the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.
Colonies and dependencies       Taiwan was a Japanese dependency established in 1895.
Japan occupied the Dutch East Indies during the war.
During the 1930s  because of traditional right wing elements  Bulgaria drew closer to Nazi Germany.
Despite this  the Paris Peace Treaty treated Bulgaria as one of the defeated countries.
The vast majority of the Hungarians desired to recover territories lost through the Trianon Treaty.
Over 500 000 soldiers served on the Eastern Front.
On 25 November 1941  Hungary was one of thirteen signatories to the renewed Anti Comintern Pact.
By the end of 1943  the Soviets had gained the upper hand and the Germans were retreating.
Nonetheless  the Arrow Cross rule  short lived as it was  was brutal.
In fewer than three months  Arrow Cross death squads killed as many as 38 000 Hungarian Jews.
German and Hungarian forces tried to hold off the Soviet advance but failed.
After fierce fighting  Budapest was taken by the Soviets.
Initially the Ustaše had been heavily influenced by Italy.
Hitler did not want to engage in a war in the Balkans until the Soviet Union was defeated.
Hitler reluctantly agreed  Yugoslavia was invaded and the NDH was created.
However  strong German influence began to be asserted soon after the NDH was founded.
The regime enjoyed support amongst radical Croatian nationalists.
Originally authorized at 16 000 men  it grew to a peak fighting force of 130 000.
Ustaše militia were garrisoned in the Balkans  battling the communist partisans.
The racial laws were enforced by the Ustaše militia.
Southern Dobruja was ceded to Bulgaria in September 1940.
German troops entered the country on 10 October 1941  officially to train the Romanian Army.
Having secured Hitler s approval in January 1941  Antonescu ousted the Iron Guard from power.
Romania was subsequently used as a platform for invasions of Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union.
After the Siege of Odessa  the city became the capital of the Governorate.
Romania had also been a major power in the oil industry since the 1800s.
During the Jassy Kishinev Offensive of August 1944  Romania switched sides on August 23  1944.
Slovakia entered into a treaty of protection with Germany on 23 March 1939.
Slovak troops joined the German invasion of Poland  having interest in Spiš and Orava.
The Poles fully annexed them following the Munich Agreement.
After the invasion of Poland  Slovakia reclaimed control of those territories.
Slovakia invaded Poland alongside German forces  contributing 50 000 men at this stage of the war.
Slovakia declared war on the United Kingdom and the United States in 1942.
After the war  Tiso was executed and Slovakia once again became part of Czechoslovakia.
The border with Poland was shifted back to the pre war state.
Slovakia and the Czech Republic finally separated into independent states in 1993.
From late 1940 Hitler sought a non aggression pact with Yugoslavia.
Seventeen year old King Peter was declared to be of age.
As such their adherence to the Axis may have been less than that of Tripartite Pact signatories.
Signing the Anti Comintern Pact was seen as a  a litmus test of loyalty  by the Nazi leadership.
Wang Jingwei became head of state.
The government had a strained relationship with the Japanese from the beginning.
The army was almost continuously employed against the communist New Fourth Army.
Wang Jingwei died on 10 November 1944  and was succeeded by his deputy  Chen Gongbo.
Chen had little influence  the real power behind the regime was Zhou Fohai  the mayor of Shanghai.
Wang s death dispelled what little legitimacy the regime had.
The state stuttered on for another year and continued the display and show of a fascist regime.
Chen Gongbo was tried and executed in 1946.
Denmark      Denmark was occupied by Germany after April 1940 and never joined the Axis.
Thousands of volunteers fought and many died as part of the German Army on the Eastern Front.
13 warships escaped to Sweden and formed a Danish naval flotilla in exile.
Sweden allowed formation of a Danish military brigade in exile  it did not see combat.
Finland did sign the revived Anti Comintern Pact of November 1941.
As such  Finland was the only democracy to join the Axis.
The Finnish conflict with the Soviet Union is generally referred to as the Continuation War.
Finland s main objective was to regain territory lost to the Soviet Union in the Winter War.
Finland maintained command of its armed forces and pursued war objectives independently of Germany.
Finland took part in the Siege of Leningrad.
While Manchukuo ostensibly was a state for ethnic Manchus  the region had a Han Chinese majority.
He was proclaimed the Emperor of Manchukuo a year later.
The new Manchu nation was recognized by 23 of the League of Nations  80 members.
Germany  Italy  and the Soviet Union were among the major powers who recognised Manchukuo.
The League of Nations later declared in 1934 that Manchuria lawfully remained a part of China.
The Manchukuoan state ceased to exist after the Soviet invasion of Manchuria in 1945.
Manchukuo signed the Anti Comintern Pact in 1939  but never signed the Tripartite Pact.
Members of the ruling Falange party in Spain held irredentist designs on Gibraltar.
In addition  Spain held ambitions on former Spanish colonies in Latin America.
Spain invaded and occupied the Tangier International Zone  maintaining its occupation until 1945.
Both were eager to establish another fascist state in Europe.
Prior to the outbreak of war  support for Franco and the Falange was high in the Philippines.
In some cases these bilateral agreements were formalised  in other cases it was less formal.
Some of these countries were puppet states established by the Axis Powers themselves.
A State of Burma was formed on 1 August 1943 under the Burmese nationalist leader Ba Maw.
On 27 March 1945 the Burma National Army revolted against the Japanese.
The rest of Burma was to be under Japanese control.
Kengtung  the main objective  was captured on 27 May.
Renewed offensives in June and November saw the Chinese retreat into Yunnan.
The area containing the Shan States and Kayah State was annexed by Thailand in 1942.
The areas were ceded back to Burma in 1945.
The Free Thai Movement   Seri Thai   was established during these first few months.
Parallel Free Thai organizations were also established in the United Kingdom.
As the war dragged on  the Thai population came to resent the Japanese presence.
In June 1944  Phibun was overthrown in a coup d état.
Thailand also returned the portions of British Burma and French Indochina that had been annexed.
However  the charges were dropped due to intense public pressure.
Germany was now freed from the risk of war with the Soviets  and was assured a supply of oil.
The Soviet Union attacked Finland on 30 November 1939  which started the Winter War.
Hitler never responded to Stalin s letter.
Shortly thereafter  Hitler issued a secret directive on the invasion of the Soviet Union.
Pétain became the last Prime Minister of the French Third Republic on 16 June 1940.
Under the terms of the agreement  Germany occupied two thirds of France  including Paris.
This number included neither the army based in the French colonial empire nor the French fleet.
In Africa the Vichy regime was permitted to maintain 127 000.
After the armistice  relations between the Vichy French and the British quickly worsened.
The Vichy regime continued to administer them under Japanese military occupation.
After his assassination De Gaulle emerged as the uncontested French leader.
The Germans recruited volunteers in units independent of Vichy.
Rashid Ali was appointed Prime Minister Rashid Ali in 1940.
When Italy declared war on Britain  Rashid Ali had maintained ties with the Italians.
This angered the British government.
On 25 May 1941  the Germans stepped up offensive operations in the Middle East.
In this connection special importance is attached to the liberation of Iraq ...
I have therefore decided to move forward in the Middle East by supporting Iraq.
He also helped recruit Muslim volunteers in the Balkans for the Waffen SS.
The General Government in occupied Poland was a German administration  not a Polish government.
Albanians in the Italian army joined the guerrilla forces.
Several Balli Kombëtar leaders held positions in the regime.
The Albanian government had refused to hand over their Jewish population.
Albania was completely liberated on November 29  1944.
The Prime Minister throughout was General Milan Nedić.
On 1 April 1942  a Serbian Gestapo was formed.
50 000 to 80 000 were killed during this period.
The Yugoslav authorities refused to return Nedić to United States custody.
Mussolini had been removed from office and arrested by King Victor Emmanuel III on 25 July 1943.
He was subject to German control for the duration of the war.
The result was Italy accepting the creation of a puppet regime with the support of Germany.
Italy had been assured by Hitler of a primary role in Greece.
These puppet states achieved varying degrees of international recognition.
King Sihanouk declared the Kingdom of Kampuchea  replacing the French name  independent.
From occupied Singapore Bose declared India s independence on October 21  1943 .
The Indian National Army was committed as a part of the U Go Offensive.
It was later committed to the defence of Burma against the Allied offensive.
It suffered a large number of desertions in this latter part.
Inner Mongolia  Mengjiang        Mengjiang was a Japanese puppet state in Inner Mongolia.
Mengjiang vanished in 1945 following Japan s defeat in World War II.
The country declared its independence in 1945.
The country was in chaos  and Phetxarāt s government had no real authority.
The country suffered through the Vietnamese Famine of 1945.
Italy also declared war on the U.S..
This order effectively declared naval war on Germany and Italy.
The US destroyer Reuben James was torpedoed and sunk by the submarine U 552 on 31 October 1941.
The first step was the treaty signed by Germany and Italy in October 1936.
Italy joined the Pact in 1937 and Hungary and  Francoist Spain Spain   joined in 1939.
He believed that Italy could expand its influence in Europe by allying with Germany against France.
In 1933  Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party came to power in Germany.
His first diplomatic visitor was Gömbös.
Hitler had advocated an alliance between Germany and Italy since the 1920s.
Hitler responded in contempt to Mussolini that he intended  to throw Dollfuss into the sea .
The meeting did not proceed amicably.
Several weeks after the Venice meeting  on 25 July 1934  Austrian Nazis assassinated Dollfuss.
The Tripartite Pact was signed by Germany  Italy  and Japan on 27 September 1940  in Berlin.
The Axis championed a number of variants on fascism  militarism  and autarky.
Thus the Allied powers outnumbered the Axis powers by 2.7 to 1.
The GDP of the Allied powers was  1 798 billion.
Declarations of neutrality must be ignored .
The pressure of the reparations on the German economy led to hyperinflation during the early 1920s.
In 1923 the French occupied the Ruhr region when Germany defaulted on its reparations payments.
Germany renounced the Versailles treaty and remilitarized the Rhineland in March 1936.
The new Slovak State allied itself with Germany.
After the war  Quisling and other collaborators were executed.
Quisling s name has become an international eponym for traitor.
Relations between Italy and France deteriorated with France s refusal to accept Italy s demands.
France responded to Italy s demands with threatening naval manoeuvres as a warning to Italy.
In March April 1939 Italian troops invaded and annexed Albania.
Germany and Italy signed the Pact of Steel on May 22.
By 1939 military expenditures by Britain and France far exceeded what Italy could afford.
By March 1940  Mussolini decided that Italy would intervene  but the date was not yet chosen.
His senior military leadership unanimously opposed the action because Italy was unprepared.
Some areas in Northern Italy were liberated from the Germans as late as May  1945.
Mussolini was killed by Communist partisans on 28 April 1945 while trying to escape to Switzerland.
On 12 July 1941  they proclaimed the  Kingdom of Montenegro  under the protection of Italy.
In less than 24 hours  that triggered a general uprising against the Italians.
Within three weeks  the insurgents managed to capture almost all the territory of Montenegro.
Drljevic was expelled from Montenegro in October 1941.
Montenegro then came under full direct Italian control.
With the Italian capitulation of 1943  Montenegro came directly under the control of Germany.
In Africa       Italian East Africa was an Italian colony existing from 1936 to 1943.
Libya was an Italian colony existing from 1912 to 1943.
On 7 December 1941 Japan declared war on the United States and the British Empire.
Japan entered into conflict against the Chinese in 1937.
The Japanese also fought skirmishes with Soviet–Mongolian forces in Manchukuo in 1938 and 1939.
Japan sought to avoid war with the Soviet Union by signing a non aggression pact with it in 1941.
War with the United States was being discussed within the Japanese government by 1940.
So I will fight the best I can.
Doubtless I shall die on board Nagato  his flagship .
Meanwhile Tokyo will be burnt to the ground three times.
Konoe and others will be torn to pieces by the revengeful people  I  shouldn t  wonder.
With the European powers focused on the war in Europe  Japan sought to acquire their colonies.
In 1940 Japan responded to the German invasion of France by occupying northern French Indochina.
The Vichy France regime  a de facto ally of Germany  accepted the takeover.
The allied forces did not respond with war.
This cut off Japan s supply of scrap metal and oil needed for industry  trade  and the war effort.
They also invaded Malaya and Hong Kong.
The Pacific War lasted until the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.
Colonies and dependencies       Taiwan was a Japanese dependency established in 1895.
Japan occupied the Dutch East Indies during the war.
During the 1930s  because of traditional right wing elements  Bulgaria drew closer to Nazi Germany.
Despite this  the Paris Peace Treaty treated Bulgaria as one of the defeated countries.
The vast majority of the Hungarians desired to recover territories lost through the Trianon Treaty.
Over 500 000 soldiers served on the Eastern Front.
On 25 November 1941  Hungary was one of thirteen signatories to the renewed Anti Comintern Pact.
By the end of 1943  the Soviets had gained the upper hand and the Germans were retreating.
Nonetheless  the Arrow Cross rule  short lived as it was  was brutal.
In fewer than three months  Arrow Cross death squads killed as many as 38 000 Hungarian Jews.
German and Hungarian forces tried to hold off the Soviet advance but failed.
After fierce fighting  Budapest was taken by the Soviets.
Initially the Ustaše had been heavily influenced by Italy.
Hitler did not want to engage in a war in the Balkans until the Soviet Union was defeated.
Hitler reluctantly agreed  Yugoslavia was invaded and the NDH was created.
However  strong German influence began to be asserted soon after the NDH was founded.
The regime enjoyed support amongst radical Croatian nationalists.
Originally authorized at 16 000 men  it grew to a peak fighting force of 130 000.
Ustaše militia were garrisoned in the Balkans  battling the communist partisans.
The racial laws were enforced by the Ustaše militia.
Southern Dobruja was ceded to Bulgaria in September 1940.
German troops entered the country on 10 October 1941  officially to train the Romanian Army.
Having secured Hitler s approval in January 1941  Antonescu ousted the Iron Guard from power.
Romania was subsequently used as a platform for invasions of Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union.
After the Siege of Odessa  the city became the capital of the Governorate.
Romania had also been a major power in the oil industry since the 1800s.
During the Jassy Kishinev Offensive of August 1944  Romania switched sides on August 23  1944.
Slovakia entered into a treaty of protection with Germany on 23 March 1939.
Slovak troops joined the German invasion of Poland  having interest in Spiš and Orava.
The Poles fully annexed them following the Munich Agreement.
After the invasion of Poland  Slovakia reclaimed control of those territories.
Slovakia invaded Poland alongside German forces  contributing 50 000 men at this stage of the war.
Slovakia declared war on the United Kingdom and the United States in 1942.
After the war  Tiso was executed and Slovakia once again became part of Czechoslovakia.
The border with Poland was shifted back to the pre war state.
Slovakia and the Czech Republic finally separated into independent states in 1993.
From late 1940 Hitler sought a non aggression pact with Yugoslavia.
Seventeen year old King Peter was declared to be of age.
As such their adherence to the Axis may have been less than that of Tripartite Pact signatories.
Signing the Anti Comintern Pact was seen as a  a litmus test of loyalty  by the Nazi leadership.
Wang Jingwei became head of state.
The government had a strained relationship with the Japanese from the beginning.
The army was almost continuously employed against the communist New Fourth Army.
Wang Jingwei died on 10 November 1944  and was succeeded by his deputy  Chen Gongbo.
Chen had little influence  the real power behind the regime was Zhou Fohai  the mayor of Shanghai.
Wang s death dispelled what little legitimacy the regime had.
The state stuttered on for another year and continued the display and show of a fascist regime.
Chen Gongbo was tried and executed in 1946.
Denmark      Denmark was occupied by Germany after April 1940 and never joined the Axis.
Thousands of volunteers fought and many died as part of the German Army on the Eastern Front.
13 warships escaped to Sweden and formed a Danish naval flotilla in exile.
Sweden allowed formation of a Danish military brigade in exile  it did not see combat.
Finland did sign the revived Anti Comintern Pact of November 1941.
As such  Finland was the only democracy to join the Axis.
The Finnish conflict with the Soviet Union is generally referred to as the Continuation War.
Finland s main objective was to regain territory lost to the Soviet Union in the Winter War.
Finland maintained command of its armed forces and pursued war objectives independently of Germany.
Finland took part in the Siege of Leningrad.
While Manchukuo ostensibly was a state for ethnic Manchus  the region had a Han Chinese majority.
He was proclaimed the Emperor of Manchukuo a year later.
The new Manchu nation was recognized by 23 of the League of Nations  80 members.
Germany  Italy  and the Soviet Union were among the major powers who recognised Manchukuo.
The League of Nations later declared in 1934 that Manchuria lawfully remained a part of China.
The Manchukuoan state ceased to exist after the Soviet invasion of Manchuria in 1945.
Manchukuo signed the Anti Comintern Pact in 1939  but never signed the Tripartite Pact.
Members of the ruling Falange party in Spain held irredentist designs on Gibraltar.
In addition  Spain held ambitions on former Spanish colonies in Latin America.
Spain invaded and occupied the Tangier International Zone  maintaining its occupation until 1945.
Both were eager to establish another fascist state in Europe.
Prior to the outbreak of war  support for Franco and the Falange was high in the Philippines.
In some cases these bilateral agreements were formalised  in other cases it was less formal.
Some of these countries were puppet states established by the Axis Powers themselves.
A State of Burma was formed on 1 August 1943 under the Burmese nationalist leader Ba Maw.
On 27 March 1945 the Burma National Army revolted against the Japanese.
The rest of Burma was to be under Japanese control.
Kengtung  the main objective  was captured on 27 May.
Renewed offensives in June and November saw the Chinese retreat into Yunnan.
The area containing the Shan States and Kayah State was annexed by Thailand in 1942.
The areas were ceded back to Burma in 1945.
The Free Thai Movement   Seri Thai   was established during these first few months.
Parallel Free Thai organizations were also established in the United Kingdom.
As the war dragged on  the Thai population came to resent the Japanese presence.
In June 1944  Phibun was overthrown in a coup d état.
Thailand also returned the portions of British Burma and French Indochina that had been annexed.
However  the charges were dropped due to intense public pressure.
Germany was now freed from the risk of war with the Soviets  and was assured a supply of oil.
The Soviet Union attacked Finland on 30 November 1939  which started the Winter War.
Hitler never responded to Stalin s letter.
Shortly thereafter  Hitler issued a secret directive on the invasion of the Soviet Union.
Pétain became the last Prime Minister of the French Third Republic on 16 June 1940.
Under the terms of the agreement  Germany occupied two thirds of France  including Paris.
This number included neither the army based in the French colonial empire nor the French fleet.
In Africa the Vichy regime was permitted to maintain 127 000.
After the armistice  relations between the Vichy French and the British quickly worsened.
The Vichy regime continued to administer them under Japanese military occupation.
After his assassination De Gaulle emerged as the uncontested French leader.
The Germans recruited volunteers in units independent of Vichy.
Rashid Ali was appointed Prime Minister Rashid Ali in 1940.
When Italy declared war on Britain  Rashid Ali had maintained ties with the Italians.
This angered the British government.
On 25 May 1941  the Germans stepped up offensive operations in the Middle East.
In this connection special importance is attached to the liberation of Iraq ...
I have therefore decided to move forward in the Middle East by supporting Iraq.
He also helped recruit Muslim volunteers in the Balkans for the Waffen SS.
The General Government in occupied Poland was a German administration  not a Polish government.
Albanians in the Italian army joined the guerrilla forces.
Several Balli Kombëtar leaders held positions in the regime.
The Albanian government had refused to hand over their Jewish population.
Albania was completely liberated on November 29  1944.
The Prime Minister throughout was General Milan Nedić.
On 1 April 1942  a Serbian Gestapo was formed.
50 000 to 80 000 were killed during this period.
The Yugoslav authorities refused to return Nedić to United States custody.
Mussolini had been removed from office and arrested by King Victor Emmanuel III on 25 July 1943.
He was subject to German control for the duration of the war.
The result was Italy accepting the creation of a puppet regime with the support of Germany.
Italy had been assured by Hitler of a primary role in Greece.
These puppet states achieved varying degrees of international recognition.
King Sihanouk declared the Kingdom of Kampuchea  replacing the French name  independent.
From occupied Singapore Bose declared India s independence on October 21  1943 .
The Indian National Army was committed as a part of the U Go Offensive.
It was later committed to the defence of Burma against the Allied offensive.
It suffered a large number of desertions in this latter part.
Inner Mongolia  Mengjiang        Mengjiang was a Japanese puppet state in Inner Mongolia.
Mengjiang vanished in 1945 following Japan s defeat in World War II.
The country declared its independence in 1945.
The country was in chaos  and Phetxarāt s government had no real authority.
The country suffered through the Vietnamese Famine of 1945.
Italy also declared war on the U.S..
This order effectively declared naval war on Germany and Italy.
The US destroyer Reuben James was torpedoed and sunk by the submarine U 552 on 31 October 1941.
The eastern part of the territory of Nobunaga was not invaded by this alliance.
Nobunaga then moved his army to the west.
He endured though Nobunaga kept attacking his fortress for ten years.
The remaining daimyō soon capitulated  and the military reunification of Japan was complete.
The basis of power was distribution of territory as measured by rice production  in units of koku.
Hideyoshi ordered the collection of weapons in a great  sword hunt   katanagari .
Only later did he attempt to formalize the balance of power by establishing administrative bodies.
Korean campaigns      Hideyoshi s last major ambition was to conquer the Ming dynasty of China.
King Seonjo of Joseon fled  and two Korean princes were captured by Katō Kiyomasa.
Seonjo dispatched an emissary to the Ming court  asking urgently for military assistance.
The Chinese emperor sent admiral Chen Lin and commander Li Rusong to aid the Koreans.
Commander Li pushed the Japanese out of the northern part of the Korean Peninsula.
Japan s requests were thus denied and peace efforts reached an impasse.
If the cuckoo does not sing  kill it.
If the cuckoo does not sing  coax it.
If the cuckoo does not sing  wait for it.
Hideyoshi initiated the Taikō kenchi surveys.
Tenshō embassy is sent by the Japanese Christian lord Ōtomo Sōrin.
1586  Osaka Castle is built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
1590  Hideyoshi defeats the Hōjō clan  effectively unifying Japan.
1591  Sen no Rikyū is forced to commit suicide by Hideyoshi.
1592  Hideyoshi initiates the first invasion of Korea.
1593  Toyotomi Hideyori is born.
1595  Hideyoshi orders his nephew and reigning kampaku  Toyotomi Hidetsugu  to commit seppuku.
It is located in Madrid  on the Paseo de Recoletos.
At the same time  it was renamed the Biblioteca Nacional.
In 1892 the building was used to host the Historical American Exposition.
The Madrid premises are shared with the National Archaeological Museum.
The current director of the Biblioteca Nacional is Ana Santos Aramburo  appointed in 2013.
Jean Blanchet made another list in 1380 and Jean de Bégue one in 1411 and another in 1424.
Charles V was a patron of learning and encouraged the making and collection of books.
Charles VIII seized a part of the collection of the kings of Aragon.
Under de Thou  the library was enriched by the collections of Queen Catherine de Medici.
The death of Louvois  however  prevented the realization of this plan.
Louvois employed Mabillon  Thévenot and others to procure books from every source.
Catalogues were made which appeared from 1739 to 1753 in 11 volumes.
A new administrative organization was established.
Napoleon furthermore increased the collections by spoil from his conquests.
A considerable number of these books were restored after his downfall.
By 1920  the library s collection had grown to 4 050 000 volumes and 11 000 manuscripts.
Many thousands of books  including complete libraries  were seized by the Germans.
Despite Nazi opposition they maintained a supply of books to French prisoners of war.
Only with this high level of automation  the library can comply with all demands fully in time.
Due to initial trade union opposition  a wireless network was fully installed only in August 2016.
In July 1989  the services of the architectural firm of Dominique Perrault were retained.
The design was recognized with the European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture in 1996.
The construction was carried out by Bouygues.
It was established in October 1997.
All library materials are freely available.
France Detects a Cultural Threat in Google   The New York Times.
It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea  together with Goguryeo and Silla.
The Samguk Sagi provides a detailed account of Baekje s founding.
Jumong became Divine King Dongmyeong  and had two more sons with So Seo no  Onjo and Biryu.
When Yuri later arrived in Goguryeo  Jumong promptly made him the crown prince.
She is remembered as a key figure in the founding of both Goguryeo and Baekje.
Biryu then went to his brother Onjo  asking for the throne of Sipje.
When Onjo refused  Biryu declared war  but lost.
Baekje is first described in Chinese records as a kingdom in 345.
Buddhism became the official state religion in 384.
Baekje s capital was located at Ungjin  present day Gongju  from 475 to 538.
Baekje forces attempted a brief restoration movement but faced Silla–Tang joint forces.
They put the Tang general Liu Renyuan  劉仁願  under siege in Sabi.
The Tang dynasty also sent 7 000 soldiers and 170 ships.
Like most monarchies  a great deal of power was held by the aristocracy.
The names of several candidates were placed under a rock  Cheonjeongdae  near Hoamsa temple.
Whether this was a form of selection by lot or a covert selection by the elite is not clear.
Buddhist themes are extremely strong in Baekje artwork.
Taoist influences are also widespread.
Mortuary practices also followed the unique tradition of Baekje.
This tomb is seen as a representative tomb of the Ungjin period.
The Buddhist sculptures and refined pagodas reflect religion inspired creativity.
Kings Muryeong and Seong sent envoys to Liang several times and received titles of nobility.
Tomb of King Muryeong is built with bricks according with Liang s tomb style.
Due to this problem in interpretation  nothing can be concluded.
Chinese scholars participated in the study of the Stele during the 1980s.
Around August 661  10 000 soldiers and 170 ships  led by Abe no Hirafu  arrived.
This attempt  however  failed at the Battle of Baekgang  and the prince escaped to Goguryeo.
According to the Nihon Shoki  400 Japanese ships were lost in the battles.
Only half of the troops were able to return to Japan.
The Japanese army retreated to Japan with many Baekje refugees.
Hubaekje was overthrown in 936 by King Taejo of Goryeo.
The Ōuchi are descendants of Prince Imseong.In 2010  Baekje Cultural Land was opened to visitors.
Half of people counted are non nationals willing to report their status.
The capital and largest city is Manama.
Bahrain is the site of the ancient Dilmun civilization.
In 1971  it declared independence.
Formerly an emirate  Bahrain was declared an Islamic constitutional monarchy in 2002.
In 2011  the country experienced protests inspired by the regional Arab Spring.
The region stretched from Basra in Iraq to the Strait of Hormuz in Oman.
This was Iqlīm al Bahrayn s  Bahrayn Province.
The entire coastal strip of Eastern Arabia was known as  Bahrain  for a millennium.
The island and kingdom were also commonly spelled Bahrein into the 1950s.
The use of these is not confined to India  but extends to Arabia.
Herodotus also believed that the homeland of the Phoenicians was Bahrain.
For many centuries after Tylos  Bahrain was known as Awal.
Muhammad ordered a surprise attack on the Banu Salim tribe for allegedly plotting to attack Medina.
In 1860  the Al Khalifas used the same tactic when the British tried to overpower Bahrain.
Sheikh Issa was the first of the Al Khalifa to rule without Persian relations.
The group s leaders were subsequently arrested and exiled to India.
At the same time  the pearl diving industry developed at a rapid pace.
This was to bring rapid modernisation to Bahrain.
Imperial Airways flew there  including the Handley Page HP42 aircraft.
The riots focused on the Jewish community.
Bahrain joined the United Nations and the Arab League later in the year.
A referendum on 14–15 February 2001 massively supported the National Action Charter.
Almost daily clashes between protesters and security forces led to dozens of deaths.
Protests  sometimes staged by opposition parties  were ongoing.
More than 80 civilians and 13 policemen have been killed as of March 2014.
Iran is alleged by United States and others to have a hand in the arming of Bahraini militants.
Geography     Bahrain is a generally flat and arid archipelago in the Persian Gulf.
Bahrain has mild winters and very hot  humid summers.
Arable land constitutes only 2.82  of the total area.
Summer temperatures may reach up to 50 °C  122 °F  under the right conditions.
Rainfall in Bahrain is minimal and irregular.
Precipitation mostly occurs in winter  with an average of 70.8mm of rainfall recorded annually.
Millions of migratory birds pass through the Persian Gulf region in the winter and autumn months.
One globally endangered species  Chlamydotis undulata  is a regular migrant in the autumn.
Bahrain s national bird is the bulbul while its national animal is the Arabian oryx.
And the national flower of Bahrain is the beloved Deena.
They are   Hawar Islands Mashtan Island  off the coast of Bahrain.
The head of government is the prime minister.
The forty members of the Shura are appointed by the king.
The period between 2002 and 2010 saw three parliamentary elections.
The law was supported by women activists who said they were  suffering in silence .
They managed to organise a rally attended by 500 participants.
Bahrain also hosts 36 embassies.
Bahrain is also one of the founding members of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Bahrain s decision was very likely approved in advance by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
In 2011  Human Rights Watch described the country s human rights situation as  dismal .
The government promised to introduce reforms and avoid repeating the  painful events .
It also caused some problems between the Bahraini and the Qatari governments.
Freedom House labels Bahrain as  not free  in its 2016 report.
They were arrested in 2014 and accused of killing a police officer.
However  no women were elected to office in that year s polls.
The number rose to four after the 2011 by elections.
In 2011  Alice Samaan  a Christian woman  was appointed ambassador to the United Kingdom.
Newspapers are widely available in multiple languages such as Arabic  English  Malayalam  etc.
to support the varied population.
Gulf Madhyamam is a newspaper published in Malayalam.
Radio  much like the television network  is mostly state run and usually in Arabic.
By June 2012  Bahrain had 961 000 internet users.
Journalists were targeted by officials during anti government protests in 2011.
Several foreign correspondents were expelled.
Bahrain will host the Saudi financed Alarab News Channel  expected to launch in December 2012.
It will be based at a planned  Media City .
An opposition satellite station  LuaLua TV  operates from London but has found its signals blocked.
The municipality was in charge of cleaning roads and renting buildings to tenants and shops.
By 1929  it undertook road expansions as well as opening markets and slaughterhouses.
In 1958  the municipality started water purification projects.
In 1960  Bahrain comprised four municipalities  Manama  Hidd  Al Muharraq  and Riffa.
The United States designated Bahrain a major non NATO ally in 2001.
Since only 2.9  of the country s land is arable  agriculture contributes to 0.5  of Bahrain s GDP.
This means they use 16.5 times as much biocapacity as Bahrain contains.
In 2008  the jobless figure was at 4   with women over represented at 85  of the total.
Tourism      As a tourist destination  Bahrain received over eight million visitors in 2008.
The 2012 festival featured concerts starring Andrea Bocelli  Julio Iglesias and other musicians.
The airport handled more than 100 000 flights and more than 8 million passengers in 2010.
Bahrain s national carrier  Gulf Air operates and bases itself in the BIA.
Bahrain has a well developed road network  particularly in Manama.
Currently there are three modern bridges connecting the two locations.
The four main islands and all the towns and villages are linked by well constructed roads.
There were 3 164 km  1 966 mi  of roadways in 2002  of which 2 433 km  1 512 mi  were paved.
It was completed in December 1986  and financed by Saudi Arabia.
In 2001  Bahrain had a merchant fleet of eight ships of 1 000 GT or over  totaling 270 784 GT.
Private vehicles and taxis are the primary means of transportation in the city.
A nationwide metro system is currently under construction and is due to be operational by 2023.
In 1981  there were more than 45 000 telephones in use in the country.
By 1999  Batelco had more than 100 000 mobile contracts.
As of August 2013  the TRA has licensed 22 Internet Service Providers.
Bahrain has already diversified its exports to some extent  out of necessity.
The aim is to establish a knowledge hub for the six member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
In March 2012  the centre hosted two high level workshops on ICTs and education.
Scientific output has risen slowly from 93 articles in 2005 and remains modest.
The only sovereign states with larger population densities are city states.
Ethnic groups      Bahraini people are ethnically diverse.
Shia Bahrainis are divided into two main ethnic groups  Baharna and Ajam.
The Shia Bahrainis are Baharna  Arab   and the Ajam are Persian Shias.
Shia Persians form large communities in Manama and Muharraq.
A small minority of Shia Bahrainis are ethnic Hasawis from Al Hasa.
Sunni Bahrainis are mainly divided into two main ethnic groups  Arabs  al Arab  and Huwala.
Sunni Arabs  while a minority  are the most influential ethnic group in Bahrain.
They hold most government positions and the Bahraini monarchy are Sunni Arabs.
Sunni Arabs have traditionally lived in areas such as Zallaq  Muharraq  Riffa and Hawar islands.
There are also Sunnis of Baloch origin.
Religion      The state religion of Bahrain is Islam and most Bahraini citizens are Muslim.
The majority of Bahraini Muslims are Shiites.
The country s two Muslim communities are united on some issues  but disagree sharply on others.
Christians in Bahrain make up about 14.5  of the population.
There is a native Christian community in Bahrain.
Non Muslim Bahraini residents numbered 367 683 per the 2010 census  most of whom are Christians.
Alees Samaan  a former Bahraini ambassador to the United Kingdom is a native Christian.
Bahrain also has a native Jewish community numbering thirty seven Bahraini citizens.
Various sources cite Bahrain s native Jewish community as being from 36 to 50 people.
Languages     Arabic is the official language of Bahrain  though English is widely used.
Nepali is also widely spoken in the Nepalese workers and Gurkha Soldiers community.
Malayalam  Tamil  Bangla and Hindi are spoken among significant Indian communities.
All commercial institutions and road signs are bilingual  displaying both English and Arabic.
Education      Education is compulsory for children between the ages of 6 and 14.
They were traditional schools aimed at teaching children and youth the reading of the Qur an.
The project s objective is to connect all schools within the kingdom with the Internet.
In addition to British intermediate schools  the island is served by the Bahrain School  BS .
MCG is one of the oldest private institutes in the country.
Health      Bahrain has a universal health care system  dating back to 1960.
The life expectancy in Bahrain is 73 for males and 76 for females.
Compared to many countries in the region  the prevalence of AIDS and HIV is relatively low.
Abstract expressionism has gained popularity in recent decades.
The architecture of Bahrain is similar to that of its neighbours in the Persian Gulf.
Legend also states that it was the location of the Garden of Eden.
Music      The music style in Bahrain is similar to that of its neighbours.
The Khaliji style of music  which is folk music  is popular in the country.
Ali Bahar was one of the most famous singers in Bahrain.
He performed his music with his Band Al Ekhwa  The Brothers .
Bahrain was also the site of the first recording studio amongst the Persian Gulf states.
Bahrain has its own top tier domestic professional football league  the Bahraini Premier League.
Basketball  rugby and horse racing are also widely popular in the country.
Bahrain will be the first Asian and Arab country to host the amateur MMA championship.
This was followed by the Bahrain Grand Prix in 2005.
Bahrain hosted the opening Grand Prix of the 2006 season on 12 March of that year.
Both the above races were won by Fernando Alonso of Renault.
The series has not returned since.
The Baháʼí Faith in Japan begins after a few mentions of the country by ʻAbdu l Bahá first in 1875.
Alexander would live some 31 years off and on in Japan until 1967 when she left for the last time.
The first Baháʼí convert on Japanese soil was Kikutaro Fukuta  福田菊太郎  in 1915.
In 1932 the first Baháʼí Local Spiritual Assembly was elected in Tokyo and reelected in 1933.
In 1942  back in the United States  the Yamamoto family lived at a relocation camp during the war.
In 1971 the first residents of Okinawa converted to the religion.
It was written to try to enlighten Persia.
Firsts     Baháʼís moved across Asia from the turn of the century.
However  for the Japanese contact with the religion came from the West.
Leach received awards for his continued work in Japanese folk arts in the 1960s and 70s.
A few other Baháʼís traveled through Japan in 1911 and 1914.
The first Japanese woman to convert to the religion was Yuri Mochizuki in 1919.
Alexander also spent time with Shibusawa Eiichi.
In London in 1912  ʻAbdu l Bahá came in contact with the President of the Japan Women s University.
It was this occasion that ʻAbdu l Bahá wrote the only prayer he wrote for the Japanese.
The world is in need of the light of Guidance!
Confer Thy favor so that the Sun of Reality may illumine the East and the West.
In New York he met several Japanese as well.
On September 12  ʻAbdu l Bahá reached Chicago.
Fujita attempted to connect with ʻAbdu l Bahá at Cleveland but caught up with him in Chicago.
ʻAbdu l Bahá made mentioned especially to the blind of Japan.
He addressed five Tablets to three blind men.
In 1932 the first Baháʼí Local Spiritual Assembly was elected in Tokyo.
The members of the community of Tokyo were  former Rev.
The members included five women and two who were blind.
The assembly was reelected in 1933.
In all of Japan there were 19 Baháʼís.
In 1916 Daiun Inouye was a young Buddhist priest when he first heard of the religion.
In 1932 he translated Baháʼu lláh and the New Era and it was printed the following year.
In 1923 Alexander first visited Hong Kong and returned on several more over the next thirty years.
In 1942 back in the United States the Yamamoto family lived at a relocation camp  during the war.
Jamir in particular undertook trips to find Torii and Fujita circa 1945–6.
Imagire arrived in 1947 and was given an address where Alexander had left her printed materials.
In 1948 Imagire helped re elect the assembly in Tokyo.
The Americans were Alexander  Lane Skelton  Barbara Davenport  and Imagire.
The Moghbel and Katirai Persian families arrived in 1953.
In 1954 the community was 52 adults — 10 were Americans and 13 were Persians.
The first center owned by the Baháʼí assemblies in Japan was in Amagasaki in 1953.
The Tokyo assembly bought a house  it became the second Baháʼí Center in 1954.
In 1965 Alexander fell and broke her hip.
She convalesced in Japan for two years and returned to Hawaii where she died in 1971.
The first Baháʼí Cemetery — a division of a larger cemetery — was established in 1958.
In 1971 the first residents of Okinawa converted to the religion.
In 1974 Sims was elected to the first National Spiritual Assembly of Japan  serving until 1993.
Worldwide in 1979 there were 129 officially recognized Baháʼí socio economic development projects.
By 1987  the number of officially recognized development projects had increased to 1482.
The modern Baháʼí community of Japan has grown and developed strength in diverse interests.
Ruth Lattimore is the mathematics academic director living in Yokota base in Tokyo.
Arts     There are a number of Baháʼí artists who have done work who lived in Japan.
Meanwhile  Japan endeavoured to learn about foreign sciences through rangaku   Western studies  .
These domains also studied the manufacture of Western weapons.
Some such as Egawa claimed that it was necessary to use the foreigners  techniques to repel them.
To demonstrate his weapons  Perry ordered his ships to attack several buildings around the harbor.
Industrial developments were also soon started in order to build modern cannons.
A reverbatory furnace was established by Egawa Hidetatsu in Nirayama to cast cannons.
The American fleet returned in 1854.
In February 1855  the Russians followed suit with the Treaty of Shimoda.
The resulting damage to the shogunate was significant.
Debate over government policy was unusual and had engendered public criticism of the shogunate.
In 1857  it acquired its first screw driven steam warship  the Kanrin Maru.
Edo  Kobe  Nagasaki  Niigata  and Yokohama’s opening to foreign trade as ports.
Trading houses were quickly set up in the open ports.
While some entrepreneurs prospered  many others went bankrupt.
Unemployment rose  as well as inflation.
Coincidentally  major famines also increased the price of food drastically.
Japan s monetary system  based on Tokugawa coinage  also broke down.
In 1860  about 4 million ryōs thus left Japan  that is about 70 tons of gold.
A servant of the French Minister was attacked at the end of 1860.
On 14 January 1861  Henry Heusken  Secretary to the American mission  was attacked and murdered.
On 5 July 1861  a group of samurai attacked the British Legation  resulting in two deaths.
During this period  about one foreigner was killed every month.
In May 1863  the US legation in Edo was torched.
World renewal  movement appeared  as well as feverish hysteric movements such as the Eejanaika.
Violence increased against the foreigners and those who dealt with them.
Murders of foreigners and collaborating Japanese soon followed.
On 26 August 1859  a Russian sailor was cut to pieces in the streets of Yokohama.
In early 1860  two Dutch captains were slaughtered  also in Yokohama.
Chinese and native servants of foreigners were also killed.
These efforts towards revision remained largely unsuccessful.
A First Japanese Embassy to Europe was sent in 1862.
This influence would be replaced by that of the British  the Dutch and the French.
The Royal Navy bombarded Kagoshima and sunk several ships.
This conflict proved inopportune for America  which in 1864  was already torn by its own civil war.
The sonnō jōi movement thus lost its initial impetus.
This reversal encouraged the Bakufu to take drastic steps towards modernization.
Japan sent a delegation to and participated in the 1867 World Fair in Paris.
In 1867  Emperor Kōmei died and was succeeded by his second son  Mutsuhito  as Emperor Meiji.
Black Ships Off Japan – The Story of Commodore Perry s Expedition.
The Bank of Japan  日本銀行  Nippon Ginkō  BOJ  JASDAQ  8301  is the central bank of Japan.
The bank is often called Nichigin  日銀  for short.
It has its headquarters in Chūō  Tokyo.
For a time both the central government and these so called  national  banks issued money.
The tool was instrumental in the creation of the  bubble economy  of the 1980s.
This created a greater than 10  inflation rate at that time.
In 1979  when the energy crisis happened  the BOJ raised the official bank rate rapidly.
The BOJ succeeded in a quick economic recovery.
After overcoming the crisis  they reduced the official bank rate.
Reaganomics  was in vogue in America and USD became strong.
Even in 1986  USD continued to fall and reached 160yen  .
However  the market was confused about the rapid fall of USD.
The BOJ kept the official bank rate at 2.5  until May in 1989.
After 1990  the stock market and real asset market fell.
At that time BOJ regulated markets until 1991 in order to end the bubble.
In January 1995  a terrible earthquake happened and Japanese yen became stronger and stronger.
JPY USD reached 80yen    so the BOJ reduced the office bank rate to 0.5  and the yen recovered.
In 2008  the financial crisis happened  and Japanese economy turned bad again.
They are the largest owner of Japanese stocks.
The Neo baroque Bank of Japan building in Tokyo was designed by Tatsuno Kingo in 1896.
Japanese lawmakers endorse the Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda.
He is seen to adopt Reflation policy as part of Abenomics.
It is called Puro Yakyū  プロ野球   meaning professional baseball.
The pro baseball season is eight months long  with games beginning in April.
Historically  teams have been identified with their owners  not where the team is based.
However  the game roster has a 25 player limit.
If there are four  they cannot all be pitchers nor all be position players.
The new team  the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles  began play in the 2005 season.
Amateur baseball is governed by the Japan Amateur Baseball Association  JABA .
Japanese Baseball Takes a Strike   subscription required .
America s  National Pastime  as a Global Sport   Global Networks 7.2  2007   Roden  Donald.
On 21 October 1938 the Japanese occupied Canton  Guangzhou  and Hong Kong was surrounded.
By 1940  the British determined to reduce the Hong Kong Garrison to only a symbolic size.
According to Ward   when the real fighting came it was the British soldiery that broke and ran.
The same thing happened on the mainland.
The Hong Kong Mule Corps was staffed almost entirely by Dogras and Punjabi Muslims.
Medical personnel from the Indian Medical Service tended to those injured in combat.
The 2nd Battalion  Royal Scots were assigned to the western sector.
Royal Scots were reassigned to the Wanchai Filter Beds.
On Hong Kong Island they were assigned to defences located all along the North Shoreline.
fell into Japanese hands and have not been recorded .
A total of 96 officers  two Auxiliary Services supervisors and 1 877 other ranks disembarked.
On Christmas morning  Young informed Chak of his intent to surrender.
The colony had no significant air defence.
Two of the three Vildebeest and the two Walruses were destroyed by 12 Japanese bombers.
Two of the Royal Navy s three remaining destroyers were ordered to leave Hong Kong for Singapore.
Only one destroyer  HMS Thracian  several gunboats and a flotilla of motor torpedo boats remained.
The Pan Am Airways flying boat  Hong Kong Clipper  was dive bombed and destroyed.
By 10 00 the hill was again taken by the Japanese.
As much as possible  military and harbour facilities were demolished before the withdrawal.
On 15 December  the Japanese began systematic bombardment of the island s North Shore.
Two demands for surrender were made on 13 and 17 December.
In both cases  a few men survived.
This was the first occasion on which a British Crown Colony had surrendered to an invading force.
British Somaliland fell to the Italians in August 1940 but this was a protectorate.
The garrison had held out for 17 days.
This day is known in Hong Kong as  Black Christmas .
C Force also had 28 officers and 465 men wounded.
Some of the dead were murdered by Japanese soldiers during or after surrender.
These men may have been some of those attached to the Hong Kong Chinese Regiment.
It is uncertain whether they were killed in action  or murdered after capture.
The names of all the reported victims may never be known.
Although it is the  most infamous massacre   it  has been the hardest to match with records .
Four Chinese servants and one civilian  Tam Cheung Huen  were killed.
Tam is the only Chinese victim of this massacre known by name.
Most of the soldiers here murdered were Muslims  including one religious teacher.
Subsequent operations      Isogai Rensuke became the first Japanese governor of Hong Kong.
The resistance groups were known as the Gangjiu and Dongjiang forces.
He was born in Norfolk  England.
The men had been captured and were in the process of planning a mass escape by British forces.
This Coat of Arms was in place until 1997  when it was replaced by the regional emblem.
The Japanese had air and naval supremacy from the opening days of the campaign.
In addition  they had over 500 combat aircraft available.
He predicted that landings could be made at Songkhla and Pattani in Siam  and Kota Bharu in Malaya.
He recommended large reinforcements to be sent immediately.
His predictions turned out to be correct  but his recommendations were ignored.
A strong naval presence was also thought to act as a deterrent against possible aggressors.
The east  until that time  would be a secondary priority.
Containment was considered the primary strategy in the east.
Thailand was seen to be under threat from this build up as well as Malaya.
French Indochina was controlled by Vichy France  which collaborated with the Axis.
The Allies had no tanks  which had put them at a severe disadvantage.
In addition the Allies did not consider Japanese aircraft a significant threat.
In 1941 the Allies assumed that Japan would only have a few hundred poor quality outdated aircraft.
The Japanese had at least 459 aircraft available.
They were equipped with 33 Type 96 Mitsubishi G3M1 Nell bombers.
The Air Flotilla also had 25 Type 96 Mitsubishi A5M4 Claude fighters available.
They were all very well trained.
Its engine had fuel starvation problems and poor supercharger performance at higher altitudes.
The Vildebeests were considered obsolete for the European theatre of operations.
No 36 Squadron had some Fairey Albacore biplanes.
There were also two PBY Catalina flying boats of No.
A total of 60 Allied aircraft were lost on the first day  primarily on the ground.
The Squadron was transferred to Kuantan the following day.
The Allies tried to attack Singora airfield.
The sole surviving bomber  a Bristol Blenheim flown by Arthur Scarf  did manage to bomb Singora.
Within the first week of the campaign the Japanese had established air superiority.
RAAF No 1 and No 8 squadrons were amalgamated due to aircraft losses.
In addition  488  NZ  Squadron  a Buffalo squadron  converted to Hurricanes.
On 18 January  the two squadrons formed the basis of 226 Group.
232 Squadron thus had the first losses and victories for the Hurricane in Southeast Asia that day.
Only about 20 Buffalos survived to reach India or the Dutch East Indies.
The last airworthy Buffalo in Singapore flew out on 10 February  five days before the island fell.
Eighty were claimed in total  a ratio of kills to losses of just 1.3 to 1.
Additionally  most of the Japanese aircraft shot down by the Buffalos were bombers.
Arms  boats  supplies and a working radio station were left in haste to the Japanese.
However  many who were present during the evacuation did not experience it as a scramble.
It did not take long for the Japanese army s next objective  the city of Kuala Lumpur  to fall.
The Japanese entered and occupied the city unopposed on 11 January 1942.
Anderson was awarded a Victoria Cross for his fighting withdrawal.
Nearly 50 000 Commonwealth troops had been captured or killed during the battle.
The final battle before the surrender was with the Malay Regiment at Bukit Candu on 14 February.
His body was thrown into the sea.
One Japanese transport was sunk  with two damaged.
The operation failed due to delays in authorisation by Percival and resistance by Thai police.
This was the first time any capital ships at sea had been sunk by aircraft.
His death created a power vacuum  there was no appointed shōgun over the armies.
Toyotomi clan loyalists and the lords of western Japan rallied behind Ishida Mitsunari.
However  many of them were at that moment besieging Hasedō.
Here  they forged their alliance  and invited Mōri Terumoto to be its head.
They formed what came to be referred to as the Western Army.
Ishida wanted to reinforce Mōri at the impregnable Osaka Castle.
This would let Ishida control the capital of Kyoto and challenge the Tokugawa.
Ieyasu himself commanded 30 000 men and his subordinates led another 40 000 men.
This made up the bulk of what would later be called the Eastern Army.
Ieyasu marched on Gifu while Ishida Mitsunari was delayed at Fushimi Castle.
Ishida could not risk leaving a force that could attack his rear  so he marched on it.
It took him ten days to capture Fushimi  and in that time Gifu Castle had fallen.
This forced Ishida Mitsunari to retreat southward in the rain.
A few days before October 21  1600  Ishida Mitsunari and his troops were stationed at Ōgaki Castle.
Not wanting to lose the advantage  Mitsunari ordered his army to surround Ieyasu at Sekigahara.
They had been following the Western Army  and benefited from considerably better weather.
Neither side saw each other due to the dense fog caused by the earlier rain.
He sent his allies  forces in a line to the front  and held his own troops in reserve.
Last minute orders were issued and the battle began.
Initially  the Eastern Army had 75 000 men  while the Western Army numbered 120 000.
Ieyasu had also sneaked in a supply of arquebuses.
At that point Kobayakawa joined the battle as a member of the Eastern Army.
His forces charged Ōtani s position  which did not end well for Kobayakawa.
At this point  the buffer Ōtani established was outnumbered.
Fall of the Western Army     Heavily outnumbered  Ōtani had no choice but to retreat.
However  these forces were there for a reason.
Kikkawa Hiroie was one of the commanders on the mountain.
This in turn prevented the Chōsokabe army  which deployed behind the Mōri clan  from attacking.
When Ishida arrived  Kikkawa betrayed him as well.
Some  like Ukita Hideie  managed to escape  at least initially.
Ishida himself was later executed.
Ieyasu s son Hidetada led another group through Nakasendō.
Some among the 15 000 troops respected Hosokawa so much they intentionally slowed their pace.
If either of these armies participated in the conflict  it could have ended quite differently.
He hoped to use them to force his rival generals to join his cause.
He and the rest of the residents committed seppuku to avoid capture.
In a turn of fate  Yoshitaka committed seppuku before the news from Moritaka reached him.
Musashi would have been around 16 years of age at the time.
There is no hard evidence to prove whether Musashi was present or not for the battle.
Ryōtarō Shiba wrote a three volume historical novel called Sekigahara on it in the 1960s.
It featured actors Hisaya Morishige  Gō Katō  and Rentarō Mikuni.
Samurai Battles  The Long Road to Unification Groningen  Toyo Press  2020 Sadler  A.L.
Bryant is the author of the above mentioned Sekigahara 1600  The Final Struggle for Power.
Belgium is a sovereign state and a federal constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system.
A small German speaking Community  numbering around one percent  exists in the East Cantons.
The country emerged in 1830 following the Belgian Revolution  when it seceded from the Netherlands.
It also ranks as one of the safest or most peaceful countries in the world.
Caesar used the word  Belgium  once  to refer to their region.
During the 8th century  the kingdom of the Franks evolved and became the Carolingian Empire.
Most of modern Belgium was in the Middle Kingdom  later known as Lotharingia.
Only the coastal county of Flanders became part of West Francia  the predecessor of France.
French was originally the single official language adopted by the nobility and the bourgeoisie.
It progressively lost its overall importance as Dutch became recognized as well.
A Belgian commission in 1919 estimated that Congo s population was half what it was in 1879.
The opening months of the war were known as the Rape of Belgium due to German excesses.
From September 1944 to February 1945 the Allies liberated Belgium.
Its total surface  including water area  is 30 689 km2  11 849 sq mi .
Before 2018  its total area was believed to be 30 528 km2  11 787 sq mi .
However  when the country s statistics were measured in 2018  a new calculation method was used.
Its land area alone is 30 278 km2.
The bicameral federal parliament is composed of a Senate and a Chamber of Representatives.
Prior to 2014  most of the Senate s members were directly elected.
The Council of Ministers is composed of no more than fifteen members.
The judicial system is based on civil law and originates from the Napoleonic code.
The Court of Cassation is the court of last resort  with the courts of appeal one level below.
Restrictions on withholding euthanasia were reduced and same sex marriage legalized.
The government promoted active diplomacy in Africa and opposed the invasion of Iraq.
For more than a year  the country experienced a political crisis.
This crisis was such that many observers speculated on a possible partition of Belgium.
From 21 December 2007 until 20 March 2008 the temporary Verhofstadt III Government was in office.
A few hours later  the new government under Prime Minister Yves Leterme was sworn in.
The structure is intended as a compromise to allow different cultures to live together peacefully.
State owned companies include the Belgian Post Group and Belgian Railways.
It controls substantial parts of public health  home affairs and foreign affairs.
.Regions have authority in fields that can be broadly associated with their territory.
The Belgians have been strong advocates of European integration.
Both the European Union and NATO are headquartered in Belgium.
Armed forces      The Belgian Armed Forces have about 47 000 active troops.
In March 1948 Belgium signed the Treaty of Brussels and then joined NATO in 1948.
However  the integration of the armed forces into NATO did not begin until after the Korean War.
This mission was the first in a long line of UN missions which the Belgians supported.
As of 2006  the budget was balanced and public debt was equal to 90.30  of GDP.
Unemployment rates of 8.4  in 2005 and 8.2  in 2006 were close to the area average.
From 1832 until 2002  Belgium s currency was the Belgian franc.
Belgium switched to the euro in 2002  with the first sets of euro coins being minted in 1999.
This means they required about eight times as much biocapacity as Belgium contains.
As of 2007  the unemployment rate of Wallonia is over double that of Flanders.
Pro independence movements have gained high popularity in Flanders as a consequence.
The separatist New Flemish Alliance  N VA  party  for instance  is the largest party in Belgium.
Bakelite was developed in 1907–1909 by Leo Baekeland.
François Englert  Université libre de Bruxelles  was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2013.
Ilya Prigogine  Université libre de Bruxelles  was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1977.
The most densely populated province is Antwerp  the least densely populated province is Luxembourg.
The largest group of immigrants and their descendants in Belgium are Moroccans.
Languages      Belgium has three official languages  Dutch  French and German.
A number of non official minority languages are spoken as well.
31  answered that they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force.
27  answered that they do not believe there is any sort of spirit  God  or life force.
Protestants comprised 2.1  and Orthodox Christians were the 1.6  of the total.
A further 5.2  of the population was Muslim and 2.1  were believers in other religions.
In the early 2000s  there were approximately 42 000 Jews in Belgium.
In addition  most Jewish children in Antwerp receive a Jewish education.
On the other hand  Wallonia has become one of Europe s most secular least religious regions.
This is particularly the case in eastern Wallonia and areas along the French border.
A 2008 estimate found that approximately 6  of the Belgian population  628 751 people  is Muslim.
Muslims constitute 23.6  of the population of Brussels  4.9  of Wallonia and 5.1  of Flanders.
The largest group of immigrants in Belgium are Moroccans  with 400 000 people.
Health      The Belgians enjoy good health.
According to 2012 estimates  the average life expectancy is 79.65 years.
Since 1960  life expectancy has  in line with the European average  grown by two months per year.
The child had been euthanized due to an incurable disease that was inflicted upon the child.
Education      Education is compulsory from 6 to 18 years of age for Belgians.
Fine arts      Contributions to painting and architecture have been especially rich.
The composer César Franck was born in Liège in 1822.
Contemporary popular music in Belgium is also of repute.
Jazz musician Toots Thielemans and singer Jacques Brel have achieved global fame.
Nowadays  singer Stromae has been a musical revelation in Europe and beyond  having great success.
The poet and playwright Maurice Maeterlinck won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1911.
Belgian cinema has brought a number of mainly Flemish novels to life on screen.
Originated in 1832 and revived in the 1960s  the Gentse Feesten have become a modern tradition.
Belgium is famous for beer  chocolate  waffles and french fries with mayonnaise.
Belgium produces over 1100 varieties of beer.
The Trappist beer of the Abbey of Westvleteren has repeatedly been rated the world s best beer.
The biggest brewer in the world by volume is Anheuser Busch InBev  based in Leuven.
They have also the most victories on the UCI Road World Championships.
Philippe Gilbert is the 2012 world champion.
Another modern well known Belgian cyclist is Tom Boonen.
The 1920 Summer Olympics were held in Antwerp.
The 1977 European Basketball Championship was held in Liège and Ostend.
This can often lead to the two chambers having very different compositions of members.
When this is the case  the legislature may be called an example of perfect bicameralism.
Many nations with parliaments have to some degree emulated the British  three tier  model.
The idea was to have the Senate be wealthier and wiser.
There have been a number of rationales put forward in favour of bicameralism.
The first tends to be the case in federal systems and those with presidential governments.
The second tends to be the case in unitary states with parliamentary systems.
Historically there were two distinct types    ordinary  and  free .
A free conference resolves a dispute through  managers  meeting less formally in private.
The Commons is democratically elected every four years  constitutionally up to five years .
executive  is responsible to and must maintain the confidence of the elected House of Commons.
The government of the day must achieve the confidence of this House to gain and hold power.
This makes the total number 76  i.e.
This was also the case in the United States before the Seventeenth Amendment was adopted.
Rather  it sees the Bundesrat and the Bundestag as independent constitutional bodies.
Only the directly elected Bundestag is considered the parliament.
Members of the House of Lords all have an aristocratic title  or are from the Clergy.
Membership is not fixed and decreases only on the death  retirement or resignation of a peer.
These were called the Odelsting and were abolished after the general election of 2009.
Brazilian states and Canadian provinces all abolished upper houses .
Tucumán and Córdoba changed to unicameral systems in 1990 and 2001 respectively.
After Federation  these became the state Parliaments.
The other 15 states have used a unicameral system since their founding.
India     Out of 28 States and 8 Union Territories that India has  only 6 Indian states  viz.
Since then the Andhra Pradesh Legislature has become once again bicameral.
Russia     Under Soviet regime regional and local Soviets were unicameral.
After the adoption of 1993 Russian Constitution bicameralism was introduced in some regions.
The last region to switch from bicameralism to unicameralism was Sverdlovsk Oblast in 2012.
This tends to place much power in the hands of only a small number of legislators.
The turnout rate was 50.95   with 77.78  of  Yes  votes for a unicameral Parliament.
Ivory Coast     A referendum on a new constitution was held on 30 October 2016.
The constitution draft would create a bicameral Parliament instead of the current unicameral.
Two thirds of the Senate is to be elected at the same time as the general election.
The remaining one third is appointed by the president elect.
In 1844  William II of the Netherlands urged Japan to open  but was rejected.
In this sense  the kurofune became a symbol of the ending of isolation.
Soon they established a trade route linking their headquarters in Goa  via Malacca to Nagasaki.
The name was inscribed in the Nippo Jisho  the first western Japanese dictionary compiled in 1603.
In 1549 Spanish missionary Francis Xavier started a Jesuit mission in Japan.
In 1637 the Shimabara Rebellion blamed on the Christian influence was suppressed.
in 2012  Peter Grauer became the chairman of the company  a role he still holds.
Following the acquisition  BusinessWeek was renamed Bloomberg Businessweek.
In 2018  Joel Weber was named editor of the magazine.
It was renamed to Bloomberg New Energy Finance or BNEF for short.
The company will be renamed Bloomberg Index Services Limited.
In 2000  Bloomberg News included more than 2 300 editors and reporters in 100 countries.
Since 2015  John Micklethwait has served as editor in chief.
Michael Dukmejian has served as the magazine s publisher since 2009.
It was launched on May 25  2016.
It is headquartered in San Francisco.
Bloomberg Live     Bloomberg Live is a series of conferences targeted towards business people.
Bloomberg Quicktake     Quicktake  formerly TicToc  is Bloomberg s social media brand.
It will also play at several screens across multiple airports in the United States and Canada.
The inaugural event was held in 2018 in Singapore.
The case was re opened by another lawyer in 2000  but disappeared from the court docket in 2001.
Garrison alleged that when she told Bloomberg that she was pregnant  he told her to  Kill it!
It doesn’t know the difference between you and anyone else!
Bloomberg L.P. won at the trial court level.
Throughout both cases the same law firm defends the victims.
The attack began at around 0430  shortly after Japanese forces landed on Kota Bharu  Malaya.
It was the first knowledge the Singapore population had that war had broken out in the Far East.
However  bad weather conditions were encountered while over the South China Sea.
453 Squadron RAAF were on standby at RAF Sembawang.
Paradoxically  there were 12 Bristol Blenheim Mark IF night fighters of No.
When the bombers began their attack at 0430  Allied anti aircraft guns immediately opened fire.
They were flying at 12 000 feet  while the second formation was at 4 000 feet.
Aftermath      The  Raiders Passed  signal was sent out at 0500.
A number of bombs also fell on Raffles Place.
61 people were killed and more than 700 were injured.
Most of the casualties were troops of the 2 2nd Gurkha Rifles  11th Indian Infantry Division.
Bombs were dropped but none fell in our area.
The next raid occurred on the night of 16 17 December 1941.
This was minor attack on RAF Tengah by two Japanese Ki 21s.
The next serious raid on Singapore City was on the night of 29 30 December.
Geographically speaking  all of these islands are part of the Nanpō Islands.
At that time  the islands were uninhabited.
It is thought that this was an attempt to discourage colonization attempts by foreign nations.
In 1826  another British whaler  the William  arrived at Beechey Island.
Beechey was surprised to find two men living on the islands.
They remained on the islands after the William left the year before in 1826.
They established themselves initially in South Island.
The US  Colony of Peel Island   Chichijima  was created and Savory was appointed governor.
This tentative colonization  however  did not last for long.
Jack London visited the islands in 1893 and published an account of his sojourn.
Lionel Cholmondeley compiled a history of the islands over the course of several years.
His work was published in London in 1915.
The current residents include some who claim to be related to Nathaniel Savory.
During World War II  most inhabitants were forcibly evacuated to the mainland.
He was hanged for his crimes after the war.
Matchmaker Island    Kita no jima  北ノ島 or 北島  lit.
It is a Subprefecture of Tokyo Metropolis.
Geology    The Ogasawara  Bonin  Islands were formed around 48 million years ago.
They are a part of the Izu Bonin Mariana Arc known geologically as a fore arc.
They lie above a subduction zone between the Pacific Plate and the Philippine Sea Plate.
The highest point lies on South Iwo Jima  at 916 metres  3 005 ft .
The wettest months are May and June  while the driest months are January and February.
The wettest months are July and August  while the driest months are February and March.
Ecology          Flora      Flora has evolved differently on each of the islands.
C. savoryianum is endemic and has been planted in mediterranean climates often with success.
The ecoregion has a high degree of biodiversity and endemism.
The islands are home to about 500 plant species  of which 43  are endemic.
These forests were almost completely destroyed by clearing for agriculture before 1945.
These forests have the highest species diversity on the islands.
Other common shrubs are Myrsine okabeana  Symplocos kawakamii  and Pittosporum parvifolium.
The Japanese woodpigeon was extirpated in the Iwo Island groups in the 1980s.
There are four or five crossings each month.
It travels to Futami Port on Chichijima Island.
To get to Hahajima  one must first get to Chichijima  and then cross by the liner Hahajima Maru.
This seaplane is also used to transport the Tokyo governor and other VIPs.
Bringing one s own automobile onto the island is extremely difficult and costly.
However  for several decades there was talk of building one.
The purpose is to determine the best location to construct an airport.
The potential construction will turn a part of the sea area into a runway for propeller aircraft.
Japanese is the common language.
Upon approaching the island  one of the crew members shouts   I wonder if it s the Bonin Islands?
Nicholson by order of Congress  1856  originally published in Senate Executive Documents  No.
San kokf tsou ran to sets  ou Aperçu général des trois royaumes.
Tokyo Metropolitan Government  Ogasawara mura  maps photos Waseda University — Hayashi Shihei.
A bonsai is created beginning with a specimen of source material.
This may be a cutting  seedling  or small tree of a species suitable for bonsai development.
The source specimen is shaped to be relatively small and to meet the aesthetic standards of bonsai.
From that point forward  its growth is restricted by the pot environment.
Plant dwarfing often uses selective breeding or genetic engineering to create dwarf cultivars.
They brought back many Chinese ideas and goods  including container plantings.
Over time  these container plantings began to appear in Japanese writings and representative art.
In 1351  dwarf trees displayed on short poles were portrayed in the Boki Ekotoba scroll.
Several other scrolls and paintings also included depictions of these kinds of trees.
The monk is a disguised official who later rewards the samurai for his actions.
In later centuries  woodblock prints by several artists depicted this popular drama.
There was even a fabric design of the same name.
Through these and other popular media  bonsai became known to a broad Japanese population.
Bonsai cultivation reached a high level of expertise in this period.
Bonsai dating to the 17th century have survived to the present.
This word connoted a shallow container  not a deeper bowl style.
The popularity of bonsai began to grow outside the limited scope of scholars and the nobility.
On October 13  1868  the Meiji Emperor moved to his new capital in Tokyo.
This event demonstrated a new tendency to see bonsai as an independent art form.
Three years later  Bonsai Gaho  1906 – c. 1913   became the first monthly magazine on the subject.
It was followed by Toyo Engei and Hana in 1907.
Zinc galvanized steel wire was initially used.
Expensive copper wire was used only for selected trees that had real potential.
Another great annual public exhibition of trees began in 1927 at the Asahi Newspaper Hall in Tokyo.
Beginning in 1934  the prestigious Kokufu ten annual exhibitions were held in Tokyo s Ueno Park.
One key trend was the increase in the number  scope  and prominence of bonsai exhibitions.
These displays continue to this day  and are by invitation only for eight days in February.
In 1967 the first group of Westerners studied at an Ōmiya nursery.
Returning to the U.S.  these people established the American Bonsai Society.
Bonsai nurseries in Japan advertise and ship specimen bonsai worldwide.
Most countries have local nurseries providing plant stock as well.
Specialized bonsai tools are widely available from Japanese and Chinese sources.
A few dozen magazines in over thirteen languages are in print.
Sources of bonsai material include   Propagation from a source tree through cuttings or layering.
These trees are called yamadori and are often the most expensive and prized of all Bonsai.
Defoliation  which can provide short term dwarfing of foliage for certain deciduous species.
Care     Small trees grown in containers  like bonsai  require specialized care.
Branch and leaf  or needle  growth in trees is also of a larger scale in nature.
Repotting must occur at intervals dictated by the vigor and age of each tree.
Tools have been developed for the specialized requirements of maintaining bonsai.
Established art forms that share some aesthetic principles with bonsai include penjing and saikei.
Simply following the guidelines alone will not guarantee a successful result.
No trace of the artist  The designer s touch must not be apparent to the viewer.
If a branch is removed in shaping the tree  the scar will be concealed.
That position emphasizes the bonsai s defined  front   which is designed into all bonsai.
For outdoor displays  there are few aesthetic rules.
The walls or dividers between the alcoves make it easier to view only one bonsai at a time.
The back of the alcove is a neutral color and pattern to avoid distracting the viewer s eye.
Completed trees are grown in formal bonsai containers.
There are alternatives to the conventional ceramic pot.
Many aesthetic guidelines affect the selection of pot finish and color.
Pots are also distinguished by their size.
Today many potters worldwide produce pots for bonsai.
Less common forms include windswept  weeping  split trunk  and driftwood styles.
A frequently used set of styles describes the orientation of the bonsai tree s main trunk.
Branches along the top side of the trunk continue to grow as a group of new trunks.
Other styles     A few styles do not fit into the preceding categories.
Broom  箒立ち  hokidachi  is a style employed for trees with fine branching  like elms.
The branches and leaves form a ball shaped crown.
Bonsai artists    This is a list of some notable bonsai artists.
The size class implies the height and weight of the tree in its container.
These trees will have dozens of branches and can closely simulate a full size tree.
Kept in the artificial environment of a home  these trees weaken and die.
However  a number of tropical and sub tropical tree species will survive and grow indoors.
It is also called the Book of Former Han.
It is the best source  sometimes the only one  for many topics in this period.
Chronological tables     Biao  表  tables   8 volumes.
Treatises     Zhi  志  memoirs   10 volumes.
Each treatise describes an area of effort of the state.
Two or more people are treated in one main article  as they belong to the same class of people.
The seal itself was discovered in northern Kyūshū in the 18th century.
Hanshu Kuiguan 漢書管窺  by Yang Shuda is a modern commentary.
See also         Notes         References and further reading    Amies  Alex  2020 .
To read or download go to   1  Dubs  Homer H.
Digitized text does not retain volume or page numbers and alters Dubs  footnote numbering.
T oung Pao 76.4–5  1990   322–23.
Early Chinese Texts – A Bibliographical Guide.
Die monographie über Wang Mang.
Abhandlungen für die kunde des morgenlandes XXIII  3  1939.
Sure Guidance for One s Own Time  Pan Ku and the Tsan to Han shu 94.
Main Sources  2   Hanshu   in Wilkinson  Endymion  2012 .
Around 120 000 men were mobilized during the conflict  and of these about 8 200 were killed.
His efforts culminated in March 1863 with his  order to expel barbarians .
This  in turn  prompted Chōshū to form a secret alliance with Satsuma.
This was blamed on Satsuma rōnin  who on that day attacked a government office.
The residence was burned down  and many opponents killed or later executed.
The shogunate is known to have placed an order for 30 000 modern Dreyse needle guns in 1866.
Armstrong guns were efficiently used by Satsuma and Saga troops throughout the war.
The shogunate initially had the edge in warships  and it had the vision to buy the Kōtetsu.
Officers of the shogunate often wore French and British uniforms.
Traditional troops however retained their samurai clothes.
Some parts of the 15 000 strong shogunate forces had been trained by French military advisers.
These forces were known as the Shinsengumi.
This was Japan s second engagement between two modern navies.
Shocked  Léon Roches resigned from his position.
He was later released  when he demonstrated no further interest and ambition in national affairs.
He retired to Shizuoka  the place to which his ancestor Tokugawa Ieyasu had also retired.
Enomoto s fleet reached Sendai harbor on August 26.
After a protracted month long battle  Aizu finally admitted defeat on November 6.
Soon however a second military mission was invited to Japan in 1874  and a third one in 1884.
It ended with a heroic but total defeat at the Battle of Shiroyama.
Such Japanese depictions include numerous dramatizations  spanning many genres.
Notably  Jirō Asada wrote a four volume novel of the account  Mibu Gishi den.
Japan s Modern History  1857–1937  A New Political Narrative.
Meiji Japan s Encounter with Modernization   PDF .
The Roots and Consequences of Civil Wars and Revolutions  Conflicts that Changed World History.
Its capital is Brasília  and its most populous city is São Paulo.
The federation is composed of the union of the 26 states and the Federal District.
Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean on the east  Brazil has a coastline of 7 491 kilometers  4 655 mi .
The country became a presidential republic in 1889 following a military coup d état.
The popular appellation eclipsed and eventually supplanted the official Portuguese name.
This was the name the indigenous population gave to the region  meaning  land of the palm trees .
The indigenous population of Brazil comprised several large indigenous ethnic groups  e.g.
15 November is now Republic Day  a national holiday.
Freedom of the press disappeared and elections were controlled by those in power.
The first was the Constitutionalist Revolution in 1932  led by the Paulista oligarchy.
Contemporary era      Several brief interim governments followed Vargas s suicide.
Kubitschek s successor  Jânio Quadros  resigned in 1961 less than a year after taking office.
Cardoso won the 1994 election  and again in 1998.
Large street protests for and against her took place during the impeachment process.
President Temer himself was also accused of corruption.
Its size  relief  climate  and natural resources make Brazil geographically diverse.
Brazil is the longest country in the world  spanning 4 395 km  2 731 mi  from north to south.
Much of the terrain lies between 200 metres  660 ft  and 800 metres  2 600 ft  in elevation.
The main upland area occupies most of the southern half of the country.
The rich wildlife of Brazil reflects the variety of natural habitats.
Concern for the environment has grown in response to global interest in environmental issues.
In many areas of the country  the natural environment is threatened by development.
The current president is Jair Bolsonaro.
The previous president  Michel Temer  replaced Dilma Rousseff after her impeachment.
The President appoints the Ministers of State  who assist in government.
Legislative houses in each political entity are the main source of law in Brazil.
Judiciary authorities exercise jurisdictional duties almost exclusively.
All members of the executive and legislative branches are directly elected.
Judges and other judicial officials are appointed after passing entry exams.
Fifteen political parties are represented in Congress.
Five parties declare themselves as center right  PTB  Progressistas  PSC  PRTB and Republicanos.
The only party that claims to be purely liberal  without further consideration  is Novo.
All other legislation and court decisions must conform to its rules.
As of April 2007  there have been 53 amendments.
States have their own constitutions  which must not contradict the Federal Constitution.
There are also specialized military  labor  and electoral courts.
The highest court is the Supreme Federal Court.
This system has been criticized over the last few decades for the slow pace of decision making.
Brazil signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
The scale of this aid places it on par with China and India.
The Brazilian South South aid has been described as a  global model in waiting.
The number considered tolerable by the WHO is about 10 homicides per 100 000 inhabitants.
In 2018  Brazil had a record 63 880 murders.
However  there are differences between the crime rates in the Brazilian states.
They have a governor and a unicameral legislative body elected directly by their voters.
They also have independent Courts of Law for common justice.
Despite this  states have much less autonomy to create their own laws than in the United States.
Each has a mayor and an elected legislative body  but no separate Court of Law.
Brazil has a mixed economy with abundant natural resources.
Brazil has been the world s largest producer of coffee for the last 150 years.
Part of the production is exported  and another part goes to the domestic market.
In the production of animal proteins  Brazil is today one of the largest countries in the world.
In 2019  the country was the world s largest exporter of chicken meat.
Brazil has become the fourth largest car market in the world.
In total  Brazil ranks 23rd worldwide in value of exports.
In the footwear industry  in 2019  Brazil ranked 4th among world producers.
In 2019  the country was the 8th producer of vehicles and the 9th producer of steel in the world.
In 2018  the chemical industry of Brazil was the 8th in the world.
The service sector was responsible for 60  of GDP and trade for 13 .
Micro and small businesses represent 30  of the country s GDP.
The number of commercial enterprises was 1.5 million and the number of stores 1.7 million.
Brazil s central bank repaid the IMF loan in 2005  although it was not due to be repaid until 2006.
The year 2010 was a new record in terms of value with US 115 billion in transactions.
The largest transaction with involvement of Brazilian companies was the Cia.
Vale do Rio Doce acquisition of Inco in a tender offer valued at US 18.9 billion.
a radio station is present to divulge the findings of corruption charges.
In 2019  wind energy represented 9  of the energy generated in the country.
Some of the most irradiated Brazilian States are Minas Gerais  Bahia and Goiás.
The most popular destinations for business trips were São Paulo  Rio de Janeiro and Porto Alegre.
In 2006 Rio de Janeiro and Fortaleza were the most popular destinations for business trips.
Transport      Brazilian roads are the primary carriers of freight and passenger traffic.
The road system totaled 1.98 million km  1.23 million mi  in 2002.
The São Paulo Metro was the first underground transit system in Brazil.
Bolivia and Paraguay have been given free ports at Santos.
Of the top 20 Latin American universities  eight are Brazilian.
However  efforts to change this are making impacts.
The first census in Brazil was carried out in 1872 and recorded a population of 9 930 478.
It was highest  20.30   in the Northeast  which had a large proportion of rural poor.
From the 19th century  Brazil opened its borders to immigration.
Brazil has the second largest Jewish community in Latin America making up 0.06  of its population.
Religion      Roman Catholicism is the country s predominant faith.
Brazil has the world s largest Catholic population.
The most common Protestant denominations are Evangelical Pentecostal ones.
Teresina  Fortaleza  and Florianópolis were the most Roman Catholic in the country.
This spelling reform went into effect in Brazil on 1 January 2009.
The language must be taught as a part of the education and speech and language pathology curricula.
LIBRAS teachers  instructors and translators are recognized professionals.
Schools and health services must provide access   inclusion   to deaf people.
Minority languages are spoken throughout the nation.
Brazil is the first country in South America to offer Esperanto to secondary students.
Architecture      The architecture of Brazil is influenced by Europe  especially Portugal.
It has a history that goes back 500 years to the time when Pedro Cabral discovered Brazil in 1500.
Portuguese colonial architecture was the first wave of architecture to go to Brazil.
It is the basis for all Brazilian architecture of later centuries.
Then in the 20th century especially in Brasília  Brazil experimented with Modernist architecture.
The Portuguese built architecture familiar to them in Europe in their aim to colonize Brazil.
Forró is a type of folk music prominent during the Festa Junina in northeastern Brazil.
Its origins are in 19th century Rio de Janeiro.
The phrase  bossa nova  means literally  new trend .
A lyrical fusion of samba and jazz  bossa nova acquired a large following starting in the 1960s.
This has created a national cuisine marked by the preservation of regional differences.
Often  it is mixed with cassava flour  farofa .
Peanuts are used to make paçoca  rapadura and pé de moleque.
Always in this period the comedy of costume and comic production was imposed.
Significant  also in the nineteenth century  was also the playwright Antônio Gonçalves Dias.
There were also numerous operas and orchestras.
The most prominent authors at this stage were Jorge Andrade and Ariano Suassuna.
Sports      The most popular sport in Brazil is football.
The São Paulo circuit  Autódromo José Carlos Pace  hosts the annual Grand Prix of Brazil.
Furthermore  the country hosted the FIBA Basketball World Cups in 1954 and 1963.
A lower key Group N class for production cars ran from 2000 until 2003.
The Super 2000 rules were adopted for the 2007 season.
S2000 cars continued running in the Jack Sears Trophy until the 2014 season.
From the 2014 season  only NGTC cars are eligible to compete in the BTCC.
For wet races  the Dunlop SportMaxx BluResponse tyre is used.
Only Hughes continued on this fuel in 2007 and 2008.
Only cars that competed in 2010 would be eligible to race in 2011.
From the 2010 season  teams with S2000 chassis were allowed to use an NGTC engine with their car.
This hybrid specification was eligible until the end of the 2013 season.
In the past  the BTCC has visited Mondello Park in Ireland and Pembrey Circuit in Wales.
Each race typically consists of between 16 and 25 laps  depending on the length of the circuit.
A race may be extended by three laps if three or more laps have been run behind a safety car.
The grid for race two is based on the finishing order of race one.
For race three  a draw takes place to decide at which place the grid is  reversed .
The draw is normally conducted by a celebrity or VIP  live on TV.
For 2014  this was changed so that the driver who finished Race 2 in 10th position made the draw.
Fabrizio Giovanardi has twice managed to put himself on pole position by drawing out number 10.
Before 2006  the driver finishing in 10th place in race two took pole position for race three.
These factors contributed the rule change for the 2006 season.
Television coverage    The BBC screened highlights of every race from 1988 to 2001.
The F1 commentator at the time  Murray Walker  commentated.
From 1997  some races were screened live with Charlie Cox joining Murray Walker.
ITV also has a Sunday night show called Motorsport UK  featuring many of the supporting races.
From 2008  the races were screened live on ITV4  along with the support races.
ITV has a one hour highlights programme on the Monday night following the race.
The series is screened in other countries.
In Australia  Fox Sports Australia have been covering the BTCC championship since 2000.
From 2009 the ITV coverage has screened on ONE HD.
Previous champions     Currently  five championships are awarded per season.
Below is a timeline of manufacturer constructor entries from the beginning of the 2 litre era.
All the support championships are either Single Make Championships or Formula racing.
The main class is the G55 class  utilising Ginetta s G55 car.
The second class  known as the G50 class  utilises the older and less powerful Ginetta G50.
Most weekends in 2013 see three Supercup races with a few rounds hosting only two races.
Drivers compete in identical Porsche 911 GT3 Cup  Type 997  cars which produce 450 bhp.
The three tier championship splits drivers according to their racing experience.
From 2013  the Carrera Cup has held two races at each BTCC meeting.
The Clio Cup has joined the British GT Package instead.
However  it was reported in the media that the series was ended definitively in September 2012.
The series folded after SEAT UK ended its racing activities.
It is separated into two parts by the Sarawak district of Limbang.
Brunei s population was 428 963 in 2018.
During the 19th century  the Bruneian Empire began to decline.
After the Japanese occupation during World War II  in 1959 a new constitution was written.
In 1962  a small armed rebellion against the monarchy was ended with the help of the British.
Brunei gained its independence from the United Kingdom on 1 January 1984.
It has developed wealth from extensive petroleum and natural gas fields.
He moved from Garang in the Temburong District to the Brunei River estuary  discovering Brunei.
According to legend  upon landing he exclaimed  Baru nah  loosely translated as  that s it!
or  there    from which the name  Brunei  was derived.
He was the first Muslim ruler of Brunei.
The word  Borneo  is of the same origin.
The people are pagans and are men of goodwill.
Spain declared war in 1578  planning to attack and capture Kota Batu  Brunei s capital at the time.
The former had travelled to Manila  then the centre of the Spanish colony.
The expedition consisted of 400 Spaniards and Mexicans  1 500 Filipino natives and 300 Borneans.
The campaign was one of many  which also included action in Mindanao and Sulu.
The Muslim side though was also equally racially diverse.
In Jerudong  they made plans to chase the conquering army away from Brunei.
There was suspicion that he the legitimate Sultan could have been poisoned by the ruling sultan.
The country suffered a civil war from 1660 to 1673.
Over time  Brooke and his nephews  who succeeded him  leased or annexed more land.
Brunei lost much of its territory to him and his dynasty  known as the White Rajahs.
The residents were to advise the sultan on all matters of administration.
Over time  the resident assumed more executive control than the sultan.
Discovery of oil     Petroleum was discovered in 1929 after several fruitless attempts.
Two men  F. F. Marriot and T. G. Cochrane  smelled oil near the Seria river in late 1926.
They informed a geophysicist  who conducted a survey there.
In 1927  gas seepages were reported in the area.
Seria Well Number One  S 1  was drilled on 12 July 1928.
Oil was struck at 297 metres  974 ft  on 5 April 1929.
Seria Well Number 2 was drilled on 19 August 1929  and  as of 2009  continues to produce oil.
Oil production was increased considerably in the 1930s with the development of more oil fields.
In 1940  oil production was at more than six million barrels.
The first offshore well was drilled in 1957.
They landed 10 000 troops of the Kawaguchi Detachment from Cam Ranh Bay at Kuala Belait.
After six days  fighting  they occupied the entire country.
Most of the Malay government officers were retained by the Japanese.
Brunei s administration was reorganised into five prefectures  which included British North Borneo.
The Prefectures included Baram  Labuan  Lawas  and Limbang.
Ibrahim hid numerous significant government documents from the Japanese during the occupation.
Although in the area the day of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima  Yusuf survived.
The remaining equipment and installations were destroyed when the Japanese invaded Malaya.
Coal production at Muara was also recommenced  but with little success.
The local currency was replaced by what was to become known as duit pisang  banana money .
Allied attacks on shipping eventually caused trade to cease.
Food and medicine fell into short supply  and the population suffered famine and disease.
The naval base was destroyed by Allied bombing  but the airport runway survived.
The facility was developed as a public airport.
They were supported by American air and naval units.
Brunei town was bombed extensively and recaptured after three days of heavy fighting.
Many buildings were destroyed  including the Mosque.
The British Military Administration took over from the Japanese and remained until July 1946.
It consisted mainly of Australian officers and servicemen.
The administration of Brunei was passed to the Civil Administration on 6 July 1945.
The Brunei State Council was also revived that year.
BARIP also contributed to the composition of the country s national anthem.
The party was dissolved in 1948 due to inactivity.
A small rebellion erupted against the monarchy in 1962  which was suppressed with help of the UK.
Known as the Brunei Revolt  it contributed to the failure to create the North Borneo Federation.
They agreed to authorise the drafting of a constitution.
The British delegation was led by Sir Alan Lennox Boyd  Secretary of State for the Colonies.
The British Government later accepted the draft constitution.
On 29 September 1959  the Constitution Agreement was signed in Brunei Town.
It included the following provisions  The Sultan was made the Supreme Head of State.
Brunei was responsible for its internal administration.
The British Government was responsible for foreign and defence affairs only.
The first was introduced in 1953.
A total sum of B 100 million was approved by the Brunei State Council for the plan.
Bevington  from the Colonial Office in Fiji  was appointed to implement it.
A  US14 million Gas Plant was built under the plan.
By 1956  production reached 114 700 bpd.
The plan also aided the development of public education.
The plan also promoted the production of meat and eggs for consumption by citizens.
The fishing industry increased its output by 25  throughout the course of the plan.
The deepwater port at Muara was also constructed during this period.
Power requirements were met  and studies were made to provide electricity to rural areas.
Malaria cases were reduced from 300 cases in 1953 to only 66 cases in 1959.
The death rate was reduced from 20 per thousand in 1947 to 11.3 per thousand in 1953.
On 7 January 1979  another treaty was signed between Brunei and the United Kingdom.
It was signed with Lord Goronwy Roberts being the representative of the UK.
This agreement granted Brunei to take over international responsibilities as an independent nation.
Britain agreed to assist Brunei in diplomatic matters.
The move attracted international criticism  the United Nations expressing  deep concern .
Areas of mountain rain forests are located inland.
Brunei is exposed to the risks stemming from climate change along with other ASEAN member states.
Since 1962  this authority has included emergency powers  which are renewed every two years.
Brunei has technically been under martial law since the Brunei Revolt of 1962.
Hassanal Bolkiah also serves as the state s Prime Minister  Finance Minister and Defence Minister.
The Royal family retains a venerated status within Brunei.
After that  they were handled by the Brunei Diplomatic Service.
It also hosted the ASEAN summit on that same year.
Defence      Brunei maintains three infantry battalions stationed around the country.
The Brunei navy has several  Ijtihad  class patrol boats purchased from a German manufacturer.
The United Kingdom also maintains a base in Seria  the centre of the oil industry in Brunei.
A Gurkha battalion consisting of 1 500 personnel is stationed there.
The cause of the accident has yet to be ascertained.
The crash is the worst aviation incident in the history of Brunei.
The highest court is the Supreme Court  which consists of the Court of Appeal and High Court.
Both of these have a chief justice and two judges.
LGBT rights      Male and female homosexuality is illegal in Brunei.
However  celebrations and prayers must be confined to places of worship and private residences.
Stoning to death was the specified  method of execution for crimes of a sexual nature .
Central to this strategy is the position that the airline maintains at London Heathrow Airport.
Brunei depends heavily on imports such as agricultural products  e.g.
rice  food products  livestock  etc.
Brunei International Airport is the main entry point to the country.
Royal Brunei Airlines is the national carrier.
There is another airfield  the Anduki Airfield  located in Seria.
Speedboats provide passenger and goods transportation to the Temburong district.
The main highway running across Brunei is the Tutong Muara Highway.
The country s road network is well developed.
Fourteen kilometres  9 mi  of this roadway would be crossing the Brunei Bay.
The bridge cost is  1.6 billion.
Banking     Bank of China received permission to open a branch in Brunei in April 2016.
Citibank  which entered in 1972  closed its operations in Brunei in 2014.
HSBC  which had entered in 1947  closed its operation in Brunei in November 2017.
The population of Brunei in 2018 was 428 963  of which 76  live in urban areas.
The rate of urbanisation is estimated at 2.13  per year from 2010 to 2015.
The average life expectancy is 77.7 years.
There is a relatively large expatriate community.
Other faiths practised are Buddhism  13   mainly by the Chinese  and Christianity  10  .
Followers of indigenous religions are about 2  of the population.
Arabic is the religious language of Muslims.
As of 2004  there are six Arabic schools and one religious teachers  college in Brunei.
Four periods of cultural influence have occurred  animist  Hindu  Islamic  and Western.
Islam had a very strong influence  and was adopted as Brunei s ideology and philosophy.
The country ranks  Not Free  in media by Freedom House.
The government allowed a printing and publishing company  Brunei Press PLC  to form in 1953.
The company continues to print the English daily Borneo Bulletin.
Sport     The most popular sport in Brunei is association football.
The Brunei national football team joined FIFA in 1969  but has not had much success.
The top two football leagues are the Brunei Super League and the Brunei Premier League.
Brunei has had slightly more success at the Asian Games  winning four bronze medals.
Early texts have the Buddha s family name as  Gautama   Pali  Gotama .
The details of Buddha s life are mentioned in many Early Buddhist Texts but are inconsistent.
He thus set out on a quest to find liberation from suffering  also known as  nirvana  .
This too fell short of attaining his goal  and then he turned to the meditative practice of dhyana.
As a fully enlightened Buddha  he attracted followers and founded a Sangha  monastic order .
This keeps us caught in saṃsāra  the endless cycle of repeated rebirth  dukkha and dying again.
The clinging and craving produces karma  which ties us to samsara  the cycle of death and rebirth.
This also means that no more karma is being produced  and rebirth ends.
The Theravada tradition regards insight into the four truths as liberating in itself.
The orthodox Theravada position rejects the wait  and asserts that rebirth of a being is immediate.
Further  a person can transfer one s own good karma to living family members and ancestors.
Buddhism asserts that there is nothing independent  except the state of nirvana.
It is the view that there is no unchanging  permanent self  soul or essence in phenomena.
This can be seen in Buddhist discourses such as the Anattalakkhana Sutta.
This doctrine sought to refute the heterodox theories of svabhava circulating at the time.
Whatever that may be   Buddha  is still central to all forms of Buddhism.
It is an everlasting principle which applies to all beings and worlds.
The Dharma is the second of the three jewels which all Buddhists take refuge in.
Indeed  it is part of what makes them a Buddha that they do so.
Without the Sangha there is no Buddhism.
This sangha is called the āryasaṅgha  noble Sangha .
Aryas have attained the fruits of the Buddhist path.
Becoming an arya is a goal in most forms of Buddhism.
The āryasaṅgha includes holy beings such as bodhisattvas  arhats and stream enterers.
They are seen as having ended rebirth and all the mental defilements.
It thus promotes the bodhisattva path as the highest and most worthwhile.
The value of textual study is regarded differently in the various Buddhist traditions.
An important guiding principle of Buddhist practice is the Middle Way  madhyamapratipad .
This presentation is known as the  Seven Purifications   satta visuddhi .
A Bodhisattva refers to one who is on the path to buddhahood.
The term Mahāyāna was originally a synonym for Bodhisattvayāna or  Bodhisattva Vehicle.
There is no single dominant presentation.
All the various Tibetan schools have their own Lamrim presentations.
Tibetan Buddhism sometimes adds a fourth refuge  in the lama.
This includes ordering or causing someone else to kill.
I undertake the training precept to abstain from taking what is not given.
I undertake the training precept to abstain from misconduct concerning sense pleasures.
This generally refers to adultery  as well as rape and incest.
It also applies to sex with those who are legally under the protection of a guardian.
It is also interpreted in different ways in the varying Buddhist cultures.
I undertake the training precept to abstain from false speech.
According to Harvey  intoxication is seen as a way to mask rather than face the sufferings of life.
Compassion and a belief in karmic retribution form the foundation of the precepts.
However  the extent to which people keep them differs per region and time.
Temporary expulsion follows a lesser offence.
The other four precepts are  No sexual activity  Abstain from eating at the wrong time  e.g.
Vinaya       Vinaya is the specific code of conduct for a sangha of monks or nuns.
The list of pattimokkha is recited every fortnight in a ritual gathering of all monks.
Within a monastic fraternity  a sangha has its own rules.
This is said to prevent harmful influences from entering the mind.
Renunciation can be cultivated in different ways.
The practice of giving for example  is one form of cultivating renunciation.
Another one is the giving up of lay life and becoming a monastic  bhiksu o bhiksuni .
Devout laypersons also follow this rule during special days of religious observance  uposatha .
In different Buddhist traditions  other related practices which focus on fasting are followed.
Its function is non distraction.
Samādhi is a calm  undistracted  unified and concentrated state of consciousness.
It is defined by Asanga as  one pointedness of mind on the object to be investigated.
Its function consists of giving a basis to knowledge  jñāna .
Some scholars  like Bronkhorst  see the four dhyānas as a Buddhist invention.
Four rupa jhāna       Buddhist texts teach various meditation schemas.
According to Gethin  they are states of  perfect mindfulness  stillness and lucidity.
They are described in the Pali Canon as trance like states without desire.
These are also referred to in commentarial literature as immaterial formless jhānas  arūpajhānas .
and using that image to cultivate calm and insight.
One may also visualize and identify oneself with the imagined deity.
Anuttarayoga practice is divided into two stages  the Generation Stage and the Completion Stage.
This method is also known as deity yoga  devata yoga .
Completion Stage practices also include techniques such as tummo and phowa.
Overcoming this ignorance is part of the path to awakening.
There is some disagreement in contemporary Theravāda regarding samatha and vipassanā.
bhakti  Pali  bhatti  is an important part of the practice of most Buddhists.
Devotional practices include ritual prayer  prostration  offerings  pilgrimage  and chanting.
In Nichiren Buddhism  devotion to the Lotus Sutra is the main practice.
Indian Mahayana thinkers like Shantideva promoted the avoidance of meat.
Also  the new religious movement Santi Asoke  promotes vegetarianism.
The general belief among Buddhists is that the canonical corpus is vast.
According to Peter Harvey  it contains material at odds with later Theravadin orthodoxy.
Among these is the Śālistamba Sutra which survives in Tibetan and Chinese translation.
This text contains numerous sections which are remarkably similar to Pali suttas.
These are often called śāstra  treatises  or vrittis  commentaries .
By the 8th century  the tantric tradition was very influential in India and beyond.
Buddhism was one among several Indian religions that did so.
The authenticity of certain teachings and doctrines have been questioned.
In time  this short description was elaborated  resulting in the description of the eightfold path.
Many modern scholars question the historicity of this event.
Likewise  the Mahāsāṃghika groups also eventually split into different Sanghas.
Kushan support helped Buddhism to expand into a world religion through their trade routes.
Buddhism spread to Khotan  the Tarim Basin  and China  eventually to other parts of the far east.
Buddhism also flourished under the support of the Pāla Empire  8th–12th centuries .
Under the Guptas and Palas  Tantric Buddhism or Vajrayana developed and rose to prominence.
Some scholars use other schemes.
Buddhists themselves have a variety of other schemes.
The Pāli Canon is the only complete Buddhist canon surviving in an ancient Indian language.
This language  Pāli  serves as the school s sacred language and lingua franca.
This movement  often termed Buddhist modernism  has influenced most forms of modern Theravāda.
It has a growing presence in the west  especially as part of the Vipassana Movement.
The first Mahāyāna texts date to sometime between the 1st century BCE and the 2st century CE.
In most of China  these different strands and traditions are generally fused together.
Vietnamese Mahāyāna is similarly very eclectic.
Tantric Buddhism is largely concerned with ritual and meditative practices.
Buddhist monastics originally followed a life of wandering  never staying in one place for long.
In Indo Tibetan Buddhism  Buddhist institutions are generally housed in gompas.
They include monastic quarters  stupas and prayer halls with Buddha images.
Like other religions  the findings of modern science has challenged its basic premises.
One response to some of these challenges has come to be called Buddhist modernism.
Japanese Buddhism also went through a period of modernisation during the Meiji period.
Ambedkar launched the Navayana tradition – literally   new vehicle .
Buddhist monasteries have long existed alongside local shamanic traditions.
Over 98  of all Buddhists live in the Asia Pacific and South Asia region.
In Russia  Buddhists form majority in Tuva  52   and Kalmykia  53  .
Buddhism in the America is primarily made up of native born adherents  whites and converts.
As such  Japanese Buddhism is strongly influenced by Chinese Buddhism and Korean Buddhism.
Some Japanese sources mention this explicitly.
This may have been a source for the Soga clan s interest in Buddhism.
The Nihon Shoki and other sources mention various attempts to destroy Buddhist statues and relics.
Modern historians have questioned much of this  seeing most of it as a constructed hagiography.
Japanese Buddhism at this time was also influenced by Tang dynasty  618–907  Buddhism.
The Nihon Shoki states that in 624 there were 46 Buddhist temples.
Some of these temples include Kawaradera and Yakushiji.
the Six Sects of the Southern Capital   all were continuations of Chinese Buddhist schools.
The temples of these schools became important places for the study of Buddhist doctrine.
The temples were not exclusive and sectarian organizations.
Instead  temples were apt to have scholars versed in several of schools of thought.
Rituals centered on scriptures like the Golden Light and the Lotus Sūtra.
These  unofficial  monks were often subject to state punishment.
Their practice could have also included Daoist and indigenous kami worship elements.
This practice was initially popular in Tendai monasteries but then spread throughout Japan.
This phenomenon began in Tendai temples  as they vied for political influence with each other.
The Genpei war saw various groups of warrior monks join the fray.
These figures had much more contact with the general populace than other monks.
The most well known of these figures was Kūya  alt.
The merging of Shinto deities with Buddhist practice was not new at this time.
Some monks saw them as just worldly beings who could be prayed for.
Other saw them as manifestations of Buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Hiei monk Eryō saw the kami as “traces”  suijaku  of the Buddha.
The copying and writing of Buddhist scripture was a widespread practice in this period.
It was seen as producing merit  good karma .
Artistic portraits depicting events from the scriptures were also quite popular during this era.
They were used to generate merit as well as to preach and teach the doctrine.
Doctrinally  these performative arts were seen as skillful means  hōben  Skt.
In 1185 the Kamakura shogunate was established at Kamakura.
All of the major founders of these new lineages were ex Tendai monks who had trained at Mt.
Hiei and had studied the exoteric and esoteric systems of Tendai Buddhism.
The only means to liberation was now the faithful chanting of the nembutsu.
This view was critiqued by more traditional figures such as Myō’e  1173–1232 .
Dōgen  1200–1253  began a prominent meditation teacher and abbot.
He introduced the Chan lineage of Caodong  which would grow into the Sōtō school.
The only exception is Rinzai Zen  which attained prominence earlier  13th century .
This tendency of practicing in multiple schools or lineages was termed shoshū kengaku.
Issan influenced the Japanese interest in Chinese literature  calligraphy and painting.
The Japanese literature of the Five Mountains  Gozan Bungaku  reflects this influence.
The Zen monk poets Sesson Yūbai and Kokan Shiren also studied under Issan.
Shiren was also a historian who wrote the Buddhist history Genkō shakusho.
The shogunal families even built Zen temples in their residential palaces.
This idea can be found in the work of the Hiei monk Sonshun  1451–1514 .
These leagues would also sometimes go to war with each other and with major temples.
The Tokugawa also banned most foreigners from entering the country.
He also wrote a book on zen and martial arts  The Unfettered Mind  addressed to the samurai.
The practice of pilgrimage was also prominent in the Edo Period.
Many temples and holy sites like Mt.
Ōyama  Sagami Province  hosted Buddhist pilgrims and mountain ascetics throughout the era.
During the 17th century  the Ōbaku lineage of Zen would be introduced by Ingen  a Chinese monk.
Ingen had been a member of the Linji school in Ming China.
Hakuin also criticized the mixing of Zen and Pure Land.
The new order dismantled the combined temple shrine complexes that had existed for centuries.
Japanologist Martin Collcutt believes Japanese Buddhism was on the verge of total eradication.
The New Buddhists often joined Japanese nationalist patriotism with Buddhist virtues.
They focused on active proselytization and wordly personal benefits.
Some Buddhists  like Tanaka Chigaku  saw the war as a way to spread Buddhism.
A few individuals who directly opposed war were targeted by the government.
Because of this  Buddhist lineages have engaged in acts of repentance for their wartime activities.
There was much damage that needed to be repaired and there was little funding for it.
Still  around 90  of Japanese funerals are conducted according to Buddhist rites.
Some of the major groups are outlined below.
The East Asian Yogācāra school of Buddhism was founded by Xuanzang  玄奘  Jp.
Hossō was connected withseveral prominent temples  Hōryūji  Yakushiji  and Kōfukuji.
Kusha was never a truly independent school  instead it was studied along with Hossō doctrine.
Sanron   The Chinese Three Discourse School was transmitted to Japan in the 7th century.
Sanron was the focus of study at Gangōji and Daianji.
It was introduced in 625 by the monk Ekwan of Goryeo.
Jōjitsu was never an independent school  instead it was taught in tandem with Sanron.
Risshū   The Risshū  Ritsu or vinaya school  was founded by Daoxuan  道宣  Jp.
They used the Dharmagupta version of the vinaya which is known in Japanese as Shibunritsu  四分律 .
It was closely associated with Tōshōdaiji.
In China  Kūkai studied Sanskrit  and received tantric initiation from Huiguo.
Shugendō  an eclectic tradition which brought together Buddhist and ancient Shinto elements.
It was founded by En no Gyōja  役行者   En the ascetic  .
The Yūzū Nembutsu school was founded by Ryōnin  良忍  1072–1132   this is another Pure Land school.
Some of these later schools include    The Ōbaku School of Zen was introduced by Ingen in 1654.
Buddhist institutions were used by the shogunate to control the country.
Buddhist art became extremely varied in its expression.
It was later renamed as Asuka dera for Asuka  the name of the capital where it was located.
The Daibutsuyō style and the Zenshūyō style emerged in the late 12th or early 13th century.
The day at the Buddha was said to have passed away into Parinirvana  his final vanishing .
21st  approximately – Higan e  the Spring Equinox celebration.
8th – Buddha’s Birthday  Hanamatsuri   i.e.
Kanbutsu e  潅仏会  or Busshō e  仏生会 .
July – Aug. – Obon Festival  a festival to honor the spirits of one s ancestors.
Sept. 21st  approximately – Higan e  the Autumnal Equinox celebration.
Through these successive generations  however  the rules developed and changed significantly.
The han  feudal domains  are not to harbor fugitives and outlaws.
Domains must expel rebels and murderers from their service and from their lands.
Castles may be repaired  but such activity must be reported to the shogunate.
Structural innovations and expansions are forbidden.
Marriages among daimyō and related persons of power or importance must not be arranged privately.
Daimyō must present themselves at Edo for service to the shogunate.
Conventions regarding formal uniform must be followed.
Miscellaneous persons are not to ride in palanquins.
Samurai throughout the realm are to practice frugality.
The new edicts made clear the shogunate s authority and its desire to assert control.
Sumptuary regulations were elaborated upon.
Private toll barriers and embargoes are forbidden  as is the elimination of existing ferry routes.
Ships which can carry over 500 koku are forbidden to be constructed.
Lands owned by Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples must not be taken away from them.
Later promulgations    The edicts were reissued upon the succession of each of the shōguns.
Occasionally other instruments such as taiko drums will be used.
The most accurate term for the traditional puppet theater in Japan is ningyō jōruri  人形浄瑠璃 .
The heads can be quite sophisticated mechanically.
A third puppeteer  the ashizukai  operates the feet and legs.
Occasionally multiple chanters are used.
The chanters sit next to the shamisen player.
Bunraku is particularly noted for lovers  suicide plays.
The story of the forty seven rōnin is also famous in both bunraku and kabuki.
Bunraku is an author s theater  as opposed to kabuki  which is a performer s theater.
The most famous bunraku playwright was Chikamatsu Monzaemon.
With more than 100 plays to his credit  he is sometimes called the Shakespeare of Japan.
Today     Osaka is the home of the government supported troupe at National Bunraku Theatre.
The National Bunraku Theatre also tours within Japan and occasionally abroad.
A few regional troupes  however  continue to perform actively.
They have also performed alongside the Imada Puppet Troupe.
This is also done to maximize the emotional aspects for the audience.
The hair distinguishes the character and can also indicate certain personality traits.
The hair is made from human hair  however yak tail can be added to create volume.
The ensemble is then fixed on a copper plate.
The process of dressing or redressing the puppets by the puppeteers is called koshirae.
Construction     A doll s skeletal structure is simple.
The script is presented at the beginning of each act as well.
The whole environment that gave birth to these puppet shows is reflected in the themes.
It juts out into the audience area at the front right area of the seats.
Upon this auxiliary stage there is a special rotating platform.
The puppets are made to appear and then leave the stage through the small black curtains.
It is used to separate the area where the audience is sitting from the main stage.
People from regions of Japan where  discriminated communities  no longer exist  e.g.
Eta towns were called etamura  穢多村 .
It was kawata  かわた  or eta  穢多  who treated dead bodies of horses and cattle.
Bakufu regarded beggars as hinin and allowed them to beg in designated areas.
They had to work as restroom attendants  prison officers  or executioners.
It is currently better known as the Kaihōrei  解放令  Emancipation Edict .
Most were located in western Japan  while none were located in Hokkaido and Tōhoku.
Around three quarters of the districts are in rural areas.
Nonaka subsequently withdrew as a candidate.
Asō s comment about Nonaka s heritage was revealed in 2005.
The Buraku Liberation League  who did not support his policies  also remonstrated.
The publisher had a third party examine the incident and apologized.
The president of the publisher Hideo Kotoku resigned to take responsibility.
Jodo Shinshu Buddhism was the original supporter of lower castes.
After many petitions from the BLL  in 1969 the Honganji changed its opinion on the burakumin issue.
Dalit  a collective term for the outcast endogamous communities of India and Nepal.
Hah  Chong do  Lapp  Christopher C.  May 1978 .
Civil Law Book    abbreviated BGB  is the civil code of Germany.
In 1871  most of the various German states were united into the German Empire.
A first draft code  in 1888  did not meet with favour.
After significant revisions  the BGB was passed by the Reichstag in 1896.
In West and reunited Germany  the BGB has been amended many times.
In recent years lawmakers have tried to bring some outside legislation  back into the BGB .
The BGB continues to be the centerpiece of the German legal system.
Only once this second agreement is formed  the buyer acquires ownership of the purchased property.
433  whereas real contracts alienating movable property are provided for under art.
The payment of the purchase price  or valuable consideration  is treated likewise.
A good example is retention of title.
If the buyer defaults  the seller may repossess the property just like any other owner.
In 1923  the Government of Siam  Thailand  passed the Act establishing the Civil Code of B.E.
2466  1923  which put into force the first two books of the Civil Code of Thailand.
Trivia    No other German law has a larger number of sections  The BGB ends with sec.
Powers    The Cabinet exercises two kinds of power.
Other powers are explicitly vested in the Cabinet.
Instead  the Constitution explicitly vests executive authority in the Cabinet.
Hence  nearly all of the day to day work of governing is done by the Cabinet.
In practice  much of the Cabinet s authority is exercised by the Prime Minister.
Drafting of the budget  which must be adopted by the Diet .
Retrieved 28 Oct. 2003 from  http   www.kantei.go.jp foreign index e.html Hunter  Janet  1984 .
The sovereign state of Cambodia has a population of over 15 million.
Cambodia s minority groups include Vietnamese  Chinese  Chams and 30 hill tribes.
This marked the beginning of the Khmer Empire  which flourished for over 600 years.
Angkor Wat is the most famous of these structures and is designated as a World Heritage Site.
Cambodia gained independence from France in 1953.
This led to the US bombing of Cambodia from 1969 until 1973.
The United Nations designates Cambodia as a least developed country.
Name     The  Kingdom of Cambodia  is the official English name of the country.
Excavations in its lower layers produced a series of radiocarbon dates around 6000 BC.
Their function and age are still debated  but some of them possibly date from 2nd millennium BC.
Around the 13th century  monks from Sri Lanka introduced Theravada Buddhism to Southeast Asia.
By this time  the Khmer penchant for monument building had ceased.
The first mention of Cambodia in European documents was in 1511 by the Portuguese.
Portuguese travellers described the city as a place of flourishing wealth and foreign trade.
This led to several rebellions against the Vietnamese and appeals to Thailand for assistance.
The provinces were ceded back to Cambodia by a border treaty between France and Siam in 1907.
Between 1874 and 1962  the total population increased from about 946 000 to 5.7 million.
Instead  Norodom Sihanouk  a maternal grandson of King Sisowath was enthroned.
The French thought young Sihanouk would be easy to control.
Upon his father s death in 1960  Sihanouk again became head of state  taking the title of prince.
As the Vietnam War progressed  Sihanouk adopted an official policy of neutrality in the Cold War.
This policy was perceived as humiliating by many Cambodians.
Nevertheless  the public pleas of Sihanouk were ignored and the bombing continued.
US support for the coup remains unproven.
Soon Khmer Rouge rebels began using him to gain support.
Lon Nol remained in power in part because neither of the others was prepared to take his place.
In 1972  a constitution was adopted  a parliament elected  and Lon Nol became president.
At the same time  the CPK forces became stronger and more independent of their Vietnamese patrons.
Lon Nol s control was reduced to small enclaves around the cities and main transportation routes.
More than 2 million refugees from the war lived in Phnom Penh and other cities.
A US funded airlift of ammunition and rice ended when Congress refused additional aid for Cambodia.
Khmer Rouge regime  1975–1978      The Khmer Rouge reached Phnom Penh and took power in 1975.
Led by Pol Pot  they changed the official name of the country to Democratic Kampuchea.
The regime disproportionately targeted ethnic minority groups.
The Cham Muslims suffered serious purges with as much as half of their population exterminated.
However  most of the victims of the Khmer Rouge regime were not ethnic minorities but ethnic Khmer.
Professionals  such as doctors  lawyers and teachers  were also targeted.
Its credentials were recognised by the United Nations.
The trial began in November 2011.
This cliff marks the southern limit of the Dângrêk Mountains.
Flowing south through Cambodia s eastern regions is the Mekong River.
Much of this area has been designated as a biosphere reserve.
Cambodia has a temperature range from 21 to 35 °C  70 to 95 °F  and experiences tropical monsoons.
The northeast monsoon ushers in the dry season  which lasts from November to April.
Nearly all provinces in Cambodia are affected by climate change.
Rural coastal populations are particularly at risk.
Severe flooding also affected 17 provinces in Cambodia during the 2020 Pacific typhoon season.
In 1997  it was successfully nominated as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.
This is among the worst in the Southeast Asian region  only ahead of Laos and Myanmar.
The environmental areas where Cambodia performs worst on the EPI  i.e.
Cambodia s primary forest cover fell from over 70  in 1969 to just 3.1  in 2007.
The global issue of land grabbing is particularly rampant in Cambodia.
The government is a constitutional monarchy operated as a parliamentary representative democracy.
The prime minister and the ministerial appointees exercise executive power.
He was enthroned in Phnom Penh on 29 October 2004.
He is a former Khmer Rouge member who defected.
His government is regularly accused of ignoring human rights and suppressing political dissent.
Cambodia is a member of the United Nations  the World Bank  and the International Monetary Fund.
It is a member of the Asian Development Bank  ADB   ASEAN  and joined the WTO in 2004.
In 2005 Cambodia attended the inaugural East Asia Summit in Malaysia.
The minister of National Defense is General Tea Banh.
Banh has served as defence minister since 1979.
The Secretaries of State for Defense are Chay Saing Yun and Por Bun Sreu.
Cambodia signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
Hun Sen and his government have seen much controversy.
Cambodia is consistently listed as one of the most corrupt governments in the world.
Corruption      The level of corruption in Cambodia exceeds most countries in the world.
Despite adopting an  Anti Corruption Law  in 2010  corruption prevails throughout the country.
Corruption affects the judiciary  the police  and other state institutions.
Favouritism by government officials and impunity is commonplace.
Legal profession     The Cambodian legal profession was established in 1932.
By 1978  due to the Khmer Rouge regime  the entire legal system was eradicated.
Cambodia is divided into 25 provinces including the autonomous municipality.
Municipalities and districts are the second level administrative divisions of Cambodia.
The provinces are subdivided into 159 districts and 26 municipalities.
The United Nations designates Cambodia as a least developed country.
Most rural households depend on agriculture and its related sub sectors.
Rice  fish  timber  garments  and rubber are Cambodia s major exports.
These varieties had been collected in the 1960s.
In 2004  inflation was at 1.7  and exports at  1.6 billion US .
In the Cambodia country assessment  Where Have All The Poor Gone?
Two decades of economic growth have helped make Cambodia a global leader in reducing poverty.
See more details of Cambodia s achievements on poverty reduction.
In April 2016 Cambodia s National Assembly has adopted a Law on Trade Unions.
A law was necessary to rein in the country s unions  Van Sou Ieng said.
Those who criticise  the law  should do businesses  and  then  they will understand.
In 2012  the exports grew to  4.61 billion up 8  over 2011.
In the first half of 2013  the garment industry reported exports worth  1.56 billion.
The sector employs 335 400 workers  of which 91  are female.
The area around Kampot and Kep including the Bokor Hill Station are also of interest to visitors.
Rice is the principal commodity.
The principal commercial crop is rubber.
Transport      The civil war and neglect severely damaged Cambodia s transport system.
The lines run from the capital to Sihanoukville on the southern coast.
Trains are again running to and from the Cambodian capital and popular destinations in the south.
Trains also run from Phnom Penh to Sisophon  although trains often run only as far as Battambang .
Cambodia s road traffic accident rate is high by world standards.
In 2018  they handled a record of 10 million passengers.
Phnom Penh International Airport is the busiest airport in Cambodia.
Sihanouk International Airport  is in the coastal city of Sihanoukville.
The fertility rate was 4.0 children in 2000.
Cambodia s population is largely homogeneous.
Most are urban dwellers  engaged primarily in commerce.
Almost all Cham in Cambodia are Muslims.
There is also a French language newspaper and some TV channels are available in French.
Cambodia is a member of La Francophonie.
Cambodian Buddhism is deeply influenced by Hinduism and native animism.
Mahayana Buddhism is the religion of the majority of Chinese and Vietnamese in Cambodia.
Cambodia s Muslim population is reported to be 80  ethnic Cham.
Two of Cambodia s most acclaimed universities are based in Phnom Penh.
During the Khmer Rouge regime  education suffered significant setbacks.
Cambodia had issued over 150 such licenses before the new policy was announced.
Rural Cambodians wear a krama scarf which is a unique aspect of Cambodian clothing.
The sampeah is a traditional Cambodian greeting or a way of showing respect to others.
Traditionally  the Khmer people have a recorded information on Tra leaves.
They are taken care of by wrapping in cloth to protect from moisture and the climate.
Every year  Cambodians visit pagodas across the country to mark the Pchum Ben  Ancestors  Day .
During the 15 day festival  people offer prayers and food to the spirits of their dead relatives.
Cuisine      Rice is the staple grain  as in other Southeast Asian countries.
Fish from the Mekong and Tonle Sap rivers is also an important part of the diet.
Some of the fish can be made into prahok for longer storage.
The cuisine of Cambodia contains tropical fruits  soups and noodles.
Some delicacies are នំបញ្ចុក  Num Banh chok   អាម៉ុក  Amok   អាពីង  Ah Ping .
The country also boasts various distinct local street foods  such as fried spiders.
French influence on Cambodian cuisine includes the Cambodian red curry with toasted baguette bread.
The toasted baguette pieces are dipped in the curry and eaten.
Cambodian red curry is also eaten with rice and rice vermicelli noodles.
Drinks     Cambodians drink plenty of tea  grown in Mondulkiri Province and around Kirirom.
When it s dark enough  the tea is decanted into another cup and plenty of sugar added  but no milk.
There are also a growing number of microbreweries in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap.
Between 2014 and 2018  the number of craft beer breweries rose from two to nine.
Its quality varies widely and it is often infused with fruits or medicinal herbs.
Soccer was brought to Cambodia by the French and became popular with the locals.
Volleyball is by far the most popular sport in the country.
Cambodia also hosted the GANEFO Games  the alternative to the Olympics  in the 1960s.
The exact origins of Khmer classical dance are disputed.
Khmer traditional social dances are analogous to those of other Southeast Asian nations.
Examples include the circle dances Romvong and Romkbach as well as Saravan and Lam Leav.
Music      Traditional Cambodian music dates back as far as the Khmer Empire.
More rural forms of music include Chapei and A Yai.
The lyrics usually have moral or religious theme.
A Yai can be performed solo or by a man and woman and is often comedic in nature.
Dance music is composed in particular styles for social dances.
and many original master tapes from the period were lost or destroyed.
It is classified as  world music  and combines Cambodian music with Western style rock.
Cambridge University Press  CUP  is the publishing business of the University of Cambridge.
Granted letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534  it is the oldest university press in the world.
Being part of the University of Cambridge gives CUP a non profit status.
CUP transfers a minimum of 30  of any annual surplus back to the University of Cambridge.
History     Cambridge University Press is the oldest university press in the world.
It originated from letters patent granted to the University of Cambridge by Henry VIII in 1534.
Cambridge is one of the two privileged presses  the other being Oxford University Press .
This site was sold to Cambridge Assessment in 2015 for the construction of The Triangle Building.
Open Access articles now account for 15 per cent of articles.
It works closely with Cambridge Assessment through the joint initiative Cambridge Exams Publishing.
In 2020  CUP partnered with online library Perlego to offer students access to digital textbooks.
Digital developments     In 2011  Cambridge University Press  CUP  adopted SAP.
In January 2013  the finance and procurement model of SAP was implemented.
The sales and distribution model of SAP is now being implemented.
The Press sent a letter to libraries asking them to remove copies from circulation.
The Press subsequently sent out copies of an  errata  sheet for the book.
The Press pointed out that  at that time  it had already sold most of its copies of the book.
The Press donated more than 75 000 books in 2016.
An apprenticeship program for people interested in careers in publishing was established in 2016.
The Press works hard to minimise the number of books that are sent for pulping each year.
It also supports sharing on commercial sharing sites through its Cambridge Core Share service.
Canada is a country in the northern part of North America.
Canada is a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy in the Westminster tradition.
The country is a Commonwealth realm and is officially bilingual at the federal level.
St. John s Island  now Prince Edward Island  became a separate colony in 1769.
Peace came in 1815  no boundaries were changed.
This paved the way for British colonies on Vancouver Island  1849  and in British Columbia  1858 .
Alberta and Saskatchewan became provinces in 1905.
The COVID 19 pandemic in Canada began on January 27  2020 with wide social and economic disruption.
Biodiversity      Canada is divided into fifteen terrestrial and five marine ecozones.
Over half of Canada s landscape is intact and relatively free of human development.
Coastal British Columbia has a temperate climate  with a mild and rainy winter.
The rate of warming has been higher across the North and in the Prairies.
An emphasis on social justice has been a distinguishing element of Canada s political culture.
Far right and far left politics have never been a prominent force in Canadian society.
The bank does not issue Canadian coins  they are issued by the Royal Canadian Mint.
Criminal law is solely a federal responsibility and is uniform throughout Canada.
Canada s peacekeeping role during the 20th century has played a major role in its global image.
Canada acceded to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in 1976.
Canada s total military expenditure is expected to reach CA 32.7 billion by 2027.
The country s average household disposable income per capita is  well above  the OECD average.
It is furthermore home to the headquarters of a number of global technology firms.
In 2019  a total of 341 180 immigrants were admitted to Canada  mainly from Asia.
India  Philippines and China are the top three countries of origin for immigrants moving to Canada.
New immigrants settle mostly in major urban areas such as Toronto  Montreal and Vancouver.
It is guided by the provisions of the Canada Health Act of 1984  and is universal.
However  30 percent of Canadians  healthcare is paid for through the private sector.
Education is within provincial jurisdiction and the curriculum is overseen by the province.
Education in both English and French is available in most places across Canada.
Canadian provinces and territories are responsible for education provision.
Canada has a large number of Universities  almost all of which are publicly funded.
Established in 1663  Université Laval is the oldest post secondary institution in Canada.
The largest university is the University of Toronto with over 85 000 students.
Canada spends about 5.3 percent of its GDP on education.
The country invests heavily in tertiary education  more than US 20 000 per student .
Just over 60 000 children are homeschooled as of 2016.
Another 22.3 percent of the population belonged to a non Indigenous visible minority.
Between 2011 and 2016  the visible minority population rose by 18.4 percent.
Indigenous peoples are not considered a visible minority in Statistics Canada calculations.
In Ontario  French has some legal status  but is not fully co official.
There are 11 Indigenous language groups  composed of more than 65 distinct languages and dialects.
Several Indigenous languages have official status in the Northwest Territories.
Religion      Canada is religiously diverse  encompassing a wide range of beliefs and customs.
Canada has no official church  and the government is officially committed to religious pluralism.
Secularization has been growing since the 1960s.
In 2011  23.9 percent declared no religious affiliation  compared to 16.5 percent in 2001.
Islam is the largest non Christian religion in Canada  constituting 3.2 percent of its population.
It is also the fastest growing religion in Canada.
1.5 percent of the Canadian population is Hindu and 1.4 percent is Sikh.
Canada has placed emphasis on equality and inclusiveness for all its people.
The primary characteristics of Canadian humour are irony  parody  and satire.
The maple leaf is depicted on Canada s current and previous flags  and on the Arms of Canada.
The penny  removed from circulation in 2013  featured the maple leaf.
The Queen s image appears on  20 bank notes  and on the obverse of all current Canadian coins.
By the 1990s  Canadian literature was viewed as some of the world s best.
Thomson s career painting Canadian landscapes spanned a decade up to his death in 1917 at age 39.
They were joined briefly by Frank Johnston  and by commercial artist Franklin Carmichael.
A. J. Casson became part of the Group in 1926.
Music broadcasting in the country is regulated by the CRTC.
The earliest  The Bold Canadian  was written in 1812.
The text was originally only in French before it was adapted into English in 1906.
Canada s official national sports are ice hockey and lacrosse.
Carbon dioxide molecules consist of a carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms.
It occurs naturally in Earth s atmosphere as a trace gas.
It is present in deposits of petroleum and natural gas.
Carbon dioxide has a sharp and acidic odor and generates the taste of soda water in the mouth.
Carbon dioxide also causes ocean acidification because it dissolves in water to form carbonic acid.
Background     Carbon dioxide was the first gas to be described as a discrete substance.
He observed that the fixed air was denser than air and supported neither flame nor animal life.
Since it is centrosymmetric  the molecule has no electrical dipole.
As a linear triatomic molecule  CO2 has four vibrational modes as shown in the diagram.
The two bending modes are degenerate  meaning that they correspond to only one frequency.
This is also true for other “linear” molecules.
In very alkaline water  pH   10.4   the predominant   50   form is carbonate.
The nickel containing enzyme carbon monoxide dehydrogenase catalyses this process.
Physical properties      Carbon dioxide is colorless.
In its solid state  carbon dioxide is commonly called dry ice.
The critical point is 7.38 MPa at 31.1 °C.
Another form of solid carbon dioxide observed at high pressure is an amorphous glass like solid.
These processes begin with the reaction of water and natural gas  mainly methane .
They have widespread uses in industry because they can be used to neutralize waste acid streams.
The large number of reactions involved are exceedingly complex and not described easily.
Most of the remaining 50–55  is methane.
Leavening agents cause dough to rise by producing carbon dioxide.
Beverages      Carbon dioxide is used to produce carbonated soft drinks and soda water.
Stunning animals      Carbon dioxide is often used to  stun  animals before slaughter.
Although  this may be due to atmospheric reactions occurring at the puddle site.
Life jackets often contain canisters of pressured carbon dioxide for quick inflation.
High concentrations of carbon dioxide can also be used to kill pests.
It does not itself react to extinguish the flame  but starves the flame of oxygen by displacing it.
It is also used by some dry cleaners for this reason  see green chemistry .
Agriculture     Plants require carbon dioxide to conduct photosynthesis.
Among the advantages of this is the avoidance of handling  more hazardous  acids.
Carbon dioxide induction is commonly used for the euthanasia of laboratory research animals.
The concentration of carbon dioxide has risen due to human activities.
Most CO2 from human activities is released from burning coal  petroleum  and natural gas.
Other large anthropogenic sources include cement production  deforestation  and biomass burning.
Less energy reaches the upper atmosphere  which is therefore cooler because of this absorption.
This produces a positive feedback for changes induced by other processes such as orbital cycles.
After sunrise the gas is dispersed by convection.
The ability of marine algae and free swimming zooplankton to maintain protective shells is reduced.
The survival of larval marine species  including commercial fish and shellfish  is reduced.
Increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations lead to further acidification ...
This includes all plants  algae and animals and aerobic fungi and bacteria.
Some important phototrophs  the coccolithophores synthesise hard calcium carbonate scales.
Carrion feeders attracted to the carcasses are then also killed.
The Swahili term for this phenomenon is  mazuku .
Yet  other studies show a decrease in cognitive function even at much lower levels.
Higher CO2 concentrations are associated with occupant health  comfort and performance degradation.
The exact percentages vary depending whether it is arterial or venous blood .
However  the CO2 bound to hemoglobin does not bind to the same site as oxygen.
Instead  it combines with the N terminal groups on the four globin chains.
If its concentration is high  the capillaries expand to allow a greater blood flow to that tissue.
Bicarbonate ions are crucial for regulating blood pH.
A person s breathing rate influences the level of CO2 in their blood.
Rather  breathing is stimulated by higher carbon dioxide levels.
This is especially perilous for high altitude fighter pilots.
This is why one can hold one s breath longer after hyperventilating than without hyperventilating.
which produces much less carbon emissions compared to fossil fuels.
The phrase was the New Oxford American Dictionary s Word of the Year for 2006.
The terms are used interchangeably throughout this article.
He has urged all other countries to declare climate emergencies until carbon neutrality is reached.
Which sources should be included  see section Direct and indirect emissions ?
Who is responsible for which emissions?
Which gases should be included?For individuals  carbon calculators simplify compiling an inventory.
Individuals may also set various limits of the system they are concerned with  e.g.
personal GHG emissions  household emissions  or the company they work for.
Others cover household waste or leisure interests as well.
So it is both common sense and sensible for the climate to use energy as sparingly as possible.
Offsetting is sometimes seen as a charged and contentious issue.
Science and technology move on  regulations become tighter  the standards people demand go up.
Artists like The Rolling Stones and Pink Floyd have made albums or tours carbon neutral.
Indirect emissions include all emissions that result from the use or purchase of a product.
Indirect electrical purchases must be equalized either with offsets  or renewable energy purchase.
2025  2030  2045  may be considered to send out a stronger signal internationally though.
Shaklee Corporation became the first Climate Neutral certified company in April 2000.
The company claims to the first carbon neutral coffee sold in Canada.
Buildings are the largest single contributor to the production of greenhouse gases.
The province intends to accelerate the deployment of natural gas vehicles.
Costa Rica      Costa Rica aims to be fully carbon neutral by at least 2050.
There are future hopes of using electric or biofuel vehicles.
This was approved by the French Senate on 18 July 2019.
Iceland      Iceland is also moving towards climate neutrality.
The Maldives presided over the foundation of the Climate Vulnerable Forum.
Also  the city of Logroño Montecorvo in La Rioja will be carbon neutral once completed.
Sweden      Sweden aims to become carbon neutral by 2045.
The vision is that net greenhouse gas emissions should be zero.
South Korea      South Korea aims to be carbon neutral by 2050.
The goal would be reached through the donation of the Vatican Climate Forest in Hungary.
The forest is to be sized to offset the year s carbon dioxide emissions.
However  no trees have actually been planted As of 2008.
The company KlimaFa is no longer in existence and hasn t fulfilled its promises.
Scotland       Scotland has set a 2045 target.
GreenLife   Daily tips on sustainability for individuals to become carbon neutral.
These companies can then claim climate neutral status and even use the title online.
However  there is no international clarity around these certifications and their validity.
It forms the central part of the Chūbu region.
It comprises most of Nagano and Yamanashi Prefectures  as well as the Hida area of Gifu Prefecture.
Sometimes Tōnō area of Gifu Prefecture is included.
Precipitation is light throughout the year.
In the Edo period  the Nakasendō and Kōshū Kaidō ran through the Central Highland.
Chemical substances can be simple substances  chemical compounds  or alloys.
Chemical substances may be combined or converted to others by means of chemical reactions.
The CAS index also includes mixtures.
This is now known as the law of constant composition.
Some elements can occur as more than a single chemical substance  allotropes .
For instance  oxygen exists as both diatomic oxygen  O2  and ozone  O3 .
The majority of elements are classified as metals.
These are elements with a characteristic lustre such as iron  copper  and gold.
Metals typically conduct electricity and heat well  and they are malleable and ductile.
Around a dozen elements  such as carbon  nitrogen  and oxygen  are classified as non metals.
All compounds are substances  but not all substances are compounds.
Compounds containing bonds between carbon and a metal are called organometallic compounds.
Compounds in which components share electrons are known as covalent compounds.
Compounds consisting of oppositely charged ions are known as ionic compounds  or salts.
Generally  these are called isomers.
A common example is glucose vs. fructose.
The former is an aldehyde  the latter is a ketone.
Their interconversion requires either enzymatic or acid base catalysis.
A common example is glucose  which has open chain and ring forms.
Mixtures contain more than one chemical substance  and they do not have a fixed composition.
In principle  they can be separated into the component substances by purely mechanical processes.
Butter  soil and wood are common examples of mixtures.
The resulting compound has all the properties of a chemical substance and is not a mixture.
Bulk chemicals are usually much less complex.
An alternative system is used by the Chemical Abstracts Service  CAS .
Also it is difficult to keep the track of them in the literature.
This information is compiled as a database and is popularly known as the Chemical substances index.
A cherry blossom is a flower of many trees of genus Prunus.
From then on  in both waka and haiku   flowers   花  hana  meant  cherry blossoms .
Tokugawa Yoshimune planted areas of cherry blossom trees to encourage this.
Under the sakura trees  people had lunch and drank sake in cheerful feasts.
Most Japanese schools and public buildings have cherry blossom trees outside of them.
The last message of the forces on Peleliu was  Sakura  Sakura  — cherry blossoms.
The first kamikaze unit had a subunit called Yamazakura or wild cherry blossom.
The following species  hybrids  and varieties are used for sakura  Prunus apetala var.
pilosa Prunus campanulata Prunus × furuseana Prunus × incam Prunus incisa var.
Its flowers are nearly pure white  tinged with the palest pink  especially near the stem.
They bloom and usually fall within a week  before the leaves come out.
Therefore  the trees look nearly white from top to bottom.
The variety takes its name from the village of Somei  now part of Toshima in Tokyo .
The yaezakura have large flowers  thick with rich pink petals.
The first stage was opened in 1979  and the second stage in 1986.
The gardens were designed in the style of the Edo period and are a kaiyū shiki or strolling garden.
They are designed to show all of the landscape types of Japan.
Vancouver holds the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival every year.
Niagara Falls has many near the falls itself.
Other donations would add to the numbers in the following years.
Currently  Wuhan University has about one thousand cherry blossom trees of different species.
The university annually hosts hundreds of thousands of tourists attracted by the blossoms in March.
In addition  the leaves are also used as incense.
Cherry blossom festivals in India are held during October–November when Prunus cerasoides blooms.
Shillong is notable for its cherry blossom festival during autumn.
Korea      Cherry trees have been used in Korea for a long time.
It has been used in making bows and woodblocks  Palman Daejanggyeong .
The origins of cherry blossoms in South Korea is contentious.
Myanmar     Cherry blossoms are part of the attraction of the temperate regions of the country.
The trees have been planted in the cherry blossom park in the Amsterdamse Bos.
Thailand     Cherry blossoms are found in Northern Thailand.
That loss is being remembered at every anniversary.
The Japanese cherry trees represent the memory of those who died and provide remembrance.
The gift was renewed with another 3 800 trees in 1965.
In Los Angeles  over 2 000 trees are located at Lake Balboa in Van Nuys.
The University of Washington in Seattle also has cherry blossoms in its quad.
The Brooklyn Botanic Garden in New York City also has a large  well attended festival.
The fruit  the sakuranbo  is small and does not have much flesh beyond the seed within.
Likewise  the seeds should not be eaten.
Chiba  千葉市  Chiba shi  Japanese   tɕiꜜba   is the capital city of Chiba Prefecture  Japan.
It sits about 40 kilometres  25 mi  southeast of the centre of Tokyo on Tokyo Bay.
Chiba City became a government designated city in 1992.
In June 2019  its population was 979 768  with a population density of 3 605 people per km2.
The city has an area of 271.77 square kilometres  104.93 sq mi .
Much of the city is residential  although there are many factories and warehouses along the coast.
Chiba is famous for the Chiba Urban Monorail  the longest suspended monorail in the world.
Etymology    The name of Chiba in the Japanese language is formed from two kanji characters.
The first  千  means  thousand  and the second  葉 means  leaves .
Finally both the Chiba and Sakai clans were annihilated by Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
A part of the area was also governed directly by the Tokugawa Bakufu.
The Oyumi clan governed their territory stably.
Finally the Hotta clan stabilized the governance of their territory.
Chiba prospered in this period as a shukuba  宿場  post town of the Tokugawa shogunate.
Large scale land reclamation added to the area of the city throughout the 20th century.
The city was almost completely destroyed by the end of the war.
Post war industrialization led to the city becoming a major part of the Keiyō Industrial Zone.
Chiba became a Designated City of Japan on April 1  1992.
The total area of the city is 271.76 km2  104.93 sq mi .
It is the 14th most populated city in Japan.
He was arrested in April 2009 during a corruption investigation by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police.
Precipitation is significant throughout the year  but is somewhat lower in winter.
Culture    One of the many points of interest is the Experimental Station for Landscape Plants.
Chiba Velodrome is located within the city.
It also hosts the Bridgestone Open golf tournament.
Railway      The Chiba Urban Monorail runs through Chiba City.
There are also nine private high schools  including the Makuhari Junior and Senior High School.
It is a day set aside to respect children s personalities and to celebrate their happiness.
It was designated a national holiday by the Japanese government in 1948.
It has been a day of celebration in Japan since ancient times.
After Japan switched to the Gregorian calendar  the date was moved to May 5.
China  officially the People s Republic of China  PRC   is a country in East Asia.
It is the world s most populous country  with a population of around 1.4 billion in 2019.
Since then  China has expanded  fractured  and re unified numerous times.
In the 3rd century BCE  the Qin reunited core China and established the first Chinese empire.
The Qing Empire  China s last dynasty  suffered heavy losses to foreign imperialism.
China was invaded by the Empire of Japan during World War II.
The name Zhongguo is also translated as  Middle Kingdom  in English.
The PRC is sometimes referred to as the Mainland to distinguish the ROC from the PRC.
The succeeding Shang dynasty is the earliest to be confirmed by contemporary records.
King Zheng of Qin proclaimed himself the First Emperor of the Qin dynasty.
His dynasty also conquered the Yue tribes in Guangxi  Guangdong  and Vietnam.
Han China gradually became the largest economy of the ancient world.
At its end  Wei was swiftly overthrown by the Jin dynasty.
In the south  the general Liu Yu secured the abdication of the Jin in favor of the Liu Song.
However  it was devastated and weakened by the An Lushan Rebellion in the 8th century.
In 907  the Tang disintegrated completely when the local military governors became ungovernable.
However  the military weakness of the Song army was observed by the Jurchen Jin dynasty.
In 1127  Emperor Huizong of Song and the capital Bianjing were captured during the Jin–Song Wars.
In the early years of the Ming dynasty  China s capital was moved from Nanjing to Beijing.
The Chongzhen Emperor committed suicide when the city fell.
The ill fated anti foreign Boxer Rebellion of 1899–1901 further weakened the dynasty.
Puyi  the last Emperor of China  abdicated in 1912.
China emerged victorious but war ravaged and financially drained.
In 1950  the People s Liberation Army captured Hainan from the ROC and incorporated Tibet.
China developed an independent industrial system and its own nuclear weapons.
The Chinese population increased from 550 million in 1950 to 900 million in 1974.
Elder Deng Xiaoping took power in 1978  and instituted significant economic reforms.
China adopted its current constitution on 4 December 1982.
In 2013  China initiated the Belt and Road Initiative  a global infrastructure investment project.
The COVID 19 pandemic broke out in Wuhan  Hubei in 2019.
China s landscapes vary significantly across its vast territory.
Other major rivers include the Xi  Mekong  Brahmaputra and Amur.
To the west sit major mountain ranges  most notably the Himalayas.
The understory of moist conifer forests may contain thickets of bamboo.
In higher montane stands of juniper and yew  the bamboo is replaced by rhododendrons.
China has over 10 000 recorded species of fungi  and of them  nearly 6 000 are higher fungi.
China is the country with the second highest death toll because of air pollution  after India.
There are approximately 1 million deaths caused by exposure to ambient air pollution.
Greenhouse gas emissions by China are the world s largest  as is renewable energy in China.
China s total area is generally stated as being approximately 9 600 000 km2  3 700 000 sq mi .
China borders 14 nations  more than any other country except Russia  which also borders 14.
The PRC is one of the world s only socialist states explicitly aiming to build communism.
The electoral system is pyramidal.
In 2019  China had the largest diplomatic network in the world.
By 2016  China was the largest trading partner of 124 other countries.
China became a member of the World Trade Organization  WTO  in 2001.
China has a significant trade surplus with the United States  its most important export market.
China maintains healthy and highly diversified trade links with the European Union.
As of 2020  China currently has a disputed land border with only India and Bhutan.
The report provided evidence that this gap is being made up by executed prisoners of conscience.
China has the second biggest military reserve force  only behind North Korea.
According to the World Bank  China s GDP grew from  150 billion in 1978 to  13.6 trillion by 2018.
China is also the world s largest exporter and second largest importer of goods.
1 manufacturer since 2010  after overtaking the US  which had been No.
China is the second largest retail market in the world  next to the United States.
Additionally  its development is highly uneven.
Its major cities and coastal areas are far more prosperous compared to rural and interior regions.
Economists also expect China s middle class to expand to 600 million people by 2025.
China has a high level of economic inequality  which has increased in the past few decades.
In 2018 China s GINI index was 0.467  according to the World Bank.
Chinese mathematicians were the first to use negative numbers.
In 2017  China spent  279 billion on scientific research and development.
According to the OECD  China spent 2.11  of its GDP on research and development  R D  in 2016.
Chinese tech companies Huawei and ZTE were the top 2 filers of international patents in 2017.
China also became the world s largest publisher of scientific papers in 2016.
In 2013  China successfully landed the Chang e 3 lander and Yutu rover onto the lunar surface.
In 2019  China became the first country to land a probe—Chang e 4—on the far side of the moon.
The Belt and Road Initiative could be one of the largest development plans in modern history.
By 2018  China had more than 1 billion 4G users  accounting for 40  of world s total.
Combined  the three operators had over 3.4 million 4G base stations in China.
With an annual ridership of over 1.1 billion passengers in 2015 it is the world s busiest.
Since 2000  the growth of rapid transit systems in Chinese cities has accelerated.
China has over 2 000 river and seaports  about 130 of which are open to foreign shipping.
The ongoing South–North Water Transfer Project intends to abate water shortage in the north.
The population growth rate for 2013 is estimated to be 0.46 .
China used to make up much of the world s poor  now it makes up much of the world s middle class.
In 2016  the one child policy was replaced in favor of a two child policy.
However  these scholars have been challenged.
The 2010 census found that males accounted for 51.27 percent of the total population.
The 2010 census recorded a total of 593 832 foreign nationals living in China.
Languages      There are as many as 292 living languages in China.
Korean is spoken natively along the border with North Korea.
Sarikoli  the language of Tajiks in western Xinjiang  is an Indo European language.
Chinese characters are romanized using the Pinyin system.
Tibetan uses an alphabet based on an Indic script.
Uyghur is most commonly written in Persian alphabet based Uyghur Arabic alphabet.
Zhuang uses both an official Latin alphabet script and a traditional Chinese character script.
Urbanization      China has urbanized significantly in recent decades.
Shanghai is China s most populous urban area while Chongqing is its largest city proper.
In 2010  27 percent of secondary school graduates are enrolled in higher education.
However  there remains an inequality in education spending.
In 1949  only 20  of the population could read  compared to 65.5  thirty years later.
Healthcare in China became mostly privatized  and experienced a significant rise in quality.
By 2011  the campaign resulted in 95  of China s population having basic health insurance coverage.
Both have improved significantly since the 1950s.
Culture     Since ancient times  Chinese culture has been heavily influenced by Confucianism.
Examinations and a culture of merit remain greatly valued in China today.
Literature      Chinese literature is based on the literature of the Zhou dynasty.
Hu Shih and Lu Xun were pioneers in modern literature.
Mo Yan  a xungen literature author  was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2012.
All of them are featured by the precise skills of shaping  heating  colorway and flavoring.
Generally  China s staple food is rice in the south  wheat based breads and noodles in the north.
And the bean products  such as tofu and soy milk  remain as a popular source of protein.
Chinese pop  C Pop  includes mandopop and cantopop.
Chinese rap  Chinese hip hop and Hong Kong hip hop have become popular in contemporary times.
Fashion      Hanfu is the historical clothing of the Han people in China.
The qipao or cheongsam is a popular Chinese female dress.
The hanfu movement has been popular in contemporary times and seeks to revitalize Hanfu clothing.
Sports      China has one of the oldest sporting cultures in the world.
There is evidence that archery  shèjiàn  was practiced during the Western Zhou dynasty.
Basketball is currently the most popular spectator sport in China.
In 2011  Shenzhen in Guangdong  China hosted the 2011 Summer Universiade.
China  officially the People s Republic of China  PRC   is a country in East Asia.
It is the world s most populous country  with a population of around 1.4 billion in 2019.
Since then  China has expanded  fractured  and re unified numerous times.
In the 3rd century BCE  the Qin reunited core China and established the first Chinese empire.
The Qing Empire  China s last dynasty  suffered heavy losses to foreign imperialism.
China was invaded by the Empire of Japan during World War II.
The name Zhongguo is also translated as  Middle Kingdom  in English.
The PRC is sometimes referred to as the Mainland to distinguish the ROC from the PRC.
The succeeding Shang dynasty is the earliest to be confirmed by contemporary records.
King Zheng of Qin proclaimed himself the First Emperor of the Qin dynasty.
His dynasty also conquered the Yue tribes in Guangxi  Guangdong  and Vietnam.
Han China gradually became the largest economy of the ancient world.
At its end  Wei was swiftly overthrown by the Jin dynasty.
In the south  the general Liu Yu secured the abdication of the Jin in favor of the Liu Song.
However  it was devastated and weakened by the An Lushan Rebellion in the 8th century.
In 907  the Tang disintegrated completely when the local military governors became ungovernable.
However  the military weakness of the Song army was observed by the Jurchen Jin dynasty.
In 1127  Emperor Huizong of Song and the capital Bianjing were captured during the Jin–Song Wars.
In the early years of the Ming dynasty  China s capital was moved from Nanjing to Beijing.
The Chongzhen Emperor committed suicide when the city fell.
The ill fated anti foreign Boxer Rebellion of 1899–1901 further weakened the dynasty.
Puyi  the last Emperor of China  abdicated in 1912.
China emerged victorious but war ravaged and financially drained.
In 1950  the People s Liberation Army captured Hainan from the ROC and incorporated Tibet.
China developed an independent industrial system and its own nuclear weapons.
The Chinese population increased from 550 million in 1950 to 900 million in 1974.
Elder Deng Xiaoping took power in 1978  and instituted significant economic reforms.
China adopted its current constitution on 4 December 1982.
In 2013  China initiated the Belt and Road Initiative  a global infrastructure investment project.
The COVID 19 pandemic broke out in Wuhan  Hubei in 2019.
China s landscapes vary significantly across its vast territory.
Other major rivers include the Xi  Mekong  Brahmaputra and Amur.
To the west sit major mountain ranges  most notably the Himalayas.
The understory of moist conifer forests may contain thickets of bamboo.
In higher montane stands of juniper and yew  the bamboo is replaced by rhododendrons.
China has over 10 000 recorded species of fungi  and of them  nearly 6 000 are higher fungi.
China is the country with the second highest death toll because of air pollution  after India.
There are approximately 1 million deaths caused by exposure to ambient air pollution.
Greenhouse gas emissions by China are the world s largest  as is renewable energy in China.
China s total area is generally stated as being approximately 9 600 000 km2  3 700 000 sq mi .
China borders 14 nations  more than any other country except Russia  which also borders 14.
The PRC is one of the world s only socialist states explicitly aiming to build communism.
The electoral system is pyramidal.
In 2019  China had the largest diplomatic network in the world.
By 2016  China was the largest trading partner of 124 other countries.
China became a member of the World Trade Organization  WTO  in 2001.
China has a significant trade surplus with the United States  its most important export market.
China maintains healthy and highly diversified trade links with the European Union.
As of 2020  China currently has a disputed land border with only India and Bhutan.
The report provided evidence that this gap is being made up by executed prisoners of conscience.
China has the second biggest military reserve force  only behind North Korea.
According to the World Bank  China s GDP grew from  150 billion in 1978 to  13.6 trillion by 2018.
China is also the world s largest exporter and second largest importer of goods.
1 manufacturer since 2010  after overtaking the US  which had been No.
China is the second largest retail market in the world  next to the United States.
Additionally  its development is highly uneven.
Its major cities and coastal areas are far more prosperous compared to rural and interior regions.
Economists also expect China s middle class to expand to 600 million people by 2025.
China has a high level of economic inequality  which has increased in the past few decades.
In 2018 China s GINI index was 0.467  according to the World Bank.
Chinese mathematicians were the first to use negative numbers.
In 2017  China spent  279 billion on scientific research and development.
According to the OECD  China spent 2.11  of its GDP on research and development  R D  in 2016.
Chinese tech companies Huawei and ZTE were the top 2 filers of international patents in 2017.
China also became the world s largest publisher of scientific papers in 2016.
In 2013  China successfully landed the Chang e 3 lander and Yutu rover onto the lunar surface.
In 2019  China became the first country to land a probe—Chang e 4—on the far side of the moon.
The Belt and Road Initiative could be one of the largest development plans in modern history.
By 2018  China had more than 1 billion 4G users  accounting for 40  of world s total.
Combined  the three operators had over 3.4 million 4G base stations in China.
With an annual ridership of over 1.1 billion passengers in 2015 it is the world s busiest.
Since 2000  the growth of rapid transit systems in Chinese cities has accelerated.
China has over 2 000 river and seaports  about 130 of which are open to foreign shipping.
The ongoing South–North Water Transfer Project intends to abate water shortage in the north.
The population growth rate for 2013 is estimated to be 0.46 .
China used to make up much of the world s poor  now it makes up much of the world s middle class.
In 2016  the one child policy was replaced in favor of a two child policy.
However  these scholars have been challenged.
The 2010 census found that males accounted for 51.27 percent of the total population.
The 2010 census recorded a total of 593 832 foreign nationals living in China.
Languages      There are as many as 292 living languages in China.
Korean is spoken natively along the border with North Korea.
Sarikoli  the language of Tajiks in western Xinjiang  is an Indo European language.
Chinese characters are romanized using the Pinyin system.
Tibetan uses an alphabet based on an Indic script.
Uyghur is most commonly written in Persian alphabet based Uyghur Arabic alphabet.
Zhuang uses both an official Latin alphabet script and a traditional Chinese character script.
Urbanization      China has urbanized significantly in recent decades.
Shanghai is China s most populous urban area while Chongqing is its largest city proper.
In 2010  27 percent of secondary school graduates are enrolled in higher education.
However  there remains an inequality in education spending.
In 1949  only 20  of the population could read  compared to 65.5  thirty years later.
Healthcare in China became mostly privatized  and experienced a significant rise in quality.
By 2011  the campaign resulted in 95  of China s population having basic health insurance coverage.
Both have improved significantly since the 1950s.
Culture     Since ancient times  Chinese culture has been heavily influenced by Confucianism.
Examinations and a culture of merit remain greatly valued in China today.
Literature      Chinese literature is based on the literature of the Zhou dynasty.
Hu Shih and Lu Xun were pioneers in modern literature.
Mo Yan  a xungen literature author  was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2012.
All of them are featured by the precise skills of shaping  heating  colorway and flavoring.
Generally  China s staple food is rice in the south  wheat based breads and noodles in the north.
And the bean products  such as tofu and soy milk  remain as a popular source of protein.
Chinese pop  C Pop  includes mandopop and cantopop.
Chinese rap  Chinese hip hop and Hong Kong hip hop have become popular in contemporary times.
Fashion      Hanfu is the historical clothing of the Han people in China.
The qipao or cheongsam is a popular Chinese female dress.
The hanfu movement has been popular in contemporary times and seeks to revitalize Hanfu clothing.
Sports      China has one of the oldest sporting cultures in the world.
There is evidence that archery  shèjiàn  was practiced during the Western Zhou dynasty.
Basketball is currently the most popular spectator sport in China.
In 2011  Shenzhen in Guangdong  China hosted the 2011 Summer Universiade.
The first summit was held during December 2008 in Fukuoka  Japan.
In September 2011  the three countries launched the Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat in Seoul.
There is also speculation of a future regional Free trade area.
Not much progress has been achieved in these areas as well over the past one year.
They also agreed to pursue the six party talks over North Korea s nuclear weapons program.
Han characters    are logograms developed for the writing of Chinese.
Chinese characters are the oldest continuously used system of writing in the world.
There are various national standard lists of characters  forms  and pronunciations.
A character almost always corresponds to a single syllable that is also a morpheme.
Cognates in the several varieties of Chinese are generally written with the same character.
Words have also been created by adding affixes  reduplication and borrowing from other languages.
Polysyllabic words are generally written with one character per syllable.
For the 500 most common characters  the proportion rises to 30 .
Often these readings are similar in sound and related in meaning.
In many cases the pronunciations diverged due to subsequent sound change.
For example   传 傳 has readings OC  drjon   MC drjwen    Mod.
chuán  to transmit  and  drjons   drjwenH   zhuàn  a record .
Middle Chinese forms are given in Baxter s transcription  in which H denotes the departing tone.
磨 has readings  maj   ma   mó  to grind  and  majs   maH   mò  grindstone .
For example   见 見 has readings  kens   kenH   jiàn  to see  and  gens   henH   xiàn  to appear .
败 敗 has readings  prats   pæjH   bài  to defeat  and  brats   bæjH   bài  to be defeated .
折 has readings  tjat   tsyet   zhé  to bend  and  djat   dzyet   shé  to break by bending .
Examples of pictograms include 日 rì for  sun   月 yuè for  moon   and 木 mù for  tree  or  wood .
Xu Shen placed approximately 4  of characters in this category.
symbols   are the building blocks of compound characters  意意字  and picto phonetic characters  形声字 .
Furthermore  the same kangxi radical character element can be used to depict different objects.
Thus  the image depicted by most pictograms is not often immediately evident.
Examples include 上 shàng  up  and 下 xià  down   originally a dot above and below a line.
convex 凸  concave 凹  flat and level 平.
The canonical example is 明 bright.
It is canonical because the term 明白 in Chinese  lit.
bright white   means  to understand  understand .
These characters are composed of at least two parts.
The semantic component suggests the general meaning of the compound character.
The  phonetic component suggests the pronunciation of the compound character.
Because Chinese is replete in homophones phonetic elements may also carry semantic content.
In some rare examples phono semantic characters may also convey pictorial content.
The Chu Nom characters of Vietnam were created using this principle.
The term does not appear in the body of the dictionary  and is often omitted from modern systems.
The earliest of these is dated to around 1200 BC.
Gradual evolution and the coexistence of two or more scripts was more often the case.
However  despite the Qin script standardization  more than one script remained in use at the time.
Zhong Yao has been called the  father of regular script .
Japanese      Chinese characters adapted to write Japanese words are known as kanji.
Only some of the old kanji spellings are in common use  like kan  缶  meaning  can .
Kanji that are used to only represent the sounds of a word are called ateji  当て字 .
There is a clear trend toward the exclusive use of hangul in day to day South Korean society.
The ban continued into the 21st century.
However  it is also said that the authorities implore students not to use the characters in public.
In addition  thousands of new compound characters were created to write Vietnamese words.
Other languages written with such scripts include Miao  Yao  Bouyei  Mulam  Kam  Bai and Hani.
Hanzi was also used to phonetically transcribe the Manchu language in the Qing dynasty.
This clerical form uses one fewer stroke  and was thus adopted as a simplified form.
Simplified Chinese simply merges them.
Some characters were given simplified forms called shinjitai  新字体  lit.
new character forms    the older forms were then labelled the kyūjitai  旧字体  lit.
These resulted in some simplifications that differed from those used in mainland China.
However  unlike in China  personal names may still be registered in traditional characters.
Chinese shop signs are also generally written in traditional characters.
Recently  however  more Chinese schools now use both simplified characters and pinyin.
Most community newspapers printed in North America are also printed in traditional characters.
Generally  the jōyō kanji are more similar to fantizi  traditional  than jiantizi  are to fantizi.
The seal script  as the name suggests  is now used only in artistic seals.
The cursive script  草書 草书   cǎoshū  literally  grass script   is used informally.
The Japanese hiragana script is also derived from this script.
Calligraphy      The art of writing Chinese characters is called Chinese calligraphy.
It is usually done with ink brushes.
In ancient China  Chinese calligraphy is one of the Four Arts of the Chinese Scholars.
There is a minimalist set of rules of Chinese calligraphy.
Regular script typefaces emulate regular script.
Despite standardization  some nonstandard forms are commonly used  especially in handwriting.
In older sources  even authoritative ones  variant characters are commonplace.
A few of these are reproduced at right.
Mainland China adopted simplified Chinese characters in 1956.
They are also used in Singapore and Malaysia.
Traditional Chinese characters are used in Hong Kong  Macau and Taiwan.
The List of Forms of Frequently Used Characters for Hong Kong.
The most important rules regard the strokes employed  stroke placement  and stroke order.
Some characters are also written with different stroke orders due to character simplification.
In modern Chinese 10  of morphemes only occur as part of a given compound.
However  a few morphemes are disyllabic  some of them dating back to Classical Chinese.
Excluding foreign loan words  these are typically words for plants and small animals.
Examples are 蝴蝶 húdié  butterfly  and 珊瑚 shānhú  coral .
Neither exists as an independent morpheme except as a poetic abbreviation of the disyllabic word.
These do see use  particularly in handwriting or decoration  but also in some cases in print.
In some cases counters are also merged into one character  such as 七十人 qīshí rén  seventy people .
Modern examples particularly include Chinese characters for SI units.
These have now fallen out of general use  but are occasionally seen.
These uses are completely standard and unexceptional.
Taiwanese political posters  movie posters etc.
will often add the bopomofo phonetic symbols next to such a character.
Another 64 stroke character is  𠔻  U 2053B  zhèng composed of 興 xīng xìng  lit.
However  these are not in common use.
It is composed of the dragon radical represented three times  for a total of 16 × 3   48 strokes.
Also in occasional modern use is 鱻  xiān  fresh   variant of 鮮 xiān  with 33 strokes.
In Japanese  an 84 stroke kokuji exists    normally read taito.
This character along with the syllable biáng cannot be found in dictionaries.
There are about 300 radicals and 100 are in common use.
GB18030  the modern  mandatory standard  has a much higher number.
For example  the vernacular character 㓾  pronounced cii11 in Hakka  means  to kill .
Written Standard Mandarin is the preference for all mainland regions.
Japanese     In Japanese there are 2 136 jōyō kanji  常用漢字  lit.
kanji for use in personal names    is published.
This is the system of radicals  see for example  the 214 so called Kangxi radicals .
Chinese character dictionaries often allow users to locate entries in several ways.
Under each radical  characters are listed by their total number of strokes.
From there  the user must scan the entries to locate the character he or she is seeking.
Easy lessons in Chinese  or progressive exercises to facilitate the study of that language.
A Chinese and English dictionary  arranged according to radicals and sub radicals.
The student s four thousand  characters  and general pocket dictionary  2 ed. .
Trübner   co. Chinese and English dictionary  compiled from reliable authors.
This art is also called  Chinese traditional decorative knots .
In other cultures  it is known as  decorative knots .
The knots are usually double layered and symmetrical.
On the right you can see examples of Pan Chang knot s 3D structures.
The most famous poem about the love knot was written by Meng Jiao Knotting love  Chinese  结爱 .
The culture of Lào zi then caught a second peak during the period of Qing Dynasty  1644 1911 .
Regional          China     Historically knotwork is divided into cords and knots.
Cord  knot and tassels were made separated and combined later.
Usually  these decorations are in red  which traditional Chinese regards it as  luck .
Maedeup articles were first used at religious ceremonies.
Korean knotwork is differentiated from Korean embroidery.
Maedeup is still a commonly practiced traditional art  especially among the older generations.
The most basic knot in Maedeup is called the Dorae or double connection knot.
The Dorae knot is used at the start and end of most knot projects.
There are approximately 33 basic Korean knots which vary according to the region they come from.
More complex knots are then constructed from repeating or combining basic knots.
However  finished knots look identical from both the front and back.
This is because it symbolizes good luck and prosperity.
Chinese law is one of the oldest legal traditions in the world.
However  earlier traditions from Chinese history have retained their influence.
Chinese legal tradition     The word for law in classical Chinese was fǎ  法 .
It also carries the sense of  standard  measurement  and model .
Xíng later evolved to be a general term for laws that related to criminal punishment.
In modern times  xíng denotes penal law or criminal law.
An example of the classical use of xíng is Xíng Bù  刑部  lit.
Under Legalism  law is to be publicly promulgated standards of conduct backed by state coercion.
The idea is that people will internalize the acceptable norms and only take proper actions.
This is not done by dictatorship but by setting an example.
Therefore  a ruler needs not to force his people to behave properly.
This is due to the legalists’ belief that all human beings are born evil and self interested.
It also makes it irrelevant whether the ruler has superior abilities.
Therefore  like Confucianism  Legalism is subject to abuse as well.
For example  books were burned and people holding different ideals were buried alive.
It is true that neither theory is ideal in achieving a social order.
Most legal professionals were not lawyers but generalists trained in philosophy and literature.
For example  li could be enforced by moral influence and legal means.
During the Qing dynasty  criminal justice was based on extremely detailed Great Qing Legal Code.
This often led to the use of torture  in order to extract the necessary confession.
These elements still influence modern Chinese views toward law.
Attitudes toward the traditional Chinese legal system changed markedly in the late 20th century.
Republic of China      Law in the Republic of China  Taiwan  is mainly a civil law system.
A new concept of justice called judicial populism  sifa dazhonghua  was established.
This initial constitution was based on the constitution of the Soviet Union.
It was shortly ignored  however  and became without legal force.
The third constitution of the PRC was adopted in 1978.
It also retained Communist Party control over the state structure.
Legal reconstruction occurred in piece meal fashion.
This Constitution also contains more extensive rights than any of the previous constitutions.
These rights  however  are connected to social duties.
Neither the rights nor duties provided for in the Constitution are exhaustive.
The Constitution states its own supremacy.
More than 800 000 such committees operate   in both rural and urban areas.
Often laws are drafted on a trial basis  with the law being redrafted after several years.
Legal reform became a government priority in the 1990s.
The Chinese government has promoted a reform it often calls  legalisation   法制化 .
The criminal law amendments abolished the crime of  counter revolutionary  activity.
The basic principles of Chinese legislative drafting include generality and flexibility.
However  many regulatory barriers to entry remain to protect the domestic legal industry.
The existence of the rule of law in China has been widely debated.
Strengthening the law  meant reform of legislation and enforcement of laws.
There are differing theories of the rule of law.
One theory is the  thin   or formal  theory of rule of law  and the other is the  thick  theory.
13  Additionally  some believe that China may still fall short of the thin theory of rule of law.
Scholars point to the following defects as slowing movement toward rule of law.
Second  the Chinese Constitution is not treated as the supreme law  nor is it enforced.
Third  the judiciary is not independent from political pressure.
Fourth  there is a high level of corruption among public officials.
Finally  the legal profession is inadequate for lack of qualified attorneys and judges.
Lawyers who refuse to follow the party line may have their license to practice law revoked.
Han Chinese people have had a long history in Japan as a minority.
In 2000  Japanese governmental statistics revealed that there were 335 575 Chinese people in Japan.
Therefore  the numbers of Japanese people who are of Chinese descent is unclear.
Suwa Haruo considered Wa zoku  Wajin  to be part of the Baiyue  百越 .
The Hata clan claimed to be the descendants of Qin Shi Huang.
After fleeing Japan  Mugaku Sogen became an advisor to the then ruler of Japan  Hōjō Tokimune.
During the second Mongol invasion of Japan  many Chinese soldiers landed in Japan.
Many Chinese communities would be established in Japan  especially on the island of Kyushu.
Koxinga is still worshiped as a folk deity  especially in Fujian and Taiwan.
In 1906 alone  more than six thousand Chinese students were in Japan.
Most of them resided in the district of Kanda in Tokyo.
Sun Yat sen established the Yokohama Chinese School in 1898.
The Kobe Chinese School is also oriented towards mainland China.
The Osaka Chinese School is located in Naniwa ku  Osaka.
There is also the Tokyo Chinese School.
Media    The Chūnichi Shinpo  a biweekly paper  is published in Chinese and Japanese.
In addition the Kansai Kabun Jihō  published in Chinese and Japanese  is based in the Osaka area.
I referred to the  many sangokujin who entered Japan illegally.
It s at that time the word was used  so it was not derogatory.
There s no need for an apology.
I was surprised that there was a big reaction to my speech.
In order not to cause any misunderstanding  I decided I will no longer use that word.
It is regrettable that the word was interpreted in the way it was.
Springer US  2005  Part III  pp 680–688.
Chinese Immigrants Chase the Japanese Dream.
Even in modern society  Confucianism is still the creed of etiquette for Chinese society.
See Legitimacy of Chinese philosophy for details.
Early beliefs    Early Shang dynasty thought was based upon cycles.
During the Shang  fate could be manipulated by great deities  commonly translated as gods.
Ancestor worship was present and universally recognized.
There was also human and animal sacrifice.
Before the Han dynasty the largest rivals to Confucianism were Chinese Legalism  and Mohism.
As in Japan  philosophy in China has become a melting pot of ideas.
It accepts new concepts  while attempting also to accord old beliefs their due.
This period is considered the golden age of Chinese philosophy.
Its influence also spread to Korea  Japan  Vietnam and many other Asian countries.
Confucius taught both positive and negative versions of the Golden Rule.
The character Dao 道 literally means  path  or  way .
It advocated nonaction  wu wei   the strength of softness  spontaneity  and relativism.
Shu  術 shù   method  tactic  art  or statecraft.
Its main motto is   Set clear strict laws  or deliver harsh punishment .
Ministers were only to be rewarded if their words were accurate to the results of their proposals.
In its early days  this theory was most strongly associated with the states of Yan and Qi.
The earliest surviving recordings of this are in the Ma Wang Dui texts and Huang Di Nei Jing.
Everyone must love each other equally and impartially to avoid conflict and war.
The moral guide must then promote and encourage social behaviors that maximize general benefit.
Another logician  Gongsun Long  originated the famous When a White Horse is Not a Horse dialogue.
This school did not thrive because the Chinese regarded sophistry and dialectic as impractical.
The most important philosophers of this movement were Wang Bi  Xiang Xiu and Guo Xiang.
At the beginning  it was considered a sort of Taoist sect.
Two chiefly important monk philosophers were Sengzhao and Daosheng.
From then on  Buddhism lost much of its influence.
The most important philosophers of this movement were Wang Bi  Xiang Xiu and Guo Xiang.
The most prominent examples with philosophical merit are Sanlun  Tiantai  Huayan  and Chán  a.k.a.
The School of Mind was developed by Lu Jiuyuan  Zhu Xi s main rival  but was soon forgotten.
This school was particularly important in Japan.
Mao Zedong added Marxism  Stalinism  Chinese Marxist Philosophy and other communist thought.
Moreover  those organizations are heavily monitored.
The influences of the past are still deeply ingrained in the Chinese culture.
Chuang Tzu  said to be the author of the Zhuangzi.
Liezi  said to be the author of the Liezi.
The word Yin originally referred to a hillside facing away from the sun.
The belief that the purpose of philosophy is primarily to serve as an ethical and practical guide.
Feng Youlan  A History of Chinese Philosophy  Princeton Paperbacks   tr.
The term is often used pejoratively to describe the Christian right in the United States.
They are as anathema to true Christians as the Islamists are to true Islam.
Sullivan later expanded on his usage of the term in a Time magazine column.
The bloggers Tristero and David Neiwert used the term shortly after.
Christianity in Japan is among the nation s minority religions.
Between less than 1 percent and 1.5  of the population claims Christian belief or affiliation.
Since the mid 1990s  the majority of Japanese people are of the Shinto or Buddhist faith.
The majority of Japanese couples  typically 60 70   are wed in Christian ceremonies.
This makes Christian weddings the most influential aspect of Christianity in contemporary Japan.
Christmas Eve is celebrated as a couple s holiday on which romantic gifts are exchanged.
Stylistic elements from this genre are employed in many J pop songs.
Presently there are about 509 000 Catholics in 16 dioceses in Japan.
This system is widely known as Hepburn romanization because Hepburn s dictionary popularized it.
Hepburn also contributed to the Protestant translation of the Bible into Japanese.
Hepburn returned to the United States in 1892.
His gospel tract translated into Japanese was among the first Protestant literature in Japan.
In 1865 McCartee moved back to Ningbo  China  but others have followed in his footsteps.
The primate s seat is the Holy Resurrection Cathedral in Chiyoda  Tokyo.
His commemoration day is February 16.
Before 1945 they were banned in Japan.
As of July 2016  there are 128 216 members.
Hideyoshi nonetheless showed favor to daimyō who had converted  such as Konishi Yukinaga.
Clifford worked with missionary the Rev.
Bernard Jean Bettelheim  who was the first Christian missionary to Okinawa.
Among the original twenty six martyrs of Japan  Paulo Miki is the best known.
Catholics venerate him as one of the patron saints of Japan.
His autobiography Why have I become a christian?
After World War II ended  Fuchida became a Christian and an evangelistic preacher.
Fuchida spent the rest of his life telling others what God had done for him around the world.
In February 1954  Reader s Digest published Fuchida s story of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
In 1935 he converted to Orthodox Christianity while serving in China as a diplomat.
Most of the Jews who escaped were refugees from German occupied Poland or residents of Lithuania.
Goto had always stressed that he was not a war correspondent.
He went to Brazil to work in the evangelization of Japanese immigrants living in Brazil.
Soldier of God  MacArthur s Attempt to Christianize Japan.
Japan s Encounter with Christianity  The Catholic Mission in Pre modern Japan.
Bulletin of Portuguese   Japanese Studies  4   63–89.
It does not have a meaning of  of Christ  or  related or pertaining to Christ .
Christians make up the majority of the population in 158 countries and territories.
280 million Christians live as a minority.
About half of all Christians worldwide are Catholic  while more than a third are Protestant  37  .
Orthodox communions comprise 12  of the world s Christians.
Other Christian groups make up the remainder.
By 2050  the Christian population is expected to exceed 3 billion.
The word Xmas uses a similar contraction.
Nazarenes     Another term for Christians which appears in the New Testament is  Nazarenes .
Jesus is named as a Nazarene in Matthew 2 23  while Paul is said to be Nazarene in Acts 24 5.
Denominations and sects disagree on a common definition of  Christianity .
Hebrew terms      The identification of Jesus as the Messiah is not accepted by Judaism.
Asian terms     The most common Persian word is Masīhī  مسیحی   from Arabic.
In Indonesian language  the term  Nasrani  is also used alongside  Kristen .
The Chinese word is 基督徒  pinyin  jīdū tú   literally  Christ follower.
The Thai word คริสต์  khrit  is derived from  Christ.
Christians have composed about 33 percent of the world s population for around 100 years.
By 2050  the Christian population is expected to exceed 3 billion.
High birth rates and conversion were cited as the reason for Christian population growth.
A 2015 study found that approximately 10.2 million Muslims converted to Christianity.
Christianity is growing in Africa  Asia  the Muslim world  and Oceania.
This investigation found that approximately 80  of persecuted believers worldwide are Christians.
See also         References         Bibliography    Etymology  Bickerman  Elias J.
from which page numbers are cited  Wuest  Kenneth Samuel  1973 .
The Chrysanthemum Throne  皇位  kōi   imperial seat   is the throne of the Emperor of Japan.
History     Japan is the oldest continuing hereditary monarchy in the world.
The modern Emperor is a constitutional monarch.
Takamikura     The actual throne Takamikura  高御座  is located in the Kyoto Imperial Palace.
It is the oldest surviving throne used by the monarchy.
The current model was built for the enthronement ceremony of Emperor Taisho in 1912.
It sits on an octagonal dais  5 metres  16 ft  above the floor.
It is separated from the rest of the room by a curtain.
Rhetorical usage    This flexible English term is also a rhetorical trope.
Nihon Odai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
In the social hierarchy  it was considered subordinate to the warrior class.
Social Class    The chōnin emerged in joka machi or castle towns during the sixteenth century.
The majority of chōnin were merchants  but some were craftsmen.
Nōmin  農民   farmers   were not considered chōnin.
Aesthetic ideals such as iki  tsū  and Wabi sabi were also developed among the chōnin.
Including Mie  Chūbu has a population of 23 010 276 as of 1 June 2019.
There is also another subregion occasionally referred to in business circles called Chūkyō.
The area consists of Aichi  Mie  Shizuoka  and southern Gifu prefectures.
A number of small alluvial plains are found in the corridor section.
The corridor also has a number of small but important industrial centers.
Thus  these three prefectures are sometimes called the  Chūkyō region  in a business sense.
The population is chiefly concentrated in six elevated basins connected by narrow valleys.
It was long a main silk producing area  although output declined after World War II.
Niigata Prefecture is the site of domestic gas and oil production as well.
Hokuriku has port facilities which are mainly to facilitate trade with Russia  Korea and China.
Per Japanese census data  and  Chūbu region has had positive population growth until around 2010.
Since 2010  the Chūbu region has experienced negative population growth.
It consists of the prefectures of Hiroshima  Okayama  Shimane  Tottori  and Yamaguchi.
In 2010  it had a population of 7 563 428.
History    Chūgoku literally means  middle country   but the origin of the name is unclear.
The same characters are used in Chinese to refer to China  but pronounced Zhōngguó  lit.
It is similar to the use of the West Country in English for a region of England.
San in   yīn of the mountains   is the northern part facing the Sea of Japan.
San yō   yáng of the mountains   is the southern part facing the Seto Inland Sea.
These names were created using the yīnyáng‐based place‐naming scheme.
In contrast  San in is less industrialized with an agricultural economy.
Kyūshū  Shikoku  and Kansai neighbor the Chūgoku region.
The rest of Chūgoku region is sparsely populated and very rural.
In B. Ichi  Chugoku is referred to as  the land of martial arts .
Films have been produced in Japan since 1897  when the first foreign cameramen arrived.
Lumière cameramen were the first to shoot films in Japan.
The first documentary  the short Geisha no teodori  芸者の手踊り   was made in June 1899.
Early films were influenced by traditional theater – for example  kabuki and bunraku.
Benshi could be accompanied by music like silent films from cinema of the West.
With the advent of sound in the early 1930s  the benshi gradually declined.
Shōzō recruited Matsunosuke Onoe  a former kabuki actor  to star in his productions.
The pair pioneered the jidaigeki genre.
Tokihiko Okada was a popular romantic lead of the same era.
There were parallel efforts elsewhere in the film industry.
The Pure Film Movement was central in the development of the gendaigeki and scriptwriting.
Even Nikkatsu produced reformist films under the direction of Eizō Tanaka.
Directors Kenji Mizoguchi  Daisuke Itō  Shigeyoshi Suzuki  and Tomu Uchida were prominent examples.
It used the Mina Talkie System.
Notable talkies of this period include Mikio Naruse s Wife  Be Like A Rose!
Thus  many films from this period depict patriotic and militaristic themes.
Yoshiko Yamaguchi was a very popular actress.
She rose to international stardom with 22 wartime movies.
After the war she used her official Japanese name and starred in an additional 29 movies.
She was elected as a member of the Japanese parliament in the 1970s and served for 18 years.
Akira Kurosawa made his feature film debut with Sugata Sanshiro in 1943.
The completed film was censored a second time by a CCD  Civil Censorship Detachment .
The censorship was also carried out retroactively to past movie works.
became prohibited items  making the production of historical drama virtually impossible .
In addition  many propaganda films were produced as democratic courtesy works recommended by SCAP.
It gained national popularity as a star symbolizing the beginning of a new era.
Yasujirō Ozu directed the critically and commercially successful Late Spring in 1949.
The Mainichi Film Award was created in 1946.
1950s      The 1950s are widely considered the Golden Age of Japanese cinema.
It was also the breakout role for legendary star Toshiro Mifune.
There was also a black and white version of this film available.
Tokyo File 212  1951  was the first American feature film to be shot entirely in Japan.
The lead roles were played by Florence Marly and Robert Peyton.
It featured the geisha Ichimaru in a short cameo.
Suzuki Ikuzo s Tonichi Enterprises Company co produced the film.
The year 1954 saw two of Japan s most influential films released.
The trilogy was completed in 1961  with A Soldier s Prayer.
He won the Silver Bear at the Venice Film Festival for Ugetsu.
Mizoguchi s films often deal with the tragedies inflicted on women by Japanese society.
The Blue Ribbon Awards were established in 1950.
The first winner for Best Film was Until We Meet Again by Tadashi Imai.
1960s      The number of films produced  and the cinema audience reached a peak in the 1960s.
A typical program picture was shot in four weeks.
The huge level of activity of 1960s Japanese cinema also resulted in many classics.
Akira Kurosawa directed the 1961 classic Yojimbo.
Yasujirō Ozu made his final film  An Autumn Afternoon  in 1962.
1970s     The 1970s saw the cinema audience drop due to the spread of television.
Total audience declined from 1.2 billion in 1960 to 0.2 billion in 1980.
The resulting pink film industry became the stepping stone for many young independent filmmakers.
Toshiya Fujita made the revenge film Lady Snowblood in 1973.
In 1976 the Hochi Film Award was created.
The first winner for Best Film was The Inugamis by Kon Ichikawa.
Controversial for its explicit sexual content  it has never been seen uncensored in Japan.
Kinji Fukasaku completed the epic Battles Without Honor and Humanity series of yakuza films.
Dodes ka den by Akira Kurosawa and Sandakan No.
8 by Kei Kumai were nominated to the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
Seijun Suzuki made a comeback beginning with Zigeunerweisen in 1980.
Shohei Imamura won the Palme d Or at the Cannes Film Festival for The Ballad of Narayama  1983 .
Yoshishige Yoshida made A Promise  1986   his first film since 1973 s Coup d État.
Mamoru Oshii released his landmark Angel s Egg in 1985.
Home video made possible the creation of a direct to video film industry.
The 1990s saw the reversal of this trend and the introduction of the multiplex in Japan.
Kiyoshi Kurosawa gained international recognition following the release of Cure  1997 .
Satoshi Kon directed the award winning psychological thriller Perfect Blue.
Hideaki Anno also gained considerable recognition with The End of Evangelion in 1997.
Movies based on Japanese television series were especially popular during this period.
Takeshi Kitano appeared in Battle Royale and directed and starred in Dolls and Zatoichi.
In 2005  director Seijun Suzuki made his 56th film  Princess Raccoon.
In 2008  Departures won the Academy Award for best foreign language film.
His 2008 film The Sky Crawlers was met with similarly positive international reception.
In February 2000  the Japan Film Commission Promotion Council was established.
The laws were passed on November 30 and came into effect on December 7.
Yakuza films  films about Yakuza mobsters.
Cinema of Actuality  Japanese Avant garde Filmmaking in the Season of Image Politics.
A city  市  shi  is a local administrative unit in Japan.
Like other contemporary administrative units  they are defined by the Local Autonomy Law of 1947.
Many municipalities gained city status under this eased standard.
Tokyo also has several other incorporated cities  towns and villages within its jurisdiction.
By 1945  the number of cities countrywide had increased to 205.
As of October 1 2018  there are 792 cities of Japan.
A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law.
The archaic term  suit in law  is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today.
The defendant is required to respond to the plaintiff s complaint.
A declaratory judgment may be issued to prevent future legal disputes.
The conduct of a lawsuit is called litigation.
The term litigation may also refer to a Criminal procedure.
Litigants are responsible to obtain the suited result and the timing of reaching this result.
This is particularly true in federal systems  where a federal court may be applying state law  e.g.
About 98 percent of civil cases in the United States federal courts are resolved without a trial.
Lawsuits can become additionally complicated as more parties become involved  see joinder .
While online searches are appropriate for many legal situations  they are not appropriate for all.
At the time the defendant files an answer  the defendant also raises all  affirmative  defenses.
The defendant may also assert counterclaims for damages or equitable relief against the plaintiff.
Filing an answer  joins the cause  and moves the case into the pre trial phase.
Many courts have a pro se clerk to assist people without lawyers.
After this occurs  the judge or jury renders their decision.
The prevailing party may appeal  for example  if they wanted a larger award than was granted.
Some lawsuits go up and down the appeals ladder repeatedly before final resolution.
There  a new trial will be held and new information taken into account.
Judgments are typically a monetary award.
A defendant who has no assets in any jurisdiction is said to be  judgment proof.
The term is generally a colloquialism to describe an impecunious defendant.
An example of that distinction survives today in the codified text of the Third Enforcement Act.
Americans also use  claim  to describe a demand filed with an insurer or administrative agency.
If the case ultimately loses  the litigant does not have to pay any of the money funded back.
It can be beneficial in many situations  however also detrimental in others.
Civil law is a legal system originating in mainland Europe and adopted in much of the world.
It holds case law secondary and subordinate to statutory law.
Civil law is often paired with the inquisitorial system  but the terms are not synonymous.
There are key differences between a statute and a code.
Codes explain the principles of law  rights and entitlements  and how basic legal mechanisms work.
Other major legal systems in the world include common law  Islamic law  Halakha  and canon law.
Except for the highest courts  all publication of legal opinions are unofficial or commercial.
Roman law was received differently in different countries.
It became the basis of Scots law  though partly rivaled by received feudal Norman law.
The codification typical of modern civilian systems did not first appear until the Justinian Code.
The use of custumals from influential towns soon became commonplace over large areas.
Those ideals required certainty of law  recorded  uniform law.
So  the mix of Roman law and customary and local law gave way to law codification.
Also  the notion of a nation state implied recorded law that would be applicable to that state.
There was also a reaction to law codification.
Germany  1900   and Switzerland  1912  adopted their own codifications.
The Swiss version was adopted in Brazil  1916  and Turkey  1926 .
Despite their differences  the two systems are quite similar from a historical point of view.
Both evolved in much the same way  though at different paces.
Former colonies include Quebec  Canada  and Louisiana  U.S. .
The Chilean Code is an original work of jurist and legislator Andrés Bello.
Hong Kong  although part of China  uses common law.
The Basic Law of Hong Kong ensures the use and status of common law in Hong Kong.
Some systems of civil law do not fit neatly into this typology  however.
Polish law developed as a mixture of French and German civil law in the 19th century.
Louisiana private law is primarily a Napoleonic system.
In Louisiana  private law was codified into the Louisiana Civil Code.
In fact  any innovation  whether private or public  has been decidedly common law in origin.
By contrast  Quebec private law has innovated mainly from civil sources.
Several Islamic countries have civil law systems that contain elements of Islamic law.
External links    A collection of Roman Law resources maintained by professor Ernest Metzger.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change  IPCC  proposes two  hypothetical future scenarios.
Effects of climate change in Japan    Climate change has affected Japan drastically.
The temperature and rainfall have increased rapidly in the years leading up to 2020.
Similarly  the daily maximum temperature in Japan will increase by 3.1 °C in B1 and 4.4 °C in A1B.
In 2018  Japan established its Strategic Energy Plan  with goals set for 2030.
As of 2020  114 of Japan s 140 coal fired plants are deemed old and inefficient.
As of 2021 construction of overseas coal power still is being funded.
This penalty chargeable regulation is the first in Japan.
The feudal overlord of this territory was at first the Count of Urgell.
In 1095  the lord and the bishop signed a declaration of their co sovereignty over Andorra.
Their daughter  Ermessenda  married Roger Bernat II  the French count of Foix.
Andorra  un profund i llarg viatge  in Catalan .
ISBN 9789992005491.CS1 maint  ref harv  link  Guillamet Anton  J.
Andorra  nova aproximació a la història d Andorra  in Catalan .
ISBN 9788493622046.CS1 maint  ref harv  link       External links    Representació de S.E.
This was mankind s first direct view of the far side.
Additional missions to the Moon continued this exploration phase.
Apollo 16 made the first landing within the rugged lunar highlands.
Instead  focus was turned to the Space Shuttle and crewed missions in near Earth orbit.
1974 saw the end of the Soviet Moonshot  two years after the last American crewed landing.
On June 18  2009  NASA s LCROSS LRO mission to the Moon was launched.
However  existing plans delay the proposed mission to 2028 with a base established in the 2030s.
Initial funding for Open Lunar was US 5 million.
M3 detected absorption features near 2.8–3.0 μm  0.00011–0.00012 in  on the surface of the Moon.
M3 was aimed at providing the first mineral map of the entire lunar surface.
Lunar scientists had discussed the possibility of water repositories for decades.
They are now increasingly  confident that the decades long debate is over  a report says.
The results from the Chandrayaan mission are also  offering a wide array of watery signals.
Within this ejecta  an estimated 100 kg of water was detected.
The energy required to send objects from the Moon to space is much less than from Earth to space.
This could allow the Moon to serve as a source of construction materials within cis lunar space.
Others have proposed momentum exchange tethers  see below .
In addition  the Moon is the closest large body in the Solar System to Earth.
A lunar zenith telescope can be made cheaply with ionic liquid.
Other areas near the poles that get light most of the time could be linked in a power grid.
The Moon is highly depleted in volatile elements  such as nitrogen and hydrogen.
Carbon  which forms volatile oxides  is also depleted.
There had been some disagreement whether the hydrogen must necessarily be in the form of water.
Other volatiles containing carbon and nitrogen were found in the same cold trap as ice.
Volatiles would need to be stringently recycled.
This would limit the colony s rate of growth and keep it dependent on imports.
Transport costs would be reduced by a lunar space elevator if and when one can be constructed.
Lunar rubble can protect living quarters from cosmic rays.
Shielding against solar flares during expeditions outside is more problematic.
This causes a negative charge build up from −200 V to −1000 V. See Magnetic field of the Moon.
It sticks to everything  can damage equipment  and it may be toxic.
Moreover  due to the Moon s uneven surface some sites have nearly continuous sunlight.
This crater is potentially valuable for astronomical observation.
An infrared instrument would benefit from the very low temperatures.
A radio telescope would benefit from being shielded from Earth s broad spectrum radio interference.
The South Pole Aitken basin is located at the lunar south pole.
This is comparable to winter conditions in Earth s Poles of Cold in Siberia and Antarctica.
Several probes have landed in the Oceanus Procellarum area.
Lunar lava tubes      Lunar lava tubes are a potential location for constructing a lunar base.
Lava tubes provide ideal positions for shelter because of their access to nearby resources.
An underground colony would escape the extreme temperatures on the Moon s surface.
The night period  also 354 hours  has an average temperature of about −153 °C  −243 °F .
Structure          Habitat     There have been numerous proposals regarding habitat modules.
Proposals have shifted as these hazards were recognized and taken into consideration.
A more porous insulating material also made in situ could then be applied.
Mining methods such as the room and pillar might also be used.
Inflatable self sealing fabric habitats might then be put in place to retain air.
Eventually an underground city can be constructed.
Farms set up underground would need artificial sunlight.
Printed  lunar soil would provide both  radiation and temperature insulation.
With the help of fission reactors  one could overcome the difficulty of the 354 hour lunar night.
Japan has the RAPID L conceptual design.
Solar energy      Solar energy is a possible source of power for a lunar base.
Many of the raw materials needed for solar panel production can be extracted on site.
A third possibility would be to leave the panels in orbit  and beam the power down as microwaves.
The solar energy converters need not be silicon solar panels.
Fuel cells produce water directly as a waste product.
This makes PEMs more economical to launch from Earth than the shuttle s cells.
PEMs have not yet been proven in space.
Proposed concepts of Earth Moon transportation are Space elevators.
The LRV was an open rover for a crew of two  and a range of 92 km during one lunar day.
Chemical rockets would take a payload from Earth to the L1 lunar Lagrange location.
The overall system efficiency would then drop to 25 .
The situation of the local hydrogen is most open to speculation.
On Earth  the gas bubbles rise and burst  but in a zero gravity environment  that does not happen.
This allows the molecular structure to realign.
This proposal was based on the contemporary estimates of future launch costs of the Space Shuttle.
Cornell News Arecibo radar shows no evidence of thick ice at lunar poles  ... .
How Stuff Works – What if we lived on the moon?
Researchers are ramping up plans for living on the Moon
Most of the women were from occupied countries  including Korea  China  and the Philippines.
However  many women ended up being forced to work in the brothels against their own will.
In some cases propaganda advocated equity and the sponsorship of women in higher education.
Earlier comfort women were Japanese prostitutes who volunteered for such service.
In urban areas  conventional advertising through middlemen was used alongside kidnapping.
These sources soon dried up  especially in metropolitan Japan.
These documents were initially made public at the war crimes trial.
Municipal archives from Shanghai and Nanjing were also examined.
One conclusion reached was that the relevant archives in Korea are distorted.
Lack of official documentation has made estimating the total number of comfort women difficult.
Cumings stated that between 100 000 and 200 000 Korean girls and women were recruited.
Some of the women also volunteered in hopes protecting the younger ones.
The number of Dutch women that were sexually assaulted or molested were also largely ignored.
Common destinations of comfort women from Java included Burma  Thailand  and Eastern Indonesia.
Not just Japanese men  but all men even my own husband who saved me from the brothel.
I shiver whenever I see a Japanese flag...Why should I feel ashamed?
They were systematically beaten and raped day and night.
In the “comfort station” I was systematically beaten and raped day and night.
He quotes from the diary of Gordon Thomas  a POW in Rabaul.
Nelson also quotes from Kentaro Igusa  a Japanese naval surgeon who was stationed in Rabaul.
Eventually  61 former Korean comfort women accepted 5 million yen  approx.
We should never forget our feelings of remorse over this.
He apologized again the following day in a speech before South Korea s National Assembly.
On March 27 the Japanese parliament issued an official apology.
The Obama Administration also addressed the need for Japan to do more to address the issue.
There is a nursing home  called House of Sharing  for former comfort women in South Korea.
For other nations  the research and the interaction with victims is less advanced.
It is a museum that exhibits photographs and various items related to comfort women in China.
By reason of this  it has become difficult to shift the site or demolish the statue.
House of Sharing       The House of Sharing is a nursing home for living comfort women.
These groups have taken legal actions against Japan.
This second book was written in the 1990s  after Lila Filipina was formed.
The Bahay na Pula is seen as a memorial to the forgotten Filipino comfort women in the Philippines.
Their testimony and memories have been documented by newspapers  books  and documentary films.
The statue symbolizes women forced to work in wartime brothels for the Japanese military.
The statue has been subject to multiple legal attempts to remove it.
On May 23  2018  a comfort women memorial was installed in Constitution Park in Fort Lee  NJ.
The statue was a replica of the bronze statue installed in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul.
Australia     A comfort women statue was unveiled in Sydney in August 2016.
Reverend Bill Crews then agreed to install the statue outside his church  Ashfield Uniting Church.
He said  It s finally found a home.
See also         References          Bibliography     United NationsMcDougall  Gay J.
JSTOR 40003395.News articles Canada MPs demand Japan apologize to WWII  comfort women  .
Foreign Ministry Staff say  South Korea is doing a criminal conviction .
None of them was forcibly recruited.
Diary of a Japanese Military Comfort Station  Brothel  Manager  excerpt in English .
Comparative Connections  A Quarterly e Journal on East Asian Bilateral Relations.
Comfort Women  Were they teen rape slaves or paid pros? .
Japan s Comfort Women  Theirs and Ours  Book review  Japan Policy Research Institute Critique 9 2.
The holiday was first established in 1948  to be held every year on January 15.
This was the first time it has declined below the 50  threshold.
The ceremonies are generally held in the morning at local city offices throughout Japan.
There are some special cases such as the ceremony having been held at Tokyo Disneyland since 2002.
Citizens were initially asked to take place in the ceremony held after the 20th birthday.
See Amateur radio call signs of Japan.
As of December 2017  the smaller company has been managed by CEO Koji Furukawa.
The simple Japanese postal mark  predating mass literacy in the nation  is still used to this day.
Widespread adoption of movable type took place as Japanese society modernized.
Five such dailies got started early in the Meiji period  taking place from 1868 to 1912.
Its first issue ran 22 June of that year.
Television broadcasting began in 1953  and color television was introduced in 1960.
Cable television was introduced in 1969.
In 1978 an experimental broadcast satellite with two color television channels was launched.
Operational satellites for television use were launched between 1984 and 1990.
See also     Economy of Japan Economic history of Japan Telecommunications      References
It involves one company trying to figure out how to take away market share from another company.
In the short run the firm adjusts its quantity produced according to prices and costs.
In a perfectly competitive market  firms producers earn zero economic profit in the long run.
Monopolies can form through both fair and unfair business tactics.
These tactics include  collusion  mergers  acquisitions  and hostile takeovers.
Oligopoly     Oligopolies are another form of imperfect competition market structures.
Similar factors that allow monopolies to exist also facilitate the formation of oligopolies.
In the long run  demand is highly elastic  meaning that it is sensitive to price changes.
In the short run  economic profit is positive  but it approaches zero in the long run.
Examples of monopolistic competition include  restaurants  hair salons  clothing  and electronics.
Dominant firms have a market share of 50  to over 90   with no close rival.
At this equilibrium price  the quantity supplied is equal to the quantity demanded.
The Australian economy thrives on competition as it keeps the prices in check.
Appearance in real markets    Real markets are never perfect.
This can result in large price variations for a property at one location.
International competition also differentially affects sectors of national economies.
Examples include cartelization and evergreening.
Simultaneously  domestic anti inflationary measures  e.g.
In 1984  the manufacturing sector faced import penetration rates of 25 .
The  super dollar  resulted in unusually high imports of manufactured goods at suppressed prices.
The Act s underlying goal was to bolster America s ability to compete in the world marketplace.
Recently  countries are increasingly looking at their competition on global markets.
High level support provides credibility with the appropriate actors in the private sector.
In general  they do not claim that this model is representative of the real world.
CEPEA and East Asia Free Trade Area  EAFTA  could be examined and considered in parallel.
The Chairman s Statement of the 16th ASEAN Summit  9 April 2010  stated   30.
The 10 members ASEAN have established the ASEAN Free Trade Area.
Australia and New Zealand have the long established Closer Economic Relations.
Between the 16 members bilateral and multilateral arrangements are in place or under negotiation.
India has formally signed the Trade in Services   Trade in Investments Agreement with ASEAN.
Nine out of ten ASEAN countries have signed the same.
The abolition of the examination system in 1905 marked the end of official Confucianism.
Confucianism focuses on the practical order that is given by a this worldly awareness of the Tiān.
Some of the basic Confucian ethical concepts and practices include rén  yì  and lǐ  and zhì.
It is the virtue form of Heaven.
Yì  义  義  is the upholding of righteousness and the moral disposition to do good.
The character rú in ancient China had diverse meanings.
Some examples include  to tame    to mould    to educate    to refine .
Classic of Poetry or Book of Songs is the earliest anthology of Chinese poems and songs.
The documents show the sagacity  filial piety  and work ethic of Yao  Shun  and Yu.
They established a political culture which was based on responsibility and trust.
Their virtue formed a covenant of social harmony which did not depend on punishment or coercion.
Book of Rites describes the social forms  administration  and ceremonial rites of the Zhou Dynasty.
The four functional occupations are cooperative  farmer  scholar  artisan  merchant .
Creation is therefore a continuous ordering  it is not a creation ex nihilo.
In 17.19 Confucius says that Tian spoke to him  though not in words.
Tian may also be compared to the Brahman of Hindu and Vedic traditions.
Yet there are four seasons going round and there are the hundred things coming into being.
Confucius himself was a ritual and sacrificial master.
They may be practiced by all the members of a society.
It is exemplified by a normal adult s protective feelings for children.
Another meaning of rén is  not to do to others as you would not wish done to yourself.
Confucius also said   rén is not far off  he who seeks it has already found it.
Rén is close to man and never leaves him.
Li also means religious rites which establish relations between humanity and the gods.
This practice is defined as  centring   央 yāng or 中 zhōng .
Confucius envisioned proper government being guided by the principles of li.
Some Confucians proposed that all human beings may pursue perfection by learning and practising li.
In addition  loyalty does not mean subservience to authority.
This is because reciprocity is demanded from the superior as well.
Moreover  Mencius indicated that if the ruler is incompetent  he should be replaced.
If the ruler is evil  then the people have the right to overthrow him.
A good Confucian is also expected to remonstrate with his superiors when necessary.
Like filial piety  loyalty was often subverted by the autocratic regimes in China.
Many of these Confucians suffered and sometimes died because of their conviction and action.
One of the most famous collections of such stories is  The Twenty four Filial Exemplars .
These stories depict how children exercised their filial piety in the past.
Baker calls respect for the family the only element common to almost all Chinese believers.
Legge  Particular duties arise from one s particular situation in relation to others.
This theme of mutuality still exists in East Asian cultures even to this day.
Specific duties were prescribed to each of the participants in these sets of relationships.
Such duties are also extended to the dead  where the living stand as sons to their deceased family.
In the I Ching it is used by the Duke of Wen.
Confucius created the model of junzi  gentleman  which may be achieved by any individual.
Later  Zhu Xi defined junzi as second only to the sage.
Despite its literal meaning  any righteous man willing to improve himself may become a junzi.
The junzi enforces his rule over his subjects by acting virtuously himself.
It is thought that his pure virtue would lead others to follow his example.
He gave an explanation of zhengming to one of his disciples.
What will you consider the first thing to be done?
The Master replied   What is necessary to rectify names.
Why must there be such rectification?
The Master said   How uncultivated you are  Yu!
If names be not correct  language is not in accordance with the truth of things.
If language be not in accordance with the truth of things  affairs cannot be carried on to success.
When affairs cannot be carried on to success  proprieties and music do not flourish.
When proprieties and music do not flourish  punishments will not be properly awarded.
When punishments are not properly awarded  the people do not know how to move hand or foot.
What the superior man requires is just that in his words there may be nothing incorrect.
The traditions of the 九野   Nine Fields   and of the Yijing flourished.
Confucius  551–479 BCE  appeared in this period of political decadence and spiritual questioning.
Confucius saw an opportunity to reinforce values of compassion and tradition into society.
Confucius conceived these qualities as the foundation needed to restore socio political harmony.
The emperors of China were considered agents of Heaven  endowed with the Mandate of Heaven.
Meritocracy     In teaching  there should be no distinction of classes.
The Chinese imperial examination system started in the Sui dynasty.
The practice of meritocracy still exists across China and East Asia today.
The New Life Movement in the early 20th century was also influenced by Confucianism.
This did not exclude martial arts culture.
In South Korea  there has long been criticism.
Some South Koreans believe Confucianism has not contributed to the modernisation of South Korea.
In the later dynasties  more emphasis was placed on the virtue of chastity.
Chaste widows were revered and memorialised during the Ming and Qing periods.
Finally  scholars have discussed the attitudes toward women in Confucian texts such as Analects.
However  she does present education and literary power as important for women.
Scholars recognise that classification ultimately depends on how one defines religion.
Constitution Memorial Day  憲法記念日  Kenpō Kinenbi  is a national holiday in Japan.
It takes place on May 3 in celebration of the enactment of the 1947 Constitution of Japan.
It is a part of the collection of holidays known as Golden Week.
Celebration    Constitution Memorial Day is a time to reminisce the events of Japan s history.
The National Diet opens to the public on 3 May every year  for tours of the building.
Constitution Memorial Day in Japan is a part of Golden Week.
It is a heavily amended version of the Meiji Constitution and came into effect on 3 May 1947.
Japanese scholars reviewed and modified it before adoption.
The Japanese constitution is the oldest unamended constitution in the world.
It has not had any amendments to its text in more than 70 years.
The Post war Constitution has been in force since 3 May 1947.
Instead  they wished to encourage Japan s new leaders to initiate democratic reforms on their own.
MacArthur rejected them outright and ordered his staff to draft a completely new document.
The Constitution was mostly drafted by American authors.
A few Japanese scholars reviewed and modified it.
On 6 March 1946  the government publicly disclosed an outline of the pending Constitution.
Both chambers had made amendments.
The house also amended Article 9.
It became law when it received the Emperor s assent on 3 November 1946.
Under its own terms  the constitution came into effect on 3 May 1947.
The MacArthur draft did not attempt to impose a United States style presidential or federal system.
One was the extreme difficulty of amending it.
Even for members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party  LDP   the constitution was advantageous.
Supreme Law  Articles 97–99  XI.
The text of the constitution also asserts the liberal doctrine of fundamental human rights.
Sovereignty rests with the people  not the Emperor  as it did under the Meiji Constitution.
The budget for the maintenance of the Imperial House is managed by resolution of the Diet.
Such freedoms are delineated in the post war constitution without qualification.
Prohibition of peerage  Article 14 forbids the state from recognising peerage.
Honours may be conferred but they must not be hereditary or grant special privileges.
It guarantees universal adult  in Japan  persons age 20 and older  suffrage and the secret ballot.
Involuntary servitude is permitted only as punishment for a crime.
Workers have the right to participate in a trade union  Article 28 .
The state may take property for public use if it pays just compensation  Article 29 .
The state also has the right to levy taxes  Article 30 .
Article 34 guarantees habeas corpus  right to counsel  and right to be informed of charges.
Article 40 enshrines the right to sue the state for wrongful detention.
Thus  in practice  the Prime Minister is the leader of the majority party of the Lower House.
Article 99 binds the Emperor and public officials to observe the constitution.
This transitional period took place from 3 November 1946  to 3 May 1947.
The Emperor promulgates the successful amendment in the name of the people  and cannot veto it.
More broadly  fundamental norms written in the Constitution by constituent power cannot be amended.
History     The Constitution has not been amended since its enactment in 1946.
The debate has been highly polarised.
to allow for direct election of the prime minister.
The proposed changes included   New wording for the Preamble.
First paragraph of Article 9  renouncing war  is retained.
Changes Article 89 to permit corresponding state funding of religious institutions.
However  there was in 2005 no legislation in place for such a referendum.
Koizumi s successor Shinzō Abe vowed to push aggressively for Constitutional revision.
The draft defines him as  the head of the State   Article 1 .
The draft defines Nisshōki as the national flag and Kimigayo the national anthem  Article 3 .
The reason for this change is not presented in the booklet.
The LDP draft adds six more  The people must respect the national anthem and flag  Article 3 .
The people must comply with the public interest and public order  Article 12 .
The people must help one another among the members of a household  Article 24 .
The reason for this change is not presented in the booklet.
Liberal Democratic Party s Center to Promote Enactment of a New Constitution website  in Japanese .
Nihon koku Kenpou Kaisei Souan  Amendment Draft of the Constitution of Japan.
Nihon koku Kenpou Kaisei Souan Q   A.
In executive monarchies  the monarch wields significant  though not absolute  power.
The monarchy under this system of government is a powerful political  and social  institution.
For example  in Liechtenstein and Monaco  the ruling monarchs wield significant executive power.
However  they are not absolute monarchs  and these countries are generally reckoned as democracies.
Following the Unification of Germany  Otto von Bismarck rejected the British model.
This eventually discredited the Italian monarchy and led to its abolition in 1946.
Fraser and his government were returned with a massive majority.
Bhumibol reigned through several political changes in the Thai government.
See Bhumibol s role in Thai Politics.
It carries strict criminal penalties for violators.
Generally  the Thai people were reverent of Bhumibol.
There are currently 43 monarchies worldwide.
Kingdom of Bulgaria until 1946 when Tsar Simeon was deposed by the communist assembly.
Greece until 1973 when Constantine II was deposed by the military government.
The decision was formalized by a plebiscite December 8  1974.
This constitutional form of government continued until the monarchy was overthrown in an 1893 coup.
This attempt to create a European style monarchy lasted three years  from 1864 to 1867.
Montenegro until 1918 when it merged with Serbia and other areas to form Yugoslavia.
The Kingdom of Afghanistan was a constitutional monarchy under Mohammad Zahir Shah until 1973.
The King was elected  and had the duty of maintaining the people s rights.
Republic Day is celebrated every year on 24 September.
Andorra  Monaco and Liechtenstein are the only countries with reigning princes.
Japan is the only country remaining with an emperor.
Luxembourg is the only country remaining with a grand duke.
These ideas were put into effect successfully in the cotton mills of New Lanark  Scotland.
It was here that the first co operative store was opened.
Dr William King made Owen s ideas more workable and practical.
The Rochdale Pioneers established the ‘Rochdale Principles’ on which they ran their cooperative.
This became the basis for the development and growth of the modern cooperative movement.
By 1872  it had become known as the Co operative Wholesale Society  CWS .
Most consumer cooperatives have a board of directors elected by and from the membership.
Most consumer cooperatives hold regular membership meetings  often once a year .
In smaller businesses the consumer owners are often workers as well.
This is one critique of consumer cooperatives in favor of worker cooperatives.
In Ireland  the Dublin Food Coop has been in operation since 1983.
As a worker consumer hybrid  part of the personnel are hired workers and part are owner workers.
The owners include workers and mere consumers  but buying is open to everybody.
It has franchises under the brand Aliprox not owned by Eroski but sharing its product range.
Its origin is in the Basque Country.
It has expanded across Spain and entered France and Gibraltar.
After the Spanish crisis of 2008  Eroski has sold several of its supermarkets and hypermarkets.
Australia     The Co op Bookshop sold textbooks both online and on university campuses.
It also owned Australian Geographic.
The bank is wholly owned by its customers  reported at 125 000 in 2012.
They depend on consumers movement  feminism  regionalism  and prefer to anti nuclear.
These parties keep small but steady sections in prefecture and municipal assemblies.
The National Cooperative Grocers Association maintains a food cooperative directory.
All credit unions in the United States and Canada are financial cooperatives.
See also    Food cooperative  a supermarket owned and operated by its consumers.
This policy had two main objectives   To suppress the spread of Christianity.
By the early 17th century  Catholicism had spread throughout the world.
Tokugawa feared that trade with western powers would cause further instability in the nation.
Thus  the isolation policy expelled foreigners and did not allow international travel.
By the early 19th century  this policy of isolation was increasingly under challenge.
Perry arrived with four warships at Uraga  at the mouth of Edo Bay on July 8  1853.
Attempting to legitimize any decision taken  Abe polled all of the daimyō for their opinions.
Negotiations began on March 8 and proceeded for around one month.
Each party shared a performance when Perry arrived.
The Americans had a technology demonstration  and the Japanese had a sumo wrestling show.
The treaty was ratified on February 21  1855.
On the other hand  the Japanese were forced into this trade  and many saw it as a sign of weakness.
Internally  the treaty had far reaching consequences.
External links    The Convention of Kanagawa  1854  full text  Kitahara  Michio.
They received offers from other human partners and from a computer partner.
Among other animals    Cooperation is common in non human animals.
This phenomenon is known as kin discrimination.
The phenomenon is generally known as  emergence  and is considered an outcome of self organization.
Examples   The components in a cell work together to keep it living.
People form families  tribes  cities and nations.
Structures responsible for social interaction have been identified in the brain.
Rheingold.com  The Cooperation Project  Objectives  Accomplishments  and Proposals.
It is effectively a successor to Greenwich Mean Time  GMT .
The coordination of time and frequency transmissions around the world began on 1 January 1960.
This change also adopted leap seconds to simplify future adjustments.
See the  Current number of leap seconds  section for the number of leap seconds inserted to date.
Etymology    The official abbreviation for Coordinated Universal Time is UTC.
UTC is used in many Internet and World Wide Web standards.
For sub microsecond precision  clients can obtain the time from satellite signals.
UTC is also the time standard used in aviation  e.g.
The International Space Station also uses UTC as a time standard.
Mechanism    UTC divides time into days  hours  minutes and seconds.
Each day contains 24 hours and each hour contains 60 minutes.
Thus  in the UTC time scale  the second and all smaller time units  millisecond  microsecond  etc.
are of constant duration  but the minute and all larger time units  hour  day  week  etc.
The extra second is called a leap second.
The irregular day lengths mean that fractional Julian days do not work properly with UTC.
These discontinuities take the form of leap seconds implemented by a UTC day of irregular length.
As with TAI  UTC is only known with the highest precision in retrospect.
Such approximations are designated UTC k   where k is an abbreviation for the time laboratory.
See the article on International Atomic Time for details.
TAI is also commonly used by systems that cannot handle leap seconds.
Since the NATO phonetic alphabet word for Z is  Zulu   UTC is sometimes known as  Zulu time .
This is especially true in aviation  where  Zulu  is the universal standard.
He referred to the resulting system as Cosmic Time.
This agreed with civil Greenwich Mean Time  GMT   used on the island of Great Britain since 1847.
Until the 1950s  broadcast time signals were based on UT  and hence on the rotation of the Earth.
In 1955  the caesium atomic clock was invented.
The jumps increased in size to 0.1 second.
The length of second so defined was practically equal to the second of ephemeris time.
This was the frequency that had been provisionally used in TAI since 1958.
Thus it would be necessary to rely on time steps alone to maintain the approximation of UT.
At the same time  the tick rate of UTC was changed to exactly match TAI.
UTC also started to track UT1 rather than UT2.
Current number of leap seconds     The first leap second occurred on 30 June 1972.
As a result  the SI second is close to 1 86400 of a mean solar day in the mid‑19th century.
This rate fluctuates within the range of 1.7–2.3 ms cy.
Leap seconds are timed to keep DUT1 within the vertical range depicted by this graph.
The long term rate of change of LOD is approximately  1.7 ms per century.
This is the only request I want to make.
Hideyoshi chose powerful daimyō to prevent authority being concentrated on a single daimyō.
One of the reason was the absence of a Toritsugi  Japanese  取次 .
Toritsugi acted as mediators that went between the daimyō to help with the communication of orders.
Hideyoshi expected the daimyō under his control to govern their lands and serve military services.
The rules of Hideyoshi s house shall not be altered.
There were to be no factions among them.
Personal considerations and partiality of every kind were to be excluded from their counsel.
In settling matters the opinion of the majority was usually to be followed.
In that case another meeting might be called.
It goes without saying that all accounts had to be kept in a manner that was above suspicion.
There were to be no irregularities and no pressing of personal interests in this line.
This vow is known in Japanese as Kishomon  Japanese  起證文 .
They both called the five commissioners Go bugyoshu  Japanese  御奉行衆 .
Among the Five Elders  Ieyasu held the most power measured in koku.
This action demonstrated the power that Hideyoshi had over Ieyasu.
He was a military commander and feudal lord during Azuchi Momoyama period.
He was banished to Hachijō Island after the Battle of Sekigahara.
Japanese  慶弔の役 keicho no eki .
He became one of the Five Elders at the age of 53.
He was the primary lord of the feudal domain of Yonesawa.
He was elected to be a part of five elders at the age of 43.
He was a descendant of the feudal lord of the Choshu domain.
He became one of the Five Elders at the age of 46.
Terumoto fought against Hideyoshi before the latter s rise to power  but lacked enough supporters.
Takakage handed over rule of the family to Hidetoshi  Hideaki  and retired  moved to Mihara.
Takakage refurbished Najima Castle  Japanese  名島城 Najima Jō  and made it his own residence.
Kobayakawa died on June 12  1597 at the age of 65.
After his death his nephew  Mōri Terumoto  took his place on the council of Five Elders.
Ukita Hideie was to be counted on as a loyal member of Hideyori s service.
The Elders were to deal with the administering of punishment to any person who broke the law.
Ieyasu married his son Tadateru to the Date Masamune s daughter Irohahime.
The Commissioners called for Ieyasu s resignation on the grounds of these marriages.
One of the retainers  Ishida Mitsunari  complained about this matter to Maeda Toshiie.
One year after Maeda Toshiie died  Ieyasu saw his chance to take control.
The death of Maeda Toshiie in 1599 made Ieyasu the most experienced of the Five Elders.
Following the battle  in 1603  Ieyasu became Shōgun while Hideyori was declared naidaijin.
Tokugawa Ieyasu rose to power while originally working in the name of Toyotomi Hideyori.
This topic is briefly mentioned in Gunshi Kanbei and Tenchijin  and more in detail in Sanadamaru.
Government responses to terrorism  in some cases  generate substantial unintended consequences.
The central activities are traditional  interception of communications and the tracing of persons.
New technology has  however  expanded the range of military and law enforcement operations.
Mass surveillance of an entire population raises objections on civil liberties grounds.
Financial tracking can play a role  as an communications intercept.
However  both of these approaches need to be balanced against legitimate expectations of privacy.
This act had been allowed to expire in 1953.
From 1974 to 1989  the temporary provisions of the act were renewed annually.
It received royal assent and went into force on December 13  2001.
However  under the terms of the Human Rights Act 1998  it remained in force.
Search and seizure is governed by the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
External or international use of lethal force would require a Presidential finding.
AustraliaAustralia has passed several anti terrorism acts.
In 2004  a bill comprising three acts Anti terrorism Act  2004   No 2  and  No 3  was passed.
Then Attorney General  Philip Ruddock  introduced the Anti terrorism bill  2004 on March 31.
The Australian Anti Terrorism Act 2005 supplemented the powers of the earlier acts.
The Australian Anti Terrorism Act of 2005 included a  shoot to kill  clause.
The law also regulates legal efforts against terrorism.
Any successful strategy for dealing with terrorism requires terrorists to be isolated.
Preemptive neutralization     Some countries see preemptive attacks as a legitimate strategy.
These methods are not tolerated by European powers.
Such activities empower citizens  providing  freedom from fear  and  freedom from want .
Foreign internal defense programs provide outside expert assistance to a threatened government.
FID can involve both non military and military aspects of counter terrorism.
That was the primary stated justification for the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan.
It was also a stated justification for the second Russian invasion of Chechnya.
Preparation    Police  fire  and emergency medical response organizations have prominent roles.
However  the police may deal with threats of such attacks.
Scottish stations removed theirs after the 7 July 2005 London Bombings as a precautionary measure.
The technique was apparently used on a limited scale by British authorities in the 1940s.
The idea has been suggested more recently as a deterrent to suicide bombings in Israel.
However  the actual effectiveness of this tactic is probably limited.
Bringing in such units will typically involve civil or military authority beyond the local level.
Such units perform both in preventive actions  hostage rescue  and responding to on going attacks.
Countries of all sizes can have highly trained counter terrorist teams.
Tactics  techniques  and procedures for manhunting are under constant development.
Most of these measures deal with terrorist attacks that affect an area or threaten to do so.
In some countries  the military may be called in as a last resort.
Designing such a system of systems comprises a major technological project.
A particular design problem for this system is that it will face many uncertainties in the future.
These include the Border Patrol  the Secret Service  the Coast Guard and the FBI.
Local agencies began to establish more patterned lines of communication with federal agencies.
is usually to assess total financial costs against clearance rates or arrest rates.
James Mitchell   Identifying Potential Terrorist Targets  a study in the use of convergence.
All ASCII ccTLD identifiers are two letters long  and all two letter top level domains are ccTLDs.
Country code extension applications began in 1985.
There are 312 ccTLDs in active use totally.
The .cn  .tk  .de and .uk ccTLDs contain the highest number of domains.
The current delegation can be determined from IANA s list of ccTLDs.
Individual ccTLDs may have varying requirements and fees for registering subdomains.
History    The first registered ccTLD was .no  which was registered in 1983.
However  some of these are effectively unused.
Sites in the United Kingdom generally use uk  see below .
The former .um ccTLD for the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands was removed in April 2008.
Some of these codes were specified in older versions of the ISO list.
uk  United Kingdom   The ISO 3166 1 code for the United Kingdom is GB.
The decision was later reversed  with Ascension Island now the sole outlier.
Only EU currently meets this criterion.
Since 7 April 2006  registration is open to all in the European Economic Area.
Historical ccTLDs     ccTLDs may be removed if that country ceases to exist.
Other ccTLDs corresponding to obsolete ISO 3166 1 codes have not yet been deleted.
Between Cyrillic and Greek alphabets  for example  this could happen.
Some ccTLDs may also be used for typosquatting.
In 2015  Japan had one of the lowest murder rates in the world  but higher than Singapore.
Their number have since swelled and shrunk  often coinciding with economic conditions.
The yakuza tradition also spread to the Okinawa Island in the 20th century.
Statistics    In 1989 Japan experienced 1.3 robberies and 1.1 murders per 100 000 population.
This number decreased to less than one third by 2017 with 915 042 crimes being recorded.
Crimes    Of particular concern to the police are crimes associated with modernization.
Traffic accidents and fatalities consume substantial law enforcement resources.
Russian car theft gangs have also been known to target the nation.
They are raped in brothels and other locations and experience physical and psychological trauma.
Information is presented as well in Latin as in Asian script.
Until 2011 CrossAsia was member of the interdisciplinary portal vascoda.
Specialist browsing and search through filter options is possible.
The user is in many cases guided directly from the bibliographic record to the fulltext.
Buried properties and conservation techniques are also protected.
Owners are therefore given subsidies to install fire and other disaster prevention systems.
There were a further 12 251 designations at prefectural and 49 793 at municipal level.
There were a further 6 195 designations at prefectural and 24 598 at municipal level.
They can be terraced rice fields  mountain villages  waterways and the like.
Additional support is given in the form of preferential tax treatment.
The protective measures taken include restrictions on their excavation.
The object is then investigated to determine if it qualifies as a Cultural Property.
Any Cultural Property whose owner is not known becomes as a rule property of the prefecture.
There is no equivalent system for Intangible Folk Cultural Properties.
As of 1 February 2012  there were 21 registered properties.
As of 1 February 2012  61 monuments were registered under this system.
It is estimated that nearly 18 000 temples closed during this time.
Applications for financial support were to be made to the Ministry of Internal Affairs  art.
1   and the responsibility for restoration or preservation lay in the hand of local officials  art.
Restoration works were financed directly from the national coffers  art.
The restoration of Tōdai ji s Daibutsuden from 1906 to 1913 was carried out under these laws.
Most of these were religious buildings erected from the 7th to the early 17th century.
About 500 buildings had been extensively restored with 90  of costs paid from the national budget.
Restorations during the Meiji period often employed new materials and techniques.
It provided for a simpler designation procedure and a temporary protection including export.
206 designated buildings  including Hiroshima Castle  were destroyed from May to August 1945.
Even by international standards  the 1950 law covered a broad spectrum of properties.
Some of them have been again designated as National Treasures since June 9  1951.
Around the same time  concepts for conserving the built environment were developed.
At the same time was established the Council for the Protection of Cultural Properties.
In 1999 the protective authority was transferred to prefectures and designated cities.
Blackwell Companions to Social and Cultural Anthropology  illustrated ed. .
Hozon  architectural and urban conservation in Japan  illustrated ed. .
Rutgers series on the public life of the arts  illustrated ed. .
This was subsequently discontinued with the announcement of Culture Day in 1948.
Between 1965 and 1996  there were only three years with rain occurring in Tokyo on Culture Day.
Since the Meiji period Japan has been primarily influenced by western countries.
Language     Japanese is the national and primary language of Japan.
Japanese has a lexically distinct pitch accent system.
The earliest attestation of the Japanese language is in a Chinese document from 256 AD.
Japanese is written with a combination of three scripts  kanji  hiragana and katakana.
Shinto      Shinto is an ethnic religion focusing on ceremonies and rituals.
Humans can also be considered to possess a kami.
One of the goals of Shinto is to maintain a connection between humans  nature  and kami.
It arrived in Japan during the 6th century CE  where it was initially unpopular.
Chinese papermaking was introduced to Japan around the 7th century.
Later  washi was developed from it.
Ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arrangement.
Kimono come in a variety of colors  styles  and sizes.
The happi coat is another form of traditional clothing.
The oldest sculpture in Japan is a wooden statue of Amitābha at the Zenkō ji temple.
In the Nara period  Buddhist statues were made by the national government to boost its prestige.
Bronze and other metals are generally not used.
Recent attempts to reintroduce actresses in kabuki had not been well accepted.
The origin of bunraku  however is older  lies back in the Heian period.
Judo was developed by Kanō Jigorō  who studied some sects of jujutsu.
These sports are still widely practiced in present day Japan and other countries.
These sports are commonly practiced in schools  along with traditional martial arts.
Baseball  soccer  football  and ping pong are the most popular sports in Japan.
Japan also co hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
Dishes such as sushi  tempura  noodles  and teriyaki are some of the foods that are commonly known.
The healthy Japanese diet is often believed to be related to the longevity of Japanese people.
A wide variety of types of popular entertainment are available.
Minamitorishima is Japan s easternmost island.
Thus Japan is the land where the sun rises before the Asian continent.
The kanji 日本 that make up the name of Japan literally mean  sun origin .
It is pronounced as Nihon or Nippon in Japanese.
So it is often called by the epithet  Land of the Rising Sun .
The Nisshōki  日章旗   lit.  the  sun rise flag   is the national flag of Japan.
It symbolizes the rising sun and corresponds with the name of Japan.
The earliest accounts of the rising sun flag is in the 7th century CE.
Similarly  the Japan Self Defense Forces have flags that symbolize the sun.
She is seen as the goddess of the Sun and the universe in Shinto religion.
The emperor is  the symbol of the State and of the unity of the people.
Emperor Jimmu  神武天皇  Jinmu tennō   is the national founder of Japan.
The national animals are the Green pheasant  Koi fish and the Great purple emperor butterfly.
Japan s de facto national dish is sushi  Japanese curry and ramen.
The de facto national liquor is sake.Mount Fuji  富士山  Fujisan  is the national mountain of Japan.
It is one of Japan s  Three Holy Mountains   三霊山  Sanreizan  along with Mount Tate and Mount Haku.
It is also a Special Place of Scenic Beauty and one of Japan s Historic Sites.
The summit is considered a sacred place since ancient times.
It functions primarily as a kind of shorthand script or calligraphic style.
Thus  the name of this script is literally  rough script  or  sloppy script .
Cursive script forms of Chinese characters are also the origin of the Japanese hiragana script.
This term was later applied to hiragana  as well.
In contrast  kanji themselves were referred to as men’s script  男手  otokode .
It is a unitary parliamentary republic.
The Protestant Bohemian Revolt led to the Thirty Years  War.
After the Battle of the White Mountain  the Habsburgs consolidated their rule.
After the Munich Agreement in 1938  Nazi Germany systematically took control over the Czech lands.
The Czech Republic is a member of NATO  EU  OECD  OSCE and CoE.
The Czech Republic is a developed country with an advanced  high income social market economy.
It ranks as the 8th safest and most peaceful country and 32nd in democratic governance.
The highest point in the country  Sněžka at 1 603 m  5 259 ft   is located here.
Moravia  the eastern part of the country  is also hilly.
The territory reverts to Germany in 2028.
Another factor is the distribution of the mountains.
The coldest month is usually January  followed by February and December.
During these months  there is snow in the mountains and sometimes in the cities and lowlands.
The warmest month of the year is July  followed by August and June.
On average  summer temperatures are about 20–30 °C  36–54 °F  higher than during winter.
Summer is also characterized by rain and storms.
Autumn generally begins in September  which is still warm and dry.
By the end of November  temperatures usually range around the freezing point.
The Boii founded an oppidum near the site of modern Prague.
The leaders of the Bohemian Revolt were executed in 1621.
The Habsburgs prohibited all Christian confessions other than Catholicism.
The flowering of Baroque culture shows the ambiguity of this historical period.
Ottoman Turks and Tatars invaded Moravia in 1663.
In 1679–1680 the Czech lands faced the Great Plague of Vienna and an uprising of serfs.
There were peasant uprisings influenced by famine.
Serfdom was abolished between 1781 and 1848.
Several battles of the Napoleonic Wars took place on the current territory of the Czech Republic.
Bohemian lands became part of the Austrian Empire.
The Bohemian Crown lands became part of the so called Cisleithania.
The Czech Social Democratic and progressive politicians started the fight for universal suffrage.
The first elections under universal male suffrage were held in 1907.
In 1938 Czechoslovakia held 10th place in the world industrial production.
Czechoslovakia was the only democracy in Central Europe during the interwar period.
One Nazi concentration camp was located within the Czech territory at Terezín  north of Prague.
A coup d état came in 1948 and a single party government was formed.
The Czech Republic joined NATO on 12 March 1999 and the European Union on 1 May 2004.
On 21 December 2007 the Czech Republic joined the Schengen Area.
There are 14 voting districts  identical to the country s administrative regions.
Since 2013 the presidential election is direct.
The Government s exercise of executive power derives from the Constitution.
The members of the government are the Prime Minister  Deputy prime ministers and other ministers.
The Government is responsible to the Chamber of Deputies.
The basis of the legal system is the Constitution of the Czech Republic adopted in 1993.
The Penal Code is effective from 2010.
A new Civil code became effective in 2014.
The Czech judiciary has a triumvirate of supreme courts.
The Supreme Administrative Court decides on issues of procedural and administrative propriety.
The Czech passport is restricted by visas.
The World Tourism Organization ranks the Czech passport 24th.
Membership in the European Union and NATO is central to the Czech Republic s foreign policy.
Czech officials have supported dissenters in Belarus  Moldova  Myanmar and Cuba.
The armed forces are managed by the Ministry of Defence.
The President of the Czech Republic is Commander in chief of the armed forces.
The country has been a member of NATO since 12 March 1999.
Defence spending is approximately 1.19  of the GDP  2019 .
The Czech Air Force also served in the Baltic states and Iceland.
Every region has its own elected regional assembly and a regional governor.
In Prague  the assembly and presidential powers are executed by the city council and the mayor.
It has a per capita GDP rate that is 91  of the EU average and is a member of the OECD.
The country experienced a 4.5  GDP growth in 2017.
The Czech Republic has a diverse economy that ranks 7th in the 2016 Economic Complexity Index.
The largest trading partner for both export and import is Germany and the EU in general.
Russian gas is imported via Ukraine  Norwegian gas is transported through Germany.
100 TWh in 2003–2005  is almost double electricity consumption.
South Moravia has small oil and gas deposits.
There are 1 232 km of motorways as of 2017.
Maximum speed is limited to 160 km h.
In 2006 seven Italian tilting trainsets Pendolino ČD Class 680 entered service.
Václav Havel Airport in Prague is the main international airport in the country.
In 2017  it handled 15 million passengers.
Government owned Český Telecom slowed down broadband penetration.
This and later privatisation of Český Telecom helped drive down prices.
Two computer security companies  Avast and AVG  were founded in the Czech Republic.
Avast is the leading provider of antivirus software  with a 20.5  market share.
The industry employs more than 110 000 people – over 1  of the population.
The Czech Republic boasts 14 UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
All of them are in the cultural category.
There is a number of beer festivals.
The country is also known for its various museums.
Puppetry and marionette exhibitions are with a number of puppet festivals throughout the country.
Aquapalace Praha in Čestlice near Prague  is the biggest water park in central Europe.
The Czech Republic s population subsequently has an average age of 42.5 years.
The life expectancy in 2013 was estimated at 77.56 years  74.29 years male  81.01 years female .
Immigration increased the population by almost 1  in 2007.
About 77 000 people immigrate to the Czech Republic annually.
In 2009  there were about 70 000 Vietnamese in the Czech Republic.
As the  nationality  was an optional item  a number of people left this field blank  26.0  .
According to some estimates  there are about 250 000 Romani people in the Czech Republic.
There were approximately 4 000 Jews in the Czech Republic in 2005.
The former Czech prime minister  Jan Fischer  is of Jewish faith.
Taborites and Utraquists were Hussite groups.
During the Hussite Wars  Utraquists sided with the Catholic Church.
Going forward  Czechs have become more wary and pessimistic of religion as such.
A history of resistance to the Catholic Church followed.
45  of the population did not answer the question about religion.
The Muslim population is estimated to be 20 000 representing 0.2  of the population.
Founded in 1348  Charles University was the first university in Central Europe.
Culture          Art      Venus of Dolní Věstonice is the treasure of prehistoric art.
Theodoric of Prague was a painter in the Gothic era who decorated the castle Karlstejn.
In the first half of the 19th century  Josef Mánes joined the romantic movement.
At the end of the century came a wave of Art Nouveau.
Alfons Mucha became the main representative.
Max Švabinský was another Art nouveau painter.
The 20th century brought avant garde revolution.
Surrealism emerged particularly in the work of Toyen  Josef Šíma and Karel Teige.
In the world  however  he pushed mainly František Kupka  a pioneer of abstract painting.
The Czech Republic is known for its individually made  mouth blown and decorated Bohemian glass.
The oldest still standing churches were built in the Romanesque style.
During the 13th century it was replaced by the Gothic style.
Brutalism dominated in the 1970s and 1980s.
The Czech Republic is not shying away from the more modern trends of international architecture.
The Czech German language literature can be seen in the first half of the 20th century.
Bible translations played a role in the development of Czech literature.
The first complete printed Czech Bible was published in 1488.
The antiwar comedy novel The Good Soldier Švejk is the most translated Czech book in history.
Some Czech musical works are The Bartered Bride  New World Symphony  Sinfonietta and Jenůfa.
Original Czech cultural phenomenon came into being at the end of the 1950s.
A drama is Karel Čapek s play R.U.R.  which introduced the word  robot .
Film      The tradition of Czech cinematography started in the second half of the 1890s.
There were dramatic movies sought internationally.
This began a tradition of animated films  Mole etc. .
Filmmakers have come to Prague to shoot scenery no longer found in Berlin  Paris and Vienna.
Media     Journalists and media enjoy a degree of freedom.
There are restrictions against writing in support of Nazism  racism or violating Czech law.
Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty has its headquarters in Prague.
The most watched main news program is TV Nova.
Other public services include the Czech Radio and the Czech News Agency  ČTK .
Cuisine      Czech cuisine is marked by an emphasis on meat dishes with pork  beef and chicken.
Goose  duck  rabbit and venison are served.
Further south the town of České Budějovice  lent its name to its beer  known as Budweiser Budvar.
Kofola is a non alcoholic domestic cola soft drink which competes with Coca Cola and Pepsi.
There is also a variety of local sausages  wurst  pâtés  and smoked and cured meats.
The two leading sports are football and ice hockey.
The word for  tourist  in the Czech language  turista  also means  trekker  or  hiker .
Európa a korai középkorban  Europe in the Early Middle Ages   in Hungarian .
Why You Should Read Kafka Before You Waste Your Life.
They were subordinate to the shōgun and nominally to the emperor and the kuge.
Shugo daimyo     The shugo daimyo  守護大名  were the first group of men to hold the title daimyo.
They arose from among the shugo during the Muromachi period.
They accumulated these powers throughout the first decades of the Muromachi period.
Eventually some of these in turn came to reside in Kyoto  appointing deputies in the provinces.
The Ōnin War was a major uprising in which shugo daimyo fought each other.
At the end of the fifteenth century  those shugo daimyo who succeeded remained in power.
New to the ranks of the daimyo were the Asakura  Amago  Nagao  Miyoshi  Chōsokabe  Hatano  and Oda.
These came from the ranks of the shugodai and their deputies.
Additional sengoku daimyo such as the Mōri  Tamura  and Ryūzōji arose from the jizamurai.
Edo period     The Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 marked the beginning of the Edo period.
Those heading han assessed at 10 000 koku  50 000 bushels  or more were considered daimyo.
A few fudai daimyo  such as the Ii of Hikone  held large han  but many were small.
Also  many fudai daimyo took positions in the Edo shogunate  some rising to the position of rōjū.
Tozama daimyo held mostly large fiefs far away from the capital  with e.g.
the Kaga han of Ishikawa Prefecture  headed by the Maeda clan  assessed at 1 000 000 koku.
In 1871  the han were abolished  and prefectures were established.
The move to abolish the feudal domains effectively ended the daimyo era in Japan.
For this reason  it survived intact long after Christianity in Japan had been eradicated.
and to obtain from it a terauke.
The system had three tiers  with at the lowest the temple which issued the terauke.
The intendant had to keep the registry and send a one page summary to higher authorities.
Further  all departures from the community due to marriage  work or death were to be recorded.
This registry format was maintained unchanged until 1870  three years into the Meiji era.
It was necessary to marry  to travel  to gain access to certain jobs.
By the late 17th century the system had become an integral part of the Tokugawa state apparatus.
Duty to visit the temple on several yearly occasion.
Failure to make the visits could cause the removal of the danka s name from the registry.
Duty to perform two services on the day of the ancestor memorial service.
Failure to provide adequate entertainment for the priest meant being branded as a Christian.
Duty to make the family temple perform all memorial and funerary services.
Failure to do so meant being branded as a Fuju fuse sect member.
A danka had to obey its temple and give money to its priests.
The danka was always to follow his temple s orders.
Hence the tight association between Buddhism and death that continues to this day.
Japanese Buddhism – A Cultural History  First ed. .
More than 40  of the population is expected to be over the age of 65 in 2060.
The latest population census reflects the situation as of 1 October 2015.
Between 1955 and 1989  land prices in the six largest cities increased 15 000    12  a year .
Many farmers supplement their income with part time jobs in nearby towns and cities.
Aging of Japan      Japan s population is aging faster than that of any other nation.
The same increase took 61 years in Italy  85 years in Sweden  and 115 years in France.
More than 50  of the population lives on 2  of the land.
Marital status      Over 15  Never married Male 61.8   Female 58.2 .
16–24  Never married Male 31.8   Female 23.7 .
25–29  Never married Male 69.3   Female 54.0 .
30–34  Never married Male 42.9   Female 26.6   July 2000 .
In 2012  the highest TFR was 1.90  in Okinawa  and the lowest was 1.09  in Tokyo.
TFR by prefecture for 2000–05  as well as future estimates  have been released.
It was published by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and relates to 2015.
Chinese  Filipinos  Koreans  and Brazilians account for about 69.5  of foreign residents in Japan.
Japanese statistical authorities do not collect information on ethnicity  only nationality.
As a result  both native and naturalized Japanese citizens are counted in a single group.
Japanese society is linguistically  ethnically and culturally homogeneous.
It is composed of 98.1  ethnic Japanese.
Japan has indigenous minority groups such as the Ainu and Ryukyuans  who generally speak Japanese.
Names using Western alphabet  Korean alphabet  Arabic characters  etc.
are not acceptable as legal names.
スミス　 Sumisu  for  Smith   are also legally acceptable.
The largest are the hisabetsu buraku or  discriminated communities   also known as the burakumin.
The laws  however  did eliminate the economic monopoly they had over certain occupations.
The Ryukyuan people and language originated in the Ryukyu Islands  which are in Okinawa prefecture.
Hāfu     Hāfu is a term used for people who are biracial and ethnically half Japanese.
Of the 1 million children born in Japan in 2013  2.2  had one or more non Japanese parent.
6 737 were Japanese or Chinese dependents.
Most of these departures – 78 276 – occurred before 1962.
Of these foreign residents below  the new wave started 2014 comes to Japan as students or trainees.
Together these countries makes up 91 126 or 82.6  of all new residents from 2014 to 2015.
The majority of long term residents were from Asia  totalling 478 953.
This is an all time high and 1.76  of the population.
In 2018  net immigration rose for the sixth straight year with 165 000.
More than half of all resident foreigners  1.15 million  are in their 20s and 30s.
The number of foreign workers was 1.46 million in 2018  29.7  are in the manufacturing sector.
Japan formally accepts foreign blue collar workers.
This helps reduce labour shortage in certain sectors of the economy.
The reform includes a new visa status called tokutei gino  特定技能   designated skills  .
In the old  Technical Trainee programme  a foreign employee was tied to their employer.
This caused numerous cases of exploitation.
The revision gives foreign workers more freedom to leave and change their employer.
Since then  all residents are recorded by municipal offices in the jūminhyō system.
Religion     Shinto and Buddhism are Japan s two major religions.
They have co existed for more than a thousand years.
More than 40  of the population is expected to be over the age of 65 in 2060.
The latest population census reflects the situation as of 1 October 2015.
Between 1955 and 1989  land prices in the six largest cities increased 15 000    12  a year .
Many farmers supplement their income with part time jobs in nearby towns and cities.
Aging of Japan      Japan s population is aging faster than that of any other nation.
The same increase took 61 years in Italy  85 years in Sweden  and 115 years in France.
More than 50  of the population lives on 2  of the land.
Marital status      Over 15  Never married Male 61.8   Female 58.2 .
16–24  Never married Male 31.8   Female 23.7 .
25–29  Never married Male 69.3   Female 54.0 .
30–34  Never married Male 42.9   Female 26.6   July 2000 .
In 2012  the highest TFR was 1.90  in Okinawa  and the lowest was 1.09  in Tokyo.
TFR by prefecture for 2000–05  as well as future estimates  have been released.
It was published by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and relates to 2015.
Chinese  Filipinos  Koreans  and Brazilians account for about 69.5  of foreign residents in Japan.
Japanese statistical authorities do not collect information on ethnicity  only nationality.
As a result  both native and naturalized Japanese citizens are counted in a single group.
Japanese society is linguistically  ethnically and culturally homogeneous.
It is composed of 98.1  ethnic Japanese.
Japan has indigenous minority groups such as the Ainu and Ryukyuans  who generally speak Japanese.
Names using Western alphabet  Korean alphabet  Arabic characters  etc.
are not acceptable as legal names.
スミス　 Sumisu  for  Smith   are also legally acceptable.
The largest are the hisabetsu buraku or  discriminated communities   also known as the burakumin.
The laws  however  did eliminate the economic monopoly they had over certain occupations.
The Ryukyuan people and language originated in the Ryukyu Islands  which are in Okinawa prefecture.
Hāfu     Hāfu is a term used for people who are biracial and ethnically half Japanese.
Of the 1 million children born in Japan in 2013  2.2  had one or more non Japanese parent.
6 737 were Japanese or Chinese dependents.
Most of these departures – 78 276 – occurred before 1962.
Of these foreign residents below  the new wave started 2014 comes to Japan as students or trainees.
Together these countries makes up 91 126 or 82.6  of all new residents from 2014 to 2015.
The majority of long term residents were from Asia  totalling 478 953.
This is an all time high and 1.76  of the population.
In 2018  net immigration rose for the sixth straight year with 165 000.
More than half of all resident foreigners  1.15 million  are in their 20s and 30s.
The number of foreign workers was 1.46 million in 2018  29.7  are in the manufacturing sector.
Japan formally accepts foreign blue collar workers.
This helps reduce labour shortage in certain sectors of the economy.
The reform includes a new visa status called tokutei gino  特定技能   designated skills  .
In the old  Technical Trainee programme  a foreign employee was tied to their employer.
This caused numerous cases of exploitation.
The revision gives foreign workers more freedom to leave and change their employer.
Since then  all residents are recorded by municipal offices in the jūminhyō system.
Religion     Shinto and Buddhism are Japan s two major religions.
They have co existed for more than a thousand years.
The original Greek word daimon does not carry negative connotations.
Daimōn most likely came from the Greek verb daiesthai  to divide  distribute .
The Greek terms do not have any connotations of evil or malevolence.
In fact  εὐδαιμονία eudaimonia   literally good spiritedness  means happiness.
It was no longer beautiful  it was infested.
This was then inherited by the Koine text of the New Testament.
Demons are still feared largely due to their alleged power to possess living creatures.
The existence of demons can be related to the realm of chaos  beyond the created world.
But even this negative connotation cannot be denied in light of the magical texts.
Ancient Egyptian demons can be divided into two classes   guardians  and  wanderers.
Demons protecting the underworld may prevent human souls from entering paradise.
Only by knowing right charms is the deceased able to enter the Halls of Osiris.
Accordingly  demons guarded sacred places or the gates to the netherworld.
The  wanderers  are associated with possession  mental illness  death and plagues.
These demons could sometimes leave the underworld and terrorize mortals on earth.
Several extant poems describe the galla dragging the god Dumuzid into the underworld.
He was believed to be the son of the god Hanbi.
There are  practically nil  roles assigned to demons in the Hebrew Bible.
In Judaism today  beliefs in  demons  or  evil spirits  are either midot hasidut  Hebr.
The word shedim appears in two places in the Tanakh  Psalm 106 37  Deuteronomy 32 17 .
The shedim in return are not pagan demigods  but the foreign gods themselves.
The writers of the Tanach applied the word as a dialogism to Canaanite deities.
Examples include catalepsy  headache  epilepsy and nightmares.
There also existed a demon of blindness   Shabriri   lit.
In mythology  there were few defences against Babylonian demons.
Informing this state of uncleanliness are both his  hostile  and  wicked design   4Q286 3 4 .
Through this design  Belial poisons the thoughts of those who are not necessarily sinners.
Thus a dualism is born from those inclined to be wicked and those who aren t.
This sense of fear is the stimulus for this prayer in the first place.
Belial s tendency is to  ensnare  you  from every path of righteousness   Jubilees 1 19 .
This phrase is intentionally vague  allowing room for interpretation.
This dichotomy sheds light on the negative connotations that Belial held at the time.
Belial s influence is not taken lightly.
In Col. XI  verse 8  the text depicts God conquering the  hordes of Belial   1Q33 11 8 .
This defeat is indicative of God s power over Belial and his forces of temptation.
However the fact that Belial is the leader of hordes is a testament to how persuasive he can be.
In Column 4  the first mention of Belial reads   Belial shall be unleashed against Israel   4Q266 .
This phrase is able to be interpreted myriad different ways.
This statement is a clear display of Belial s influence over man regarding sin.
The passage goes on to state   they preached rebellion against ... God   4Q266 5 21 22 .
Belial  despite his malevolent disposition  is considered an angel.
The existence of shedim in general was not questioned by most of the Babylonian Talmudists.
Their point of view eventually became mainstream Jewish understanding.
se irim  hairy beings    he goats  or  fauns   Isaiah 13 21  34 14  and the  demons   from Hebr.
shedim first translated as Greek  δαιμόνιον daimonion   daemon   106 35–39  32 17 .
In Genesis 6 5  God sees evil in the hearts of men.
The mention of the Nephilim in the preceding sentence connects the spread of evil to the Nephilim.
In Enoch  Semyaz leads the angels to mate with women.
Azazel indirectly influences humans to sin by teaching them divine knowledge not meant for humans.
Asael brings down the  stolen mysteries   Enoch 16 3 .
Asael gives the humans weapons  which they use to kill each other.
Demons originate from the evil spirits of the giants that are cursed by God to wander the earth.
This differs from Enoch in that it does not place blame on the Angels.
Their spiritual part now desires reembodiment.
He also lent this power to some of his disciples  Luke 10 17 .
Islam      Shayatin is the usual term for demons in Islamic belief.
Among the demons are the shayatin  devils  and the div  fiends .
Both are believed to have worked for Solomon as slaves.
According to exegisis of the Quran the devils are the offspring of Iblis  Satan .
When they succeed  their victim would follow their commands.
Prayers are used to ward off their attacks  dissolving them temporarily.
They lack free will and are bound to evil.
The ifrit and marid are more powerful classes of shayatin.
The Muslim Persians identified the evil spirits of the Quran with div.
When Iblis was still among the angels  he led an army against the spirits on the earth.
The div are often depicted as sorcerers whose misdeeds are not bound to temptation only.
They could cause sickness  mental illnesses  or even turn humans to stone by touching.
from  harm to be guarded against    and Asura are incorrectly translated into English as  demon .
The Asura are not fundamentally against the gods  nor do they tempt humans to fall.
Many kinds of such spirits  Vetalas  Pishachas  Bhūta  are recognized in the later Hindu texts.
Some demons are related to specific vices.
The demons came into the world after the Prince of Darkness assaulted the Realm of Light.
The Watchers came into existence after the demons were chained up in the sky by Living Spirit.
The spirit is believed to possess people who then become cannibals.
In Athabaskan folklore  there is a belief in wechuge  a similar cannibal sprit.
The existence of negative energies is acknowledged.
Peck describes in some detail several cases involving his patients.
See also         References         Sources    Freud  Sigmund  1950 .
Denmark lies southwest of Sweden and south of Norway  and is bordered to the south by Germany.
The areas of Denmark and Norway remained under the same monarch until 1814  Denmark–Norway.
After the Second Schleswig War in 1864  Denmark lost the Duchy of Schleswig to Prussia.
It establishes a constitutional monarchy organised as a parliamentary democracy.
The inhabitants of Denmark are there called tani   danɪ    or  Danes   in the accusative.
Denmark has been inhabited since around 12 500 BC and agriculture has been evident since 3900 BC.
The remaining Jutish population in Jutland assimilated in with the settling Danes.
They colonised  raided  and traded in all parts of Europe.
The Danish Vikings were most active in the eastern and southern British Isles and Western Europe.
More Anglo Saxon pence of this period have been found in Denmark than in England.
Most of the latter two now form the state of Schleswig Holstein in northern Germany.
The three countries were to be treated as equals in the union.
Later that year  Denmark entered into a union with Norway.
Denmark s large colonial aspirations included a few key trading posts in Africa and India.
Swedish armies invaded Jutland in 1643 and claimed Scania in 1644.
In 1657  King Frederick III declared war on Sweden and marched on Bremen Verden.
Denmark tried but failed to regain control of Scania in the Scanian War  1675–1679 .
This led to the so called Danish British Gunboat War.
A new constitution established a two chamber parliament.
Denmark was defeated and obliged to cede Schleswig and Holstein to Prussia.
After these events  Denmark pursued a policy of neutrality in Europe.
Industrialisation came to Denmark in the second half of the 19th century.
Trade unions developed  starting in the 1870s.
Denmark maintained its neutral stance during World War I.
Denmark was a founding member of European Free Trade Association  EFTA .
The Danes rejected the euro as the national currency in a referendum in 2000.
Greenland gained home rule in 1979 and was awarded self determination in 2009.
The Liberal Party and the Conservative People s Party have also led centre right governments.
The island of Bornholm is located east of the rest of the country  in the Baltic Sea.
Ferries or small aircraft connect to the smaller islands.
The country occupies a total area of 42 943.9 square kilometres  16 581 sq mi .
Lake Arresø northwest of Copenhagen is the largest lake.
No location in Denmark is farther from the coast than 52 km  32 mi .
This is in the small Ertholmene archipelago 18 kilometres  11 mi  north east of Bornholm.
The highest natural point is Møllehøj  at 170.86 metres  560.56 ft .
Although once extensively forested  today Denmark largely consists of arable land.
These territories are self governing and form part of the Danish Realm.
The deforestation has created large swaths of heathland and devastating sand drifts.
Denmark is also home to smaller mammals  such as polecats  hares and hedgehogs.
Approximately 400 bird species inhabit Denmark and about 160 of those breed in the country.
Environment      In 2020  Denmark was placed first in the Environmental Performance Index.
The regions are further subdivided into 98 municipalities  kommuner .
These sui generis municipalities were incorporated into the new regions under the 2007 reforms.
The Monarch is not answerable for his or her actions  and their person is sacrosanct.
Hereditary monarch Queen Margrethe II has been head of state since 14 January 1972.
Bills may be initiated by the Government or by members of parliament.
Denmark is a representative democracy with universal suffrage.
She was succeeded by Lars Løkke Rasmussen  the leader of the Liberal Party  Venstre .
Frederiksen became prime minister on 27 June 2019.
Following World War II  Denmark ended its two hundred year long policy of neutrality.
Military      Denmark s armed forces are known as the Danish Defence  Danish  Forsvaret .
During peacetime  the Ministry of Defence employs around 33 000 in total.
Between 2003 and 2007  there were approximately 450 Danish soldiers in Iraq.
The country ranks highest in the world for workers  rights.
GDP per hour worked was the 13th highest in 2009.
According to the International Monetary Fund  Denmark has the world s highest minimum wage.
70  of trade flows are inside the European Union.
Denmark has a corporate tax rate of 22  and a special time limited tax regime for expatriates.
The overall level of taxation  sum of all taxes  as a percentage of GDP  was 46  in 2017.
Denmark has the 2nd lowest relative poverty rate in the OECD  below the 11.3  OECD average.
Establishing a business can be done in a matter of hours and at very low costs.
In the 20th century  Danes have also been innovative in several fields of the technology sector.
Life science is a key sector with extensive research and development activities.
Denmark is connected by electric transmission lines to other European countries.
The main railway operator is DSB for passenger services and DB Schenker Rail for freight trains.
The railway tracks are maintained by Banedanmark.
The North Sea and the Baltic Sea are intertwined by various  international ferry links.
Private vehicles are increasingly used as a means of transport.
The purpose of the tax is to discourage car ownership.
Other notable airports are Billund Airport  Aalborg Airport  and Aarhus Airport.
The World Happiness Report frequently ranks Denmark s population as the happiest in the world.
Languages      Danish is the de facto national language of Denmark.
Faroese and Greenlandic are the official languages of the Faroe Islands and Greenland respectively.
There is a limited degree of mutual intelligibility between Danish  Norwegian  and Swedish.
Danish is more distantly related to German  which is a West Germanic language.
Denmark had 25 900 native speakers of German in 2007  mostly in the South Jutland area .
Religion      Christianity is the dominant religion in Denmark.
Until the 1970s  the state formally recognised  religious societies  by royal decree.
Most children attend folkeskole for 10 years  from the ages of 6 to 16.
The test is obligatory if further education is to be attended.
Higher Preparatory Examination  HF  is similar to Gymnasium  STX   but is one year shorter.
This ranks it 27th among 193 nations  behind the other Nordic countries.
This means that most health care provision is free at the point of delivery for all residents.
This places Denmark above the OECD average and above the other Nordic countries.
As a result  the term is widely used in the media and common parlance.
In 2017  8.7  of Denmark s population consisted of non Western immigrants or their descendants.
The population proportion of  ghetto residents  with non Western background was 66.5 .
It has historically been one of the most socially progressive cultures in the world.
Modesty and social equality are important parts of Danish culture.
A major feature of Danish culture is Jul  Danish Christmas .
The Inuit have never been a single community in a single region of Inuit.
In 1666  Anders Bording  the father of Danish journalism  began a state paper.
Modernisation  bringing in new features and mechanical techniques  appeared after 1900.
The total circulation was 500 000 daily in 1901  more than doubling to 1.2 million in 1925.
Danish mass media and news programming are dominated by a few large corporations.
In television  publicly owned stations DR and TV 2 have large shares of the viewers.
Music      Denmark and its multiple outlying islands have a wide range of folk traditions.
The Royal Danish Orchestra is among the world s oldest orchestras.
Very little is known of other Danish literature from the Middle Ages.
With the Age of Enlightenment came Ludvig Holberg whose comedy plays are still being performed.
In the late 19th century  literature was seen as a way to influence society.
In recent history Johannes Vilhelm Jensen was also awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Karen Blixen is famous for her novels and short stories.
Danish philosophy has a long tradition as part of Western philosophy.
Hosted by Michael and his wife Anna  they were soon joined by P.S.
All participated in painting the natural surroundings and local people.
Denmark is known for its Carlsberg and Tuborg beers and for its akvavit and bitters.
This includes Geranium and Noma in Copenhagen.
The national sport is football  with over 320 000 players in more than 1600 clubs.
The incumbent Deputy Prime Minister is Tarō Asō  who took the post on 26 December 2012.
Corule is one of the oldest forms of government.
Its princes are  ex officio  the French president and the bishop of Urgell in Catalonia  Spain.
Since 1962  the French president has been elected by universal suffrage within France.
The bishop of the diocese of Urgell is appointed by the Roman Catholic pope.
Both positions exercise identical executive powers  however they are not heads of state.
They serve as heads of state and government and are normally chosen from opposing parties.
After half of the government s term  the two prime ministers  change positions and status.
It is not known with certainty whether Árpád was originally the kende or the gyula.
The most famous such arrangement was the 1278 treaty that established modern Andorra.
The governor was responsible to the Secretary of State for acts of omission and commission.
Each councillor was to remain in office for a period of four years.
Their salaries and service conditions were not subject to the vote of provincial legislature.
In fiction    Umbar  in the works of J. R. R. Tolkien  was ruled by a duumvirate.
The district was initially called kōri and has ancient roots in Japan.
It was not until the Taihō Code that kōri came to be written as 郡  imitating the Chinese division .
The district assemblies and governments were abolished a few years later.
Kamikawa  means upper course of the river   Nakagawa  means middle course.
The DOI system uses the indecs Content Model for representing metadata.
It is the publisher s responsibility to update the DOI database.
If they fail to do so  the DOI resolves to a dead link leaving the DOI useless.
The DOI system is implemented through a federation of registration agencies coordinated by the IDF.
Since 2015  RFCs can be referenced as doi 10.17487 rfc….
It uses a managed registry  providing social and technical infrastructure .
Several approaches for making identifiers persistent have been proposed.
To resolve a DOI name  it may be input to a DOI resolver  such as doi.org.
This approach allows users to click on the DOI as a normal hyperlink.
Other DOI resolvers and HTTP Proxies include http   hdl.handle.net  and https   doi.pangaea.de .
This plug in can also replace references to web to handle proxy servers with native resolution.
The IDF holds annual open meetings on the topics of DOI and related issues.
A list of current RAs is maintained by the International DOI Foundation.
The DOI system overall  through the IDF  operates on a not for profit cost recovery basis.
But it is also a very conservative approach to politics.
However  in some countries this is common practice even when there is no dominant party.
In some cases outright electoral fraud keeps the opposition from power.
Presidential election  1992  dos Santos  MPLA PT  won 49.6  of the vote.
Dos Santos remained in office without democratic legitimacy.
Bahia  the Workers  Party has won every gubernatorial election since 2002.
Currently opposition parties are in talks for a coalition to avoid a third consecutive period.
Canada s 23rd Prime Minister Justin Trudeau  has been the 13th Liberal to serve as Prime Minister.
In early 2006  the newly formed Conservative Party of Canada were elected  governing until 2015.
Alberta has been predominantly ruled by conservative parties since 1971.
From 1971 to 2015  the ruling party was the Progressive Conservative Party.
The Saskatchewan Party won 51 of the 61 seats in the 2016 election.
State Legislatures are controlled by the Democrats since 1970  except 1994–1996 .
Hawaii has been dominated by Democrats since the Democratic Revolution of 1954.
Beforehand  the then Territory of Hawaii was dominated by Republicans and a sugar oligarchy.
New York has an overwhelmingly Democratic population.
Louisiana is dominated by the Republicans.
New Orleans  however  has been dominated by the Democratic Party since the 19th century.
Since last parliamentary election in 2016  82.20  and holds 84 of 107 seats in the Majilis.
From 1966 to 2003 and 2013 to 2018  CSU ruled with an absolute majority.
From 2003 to 2008  CSU held a two thirds supermajority in the Bavarian Landtag.
In the 2010s  CDU s dominance eroded significantly.
from 2016 to 2020 it was in opposition.
The predecessor of the PDCS the Sammarinese People s Party was already biggest party in 1920.
The party governed all states until 1989 and controlled both chambers of congress until 1997.
Liberal Party  later on as the National Porfirist Party ruled consistently from 1867 to 1911.
This dominance continued until the rise of the American Whig Party circa 1830.
Non Partisan Liberals dominates Costa Rican presidency from 1846 to 1868.
El Salvador  ARENA hold the presidency from 1989 to 2009.
Trinidad and Tobago  People s National Movement ruled from 1956 to 1986.
San Luis  The conservative Liberal Democratic Party ruled the province between 1922 and 1943.
Bolivia  Liberal Party ruled from 1899 to 1920.
From 1990 to 2010 the Concertación Coalition hold presidency.
Guyana  The People s National Congress from 1964 to 1992.
Paraguay  The Colorado Party of Paraguay  1880–1904 and 1948–2008.
They were the sole legal party from 1947 to 1962.
Denmark  The National Landowners  and later the Højre  ruled Denmark from 1874 to 1901.
Mikheil Saakashvili was reelected in 2008  and served until 2013.
However  this majority was once again lost in the 2018 state election.
Since 2014  it has been in opposition.
However  the party were heavily defeated in the 2011 Irish general election  coming third.
The main opposition to the Christian democratic governments was the Italian Communist Party.
Emilia Romagna  The Italian Communist Party dominated the region from 1946 until 1991.
Emilia Romagna  The Democratic Party of the Left dominated the region from 1991 until 1998.
Emilia Romagna  The Democrats of the Left dominated the region from 1998 until 2007.
Tuscany  The Democratic Party of the Left dominated the region from 1991 until 1998.
Tuscany  The Democrats of the Left dominated the region from 1998 until 2007.
Liechtenstein  Progressive Citizen s Party governed from 1928 to 1970.
Monaco  Rally   Issues governed the National Assembly from 1962 to 2003.
The Whigs dominated United Kingdom politics from 1714 to 1762 during the Whig Supremacy.
From 1978 to 1986 Kilusang Bagong Lipunan operated as a dominant party.
It formed minority governments from 1991 to 1996  and from 2004 to 2014.
Currently  Bangladesh Awami League again has become the dominant political force since 2008.
Burma  The Anti Fascist People s Freedom League in Burma  now Myanmar  from 1948 to 1962.
Kuomintang maintained control of the Legislative Yuan until 2016.
The Labor Party continued to participate in several coalition governments until 2009.
Northern Cyprus  The National Unity Party governed from 1983 to 2005.
Liberia  True Whig Party ruled de jure dominantly from 1878 to 1980.
Seychelles  United Seychelles Party ruled from 1977 to 2020.
The National Party then held power from 1957 to 1989  32 years .
South Australia  The Liberal and Country League held power from 1933 to 1965  32 years .
Victoria  The Liberal Party held power from 1955 to 1982  27 years .
New Zealand  The Liberal Party governed from 1891 to 1912.
There is a separate competition for men  first held in 2003  and women  first held in 2005 .
The most recent edition was held in 2019 in South Korea.
It was held four times from 1990 to 1998.
In April 2012  the competition was renamed to the  EAFF East Asian Cup .
The indicators compiled in the Doing Business project allow such research to take place.
Methodology    The report is  above all  a benchmark study of regulation.
in 190 countries who deal with business regulations in their day to day work.
For the 2017 report  team members visited 34 economies to verify data and to recruit respondents.
Data from the survey is subjected to several rounds of verification.
Results are also validated with the relevant government before publication.
The official cost is 0.4  of the gross national income per capita.
There is no minimum capital requirement.
The official cost is 202  of the gross national income per capita.
A minimum capital investment of 289.4  of the gross national income per capita is required.
While fewer and simpler regulations often imply higher rankings  this is not always the case.
DB uses a simple averaging approach for weighting sub indicators and calculating rankings.
It also doesn t consider the state of the finances of the government of every country.
Doing Business does not cover all the regulations or all the regulatory requirements.
Countries with more democratic and limited governments have lighter regulation of entry.
Also  Doing Business highlights every year the successful reforms carried out by each country.
In 2013  Doing Business covered regulations measured from June 2011 through May 2012.
Poland was the global top improver in the past year.
Of the 201 regulatory reforms recorded in the past year  44  focused on these 3 policy areas alone.
For the first time data about Libya  Myanmar  San Marino  and South Sudan were collected.
The added city enables a sub national comparison and benchmarking against other large cities.
Research and influence    More than 3 000 academic papers have used data from the index.
The effect of improving regulations on economic growth is claimed to be very strong.
The 2016 Nobel Prize Winner in Economics Oliver Hart is among the authors of such papers.
The various sub components of the index in themselves provide concrete suggestions for improvement.
As such  the index has influenced many nations to improve their regulations.
For business interests  it has helped to catalyze debates and dialogue about reform.
Lower costs of entry encourage entrepreneurship  enhance firm productivity  and reduce corruption.
Simple start up translates into greater employment opportunities.
Costs for other forms and scales of businesses may differ.
Transactions and fees to have cost out are very specifically defined.
The costs of other types of transactions may differ.
The cost estimates come from individuals identified as expert respondents.
If so  the responses are cross checked for consistency.
The estimates assume that a business knows what is required and does not waste time.
All studies are available from the DB website.
DB has been widely used as a study to measure competitiveness.
However  regulation rather than competitiveness is the main objective in the DB.
Ranking    The most recent rankings come from the  Doing Business 2020  report.
Singapore topped the Ease of Doing Business rankings in 2007–2016.
For example Kuwait  ranked 83   Qatar  ranked 77   Oman  ranked 68  Saudi Arabia  ranked 62 .
Notable exceptions are Norway  ranked 9  and the United Arab Emirates  ranked 16 .
Rankings are subject to revision.
It has subsequently been removed from the rankings.
In April 2009 the World Bank issued a note with revisions to the Employing Workers index.
In 2018  another independent evaluation was commissioned by the World Bank Group.
The Chinese calendar serves as the root from which many other East Asian calendars are derived.
Major languages in East Asia include Mandarin Chinese  Japanese  and Korean.
There are also several unrecognised indigenous ethnic groups in mainland China and Taiwan.
Its hegemony was the heart of an empire that would include Taiwan and Korea.
The Council on Foreign Relations includes the Russia Far East  Mongolia  and Nepal.
It is one of five Regional Games of the OCA.
A history of the Far East  1958  online free to borrow Dennett   Tyler.
online free to borrow Levinson  David  and Karen Christensen  eds.
Charles Scribner s Sons  2002 .
2nd ed 1955  1950 edition online free  780pp  focus on 1900 1950.
Global warming caused by greenhouse gas emissions directly impacts temperature and precipitation.
Currently  the KOICA is providing grant aid supports for 21 projects in 10 countries.
It also works to develop three new projects for three partner countries in 2010.
Lafayette College guarantees campus housing to all enrolled students.
Lafayette College s athletic program is notable for The Rivalry with nearby Lehigh University.
George Junkin  a Presbyterian minister  was elected first official president of the college.
Junkin supported colonization of Liberia by ex slaves from the United States.
The College s first building was constructed two years later on the current site of South College.
Junkin led to the latter man s resignation from the presidency in 1841.
In the time from 1855 to 1856  Lafayette had a peak enrollment of 112 students in total.
Men trained to serve in mechanical trades.
The college created new scholarships and scholarship loans to enable more students to attend.
It also founded an Engineering Guidance Conference for boys.
This program continued until the outbreak of World War II in 1941.
They also made athletic facilities available for free to unemployed members of the community.
Enrollment began to rise again for the 1935–1936 school year.
It started as a celebration of the 70th anniversary of Lafayette s engineering program.
By the time the campaign closed in 1944  the college had received a total amount of  280 853.34.
The college took official action as well.
It bolstered its ROTC program and improved facilities to prepare for air raid tests.
That committee issued a formal recommendation the following year.
Major festivities were held on September 6  2007  Lafayette s birthday.
They were started the night before with a lecture by renowned historian David McCullough.
She took office on July 1  2013  replacing outgoing president Daniel Weiss.
She formerly was a professor at Middlebury College.
Academics     Lafayette College offers a bachelor of arts  B.A.
Lafayette also offers 14 bachelor of science  B.S.
This is the first requirement toward getting a professional engineering license.
It is about 70 mi  110 km  west of New York City and 60 mi  97 km  north of Philadelphia.
This includes a 230 acre athletic campus.
Academic facilities     Williams Center for the Arts is the college s performing arts center.
When initially constructed  it was one of the largest academic buildings of its era.
Pardee was designed to hold all of the science programs.
Today it is used for most of Lafayette s humanities and social science departments.
The cost of the building was donated by Kirby.
The design was  rumored to be per square foot the most expensive building of its day.
The interior lobby area contains broad staircases and is constructed of travertine marble.
Students have access to the Kirby library  which has 20 foot ceilings and oak paneled book cases.
Reading and study areas and computer labs are available to the students.
It is curated by the Digital Scholarship Services of Lafayette College.
Some halls are single gender  while others may be co ed by floor  wing  room  or suite.
The top floor of Farinon is an  all you can eat  style buffet  while ground level is a food court.
Marquis also houses regularly themed events and contests.
Simon s  a sandwich shop  is located in the ground floor of Kamine  a residence hall.
Student athletes are considered students first  and athletes second.
These seasons were documented by John Feinstein in his book  The Last Amateurs  2001 .
Since 1884  the two football teams have met 150 times.
This rivalry has had the most games in the history of American college football.
It is also one of the oldest  when including high school or secondary school contests .
The Rivalry is considered to be one of the best in college athletics by ESPNU.
In the most recent contest  on November 23  2019  Lafayette defeated Lehigh by a score of 17 16.
Greek life     Lafayette College encompasses a lively Greek community.
It is available in both print and online form.
Over 4 200 digitized issues of The Lafayette are available online.
As of March 2016  the portfolio contains 41 stocks.
Engineers Without Borders      The club was founded in 2003 and is a member of EWB USA.
Members of the club represent many disciplines in engineering and the liberal arts.
The club is linked with rural villages in the Yoro region of Honduras.
EWB s mission is to design and implement projects in these villages that help promote better life.
The club has focused its efforts on water treatment systems.
The group has implemented gravity fed water systems in neighboring Lagunitas and La Fortuna.
In La Fortuna  the group utilized a slow sand filter in its system.
Students raise money through various fundraising events to mitigate the cost of the trip.
Students may elect to complement their studies by completing an apprenticeship.
It originally published articles both in English and in Mandarin Chinese.
It simultaneously became an English language only publication.
The journal held its first symposium in 2009  titled  Repeating History?
Lessons from the 1997 East Asia Financial Crisis and What they Mean Today.
In 2016 the journal was re titled again to Asian Law Review.
Since its establishment  ASEAN has held the central role and leadership in the forum.
The first summit was held in Kuala Lumpur  Malaysia on 14 December 2005.
However  the issue was to which countries beyond those in ASEAN the EAS was to be extended.
At the time there were difficulties in the relationship between the  Plus Three  members  i.e.
The next EAS was to be held on 13 December 2006 in Metro Cebu  Philippines.
However  in the face of Tropical Typhoon Utor the summit was postponed until January 2007.
It was rescheduled for 15 January 2007  approximately a month after the original scheduled date.
Internal issues      Internal ASEAN issues were significant for the next Summits.
In the lead up to the summit there were several border clashes between Thailand and Cambodia.
It was rescheduled and held on 25 October 2009.
The summit adopted statements on disaster relief and the Nalanda University.
We welcomed Japan s proposal for an Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia  ERIA .
The reality appears however that movement towards such a relationship is a long way off.
India has launched several Look East connectivity projects with China and ASEAN nations.
On any view  community building is not a short term project.
This may be significant for those advocating a broader role for EAS in the future.
Not all members of the EAS  notably India  are members of APEC.
ASEAN formally invited the United States and Russia to join the group from 2011.
In 2006  Pakistan and Mongolia were proposed as future members by Malaysia.
Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau attended as guest.
He had arrived directly from the APEC 2017 summit held in Da Nang  Vietnam.
Bronze Age cultures differed in their development of the first writing.
Human made tin bronze technology requires set production techniques.
The dating of the foil has been disputed.
Societies in the region laid the foundations for astronomy  mathematics and astrology.
Arzawa has been associated with the much more obscure Assuwa generally located to its north.
It probably bordered it  and may even be an alternative term for it  at least during some periods .
Abydos remained the major holy land in the south.
Memphis in the Early Bronze Age was the largest city of the time.
Middle Bronze dynasties       The Middle Kingdom of Egypt lasted from 2055 to 1650 BC.
During this period  the Osiris funerary cult rose to dominate Egyptian popular religion.
It is best known for the Hyksos  whose reign comprised the 15th and 16th dynasties.
By the 15th Dynasty  they ruled lower Egypt  and they were expelled at the end of the 17th Dynasty.
It was Egypt s most prosperous time and marked the peak of Egypt s power.
This corresponds to level IV at Namazga Tepe.
Altyndepe was a major center even then.
This Bronze Age culture is called the Bactria–Margiana Archaeological Complex  BMAC .
Agriculture was the economic base of these people.
However  it is unclear at what time these monuments got to Ugarit.
At its beginning  Mitanni s major rival was Egypt under the Thutmosids.
The usual tripartite division into an Early  Middle and Late Bronze Age is not used.
The cities of the Ancient Near East housed several tens of thousands of people.
The Amorite dynasty established the city state of Babylon in the 19th century BC.
Its sites were discovered and named by the Soviet archaeologist Viktor Sarianidi  1976 .
According to recent studies  the BMAC was not a primary contributor to later South Asian genetics.
Others believe the Erlitou sites belong to the preceding Xia  Wade–Giles  Hsia  dynasty.
This is  however  still just speculation since there is a lack of direct evidence.
A few human mummies alone cannot provide sufficient explanation of metallurgy transmission.
Iron has been found from the Zhou dynasty  but its use was minimal.
These appear in three main motif types  those of demons  of symbolic animals  and abstract symbols.
Korea        The beginning of the Bronze Age on the peninsula is around 1000–800 BC.
Bronze was an important element in ceremonies and as for mortuary offerings until 100.
In Nyaunggan  Burma  bronze tools have been excavated along with ceramics and stone artifacts.
Dating is still currently broad  3500–500 BC .
There are a few possible implications of this.
Europe      A few examples of named Bronze Age cultures in Europe in roughly relative order.
The production of complex tin bronzes lasted for c. 500 years in the Balkans.
Tin bronzes using cassiterite tin would be reintroduced to the area again some 1500 years later.
Bronze objects were then exported far and wide and supported the trade.
Ancient empires valued luxury goods in contrast to staple foods  leading to famine.
Several Minoan client states lost much of their population to famine and or pestilence.
The Thera eruption occurred c. 1600 BC  110 km  68 mi  north of Crete.
All in all  cemeteries of this period are rare and of small size.
The late Bronze Age Urnfield culture  1300–700 BC  is characterized by cremation burials.
The Central European Bronze Age is followed by the Iron Age Hallstatt culture  700–450 BC .
They lived in square villages of wooden stilt houses.
The whole complex denoted the nature of a fortified settlement.
The Castellieri culture developed in Istria during the Middle Bronze Age.
The Golasecca culture developed starting from the late Bronze Age in the Po plain.
It is marked by economic and cultural exchange.
Commercial contacts extend to Denmark and the Mediterranean.
Migration brought new people to the islands from the continent.
The rich Wessex culture developed in southern Britain at this time.
One copper mine at Great Orme in North Wales  extended to a depth of 70 meters.
Ireland is also known for a relatively large number of Early Bronze Age burials.
One of the characteristic types of artifact of the Early Bronze Age in Ireland is the flat axe.
It is followed by the Pre Roman Iron Age.
There are many mounds and rock carving sites from the period.
Numerous artifacts of bronze and gold are found.
The rock carvings have been dated through comparison with depicted artifacts.
The name also appears in English as Pit Grave Culture or Ochre Grave Culture.
The Srubna culture was a Late Bronze Age  18th–12th centuries BC  culture.
It is a successor to the Yamnaya and the Poltavka culture.
As such  most African civilizations outside of Egypt did not experience a distinct Bronze Age.
Nubia       The Bronze Age in Nubia started as early as 2300 BC.
A furnace for bronze casting has been found in Kerma that is dated to 2300–1900 BC.
However  evidence for copper production in this region before 1000 BC is debated.
The Calchaquí people of Northwest Argentina had bronze technology.
Smelting and Recycling Evidences from the Late Bronze Age habitat site of Baioes   PDF .
Ancient Stones  The Prehistoric Dolmens of Sicily.
Subsequent centuries saw the introduction and spread of esoteric Buddhism.
In the modern era  China has the largest population of Buddhists of any country.
It was officially launched  alongside the EAF  in 2006  by the then Treasurer  Peter Costello.
ASEAN Plus Three appeared to take the role of community building in East Asia.
In turn in 2001 the East Asian Study Group was established.
In 2002  ASEAN Plus Three received the Final Report of the East Asian Study Group.
This included a recommendation to establish an East Asia Summit.
The Chairman s Statement of the 3rd East Asia Summit Singapore  21 November 2007 also states   21.
The reality appears  however  that movement towards such a relationship is a long way off.
The Japanese proposal is for a regional trade grouping.
The Chairman s Statement for the ASEAN Plus Three meeting stated   20.
ASEAN Plus Three was noted as  a  main vehicle whereas earlier language had been  the .
The Chairman s Statement Fourth East Asia Summit stated   21.
In addition to these proposals India also has its proposal for an Asian Economic Community.
ASEAN nevertheless continued to discuss the issues of regional structures.
On any view community building is not a short term project.
It is economics perhaps more than anything else which is driving the discussion.
It may even lead to a larger Asian solidarity  as envisioned by Pandit Nehru in the early 1950s.
We perceive the comprehensive interaction with South East Asia as a vehicle for regional growth.
It will eventually lead to prosperity and true peace in the entire region.
Hence it can be seen that fear of large international trading blocs is driving this discussion.
Plainly the level of support within the EAS for such an ambitious role for the EAS is mixed.
The editor in chief is Chul Chung  Korea Institute for International Economic Policy .
Women s national teams     Rankings are calculated by FIFA.
The East Asian Games was one of five subregional Games of the Olympic Council of Asia  OCA .
Instead  the East Asian Youth Games had a plan to start in Taichung  Taiwan in 2019 but failed.
Kazakhstan is a former member of the EAGA.
It now participates in the Central Asian Games.
It is driven by temperature differences between the East Asian continent and the Pacific Ocean.
This leads to a reliable precipitation spike in July and August.
However  this pattern occasionally fails  leading to drought and crop failure.
The spring summer rainy season is referred to as  plum rain  in various languages of East Asia.
In Chinese Buddhism  these are often referred to as the Sānlùn  Ch.
The school and its texts were later transmitted to Korea and Japan.
Sēngzhào is often seen as the founder of the Sānlùn school proper.
Jízàng criticized numerous Chinese Buddhists for their unwarranted metaphysical assumptions.
Thus according to Hsueh Lu Cheng  for Jízàng True wisdom  prajña  is the abandonment of all views.
Chi tsang argues that metaphysical speculation of Being and Nothingness is a disease  ping .
It is the root of all erroneous or perverted views.
Enlightened men should discard conceptualization so as to avoid being taken in by this trick.
Emptiness  for Chi tsang  is a medicine  yao  for curing the  philosophical disease.
Ekan 慧灌  who resided at Gangōji Temple.
Prince Shōtoku is known to have had two Buddhist mentors from the Sanron school.
Why did the Madhyamika decline?  Indogaku Bukkyogaku Kenkyu 5  2   10 14 Brian Bocking  1995 .
The mind distorts reality and projects it as reality itself.
These masters included Śīlabhadra  the abbot of the Nālandā Mahāvihāra  who was then 106 years old.
Xuanzang was tutored in the Yogācāra teachings by Śīlabhadra for several years at Nālandā.
In total  Xuanzang had procured 657 Buddhist texts from India.
Xuanzang also promoted devotional meditative practices toward Maitreya Bodhisattva.
One such example is that of Hanshan Deqing during the Ming dynasty.
In a moment I saw that tall  dignified monks were standing in line before the throne.
He asked me to give it to you.
I put it inside my robe and asked   Who is the Master?
Clinging to consciousness will bring disgrace but clinging to wisdom will bring purity.
Disgrace leads to birth and death but purity leads to Nirvana.
I listened to him as if I were in a dream within the dream.
His voice  like the sound of tinkling crystal  floated on the air.
I could hear him so clearly that even when I awoke his words kept on repeating in my mind.
Now I realized the difference between consciousness and wisdom.
For this reason  there are now many people researching it.
One of the founders of the Hossō sect in Japan was Kuiji.
The sect still maintains Kōfuku ji and Yakushi ji.
Orthodox Chinese Buddhism  A Contemporary Chan Master s Answers to Common Questions.
People are born at the age of one  i.e.
That is  age is the number of calendar years in which they have lived.
In Chinese usage  there are three different types of age reckoning systems   Traditional age  lit.
The  real age  is also the only legally admissible to start drinking alcohol.
Japan    The traditional Japanese system of age reckoning  or kazoedoshi  数え年  lit.
For example  man yeol sal means  full ten years   or  ten years old  in English.
For official government uses  documents  and legal procedures  the international system is used.
The age limit for tobacco  alcohol use are after January 1 of the year one s age turns to 19.
However  this age is not really familiar to the young generation.
The purpose of the procedure is to create an upper eyelid with a crease  i.e.
The upper lid fold can range from 1 mm  0.039 in  above the eyelash line to about 10 mm  0.39 in .
Each has its advantages depending on the patient s anatomy and desires.
A procedure to remove the epicanthal fold  i.e.
Calligraphy  from Greek  καλλιγραφία  is a visual art related to writing.
Tools     The principal tools for a calligrapher are the pen and the brush.
Calligraphy pens write with nibs that may be flat  round  or pointed.
For some decorative purposes  multi nibbed pens—steel brushes—can be used.
There are some styles of calligraphy  such as Gothic script  that require a stub nib pen.
Moreover  each archaic kingdom of current China had its own set of characters.
Printing technologies here allowed a shape stabilization.
Some variant Chinese characters were unorthodox or locally used for centuries.
They were generally understood but always rejected in official texts.
Besides the traditional four tools  desk pads and paperweights are also used.
Many different parameters influence the final result of a calligrapher s work.
Changing these variables produces thinner or bolder strokes  and smooth or toothed borders.
These styles  stroke orders vary more  sometimes creating radically different forms.
These are not considered traditional styles  and are normally not written.
However  the calligraphic traditions continue to be preserved.
Tibet       Tibetan calligraphy is central to Tibetan culture.
The script is derived from Indic scripts.
The most widespread use is for Amharic in Ethiopia and Tigrinya in Eritrea and Ethiopia.
In the second and third centuries the uncial lettering style developed.
The Semi uncial generated the Irish Semi uncial  the small Anglo Saxon.
Each region developed its own standards following the main monastery of the region  i.e.
Alcuin developed the style known as the Caroline or Carolingian minuscule.
Still Edward Crocker began publishing his copybooks 40 years before the aforementioned.
Each character had  and often still has  a precise stroke order.
It evolved from the 10th century to today.
As it is based on Arabic letters  some call it  Arabic calligraphy .
Proverbs and passages from the Qur an are still sources for Islamic calligraphy.
During the Ottoman civilization  Islamic calligraphy attained special prominence.
have glyphs in their structures.
Carved stone monuments known as stele are common sources of ancient Mayan calligraphy.
Persia      Persian calligraphy has been present in the Persian region before Islamisation.
In Zoroastrianism  beautiful and clear writings were always praised.
Centuries later  other scripts such as  Pahlavi  and  Avestan  scripts were used in ancient Persia.
These inscriptions are stiff and angular in form.
Following the Aśoka style of Indic writing  two new calligraphic types appear  Kharoṣṭī and Brāhmī.
In many parts of ancient India  the inscriptions were carried out in smoke treated palm leaves.
This tradition dates back to over two thousand years.
Both sides of the leaves were used for writing.
Books of this manufacture were common to Southeast Asia.
Burnt clay and copper were a favoured material for Indic inscriptions.
In the north of India  birch bark was used as a writing surface as early as the 2nd century AD.
Nepal      Nepalese calligraphy is primarily created using the Ranjana script.
Historically  calligraphers used the former two scripts.
Edward Johnston is regarded as being the father of modern calligraphy.
He is attributed with the  revival of  gilding with gesso and gold leaf on vellum.
Rudolf Koch was a friend and younger contemporary of Larisch.
London  Hutchinson   Co. p. 441.
Wolfgang Kosack  Islamische Schriftkunst des Kufischen Geometrisches Kufi in 593 Schriftbeispielen.
East Asian cinema is cinema produced in East Asia or by people from this region.
It is part of Asian cinema  which in turn is part of world cinema.
World cinema  is used in the English speaking world to refer to all foreign language films.
The largest market producers in East Asia are Mainland China  Japan and South Korea.
Shortly thereafter  the American born Bruce Lee became a global icon.
The influence also goes the other way.
Famous Chinese actor turned director.
His most renowned works includes the highly acclaimed Platform  Unknown Pleasures  and The World.
Notable works includes  The Red Detachment of Women  Two Stage Sisters.
Triad Election     2006  and  Exiled  2006 .
He is a darling of film festivals  from Cannes Film Festival to Venice Film Festival.
In the Mood For Love and Chungking Express are among his best known films.
Night Drum  1958  and Muddy Waters are two of his best known films.
Other films include The Insect Woman  1963  and Black Rain  1989 .
Kitano is also known for his acting  in such films as Battle Royale and Taboo.
Renowned director  whose classic films include Ikiru  Rashomon  Seven Samurai  Kagemusha and Ran.
Not related to the other Kurosawa  his films include Cure and the J Horror hit  Kairo.
He is best known in the West for Audition  Ichi the Killer  The Happiness of the Katakuris.
Influential director of Flowing  1956  and When a Woman Ascends the Stairs  1960 .
One of Korea s most acclaimed directors.
Director of Vive L Amour  1994  and What Time Is It There?
This is a list of Asian cuisines  by region.
Traditional Kazakh cuisine revolves around mutton and horse meat  as well as various milk products.
Traditional Kyrgyz food includes mutton and horse meat  as well as milk products.
Plov  also called osh  is the national dish in Tajikistan  as in other countries in the region.
Green tea is the national drink.
Turkmen cuisine – cuisine of Turkmenistan.
It is similar to that of the rest of Central Asia.
Plov is the staple  everyday food  which is also served at celebrations.
Meals are almost always served with naan  Central Asian flat bread  known locally as  çörek .
American Chinese cuisine and Canadian Chinese food are popular examples of local varieties.
Local ingredients would be adopted while maintaining the style and preparation technique.
It is known for the use of wild herbs  from both land and sea  and simple methods of preparation.
Cantonese comes from Guangdong Province in southern China.
Char siu is a popular way to flavor and prepare pork in Cantonese cuisine.
The cuisine is well known for its hot spicy flavor  fresh aroma and deep color.
Common cooking techniques include stewing  frying  pot roasting  braising  and smoking.
Jiangsu is derived from the native cooking styles of the Jiangsu region in China.
Food texture is often soft  but not to the point of mushy or falling apart.
Peanuts  sesame paste  and ginger are also prominent ingredients in Sichuan cooking.
Zhejiang is derived from the native cooking styles of the Zhejiang region in China.
Sushi and sashimi are both part of the cuisine of the island nation.
Japanese wine Okinawan cuisine is the cuisine of the Japanese island of Okinawa.
The cuisine incorporated influence from Chinese cuisine and Southeast Asian cuisine due to trade.
Korean cuisine is largely based upon rice  vegetables  and meats.
Kimchi is served often  sometimes at every meal.
It features cooking methods such as sautéing and what is known in the West as barbecue.
Use of vegetables and spices are limited.
Other staples of many of the cuisines include rice  chapati made from wheat and barley  and beans.
Lamb is the primary meat for many Afghans  although Turkic peoples also eat horse.
Afghanistan is also well known for its grapes.
The country has a tropical monsoon climate.
Rice is the main staple food of Bangladeshi people and it is served with a wide range of curries.
A variety of spices and herbs  along with mustard oil and ghee  is used in Bangladeshi cooking.
The main breads are naan  porota  roti  bakarkhani and luchi.
Dal is the second most important staple food which is served with rice porota luchi.
Meat consumption includes beef  lamb  venison  chicken  duck  squab and koel.
Vegetable dishes  either mashed  bhorta   boiled  sabji   or leaf based  saag   are widely served.
Seafood such as lobsters and shrimps are also often prevalent.
The diet in the hills also includes chicken  yak meat  dried beef  pork  pork fat  and mutton.
There is also the widespread practice of vegetarianism across its society.
Indian cuisine has also influenced cuisines across the world  especially those from Southeast Asia.
In particular  curry has been widely adopted in cuisines around the world.
It is a typical feast of the people of Kerala.
Cooking methods include stir frying  boiling and steaming.
Burmese cuisine has been influenced greatly by China  India and Thailand.
The Burmese eat a great variety of vegetables and fruits  and a variety of meat.
Cambodian cuisine is another name for the foods and cuisine widely consumed in Cambodia.
The food of Cambodia includes tropical fruits  rice  noodles  drinks  dessert and various soups.
Cuisine of East Timor is the cuisine of one of the newest Southeast Asian countries.
Many regional cuisines exist  often based upon cultural and foreign influences.
Indonesian Arabs brought their legacy of Arab cuisine originally from Hadhramaut  Hejaz and Egypt.
Indonesian Chinese cuisine is characterized by the mixture of Chinese with local Indonesian style.
Chinese Indonesians bring their Chinese cuisine legacy.
Indian Indonesians bring their Chinese cuisine legacy.
Javanese cuisine is the cuisine of Javanese people.
Sundanese cuisine is the cuisine of Sundanese people of West Java  Indonesia.
In Sundanese restaurants  it is common to eat with one s hands.
They usually serve kobokan  a bowl of tap water with a slice of lime for handwashing.
Makassar cuisine is the cuisine of the Buginese people and Makassar people in South Sulawesi.
Malay cuisine is the cuisine of Malay people with many regional and foreign influences.
Manado cuisine  is the cooking tradition of the Minahasan people of North Sulawesi.
This cuisine has influences by Eurasian cuisine  especially Dutch cuisine.
It is among the most popular food in Maritime Southeast Asia.
It is known across Indonesia as masakan Padang.
Palembang cuisine is the cuisine of the Palembang people in South Sumatra.
Laotian cuisine is the cuisine of Laos  which is distinct from other Southeast Asian cuisines.
Malaysian cuisine reflects the multicultural aspects of Malaysia.
Malaysian Chinese cuisine is characterized by the mixture of Chinese with local ingredients.
Malaysian Indian cuisine is characterized by the mixture of Indian with local ingredients.
Vietnamese cuisine is a style of cooking derived from Vietnam with Chinese influence.
Fish sauce  soy sauce  rice  fresh herbs  fruits and vegetables are commonly used.
The cuisine of the region is diverse while having a degree of homogeneity.
Many West Asian dishes are made with a paste called tahini.
Tahini is a sesame paste made with hulled seeds  unlike its East Asian counterpart.
Hummus is made from chickpeas  which are staples of the diet.
Its primary crops are dates  bananas  citrus fruits  pomegranates  mangoes  cucumbers and tomatoes.
Unlike many other Asian nations  Omani cuisine is not spicy  and varies between regions.
One such example is the spread of Chinese architecture throughout the region.
civilizations is presented as among the major  units of study.
Calligraphy  Caoshu is a cursive script style used in Chinese and East Asian calligraphy.
Cuisine      The cuisine of East Asia shares many of the same ingredients and techniques.
Chopsticks are used as an eating utensil in all of the core East Asian countries.
Aside from China  versions of the lion dance are found in Japan  Korea  Vietnam  Tibet  and Taiwan.
Lion Dances are usually performed during Chinese New Year  religious and cultural celebrations.
By the 7th century and possibly earlier  woodblock printing had been developed in China.
Taoism      The countries of China  Japan  Korea  and Vietnam have been influenced by Taoism.
It is also called as Onmyōdō in Japan.
Shintoism      Shintoism is the ethnic religion of Japan  where shinto means  Way of the Gods .
Sect  Shinto is a diverse group including mountain worshippers and Confucian Shinto schools.
It could have also re spread from China south to Vietnam.
Major Sino Tibetan languages include the varieties of Chinese  the Tibetic languages and Burmese.
They are thought to have originated around the Yellow River north of the Yangzi.
Major Turkic languages include Turkish  Azerbaijani  Kazakh  Uzbek and Uyghur.
Major Austroasiatic languages include Vietnamese and Khmer.
Major Kra Dai languages include Thai and Lao.
Major Mongolian languages include Mongolian  Monguor  Dongxiang and Buryat.
Major Tungusic languages include Evenki  Manchu  and Xibe.
Major Korean languages include Korean  and Jeju.
Historically  Japan  Korea  and Vietnam have used Chinese characters.
However  hanja is a required subject in South Korea.
Names are also written in hanja.
Since the 8th century they began inventing many of their own chữ Nôm.
And there are movements to restore Hán Nôm in Vietnam.
Also see History of writing in Vietnam.
South Korea followed a similar route  developing the textile industry.
Affiliated Chinese surnames include 龐   庞  Dragon God  House of Dragon  and 龍   龙  Dragon .
Instead  it is generally used as the symbol of culture.
In Hong Kong  the dragon was a component of the coat of arms under British rule.
State symbol     The dragon was the symbol of the Chinese emperor for many dynasties.
During the Qing dynasty  the Azure Dragon was featured on the first Chinese national flag.
Some of the earliest Dragon artifacts are the pig dragon carvings from the Hongshan culture.
The coiled dragon or snake form played an important role in early Chinese culture.
Upon his head he has a thing like a broad eminence  a big lump   called  chimu   尺木 .
If a dragon has no  chimu   he cannot ascend to the sky.
Further sources give variant lists of the nine animal resemblances.
Sinologist Henri Doré lists these characteristics of an authentic dragon   The antlers of a deer.
And it hears through its horns  its ears being deprived of all power of hearing.
He notes that   Others state it has a rabbit s eyes  a frog s belly  a carp s scales.
Chinese dragons were considered to be physically concise.
Just as water destroys  they said  so can some dragons destroy via floods  tidal waves  and storms.
Many pictures of Chinese dragons show a flaming pearl under their chin or in their claws.
Chinese art often depicts a pair of dragons chasing or fighting over the flaming pearl.
is mystical and not seen as a result of their physical attributes.
The dragon has also acquired an almost unlimited range of supernatural powers.
It is said to be able to disguise itself as a silkworm  or become as large as our entire universe.
It can fly among the clouds or hide in water  according to the Guanzi .
They are believed to be the rulers of moving bodies of water  such as waterfalls  rivers  or seas.
Because of this association  they are seen as  in charge  of water related weather phenomena.
The imperial throne was referred to as the Dragon Throne.
During the late Qing dynasty  the dragon was even adopted as the national flag.
In some Chinese legends  an emperor might be born with a birthmark in the shape of a dragon.
Some of earliest depictions of dragons were found at Xinglongwa culture sites.
Yangshao culture sites in Xi an have produced clay pots with dragon motifs.
The Liangzhu culture also produced dragon like patterns.
It is a coiled  elongated creature with a head resembling a boar.
The linguist Michael Carr analyzed over 100 ancient dragon names attested in Chinese classic texts.
Note that this zhulong is different from the similarly named Vermilion Dragon or the Pig dragon .
For instance  Emperor Huizong of the Song dynasty canonized five colored dragons as  kings .
The Azure Dragon  Qinglong 青龍  spirits  most compassionate kings.
The Vermilion Dragon  Zhulong 朱龍 or Chilong 赤龍  spirits  kings that bestow blessings on lakes.
The Yellow Dragon  Huanglong 黃龍  spirits  kings that favorably hear all petitions.
The White Dragon  Bailong 白龍  spirits  virtuous and pure kings.
The  qiú niú 囚牛   which like music  are used to adorn musical instruments.
The  yá zì 睚眦   which like to kill  are engraved on sword guards.
The  bì àn 狴犴   which like litigation  are placed over prison gates  in order to keep guard .
It s also a Chinese idiom  which means among brothers each one has his good points.
Dragon claws      Early Chinese dragons are depicted with two to five claws.
In China  three clawed dragons were popularly used on robes during the Tang dynasty.
The part of the Mekong in Vietnam is known as Cửu Long  with the same meaning.
It is thought that each animal is associated with certain personality traits.
Dragon years are usually the most popular to have children.
There are more people born in Dragon years than in any other animal years of the zodiac.
In this context  the Azure Dragon is associated with the East and the element of Wood.
Typically  these are boats paddled by a team of up to 20 paddlers with a drummer and steersman.
The boats have a carved dragon as the head and tail of the boat.
They perform choreographed moves to the accompaniment of drums  drama  and music.
They also wore good clothing made of silk.
Sun Wukong s staff  the Ruyi Jingu Bang  was robbed from Ao Guang  the Dragon King of the East Sea.
Manda is a large Chinese dragon that appears in the Godzilla storyline.
A golden three headed dragon also appears in the comic book series God Is Dead.
Red dragon is a symbol of China which appears in many Mahjong games.
The main antagonist of Wendy Wu  Homecoming Warrior  Yan Lo  was a Chinese dragon.
In Monster High  Jinafire Long is the daughter of a Chinese dragon.
It is the second most commonly used style in East Asian typography  after Ming.
They are commonly used in headlines  signs  and video applications.
This is the style of typeface used for Japanese road signs.
It also influenced the style of the bahay na bato of the Philippines.
Irimoya in Japan    Irimoya arrived from China to Japan in the 6th century.
The style was originally used in the main and lecture halls of a Buddhist temple compound.
It started to be used for the honden at shrines later  during the Japanese Middle Ages.
In the last case  it is often called moya zukuri  母屋造 .
The Kandyan roof is primarily used for religious  and historically  royal buildings.
Its roots however lie in the traditions of the  Sri Lankan village .
Macau is also sometimes included.
Further  Indonesia s population increased from 117 to 200 million.
The governments were also crucial in controlling infrastructure  provisions and trade unions.
Such policies also made these countries more attractive for foreign investors.
After the war and American occupation  recently occupied Japan was considered a developing country.
The main development was between 1950 and 1980.
5 years later  Japan produced more automobiles than the United States.
In 1950s and early 1960s  average annual growth rates were around 10  to 13 .
By 1990  average annual growth was around 9 .
In Singapore  East Asians make up the majority of the population  at almost 80 .
Jainism may have roots dating back to the times of the Indus Valley Civilization.
The major orthodox schools arose sometime between the start of the Common Era and the Gupta Empire.
Hindu thought also spread east to the Indonesian Srivijaya empire and the Cambodian Khmer Empire.
These religio philosophical traditions were later grouped under the label Hinduism.
Hinduism is the dominant religion  or way of life  in South Asia.
Important Indian philosophical concepts include dharma  karma  samsara  moksha  and ahimsa.
Elements of proto Samkhya ideas can however be traced back to the period of the early Upanishads.
The school developed a complex theoretical exposition of the evolution of consciousness and matter.
Therefore  they sought to investigate the sources of correct knowledge or epistemology.
For this tradition  the study of dharma as ritual and social duty was paramount.
Vedānta sees the Vedas  particularly the Upanishads  as a reliable source of knowledge.
These include  Paśupata  an ascetic school of Shaivism founded by Lakulisha   2nd century CE .
Śaiva Siddhānta  a school of dualistic Shaivism which was strongly influenced by Samkhya.
Jainism is essentially a transtheistic religion of ancient India.
They believed the viewpoint of relinquishing pleasure to avoid pain was the  reasoning of fools .
The primary texts of Cārvāka  like the Barhaspatya sutras  c. 600 BCE  have been lost.
Buddhist philosophies      Buddhist philosophy begins with the thought of Gautama Buddha  fl.
between sixth and fourth centuries BCE  and is preserved in the early Buddhist texts.
Buddhist thought is trans regional and trans cultural.
Buddhism s main concern is soteriological  defined as freedom from dukkha  unease .
This tradition contributed to what has been called an  epistemological turn  in Indian philosophy.
Their main sacred text is the Guru Granth Sahib.
Key concepts include Simran  Sewa  the Three Pillars of Sikhism  and the Five Thieves.
It was during this period that Hindu modernists presented a single idealized and united  Hinduism.
They were also influenced by Western ideas.
The first of these movements was that of the Brahmo Samaj of Ram Mohan Roy  1772–1833 .
Their goal was to achieve increased order  security  and stability.
They were initially influenced by Mohist ideas.
The main text of the school is the Mozi  book .
The moral guide must then promote and encourage social behaviors that maximize the general benefit.
The later Taoist traditions were also influenced by Chinese Buddhism.
There were two major philosophical trends during this period.
One was anti traditional and promoted Western learning and ideas.
Key New Confucians of the first generation are Xiong Shili and Fung Youlan.
Together with Zhang Junmai  the second generation published the New Confucian Manifesto in 1958.
The Shōwa period  1926–1989  saw the rise of State Shinto and Japanese nationalism.
Some have claimed that there is also a definite eastern element within Heidegger s philosophy.
However  this is only an interpretation.
Followers of these two authors are often grouped together under the term Integral thought.
It uses a system of Yin and Yang  which it places into hexagrams for the purposes of divination.
These weather systems can produce heavy rainfall and flooding.
The long river goes off surging  and  darkening  a fine rain comes.
Roof thatch  loosely bound  is easily soaked  clouds and fog are dense and will not lift.
All day long the dragons delight  whirlpools turning with the bank.
The weather front forms when the moist air over the Pacific meets the cooler continental air mass.
However  in the years that it does not rain as much as usual  a drought might result.
Environmentally  heavy rains encourage mudslides and flooding in all areas affected.
The most rain in a one hour period as recorded in Japan was in Nagasaki in 1982 with 153 mm.
Korea     The rainy season is between June and mid July.
When the two meteorological events meet they form a long jangmajeonseon  Korean  장마전선 .
On landfall  heavy monsoon rains lead to torrential downpours and flooding.
By August the system has weakened as the southern systems retreat towards the Filipino archipelago.
This produces inclement weather although not on the scale of the summer monsoons.
Korea can  however  be struck by typhoons during this period.
Timing    In some years  the rainy season s actual beginning and end are under debate.
For example  in 2005  the subtropical ridge moved quickly northward in late June early July.
The weather front skipped the Chang Jiang region and there was no rainy season there.
Then  the ridge retreated southward and there was significant rainfall in the region.
Some meteorologists even argued that the rainy period in late June was not a true rainy season.
Further complications arise from the inconsistent use of many terms.
Similar to the negative theology of Western scholars  the Tao is compared to what it is not.
This is considered the active expression of Tao.
On the popular level  Taoism typically presents the Jade Emperor as the head deity.
The Tao is never an object of worship  being treated more like the Indian concept of atman.
It is commonly associated with legalism  but actually rejects legalism for ritualism.
It also endorses meritocracy as the ideal of nobility.
Confucianism includes a complicated system governing duties and etiquette in relationships.
Shintoism      Shintoism is the ethnic religion of Japan.
Shinto literally means  Way of the Gods .
Ritual cleanliness is a central part of Shinto life.
Sect  Shinto is a diverse group including mountain worshippers and Confucian Shinto schools.
However  some scholars believe that the Tao Te Ching arose as a reaction to Confucianism.
They did share some similar values.
All three embraced a humanist philosophy emphasising moral behavior and human perfection.
and humanities  literature  history  art  film  music  etc.
In the context of the Republic of China also specified as Taiwan studies  Academia Sinica .
In 1991  the South Korean government established the Korea Foundation to promote Korean studies.
The American Center for Mongolian Studies was founded in 2002.
The 12 year cycle is an approximation to the 11.85 year orbital period of Jupiter.
The Chinese 12 part cycle corresponds to years  rather than months.
Signs     The zodiac traditionally begins with the sign of the Rat.
The Earth is all 12 signs  5 seasons.
In 2011  the year of the Rabbit  that person is one year older.
The sexagenary cycle begins at lichun about February 4 according to some astrological sources.
Instead of months  this calendar is divided into 24 two week segments known as Solar Terms.
Each animal is linked to two of these solar terms for a period similar to the Western month.
As each sign is linked to a month of the solar year  it is thereby also linked to a season.
Day     Four pillars calculators can determine the zodiac animal of the day.
The term for them is “True Animals”.
Second Trine     The second Trine consists of the Ox  Snake  and Rooster.
Third Trine     The third Trine consists of the Tiger  Horse  and Dog.
Fourth Trine     The fourth Trine consists of the Rabbit  Goat  and Pig.
Since the Han Dynasty  the 12 Earthly Branches have been used to record the time of day.
However  for the sake of entertainment and convenience  they have been replaced by the 12 animals.
This is the time when rats are most active in seeking food.
This is the time when oxen begin to chew the cud slowly and comfortably.
This is the time when tigers hunt their prey more and show their ferocity.
This is the time when dragons are hovering in the sky to give rain.
This is the time when snakes are leaving their caves.
This is the time when goats eat grass and urinate frequently.
This is the time when monkeys are lively.
This is the time when roosters begin to get back to their coops.
This is the time when dogs carry out their duty of guarding the houses.
This is the time when pigs are sleeping sweetly.
To get there  the animals would have to cross a river.
The Cat and the Rat were not good at swimming  but they were both quite intelligent.
They decided that the best and fastest way to cross the river was to hop on the back of the Ox.
The Ox  being kindhearted and naive  agreed to carry them both across.
It was named as the first animal of the zodiac calendar.
The Ox had to settle in second place.The third one to come  was the Tiger.
It explained how it crossed the river  by jumping from one stone to another  in a nimble fashion.
For that  it became the fourth animal in the zodiac cycle.In fifth place  was the flying Dragon.
With combined efforts  they managed to arrive to the other side.
Although it should have been the best swimmer and runner  it spent its time to play in the water.
Though his explanation for being late was because it needed a good bath after a long spell.
The Pig felt hungry in the middle of the race  so it stopped  ate something  and then fell asleep.
It is said that this is the reason cats always hunt rats and also don t like water as well.
To reward the animals who came to him  he named a year after each of them.
The years were given to them in the order they had arrived.
The most common explanation is that the ancient word for Rabbit  Mao  sounds like cat  Meo .
However  Rat is the most commonly used one among all the synonyms.
However  Ox is the most commonly used one among all the synonyms.
The term 羊 Goat can be translated as Sheep and Ram  a male Sheep.
However  Goat is the most commonly used one among all the synonyms.
The term 雞 Chicken  can be translated interchangeably with male Rooster  as well as the female Hen.
The term 豬 Pig is sometimes translated to Boar after its Japanese name.
In other countries    The Chinese zodiac signs are also used by cultures other than Chinese.
For one example  they usually appear on Korean New Year and Japanese New Year s cards and stamps.
However  some of the animals in the zodiac may differ by country.
Sheep and Goat are interchangeable as well.
Unlike China  Cambodians start their new year in April rather than in the beginning of the year.
Islands and reefs      Senkaku Islands  Japanese  or Diaoyu Islands  Chinese .
Tong IslandThere is a cluster of submerged reefs in the northern East China Sea.
Despite this  many Indonesian media outlets and publications continue to use the former sea name.
Japan therefore seeks a share in the natural gas resources.
This is a term used in economic and policy debates as well as in the philosophy of economics.
There are several indices of economic freedom that attempt to measure free market economic freedom.
From this point on  the Lochner view of freedom of contract has been rejected by US courts.
Political freedom is the corollary of economic freedom.
It is no accident that the age of capitalism became also the age of government by the people.
We needn’t make one set of arguments depend on the other.
The average score has increased from 5.17 in 1985 to 6.4 in 2005.
Criticism      The nature of economic freedom is often in dispute.
Economic activity exists and their job was to measure it.
Classical liberals favour a focus on negative freedom as did Berlin himself.
See also         References         Further reading    Cebula  R.    Clark  J.
However  radio carbon evidence suggests a date up to 500 years earlier  between 1 000 and 800 BCE.
During this period Japan transitioned to a settled agricultural society.
As the Yayoi population increased  the society became more stratified and complex.
They also accumulated wealth through land ownership and the storage of grain.
Such factors promoted the development of distinct social classes.
Their government devised and implemented the far reaching Taika Reforms.
The Reform began with land reform  based on Confucian ideas and philosophies from China.
Land was no longer hereditary but reverted to the state at the death of the owner.
Taxes were levied on harvests and on silk  cotton  cloth  thread  and other products.
The imperial court was thus deprived of the tax revenue to pay for its national army.
The central government began to use these two warrior clans to suppress rebellions and piracy.
Japan s population stabilized during the late Heian period after hundreds of years of decline.
This had permanent negative consequences for the shogunate s relations with the samurai class.
Japan nevertheless entered a period of prosperity and population growth starting around 1250.
Fewer famines and epidemics allowed cities to grow and commerce to boom.
Commerce flourished  including considerable trade with China and Korea.
Japanese pirates of this era and region were referred to as wokou by the Chinese  Japanese wakō .
Japan was to become a major exporter of copper and silver during the period.
It was densely populated and urbanized.
Early European visitors were amazed by the quality of Japanese craftsmanship and metalsmithing.
The Portuguese  who were called Nanban  lit.
Southern Barbarians  therefore found the opportunity to act as intermediaries in Asian trade.
The Dutch  who  rather than  Nanban  were called  Kōmō   Jp 紅毛  lit.
Their pilot was William Adams  the first Englishman to reach Japan.
Many other castle towns grew as well.
Taxes were high  about 40  of the harvest.
The rice was sold at the fudasashi market in Edo.
To raise money  the daimyō used forward contracts to sell rice that was not yet harvested.
Japanese adventurers  such as Yamada Nagamasa  were active throughout Asia.
They were sent there by their fathers  and they turned over their wages to their fathers.
They were able to do this by inventing and selling their own wares.
More important was the fact that the Japanese people now had the ability to become more educated.
With a more educated population  Japan s industrial sector grew significantly.
In short  government was to be the guide  and business the producer.
Many of these businesses grew rapidly into the larger conglomerates.
It had parity with the Mexican silver dollar.
The former han  fiefs  became prefectures and their mints became private chartered banks.
Initially they retained the right to print money.
For a time both the central government and these so called  national  banks issued money.
The Bank started out on the silver standard  but adopted the gold standard in 1897.
The gold standard was suspended in 1917 and dropped in 1931.
In 1973 flexible exchange rates were adopted.
Railways      After 1868 the new Meiji regime strongly encouraged railroad construction.
This modernizing move had multiple objectives.
It would weaken feudalistic institutions.
In a broader sense  modernized transportation would inspire the people and facilitate growth.
A one way trip took 53 minutes in comparison to 40 minutes for a modern electric train.
All three trained Japanese engineers to undertake railway projects.
The line to Takasaki opened in 1884  as did the Tohoku line as far as Utsunomiya.
This was the first section of what has become the Yamanote Line  and opened in 1885.
The SRC line reached Hiroshima in 1894  and Shimonoseki in 1901.
A specific outcome of the RCA was that every prefecture would be served by railway communication.
The Japanese National Railways was formed by the nationalization of 17 private railways in 1907.
A prolonged economic slump that followed brought cutbacks in employment in heavy industry.
By 1928  the GNP of Japan at current prices peaked at ¥16 506 million.
Japan s large military force was regarded as essential to the empire s defense.
Transportation and communications had developed to sustain heavy industrial development.
Most industrial growth  however  was geared toward expanding the nation s military power.
Japan also purchased the rice production of Thailand  Burma  and Cochinchina.
During the early stages of Japan s expansion  the Japanese economy expanded considerably.
Steel production rose from 6 442 000 tons to 8 838 000 tons over the same time period.
In 1941 Japanese aircraft industries had the capacity to manufacture 10 000 aircraft per year.
Much of this economic expansion benefited the  zaibatsu   large industrial conglomerates.
Local industries were unable to produce at high enough levels to avoid severe shortfalls.
The destruction wrought by the war eventually brought the Japanese economy to a virtual standstill.
According to a 2020 study  Japan used its imperial power to boost its industrialization.
Post World War II     The war wiped out many of the gains which Japan had made since 1868.
The people were shocked by the devastation and swung into action.
US grant assistance  however  tapered off quickly in the mid 1950s.
Previously  property belonged to landlords and farmers worked on it in a feudal type system.
By the mid 1950s  production matched prewar levels.
Japan s highly acclaimed post war education system contributed strongly to the modernizing process.
Japanese schools also encouraged discipline  another benefit in forming an effective work force.
The value added to manufacturing and mining grew at the rate of 17  per year between 1965 and 1970.
Oil crisis     Japan faced a severe economic challenge in the mid 1970s.
The 1973 oil crisis shocked an economy that had become dependent on imported petroleum.
Changing price conditions favored conservation and alternative sources of industrial energy.
Despite more petroleum price increases in 1979  the strength of the Japanese economy was apparent.
First  the nation s prewar experience provided several important legacies.
Japanese businesses imported the latest technologies to develop the industrial base.
High productivity growth played a key role in post war economic growth.
The nation also benefited from economies of scale.
Many industrial enterprises consolidated to form larger  more efficient units.
Growth oriented corporations that took chances competed successfully.
Product diversification became an essential ingredient of the growth patterns of many keiretsu.
Japanese companies added plant and human capacity ahead of demand.
Seeking market share rather than quick profit was another powerful strategy.
Finally  circumstances beyond Japan s direct control contributed to its success.
The tertiary sector grew from 47  of the work force in 1970 to 59.2  in 1990.
In 1992  however  Japan s real GNP growth slowed to 1.7 .
Japan s imports grew at a faster rate than exports.
Information became an important resource and product  central to wealth and power.
The selling and use of information became very beneficial to the economy.
Even here  however  the recession took its toll.
And  with the yen appreciating  financial assets became lucrative.
Additionally  banks granted increasingly risky loans.
At the height of the bubble  real estate was extremely over valued.
Prices were only slightly less in other areas of Tokyo.
Trillions were wiped out with the combined collapse of the Tokyo stock and real estate markets.
With Japan s economy driven by its high rates of reinvestment  this crash hit particularly hard.
The downward movement in the Nikkei is likely due to global as well as national economic problems.
Deflation from the 1990s to present       Deflation in Japan started in the early 1990s.
Despite having interest rates near zero for a long period  this strategy did not succeed.
In July 2006  the zero rate policy was ended.
Insolvent companies  Banks lent to companies and individuals that invested in real estate.
When real estate values dropped  many loans went unpaid.
Banks have delayed the decision to collect on the collateral  hoping asset prices would improve.
These delays were allowed by national banking regulators.
These banks cannot lend more money until they increase their cash reserves to cover the bad loans.
Thus the number of loans is reduced sooner and less funds are available for economic growth.
The global economic recession of the late 2000s significantly harmed the economy of Japan.
The nation suffered a 0.7  loss in real GDP in 2008 followed by a severe 5.2  loss in 2009.
One is the government s raise in consumption tax from 8  to 10 .
–  2       Further reading    Allen  G. C. A Short Economic History of Modern Japan  3rd ed.
online Tiedemann  Arthur E.  Japan s Economic Foreign Policies  1868 1893.
The period was characterized by business bankruptcies  low interest rates and deflation.
Purchase of structures and equipment increased 500  from the previous decade.
There were numerous strikes and other labor movements for a ten hour day.
A building boom commenced in the years following the war.
Railroad locomotives switched from steam to diesel power  with a large increase in fuel efficiency.
Air conditioning became increasingly prevalent in households and businesses.
Construction of the interstate highway system started in the late 1950s.
The pipeline network continued to expand.
Railroad track mileage continued its decline.
Stronger economic growth resumed and inflation declined during the 1980s.
Health care expenditures rose to over 17  of the economy.
An example of such a great invention is the assembly line production method of Fordism.
The general form of the argument has been the subject of papers by Robert J. Gordon.
It has also been written about by Owen.
Even with artificial stimulus to demand you wouldn t see any excess demand.
A Century of Innovation  Twenty Engineering Achievements That Transformed Our Lives.
The region includes several of the world s largest and most prosperous economies.
Recent developments have led to an expanding cosmopolitan middle class.
The region is home to some of the world s most affluent nations and sees high standards of living.
The history of trade in East Asia was largely shaped by the history of trade within Ancient China.
During the Han dynasty  China gradually became the largest economy of the ancient world.
For much of East Asia s economic history  China was one of the most developed economies.
Two main European colonial empires that competed to colonize it were the Dutch and Spanish.
The Dutch would collect the commodities and monopolize the export trade.
The British Empire and Tokugawa Japan continued to trade with Taiwan as an independent state.
Thus  economic activities mostly came from the settlements of Han Chinese immigrants.
Commercial activities continued throughout major trading ports.
Tainan  Lukang  and Banka became the three largest cities in Taiwan.
Yayoi farmers fished  hunted  gathered and farmed.
As the Yayoi population increased  the society became more stratified and complex.
Such factors promoted the development of distinct social classes.
One koku was 47 gallons  180 liters  of rice.
As rice signified money  large quantities of rice had to be stored and distributed nationally.
The Yamato government began minting coins in 708 AD.
Copper coins were modeled after the Chinese coins.
The growth of the merchant class also fueled the growth of early modern Japanese cities.
Earlier Korean currencies was based on bartering as a means of exchanging goods and services.
The share of China and East Asia declined significantly up until the 1950s.
China accounts for 71.36  of East Asia s overall GDP.
Macau replaced Las Vegas as the world s largest gambling center in 2007.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s  Japan s GDP was large as the rest of Asia combined together.
In 1853  an American fleet led by US Commodore Matthew C. Perry appeared off the Japanese coast.
Once the initial losses were written off  many of the remaining businesses became profitable.
Japanese shippers were competing with European traders to carry these goods across Asia and Europe.
The economy of Japan is a highly developed free market economy.
Japan is a member of the G7 and G20.
Due to a volatile currency exchange rate  Japan s GDP as measured in dollars fluctuates sharply.
In 2018  Japan was the world s fourth largest importer and the fourth largest exporter.
It has the world s second largest foreign exchange reserves worth  1.3 trillion.
It ranks 29th on Ease of doing business index and 5th on Global Competitiveness Report.
It ranks first in the world in the Economic Complexity Index.
Japan is the world s largest creditor nation.
As of 2017  51 of the Fortune Global 500 companies are based in Japan  down from 62 in 2013.
The country is the third largest in the world by total wealth.
From 1995 to 2007  GDP fell from  5.33 trillion to  4.36 trillion in nominal terms.
This debt is predominantly owned by Japanese nationals.
By 1990  income per capita in Japan equalled or surpassed that in most countries in the West.
After another decade of low growth rate  the term became the Lost 20 Years.
The scenario of  Abandoned homes  continues to spread from rural areas to urban areas in Japan.
Japan is the world s largest single national importer of fish and fishery products.
Local deposits of metal bearing ores were difficult to process because they were low grade.
Domestic sources only supplied between 25 and 30 percent of the nation s timber needs.
Iron ore  copper  bauxite  and alumina must be imported  as well as many forest products.
It has also been one of the least trade dependent economies in the 1970 2018 period.
Japan receives exceptionally low levels of foreign investment.
Relative to GDP  its ratio of inward FDI stock is probably the lowest in the world.
Japan lags behind other developed countries in labor productivity.
From 1970 to 2018 Japan has consistently had the lowest labor productivity in the G7.
In contrast  startup culture is not as prominent in Japan as elsewhere.
History     The economic history of Japan is one of the most studied.
It was densely populated and urbanized.
Early European visitors were amazed by the quality of Japanese craftsmanship and metalsmithing.
The Portuguese  who were called Nanban  lit.
Southern Barbarians  therefore found the opportunity to act as intermediaries in Asian trade.
Japanese adventurers  such as Yamada Nagamasa  were active throughout Asia.
Many other castle towns grew as well.
Taxes were high  about 40  of the harvest.
The rice was sold at the fudasashi market in Edo.
To raise money  the daimyō used forward contracts to sell rice that was not even harvested yet.
These contracts were similar to modern futures trading.
The greatest role of government was to help provide good economic conditions for business.
In short  government was to be the guide and business the producer.
Many of these businesses grew rapidly into the larger conglomerates.
Unfortunately  these policies led Japan into deflation on numerous occasions between 1999 and 2004.
By late 2005  the economy finally began what seems to be a sustained recovery.
Unlike previous recovery trends  domestic consumption has been the dominant factor of growth.
In July 2006  the zero rate policy was ended.
In recent years  Japan has been the top export market for almost 15 trading nations worldwide.
It creates the world s largest free trade zone valued at 1 3rd of global gross domestic product.
It enables tariff free trade on 99  of exports to Japan.
It is due to strong corporate earnings  GDP data and optimism over a COVID 19 vaccine.
The 1.2 million kilometers of paved road are one of the major means of transportation.
Some 250 high speed Shinkansen trains connect major cities.
The largest domestic airport  Tokyo International Airport  is Asia s second busiest airport.
Given its heavy dependence on imported energy  Japan has aimed to diversify its sources.
Japan s solar market is also currently booming.
Kerosene is also used extensively for home heating in portable heaters  especially farther north.
Many taxi companies run their fleets on liquefied natural gas.
See also For purchasing power parity comparisons  the US dollar was exchanged at ￥109 in 2010.
GDP composition     Industries by GDP value added 2012.
Values are converted using the exchange rate on 13 April 2013.
Inflation under 2   is in green.
Only 12  of Japan s land is suitable for cultivation.
Due to this lack of arable land  a system of terraces is used to farm in small areas.
Japan is the second largest agricultural product importer in the world.
Japan imports large quantities of wheat and soybeans.
Japan is the 5th largest market for EU agricultural exports.
Over 90  of mandarin oranges in Japan are grown in Japan.
Apples are also grown due to restrictions on apple imports.
Despite government claims  radiation from the 2011 nuclear disaster is not gone.
Japan ranked fourth in the world in 1996 in tonnage of fish caught.
In 2003  the total aquaculture production was predicted at 1 301 437 tonnes.
In 2010  Japan s total fisheries production was 4 762 469 fish.
Deep sea fishing from larger vessels makes up the rest.
Japan has also sparked controversy by supporting quasi commercial whaling.
However  massive deposits of rare earths have been found off the coast of Japan.
Services      Japan s service sector accounts for 68.7   2017  of its total economic output.
Four of the five most circulated newspapers in the world are Japanese newspapers.
Japan is home to 251 companies from the Forbes Global 2000 or 12.55   as of 2013 .
The government hopes to attract 40 million visitors a year by the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
Finance     Japan s most profitable and sustainable industry is the financial sector.
One major long term concern for the Japanese labor force is its low birthrate.
Labor union membership is about 12 million.
As of 2019 Japan s unemployment rate was the lowest in the G7.
Its employment rate for the working age population  15 64  was the highest in the G7.
After deductions  the majority of workers are free from personal income taxes.
Japanese companies are known for management methods such as  The Toyota Way .
It also does not guarantee or even attempt to bring the  right person for the right job .
Relationships between government bureaucrats and companies are often close.
The word can be found in many books and articles pertaining to Japanese culture.
The term salaryman refers almost exclusively to males.
Like many unmarried Japanese  OLs often live with their parents well into early adulthood.
They may also be described as underemployed or freelance workers.
The major medical causes of karōshi deaths are heart attack and stroke due to stress.
Sarakin  サラ金  is a Japanese term for moneylender  or loan shark.
It is a contraction of the Japanese words for salaryman and cash.
Around 14 million people  or 10  of the Japanese population  have borrowed from a sarakin.
The value of outstanding loans totals  100 billion.
When the roots are considered  however  Matsuzakaya has an even longer history  dated from 1611.
The kimono store changed to a department store in 1910.
These former kimono shop department stores dominated the market in its earlier history.
Another origin of Japanese department store is that from railway company.
Seibu and Hankyu are the typical examples of this type.
Still  depāto are bastions of several aspects of cultural conservatism in the country.
It is a type of business group.
The prototypical keiretsu appeared in Japan during the  economic miracle  following World War II.
There are two types of keiretsu  vertical and horizontal.
Both are complexly woven together and sustain each other.
The Japanese recession in the 1990s had profound effects on the keiretsu.
This cumulates to a total value of 2 636 bil.
USD which translates to 281 469.9 bil.
In the year 1999 there was an all time high in terms of value of deals with almost 220 bil.
The most active year so far was 2017 with over 3 150 deals  but only a total value of 114 bil.
USD  see graph  M A in Japan by number and value  .
Here is a list of the most important deals  ranked by value in bil.
Foreign direct investment is playing a much smaller role than national M A in Japan.
Japan is home to nine forest ecoregions  which reflect its climate and geography.
The shogunate was officially established in Edo  now Tokyo  on March 24  1603  by Tokugawa Ieyasu.
The period came to an end with the Meiji Restoration on May 3  1868  after the fall of Edo.
After Hideyoshi s death  Ieyasu moved quickly to seize control from the Toyotomi clan.
In 1615  the Tokugawa army destroyed the Toyotomi stronghold at Osaka.
The Tokugawa  or Edo  period brought 250 years of stability to Japan.
In the bakuhan  the shōgun had national authority and the daimyō had regional authority.
The feudal hierarchy was completed by the various classes of daimyō.
Closest to the Tokugawa house were the shinpan  or  related houses .
They were twenty three daimyō on the borders of Tokugawa lands  all directly related to Ieyasu.
The shinpan held mostly honorary titles and advisory posts in the bakufu.
By the 18th century  145 fudai controlled much smaller han  the greatest assessed at 250 000 koku.
Members of the fudai class staffed most of the major bakufu offices.
A code of laws was established to regulate the daimyō houses.
The han  once military centered domains  became mere local administrative units.
Japanese adventurers  such as Yamada Nagamasa  used those ships throughout Asia.
Other Europeans who landed on Japanese shores were put to death without trial.
At the top were the emperor and court nobles  kuge   together with the shōgun and daimyō.
Only the peasants lived in the rural areas.
A few upper samurai were eligible for high office  most were foot soldiers.
The samurai were affiliated with senior lords in a well established chain of command.
The shogun had 17 000 samurai retainers  the daimyo each had hundreds.
Most samurai lost their direct possession of the land  the daimyō took over their land.
The daimyō were put under tight control of the shogunate.
The individual had no separate legal rights.
Eta were butchers  tanners and undertakers.
Hinin served as town guards  street cleaners  and executioners.
Other outsiders included the beggars  entertainers  and prostitutes.
Hinin were only allowed inside a special quarter of the city.
Sometimes eta villages were not even printed on official maps.
The eta  hinin and burakumin classes were officially abolished in 1871.
Osaka and Kyoto each had more than 400 000 inhabitants.
Many other castle towns grew as well.
Rice production increased steadily  but population remained stable.
Rice paddies grew from 1.6 million chō in 1600 to 3 million by 1720.
Improved technology helped farmers control the all important flow of water to their paddies.
The daimyos operated several hundred castle towns  which became loci of domestic trade.
Samurai and daimyos  after prolonged peace  are accustomed to more elaborate lifestyles.
The concentration of wealth also led to the development of financial markets.
Each daimyo also had a capital city  located near the one castle they were allowed to maintain.
Merchants invented credit instruments to transfer money  and currency came into common use.
A century after the Shogunate s establishment  problems began to emerge.
The nation had to deal somehow with samurai impoverishment and treasury deficits.
One solution was reactionary—cutting samurai salaries and prohibiting spending for luxuries.
Other solutions were modernizing  with the goal of increasing agrarian productivity.
Others shoguns debased the coinage to pay debts  which caused inflation.
Agriculture      Rice was the base of the economy.
About 80  of the people were rice farmers.
Rice production increased steadily  but population remained stable  so prosperity increased.
Rice paddies grew from 1.6 million chō in 1600 to 3 million by 1720.
Improved technology helped farmers control the all important flow of irrigation to their paddies.
The daimyō operated several hundred castle towns  which became loci of domestic trade.
Large scale rice markets developed  centered on Edo and Ōsaka.
The daimyō collected the taxes from the peasants in the form of rice.
Taxes were high  often at around 40  50  of the harvest.
The rice was sold at the fudasashi market in Edo.
To raise money  the daimyō used forward contracts to sell rice that was not even harvested yet.
These contracts were similar to modern futures trading.
It was during the Edo period that Japan developed an advanced forest management policy.
The policy mandated that only the shōgun and daimyō could authorize the use of wood.
The rule of the people or Confucian man was gradually replaced by the rule of law.
New laws were developed  and new administrative devices were instituted.
The people were to be ruled with benevolence by those whose assigned duty it was to rule.
Government was all powerful but responsible and humane.
Although the class system was influenced by neo Confucianism  it was not identical to it.
Study of mathematics  astronomy  cartography  engineering  and medicine were also encouraged.
Emphasis was placed on quality of workmanship  especially in the arts.
Buddhism and Shinto were both still important in Tokugawa Japan.
Buddhism  together with neo Confucianism  provided standards of social behavior.
Shinto also helped preserve a sense of national identity.
The kokugaku movement emerged from the interactions of these two belief systems.
The Kojiki  Nihon Shoki  and Man yōshū were all studied anew in the search for the Japanese spirit.
Japan was the land of the kami and  as such  had a special destiny.
Art  culture and entertainment      In the field of art  the Rinpa school became popular.
For the first time  urban populations had the means and leisure time to support a new mass culture.
The district was known for being the center of Edo s developing sense of elegance and refinement.
The most popular sport was sumo.
Eating out became popular due to urbanization.
A number of ryotei also opened to serve high class food.
The rise of a merchant class fuelled more demand for elaborate costumes.
These would be worn by women of the merchant class.
Japanese designers started printing designs that were influenced by the Indian patterns.
Especially samurai and wealthy merchants competed to buy inro of high artistic value.
The Tokugawa did not eventually collapse simply because of intrinsic failures.
In this way  a subtle subversion of the warrior class by the chōnin took place.
During the Tokugawa period  there were 154 famines  of which 21 were widespread and serious.
Western intrusions were on the increase in the early 19th century.
By the 1830s  there was a general sense of crisis.
Although it lasted only a day  the uprising made a dramatic impression.
The resulting damage to the bakufu was significant.
The devalued price for gold in Japan was one immediate  enormous effect.
Debate over government policy was unusual and had engendered public criticism of the bakufu.
In the final years of the Tokugawas  foreign contacts increased as more concessions were granted.
The final economic reform of the Tenpō era of 1841–1843 had similar objectives.
Most were ineffective and only worked in some areas.
Some scholars also point to internal activism for political change.
The army and the navy were modernized.
A naval training school was established in Nagasaki in 1855.
French naval engineers were hired to build naval arsenals  such as Yokosuka and Nagasaki.
A French military mission was established to help modernize the armies of the bakufu.
Finally  in 1867  Emperor Kōmei died and was succeeded by his underaged son Emperor Meiji.
Tokugawa Yoshinobu reluctantly became head of the Tokugawa house and shōgun.
Yoshinobu accepted the plan in late 1867 and resigned  announcing an  imperial restoration .
Tokugawa Ieyasu defeats a coalition of daimyō and establishes hegemony over most of Japan.
1605  Tokugawa Ieyasu resigns as shōgun and is succeeded by his son Tokugawa Hidetada.
1607  Korean Joseon dynasty sends an embassy to Tokugawa shogunate.
1611  Ryūkyū Islands become a vassal state of Satsuma Domain.
1614  Tokugawa Ieyasu bans Christianity from Japan.
Tokugawa Ieyasu besieges Osaka Castle  all opposition from forces loyal to the Toyotomi family.
Tokugawa authority becomes paramount throughout Japan.
1635  Iemitsu formalizes the system of mandatory alternative residence  sankin kōtai  in Edo.
1639  Edicts establishing National Seclusion  Sakoku Rei  are completed.
All Westerners except the Dutch are prohibited from entering Japan.
1641  Iemitsu bans all foreigners  except Chinese and Dutch  from Japan.
1657  The Great Fire of Meireki destroys most of the city of Edo.
1700  Kabuki and ukiyo e become popular.
1787  Matsudaira Sadanobu becomes senior shogunal councillor and institutes the Kansei Reforms.
1792  Russian envoy Adam Laxman arrives at Nemuro in eastern Ezo  now Hokkaidō .
1853  US Navy Commodore Matthew C. Perry s four ship squadron appeared in Edo Bay  Tokyo Bay .
1855  Russia and Japan establish diplomatic relations.
These include novels  comics  stageplays  films  television shows  animated works  and manga.
Clad in the aesthetics of tradition  from kosode to kimono .
Education in Japan is compulsory at the elementary and lower secondary levels.
Education prior to elementary school is provided at kindergartens and day care centers.
The programmes for those children aged 3–5 resemble those at kindergartens.
Scholar officials were chosen through an Imperial examination system.
Since their influence could not be raised through war  they competed on the economic field.
Elementary education was imparted as well as writing and morality lessons.
Japan was thriving with the want for enlightenment.
Compulsory education was introduced  mainly after the Prussian model.
The Japan Library Association  or the JLA  was founded in 1892 to promote the library.
These ideas rapidly disseminated through all social classes.
Teachers also use other media  such as television and radio  and there is some laboratory work.
All course contents are specified in the Course of Study for Lower Secondary Schools.
All students are also exposed to industrial arts and homemaking.
Moral education and special activities continue to receive attention.
Beginning with 848 participants in 1987  the program grew to a high of 6 273 participants in 2002.
A small number of schools offer part time programs  evening courses  or correspondence education.
The first year programs for students in both academic and commercial courses are similar.
They include basic academic courses  such as Japanese language  English  mathematics  and science.
However  there is a core of academic material throughout all programs.
Most upper secondary teachers are university graduates.
Approach and subject coverage tends to be uniform  at least in the public schools.
As of 2017  more than 2.89 million students were enrolled in 780 universities.
The 597 remaining four year colleges in 2010 were private.
Assistance is also offered by local governments  nonprofit corporations  and other institutions.
The quality of universities and higher education in Japan is internationally recognized.
Bullying     There is criticism about insufficient efforts to reduce bullying in schools.
In fiscal 2019  there were a record 612 496 bullying cases in schools across Japan.
Serious incidents with severe physical or psychological damage was 723  20  increase from 2018 .
In fiscal 2019  317 students committed suicide of which 10 suffered from bullying.
International education    As of 2016  Japan has 30–40 international schools.
United Nations University is located in Japan and Temple University has a branch campus in Japan.
Akita International University is also an English taught University.
Sophia University s Faculty of Liberal Arts is fully taught in English.
Hawai i  University of Hawai i Press.
Japanese lesson study   teacher professional development through communities of inquiry .
The Meiji leaders established a public education system to modernize the country.
They returned with the ideas of decentralization  local school boards  and teacher autonomy.
Such ideas and ambitious initial plans  however  proved very difficult to carry out.
After some trial and error  a new national education system emerged.
In 1871  the Ministry of Education was established.
Other advisors  such as George Adams Leland  were recruited to create specific types of curriculum.
Compulsory education was extended to six years in 1907.
All children of the same age learned each subject from the same series of textbook.
One of the main emphases of the Council was in higher education.
The Seinen Gakkō also conducted classes at night for working boys and girls.
The aim of the Senmon Gakkō was to produce a professional class  rather than intellectual elite.
In the pre war period  all higher school for women were Senmon Gakkō.
Textbooks such as the Kokutai no Hongi became required to be read.
This had prevailed from the Meiji period.
The Japanese state modernized organizationally  but preserved its national idiosyncrasies.
Modern Egypt dates back to 1922  when it gained independence from the British Empire as a monarchy.
Islam is the official religion of Egypt and Arabic is its official language.
The Neo Assyrian Empire used the derived term   Mu ṣur.
The First Intermediate Period ushered in a time of political upheaval for about 150 years.
The first historically attested expression of monotheism came during this period as Atenism.
Frequent contacts with other nations brought new ideas to the New Kingdom.
The Macedonian Greek general of Alexander  Ptolemy I Soter  founded the Ptolemaic dynasty.
Alexandria became the capital city and a centre of Greek culture and trade.
Nevertheless  Hellenistic culture continued to thrive in Egypt well after the Muslim conquest.
Christianity was brought to Egypt by Saint Mark the Evangelist in the 1st century.
The New Testament had by then been translated into Egyptian.
After the Council of Chalcedon in CE 451  a distinct Egyptian Coptic Church was firmly established.
When they defeated the Byzantine armies in Egypt  the Arabs brought Sunni Islam to the country.
Alexandria was regained for the Byzantine Empire in 645 but was retaken by Amr in 646.
In 654 an invasion fleet sent by Constans II was repulsed.
From that time no serious effort was made by the Byzantines to regain possession of the country.
By the late 13th century  Egypt linked the Red Sea  India  Malaya  and East Indies.
The mid 14th century Black Death killed about 40  of the country s population.
The defensive militarisation damaged its civil society and economic institutions.
Portuguese traders took over their trade.
Between 1687 and 1731  Egypt experienced six famines.
The Suez Canal  built in partnership with the French  was completed in 1869.
Its construction was financed by European banks.
Large sums also went to patronage and corruption.
New taxes caused popular discontent.
However  actual control of Sudan was in British hands only.
In 1906  the Denshawai incident prompted many neutral Egyptians to join the nationalist movement.
Shortly following independence  Egypt was declared a protectorate of the United Kingdom.
The new government drafted and implemented a constitution in 1923 based on a parliamentary system.
The government of Egypt  and the Egyptian population  played a minor role in the Second World War.
The Egyptian army did no fighting.
In June 1940 the King dismissed Prime Minister Aly Maher  who got on poorly with the British.
A new coalition Government was formed with the Independent Hassan Pasha Sabri as Prime Minister.
Farouk capitulated  and Nahhas formed a government shortly thereafter.
Serageddin ordered the police to fight  to the last man and the last bullet .
The Ismailia incident outraged Egypt.
Farouk I abdicated the throne to his son Fouad II  who was  at the time  a seven month old baby.
Naguib was proclaimed as president  while Nasser was appointed as the new Prime Minister.
Nasser assumed power as president in June 1956.
British forces completed their withdrawal from the occupied Suez Canal Zone on 13 June 1956.
The union was short lived  ending in 1961 when Syria seceded  thus ending the union.
The Arab Socialist Union  a new nasserist state party was founded in 1962.
In the early 1960s  Egypt became fully involved in the North Yemen Civil War.
Despite several military moves and peace conferences  the war sank into a stalemate.
Egyptian commitment in Yemen was greatly undermined later.
Fewer than half of all primary school age children attended school  most of them being boys.
Nasser s policies changed this.
From academic year 1953–54 through 1965–66  overall public school enrolments more than doubled.
Sadat was assassinated by an Islamic extremist in October 1981.
Domestically  Mubarak faced serious problems.
It took the army 3 days to restore order.
On 17 November 1997  62 people  mostly tourists  were massacred near Luxor.
Voter turnout was less than 25 .
Election observers also alleged government interference in the election process.
Dessouki also stated that  the real center of power in Egypt is the military .
On 11 February 2011  Mubarak resigned and fled Cairo.
Jubilant celebrations broke out in Cairo s Tahrir Square at the news.
The Egyptian military then assumed the power to govern.
Turnout was high and there were no reports of major irregularities or violence.
President Morsi  2012–2013       Mohamed Morsi was elected president on 24 June 2012.
The poll  held between 26 and 28 May 2014  resulted in a landslide victory for el Sisi.
Sisi was sworn into office as President of Egypt on 8 June 2014.
The Muslim Brotherhood and some liberal and secular activist groups boycotted the vote.
The ambassador was sent back to Egypt in 2017 by the new Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni.
El Sisi was re elected in 2018  facing no serious opposition.
The proposals were approved in a referendum.
The dispute between Egypt and Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam escalated in 2020.
Geography     Egypt lies primarily between latitudes 22° and 32°N  and longitudes 25° and 35°E.
At 1 001 450 square kilometres  386 660 sq mi   it is the world s 30th largest country.
Winds create prolific sand dunes that peak at more than 30 metres  100 ft  high.
Egypt includes parts of the Sahara desert and of the Libyan Desert.
Oases include Bahariya  Dakhla  Farafra  Kharga and Siwa.
Protectorates include Ras Mohamed National Park  Zaranik Protectorate and Siwa.
On 13 March 2015  plans for a proposed new capital of Egypt were announced.
Climate      Most of Egypt s rain falls in the winter months.
A very small amount of snow fell on Cairo on 13 December 2013  the first time in many decades.
Frost is also known in mid Sinai and mid Egypt.
Egypt is the driest and the sunniest country in the world  and most of its land surface is desert.
Egypt has an unusually hot  sunny and dry climate.
The absolute highest temperatures in Egypt occur when the Khamaseen blows.
It is one of the least cloudy and least rainy regions on Earth.
This gave Egypt a consistent harvest throughout the years.
For the grasses  284 native and naturalised species have been identified and recorded in Egypt.
Elections were last held between November 2011 and January 2012 which was later dissolved.
The Egyptian presidential election  2014  took place on 26–28 May 2014.
The first popular assembly was established in 1866.
In 1989  Egypt was designated as a major non NATO ally of the United States.
The Armed Forces  inventory includes equipment from different countries around the world.
Relations with China have also improved considerably.
In 2014  Egypt and China established a bilateral  comprehensive strategic partnership .
This position is currently held by former foreign minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit.
Despite that  Israel is still widely considered as a hostile state by the majority of Egyptians.
It is also a member of the Organisation internationale de la francophonie  since 1983.
Egypt adopted  harsh  sometimes lethal  methods of border control.
Sharia courts and qadis are run and licensed by the Ministry of Justice.
It replaced the 2011 Provisional Constitution of Egypt  adopted following the revolution.
The Penal code was unique as it contains a  Blasphemy Law.
The president is elected to a four year term and may serve 2 terms.
The parliament may impeach the president.
Under the constitution  there is a guarantee of gender equality and absolute freedom of thought.
In 2003  the government established the National Council for Human Rights.
The judgement was condemned as a violation of international law.
Homosexuality is illegal in Egypt.
Sexual harassment was described as occurring on a daily basis.
At least 18 journalists were imprisoned in Egypt  as of August 2015.
Administrative divisions      Egypt is divided into 27 governorates.
The governorates are further divided into regions.
The regions contain towns and villages.
Each governorate has a capital  sometimes carrying the same name as the governorate.
The government has invested in communications and physical infrastructure.
Oil and gas are produced in the western desert regions  the Gulf of Suez  and the Nile Delta.
Corruption is often cited by Egyptians as the main impediment to further economic growth.
In the Corruption Perceptions Index 2013  Egypt was ranked 114 out of 177.
Egypt s most prominent multinational companies are the Orascom Group and Raya Contact Center.
Some of these companies are the Xceed Contact Center  Raya  E Group Connections and C3.
Tourism      Tourism is one of the most important sectors in Egypt s economy.
More than 12.8 million tourists visited Egypt in 2008  providing revenues of nearly  11 billion.
The tourism sector employs about 12  of Egypt s workforce.
The system consists of three operational lines with a fourth line expected in the future.
The Current EgyptAir fleet includes 80 aeroplanes.
The northern terminus is Port Said and the southern terminus is Port Tawfiq at the city of Suez.
Ismailia lies on its west bank  3 kilometres  1 7⁄8 miles  from the half way point.
The canal is a single lane with passing places in the Ballah By Pass and the Great Bitter Lake.
It contains no locks  seawater flows freely through the canal.
In general  the canal north of the Bitter Lakes flows north in winter and south in summer.
On 26 August 2014 a proposal was made for opening a New Suez Canal.
Work on the New Suez Canal was completed in July 2015.
Access to an improved water source in Egypt is now practically universal with a rate of 99 .
Another challenge is low cost recovery due to water tariffs that are among the lowest in the world.
The process of emigrating to non Arab states has been ongoing since the 1950s.
Languages      The official language of the Republic is Arabic.
Historically Egyptian was spoken  of which the latest stage is Coptic Egyptian.
It remains in use as the liturgical language of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria.
It forms a separate branch among the family of Afroasiatic languages.
The percentage of adherents of various religions is a controversial topic in Egypt.
Other estimates put the Christian population as high as 15–20 .
Under Anwar Sadat  Islam became the official state religion and Sharia the main source of law.
Cairo is famous for its numerous mosque minarets and has been dubbed  The City of 1 000 Minarets .
Likewise  Armenians made up the then larger Armenian Orthodox and Catholic communities.
Egypt also used to have a large Roman Catholic community  largely made up of Italians and Maltese.
Egypt hosts the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria.
It was founded back in the first century  considered to be the largest church in the country.
It is considered to be the first synthetic pigment.
Egyptian civilisation is renowned for its colossal pyramids  temples and monumental tombs.
The Cairo Opera House serves as the main performing arts venue in the Egyptian capital.
It is an important cultural element in the life of Egypt.
Cinema      Egyptian cinema became a regional force with the coming of sound.
Egypt is considered the leading country in the field of cinema in the Arab world.
Actors from all over the Arab world seek to appear in the Egyptian cinema for the sake of fame.
It has been an integral part of Egyptian culture since antiquity.
Prominent contemporary Egyptian pop singers include Amr Diab and Mohamed Mounir.
Dances      Today  Egypt is often considered the home of belly dance.
Egyptian belly dance has two main styles – raqs baladi and raqs sharqi.
Museums      Egypt has one of the oldest civilisations in the world.
Festivals     Egypt celebrates many festivals and religious carnivals  also known as mulid.
Some consider kushari  a mixture of rice  lentils  and macaroni  to be the national dish.
Fried onions can be also added to kushari.
In addition  ful medames  mashed fava beans  is one of the most popular dishes.
Sports      Football is the most popular national sport of Egypt.
They re known as the  African Club of the Century .
Egypt was 4th place in the football tournament in the 1928 and the 1964 Olympics.
Squash and tennis are other popular sports in Egypt.
The Egyptian squash team has been competitive in international championships since the 1930s.
Egypt has won the Squash World Championships four times  with the last title being in 2017.
In 1999  Egypt hosted the IHF World Men s Handball Championship  and will host it again in 2021.
Egypt has won in the African Men s Handball Championship five times  being the best team in Africa.
Further  the team has won a record number of 16 medals at the African Championship.
The first telephone line between the two cities was installed in 1881.
Post      Egypt Post is the company responsible for postal service in Egypt.
Established in 1865  it is one of the oldest governmental institutions in the country.
Education     The illiteracy rate has decreased since 1996 from 39.4 to 25.9 percent in 2013.
The adult literacy rate as of July 2014 was estimated at 73.9 .
In 2010  spending on healthcare accounted for 4.66  of the country s GDP.
Life expectancy increased from 44.8 years during the 1960s to 72.12 years in 2009.
Ehime Prefecture  愛媛県  Ehime ken  is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku.
History     Until the Meiji Restoration  Ehime Prefecture was known as Iyo Province.
The westernmost arm of Ehime  the Sadamisaki Peninsula  is the narrowest peninsula in Japan.
Ikata Nuclear Power Plant produces a large portion of Shikoku Electric Power.
Education         Sports     The sports teams listed below are based in Ehime.
It has been used for over two thousand years.
These are anime set in Ehime Prefecture.
It was based on his experience in Matsuyama.
Movies  dramas  and manga are published based on the novel.
The shooting was done at a high school  university  and library in Ehime.
The drum stand is lifted by about 150 men.
Hot Springs     There are Hot Springs in Ehime Prefecture.
Dōgo Onsen appears in the Nihon Shoki.
This Hot Spring has three public baths  the main building  Tsubaki no Yu  and Asuka no Yu.
Sora to Mori is a combined warm bath facility.
There are hot springs  restaurants  and body care.
Nibukawa Onsen is a hot spring located in Imabari.
The source originates from the crevices of the Inugawa Valley in this hot spring town.
Language     Iyo dialect is a Japanese dialect spoken in Ehime Prefecture.
Nanyo is influenced by the Kyushu dialect  and Chuyo and Toyo are influenced by the Kinki dialect.
The Eighth East Asia Summit was held in Bandar Seri Begawan  Brunei on October 9–10  2013.
The other members  leaders attended.
Voters must satisfy a three month residency requirement before being allowed to cast a ballot.
Most prime ministers use that option.
The term is fixed  the House of Councillors cannot be dissolved.
This  too  is a parallel electoral system.
Dual candidacies are not allowed.
The preference votes strictly determined the ranking of candidates on party lists before 2019.
The electoral cycles of the two chambers of the Diet are usually not synchronized.
Vacant district seats in both Houses are generally filled in by elections  補欠選挙  hoketsu senkyo .
Nowadays  these are usually scheduled in April and October as necessary.
twisted Diet   where passing legislation depends on cooperation with the opposition.
In practice  the Genrō  元老  usually nominated a candidate for appointment.
The only other candidate was Takashi Tachibana for the anti NHK party.
Yet great inequities remained between urban and rural voters.
Several lower house districts  boundaries were redrawn.
Yet the disparity was still as much as three urban votes to one rural vote.
After the 1986 change  the average number of persons per lower house representative was 236 424.
The majority of Tokyo s special wards follow separate cycles for their mayoral elections.
The 2014 Ibaraki election was held on the same day as the 2014 Japanese general election.
These so called  proportional fractional votes   按分票  Anbun hyō  are rounded to the third decimal.
The first machine vote took place in Niimi  Okayama in June 2002.
In 2003  a system for early voting  期日前投票制度  Kijitsu mae tōhyō seido  was introduced.
Military service often was linked with citizenship among the male members of the royal house.
Rome Byzantium      In the ancient Roman Kingdom  the kings were elected by the Assemblies.
In practice  however  Imperial Rome was a monarchy.
This was particularly the case for Augustus  the first Emperor  who established the Principate.
majestic   he described himself as  princeps senatus   or merely  first among senators .
The illusion of being elected from the Senate continued when Tiberius succeeded to the purple.
Accordingly  heredity never was  and could never be  formally established in law.
Merovingian kings were elected  while Carolingian kings were elected at times.
The election soon became a mere formality and vanished after the reign of Philip II of France.
The secular electoral seats were hereditary.
Thus the prince bishoprics were elective monarchies too.
The attempt to make Frederick V King of Bohemia is regarded as a catalyst for the Thirty Years War.
Nevertheless  the king was elected  or at least recognized  by the Haute Cour.
The selection was not always limited to the heirs of the previous king  e.g.
There could also be joint rule between multiple kings.
This continued until 1660  when a hereditary and absolute monarchy was instituted by Frederick III.
This unique Polish election was termed the free election  wolna elekcja .
Henry IV of England  chosen by Parliament in 1399 to replace Richard II.
William III and Mary II of England  chosen by Parliament to replace James II.
Hungary      Hungary was an elective monarchy until 1687.
It was then decided that a democratically elected monarch was needed in Spain.
The Cortes affirmed the crown as elective when it elevated King John in 1385.
This practice has continued to the present day.
In the Mongol Empire  the Great Khan was chosen by the Kurultai.
In 1858  the central tribes of North Island elected Potatau te Wherowhero as their monarch.
The Kingdom of Hawaii could be considered a de facto example.
King Kalākaua was elected by the legislature in 1874  after Lunalilo s death.
Prior to 1864  the Hawaiian King in Council appointed the heir to the Hawaiian throne.
He would be selected from a pool of four candidates.
United States      An attempt to create an elective monarchy in the United States failed.
Alternatively  the monarch may be deposed  as in a revolution.
Malaysia  where the Yang di Pertuan Agong  Supreme Head of State  is elected to a five year term.
The Yang di Pertuan Agong shall not be re elected unless the rotation succession was complete.
The ruling chiefs themselves are elected by the chieftain.
Male candidates are determined based on matrilineal clan.
The system was partially the basis for the federal monarchy.
United Arab Emirates has a president called Ra is.
This is an elected position elected by the Federal Supreme Council with a term of 5 years.
Elections are held every 5 years.
Similar forms     Andorra could be considered a semi elective principality.
Eswatini has a form of quasi elective monarchy.
In the country  no king can appoint his successor.
The son of this  Great Wife  will automatically become the next king.
The eldest son is never appointed successor as he has other ceremonial roles.
The latest election was in 2013 after the death of the previous cacique at around 100 years old.
Current cacique is Costa Rican born Pedro Palacios  son of the previous cacique Pedro Bejarano.
Poland – The Historical Setting.
Japan s education system has also been highlighted as a possible contributing factor.
Quite a few Japanese companies still have significant international market share.
The future of the Japanese electronics industry is debated.
Elementary school  小学校  Shōgakkō  in Japan is compulsory.
In 1886  the modern elementary school system started as compulsory education.
Until 1947  only elementary schools were compulsory.
Today virtually all elementary education takes place in public schools.
Less than 1  of the schools are private  partly because of the latter s expense.
Competition to enter some of these  ladder schools  is quite intense.
Elementary school classes are large  typically between thirty and forty students each.
Academic subjects include Japanese language  social studies  arithmetic  and science.
These include  a whole range of meats  fishes  vegetables  and sea plants.
A typical meal consists of stew or curry  boiled vegetables  a sandwich  and salad.
Usually  there is also dessert  such as gelatin  ice cream  and fruit.
All students eat the same lunch  and are assigned to shifts for serving lunch to their homeroom.
Upper elementary students in those schools have one more class after lunch.
The government also is concerned with the education of Japanese children residing abroad.
The Eleventh East Asia Summit was held in Vientiane  Laos on September 6–8  2016.
Compensation     Annual compensation for the Emir is defined by the National Assembly.
The annual compensation is currently set to 50 million KWD.
This was to be the last time the emperor had any power until the Meiji Restoration in 1868.
She became Nyoin called Dantenmon in  談天門院 .
His older brother was Emperor Go Nijō.
Shortly thereafter  Emperor Go Daigo is said to have acceded to the throne  sokui .
He wanted to imitate the Chinese in all their ways and become the most powerful ruler in the East.
Daigo ordered Nitta Yoshisada to track down and destroy Ashikaga.
Ashikaga defeated Nitta Yoshisada at the Battle of Takenoshita  Hakone.
Kusunoki Masashige and Kitabatake Akiie  in communication with Kyoto  smashed the Ashikaga army.
He ordered Masashige and Yoshisada to destroy Takauji.
Kusunoki s army was defeated at the Battle of Minatogawa.
This emperor is traditionally venerated at a memorial Shinto shrine  misasagi  at Nara.
The Imperial Household Agency designates this location as Go Daigo s mausoleum.
It is formally named Tō no o no misasagi.
In general  this elite group included only three to four men at a time.
Nihon Ōdai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
His mother was a lady in waiting.
Go Yōzei s Imperial family lived with him in the Dairi of the Heian Palace.
The events during his lifetime shed some light on his reign.
November 5  1586  Prince Katahito was given the title Crown Prince and heir.
There had been no such Imperial transition since Emperor Go Hanazono abdicated in 1464  Kanshō 5 .
This was the first time that an emperor appeared in public since 1521.
1592  Keichō 1   Keichō expedition to Korea en route to invade China.
The Tokugawa clan and its allies decisively vanquish all opposition.
1602  Keichō 8   The Kyōto Daibutsu is destroyed by fire.
Toyotomi Hideyori was elevated to Naidaijin in the Imperial court.
1606  Keichō 11   Construction began on Edo Castle.
1610  Keichō 15   Reconstruction of the Daibutsu hall in Kyōto is begun.
He gradually began to interfere in the affairs of the Imperial Court.
The right to grant ranks of court nobility and change the era became a concern of the bakufu.
Nihon Ōdai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
Traditional narrative    Kammu s personal name  imina  was Yamabe  山部 .
In 785 Sawara was expelled and died in exile.
Otomaro was declared  Sei i Taishōgun  which means  Barbarian subduing Great General .
The waka poet Ariwara no Narihira was one of his grandsons.
Kammu appointed Sakanoue no Tamuramaro  758–811  to lead a military expedition against the Emishi.
773  Received the title of crown prince.
Shortly thereafter  Emperor Kammu is said to have ascended to the throne.
During his reign  the capital of Japan was moved from Nara  Heijō kyō  to Nagaoka kyō in 784.
Shortly thereafter  the capital would be moved again in 794.
In the same general time frame  Fujiwara no Tamaro was named Udaijin.
783  Enryaku 2  3rd month   The udaijin Tamaro died at the age of 62 years.
793  Enryaku 12   Under the leadership of Dengyō  construction began on the Enryaku Temple.
This marks the beginning of the Heian period.
806  Kammu died at the age of 70.
Kammu s reign lasted for 25 years.
This led to an uprising  and in 789 a substantial defeat for Kammu s troops.
Many disguised themselves as Buddhist priests for the same reason.
Confucian ideology still provided the raison d être for the Imperial government.
Sadaijin  Fujiwara no Tamaro　 藤原田麿  　783.
Udaijin  Ōnakatomi no Kiyomaro　 大中臣清麿  　771–781 Udaijin  Fujiwara no Tamaro　 藤原田麿   782–783.
Udaijin  Fujiwara no Korekimi　 藤原是公  　783–789.
Udaijin  Fujiwara no Tsuginawa　 藤原継縄  790–796.
Annales des empereurs du Japon  Nihon Ōdai Ichiran .
Before it went old Japan  after it came new Japan.
Since the modern era  when an Emperor of Japan dies he is given a posthumous name.
Background     The Tokugawa shogunate had established itself in the early 17th century.
Under its rule  the shōgun governed Japan.
Under the code  the Emperor was required to devote his time to scholarship and the arts.
Emperors were taught only the rudiments of Japanese and Chinese history and geography.
Unknown to him at the time  Meiji also had hereditary diseases that were the result of inbreeding.
The imperial family had a poorer diet than that of average people due to religious reasons.
Due to beriberi  he could barely walk.
He had fifteen children with his concubines.
Another states that the prince was delicate and often ill.
Some biographers state that he fainted when he first heard gunfire  while others deny this account.
The prince began his education at the age of seven.
Representatives of foreign powers sought to increase their influence in Japan.
Many daimyōs were increasingly dissatisfied with bakufu handling foreign affairs.
The shishi revered Emperor Kōmei and favoured direct violent action to cure societal ills.
In 1863  the shishi persuaded him to issue an  Order to expel barbarians .
Several attacks were made on foreigners or their ships  and foreign forces retaliated.
During this time  he studied waka poetry  first with his father  then with the court poets.
Tokugawa Yoshinobu was a reformer who desired to transform Japan into a Western style state.
In mid 1866  a bakufu army set forth to punish rebels in southern Japan.
The new Emperor continued his classical education  which did not include matters of politics.
In the meantime  the shōgun  Yoshinobu  struggled to maintain power.
Officers are being appointed by us to the conduct of foreign affairs.
He arrived in late November and began an extended stay by distributing sake among the population.
The population of Tokyo was eager for an Imperial visit.
It would not be until 1889 that a final decision was made to move the capital to Tokyo.
It indicated his intent to be involved in government affairs.
Japan s new leaders sought to reform the patchwork system of domains governed by the daimyōs.
By the following year  all other daimyōs had followed suit.
However  unlike the daimyōs  many samurai suffered financially from this change.
Most other class based distinctions were abolished.
Legalized discrimination against the burakumin ended.
However  these classes continue to suffer discrimination in Japan to the present time.
The 1889 constitution created a new parliament  although it had no real power.
The description text said   The victorious Emperor of Japan   beloved ruler of a new world power.
Before it went old Japan  after it came new Japan.
The shrine does not contain the Emperor s grave  which is at Fushimi momoyama south of Kyoto.
The two married on 11 January 1869.
Although she was the first Japanese Empress Consort to play a public role  she bore no children.
However  the Meiji Emperor had fifteen children by five official ladies in waiting.
1853  A fleet of ships headed by Commodore Matthew Perry arrives in Japan on 8 July.
1854–55  Treaties are signed with the United States by the shogunate.
Late 1850s–1860s  The  Sonnō jōi  movement is in full force.
March 1860  The Tairō  Ii Naosuke  is assassinated in the Sakuradamon incident.
11 November  Sachinomiya is formally proclaimed Crown Prince and given the personal name Mutsuhito.
23 October  The era name is changed to Meiji.
6 November  The capital is moved from Kyoto Prefecture to Edo  renamed Tokyo.
5 November 1872  The Emperor receives the Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich of Russia.
4 September  The Emperor receives The Duke of Edinburgh.
1871  The abolition of the han system is proclaimed.
1873  Edo Castle is destroyed in a conflagration  the Emperor moves to the Akasaka Palace.
His first children are born  but die at birth.
1881  Receives the first state visit of a foreign monarch  King Kalākaua of Hawaii.
1889  Meiji Constitution promulgated  Itō Hirobumi becomes first Prime Minister of Japan.
1894  Sino Japanese War  Japanese victory establishes Japan as a regional power.
1904–1905  Russo Japanese War  Japanese victory earns Japan the status of a great power.
30 July 1912  The Emperor dies  aged 59 .
The Emperor of Japan is the head of state and the head of the Imperial Family of Japan.
Imperial Household Law governs the line of imperial succession.
The Supreme Court does not have judicial power over him.
He is also the Head of the Shinto religion.
The Japanese Shinto religion holds him to be the direct descendant of the sun goddess Amaterasu.
The Emperor is also the head of all national Japanese orders  decorations  medals  and awards.
The Imperial House of Japan is the oldest continuing monarchical house in the world.
Naruhito is the current Emperor of Japan.
Earlier  emperors resided in Kyoto  the ancient capital  for nearly eleven centuries.
The Emperor s Birthday  currently 23 February  is a national holiday.
The emperor is also not the commander in chief of the Japan Self Defense Forces.
The Japan Self Defense Forces Act of 1954 explicitly vests this role with the prime minister.
The emperor s powers are limited only to important ceremonial functions.
Article 4 also states that these duties can be delegated by the Emperor as provided for by law.
The latter ceremony opens ordinary and extra sessions of the Diet.
Extra sessions usually convene in the autumn and are opened then.
The emperors from Emperor Keiko to Emperor Ingyo  376–453 AD  are considered as perhaps factual.
Emperors are known to have come into conflict with the reigning shogun from time to time.
Empress Meishō  1624 1696  was the last ruling Empress of Japan and reigned from 1629 to 1643.
In 1868  Emperor Meiji was restored to nominal full power and the shogunate was dissolved.
Scholars still debate about the power he had and the role he played during WWII.
On April 30  2019  Emperor Emeritus Akihito abdicated from his reign due to health issues.
The previous time abdication occurred was Emperor Kōkaku in 1817.
Naruhito ascended on May 1  2019  referred to as  Kinjō Tennō.
The territory of Japan has changed throughout history.
Its largest extent was the Empire of Japan.
In 1938 it was 1 984 000 km2  800 000 sq mi .
After its defeat in World War II the empire was dismantled.
The contemporary territories include the Japanese archipelago and these areas.
Regardless of territorial changes the Emperor remains the formal head of state of Japan.
During most of history  de facto power was with Shoguns or Prime Ministers.
The shoguns and prime ministers derived their legitimacy from the Emperor.
The parliamentary government continues a similar coexistence with the Emperor.
The first recorded instance of the name Nihon 日本 was between 665 and 703 during the Asuka period.
This was several centuries after the start of the current imperial line.
The various names of Japan do not affect the status of the Emperor as head of state.
Education     The emperors traditionally had an education officer.
Sumeramikoto   the Imperial person   was also used in Old Japanese.
In English  the term mikado  御門 or 帝   literally meaning  the honorable gate   i.e.
In the case of the imperial family  it is considered extremely inappropriate to use the given name.
Hirohito  as usually called in English outside Japan  was never referred to by his name in Japan.
Concubines were allowed also to other dynasts  Shinnōke  Ōke .
With the help of all this polygamy  the imperial clan could produce more offspring.
Of the eight reigning empresses of Japan  none married or gave birth after ascending the throne.
Some of them  being widows  had produced children before their reigns.
In the succession  children of the empress were preferred over sons of secondary consorts.
Many such alliances were sealed by marriages.
Marriages were also a means to seal a reconciliation between two imperial branches.
Tradition had become more forceful than law.
Fujiwara women often became empresses  while concubines came from less exalted noble families.
Fujiwara daughters were thus the usual empresses and mothers of emperors.
The law was repealed in the aftermath of World War II.
The account of Ninigi being sent to earth appears in the Nihon Shoki.
These three gifts signify that the emperor is the descendant of Amaterasu.
It has been non primogenitural  more or less agnatic  based mostly on rotation.
However  female accession was clearly much more rare than male.
Abdication was used very often  and in fact occurred more often than death on the throne.
Over a thousand years ago  a tradition started that an emperor should ascend relatively young.
A dynast who had passed his toddler years was regarded suitable and old enough.
Reaching the age of legal majority was not a requirement.
Thus  a multitude of Japanese emperors have ascended as children  as young as 6 or 8 years old.
The high priestly duties were deemed possible for a walking child.
A reign of around 10 years was regarded a sufficient service.
Several emperors abdicated to their entitled retirement while still in their teens.
None ascended purely as a wife or as a widow of an emperor.
One  Empress Genmei  was the widow of a crown prince and a princess of the blood imperial.
None of these empresses married or gave birth after ascending the throne.
Current status      Succession is now regulated by laws passed by the National Diet.
A change to this law had been considered until Princess Kiko gave birth to a son.
Her son  Prince Hisahito  is the third in line to the throne under the current law of succession.
This would be an emergency measure to ensure stable succession.
It does not revise the Imperial Household Law.
After that  with a few exceptions  all emperors were cremated up to the Edo period.
For the next 350 years  in ground burial became the favoured funeral custom.
Until 1912  the emperors were usually buried in Kyoto.
Staff numbers in the imperial households were slashed from a peak of roughly 6 000 to about 1 000.
Among other details  the book revealed the royal family employed a staff of over 1 000 people.
This is 30  higher than Emperor Emeritus Akihito s accession  1990 .
OCLC 922925863.CS1 maint  multiple names  authors list  link  Pye  Lucian W.  Keene  Donald  2002 .
Slave to the tortoise shell  Japan s monarchy.
Nihon Ōdai Ichiran Annales des empereurs du Japon pp.
The Pacific War officially came to a close on September 2  1945.
A period of occupation by the Allies followed.
The Empire of Japan had three emperors  although it came to an end during Shōwa s reign.
This meaning is significant in terms of geography  encompassing Japan  and its surrounding areas.
Later the Empire emerged as a major colonial power in the world.
Due to its name in kanji characters and its flag  it was also given the exonym  Empire of the Sun .
Thus  the period known as Bakumatsu began.
The British demanded reparations but were denied.
They responded by bombarding the port of Kagoshima in 1863.
The Tokugawa government agreed to pay an indemnity for Richardson s death.
The Chōshū clan also launched the failed coup known as the Kinmon incident.
Tokugawa Yoshinobu launched a military campaign to seize the emperor s court at Kyoto.
The siege of Hakodate came to an end in May 1869 and the remaining forces surrendered.
The Meiji leaders also aimed to boost morale and win financial support for the new government.
Japan dispatched the Iwakura Mission in 1871.
This would later bring the Meiji government into conflict with the samurai.
In the Meiji Restoration period  military and economic power was emphasized.
Military strength became the means for national development and stability.
Japan s rise has been meteoric.
After only 80 years  it is one of the few great powers that determine the fate of the world.
The feudal caste system in Japan formally ended in 1869 with the Meiji restoration.
It is currently better known as the Kaihōrei  解放令 Emancipation Edict .
The traditional syncreticism between Shinto and Buddhism ended.
Emperor Ogimachi issued edicts to ban Catholicism in 1565 and 1568  but to little effect.
After the Tokugawa shogunate banned Christianity in 1620  it ceased to exist publicly.
Only after the Meiji Restoration  was Christianity re established in Japan.
His commemoration day is February 16.
His gospel tract translated into Japanese was among the first Protestant literature in Japan.
In 1865  McCartee moved back to Ningbo  China  but others have followed in his footsteps.
The Emperor gives sanction to laws  and orders them to be promulgated and executed.
The Diet consisted of the House of Representatives of Japan and the House of Peers.
Both houses opened seats for colonial people as well as Japanese.
The Imperial Diet continued until 1947.
Japan emerged from the Tokugawa Meiji transition as an industrialized nation.
Transportation and communications developed to sustain heavy industrial development.
On June 4  1894  Korea requested aid from the Qing Empire in suppressing the Donghak Rebellion.
The Qing government sent 2 800 troops to Korea.
When Korea demanded that Japan withdraw its troops from Korea  the Japanese refused.
Japan provided the largest contingent of troops  20 840  as well as 18 warships.
The Japanese were able to contribute 52 men to the Seymour Expedition.
The force landed near Tianjin on July 5.
After the treaty  Russia continued to occupy all of Manchuria.
The victory greatly raised Japan s stature in the world of global politics.
Originally  in the Treaty of Shimonoseki  Ryojun had been given to Japan.
These interests came into conflict with Japanese interests.
The fleet arrived on the scene a year later  only to be annihilated in the Battle of Tsushima.
In addition  Russia s defeat cleared the way for Japan to annex Korea outright in 1910.
Japanese involvement in Korea increased during the 1890s  a period of political upheaval.
Korea was occupied and declared a Japanese protectorate following the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1905.
Japan declared war on Germany on August 23  1914.
The German colonial troops surrendered on November 7  1914  and Japan gained the German holdings.
It was officially terminated in 1923.
Calls were raised for universal suffrage and the dismantling of the old political party network.
Thereafter  until 1932  the Seiyūkai and the Rikken Minseitō alternated in power.
The concept of Kodo linked the Emperor  the people  land  and morality as indivisible.
This led to the creation of a  new  Shinto and increased Emperor worship.
On February 26  1936  a coup d état was attempted  the February 26 Incident .
The state was being transformed to serve the Army and the Emperor.
In such a government the Emperor would once more be a figurehead  as in the Edo period .
This unique style of government  very similar to fascism  was known as Shōwa Statism.
In the early twentieth century  a distinctive style of architecture was developed for the empire.
Their main concern was a shortage of raw materials.
The Great Depression  just as in many other countries  hindered Japan s economic growth.
Most of these resources came from the United States.
Jehol  a Chinese territory bordering Manchukuo  was later also taken in 1933.
In total  an estimated 20 million Chinese  mostly civilians  were killed during World War II.
A puppet state was also set up in China quickly afterwards  headed by Wang Jingwei.
Two days later the Mongolian force returned and the Manchukoans were unable to evict them.
The IJA 23rd Division and other units of the Kwantung Army then became involved.
On September 15 an armistice was arranged.
On September 27  1940  Japan signed the Tripartite Pact with Germany and Italy.
The signatories of this alliance became known as the Axis Powers.
The American public saw the attack as barbaric and treacherous and rallied against the Japanese.
Hong Kong surrendered to the Japanese on December 25.
The Allies lacked aircover and tanks  the Japanese had complete air superiority.
By the end of January 1942  the last Allied forces crossed the strait of Johore and into Singapore.
In April 1942  Japan was bombed for the first time in the Doolittle Raid.
The Sixth United States Army  led by General MacArthur  landed on Leyte on October 20  1944.
The Palawan massacre was committed by the imperial army against Filipinos in December 1944.
Regardless  these efforts did not succeed in persuading the Japanese military to surrender.
These bombings were the first and only combat use of nuclear weaponry.
The bombs killed as many as 140 000 people in Hiroshima and 80 000 in Nagasaki by the end of 1945.
This new constitution was imposed by the United States under the supervision of MacArthur.
The US occupation forces were fully responsible for protecting Japan from external threats.
Japan only had a minor police force for domestic security.
Japan was under the sole control of the United States.
In the bureaucracy  the purge was negligible from the outset.
1927  Tanaka Giichi becomes prime minister  April 20 .
1928  Emperor Shōwa is formally installed as emperor  November 10 .
1929  Osachi Hamaguchi becomes prime minister  July 2 .
1930  Hamaguchi is wounded in an assassination attempt  November 14 .
1931  Hamaguchi dies and Wakatsuki Reijirō becomes prime minister  April 14 .
Japan occupies Manchuria after the Mukden Incident  September 18 .
Manchukuo is established with Henry Pu Yi as emperor  February 29 .
Inukai is assassinated during a coup attempt and Saitō Makoto becomes prime minister  May 15 .
Japan is censured by the League of Nations  December 7 .
1933  Japan leaves the League of Nations  March 27 .
1934  Keisuke Okada becomes prime minister  July 8 .
Japan withdraws from the Washington Naval Treaty  December 29 .
1936  Coup attempt  February 26 Incident .
Kōki Hirota becomes prime minister  March 9 .
Mengjiang established in Inner Mongolia.
1937  Senjūrō Hayashi becomes prime minister  February 2 .
Prince Fumimaro Konoe becomes prime minister  June 4 .
Japan captures Beijing  July 31 .
Japanese troops occupy Nanjing  December 13   beginning the Nanjing Massacre.
Canton falls to Japanese forces  October 21 .
1939  Hiranuma Kiichirō becomes prime minister  January 5 .
Abe Nobuyuki becomes prime minister  August 30 .
1940  Mitsumasa Yonai becomes prime minister  January 16 .
Konoe becomes prime minister for a second term  July 22 .
1941  General Hideki Tojo becomes prime minister  October 18 .
Japan bombs Australia  February 19 .
Indian Ocean raid  March 31 – April 10 .
1944  Tojo resigns and Kuniaki Koiso becomes prime minister  July 22 .
1945  Allied bombers begin firebombing of major Japanese cities.
Admiral Kantarō Suzuki becomes prime minister  April 7 .
Japan surrenders  September 2   Allied occupation begins.
1947  The Constitution of Japan comes into force.
The term endonym was subsequently devised as an antonym for the term exonym.
Native and borrowed exonyms     Exonyms can also be divided into native and borrowed  i.e.
In preference of exonyms     In some situations  the use of exonyms can be preferred.
Other difficulties with endonyms have to do with pronunciation  spelling  and word category.
The attempt to use the endonym thus has a bizarre sounding result.
However  outside of Thailand  the capital retained the old name and is still called Bangkok.
In most non Francophone countries  however  the French version has not entered common parlance.
For example  in German the country is known as die Elfenbeinküste and in Italian as Costa d Avorio.
The Belarusian government argues that the endonym Belarus should be used in all languages.
This use has now been made official within the People s Republic of China.
In Taiwan  however  the standardization of Hanyu Pinyin has only seen mixed results.
In Taipei  most  but not all  street and district names shifted to Hanyu Pinyin.
For example  the Sinyi District is now spelled Xinyi.
The name  Comanche  comes from the Ute word kɨmantsi meaning  enemy  stranger .
In India     The name Madras  now Chennai  may be a special case.
They possibly referred to different villages which were fused into the new settlement.
In any case  Madras became the exonym  while more recently  Chennai became the endonym.
Japan relied on oil imports to meet about 84 percent of its energy needs in 2010.
Following the Fukushima disaster  the general public has opposed the use of nuclear energy.
By 1976  with only 3  of the world s population  Japan was consuming 6  of global energy supplies.
Japan now depends heavily on imported fossil fuels to meet its energy demand.
As of 2016  India  Saudi Arabia and Texas have overtaken Japan in oil consumption.
Coal     As of 2019  a third of the electricity in Japan was generated from coal.
Twenty two new coal plants were planned for the years 2020 to 2025.
In 2017  Japan consumed 4.738 quadrillion Btu  1 388 TWh  of imported coal.
3 was restarted on 2 July  and No.
The proposal calls for an increase of about 20  in nuclear energy by 2030.
Renewables     Japan currently produces about 10  of its electricity from renewable sources.
The Fourth Strategic Energy Plan set the renewable share goal to be 24  by 2030.
In the next 15 years  Japan intends on investing  700 billion into renewable energy.
Nuclear energy will provide 20  of the country s energy needs as an emissions free energy source.
This will help Japan meet climate change commitments.
As of September 2011  Japan had 1 198 small hydropower plants with a total capacity of 3 225 MW.
The smaller plants accounted for 6.6 percent of Japan s total hydropower capacity.
Since then  Japan had been slow to increase solar capacity compared to other countries until 2012.
With the incentives in place  Japan added 1 718 MW of solar power in 2012.
By the end of the year  Japan s total solar capacity was 7.4 GW.
The country had six geothermal power stations with a combined capacity of 133 megawatts in 1989.
By 2011  the country had 18 geothermal plants.
In addition  14 other generators were used to burn both coal and biomass fuel.
In 2008  Japan produced 322 million tons of biomass fuel and converted 76  of it into energy.
In that respect it ranked 18th among the countries of the world.
One way this was done in Japan is through the feed in tariff scheme.
This was announced in 2012 as a direct consequence of the Fukushima disaster.
Also wholesale electricity trading on the Japan Electric Power Exchange has been encouraged.
A converter station also exists at Minami Fukumitsu.
The two grids were originally developed by separate companies.
Tokyo Electric Light Co was established in 1883  which also established electric power in Japan.
In 1885  demand had grown enough that TELCO bought generation equipment from AEG of Germany.
Carbon emissions     Japan has pledged to become carbon neutral by 2050.
In 2014  Japan was the 6th largest producer of carbon emissions.
In 2013  Japan ranked 28 in the list of countries by carbon dioxide emissions per capita.
He expected Japan to play a leading role in such an effort.
Environmental pollution in Japan has accompanied industrialization since the Meiji period.
The number of casualties in Minamata is 6 500 as of November 2006.
In the 1990s  Japan s environmental legislation was further tightened.
In 1984 the Environmental Agency had issued its first white paper.
In 1999  some experts estimated 70 percent of the world s waste incinerators were located in Japan.
Coral reefs house many fish  so this had  and will have  terrible consequences.
It is estimated that in 2008 that Japan eat 81 percent of the worlds fresh tuna.
These reasons are why Japan has one of the most overfished waters in the world.
As of 2005  more than ten species faced serious stock depletion.
Government policy that has been implemented include The Total Allowable Catch System  TACs .
See chapter 9 entitled  Opposite Paths to Success .
Epithet can also refer to an abusive  defamatory  or derogatory phrase.
An epithet is linked to its noun by long established usage.
Not every adjective is an epithet.
The same epithet can be used repeatedly joined to different names  e.g.
An example of a kenning would be using the term whale road instead of the word  sea .
The phrase  Discreet Telemachus  is also considered an epithet.
An epithet can even be meant for collective use  e.g.
in Latin pilleati  the felt hat wearers  for the brothers Castor and Pollux.
Mother of God    Panagia    and of the saints  e.g.
These descriptive phrases can be used in a positive or negative way that benefits the orator.
With persuasion being a key component of rhetoric  it is rational to use epithets.
The use of persuasive wording gives leverage to one s arguments.
Knowledge along with descriptive words or phrases can be a powerful tool.
Orators have a variety of epithets that they can employ that have different meanings.
The most common are fixed epithets and transferred epithets.
A fixed epithet is the repetitive use of the same word or phrase for the same person or object.
A transferred epithet qualifies a noun other than the person or thing it is describing.
This is also known as a hypallage.
Orators take special care when using epithets so as to not use them as smear words.
Orators could be accused of racial or abusive epithets if used incorrectly.
Some of the individuals  such as Richard Basset  made use of what we would recognize as a surname.
The use of by names did not end with the adoption of surnames.
This led to the use of by names to further distinguish the person.
Buddhist monasteries also came to control vast estates of agricultural lands.
The gradual loss of taxable lands is a reason for the decline of the Tang dynasty.
Nonetheless  the system remained in existence  at least in theory  well after that.
Tallinn  the capital of Estonia  and Tartu are the largest cities and urban areas in the country.
Other notable cities include Narva  Pärnu  Kohtla Järve and Viljandi.
The official language of the country  Estonian  is the second most spoken Finnic language.
The territory of Estonia has been inhabited since at least 9 000 BC.
The toponym Estland Eistland has been linked to Old Norse aust  austr meaning  the east .
Subsistence activities consisted of hunting  gathering and fishing.
Around 4900 BC  ceramics appear of the neolithic period  known as Narva culture.
Similar threats appeared to the east  where Russian principalities were expanding westward.
In 1030 Yaroslav the Wise defeated Estonians and established a fort in modern day Tartu.
The landscape of Ancient Estonia featured numerous hillforts.
Prehistoric or medieval harbour sites have been found on the coast of Saaremaa.
In the early centuries AD  political and administrative subdivisions began to emerge in Estonia.
Fighting reached Estonia in 1206  when Danish king Valdemar II unsuccessfully invaded Saaremaa.
The next year  Sweden invaded Western Estonia  but were repelled by the Oeselians.
In the next decades there were several uprisings against foreign rulers on Saaremaa.
The unsuccessful rebellion led to a consolidation of power for the Baltic German minority.
For the subsequent centuries they remained the ruling elite in both cities and the countryside.
In 1248 Reval received full town rights and adopted the Lübeck law.
Danish Saaremaa was transferred to Sweden in 1645.
Printing presses were also established in both towns.
Russian administration restored all the political and landholding rights of Baltic Germans.
Linguistic reforms helped to develop the Estonian language.
During the unrest peasants and workers attacked manor houses.
Bolsheviks seized power during the October Revolution  and disbanded the Provincial Assembly.
In April 1919  the Estonian Constituent Assembly was elected.
In 1924  the Soviet Union organised a communist coup attempt  which quickly failed.
To legitimise the regime  a new constitution was adopted and elections were held in 1938.
In the 1930s  Estonia also engaged in secret military co operation with Finland.
Non aggression pacts were signed with the Soviet Union in 1932  and with Germany in 1939.
In 1938  Estonia declared neutrality  but this proved futile in World War II.
On the same day  the airliner Kaleva was shot down by the Soviet Air Force.
Soviet destruction battalions initiated a scorched earth policy.
Political prisoners who could not be evacuated were executed by the NKVD.
Many Estonians went into the forest  starting an anti Soviet guerrilla campaign.
In July  German Wehrmacht reached south Estonia.
About a thousand Estonian Jews who had not managed to leave were almost all quickly killed in 1941.
In March 1949 about 20 000 Estonians were deported to Siberia.
The country was heavily militarised  with closed military areas covering 2  of territory.
In 1990  the Congress of Estonia was formed as the representative body of Estonian citizens.
There is 3 794 kilometres  2 357 mi  of coastline marked by numerous bays  straits  and inlets.
Two of them are large enough to constitute separate counties  Saaremaa and Hiiumaa.
Most are very small  with the largest  Lake Peipus  being 3 555 km2  1 373 sq mi .
There are many rivers in the country.
Estonia has numerous fens and bogs.
Forest land covers 50  of Estonia.
Estonia has four seasons of near equal length.
The average annual temperature in Estonia is 5.2 °C  41.4 °F .
There are 6 national parks  159 nature reserves  and many other protection areas.
The last five years account for 80  of that loss.
Further alterations to rules in other Estonian national parks are planned.
Politics     Estonia is a unitary parliamentary republic.
Ministers head ministries and represent its interests in the government.
The head of the state is the President who has primarily representative and ceremonial role.
The president is elected by the Riigikogu  or by a special electoral college.
Estonia has a civil law legal system based on the Germanic legal model.
The court system has three level structure.
The second instance are district courts which handle appeals about the first instance decisions.
Local affairs are managed autonomously by local governments.
The council appoints local government  headed by a mayor.
In 2007  Estonia joined the Schengen Area  and in 2011 the Eurozone.
The Nordic Council of Ministers has an office in Tallinn with a subsidiaries in Tartu and Narva.
NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence was established in Tallinn in 2008.
Also part of NATO Baltic Air Policing deployment has been based in Ämari Air Base since 2014.
The peak strength of Estonian deployment in Afghanistan was 289 soldiers in 2009.
11 Estonian soldiers have been killed in missions of Afghanistan and Iraq.
Estonia produces about 75  of its consumed electricity.
In 2011  about 85  of it was generated with locally mined oil shale.
Renewable wind energy was about 6  of total consumption in 2009.
Estonia imports 100  of its natural gas from Russia.
The Estonian government made a supplementary negative budget  which was passed by Riigikogu.
In 2010  the economic situation stabilised and started a growth based on strong exports.
Estonia has the third lowest business bribery risk in the world  according to TRACE Matrix.
Historic development     In 1928  a stable currency  the kroon  was established.
It is issued by the Bank of Estonia  the country s central bank.
The kroon succeeded the mark in 1928 and was used until 1940.
After Estonia regained its independence  the kroon was reintroduced in 1992.
Estonia s market reforms put it among the economic leaders in the former COMECON area.
A Land Value Tax is levied which is used to fund local municipalities.
It is a state level tax  however 100  of the revenue is used to fund Local Councils.
The rate is set by the Local Council within the limits of 0.1–2.5 .
It is one of the most important sources of funding for municipalities.
Estonia joined the WTO in November 1999.
Estonia joined the OECD in 2010.
In 2018  the enterprise was listed in Tallinn Stock Exchange.
It was also the 2nd largest IPO in Nasdaq Tallinn in the number of retail investors participating.
Total passengers using the airport has increased on average by 14.2  annually since 1998.
In recent years many local and foreign companies have been investing in renewable energy sources.
Estonia liberalised 35  of its electricity market in April 2010.
The electricity market as whole will be liberalised by 2013.
Other notable tech startups include GrabCAD  Fortumo and TransferWise.
At the end of the 1980s  Estonians perceived their demographic change as a national catastrophe.
The Estonian Cultural Autonomy law that was passed in 1925 was unique in Europe at that time.
The Law on Cultural Autonomy for National Minorities was reinstated in 1993.
The Estonian Swedish minority similarly received cultural autonomy in 2007.
There are 33 cities and several town parish towns in the country.
In total  there are 47 linna  with  linn  in English meaning both  cities  and  towns .
More than 70  of the population lives in towns.
The Protestant Reformation led to the establishment of the Lutheran church in 1686.
Additionally  there are between 8 000 and 9 000 members abroad.
Eastern Orthodoxy is practised chiefly by the Russian minority.
They are organised under the Latin Apostolic Administration of Estonia.
Around 68 000 people consider themselves atheists.
South Estonian languages are spoken by 100 000 people and include the dialects of Võro and Seto.
However  by 2010  64.1  of non ethnic Estonians spoke Estonian.
From 1918 to 1940  when Estonia was independent  the small Swedish community was well treated.
Only a handful of older speakers remain.
Other popular languages include Finnish  Spanish  and Swedish.
The first primer in the Estonian language was published in 1575.
In 1919  university courses were first taught in the Estonian language.
Today s education in Estonia is divided into general  vocational  and hobby.
The education system is based on four levels  pre school  basic  secondary  and higher education.
A wide network of schools and supporting educational institutions have been established.
The Estonian education system consists of state  municipal  public  and private institutions.
Estonia has a moderate number of public and private universities.
The Estonian Academy of Sciences is the national academy of science.
The first computer centres were established in the late 1950s in Tartu and Tallinn.
Saxo speaks of Estonian warriors who sang at night while waiting for a battle.
The kannel is a native instrument that is now again becoming more popular in Estonia.
A Native Music Preserving Centre was opened in 2008 in Viljandi.
Today  it is one of the largest amateur choral events in the world.
The last festival took place in July 2019.
In 2002  Estonia hosted the event.
Lenna Kuurmaa is a very popular singer in Europe  with her band Vanilla Ninja.
The Liber Census Daniae  1241  contains Estonian place and family names.
One of the most outstanding achievements in this field is the national epic Kalevipoeg.
The first public TV broadcast in Estonia was in July 1955.
Regular  live radio broadcasts began in December 1926.
The first licences for private TV broadcasters were issued in 1992.
The first private radio station went on the air in 1990.
Today  it includes many typical international foods.
The most typical foods in Estonia are black bread  pork  potatoes  and dairy products.
Today  it is also very popular to grill outside in summer.
Traditionally in winter  jams  preserves  and pickles are brought to the table.
However  preparing food for winter is still very popular in the countryside.
Sports      Sport plays an important role in Estonian culture.
The 1980 Summer Olympics Sailing regatta was held in the capital city Tallinn.
After regaining independence in 1991  Estonia has participated in all Olympics.
Estonia has won most of its medals in athletics  weightlifting  wrestling and cross country skiing.
Estonia has had very good success at the Olympic games given the country s small population.
He narrowly missed a chance at a World Chess Championship match on five occasions.
Kiiking  a relatively new sport  was invented in 1993 by Ado Kosk in Estonia.
Kiiking involves a modified swing in which the rider of the swing tries to go around 360 degrees.
Basketball is also a notable sport in Estonia.
The domestic top tier basketball championship is called the Korvpalli Meistriliiga.
BC Kalev Cramo are the most recent champions  having won the league in the 2016–17 season.
University of Tartu team has won the league a record 26 times.
Estonian clubs also participate in European and regional competitions.
Estonian national team also competed at the EuroBasket 2015.
She has also won the women s slopestyle at 2015 and 2016 Winter Dew Tour.
International rankings    The following are links to international rankings of Estonia.
However  its pejorative connotations make it inappropriate as a general translation.
Demographic     About 2.2  of Japan s total legal resident population are foreign citizens.
Of these  according to 2018 data from the Japanese government  the principal groups are as follows.
The total legal resident population of 2012 is estimated at 127.6 million.
They traditionally practiced tattooing and followed religious beliefs that are considered animism.
They comprise 0.64  of Japan s population.
Chinese people are mostly concentrated in the Osaka  Tokyo and Yokohama areas.
Koreans      Koreans in Japan are the fifth largest ethnic minorities in the country.
Most of them arrived in the early 20th century.
As of 2012  there are 530 421 Koreans in Japan who are not Japanese citizens.
South Asian    South Asians in Japan live mostly in Tokyo.
As of March 12  2011  the Filipino population of Japan was 305 972.
As of April 1  2020  the number of Filipinos in Japan is estimated at 325 000.
Likewise  Brazil maintains its status as home to the largest Japanese community outside of Japan.
Alberto Fujimori is one example of Peruvian Japanese.
Moreover  some customs have changed over the course of Japanese history.
Therefore  the body must be cleaned and scrubbed before entering the bathtub or ofuro.
Water heaters also continue to maintain the temperature.
Ryokan baths have a small anteroom for undressing before entering the bathing room.
Usually there is a basket in which to place used towels and wash cloths.
A scoop is provided so the bather can douse his her head with the tub water.
If there are guests in the home  they will be given priority.
In homes with larger tubs  it is not uncommon for family members to bathe together.
Some homes transfer the hot bath water to a clothes washing machine.
A regular bathhouse will have tap water heated in a boiler.
In all but the most rural areas  public baths are segregated by gender.
Customers bathe nude  many using a small washcloth to cover their genitals.
Hotels  pachinko parlors and other venues may have on site sentō for customer use.
Larger onsen will have separate pools for men and women  and visitors normally bathe nude.
The  honorific  o   or お  cannot be omitted from this word.
The body should be composed but not rigid.
Generally  the longer and deeper the bow  the stronger the emotion and respect expressed.
The three main types of bows are informal  formal  and very formal.
This often leads to a long exchange of progressively lighter bows.
A lower ranked person will bend forward from the waist.
Bows of thanks follow the same pattern.
This is called saikeirei  最敬礼   literally  most respectful bow.
When dealing with non Japanese people  many Japanese will shake hands.
Bows may be combined with handshakes or performed before or after shaking hands.
that was  the condition of  an  honorable  feast  .
In response  the preparer often says osomatsusama deshita  おそまつさまでした  lit.
Children are especially encouraged to eat every last grain of rice.
See also mottainai as Buddhist philosophy.
It is impolite to pick out certain ingredients and leave the rest.
One should chew with the mouth closed.
It is acceptable to lift soup and rice bowls to the mouth so one does not spill food.
It is uncommon for Japanese people to eat or drink while walking in public.
Some consider it rude to eat in public  but this is not a universally held aversion.
As a result  the attachment area may produce small splinters.
Nonwoven towelettes are replacing the cloth oshibori.
Chopsticks      Chopsticks have been used in Japan since the Nara period  710 794 .
There are many traditions and unwritten rules surrounding the use of chopsticks  はし  hashi .
Mismatched chopsticks are not to be used.
Placing chopsticks so that they point at someone else is considered a symbolic threat.
Visiting someone s house     It is considered an honor to be invited to someone s home in Japan.
Many Japanese regard their homes as being too humble to entertain guests.
Just wearing socks is also acceptable in informal situations.
There are also separate slippers used when using a bathroom  for reasons of hygiene.
Wooden geta are provided for short walks outside when entering the house.
The shoes are turned around so that the toe faces the door after taking them off.
When the guest is leaving  he or she does not put on the coat or hat until the door has closed.
Regarding seating arrangements  see kamiza.
Seasonal gifts     There are two gift seasons in Japan  called seibo  歳暮  and chūgen  中元 .
One is for winter and the other is for summer.
For chūgen  July 20 is the latest date to deliver gifts for those living in Tokyo area.
Thus  a comb  or kushi is a carefully avoided item to give as a gift.
Other gifts     Another custom in Japan is for women to give men chocolate on Valentine s Day.
The latter is called giri choko  義理チョコ   obligation chocolate .
Greetings    Greetings are considered to be of extreme importance in Japanese culture.
Letter addresses  even those sent to close friends  are normally written in quite formal language.
Letters addressed to a company take the title onchū  御中  after the company name.
The preferred paper is washi  Japanese paper .
Greeting postcards      In Japan  holiday goers do not send postcards.
These are decorated with motifs based on the year of the Chinese zodiac which is starting.
They request the addressee s continued favor in the new year.
In this case  the etiquette is not to send them a New Year s Greeting either.
These often contain a polite inquiry about the recipient s health.
They are usually sold from the post office and as such contain a lottery number.
This need for harmonious relationships between people is reflected in much Japanese behavior.
They present disagreeable facts in a gentle and indirect fashion.
They see working in harmony as the crucial ingredient for working productively.
Such claims are difficult  if not impossible  to quantify.
Private conversations among service staff are considered inappropriate when a customer is near.
In general  as in most countries  etiquette dictates that the customer is treated with reverence.
A customer is not expected to reciprocate this level of politeness to a server.
Dress for employees is normally neat and formal  depending on the type and style of establishment.
Cards are not to be tossed across the table or held out casually with one hand.
If needed  one may ask how to pronounce someone s name at this juncture.
This attention to business card etiquette is intended to show respect.
Passport controls have been abolished for travel within the Schengen Area.
The United Kingdom became the first member state to leave the EU on 31 January 2020.
Before this  three territories of member states had left the EU or its forerunners.
In 2012  the EU was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
His ideas influenced his contemporaries  among which then Prime Minister of France Aristide Briand.
These men and others are officially credited as the founding fathers of the European Union.
In 1986  the European flag began to be used by the EEC and the Single European Act was signed.
The expansion of the EU introduced a new level of complexity and discord.
In 1995  Austria  Finland  and Sweden joined the EU.
In 2002  euro banknotes and coins replaced national currencies in 12 of the member states.
Since then  the eurozone has increased to encompass 19 countries.
The euro currency became the second largest reserve currency in the world.
Lisbon Treaty  2007–present      In 2007  Bulgaria and Romania became EU members.
On 1 December 2009  the Lisbon Treaty entered into force and reformed many aspects of the EU.
For comparison  the EU 28 birth rate had stood at 10.6 in 2000  12.8 in 1985 and 16.3 in 1970.
This corresponds to 9.4  of the total EU population.
In 2017  approximately 825 000 people acquired citizenship of a member state of the European Union.
The largest groups were nationals of Morocco  Albania  India  Turkey and Pakistan.
2.4 million immigrants from non EU countries entered the EU in 2017.
Urbanisation      The EU contains about 40 urban areas with populations of over one million.
In addition  both are official languages of several EU member states.
Religion      The EU has no formal connection to any religion.
Many countries have experienced falling church attendance and membership in recent years.
Evaluation of a country s fulfilment of the criteria is the responsibility of the European Council.
Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty provides the basis for a member to leave the Union.
Laws made by the EU institutions are passed in a variety of forms.
The monetary policy of the eurozone is determined by the European Central Bank.
The EU budget is scrutinised by the European Court of Auditors.
There are also a number of ancillary bodies which advise the EU or operate in a specific area.
It has been described by some as the Union s  supreme political authority .
Notwithstanding its different configurations  it is considered to be one single body.
This process applies to nearly all areas  including the EU budget.
The President and Vice Presidents are elected by MEPs every two and a half years.
Next comes  agriculture  with approximately 31  of the total.
Rural development  environment and fisheries  takes up around 11 .
The Court also gives opinions and proposals on financial legislation and anti fraud actions.
The Parliament uses this to decide whether to approve the commission s handling of the budget.
The budget included a covid recovery fund of €750 billion.
Competences     EU member states retain all powers not explicitly handed to the European Union.
In some areas the EU enjoys exclusive competence.
These are areas in which member states have renounced any capacity to enact legislation.
In other areas the EU and its member states share the competence to legislate.
While both can legislate  member states can only legislate to the extent to which the EU has not.
Signing the European Convention on Human Rights  ECHR  is a condition for EU membership.
The EU has also promoted human rights issues in the wider world.
The EU opposes the death penalty and has proposed its worldwide abolition.
The details of how they are to be implemented are left to member states.
Decisions offer an alternative to the two above modes of legislation.
European Ombudsman     The European Ombudsman was established by the Maastricht Treaty.
Emily O Reilly is the current ombudsman since 2013.
Prohibitions against sexual and nationality discrimination have a long standing in the treaties.
21 EU members are members of NATO while the remaining member states follow policies of neutrality.
It aims to detect and stop illegal immigration  human trafficking and terrorist infiltration.
International recognition of sustainable development as a key element is growing steadily.
It is applied from the principles of Capability approach and Rights based approach to development.
Partnership and cooperation agreements are bilateral agreements with non member nations.
The currency union represents 342 million EU citizens.
The average annual net earnings in the European Union was around €24 000  US 30 000  in 2015.
There is a significant variation in Nominal GDP per capita within individual EU states.
The free movement of capital is unique insofar as it is granted equally to non member states.
The states wanting to participate had first to join the European Exchange Rate Mechanism.
Around 46  of the energy consumed was produced within the member states while 54  was imported.
There is a strong dependence on Russian energy that the EU has been attempting to reduce.
The Polish road network was upgraded such as the A4 autostrada.
It was  until recently  operated by a system of subsidies and market intervention.
This is intended to allow the market to dictate production levels.
Labour market     The EU seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 6.7  in September 2018.
The euro area unemployment rate was 8.1 .
To this end it has adopted laws establishing minimum employment and environmental standards.
These included the Working Time Directive and the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive.
Such regions are primarily located in the states of central and southern Europe.
TACIS has now become part of the worldwide EuropeAid programme.
Environment and climate      In 1957  when the EEC was founded  it had no environmental policy.
More recently  the EU has demonstrated leadership in global environmental governance  e.g.
The Lisbon Treaty further strengthened the leadership ambitions.
The EU has adopted an emissions trading system to incorporate carbon emissions into the economy.
Almost all member states supported that goal at an EU summit in June 2019.
The EU has a target of zero GHG emission by 2050.
The aims of EU policy in this area are to co ordinate and stimulate research.
In general  life expectancy is lower in Eastern Europe than in Western Europe.
Eutrophication may also be referred to as dystrophication or hypertrophication.
According to Ullmann s Encyclopedia   the primary limiting factor for eutrophication is phosphate.
Phosphate adheres tightly to soil  so it is mainly transported by erosion.
This decomposition process consumes oxygen  which reduces the concentration of dissolved oxygen.
Eutrophication also decreases the value of rivers  lakes and aesthetic enjoyment.
Elevated levels of atmospheric compounds of nitrogen can increase nitrogen availability.
Coastal waters     Eutrophication is a common phenomenon in coastal waters.
Increased nitrates in soil are frequently undesirable for plants.
Species rich fens can be overtaken by reed or reedgrass species.
However  there is a limit to how much nitrogen can be utilized.
Ecosystems receiving more nitrogen than the plants require are called nitrogen saturated.
This is also the case with increased levels of phosphorus.
Consequently  phosphorus is much more important as a limiting nutrient in aquatic systems.
Since then  it has become more widespread.
Removal of these nutrients is an expensive and often difficult process.
When dissolved oxygen levels decline to hypoxic levels  fish and other marine animals suffocate.
As a result  creatures such as fish  shrimp  and especially immobile bottom dwellers die off.
In extreme cases  anaerobic conditions ensue  promoting growth of bacteria.
Zones where this occurs are known as dead zones.
This process causes shifts in the species composition of ecosystems.
This has been shown to occur in New England salt marshes.
Toxic compounds can make their way up the food chain  resulting in animal mortality.
Freshwater algal blooms can pose a threat to livestock.
An example of algal toxins working their way into humans is the case of shellfish poisoning.
Examples include paralytic  neurotoxic  and diarrhoetic shellfish poisoning.
Assessment    At the most extreme levels  eutrophication is identifiable by sight and smell.
Cleanup measures have been mostly  but not completely  successful.
These efforts have had a 90  removal efficiency.
Still  some targeted point sources did not show a decrease in runoff despite reduction efforts.
See nutrient pollution for an extended explanation of nutrient remediation using shellfish.
The literature suggests  though  that when these sources are controlled  eutrophication decreases.
This suggests that the most effective means of prevention is from the primary source.
Waste disposal technology constitutes another factor in eutrophication prevention.
The role of the public is a major factor for the effective prevention of eutrophication.
There are several phosphate sorbents in the literature  from metal salts  e.g.
lanthanum modified bentonite  and others.
Japan has the eighth largest exclusive economic zone  EEZ  in the world.
The total area of Japan is about 377 975.24 km2.
Geography     The Japanese Archipelago consists of about 6 852 islands.
In this case  a fine of 3 million yen or less will be imposed.
J Alert will not be used when the missile will fall somewhere in Japan s exclusive economic zone.
The above  and relevant maps at the Sea Around Us Project both indicate Japan s claimed boundaries.
The UK  Germany  the US  Japan and now China have been at the forefront of successive waves.
Various rebel tribes in the Caucasus region were crushed.
A Polish revolt in 1830 was ruthlessly crushed.
Russian troops in 1848 crossed into Austria Hungary to put down the Hungarian revolt.
Russification policies were implemented to weaken minority ethnic groups.
Nicholas also built the Kremlin Palace and a new cathedral in Saint Petersburg.
Poles and Catholics were persecuted.
Colonies were acquired in Africa and China.
After war broke out  Hitler and Stalin divided Poland between Germany and the USSR.
Its government has occupied whole Palestine  golan heights and Sinai Peninsula during six day war.
Russia     Russian posturing has become aggressive since 2008  and especially since 2014.
Some were ceded to other countries  but many remain U.S. territory.
The federal government purchased Alaska from Russia in 1867.
The United States took control of American Samoa after the Second Samoan Civil War ended in 1899.
The United States has made no territorial claims in Antarctica  but reserves the right to do so.
For example  the U.S. forced the opening of Japan in the 1850s.
The Corn Islands were leased from Nicaragua from 1914 to 1971.
The expressways  高速道路  kōsoku dōro  lit.
high speed road   also jidōsha dō  自動車道   lit.
In 1987  the plan was revised to extend the network to 14 000 kilometres  8 699.2 mi .
Finances     Japan s expressway development has been financed largely with debt.
It was intended to make the expressways free when they are paid off.
The Meishin Expressway and Tomei Expressway debt has been fully paid off since 1990.
Earthquake resistant construction methods have added to costs  as well as extensive soundwalling.
Tolls on weekdays would be cut by around 30 percent.
Features     Most expressways are 4 lanes with a central reservation  median .
The rate of this fee depends on the type of vehicle as shown in the following table.
Tolls are always rounded to the nearest 10 yen and include consumption tax.
There are other smaller networks in Nagoya  Hiroshima  Kitakyūshū  and Fukuoka.
Examples include the Michinoku Toll Road  the Higashi Mito Road and the Futtsu Tateyama Road.
Examples include the Ken Ō Expressway and the Tōkai Kanjō Expressway.
The World Endurance Championship name was previously used by the FIA from 1981 to 1985.
Cars finishing the race but classified eleventh or further are awarded a half point.
For the 24 Hours of Le Mans points are worth roughly 1.5x as much  i.e.
25 points for a win is worth 38 points at Le Mans .
Freeman himself thought a federal monarchy only possible in the abstract.
Officially  Spain is a unitary state displaying a high degree of devolution.
The Fifteenth East Asia Summit was held in Hanoi  Vietnam on November 14  2020.
The summit was held through video conference.
The Fifth East Asia Summit was chaired by Vietnam on 30 October 2010.
Education     China has made reference to deepening educational exchanges through the Summit.
This confirmed the invitation to the United States of America and Russia.
As of 2016  the Filipino population in Japan was 237 103 according to the Ministry of Justice.
An island or isle is any piece of subcontinental land that is surrounded by water.
Sedimentary islands in the Ganges delta are called chars.
There are two main types of islands in the sea  continental and oceanic.
There are also artificial islands  which are man made.
By contrast  islands are either extensions of the oceanic crust  e.g.
The vast majority are volcanic in origin  such as Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean.
Examples are Saint Peter and Paul Rocks in the Atlantic Ocean and Macquarie Island in the Pacific.
These islands arise from volcanoes where the subduction of one plate under another is occurring.
Examples are the Aleutian Islands  the Mariana Islands  and most of Tonga in the Pacific Ocean.
Hotspots       A third type of volcanic oceanic island is formed over volcanic hotspots.
Tristan da Cunha is an example of a hotspot volcano in the Atlantic Ocean.
Another hotspot in the Atlantic is the island of Surtsey  which was formed in 1963.
The reef rises to the surface of the water and forms a new island.
Atolls are typically ring shaped with a central lagoon.
Examples are the Line Islands in the Pacific and the Maldives in the Indian Ocean.
Examples formed from coral reefs include Maldives  Tonga  Samoa  Nauru  and Polynesia.
Granite islands include Seychelles and Tioman.
Legally these are not islands and have no territorial sea of their own.
It was enacted in 1958 and revised a number of times  most recently in 2008.
Effects on society    Due to the tight control of firearms  very few people in Japan own a gun.
Since its establishment  ASEAN has held the central role and leadership in the forum.
The first summit was held in Kuala Lumpur  Malaysia on 14 December 2005.
However  the issue was to which countries beyond those in ASEAN the EAS was to be extended.
At the time there were difficulties in the relationship between the  Plus Three  members  i.e.
The next EAS was to be held on 13 December 2006 in Metro Cebu  Philippines.
However  in the face of Tropical Typhoon Utor the summit was postponed until January 2007.
It was rescheduled for 15 January 2007  approximately a month after the original scheduled date.
Internal issues      Internal ASEAN issues were significant for the next Summits.
In the lead up to the summit there were several border clashes between Thailand and Cambodia.
It was rescheduled and held on 25 October 2009.
The summit adopted statements on disaster relief and the Nalanda University.
We welcomed Japan s proposal for an Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia  ERIA .
The reality appears however that movement towards such a relationship is a long way off.
India has launched several Look East connectivity projects with China and ASEAN nations.
On any view  community building is not a short term project.
This may be significant for those advocating a broader role for EAS in the future.
Not all members of the EAS  notably India  are members of APEC.
ASEAN formally invited the United States and Russia to join the group from 2011.
In 2006  Pakistan and Mongolia were proposed as future members by Malaysia.
Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau attended as guest.
He had arrived directly from the APEC 2017 summit held in Da Nang  Vietnam.
The humiliating loss of Korea as a tributary state sparked an unprecedented public outcry.
In Japan  it is called the Japan–Qing War  Japanese  日清戦争  Hepburn  Nisshin sensō .
These reforms transformed Japan from a feudal society into a modern industrial state.
The departure of the Daewongun led to Korea s abandonment of its isolationist policy.
Subsequently  commercial treaties were concluded with other European countries.
Under this overarching organization  12 sa or agencies were created.
In 1881  a technical mission was sent to Japan to survey its modernized facilities.
The Japanese interest in the reform of Korea was not purely altruistic.
The country was also struggling financially  with inflation as a result of these internal factors.
As a result  the rice became rotten and inedible.
The distribution of the alleged rice infuriated the soldiers.
On July 23  a military mutiny and riot broke out in Seoul.
He had assumed that this would serve as a warning to the other agitators.
The rioters now turned their attention to the Japanese.
One group headed to Lieutenant Horimoto s quarters and killed him.
The mob surrounded the legation shouting its intention of killing all the Japanese inside.
Hanabusa gave orders to burn the legation and important documents were set on fire.
They escaped to the harbor during heavy rain and were pursued by Korean soldiers.
Six Japanese were killed  while another five were seriously wounded.
They also searched for Queen Min.
The Daewongun used the incident to reassert his power.
However  tensions subsided with the Treaty of Chemulpo  signed on the evening of August 30  1882.
They were impressed by the developments in Meiji Japan and were eager to emulate them.
Its members included Kim Ok gyun  Pak Yung hio  Hong Yeong sik  Seo Gwang beom  and Soh Jaipil.
After the Imo incident  the Min clan pursued a pro Chinese policy.
As a consequence they were prepared to seize power by all means necessary.
The banquet was to celebrate the opening of the new national post office.
The treaty restored diplomatic relations between Japan and Korea.
The failure of the coup also marked a dramatic decline in Japanese influence over Korea.
Some Chinese sailors caused trouble in the city and started the riot.
Several Japanese policemen confronting the rioters were killed.
Japan requested and received compensation in 1893 for their importers.
The incident highlighted the growing dependence Japan felt on Korean food imports.
Kim s assassination had also called Japan s commitment to its Korean supporters into question.
Nationalistic groups immediately began to call for war with China.
However  the following month in late April  the Donghak Rebellion erupted in Korea.
On June 25  a further 400 troops had arrived.
By June 9  Japanese warships had consecutively called at Chemulpo and Pusan.
There they served as a temporary counterbalance to the Chinese troops camped at Asan.
When Korea demanded that Japan withdraw its troops from Korea  the Japanese refused.
The Qing Empire rejected the new Korean government as illegitimate.
It was also an army that was equal to European armed forces in every respect.
There was also an Imperial Guard division which recruited nationally  from all around Japan.
The division artillery consisted of 75mm field guns and mountain pieces manufactured in Osaka.
Its officers had studied in Europe and were well educated in the latest strategy and tactics.
Observers commended Chinese units such as the Huai Army and Beiyang Fleet.
They were formed into very loosely organized units from the same province.
Instead they were armed with a variety of swords  spears  pikes  halberds  and bows and arrows.
Against well trained  well armed  and disciplined Japanese troops  they would have little chance.
The soldiers were drawn from diverse provinces that had no affinity with each other.
The Beiyang Fleet was the dominant navy in East Asia before the First Sino Japanese War.
Japan s victories over China has often been falsely rumored to be the fault of Cixi.
Early stages    1 June 1894  The Donghak Rebel Army moves toward Seoul.
The Korean government requests help from the Qing government to suppress the revolt.
China asserts that Japan was notified and approved of Chinese intervention.
However  China retains a resident to look after Chinese primacy in Korea.
22 June 1894  Additional Japanese troops arrive in Korea.
Mutsu tells Ōtori to press the Korean government on the Japanese demands.
26 June 1894  Ōtori presents a set of reform proposals to the Korean king Gojong.
Gojong s government rejects the proposals and instead insists on troop withdrawals.
They could only be supplied by sea through Asan Bay.
Command of the sea would allow Japan to transport troops to the mainland.
A German artillery officer  Major von Hanneken  advisor to the Chinese  was also aboard.
The ship was due to arrive on 25 July.
After four hours of negotiations  Captain Togo gave the order to fire upon the vessel.
A torpedo missed  but a subsequent broadside hit the Kow Shing  which started to sink.
In the confusion  some of the Europeans escaped overboard  only to be fired upon by the Chinese.
The remaining Chinese troops were stationed in Asan itself.
The Japanese took the city of Asan on July 29  breaking the Chinese encirclement of Seoul.
The Chinese suffered 500 killed and wounded while the Japanese suffered 88 casualties.
She was first introduced into the family of nations by the advice and guidance of Japan.
But China  advancing various pretexts  declined Japan s proposal.
Korea has already consented to undertake the task.
But China has secretly and insidiously endeavoured to circumvent and to thwart Japan s purpose.
She has given us tribute all this time  which is a matter known to the world.
It was found a difficult matter to reason with the Wojen.
Let all know this edict as if addressed to themselves individually.
In the early morning of 16 September  the entire Japanese army entered Pyongyang.
A memorial to him was constructed.
About 4 500 additional troops stationed in the Zhili were to be redeployed.
The Chinese had mistaken them for the main Japanese fleet.
The Chinese warships spent the entire day cruising the area  waiting for the Japanese.
Subsequently  it made the redeployment of the troops to the mouth of the Taedong river unnecessary.
The naval battle  which lasted from late morning to dusk  resulted in a Japanese victory.
The principal factors in the Japanese victory was the superiority in speed and firepower.
The victory shattered the morale of the Chinese naval forces.
After receiving reinforcements by 10 October  the Japanese quickly pushed north toward Manchuria.
The 5th Provincial Division marched during a severe Manchurian winter towards Mukden.
This filled us with rage and a desire to crush any Chinese soldier.
Anyone we saw in the town  we killed.
The streets were filled with corpses  so many they blocked our way.
Blood was flowing and the smell was awful.
We shot some  hacked at others.
The Chinese troops just dropped their arms and fled.
Firing and slashing  it was unbounded joy.
At this time  our artillery troops were at the rear  giving three cheers  banzai  for the emperor.
By 10 December 1894  Kaipeng  present day Gaizhou  fell to the Japanese 1st Army Corps.
By March 1895 the Japanese had fortified posts that commanded the sea approaches to Beijing.
Although this would be the last major battle fought  numerous skirmishes would follow.
The Battle of Yinkou was fought outside the port town of Yingkou  Manchuria  on 5 March 1895.
A fort guarding the harbor was quickly silenced.
At about midday  the Japanese troops began their landing.
But they were soon silenced again after being shelled by the Japanese cruisers.
By 2 00pm  Lizhangjiao was under Japanese control.
However  it caused no serious casualties among the Japanese forces.
They had  undoubtedly  considerable provocation.
But their revenge was often taken on innocent villagers.
It also heightened their ambitions of aggression and military expansion in Asia.
It made the Chinese national crisis unprecedentedly serious.
The degree of semi colonisation was greatly deepened.
Then these Imperialist powers started to partition China over the next few years.
Traditionally  China viewed Japan as a subordinate part of the Chinese cultural sphere.
Korea proclaimed itself the Korean Empire and announced its independence from the Qing Empire.
Thus  for a year  the King reigned from the Russian legation in Seoul.
Russian guards guarded the King in his palace even after he left the Russian legation.
After the suppression of the Boxers  the Russian government agreed to vacate the area.
However  by 1903  it had actually increased the size of its forces in Manchuria.
Japan sought to prevent a repetition of the Triple Intervention that deprived it of Port Arthur.
Eventually  Japan was forced to take action.
This page lists the world fisheries production for 2016 and 2005.
The tonnage from capture and aquaculture is listed by country.
The tonnage from capture and aquaculture is listed by country.
Capture includes fish  crustaceans  molluscs  etc.
The tonnage from capture and aquaculture is listed by country.
Countries whose total harvest was less than 100 000 tons are not included.
Governments then took the lead due to the high capital costs of establishing and running airlines.
It embodies the country s sobriquet  Land of the Rising Sun.
A sun disc flag was adopted as the national flag for merchant ships under Proclamation No.
Propaganda posters  textbooks  and films depicted the flag as a source of pride and patriotism.
Disputes about their use have led to protests and lawsuits.
For the government of China and South Korea  the flag is a symbol of aggression and imperialism.
Several military banners of Japan are based on the Hinomaru  including the sunrayed naval ensign.
The Hinomaru also serves as a template for other Japanese flags in public and private use.
The Imperial God  Amaterasu ōmikami  is the sun goddess.
So his clan went to the east side of Kii Peninsula to battle westward.
They reached Kumano  or Ise  and went towards Yamato.
In Japan   red and white  has been regarded as a joyous color scheme.
One legend related to the national flag is attributed to the Buddhist priest Nichiren.
The flags belonged to each daimyō and were used primarily in battle.
Most of the flags were long banners usually charged with the mon  family crest  of the daimyō lord.
The flags served as identification  and were displayed by soldiers on their backs and horses.
This became especially important after the landing of U.S. Commodore Matthew Perry in Yokohama Bay.
In 1885  all previous laws not published in the Official Gazette of Japan were abolished.
The flag was also used in war efforts throughout the country.
Patriotism was taught as a virtue to Japanese children.
Local flags were allowed for some areas such as the Philippines  Indonesia  and Manchukuo.
To Westerners  it was one of the Japanese military s most powerful symbols.
As a result  schools and homes were encouraged to fly the Hinomaru until the early 1950s.
Similar objections have also been raised to the current national anthem of Japan  Kimigayo.
Tadamasa Fukiura  a color specialist  chose to set the sun disc at two thirds of the flag s length.
This is not the first time legislation was considered for establishing both symbols as official.
The CPJ was further opposed for not allowing the issue to be decided by the public.
Meanwhile  the Democratic Party of Japan  DPJ  could not develop party consensus on it.
The House of Representatives passed the bill on July 22  1999  by a 403 to 86 vote.
The legislation was sent to the House of Councilors on July 28 and was passed on August 9.
The banner was made of two Hinomaru flags cut and sewn together to form the shape of the DPJ logo.
This infuriated the LDP and Prime Minister Tarō Asō  saying this act was unforgivable.
Design     Passed in 1870  the Prime Minister s Proclamation No.
57 had two provisions related to the national flag.
The ratio was seven units width and ten units length  7 10 .
The red disc  which represents the sun  was calculated to be three fifths of the hoist width.
For the merchant flag  the ratio was two units width and three units length  2 3 .
The overall ratio of the flag was changed to two units width by three units length  2 3 .
The red disc was shifted towards the center  but the overall size of the disc stayed the same.
There was some resentment among the Japanese over the flag  resulting in some protests.
One term for this kind of charm is Hinomaru Yosegaki  日の丸寄せ書き .
One tradition is that no writing should touch the sun disc.
After battles  these flags were often captured or later found on deceased Japanese soldiers.
The Hinomaru Yosegaki is shown at sporting events to give support to the Japanese national team.
The colored paper and flag has writing with a message.
Phrases are usually written on it.
It is worn as a symbol of perseverance  effort  and or courage by the wearer.
This denoted that the pilot was willing to die for his country.
Hinomaru Bentō      A bentō and makunouchi are types of Japanese lunch boxes.
It can have Hinomaru rice  日の丸ご飯  Hinomaru gohan .
A Hinomaru lunch box  日の丸弁当  Hinomaru bentō  only has white rice and a red umeboshi in the center.
The salty  vinegar soaked umeboshi acts as a preservative for the rice.
There are also hinomaru rice bowls which are less common.
The Caridea Alpheus shrimp has an abdominal segment with a type of Japanese flag shaped crest.
Despite this  controversies surrounding the use of the flag in school events or media still remain.
There is no requirement to fly the flag on any national holiday or special events.
The Japanese Communist Party is vocally against the flag.
In other nations that Japan occupied  the 1999 law was met with mixed reactions or glossed over.
Both flags must be at the same height and of equal size.
When the flag becomes unsuitable to use  it is customarily burned in private.
Mourning     The Hinomaru flag has at least two mourning styles.
One is to display the flag at half staff  半旗  Han ki   as is common in many countries.
The Cabinet has the authority to announce the half staffing of the national flag.
The order requires school teachers to respect both symbols or risk losing their jobs.
The JMSDF also employs the use of a masthead pennant.
This is the only branch of service with an emblem that does not invoke the rayed Imperial Standard.
However  the branch does have an ensign to fly on bases and during parades.
At first  the Emperor s flag was ornate  with a sun resting in the center of an artistic pattern.
He had flags that were used on land  at sea  and when he was in a carriage.
The Empress uses the same flag  except the shape is that of a swallow tail.
This symbol is centered on a white flag  with a ratio of 2 3.
Both the city emblem and the flag were adopted in 2006.
There was also a thin white ring around the red sun.
The current flag  adopted in 1972  dropped the golden map and kept everything else.
The flag of Palau is an off centered golden yellow full moon on a sky blue background.
One such flag design is used by the Asahi Shimbun.
At the bottom hoist of the flag  one quarter of the sun is displayed.
The kanji character 朝 is displayed on the flag  colored white  covering most of the sun.
Föhn winds can raise temperatures by as much as 14 °C  25 °F  in just a matter of hours.
Causes     There are four known causes of the foehn warming and drying effect.
This mechanism has become a popular textbook example of atmospheric thermodynamics.
Isentropic draw down     Isentropic draw down is the draw down of warmer  drier air from aloft.
This often leads to greater daytime radiative  solar  warming under foehn conditions.
This is a result not only of the warmth of foehn air  but also its low relative humidity.
The causation of Föhnkrankheit  English  Foehn sickness  is unproven.
Evidence for effects from Chinook winds remain anecdotal.
Etymology    The name Foehn  German  Föhn  pronounced  ˈføːn   arose in the Alpine region.
The form phon is used in French speaking parts of Switzerland as well as in Italy.
Local examples    Regionally  these winds are known by many different names.
The föhn is used for the letter F in  Crazy ABC s  from the album Snacktime!
In southern Germany  this wind is supposed to cause disturbed mood.
Hoffmann tried to pacify Hitler about the Austrian föhn wind as the possible reason.
Hours later  Hitler s niece  Geli Raubal  was found dead in his Munich apartment.
Joan Didion explores the nature of various foehn winds in her essay  The Santa Ana .
Foehn  is a magic spell that deals wind heat damage in Star Ocean  The Second Story.
Foehn  is the last word in A Nest of Ninnies  a 1969 novel by John Ashbery and James Schuyler.
In Physical Geography  A Landscape Appreciation  p. 132.
These are ready to eat or heat and serve foods  such as TV dinners and re heated airline meals.
Both during ancient times and today in modern society these are considered processed foods.
The extremely varied modern diet is only truly possible on a wide scale because of food processing.
The increase in free time allows people much more choice in life style than previously allowed.
The food industry offers products that fulfill many different needs  e.g.
fully prepared ready meals that can be heated up in the microwave oven within a few minutes.
Food processing can also add extra nutrients such as vitamins.
Drawbacks      Processing of food can decrease its nutritional density.
These processes introduce a number of contamination risks.
This type of failure will introduce into the product stream small to large metal contaminants.
However  heavily processed foods also have drawbacks.
Added sodium    One of the main sources for sodium in the diet is processed foods.
Sodium is added to prevent spoilage  add flavor and improve the texture of these foods.
Currently  Americans consume an average of 355 calories from added sugars each day.
For example  using high heat during processing can cause vitamin C losses.
Another example is refined grains  which have less fiber  vitamins and minerals than whole grains.
The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends keeping trans fat intake as low as possible.
measured by number of micro organisms per mL of finished product Energy efficiency measured e.g.
by “percentage of peeling loss during the peeling of potatoes” Labour used  measured e.g.
Each committee reports on its deliberations to plenary sessions of the chamber to which it belongs.
Special committees are formed occasionally to consider special .
Treaties with foreign countries require ratification by the Diet.
A similar move in Sino Japanese relations followed.
The demand for a more independent foreign policy reflected this enhanced self image.
The shift therefore required a reassessment of omnidirectional diplomacy.
Changes in world economic relations during the 1970s also encouraged a more independent stance.
Japan had become less dependent on the Western powers for resources.
Under Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone  a more hawkish stance on foreign policy was introduced.
Japan s defense spending continued to grow steadily despite overall budgetary restraint.
Japan had also become the second largest donor of foreign aid.
The results of this effort were far from clear.
The power of Japan s ally  the United States  was also seen by many as waning.
Japanese industries and enterprises were among the most capable in the world.
Meanwhile  the ruling LDP modified its base of political power.
In 1989 the opposition Japan Socialist Party won control of the Diet s House of Councillors.
Only the Japan Communist Party remained adamant.
Opinion polls reflected a marked increase in national pride and self esteem.
This last objective is new  and ends up being very connected to its anti terrorism policies.
Historical Dictionary of Japanese Foreign Policy  2015  excerpt Sun  Youli  and You Li Sun.
Japan rapidly modernized and built a strong military.
It was imperialistic seeking control of nearby areas—with major wars against China and Russia.
It lost in World War II and was stripped of all of its foreign conquests and possessions.
It played a major support role in the Korean War  1950 1953 .
South Asia     In South Asia  Japan s role is mainly that of an aid donor.
In fact  the only western country that was allowed to trade with Japan was the Dutch Republic.
Japan s international relations  Politics  economics and security  3rd ed.
Each driver must hold a valid Super Licence  the highest class of racing licence issued by the FIA.
The races must run on tracks graded  1   formerly  A    the highest grade rating issued by the FIA.
The formula consists of a set of rules that all participants  cars must meet.
The first Formula 1 race was the 1946 Turin Grand Prix.
The first world championship race took place at  Silverstone in the United Kingdom in 1950.
A championship for constructors followed in 1958.
National championships existed in South Africa and the UK in the 1960s and 1970s.
The new logo replaced F1 s iconic  flying one   which had been the sport s trademark since 1993.
Fangio s streak was interrupted  after an injury  by two time champion Alberto Ascari of  Ferrari.
The first seasons featured pre war cars like Alfa s 158.
By 1961  all regular competitors had switched to mid engined cars.
He offered Formula One to circuit owners as a package  which they could take or leave.
FISA imposed a ban on ground effect aerodynamics during 1983.
These cars were the most powerful open wheel circuit racing cars ever.
This  according to the FIA  was to reduce cornering speeds in the interest of safety.
Since 1990  twenty eight teams have withdrawn from Formula One.
During 2006  Renault and Alonso won both titles again.
The sole exception was McLaren  which at the time was part owned by Mercedes Benz.
This resulted in the end of manufacturer dominance within the sport.
BMW F1 was bought out by the original founder of the team  Peter Sauber.
Financial issues befell the squad before they even made the grid.
The season began in dominant fashion for Nico Rosberg  winning the first 4 Grands Prix.
Recent years have seen an increase in car manufacturer presence in the sport.
In 2018  Aston Martin and Alfa Romeo became Red Bull and Sauber s title sponsors  respectively.
The war culminated in a FOCA boycott of the 1982 San Marino Grand Prix months later.
In practice  several of the FOCA teams backed out of the boycott  citing  sponsor obligations .
Notable among these were the Tyrrell and Toleman teams.
Most competitive cars came from Italy  particularly Alfa Romeo.
After the start of the world championship  these non championship races continued.
Racing and strategy     A Formula One Grand Prix event spans a weekend.
A qualifying session is held after the last free practice session.
This session determines the starting order for the race on Sunday.
The current qualifying system was adopted in the 2006 season.
Known as  knock out  qualifying  it is split into three periods  known as Q1  Q2  and Q3.
Drivers are allowed as many laps as they wish within each period.
Currently  with 20 cars  Q1 runs for 18 minutes  and eliminates the slowest five drivers.
Otherwise  all drivers proceed to the race albeit in the worst starting positions.
This rule does not affect drivers in Q2 or Q3.
All of the drivers that did not participate in Q3 have free tyre choice for the start of the race.
Any penalties that affect grid position are applied at the end of qualifying.
The start procedure may be abandoned if a driver stalls on the grid  signalled by raising his arm.
As of the 2019 season  there will always be a standing restart.
In the 1950s  race distances varied from 300 km  190 mi  to 600 km  370 mi .
The maximum race length was reduced to 400 km  250 mi  in 1966 and 325 km  202 mi  in 1971.
The race length was standardised to the current 305 km  190 mi  in 1989.
However  street races like Monaco have shorter distances  to keep under the two hour limit.
Drivers may overtake one another for position over the course of the race.
A driver can be lapped numerous times  by any car in front of them.
However  if the driver has completed more than 90  of the race distance  s he will be classified.
Over the course of a race  drivers must use two of the three available compounds.
If rain tyres are used  drivers are no longer obliged to use both types of dry tyres.
Pit stops are permitted under the safety car.
Mercedes Benz supplies Mercedes AMG models to Formula One to use as the safety cars.
Since 2000  the main safety car driver has been German ex racing driver Bernd Mayländer.
After crossing this line  drivers are allowed to start racing for track position once more.
Flags     The format of the race has changed little through Formula One s history.
The main changes have revolved around what is allowed at pit stops.
In recent years  the emphasis has been on changing refuelling and tyre change regulations.
If both cars of a team finish in the points  they both receive Constructors  Championship points.
Ferrari is the oldest Formula One team  the only still active team which competed in 1950.
Mercedes Benz owned 40  of the McLaren team and manufactured the team s engines.
Ferrari holds the record for having won the most Constructors  Championships  sixteen .
Cosworth was the last independent engine supplier.
Lewis Hamilton achieved the most race wins  too  in 2020.
GP2 was rebranded as the FIA Formula 2 Championship in 2017.
Drivers are not required to have competed at this level before entering Formula One.
Former F1 driver Paul di Resta raced in DTM until he was signed with Force India in 2011.
Beyond F1      Most long time F1 drivers leave the series in their mid to late 30s.
Some drivers have moved from F1 to racing in disciplines with fewer races during the season.
A series for former Formula One drivers  called Grand Prix Masters  ran briefly in 2005 and 2006.
Carlos Reutemann became a politician and served as governor of his native state in Argentina.
Grands Prix     The number of Grands Prix held in a season has varied over the years.
If a single country hosts multiple Grands Prix in a year they receive different names.
This initiative started with the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix.
Future Grands Prix     Bold denotes the Grands Prix scheduled as part of the 2021 season.
Below is a list of announced plans for new Grands Prix.
In May 2020  it was announced that some circuits would run back to back races for the first time.
These races would be run under a different Grand Prix title.
The season finally comprised 17 races  ending on 13 December with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
The other major factor controlling the cornering speed of the cars is the design of the tyres.
Slick tyres returned to Formula One in the 2009 season.
Ferrari used a pullrod suspension at both the front and rear in their 2012 car.
Carbon carbon disc brakes are used for reduced weight and increased frictional performance.
These get a significant amount of their power from electric motors.
In addition they include a lot of energy recovery technology.
The 2006 generation of engines spun up to 20 000 rpm and produced up to 580 kW  780 bhp .
According to Honda  the car fully met the FIA Formula One regulations.
Downforce of 2.5 times the car s weight can be achieved at full speed.
Pirelli said the move was  more than welcome .
The total spending of all eleven teams in 2006 was estimated at  2.9 billion US.
Costs vary greatly from team to team.
The company grossed revenues of  620 million for the same quarter the previous year.
As the first step  it would begin carbon reduction projects immediately.
We aim to inspire greater awareness and best practice in sustainability motor sport standards.
The 2008 season attracted a global audience of 600 million people per race.
The BBC also showed live coverage of practice and qualifying sessions from those races.
The free to air TV rights were picked up by Channel 4 until the end of the 2018 season.
Many use commentary from either Sky Sports or Channel 4.
Some countries  however  have commentators of their own.
In the United States  ESPN holds the official rights to broadcast the sport.
In Germany  Austria and Switzerland  the two main broadcasters are RTL Germany and n TV.
But the two terms are not interchangeable.
It only officially became the FIA Formula One World Championship in 1981.
Institutional analyses found that some level of state intervention was involved.
Education in particular is cited as playing a major role in the Asian economic miracle.
By 1965  all four nations had achieved universal primary education.
South Korea in particular had achieved a secondary education enrollment rate of 88  by 1987.
South Korea in particular had deficits lower than the OECD average in the 1980s.
Export policies have been the de facto reason for the rise of these Four Asian Tiger economies.
The approach taken has been different among the four nations.
South Korea and Taiwan introduced export incentives for the traded goods sector.
Singapore and Taiwan were relatively unscathed.
Exports also fell by a 50  annualized rate.
Weak domestic demand also affected the recovery of these economies.
This is due in no small part to each country s government fiscal stimulus measures.
These fiscal packages accounted for more than 4  of each country s GDP in 2009.
This theory was not without its critics.
The first occurred in 1912  and the other three occurred in the 1950s and 1960s.
Itai itai disease    Itai itai disease first occurred in 1912 within Toyama Prefecture.
The source of cadmium was discovered to be from Mitsui Mining and Smelting Company.
Mitsui Mining began to discharge cadmium into the Jinzū River in 1910.
The cadmium poisoned the river  thus poisoning locals  source of water.
Symptoms of itai itai     The first symptoms were spine and leg pain.
Residents won this lawsuit and began to conduct negotiations.
Mitsui Mining was also obliged to pay recovery costs for the land.
This meant that they had to ensure the poisoned land was returned to a safe and cultivable state.
The methylmercury was then dumped into Minamata Bay as chemical waste.
Niigata Minamata was caused by methylmercury poisoning in the Agano River basin.
However  this second outbreak of Minamata disease was discovered early on.
Investigation of the cause of the disease was given to the Niigata University medical department.
There were a number of factors that could be the cause of this outbreak.
This increase in respiratory problems was then specified as Yokkaichi asthma.
In specific areas where the prevalence of that disease has increased.
The Fourteenth East Asia Summit was held in Bangkok  Thailand on November 4  2019.
It was finally held on 25 October 2009 in Cha am and Hua Hin  Thailand.
The members were to consider India s plans for the revival of Nalanda University.
The revised date meant that a change of venue from Phuket to Pattaya was contemplated.
The revised date and venue were subsequently confirmed.
The venue was to be the Pattaya Exhibition and Conference Hall  PEACH .
Officials did not say whether or when the summit would resume.
There had been earlier reports that Indonesia might seek to host the summit if Thailand could not.
Outcomes    The summit adopted two documents.
The first was a statement on disaster management.
References         External links    14th ASEAN summit
Other major urban areas include Lyon  Marseille  Toulouse  Bordeaux  Lille and Nice.
During the Iron Age  what is now metropolitan France was inhabited by the Gauls.
By the end of his reign  France had emerged as the most powerful state in Europe.
In the mid 14th century  French monarchs were victorious in the Hundred Years  War with England.
The Italian Wars with Spain followed during the Renaissance.
Especially costly were the Seven Years  War and the American War of Independence.
The French First Republic drafted the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen.
The declaration expresses the nation s ideals to this day.
The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars shaped the course of European and world history.
The Fifth Republic  led by Charles de Gaulle  was formed in 1958 and remains to this day.
France retains its centuries long status as a global centre of art  science  and philosophy.
In terms of aggregate household wealth  it ranks fourth in the world.
Early hominids led a nomadic hunter gatherer life.
This makes it France s oldest city.
The Roman polytheism merged with the Gallic paganism into the same syncretism.
In 312  Emperor Constantin I converted to Christianity.
But  from the beginning of the 5th century  the Barbarian Invasions resumed.
Thus was established feudalism in France.
French knights also made up the majority in both the Hospital and the Temple orders.
Charles IV the Fair died without an heir in 1328.
During the reign of Philip of Valois  the French monarchy reached the height of its medieval power.
By the end of the 1620s  Richelieu established  the royal monopoly of force  as the doctrine.
The monarchy reached its peak during the 17th century and the reign of Louis XIV.
Remembered for his numerous wars  he made France the leading European power.
France obtained many overseas possessions in the Americas  Africa and Asia.
Louis XIV also revoked the Edict of Nantes  forcing thousands of Huguenots into exile.
Freedom of speech and press were declared  and arbitrary arrests outlawed.
On 20 April 1792  therefore  they declared war on Austria.
A Prussian Army invaded France later in August 1792.
The Assembly and the Paris City Council seemed unable to stop that bloodshed.
Ex King Louis XVI was convicted of treason and guillotined in January 1793.
By the end of 1793 the allies had been driven from France.
France in February 1794 abolished slavery in its American colonies  but would reintroduce it later.
Meanwhile  France s external wars in 1794 were going prosperous  for example in Belgium.
In June 1812  Napoleon attacked Russia  reaching Moscow.
About a million Frenchmen died during the Napoleonic Wars.
In 1848 general unrest led to the February Revolution and the end of the July Monarchy.
In 1905  state secularism was officially established.
World War I left 1.4 million French soldiers dead  4  of its population.
Between 27 and 30  of soldiers conscripted from 1912 to 1915 were killed.
In 1940  France was invaded and occupied by Nazi Germany and Italy.
On 6 June 1944  the Allies invaded Normandy and in August they invaded Provence.
France was one of the founding members of NATO  1949 .
Only months later  France faced another anti colonialist conflict in Algeria.
The war was concluded with the Évian Accords in 1962 that led to Algerian independence.
The Algerian independence came at a high price  the large toll on the Algerian population.
It resulted in half million to a million deaths and over 2 million internally displaced Algerians.
A vestige of the colonial empire are the French overseas departments and territories.
Since the 19th century France has received many immigrants.
Due to its shape  France is often referred to as l Hexagone   The Hexagon  .
Metropolitan France includes various coastal islands  of which the largest is Corsica.
Its continental part covers about 1000 km from north to south and from east to west.
Its EEZ covers approximately 8  of the total surface of all the EEZs of the world.
The Alpine  Pyrenean and Jura mountains are much younger and have less eroded forms.
Although 60  of municipalities are classified as having seismic risks  these risks remain moderate.
Corsica lies off the Mediterranean coast.
Other water courses drain towards the Meuse and Rhine along the north eastern borders.
Summers are hot and dry  while winters are mild and wet.
• The warm summer mediterranean climate  Csb  is found in the northern part of Brittany.
Summers are warm and dry  while winters are cool and wet.
• The humid subtropical climate  Cfa  is found in the Garonne and Rhône s inland plains.
Summers are hot and wet  while winters are cool and damp.
Summers are pleasantly warm and wet  while winters are cool and damp.
Summers are hot and wet  while winters are cold and gloomy.
Summers are short  cool and wet  while winters are moderately cold and damp.
No major cities are affected by this climate.
Summers are pleasantly warm and dry  while winters are very cold and snowy.
Summers are cool  short and dry  while winters are very cold and snowy.
Summers are pleasantly warm and wet  while winters are very cold and snowy.
In January 1985  in Mouthe  the temperature has dropped under  41 °C.
Summers are cool  short and wet  while winters are very cold and snowy.
Summers are chilly and wet  while winters are extremely cold  long and snowy.
• The ice cap climate  EF  is found in all the mountainous regions of France that have a glacier.
Summers are cold and wet  while winters are extremely cold  long and snowy.
Cities or places affected by this climate  Port aux Français  Saint Pierre et Miquelon.
As of 2009  French carbon dioxide emissions per capita were lower than that of China s.
However  the plan was abandoned due to fears of burdening French businesses.
French forests are some of the most diverse in Europe  comprising more than 140 species of trees.
As of 2019 there are 54 PNRs in France.
The regions are further subdivided into 101 departments  which are numbered mainly alphabetically.
This number is used in postal codes and was formerly used on vehicle number plates.
Three communes—Paris  Lyon and Marseille—are subdivided into 45 municipal arrondissements.
Arrondissements and cantons are merely administrative divisions.
However  this was not always the case.
In contrast  the five overseas regions used the French franc and now use the euro.
The Constitution of the Fifth Republic was approved by referendum on 28 September 1958.
It greatly strengthened the authority of the executive in relation to Parliament.
The executive branch itself has two leaders.
The Government has a strong influence in shaping the agenda of Parliament.
became the dominant force  overtaking both Socialists and Republicans.
French law is divided into two principal areas  private law and public law.
Private law includes  in particular  civil law and criminal law.
Public law includes  in particular  administrative law and constitutional law.
Laws prohibiting discriminatory speech in the press are as old as 1881.
Some consider hate speech laws in France to be too broad or severe  undermining freedom of speech.
Nonetheless  it does recognize religious associations.
However  it is supported by most of the population.
This represents 0.43  of its GNP  the 12th highest among the OECD.
Together they are among the largest armed forces in the world and the largest in the EU.
France has major military industries with one of the largest aerospace industries in the world.
Other smaller parades are organised across the country.
France also possesses in 2020 the fourth largest gold reserves in the world.
It is the third largest manufacturing country in Europe behind Germany and Italy.
Financial services  banking and the insurance sector are an important part of the economy.
Three largest financial institutions cooperatively owned by their customers are located in France.
In 2000  the stock exchanges of Paris  Amsterdam and Brussels merged into Euronext.
France introduced the common European currency  the Euro in 2002.
Agriculture      France has historically been a large producer of agricultural products.
That same year  France sold 33.4 billion euros of transformed agricultural products.
It is third in income from tourism due to shorter duration of visits.
Each year the Côte d Azur hosts 50  of the world s superyacht fleet.
This label is intended to protect and promote remarkable gardens and parks.
In 2018  it produced around 20  of the European Union s electricity  primarily from nuclear power.
As of 2016  72  of the electricity produced by France is generated by 58 nuclear power plants.
In this context  renewable energies are having difficulty taking off.
Rail connections exist to all other neighboring countries in Europe  except Andorra.
There are 464 airports in France.
It was at the forefront of scientific developments in Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries.
It is one of the earliest academies of sciences.
Other eminent French scientists of the 19th century have their names inscribed on the Eiffel Tower.
A face transplant was first done on 27 November 2005 by Dr. Bernard Devauchelle.
It is also a leader in civilian nuclear technology.
It also owns Minatec  Europe s leading nanotechnology research center.
Western Europe is now serviced by a network of TGV lines.
France s fertility rate and crude birth rate nonetheless remain among the highest in the EU.
Average life expectancy at birth is 82.7 years  the 12th highest in the world.
Large scale immigration over the last century and a half has led to a more multicultural society.
Statistics on Spanish immigrants in France show a growth of 107 percent between 2009 and 2012  i.e.
in this period went from 5300 to 11 000 people.
Rural flight was a perennial political issue throughout most of the 20th century.
Estimates of the number of Muslims in France vary widely.
Among the 47 000 religious buildings in France  94  are Roman Catholic.
Conversely  religious organisations are expected to refrain from intervening in policy making.
Secte is considered a pejorative term in France.
The French healthcare system was ranked first worldwide by the World Health Organization in 1997.
Authorities now regard obesity as one of the main public health issues and fight it fiercely.
Secondary education also consists of two phases.
Culture     France has been a centre of Western cultural development for centuries.
The successive political regimes have always promoted artistic creation.
It counts 1 200 museums welcoming more than 50 million people annually.
The UNESCO inscribed 45 sites in France on the World Heritage List.
Many museums in France are entirely or partly devoted to sculptures and painting works.
These three state owned museums welcome close to 17 million people a year.
Some of the finest collections are in Lyon  Lille  Rouen  Dijon  Rennes and Grenoble.
During this era  France had been using Romanesque architecture like most of Western Europe.
The kings were crowned in another important Gothic church  Notre Dame de Reims.
In the secular domain  the Palace of Versailles has many baroque features.
In the 20th century  French Swiss architect Le Corbusier designed several buildings in France.
More recently  French architects have combined both modern and old architectural styles.
The Louvre Pyramid is an example of modern architecture added to an older building.
For instance  in Paris  since 1977  new buildings had to be under 37 meters  121 feet .
There were several languages and dialects  and writers used their own spelling and grammar.
Some authors of French medieval texts are unknown  such as Tristan and Iseult and Lancelot Grail.
Michel de Montaigne was the other major figure of the French literature during that century.
His most famous work  Essais  created the literary genre of the essay.
French poetry during that century was embodied by Pierre de Ronsard and Joachim du Bellay.
Both writers founded the La Pléiade literary movement.
A workman is known by his chips .
French literature and poetry flourished even more in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Denis Diderot s best known works are Jacques the Fatalist and Rameau s Nephew.
The preface of his play Cromwell is considered to be the manifesto of the Romantic movement.
The Prix Goncourt is a French literary prize first awarded in 1903.
As of 2014  French authors had more Literature Nobel Prizes than those of any other nation.
Jean Paul Sartre was also the first nominee in the committee s history to refuse the prize in 1964.
Descartes revitalised Western philosophy  which had been declined after the Greek and Roman eras.
Music      France has a long and varied musical history.
This period was also a golden age for operas.
Later came precursors of modern classical music.
Debussy s music is noted for its sensory content and frequent usage of atonality.
The two composers invented new musical forms and new sounds.
The world s first female filmmaker  Alice Guy Blaché  was also from France.
For this reason  French cinema is sometimes intertwined with the cinema of foreign nations.
Public broadcasting group Radio France run five national radio stations.
In 2006  the government created global news channel France 24.
As of 2017  the favourable view of the United States had dropped to 46 .
The French Revolution continues to permeate the country s collective memory.
France legalized same sex marriage and adoption in 2013.
Cuisine      French cuisine is renowned for being one of the finest in the world.
The plat principal could include a pot au feu or steak frites.
The acquisition or loss of a star can have dramatic effects on the success of a restaurant.
Since 1903  France is famous for its 24 Hours of Le Mans sports car endurance race.
French martial arts include Savate and Fencing.
Paris was the first home of the International Olympic Committee  before it moved to Lausanne.
The top national football club competition is Ligue 1.
Fukui Prefecture  福井県  Fukui ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū.
Buildings for the Fukui Prefectural government were built on the site of the castle.
The province lays within Japan s  Snow country .
It has 14 reactors  the most of any prefecture.
Eihei ji is a temple offering training and education to Buddhist monks.
Founded by Dogen Zenji in 1244  Eiheiji is located on a plot of land covering about 33 hectares.
Myōtsū ji s Three storied Pagoda and Main Hall are National Treasures of Japan.
Fukui is home to Maruoka Castle  the oldest standing castle in Japan.
Residents of Fukui Prefecture have a distinctive accent  Fukui ben.
Fukui has long been a center for papermaking in Japan  along with Kyoto .
Awara is a famous onsen in the north of the prefecture.
It is the most populous city on the island  followed by Kitakyushu.
It is the largest city and metropolitan area west of Keihanshin.
The city was designated on April 1  1972  by government ordinance.
As of 2015  Fukuoka is Japan s sixth largest city  having passed the population of Kobe.
In July 2011  Fukuoka surpassed the population of Kyoto.
It has been thought that waves of immigrants arrived in Northern Kyushu from mainland Asia.
Central Fukuoka is sometimes still referred as Hakata which is the name of the central ward.
Kublai Khan first sent an envoy to Japan to make the Shogunate acknowledge Khan s suzerainty.
This initial invasion was compromised by a combination of incompetence and severe storms.
Kublai sent another envoy to Japan in 1279.
At that time  Hōjō Tokimune of the Hōjō clan  1251–1284  was the Eighth Regent.
When Hakata and Fukuoka decided to merge  a meeting was held to decide the name for the new city.
In 1911  the college is renamed Kyushu Imperial University and established as a separate entity.
1910  Fukuoka streetcar service begins.
1975  The city absorbed the town of Sawara.
1975  Sanyō Shinkansen high speed railway reaches Hakata station.
1989  Asian Pacific Exposition is held.
1997  The 30th annual meeting of the Asian Development Bank was held in Fukuoka.
21st century     2005  Fukuoka subway Nanakuma Line started operations.
As of October there have been 99 deaths due to Covid in Fukuoka prefecture.
It is located 1 100 km  684 mi  from Tokyo.
Fukuoka and Busan are sister cities.
Roughly 40  of the year is cloudy.
Spring is warm and sunnier  with cherry blossoms appearing in late March or early April.
Summers are humid and hot  with temperatures peaking around 37 °C  99 °F .
Wards    Fukuoka has 7 wards  ku .
The total area is 343.39 square kilometres  132.58 sq mi .
Fukuoka is Japan s youngest major city and has Japan s fastest growing population.
It is also the largest startup city in Japan  and is the only economic zone for startups.
Fukuoka has the highest business opening rate in Japan.
Large companies headquartered in the city include Iwataya and Kyushu Electric Power.
Most of the region s heavy manufacturing takes place in the nearby city of Kitakyushu.
The GDP in Greater Fukuoka  Fukuoka Metropolitan Employment Area  was US 101.6 billion in 2010.
The port of Hakata and Fukuoka Airport also make the city a key regional transportation hub.
It is one of six in Japan.Fukuoka is one of the more affordable cities in Japan.
Fukuoka has a diverse culture and a wide range of cultural attractions.
The same survey in 2018 ranked Fukuoka at number 22.
Nearly 200 international conferences are held each year in Fukuoka.
It was closed in September 2009.
Ōhori Park is also the location of one of Fukuoka City s major art galleries.
Yatai  street stalls  serving ramen can be found in Tenjin and Nakasu most evenings.
Itoshima  to the west of Fukuoka city  has recently become a very popular tourist destination.
It is claimed to be the largest statue of a reclining Buddha in the world.
There is a newly opened Kyushu National Museum in nearby Dazaifu.
Fukuoka Asian Art Museum – contains art from various countries of Asia.
Festivals      Fukuoka is home to many festivals  matsuri  that are held throughout the year.
Of these  the most famous are Hakata Dontaku and Hakata Gion Yamakasa.
Tens of thousands line the streets to cheer on the teams.
Hakata Dontaku      Hakata Dontaku  博多どんたく  is held in Fukuoka City on May 3 and 4.
Since it was restarted in the 12th year of the Meiji era it has been known as Hakata Dontaku.
HKT 48 have their own Theater at Nishitetsu Hall.
Fukuoka is home to a professional football team  Avispa Fukuoka.
Annual sporting events include   The All Japan Judo Category Championships are held in early April.
Defunct  The November tournament of professional Sumo is held at the Fukuoka Kokusai Center.
Fukuoka International Women s Judo Championships from 1983 to 2006.
The city established the Asian Pacific City Summit in 1994.
It consists of 26 Asia Pacific cities.
The Asian Pacific Children s Convention was established in Fukuoka in 1988.
History     Fukuoka Prefecture includes the former provinces of Chikugo  Chikuzen  and Buzen.
It also includes a number of small islands near the north coast of Kyūshū.
Major industries include automobiles  semiconductors  and steel.
Universities    One of Japan s top 5 universities  Kyushu University  is located in Fukuoka.
It is one of the few prefectures with a steadily increasing population.
The marathon has been held in Fukuoka since 1959 and has seen world records broken.
Fukuoka is the main shopping  dining  transportation and entertainment hub in Kyushu.
The Mojiko area features waterfront dining  a market  and several preserved historical buildings.
The event was caused by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.
It was the most severe nuclear accident since the Chernobyl disaster in 1986.
The accident was started by the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami on Friday  11 March 2011.
This caused the failure of the emergency generators and loss of power to the circulating pumps.
It produced maximum ground g forces of 0.56  0.52  0.56 at units 2  3  and 5 respectively.
These operated normally until the tsunami destroyed the generators for Reactors 1–5.
The moment of impact was recorded by a camera.
TEPCO then notified authorities of a  first level emergency .
All AC power was lost to units 1–4.
Eventually these pumps stopped working  and the reactors began to overheat.
Unsuccessful attempts were made to connect portable generating equipment to power water pumps.
TEPCO switched its efforts to installing new lines from the grid.
0.7 m  2 ft 4 in  in depth  while the thickness of the containment is 7.6 m  25 ft  thick.
For Unit 2 and Unit 3 it was estimated that the  fuel is cooled sufficiently .
The estimation was revised later to 80 Sv h.
Damage to unit 4      Reactor 4 was not operating when the earthquake struck.
It was reported that water in the spent fuel pool might be boiling.
Radiation inside the Unit 4 control room prevented workers from staying there for long periods.
Visual inspection of the spent fuel pool on 30 April revealed no significant damage to the rods.
This process was completed on 22 December 2014.
Units 5 and 6      Reactors 5 and 6 were also not operating when the earthquake struck.
The reactors had been closely monitored  as cooling processes were not functioning well.
Reactors 2 and 3 were both 784 MWe type BWR 4s.
The only MOX fuel was currently loaded in the Unit 3 reactor.
Some electrical power was needed to operate valves and monitoring systems.
Unit 1 had a different  entirely passive cooling system  the Isolation Condenser  IC .
It consisted of a series of pipes run from the reactor core to the inside of a large tank of water.
For unknown reasons  Unit 1 s IC was operated only intermittently during the emergency.
On 16 April 2011  TEPCO declared that cooling systems for Units 1–4 were beyond repair.
All three of the generators added in the late 1990s were operational after the tsunami.
They can then be transferred to the central fuel storage pond.
Fukushima I s storage area contains 6375 fuel assemblies.
At normal operating temperatures of approximately 300 °C  572 °F   zircaloy is inert.
The reaction between zirconium and the coolant produces more heat  accelerating the reaction.
In addition  zircaloy can react with uranium dioxide to form zirconium dioxide and uranium metal.
Noda said  Everybody must share the pain of responsibility.
The representatives of the safety inspectorate fled.
All residents of this village were evacuated after the government designated it a no entry zone.
The latter groups were urged to evacuate on 25 March.
Of the 470 000  the nuclear accident was responsible for 154 000 being evacuated.
TEPCO installed doors to prevent water from leaking into the generator rooms.
TEPCO leadership said the study s technological validity  could not be verified.
Until June 2011  its chairman was Masao Yoshida  the Fukushima Daiichi chief.
This study mentioned the possibility of tsunami waves up to 10.2 meters  33 ft .
In 2015  the tap water contamination was still higher in Tokyo compared to other cities in Japan.
By day 15  traces of radioactivity were detectable all across the northern hemisphere.
2012 crops did not show signs of radioactivity contamination.
Cabbage  rice and beef showed insignificant levels of radioactivity.
The company had calculated only the direct releases into the sea.
The Fukushima coast has one of the world s strongest currents  Kuroshio Current .
It transported the contaminated waters far into the Pacific Ocean  dispersing the radioactivity.
The trace level radioactivity was in dust blown across the Pacific Ocean.
As of March 2012  no cases of radiation related ailments had been reported.
Experts cautioned that data was insufficient to allow conclusions on health impacts.
In May 2012  TEPCO released their estimate of cumulative radioactivity releases.
An estimated 538.1 PBq of iodine 131  caesium 134 and caesium 137 was released.
Undetected leaks could not be ruled out  because the reactor basements remained flooded.
Around August 2012 two greenling were caught close to shore.
TEPCO had previously denied that this was happening.
A  300 million 7.8 MW cooling facility freezes the ground to a depth of 30 meter.
Plastic bags filled with contaminated soil and grass were also swept away by the flood waters.
Event rating     The incident was rated 7 on the International Nuclear Event Scale  INES .
Iodine 131 has a half life of 8.02 days  decaying into a stable nuclide.
After ten half lives  80.2 days   99.9  has decayed to xenon 131  a stable isotope.
while approximately 18 500 people died due to the earthquake and tsunami.
In 2015  the number of thyroid cancers or detections of developing thyroid cancers numbered 137.
The museum exhibits items and videos about the earthquake and the nuclear accident.
To attract visitors from abroad  the museum offers explanations in English  Chinese and Korean.
However  tritium cannot be separated from the water.
For comparison  Japanese people get 2100 microsieverts per year from natural radiation.
IAEA considers that the dose calculation method is appropriate.
Further  IAEA recommends that a decision on the water disposal must be made urgently.
One third of involved emergency workers would have increased cancer risks.
Cancer risks for fetuses were similar to those in 1 year old infants.
The estimated cancer risk to children and adults was lower than it was to infants.
In comparison  the dosage of background radiation received over a lifetime is 170 mSv.
However  the amount of radioactivity is less than that found naturally in a single banana.
Caesium 137 and caesium 134 have been noted in Japanese whiting in Tokyo Bay as of 2016.
He described the screening results to be  20 times to 50 times what would be normally expected.
also concluded that Thyroid cancer rate differences can be attributed to the screening effect.
found similar conclusions to Yamamoto et al.  although unlike the 2019 Yamamoto et al.
did not focus on the results of the incorporation of the screening effect.
Ohba et al.  Ohira et al.  and Toki et al.
That rate increases to a nearly 100  survival rate if caught early.
Chernobyl comparison       Radiation deaths at Chernobyl were also statistically undetectable.
Nine of these had died as of 2005  a 99  survival rate.
Relocation is not easy  the stress is very big.
We must not only track those problems  but also treat them.
Otherwise people will feel they are just guinea pigs in our research.
Unusual conservation measures were undertaken.
In the immediate aftermath  nine prefectures served by TEPCO experienced power rationing.
Benjamin K. Sovacool asserted that Japan could have exploited instead its renewable energy base.
Journalist George Monbiot wrote  Why Fukushima made me stop worrying and love nuclear power.
In it he said   As a result of the disaster at Fukushima  I am no longer nuclear neutral.
The electricity supply failed  knocking out the cooling system.
The reactors began to explode and melt down.
The disaster exposed a familiar legacy of poor design and corner cutting.
Yet  as far as we know  no one has yet received a lethal dose of radiation.
The first became operational in November 2013.
Nuclear plant restarts must meet safety standards of the new independent regulatory authority.
On 16 December 2012  Japan held its general election.
The Liberal Democratic Party  LDP  had a clear victory  with Shinzō Abe as the new Prime Minister.
Decontamination equipment was slow to be made available and then slow to be utilized.
This is a much lower threshold than is necessary for protecting health.
Chiaki Takahashi  Japan s foreign minister  criticized foreign media reports as excessive.
The Japanese government  does not consider nongovernment readings to be authentic .
The group uses off the shelf Geiger counter equipment.
A simple Geiger counter is a contamination meter and not a dose rate meter.
The Japanese government decided to pump radioactive water to the Pacific after the Tokyo Olympics.
International      The international reaction to the disaster was diverse and widespread.
Many inter governmental agencies immediately offered help  often on an ad hoc basis.
China suspended its nuclear development program briefly  but restarted it shortly afterwards.
Renewable energy supplies 17 percent of China s electricity  16  of which is hydroelectricity.
KPMG reports 653 new nuclear facilities planned or proposed for completion by 2030.
India is also pressing ahead with a large nuclear program  as is South Korea.
In September 2019 the court found all three men not guilty.
It was a profoundly man made disaster – that could and should have been foreseen and prevented.
And its effects could have been mitigated by a more effective human response.
The 10 member  government appointed panel included scholars  journalists  lawyers  and engineers.
It was supported by public prosecutors and government experts.
See also         References          Notes           Sources     Cited  WHO  2013 .
Retrieved 7 September 2016.Other  Caldicott  Helen  ed.
The site was designated a National Historic Site of Japan in 2000.
It was built in 1160 and it is a National Treasure.
The temple  including the paradise garden is an Historic Site.
Contemporary period     This region of Japan is also known as Michinoku and Ōshū.
This resulted in increased recorded radiation levels across Japan.
Fukushima city is located in the Fukushima Basin s southwest area and nearby mountains.
Mount Bandai is the highest mountain in the prefecture with an elevation of 1 819 m  5 968 ft .
The mountainous Aizu region has scenic lakes  lush forests  and snowy winters.
Thanks to Fukushima s climate  various fruits are grown throughout the year.
These include pears  peaches  cherries  grapes  and apples.
Objects made are usually dishes  vases and writing materials.
The Adachigahara plain lies close to the city of Fukushima.
They are carved wooden dolls  with large round heads and hand painted bodies.
The history behind the festival and events is over one thousand years old.
There is also a traditional Taiwanese dragon dance  or Ryumai  performed by Taiwanese visitors.
Bird watching crowds are not uncommon during migration season here.
The area is popular with hikers and skiers.
It was preserved along with some of Noguchi s belongings and letters as part of a memorial.
Fukushima Gyu is the prefecture s signature beef.
It is a local cuisine from the northern parts of Fukushima Prefecture.
The baked good has a milky red bean flavor center wrapped in a buttery dough.
The name means “People who drink mothers’ milk  in Spanish.
It is produced by the Sanmangoku Company.
Creambox is prefecture s second famous confection.
It is a sweet bread with a thick milk bread and white milk flavored cream.
It is sold in Koriyama City at many bakery and school purchases .
The selling price is usually around 100 yen  and in some rare cases  the dough is round.
The Fukushima Prefecture Sake Brewers Cooperative is made up of nearly 60 sake breweries.
The Japanese government created the Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize in his honor.
MEXT translations into English entitle it the Basic Act on Education.
The Fundamental Law of Education contains a preamble and 18 Articles.
The law was approved by the Imperial Diet as was written in the original draft  without revision.
Such arguments have been brought up repeatedly since the law was first passed.
The draft is composed of a preamble and 18 articles.
The first meeting was scheduled for May 8  and a project team was established.
The new Law does not contain the word  equally  any longer.
The proposed reforms reflect three influential lines of thinking.
The expansion of the Ministry of Education s realm of authority is critical.
The asset transacted is usually a commodity or financial instrument.
Because it is a function of an underlying asset  a futures contract is a derivative product.
Stock futures are one of the high risk trading instruments in the market.
Even organ futures have been proposed to increase the supply of transplant organs.
In Europe  formal futures markets appeared in the Dutch Republic during the 17th century.
This enables traders to transact without performing due diligence on their counterparty.
Futures Commission Merchants are responsible for overseeing customer margin accounts.
Margins are determined on the basis of market risk and contract value.
Initial margin is the equity required to initiate a futures position.
This is a type of performance bond.
Initial margin is set by the exchange.
Calls for margin are usually expected to be paid and received on the same day.
However  most non US brokers only use the term “initial margin” and “variation margin”.
A futures account is marked to market daily.
The broker may set the requirement higher  but may not set it lower.
A trader  of course  can set it above that  if he does not want to be subject to margin calls.
ROM may be calculated  realized return     initial margin .
The Annualized ROM is equal to  ROM 1  year trade duration  1.
For example  if a trader earns 10  on margin in two months  that would be about 77  annualized.
Physical delivery is common with commodities and bonds.
In practice  it occurs only on a minority of contracts.
On this day the back month futures contract becomes the front month futures contract.
It is also the same if the underlying asset is uncorrelated with interest rates.
This is called the futures  convexity correction.
Storage costs are costs involved in storing a commodity to sell at the futures price.
In other words  a futures price is a martingale with respect to the risk neutral probability.
For information on futures markets in specific underlying commodity markets  follow the links.
For a list of tradable commodities futures contracts  see List of traded commodities.
LIFFE had taken over London Commodities Exchange   LCE   in 1996   softs  grains and meats.
Index futures include EURIBOR  FTSE 100  CAC 40  AEX index.
Those that buy or sell commodity futures need to be careful.
A put is the option to sell a futures contract  and a call is the option to buy a futures contract.
Futures are often used since they are delta one instruments.
Investors can either take on the role of option seller  or  writer   or the option buyer.
Definition of a futures contract    Following Björk we give a definition of a futures contract.
Futures are margined  while forwards are not.
In the case of physical delivery  the forward contract specifies to whom to make the delivery.
The counterparty for delivery on a futures contract is chosen by the clearing house.
Forwards do not have a standard.
More typical would be for the parties to agree to true up  for example  every quarter.
On day 51  that futures contract costs  90  7h 30m   7h 30m .
This money goes  via margin accounts  to the holder of the other side of the future.
That is  the loss party wires cash to the other party.
With an exchange traded future  the clearing house interposes itself on every trade.
Thus there is no risk of counterparty default.
The only risk is that the clearing house defaults  e.g.
become bankrupt   which is considered very unlikely.
Financial Derivatives  An Introduction to Futures  Forwards  Options and Swaps.
The EU is represented by the European Commission and by the European Central Bank.
Since the November 2011 Cannes summit  G20 summits have been held annually.
Early topics     The G20 s primary focus has been governance of the global economy.
Summit themes have varied from year to year.
The theme of the 2006 G20 ministerial meeting was  Building and Sustaining Prosperity .
Additionally  the G20 summits of heads of state or government were held.
Nations from the same region are placed in the same group  except Group 1 and Group 2.
Organization    The G20 operates without a permanent secretariat or staff.
The 2019 chair was Japan  which hosted the 2019 summit in Osaka.
The current chair is held by Italy.
The 2021 summit is planned to be held in Italy.
The 2022  2023 and 2024 summits will be hosted by Indonesia  India and Brazil respectively.
Seoul and Paris were suggested as possible locations for its headquarters.
South Korea proposed a  cyber secretariat  as an alternative.
It has been argued that the G20 has been using the OECD as a secretariat.
Total GDP figures are given in millions of US dollars.
Aspects such as geographical balance and population representation also played a major part.
Taiwan  21   which is not a UN member state is also not represented.
For example  South Korea invited Singapore.
Norway  like other such nations  has little or no voice within the group.
Its composition is determined by the major countries and powers.
No one needs a new Congress of Vienna.
These facts have reinforced the idea that Spain should seek permanent membership of the G20.
The place of my country is among the members of the G20.
That story is a political and economic transformation.
India is currently not opposed by any P5 nation.
In Africa  Namibia also opposes Germany s bid.
In Asia  Pakistan opposes India s bid.
And meanwhile  Japan s continuing relations with the G4 were not mutually exclusive.
It is used mainly for documentation in libraries and increasingly also by archives and museums.
A number of fictional franchises focus on gambling in Japan.
All four types employ parimutuel betting.
The prize pool for gamblers on these races are 70 80  of total sales.
Tickets for selected number lotteries can be also bought at some ATMs.
Pachinko     Pachinko is a pinball like slot machine game.
Pachinko parlors can be found all over Japan  and they are operated by private companies.
As of 2011  there are about 12 480 pachinko parlors in Japan.
In 2018  Japan spent  200 billion on pachinko each year.
Players can then exchange the balls for prizes of different value at a booth in the parlor.
Money cannot be awarded at pachinko parlors as this would be in violation of the criminal code.
Illegal gambling    Yakuza are known to operate illegal casinos in Japan.
Another illegal gambling opportunity is offered by mobile gambling sites.
At these sites  Japanese gamblers can play rock paper scissors and win cash prizes.
In 2010  the owner of one of these sites was arrested and confessed to earning over  1 million.
The players purchased betting tickets for ¥315.
Three casinos in the form of integrated resorts  IRs  will be established in different locations.
Names of two gambling operators were not revealed as they had requested anonymity.
The chairman is Michio Katamura.
See also    Sports betting Bookmaker Yakuza      References
Most professional garden designers have some training in horticulture and the principles of design.
All of these considerations are subject to the limitations of the prescribed budget.
Location     A garden s location can have a substantial influence on its design.
The locational context of the garden can also influence its design.
For example  an urban setting may require a different design style In contrast to a rural one.
However  soils may be replaced or improved in order to make them more suitable.
the soil acidity alkalinity  and the choice of plants to be grown.
In this case  poor soil is better than a rich soil that has been artificially enriched.
Planting can be used to modify an existing boundary line by softening or widening it.
Introducing internal boundaries can help divide or break up a garden into smaller areas.
The main types of boundary within a garden are hedges  walls and fences.
Surfaces for paths and access points are chosen for practical as well as aesthetic reasons.
Issues such as safety  maintenance and durability may need to be considered by the designer.
The four sectors symbolize the Zoroastrian elements of sky  earth  water and plants.
The gardens  plantings have a controlled but naturalistic aesthetic.
A picnic table  is used for the purpose of eating a meal outdoors such as in a garden.
The amount of available light is a critical factor in determining what plants may be grown.
Sunlight will  therefore  have a substantial influence on the character of the garden.
In some cases  the amount of available sunlight can be influenced by the gardener.
In other cases  the amount of sunlight is not under the gardener s control.
Lighting     Garden lighting can be an important aspect of garden design.
Safety lighting is the most practical application.
Light regulates three major plant processes  photosynthesis  phototropism  and photoperiodism.
Photosynthesis provides the energy required to produce the energy source of plants.
The Zen garden of rocks  moss and raked gravel is an example.
Lawns and hedges in a formal garden need to be kept neatly clipped for maximum effect.
The style was brought to France and expressed in the gardens of the French Renaissance.
English Renaissance gardens in a rectilinear formal design were a feature of the stately homes.
The introduction of the parterre was at Wilton House in the 1630s.
The more developed and elaborate formal gardens contain statuary and fountains.
William Kent and Lancelot  Capability  Brown were leading proponents  among many other designers.
The French Landscape Garden subsequently continued the style s development on the Continent.
Flowers were used to fill any spaces in between.
Over time  flowers became more dominant.
Signs near the plants usually provide relevant quotations.
Typical amenities are walkways and benches and a weather resistant bust of Shakespeare.
Shakespeare gardens may accompany reproductions of Elizabethan architecture.
They may be grown in troughs  containers   or in the ground.
The plants will usually be types that prefer well drained soil and less water.
Some rock gardens incorporate bonsai.
Some rock gardens are designed and built to look like natural outcrops of bedrock.
The Ryōan ji temple garden is a well known example.
Grasses are a very popular choice for this style of design.
Lighting effects also play an integral role in the modern garden.
However  the garden of a great house or a large estate may be larger than a public park.
Some early residential gardens include the Donnell Garden in Sonoma  California.
The garden is on top of a hillside overlooking the northern area of San Francisco Bay.
See also         References      The Cultrual Landscape Foundation .
Apprentice geisha are known as maiko  舞妓   a term translating to  woman of dance .
flower town   花街   the district where a geisha works  is affiliated  and potentially lives.
Kagai – lit.   five flower towns   五花街 .
In the present day  Shimabara is active only as a host for tayū re enactors.
A euphemistic term previously used to describe the entertainment and red light districts in Japan.
Okiya are usually run by women  many of whom are ex geisha themselves.
These reforms were often inconsistent  and were repealed at various times.
This trend would continue until the criminalisation of prostitution in Japan in 1956.
She remarked on the big dip in figures when women reached the age of twenty five.
In those days  when you found yourself a patron you could stop working.
I think it s pretty unusual nowadays for a geisha to stop working when she gets a patron.
The status of geisha in Japanese society also changed drastically after the war.
After Japan lost the war  geisha dispersed and the profession was in shambles.
In modern Japan  girls are not sold into indentured service.
Nowadays  a geisha s sex life is her private affair.
Successors  however  were not always blood relations.
Nowadays  a girl is often a shikomi for up to a year.
A maiko is an apprentice and is therefore bonded under a contract to her okiya.
This stage lasts only about a month or so.
After the minarai period  a trainee will make her official debut  misedashi  and become a maiko.
There are three major elements of a maiko s training.
The first is the formal arts training  which takes place in schools found in every hanamachi.
Isn t that what feminists are?
Wives were modest  responsible  and at times sombre  whereas geisha could be playful and carefree.
Non Japanese geisha    Since the 1970s  non Japanese have also become geisha.
She began her apprenticeship in April 2010 and debuted a year later in 2011.
Stephens debuted in August 2015  but left the profession in 2017 for personal reasons.
Other hanamachi also hold public dances  including some in Tokyo  but have fewer performances.
Another geisha beer garden is available at the Gion Shinmonso ryokan in the Gion district.
These beer gardens also feature traditional dances by the geisha in the evenings.
The shamisen soon became the mainstay instrument of geisha entertainment in the 1750s.
These constitute changes in hairstyle  hair accessories  and kimono style.
Apprentices wear long  formal obi.
Geisha exclusively wear solid white han eri  and wear either geta or zōri when wearing kimono.
Hair      The hairstyles of geisha have varied throughout history.
In popular culture    Geisha have been the subject of many films  books and television shows.
Kinji Fukasaku The Sea is Watching  2002 —Dir.
Geisha  A Photographic History  1872–1912.
Women of the Pleasure Quarters  The Secret History of the Geisha.
Both groups are National Treasures of Japan.
History    The word emaki stems from the word  emakimono  meaning  picture scrolls .
The first known picture scroll was produced in Japan during the late ninth or tenth century.
The Genji Monogatari picture scroll  however  was produced in the early twelfth century.
Dimensions     The original scroll was about 450 feet long.
It consisted of twenty rolls  contained over 100 paintings  and had over 300 sheets of calligraphy.
It also referred to the painter himself  as opposed to the artist who did the basic drawing.
There are four steps to this process.
In the second step  the piece is executed in a black and white drawing.
Pigments were added to the basic drawing and the details are colored in the third step.
In some cases  interior partitions are omitted.
The artists were very realistic with the architectural details of the scroll.
This technique takes place in all but one of the nineteen pictures in the scroll.
There are only two different viewpoints used to show the faces.
With the right angle the eyebrows and corners of the eyes are seen but the nose is invisible.
They were instead figures of one s imagination from the past or a make believe world.
It was intended for the readers to portray their own image of the figures while reading the novel.
Another way that the artists showed emotion in the characters was by the tilt of their faces.
Some examples that were used throughout the scroll were autumn grasses and raindrops.
The autumn grasses were used as a symbol of human emotion.
Because of this style of calligraphy  the Genji Monogatari Emaki is almost impossible to decipher.
Even amongst today s most educated Japanese people  only a few can successfully decipher it.
The best known of these is the Yomei bunko Genji.
The Mii dera monks were unable to ensure him sufficient protection  so he was forced to move along.
He was then chased by Taira forces to the Byōdō in  just outside Kyoto.
The war began thus  with a dramatic encounter on and around the bridge over the River Uji.
Minamoto no Yukiie was defeated by a force led by Taira no Shigehira at the Battle of Sunomatagawa.
However  the  Taira could not follow up their victory.
For nearly two years  the war ceased  only to resume in the spring of 1183.
The cloistered emperor Go Shirakawa defected to Yoshinaka.
The Taira set up a temporary Court at Dazaifu in Kyūshū  the southernmost of Japan s main islands.
However  Yukiie revealed these plans to the Emperor  who communicated them to Yoritomo.
He was defeated by Yoshitsune  and killed while attempting to flee.
This was a deceptive play on the part of the Minamoto  however.
Many of the Taira nobles perished  along with Emperor Antoku and the widow of Kiyomori.
This was the beginning of a feudal state in Japan  with real power now in Kamakura.
However  Kyoto remained the  seat of national ceremony and ritual.
1181 Battle of Sunomatagawa – the Taira thwart a sneak attack in the night but retreat.
1181 Battle of Yahagigawa – the Minamoto  retreating from Sunomata  attempt to make a stand.
1183 Battle of Kurikara – the tide of the war turns  in the Minamoto s favor.
1184 Siege of Hōjūjidono – Yoshinaka sets fire to the Hōjūji dono and kidnaps Emperor Go Shirakawa.
1184 Second Battle of Uji – Yoshinaka is pursued out of the capital by Yoshitsune and Noriyori.
1184 Battle of Awazu – Minamoto no Yoshinaka is defeated and killed by Yoshitsune and Noriyori.
1184 Battle of Kojima – Taira fleeing Ichi no Tani are attacked by Minamoto no Noriyori.
1185 Battle of Yashima – the Minamoto assault their enemies  fortress  just off Shikoku.
They were  however  decimated by the Taira in the Heiji Rebellion of 1160.
The Genpei war would see the Minamoto clan defeat the Taira and take command of the entire country.
Minamoto no Yoritomo  源頼朝   head of the clan upon Yorimasa s death.
Allies and vassals  Emperor Go Shirakawa  後白河   cloistered  retired  emperor.
Benkei  弁慶   sōhei  warrior monk   ally of Yoshitsune.
Sasaki Moritsuna  佐々木 盛綱   vassal of Noriyori who commanded the assault at the battle of Kojima.
Nasu no Yoichi  那須与一   celebrated archer and Minamoto ally.
Imai Kanehira  今井 兼平   who joined Yoshinaka in his escape to Seta.
The end of the war  however  brought destruction to the Taira clan.
Taira no Noritsune  平教経   a Taira samurai.
Taira no Tokiko  平時子   wife of Kiyomori who committed suicide at the battle of Dan no ura.
Taira no Kagekiyo  平景清   a Taira samurai  adopted from the Fujiwara clan.
Senoo Kaneyasu  妹尾兼康   vassal of the Taira who commanded at the Fukuryūji fortress.
Games     Cinemaware s 1989 Amiga title Lords of the Rising Sun features the Genpei war.
The player attacks five Taira princes before taking Kyoto.
The Dominican Republic voted against the motion  while France and Brazil abstained.
This daily movement can be as much as a meter.
Continental movement can be up to 10 cm a year  or 10 m in a century.
A weather system high pressure area can cause a sinking of 5 mm.
In the United Kingdom there are three common latitude  longitude  and height systems in use.
The Equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres.
The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E.
The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a  graticule .
The formulae both return units of meters per degree.
for the GRS80 and WGS84 spheroids  b a calculates to be 0.99664719.
is known as the reduced  or parametric  latitude .
The UPS system is used for the polar regions  which are not covered by the UTM system.
The stereographic coordinate system was superseded by the latitude longitude system.
Vertical coordinates     Vertical coordinates include height and depth.
Cartesian coordinates simplify many mathematical calculations.
The Cartesian systems of different datums are not equivalent.
The vertical coordinate can point either up or down.
The NED coordinates allow this as an alternative to the ENU.
in this article we will restrict the local coordinate frame to ENU.
The 5 main islands are Hokkaido  Honshu  Kyushu  Shikoku and Okinawa.
There are 6 847 remote islands.
The Ryukyu Islands and Nanpō Islands are south and east of the main islands.
The territory covers 377 976.41 km2  145 937.51 sq mi .
It is the 4th largest island country in the world and the largest island country in East Asia.
The population is clustered in urban areas on the coast  plains and valleys.
Japan is located in the northwestern Ring of Fire on multiple tectonic plates.
East of the Japanese archipelago are three oceanic trenches.
The continuous subduction process causes frequent earthquakes  tsunami and stratovolcanoes.
The islands are also affected by typhoons.
It is narrow  and no point in Japan is more than 150 km  93 mi  from the sea.
There are 6 852 islands in total.
The five main islands are  from north to south  Hokkaido  Honshu  Shikoku  Kyushu and Okinawa.
The 6 847 smaller islands are called remote islands.
The Senkaku Islands are claimed by Japan but disputed by China.
This excludes the disputed Northern Territories  Kuril islands  and Liancourt Rocks.
Japan has the 6th longest coastline in the world  29 751 km  18 486 mi  .
It is more than 11 times the land area of the country.
Japan has a population of 126 million in 2019.
It is the 11th most populous country in the world and second most populous island country.
While Japan has eight High Courts  their jurisdictions do not correspond with the eight regions.
Japan s highest mountain is Mount Fuji  with an elevation of 3 776 m  12 388 ft .
Japan s forest cover rate is 68.55  since the mountains are heavily forested.
Destructive earthquakes occur several times a century.
Hot springs are numerous and have been exploited by the leisure industry.
As of October 1  2020  Japan s territory is 377 976.41 square kilometres  145 937.51 sq mi .
Location     The Japanese archipelago is relatively far away from the Asian continent.
Thus historically Kyushu was the gateway between Asia and Japan.
China is separated by 800 km  500 mi  of sea from Japan s big main islands.
Hokkaido is near Sakhalin  which was occupied by Japan from 1905 to 1945.
Most of the population lives on the Pacific coast side of Honshū.
The Japanese can close their civilization with an isolationist foreign policy.
In modern times  the inflow of people is managed via the seaports and airports.
Thus Japan is fairly insulated from continental issues.
Throughout history  Japan was never fully invaded nor colonized by foreigners.
The Mongols tried to invade Japan twice and failed in 1274 and 1281.
Japan capitulated only once after nuclear attacks in World War II.
At the time Japan did not have nuclear technology.
They are separated from the continent by the Sea of Japan  which serves as a protective barrier.
The highest point in the Japanese Alps is Mount Kita at 3 193 metres  10 476 ft .
Plains      There are three major plains in central Honshū.
The largest is the Kantō Plain which covers 17 000 km2  6 600 sq mi  in the Kantō region.
The capital Tokyo and the largest metropolitan population is located there.
The third largest plain is the Osaka Plain which covers 1 600 km2  620 sq mi  in the Kinki region.
It features the second largest urban area of Osaka  part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area .
Osaka and Nagoya extend inland from their bays until they reach steep mountains.
The Osaka Plain is connected with Kyoto and Nara.
This made them the largest population centers.
Kyoto and Nara are the ancient capitals and cultural heart of Japan.
The Tokugawa Shogunate established a bakufu in Kamakura in 1603.
This evolved into the capital of Tokyo by 1868.
There are many farms that produce a plethora of agricultural products.
The average farm size in Hokkaido is 26 hectares per farmer in 2013.
That is nearly 11 times larger than the national average of 2.4 hectares.
This made Hokkaido the most agriculturally rich prefecture of Japan.
Seasonal variations in flow have led to extensive development of flood control measures.
It has consistently carried water for millions of years.
Lake Biwa was created by plate tectonics in an active rift zone.
This created a very deep lake with a maximum depth of 104 m  341 ft .
Thus it has not naturally filled with sediment.
It has more than 1 000 species and subspecies.
Approximately 5 000 water birds visit the lake each year.
The following are the 10 largest lakes of Japan.
Reclamation of 80  to 90  of all the tidal flatland was done.
Port Island  Rokkō Island and Kobe Airport were built in Kobe.
Tokyo Bay  Japan – 249 square kilometres  96 sq mi  artificial island  2007 .
Kobe  Japan – 23 square kilometres  8.9 sq mi   1995 .
Yumeshima  Osaka – 390 hectares  960 acres  artificial island  2025 .
It is used to build man made islands in harbors and embankments in inland areas.
For example  the artificial island Toyosu was once occupied by a Tokyo gas factory.
Toxic substances were discovered in the soil and groundwater at Toyosu.
After the new site was declared safe following a cleanup operation  Toyosu Market was opened.
Oceanography and seabed of Japan     Japan s sea territory is 4 470 000 km2  1 730 000 sq mi .
The other 50  has a depth of 4 000 m  13 000 ft  to over 6 000 m  20 000 ft .
19  has a depth of 0 to 1 000 m  3 300 ft .
Multiple long undersea mountain ranges stretch from Japan s main islands to the south.
They occasionally reach above the sea surface as islands.
There are large quantities of marine life and mineral resources in the ocean and seabed of Japan.
It is considered a mature island arc.
This is a minor tectonic plate bounded to the north by the North American Plate.
It is bounded on the south by the Philippine Sea Plate at the Nankai Trough.
On the west it is bounded by the Eurasian Plate and possibly on the southwest by the Amurian Plate.
The southern half of Honshu  Shikoku and most of Kyushu are located on the Amurian Plate.
The southern tip of Kyushu and the Ryukyu islands are located on the Okinawa Plate.
They are deeper than the Eurasian plate.
The Pacific Plate moves under the Okhotsk Plate to the north.
The Strait of Tartary and the Korea Strait opened much later.
This is because the oceanic plate s litosphere has a higher density.
Subduction zones are sites that usually have a high rate of volcanism and earthquakes.
Major earthquakes  volcanic eruptions and tsunamis occur several times per century.
It is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire.
Median Tectonic Line      The Japan Median Tectonic Line  MTL  is Japan s longest fault system.
The sense of motion is consistent with the direction of the Nankai Trough s oblique convergence.
The rate of motion on the MTL is much less than the rate of convergence at the plate boundary.
Oceanic trenches      East of the Japanese archipelago are three oceanic trenches.
The Kuril–Kamchatka Trench is in the northwest Pacific Ocean.
Its deepest part is 8 046 m  26 398 ft .
The subduction process causes bending of the down going plate  creating a deep trench.
The Izu Ogasawara Trench is south of the Japan Trench in the western Pacific Ocean.
It stretches to the northernmost section of the Mariana Trench.
The Izu Ogasawara Trench is an extension of the Japan Trench.
In northwest Japan are thick quaternary deposits.
The geologic province of Japan is mostly basin and a bit extended crust.
Erosion and shifting sands caused the new island to merge with Nishinoshima.
This made some sections of Japan s landmass wider than before.
The areas of Japan closest to the epicenter experienced the largest shifts.
During the glacial maximum the marine elevation was 200 meters lower than present.
The Korean Peninsula was landlocked on the entire west and south side in the Yellow Plane.
The onset of formation of the Japan Arc was in the Early Miocene  23 million years ago .
The south part of the Japanese archipelago remained as a relatively large landmass.
The land area expanded northward during the Miocene.
During the advance of the last Ice Age  the world sea level dropped.
This dried and closed the exit straits of the Sea of Japan one by one.
The deepest  and thus the last to close  was the western channel of the Korea Strait.
There is controversy as to whether the Sea of Japan became a huge cold inland lake.
The Japanese archipelago had a taiga biome  open boreal woodlands .
It was characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines  spruces and larches.
Hokkaido  Sakhalin  and the Kuril islands had mammoth steppe biome  steppe tundra .
The vegetation was dominated by palatable high productivity grasses  herbs and willow shrubs.
The Yamato Basin and Tsushima Basin have thick ocean crusts.
The continental shelves of the sea are wide on the eastern shores along Japan.
Without the Japanese archipelago it would just be the Pacific Ocean.
The term has been the international standard since at least the early 19th century.
Ocean currents     The Japanese archipelago is surrounded by eight ocean currents.
It is a strong western boundary current and part of the North Pacific ocean gyre.
It transports warm  tropical water northward toward the polar region.
The winter spawning Japanese Flying Squid are associated with the Kuroshio Current.
The Tsushima Current  対馬海流  Tsushima Kairyū  is a branch of the Kuroshio Current.
It flows along the west coast of Kyushu and Honshu into the Sea of Japan.
There is a relatively stronger flow in the summer than in the winter.
The oil crisis in 1973 encouraged the efficient use of energy.
Japan has therefore aimed to diversify its sources and maintain high levels of energy efficiency.
Rice has a 100  food self sufficiency.
This makes it difficult to meet Japan s food demand without imports.
Most of these deep sea resources are unexplored at the seabed.
Japan s mining law restricts offshore oil and gas production.
There are technological hurdles to mine at such extreme depths and to limit the ecological impact.
There are no successful commercial ventures that mine the deep sea yet.
This is why currently Japan has very limited proven reserves like crude oil.
The Kanto region alone is estimated to have over 400 billion cubic meters of natural gas reserves.
In 2005  Japan ranked sixth in the world in tonnage of fish caught.
In 2003  the total aquaculture production was predicted at 1 301 437 tonnes.
In 2010  Japan s total fisheries production was 4 762 469 fish.
Thus Japan s industrial sector became even more dependent than before on imported fossil fuels.
Opposition from local governments has delayed several restarts that remain pending.
Nuclear energy will provide 20  of the country s energy needs as an emissions free energy source.
This will help Japan meet climate change commitments.
The Quasi National Parks have slightly less beauty  size  diversity  or preservation.
For example  the northern part of Hokkaido has a taiga biome.
Most natural islands have mountain ranges in the center with coastal plains.
Hokkaido belongs to the humid continental climate  with long  cold winters and cool summers.
Precipitation is lower than on the coast because of rain shadow effects.
Summers are hot because of the southeast seasonal wind.
Precipitation is very heavy in the south and heavy in the summer in the north.
Precipitation is very high and is especially affected by the rainy season and typhoons.
Rainfall     Japan is generally a rainy country with high humidity.
Two prefectures—Hokkaido and Okinawa—are composed entirely of islands.
These air flows are full of moisture and deposit substantial amounts of rain when they reach land.
There is a marked rainy season  beginning in early June and continuing for about a month.
It is followed by hot  sticky weather.
In Okinawa  the rainy season starts early in May and continues until mid June.
The lowest was −41.0 °C  −41.8 °F  in Asahikawa on 25 January 1902.
However an unofficial −41.5 °C was taken in Bifuka on 27 January 1931.
Record lows for any month were taken as recent as 1984.
Population distribution     Japan has a population of 126.3 million in 2019.
It is the eleventh most populous country and second most populous island country in the world.
The population is clustered in urban areas on the coast  plains and valleys.
In 2010  90.7  of the total Japanese population lived in cities.
Japan is an urban society with about only 5  of the labor force working in agriculture.
Nearly 1 in 3 Japanese people live in the Greater Tokyo Area.
It has a population of 104 000 000 with a population density of 450 km2  1 200 sq mi   2010 .
It is the 7th largest island in the world.
Kyushu     Kyushu  九州  is the third largest island of Japan of the five main islands.
As of 2016  Kyushu has a population of 12 970 479 and covers 36 782 km2  14 202 sq mi .
It has the second highest population density of 307.13 km2  118.58 sq mi   2016 .
It is located south of Honshu and northeast of Kyushu.
The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu.
The island area ranks 21st in the world by area.
It is 3.6  smaller than the island of Ireland.
Okinawa Prefecture     Okinawa Prefecture  沖縄県  is the southernmost prefecture of Japan.
It encompasses two thirds of the Ryukyu Islands over 1 000 kilometres  620 mi  long.
It has a population of 1 445 812  2017  and a density of 622 km2  240 sq mi .
The Nanpō Islands are all administered by Tokyo Metropolis.
Approximately 0.7  of the Japanese population lives there.
It has a total population of approximately 81 859 345  2016 .
38 000 000 people  Keihanshin – Part of the larger Kansai region  includes Osaka  Kyoto  Kobe.
Currently no underwater city is constructed yet.
The Ocean Spiral was co developed with JAMSTEC and Tokyo University.
These are the points that are farther north  south  east or west than any other location in Japan.
These are also called the mainland.
All of these points are accessible to the public.
It excludes the disputed Kuril islands known as the northern territories.
These islands were occupied by the Soviet Union in 1945.
The Kuril Islands historically belong to Japan.
The Soviet Union did not sign the San Francisco Treaty in 1951.
This dispute has prevented the signing of a peace treaty between Japan and Russia.
Geographically the Kuril Islands are a northeastern extension of Hokkaido.
Kunashiri and the Habomai Islands are visible from the northeastern coast of Hokkaido.
Time zone     There is one time zone in the whole Japanese archipelago.
There is no daylight saving time.
Sakhalin uses UTC 11 00 even though it is located above Hokkaido.
The 1923 Tokyo earthquake killed over 140 000 people.
At least 100 aftershocks registering a 6.0 magnitude or higher have followed the main shock.
At least 15 000 people died as a result.
Volcanic eruptions      Japan has 108 active volcanoes.
That s 10  of all active volcanoes in the world.
Japan has stratovolcanoes near the subduction zones of the tectonic plates.
Unzen erupted in 1792 and killed more than 15 000 people.
It is the worst volcanic disaster in the country s recorded history.
It spread over vast areas around the volcano and reached Edo almost 100 kilometres  60 mi  away.
Cinders and ash fell like rain in Izu  Kai  Sagami  and Musashi provinces.
In Edo  the volcanic ash was several centimeters thick.
The eruption is rated a 5 on the Volcanic Explosivity Index.
There are three VEI 7 volcanoes in Japan.
These are the Aira Caldera  Kikai Caldera and Aso Caldera.
These giant caldera are remnants of past eruptions.
Mount Aso is the largest active volcano in Japan.
The Aira Caldera is 17 kilometers long and 23 km wide located in south Kyushu.
The city of Kagoshima and the Sakurajima volcano are within the Aira Caldera.
Sakurajima is the most active volcano in Japan.
It is the remains of the ancient eruption of a colossal volcano.
The pyroclastic flows could reach much of Kyushu.
Beyond the pyroclastic area is volcanic ash that falls from the sky.
The underwater ash would be swept away by ocean currents.
Thus enough heat could be extracted to prevent an eruption.
The heat could be used by a geothermal plant to generate geothermal energy and electricity.
In October 2004  Typhoon Tokage caused heavy rain in Kyushu and central Japan with 98 casualties.
Until the 1960s the death toll was hundreds of people per typhoon.
Japan was originally attached to the eastern coast of the Eurasian continent.
The Strait of Tartary and the Korea Strait opened much later.
Japan is situated in a volcanic zone on the Pacific Ring of Fire.
Destructive earthquakes  often resulting in tsunamis  occur several times per century.
Hot springs are numerous and have been developed as resorts.
The most recent complete subduction of a plate was that of the Izanagi Plate 95 million years ago.
The Pacific Plate is subducting under the Okhotsk Plate to the north at a speed of 10 cm year.
The Strait of Tartary and the Korea Strait opened much later  about 2 million years ago.
At the same time  a severe subduction of Fossa Magna graben have formed the Kantō Plain.
The Japanese islands are formed of several geological units parallel to the subduction front.
Destructive earthquakes  often resulting in tsunamis  occur several times a century.
Hot springs are numerous and have been developed as resorts.
Tbilisi is the country s capital and largest city.
Following World War I  Georgia was invaded and incorporated into the Soviet Union in 1922.
Georgia is a developing country classified as  very high  on the Human Development Index.
The self designation used by ethnic Georgians is Kartvelebi  ქართველები  i.e.
The name Sakartvelo  საქართველო  consists of two parts.
Before the 1995 constitution came into force the country s name was the Republic of Georgia.
The proto Georgian tribes first appear in written history in the 12th century BC.
The most prosperous period of the Abkhazian kingdom was between 850 and 950.
The Kingdom of Georgia reached its zenith in the 12th to early 13th centuries.
Tamar was given the title  king of kings   mepe mepeta .
George V was the last great king of the unified Georgian state.
Georgia was further weakened by several disastrous invasions by Tamerlane.
However  subsequent Iranian and Ottoman invasions further weakened local kingdoms and regions.
The Bagrationi royal family was deported from the kingdom.
Mingrelia  although a Russian protectorate since 1803  was not absorbed until 1867.
The federation consisted of three nations  Georgia  Armenia and Azerbaijan.
The country s independence did not last long  being annexed by the Soviet Union in 1922.
The Georgian army was defeated and the Social Democratic government fled the country.
Soviet rule was firmly established only after the insurrection was swiftly defeated.
Of them  an estimated 350 000 were killed.
On 26 May 1991  Zviad Gamsakhurdia was elected as the first President of independent Georgia.
He was soon deposed in a bloody coup d état  from 22 December 1991 to 6 January 1992.
The country became embroiled in a bitter civil war  which lasted until nearly 1995.
A bomb explosion on 1 August 2008 targeted a car transporting Georgian peacekeepers.
In response  several South Ossetian militiamen were hit.
South Ossetian separatists began shelling Georgian villages on 1 August.
Russian airstrikes against targets within Georgia were also launched.
Abkhaz forces opened a second front on 9 August by attacking the Kodori Gorge  held by Georgia.
Tskhinvali was seized by the Russian military by 10 August.
Russia recognised Abkhazia and South Ossetia as separate republics on 26 August.
The executive branch of power is made up of the Cabinet of Georgia.
The Cabinet is composed of ministers  headed by the Prime Minister  and appointed by the President.
Since February 2021  Irakli Gharibashvili has been the Prime Minister of Georgia.
Legislative authority is vested in the Parliament of Georgia.
Members of parliament are elected for four year terms.
Saakashvili believed in 2008 that the country is  on the road to becoming a European democracy.
As of March 2012  Parliament was discussing further amendments to address these concerns.
In August 2004  the Individual Partnership Action Plan of Georgia was submitted officially to NATO.
On 6–9 March 2006  the IPAP implementation interim assessment team arrived in Tbilisi.
George W. Bush became the first sitting U.S. president to visit the country.
The street leading to Tbilisi International Airport has since been dubbed George W. Bush Avenue.
Military      Georgia s military is organized into land and air forces.
They are collectively known as the Georgian Armed Forces  GAF .
The military budget of Georgia for 2017 is 748₾ million  by 78₾ million more than in 2016.
After its independence from the Soviet Union  Georgia began to develop its own military industry.
The first exhibition of products made by STC Delta was in 1999.
Georgia also participated in the NATO led International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan.
Over 11 000 Georgian soldiers have been rotated through Afghanistan.
A new force was then subsequently built around new recruits.
The police introduced an 022  currently 112  emergency dispatch service in 2004.
Human rights      Human rights in Georgia are guaranteed by the country s constitution.
Georgia has ratified the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities in 2005.
In addition  another territory not officially autonomous has also declared independence.
It was called South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast when Georgia was part of Soviet Union.
Its autonomous status was revoked in 1990.
Georgia considers the regions as occupied by Russia.
The two republics gained limited international recognition after the 2008 Russo Georgian War.
It is a very mountainous country.
The Likhi Range divides the country into eastern and western halves.
The southern portion of the country is bounded by the Lesser Caucasus Mountains.
Out of the abovementioned peaks  only Kazbek is of volcanic origin.
Two major rivers in Georgia are the Rioni and the Mtkvari.
The Krubera Cave is the deepest known cave in the world.
It is located in the Arabika Massif of the Gagra Range  in Abkhazia.
The atlas was presented at the Frankfurt Book Fair 2018  where Georgia was the guest of honor.
Topography      The landscape within the nation s boundaries is quite varied.
Evergreen species such as box may also be found in many areas.
1000 of all 4000 higher plants of Georgia are endemic to this country.
The zone is made up mainly of beech  spruce  and fir forests.
In contrast with western Georgia  nearly 85 percent of the forests of the region are deciduous.
Coniferous forests only dominate in the Borjomi Gorge and in the extreme western areas.
Out of the deciduous species of trees  beech  oak  and hornbeam dominate.
Other deciduous species include several varieties of maple  aspen  ash  and hazelnut.
The only remaining large  low land forests remain in the Alazani Valley of Kakheti.
Climate      The climate of Georgia is extremely diverse  considering the nation s small size.
Eastern Georgia has a transitional climate from humid subtropical to continental.
The spider checklist of Georgia  for example  includes 501 species.
1 729 species of plants have been recorded from Georgia in association with fungi.
Gold  silver  copper and iron have been mined in the Caucasus Mountains.
Georgian wine making is a very old tradition and a key branch of the country s economy.
The country has sizable hydropower resources.
As with all other post Soviet states  Georgia faced a severe economic collapse.
The civil war and military conflicts in South Ossetia and Abkhazia aggravated the crisis.
The agriculture and industry output diminished.
Georgia improved its position to 6th in World Bank s Doing Business report 2019.
In addition  Russia increased the price of gas for Georgia.
The country has also maintained a solid credit in international market securities.
Among other things a flat income tax was introduced in 2004.
In 2015  the average monthly income of a household was 1 022.3₾  about  426 .
2015 calculations place Georgia s nominal GDP at US 13.98 billion.
Georgia ranked number 58 overall in the 2016 NRI ranking  up from 60 in 2015.
Tourism      Tourism is an increasingly significant part of the Georgian economy.
In 2016  2 714 773 tourists brought approximately US 2.16 billion to the country.
The country plans to host 11 million tourists by 2025 with annual revenues reaching US 6.6 billion.
According to the government  there are 103 resorts in different climatic zones in Georgia.
Other tourist attractions are Cave City  Ananuri Castle Church  Sighnaghi and Mount Kazbek.
In 2018  more than 1.4 million tourists from Russia visited Georgia.
Transportation     Today transport in Georgia is provided by rail  road  ferry  and air.
Total length of roads excluding occupied territories is 20 553 kilometers and railways – 1 576 km.
The Georgian Jews are one of the oldest Jewish communities in the world.
Since 1990  1.5 million Georgian nationals have left.
At least 1 million emigrants from Georgia legally or illegally reside in Russia.
Many Ossetians living in Georgia left the country  mainly to Russia s North Ossetia.
Education in Georgia is mandatory for all children aged 6–14.
Students with a secondary school certificate have access to higher education.
Architecture and arts      Georgian architecture has been influenced by many civilizations.
There are several architectural styles for castles  towers  fortifications and churches.
The head of supra is known as tamada.
This method of cultivation is called maglari.
Georgian wine has been a contentious issue in recent relationships with Russia.
There were a number of other styles in the past that are not as widely used today.
For example  the Khevsureti region of Georgia has three styles of wrestling.
The first and only race circuit in the Caucasian region is located in Georgia.
Dinamo Tbilisi won the prestigious Euroleague competition in 1962.
Sport is regaining its popularity in the country in recent years.
The former name of the organization from 1949 until March 2010 was Geographical Survey Institute.
It is an extraordinary organ of the Ministry of Land  Infrastructure  Transport and Tourism.
Its main offices are situated in Tsukuba City of Ibaraki Prefecture.
It also runs a museum  situated in Tsukuba  the Science Museum of Map and Survey.
Construction of the building started on August 1890 and it was completed on December 24  1891.
It serves as a reference point for elevations in Japan  vertical datum .
The building cannot be entered  but there is a stone base with a description outside.
At the time the novel was set  in the late sixties  the GSI was situated in Tokyo.
Japanese map symbols  the official symbols used by the GSI in maps.
Global Map      References         External links    Official Website
Unified in the early 1870s  the chancellor of this time period was Otto von Bismarck.
The German colonial empire ceased to exist in 1919.
Germany seemed destined to play catch up.
However  by 1891 the Germans were mostly united under Prussian rule.
They also sought a more clear cut  German  state  and saw colonies as a good way to achieve that.
Around half of the colonists died  and the venture proved a complete failure.
I am no man for colonies  and  remained as contemptuous of all colonial dreams as ever.
Indeed  in 1889   Bismarck  tried to give German South West Africa away to the British.
It was  he said  a burden and an expense  and he would like to saddle someone else with it.
The Hanseatic republics of Hamburg and Bremen sent traders across the globe.
These islands were given the status of protectorate.
Large African inland acquisitions followed — mostly to the detriment of native inhabitants.
Several of the African colonies remained powder kegs throughout this phase  and beyond .
The use of forced  unpaid labor went on the books as a criminal offense.
The native population was forced into unequal treaties by the German colonial governments.
The result was several military and genocidal campaigns by the Germans against the natives.
Political and economic subjugation of Herero and Nama was envisioned.
Whatever the Germans constructed in their colonies was made to last.
By 1916 only in remote jungle regions in East Africa did the German forces hold out.
Smuts  warnings were repeated in the press.
The idea took hold that they should not be returned to Germany after the war.
Confiscation     Germany s overseas empire was dismantled following defeat in World War I.
German South West Africa was taken under mandate by the Union of South Africa.
Settlement in Africa was not popular and was not a focus for Hitler.
In the Pacific colonies in 1913 there were 1 645 Germans.
More than three million Africans were vaccinated against smallpox.
In the process they built an international network of sympathisers.
The subduing of the Maji Maji uprising in German East Africa in 1905 was prominently published.
However  Togoland saw its own share of bloodshed.
The Germans used forced labor and harsh punishment to keep the Africans in line.
Although the lack of any true war led some in Europe to call Togoland Germany s  model colony.
Together with Theodor Mollison he also experimented upon Herero prisoners.
Those experiments included sterilization  injection of smallpox  typhus as well as tuberculosis.
An estimated 3000 skulls were sent to Germany for study.
Afterwards he researched the effects of these substances by performing autopsies on dead bodies.
Techniques included genocide in parts of Africa.
The Duala leadership in 1884 placed the tribe under German rule.
Most converted to Protestantism and were schooled educated along German lines.
Other scholars  are skeptical and challenge the continuity thesis.
A small German ethnic minority also resides in the country.
“Germany s Trade with Her Colonies  1884 1914.” Economic History Review  9 1 1938  pp.
historiography   excerpt Lewthwaite  Gordon R.  1962 .
Great Britain and Germany s Lost Colonies 1914–1919.
German Colonialism and National Identity  2010  focuses on cultural impact in Africa and Germany.
ISBN 978 0 391 03383 2.CS1 maint  extra text  authors list  link  Strandmann  Hartmut Pogge von.
The rise and fall of Germany s colonial empire  1884 1918  1930 .
Germany’s Overseas Protectorates 1884–1918 .
Unter Kaisers Flagge  Deutschlands Schutzgebiete im Pazifik und in China einst und heute.
Frankfurt am Main  Campus Verlag.
Politiques et Identités  2010  ISBN 978 2 84516 436 9.
A region named Germania was documented before AD 100.
In the 10th century  German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire.
During the 16th century  northern German regions became the centre of the Protestant Reformation.
Germany is also a member of the United Nations  NATO  the G7  the G20  and the OECD.
It also has the fourth greatest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
History     Ancient humans were present in Germany at least 600 000 years ago.
The first non modern human fossil  the Neanderthal  was discovered in the Neander Valley.
The Nebra sky disk  created during the European Bronze Age  is attributed to a German site.
Under Augustus  Rome began to invade Germania.
In 9 AD  three Roman legions were defeated by Arminius.
Around 260  Germanic peoples broke into Roman controlled lands.
The Ottonian rulers  919–1024  consolidated several major duchies.
Population declined starting with the Great Famine in 1315  followed by the Black Death of 1348–50.
The House of Habsburg held the imperial crown from 1438 until the death of Charles VI in 1740.
The Zollverein  a tariff union  furthered economic unity.
Later  Germany further expanded its colonial empire to include holdings in the Pacific and China.
Germany s new leadership signed the Treaty of Versailles in 1919  accepting defeat by the Allies.
The worldwide Great Depression hit Germany in 1929.
In 1941  German troops invaded Yugoslavia  Greece and the Soviet Union.
They were informally known as West Germany and East Germany.
Konrad Adenauer was elected the first Federal Chancellor of Germany in 1949.
The country enjoyed prolonged economic growth  Wirtschaftswunder  beginning in the early 1950s.
In 2009 the German government approved a €50 billion stimulus plan.
France  Luxembourg and Belgium are situated to the west  with the Netherlands to the northwest.
Germany is also bordered by the North Sea and  at the north northeast  by the Baltic Sea.
There are many species of ferns  flowers  fungi  and mosses.
In addition  there are 17 Biosphere Reserves and 105 nature parks.
More than 400 zoos and animal parks operate in Germany.
Politics     Germany is a federal  parliamentary  representative democratic republic.
So far every chancellor has been a member of one of these parties.
The German penal system seeks the rehabilitation of the criminal and the protection of the public.
In 2018  the overall crime rate fell to its lowest since 1992.
Germany is a member of NATO  the OECD  the G8  the G20  the World Bank and the IMF.
The governments of Germany and the United States are close political allies.
It was the world s second biggest aid donor in 2019 after the United States.
In absolute terms  German military expenditure is the 8th highest in the world.
As of January 2020  the Bundeswehr has a strength of 184 001 active soldiers and 80 947 civilians.
Since 2001 women may serve in all functions of service without restriction.
In state of defence  the Chancellor would become commander in chief of the Bundeswehr.
The role of the Bundeswehr is described in the Constitution of Germany as defensive only.
Germany introduced the common European currency  the Euro  in 2002.
Germany is the largest contributor to the European Space Agency.
Its road network is among the densest in Europe.
The largest German airports are Frankfurt Airport and Munich Airport.
The government and the nuclear power industry agreed to phase out all nuclear power plants by 2021.
It meets the country s power demands using 40  renewable sources.
The country s household recycling rate is among the highest in the world—at around 65 .
Nevertheless  the country s total greenhouse gas emissions were the highest in the EU in 2017.
Berlin has become the third most visited city destination in Europe.
The Europa Park near Freiburg is Europe s second most popular theme park resort.
Its population density stands at 227 inhabitants per square kilometre  588 per square mile .
Since the 1970s  Germany s death rate has exceeded its birth rate.
The majority of migrants live in western Germany  in particular in urban areas.
There are 11 officially recognised metropolitan regions.
The country s largest city is Berlin  while its largest urban area is the Ruhr.
Islam is the second largest religion in the country.
Languages      German is the official and predominant spoken language in Germany.
Primary education usually lasts for four to six years.
The general requirement for university is the Abitur.
In the contemporary era Germany has developed eleven Universities of Excellence.
Since the 1880s  reforms and provisions have ensured a balanced health care system.
In 2019  the principal cause of death was cardiovascular disease  at 37 .
Obesity in Germany has been increasingly cited as a major health issue.
A 2014 study showed that 52 percent of the adult German population was overweight or obese.
As of 2016 UNESCO inscribed 41 properties in Germany on the World Heritage List.
Richard Wagner was known for his operas.
Richard Strauss was a leading composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras.
DJs and artists of the techno and house music scenes of Germany have become well known  e.g.
Art and design      German painters have influenced western art.
The New Objectivity arose in response to expressionism during the Weimar Republic.
Brick Gothic is a distinctive medieval style that evolved in Germany.
Also in Renaissance and Baroque art  regional and typically German elements evolved  e.g.
The Berlin Fashion Week and the fashion trade fair Bread   Butter are held twice a year.
The German book market is the third largest in the world  after the United States and China.
Germany s television market is the largest in Europe  with some 38 million TV households.
Germany s print market of newspapers and magazines is the largest in Europe.
The largest magazines include ADAC Motorwelt and Der Spiegel.
Germany has a large video gaming market  with over 34 million players nationwide.
German cinema has made major technical and artistic contributions to film.
The first works of the Skladanowsky Brothers were shown to an audience in 1895.
Director Fritz Lang s Metropolis  1927  is referred to as the first major science fiction film.
Various Germans won an Oscar for their performances in other films.
The  Lolas  are annually awarded in Berlin  at the German Film Awards.
German cheeses account for about 22  of all cheese produced in Europe.
In 2012 over 99  of all meat produced in Germany was either pork  chicken or beef.
Sports      Football is the most popular sport in Germany.
Constructors like BMW and Mercedes are prominent manufacturers in motor sport.
Porsche has won the 24 Hours of Le Mans race 19 times  and Audi 13 times  as of 2017 .
Munich hosted the Summer Games of 1972.
Nazi Games  The Olympics of 1936.
Germany from the OECD Germany at the EU  Geographic data related to Germany at OpenStreetMap
Gifu Prefecture  岐阜県  Gifu ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu.
Japan s postal codes all start with a three digit number  ranging from 001 to 999.
Part of Gifu has the 500 prefix  reflecting its location in the center of Japan.
The center of Japanese population is currently located in Seki City  Gifu Prefecture.
The spot was calculated using the 2005 census.
The five regions are Seinō  Gifu  Chūnō  Tōnō and Hida.
The borders of the regions are loosely defined  but they are usually delineated among major cities.
The Ryōhaku Mountains are also in the Hida region.
Other major ranges include the Ibuki Mountains and the Yōrō Mountains.
Gifu boasts a high amount of skiing locations.
Agriculture is also a major industry because of Gifu s vast  arable plains.
Sake is often brewed with clear water from the rivers.
Modern industries     Kakamigahara has a large role in the prefecture s modern industries.
The most popular places are Gifu  Gero  Shirakawa and Takayama.
Gero is known for its relaxing hot springs  which attract visitors throughout the year.
Shirakawa s historic villages are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Takayama is famous for retaining its original appearance and is often referred to as Little Kyoto.
In addition to international tourists  Gifu also plays host to many international events.
The World Event and Convention Complex Gifu is available for many types of events.
The World Rowing Championships were held in the city of Kaizu in 2005.
The FIS Snowboard World Cup was held in the city of Gujo in 2008.
The APEC Japan 2010 SME Ministerial Meetings were held in Gifu City.
Some of the 11 146 photomultiplier tubes are on display at the Miraikan in Tokyo.
The same facility also hosts the CLIO prototype and KAGRA gravitational wave detector.
The percentage of male and female residents is 48.4  and 51.6   respectively.
In 2000  it was located in the former town of Mugi  which has since merged with Seki.
It was developed by the Italian statistician and sociologist Corrado Gini.
The Gini coefficient was proposed by Gini as a measure of inequality of income or wealth.
The same value may result from many different distribution curves.
The demographic structure should be taken into account.
Scholars have devised over a dozen variants of the Gini coefficient.
The line at 45 degrees thus represents perfect equality of incomes.
In reality  both extreme values are not quite reached.
displaystyle G   frac  2 sum   i 1   n iy  i   n sum   i 1   n y  i      frac  n 1  n  .
displaystyle  mu   sum  limits   i 1   n y  i f y  i  .
displaystyle G   frac  1  2 mu    int   0   1  int   0   1  Q F  1   Q F  2     dF  1   dF  2 .
For some functional forms  the Gini index can be calculated explicitly.
Yk is the cumulated proportion of the income variable  for k   0 ... n  with Y0   0  Yn   1.
More detailed data from similar sources plots a continuous decline since 1988.
It is used to discern trends in social development through educational attainment over time.
Other scholars  using just 1990s data or other short periods have come to different conclusions.
Limitations    The Gini coefficient is a relative measure.
This is because the Gini coefficient measures relative  not absolute  wealth.
countries may have identical Gini coefficients  but differ greatly in wealth.
Table A illustrates one such situation.
Economies with similar incomes and Gini coefficients can have very different income distributions.
Populations can have very low income Gini indices  yet simultaneously very high wealth Gini index.
These factors are not assessed in income based Gini.
The combined income is now split into more households.
Many old people are living separately from their children in Hong Kong.
These social changes have caused substantial changes in household income distribution.
Income Gini coefficient  claims Kwok  does not discern these structural changes in its society.
In absence of free markets  valuing these income transfers as household income is subjective.
For example  entropy measures are frequently used  e.g.
These indicators are related to Gini.
In education  it has been used as a measure of the inequality of universities.
It is related to accuracy ratio in population assessment models.
The Global Competitiveness Report  GCR  is a yearly report published by the World Economic Forum.
This in turn depends on how productively a country uses available resources.
The report has twelve pillars of competitiveness.
Intermediate values are used for economies in transition between stages.
The Index was first launched in May 2009  with subsequent reports being released annually.
In 2015 it ranked 165 countries  up from 121 in 2007.
More countries improved their levels of peacefulness than deteriorated  93 compared to 68.
Ten indicators broadly assess what might be described as safety and security in society.
In 2017  23 indicators were used to establish peacefulness scores for each country.
A table of the indicators is below.
The 0 to 1 scores that resulted were then converted to the 1 to 5 scale.
This suggests it is an important transformational factor at all stages of a nation s development.
Each year s GPI report includes a detailed description of the methodology used.
The challenge is how we break that cycle.
Now that the index covers 99  of the population  it has come a long way.
The report systemically measures peacefulness and identifies the determinants of peace.
Sierra Leone ranked 39th in the 2017 Global Peace Index.
The report ranked 163 countries based on how peaceful they are.
For perspective  India is ranked just one notch above  at 137.
It found 93 had improved  while 68 had deteriorated  and overall peace levels had inched up 0.28 .
Godzilla is a 1998 American monster film directed and co written by Roland Emmerich.
In October 1992  TriStar Pictures announced plans to produce a trilogy of Godzilla films.
In May 1993  Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio were hired to write the script.
In July 1994  Jan de Bont was announced as the director.
Principal photography began in May 1997 and ended in September 1997.
Despite turning a profit  it was considered a box office disappointment.
Planned sequels were cancelled and an animated series was produced instead.
Plot    An iguana nest is exposed to the fallout of a military nuclear test in French Polynesia.
Nick identifies skin samples he discovered in the shipwreck as belonging to an unknown species.
The creature travels to New York City  leaving a path of destruction in its wake.
Their attempt to kill it fails  however  and only causes further damage before it escapes.
Nick also meets up with his ex girlfriend  Audrey Timmonds  a young aspiring news reporter.
Suspecting a nest somewhere in the city  they cooperate with Nick to trace and destroy it.
After colliding with torpedoes  Godzilla sinks  believed to be dead by the authorities.
The eggs begin to hatch and the strike team are attacked by the offspring.
Godzilla dies from its wounds  and the remaining citizens and authorities celebrate.
Audrey tells Caiman that she quits working for him after what he did  before leaving with Nick.
Woods stated   We pitched the idea to Columbia and they passed outright.
Their response was they felt it had the potential for camp .
Woods recalled   Peter got it  he saw the movie in his head.
He was like   Godzilla  the fire breathing monster?!
Sequentially  Toho sent Sony a document of rules on how to treat Godzilla.
Stan Winston and his company were employed to do the effects for the film.
Winston crafted sculptures of Godzilla and The Gryphon.
Woods eventually convinced them to discuss the project with TriStar.
Elliott and Rossio wrote a three and half page story outline that secured their employment.
That helped us find the right tone as well as the social and political implications.
The duo approached Godzilla as something that audiences would fear yet root for.
The duo took inspiration from Moby Dick for the story concept.
Elliott described the story to be about obsession  redemption and  inappropriate grief response.
Elliott and Rossio submitted their first draft on November 10  1993.
After De Bont joined the project  Elliott and Rossio revised the script based on his notes.
Prior to hiring a new director  TriStar hired Don Macpherson to rewrite the Elliott Rossio script.
Godzilla was in virtually every scene.
So everything was an SFX scene.
Macpherson was tasked with rewriting the script to match TriStar s  ideal  budget of  80 million.
Instead  Macpherson used the Toho Godzilla design as a reference when rewriting the script.
When Chris came back to us  we still thought it was a dopey idea.
The last half was like watching two creatures go at it.
Then we asked ourselves what we would do today with a monster movie and a story like that.
We forgot everything about the original Godzilla right there.
Patrick Tatopoulos was hired by Emmerich to design Godzilla.
Godzilla s color scheme was designed to reflect and blend in with the urban environment.
And when you do that  first of all I think it’s very disrespectful.
It’s more disrespectful for me to alter something existing than to take a fresh new direction.
He had this great chin thing and I always loved it  he looked scary  evil but you respected him.
Tatopoulos created four concept art pieces and a 2 foot tall maquette for a meeting with Toho.
Tomiyama later recalled that  It was so different we realized we couldn t make small adjustments.
That left the major question of whether to approve it or not.
What Japan had originally come up with regarding nuclear radiation — you can’t abandon that.
It’s too important to what Godzilla is all about.
We weren’t creating a monster.
So you get this flame thrower effect  which causes everything to ignite.
Scenes in New York were filmed in 13 days  tropical scenes were filmed in the Hawaiian Islands.
The United States Marine Corps participated in the filming of the movie.
The original score was composed by David Arnold.
The album was supported by the single  Come with Me  performed by Sean Combs and Jimmy Page.
The trailer received overwhelmingly positive reactions from audiences.
It debuted in selected screenings of Men in Black around that time.
Robert Fried had estimated that  80 million was spent on marketing worldwide.
Home media     On November 3  1998  the film was released on VHS and DVD in the United States.
In 1999  Sony released a Widescreen edition VHS.
The DVD sold over 400 000 units in the United States by the end of 1998.
On July 16  2013  Sony released a  Mastered in 4K  Blu ray edition.
On May 14  2019  the film was released on 4K Ultra HD.
Godzilla was released worldwide on May 20  1998.
During its final week in North America  the film was in 19th place  grossing  202 157.
Critical response     Godzilla received generally negative reviews from critics.
You have to absorb such a film  not consider it.
But my brain rebelled  and insisted on applying logic where it was not welcome.
Siskel placed the film on his list of the worst films of 1998.
The only question worth asking about this  120 million wad of popcorn is a commercial one.
There s Doug Savant from Melrose Place as O Neal  a scaredy cat military man who looks like Sgt.
You’d go with all your friends and just laugh.
He also described Roland Emmerich as  a very good friend.
They took a jewel and turned it into dust.
Nakajima stated  its face looks like an iguana and its body and limbs look like a frog .
Toho publicist Yosuke Ogura later called TriStar s design a  disaster.
The character has since appeared in other media as  Zilla .
It would appear that to them  he s just a giant lizard.
Accolades     The film was nominated and won several awards in 1998–99.
Furthermore  it was screened out of competition at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival.
Devlin had confirmed plans for a trilogy  stating   We have a Godzilla trilogy in mind.
I don t see us doing more than three  but I would love to finish out telling the story.
Emmerich and Devlin commissioned a treatment from Tab Murphy titled Godzilla 2.
The sequel would have involved the surviving offspring battling a giant insect in Sydney.
Devlin stated   They wanted to tailor it budget wise  so it didn t make sense for us creatively.
They are disappointed  and you have to defend yourself .
Sony had considered a reboot with the new series disassociating itself from the 1998 film.
The creature hatches after Nick Tatopoulos stumbles onto it and it assumes him to be its parent.
Stomp the World  I Want to Get Off.
Japan s Favorite Mon Star  The Unauthorized Biography of the Big G. ECW Press.
Godzilla FAQ  All That s Left to Know About the King of the Monsters.
Bad governance collectively encompasses governance in government and corporate settings.
It is the opposite of good governance.
Weak accountability in turn causes a distrust between the two parties and can lead to instability.
This distrust and uncertainty creates an unfavourable relationship between the parties.
Corruption      Bad Governance  is often considered to come hand in hand with corruption.
Corruption occurs in many sectors ranging from political to economic environments.
Corruption can occur in many different ways and forms.
African countries has experienced this impact the most since World War II.
By curbing corruption within governing bodies bad governance can be reduced.
Such a trade means a face to face transaction needs to occur between the two parties.
By correctly matching the entitlements and the obligations a drop in a quality can be avoided.
There has been no proven relationship between bad governance and bad leadership.
It resembles a stylized paulownia with 5–7–5 flowers.
Designs    More than 140 designs exist.
It is found in the emblem of the Ministry of Justice and the Imperial Guard Headquarters.
The Government runs under the framework established by the Constitution of Japan  adopted in 1947.
His role is ceremonial and he has no powers related to Government.
Its members are directly elected by the people  who are the source of sovereignty.
It is defined as the supreme organ of sovereignty in the Constitution.
They are independent from the executive and the legislative branches.
This event restored the country to Imperial rule and the proclamation of the Empire of Japan.
He is defined by the Constitution to be  the symbol of the State and of the unity of the people .
Performance of ceremonial functions.The Emperor is known to hold the nominal ceremonial authority.
One such example can be prominently seen in the 2009 Dissolution of the House of Representatives.
Emperor Jimmu was the first Emperor of Japan and the ancestor of all of the Emperors that followed.
He was officially enthroned on May 1  2019  following the abdication of his father.
He is styled as His Imperial Majesty  天皇陛下   and his reign bears the era name of Reiwa  令和 .
Fumihito is the heir presumptive to the Chrysanthemum Throne.
Executive    The Executive branch of Japan is headed by the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister must also be both a civilian and a member of either house of the Diet.
However  it shall obtain prior or  depending on circumstances  subsequent approval of the Diet.
Prepare the budget  and present it to the Diet.
Enact cabinet orders in order to execute the provisions of this Constitution and of the law.
However  it cannot include penal provisions in such cabinet orders unless authorized by such law.
It reviews government expenditures and submits an annual report to the Diet.
Legislative     The Legislative branch organ of Japan is the National Diet  国会 .
The Diet is also able to impeach Court judges convicted of criminal or irregular conduct.
Speeches  debates  and votes cast in the Diet also enjoy parliamentary privileges.
During an election  only the House of Representatives is dissolved.
As of November 18  2017  it has 465 members.
233 seats are required for majority.
It can  however  be dissolved by the Prime Minister at will.
This includes the legislation of treaties  the budget  and the selection of the Prime Minister.
The document is taken to the Chamber for preparation by the General Secretary.
The General Secretary prepares the document for reading by the Speaker.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives promptly declares the dissolution of the House.
As of November 18  2017  it has 242 members.
The House of Councillors cannot be dissolved by the Prime Minister.
Penal system     The Penal system of Japan  矯正施設  is operated by the Ministry of Justice.
The main law that defines them is the Local Autonomy Law.
They are given limited executive and legislative powers by the Constitution.
Governors  mayors and members of assemblies are constitutionally elected by the residents.
There are self governing towns outside the cities as well as precincts of urban wards.
Like the cities  each has its own elected mayor and assembly.
Villages are the smallest self governing entities in rural areas.
Villages have mayors and councils elected to four year terms.
Governors are subject to recall referenda.
Candidates must be Japanese citizens and at least 30 years old.
The current top division is known as MotoGP since 2002 when the four stroke era began.
As of 2019  Rossi holds the record for most top flight race wins with 89.
These four entities compose the Grand Prix Commission.
Up through the 1950s and most of the 1960s  four stroke engines dominated all classes.
By this time  two strokes completely eclipsed the four strokes in all classes.
It also featured a 350cc class from 1949 to 1982  and a 750 cc class from 1977 to 1979.
Sidecars were dropped from world championship events in the 1990s  see Sidecar World Championship .
In 2002  rule changes were introduced to facilitate the phasing out of the 500 cc two strokes.
Manufacturers were also permitted to employ their choice of engine configuration.
As a result  by 2003 no two stroke machines remained in the MotoGP field.
The 125 cc and 250 cc classes still consisted exclusively of two stroke machines.
As a result of the 2008–2009 financial crisis  MotoGP underwent changes in an effort to cut costs.
For the 2010 season  carbon brake discs were banned.
For the 2012 season  the MotoGP engine capacity was increased again to 1 000 cc.
For the 2014 season  the CRT subclass was rebranded Open  as the claiming rule was removed.
In 2010  the 250cc two stroke class was replaced by the new Moto2 600 cc four stroke class.
Harold Daniell wins the first ever 500 cc Grand Prix race held at the Isle of Man TT.
1959  Honda enters the Isle of Man TT for the first time.
1961  The 1961 Argentine Grand Prix is the first world championship race held outside of Europe.
1963  The 1963 Japanese Grand Prix is the first world championship race held in Asia.
1964  The 1964 United States Grand Prix is the first world championship race held in North America.
1966  Honda wins the constructors  championship in all five solo classes.
1968  Giacomo Agostini  MV Agusta  wins both the 350 cc and 500 cc titles.
1972  Giacomo Agostini wins his seventh consecutive 500cc championship  all with MV Agusta.
1974  The Suzuki RG500 is the first square four in the 500 cc class.
The constructors  title is won by a Japanese brand and a two stroke for the first time  Yamaha .
1976  Barry Sheene wins the first 500 cc championship for Suzuki.
1977  750 FIM prize becomes a world championship for 750cc machines.
Barry Sheene wins the 500 cc class.
1978  Kenny Roberts  Yamaha  wins the 500 cc class  the first American to do so.
1981  Marco Lucchinelli wins the 500GP world title with his Suzuki RG500 Gamma.
1982  Franco Uncini wins 500cc class world title riding a Suzuki RG500 Gamma.
1983  Freddie Spencer  Honda  wins the 500 cc class.
Spencer and Kenny Roberts win all 500cc races for the season between them.
1985  Freddie Spencer  Honda  wins both the 250cc and 500cc titles.
1987  Push starts are eliminated.
1987  Wayne Gardner  Honda  wins the 500 cc class  the first Australian to do so.
1988  Wayne Rainey wins the first 500 cc race using carbon brakes  at the British GP.
1989  Iván Palazzese  Aprilia  is killed in 250 cc West German GP at Hockenheim.
1992  Honda introduces the NSR500 with a big bang engine.
1993  Nobuyuki Wakai  Suzuki  is killed during the practice session of the 250 cc GP in Spain.
1998  Mick Doohan wins his fifth consecutive 500cc title  all with Honda.
1999  Àlex Crivillé  Honda  wins the 500cc class  the first Spaniard to do so.
Two strokes of 500cc capacity remain legal for independent teams for the transitional period.
2003  Ducati makes its Grand Prix debut in the new four stroke MotoGP class.
2004  Makoto Tamada earns Bridgestone their first MotoGP victory at the Brazilian GP.
2005  Valentino Rossi wins his fifth consecutive MotoGP title.
2007  MotoGP engine capacity is restricted to 800cc four strokes.
Stoner won 10 out of 17 races in the season.
2008  MotoGP runs its first night race in Qatar.
2008  Dunlop drops out of MotoGP.
2009  Michelin drops out of MotoGP and Bridgestone becomes the sole tyre provider.
2010  Moto2 rider Shoya Tomizawa is killed at Misano.
2011  MotoGP rider Marco Simoncelli is killed at Sepang.
2011  Suzuki suspend their MotoGP participation at the end of the season.
2012  Aprilia rejoins the MotoGP class as a claiming rule team  CRT .
2013  Knockout qualifying format is introduced.
2013  The  rookie rule  introduced for the 2010 season is rescinded.
Marc Márquez dominates the season by winning the first 10 races of the season.
2016  Michelin returns as tyre supplier after Bridgestone s withdrawal.
2017  KTM joins the premier class with a factory supported team for the first time.
2019  Triumph Motorcycles replace Honda as sole Moto2 engine supplier.
The new engines are 765cc  46.7 cu in  triples based on the Street Triple RS 765.
2019  Both Moto2 and Moto3 adopt the qualifying format used by MotoGP.
2019  The MotoE class is introduced using electric motorcycles.
They also achieved the first wins for KTM and Tech3 in the MotoGP class.
In 2005  a flag to flag rule for MotoGP was introduced.
The suspension is also  softened  up somewhat for the wet weather.
If a fallen rider cannot be evacuated safely from the track  the race is red flagged.
Increased use of traction control has made highsides much less frequent.
Riders          Current       1  Test Rider  no Wildcard events scheduled.
The current champion is Spanish rider Marc Márquez  6x MotoGP  1x Moto2  1x 125 cc   8 titles.
No motorcycle may include such a device.
This stops an artificial  boost  gained from increasing fuel density by cooling it.
MotoGP class motorcycles are not restricted to any specific engine configuration.
In 2004 motorcycles were entered with three   four and five cylinder configurations.
A six cylinder engine was proposed by Blata  but it did not reach the MotoGP grids.
Carbon brake discs are banned  only steel brake discs are allowed.
However  there are no chassis limitations.
Until 2019  only 600 cc four stroke Moto2 machines were allowed.
In 2019 Triumph replaced Honda as the sole supplier of Moto2 engines.
Moto3 class     The 125 cc class was replaced in 2012 by the Moto3 class.
The minimum total weight for motorcycle and rider is 148 kg  326 lb .
The first beneficiary of this rule change was double  2013 and 2014  CEV champion Fabio Quartararo.
The series uses a spec Energica Ego Corsa motorcycle  manufactured by Energica Motor Company.
The first season was contested over 6 rounds  at 4 Grand Prix weekends .
The maximum fuel capacity is to be 21 litres  4.6 imp gal  5.5 US gal .
Conserving rubber throughout a race is a specific skill winning riders acquire.
This factor was greeted with varying degrees of enthusiasm by participants.
Pedrosa switched to Bridgestones during the 2008 season.
The lower number of tires per weekend was considered a handicap to Michelin riders.
For each round Bridgestone provided only two specifications for front and rear.
Tyres are assigned to riders randomly to assure impartiality.
Faster  a documentary film about MotoGP  was released in 2003 and is now available on DVD.
The first simulator was GP 500  launched in 1999.
In 2007  Capcom became the new PlayStation publisher.
In 2008  THQ lost the MotoGP licence and Capcom became the exclusive publisher.
MotoGP 10 11 was released by Capcom on March 15  2011  for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
The game received mixed reviews and scored 73 .Milestone srl got the MotoGP licence in 2012.
The current MotoGP game is MotoGP 20.
It received positive reviews and was released on April 23  2020.
The company s first title was MotoGP 13.
That game came out on June 21  2013.
The tremors lasted for approximately 20 seconds.
Up to 6 434 people lost their lives  about 4 600 of them were from Kobe.
The Great Hanshin earthquake began north of the island of Awaji  which lies just south of Kobe.
The Mj 7.3 earthquake struck at 05 46 JST on the morning of January 17  1995.
There were four foreshocks  beginning with the largest  Mj 3.7  at 18 28 on the previous day.
Damage     Damage was widespread and severe.
The quake triggered approximately 300 fires  which raged over large portions of the city.
Disruptions of water  electricity and gas supplies were common.
The majority of deaths  over 4 000  occurred in cities and suburbs in Hyōgo Prefecture.
A total of 68 children under the age of 18 were orphaned  while 332 children lost one parent.
High rise buildings that were built after the 1981 building code suffered little.
Those that were not constructed to these standards suffered serious structural damage.
Half of the elevated expressway s piers sustained some damage.
The entire route was not reopened until September 30  1996.
It wasn t until July 29 that all four lanes were opened to traffic along one section.
Most railways in the region were damaged.
In the aftermath of the earthquake  only 30  of the Osaka Kobe railway tracks were operational.
The railways rebounded quickly after the quake  reaching 80  operability in one month.
Trains continued to operate with speed restrictions until July 21  1995.
Nomenclature     Outside Japan the earthquake is commonly known as the Kobe earthquake.
Memorials     The Kobe Luminarie is an event held for approximately two weeks every December.
People were forced to wait in corridors due to the overcrowding and lack of space.
Some people had to be operated on in waiting rooms and corridors.
Varied accounts indicate the duration of the earthquake was between four and ten minutes.
Extensive firestorms and even a fire tornado added to the death toll.
the Kantō Massacre  has been documented.
Fires started immediately after the earthquake.
Some fires developed into firestorms that swept across cities.
Many people died when their feet became stuck on melting tarmac.
These winds caused fires to spread rapidly.
The RMS Empress of Australia was about to leave Yokohama harbour when the earthquake struck.
It narrowly survived and assisted in rescuing 2000 survivors.
Over 570 000 homes were destroyed  leaving an estimated 1.9 million homeless.
Evacuees were transported by ship from Kantō to as far as Kobe in Kansai.
The damage is estimated to have exceeded 1 billion USD  or about   15 billion today .
Postquake violence      Ethnic Koreans were massacred after the earthquake.
Anti Korean sentiment was heightened by fear of the Korean independence movement.
Independent reports said the number of dead was far higher  ranging from 6 000 to 10 000.
Army and police personnel colluded in the vigilante killings in some areas.
About 700 Chinese  mostly from Wenzhou  were killed.
A monument commemorating this was built in 1993 in Wenzhou.
Proposed sites for the new capital were even discussed.
Schools and public and private organizations host disaster drills.
In literature  alternative terms for great power are often world power or major power.
Characteristics    There are no set or defined characteristics of a great power.
These characteristics have often been treated as empirical  self evident to the assessor.
However  this approach has the disadvantage of subjectivity.
Power dimensions      As noted above  for many  power capabilities were the sole criterion.
However  even under the more expansive tests  power retains a vital place.
This aspect has received mixed treatment  with some confusion as to the degree of power required.
These positions have been the subject of criticism.
These were conferences that settled important questions based on major historical events.
History     Different sets of great  or significant  powers have existed throughout history.
These five primary participants constituted the original great powers as we know the term today.
Others  such as Russia and Austria Hungary  stagnated.
By 1900  the balance of world power had changed substantially since the Congress of Vienna.
Germany later joined but left along with Japan  and the Soviet Union joined.
But after World War II Britain lost its superpower status.
Regional powers are those whose influence is generally confined to their region of the world.
During the Cold War  Japan  France  the United Kingdom and West Germany rebuilt their economies.
This is most notable in areas where the European Union has exclusive competence  i.e.
The G4 is opposed by the Italian led Uniting for Consensus group.
... A sequential ranking of other major powers beyond the top two would be imprecise at best.
Central European Journal of International   Security Studies 13.1  2019  online.
1973  An Encyclopedia Of World History  1948 And later editions  online free Stearns  Peter  ed.
Rising titans  falling giants  how great powers exploit power shifts  Cornell UP  2018 .
External links    Rising Powers Project publishes Rising Powers Quarterly  2016
A 2016 United Nations estimate puts the total population at 38 140 000.
The metropolis is administered by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government as a whole.
Its subdivisions have been reclassified as special wards  特別区  tokubetsu ku .
If they are included  Greater Tokyo s population would be around 39 million.
The landscape is relatively flat compared to most of Japan  most of it comprising low hills.
Outside the Route 16 loop the landscape becomes more rural.
Many rivers run through the area  the major ones being Arakawa and Tama River.
Minor facilities include the Chōfu  Ibaraki Airport  and Honda Airport.
Tokyo Heliport serves helicopter traffic  including police  fire  and news.
Green is the color between blue and yellow on the visible spectrum.
It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495–570 nm.
It also has a long historical tradition as the color of Ireland and of Gaelic culture.
It is the historic color of Islam  representing the lush vegetation of Paradise.
Because of its association with nature  it is the color of the environmental movement.
The first recorded use of the word as a color term in Old English dates to ca.
AD 700.Latin with viridis also has a genuine and widely used term for  green .
Likewise the Slavic languages with zelenъ.
Ancient Greek also had a term for yellowish  pale green – χλωρός  chloros  cf.
the color of chlorine   cognate with χλοερός  verdant  and χλόη  chloe  the green of new growth .
For example  the Slavic zelenъ is cognate with Sanskrit hari  yellow  ochre  golden .
In more contemporary terms  they are 藍  lán  in Mandarin  and 綠  lǜ  in Mandarin  respectively.
sky blue    lam  blue   and lục  green  also xanh lá cây  lit.
Other green wavelengths are also available using DPSS technology ranging from 501 nm to 543 nm.
The large number of green pigments makes it impossible to mention them all.
For many years  the source of amazonite s color was a mystery.
The process of making verdigris was described in ancient times by Pliny.
Leonardo da Vinci  in his treatise on painting  warned artists not to use it.
It was widely used in miniature paintings in Europe and Persia in the 16th and 17th centuries.
Viridian  as described above  was patented in 1859.
It became popular with painters  since  unlike other synthetic greens  it was stable and not toxic.
It is composed of clay colored by iron oxide  magnesium  aluminum silicate  or potassium.
The clay was crushed  washed to remove impurities  then powdered.
Sven Rinman  a Swedish chemist  discovered this compound in 1780.
Emerald green was a synthetic deep green made in the 19th century by hydrating chrome oxide.
It was also known as Guignet green.
Green pyrotechnic flares can use a mix ratio 75 25 of boron and potassium nitrate.
Perception of color can also be affected by the surrounding environment.
Turacoverdin is one chemical which can cause a green hue in birds  especially.
This can causes their feces to look green as well.
Humans have imitated this by wearing green clothing as a camouflage in military and other fields.
It hunts insects in green vegetation  where it is well camouflaged.
Nobody is brought into the world with green eyes.
An infant has one of two eye hues  dark or blue.
This beginnings happening since melanocytes respond to light in time.
Green eyes are most common in Northern and Central Europe.
They can also be found in Southern Europe  West Asia  Central Asia  and South Asia.
In Iceland  89  of women and 87  of men have either blue or green eye color.
It was of very poor quality  more brown than green.
They also used less expensive green earth pigment  or mixed yellow ochre and blue azurite.
Palettes of green facial makeup  made with malachite  were found in tombs.
It also symbolized the sea  which was called the  Very Green.
They also used the pigment verdigris  made by soaking copper plates in fermenting wine.
They also used finely ground malachite  which made a luminous green.
They used green earth colors for backgrounds.
Over the centuries the pink has faded  making some of the faces look green.
Green was contrasted to the smoky grays and blacks of the Industrial Revolution.
These studies were avidly followed by artists such as Vincent van Gogh.
Everywhere it is a battle and antithesis of the most different reds and greens.
See § In politics section below.
It exploded the following year  injuring the policeman who operated it.
In 1912  the first modern electric traffic lights were put up in Salt Lake City  Utah.
Today green lights universally signal that a system is turned on and working as it should.
A green cross is commonly used to designate pharmacies in Europe.
In China  green is associated with the east  with sunrise  and with life and growth.
Green is often used to symbolize rebirth and renewal and immortality.
In Ancient Egypt  the god Osiris  king of the underworld  was depicted as green skinned.
Red is associated with heat  blue with cold  and green with an agreeable temperature.
Red is associated with dry  blue with wet  and green  in the middle  with dampness.
Jealousy and envy     Green is often associated with jealousy and envy.
Shakespeare also used it in the Merchant of Venice  speaking of  green eyed jealousy.
It was the color of the serpent in the Garden of Eden who caused the downfall of Adam and Eve.
The Chinese term for cuckold is  to wear a green hat.
In the Middle Ages  the devil was usually shown as either red  black or green.
Dragons were usually green  because they had the heads  claws and tails of reptiles.
The dragon is also a symbol of power  strength  and good luck.
The Emperor of China usually used the dragon as a symbol of his imperial power and strength.
The dragon dance is a popular feature of Chinese festivals.
In theater and film  green was often connected with monsters and the inhuman.
The intoxicating drink absinthe was known as  the green fairy .
A green tinge in the skin is sometimes associated with nausea and sickness.
The expression  green at the gills  means appearing sick.
The color  when combined with gold  is sometimes seen as representing the fading of youth.
In some Far East cultures the color green is used as a symbol of sickness or nausea.
In the United States green was connected with the dollar bill.
Since 1861  the reverse side of the dollar bill has been green.
Other versions say it is the color of the Italian landscape  or symbolizes hope.
The flag of Brazil has a green field adapted from the flag of the Empire of Brazil.
The green represented the royal family.
It consists of a red disc on top of a green field.
The green field stands for the lushness of the land of Bangladesh.
The flag of Hamas  as well as the flag of Iran  is green  symbolizing their Islamist ideology.
The 1977 flag of Libya consisted of a simple green field with no other characteristics.
Green is a symbol of Ireland  which is often referred to as the  Emerald Isle .
Green is a strong trend in the Irish holiday St. Patrick s Day.
which took its name from a popular chariot racing team.
Green was the traditional color of Irish nationalism  beginning in the 17th century.
The green harp flag  with a traditional gaelic harp  became the symbol of the movement.
Green was chosen for its association with nature  health  and growth.
The movement now has branches in forty countries.
The Australian Greens was founded in 1992.
In Taiwan  green is used by Democratic Progressive Party.
In religion     Green is the traditional color of Islam.
He was given that name because of his role as a diplomat and negotiator.
In the Eastern Catholic Church  green is the color of Pentecost.
This is shown on the national flag of Ireland.
In Paganism  green represents abundance  growth  wealth  renewal  and balance.
In magickal practices  green is often used to bring money and luck.
In gambling and sports     		 		 		 Gambling tables in a casino are traditionally green.
The tradition is said to have started in gambling rooms in Venice in the 16th century.
Billiards tables are traditionally covered with green woolen cloth.
Green is a common color for sports teams.
Well known teams include A.S. Saint Étienne of France  known as Les Verts  The Greens .
A green belt in karate  taekwondo and judo symbolizes a level of proficiency in the sport.
To be passionate about or talented at gardening.
The expression was popularized beginning in 1925 by a BBC gardening program.
See section above on jealousy and envy .
It originated in the 1980s on Wall Street  and originates from the green of dollars.
A description of a person who looks physically ill.
A description of a person who looks revolted or repulsed.
Thames and Hudson  Page numbers cited from French translation .
Couleurs – pigments et teintures dans les mains des peuples.
This flavor is extremely popular in Japan and other parts of East Asia.
Green tea ice cream is also sold in monaka form.
The true origin of green tea ice cream  however  is unknown.
It has been produced since April 1995  using fresh California milk made in U.S.A.
Häagen Dazs Japan started producing green tea ice cream in 1996.
It could be served with other Japanese sweets such as Azuki  小豆   Dango  団子   and Monaka  モナカ .
However  in practice it is seen as just another day that expands the Japanese Golden Week vacation.
The Shōwa Emperor reigned for 62 years and 2 weeks.
On May 3  1947  he became a symbol of Japan by the new constitution of the country.
Total GDP can also be broken down into the contribution of each industry or sector of the economy.
Charles Davenant developed the method further in 1695.
The modern concept of GDP was first developed by Simon Kuznets for a US Congress report in 1934.
The switch from GNP to GDP in the US was in 1991  trailing behind most other nations.
Previously  China had relied on a Marxist inspired national accounting system.
This approach mirrors the OECD definition given above.
For measuring output of domestic product  economic activities  i.e.
industries  are classified into various sectors.
GDI should provide the same amount as the expenditure method described later.
By definition  GDI is equal to GDP.
Gross operating surplus  GOS  is the surplus due to owners of incorporated businesses.
Gross mixed income  GMI  is the same measure as GOS  but for unincorporated businesses.
It measures the value of GDP at factor  basic  prices.
Therefore  measuring the total expenditure used to buy things is a way of measuring production.
This is known as the expenditure method of calculating GDP.
Spending by households  not government  on new houses is also included in investment.
Buying financial products is classed as  saving   as opposed to investment.
G  government spending  is the sum of government expenditures on final goods and services.
It does not include any transfer payments  such as social security or unemployment benefits.
X  exports  represents gross exports.
M  imports  represents gross imports.
In a global context  world GDP and world GNI are  therefore  equivalent terms.
In practice  however  foreign ownership makes GDP and GNI non identical.
For example  suppose a country s GDP in 1990 was  100 million and its GDP in 2000 was  300 million.
Suppose also that inflation had halved the value of its currency over that period.
The GDP adjusted for changes in money value in this way is called the real  or constant  GDP.
Per capita GDP is a measure to account for population growth.
Current currency exchange rate is the exchange rate in the international foreign exchange market.
The method can offer better indications of a country s international purchasing power.
The PPP method of GDP conversion is more relevant to non traded goods and services.
This finding is called the Penn effect.
GDP does not include several factors that influence the standard of living.
Increased industrial output might grow GDP  but any pollution is not counted.
Bartering may be more prominent than the use of money  even extending to services.
Wealth distribution – GDP does not account for variances in incomes of various demographic groups.
Economic welfare cannot be adequately measured unless the personal distribution of income is known.
Goals for more growth should specify more growth of what and for what.
Even GDP per capita measures may have the same downside if inequality is high.
The number of trees that are net lost annually is estimated to be approximately 10 billion.
The number of obese adults was approximately 600 million  12   in 2015.
Similarly GDP does not value or distinguish for environmental protection.
These capabilities consist of the functions that a person is able to achieve.
The proposal was inspired by the King of Bhutan s GNH philosophy.
In 2013  the OECD Better Life Index was published by the OECD.
Articles and books     Gross Domestic Product  An Economy’s All  International Monetary Fund.
If the GDP is up  why is America down?
The seven countries involved are also the largest IMF advanced economies in the world.
The meeting was subsequently held in the library on the ground floor.
This informal arrangement was dubbed the Political 8  P8  – or  colloquially  the G7 1.
Russia also has never been a major advanced economy according to the IMF.
Generally every country hosts the summit once every 7 years.
Including the EU the G7 represents over 70  of the global net wealth.
7 of 10 top ranked leading export countries.
7 of 30 top ranked nations with large amounts of foreign exchange reserves in their central banks.
Following the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami  Japan shut down all of its nuclear reactors.
However  Japan restarted several nuclear reactors  with the refueling of other reactors underway.
After the suspension  in January 2017 the Russian Federation decided to permanently leave the G8.
Gunma Prefecture  群馬県  Gunma ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu.
In the past  Gunma was joined with Tochigi Prefecture and called Kenu Province.
This was later divided into Kami tsu ke  Upper Kenu  Gunma  and Shimo tsu ke  Lower Kenu  Tochigi .
The area is sometimes referred to as Jomo  上毛  Jōmō .
The modern Japanese army gunned down farmers with new repeating rifles built in Japan.
The farmers in Gunma were said to be the first victims of the Murata rifle.
To the north are Niigata and Fukushima prefectures  while to the east lies Tochigi Prefecture.
To the west lies the Nagano Prefecture  and the Saitama Prefecture is to the south.
Major rivers include the Tone River  the Agatsuma River  and the Karasu River.
For this reason  the wind changes into the kara kaze.
More traditional industries include sericulture and agriculture.
Gunma s major agricultural products include cabbages and konjacs.
Also  the city of Ōta is famous for car industry  notably the Subaru factory.
Culture    Gunma has a traditional card game called Jomo Karuta  上毛かるた .
Kiyoshi Ogawa  a Kamikaze pilot who led the attack on the USS Bunker Hill was born in Gunma.
Melody Roads     As of 2018  Gunma is home to eleven of Japan s over thirty Melody Roads.
Each is of a differing length and plays a different song.
Tourism    Gunma has many hot spring resorts and the most famous is Kusatsu Onsen.
Another draw to the mountainous Gunma is the ski resorts.
The first of 13 volumes was published in 2002.
The last volume was published in 2014.
It makes accessible  for free  all articles ready for publication in print  but no illustrations.
It also lists all 36 000 topics that are to be covered.
It includes articles not available in the other languages.
The first volume was published in 2010  the second in 2012.
An on line version is also available.
However  haikai does not include orthodox renga or waka.
He made his life’s work the transformation of haikai into a literary genre.
He composed haikai masterpieces in a variety of genres  including renku  haibun  and haiga.
Shiki also rediscovered Yosa Buson  a prominent  Back to Bashō  poet and painter who died in 1784.
See also     Sept haï kaïs Sept haïkaï      References
Hamamatsu  浜松市  Hamamatsu shi  is a city located in western Shizuoka Prefecture  Japan.
The total area of the site was 1 558.06 km2  601.57 sq mi .
Hamamatsu is a member of the World Health Organization’s Alliance for Healthy Cities   AFHC .
Foreign population      Hamamatsu has a significant non Japanese population.
The city has a lot of Portuguese signage.
It includes a Brazilian school  and many businesses catering to Brazilians display Brazilian flags.
The climate in northern Hamamatsu is much harsher because of foehn winds.
In the Nara period  it became the capital of Tōtōmi Province.
During the Sengoku period  Hamamatsu Castle was the home of future shōgun Tokugawa Ieyasu.
Hamamatsu Station opened on the Tōkaidō Main Line in 1889.
The same year  with the establishment of the modern municipalities system  Hamamatsu became a town.
April 1  1991  The first Hamamatsu International Piano Competition was held.
May 1  1994  Act City Tower opened.
October 1  1995  Hamamatsu Museum of Musical Instruments opened.
April 1  1996  Hamamatsu is designated a core city by the central government.
June 1  1996  Hamamatsu City Fruit Park opened.
April 1  1997  Hamamatsu is designated as an Omnibus Town.
April 1  1998  Act City Musical School opened.
April 3  2000  Shizuoka University of Art and Culture opened.
April 1  2003  Shizuoka New Kawafuji National High School Competition was held.
Inasa District and Iwata District were both dissolved as a result of this merger.
Therefore  there are no more villages left in Shizuoka Prefecture.
The city contributes 15 members to the Shizuoka Prefectural Assembly.
2014 Hamamatsu s GDP per capita PPP  was US 41 470.
As of 2008  the city had 117 public elementary schools and 52 public junior high schools.
In particular the schools use their part time interpreters to assist Brazilian students.
Many Hamamatsu football fans prefer to follow Júbilo Iwata  across the Tenryū River in Iwata.
Júbilo maintains a club shop within Hamamatsu.
The original is in Hamamatsu s sister city  Warsaw.
The castle is located on a hill in the southeast corner of the park  near city hall.
It was built by Tokugawa Ieyasu.
His rule marks the beginning of the Edo period.
Tokugawa Ieyasu lived here from 1571 to 1588.
Bow and arrow  sword  and fire dances are performed at the Akiha Shrine.
This is one of the local performing arts of the region.
It has been held triennially since 1991 at the Act City Concert Hall and Main Hall.
The shows provide a full day of enjoyment for both children and adults.
Samba Festival      The Hamamatsu Samba Festival is held in the city.
There are also 200 young trees planted along the mountainside.
Han characters    are logograms developed for the writing of Chinese.
Chinese characters are the oldest continuously used system of writing in the world.
There are various national standard lists of characters  forms  and pronunciations.
A character almost always corresponds to a single syllable that is also a morpheme.
Cognates in the several varieties of Chinese are generally written with the same character.
Words have also been created by adding affixes  reduplication and borrowing from other languages.
Polysyllabic words are generally written with one character per syllable.
For the 500 most common characters  the proportion rises to 30 .
Often these readings are similar in sound and related in meaning.
In many cases the pronunciations diverged due to subsequent sound change.
For example   传 傳 has readings OC  drjon   MC drjwen    Mod.
chuán  to transmit  and  drjons   drjwenH   zhuàn  a record .
Middle Chinese forms are given in Baxter s transcription  in which H denotes the departing tone.
磨 has readings  maj   ma   mó  to grind  and  majs   maH   mò  grindstone .
For example   见 見 has readings  kens   kenH   jiàn  to see  and  gens   henH   xiàn  to appear .
败 敗 has readings  prats   pæjH   bài  to defeat  and  brats   bæjH   bài  to be defeated .
折 has readings  tjat   tsyet   zhé  to bend  and  djat   dzyet   shé  to break by bending .
Examples of pictograms include 日 rì for  sun   月 yuè for  moon   and 木 mù for  tree  or  wood .
Xu Shen placed approximately 4  of characters in this category.
symbols   are the building blocks of compound characters  意意字  and picto phonetic characters  形声字 .
Furthermore  the same kangxi radical character element can be used to depict different objects.
Thus  the image depicted by most pictograms is not often immediately evident.
Examples include 上 shàng  up  and 下 xià  down   originally a dot above and below a line.
convex 凸  concave 凹  flat and level 平.
The canonical example is 明 bright.
It is canonical because the term 明白 in Chinese  lit.
bright white   means  to understand  understand .
These characters are composed of at least two parts.
The semantic component suggests the general meaning of the compound character.
The  phonetic component suggests the pronunciation of the compound character.
Because Chinese is replete in homophones phonetic elements may also carry semantic content.
In some rare examples phono semantic characters may also convey pictorial content.
The Chu Nom characters of Vietnam were created using this principle.
The term does not appear in the body of the dictionary  and is often omitted from modern systems.
The earliest of these is dated to around 1200 BC.
Gradual evolution and the coexistence of two or more scripts was more often the case.
However  despite the Qin script standardization  more than one script remained in use at the time.
Zhong Yao has been called the  father of regular script .
Japanese      Chinese characters adapted to write Japanese words are known as kanji.
Only some of the old kanji spellings are in common use  like kan  缶  meaning  can .
Kanji that are used to only represent the sounds of a word are called ateji  当て字 .
There is a clear trend toward the exclusive use of hangul in day to day South Korean society.
The ban continued into the 21st century.
However  it is also said that the authorities implore students not to use the characters in public.
In addition  thousands of new compound characters were created to write Vietnamese words.
Other languages written with such scripts include Miao  Yao  Bouyei  Mulam  Kam  Bai and Hani.
Hanzi was also used to phonetically transcribe the Manchu language in the Qing dynasty.
This clerical form uses one fewer stroke  and was thus adopted as a simplified form.
Simplified Chinese simply merges them.
Some characters were given simplified forms called shinjitai  新字体  lit.
new character forms    the older forms were then labelled the kyūjitai  旧字体  lit.
These resulted in some simplifications that differed from those used in mainland China.
However  unlike in China  personal names may still be registered in traditional characters.
Chinese shop signs are also generally written in traditional characters.
Recently  however  more Chinese schools now use both simplified characters and pinyin.
Most community newspapers printed in North America are also printed in traditional characters.
Generally  the jōyō kanji are more similar to fantizi  traditional  than jiantizi  are to fantizi.
The seal script  as the name suggests  is now used only in artistic seals.
The cursive script  草書 草书   cǎoshū  literally  grass script   is used informally.
The Japanese hiragana script is also derived from this script.
Calligraphy      The art of writing Chinese characters is called Chinese calligraphy.
It is usually done with ink brushes.
In ancient China  Chinese calligraphy is one of the Four Arts of the Chinese Scholars.
There is a minimalist set of rules of Chinese calligraphy.
Regular script typefaces emulate regular script.
Despite standardization  some nonstandard forms are commonly used  especially in handwriting.
In older sources  even authoritative ones  variant characters are commonplace.
A few of these are reproduced at right.
Mainland China adopted simplified Chinese characters in 1956.
They are also used in Singapore and Malaysia.
Traditional Chinese characters are used in Hong Kong  Macau and Taiwan.
The List of Forms of Frequently Used Characters for Hong Kong.
The most important rules regard the strokes employed  stroke placement  and stroke order.
Some characters are also written with different stroke orders due to character simplification.
In modern Chinese 10  of morphemes only occur as part of a given compound.
However  a few morphemes are disyllabic  some of them dating back to Classical Chinese.
Excluding foreign loan words  these are typically words for plants and small animals.
Examples are 蝴蝶 húdié  butterfly  and 珊瑚 shānhú  coral .
Neither exists as an independent morpheme except as a poetic abbreviation of the disyllabic word.
These do see use  particularly in handwriting or decoration  but also in some cases in print.
In some cases counters are also merged into one character  such as 七十人 qīshí rén  seventy people .
Modern examples particularly include Chinese characters for SI units.
These have now fallen out of general use  but are occasionally seen.
These uses are completely standard and unexceptional.
Taiwanese political posters  movie posters etc.
will often add the bopomofo phonetic symbols next to such a character.
Another 64 stroke character is  𠔻  U 2053B  zhèng composed of 興 xīng xìng  lit.
However  these are not in common use.
It is composed of the dragon radical represented three times  for a total of 16 × 3   48 strokes.
Also in occasional modern use is 鱻  xiān  fresh   variant of 鮮 xiān  with 33 strokes.
In Japanese  an 84 stroke kokuji exists    normally read taito.
This character along with the syllable biáng cannot be found in dictionaries.
There are about 300 radicals and 100 are in common use.
GB18030  the modern  mandatory standard  has a much higher number.
For example  the vernacular character 㓾  pronounced cii11 in Hakka  means  to kill .
Written Standard Mandarin is the preference for all mainland regions.
Japanese     In Japanese there are 2 136 jōyō kanji  常用漢字  lit.
kanji for use in personal names    is published.
This is the system of radicals  see for example  the 214 so called Kangxi radicals .
Chinese character dictionaries often allow users to locate entries in several ways.
Under each radical  characters are listed by their total number of strokes.
From there  the user must scan the entries to locate the character he or she is seeking.
Easy lessons in Chinese  or progressive exercises to facilitate the study of that language.
A Chinese and English dictionary  arranged according to radicals and sub radicals.
The student s four thousand  characters  and general pocket dictionary  2 ed. .
Trübner   co. Chinese and English dictionary  compiled from reliable authors.
It is located in Ōta  Tokyo  15 kilometres  9.3 mi  south of Tokyo Station.
It is able to handle 90 million passengers per year following its expansion in 2018.
It was the main operating base of Japan Air Transport  then the country s flag carrier.
A 300 metre  980 ft  concrete runway  a small airport terminal and 2 hangars were constructed.
JAT was renamed Imperial Japanese Airways following its nationalization in 1938.
Passenger and freight traffic grew dramatically in these early years.
On the 21st  over 3 000 residents received orders to leave their homes within 48 hours.
A number of C 54s  based at Haneda AFB  participated in the Berlin Blockade airlift.
These planes were specially outfitted for hauling coal to German civilians.
Many of these planes were decommissioned after their participation due to coal dust contamination.
For a few postwar years Tokyo International Airport did not have a passenger terminal building.
European carriers began service to Haneda in the 1950s.
Air France arrived at Haneda for the first time in November 1952.
JAL and Aeroflot began cooperative service from Haneda to Moscow in 1967.
Pan Am and Northwest Orient used Haneda as a hub.
In 1966  the government decided to build a new airport for international flights.
All Taiwan flights were moved to Narita in 2002  and Haneda Honolulu services ceased.
In July 1988  a new 3 000 metre  9 800 ft  runway opened on the landfill.
New C  parallel  and B  cross  runways were completed in March 1997 and March 2000 respectively.
Nine more daytime slot pairs were allocated for service to the United States in February 2016.
Facilities    Haneda Airport has three passenger terminals.
Terminal 1 and 2 are connected by an underground walkway.
A free inter terminal shuttle bus connects all terminals on the landside.
All three passenger terminals are managed and operated by private companies.
As of March 2013  Terminal 1 and 2 have 47 jetways altogether.
The JAL lounge is also used by SkyTeam carriers at the airport.
The Keikyu Domestic Terminal station was renamed to the Terminal 1·2 Station.
Airport Limited Express trains make the nonstop run from Haneda Airport to Shinagawa in 11 minutes.
Express trains make the nonstop run from Haneda Airport to Hamamatsuchō in 16 minutes.
Hamamatsuchō Station is also located adjacent to the Toei Ōedo Line Daimon station.
There are also direct buses between the airports operated by Airport Limousine Bus.
The journey takes 65–85 minutes or longer depending on traffic and cost ¥3000 as of May 2012.
All 133 passengers and crew were killed.
The accident held the death toll record for a single plane accident until 1969.
Of the 62 passengers and 10 crew  only 8 passengers survived.
The debris field was over 16 kilometres  10 mi  long.
Twenty four passengers were killed.
Out of all 524 people on the flight  four only survived the crash.
One of the casualties was famous Japanese singer Kyu Sakamoto.
It is the deadliest single aircraft accident in aviation history.
July 23  1999  All Nippon Airways Flight 61 was hijacked shortly after takeoff.
The hijacker killed the captain before he was subdued  the aircraft landed safely.
No problems indicate that you did not stretch to meet  or exceed  your expected capacity.
The manager will publicly take the blame  while the department works on solving the problem.
Other use    Hansei also incorporates the concept of greeting success with modesty and humility.
To stop hansei means to stop learning.
It is the Japanese equivalent of the 1969 Uniform Monday Holiday Act in the United States.
Harajuku  原宿   haɾa d ʑɯkɯ   listen   is a district in Shibuya  Tokyo  Japan.
In 1906  Harajuku Station was opened as a part of the expansion of the Yamanote Line.
The name Harajuku has persisted due to the earlier naming of the nearby JR East Harajuku Station.
The area from Harajuku station to the area surrounding Takeshita Street was called  Takeshita cho .
In the 1980s  Takeshita Street became known for teenage street dancing groups called takenoko zoku.
From 1977  a Sundays only pedestrian precinct was established by closing local roads.
In the peak period  crowds of up to 10 000 people would gather.
In 1998  the Sundays only pedestrian paradise was abolished.
In 2006  Omotesando Hills opened replacing the former Dojunkai apartments on Omotesando.
The man attempted to flee from the scene but was soon apprehended by authorities in a nearby park.
Harajuku is used as the setting in the 2017 anime series  Urahara.
Haruki Murakami  村上 春樹  Murakami Haruki  born January 12  1949  is a Japanese writer.
He has also translated works by writers  like Raymond Carver and J. D. Salinger into Japanese.
Murakami is influenced by western writers from Chandler to Vonnegut by way of Brautigan.
His father was the son of a Buddhist priest  and his mother is the daughter of an Osaka merchant.
His first job was at a record store.
Writing career          Trilogy of the Rat     Murakami began to write fiction when he was 29.
Before that   he said   I didn t write anything.
I was just one of those ordinary people.
I was running a jazz club  and I didn t create anything at all.
He described the feeling as a  warm sensation  he could still feel in his heart.
He went home and began writing that night.
Murakami s initial success with Hear the Wind Sing encouraged him to continue writing.
A year later  he published a sequel  Pinball  1973.
In 1982  he published A Wild Sheep Chase  a critical success.
When you read a good story  you just keep reading.
When I write a good story  I just keep writing.
He was mobbed at airports and other public places  leading to his departure from Japan in 1986.
During this time he wrote South of the Border  West of the Sun and The Wind Up Bird Chronicle.
Both were later re translated from Japanese.
Kafka on the Shore won the World Fantasy Award for Novels in 2006.
The English version of his novel After Dark was released in May 2007.
It was chosen by The New York Times as a  notable book of the year .
The book was longlisted for the Man Asian Literary Prize in 2011.
In April 2013  he published his novel Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage.
The novel was labeled under  Class II – indecent  in Hong Kong.
This classification led to mass amounts of censorship.
Murakami said   Each of us possesses a tangible living soul.
We must not allow the system to exploit us.
The collection is intended to be open to scholars.
The film was released in 1981 and distributed by Art Theatre Guild.
The film was screened at the 2008 CON CAN Movie Festival.
The show had its world premiere at the Edinburgh International Festival on August 21  2011.
When working on a book  Murakami states that he relies on his wife  who is always his first reader.
The first book that he read in English was The Name is Archer  written by Ross Macdonald in 1955.
He later opened the Peter Cat  a coffeehouse and jazz bar.
Murakami has said that music  like writing  is a mental journey.
Kanji titles are given with Hepburn romanization.
Original titles entirely in transcribed English are given as  katakana   romaji   English .
Many visit on the first  second  or third day of the year as most are off work on those days.
There are often long lines at major shrines throughout Japan.
Most of the people in Japan are off work from December 29 until January 3 of every year.
Some shrines and temples have millions of visitors over the three days.
Sensoji temple in Tokyo is the most popular one.
Some of these titles relate to governments below the national level  e.g.  states or provinces .
Maltese  In Malta  the head of government is  Prim Ministru .
Some such titles are diwan  mahamantri  pradhan  wasir or vizier.
In some cases a head of government may even pass on the title in hereditary fashion.
by turns  the ceremonial Head of state.
This system is described as the directorial system.
The ability to vote down legislative proposals of the government.
In a bicameral system  it is often the so called lower house  e.g.
Constitutions differ in the range and scope of powers granted to the head of government.
There is sometimes a local marching band providing music.
Local officials will make speeches welcoming everyone.
Sources         External links    What is sports day?
All residents of Japan are required by the law to have health insurance coverage.
Patients are free to select physicians or facilities of their choice and cannot be denied coverage.
Hospitals  by law  must be run as non profit and be managed by physicians.
Medical fees are strictly regulated by the government to keep them affordable.
The share of gross domestic products was same as the average of OECD states in 2008.
The government is also able to reduce fees when the economy stagnates.
This was the case when the fee for an MRI was lowered by 35  in 2002 by the government.
Once a patient s monthly copayment reaches a cap  no further copayment is required.
As of 2010  Japan had a goal of adding more drugs to the nations National Health Insurance listing.
Age related conditions remain one of the biggest concerns.
Pharmaceutical companies focus on marketing and research toward that part of the population.
Life expectancy at birth was 83 years in 2009  male 79.6 years  female 86.4 years .
Five year survival of patients under dialysis is 59.9  in Japan and 38  in the US.
In an article titled  Does Japanese Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting Qualify as a Global Leader?
They oversee annual hospital inspections.
The Japan Council for Quality Health Care accredits about 25  of hospitals.
However  it is up to the hospital to decide whether the death was unexpected.
In most cases  CT scans  MRIs and many other tests do not require waiting periods.
In turn this causes delays for ambulances arriving to serious emergencies.
The problem has become a wide concern in Japan  particularly in Tokyo.
There is a total of eight health insurance systems in Japan  with around 3 500 health insurers.
According to Mark Britnell  it is widely recognised that there are too many small insurers.
The monthly insurance premium is paid per household and scaled to annual income.
This ends up accounting for 95  of the coverage for individuals.
Patients in Japan must pay 30  of medical costs.
If there is a need to pay a much higher cost  they get reimbursed up to 80 90 .
Seniors who are covered by SHSS   Senior insurance  only pay 10  out of pocket.
As of 2016  healthcare providers spend billions on inpatient care and outpatient care.
152 billion is spent on inpatient care while 147 billion is spent on outpatient care.
The goal is to help prevent diseases so people live longer.
If preventable diseases are prevented  Japan will not have to spend as much on other costs.
The action plan also provides a higher quality of medical and health care.
However  the copayment rates differed greatly.
Hospitals provided both out patient and in patient care.
Japanese visit a doctor nearly 14 times a year  more than four times as often as Americans.
Life expectancy in 2013 was 83.3 years   among the highest on the planet.
Bullying is often a factor in such cases.
In 2011  suicide remained over 30 000 for the 14th year running.
However  space can be an issue in some regions.
In the worst case  a woman in her 70s with a breathing problem was rejected 49 times in Tokyo.
Patients are responsible for the remainder  upper limits apply .
The monthly insurance premium is 0–50 000 JPY per household  scaled to annual income .
In 2005  Japan spent 8.2  of GDP on health care or US 2 908 per capita.
Of that  approximately 83  was government expenditure.
Since around 1900  Chinese style herbalists have been required to be licensed medical doctors.
Western medicine was introduced to Japan with the Rangaku studies during the Edo period.
A number of books on pharmacology and anatomy were translated from Dutch and Latin to Japanese.
Innovations like vaccines were introduced to Japan  improving average life expectancy.
Patient charts in Japanese teaching hospitals were even written in German.
But even today  a person who becomes ill in Japan has a number of alternative options.
One may visit a priest  or send a family member in his or her place.
The first confirmed case of AIDS in Japan was reported in 1985.
By 1991 there were 553 reported cases  and by April 1992 the number had risen to 2 077.
See in particular Chapter 6  Japan  Bismark on Rice   pp.
82–124  this book is a further expansion of Reid s 2008 stories.
The Art of Balance in Health Policy   Maintaining Japan s Low Cost  Egalitarian System.
In 1994  Kyoto City held various events commemorating its 1200th anniversary.
The layout of Heian kyō was plotted in accordance with the principles of geomancy as a square city.
Jō  丈  about 3.03m  was the basic unit of measurement.
jō made a chō  町  121.2 meters on each side .
The city was further divided by major streets called ōji  大路  and minor streets called koji  小路 .
Almost all of the streets in present day Kyoto have become considerably narrower.
Suzaku ōji for example was 28 Jō  丈  about 84m  wide.
In addition a river ran alongside Horikawa koji  堀川小路  and Nishi Horikawa koji  西堀川小路 .
History     In 784 AD emperor Kammu constructed Nagaoka kyō  moving the capital from Heijō kyō.
This arrangement provided a stable supply of food and goods which encouraged population growth.
So started a tendency for the city to extend out to the east.
During the Meiji Revolution Edo was re christened Tokyo  becoming the new capital of Japan .
Since that time the emperor has not returned to Kyoto.
An imperial garden called Shinsenen  ja 神泉苑  was adjacent to the Daidairi.
Note that there were more paths cut short by residences straddling multiple blocks.
In English  major streets and palace only    Note   七条大路  erroneously listed twice in the diagram.
The period is named after the capital city of Heian kyō  or modern Kyoto.
Many emperors actually had mothers from the Fujiwara family.
Heian  平安  means  peace  in Japanese.
Nominally  sovereignty lay in the emperor but in fact  power was wielded by the Fujiwara nobility.
The warrior class made steady political gains throughout the Heian period.
The entry of the warrior class into court influence was a result of the Hōgen Rebellion.
Kanmu endeavored to improve the Tang style administrative system which was in use.
Imperial control over the provinces was tenuous at best  however.
The new Metropolitan Police Board replaced the largely ceremonial imperial guard units.
Toward the end of the 9th century  several emperors tried but failed  to check the Fujiwara.
Nevertheless  the Fujiwara were not demoted by Daigo but actually became stronger during his reign.
Within decades of Daigo s death  the Fujiwara had absolute control over the court.
By the year 1000  Fujiwara no Michinaga was able to enthrone and dethrone emperors at will.
The Fujiwara had become what historian George B. Sansom has called  hereditary dictators .
There was great interest in graceful poetry and vernacular literature.
As culture flourished  so did decentralization.
New institutions were now needed in the face of social  economic  and political changes.
The Taihō Code lapsed  its institutions relegated to ceremonial functions.
Family administrations now became public institutions.
This gave rise to the Japanese military class.
Gradually  the provincial upper class was transformed into a new military elite of samurai.
The In no chō filled the void left by the decline of Fujiwara power.
In time  many of the Fujiwara were replaced  mostly by members of the rising Minamoto clan.
Military might rather than civil authority dominated the government.
Takakura s other son succeeded as Emperor Go Toba.
Three years later  he was appointed shōgun in Kyoto.
One year before his death in 1199  Yoritomo expelled the teenaged emperor Go Toba from the throne.
It was brought to Japan by the monk Saichō.
Saichō also sought independent ordination for Tendai monks.
As a result  Tendai emphasized great reverence for the emperor and the nation.
It was brought to Japan by the monk Kūkai.
Poetry  in particular  was a staple of court life.
Almost as important was the choice of calligraphy  or handwriting  used.
Instead of a fully realized system of money circulation  rice was the primary unit of exchange.
The lack of a solid medium of economic exchange is implicitly illustrated in novels of the time.
The major Buddhist temples in Heian kyō and Nara also made use of the shōen.
Cosmology of Kyoto is a Japanese video game set in 10th – 11th century Japan.
It was praised by film critic Roger Ebert.
The new capital city s name was written Heijō  平城  but also pronounced Nara at the time.
The Nara period covers 75 years from 710 784 AD.
The imperial buildings and government offices were drastically transformed around this period.
This is called the latter audience hall.
This was probably not due to the repair of the old buildings but due to another reason.
The Suzaku Gate and East Palace Garden have been restored and opened to the public in 1998.
The gate measured 10 by 25 by 22 metres  33 ft × 82 ft × 72 ft .
The open space to the front was used for ceremonies such as New Year celebrations.
Around 35 metres in width  it was second only to Suzaku Avenue in size.
The Mibu Gate served in effect as the main gate to the palace.
It was facing south at the northern end of the compound.
No data directly indicating the audience hall s true appearance have survived.
The reconstruction was started in 2001 and completed in 2010.
For the reconstruction  Japanese cypress wood was used.
Nobles lined up in the inner court south of the hall and paid their respect.
Tanada Kajuro  a local gardener  worked on a public movement for protection of the site.
The area on the north side of the latter audience hall is the site of the imperial domicile.
It was surrounded by a roofed walkway  divided lengthwise by an earthen wall.
The Office of the Court Ladies was also located here.
The well was lined with a solid cedar tube carved from a log 1.7 metres  5 ft 7 in  in diameter.
The water from this well was probably for the exclusive use of the emperor and empress.
The site was reburied and the wall was reconstructed with new materials as an outdoor exhibit.
Six buildings stood in this compound.
The main one was roofed with tiles  the others with cypress bark.
Several buildings were located around a curvilinear pond.
The garden was reconstructed in 1998.
The Nara Palace Site Museum exhibits the results of the excavations.
Transport    It takes 15 or 20 minutes to walk from Yamato Saidaiji Station to Heijō Palace.
Heisei translates to  peace everywhere .
By combining both meanings  Heisei is intended to mean  peace everywhere .
This was an implication of his wish to retire.
The Japanese Diet passed a law in June 2017 to allow the throne to pass to Akihito s son  Naruhito.
The Era of Naruhito s reign began the next day.
By 1992  it had fallen to 15 000  signifying the end of Japan s famed  bubble economy .
In 1993  the LDP was ousted by a coalition led by Morihiro Hosokawa.
The 1990s had an  anime boom  period marked by increased popularity of anime and anime conventions.
The 2009–2010 Toyota vehicle recalls also took place during this time.
The population of Japan peaked at 128 million in 2010.
This was Japan s biggest population in history.
It declined due to a low birthrate in the following years.
Japan s economy descended to the world s third largest by nominal GDP.
In March 2011  the Tokyo Skytree 634.0 metres  2 080 ft  became the tallest tower in the world.
In August 2011  Naoto Kan resigned  and Yoshihiko Noda became Prime Minister.
Later that year Olympus Corporation admitted major accounting irregularities.
Abe called an election in December  and promised to delay further sales tax hikes to 2018.
Pokémon surpassed the number 2 Hello Kitty   80 billion  and the number 5 Star Wars   65 billion .
In 2018 a record number of 31 191 929 foreign tourists visited Japan in 2018.
This is a 33  increase over 2015  19.73 million .
By 2018  Japan regained the leading position as the predominant source of saving and investments.
Economy     The bubble economy having continued from around the end of the Shōwa era collapsed.
A series of rulers from the same family would constitute a dynasty.
An agnate is a kinsman with whom one has a common ancestor by descent in an unbroken male line.
But hereditary succession can also occur in practice despite any such legal limitations.
Or a reigning monarch might have sole power to elect a relative.
Exceptions such as the Holy Roman Empire and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth prove the rule.
This has changed a little since the turn of the 21st century.
Previously  lawyers only had to pass the bar exam  which undergraduate students could take.
Especially  National Seven Universities are the most prestigious.
A common custom practiced by Japanese employers is simultaneous recruiting of new graduates.
Applicants to private universities need to take only the university s examination.
A large number of students choose the last option.
The number of applicants to four year universities totaled almost 560 000 in 1988.
Ronin accounted for about 40  of new entrants to four year colleges in 1988.
Most ronin were men  but about 14  were women.
In the late 1980s  the examination and entrance process were the subjects of renewed debate.
The investigation found that priority was given to legacy applicants.
The 597 remaining four year colleges in 2010 were private.
Thus  students avoid taking graduate work unless in the hard sciences.
Many polytechnic junior colleges have a small campus with several hundred students.
Specialized training colleges are not regulated by MEXT.
These institutions are less competitive and simpler to enroll in than a university.
These institutions enroll a large number of men.
Students are eligible to enter colleges of technology halfway through their senior secondary years.
Nevertheless  technical graduates usually find employment immediately upon graduation.
KIC is the first IT College in Asia.
Hinduism  unlike the closely related Buddhism  is a minority religion in Japan.
Even so  Hinduism has played a somewhat significant role in Japanese culture.
She is also mentioned in the Lotus Sutra.
In Japan  the lokapālas take the Buddhist form of the Four Heavenly Kings  四天王 .
The Hindu god of death  Yama  is known in his Buddhist form as Enma.
It has the body of a human and the face or beak of an eagle.
People have written books on the worship of Hindu gods in Japan.
Even today  it is claimed Japan encourages a deeper study of Hindu Gods.
Today    Hinduism is practiced mainly by the Indian migrants  although there are others.
As of 2016  there are 30 048 Indians in Japan.
Hindu gods are still revered by many Japanese particularly in Shingon Buddhism.
It is a phonetic lettering system.
These basic characters can be modified in various ways.
For example  か  ka  becomes が  ga .
This changes the i vowel sound to a glide  palatalization  to a  u or o.
For example  き  ki  plus ゃ  small ya  becomes きゃ  kya .
Addition of the small y kana is called yōon.
A small tsu っ  called a sokuon  indicates that the following consonant is geminated  doubled .
However  the Okinawan language uses chōonpu with hiragana.
Standard and voiced iteration marks are written in hiragana as ゝ and ゞ respectively.
Obsolete and normally unused kana are shown in brackets and  gray .
Those in bold do not use the initial sound for that row.
For example  すうじ sūji  sɯːʑi   number   ざっし zasshi  d͡zaɕɕi   magazine .
In archaic forms of Japanese  there existed the kwa  くゎ  kwa   and gwa  ぐゎ  ɡwa   digraphs.
toukyou  is pronounced  toːkjoː   Tokyo   and せんせい sensei is  seɯ̃seː   teacher .
Similarly  している shite iru is pronounced  ɕiteiɾɯ   is doing .
For a more thorough discussion on the sounds of Japanese  please refer to Japanese phonology.
In modern orthography  ye can also be written as いぇ  イェ in katakana .
Wu     Hiragana wu also appeared in different Meiji era textbooks   .
However  it was never commonly used.
In the future  this character will be encoded into Unicode as HIRAGANA LETTER ARCHAIC WU.
These pairs are not interchangeable.
Usually  ji is written as じ and zu is written as ず.
For compound words where the dakuten reflects rendaku voicing  the original hiragana is used.
For example  chi  血  blood   is spelled ち in plain hiragana.
So hanaji is spelled はなぢ according to ち  the basic hiragana used to transcribe 血.
The Japanese word for  lightning   for example  is inazuma  稲妻 .
The 稲 component means  rice plant   is written いな in hiragana and is pronounced  ina.
Some people write the word for hemorrhoids as ぢ  normally じ  for emphasis.
No standard Japanese words begin with the kana ん  n .
This is the basis of the word game shiritori.
These are clearly distinct from the na  ni etc.
ゐ wi and ゑ we are obsolete outside of Okinawan orthography.
ぢゃ  ぢゅ  ぢょ for ja ju jo are theoretically possible in rendaku  but are practically never used.
For example  日本中  throughout Japan  could be written にほんぢゅう  but is practically always にほんじゅう.
Its katakana counterpart is used in many loanwords  however.
This sword is thought to be made in the year 辛亥年  most commonly taken to be A.D. 471 .
The figure below shows the derivation of hiragana from manyōgana via cursive script.
The cursive script forms are not strictly confined to those in the illustration.
When it was first developed  hiragana was not accepted by everyone.
The educated or elites preferred to use only the kanji system.
From this comes the alternative name of onnade  女手   women s writing .
In modern times  the usage of hiragana has become mixed with katakana writing.
Originally  for all syllables there was more than one possible hiragana.
In 1900  the system was simplified so each syllable had only one hiragana.
The deprecated hiragana are now known as hentaigana  変体仮名 .
The table is arranged in a traditional manner  beginning top right and reading columns down.
The numbers and arrows indicate the stroke order and direction respectively.
Characters U 3095 and U 3096 are small か  ka  and small け  ke   respectively.
U 309F is a ligature of より  yori  occasionally used in vertical text.
Iteration mark explains the iteration marks used with hiragana.
Japanese phonology explains Japanese pronunciation in detail.
Japanese typographic symbols gives other non kana  non kanji symbols.
As of June 1  2019  the city had an estimated population of 1 199 391.
Kazumi Matsui has been the city s mayor since April 2011.
Hiroshima was founded in 1598 as a castle town on the Ōta River delta.
In 1889  Hiroshima officially gained city status.
The Hiroshima Peace Memorial  a UNESCO World Heritage Site  serves as a memorial of the bombing.
Hiroshima Castle was quickly built  and in 1593 Mōri moved in.
Terumoto was on the losing side at the Battle of Sekigahara.
From 1619 until 1871  Hiroshima was ruled by the Asano clan.
About 500 German prisoners of war were held in Ninoshima Island in Hiroshima Bay.
There were no such air raids on Hiroshima.
However  a real threat existed and was recognized.
Fewer than 10  of the casualties were military.
By the end of the year  injury and radiation brought the total number of deaths to 90 000–166 000.
The population before the bombing was around 345 000.
About 70  of the city s buildings were destroyed  and another 7  severely damaged.
Film shot by Japanese cameramen in Hiroshima and Nagasaki after the bombings was confiscated.
Hiroshima Prefecture suffered more than 3 000 deaths and injuries  about half the national total.
The river s six channels divide Hiroshima into several islets.
Precipitation occurs year round  although winter is the driest season.
Demographics     In 2017  the city has an estimated population of 1 195 327.
Before World War II  Hiroshima s population had grown to 360 000  and peaked at 419 182 in 1942.
Following the atomic bombing in 1945  the population dropped to 137 197.
By 1955  the city s population had returned to pre war levels.
The Hiroshima Prefectural Art Museum opened in 1968 and is located near Shukkei en gardens.
The Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art  which opened in 1989  is located near Hijiyama Park.
Festivals include Hiroshima Flower Festival and Hiroshima International Animation Festival.
Hiroshima Gokoku Shrine is within the walls of the castle.
Other attractions in Hiroshima include Shukkei en  Fudōin  Mitaki dera  and Hijiyama Park.
The amount of cabbage used is usually 3 to 4 times the amount used in the Osaka style.
It starts piled very high and is generally pushed down as the cabbage cooks.
Sports      Hiroshima has several professional sports clubs.
After adopting their current name in 1992  the club won the J.League in 2012 and 2013.
The city s main women s football club is Angeviolet Hiroshima.
Members of the Central League  the club won the Japan Series in 1979  1980 and 1984.
The Woodone Open Hiroshima was part of the Japan Golf Tour between 1973 and 2007.
It publishes both morning paper and evening editions.
Service between Koi Nishi Hiroshima and Tenma cho was started up three days after the bombing.
By 1995 almost all campuses were relocated to Higashihiroshima.
History     The area around Hiroshima was formerly divided into Bingo Province and Aki Province.
Geography     Hiroshima prefecture lies in the middle of Japan .
The province faces Shikoku across the Seto Inland Sea.
Hiroshima Bay opens on the Inland Sea.
The prefecture also includes many small islands.
The sheltered nature of the Inland Sea makes Hiroshima s climate very mild.
After 2012  production of manufacturing is continuously increasing in 2015.
Five are Buddhist temples  one is a Shinto shrine  one is a Palace and one a primeval forest.
All compounds have been recognized as Historic Sites.
UNESCO listed the site as World Heritage in 1998.
The teaching and studying of East Asian history began in the West during the late 19th century.
At the present time  East Asian History remains a major field within Asian Studies.
Civilization expanded to other areas in East Asia gradually.
In Korea Gojoseon became the first organized state approximately around 195 BC.
Japan emerged as a unitary state with the creation of its first constitution in 604 AD.
China s GDP was likely the largest in the world as well.
The Yuan dynasty came to rule most of modern China and all of the Korean Peninsula.
The Yuan dynasty also attempted and failed to conquer Japan in maritime invasions.
The Portuguese established a colony in Macau  China and attempted to Christianize Japan.
The 17th and 18th centuries saw great economic and cultural growth.
Qing China dominated the region but Edo Japan remained completely independent.
The 1800s however saw the rise of direct European Imperialism upon the region.
The rising Japanese Empire forcibly annexed Korea in 1910.
Japan s wars in Asia became a part of WWII after Japan s attack of the United States  Pearl Harbor.
Afterwards  East Asia was caught in the cross hairs of the Cold War.
Japan s recovery became known as the Post war economic miracle.
In contemporary times  East Asia is a pivotal world region with a major influence on world events.
In 2010  East Asia s population made up approximately 24  of the world s population.
They may have been the first to use fire and cook food.
China s first villages appeared on the landscape at this time.
The Jeulmun was a period of hunting  gathering  and small scale cultivation of plants.
The Zhou dynasty of c. 1046–256 BC lasted longer than any other dynasty in Chinese history.
The cultures and languages in these areas were fluid and changed frequently.
The use of horses to herd and move started during the Iron Age.
To appease the nomads local Chinese rulers often gave important hostages and arranged marriages.
Afterwards the Xianbei returned to rule the Steppe north of the Great Wall.
The titles of Khangan and Khan originated from the Xianbei.
Furthermore  Goguryeo had been engaged in constant wars with the Chinese.
The Tang dynasty teamed up with Silla and formed a strategy to invade Goguryeo.
However  Yamato Japan and Baekje had been long standing and very close allies.
The Tang dynasty also sent 7 000 soldiers and 170 ships.
The Silla–Tang forces turned their attention to Goguryeo.
The Silla–Tang alliance emerged victorious in the Goguryeo–Tang War.
Silla thus unified most of the Korean Peninsula in 668.
The kingdom s reliance on China s Tang dynasty had its price.
Silla had to forcibly resist the imposition of Chinese rule over the entire peninsula.
Silla a unification of Korea was short lived.
around Tokyo  and seems to have been developed for more practical purposes.
They have functioned has both competing and complementary belief systems.
It later developed metaphysical and cosmological elements in the Han dynasty.
A Confucian revival began during the Tang dynasty.
In 220 AD  the Han empire collapsed into the Three Kingdoms.
The series of trade routes known as Silk Road began during the Han dynasty.
Qin Shi Huang ruled the unified China directly with absolute power.
Eventually  rebels rose against the Qin s brutal reign and fought civil wars for control of China.
After 208 AD the Han dynasty broke up into rival kingdoms.
After Cao Cao s death in AD 220  his son Cao Pi became emperor of Wei.
Liu Bei and Sun Quan declared themselves emperor of Shu and Wu respectively.
Buddhism  which was introduced during the Han dynasty  also became popular in this period.
However  the Western Jin did not last long.
Following the death of Sima Yan  the War of the Eight Princes began.
This war weakened the Jin dynasty  and it soon fell to the kingdom of Han Zhao.
Soon  the Northern Wei was divided into the Eastern Wei and Western Wei.
These were followed by the Northern Zhou and Northern Qi.
In the south  the dynasties were much less stable than the Northern dynasties.
The four Southern dynasties were weakened by conflicts between the ruling families.
For a long time Buddhism remained a foreign religion with a few believers in China.
This became the mainstream notion of Japanese religion.
It was mixed in with Tengeriism and Shamanism.
Later  Yang Jian  who became Sui Wendi  conquered the Chen dynasty  and united China.
However  this dynasty was short lived.
These projects depleted the resources and the workforce of the Sui.
In AD 618  Sui Yangdi was murdered.
This competitive procedure was designed to draw the best talents into government.
This model of government had an influence on Japan and Korea.
The Mongols would proceed to conquer the majority of modern East Asia.
Meanwhile  China were divided into five competing states.
From 1211  Mongol forces invaded North China.
In 1227 the Mongol Empire conquered Western Xia.
In 1234  Ogedei Khan extinguished the Jin dynasty.
The northern part of China was annexed by Mongol Empire.
The Goryeo royal family retreated to the sea outside the city of Seoul to Ganghwa Island.
Goryeo was divided between collaborators and resisters to the invaders.
However  at the time  the Goryeo Sannotei on the peninsula resisted until 1275.
In the 1250s  the Mongols invaded the last remaining state in southern China – the Southern Song.
The invasion carried on for over thirty years  and likely resulted in millions of casualties.
In 1271  Kublai Khan proclaimed the Yuan dynasty of China in the traditional Chinese style.
The last remnants of the Song were defeated at sea in 1279.
China was unified under the Yuan dynasty.
Kublai Khan and his administration shifted to the Central Plains area and embraced Confucianism.
By 1275  Goryeo had surrendered to the Yuan dynasty as a vassal.
Japan was seriously threatened by the Yuan forces from the East Asian mainland.
In 1274  Kublai Khan appointed Yudu.
These two invasions both occupied the town of Kitakyushu before being swept into the sea.
At the time the Yuan dynasty fleet was the largest fleet in the history of the world.
The ruling system collapsed in the first half of the 14th century.
The discovery of gunpowder was probably the product of centuries of alchemical experimentation.
Pi Sheng s type was made of baked clay  as described by the Chinese scholar Shen Kuo  1031–1095 .
Jikji is the world s oldest extant movable metal print book.
Much attention was paid to genealogy to prove that high status was inherited from generations back.
The Manchus ruled it as the Qing dynasty until the early 20th century.
That said  some Han did achieve high rank in the civil service via the Imperial Examination system.
Until the 19th century  Han immigration into Manchuria was forbidden.
Chinese had an advanced artistic culture and well developed science and technology.
After each defeat  the victors forced the Chinese government to make major concessions.
For that matter  the kowtow was required in dealing with any Chinese official.
However  they considered the notion that they should kowtow utterly ludicrous.
In fact  it was official policy that no Briton of any rank should kowtow in any circumstances.
The ambassadors  progress to Beijing was impeded at every step.
Eventually  Beijing was occupied  the treaty signed and embassies established.
The Qing armies acquitted themselves well in campaigns in Guangxi and Taiwan.
Despite pleas from a Ryukyuan envoy  China was powerless to send an army.
The Chinese sought help from the British  who refused to intervene.
It was largely a peasant revolt.
To many Chinese  however  these were yet more examples of the West exploiting China.
Boxer Rebellion 1898–1900       Around 1898  these feelings exploded.
Some believed their kung fu and prayer could stop bullets.
In addition  Shanghai was divided among China and the eight nations.
It was undertaken by the young Guangxu Emperor and his reform minded supporters.
New ministries were created in Beijing and revised law codes were drafted.
At the top were the emperor and the court nobility  invincible in prestige but weak in power.
In the villages the peasants had their own rituals and localistic traditions.
One exception came in religion  where there was a revival of Shinto  which had originated in Japan.
Edo resembled the capital cities of Europe with military  political  and economic functions.
It occupied Korea  Formosa  Taiwan   and southern Sakhalin Island.
The U.S. undertook large scale military and economic aid to China and demanded Japanese withdrawal.
Instead of withdrawing  Japan invaded French Indochina in 1940–41.
Negotiations with the US led nowhere.
Although it was to be a long and bloody war  Japan began to lose the initiative in 1942.
At the Battle of the Coral Sea  a Japanese offensive was turned back  for the first time  at sea.
In the Guadalcanal Campaign  the U.S. took back ground from Japan.
Postwar     The Japanese growth in the postwar period was often called a  miracle .
The Chinese Civil War resumed after World War II concluded.
Since then  the jurisdiction of the Republic of China has been limited to the Taiwan Area.
The abolition of the examination system in 1905 marked the end of official Confucianism.
2008–2013  online free to borrow 703pp Embree  Ainslie T.  ed.
The Heian period is considered a golden age of classical Japanese culture.
After seizing power  Yoritomo set up his capital in Kamakura and took the title of shōgun.
Eventually  Japan descended into a period of civil war.
Japan s attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 led to war with the United States and its allies.
Since the Lost Decade of the 1990s  economic growth has slowed.
Early humans likely arrived on Japan by sea on watercraft.
Jōmon pottery is generally accepted to be among the oldest in East Asia and the world.
The onset of this wave of changes was  until recently  thought to have begun around 400 BCE.
The Yayoi technologies originated on the Asian mainland.
The migration theory is supported by genetic and linguistic studies.
Calculations of the population size have varied from 1 to 4 million by the end of the Yayoi.
Yamatai was said to have been ruled by the female monarch Himiko.
It is commonly accepted that the tomb was built for Emperor Nintoku.
Many of the powerful local clans who joined the Yamato state became known as the uji.
Their government devised and implemented the far reaching Taika Reforms.
The Reform began with land reform  based on Confucian ideas and philosophies from China.
It is now the oldest wooden structure in the world.
There was also a serious attempt to overthrow the Imperial house during the middle Nara period.
The Fujiwara clan furthermore consolidated its power.
The imperial court was thus deprived of the tax revenue to pay for its national army.
The central government began to use these two warrior clans to suppress rebellions and piracy.
The court thus temporarily reasserted its authority in northern Japan.
During this war  the Taira clan led by Taira no Kiyomori defeated the Minamoto clan.
The outcome of this war led to the rivalry between the Minamoto and Taira clans.
Yoritomo and his retainers thus became the de facto rulers of Japan.
The older institutions remained intact in a weakened form  and Kyoto remained the official capital.
Behind the scenes  Yoritomo s wife Hōjō Masako became the true power behind the government.
This had permanent negative consequences for the shogunate s relations with the samurai class.
Discontent among the samurai proved decisive in ending the Kamakura shogunate.
Fewer famines and epidemics allowed cities to grow and commerce to boom.
Zen Buddhism spread widely among the samurai class.
Takauji rebelled after Go Daigo refused to appoint him shōgun.
Go Daigo responded by fleeing to the southern city of Yoshino  where he set up a rival government.
Henceforth  the shogunate kept the emperor and his court under tight control.
This started in 1467 when the Ōnin War broke out over who would succeed the ruling shogun.
Some of the most powerful daimyōs of the era were Uesugi Kenshin and Takeda Shingen.
One enduring symbol of this era was the ninja  skilled spies and assassins hired by daimyōs.
The three Portuguese traders on board were the first Europeans to set foot in Japan.
Soon European traders would introduce many new items to Japan  most importantly the musket.
By 1556  the daimyōs were using about 300 000 muskets in their armies.
In 1549 the Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier disembarked in Kyushu.
In 1564  he faced a rebellion instigated by the Buddhist clergy and Yokoseura was destroyed.
By 1579  Nagasáqui already had four hundred houses  with some Portuguese married.
When open war broke out  Ieyasu defeated rival clans in the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600.
Commerce flourished  including considerable trade with China and Korea.
He had the famous Kinkaku ji or  Temple of the Golden Pavilion  built in Kyoto in 1397.
Nobunaga was the daimyō of the small province of Owari.
Nobunaga was renowned for his strategic leadership and his ruthlessness.
He equipped his armies with muskets and trained them with innovative tactics.
Hideyoshi avenged Nobunaga by crushing Akechi s uprising and emerged as Nobunaga s successor.
Nevertheless  it took time for the Tokugawas to consolidate their rule.
Ieyasu led the Siege of Osaka that ended with the destruction of the Toyotomi clan in 1615.
Even so  the daimyōs continued to maintain a significant degree of autonomy in their domains.
Geisha  a new profession of entertainers  also became popular.
The samurai class claimed to follow the ideology of bushido  literally  the way of the warrior .
Peasant unrest grew and government revenues fell.
The US government aimed to end Japan s isolationist policies.
The two domains went on to form an alliance.
It instituted comprehensive tax reform and lifted the ban on Christianity.
The Japanese adopted the Gregorian calendar  Western clothing  and Western hairstyles.
One leading advocate of Westernization was the popular writer Fukuzawa Yukichi.
The leaders of this movement included Itagaki Taisuke and Ōkuma Shigenobu.
Schools nationwide instilled patriotic values and loyalty to the emperor.
In 1902 Japan signed an important military alliance with the British.
Japan next clashed with Russia  which was expanding its power in Asia.
Japan thus laid claim to Korea as a protectorate in 1905  followed by full annexation in 1910.
The phenomenal industrial growth sparked rapid urbanization.
The population rose from 34 million in 1872 to 52 million in 1915.
The Meiji government responded with harsh suppression of dissent.
In February 1936 young radical officers of the Imperial Japanese Army attempted a coup d état.
They assassinated many moderate politicians before the coup was suppressed.
Japan s expansionist vision grew increasingly bold.
These ambitions led to the outbreak of the Second Sino Japanese War in 1937.
This brought the US into World War II on the side of the Allies.
These destroyed over half of the total area of Japan s major cities.
This was the first nuclear attack in history.
Other major goals were the demilitarization and democratization of Japan s government and society.
The cabinet became responsible not to the Emperor but to the elected National Diet.
In 1968  the Ogasawara Islands were returned from US occupation to Japanese sovereignty.
Japanese citizens were allowed to return.
Okinawa was the last to be returned in 1972.
Yoshida was one of the longest serving prime ministers in Japanese history.
The Korean War  1950–1953  was a major boon to Japanese business.
MITI sought successfully to promote manufacturing and heavy industry  and encourage exports.
Life expectancy rose and Japan s population increased to 123 million by 1990.
Ordinary Japanese people became wealthy enough to purchase a wide array of consumer goods.
Banks found themselves saddled with insurmountable debts that hindered economic recovery.
Stagnation worsened as the birthrate declined far below replacement level.
The 1990s are often referred to as Japan s Lost Decade.
Japan s system of lifetime employment largely collapsed and unemployment rates rose.
Japan will become the first Asian country to host the Olympics twice in the country.
The new date for the Olympics are scheduled from July 23 to August 8 2021.
Social conditions    Social stratification in Japan became pronounced during the Yayoi period.
Over 90  were commoners  who included farmers  merchants  and artisans.
Hideyoshi s land survey of the 1590s further entrenched the status of men as dominant landholders.
A History of Japan   Revised Edition .
Foreign civilizations have often provided new ideas for the development of Japan s own culture.
By the period s end  learning had become widespread.
Samurai curricula stressed morality and included both military and literary studies.
Confucian classics were memorized  and reading and reciting them were common methods of study.
Arithmetic and calligraphy were also studied.
By the 1860s  40–50  of Japanese boys  and 15  of the girls  had some schooling outside the home.
They returned with the ideas of decentralization  local school boards  and teacher autonomy.
Such ideas and ambitious initial plans  however  proved very difficult to carry out.
After some trial and error  a new national education system emerged.
The Western style school was introduced as the agent to reach that goal.
By the 1890s  schools were generating new sensibilities regarding childhood.
A new wave of foreign ideas was introduced during the postwar period of military occupation.
The postwar Ministry of Education regained a great deal of power.
School boards were appointed  instead of elected.
The post occupation period also witnessed a significant widening of educational opportunities.
In general  the 1960s was a time of great turbulence in higher education.
Also during this period  strong disagreement developed between the government and teachers groups.
Printing is considered one of the Four Great Inventions of China that spread throughout the world.
The Chinese used only clay and wood movable type at first.
The use of metal movable type was known in Korea by the 13th century.
Woodblock printing     Woodblock printing started in China in 593 AD.
In Korea  an example of woodblock printing from the eighth century was discovered in 1966.
The document is estimated to have been created no later than 704 AD.
Larger errors require an inlay.
After this the block is washed to remove any refuse.
To print  the block is fixed firmly on a table.
The printer takes a round horsehair inking brush and applies ink with a vertical motion.
The paper is peeled off and set to dry.
Sample copies were sometimes made in red or blue  but black ink was always used for production.
It is said that a skilled printer could produce as many as 1500 or 2000 double sheets in a day.
Blocks can be stored and reused when extra copies are needed.
15 000 prints can be taken from a block with a further 10 000 after touching up.
It was published in Korea before the year 751 A.D. during the Silla Kingdom.
This Darani Sutra was found inside the Seokga Pagoda of Bulguksa Temple in Gyeongju  Korea.
One row of the darani gyeongmun 8–9 are printed in the form of a roll.
Tripitaka Koreana was printed between 1011 and 1082.
It is the world s most comprehensive and oldest intact version of Buddhist canon.
This is due to economic development and a very high literacy rate for the time.
After the Mongols conquered Turfan  a great number of Uighurs were recruited into the Mongol army.
In this he placed the types  set close together.
When the frame was full  the whole made one solid block of type.
He then placed it near the fire to warm it.
But for printing hundreds or thousands of copies  it was marvelously quick.
As a rule he kept two forms going.
When the printing of the one form was finished  the other was then ready.
As late as 1844 there were still books printed in China with ceramic movable types.
This new method overcame many of the shortcomings of woodblock printing.
Furthermore  these new  more compact type fonts could be reused and stored.
Wooden movable types were used continually in China.
It was faster to carve one woodblock per page than to composit a page from so many different types.
Each set consisted of 5040 volumes  making a total of 322 560 volumes printed using movable type.
A set of ritual books  Sangjeong Gogeum Yemun were printed with movable metal type in 1234.
One fills a trough level with fine sandy  clay  of the reed growing seashore.
The fluid flows in  filling these negative molds  one by one becoming type.
However  western printing press were discontinued after the ban on Christianity in 1614.
By 1640 woodblocks were once again used for nearly all purposes.
Common characters need 20 or more copies  and rarer characters only a single copy.
This system worked well when the run was large.
But for the smaller runs typical of the time it was not such an improvement.
Individual wooden characters didn t last as long as complete blocks.
But small local printers often found that wooden blocks suited their needs better.
Mechanical presses    Mechanical presses were then invented by Europeans.
It is ranked 38th in the 2012 Fortune Global 500 and 129th in the 2012 Forbes Global 2000.
Odaira moved headquarters to Tokyo in 1918.
Founder Odaira was removed from the company and Hitachi Zosen Corporation was spun out.
Hitachi s reconstruction efforts after the war were hindered by a labor strike in 1950.
The Baku factory was established under the license of Japanese company Hitachi.
Volumes of production of air conditioners in the USSR were small  about 500 000 per a year.
However air conditioners were a matter of great pride.
Mainly window air conditioners were produced.
Most of the output was exported.
Hitachi maintained a 40  stake of the resulting company  Johnson Controls Hitachi Air Conditioning.
Showa Denko bought Hitachi Chemical from Hitachi and other shareholders  at US 42.97 per share.
Until then  Hitachi Chemical had been considered to be a core unit of the group.
majority stake of ex Japan business sold to Arcelik.
The company name  Hitachi Data Systems   HDS  and its logo is no longer used in the market.
It also provides materials  components and tools for the automotive and electronics industries.
Hokkaido was formerly known as Ezo  Yezo  Yeso  or Yesso.
According to Matsuura  the name was thought up because the Ainu called the region Kai.
In contrast to the island of Honshu  Hokkaido saw an absence of conflict during this time period.
From the Middle Ages  the people in Hokkaido began to be called Ezo.
Hokkaido subsequently became known as Ezochi  蝦夷地  lit.
The disputes eventually developed into war.
Takeda Nobuhiro killed the Ainu leader  Koshamain  and defeated the opposition in 1457.
The Matsumae family s economy relied upon trade with the Ainu.
They held authority over the south of Ezochi until the end of the Edo period.
There were numerous revolts by the Ainu against the feudal rule.
The last large scale resistance was Shakushain s revolt in 1669–1672.
In 1789  a smaller movement known as the Menashi–Kunashir rebellion was crushed.
Meiji Restoration     Hokkaido was known as Ezochi until the Meiji Restoration.
Ezochi was subsequently put under control of Hakodate fu  箱館府   Hakodate Prefectural Government.
Kuroda Kiyotaka was put in charge of the venture.
Capron  frustrated with obstacles to his efforts returned home in 1875.
In 1876  William S. Clark arrived to found an agricultural college in Sapporo.
His parting words   Boys  be ambitious!
can be found on public buildings in Hokkaido to this day.
The agency was absorbed by the Ministry of Land  Infrastructure and Transport in 2001.
The center of the island is mountainous  with volcanic plateaux.
Hokkaido is 83 423.84 km2  32 210.12 sq mi  which make it the  second largest island of Japan.
By Japanese reckoning  Hokkaido also incorporates several of the Kuril Islands.
Hokkaido Prefecture is the largest and northernmost  Japanese prefecture.
The island ranks 21st in the world by area.
It has the lowest population density in Japan with just 64.5 km2  160 sq mi   2016 .
By population it ranks 20th globally.
Sapporo is the largest city of Hokkaido and 5th largest in Japan.
Flora and fauna      There are three populations of the Ussuri brown bear found on the island.
There are more brown bears in Hokkaido than anywhere else in Asia besides Russia.
The Hokkaido brown bear is separated into three distinct lineages.
There are only eight lineages in the world.
Those on Honshu died out long ago.
Seismic activity     Like many areas of Japan  Hokkaido is seismically active.
Parks        designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO on 2005 07 14.
Twelve prefectural natural parks  道立自然公園 .
Hokkaido is one of eight prefectures in Japan that have subprefectures  支庁 shichō .
The island tends to have isolated snowstorms that develop long lasting snowbanks.
Hokkaido celebrates its winter weather at the Sapporo Snow Festival.
The island has two core cities  Hakodate in the south and Asahikawa in the central region.
Hokkaido has nearly one fourth of Japan s total arable land.
Hokkaido also accounts for 22  of Japan s forests with a sizable timber industry.
The prefecture is first in the nation in production of marine products and aquaculture.
Cities such as Muroran were primarily developed to supply the rest of the archipelago with coal.
Transportation     Hokkaido s only land link to the rest of Japan is the Seikan Tunnel.
One of the airlines  Air Do was named after Hokkaido.
The Hokkaido Shinkansen takes passengers from Tokyo to near Hakodate in slightly over four hours.
There is a fairly well developed railway network  but many cities can only be accessed by road.
The sports teams listed below are based in Hokkaido.
Politics          Governor     The current governor of Hokkaido is Harumi Takahashi.
She won a fourth term in the gubernatorial election in 2015 with centre right support.
Assembly     The Hokkaido Legislative Assembly has 100 members from 47 electoral districts.
Let the Sea Make a Noise  A History of the North Pacific from Magellan to MacArthur.
Hokkaido was formerly known as Ezo  Yezo  Yeso  or Yesso.
According to Matsuura  the name was thought up because the Ainu called the region Kai.
In contrast to the island of Honshu  Hokkaido saw an absence of conflict during this time period.
From the Middle Ages  the people in Hokkaido began to be called Ezo.
Hokkaido subsequently became known as Ezochi  蝦夷地  lit.
The disputes eventually developed into war.
Takeda Nobuhiro killed the Ainu leader  Koshamain  and defeated the opposition in 1457.
The Matsumae family s economy relied upon trade with the Ainu.
They held authority over the south of Ezochi until the end of the Edo period.
There were numerous revolts by the Ainu against the feudal rule.
The last large scale resistance was Shakushain s revolt in 1669–1672.
In 1789  a smaller movement known as the Menashi–Kunashir rebellion was crushed.
Meiji Restoration     Hokkaido was known as Ezochi until the Meiji Restoration.
Ezochi was subsequently put under control of Hakodate fu  箱館府   Hakodate Prefectural Government.
Kuroda Kiyotaka was put in charge of the venture.
Capron  frustrated with obstacles to his efforts returned home in 1875.
In 1876  William S. Clark arrived to found an agricultural college in Sapporo.
His parting words   Boys  be ambitious!
can be found on public buildings in Hokkaido to this day.
The agency was absorbed by the Ministry of Land  Infrastructure and Transport in 2001.
The center of the island is mountainous  with volcanic plateaux.
Hokkaido is 83 423.84 km2  32 210.12 sq mi  which make it the  second largest island of Japan.
By Japanese reckoning  Hokkaido also incorporates several of the Kuril Islands.
Hokkaido Prefecture is the largest and northernmost  Japanese prefecture.
The island ranks 21st in the world by area.
It has the lowest population density in Japan with just 64.5 km2  160 sq mi   2016 .
By population it ranks 20th globally.
Sapporo is the largest city of Hokkaido and 5th largest in Japan.
Flora and fauna      There are three populations of the Ussuri brown bear found on the island.
There are more brown bears in Hokkaido than anywhere else in Asia besides Russia.
The Hokkaido brown bear is separated into three distinct lineages.
There are only eight lineages in the world.
Those on Honshu died out long ago.
Seismic activity     Like many areas of Japan  Hokkaido is seismically active.
Parks        designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO on 2005 07 14.
Twelve prefectural natural parks  道立自然公園 .
Hokkaido is one of eight prefectures in Japan that have subprefectures  支庁 shichō .
The island tends to have isolated snowstorms that develop long lasting snowbanks.
Hokkaido celebrates its winter weather at the Sapporo Snow Festival.
The island has two core cities  Hakodate in the south and Asahikawa in the central region.
Hokkaido has nearly one fourth of Japan s total arable land.
Hokkaido also accounts for 22  of Japan s forests with a sizable timber industry.
The prefecture is first in the nation in production of marine products and aquaculture.
Cities such as Muroran were primarily developed to supply the rest of the archipelago with coal.
Transportation     Hokkaido s only land link to the rest of Japan is the Seikan Tunnel.
One of the airlines  Air Do was named after Hokkaido.
The Hokkaido Shinkansen takes passengers from Tokyo to near Hakodate in slightly over four hours.
There is a fairly well developed railway network  but many cities can only be accessed by road.
The sports teams listed below are based in Hokkaido.
Politics          Governor     The current governor of Hokkaido is Harumi Takahashi.
She won a fourth term in the gubernatorial election in 2015 with centre right support.
Assembly     The Hokkaido Legislative Assembly has 100 members from 47 electoral districts.
Let the Sea Make a Noise  A History of the North Pacific from Magellan to MacArthur.
It lay along the Sea of Japan within the Chūbu region  which it is currently a part of.
It is almost equivalent to Koshi Province and Hokurikudō area in pre modern Japan.
Koshihikari  a popular variety of rice is a special product of Hokuriku subregion.
The Hokuriku region is also the setting for Yasunari Kawabata s novel Snow Country.
Tourism    Hokuriku is listed as No.
Starting as a young child  he continued working and improving his style until his death  aged 88.
His childhood name was Tokitarō.
It is believed his father was Nakajima Ise mirror maker for the shōgun.
His father never made Hokusai an heir  so it is possible that his mother was a concubine.
He married again in 1797  although this second wife also died after a short time.
This change of subject was a breakthrough in ukiyo e and in Hokusai s career.
By 1800  Hokusai was further developing his use of ukiyo e for purposes other than portraiture.
Hokusai also created several albums of erotic art  shunga .
This portrait in ink on paper measured 18 × 10.8 metres  and the event drew huge crowds.
It proved so popular that ten more prints were later added to the series.
When I am one hundred and ten  each dot  each line will possess a life of its own.
He died on 10 May 1849 and was buried at the Seikyō ji in Tokyo  Taito Ward .
Hokusai was an early experimenter with western linear perspective among Japanese artists.
Hokusai himself was influenced by Sesshū Tōyō and other styles of Chinese painting.
Degas said of him   Hokusai is not just one artist among others in the Floating World.
He is an island  a continent  a whole world in himself.
Even after his death  exhibitions of his artworks continue to grow.
Several paintings from the Tokyo exhibition were also exhibited in the United Kingdom.
Hokusai  The Man Who Painted a Mountain.
Giants of Japan  The Lives of Japan s Most Influential Men and Women.
Fugaku Hiyaku kei  One Hundred Views of Fuji by Hokusai .
Masterworks of Ukiyo E  Hokusai – The Thirty Six Views of Mt.
Art monographs     Monographs dedicated to Hokusai art works   Goncourt  Edmond de  2014 .
The whole territory was transferred to China in 1997.
It is the world s tenth largest exporter and ninth largest importer.
Aberdeen was an initial point of contact between British sailors and local fishermen.
The name translates as  fragrant harbour  or  incense harbour .
The incense was stored near Aberdeen Harbour for export before Victoria Harbour developed.
The claim is based on an archaeological investigation in Wong Tei Tung  Sai Kung in 2003.
Neolithic to Bronze Age Hong Kong settlers were semi coastal people.
The Kangxi Emperor lifted the prohibition  allowing foreigners to enter Chinese ports in 1684.
To reduce the trade imbalance  the British sold large amounts of Indian opium to China.
The Qing surrendered early in the war and ceded Hong Kong Island in the Convention of Chuenpi.
However  both countries were dissatisfied and did not ratify the agreement.
Hong Kong became the first of the Four Asian Tiger economies to industrialise during the 1950s.
By the early 1990s  Hong Kong had established itself as a global financial centre and shipping hub.
Over half a million people left the territory during the peak migration period  from 1987 to 1996.
Judges are appointed by the Chief Executive on the advice of a recommendation commission.
The Chief Executive is the head of government and serves for a maximum of two five year terms.
All popularly elected members are chosen by proportional representation.
Local courts may refer to precedents set in English law and overseas jurisprudence.
There are a total of 479 district council seats  452 of which are directly elected.
Rural committee chairmen  representing outlying villages and towns  fill the 27 non elected seats.
Sex trafficking in Hong Kong is an issue.
Of the total area  1 073 km2  414 sq mi  is land and 35 km2  14 sq mi  is water.
The territory s highest point is Tai Mo Shan  957 metres  3 140 ft  above sea level.
About 40 per cent of the remaining land area are country parks and nature reserves.
Summer is hot and humid  with occasional showers and thunderstorms and warm air from the southwest.
Typhoons occur most often then  sometimes resulting in floods or landslides.
Autumn is the sunniest season  whilst spring is generally cloudy.
When there is snowfall  which is extremely rare  it is usually at high elevations.
Older government buildings tend to show examples of colonial architecture.
The predominant language is Cantonese  a variety of Chinese originating in Guangdong.
The city has the most billionaires per capita  with one billionaire per 109 657 people.
It is the world s 35th largest economy  with a nominal GDP of approximately US 373 billion.
Over half of its cargo throughput consists of transshipments  goods travelling through Hong Kong .
The territory s largest export markets are mainland China and the United States.
More than 90 per cent of Hong Kong s food is imported  including nearly all its meat and rice.
Mainland firms represent over half of the Hang Seng Index value  up from five per cent in 1997.
The city has the second highest number of corporate headquarters in the Asia Pacific region.
Colonial governments had little industrial policy  and implemented almost no trade controls.
The city is ranked as one of the most expensive cities for expatriates.
Over 90 per cent of daily trips are made on public transport  the highest percentage in the world.
Hong Kong International Airport is the territory s primary airport.
Ferries also serve outlying islands inaccessible by other means.
Smaller kai to boats serve the most remote coastal settlements.
Ferry travel to Macau and mainland China is also available.
Hong Kong Tramways covers a portion of Hong Kong Island.
The MTR operates its Light Rail system  serving the northwestern New Territories.
Utilities      Hong Kong generates most of its electricity locally.
The rest is from other imports  including nuclear energy generated in mainland China.
Renewable sources account for a negligible amount of energy generated for the territory.
Culture     Hong Kong is characterised as a hybrid of East and West.
Mainstream culture is derived from immigrants originating from various parts of China.
The degree of its adherence to feng shui is believed to determine the success of a business.
Rice is the staple food  and is usually served plain with other dishes.
Freshness of ingredients is emphasised.
There are five daily meals  breakfast  lunch  afternoon tea  dinner  and siu yeh.
Dim sum  as part of yum cha  brunch   is a dining out tradition with family and friends.
Dishes include congee  cha siu bao  siu yuk  egg tarts  and mango pudding.
Local versions of Western food are served at cha chaan teng  fast  casual restaurants .
The city s martial arts film roots are evident in the roles of the most prolific Hong Kong actors.
The number of films produced annually has declined to about 60 in 2017.
Evolving from Shanghai style shidaiqu  it is also influenced by Cantonese opera and Western pop.
Lee Lai shan won the territory s first and only Olympic gold medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
Hong Kong athletes have won 126 medals at the Paralympic Games and 17 at the Commonwealth Games.
Three forms of gambling are legal in Hong Kong  lotteries and betting on horse racing and football.
Mandatory education has contributed to an adult literacy rate of 95.7 per cent.
These schools are subject to the curriculum guidelines as provided by the Education Bureau.
Local publications are often politically affiliated  with pro Beijing or pro democracy sympathies.
TVB  Hong Kong s dominant television network  has an 80 per cent viewer share.
RTHK is the public broadcaster  providing seven radio channels and three television channels.
Ten non domestic broadcasters air programming for the territory s foreign population.
Mitsuhide led his army toward Kyoto under the pretense of following the order of Nobunaga.
Before dawn  the Akechi army had the Honnō ji temple surrounded in a coup d état.
Nobunaga then  with the help of his young page  Mori Ranmaru  committed seppuku.
Ranmaru then followed suit  committing seppuku himself.
His loyalty and devotion makes him a revered figure in Japanese history.
Nobunaga s remains were never found  a fact often speculated about by writers and historians.
Another theory is that Mitsuhide did not enjoy the cruelty of Nobunaga.
Many think it was a combination of at least some of the above assumed reasons.
He was later removed from this post for unknown reasons.
Akechi Mitsuhide felt humiliated and depressed by this and eventually decided to kill his master.
Luís Fróis wrote that Mitsuhide liked to use treachery and diversion as his strategy.
Before Akechi began his march toward Chugoku  he held a renga session at the shrine on Mount Atago.
However  there are several homonyms in the line  such that it could be taken as a double entendre.
An alternate meaning  without changing any of the pronunciations  would be  時は今 天が下治る 皐月かな.
Thus it has also been translated as  Now is the time to rule the world  It s the fifth month!
He would later fall in the Battle of Shizugatake against Hideyoshi a year later.
Samurai Battles  The Long Road to Unification.
Honshu  本州  Honshū  pronounced  hoꜜɰ̃ɕɯː   listen   lit.
The island is linked to the other three major Japanese islands by a number of bridges and tunnels.
There are many rivers  including the Shinano River  Japan s longest.
The Japanese Alps span the width of Honshu  from the  Sea of Japan  coast to  the Pacific shore.
The climate is generally humid subtropical in western Japan and humid continental in the north.
Population    Its population was 104 million people  according to a 2017 estimate.
This represents 81.3 percent of the entire population of Japan.
Fruits  vegetables  grains  rice and cotton are grown in Honshu.
Niigata is noted as an important producer of rice.
The Kantō and Nōbi plains produce rice and vegetables.
Yamanashi is a major fruit growing area  and Aomori is famous for its apples.
Rare species of the lichen genus Menegazzia are found only in Honshu.
Minerals     Yields of zinc  copper  and oil have been found on Honshu.
Many East Asian scripts can be written horizontally or vertically.
There are some small differences in orthography.
Therefore  before the end of World War II in Japan  those signs were read right to left.
Of these  only traditional Mongolian still remains in use today in Inner Mongolia.
This accelerated acceptance of horizontal writing.
Vertical text proponents considered horizontal text to be a break from established tradition.
All newspapers in China changed from vertical to horizontal alignment on January 1  1956.
Inscriptions of signs on most state organs are still vertical.
In Singapore  vertical writing has also become rare.
Because this was unwieldy  the idea of yokogaki came to be accepted.
It was probably based on the traditional single row right to left writing.
Today  major Korean newspapers hardly ever run text vertically.
Manga frames tend to flow in right to left horizontal direction.
Frames in yonkoma manga tend to flow in a vertical direction.
Page ordering is the same as books that use vertical direction  from right to left.
In those contexts  both horizontal and vertical writing are used as well.
Vertical writing is commonly used for novels  newspapers  manga  and many other forms of writing.
Because it goes downwards  vertical writing is invariably used on the spines of books.
Musical notation for some Japanese instruments such as the shakuhachi is written vertically.
Computer text is usually presented in horizontal format  see Japanese language and computers.
Most publications are now printed in horizontal alignment  like English.
Vertical alignment is generally used for artistic or aesthetic purposes  e.g.
Calligraphy – in Simplified or Traditional Chinese – is invariably written vertically.
Since 2012  street markings are written vertically  but unorthodoxically from bottom to top.
This is so that the characters are read from nearest to furthest from the drivers  perspective.
Korean       In modern Korea  vertical writing is uncommon.
Modern Korean is usually written in left to right horizontally.
Vertical writing is used when the writing space is long vertically and narrow horizontally.
For example  titles on the spines of books are usually written vertically.
However  vertical writing using Western punctuation marks is sometimes found.
Users can compose and edit the document as normal horizontal text.
A warrior on horseback or horse drawn chariot changed the balance of power between civilizations.
When people with horses clashed with those without  horses provided a huge advantage.
Military tactics were refined in terms of the use of horses  cavalry tactics .
The Chinese army lacked a sufficient number of good quality horses.
Importation was the only remedy but the only potential suppliers were the steppe nomads.
The hardy Central Asian horses were generally short legged with barrel chests.
The horses were acquired for military use and for breeding.
The samurai were particularly skilled in the art of using archery from horseback.
One day he and his troops had to cross a very narrow bridge over a raging river.
All were wondering how he would ride over this dangerous bridge.
By roughly the 1st century BC  the ancient kingdom of Buyeo also had mounted warriors.
The cavalry of Goguryeo  one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea  were called Gaemamusa  개마무사  鎧馬武士 .
In 1107  the Jurchen were ultimately defeated  and surrendered to Yun Gwan.
Mongolia     The warhorses of the Mongols were called cerigyn nojan.
Mongolian horses were known for their hardiness  endurance and stamina.
China has few horses  and its men are not accustomed to riding  this is China s weakness....
They do not realize that  without horses  we can never create an effective military force.
Pre Modern East Asia to 1800  A Cultural  Social  and Political History.
Cavalry  The History of Mounted Warfare.
Annales des empereurs du Japon  Nihon Odai Ichiran .
The House of Councillors  参議院  Sangiin  is the upper house of the National Diet of Japan.
The House of Representatives is the lower house.
The House of Councillors is the successor to the pre war House of Peers.
The House initially had 250 seats.
Shintaro Ishihara won a record 3 million votes in the national block in the 1968 election.
The national proportional representation block was reduced to 96 members in the 2000 reforms.
The House of Representatives  衆議院  Shūgiin  is the lower house of the National Diet of Japan.
The House of Councillors is the upper house.
The House of Representatives has 465 members  elected for a four year term.
233 seats are required for a majority.
The house is currently led by Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.
Japanese nationals aged 25 years and older may run for office in the lower house.
As a result  the House of Representatives is considered the more powerful house.
Parties who vote with the government in the Diet  but are not part of the cabinet  e.g.
SDP   NPH after the 1996 election  are not shaded.
Similarly  Korea and Taiwan were granted several appointed members of the House of Peers in 1945.
Only once  in 1976  did the House last a full 4 years.
This came to be known as the  you idiot  dissolution.
They eventually overpowered other regional lords and earned the favour of the British Empire.
The position of Druk Gyalpo is more commonly known in English as King of Bhutan.
Jigme Singye Wangchuck  b.1955   Fourth King   r. 24 July 1972 – 15 December 2006.
During this period  factions were influenced and supported by Tibet and the British Empire.
He was born Damchho Lhundrub in Min Chhud  Tibet  and led a monastic life from childhood.
Before his appointment as Tongsab  he held the appointed post of Umzey  Chant Master .
The family belongs to the Nyö clan  and is descended from Pema Lingpa  a Bhutanese Nyingmapa saint.
The Penlop of Paro  unlike Trongsa  was an office appointed by the Druk Desi s central government.
In 1879  he appointed his 17 year old son Ugyen Wangchuck as the 23rd Penlop of Paro.
From this time forward  the office of Desi became purely ceremonial.
Penlop Ugyen Wangchuck further garnered knighthood in the KCIE in 1905.
As a result  a power vacuum formed within the already dysfunctional dual system of government.
King Ugyen Wangchuck died in 1926.
Under Jigme Dorji Wangchuck  Bhutan also modernized its legal codes.
Housing in Japan includes modern and traditional styles.
Of these  46 862 900  86.9   were occupied and 7 027 900  13.0   unoccupied.
Of the occupied units  28 665 900  61.2   were owned by the resident household.
During the postwar period  the number of multi unit dwellings in Japan increased rapidly.
In 1997  it was estimated that about 60  of Japanese lived in detached houses.
Any room can be a living room  dining room  study  or bedroom.
It is important to note that in Japan  living room is expressed as ima  living  space .
This is because the size of a room can be changed by altering the partitioning.
Fusuma seal each partition from top to bottom so it can create a mini room within the house.
On the edge of a house are rōka  wooden floored passages  that are similar to hallways.
Unlike fusuma  paper used for shōji is very thin so outside light can pass through into the house.
This was before glass began to be used for sliding doors.
For large gatherings  these partitions are removed to create one large meeting room.
During a normal day  partitions can create much smaller and more manageable living spaces.
However  the bathroom  toilet  and even kitchen can be communal.
L  D and K are not really separate and are part of or next to the kitchen.
The number before the letters indicates the number of additional multipurpose rooms.
2DK  one six tatami Japanese style room  one six tatami Western style room  is an example.
Genkan      One characteristic of a Japanese home is the genkan  or entryway.
As they take off their shoes  people step up onto a raised floor.
They point the tips of their shoes to the outside.
The rest of the residence is at the raised level of this floor.
Slippers for indoor use are usually placed there.
Common units of all types of stoves include two to four burners.
Most kitchens have electric exhaust fans.
Furnishings commonly include microwave ovens  hot water boilers  and electric toaster ovens.
Built in dishwashers are rare  although some kitchens may have small dishwashers or dishdryers.
The kitchen includes running water  typically with hot and cold faucets taps.
Separate rooms for the Japanese toilet  sink  and ofuro  bathing room  are common.
As a result  bathwater is neither soapy nor dirty  and can be reused.
Many washing machines in Japan come with an extension pipe to draw water from the tub for the wash.
Hot water usually comes from a gas or kerosene heater.
The heater is usually located outdoors  at least in warm climates .
Its gas supply may be from a municipal utility or from LP  Liquid Petroleum  tanks on site.
The typical Japanese water heater is tankless and heats water on demand.
One heater may supply both bath and kitchen.
However  many homes have two or more heaters.
Recently  electric water heaters  eco friendly ones  have been introduced for home owners.
Laundromats are found throughout Japan.
Many small apartments do not have room to place a washing machine and or dryer.
Likewise  even for homes with washing machines  only a small percentage have dryers.
Washitsu      Many homes include at least one traditional Japanese styled room  or washitsu.
It might be unfurnished  and function as a family room during the day and a bedroom at night.
Many washitsu have sliding glass doors opening onto a deck or balcony.
Other bedrooms  as well as living rooms  dining rooms  and kitchens  are in a Western style.
They usually have modern synthetic floor coverings.
Ceilings are typically also synthetic  and might be white or beige.
It is the functional equivalent of the Western style studio apartment.
Kerosene  gas  and electric units are common.
Occupants purchase appliances and take them when they move.
This is not the case in Hokkaido and the northern part of Honshū  due to the cold winters there.
Battery operated electric ignition is a popular step up.
The next rank has an electric fan to circulate hot air through the room.
Many such units feature computer control of temperature.
The computer can also turn them on and off on schedule.
Gas heaters are popular  and many homes have gas outlets in rooms to accommodate portable units.
Windows in many homes have vents to open to protect the occupants from excessive exhaust gas.
These heaters often do double duty as air conditioners and are accordingly called eakon  エアコン .
Thermostatic control and timers are available in most lines.
The manufacturers of electric and electronic appliances produce these heaters.
Electric carpets have become popular in recent years.
Toilet seats are frequently warmed by electric heat.
Finally  a traditional type of heater known as a kotatsu is still widely used today.
This type of table is common in the washitsu.
Few 200 V outlets may also exist for connecting induction heating stove or large air conditioner.
The line frequency is 50 Hz in eastern Japan  and 60 Hz in the western part of the country.
Circuit breakers of 30 to 60 amperes is typical for most electrical distribution boards.
Many domestic appliances operate properly at either frequency  auto sensing .
The older outlets are un polarized and many sockets lack proper grounding.
Lighting     Lighting equipment  like heaters  is normally the provenance of the occupant.
Many homes do not include built in ceiling lights in the living  dining  and bedrooms.
Kitchens  bathrooms  corridors and genkan are likely to have built in ceiling fixtures.
More elaborate elevator arrangements are also in use.
Some such companies maintain parks with model homes to show to prospective buyers.
Makers of appliances similarly operate showrooms to display their products.
Construction materials      For freestanding houses  wood frames are popular.
Two by four construction is an alternative to the native style.
Houses may be clad in siding or faced with ceramic tile.
Interiors often have drywall  painted or with a wall covering.
Tile is a common roofing material  it may be fired clay or concrete.
Clay tiles often bear a color and a glaze.
Large buildings are typically constructed of reinforced concrete.
Roofs coverings include asphalt and synthetics.
Some wooden houses may have lofts  but these may not be used as bedrooms  only for storage space.
Steel and concrete buildings may have more stories  but usually they only have two.
Basements are uncommon in private homes but common in high rise buildings.
This would mean that a 4 story home could be built using 70  of the land.
The taxable value of a house is controlled by its building material.
Most real estate agents also use this pricing policy as a rough guide.
After marriage  the young couple often live in the same house as their parents.
The responsibility for the parent usually falls onto the oldest male child or atotsugi  跡継ぎ .
Apartment designs are many and varied.
In 2003  less than half of the living units in Tokyo were owned by the resident.
On the other hand  rural areas tend to have much higher ownership rates.
The living space of houses and condominiums is larger than apartments.
The average size of an owned residence in Japan is 121.7 m2  36.8 tsubo  1 310 sq ft .
In recent years  condos mansions have become more and more popular.
As houses age  owners replace them.
A common pattern is to rebuild on the same site.
To accomplish this  the occupants move to a temporary residence.
A contractor demolishes the old structure and builds a new one on the grounds.
The residents can then return to the location.
This has been the source of some debate.
These usually have the layout of the apartment for rent and the costs to rent this apartment.
Key money is a non refundable payment to the landlord.
In Tokyo  a typical rental agreement is for one year.
Some agents will explain to foreigners directly that it is difficult to rent to them.
Finding a guarantor is also difficult for many foreigners.
Living in a Guest House is one way to circumvent these problems.
A guest house will provide one room for sleeping  a shared kitchen and shared bathroom.
Sometimes  the shataku is located near the company s office building.
In 2003  there were nearly 1.5 million shataku units in Japan.
It varies from company to company.
Examples are still visible in Kyoto.
Raised floors were of wood  and might be covered with straw mats in places.
Kitchens usually had dirt floors.
Their culture has distinct differences that developed from the practice of Islam.
The Hui people are one of 56 ethnic groups recognized by China.
The Hui predominantly speak Chinese  while maintaining some Arabic and Persian phrases.
Practising Islam was not a criterion.
Arab were white cap  Persians black cap and Jews blue cap Huihui.
Cinggis Qa’an replied    By the aid of heaven we have pacified you  you are our slaves.
Yet you do not eat our food or drink.
If you slaughter sheep  you will be considered guilty of a crime.
A French army Commandant Viscount D Ollone wrote a report on what he saw among Hui in 1910.
Dashi Fa  literally means  Arab law  in Old Chinese.
The name  Hui Hui  was applied to them  and eventually became the name applied to Muslims.
In the 1930s the Communist Party defined the term Hui to indicate only Sinophone Muslims.
Gladney suggested that a good translation for it would be Arabic tahára.
ritual or moral purity  The usual term for a mosque is qīngzhēn sì  清真寺   i.e.
Pusuman       Pusuman was a name used by Chinese during the Yuan Dynasty.
It could have been a corruption of Musalman or another name for Persians.
It either means Muslim or Persian.
Pusuman Kuo  Pusuman Guo  referred to the country where they came from.
However  not all Hui are Muslims  nor are all Chinese Muslims Hui.
For example  Prinsep in 1835 mentioned Muslim  Túngánis  in  Chinese Tartary .
Later authors continued to use variants of the term for Xinjiang Hui people.
Panthay       Panthays are a group of Chinese Muslims in Burma.
Zhongyuan ren was used by Turkic Muslims to refer to ethnic Chinese.
It identifies Hui by their ancestry only  and includes those who do not practice Islam.
In recent years more of these clans identified as Hui  increasing the official population.
They provided evidence of their ancestry and were recognized as Hui.
Many clans across Fujian had genealogies that demonstrated Hui ancestry.
These clans inhabited Fujian  Taiwan  Singapore  Indonesia and the Philippines.
None of these clans were Muslims but they do not offer pork during their ancestral worship.
The Chinese Muslim Association counts these people as Muslims.
They trace their descent through him via the Quanzhou Ding family of Fujian.
This futile endeavour ended in 1986  when the final Ningxia Imam left.
Hui people consider other Hui who do not observe Islamic practices to still be Hui.
They consider it impossible to lose their Hui nationality.
History          Origins      Hui have diverse origins.
Many are direct descendants of Silk Road travelers.
Those Muslim warriors were the originators of the Hui people.
The Confucian philosopher Li Zhi was their descendant.
This was recorded in the Lin and Li genealogy 《林李宗谱》.
Song dynasty     During the Song Dynasty  Muslims played a major role in foreign trade.
The office of the Director General of Shipping was consistently held by a Muslim.
The Song Dynasty hired Muslim mercenaries from Bukhara to fight against Khitan nomads.
These men settled between the Sung capital of Kaifeng and Yenching  modern day Beijing .
They were led by the Amir of Bukhara  Sayyid  So fei er  in Chinese.
He is called the  Father  of Chinese Islam.
Islam was named by the Tang and Song Chinese as Dashi fa   law of the Arabs  .
Persian merchants Amin ud Din  Amiliding  and Saif ud Din  Saifuding led the revolt.
The corpses of the Pus were all stripped naked  their faces to the west.
Wassaf  and Arab historian said that Jamal became wealthy due to trade with India and China.
A Pu family relative by marriage  Yawuna  another Muslim assassinated those two.
Maritime trade was regulated and implemented extremely differently in the Ming dynasty.
The Muslim community in Quanzhou became a target of the people s anger.
and used the words  a bubbling cauldron  to describe Quanzhou.
In 1368 Quanzhou came under Ming control and the atmosphere calmed down for the Muslims.
The Ming passed some laws saying that Muslims not use Chinese surnames.
Ma Huan also mentions Guangdong was the source of many Muslims from China who moved to Java.
Cu Cu Jinbun was said to be Chinese.
And like most Muslims form China  Wali Sanga Sunan Giri was Hanafi according to Stamford Raffles.
In 1366 the Mongols slaughtered the Sunni Muslims of Quanzhou and ended the rebellion.
The Yuan dynasty s violent end saw repeated slaughters of Muslims until the Ming dynasty in 1368.
The role of trade in Quanzhou ended as Sunni Muslims fled to Southeast Asia from Quanzhou.
Only low status Han would convert to marry a Hui woman.
Muslim eunuchs contributed money in 1496 to repairing Niujie Mosque.
The Muslim Ming loyalists were supported by Hami s Sultan Sa id Baba and his son Prince Turumtay.
The Muslim Ming loyalists were joined by Tibetans and Han Chinese in the revolt.
Kangxi also distrusted Muslims of Turfan and  Hami.
These revolts were eventually put down by the Manchu government.
The Manchu official Shuxing a started an anti Muslim massacre which led to the Panthay Rebellion.
Du established himself as a Sultan in Yunnan during this revolt.
Loyalist Muslim forces helped Qing crush the rebel Muslims.
During the Panthay Rebellion  the Qing dynasty did not massacre Muslims who surrendered.
T o Ming s forces were defeated by Yaqub  who planned to conquer Dzungharia.
Yaqub intended to seize all Dungan territory.
Poems were written about Yaqub Beg s victories.
Hui rebels battled Turkic Muslims in addition to fighting the Qing.
Reportedly in 1862 the number of Hui in China proper numbered 30 000 000.
They have done so  and  generally speaking  have never been molested on account of their beliefs.
Their chief strength lies in the northern part.
Some hold office  and pass through the examinations to obtain it  most of them being military men.
Another revolt erupted in 1895 and was suppressed by loyalist Muslim troops.
Only some wealthy Manchus who were ransomed and Manchu females survived.
We have been good citizens among the Five Nationalities!
Another policy was one of deliberate humiliation.
The door was open by the landlord  a Muslim named Ha.
Mrs. Ha asked them why they killed her husband and they shot her.
The baby was killed with a bayonet.
They were about to rape the girls when the grandmother tried to protect them.
The soldiers killed her with a revolver.
The grandfather grasped the body of his wife and was killed.
The two girls were then stripped  the elder being raped by 2–3 men  and the younger by 3.
The older girl was stabbed afterwards and a cane was rammed in her vagina.
The soldiers then bayoneted another sister of between 7–8  who was also in the room.
The last murders in the house were of Ha s two children  aged 4 and 2 respectively.
The older was bayoneted and the younger split down through the head with a sword.
Newspapers in China reported the visit.
Ma Fuliang and Isa were working for Zhu Jiahua.
He went to British India  Hejaz in Saudi Arabia and Cairo in Egypt.
From 1938 to 1948 Da served on China s National Military Council.
Da was educated at Al Azhar in 1923.
Gandhi and Jinnah met with the Hui Ma Fuliang and Uyghur Isa Alptekin as they denounced Japan.
Yunnan and Kokang received Hui refugees from Panglong driven out by the Japanese.
Many Hui women wear veils and headscarves.
Since then  the government has been accused of repressing aspects of Hui culture deemed  Arab .
Many Hui Muslim civilians were killed by Uyghur rebellion troops known as Kizil massacre  1933 .
Hui and Uyghur live separately  attending different mosques.
During the 2009 rioting in Xinjiang that killed around 200 people   Kill the Han  kill the Hui.
Hui Muslim drug dealers are accused by Uyghur Muslims of pushing heroin onto Uyghurs.
Tibetan Muslim sectarian violence       In Tibet  the majority of Muslims are Hui people.
Tibetans also boycotted Muslim owned businesses.
Some Muslims avoided overt display of religious identity in the wake of the violence.
Several sects refuse to intermarry with each other.
One Sufi sect circulated an anti Salafi pamphlet in Arabic.
Sects of Islam      Hui are all Sunni Muslim following different Sufi schools.
They claimed Islam s superiority to  barbarian  religions.
Offerings were given to Dr. Sun by the participants  including Muslims.
Ma Bufang invited Kazakh Muslims to attend the Ceremony.
Ma Bufang received audiences of Christian missionaries  who sometimes preached the Gospel.
Muslims and Christians are brothers.
It was particularly prevalent in Gansu.
Chinese practices like incense burning at ancestral tablets and honoring Confucius were adopted.
One practice that was stringently observed was the ban on pork consumption.
The Sunni Gedimu and the Yihewani burned incense during worship.
This was viewed as Daoist or Buddhist influence.
The Hui were also known as the  White capped .
No minarets were available and no chanting accompanied the call to prayer.
An example of this is Pai Hsien yung  a Hui author in America  who adopted the name Kenneth.
His father was Muslim General Bai Chongxi  who had his children adopt western names.
He edited Shuofang Daozhi  a gazette and books such as Meng Cang ZhuangKuang  Hui Bu Xinjiang fu.
Generally Han of both sexes have to convert to Islam before marrying.
This practice helped increase the population of Hui.
Some marriages between Han and Hui are conducted this way.
The husband does not need to convert  but the wife s family follows Islamic customs.
Data was collected in different Beijing districts.
He married a Persian or an Arab girl  and brought her back to Quanzhou.
He fled his position due to fear of being punished for being a bannerman marrying a commoner woman.
Education     Hui have supported modern education and reform.
Hui such as Hu Songshan and the Ma Clique warlords promoted western  modern secular education.
Elite Hui received both Muslim and Confucian education.
They are the world s only female Imams.
They guide females in prayer but are not allowed to lead prayers.
In 756  over 4 000 Arab mercenaries joined the Chinese against An Lushan.
The Qing administration also preferred to use Hui in Xinjiang as police.
These troops were the Kansu Braves led by General Dong Fuxiang.
Military service continued into the Republic of China.
After the Kuomintang party took power  Hui participation in the military reached new levels.
They became known as the Ma Clique.
The Japanese planned to invade Ningxia from Suiyuan in 1939 and create a Hui puppet state.
A sincere unity of Muslims should be developed to contribute power towards the expulsion of Japan.
Ahong  is the Mandarin Chinese word for  imam .
Ma Zhanshan was a Hui guerilla fighter against the Japanese.
Ma Bufang became the ambassador of the Republic of China  Taiwan  to Saudi Arabia.
His brother  Ma Buqing  remained a military general on Taiwan.
Bai Chongxi and Ma Ching chiang were other Hui who served in Taiwan as military generals.
Member Bai Chongxi helped build the Taipei Grand Mosque on Taiwan.
Many members of the Hui Ma Clique were Kuomintang.
Hui put Kuomintang Blue Sky with a White Sun party symbols on their Halal restaurants and shops.
It had two Kuomintang party symbols on it.
Most were Hokkien speaking coolies and merchants originating from Fujian.
The exact Hui population is unclear today as many families left Islam before independence.
Saudi Arabia was settled by hundreds of Hui Muslim soldiers under Ma Chengxiang after 1949.
Tensions also mounted when Hui started migrating into Lhasa in the 1990s.
In February 2003  Tibetans rioted against Hui  destroying Hui owned shops and restaurants.
Many Hui Muslim civilians were killed by Uyghur rebel troops in the Kizil massacre  1933 .
Hui and Uyghur live separately  attending different mosques.
During the 2009 rioting in Xinjiang that killed around 200 people   Kill the Han  kill the Hui.
Ma Sanli  one of the most respected Chinese stand up comedians.
The following three indices are used  1.
This methodology was used by the UNDP until their 2011 report.
The formula defining the HDI is promulgated by the United Nations Development Programme  UNDP .
Below is the list of countries or territories with very high human development      increase.
Norway has been ranked the highest sixteen times  Canada eight times  and Japan and Iceland twice.
In parentheses is the year when the report was published.
I believe that what a country needs to develop is discipline more than democracy.
Democracy leads to undisciplined and disorderly conditions.
Generally speaking  western people are more suspicious of their powerful government officials.
Children are also in demand for factory or farm work or in the entertainment sector.
Traffickers target families who are socioeconomically poor.
Many Asian nations  developed or third world  have consistently breached women s rights.
Japan is a constitutional monarchy.
Many of these cases were ultimately resolved in the court.
due to the rights of the citizens the republic causes a cascade in the government.
Major issues    Article 14 of the Japanese Constitution guarantees equality between the sexes.
The percentage of women in full time jobs grew steadily during the 1980s and early 1990s.
Japan has a conviction rate of over 99 .
In several cases  courts have acknowledged confessions were forced and released those imprisoned.
To combat this  a law was passed in 2016 requiring some interrogations to be videotaped.
Some Japanese researchers believe that is one of the causes of the high conviction rate in Japan.
The prosecution rate in Japan is 33.4 .
The title of the chief executive in Japan is the Japan Executive Branch.
These commissions may direct the police to conduct investigations.
In 2003  the use of leather restraining body belts was abolished.
Softer leather handcuffs without body belts were instituted as substitute restraining devices.
Amnesty International has urged Japan to reform its police interrogation methods.
Allegations have been made that his death was caused by assault.
The authorities reported they had lost the documentation on nine deaths in Tokyo s Fuchū Prison.
Prisoners were not allowed to purchase or receive supplementary food.
Prisons operated at an average 117  capacity.
According to prison officials at Fuchu and Yokohama prisons  medical attention was inadequate.
In May  the Minister formed a subcommittee to improve prison medical facilities.
If the content is deemed  inappropriate   the letter may be censored or confiscated.
The MOJ is not required to inform a condemned inmate s family prior to the person s execution.
In December  the Upper House passed both a Crime Victims law and a revision to the 1908 Prison Law.
During the year  some women s detention facilities were operating over stated capacity.
Pretrial detainees were held separately from convicted prisoners.
The law provides for judicial determination of the legality of detention.
A judge must interview suspects prior to detention.
These extensions were sought and granted routinely.
The National Police Safety Commission oversees the National Police Agency  NPA .
Counsel may not be present during interrogations at any time before or after indictment.
Incommunicado detention could be used for up to 23 days.
The Law for Expediting Court Procedure became effective in 2003.
The average trial period in 2005 was 3.2 months for criminal cases and 8.2 months for civil cases.
The law was scheduled to take effect in 2009.
The defendant is presumed innocent.
A trial may proceed even if the accused does not understand what is happening or being said.
There were no reports of political prisoners.
A privacy bill to prevent such actions passed the Diet on May 2  2003.
However  Japan s system of exclusive press clubs has been criticised by press freedom groups.
This law has existed since before the Abe administration.
However  Japanese media strongly opposed this.
Internet access in Japan is absolutely unrestricted.
Freedom of religion      The Constitution provides for freedom of religion.
Article 20 states   Freedom of religion is guaranteed to all.
2  No person shall be compelled to take part in any religious act  celebration  rite or practice.
Concerns remained regarding the tendency of officials to judge deprogramming as a family matter.
According to media reports  several deportations were carried out in secret.
The LDP and the New Komeito Party formed the existing coalition government.
This was an increase of 14 cases from the previous year for the same time period.
In recent years  the numbers of women holding public office has slowly increased.
As of September 2003  there were two women in the Cabinet.
As of April 2003  4 of the country s 47 governors were women.
NPA statistics on violence against women probably understated the magnitude of the problem.
Police took action in 41 cases in which court orders were violated.
The Supreme Court ruled in favor of article 750 of the Civil Code in December 2015.
That article requires a husband and wife to adopt the same surname.
Rape    NPA statistics reported 2 472 rapes in 2003.
Joint physical custody or shared parenting is uncommon.
Many of these divorced people lose access and contact with their children.
Foreign parents post divorce can suffer from child abduction.
Rights of children    Boys and girls have equal access to health care and other public services.
Education is mostly free and compulsory through the lower secondary level  age 14 or ninth grade .
Children under the age of 14 cannot be held criminally responsible for their actions.
Approximately 50  of the cases involved violence  and 40  were cases of parental neglect.
Overall  cases of bullying rose 5.2 .
Student on student violence accounted for 50  of the violence by students in public schools.
In December  the Government released its Action Plan to combat trafficking in persons.
Sexual exploitation     Trafficking of women and girls into the country has been a problem.
The Government reported that some smugglers used killings and abduction to enforce cooperation.
The NPA also participated in 16 transnational investigations.
Entertainers  are not covered by the Labor Standards Law and have no minimum wage protections.
There were reports that some brokers used drugs to subjugate victims.
Few spoke Japanese well  making escape even more difficult.
Generally these trafficking victims were deported as illegal aliens.
The penalty for noncompliance is a fine.
The Law to Promote the Employment of the Handicapped includes those with mental disabilities.
These employees earn an average of 3 million yen per year  which is above the minimum wage.
Other foreigners also were subject to discrimination.
There was a widespread perception among Japanese citizens that foreigners committed many crimes.
Koreans were given the option of adopting a Japanese surname.
The amended law also enabled universities to set their admissions criteria at their own discretion.
As of May 2019  Japan has not ratified the Convention against Discrimination in Education.
In 2003  approximately 10.5 million workers  19.6  of all employees  belonged to labor unions.
Unions were free of government control and influence.
These rights were exercised freely  and collective bargaining was practiced widely.
The Constitution provides for the right to strike  and workers exercised this right in practice.
There are no export processing zones.
Involuntary servitude  except as punishment for crime  is prohibited.
Japan has ratified the ILO Convention on Forced Labour No.
29 in 1932  yet as of June 2015 still has not ratified Abolition of Forced Labour Convention No.
Prohibition of child labor     The Constitution bans the employment of children.
Minimum wage rates ranged according to prefecture from 606 to 710 yen per hour.
The Immigration Law provides for penalties against employers of undocumented foreign workers.
Maximum fines for illegal employment assistance were raised to 3 million yen in December.
There are only government guidelines against confiscation.
Companies fear that foreign employees could run away.
They have implored the Japanese government to make it illegal in order to protect human rights.
Precipitation is usually distributed throughout the year.
In addition  the location in question must not be semi arid or arid.
The Dfb  Dwb and Dsb subtypes are also known as hemiboreal.
These temperatures were not arbitrary.
In the United States  it is more common to use the 0 °C  32.0 °F  isotherm.
In places with sufficient wintertime precipitation  the snow cover is often deep.
Vegetation      By definition  forests thrive within this climate.
Within wetter areas  maple  spruce  pine  fir  and oak can be found.
Fall foliage is noted during the autumn.
Precipitation increases further eastward in this zone and is less seasonally uniform in the west.
Marine influences preclude Dfa  Dwa  and Dsa climates in the southern hemisphere.
Heat spells lasting over a week are rare.
It has little warming or precipitation effects from the northern Atlantic.
It is also known as warm temperate climate.
In a humid subtropical climate  summers are typically long  hot and humid.
Monthly mean summer temperatures are normally between 24 and 27 °C  75 and 81 °F .
Some lower portions of the Ethiopian Highlands also have this climate.
Drought can be severe and often catastrophic to agriculture in the Cwa zone.
Summer rainfall comes from the East Asian Monsoon and from frequent typhoons.
Parts of hilly and Terai of Nepal are marked subtopical.
Winters here are typically mild  dry and relatively short.
During this period many native trees defoliate to save water.
Average high temperatures decrease during the monsoon season  but humidity increases.
In Bangladesh  cities like Rangpur  Mymensingh  Rajshahi and Bogra fetures this climatic condition.
Temperatures are generally moderate in comparison with other parts of Western Asia.
During winter  the coastal areas can receive snowfall  which is usually of a short duration.
These climates are a Cfb Cfa  Oceanic climate Humid subtropical climate  borderline case.
In Mexico  there are small areas of Cfa and Cwa climates.
Guadalajara s climate is a major example of this.
However  for the majority of the winter here  temperatures remain above or well above freezing.
South America    Humid subtropical climates are found in a sizable portion of South America.
These areas  which include the Pampas  generally feature a Cfa climate categorization.
To note  these places would have characteristics of the semi arid and or Mediterranean climates.
Frost is prevalent in the more inland areas of Sydney  such as Richmond.
Some parts of the valley have a mild continental climate.
Budapest  Hungary is just warm enough to qualify  due to recent warming.
At 47°N  the city lies on the northern limit of the humid subtropical zone.
Hungary  Hungarian  Magyarország  ˈmɒɟɒrorsaːɡ   listen   is a country in Central Europe.
With about 10 million inhabitants  Hungary is a medium sized member state of the European Union.
Hungarians enjoy universal health care and tuition free secondary education.
Hungary joined the European Union in 2004 and has been part of the Schengen Area since 2007.
The rest of the word comes from the Latinized form of Byzantine Greek Oungroi  Οὔγγροι .
The Franks under Charlemagne defeated the Avars in a series of campaigns during the 790s.
Under Stephen  Hungary was recognised as a Catholic Apostolic Kingdom.
Around this time  Hungary began to become a powerful kingdom.
Ladislaus I extended Hungary s frontier in Transylvania and invaded Croatia in 1091.
His Golden Bull of 1222 was the first constitution in Continental Europe.
In 1241–1242  the kingdom received a major blow with the Mongol  Tatar  invasion.
Up to half of Hungary s then population of 2 000 000 were victims of the invasion.
King Béla IV let Cumans and Jassic people into the country  who were fleeing the Mongols.
The invading Mongol force was defeated near Pest by the royal army of Ladislaus IV of Hungary.
As with later invasions  it was repelled handily  the Mongols losing much of their invading force.
Sigismund was also  in several ways  a bilineal descendant of the Árpád dynasty.
The first Hungarian Bible translation was completed in 1439.
He was elected governor then regent.
He was a successful military leader and an enlightened patron of the arts and learning.
Abroad he defeated the Polish and German imperial armies of Frederick at Breslau  Wrocław .
The resulting degradation of order paved the way for Ottoman pre eminence.
The early appearance of Protestantism further worsened internal relations in the country.
The remaining central area  including the capital Buda  was known as the Pashalik of Buda.
The last raid into Hungary by the Ottoman vassals Tatars from Crimea took place in 1717.
The Hungarian Parliament was reconvened in 1825 to handle financial needs.
A liberal party emerged and focused on providing for the peasantry.
Many reformers  Lajos Kossuth  Mihály Táncsics  were imprisoned by the authorities.
The Hungarian forces  Honvédség  defeated Austrian armies.
This made Artúr Görgey surrender in August 1849.
Lajos Kossuth escaped into exile.
Following the war of 1848 – 1849  the whole country was in  passive resistance .
Economically  the empire was a customs union.
The old Hungarian Constitution was restored  and Franz Joseph I was crowned as King of Hungary.
The era witnessed impressive economic development.
The Central Powers conquered Serbia.
The Central Powers conquered Southern Romania and the Romanian capital Bucharest.
In 1916 Emperor Franz Joseph died  and the new monarch Charles IV sympathized with the pacifists.
With great difficulty  the Central powers stopped and repelled the attacks of the Russian Empire.
The Eastern front of the Allied  Entente  Powers completely collapsed.
The Austro Hungarian Empire then withdrew from all defeated countries.
On the Italian front  the Austro Hungarian army made no progress against Italy after January 1918.
Austria Hungary signed a general armistice in Padua on 3 November 1918.
In October 1918  Hungary s union with Austria was dissolved.
This happened under the direction of Béla Linder  minister of war in the Károlyi government.
During the rule of Károlyi s pacifist cabinet  Hungary lost the control over approx.
On 4 June of that year  the Treaty of Trianon established new borders for Hungary.
In 1939  Hungary regained further territory from Czechoslovakia through force.
Szálasi pledged all the country s capabilities in service of the German war machine.
After German occupation  Hungary participated in the Holocaust.
Nearly all of them were murdered.
The Horthy government s complicity in the Holocaust remains a point of controversy and contention.
Some 600 000 Hungarians were deported to Soviet labour camps  where at least 200 000 died.
Nagy promised market liberalization and political openness  while Rákosi opposed both vigorously.
Rákosi eventually managed to discredit Nagy and replace him with the more hard line Ernő Gerő.
Hungary joined the Warsaw Pact in May 1955  as societal dissatisfaction with the regime swelled.
Some 13 000 were interned and 230 brought to trial and executed.
Nagy was secretly tried  found guilty  sentenced to death and executed by hanging in June 1958.
Kádár quickly normalized the situation.
In many speeches  he described this as   Those who are not against us are with us.
József Antall became the first democratically elected Prime Minister since World War II.
As a NATO member  Hungary was involved in the Yugoslav Wars.
The Government s special authorisation is in force until the pandemic is declared to have ended.
The law was lifted on 16 June 2020.
The highest point of the area is the Írott kő in the Alps  at 882 metres  2 894 ft .
The Little Hungarian Plain  Kisalföld  is found in northern Transdanubia.
The Kékes at 1 014 m or 3 327 ft is the tallest mountain in Hungary and is found here.
Hungary is a landlocked country.
Average annual temperature is 9.7 °C  49.5 °F .
The average yearly rainfall is approximately 600 mm  23.6 in .
Hungary is ranked sixth in an environmental protection index by GW CAN.
Traditionally  the Prime Minister is the leader of the largest party in parliament.
The cabinet reports to parliament.
The government achieved a budget deficit 1.9  of the GDP in 2015.
Political parties      Since the fall of communism  Hungary has a multi party system.
The last Hungarian parliamentary election took place on 8 April 2018.
This parliamentary election was the 7th since the 1990 first multi party election.
The new electoral law also entered into force that day.
The voters elected 199 MPs instead of previous 386 lawmakers.
As a result of the Austro Hungarian Compromise  it was reconstituted in 1867.
Hungarian law is codified and based on German law and in a wider sense  civil law or Roman law.
The Hungarian Police is the main and largest state law enforcement agency in Hungary.
It is led by the National Police Commissioner under the control of the Minister of the Interior.
This merger took place in January 2008.
In addition  the capital  főváros   Budapest  is an independent entity.
The counties and the capital are the 20 NUTS third level units of Hungary.
The states are further subdivided into 174 districts  járás  as of 1 January 2013.
These seven regions constitute NUTS  second level units of Hungary.
Military      The President holds the title of commander in chief of the nation s armed forces.
Since 2007  the Hungarian Armed Forces has been under a unified command structure.
The Ministry of Defence maintains the political and civil control over the army.
A subordinate Joint Forces Command coordinates and commands the HDF.
Military service is voluntary  though conscription may occur in wartime.
In 1872  the Ludovica Military Academy officially began training cadets.
Conscription was introduced on a national basis in 1939.
Furthermore  it is the 9th most complex economy according to the Economic Complexity Index.
Hungary is the largest electronics producer in Central and Eastern Europe.
Unemployment rate was 4.1  in 2017 September  down from 11  during the financial crisis of 2007–08.
Hungary is part of the European single market which represents more than 508 million consumers.
The Global Innovation Index places Hungary 33rd among the countries of the world in 2016.
As of 2018  twelve Hungarian scientists have been recipients of a Nobel Prize.
Transport      Hungary has a highly developed road  railway  air and water transport system.
Budapest  the capital  serves as an important hub for the Hungarian railway system  MÁV .
Budapest  Debrecen  Miskolc  and Szeged have tram networks.
The system consists of four lines.
A commuter rail system  HÉV  operates in the Budapest metropolitan area.
Hungary has a total length of approximately 1 314 km  816.48 mi  motorways  Hungarian  autópálya .
The most important port is Budapest.
Other important ones include Dunaújváros and Baja.
Low budget airline WizzAir is based in Hungary  at Ferihegy.
As a result  its population has been gradually declining and rapidly ageing.
The fertility rate has gradually increased from 1.27 children born woman in 2011.
In 2015  47.9  of births were to unmarried women.
Hungary has one of the oldest populations in the world  with the average age of 42.7 years.
Thus  Hungarians made up more than 90  of people who declared their ethnicity.
Urbanization      Hungary has 3 152 localities as of 15 July 2013.
All county seats except Budapest are urban counties.
Languages      Hungarian is the official and predominant spoken language in Hungary.
Religion      Hungary is a historically Christian country.
Jewish  0.1    Buddhist  0.1   and Muslim  0.06   communities are in the minority.
There are about 120 000 Jews in Hungary today.
Education      Education in Hungary is predominantly public  run by the Ministry of Education.
Primary education usually lasts for eight years.
The general requirement for university is the Matura.
Health insurance for students is free until the end of their studies.
Sigismund established Óbuda University in 1395.
Another  Universitas Istropolitana  was established 1465 in Pozsony by Mattias Corvinus.
Plastic surgery is also a key sector  with 30  of the clients coming from abroad.
In this way  he created an original synthesis of architectural styles.
Aladár Árkay took almost the same route.
Hungary has made many contributions to the fields of folk  popular and classical music.
Older veteran underground bands such as Beatrice  from the 1980s  also remain popular.
It is also the oldest surviving Uralic poem.
These chronicles mix history with legends  so historically they are not always authentic.
The first printing house was also founded during Matthias  reign  by András Hess  in Buda.
The first book printed in Hungary was the Chronica Hungarorum.
The translation is called the Bible of Vizsoly  after the town where it was first published.
The Hungarian enlightenment took place about fifty years after the French Enlightenment.
The greatest poets of the time were Mihály Csokonai Vitéz and Dániel Berzsenyi.
The greatest figure of the language reform was Ferenc Kazinczy.
Dishes are often flavoured with paprika  ground red peppers   a Hungarian innovation.
Thick  heavy Hungarian sour cream called tejföl is often used to soften the dishes  flavour.
The bisztró is an inexpensive restaurant often with self service.
The büfé is the cheapest place  although one may have to eat standing at a counter.
However  plum  szilva  is the most popular flavour.
Beer goes well with many traditional Hungarian dishes.
The five main Hungarian beer brands are  Borsodi  Soproni  Arany Ászok  Kõbányai  and Dreher.
In Hungary  people traditionally do not clink their glasses or mugs when drinking beer.
The Hungarians brought their wine making knowledge from the East.
The most famous wines from Hungary are Tokaji Aszú and Egri Bikavér.
Gustav III  King of Sweden  loved Tokaji.
Recreation      Hungary is a land of thermal water.
A passion for spa culture and Hungarian history have been connected from the very beginning.
The remains of their bath complexes are still to be seen in Óbuda.
This building is a noted example of modern Renaissance style.
Folk art      Ugrós  Jumping dances  are old style dances dating back to the Middle Ages.
Karikázó is a circle dance performed by women only accompanied by singing of folk songs.
Csárdás are new style dances developed in the 18–19th centuries.
Although usually danced by young men  it can be also danced by older men.
The dance is generally performed freestyle by one dancer at a time in front of a band.
Each man performs a number of points  dance phrases   typically four to eight without repetition.
Each point consists of four parts  each lasting four counts.
The first part is usually the same for everyone  there are only a few variations .
Flowers and leaves  sometimes a bird or a spiral ornament  are the principal decorative themes.
Soft in line  the embroideries are applied on altar cloths  pillow cases and sheets.
The imprints are made by the thumb or a finger of the ceramist who makes the piece.
Many of its classic patterns are still in production.
The company introduced the eosin glazing process and pyrogranite ceramics.
Hungary has historically excelled in Olympic water sports.
They have also seen success in canoeing and kayaking they are the third most successful overall.
Since 1986  the race has been a round of the FIA Formula One World Championship.
The Hungarian Children s Football Federation was founded in 2008  as youth development thrives.
During UEFA Euro 2016 Hungary won Group F and were eventually defeated in the round of 16.
Contrary to common misconception  hunter gatherers are mostly well fed  rather than starving.
Many of them reside in the developing world  either in arid regions or tropical forests.
Karl Marx defined this socio economic system as primitive communism.
Hunter gatherers are often grouped together based on kinship and band  or tribe  membership.
Postmarital residence among hunter gatherers tends to be matrilocal  at least initially.
In all hunter gatherer societies  women appreciate the meat brought back to camp by men.
Among the Ju  hoansi people of Namibia  women help men track down quarry.
Therefore  no surplus of resources can be accumulated by any single member.
Of those that reach 15 years of age  64  continue to live to or past the age of 45.
This places the life expectancy between 21 and 37 years.
Therefore  these societies can be described as based on a  gift economy.
Archaeologists examine hunter gatherer tool kits to measure variability across different groups.
Immediate return foragers consume their food within a day or two after they procure it.
Delayed return foragers store the surplus food  Kelly  31 .
Still others in developed countries go hunting  primarily for leisure.
The majority of population groups at this time were still highly mobile hunter gatherers.
Gleaning involves the gathering of food that traditional farmers have left behind in their fields.
Other means to store energy include pressurized fluid in hydraulic hybrids.
Early prototype motorcycles in the late 19th century used the same principle.
Most motorized bicycles  mopeds are of this type.
Until 2005 they built several prototype SH tricycles and quadricycles.
The prototype uses a regular electric bicycle charge port.
Until recently most heavy vehicles had little secondary energy storage  e.g.
Both series and parallel setups were used in WW2 submarines.
It was tested in Rotterdam  the Netherlands with Railfeeding  a Genesee   Wyoming company.
It was an EMD G12 locomotive upgraded with batteries  a 200 kW diesel generator  and 4 AC motors.
The train has a 1400 hp engine which uses fumigation technology.
The first of these trains is set to run on the 81 km long Rewari Rohtak route.
Already many transport vehicles such as auto rickshaws and buses run on CNG fuel.
No fuel is wasted for idling —  60–85  of the time for these types of locomotives.
It is unclear if regenerative braking is used  but in principle  it is easily utilized.
The existing motors and running gear are all rebuilt and reused.
The energy used to lift the containers can be partially regained when they are lowered.
Diesel fuel and emission reductions of 50–70  are predicted by Railpower engineers.
First systems are expected to be operational in 2007.
Toyota  Ford  GM and others are introducing hybrid pickups and SUVs.
Acceleration was 0 60 mph in 8 seconds  using a 1.9 liter diesel engine.
No lightweight materials were used.
UPS currently has two trucks in service using this technology.
Another example is the diesel electric submarine.
The fuel cell provides all power for the cruise phase of flight.
The energy is stored in the fuel of the internal combustion engine and an electric battery set.
It has the range needed in locations where there are wide gaps with no services.
However  private use of the existing electrical system is almost universally prohibited.
Instead vehicles are built with two  parallel  fuel systems feeding one engine.
Rising gas prices may push consumers to purchase these vehicles.
On a per unit of energy comparative basis  this makes natural gas much cheaper than gasoline.
The system does not use air motors to drive the vehicle  being directly driven by a hybrid engine.
The engine uses a mixture of compressed air and gasoline injected into the cylinders.
Acceleration was 0 60 mph in 8 seconds  using a 1.9 L diesel engine.
No lightweight materials were used.
Research is underway in large corporations and small companies.
The focus has now switched to smaller vehicles.
The system components were expensive which precluded installation in smaller trucks and cars.
A drawback was that the power driving motors were not efficient enough at part load.
The company converted a BMW car as a test bed to prove viability.
The BMW 530i  gave double the mpg in city driving compared to the standard car.
Peak power is provided by the energy stored in the accumulator.
All bulky hydraulic components are integrated into the chassis of the car.
Hydrostatic drive with no friction brakes is used in industrial vehicles.
The aim is 170 mpg in average driving conditions.
A small fossil fuelled piston engine sized for average power use charges the accumulator.
The accumulator is sized at running the car for 15 minutes when fully charged.
The hydraulic and electronic components were supplied by Robert Bosch GmbH.
While in combustion mode the engine and motor run at the same speed.
The first mass production parallel hybrid sold outside Japan was the 1st generation Honda Insight.
The combustion engine can act as a generator charging the batteries.
On the open road  the primary power source is the internal combustion engine.
The BMW i3 with Range Extender is a production series hybrid.
The Fisker Karma was the first series hybrid production vehicle.
Series arrangements have been common in diesel electric locomotives and ships.
The vehicle could not move unless the internal combustion engine was running.
In 1997 Toyota released the first series hybrid bus sold in Japan.
Current tax systems in many European countries use mineral oil taxation as a major income source.
A smaller engine can have fewer internal losses and lower weight.
Recapturing significant amounts of energy during braking that are normally wasted as heat.
Tires cause mechanical drag  once again making the engine work harder  consuming more fuel.
For continuous high speed highway use  these features are much less useful in reducing emissions.
There are many types of batteries.
Some are far more toxic than others.
Hitachi is a leader in its development.
Charging     There are two different levels of charging.
Level one charging is the slower method as it uses a 120 V 15 A single phase grounded outlet.
Hybrid battery capacity currently ranges from 4.4 kWh to 85 kWh on a fully electric car.
The same electric motor that powers the drivetrain is used to resist the motion of the drivetrain.
Power can come from either the engine  motor  or both depending on driving circumstances.
This automation is much simpler with an electric motor.
Another option is to use alternative fuel composition  i.e.
Temma Ehrenfeld explained in an article by Newsweek.
Hybrid car companies have a long time to go if they expect to really go green.
Secondly  people find it rewarding to own the better  newer  flashier  and so called greener car.
This is a 40  reduction from the mandatory 2015 target of 130 g km.
This target will be in line with the EU s long term climate goals.
In 1881  street lamps in the city of Niagara Falls were powered by hydropower.
The Barbegal mill had sixteen water wheels processing up to 28 tons of grain per day.
Such sawmills had a waterwheel which drove two crank and connecting rods to power two saws.
It later evolved into hydraulic mining when used during the California Gold Rush.
The power source was normally a head of water  which could also be assisted by a pump.
These were extensive in Victorian cities in the United Kingdom.
A hydraulic power network was also developed in Geneva  Switzerland.
He applied scientific principles and testing methods to the problem of turbine design.
The Francis reaction turbine is still in wide use today.
Power is a function of the hydraulic head and volumetric flow rate.
The head is the energy per unit weight  or unit mass  of water.
The static head is proportional to the difference in height through which the water falls.
Dynamic head is related to the velocity of moving water.
Each unit of water can do an amount of work equal to its weight times the head.
Field testing of turbines is used to validate the manufacturer s guaranteed efficiency.
In this case  the available power is the kinetic energy of the flowing water.
Over shot water wheels can efficiently capture both types of energy.
The water flow in a stream can vary widely from season to season.
A separate outlet in the roof of the chamber supplies the compressed air.
It is the primary use of hydropower today.
Hyōgo Prefecture  兵庫県  Hyōgo ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu.
There the capital remained for five months.
Himeji Castle  a UNESCO World Heritage Site  is in the city of Himeji.
In 2020 Hyōgo became one of the worst affected prefectures for the COVID 19 virus in Western Japan.
On Awaji Island  Hyōgo borders the Pacific Ocean coastline in the Kii Channel.
Awaji is an island that separates the Inland Sea and Osaka Bay  lying between Honshu and Shikoku.
Summertime weather throughout Hyōgo is hot and humid.
Akō District would be defunct if the merger was successful.
Hyōgo is a part of the Hanshin Industrial Region.
SPring 8   a synchrotron radiation facility  is in Harima.
Sports     The sports teams listed below are based in Hyōgo.
Takeda Castle in Asago is often referred to locally as the  Machu Picchu of Japan .
The matsuba crab and Tajima beef are both national delicacies.
Just 18 years after  the Hōjō usurped power with Yoritomo s death.
Hōjō Masako  Tokimasa s daughter  was married to Yoritomo.
The Minamoto and even Imperial Princes became puppets and hostages of the Hōjō.
Although deprived of political power  the court retained extensive estates in Kyoto.
Several significant administrative achievements were made during the Hōjō regency.
The Hōjō regent presided over the council  which was a successful form of collective leadership.
As might be expected  the literature of the time reflected the unsettled nature of the period.
Multiple modern films have been made based on the epic novel.
The First iteration of the Sierpinski Triangle resembles that of the Hōjō clan mon.
Privately published books sometimes appear without an ISBN.
The International Standard Music Number  ISMN  covers musical scores.
The United Kingdom continued to use the nine digit SBN code until 1974.
one of 978 or 979   and can be separated between hyphens  such as  978 1 ... .
Registration groups have primarily been allocated within the 978 prefix element.
An example 5 digit registration group is 99936  for Bhutan.
Registrant element     The national ISBN agency assigns the registrant element  cf.
The web site of the ISBN agency does not offer any free method of looking up publisher codes.
Consequently  a publisher may have different allotted registrant elements.
There also may be more than one registration group identifier used in a country.
Here are some sample ISBN 10 codes  illustrating block length variations.
It consists of a single digit computed from the other digits in the number.
The check digit is base eleven  and can be an integer between 0 and 9  or an  X .
It can be proven mathematically that all pairs of valid ISBN 10s differ in at least two digits.
Therefore  the check digit has to be 2  and the complete sequence is ISBN 0 306 40615 2.
Alternatively  modular arithmetic is convenient for calculating the check digit using modulus 11.
The remainder of this sum when it is divided by 11  i.e.
its value modulo 11   is computed.
This remainder plus the check digit must equal either 0 or 11.
is calculated as follows   Thus the check digit is 2.
It is possible to avoid the multiplications in a software implementation by using two accumulators.
Subtracted from 10  that leaves a result from 1 to 10.
In general  the ISBN 13 check digit is calculated as follows.
For instance  the above example allows this situation with the 6 followed by a 1.
Most libraries and booksellers display the book record for an invalid ISBN issued by the publisher.
OCLC often indexes by invalid ISBNs  if the book is indexed in that way by a member library.
The process began on 1 January 2005 and was planned to conclude on 1 January 2007.
As of 2011  all the 13 digit ISBNs began with 978.
As the 978 ISBN supply is exhausted  the 979 prefix was introduced.
Part of the 979 prefix is reserved for use with the Musicland code for musical scores with an ISMN.
All ISMNs are now thirteen digits commencing 979 0  979 1 to 979 9 will be used by ISBN.
Moreover  the 10 digit ISBN check digit generally is not the same as the 13 digit ISBN check digit.
Hence  many booksellers  e.g.  Barnes   Noble  migrated to EAN barcodes as early as March 2005.
Also shows correct hyphenation   verifies if ISBNs are valid or not.
Such an identifier consists of 16 digits.
It can optionally be displayed as divided into four blocks.
Format without space     MARC  it was proposed to store the ISNI without spaces  e.g.
Individual researchers can create and claim their own ORCID identifier.
The two organisations coordinate their efforts.
Registration agencies are appointed by ISNI IA but will be managed and funded independently.
Originally it was located at the Deutsches Institut für Normung  DIN  in Berlin.
Members     There are fifteen experts with voting rights on the ISO 3166 MA.
Despite the words “private custom”  the use may include other public standards.
Current country codes    Please see the List of ISO 3166 country codes.
Currently for Japan  ISO 3166 2 codes are defined for 47 prefectures.
Each code consists of two parts  separated by a hyphen.
The first part is JP  the ISO 3166 1 alpha 2 code of Japan.
The codes are assigned roughly from north to south.
History     Ibaraki Prefecture was previously known as Hitachi Province.
In 1871  the name of the province became Ibaraki.
It also has a border on the southwest with Saitama Prefecture.
Hitachi is a world wide company as well as a city name where the company was founded.
Ibaraki is an agricultural prefecture  producing food crops that are used throughout the country.
As of March 2011  the prefecture produced 25  of Japan s bell peppers and Chinese cabbage.
Demographics    Ibaraki s population is decreasing more rapidly than any other prefecture.
Ibaraki is famous for the martial art of Aikido founded by Ueshiba Morihei  also known as Osensei.
However  the standard pronunciation is  Ibaraki .
Much of Ireland was woodland until the end of the Middle Ages.
There are twenty six extant land mammal species native to Ireland.
Rainfall and cloud cover are abundant.
The earliest evidence of human presence in Ireland is dated at 10 500 BC.
Gaelic Ireland had emerged by the 1st century AD.
The island was Christianised from the 5th century onward.
Following the 12th century Anglo Norman invasion  England claimed sovereignty.
With the Acts of Union in 1801  Ireland became a part of the United Kingdom.
Northern Ireland saw much civil unrest from the late 1960s until the 1990s.
This subsided following a political agreement in 1998.
Sea levels were lower and Ireland  like Great Britain  formed part of continental Europe.
Later  around 6000 BC  Great Britain became separated from continental Europe.
The fields were farmed for several centuries between 3500 BC and 3000 BC.
The theory holds that there were four separate Celtic invasions of Ireland.
The Priteni were said to be the first  followed by the Belgae from northern Gaul and Britain.
A similar genetic replacement happened with lineages in mitochondrial DNA.
These  new  names were likely to have been the local names for the islands at the time.
The relationship between the Roman Empire and the kingdoms of ancient Ireland is unclear.
Irish Christian scholars excelled in the study of Latin and Greek learning and Christian theology.
It was led by Richard de Clare  known as  Strongbow  owing to his prowess as an archer.
In 1171  Henry arrived in Ireland in order to review the general progress of the expedition.
He wanted to re exert royal authority over the invasion which was expanding beyond his control.
Henry was authorised to impose a tithe of one penny per hearth as an annual contribution.
This church levy  called Peter s Pence  is extant in Ireland as a voluntary donation.
This defined the Irish state as the Lordship of Ireland.
In some parts  a hybrid Hiberno Norman culture emerged.
In response  the Irish parliament passed the Statutes of Kilkenny in 1367.
A further 50 000 were sent into indentured servitude in the West Indies.
The religious struggles of the 17th century left a deep sectarian division in Ireland.
Additional regressive punitive legislation followed in 1703  1709 and 1728.
The new Anglo Irish ruling class became known as the Protestant Ascendancy.
This resulted in the famine of 1740.
The Irish government halted export of corn and kept the army in quarters but did little more.
By the end of the decade  half of all immigration to the United States was from Ireland.
Immediately prior to the famine the population was recorded as 8.2 million by the 1841 census.
The population has never returned to this level since.
The pre eminent Irish political figure after the Union was Daniel O Connell.
Daniel O Connell led a subsequent campaign  for the repeal of the Act of Union  which failed.
The Irish Volunteers split into two groups.
The civil war officially ended in May 1923 when de Valera issued a cease fire order.
The oath was abolished and in 1937 a new constitution was adopted.
The German intelligence was also active in Ireland.
To the authorities  counterintelligence was a fundamental line of defence.
This period of growth became known as the Celtic Tiger.
In 2000  it was the sixth richest country in the world in terms of GDP per capita.
The traditionally high levels of religiosity have sharply declined.
Law and order broke down as unrest and inter communal violence increased.
Over 3 600 deaths resulted over the subsequent three decades of conflict.
They share an open border and both are part of the Common Travel Area.
Northern Ireland elects 18 of the UK House of Commons  650 MPs.
The Northern Ireland Secretary is a cabinet level post in the British government.
Some have been converted into hotels  such as Ashford Castle  Castle Leslie and Dromoland Castle.
A form of biomass energy  this source of heat is still widely used in rural areas.
The island operates as a single market for electricity.
Both networks were designed and constructed independently post partition.
Research and development in renewable energy  such as wind power  has increased since 2004.
Large wind farms have been constructed in Cork  Donegal  Mayo and Antrim.
The ESB s Turlough Hill facility is the only power storage facility in the state.
1846  Westminster s repeal of the Corn Laws disrupted Irish agriculture.
A ring of coastal mountains surround low plains at the centre of the island.
The most arable land lies in the province of Leinster.
Western areas can be mountainous and rocky with green panoramic vistas.
Geology     The island consists of varied geological provinces.
The west coast district of the Burren around Lisdoonvarna has well developed karst features.
Overall  Ireland has a mild but changeable oceanic climate with few extremes.
Precipitation falls throughout the year but is light overall  particularly in the east.
Munster  in the south  records the least snow whereas Ulster  in the north  records the most.
Inland areas are warmer in summer and colder in winter.
Ireland is sometimes affected by heatwaves  most recently in 1995  2003  2006  2013 and 2018.
About 400 species of birds have been recorded in Ireland.
Many of these are migratory  including the barn swallow.
Extinct species include the Irish elk  the great auk  brown bear and the wolf.
In Europe  the average woodland cover is over 33 .
Much of the land is now covered with pasture and there are many species of wild flower.
The algal and seaweed flora is that of the cold temperate variety.
Demographics     People have lived in Ireland for over 9 000 years.
Later major groups included the Connachta  Ciannachta  Eóganachta.
Many survived into late medieval times  others vanished as they became politically unimportant.
Ireland s largest religious group is Christianity.
The largest is the Anglican Church of Ireland.
The island has a small Jewish community.
Twenty six of these counties are in the Republic of Ireland  and six are in Northern Ireland.
Belfast  with 579 726 residents  is the largest city in Northern Ireland.
City status does not directly equate with population size.
A population of over 8 million in 1841 was reduced to slightly more than 4 million by 1921.
A quarter of births  24 percent  in 2009 were to mothers born outside Ireland.
Languages      The two official languages of the Republic of Ireland are Irish and English.
Each language has produced noteworthy literature.
The Gaelic Revival of the early 20th century has had a long term influence.
It has been argued that they tend to be more highly educated than monolingual English speakers.
The main Gaeltacht areas are in the west  south west and north west.
It was introduced as the official language with the Tudor and Cromwellian conquests.
Shelta  the language of the nomadic Irish Travellers is native to Ireland.
These can be seen in the ornamentation of medieval religious and secular works.
Eibhlín Dubh Ní Chonaill  c. 1743 – c. 1800  was an outstanding poet in the oral tradition.
The latter part of the nineteenth century saw a rapid replacement of Irish by English.
The playwright and poet Oscar Wilde  noted for his epigrams  was born in Ireland.
Music      Music has been in evidence in Ireland since prehistoric times.
In the 19th century  public concerts provided access to classical music to all classes of society.
Contemporary Irish visual artists of note include Sean Scully  Kevin Abosch  and Alice Maher.
Other notable Irish physicists include Ernest Walton  winner of the 1951 Nobel Prize in Physics.
He had mathematician John Nash as one of his students.
The All Ireland Football Final is the most watched event in the sporting calendar.
The island fields a single international team in most sports.
Northern Ireland has produced two World Snooker Champions.
The game has been played in an organised fashion in Ireland since the 1870s  with Cliftonville F.C.
It was most popular  especially in its first decades  around Belfast and in Ulster.
Today the southern association is known as the Football Association of Ireland  FAI .
Other sports       Horse racing and greyhound racing are both popular in Ireland.
There are frequent horse race meetings and greyhound stadiums are well attended.
Ireland has won more medals in boxing than in any other Olympic sport.
Boxing is governed by the Irish Athletic Boxing Association.
In 2008 Kenneth Egan won a silver medal in the Beijing Games.
Katie Taylor has won gold in every European and World championship since 2005.
The 2006 Ryder Cup was held at The K Club in County Kildare.
Three golfers from Northern Ireland have been particularly successful.
Since just before the year 2010  Bundoran has hosted European championship surfing.
The temperate Irish climate is suited to sport angling.
Coarse fishing continues to increase its profile.
All of these influences can be seen today in the phenomenon of the  breakfast roll .
An example of this new cuisine is  Dublin Lawyer   lobster cooked in whiskey and cream.
Porter remains very popular  although it has lost sales since the mid 20th century to lager.
Red lemonade  a soft drink  is consumed on its own and as a mixer  particularly with whiskey.
It is also known as Kadō  華道   way of flowers  .
The tradition dates back to Heian period  when floral offerings were made at altars.
Possible translations include  giving life to flowers  and  arranging flowers .
With the introduction of Buddhism  offering flowers at Buddhist altars became common.
It was the first attempt to represent natural scenery.
The lines of these arrangements were known as centre and sub centre.
This style of decoration was called zashiki kazari  座敷飾 .
Yoshimasa finally abdicated the office in order to devote his time to the fine arts.
At this time ikebana was known as rikka.This same age conceived another form called nageirebana.
Rikka and nageirebana are the two branches into which ikebana has been divided.
Popularity of the two styles vacillated between these two for centuries.
It was welcomed by the people of the 16th century for its freedom of line and natural beauty.
They gave few rules and their chief object seemed to be to withhold all information.
During the early Edo period  17th century  publications in Japan developed rapidly.
Books about ikebana were published in succession.
During this time the Sendenshō  仙伝抄  was published and is the oldest published manual.
The Kawari Kaden Hisho  替花伝秘書  came out in Kanbun 1  1661 .
This was carefully written and very instructive  with rules and principles freely given.
In the Edo period  it was the second publication after the Sendenshō.
Tachibana had spread from monks to warriors and further on to townspeople.
The Kokon Rikka shu  古今立花集  was the oldest published works on rikka in Kanbun 12  1672 .
The Kokon Rikka taizen  古今立花大全   published in Tenna 3  1683   was the most famous rikka manual.
The Rikka Imayō Sugata  立華時勢粧  came out Jōkyō 5  1688 .
This was an age of utmost elegance.
All the fine arts were highly developed  above all pattern printing for fabrics and decoration.
From this time on  it ceased to be called nageirebana and took the name of ikebana.
This form has a fixed rule or model known as  heaven  human  and earth .
Is it known as Seika  生花   or Oseika  in many schools  or pronounced Shōka at Ikenobō.
At Mishō ryū the form is called Kakubana  格花 .
Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado is the honorary president.
Followers     Followers and practitioners of kadō are known as kadōka  華道家 .
A kadō teacher is called sensei  先生 .
Noted Japanese practitioners include Junichi Kakizaki  Mokichi Okada  and Yuki Tsuji.
Her mother Beverly Harden was a practitioner of the Sōgetsu school.
She later became also president of the Ikebana International Washington  DC chapter.
Schools    Mary Averill  1913  gives an overview of the numerous schools of ikebana.
He became a priest at the temple and spent the rest of his days practicing flower arranging.
The concept of hanakotoba  花言葉  is the Japanese form of the language of flowers.
In this practice  plants are given codes and passwords.
The colours of some flowers are considered unlucky.
Though ikebana is an expression of creativity  certain rules govern its form.
Another common but not exclusive aspect present in ikebana is its employment of minimalism.
Use of these terms is limited to certain schools and is not customary in more traditional schools.
A notable exception is the traditional rikka form  which follows other precepts.
Yet hundreds of ordinary occurrences are heralded by charming flower compositions.
Red flowers suggest fire  so are avoided on such occasions.
It is a time to appreciate things in nature that people often overlook because of their busy lives.
Kadō can inspire one to identify with beauty in all art forms.
Plants play an important role in the Japanese Shinto religion.
Yorishiro are objects that divine spirits are summoned to.
This first form of ikebana is called kuge  供華 .
Books were written about it   Sedensho  being the oldest one  covering the years 1443 to 1536.
Ikebana became a major part of traditional festivals  and exhibitions were occasionally held.
During the Momoyama period  1560–1600  splendid castles were constructed.
Key to this style are nine branches that represent elements of nature.
This style is the opposite of the Momoyama style and emphasizes rustic simplicity.
Chabana is not considered a style of ikebana but is separate.
The simplicity of chabana in turn helped create the nageirebana or  thrown in  style.
It is also known by the short form nageire.
It is a simple style that is designed to show the beauty and uniqueness of the plant itself.
Jiyūka  自由花   free flowers   is a free creative design.
It is not confined to flowers  every material can be used.
Such vases can be made with little effort by anyone and can find place nearly anywhere.
In popular culture    Ikebana is taught in schools.
It has also featured in manga  anime and been shown on television.
It was directed by Tetsuo Shinohara  and was based on a novel by Tadashi Onitsuka.
New York Pearson Education  Inc. Retrieved 30 July 2008  from NetLibrary  UMUC Database  .
London and New York  G. P. Putnam s Sons.
Ohi  Minobu  Ikenobō  Sen ei  Ohara  Hōun  Teshigahara  Sōfu  1996 .
In 2013  this number had fallen to 21 488 marriages or 3.25  of all marriages registered in Japan.
In 2014 it was the world s 2nd largest financial contributor to UNHCR programs.
As of December 2015 Japan had 13 831 asylum applications under review.
In 2014  more than 5000 applications were made and 11 applications were approved.
In 2016  97 refugee applicants were granted permission to stay on this basis.
Resubmission of asylum claims by previously unsuccessful applicants often occurs.
Security at both air and maritime ports is closely controlled.
Processing of applications can take up to 18 months.
In a Nikkei survey from 2019  69  of respondents said an increase in foreigners was  good .
The duties as an Emperor are passed down the line to their male children.
The Japanese monarchy is said to be the oldest continuous hereditary monarchy in the world.
He became heir apparent upon his father s accession to the throne.
Crown Prince Naruhito was married on 9 June 1993 to Masako Owada.
He was married on 10 April 1959 to Michiko Shōda.
His childhood title was Prince Aya.
His childhood title was Prince Yoshi.
The Princess was born on 4 June 1923  the second daughter of Viscount Masanori Takagi.
Princess Mikasa has two daughters and three sons with the late Prince Mikasa.
The Princess was born 10 July 1953  the eldest daughter of Shigejiro Tottori.
She married the prince on 6 December 1984.
The eldest daughter of Emperor Shōwa married the eldest son of Prince Naruhiko Higashikuni in 1943.
The Higashikuni family lost its imperial status in October 1947.
Yasuko Konoe  born 26 April 1944   eldest daughter and eldest child of Prince and Princess Mikasa.
Masako Sen  born 23 October 1951   second daughter and fourth child of Prince and Princess Mikasa.
Noriko Senge  born 22 July 1988   second daughter of Prince and Princess Takamado.
However  there are still unofficial heads of the living collateral families.
The main Fushimi branch will become extinct upon the death of the current head  Fushimi Hiroaki  b.
1932   as he has no male offspring to succeed him.
However  crown estates could only be used for public or imperially sanctioned undertakings.
In 1939  Nijō Castle was donated to the city of Kyoto.
2 599 548 acres  1 052 000 ha  of that was the Emperor s private lands.
The total landholdings of the crown estates was 512 161 acres  207 264 ha .
Staff numbers of the Imperial Household Ministry were slashed from roughly 6000 to about 1000.
They were all transferred to the Ministry of Agriculture  Forestry and Fisheries.
When Emperor Hirohito died  he left a personal fortune of £11 million in 1989.
The estimated landholdings is 6 810 acres  2 760 ha .
There are privately used imperial villas in Hayama  Nasu and the Suzaki Imperial Villa in Shimoda.
The Katsura Imperial Villa  Shugakuin Imperial Villa and Sentō Imperial Palace are in Kyoto.
There are a number of Imperial farms  residences and game preserves.
The Imperial Household Agency administers the Shosoin Imperial Repository in Nara.
The Imperial properties are all owned by the State.
Budget     The Emperor can spend £150 million of public money annually.
There are 30 archaeologists to protect the 895 imperial tombs.
There is a silkworm breeder of the Momijiyama Imperial Cocoonery.
There are also separate stewards in charge of handling silverware and the crystal.
The Kyoto Imperial Palace has a staff of 78 people.
There are also 67 who care for the horses at the Tochigi ranch.
There are scores of additional staff for the summer palaces at the beach and in the mountains.
Emperor Akihito spent £140 000 on building a wine cellar.
The farm costs are £3 million per year  2003 .
The emperor and his family have a monthly water bill of approximately £50 000  2003 .
The last  Empress 2  was built in 2008 as a hearse exclusively for royal funerals.
They are not prohibited from holding jobs or running businesses.
Polls after had 1 3rd who are  indifferent  towards it.
Such appointees were called the Shinninkan  親任官 .
The Emperor then leaves the room followed by the other officials.
The Emperor is required to appoint the designated person  without the right to decline appointment.
Later an Inspectorate General of Aviation became the third agency with oversight of the army.
The domains of Satsuma and Chōshū came to dominate the coalition against the shogunate.
They were opposed by 5 000 troops from the Satsuma  Chōshū  and Tosa domains.
At the two road junctions of Toba and Fushimi just south of Kyoto  the two forces clashed.
Yoshinobu and his closest advisors left for Edo by ship.
To replace them  two new organizations were created.
The army lacked a strong central staff that was capable of enforcing orders.
Consequently  military units were at the mercy of individual commanders  leadership and direction.
The leaders of the restoration were divided over the future organization of the army.
Ōkubo Toshimichi preferred a small volunteer force consisting of former samurai.
The emperor donated 100 000 ryō to underwrite the new unit  which was subordinate to the court.
It was composed of members of the Satsuma  Chōshū and Tosa domains  who had led the restoration.
The possession of this military force was a factor in the government s abolition of the han system.
Recruits who passed entered the draft lottery  where some were selected for active duty.
It was decided to send 2 500 men to Asan  about 70 km from the capital Seoul.
The two governments officially declared war on August 1.
The First Army with two divisions was activated on September 1.
The Japanese provided the largest contingent of troops  20 840  as well as 18 warships.
Four days later  the Qing court declared war on the foreign powers.
A second  stronger allied expeditionary army stormed Tianjin  on July 14  and occupied the city.
World War I     The Empire of Japan entered the war on the Entente side.
The plan was scaled back considerably due to opposition from the United States.
Unlike western countries  the Army enjoyed a great deal of independence from government.
In fact  Japanese civilian administrations needed the support of the Army in order to survive.
Nevertheless  by 1938 the Army had been expanded to 34 divisions.
The conflicts stopped with the signing of the Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact on April 13  1941.
By 1945  there were 6 million soldiers in the Imperial Japanese Army.
Such atrocities throughout the war caused many millions of deaths.
This was enacted by the Japanese in order to prevent militarism  which had led to conflict.
Growth and organization of the IJA     1870  consisted of 12 000 men.
2nd National Army  untrained 20 year olds and over 40 year old trained reserves.
includes 650 000 Imperial Japanese Army Air Service.
Japan s Imperial Army  Its Rise and Fall  1853–1945.
2010  Imperial Japan s World War Two  1931–1945  Transaction Publishers .
2014  The Imperial Japanese Army  The Invincible Years 1941–42  Bloomsbury Publishing  2014 .
It was the primary opponent of the Western Allies in the Pacific War.
A notable exception was during the Napoleonic wars when neutral ships flew the Dutch flag.
Frictions with the foreign ships  however  started from the beginning of the 19th century.
The shogunate also began to strengthen the nation s coastal defenses.
This was soon followed by the 1858 Treaty of Amity and Commerce and treaties with other powers.
In 1859 the Naval Training Center relocated to Tsukiji in Tokyo.
The domains of Chōshū  Hizen  Tosa and Kaga joined Satsuma in acquiring ships.
Numerous smaller domains also had acquired a number of ships.
In October 1873  Katsu Kaishū became Navy Minister.
The plan was abandoned within a year due to lack of resources.
Financial considerations were a major factor restricting the growth of the navy during the 1870s.
Japan at the time was not a wealthy state.
The resulting military organization followed the Rikushu Kaijū  Army first  Navy second  principle.
Archibald Douglas  arrived in Japan.
Later  Commander L.P. Willan was hired in 1879 to train naval cadets.
Private construction companies such as Ishikawajima and Kawasaki also emerged around this time.
Altogether  Bertin supervised the building of more than 20 units.
They helped establish the first true modern naval force of Japan.
1 frigate  the 1 600 ton Takao  built at Yokosuka.
1 aviso  the 726 ton Chishima  built in France.
The battle occurred before the war was officially declared on 1 August 1894.
On 17 September 1894  the Japanese encountered them off the mouth of the Yalu River.
The remnants of the Beiyang Fleet were destroyed at Weihaiwei.
Yamamoto was also advocating the construction of a balanced fleet.
Japan could now acquire armored cruisers that could take the place in the battle line.
As a consequence the  Six Six Fleet  was born  with six battleships and six armored cruisers.
Of the total warship acquisitions accounted for just over ¥200 million.
Consequently  the overwhelming majority was built in British shipyards.
On the other hand  the Japanese only lost 116 men and three torpedo boats.
The victory at Tsushima elevated the stature of the navy.
Satō called for a battlefleet at least 70  as strong as that of the USA.
However  financial constraints prevented this ideal ever becoming a reality.
Between 1903 and 1910  Japan began to build battleships domestically.
In the Siege of Tsingtao  the Imperial Japanese Navy helped seize the German colony of Tsingtao.
They were later joined by the cruiser Nisshin.
By the end of the war  the Japanese had escorted 788 allied transports.
Maximum limits of 35 000 tons and 16 inch guns were also set.
These were limited to 10 000 tons and 8 inch guns.
The Japanese were trained on several  such as the Gloster Sparrowhawk  then a frontline fighter.
The Japanese would go on to order 50 of these aircraft from Gloster  and build 40.
The new destroyer design was soon emulated by other navies.
The Fubukis also featured the first torpedo tubes enclosed in splinterproof turrets.
Japan  like Britain  was almost entirely dependent on foreign resources to supply its economy.
To achieve this goal  she had to build large warships capable of long range assault.
Neither really prevailed  and both types were developed.
Allied navies were devastated during the Japanese conquest of Southeast Asia.
From the end of 1943 to 1944 Japan s defensive perimeter failed to hold.
1976  World War II warships  Excalibur Books ISBN 0 85613 220 9 Sims  Richard  1998 .
Soie et lumières  L âge d or des échanges franco japonais  des origines aux années 1950 .
It is a contrast to the Paulownia Seal used by the Japanese government.
Therefore  each member of the Imperial family used a slightly modified version of the seal.
A central disc is surrounded by a front set of 16 petals.
An example of the chrysanthemum being used is in the badge for the Order of the Chrysanthemum.
The Imperial Seal is also used on the standards of the Imperial Family.
Here  they are a component of the definition for  safely managed drinking water service .
This page lists Japan related articles.
The event is traditionally held over Memorial Day weekend  usually the last weekend of May.
The inaugural race was held in 1911 and was won by Ray Harroun.
The event celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2011  and the 100th running was held in 2016.
Takuma Sato is the current champion.
The active driver with the most victories is Hélio Castroneves  with three.
Rick Mears holds the record for most career pole positions with six.
Penske also has five wins at the IndyCar Grand Prix  held on the combined road course.
Drivers race 200 laps  counter clockwise around the circuit  for a distance of 500 miles  800 km .
Since its inception in 1911  the race has always been scheduled on or around Memorial Day.
Since 1974  the race has been specifically scheduled for the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend.
Chevrolet and Honda are the current engine manufacturers involved in the sport.
Dallara is at present the sole chassis supplier to the series.
It has been reported to be the largest single day sporting event in the world.
That is unique to most sports where major events are usually at the end of the respective season.
Currently  the Indy 500 is the sixth event of the 17 race IndyCar schedule.
Due to safety issues such as aquaplaning  the race is not held in wet conditions.
The race can be  and in the past has been  finished under caution.
The circuit lacks lights  therefore lateness can become a factor in the cases of lengthy delays.
The combination allowed the track to rapidly acquire a privileged status for automobile races.
Eighty thousand spectators were in attendance  and an annual tradition had been established.
This second event was won by Joe Dawson in a National  after Ralph de Palma s Mercedes broke.
For 1923  riding mechanics were no longer required.
A supercharged car  ID  first won the race in 1924.
Ford and Chevrolet engines were built in the UK by Cosworth and Ilmor  respectively.
Before that  no active F1 driver had competed in the Indy 500 since 1984.
Foreign born drivers became a regular fixture of Indianapolis in the years to follow.
In 1919  the race was referred to as the  Liberty Sweepstakes  following WWI.
It is the first time since 1980 that the  Sweepstakes  title has been used.
As such  female reporters were not even allowed in the pit area until 1971.
There have been nine female drivers to qualify  starting with Janet Guthrie in 1977.
Sarah Fisher has competed nine times  the most of any woman.
Pippa Mann has raced in Indy five consecutive times between 2013 and 2017.
His appearance in 1952 in a Ferrari was also the only time a Ferrari has ever appeared in the race.
Juan Manuel Fangio practiced at the track in 1958 but declined an offer to race.
Despite the CART USAC divide  from 1983 to 1995 the race was run in relative harmony.
Veteran Buddy Lazier won a competitive but crash filled 1996 Indy 500.
For 1997  new rules for less expensive cars and  production based  engines were put into place.
On race day  Montoya dominated the event  leading 167 of the 200 laps to victory.
In 2001  Penske Racing returned and won the race with driver Hélio Castroneves.
Penske and Castroneves repeated with a win in 2002.
By 2003  Ganassi  Penske and Andretti Green defected to the IRL permanently.
The two series continued to operate separately through 2007.
Since 1993  the Coca Cola 600 has been scheduled in the evening the same day as the Indy 500.
The effort has been known as  Double Duty .
From there they would fly to Concord Regional Airport  and ride a helicopter to the NASCAR race.
This significantly closed the window for a driver to be able to race both events on the same day.
Nowadays  the race is routinely completed in under three and a half hours.
Two drivers  Mario Andretti and A. J. Foyt  have won the Indianapolis 500 and the Daytona 500.
Foyt won Le Mans in 1967  about one month after winning his third Indy 500.
Indianapolis 500 winner Johnny Rutherford once won one of the Daytona 500 qualifying races.
Brad Keselowski suggested that he would consider answering the challenge in 2014.
For 2019  NBC Sports and the Speedway changed the start time.
The engines started at 12 38 PM for a start time of 12 45 PM.
Rules are generally the same as every other IndyCar race.
The backup car is identified by the letter  T .
For example  the two cars for the  2 team would be numbered  2 and  2T.
Before and after qualification attempts  cars must pass another inspection.
It is relatively brief  due to the time constraints of the qualifying procedure.
The post qualifying inspection is much more stringent and lengthy  taking place in the garage area.
can also be completed quickly by the crews.
These drivers are then given only one attempt to re qualify using the same four lap format.
Drivers who qualify 31st 33rd have their positions locked in.
Drivers who finish 34th and lower fail to qualify.
The fastest nine drivers from Saturday take part in the  Fast Nine Shootout .
The qualifying order is based on the times from Saturday s session from slowest to fastest.
Once again  the times from Saturday are erased and each driver is given only one attempt.
At that time  a member of the team is stationed at the north end of the main stretch.
He or she must wave a green flag  signaling an attempt  or else the car will be waved off.
The attempt can be waved off during any of the four laps by the team  driver  or race officials.
The longest running Indy racing memorabilia show is the National Auto Racing Memorabilia Show.
After winning his third title in 1936  he requested another glass but instead received a bottle.
Milk has been presented each year since then  apart from 1947 to 1955.
Broadcasting    Radio coverage of the race dates back to 1922.
From 1965 through 1970  a highlighted version of the race was shown on ABC s Wide World of Sports.
From 1986 through 2018  ABC televised the race live in its entirety.
Coverage of time trials on ABC dates back to 1961.
ESPN  and later along with ESPN2  carried various portions of time trials from 1987 to 2008.
Versus  now NBCSN  covered time trials from 2009 to 2013.
Java  the world s most populous island  is home to more than half of the country s population.
The sovereign state is a presidential  constitutional republic with an elected legislature.
It has 34 provinces  of which five have special status.
The country s capital  Jakarta  is the second most populous urban area in the world.
The economy of Indonesia is the world s 15th largest by nominal GDP and 7th by GDP at PPP.
The name dates to the 18th century  far predating the formation of independent Indonesia.
Homo sapiens reached the region around 43 000 BCE.
Dutch and British traders followed.
Dutch forces were engaged continuously in quelling rebellions both on and off Java.
Tensions between the military and the PKI culminated in an attempted coup in 1965.
The PKI was blamed for the coup and effectively destroyed.
Indonesia was the country hardest hit by the 1997 Asian financial crisis.
Government and politics     Indonesia is a republic with a presidential system.
The DPR passes legislation and monitors the executive branch.
Additionally  the Judicial Commission  Komisi Yudisial  monitors the performance of judges.
Parties and elections      Since 1999  Indonesia has had a multi party system.
At the national level  Indonesians did not elect a president until 2004.
It marked the first time in UN history that a member state had attempted a withdrawal.
The army has about 400 000 active duty personnel.
Administrative divisions      Indonesia has several levels of subdivisions.
The first level is that of the provinces  with five out of a total of 34 having a special status.
Each has a legislature  Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat Daerah  DPRD  and an elected governor.
Geography     Indonesia lies between latitudes 11°S and 6°N  and longitudes 95°E and 141°E.
They serve as communication and transport links between the island s river settlements.
Indonesia has two seasons—a wet season and a dry season—with no extremes of summer or winter.
Humidity is quite high  at between 70 and 90 .
Of the 400 volcanoes  around 130 are active.
Between 1972 and 1991  there were 29 volcanic eruptions  mostly on Java.
Volcanic ash has made agricultural conditions unpredictable in some areas.
Its flora and fauna is a mixture of Asian and Australasian species.
Forests cover approximately 70  of the country.
Tropical seas surround Indonesia s 80 000 kilometres  50 000 miles  of coastline.
In his 1869 book  The Malay Archipelago  Wallace described numerous species unique to the area.
The region of islands between his line and New Guinea is now termed Wallacea.
This situation makes Indonesia the world s largest forest based emitter of greenhouse gases.
It also threatens the survival of indigenous and endemic species.
Impoverished communities would likely be affected the most by climate change.
Per capita GDP in PPP is US 14 020  while nominal per capita GDP is US 4 120.
The debt ratio to GDP is 29.2 .
Over time  the structure of the economy has changed considerably.
As a result  the official poverty rate fell from 60  to 15 .
Trade barriers reduction from the mid 1980s made the economy more globally integrated.
Furthermore  the country has the potential for geothermal  solar  wind  biomass and ocean energy.
Indonesia has set out to achieve 23  use of renewable energy by 2025 and 31  by 2050.
It later became widely used in several countries.
Dirgantara Indonesia   Indonesia has provided components for Boeing and Airbus.
Former President B. J. Habibie played a vital role in this achievement.
Tourism      Tourism contributed around US 19.7 billion to GDP in 2019.
China  Singapore  Malaysia  Australia  and Japan are the top five sources of visitors to Indonesia.
Nature and culture are prime attractions of Indonesian tourism.
Java is the world s most populous island  where 56  of the country s population lives.
In 1961  the first post colonial census recorded a total of 97 million people.
It is expected to grow to around 295 million by 2030 and 321 million by 2050.
As of 2017  about 54.7  of the population lives in urban areas.
The Sundanese  Malay  Batak  Madurese  Minangkabau and Buginese are the next largest groups.
Historically  they constituted only a tiny fraction of the native population and remain so today.
Almost 11  of Indonesians are Christians  while the rest are Hindus  Buddhists  and others.
Most Hindus are Balinese  and most Buddhists are Chinese Indonesians.
Education and health      Education is compulsory for 12 years.
Private international schools that do not follow the national curriculum are also available.
The literacy rate is 96   2018   and the government spends about 3.6  of GDP  2015  on education.
In addition  Indonesia has been reported to have sizeable numbers of child and forced labours.
Culture      The cultural history of the Indonesian archipelago spans more than two millennia.
There have been numerous discoveries of megalithic sculptures in Indonesia.
Subsequently  tribal art has flourished within the culture of Nias  Batak  Asmat  Dayak and Toraja.
Wood and stone are common materials used as the media for sculpting among these tribes.
Music  dance and clothing      The music of Indonesia predates historical records.
Indonesian dances have a diverse history  with more than 3 000 original dances.
Scholars believe that they had their beginning in rituals and religious worship.
They incorporate humour and jest and often involve audiences in their performances.
Modern performing art also developed in Indonesia with its distinct style of drama.
The film industry expanded after independence  with six films made in 1949 rising to 58 in 1955.
Production of films peaked during the 1980s  although it declined significantly in the next decade.
Between 2000 and 2005  the number of films released each year steadily increased.
It hands out the Citra Award  the film industry s most prestigious award.
From 1973 to 1992  the festival was held annually and then discontinued until its revival in 2004.
Private radio stations carry news bulletins while foreign broadcasters supply programmes.
Indo Internet began operation in Jakarta in 1994.
Literature and poetry flourished during the decades leading up to and after independence.
Many scholars consider the 1950s and 1960s to be the Golden Age of Indonesian Literature.
Rice is the leading staple food and is served with side dishes of meat and vegetables.
Other popular dishes include rendang  one of the many Padang cuisines along with dendeng and gulai.
Badminton and football are the most popular sports.
Liga 1 is the country s premier football club league.
In motorsport  Rio Haryanto became the first Indonesian to compete in Formula One in 2016.
This involves an extensive re organisation of an economy for the purpose of manufacturing.
The reorganization of the economy has many knock on effects both economically and socially.
The invention of the assembly line gave this phase a boost.
Coal mines  steelworks  and textile factories replaced homes as the place of work.
Families and children reaching adulthood are more mobile and tend to relocate to where jobs exist.
Extended family bonds become more tenuous.
Environmentalism and Green politics may represent more visceral reactions to industrial growth.
The relationships among economic growth  employment  and poverty reduction are complex.
Higher productivity  it is argued  may lead to lower employment  see jobless recovery .
See also         References         Further reading    Chandler Jr.  Alfred D.  1993 .
In 2008  the IndyCar Series merged with CART s successor  the Champ Car World Series.
The series is self sanctioned by its parent company  INDYCAR  LLC.
The series  premier event is the Indianapolis 500.
Izod was announced as the series title sponsor beginning on November 5  2009.
The first new Indycar came into being in 1997.
Tony George specified new technical rules for less expensive cars and production based engines.
In total  four manufacturers have built IndyCar chassis.
Dallara began producing Indycars for the 1997 season.
This caused more teams to switch to the Dallara  further increasing their success.
Dallara was also tabbed to build the Firestone Indy Lights machines.
The G Force chassis was introduced in 1997 and won the 1997 and 2000 Indy 500 races.
It fell out of favor starting in 2006  and by then  only one finished in the top ten at Indy.
Riley   Scott produced IndyCar chassis from 1997 to 2000.
It also proved to be uncompetitive.
Later cars were designed to accommodate the added requirements of road racing.
2015 2017      In 2015  teams began running aero kits developed by their engine manufacturers.
Beginning in 2018  all DW12 Safety Cell chassis was fitted with a universal bodywork kit.
The bodywork is inspired by CART s 1990s and 2000s designs  with a more streamlined appearance.
All IndyCar Series car drivetrains are currently rear mid engine with rear wheel drive layout.
Racing has been supplying forged wheels since 1996.
The wheel rims for all IndyCar Series cars are made of aluminum alloy.
The IndyCar Series runs the bespoke compounds since 1996 and re profiled in 2003.
From the 2020 season onwards  the IndyCar Series will implement a cockpit protection system.
Methanol had long provided a safer alternative to gasoline.
It had a higher flash point  was easily extinguishable with water  and burned invisible.
As a safety feature  the methanol would burn with color.
EPIC is a consortium of ethanol producers that advocate the increased use of ethanol.
Dana was killed in a crash in 2006  but the IRL had already begun a transition to ethanol fuel.
For the 2006 season the fuel was a 90  10  mixture of methanol and ethanol.
Since ethanol gets better fuel mileage than methanol  the fuel tanks in the car were decreased.
The fumes are often compared with the sweet smell of apple cider or apple cobbler.
It also is less polluting when spilled compared to methanol.
Since 2012 the capacity has been 18.5 US gallons  70 litres .
V 8 powerplants were allowed the typical 45 inHg  1.5 bar  22.1 psi  of pressure boost.
The Menard Buick V6 engine used in 1996  however  was an updated powerplant from the 1995 version.
headers  clutch  ECU  spark box or filters .
They produced around 700 hp  520 kW .
They were purpose built racing engines.
The engine formula was changed with the 2000–2004 formula.
The engines also switched to 180° crankshafts  and the rev limits were adjusted from time to time.
This formula was used through 2003.
By the end of the 1998 season  only a handful of low budget teams were using the Infiniti.
However  the effort could not compete with the Toyota and Honda programs starting in 2003.
At the time  Cosworth was owned by Ford.
In 2003  Toyota came to the IRL from the rival CART series.
Toyota won its first race in Miami  as well as the Indianapolis 500 and the series title.
Honda also came to the IRL in 2003  and by 2005 was clearly the dominant engine manufacturer.
As such  the engines were moderately de tuned.
The valve train is a dual overhead camshaft configuration with four valves per cylinder.
The fuel feed of Honda Indy V8 engine was an electronic indirect multipoint port fuel injection.
The crankshaft is made of alloy steel  with five main bearing caps.
The pistons are forged aluminum alloy  while the connecting rods are machined alloy steel.
The engine lubrication is a dry sump type  cooled by a single water pump.
They are limited to 12 000 rpm and weighed up to 248 lb  112 kg .
Engines are currently supplied by Chevrolet and Honda.
Since the 2012 season  McLaren has supplied its TAG 400i engine control unit.
No fuel flow restriction exists in the IndyCar Series engine configuration.
Porsche also expressed interest in joining the series as a third engine supplier in 2019.
Ultimately Porsche backed out when IndyCar refused to allow them to field a hybrid powertrain.
Turbocharger        The turbochargers are reintroduced from the start of 2012 season.
The turbochargers of all IndyCar Series engines are incorporated by intercoolers.
In addition  hybrid systems will also be introduced as relevance to hybrid road vehicles.
The current third generation IndyCar Series engines will retire after 2021.
Previously Denso also was a sparkplugs supplier in 2003–2005 for Toyota powered cars.
On the new Walt Disney World Speedway the first IRL race took place in January 1996.
After the series was established  ovals used mainly by NASCAR were raced on.
For the 2001 season  the IRL also began to race on ovals that were being used by CART.
In addition  the new 1.5 mile ovals of Kansas  Kentucky  and Chicagoland were added.
These tracks were the backbone of the IRL until 2011.
Nazareth Speedway only held three races before ISC closed the track in 2004.
The first major change took place in the 2005 season.
For the first time in the history of the IRL  races were held at road and street courses.
A street course race in St. Petersburg has been added to the calendar.
In addition  races at Sonoma and Watkins Glen  the two NASCAR road course circuits were added.
In 2007  the Mid Ohio Sports Car Course was added.
These are the street races of Long Beach  Detroit  and Toronto  and starting in 2016  Road America.
The second big change took place in the 2012 season.
In 2011  the series returned for the first time since 2000 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
This new configuration led to tight pack racing.
This event led to massive media criticism of oval races for open wheel vehicles.
Instead  more races were held in cities  including Houston  Baltimore  and São Paulo.
In addition  traditional street races in Long Beach  Detroit and Toronto were canceled.
As compensation  double header races take place in Road America  Iowa  Mid Ohio and Gateway.
The winner of a race gets 50 points.
The top three drivers are separated by ten and five points respectively.
The fourth through tenth place finishers are separated by two points each.
Eleventh through twenty fifth are separated by one point each.
All other drivers who start the race score five points.
For the Indianapolis 500  qualifying points are awarded for all 33 cars at the Indianapolis 500.
Note that street courses are included as part of the road racing discipline.
Since 2013  the individual discipline trophies have received markedly less fanfare.
The 1996 97 season was broadcast by ABC  CBS and ESPN.
In 1998  TNN was added to the rotation.
In Portugal  all of the IndyCar Series are broadcast on Sport TV.
SporTV also broadcast races from 2001 until 2004.
It is used in data mining and consolidation of data from unstructured or semi structured resources.
Japan is divided into 47 administrative prefectures and eight traditional regions.
In 1937  Japan invaded China  in 1941  it entered World War II as an Axis power.
The characters 日本 mean  sun origin .
Clay vessels from the period are among the oldest surviving examples of pottery.
In 784  Emperor Kanmu moved the capital  settling on Heian kyō  modern Kyoto  in 794.
After Yoritomo s death  the Hōjō clan came to power as regents for the shōguns.
Go Daigo was defeated by Ashikaga Takauji in 1336  beginning the Muromachi period  1336–1573 .
When open war broke out  Ieyasu defeated rival clans in the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600.
The Edo period gave rise to kokugaku   national studies    the study of Japan by the Japanese.
Geography     Japan comprises 6852 islands extending along the Pacific coast of Asia.
The Ryukyu Islands  which include Okinawa  are a chain to the south of Kyushu.
The Nanpō Islands are south and east of the main islands of Japan.
Together they are often known as the Japanese archipelago.
As of 2019  Japan s territory is 377 975.24 km2  145 937.06 sq mi .
Japan has the sixth longest coastline in the world at 29 751 km  18 486 mi .
It has the 17th highest natural disaster risk as measured in the 2016 World Risk Index.
Japan has 111 active volcanoes.
In the summer  the region sometimes experiences extremely hot temperatures because of the foehn.
The Ryukyu and Nanpō Islands have a subtropical climate  with warm winters and hot summers.
Precipitation is very heavy  especially during the rainy season.
The main rainy season begins in early May in Okinawa  and the rain front gradually moves north.
In late summer and early autumn  typhoons often bring heavy rain.
Responding to rising concern  the government introduced environmental protection laws in 1970.
Japan is the world s fifth largest emitter of carbon dioxide.
In 2020 the government of Japan announced a target of carbon neutrality by 2050.
Japan s legislative organ is the National Diet  a bicameral parliament.
The Constitution of Japan  adopted in 1947  is the oldest unamended constitution in the world.
The main body of Japanese statutory law is called the Six Codes.
Military      Japan is the second highest ranked Asian country in the Global Peace Index 2020.
Japan maintains one of the largest military budgets of any country in the world.
As of 2019  Japan s labor force consisted of 67 million workers.
Japan has a low unemployment rate of around 2.4 percent.
Around 16 percent of the population were below the poverty line in 2017.
Its main exports are motor vehicles  iron and steel products  semiconductors and auto parts.
Japan ranks highly for competitiveness and economic freedom.
It is ranked sixth in the Global Competitiveness Report for 2015–2016.
Only 11.5  of Japan s land is suitable for cultivation.
Because of this lack of arable land  a system of terraces is used to farm in small areas.
Japan s small agricultural sector is highly subsidized and protected.
Japan has sparked controversy by supporting commercial whaling.
Japan s industrial sector makes up approximately 27.5  of its GDP.
For inbound tourism  Japan was ranked 11th in the world in 2019.
However  video gaming in Japan remains a major industry.
The space probe Akatsuki was launched in 2010 and achieved orbit around Venus in 2015.
Japan s plans in space exploration include building a moon base and landing astronauts by 2030.
The largest domestic airport  Haneda Airport in Tokyo  was Asia s second busiest airport in 2019.
Nuclear power was down from 11.2 percent in 2010.
Japan lacks significant domestic reserves and has a heavy dependence on imported energy.
Access to an improved water source is universal in Japan.
About 98  of the population receives piped water supply from public utilities.
In 2019  92  of the total Japanese population lived in cities.
The capital city Tokyo has a population of 13.8 million  2018 .
A growing number of younger Japanese are not marrying or remain childless.
Japan s population is expected to drop to around 100 million by 2050.
Today  1  to 1.5  of the population are Christians.
Almost all children continue their education at a three year senior high school.
The two top ranking universities in Japan are the University of Tokyo and Kyoto University.
Health      Health care is provided by national and local governments.
Another significant public health issue is smoking among Japanese men.
The Shrines of Ise have been celebrated as the prototype of Japanese architecture.
The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter is considered the oldest extant Japanese narrative.
In its literary forms  Japanese philosophy began about fourteen centuries ago.
Buddhism has profoundly impacted Japanese psychology  metaphysics  and esthetics.
Performing arts      Japanese music is eclectic and diverse.
Many instruments  such as the koto  were introduced in the 9th and 10th centuries.
Noh is one of the oldest continuous theater traditions in the world.
Isagiyosa  潔さ  is a virtue of the capability of accepting death with composure.
Cherry blossoms are a symbol of isagiyosa in the sense of embracing the transience of the world.
Seafood and Japanese rice or noodles are traditional staples.
Traditional Japanese sweets are known as wagashi.
Ingredients such as red bean paste and mochi are used.
Beer has been brewed in Japan since the late 17th century.
Japan is a world renowned powerhouse of animation.
Sports      Traditionally  sumo is considered Japan s national sport.
Baseball is the most popular spectator sport in the country.
Japan s top professional league  Nippon Professional Baseball  was established in 1936.
The country co hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup with South Korea.
Japan is the most successful Asian Rugby Union country and hosted the 2019 IRB Rugby World Cup.
It was founded in 1895 to unite  represent and serve co operatives worldwide.
Around one hundred million people work for co operatives globally.
Co operatives are values based businesses owned by their members.
In December 2009  the United Nations declared 2012 as the International Year of Cooperatives.
The present flag shows the ICA seven color logo on a white background.
The defense comprised Japanese and American lawyers.
Two defendants died during the proceedings and one was ruled unfit to stand trial.
All remaining defendants were found guilty of at least one count.
Sentences ranged from seven years  imprisonment to execution.
The tribunal was adjourned on November 12  1948.
Tojo tried to commit suicide  but was resuscitated with the help of U.S. doctors.
The charter generally followed the model set by the Nuremberg trials.
The trials were held in the War Ministry office in Tokyo.
In the event  no Class C charges were heard in Tokyo.
It submitted its evidence in fifteen phases.
The Tribunal embraced the best evidence rule once the Prosecution had rested.
To prove their case  the prosecution team relied on the doctrine of  command responsibility.
This doctrine was that it did not require proof of criminal orders.
The recollection of a conversation with a long dead man was admitted.
The defense argued that Allied Powers  violations of international law should be examined.
Two defendants  Yōsuke Matsuoka and Osami Nagano  died of natural causes during the trial.
Sixteen defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment.
Foreign minister Mamoru Shigemitsu was sentenced to 7 years.
Six of those representatives made no recommendations for clemency.
The trials took place in around fifty locations in Asia and the Pacific.
Most trials were completed by 1949  but Australia held some trials in 1951.
China held 13 tribunals  resulting in 504 convictions and 149 executions.
However  those who surrendered to the Americans were never brought to trial.
The deal was concluded in 1948.
The IMTFE had less official support than the Nuremberg trials.
Justice Jaranilla had been captured by the Japanese and walked the Bataan Death March.
Pal was the only judge to argue for the acquittal of all of the defendants.
I think the forthcoming trials offer the best opportunity to do that.
Tōjō  in particular  should be made to bear all responsibility at this trial.
Three justices wrote an obiter dictum about the criminal responsibility of Hirohito.
They were released in 1947 and 1948.
The first group of 28 were major leaders in the military  political  and diplomatic sphere.
Some executions had not yet been carried out  as Allied courts agreed to reexamine their verdicts.
The issue of criminal responsibility was reframed as a humanitarian problem.
Several of those who were imprisoned were released earlier on parole due to ill health.
The movement quickly garnered the support of more than ten million Japanese.
The war criminals themselves called for their own release as part of an anti war peace movement.
27  2013   Media related to International Military Tribunal for the Far East at Wikimedia Commons
IMF funds come from two major sources  quotas and loans.
Quotas  which are pooled funds of member nations  generate most IMF funds.
The size of a member s quota depends on its economic and financial importance in the world.
Nations with greater economic significance have larger quotas.
Gita Gopinath was appointed as Chief Economist of IMF from 1 October 2018.
The IMF provides alternate sources of financing.
This assistance was meant to prevent the spread of international economic crises.
The IMF s role was fundamentally altered by the floating exchange rates post 1971.
The IMF also researched what types of government policy would ensure economic recovery.
This activity is known as surveillance and facilitates international co operation.
Indeed  it was at this number that the Greek economy melted down in 2010.
Some countries initially used the GDDS  but later upgraded to SDDS.
If the conditions are not met  the funds are withheld.
There were two views on the role the IMF should assume as a global economic institution.
Most of White s plan was incorporated into the final acts adopted at Bretton Woods.
By the end of 1946 the IMF had grown to 39 members.
The IMF s influence in the global economy steadily increased as it accumulated more members.
This is known as the Nixon Shock.
The corporate members appoint ex officio voting members  who are listed below.
Poland withdrew in 1950—allegedly pressured by the Soviet Union—but returned in 1986.
Qualifications     Any country may apply to be a part of the IMF.
Each member country appoints its two governors.
They also advise on trade and environmental issues.
Executive Board     24 Executive Directors make up the Executive Board.
The Executive Directors represent all 189 member countries in a geographically based roster.
This Board usually meets several times each week.
The Board membership and constituency is scheduled for periodic review every eight years.
The charges were later dropped.
Together  the Managing Director and his her First Deputy lead the senior management of the IMF.
Like the Managing Director  the First Deputy traditionally serves a five year term.
The special drawing right is the unit of account of the IMF and represents a claim to currency.
It is based on a basket of key international currencies.
Changes in the voting shares require approval by a super majority of 85  of voting power.
Other top 10 members are the United States  Japan  Germany  France  the United Kingdom and Italy.
Effects of the quota system     The IMF s quota system was created to raise funds for loans.
Each member s quota also determines its relative voting power.
Currently  reforming the representation of developing countries within the IMF has been suggested.
Both developed country  creditors  and developing country  borrowers  are members of the IMF.
Such a reform was essential for ending the crisis atmosphere that then existed in emerging markets.
This criticism was voiced in the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis.
Moreover  the burden of the deflation is disproportionately borne by the poor.
However  Zambia returned to a debt of over half its GDP in less than a decade.
Countries are often advised to lower their corporate tax rate.
The IMF and its ultra liberal experts took control of the borrowing countries  economic policies.
A new form of colonization was thus instituted.
International politics play an important role in IMF decision making.
The clout of member states is roughly proportional to its contribution to IMF finances.
The United States has the greatest number of votes and therefore wields the most influence.
Development economics needs the reform  not the IMF.
Reforms to give more powers to emerging economies were agreed by the G20 in 2010.
After repeated criticism  the United States finally ratified the voting reforms at the end of 2015.
The controversy has helped spark the anti globalization movement.
In the 21 countries to which the IMF had given loans  tuberculosis deaths rose by 16.6 .
At the time  Lagarde was the French economic minister.
In September 2018  the sentence was confirmed by the Supreme Court of Spain.
Debtocracy  a 2011 independent Greek documentary film  also criticises the IMF.
Uneven Patterns of Governance  How Developing Countries are Represented in the IMF.
Major ISS modules have been launched by Russian Proton and Soyuz rockets and US Space Shuttles.
On 3 April 2013  scientists reported that hints of dark matter may have been detected by the AMS.
The space environment is hostile to life.
The study considers the diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions in space.
Usually  there is no physician on board the ISS and diagnosis of medical conditions is a challenge.
ESA offers a wide range of free teaching materials that can be downloaded for use in classrooms.
These were the first content made in space specifically for Wikipedia.
On 12 July 2000  Zvezda was launched into orbit.
Preprogrammed commands on board deployed its solar arrays and communications antenna.
Zarya s computer transferred control of the station to Zvezda s computer soon after docking.
Shepherd had been advocating the use of a new name to project managers for some time.
A Soyuz U rocket delivered the Pirs docking compartment.
These were soon followed by the first two components of Kibō.
Hydrogen gas is constantly vented overboard by the oxygen generators.
Structure     The ISS is a third generation modular space station.
Below is a diagram of major station components.
The blue areas are pressurised sections accessible by the crew without using spacesuits.
The station s unpressurised superstructure is indicated in red.
Other unpressurised components are yellow.
The Unity node joins directly to the Destiny laboratory.
For clarity  they are shown apart.
Funktsionalno gruzovoy blok  or ФГБ   is the first module of the ISS to have been launched.
The Zarya is a descendant of the TKS spacecraft designed for the Russian Salyut program.
Although it was built by a Russian company  it is owned by the United States.
It connects the Russian and U.S. segments of the station  and is where crew eat meals together.
Unity is the first of the three connecting modules  the other two are Harmony and Tranquility.
Crew assemble here to deal with emergencies on the station.
The module was manufactured by RKK Energia  with major sub contracting work by GKNPTs Khrunichev.
Lab  is the primary operating facility for U.S. research payloads aboard the ISS.
It was berthed to the Unity module and activated over a period of five days in February  2001.
It launched on February 7  2001  aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis on STS 98.
Astronauts work inside the pressurized facility to conduct research in numerous scientific fields.
The airlock was launched on STS 104 on July 14  2001.
Search   are Russian airlock modules  each having two identical hatches.
All EVA hatches on the ISS open inwards and are pressure sealing.
Harmony       Harmony  also known as Node 2  is the  utility hub  of the ISS.
Sleeping cabins for four of the crew are housed here.
Tranquility       Tranquility  also known as Node 3  is a module of the ISS.
A ceremony on November 20  2009 transferred ownership of the module to NASA.
On February 8  2010  NASA launched the module on the Space Shuttle s STS 130 mission.
The functional equipment and software of the lab was designed by EADS in Bremen  Germany.
It was launched aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis on February 7  2008  on flight STS 122.
It is designed for ten years of operation.
It is the largest single ISS module  and is attached to the Harmony module.
The first two pieces of the module were launched on Space Shuttle missions STS 123 and STS 124.
The third and final components were launched on STS 127.
Cupola       The Cupola is an ESA built observatory module of the ISS.
Its name derives from the Italian word cupola  which means  dome .
Its seven windows are used to conduct experiments  dockings and observations of Earth.
With the Cupola attached  ISS assembly reached 85 percent completion.
The Cupola s central window has a diameter of 80 cm  31 in .
The module s design is similar to the Mir Docking Module launched on STS 74 in 1995.
Rassvet is primarily used for cargo storage and as a docking port for visiting spacecraft.
The hatch connecting Rassvet with the ISS was first opened on 20 May 2010.
On 28 June 2010  the Soyuz TMA 19 spacecraft performed the first docking with the module.
It is also the personal hygiene area for the astronauts who live in the US Orbital Segment.
It was formerly one of two MPLM used for bringing cargo to and from the ISS with the Space Shuttle.
The module was named for Italian polymath Leonardo da Vinci.
Two International Docking Adapters are currently installed aboard the Station.
The module was built by NanoRacks  Thales Alenia Space  and Boeing.
Such units are replaced either by astronauts during EVA or by robotic arms.
The system is designed to be robotically serviced and will require no astronaut intervention.
It is named after Christopher Columbus s younger brother.
Crew use the two Strela  Russian  Стрела́  lit.
Each Strela crane has a mass of 45 kg  99 lb .
The MLM is funded by the Roscosmos State Corporation.
As of May 2020  the launch to the ISS is assigned to no earlier than spring 2021.
After this date  the warranties of some of Nauka s systems will expire.
UM is due to be launched in the third quarter of 2021.
One port is equipped with an active hybrid docking port  which enables docking with the MLM module.
They will dock to the Prichal module  which is planned to be attached to the Nauka module.
SPM 1 and SPM 2 would also be required components for the OPSEK space station.
The contract is under the NextSTEP2 program.
It will be designed to become a sleep module for the ISS crew.
The US Habitation Module would have served as the station s living quarters.
Instead  the living quarters are now spread throughout the station.
Two Russian Research Modules were planned for scientific research.
They would have docked to a Russian Universal Docking Module.
The Russian Orbital Segment s life support systems are contained in the Zvezda service module.
Some of these systems are supplemented by equipment in the USOS.
The Nauka laboratory has a complete set of life support systems.
Atmospheric control systems       The atmosphere on board the ISS is similar to that of Earth.
Normal air pressure on the ISS is 101.3 kPa  14.69 psi   the same as at sea level on Earth.
Carbon dioxide is removed from the air by the Vozdukh system in Zvezda.
Triple redundancy is provided by the Elektron unit  solid fuel generators  and stored oxygen.
The 1 kW  1.3 hp  system uses approximately one litre of water per crew member per day.
This water is either brought from Earth or recycled from other systems.
Mir was the first spacecraft to use recycled water for oxygen production.
Power and thermal control      Double sided solar arrays provide electrical power to the ISS.
The higher distribution voltage allows smaller  lighter conductors  at the expense of crew safety.
These arrays normally track the Sun to maximise power generation.
Each array is about 375 m2  4 036 sq ft  in area and 58 m  190 ft  long.
The batteries are recharged on the day side of the orbit.
The Lira antenna also has the capability to use the Luch data relay satellite system.
Communications between modules are carried on an internal wireless network.
Laptop hard drives occasionally fail and must be replaced.
Operations          Expeditions      Each permanent crew is given an expedition number.
From Expedition 13 the crew gradually increased to six around 2010.
All seven were transported to the ISS on Russian Soyuz spacecraft.
Ansari herself dismisses the idea that she is a tourist.
She did Russian and European studies involving medicine and microbiology during her 10 day stay.
This is currently the only non terrestrial geocache in existence.
ATVs also use Kurs  however they are not equipped with TORU.
Progress and ATV can remain docked for up to six months.
Under CRS phase 2  Cargo Dragon will dock autonomously at IDA 2 or 3 as the case may be.
As of December 2020  Progress spacecraft have flown most of the uncrewed missions to the ISS.
Currently docked berthed       Key        Scheduled missions      All dates are UTC.
Dates are the earliest possible dates and may change.
Aft is at the rear of the station  used by spacecraft boosting the station s orbit.
The European ATV uses star sensors and GPS to determine its intercept course.
Crew supervise these craft  but do not intervene except to send abort commands in emergencies.
Berthed craft can transfer International Standard Payload Racks.
On 25 May 2012  SpaceX delivered the first commercial cargo with a Dragon spacecraft.
Examples of ORUs are pumps  storage tanks  controller boxes  antennas  and battery units.
Some units can be replaced using robotic arms.
An EVA was carried out by Scott Parazynski  assisted by Douglas Wheelock.
The problem was initially not thought to be serious.
The problem appeared to be in the ammonia pump module that circulates the ammonia cooling fluid.
Several subsystems  including two of the four CMGs  were shut down.
A second EVA on 11 August successfully removed the failed pump module.
In late 2011 MBSU 1 ceased responding to commands or sending data confirming its health.
While still routing power correctly  it was scheduled to be swapped out at the next available EVA.
Astronauts had to brave a  mini blizzard  of ammonia while installing the new pump.
It was only the second Christmas Eve spacewalk in NASA history.
The first scheduled exercise of the day follows  after which the crew continues work until 13 05.
The scheduled sleep period begins at 21 30.
The USOS quarters are private  approximately person sized soundproof booths.
The ROS crew quarters include a small window  but provide less ventilation and sound proofing.
The module also provides a reading lamp  a shelf and a desktop.
Each crew member has individual food packages and cooks them using the on board galley.
Drinks are provided as dehydrated powder that is mixed with water before consumption.
Showers on space stations were introduced in the early 1970s on Skylab and Salyut 3.
Solid waste is collected in individual bags which are stored in an aluminium container.
Full containers are transferred to Progress spacecraft for disposal.
Astronaut Scott Kelly spent a year in space on the ISS  while his twin spent the year on Earth.
Solar flares are still a hazard to the crew  who may receive only a few minutes warning.
Radiation has also been linked to a higher incidence of cataracts in astronauts.
ISS crew flights typically last about five to six months.
They may also have difficulty measuring distances.
Sound levels in the station are unavoidably high.
Each astronaut spends at least two hours per day exercising on the equipment.
Astronauts use bungee cords to strap themselves to the treadmill.
They can produce acids that degrade metal  glass  and rubber.
They can also be harmful to the crew s health.
The results may be useful in improving the health and safety conditions for astronauts.
Finally  hearing thresholds are monitored on orbit  during missions .
Fire and toxic gases      An onboard fire or a toxic gas leak are other potential hazards.
After the retirement of the shuttle  the nominal orbit of the space station was raised in altitude.
It takes approximately two orbits  three hours  for the boost to a higher altitude to be completed.
Zvezda contains the ESA built DMS R Data Management System.
Orientation     Zvezda uses gyroscopes  reaction wheels  and thrusters to turn itself around.
The USOS has its own computer controlled gyroscopes to handle its extra mass.
When gyroscopes  saturate   thrusters are used to cancel out the stored momentum.
These objects  in addition to natural micrometeoroids  are a significant threat.
The type and thickness of these panels depend on their predicted exposure to damage.
The station s shields and structure have different designs on the ROS and the USOS.
On the USOS  Whipple Shields are used.
Space debris is tracked remotely from the ground  and the station crew can be notified.
Ten DAMs had been performed by the end of 2009.
If necessary  the altitude can also be lowered  although such a manoeuvre wastes propellant.
The ISS is also visible in broad daylight  albeit with a great deal more difficulty.
Under specific conditions  the ISS can be observed at night on 5 consecutive orbits.
The three photos show the first  middle and last of the five passes on June 5 6  2014.
The use of a telescope or binoculars allows viewing of the ISS during daylight hours.
Similar images were captured by NASA from a location in Washington.
This bill was unanimously approved in the Senate  but failed to pass in the U.S. House.
Cost    The ISS has been described as the most expensive single item ever constructed.
As of 2010 the total cost was US 150 billion.
The duration of the Iron Age varies depending on the region under consideration.
It is defined by archaeological convention.
For example  Tutankhamun s meteoric iron dagger comes from the Bronze Age.
The technology soon spread throughout the Mediterranean Basin region and to South Asia.
In China written history started before iron working arrived  so the term is infrequently used.
Its name harks back to the mythological  Ages of Man  of Hesiod.
The Near Eastern Iron Age is divided into two subsections  Iron I and Iron II.
The use of steel has been based as much on economics as on metallurgical advancements.
Early steel was made by smelting iron.
They have been identified as meteoric iron shaped by careful hammering.
As evidence  many bronze implements were recycled into weapons during that time.
The earliest bloomery smelting of iron is found at Tell Hammeh  Jordan around 930 BC  14C dating .
Iron metal is singularly scarce in collections of Egyptian antiquities.
Bronze remained the primary material there until the conquest by Neo Assyrian Empire in 671 BC.
In the Black Pyramid of Abusir  dating before 2000 BC  Gaston Maspero found some pieces of iron.
In the funeral text of Pepi I  the metal is mentioned.
The widespread use of the technology of iron was implemented in Europe simultaneously with Asia.
İt dates more than 2500 years back.
The site was researched by Francisco Martins Sarmento starting from 1874.
Iron metallurgy reached the Yangtse Valley toward the end of the 6th century BC.
The few objects were found at Changsha and Nanjing.
The earliest known cast iron axes in southern Korea are found in the Geum River basin.
Yayoi culture flourished in a geographic area from southern Kyūshū to northern Honshū.
As the evidence from the sites Raja Nala ka tila  Malhar suggest the use of Iron in c.1800 1700 BC.
The extensive use of iron smelting is from Malhar and its surrounding area.
This site shows agricultural technology as iron implements sickles  nails  clamps  spearheads  etc.
One ironworking centre in East India has been dated to the first millennium BC.
and the Indian Mauryan period saw advances in metallurgy.
Radiocarbon evidence has been collected from Anuradhapura and Aligala shelter in Sigiriya.
The skeletal remains of an Early Iron Age chief were excavated in Anaikoddai  Jaffna.
Han Dynasty style bronze mirrors were also found in Sa Huynh sites.
However  iron working may have been practiced in Central Africa as early as the 3rd millennium BC.
The Iron Age Chronology Debate  Is the Gap Narrowing?
The Iron Age Chronology Debate  Is the Gap Narrowing?
Isagiyosa is the capability of accepting death with composure and equanimity.
The shrine buildings are made of solid cypress wood and use no nails but instead joined wood.
The current high priestess of the shrine is Emperor Emeritus Akihito s daughter  Sayako Kuroda.
These heihaku were initially presented to 16 shrines including the Ise Shrine.
The saiō system ended during the turmoil of the Nanboku chō period.
The current chief priest of the shrine is Takatsukasa Naotake  adoptive son of Takatsukasa Kazuko.
He succeeded Kitashirakawa Michihisa  a great grandson of Emperor Meiji  in 2007.
Takatsukasa Kazuko was succeeded by her younger sister  Ikeda Atsuko.
On 19 June 2017  Sayako officially replaced her aunt as supreme priestess.
Yuitsu shinmei zukuri style replicates the architectural features of early rice granaries.
The shrine at Naikū is constructed of Japanese cypress.
The Naikū does not have any windows.
The roof ridge is supported by two free standing columns called the munamochi bashira.
The twenty year renewal process is called the Shikinen Sengū.
The original physical purpose of the Sengu process is unknown.
The next scheduled rebuilding of Naikū is due in 2033 on the lower  northern site.
In the lead up to the 2013 rebuilding  the Okihiki festival was held in 2006 and 2007.
These offerings are based on the cycle of the agricultural year and are still performed today.
The most important annual festival held at Ise Shrine is the Kannamesai Festival  神嘗祭 .
There are also daily food offerings to the shrine kami held both in the mornings and evenings.
The first of two large torii gates stands just beyond the Temizusha.
Etiquette is the same as for most Shinto shrines.
Photographs in this area are prohibited and this restriction is strictly policed.
The growth was exponential  5 million pilgrims visiting the shrine in the year 1830 alone.
By the late 19th century  tourists from abroad began to visit and document Ise.
The pilgrimage had multiple purposes and appeals.
Sir Banister Fletcher s a History of Architecture.
Ise –  Japan s Ise Shrines –  Ancient yet New.
Geography     Ishikawa is on the Sea of Japan coast.
The prefecture also has some islands  including Notojima  Mitsukejima  Hegurajima.
Kutani ware  Kutani yaki  is a bright colored glaze like Chinese porcelain.
Ohi teaware  Ōhi yaki  is a pottery with a style unique to Kanazawa.
Nyotaimori or naked sushi is said to have originated in Ishikawa Prefecture.
Kaga mizuhiki is ribbon like decoration made from glued Japanese paper  washi .
Kaga inlay crafts  Kaga zōgan  are made with a combination of thin flat and thread metal inlays.
Abare Festival is reputed the most  fierce  festivals of Noto  Ishikawa.
Tourism     The most popular destination in Ishikawa is Kanazawa.
Tourists can get to Ishikawa by plane via either the Komatsu or Noto airports.
Kyōka Izumi  author of novels  short stories  and kabuki plays  from Kanazawa.
He gained fame as a baseball player while attending high school in Kanazawa.
Daisuke Nakata  a trampolinist who has competed in the Olympics in the past  is from Ishikawa.
Suzuki  Buddhist philosopher and popularizer of Buddhism in the West was born in Kanazawa.
born in 1988  is a racewalker born in Nomi  Ishikawa prefecture.
The Hondas grew rice  potatoes  daikon radishes  and carrots.
They also made and sold miso and soy sauce.
The family also received income from a silk moth farm managed by one of Honda s brothers.
Honda met Kimi Yamasaki in 1937 and proposed to her in 1939.
Honda would have often sneaked to a movie theater without his parents  permission.
In August 1933  Mori offered entry level jobs at PCL to a few students  including Honda.
However  Honda then received a draft notice from the military.
Military service    At 23 years old  Honda was drafted in the fall of 1934.
While waiting for his call up  Honda continued working at PCL.
Honda became a sergeant and was in charge of trading and communicating with civilians.
Career          Return     Honda returned to work at Toho as an assistant director.
Due to issues with trade unions and employees at Toho  many left to form Shintoho.
From January to March 1949  Honda worked with Yamamoto again on Flirtation in Spring.
Honda had also worked as an assistant director on Senkichi Taniguchi s Escape at Dawn.
Toho sometimes used documentary projects as tests for assistant directors due to become directors.
It was commissioned by local officials to boost tourism to the national park.
The documentary was then sold to multiple European territories.
Shortly after  Honda began working with Akira Kurosawa on Stray Dog.
The film was completed on 6 October 1950 and has since been lost.
Honda recalled that the studio felt it was  too soon after the war  to produce such a film.
Had the project proceeded  it would have been Honda s first directorial feature.
The script has since been lost.Honda s feature film directorial debut was The Blue Pearl.
He also directed such tokusatsu films such as Rodan  Mothra and The War of the Gargantuas.
His last feature film was Terror of Mechagodzilla  1975 .
The following years were spent directing various science fiction TV shows.
The superhero shows Return of Ultraman  Mirrorman  and Zone Fighter were also his.
In addition  he directed the cult film Matango.
in the television series Legends of Tomorrow is based around Ishirō Honda.
At the end of the episode  the character  Mick Rory tells Ishirō to  Forget about the octopus.
Honda and Ray Harryhausen were given dedications in the 2013 film Pacific Rim.
There were isolated occasions of Muslims in Japan before the 19th century.
They manufacture tunics woven with gold.
He had sailed to the islands in Malacca in 1555.
Yamaoka became the first Japanese to go on the Hajj.
Yamaoka in fact had been with the intelligence service in Manchuria since the Russo Japanese war.
This approval was granted in 1910.
On 12 May 1938  a Mosque was dedicated in Tokyo.
During this time he served unofficially as consul.
During this period  over 100 books and journals on Islam were published in Japan.
He claimed to have seen visions of Muhammad in his sleep.
Post–World War II     The Turks have been the biggest Muslim community in Japan until recently.
Through his contacts with Chinese Muslims  he became a Muslim in Peking.
He also made a Japanese translation of the Qur an from a Muslim perspective for the first time.
These immigrants and their descendants form the majority of Muslims in the country.
Some sources state that in 1982 the Muslims numbered 30 000  half were natives .
Most estimates of the Muslim population give a range around 100 000 total.
The Pew Research Center estimated that there were 185 000 Muslims in Japan in 2010.
Most of these Mosques have only a capacity of 30 to 50 people.
As of 1996  25.2  of all independent countries were island countries.
The dominant industry for many island countries is tourism.
The Neo Assyrian Empire destroyed Israel around 720 BCE.
Jewish presence in the region has persisted to a certain extent over the centuries.
The plan was accepted by the Jewish Agency  and rejected by Arab leaders.
The prime minister is head of government and the Knesset is the legislature.
With a population of around 9 million as of 2019  Israel is a developed country and an OECD member.
Other notable Paleolithic sites include the caves Tabun  Qesem and Manot.
Antiquity      The early history of the territory is unclear.
Writing was known and available for recording  even in small sites.
According to the Hebrew Bible  he destroyed Solomon s Temple and exiled the Jews to Babylon.
The defeat was also recorded in the Babylonian Chronicles.
The Second Temple was constructed around 520 BCE.
The Greek conquests largely skipped the region without any resistance or interest.
Nevertheless  there was a continuous small Jewish presence and Galilee became its religious center.
Christianity was gradually evolving over Roman Paganism  when the area stood under Byzantine rule.
Fifty of them are known and include Jerusalem  Tiberias  Ramleh  Ashkelon  Caesarea  and Gaza.
In 1260  control passed to the Mamluk sultans of Egypt.
The ban remained in place until Israel took control of the building in 1967.
In 1470  Isaac b. Meir Latif arrived from Italy and counted 150 Jewish families in Jerusalem.
In 1660  a Druze revolt led to the destruction of Safed and Tiberias.
Shortly after  the Tanzimat reforms were implemented across the Ottoman Empire.
The hopes and yearnings of Jews living in exile are an important theme of the Jewish belief system.
After the Jews were expelled from Spain in 1492  some communities settled in Palestine.
The First Aliyah laid the cornerstone for widespread Jewish settlement in Palestine.
The first such organization was Bar Giora  a small secret guard founded in 1907.
Two years later  larger Hashomer organization was founded as its replacement.
The Haganah joined Irgun and Lehi in an armed struggle against British rule.
A total of 91 people of various nationalities were killed and 46 were injured.
The attack initially had the approval of the Haganah.
In February 1947  the British referred the Palestine issue to the newly formed United Nations.
In April 1948  the Haganah moved onto the offensive.
During this period 250 000 Palestinian Arabs fled or were expelled  due to a number of factors.
According to Benny Morris  Jews felt that the invading Arab armies aimed to slaughter the Jews.
Some 156 000 remained and became Arab citizens of Israel.
Institute for Immigration B   which organized illegal and clandestine immigration.
Mossad LeAliyah Bet was disbanded in 1953.
The immigration was in accordance with the One Million Plan.
By 1958  the population of Israel rose to two million.
Between 1948 and 1970  approximately 1 150 000 Jewish refugees relocated to Israel.
The trial had a major impact on public awareness of the Holocaust.
Eichmann remains the only person executed in Israel by conviction in an Israeli civilian court.
Other Arab states mobilized their forces.
Jordan  Syria and Iraq responded and attacked Israel.
The PLO soon resumed its policy of attacks against Israel.
Israel carried out numerous retaliatory attacks by air and on the ground.
In 1981 Israel annexed the Golan Heights  although annexation was not recognized internationally.
Sharon was forced to resign as Defense Minister.
More than a thousand people were killed in the violence.
The PLO also recognized Israel s right to exist and pledged an end to terrorism.
Israeli public support for the Accords waned as Israel was struck by Palestinian suicide attacks.
During the summit  Barak offered a plan for the establishment of a Palestinian state.
Each side blamed the other for the failure of the talks.
Sharon became prime minister in a 2001 special election.
By this time 1 100 Israelis had been killed  mostly in suicide bombings.
On 6 September 2007  the Israeli Air Force destroyed a nuclear reactor in Syria.
The 2008–09 Gaza War lasted three weeks and ended after Israel announced a unilateral ceasefire.
Further south is the Arabah  ending with the Gulf of Eilat  part of the Red Sea.
Unique to Israel and the Sinai Peninsula are makhteshim  or erosion cirques.
This tectonic disposition leads to a relatively high seismic activity in the region.
Climate      Temperatures in Israel vary widely  especially during the winter.
From May to September  rain in Israel is rare.
For this reason  the flora and fauna of Israel are extremely diverse.
There are 2 867 known species of plants found in Israel.
Of these  at least 253 species are introduced and non native.
There are 380 Israeli nature reserves.
By June 2012  approximately 60 000 African migrants had entered Israel.
About 92  of Israelis live in urban areas.
Israeli sovereignty over East Jerusalem is internationally unrecognized.
Language      Israel has one official language  Hebrew.
Arabic is spoken by the Arab minority  with Hebrew taught in Arab schools.
As a country of immigrants  many languages can be heard on the streets.
In addition  Israeli universities offer courses in the English language on various subjects.
About 2  of the population is Christian and 1.6  is Druze.
Most Arabs send their children to schools where Arabic is the language of instruction.
Education is compulsory in Israel for children between the ages of three and eighteen.
In 2014  61.5  of all Israeli twelfth graders earned a matriculation certificate.
Israel has nine public universities that are subsidized by the state and 49 private colleges.
Government and politics     Israel is a parliamentary democracy with universal suffrage.
The bill ascribes  special status  to the Arabic language.
Legal system      Israel has a three tier court system.
At the lowest level are magistrate courts  situated in most cities across the country.
Court cases are decided by professional judges rather than juries.
The current justice minister and committee s chairwoman is Ayelet Shaked.
Israel s Basic Law  Human Dignity and Liberty seeks to defend human rights and liberties in Israel.
There is no border between Israel proper and the West Bank for Israeli vehicles.
The population are mainly Palestinians  including refugees of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.
The Gaza Strip was occupied by Egypt from 1948 to 1967 and then by Israel after 1967.
Only a few nations in the Arab League have normalized relations with Israel.
Egypt and Jordan signed peace treaties in 1979 and 1994  respectively.
Ethiopia is Israel s main ally in Africa due to common political  religious and security interests.
In 1955 Israel began its foreign aid program in Burma.
The program s focus subsequently shifted to Africa.
Israel s foreign aid program subsequently shifted its focus to Latin America.
Since the late 1970s Israel s foreign aid has gradually decreased.
In recent years Israel has tried to reestablish its aid to Africa.
The UN has set a target of 0.7 .
In 2015 six nations reached the UN target.
The country ranked 43rd in the 2016 World Giving Index.
The IDF consists of the army  air force and navy.
Most Israelis are drafted into the military at the age of 18.
Men serve two years and eight months and women two years.
Most women are exempt from reserve duty.
The Arrow missile is one of the world s few operational anti ballistic missile systems.
Since the Yom Kippur War  Israel has developed a network of reconnaissance satellites.
Israel ranked 5th globally for arms exports in 2017.
The majority of Israel s arms exports are unreported for security reasons.
Israel was also ranked 5th in the world by share of people in high skilled employment.
The Bank of Israel holds  113 billion of foreign exchange reserves.
Israel has led the world in stem cell research papers per capita since 2000.
Some of Israel s satellites are ranked among the world s most advanced space systems.
It was first launched in 1988  making Israel the eighth nation to have a space launch capability.
Israel is also at the technological forefront of desalination and water recycling.
Over 90  of Israeli homes use solar energy for hot water  the highest per capita in the world.
However  Israel s trailblazing electric car company Better Place shut down in 2013.
There are several small domestic airports as well.
Ben Gurion  Israel s largest airport  handled over 15 million passengers in 2015.
Energy      Israel began producing natural gas from its own offshore gas fields in 2004.
In 2009  a natural gas reserve  Tamar  was found near the coast of Israel.
A second natural gas reserve  Leviathan  was discovered in 2010.
In 2013  Israel began commercial production of natural gas from the Tamar field.
As of 2014  Israel produced over 7.5 billion cubic meters  bcm  of natural gas a year.
The field was inaugurated on 15 June 2011.
Culture     Israel s diverse culture stems from the diversity of its population.
Arab influences are present in many cultural spheres  such as architecture  music  and cuisine.
Israel is the only country in the world where life revolves around the Hebrew calendar.
In 2001  the law was amended to include audio and video recordings  and other non print media.
The Israeli Arab satirist Sayed Kashua  who writes in Hebrew  is also internationally known.
The 2009 movie Ajami was the third consecutive nomination of an Israeli film.
It is also the home of the first hominid fossil skull found in Western Asia  called Galilee Man.
A cast of the skull is on display at the Israel Museum.
Hotel restaurants are much more likely to serve kosher food.
In 1994  UEFA agreed to admit Israel  and its football teams now compete in Europe.
has won the European championship in basketball six times.
In 2016  the country was chosen as a host for the EuroBasket 2017.
Chess is a leading sport in Israel and is enjoyed by people of all ages.
The 1968 Summer Paralympics were hosted by Israel.
Israeli tennis champion Shahar Pe er ranked 11th in the world on 31 January 2011.
Itochu is one of the largest Japanese sogo shosha  general trading companies .
In 2019 and 2020  Itochu was ranked the most popular employer for college graduates.
Itoh founded the  Benichu  drapery store in the Honmachi district of Osaka in 1872.
In 1921  the company split in half  with one half forming what is now known as Marubeni.
Business overview    Itochu s business is organized into six  companies.
Textiles  Itochu trades in raw materials and finished apparel  and also has a brand business.
Group companies include Itochu Techno Solutions  CTC   Excite Japan and Century 21 Japan.
It is in the city of Hatsukaichi in Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan.
The Itsukushima shrine is one of Japan s most popular tourist attractions.
This relates to the strict notions of sacred purity that Shinto shrines stand for.
Adding to its sanctity  Mount Misen is  its tallest peak  ranging about  1 755 feet high.
Burials on the island are forbidden.
The red entrance gate  or torii  was built over the water for much the same reason.
Commoners had to steer their boats through the torii before approaching the shrine.
This led to a far more intimate relationship between the two.
The torii appears to be floating only at high tide.
When the tide is low  it is only approachable by foot from the island.
Gathering shellfish near the gate is also popular at low tide.
The honden  is an eight by four bay structure with a kirizuma roof surfaced in cypress bark.
On September 5  2004  the shrine was severely damaged by Typhoon Songda.
Today anyone can go visit the shrine for only 300 yen.
Iwate Prefecture  岩手県  Iwate ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu.
These rocks are said to have been thrown down into Morioka by an eruption of Mt.
According to the legend  there was once a devil who often tormented and harassed the local people.
Even now after a rainfall  it is said that the devil s hand print can still be seen there.
He was especially inspired by the town of Hiraizumi.
Kanzan in what is now Hiraizumi.
Over 1 000 soldiers drowned that day.
Many a stout warrior gave up the fight to join his family again.
Finally on 15 April 802 the Emishi leaders More and Aterui surrendered with some 500 warriors.
This act of cruelty enraged the Emishi leading to another twenty or more years of fighting.
After the surrender numerous forts were built on the Chinese model along the Kitakami River.
Aomori Prefecture is to the north and Miyagi Prefecture is to the south.
The Ōu mountains on the west still contain active volcanoes such as Mt.
It is the fourth longest river in Japan and the longest in Tōhoku.
The forests of the prefecture are another valuable resource.
Recently  though  there has been a push to restore the original beech forests in some areas.
As of March 2011  the prefecture produced 3.9  of Japan s beef and 14.4  of broiler chickens.
This is also the only census to record more males than females.
In 1935  Iwate s population surpassed a million reaching 1 045 793.
In 1960  the population of the prefecture reached its all time high before or since at 1 449 207.
The census of 1950 saw the most births in the prefecture with 45 968 reported.
Since then there has been an almost steady decline to 10 344 births in 2007.
The greatest number of deaths were reported in 1945 with a total of 32 614.
The number of deaths declined steadily until 1980 when the fewest deaths were recorded  9 892.
Since then the number of deaths has increased gradually to 14 774 in 2007.
On 14 November 1230  volcanic activity was reported.
In 1662 Morioka and its suburbs were hit by a large flood leaving 1 000 dead.
Volcanic activity was reported on Mt.
In 1700  a tsunami from the 1700 Cascadia earthquake struck Iwate Prefecture.
No records from North America exist  but the event was reconstructed using Japanese records.
There was also widespread destruction of houses and shops.
In Nanbu han alone  49 594 people starved to death in the famine of 1755.
Severe famines continue from 1783 to 1787 and again from 1832 to 1838.
Cholera outbreaks occurred in August 1879  in Miyako and Kuji.
In April 1884  there was another outbreak of cholera in Kamaishi.
In September 1886  cholera outbreaks throughout Iwate left 312 dead.
On 15 June 1896  at 7 32 am  a magnitude 8.5 earthquake struck offshore.
18 158 people died in Iwate alone while some 10 000 homes were destroyed.
There was a widespread crop failure due to violent storms in September 1902.
Only 32 900 tons of rice were produced in Iwate  just 30  of the previous year s harvest.
People were reduced to eating straw  acorns and roots.
This is the fifth worst earthquake in Japan since 1923.
In August 1957  there was volcanic activity on Mt.
There was volcanic activity on Mt.
At 8 43 am on 14 June 2008  Iwate was struck by a 7.2 magnitude earthquake.
The epicenter was about 8 kilometres  5.0 mi  underground in Ichinoseki City.
The highest run up of water was measured at over 38 metres  125 ft .
The Akita Shinkansen starts at Morioka Station and connects to locations in Akita Prefecture.
There is a large JR freight yard and maintenance facility in Yahaba.
There are currently three main subgenres within C pop  Cantopop  Mandopop and Hokkien pop.
The gap between Cantopop and Mandopop has been narrowing in the new millennium.
A number of privately run radio stations from the late 1920s to the 1950s played C pop.
The Communist Party of China established the People s Republic of China in 1949.
As a result  mandopop became the dominant musical genre in Taiwan.
In 2000 EolAsia.com was founded as the first online C pop music portal in Hong Kong.
Google mp3 became available in March 2009.
The future of C pop in mainland China is slowly emerging.
All six pop stars played a major role in developing the Hong Kong or Taiwan music industry.
In 2010  the Chinese Music Awards recognized the top 30 C pop artists since 1980.
As C Pop has steered pretty clear of explicit topics  Yudes  rap serves as a cultural fusion.
See also         References         External links    Official Pandeh Music  Cpop Music Channel
J1 League is one of the most successful leagues in Asian club football.
In 1997  the average attendance was 10 131  compared to more than 19 000 in 1994.
In order to solve the problem  the management came out with two solutions.
In other words  clubs would be able to rely on the locals  rather than major national sponsors.
Second  the infrastructure of the league was heavily changed in 1999.
The league acquired nine clubs from the semi professional JFL and one club from J.
League to create a two division system.
The second tier Japan Football League  former   now became third tier Japan Football League.
Also  until 2004  with the exception of 1996 season   the J1 season was divided into two.
This was the part of the reason the league abolished the split season system starting from 2005.
Since then  other than minor adjustments  the top flight has stayed consistent.
Continuous effort led to the success of Urawa Red Diamonds in 2007 and Gamba Osaka in 2008.
Modern phase  2009–2014      Three major changes were seen starting in the 2009 season.
First  starting that season  four clubs entered the AFC Champions League.
Secondly  the number of relegation slots increased to three.
Finally  the AFC Player slot was implemented starting this season.
No major changes happened to J.League Division 1 as the number of clubs stayed at 18.
Future  2015–      From 2015 the J.League system changed to a three stage system.
Currently  18 clubs compete in double round robin  home and away.
The two halves format returned in 2015 but was abandoned again after 2016.
It provides full text searches of almost 2 000 journals.
As of 2013  more than 8 000 institutions in more than 160 countries had access to JSTOR.
Online access and full text search ability improved access dramatically.
Bowen initially considered using CD ROMs for distribution.
Content    JSTOR content is provided by more than 900 publishers.
The database contains more than 1 900 journal titles  in more than 50 disciplines.
They are notified when the dataset is ready and may download it in either XML or CSV formats.
JSTOR Plant Science is available in addition to the main site.
More than 7 000 institutions in more than 150 countries have access.
The Alumni Access Program officially launched in January 2013.
Once video was captured of the visitor  the download was stopped and Swartz was identified.
The case still was pending when Swartz committed suicide in January 2013.
Prosecutors dropped the charges after his suicide.
JSTOR stated that it had been working on making this material free for some time.
Searchable database  includes many public libraries offering free access to library card holders.
Japan is divided into 47 administrative prefectures and eight traditional regions.
In 1937  Japan invaded China  in 1941  it entered World War II as an Axis power.
The characters 日本 mean  sun origin .
Clay vessels from the period are among the oldest surviving examples of pottery.
In 784  Emperor Kanmu moved the capital  settling on Heian kyō  modern Kyoto  in 794.
After Yoritomo s death  the Hōjō clan came to power as regents for the shōguns.
Go Daigo was defeated by Ashikaga Takauji in 1336  beginning the Muromachi period  1336–1573 .
When open war broke out  Ieyasu defeated rival clans in the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600.
The Edo period gave rise to kokugaku   national studies    the study of Japan by the Japanese.
Geography     Japan comprises 6852 islands extending along the Pacific coast of Asia.
The Ryukyu Islands  which include Okinawa  are a chain to the south of Kyushu.
The Nanpō Islands are south and east of the main islands of Japan.
Together they are often known as the Japanese archipelago.
As of 2019  Japan s territory is 377 975.24 km2  145 937.06 sq mi .
Japan has the sixth longest coastline in the world at 29 751 km  18 486 mi .
It has the 17th highest natural disaster risk as measured in the 2016 World Risk Index.
Japan has 111 active volcanoes.
In the summer  the region sometimes experiences extremely hot temperatures because of the foehn.
The Ryukyu and Nanpō Islands have a subtropical climate  with warm winters and hot summers.
Precipitation is very heavy  especially during the rainy season.
The main rainy season begins in early May in Okinawa  and the rain front gradually moves north.
In late summer and early autumn  typhoons often bring heavy rain.
Responding to rising concern  the government introduced environmental protection laws in 1970.
Japan is the world s fifth largest emitter of carbon dioxide.
In 2020 the government of Japan announced a target of carbon neutrality by 2050.
Japan s legislative organ is the National Diet  a bicameral parliament.
The Constitution of Japan  adopted in 1947  is the oldest unamended constitution in the world.
The main body of Japanese statutory law is called the Six Codes.
Military      Japan is the second highest ranked Asian country in the Global Peace Index 2020.
Japan maintains one of the largest military budgets of any country in the world.
As of 2019  Japan s labor force consisted of 67 million workers.
Japan has a low unemployment rate of around 2.4 percent.
Around 16 percent of the population were below the poverty line in 2017.
Its main exports are motor vehicles  iron and steel products  semiconductors and auto parts.
Japan ranks highly for competitiveness and economic freedom.
It is ranked sixth in the Global Competitiveness Report for 2015–2016.
Only 11.5  of Japan s land is suitable for cultivation.
Because of this lack of arable land  a system of terraces is used to farm in small areas.
Japan s small agricultural sector is highly subsidized and protected.
Japan has sparked controversy by supporting commercial whaling.
Japan s industrial sector makes up approximately 27.5  of its GDP.
For inbound tourism  Japan was ranked 11th in the world in 2019.
However  video gaming in Japan remains a major industry.
The space probe Akatsuki was launched in 2010 and achieved orbit around Venus in 2015.
Japan s plans in space exploration include building a moon base and landing astronauts by 2030.
The largest domestic airport  Haneda Airport in Tokyo  was Asia s second busiest airport in 2019.
Nuclear power was down from 11.2 percent in 2010.
Japan lacks significant domestic reserves and has a heavy dependence on imported energy.
Access to an improved water source is universal in Japan.
About 98  of the population receives piped water supply from public utilities.
In 2019  92  of the total Japanese population lived in cities.
The capital city Tokyo has a population of 13.8 million  2018 .
A growing number of younger Japanese are not marrying or remain childless.
Japan s population is expected to drop to around 100 million by 2050.
Today  1  to 1.5  of the population are Christians.
Almost all children continue their education at a three year senior high school.
The two top ranking universities in Japan are the University of Tokyo and Kyoto University.
Health      Health care is provided by national and local governments.
Another significant public health issue is smoking among Japanese men.
The Shrines of Ise have been celebrated as the prototype of Japanese architecture.
The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter is considered the oldest extant Japanese narrative.
In its literary forms  Japanese philosophy began about fourteen centuries ago.
Buddhism has profoundly impacted Japanese psychology  metaphysics  and esthetics.
Performing arts      Japanese music is eclectic and diverse.
Many instruments  such as the koto  were introduced in the 9th and 10th centuries.
Noh is one of the oldest continuous theater traditions in the world.
Isagiyosa  潔さ  is a virtue of the capability of accepting death with composure.
Cherry blossoms are a symbol of isagiyosa in the sense of embracing the transience of the world.
Seafood and Japanese rice or noodles are traditional staples.
Traditional Japanese sweets are known as wagashi.
Ingredients such as red bean paste and mochi are used.
Beer has been brewed in Japan since the late 17th century.
Japan is a world renowned powerhouse of animation.
Sports      Traditionally  sumo is considered Japan s national sport.
Baseball is the most popular spectator sport in the country.
Japan s top professional league  Nippon Professional Baseball  was established in 1936.
The country co hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup with South Korea.
Japan is the most successful Asian Rugby Union country and hosted the 2019 IRB Rugby World Cup.
To prevent this  JAXA plans on using smaller  faster missions from 2010 onward.
Its headquarters are in Chōfu  Tokyo.
It carries out development and testing of rocket engines.
Sanriku Balloon Center  SBC  – Balloons have been launched from this site since 1971.
Kakuda Space Center  KSPC  in Kakuda  Miyagi – Leads the development of rocket engines.
Works mainly with development of liquid fuel engines.
This is the center of Japan s space network.
It  develops experimental equipment for the Japanese Experiment Module   Kibo  .
Training of astronauts also takes place here.
SSIPC communicates regularly with ISS crewmembers via S band audio.
For science missions like X ray astronomy  JAXA uses the Epsilon rocket.
For experiments in the upper atmosphere JAXA uses the SS 520  S 520  and S 310 sounding rockets.
NASDA was mostly active in the field of communication satellite technology.
Another prime focus of the NASDA body is Earth climate observation.
In the beginning  NASDA used licensed American models.
So far  the rocket has flown four times without any launch failures.
To prepare for future missions  ISAS tested Earth swing by orbits with the Hiten mission in 1990.
Currently interplanetary missions remain at the ISAS group under the JAXA umbrella.
The craft rendezvoused with the asteroid in September 2005.
Hayabusa returned to Earth with samples from the asteroid on 13 June 2010.
The seismometer penetrator design for LUNAR A may be reused in a future mission.
Its mission is to gather data on the Moon s origin and evolution.
It entered lunar orbit on 4 October 2007.
After 1 year and 8 months it impacted the lunar surface on 10 June 2009 at 18 25 UTC.
Nozomi ultimately passed 1 000 km from the surface of Mars.
On 7 December 2010  Akatsuki was unable to complete its Venus orbit insertion maneuver.
A thorough explanation for this phenomenon has yet been found.
JAXA ISAS was part of the international Laplace Jupiter mission proposal from its foundation.
JUICE is a reformulation of the ESA Ganymede orbiter from the Laplace project.
First revealed on 9 June 2015  MMX s primary goal is to determine the origin of the Martian moons.
As of January 2016  MMX is to be launched in fiscal year 2022.
Both sails used 7.5 micrometer thick film.
ISAS tested a solar sail again as a sub payload to the Akari  ASTRO F  mission on 22 February 2006.
However the solar sail did not deploy fully.
The IKAROS solar sail was launched on 21 May 2010.
The goal is to have a solar sail mission to Jupiter after 2020.
Later ISAS moved into solar observation  radio astronomy through Space VLBI and infrared astronomy.
The next step for JAXA was the Akari spacecraft  with the pre launch designation ASTRO F.
This satellite was launched on 21 February 2006.
Its mission is infrared astronomy with a 68 cm telescope.
This is the first all sky survey since the first infrared mission IRAS in 1983.
A 3.6 kg nanosatellite named CUTE 1.7 was also released from the same launch vehicle.
This would enable a warm launch without liquid helium.
Unlike Akari  which had a geocentric orbit  SPICA will be located at Sun–Earth L2.
The next JAXA x ray mission is the Monitor of All sky X ray Image  MAXI .
MAXI continuously monitors astronomical X ray objects over a broad energy band  0.5 to 30 keV .
MAXI is installed on the Japanese external module of the ISS.
A SOLAR C can be expected sometime after 2020.
Instead a H 2A from Tanegashima could launch it.
As H 2A is more powerful  SOLAR C could either be heavier or be stationed at L1  Lagrange point 1 .
To do so  ISAS set up a ground network around the world through international cooperation.
In FY 2006  Japan funded the ASTRO G as the succeeding mission.
The first test satellite was ETS I  launched in 1975.
On 26 December both antennas were successfully deployed.
The mission of WINDS  Kizuna  is to create the world s fastest satellite Internet connection.
WINDS was launched in February 2008.
The experiment was successful on 9 December  when the link could be established.
The Reimei satellite is currently in its extended mission phase.
ALOS 2 SAR was launched in May 2014.
For further research NASDA had launched the ADEOS and ADEOS II missions in 1996 and 2003.
However  due to various reasons  both satellites had a much shorter than expected life term.
The aim of GPM is to measure global rainfall with unprecedented detail.
The satellite is being jointly developed by JAXA and Japan s Ministry of the Environment.
JAXA is building the satellite while the Ministry is in charge of the data that will be collected.
The satellite weighs approximately 1650 kg and is expected to have a life span of five years.
Altogether GCOM will be a series of six satellites.
The first satellite  GCOM W  Shizuku   was launched on 17 May 2012 with the H IIA.
The second satellite  GCOM C  was launched in 2017.
MTSAT 2 is the backup to the MTSAT 1R.
The MTSAT 2 uses the DS 2000 satellite bus developed by Mitsubishi Electric.
As a secondary mission both the MTSAT 1R and MTSAT 2 help to direct air traffic.
On May 11  2018  JAXA has launched the first outer space object registered by Kenya.
WINDS will facilitate experiments with faster Internet connections.
Two others are expected to follow later.
If successful  one satellite will be in a zenith position over Japan full time.
The only exception is the IGS program which will be continued beyond 2008.
First launch is planned for 2010.
In 2009 Japan also plans to launch a new version of the IGS with an improved resolution of 60 cm.
Launch schedule     The maiden flight of the H IIB and the HTV occurred on 1 September 2009.
After the first flight  one HTV launch is scheduled during each FY until 2019.
If not mentioned otherwise launch vehicle for the following missions is the H IIA.
JAXA will provide the Auroral Electron Sensor  AES  for the Taiwanese FORMOSAT 5.
XEUS  joint X Ray telescope with ESA  originally planned for launch after 2015.
The simpler crewed capsule Fuji was proposed but not adopted.
One Space Shuttle mission  STS 47  in September 1992 was partially funded by Japan.
This mission was also designated Japan.
History     Japan did not have a separate air force before and during World War II.
Following World War II  the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy were disbanded in 1945.
The enabling legislation for this was the 1954 Self Defense Forces Act  Act No.
The relocation is due to the 2002 Defense Policy Review Initiative.
The purpose is to strengthen the U.S. Japan Security Alliance.
The ADC Headquarters does command and control operations to defend Japanese airspace.
Until 2015  women were banned from becoming fighter jet and reconnaissance aircraft pilots.
In 2010 there were scrambles against 31 Chinese aircraft and 193 Russian aircraft.
In 2018 scrambles increased to against 638 Chinese aircraft and 343 Russian aircraft.
That is the second highest amount of scrambles by the JASDF since 1958.
638  64   were Chinese aircraft and 343  34   were Russian aircraft.
The Air Training Command is responsible for basic flying and technical training.
On May 19  2020 the JASDF officially inaugurated its Space Operation Squadron.
It is based on a cap badge made in 1954.
The latest version of the JASDF flag was re adopted on 19 March 2001.
The JASDF flag is different from the JSDF flag and the JGSDF flag.
It is determined by a directive regarding the flags of the JSDF.
Both of these systems were improved from the beginning of the late 1980s.
The group has a fleet of 279 aircraft.
JAL was established in 1951 and became the national airline of Japan in 1953.
After over three decades of service and expansion  the airline was fully privatised in 1987.
All Nippon Airways  the largest airline in Japan  is JAL s main competitor.
By 1958  the Hong Kong route had been extended to Bangkok and Singapore.
With DC 7Cs  JAL was able to fly nonstop between Seattle and Tokyo in 1959.
JAL went on to operate a fleet of 51 DC 8s  retiring the last of the type in 1987.
During the 1960s  JAL flew to many new cities  including Moscow  New York  and Busan.
By 1965  Japan Air Lines was headquartered in the Tokyo Building in Marunouchi  Chiyoda  Tokyo.
JAL Express was established in April 1997  with Boeing 737 aircraft.
Following years of profit since 1986  the airline began to post operating losses in 1992.
Japan Airlines placed orders for Boeing 777s during the 1990s  allowing for fleet renewal.
Aircraft liveries were changed to match the design of the new JAL Group.
As a result  the airline embarked on staff cuts and route cutbacks in an effort to reduce costs.
Shares of JAL were delisted from the Tokyo Stock Exchange on 20 February 2010.
At a time  its stock was considered one of  bluest of blue chips  of Japan.
Both JAL and American denied the report.
The airline would also fortify its relationship with other partners in the Oneworld alliance.
Post bankruptcy developments     JAL emerged from bankruptcy protection in March 2011.
The transpacific joint venture between JAL and American commenced in April 2011.
It is estimated to commence operation in summer 2020.
The 26 floor building was a project of the Kajima Corporation.
When JAL was originally established in 1951  its headquarters were in Ginza  Chuo  Tokyo.
By 1965  Japan Air Lines was headquartered in the Tokyo Building in Marunouchi  Chiyoda  Tokyo.
On 28 June 1996  construction was completed on the JAL Building.
On 27 July 1996  JAL moved its headquarters into the JAL Building.
The Flight Operation Center at the JAL Building began on 20 September 1996.
On 25 November 2003  the JALS headquarters moved to the JAL Building.
In 2004  the building was to be sold to Nomura Real Estate for 65 billion yen.
It is an image of a Japanese red crown crane with its wings extended in full flight.
JAL had used several logos up until 1958.
In the creation of the logo  Huff was inspired by the personal crests of Samurai families.
In a book he d been given  We Japanese  he found pages of crests  including the crane.
Special liveries      JAL is known for adopting special liveries.
A Boeing 747  JA8908  carried an Adidas soccer livery in 2002.
One of the airline s Boeing 767 300  JA8253  was the Expo 2005 aircraft.
This livery was released officially on 30 July 2009.
Landor Associates created JAL s brand identity in 1989.
A fusion of the JAL letters with a red square and grey band feature on the fuselage.
Landor decided to use the  arc of the sun  image.
The 2000s rebranding began in April 2002 and completed in April 2004.
The brand identity firm designed 300 000 specific items for JAL.
The curved bar was likened to a samurai sword.
The tail now featured a quarter sun outlined in silver.
Repainting was completed in January 2016.
Domestically  JAL suspended 14 routes  including between Sapporo and Okinawa.
In exchange for its funding  JAL will be able to pre order up to 20 Boom aircraft.
Cargo     JAL Cargo was once a freighter airline operating for JAL.
Limited cargo activity is now maintained through JAL s passenger aircraft lower deck holds.
Like SS6 aircraft  SS2 and SS9 II aircraft are operating on shorter international routes.
Executive and First Class passengers have full AVOD control.
There will be USB ports for iPod connectivity  and an easier to control handset.
It uses 9 inch touchscreens by Panasonic SFX.
The MAGIC VI is installed on selected Boeing 787 8s and 777 300s.
Prior to the merger with JAS  JAL s inflight magazine was called Winds.
All of the JAL Group magazines are provided by JALUX.
The Japan Coast Guard  海上保安庁  Kaijō Hoan chō  is the coast guard of Japan.
The motto of the Japan Coast Guard is  Righteous Benevolence   正義仁愛 .
Dense trade and smuggling had increased dramatically  even pirates had come to appear.
Its English name was changed to Japan Coast Guard in April 2000.
The ship  later salvaged by the JCG  was found to be carrying weapons and spy equipment.
The wreck and its contents were put on display at the Japanese Coast Guard Museum at Yokohama.
Lower ranking officers include the director general  directors and inspector generals.
Graduates are given a bachelor s degree upon graduation.
About 40 cadets graduate from the academy each year.
Regional counterparts are Mobile Rescue Technician  機動救難士  Kidō kyūnan shi .
Special Security Team  SST   特殊警備隊  Tokushu keibi tai  Counter terrorism tactical team.
Regional counterparts are Special Riot Squads  特別警備隊  Tokubetsu keibi tai .
From FY1949 the construction of new ships began.
The 3 inch guns were retired by 1979  as their age was progressing.
From the 1960s  the old semi auto Nambu pistols were replaced by newly built M60 revolvers.
From 1990  their weapons were updated again to the Howa Type 89 rifles.
It is in Naka ku  Yokohama  Kanagawa Prefecture.
Seizando shoten publishing co. ltd.
Created on July 1  1954  it is the largest of the three service branches.
The present chief of staff is General Gorō Yuasa  湯浅悟郎 .
The JGSDF numbered around 150 000 soldiers in 2018.
The right of belligerency of the state will not be recognized.
The enabling legislation for this was the 1954 Self Defense Forces Act  Act No.
The purpose was to improve their strategic partnership and security cooperation.
Members of the rapid reaction component train 30 days a year.
Members of the main reserve train five days a year.
It was reorganized from the Central Readiness Force on March 27  2018.
In wartime  it would take command of two to five armies.
They are regionally independent and permanent entities.
The brigades are smaller with 3 000 to 4 000 personnel.
The JMSDF has a fleet of 154 ships and 346 aircraft and consists of approximately 45 800 personnel.
Its main tasks are to maintain control of the nation s sea lanes and to patrol territorial waters.
Since 2000  the JMSDF has been the world s fourth largest navy by total tonnage.
This formed the core of the new Imperial Japanese Navy.
An 1872 edict officially separated the Japanese Navy from the Japanese Army.
The war concluded with the Treaty of Portsmouth.
The complete victory of the Japanese military surprised world observers.
The consequences transformed the balance of power in East Asia.
On 6 September 1914 was the very first air sea battle in history.
In 1956  the JMSDF received its first domestically produced destroyer since World War II  Harukaze.
Post Cold War     Following the end of the Cold War  the role of the JMSDF has vastly changed.
In 1993  it commissioned its first Aegis equipped destroyer  Kongō.
It has also been active in joint naval exercises with other countries  such as the United States.
It included a total of 57 000 sailors  marines and airmen.
47 000 service members were from the JSDF and 10 000 from the U.S. Armed Forces.
A naval supply ship and frigate of the Royal Canadian Navy also participated.
This makes them de facto aircraft carriers.
To avoid controversy  the ruling parties call it a  multi purpose operation destroyer .
It would be the first such ship in the JMSDF since World War II.
Each ship can only carry approximately 10 F35Bs.
That is too few aircraft for effective air defense of a naval fleet.
This is the first vessel of the Taigei class and the 22nd submarine vessel of the JMSDF.
It will enter service in March 2022.
The JMSDF is known in particular for its anti submarine warfare and minesweeping capabilities.
Extended patrols over sea lanes are beyond the JASDF s current capabilities.
The JMSDF has also conducted joint naval exercises with the Indian Navy.
RIMPAC  Japan Maritime Self Defense Force participated in RIMPAC after 1980.
In 2002  the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force hosted the exercise.
The Japan Maritime Self Defense Force carried out JFTM 1 in December 2007.
Keen Sword is the biggest biennial military exercise around Japan.
The participants are primarily Japan and the United States.
The fleet has a total displacement of approximately 624 000 tonnes  including auxiliary vessels .
Most of these aircraft are used in anti submarine warfare operations.
The Self Defense Fleet  headquartered at Yokosuka  consists of the JMSDF s military shipping.
Her unit includes the flagship Izumo  the largest warship in the JMSDF.
Each district is home to a major JMSDF base and its supporting personnel and staff.
The destroyers tend to be of older classes  mainly former escort force ships.
The destroyer escorts  on the other hand  tend to be purpose built vessels.
Each district also has a number of minesweeping ships.
Fleet Air Force      The Fleet Air Force is tasked with patrol  ASW and rescue tasks.
It is composed primarily of 7 aviation groups.
Prominent bases are maintained at Kanoya  Hachinohe  Atsugi  Naha  Tateyama  Oomura and Iwakuni.
For example  the official flag of the JMSDF is the same as that used by the IJN.
Flight students  all upper secondary school graduates  enter a two year course.
The JMSDF also operates a staff college in Tokyo for senior officers.
Japan s Changing Defense Policy   The New Pacific Security Environment.
Jane s Intelligence Review  February 1992.
Jane s Defence Weekly 17 August 1991 Midford  Paul.
Japan s Maritime Self Defense Forces   Naval Forces.
Woolley  Peter J. Japan’s Navy  Politics and Paradox 1971–2000.
Most of the liability of the JNR was assumed by the JNR Settlement Corporation.
Maps almost always denoted JR and private railways differently  as does JR itself.
The six passenger railways of the JR Group are separated by region.
Nearly all their services are within the prescribed geographic area.
However  some long distance operations extend beyond the boundaries.
Japan Freight Railway Company operates all freight service on the network previously owned by JNR.
In addition  the group includes two non operating companies.
However  trains running across the boundaries of JR companies have been reduced.
Ownership    In 1987  the government of Japan took steps to divide and privatize JNR.
Privatization of some of the companies began in the early 1990s.
The new companies introduced competition  cut their staffing  and made reform efforts.
In 1988 about 51  of the six companies  1 000 locomotives were diesel  and the rest were electric.
Some of the Shinkansen electric powered trains operate at speeds up to 300 km h.
There were twenty seven private and third sector companies in 1989.
Japan      External links    Hisakyu s Railway Guide JR s Rule on Passenger Tickets
They are controlled by the Ministry of Defense  with the Prime Minister as commander in chief.
The Security Treaty Between the United States and Japan was signed on 8 September 1951.
The enabling legislation for this was the 1954 Self Defense Forces Act  Act No.
The U.S. is required to pre inform Japan of any mobilization by the U.S. Army.
The U.S. is also prohibited from exerting any power on domestic issues within Japan.
This established a security alliance between Japan and the United States.
Thus many analysts consider Japan a de facto nuclear state.
21st century     The Anti Terrorism Special Measures Law was passed on October 29  2001.
While on duty  the JSDF can use weapons to protect itself and others who come under its control.
JSDF activities abroad were elevated from  miscellaneous regulations  to  basic duties.
JMSDF ships can be dispatched worldwide such as in activities against pirates.
The Self Defense Forces may provide material support to allies engaged in combat internationally.
It could travel five times the speed of sound  Mach 5  or faster.
It included a total of 57 000 sailors  marines and airmen.
47 000 service members were from the JSDF and 10 000 from the U.S. Armed Forces.
A naval supply ship and frigate of the Royal Canadian Navy also participated.
This will be judged on a case by case basis.
The missiles have a range of 300 km and will be used to protect the southern Ryukyu Islands.
The pact enables the exchange of logistical support and supplies.
Japan already had such agreements with Australia  Canada  France  UK and USA.
Structure     The Prime Minister is the commander in chief of the Japan Self Defense Forces.
NSS sets the basic orientation of diplomatic and defense policies related to national security.
The article is interpreted as meaning that armed forces are legitimate for self defense.
This limits the capabilities of the JSDF as primarily for national defense.
The United States military is primarily responsible for offensive duties.
These are meant to guard against missile strikes.
But the officials also said the ministry will maintain its order to destroy any incoming missiles.
Particular elements of each force s mission were also identified.
The Koizumi administration  however  decided to send troops to respond to a request from the US.
Japanese forces withdrew from Iraq in 2006.
In 2003  Japan created a law to deal with armed attacks and amended the Self Defense Forces law.
Recruitment and conditions of service    As of 2016  the total strength of the JSDF was 247 154.
In addition  the JSDF maintained a total of 47 900 reservists attached to the three services.
The Japanese Constitution abolished conscription on 3 May 1947.
Naval and air recruits normally enlist for three years.
In total  20  of JSDF recruits are women.
There are no commissary or exchange privileges.
Soundproofing was installed in homes and public buildings near airfields.
It is celebrated every year in Japan since 1966.
The JGSDF  JMSDF and JASDF hold annual reviews in rotation.
There is also a three day music event called the JSDF Marching Festival.
Fleet reviews     The 28th Fleet Review was held in Sagami Bay on 18 October 2015.
There were 4 000 troops  260 tanks and other military vehicles and 40 warplanes.
It usually takes place in Nippon Budokan for three days.
It also features guest bands from other countries.
It is one of the oldest military tattoos in the Asia Pacific region.
That was the first time that the Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade participated.
JSDF museums    These are museums about the JSDF.
The company is a major component of the Fujikura group.
The company s current Japanese trading name is Nichiyu Kabushikigaisha.
There is no daylight saving time  though its introduction has been debated several times.
During World War II  it was often called Tokyo Standard Time.
Longitudes are calculated using the prime meridian  counting 180 degrees either east or west.
Positive degrees are east  negative degrees are west.
The United States imposed this policy as part of the Allied occupation of Japan.
However  it is not clear that DST would conserve energy in Japan.
They enlisted Sun Yat sen  1866–1925   then in exile in Japan  but they had little success.
The Navy thus gained significant political influence over national and international affairs.
Throughout 1915–1916  German efforts to negotiate a separate peace with Japan failed.
A total of 7 075 people were rescued by the Japanese from damaged and sinking ships.
This led to the Lansing–Ishii Agreement of 2 November 1917 to help reduce tensions.
In late 1917  Japan exported 12 Arabe class destroyers  based on Kaba class design  to France.
Exports quadrupled from 1913 to 1918.
The massive capital influx into Japan and the subsequent industrial boom led to rapid inflation.
In August 1918  rice riots caused by this inflation erupted in towns and cities throughout Japan.
Japan nevertheless emerged as a great power in international politics by the close of the war.
Aftermath    The prosperity brought on by World War I did not last.
Brazil is home to the largest Japanese population outside Japan.
Since the 1980s  a return migration has emerged of Japanese Brazilians to Japan.
This was also consistent with the government s push towards  whitening  the country.
The government and farmers offered to pay European immigrants  passage.
The plan encouraged millions of Europeans  most of them Italians  to migrate to Brazil.
By the 1930s  Japanese industrialisation had significantly boosted the population.
However  prospects for Japanese people to migrate to other countries were limited.
About half of these immigrants came from southern Okinawa.
They travelled from the Japanese port of Kobe via the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa.
However   getting rich quick  was a dream that was almost impossible to achieve.
The immigrants were paid a very low salary and worked long hours of exhausting work.
Soon  their debts became very significant.
The land owners in Brazil still had a slavery mentality.
Immigrants  although employees  had to confront the rigidity and lack of labour laws.
Japanese children born in Brazil were educated in schools founded by the Japanese community.
Over the years  many Japanese managed to buy their own land and became small farmers.
They started to plant strawberries  tea and rice.
Only 6  of children were the result of interracial relationships.
Immigrants rarely accepted marriage with a non Japanese person.
In consequence  the non white population would  gradually  achieve a desirable White phenotype.
The government focused on Italians  Jews  and Japanese.
During World War II  Brazil severed relations with Japan.
After the failure of the first Japanese immigration  it contracted 3 000 yellow people.
It insists on giving Brazil a race diametrically opposite to ours .
The drivers employed by Japanese had to have permission from the police.
Thousands of Japanese immigrants were arrested or expelled from Brazil on suspicion of espionage.
The police acted without any notice.
About 90  of people displaced were Japanese.
To reside in Baixada Santista  the Japanese had to have a safe conduct.
Prestige     For decades  Japanese Brazilians were seen as a non assimilable people.
All the immigrants reported they spoke exclusively Japanese at home in the first years in Brazil.
However  in 2003  the figure dropped to 58.5  in Aliança and 33.3  in Fukuhaku.
Those who do not live with a Japanese born relative usually speak Portuguese more often.
There were 693 495 people of Japanese origin in São Paulo  followed by Paraná with 143 588.
The smallest percentages were found in Roraima and Alagoas  with only 8 Japanese .
The percentage of Brazilians with Japanese roots largely increased among children and teenagers.
In 1991  0.6  of Brazilians between 0 and 14 years old were of Japanese descent.
NumbersThere were 4 034 families of Japanese descent from Maringá  comprising 14 324 people.
Dekasegi1 846 or 15  of Japanese Brazilians from Maringá were working in Japan.
Knowledge of the Japanese language47  can understand  read and write in Japanese.
31  of the second generation and 16  of the third generation can speak Japanese.
Mixed race20  were mixed race  have some non Japanese origin .
Many Japanese Brazilians began to immigrate.
Brazilians in Japan are usually educated.
However  they are employed in the Japanese automotive and electronics factories.
From January 2011 to March  it is estimated that 20 000 Brazilian immigrants left Japan.
Tokyo has the largest carnival parade outside of Brazil itself.
In Oizumi  it is estimated that 15  of the population speak Portuguese as their native language.
The Brazilian fashion and Bossa Nova music are also popular among Japanese.
Prince Naruhito of Japan arrived in Brazil on 17 June to participate in the celebrations.
He visited Brasília  São Paulo  Paraná  Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro.
In the São Paulo sambódromo  the Prince spoke to 50 000 people and in Paraná to 75 000.
Naruhito  the crown prince of Japan  gave a speech in Portuguese.
The former was established in 1946 and the latter was established in 1998.
The increase of the number of publications was due to Japanese immigration to Brazil.
All were published in São Paulo.
As of 2003  in southern Brazil there are hundreds of Japanese supplementary schools.
MEXT approved hoshukos in Porto Alegre and Salvador have closed.
Of the schools  111 were in São Paulo State and 54 were in Paraná State.
As escolas Japonesas paulistas  1915–1945   Ph.D. dissertation  University of Sao Paulo  1997 .
The social composition of Buddhism s followers also changed radically with time.
If a shrine housed a Buddhist temple  it was called a jingū ji  神宮寺  lit.
Arches and barrel roofs are completely absent.
The large  single space offered by the main hall can therefore be altered according to the need.
Structures are therefore made to a certain extent part of their environment.
It was later renamed as Asuka dera for Asuka   the name of the capital where it was located.
In addition  many temples were built in locations favored by the precepts of Chinese geomancy.
Six groups of five categories were established as a rule to the building of edifices.
Chinese numerology also played an important role.
Practically all wooden pagodas have either three or five stories.
Specimen with a different number of stories used to exist  but none has survived.
Because of fire  earthquakes  typhoons and wars  few of those ancient temples still exist.
100 m  330 ft  tall and a Great Buddha Hall  daibutsuden  about 80 m × 70 m  260 ft × 230 ft .
A local kami would appear in a dream to the monk  telling him about his suffering.
The Main Hall of Jōruri ji is however the only example of such a hall still extant.
The influential Zen arrived in Japan from China  and the Jōdō sect achieved independence.
The Nandaimon at Tōdai ji and the Amida Hall at Jōdo ji are the only extant examples of this style.
Ōta derived the name from Chōgen s work  particularly Tōdai ji s Daibutsuden.
Construction methods had been perfected and building types conventionalized.
The Edo period was an era of unprecedented building fervor in religious architecture.
Both  in spite of their differences  have in common a reliance on splendor and excess.
An estimated 30 000 Buddhist structures were demolished between 1868 and 1874.
Common temple features    Butsuden or Butsu dō  仏殿・仏堂  – lit.
Seems to have two stories  but has in fact only one and measures either 3x3 or 5x5 bays.
chinjusha  鎮守社 鎮主社  – a small shrine built at a Buddhist temple and dedicated to its tutelary kami.
chūmon  中門  – in a temple  the gate after the naindaimon connected to a kairō.
The prefix can be the name of a deity associated with it  e.g.
Yakushi dō  or Yakushi hall  or express the building s function within the temple s compound  e.g.
A building dedicated to lectures by the chief priest on Buddhism s scriptures  the hō .
hōjō  方丈  – the living quarters of the head priest of a Zen temple.
In Tendai Buddhism  a hall whose layout allows walking around a statue for meditation.
The purpose of walking is to concentrate on the Hokekyō and seek the ultimate truth.
kairō  回廊・廻廊  – a long and roofed portico like passage connecting two buildings.
Jōdo sect temples often call it miei dō.
golden hall   it is the main hall of a garan  housing the main object of worship.
It used to face the shōrō and lie next to the kō dō  but now the drum is usually kept in the rōmon.
kuri  庫裏  – see kuin kyō dō  経堂  – see kyōzō.
mi dō  御堂  – a generic honorific term for a building which enshrines a sacred statue.
Miroku Nyorai  弥勒如来  – Japanese name of Maitreya.
mon  門  – a temple s gate  which can be named after its position  nandaimon  lit.
The same gate can therefore be described using more than one term.
For example  a Niōmon can at the same time be a nijūmon.
nandaimon  南大門  – the main southern gate of a temple  in particular that at Nara s Tōdai ji.
nijūmon  二重門  – a two storied gate with a roof surrounding the first floor.
Niōmon  仁王門 or 二王門  – a two storied or high gate guarded by two wooden guardians called Niō.
noborirō  登廊  – a covered stairway at Nara s Hasedera.
sai dō  斎堂  – the refectory at a Zen temple or monastery.
sandō （参道）  the approach leading from a torii to a shrine.
The term is also used sometimes at Buddhist temples too.
sanmon  三門 or 山門  – the gate in front of the butsuden.
The name is short for Sangedatsumon  三解脱門   lit.
Its size depends on the temple s rank.
sekitō  石塔  – a stone pagoda  stupa .
In practice  shichidō garan can also mean simply a large complex.
shōrō  鐘楼  – a temple s belfry  a building from which a bell is hung.
sōbō  僧坊  – The monks  living quarters in a non Zen garan sō dō  僧堂  – Lit.
It used to be dedicated to many kinds of activities  from eating to sleeping  centered on zazen.
sōmon  総門  – the gate at the entrance of a temple.
It precedes the bigger and more important sanmon.
Strips of wood left behind tombs during annual ceremonies  tsuizen  symbolizing a stupa.
In present day Japanese  sotoba usually has this meaning.
Later  it became a subsidiary temple or a minor temple depending from a larger one.
Finally  it became also subsidiary temple being the family temple  bodaiji  of an important family.
Shrines of various size can be found next to  or inside temples.
tōrō  灯籠  – a lantern at a shrine or Buddhist temple.
Some of its forms are influenced by the gorintō.
tō  塔  A pagoda  and an evolution of the stupa.
tōsu or tōshi  東司  – a Zen monastery s toilet.
Yakushi dō  薬師堂  – a building that enshrines a statue of Yakushi Nyorai.
yokushitsu   浴室  – a monastery s bathroom.
Sir Banister Fletcher s a history of architecture  20th illustrated ed. .
Gardner s Art Through the Ages  Non Western Perspectives  13th  revised ed. .
Architecture and Interior Design  illustrated  revised ed. .
Periplus Asian architecture  illustrated ed. .
It is the largest single ISS module  and is attached to the Harmony module.
The first two pieces of the module were launched on Space Shuttle missions STS 123 and STS 124.
The third and final components were launched on STS 127.
The racks are placed in a 6 6 6 5 format along the four walls of the module.
The end of the PM has an airlock and two window hatches.
It is the location for many of the press conferences that take place on board the station.
All experiment payloads are fully exposed to the space environment.
Of the twelve ORUs  eight are replaceable by the JEMRMS while the other four are EVA replaceable.
The unpressurized  external  section  ELM ES  serves the EF as a storage and transportation module.
It is used for servicing the EF and for moving equipment to and from the ELM.
The JEMRMS grappled the arm and unfolded it to flex the joints before stowing it onto the EF.
Launch sequence     NASA launched the JEM complex over three flights using the Space Shuttle.
The shuttle had a large payload bay which carried the modules into orbit along with the crew.
On 3 June 2008  the PM was attached to the Harmony module.
The two elements were launched on Endeavour on 15 July 2009 as part of the STS 127 mission.
The ELM ES was brought back to Earth at the end of the mission.
The assembly of the EF was completed during the fifth spacewalk of the mission.
It is made from stainless steel  titanium  and aluminum.
Exposed Facility Slot 3 port originally held SMILES.
NREP 2 is the current mission on this pallet.
Exposed Facility Slot 4. i SEEP – IVA replaceable Small Exposed Experiment Platform  JAXA .
It is a platform to support small to medium  less than 200 kg  payloads.
Experiments on the i SEEP platform are HDTV EF2  since 2017   GPSR Wheel  and SOLISS  since 2019 .
HISUI –  Hyperspectral Imager Suite  METI  replacement for HREP which ended its mission in 2017.
Exposed Facility Slot 8 port originally held MCE.
Exposed Facility Slot 9 port originally held SEDA AP.
Mounted to the deck on handrails in the forward and aft locations next to slots 7 and 10.
Exposed Facility Slot 10 port originally held the ELM ES and the HTV Transfer Pallet.
Measures neutrons  plasma  heavy ions  and high energy light particles in the station s orbit.
ICS EF – Inter orbit Communication System Exposed Facility  Japanese communication system.
In 2007 the Grand Prix moved back to the newly redesigned Fuji Speedway.
Suzuka has hosted the Japanese Grand Prix every year since 2009.
In 1964  the race was held at Suzuka again.
This marked the beginning of motor racing in earnest in Japan.
The circuit had a banked corner called Daiichi and was the scene of many fatal accidents.
The first event in 1987 was already a classic.
Austrian Gerhard Berger won the race for Ferrari  their first victory since 1985.
As a result  he dropped to 14th  while Prost took the lead.
This race turned out to be one of the most memorable in the sport s history.
Both Senna and Prost went into the race weekend each knowing what the stakes were.
The marshals then pushed his car forwards while Senna bump started the engine  and he drove off.
Senna took the chequered flag  but the podium ceremony proceeded to be delayed.
Cutting the chicane was in effect bypassing the track to gain an advantage – and this was illegal.
The 1990 event proved to be just as controversial as the 1989 event.
The Frenchman needed to win both of the final two races to defend the title.
Senna started from pole  with Prost second  albeit on the racing line .
This accident meant that Senna won his second world Drivers  Championship.
Furious and disgusted  Prost later described Senna as  a man without value .
Senna won his 40th race in his career from Prost  but he wasn t all smiles.
1995 saw an incredible drive from French Italian Jean Alesi on dry slick tyres in damp conditions.
It had rained at the start  but the track was drying.
Alesi went into the pits on lap seven  around the time everyone else came in.
But then Alesi had to serve a drive through penalty for jumping the start.
He then went into the pits and dropped to 13th from 8th as a result.
1998 saw another dramatic title decider between Schumacher and Finn Mika Häkkinen.
Schumacher ran over the debris  puncturing his right rear tire.
This was Ferrari s first drivers  championship in 21 years.
The 2007 race was held in torrential rain and started behind the safety car.
Lewis Hamilton took the victory while his McLaren teammate Fernando Alonso crashed heavily.
However  the race was marred by tragedy.
Bianchi was unresponsive to marshals and team radio.
He was taken to a nearby hospital  where he was placed into a coma.
It was hoped that he would recover  but Bianchi died nine months later due to his injuries.
A further extension was announced in August 2018 to keep the race at Suzuka until 2021.
The 1995 Japanese Grand Prix was the first for which the allocated tickets did not sell out.
However  the last JASDF forces left Kuwait on December 18  2008.
His captors had promised to execute him unless Japanese troops were withdrawn.
Significance     Analysts differ as to the political ramifications of the deployment.
But it is first and foremost a show of support to the U.S.
The U.S. invaded Iraq without a U.N. resolution  and Japan is now aiding in that act.
The first JGSDF troops arrived at the Dutch military base in Samawah on January 19.
Mortars and rockets were lobbed at the Japanese camp several times  causing no damage or injuries.
Although all Japanese soldiers have left Iraq  JASDF forces continue to play a minor support role.
The last JASDF forces left Kuwait on December 18  2008.
The Japanese New Year  正月  Shōgatsu  is an annual festival with its own customs.
Today  sashimi and sushi are often eaten  as well as non Japanese foods.
Mochi     Another custom is to create and eat rice cakes  mochi .
Mashing the rice  it forms a sticky white dumpling.
This is made before New Year s Day and eaten during the beginning of January.
The name daidai is supposed to be auspicious since it means  several generations.
A major attraction is The Watched Night bell  in Tokyo.
Japanese believe that the ringing of bells can rid their sins during the previous year.
The bell is rung 107 times on the 31st and once past midnight.
It is also very common to eat buckwheat noodles called toshikoshi soba on ōmisoka  New Year s Eve .
Japanese people send these postcards so that they arrive on 1 January.
It is customary not to send these postcards when one has had a death in the family during the year.
People get their nengajō from many sources.
The Chinese zodiac has a cycle of 12 years.
Each year is represented by an animal.
2008 was the year of the Rat  2009 Ox  2010 Tiger  2011 Rabbit  2012 Dragon  and 2013 Snake.
The postcards may have spaces for the sender to write a personal message.
Blank cards are available  so people can hand write or draw their own.
Special printing devices are popular  especially among people who practice crafts.
In recent years this digital greeting preference is gradually accepted among the society.
It is not uncommon for amounts greater than ¥5 000  approximately US 50  to be given.
All of the traditions above would be appropriate to include in haiku as kigo  season words .
Games     It was also customary to play many New Year s games.
The show features two teams  red and white  of popular music artists competing against each other.
The final has taken place on New Year s Day since 1969 and is usually aired on NHK.
Japanese orchestras  notably the NHK Symphony Orchestra  began performing the symphony in 1925.
This is now sometimes celebrated on January 15  in various respects.
This corresponds to the Chinese Lantern Festival.
He admitted the fabrication in an interview with the newspaper.
The Japanese Archaeological Association disaffiliated Fujimura from its members.
Skull features tend to be stronger  with comparatively recessed eyes.
In the 2017 Census in Peru  only 22 534 people self reported Nikkei or Japanese ancestry.
Peru was also the first Latin American country to accept Japanese immigration.
Nearly all Japanese owned shops were destroyed.
The Japanese press in Peru    In June 1921  Nippi Shimpo  Japanese Peruvian News  was published.
It has become a gastronomic sensation in many countries.
Some examples of chefs who use Nikkei cuisine include Nobu Matsuhisa  Ferran Adrià and Kurt Zdesar.
America s Japanese Hostages  The US Plan For A Japanese Free Hemisphere.
Adios to Tears  The Memoirs of a Japanese Peruvian Internee in U.S.
The Japanese addressing system is used to identify a specific location in Japan.
Following the prefecture is the municipality.
For a large municipality this is the city  shi  市 .
In Japan  a city is separate from districts  which contain towns and villages.
There are also some municipalities like Ryūgasaki  Ibaraki which do not use any subdivisions.
Below this level  two styles of addressing are possible.
Building 10 in block 5 would be formally written as 5番10号  5 ban 10 gō .
This can be written as any of 3番地5  3 banchi 5   3番地の5  3 banchi no 5  or 3番5  3 ban 5 .
The apartment number may also be appended  resulting in 4 5 10 103.
In fact  many businesses have maps on their literature and business cards.
In addition to the address itself  all locations in Japan have a postal code.
A postal mark  〒  may precede the code to indicate that the number following is a postal code.
This system is  however  recognized by the post office and by government agencies.
For added precision  the street based address can be given  followed by the chō and land number.
While they continue to be used locally  e.g.
These function similarly to chōme and are treated as such in addresses.
See Japanese place names for more.
Shinto and Buddhism    Shinto is considered to be at the fountain head of Japanese culture.
Nevertheless  Japanese aesthetic ideals are most heavily influenced by Japanese Buddhism.
This  nothingness  is not empty space.
It is rather a space of potentiality.
If the seas represent potential then each thing is like a wave arising from it and returning to it.
At no point is a wave complete  even at its peak.
Nature is seen as a dynamic whole that is to be admired and appreciated.
In this  beauty is an altered state of consciousness and can be seen in the mundane and simple.
In Zen philosophy there are seven aesthetic principles for achieving Wabi Sabi.
Hence  aesthetic ideals have an ethical connotation and pervades much of the Japanese culture.
It expressed that sensitivity to beauty which was the hallmark of the Heian era.
Shibui maintains that literal meaning still  and remains the antonym of amai  甘い   meaning  sweet .
3.  Shibusa is not to be confused with wabi or sabi.
Though many wabi or sabi objects are shibui  not all shibui objects are wabi or sabi.
Iki     Iki  いき  often written 粋  is a traditional aesthetic ideal in Japan.
Iki is an expression of simplicity  sophistication  spontaneity  and originality.
It is ephemeral  straightforward  measured  and unselfconscious.
Iki is not overly refined  pretentious  complicated.
Iki may signify a personal trait  or artificial phenomena exhibiting human will or consciousness.
The tasteful manifestation of sensuality can be iki.
Etymologically  iki has a root that means pure and unadulterated.
However  it also carries a connotation of having an appetite for life.
Yūgen     Yūgen  幽玄  is an important concept in traditional Japanese aesthetics.
The exact translation of the word depends on the context.
Yūgen suggests that which is beyond what can be said  but it is not an allusion to another world.
It is about this world  this experience.
All of these are portals to yūgen    To watch the sun sink behind a flower clad hill.
To wander on in a huge forest without thought of return.
To stand upon the shore and gaze after a boat that disappears behind distant islands.
To contemplate the flight of wild geese seen and lost among the clouds.
He uses images of nature as a constant metaphor.
For example   snow in a silver bowl  represents  the Flower of Tranquility .
It is used to refer to Zeami s interpretation of  refined elegance  in the performance of Noh.
Ensō       Ensō  円相  is a Japanese word meaning  circle .
Only a person who is mentally and spiritually complete can draw a true ensō.
It has an exclusive economic zone of 4 470 000 km2  1 730 000 sq mi .
It is used when referring to the main islands of Hokkaido  Honshu  Kyushu  Shikoku and Okinawa.
It included Karafuto Prefecture  Sakhalin  until the end of World War II.
Its checkerboard street layout used the Chinese capital of Chang an as a template for its design.
Arches and barrel roofs are completely absent.
Simpler solutions are adopted in domestic structures.
The large  single space offered by the main hall can therefore be divided according to the need.
Structures are therefore made to a certain extent part of their environment.
On the subject of building proportions  see also the article ken .
Similar mounds in Korean Peninsula are thought to have been influenced by Japan.
Early in the period  the tombs  known as  keyhole kofun  or zenpō kōen fun  ja 前方後円墳  lit.
Access was via a vertical shaft that was sealed off once the burial was completed.
There was room inside the chamber for a coffin and grave goods.
The mounds were often decorated with terracotta figures called haniwa.
Later in the period mounds began to be located on flat ground and their scale greatly increased.
New temples became centers of worship with tomb burial practices quickly became outlawed.
The oldest surviving wooden buildings in the world are found at Hōryū ji  northeast of Nara.
The city soon became an important centre of Buddhist worship in Japan.
Brick roofing tiles and a type of cypress called hinoki were used for roofs.
The style was characterised by symmetrical buildings placed as arms that defined an inner garden.
Inside  a single golden image of Amida  circa 1053  is installed on a high platform.
During the Genpei War  1180–1185   many traditional buildings in Nara and Kyoto were damaged.
Defense became a priority  with buildings grouped under a single roof rather than around a garden.
In the Muromachi period they began to have a regular size and be closely fitted together.
The Ōnin War during the Muromachi period had led to rise of castle architecture in Japan.
By the time of the Azuchi Momoyama period each domain was allowed to have one castle of its own.
Typically it consisted of a central tower or tenshu  天守  lit.
All of this was set within massive stone walls and surrounded by deep moats.
Verandas linked the interiors of residential buildings with highly cultivated exterior gardens.
The city grew around these buildings connected by a network of roads and canals.
By 1700 the population had swollen to one million inhabitants.
Above the earthen roofs was a timber framework supporting a tiled roof.
In the following year  a Western style Ginza was completed.
The area was also known for its window displays  an example of modern marketing techniques.
The  Bricktown  of Ginza served as a model for many other modernization schemes in Japanese cities.
The Ryōunkaku was Japan s first western style skyscraper  constructed in 1890 in Asakusa.
A good example of which is Kaichi Primary School in Nagano Prefecture built in 1876.
Another example was the First National Bank building in Tokyo  built in 1872.
Between 1933 and 1937 Bruno Taut stayed in Japan.
Running contrary to modernism in Japan was the so called Imperial Crown style  teikan yōshiki .
A similar museum is the Edo Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum.
He was assisted by his three former students  Maekawa  Sakakura and Takamasa Yoshizaka.
The 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo saw a large boost to new design.
Other structures include the Nippon Budokan  the Komazawa Gymnasium and many others.
Hasegawa concentrated on what she termed  architecture as another nature .
The church was erected by Roman Catholic volunteers in five weeks.
The ancillary spaces were made with paper tubes and honeycomb panels.
Their work in turn seeks to embrace its context rather than block it out.
The plan is like a biological cell punctuated with tables and courtyards alike.
This aesthetic has in turn influenced western style  particularly Modernism.
Japanese design is based strongly on craftsmanship  beauty  elaboration  and delicacy.
The design of interiors is very simple but made with attention to detail and intricacy.
Natural materials are used to keep simplicity in the space that connects to nature.
The size of rooms can be altered by interior sliding walls or screens  the already mentioned shōji.
In summer  for example  exterior walls can be opened to bring the garden and cooling breezes in.
Her taste was not out of place in the ancient Japanese court.
...Branches about to blossom or garden strewn with faded flowers are worthier of our admiration.
The incomplete is also praised by Kenkō   uniformity and completeness are undesirable .
The spaces are used as multifunctional rooms.
This is an important aspect to Japanese design.
These panels are called fusuma and are used as an entire wall.
They originated in ancient Japan when straw was laid on bare earth as a softener and warmer.
Country dwellings and farmhouses often use it for ceilings and rafters.
A range of papers are used for various purposes in the home.
This is the focus of the room and displays Japanese art  usually a painting or calligraphy.
There was a push by bureaucrats for Japan to develop into a more  modern   Western  culture.
The modernising of the home was considered the best way to change the daily life of the people.
Influence from the Far East was not new in America at this time.
The Japanese influence was different however.
The simplicity of Japanese dwellings contrasted the oft esteemed excessive decoration of the West.
Part Four  Chapter 25 Koji Yagi  text   Ryo Hata  photos   A Japanese Touch For Your Home.
These people became less nomadic and began to settle in villages.
This advancement was a very important achievement during this time.
They were made across all of Japan  except Okinawa.
Dogū are made of clay and are small  typically 10 to 30 cm high.
They are considered by many to be representative of goddesses.
The transmission of Buddhism provided the initial impetus for contacts between China and Japan.
The earliest Japanese sculptures of the Buddha are dated to the 6th and 7th century.
Many historians portray Korea as a mere transmitter of Buddhism.
Temple building in the 8th century was focused around the Tōdai ji in Nara.
Concurrently  the Kyoto nobility developed a society devoted to elegant aesthetic pursuits.
Inside  a single golden image of Amida  c. 1053  is installed on a high platform.
picture scroll    came to the fore.
But perhaps most easily noticeable are the differences in subject matter.
Otoko e often recorded historical events  particularly battles.
This type of painting was executed with quick brush strokes and a minimum of detail.
Mist fills the middle ground  and the background mountains appear to be far in the distance.
The foremost artists of the Muromachi period are the priest painters Shūbun and Sesshū.
In the Edo period these prints were depicted events and scenes of prominent actors.
Ukiyo then was associated to woodblock printing in the early Edo period.
These Ukiyo paintings depicted daily lives of prominent members of society.
Ukiyo first started out as hand sculpted scrolls depicted life as a normal commoner.
The whole complex is surrounded by a beautiful garden with paths for walking.
Perhaps his finest are the screen paintings of Red and White Plum Blossoms.
Sculpture  The Buddhist monk Enkū carved 120 000 Buddhist images in a rough  individual style.
Marie Antoinette and Maria Theresa are known as collectors of Japanese lacquerware in this period.
This style of building was built in urban areas.
Many artistic new Japanese gardens were built by Jihei Ogawa.
The period from 1890 to 1910 was known as the  Golden age  of Japanese enamels.
Along with the two Namikawa  the Ando Cloisonné Company has produced many high quality cloisonne.
These wares were highly praised in the West.
Very large  colourful pictorial works were being produced in Kyoto.
Some artists shied away from formal public exhibitions.
Over the course of the 1960s  the Japanese economy grew by over 10  per year.
Various types of  hybrid  art increasingly came into vogue.
Yo Akiyama is just one of many modern Japanese sculptors.
His pieces take a multitude of forms  from painting to sculpture  some truly massive in size.
Aesthetic concepts     Japanese art is characterized by unique polarities.
Like a pearl  they acquired many layers of meaning and a high luster.
Modesty and unconventional things are what are seen as the sabi sabi aesthetic.
Wabi and sabi both make up the aesthetic of beauty in incompleteness together.
When separated  both serve as differing terms.
If made by accident  it brings about a certain uniqueness to the work.
Sabi is beauty and how it originates from age.
Wabi sabi has always been related to tea ceremonies in Japanese culture.
It is said that these ceremonies are profound wabi sabi events.
Wabi sabi is also related to activities such as architecture  fashion  and philosophy.
While this is true  there are many who wish to keep the belief alive despite what others believe.
Overall  wabi sabi seems to be a very mindful approach to everyday life.
A calm way to see things  and a way to live without coming off as judgmental.
When understanding wabi sabi  there are terms that strongly relate to the aesthetic as well.
Yugen  subtly profound grace  not obvious.
Miyabi      In the ongoing history of Japan  miyabi can stand for many things.
For this  it is one of the older aesthetics among most of the Japanese aesthetics in the culture.
That would explain why it is not as popular as the rest which may be newer compared to miyabi.
It is a term that is also used to express aristocratic culture.
Miyabi eliminates all forms of rudeness and crudity from the culture.
This brings about the proper picture and form of aristocratic culture.
Miyabi brings about these changes.
Shibui      Shibui is coming to understand an object or an art piece for what it is.
In many ways  shibui is very similar to wabi sabi but is not wabi sabi.
Shibui appreciates items and objects for simply being.
There is no complication or irrational thinking when it comes down to shibui.
Both these terms relate to subtle  unobtrusive beauty.
Direct and simple is the way of shibui.
It is used in different art forms in Japan even still today.
Almost akin to how a story is told.
Then once it reaches its climax  it speeds up.
Many young artists have criticized this system as stifling creativity and individuality.
Their other campuses are also involving varied courses.
All these efforts reflect a rising popular enthusiasm for the arts.
In early 1992  this price bubble burst and Japan s economy stagnated.
By late 1991  other asset prices began to fall.
The bursting of the Japanese asset price bubble contributed to what many call the Lost Decade.
recession caused by appreciation of Japanese Yen    which occurred from 1985 to 1986.
Simultaneously  the BOJ declared that curbing the yen s appreciation was a national priority.
As a result  land prices in Tokyo commercial districts increased sharply within a year.
This roughly translates to an increase of 42  over just a year.
Residential land jumped from an average 297 000¥ U 1 247 per 1 sq.
Land prices in Osaka gained 35  to a price of 1 159 000¥ 1 sq.
By 1987  virtually all land within the Tokyo metropolis was unable to cope with demand.
At this point  residential land in Tokyo increased to 890 000¥ 1 sq.
Prefectures located in Southern Kanto were more favourable to investors compared to Northern Kanto.
metre  were 1 279 000¥  Saitama were 658 000¥ and Chiba were 1 230 000¥.
Prime land in Ginza district and areas in Central Tokyo continued to rise.
Yokohama  Kanagawa prefecture  experienced a slowdown due to its location closer to Tokyo.
Saitama  Saitama  and Chiba  Chiba  still chalked up healthy gain in land prices.
Tokyo experienced the worst from the catastrophe.
As land prices in Tokyo began to rise in 1985  the stock market also moved higher.
Stock prices had officially collapsed by the end 1990.
In Japan s case  demands for yen increased  and the yen appreciated significantly.
In 1985  the exchange rate of yen per dollar was 238.
The GDP growth rate dropped from 6.3  in 1985 to 2.8  in 1986  and Japan experienced recession.
The official discount rate remained unchanged until May 30  1989.
As a result of such move  money growth was out of control.
Indeed  land prices continued to rise until the early 1990s.
The Japanese property tax stipulated that the statutory standard property tax stood at 1.4 .
As a result  the Greater Tokyo area dropped to 0.06  of the market price.
However  major firms were not keen to use the bank as the source of funding.
Firstly  cheap and easily available loans reduced the funding costs for the purpose of speculation.
By 1992  urban land prices nationwide declined 1.7  from the peak.
By 11 March 2003  it plunged to the post bubble low of 7 862.
Consequently  Japanese products became less competitive overseas.
During the asset bubble period  most Japanese corporate balance sheets were backed by assets.
Hence  the asset prices influenced the corporate balance sheet.
An important effect of the bubble collapse was the deterioration of balance sheets.
In 1993  the Japanese government decided on a major increase in government spending.
The nominal interest rate was reduced from 2  to 0.5  in 1995.
Overall  the depression after the bubble crisis was longer than expected.
The government took the policy of quantitative easing  in 2001.
This marked the better policy on recovering the economy.
The economy recovered slowly after 2001  and the quantitative easing was stopped in 2006.
Styles    Early Japanese calligraphy was originated from Chinese calligraphy.
After this time period  tens style fell out of popularity in favor of reishi.
However  tensho was still used for titles of published works or inscriptions.
While this seal was not made in Japan  it is believed to be the first instance of tensho in Japan.
Each panel is divided into two columns and each column has eight characters.
Early examples of this style in Japan are mostly various statue and temple inscriptions.
As its influence spread  the primary use of the kaisho technique was to copy the Lotus Sutra.
This script was practiced at the same time as the reisho script.
There are three different levels of  cursiveness  called seigyo  gyo  and gyoso.
In Japan many works were made using the gyosho technique during the early Heian Period.
The Cursive Script  sosho  has its origins in the Han Dynasty.
It was used by scribes as a cursive version of reisho for taking notes.
Early examples of sosho include inscriptions on bamboo and other wooden strips.
The exact date when sosho was introduced is unclear.
Tools     A number of tools are used to create a work of modern calligraphy.
The best inksticks are between 50 and 100 years old.
Mulberry paper  和紙  washi  An inkstone  硯  suzuri  to grind the inkstick against  mixed with water.
The art of engraving a seal is called  tenkoku  篆刻.
The student is encouraged to engrave his own seal.
The position of the seal or  seals is based on aesthetic preferences.
More advanced students are encouraged to grind their own ink.
The brushes come in various shapes and sizes  and are usually made using animal hair bristles.
Typical animal hair may come from goats  sheep  or horses.
The handle may be made from wood  bamboo  plastic or other materials.
The ink wet brush creates a line quite different from a sharp stylus.
It affords variation in thickness and curve of line.
The way a character was written gave a message of style.
The oldest hand copied sutra in Japan is the Kongō Jōdaranikyō.
Both inscriptions were influenced by the Northern Wei robust style.
In the 7th century  the Tang dynasty established hegemony in China.
This marks the beginning of the Heian era  Japan s  golden age .
Chinese influences in calligraphy were not changed in the early period.
Some other Chinese calligraphers  such as Ouyang Xun and Yan Zhenqing were also highly valued.
Their most notable admirers were Emperor Saga and Tachibana no Hayanari respectively.
At the same time  a style of calligraphy unique to Japan emerged.
Rankei Doryū founded the Kenchō ji temple in Kamakura and many of his works have been preserved.
The arts prospered  but are not considered as refined as that of earlier times.
Edo period      Tokugawa Ieyasu centralized power in his shogunate between 1603 and 1615.
In high school  calligraphy is one of the choices among art subjects  along with music or painting.
For any particular piece of paper  the calligrapher has but one chance to create with the brush.
The brush strokes cannot be corrected  and even a lack of confidence shows up in the work.
The calligrapher must concentrate and be fluid in execution.
Zen calligraphy is practiced by Buddhist monks and most shodō practitioners.
This is considered an essential step in the preparation for a tea ceremony.
See also    Fudepen   Modern stationery to write calligraphic scripts.
List of National Treasures of Japan  writings  Sumi e  Japanese ink painting  is related in method.
At its apex  the  Japanese colonial empire was one of the largest empires in history.
This was similar to nation building in nineteenth and twentieth century Europe.
Japanese involvement in Korea increased during the 1890s  a period of political upheaval.
In Japan  a more common description is  Japanese rule   日本統治時代の朝鮮  Nippon Tōchi jidai no Chōsen .
A colonial government was established in 1907 and South Sakhalin became the Karafuto Prefecture.
Japanese and Korean migrants to the colony developed the fishing  forestry and mining industries.
In 1942 South Sakhalin ceased to be a colony and was incorporated into Japan.
The Soviet Union gained control of the whole island at the end of World War II.
A governor and a garrison were put in place  the latter becoming the Kwantung Army in 1919.
In 1906  Japan laid the South Manchurian Railway to Port Arthur  Japanese  Ryojun .
He initially had Japanese backing  but the Japanese Kwantung Army found him too independent.
The city of Changchun was renamed Hsinking and became the capital of Manchukuo.
An imperial palace was specially built for the emperor.
Manchukuo s steel production exceeded Japan s in the late 1930s.
There was progress in the area s social systems and many Manchurian cities were modernized.
Manchukuo issued banknotes and postal stamps  and several independent banks were founded.
The Chinese Eastern Railway was bought from the Soviet Union In 1935.
During this period Manchukuo was used as a base from which to invade China.
This was called Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation.
The Army of Manchukuo was defeated and the Emperor was captured by Soviet forces.
This sprawling bureaucratic state continued post World War II and after the Korean War.
State Directed Development  Political Power and Industrialization in the Global Periphery.
Cry Havoc How the Arms Race Drove the World to War  1931 1941  New York  Basic Books.
Side dishes often consist of fish  pickled vegetables  and vegetables cooked in broth.
Seafood is common  often grilled  but also served raw as sashimi or in sushi.
Seafood and vegetables are also deep fried in a light batter  as tempura.
Apart from rice  staples include noodles  such as soba and udon.
Japanese cuisine  particularly sushi  has become popular throughout the world.
Terminology    The word washoku  和食  is now the common word for traditional Japanese cooking.
warming stone   is tied with the Japanese tea ceremony.
The kaiseki is considered a  simplified  form of honzen ryōri  本膳料理  lit.
main tray cooking    which was formal banquet dining where several trays of food was served.
There is also the homophone kaiseki ryōri  会席料理  lit.
This may be accompanied by a clear or miso soup and tsukemono  pickles .
This is done even in Japanese homes.
Placing main dishes on top of rice and  soiling  is also frowned upon by old fashioned etiquette.
However  an exception is the popular donburi.
tea bowl   doubles as a word for the large tea bowls in tea ceremonies.
History     Rice is a staple in Japanese cuisine.
Wheat and soybeans were introduced shortly after rice.
During the Kofun period  Buddhism became the official religion of the country.
Therefore  eating meat and fish was prohibited.
In 675 AD  Emperor Tenmu prohibited the eating of horses  dogs  monkeys  and chickens.
In the 8th and 9th centuries  many emperors continued to prohibit killing many types of animals.
During this period  chopsticks were introduced to Japan.
Initially  they were only used by the nobility.
The general population used their hands  as utensils were quite expensive.
Spices were rare to find at the time.
Spices like pepper and garlic were only used in a minimalist amount.
In the absence of meat  fish was served as the main protein  as Japan is an island nation.
Fish has influenced many iconic Japanese dishes today.
In the 9th century  grilled fish and sliced raw fish were widely popular.
Sushi thus became a popular snack food and main entrée  combining fish with rice.
During the Edo period  mid 15th century   sushi without fermentation was introduced.
The feast contained food that had a lot of European emphases.
For the first time in a thousand years  people were allowed to consume meat in public.
After this New Years feast  the general population from Japan started to consume meat again.
Seasonality means taking advantage of the  fruit of the mountains   山の幸  yama no sachi  alt.
bounty of the sea   as they come into season.
The consumption of whale and terrapin meat were not forbidden under this definition.
Despite this  the consumption of red meat did not completely disappear in Japan.
Several of the monks were killed during the break in attempt  and the remainder were arrested.
On the other hand  the consumption of meat was accepted by the common people.
Gyūnabe  beef hot pot   the prototype of Sukiyaki  became the rage of the time.
Western restaurants moved in  and some of them changed their form to Yōshoku.
A major exception is the deep frying of foods.
Words such as tempura or hiryōzu  synonymous with ganmodoki  are said to be of Portuguese origin.
These are typically the only seasonings used when grilling or braising an item.
Examples of such spices include ginger and takanotsume  鷹の爪  red pepper.
A sprig of mitsuba or a piece of yuzu rind floated on soups are called ukimi.
Shichimi is also a very popular spice mixture often added to soups  noodles and rice cakes.
A tosazu  土佐酢   Tosa vinegar   adds katsuo dashi to this.
Shira ae  白和え  adds tofu  bean curd  in the mix.
The style is minimalist  extolling the aesthetics of wabi sabi.
Like the tea ceremony  appreciation of the diningware and vessels is part of the experience.
An exception is shōjin ryōri  精進料理   vegetarian dishes developed by Buddhist monks.
However  the advertised shōjin ryōri at public eating places includes some non vegetarian elements.
The sect in Japan was founded by the priest Ingen  d. 1673   and is headquartered in Uji  Kyoto.
Rice     Rice has been the staple food for the Japanese historically.
While rice has a long history of cultivation in Japan  its use as a staple has not been universal.
Noodles     Japanese noodles often substitute for a rice based meal.
There are also other  less common noodles.
It may have toppings  but they are called gu  具 .
are added to the noodles  besides the broth dip sauce.
The word nuuhara  ヌーハラ  from  nuudoru harasumento   noodle harassment  was coined to describe this.
Sweets     Traditional Japanese sweets are known as wagashi.
Ingredients such as red bean paste and mochi are used.
More modern day tastes includes green tea ice cream  a very popular flavor.
Almost all manufacturers produce a version of it.
Kakigōri is a shaved ice dessert flavored with syrup or condensed milk.
It is usually sold and eaten at summer festivals.
A dessert very popular among the children in Japan are dorayaki.
They are sweet pancakes filled with a sweet red bean paste.
They are mostly eaten at room temperature but are also considered very delicious hot.
Beverages          Tea     Green tea may be served with most Japanese dishes.
Beer       Beer production started in Japan in the 1860s.
Beer and its varieties have a market share of almost 2 3 of alcoholic beverages.
Side dishes for sake are particularly called sakana or otsumami.
As of 2014  Japan has some 1500 registered breweries  which produce thousands of different sakes.
Shōchū is produced everywhere in Japan  but its production started in Kyushu.
Wine     A domestic wine production exists since the 1860s yet most wine is imported.
The total market share of wine on alcoholic beverages is about 3 .
On the other hand  Kansai region foods are lightly seasoned  with clear udon noodles.
Behind these  each okazu is served on its own individual plate.
Pickled vegetables are often served on the side but are not counted as part of the three okazu.
Only men are supposed to sit cross legged.
The formal way of sitting for both sexes is a kneeling style known as seiza.
In the home  the most important guest is also seated farthest away from the entrance.
If there is a tokonoma  or alcove  in the room  the guest is seated in front of it.
When saying itadakimasu  both hands are put together in front of the chest or on the lap.
Itadakimasu is preceded by complimenting the appearance of food.
Before touching the food  it is polite to compliment the host on his artistry.
Chimaki  steamed sweet rice cake   Tango no sekku and Gion Festival.
Hamo  a type of fish  often eel  and sōmen  Gion Festival.
Sekihan is red rice  which is served for any celebratory occasion.
This is called toshi koshi soba  ja 年越しそば   literally  year crossing soba  .
The average Japanese person eats curry at least once a week.
Today  many of these imported items still hold a heavy presence in Japan.
Restaurants that serve these foods are called yōshokuya  洋食屋   Western cuisine restaurants  .
Many are served alongside rice and miso soup  and eaten with chopsticks.
Okonomiyaki      Okonomiyaki is a savoury pancake containing a variety of ingredients.
Tonkatsu      Tonkatsu is a breaded  deep fried pork cutlet.
Curry      Curry was introduced to Japan by the British in the Meiji period.
This can be eaten during dinner most of the time.
Outside Japan     Many countries have imported portions of Japanese cuisine.
These key nations or region are Taiwan  Hong Kong  China  Singapore  Thailand and Indonesia.
It is one of the most popular styles of sushi in the US market.
Popular items are sushi  sashimi  and teriyaki.
Two of the first Japanese restaurants in the United States were Saito and Nippon.
The meal would be served with steamed rice and Japanese  soup.
Canada     In Canada  Japanese cuisine has become quite popular.
Sushi and sashimi takeout began in Vancouver and Toronto  and is now common throughout Canada.
Izakaya restaurants have surged in popularity.
United Kingdom      Japanese food restaurant chains in the UK include Wagamama  YO!
Taiwan     Japan and Taiwan have shared close historical and cultural relations.
Dishes such as sushi  ramen  and donburi are very popular among locals.
Taiwan has adapted many Japanese food items.
It is popular as a night market snack and as an ingredient for oden  hot pot and lu wei.
Thailand     In Southeast Asia  Thailand is the largest market for Japanese food.
This is also contributed to the fact that Indonesia has large numbers of Japanese expatriates.
The main concern is the halal issue.
In some cases  Japanese cuisine in Indonesia is often slanted to suit Indonesian taste.
As a result the foods served there have been adapted to suit Indonesians  taste.
Today  okonomiyaki and takoyaki are popular street fare in Jakarta and other Indonesian cities.
The Philippines have been exposed to the influences from the Japanese  Indian and Chinese.
The cities of Davao and Metro Manila probably have the most Japanese influence in the country.
In the Philippines  Halo halo is derived from Japanese Kakigori.
It is one of the most popular dishes in Japan.
The very common  curry rice  is most often referred to simply as  curry   カレー  karē .
Along with the sauce  a wide variety of vegetables and meats are used to make Japanese curry.
The basic vegetables are onions  carrots  and potatoes.
Beef  pork  and chicken are the most popular meat choices.
By the 1870s  curry began to be served in Japan  and became a staple within the Japanese diet.
Pressure cooking can be used as well.
Pre made curry is available in vacuum sealed bags that can be reheated in boiling water.
In 2007  Japanese domestic shipments of instant curry roux was 82.7 billion yen.
Serving    Japanese curry rice is served in anything from a flat plate to a soup bowl.
The curry is poured over rice in any manner and amount.
Curry rice is usually served with fukujinzuke or rakkyō on the side.
Other varieties     katsu karē  カツカレー   Curry rice served with a breaded pork cutlet on top.
dorai karē  ドライカレー   Curry flavored fried rice  or curry rice with a drier  mince meat curry sauce.
maze karē  混ぜカレー   Curry rice  served with the sauce and rice already mixed.
yaki karē  焼きカレー   Curry rice  topped with a raw egg and baked in an oven.
These include   Hokkaido Sika Deer curry  えぞ鹿カレー  ezoshika karē  from Hokkaido.
Nagoya Kōchin Chicken curry  名古屋コーチンチキンカレー  Nagoya kōchin chikin karē  from Aichi Prefecture.
Nashi pear curry  梨カレー  nashi karē  from Shimane Prefecture.
Premade curry and powdered mixes are also readily available at supermarkets.
See also    Rice and curry      References         Further reading    Eston  Elizabeth  2019 .
The term Nikkeijin may or may not apply to those Japanese who still hold Japanese citizenship.
Usages of the term may depend on perspective.
Nikkei also include people of mixed racial descent who identify themselves as Nikkei.
This policy would not be lifted for over two hundred years.
Travel restrictions were eased once Japan opened diplomatic relations with Western nations.
In 1867  the bakufu began issuing travel documents for overseas travel and emigration.
The place that used to be  Little Tokyo  in Davao was Mintal.
Most were of Japanese or Korean descent.
When Japan lost the Kuril Islands  17 000 Japanese were expelled  most from the southern islands.
That which occurred was mostly in the form of war brides.
Paraná and Mato Grosso do Sul also have a large Japanese community.
Japanese immigration into Brazil actually saw continued traffic after it resumed in 1951.
The 2002 Russian census showed 835 people claiming Japanese ethnicity  nationality .
There is a sizable Japanese community in Düsseldorf  Germany of nearly 8 000.
Other immigrants were involved in the sugar cane industry in Queensland.
By December 1941  Saipan had a population of more than 30 000 people  including 25 000 Japanese.
There are Japanese people in Palau  Guam and Northern Mariana Islands.
Another ¥200 000   2 200  is offered for each additional family member to leave.
The appreciation of the yen led to a significant economic recession in the 1980s.
Recovery stage  1946–1954      Japan was seriously harmed in WWII.
Textile production occupied more than 23.9  of the total industrial production.
By enhancing the recruitment of female labour  Japan managed to recover from the destruction.
The Japanese Economic Yearbooks from 1967 to 1971 witnessed a significant increase.
This gave the national Bank of Japan complete control over dependent local banks.
Keiretsu proved crucial to protectionist measures that shielded Japan s sapling economy.
The average monthly consumption of urban family households doubled from 1955 to 1970.
Moreover  the proportions of consumption in Japan was also changing.
The consumption in daily necessities  such as food and clothing and footwear  was decreasing.
The great increase in consumption stimulated the growth in GDP as it incentivized production.
In 1965  Japan s nominal GDP was estimated at just over  91 billion.
Fifteen years later  in 1980  the nominal GDP had soared to a record  1.065 trillion.
Ikeda lowered interest rates and taxes to private players to motivate spending.
By April 1960  trade imports had been 41 percent liberalized  compared to 22 percent in 1956 .
Ikeda planned to liberalize trade to 80 percent within three years.
Ikeda s motivations were purely pragmatic and foreign policy based  however.
By the time Ikeda left office  the GNP was growing at a phenomenal rate of 13.9 percent.
In 1962  Kaname Akamatsu published his famous article introducing the Flying Geese Paradigm.
The transformation was  in fact  a product of the oil crises and United States intervention.
Since the oil price rose tenfold  the cost of production also soared.
In 1985  the United States signed the  Plaza Accord  with Japan  West Germany  France and Britain.
The  Plaza Accord  was an attempt to devalue the US dollar  yet harmed Japan the most.
In this way  MITI formalized cooperation between the Japanese government and private industry.
This element of technological control allowed it to promote industries it deemed promising.
Productivity was greatly improved through new equipment  management  and standardization.
Power over the foreign exchange budget was also given directly to MITI.
At the time FILP controlled four times the savings of the world s largest commercial bank.
Tsuru Shigeto  Japan s Capitalism  Creative Defeat and Beyond  1993.
Shinto and Buddhism    Shinto is considered to be at the fountain head of Japanese culture.
Nevertheless  Japanese aesthetic ideals are most heavily influenced by Japanese Buddhism.
This  nothingness  is not empty space.
It is rather a space of potentiality.
If the seas represent potential then each thing is like a wave arising from it and returning to it.
At no point is a wave complete  even at its peak.
Nature is seen as a dynamic whole that is to be admired and appreciated.
In this  beauty is an altered state of consciousness and can be seen in the mundane and simple.
In Zen philosophy there are seven aesthetic principles for achieving Wabi Sabi.
Hence  aesthetic ideals have an ethical connotation and pervades much of the Japanese culture.
It expressed that sensitivity to beauty which was the hallmark of the Heian era.
Shibui maintains that literal meaning still  and remains the antonym of amai  甘い   meaning  sweet .
3.  Shibusa is not to be confused with wabi or sabi.
Though many wabi or sabi objects are shibui  not all shibui objects are wabi or sabi.
Iki     Iki  いき  often written 粋  is a traditional aesthetic ideal in Japan.
Iki is an expression of simplicity  sophistication  spontaneity  and originality.
It is ephemeral  straightforward  measured  and unselfconscious.
Iki is not overly refined  pretentious  complicated.
Iki may signify a personal trait  or artificial phenomena exhibiting human will or consciousness.
The tasteful manifestation of sensuality can be iki.
Etymologically  iki has a root that means pure and unadulterated.
However  it also carries a connotation of having an appetite for life.
Yūgen     Yūgen  幽玄  is an important concept in traditional Japanese aesthetics.
The exact translation of the word depends on the context.
Yūgen suggests that which is beyond what can be said  but it is not an allusion to another world.
It is about this world  this experience.
All of these are portals to yūgen    To watch the sun sink behind a flower clad hill.
To wander on in a huge forest without thought of return.
To stand upon the shore and gaze after a boat that disappears behind distant islands.
To contemplate the flight of wild geese seen and lost among the clouds.
He uses images of nature as a constant metaphor.
For example   snow in a silver bowl  represents  the Flower of Tranquility .
It is used to refer to Zeami s interpretation of  refined elegance  in the performance of Noh.
Ensō       Ensō  円相  is a Japanese word meaning  circle .
Only a person who is mentally and spiritually complete can draw a true ensō.
Japanese festivals are traditional festive occasions.
There are also various local festivals  e.g.
Tobata Gion  that are mostly unknown outside a given prefecture.
Similar for Nagasaki s Lantern Festival that is based in Nagasaki Chinatown.
For more detailed information on the new year celebrations see Japanese New Year.
Local festivals  matsuri      Matsuri  祭  is the Japanese word for a festival or holiday.
In Japan  festivals are usually sponsored by a local shrine or temple  though they can be secular.
Notable matsuri often feature processions which may include elaborate floats.
Preparation for these processions is usually organized at the level of neighborhoods  or machi.
If the festival is next to a lake  renting a boat is also an attraction.
It began in 1950 when high school students built snow statues in Odori Park  central Sapporo.
The event is now very large and commercialized.
Several concerts and other events are also held.
Lake Towada Snow Festival     This lake festival is held in the beginning of February.
There is a fireworks show and events held on an ice stage.
This festival is held from about August 2–7 every year.
This event attracts millions of visitors.
These floats are constructed of wooden bases and metal frames.
Japanese papers  called washi  are painted onto the frames.
These floats can take up to a year to complete.
There is a dance portion of this festival.
There are haneto dancers and they wear special costumes for this dance.
Nango Summer Jazz Festival     This event is held every year.
Thousands of artists from all over Tohoku and even further regions come to Nango to perform.
This is the largest open air jazz concert held in Tohoku region.
This festival began in 1989  in a small venue indoors.
There was such a large response from the fans that it was expanded into a large annual festival.
One must purchase tickets for this event  Bernard  2007 .
Cherry blossom festivals     Japan celebrates the entire season of the cherry blossoms.
Some locations of cherry blossom festivals include   Yaedake Cherry Blossom Festival in Okinawa.
This festival takes place early April.
This festival has a feature of illuminating the cherry blossom trees at night.
This festival takes place late March early April.
Japanese tea ceremonies and music performers are held at these festivals.
This festival is held early mid April.
The trees in this region have pink blossoms.
This festival is held early April.
This festival is held early mid April.
This festival is held mid April early May.
Hirosaki Cherry Blossom Festival held in Hirosaki Koen Hirosaki city  Aomori prefecture.
This festival is held late April early May  Mishima  Cherry Blossom Festivals 2010 .
Wales has adopted the term Matsuri to name their yearly drift festival.
It uses the Japanese name to show the sports Japanese heritage.
The event takes place over 2 days at the Anglesey Track  and has been annual for 6 years.
These paper talismans were tokens of the completion of New Year ascetic training by the priests.
The first day of the year  ganjitsu  is usually spent with members of the family.
People try to stay awake and eat toshikoshi soba  noodles to be eaten at midnight.
People also visit Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines.
These games are played to bring more luck for the year.
Also special allowances are given to children  which are called otoshidama.
The main events of Koshōgatsu are rites and practices praying for a bountiful harvest.
The celebration takes place both inside the home and at the seashore.
Both parts are meant to ward off evil spirits from girls.
Young girls put on their best kimonos and visit their friends  homes.
In some places flower viewing parties are held on traditionally fixed dates.
This is one of the most popular events during spring.
The subject of flower viewing has long held an important place in literature  dance  and fine arts.
Their light is intended to guide the way for deceased family members  spirits.
Usually the person who lets the lantern go will write a message on the side.
A priest may be asked to come and read a sutra  tanagyō .
Among the traditional preparations for the ancestors  return are the cleaning of grave sites.
The tradition is said to have originated in the Heian era as a cultured pursuit.
It is also customary to place kadomatsu  an arrangement of tree sprigs  beside the entrance way.
A fair is traditionally held in late December at shrines  temples or in local neighborhoods.
This is in preparation for the new year holidays.
Decorations and sundry goods are sold at the fair.
This is to announce the passing of the old year and the coming of the new.
With each ring one desire is dispelled.
Description of the Odawara Omatsuri festival—archived.
The academic study of folklore is known as minzokugaku  民俗学 .
This is a particularly colorful example of folk practice still kept alive.
Japanese popular cults or kō  講  are sometimes devoted to particular deities and buddhas  e.g.
Pilgrimage to these meccas declined after the Edo period.
In some areas it is common to place a small mound of salt outside the house  morijio .
Contrarily  lighting sparks with flint just as a someone is leaving the house was considered lucky.
There is also a Japanese version of Feng Shui known as kasō or literally  house physiognomy .
But there is a wealth of folktales collected through the ages.
They also close with some set phrase like  dotto harai   a variant form being Dondo Hare .
okiagari koboshi  a legless bottom loaded doll that rights itself.
Textiles     kogin zashi  Aomori Prefecture   a type of quilted clothing.
The type of material used is also part of folklore.
kasa are hats woven from sedge  soft rush  strips of bamboo  or strips of hinoki cypress.
mino  bushy cape made from rice straw  were used as rain gear and snow gear.
Snow boots were also woven from rice straw.
Ancient Japanese art inspired past garden designers.
Japanese gardens first appeared on the island of Honshu  the large central island of Japan.
Each Immortal flew from his mountain home on the back of a crane.
The islands themselves were located on the back of an enormous sea turtle.
In or around 552  Buddhism was officially installed from China  via Korea  into Japan.
They brought back Chinese writing  art objects  and detailed descriptions of Chinese gardens.
Nara period  710–794       The Nara Period is named after its capital city Nara.
The first authentically Japanese gardens were built in this city at the end of the eighth century.
Pond edges were constructed with heavy rocks as embankment.
The gardens featured one or more lakes connected by bridges and winding streams.
The south garden is famous for its cherry blossom in spring  and for azaleas in the early summer.
The best surviving example of a Paradise Garden is Byōdō in in Uji  near Kyoto.
It was designed for mediation and contemplation  not as a pleasure garden.
The capital moved to Kamakura  and then in 1336 back to the Muromachi quarter of Kyoto.
The Emperors ruled in name only  real power was held by a military governor  the shōgun.
The monks brought with them a new form of Buddhism  called simply Zen  or  meditation .
Japan enjoyed a renaissance in religion  in the arts  and particularly in gardens.
It applies to a Song China inspired composition technique derived from ink painting.
The most notable garden style invented in this period was the zen garden  or Japanese rock garden.
One of the finest examples  and one of the best known of all Japanese gardens is Ryōan ji in Kyoto.
Several of the famous zen gardens of Kyoto were the work of one man  Musō Soseki  1275–1351 .
These gardens were meant to be seen from above  from the castle or residence.
Its notable features include a bridge 10.5 meters long made of two natural stones.
The garden also includes a waterfall at the foot of a wooded hill.
The only decoration allowed inside a scroll with an inscription and a branch of a tree.
It did not have a view of the garden.
The garden was also small  and constantly watered to be damp and green.
The term first appeared at the end of the 16th century referring to isolated tea houses.
They opened up onto the garden  so that the garden seemed entirely part of the building.
The promenade gardens of the period made extensive use of borrowing of scenery   shakkei  .
Many of the old private gardens had been abandoned and left to ruin.
Others  more in the north of Japan kept to Edo period blueprint design.
Many gardeners soon were designing and constructing gardens catering to this taste.
Murin an in Kyoto  finished 1898.
The Japanese garden became an extension of the landscape architecture with the building.
Other modern gardens have taken a much more radical approach to the traditions.
Traditional Japanese gardens are very different in style from occidental gardens.
The contrast between western flower gardens and Japanese gardens is profound.
Japanese gardens have always been conceived as a representation of a natural setting.
The small space given to create these gardens usually poses a challenge for the gardeners.
The two main principles incorporated in a Japanese garden are scaled reduction and symbolization.
Traditional Japanese gardens have small islands in the lakes.
The Sakuteiki describes seven kinds of cascades.
Rocks and sand     Rock  sand and gravel are an essential feature of the Japanese garden.
A flat rock might represent the earth.
Sand or gravel can represent a beach  or a flowing river.
Rough volcanic rocks  kasei gan  are usually used to represent mountains or as stepping stones.
Smooth and round sedimentary rocks  suisei gan  are used around lakes or as stepping stones.
Hard metamorphic rocks are usually placed by waterfalls or streams.
Rocks are traditionally classified as tall vertical  low vertical  arching  reclining  or flat.
Later it was used in the Japanese rock garden or Zen Buddhist gardens to represent water or clouds.
White sand represented purity  but sand could also be gray  brown or bluish black.
In later gardens  the buildings were less visible.
The garden and the house became one.
Garden bridges     Bridges first appeared in the Japanese garden during the Heian period.
Trees are carefully chosen and arranged for their autumn colors.
Moss is often used to suggest that the garden is ancient.
Flowers are also carefully chosen by their season of flowering.
Formal flowerbeds are rare in older gardens  but more common in modern gardens.
This resemblance has been used to motivate the so called Savannah hypothesis.
Goldfish were introduced to Japan in the 16th century.
Koi were developed from common carp  Cyprinus carpio  in Japan in the 1820s.
In addition to fish  turtles are kept in some gardens.
However  they often contain common elements and used the same techniques.
Some basic principles are  Miniaturization.
The Japanese garden is a miniature and idealized view of nature.
Rocks can represent mountains  and ponds can represent seas.
This makes the garden seem larger than it really is.
Japanese gardens are not laid on straight axes  or with a single feature dominating the view.
The buildings are placed next to or over the central body of water.
The garden buildings are very elaborate  with much architectural decoration.
The architecture in a Japanese garden is largely or partly concealed.
They were often the stars and centerpieces of the garden.
In later Japanese gardens  rocks were smaller and placed in more natural arrangements.
integrated into the garden.Marine landscapes.
It is also called the shinden zukuri style  after the architectural style of the main building.
Each wing ended in a pavilion from which guests could enjoy the views of the lake.
Visitors made tours of the lake in small boats.
The most famous example is Ryōan ji temple in Kyoto.
They were as small as one tsubo  or about 3.3 square meters  whence the name tsubo niwa.
Today  tsubo niwa are found in many Japanese residences  hotels  restaurants  and public buildings.
A good example from the Meiji period is found in the villa of Murin an in Kyoto.
Totekiko is a famous courtyard rock garden.
The tradition of Japanese gardening was historically passed down from sensei to apprentice.
You must keep it secret .These garden manuals are still studied today.
I had thought that here only one chrysanthmum can grow.
Gardens are considered three dimensional textbooks of Daoism and Zen Buddhism.
It sparked the first Japanese gardens in the West.
A second edition was required in 1912.
All four courtyards there may have originally contained ponds.
Only one survives  and this is stocked with koi.
Japanese giant salamanders are widespread across rivers in southwestern Japan.
The largest wild specimen on record weighed 58 lb  26.3 kg  and was 4.46 ft  136 cm  long.
It has very small eyes with no eyelids and poor eye sight.
Its mouth extends across the width of its head  and can open to the width of its body.A.
Behavior     The Japanese giant salamander is restricted to streams with clear  cool water.
Due to its large size and lack of gills  it is confined to flowing water where oxygen is abundant.
it is entirely aquatic and almost entirely nocturnal.
This feature is essential for hunting prey due to its poor eyesight.
It feeds mainly on insects  frogs and fish.
It has a very slow metabolism and can sometimes go for weeks without eating.
In the wild  it may live for nearly 80 years.
Lifecycle     The Japanese giant salamander remains in bodies of water its entire life.
Large males guard a den and are known as denmasters.
They mate with several females throughout the season.
Smaller males who do not have a den may attempt to enter the den and fertilize some of the eggs.
The male releases milt over the eggs laid by the female.
The larvae then develop gills and limbs  then lose their gills once they metamorphose into adults.
The species was designated as a special natural monument in 1951  and is federally protected.
River disturbance has led to fewer appropriate nesting sites and dams block migration paths.
It is considered Near Threatened by IUCN  and is included on CITES Appendix I.
It can be found on the islands of Kyushu  Honshu  and Shikoku in Japan.
engineered art  in Japan has a long tradition and history.
Craftsmen and women therefore became artisans with increasing sophistication.
The wisdom could be taught either orally  Denshō 伝承   or in writing  Densho 伝書 .
In that case the established master s name was assumed instead of the personal one.
Forms such as swordmaking became obsolete.
Flower of the Nation  to draw attention to the issue.
The Second World War left the country devastated and as a result  craft suffered.
Japan has an exceptionally long and successful history of ceramic production.
Headgear could include kanzashi while footwear such as geta also needed textiles.
Items included in the past were also netsuke and inrō.
Japanese carpentry has a long tradition.
Other items of woodwork are yosegi and the making of furniture such as tansu.
The weaving process gives the kagome a chiral wallpaper group symmetry  p6  632 .
Other materials such as reeds can also be included.
Neko Chigura is a traditional form of weaving basket for cats.
Japanese swordsmithing is of extremely high quality and greatly valued.
Swordsmithing is considered a separate art form and moved beyond the craft it once started out as.
Items for daily use were also made out of metal and a whole section of craft developed around it.
Casting is creating the form by melting.
The technique is used to make a cutlery such as chisel and plane.
To create various patterns on the surface  metal carving is used to apply decorative designs.
One of the leading traditional producing companies that still exists is the Ando Cloisonné Company.
Inkstone carving     Calligraphy is considered one of the classical refinements and art forms.
The production on inkstone was therefore greatly valued.
Ivory carving     Bachiru  撥鏤  is the art of engraving and dyeing ivory.
They also tried to move west to cut the rail line to Kunming.
On 10 May 1940  Germany invaded France.
On 22 June  France signed an armistice with Germany  in effect from 25 June .
Therefore  Catroux complied with the Japanese ultimatum on 20 June.
Before the end of June the last train carrying munitions crossed the border bound for Kunming.
At Vichy  General Jules Antoine Bührer  chief of the Colonial General Staff  counselled resistance.
Following the Đồng Đăng incident  Decoux cut off negotiations.
It was understood between Martin and Nishimura that the first troops would arrive by ship.
The Twenty Second Army  however  did not intend to wait to take advantage of the accord.
On 26 September  Japanese forces came ashore at Dong Tac  south of Haiphong  and moved on the port.
A second landing put tanks ashore  and Japanese planes bombed Haiphong  causing some casualties.
By early afternoon the Japanese force of some 4 500 troops and a dozen tanks were outside Haiphong.
By the evening of 26 September  fighting had died down.
The Vichy government had agreed that some 40 000 troops could be stationed there.
The tipping point came just after the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union in late June 1941.
Conflict in Indochina  French newsreels archives  Les Actualités Mondiales   15 January 1941
At war’s end in February of 1932  the Japanese established the puppet state of Manchukuo.
On 23rd September  the Japanese took Jiaohe  Jilin and Dunhua.
On 1st October  Zhang Haipeng surrendered the Taonan area.
Tokyo was shocked by the news of the Army acting without orders from the central government.
Without their support  the government would collapse.
The publicity inspired more volunteers to enlist in the Anti Japanese Volunteer Armies.
However  the two sides failed to reach a lasting agreement.
The total strength of the Kwantung Army was thus increased to around 60 450 men.
Japanese forces took Harbin on 4 February 1932.
Jiangsu People s Publishing House.
第二部分：从“九一八”事变到西安事变“九一八”事变和东北沦陷   9 18  Emergency and Northeast falls to the enemy .
第二部分：从“九一八”事变到西安事变事变爆发和辽宁 吉林的沦陷  The emergency erupts with Liaoning  Jilin falling to the enemy .
第二部分：从“九一八”事变到西安事变江桥抗战和黑龙江省的失陷  River bridge defense and Heilongjiang Province falls to the enemy .
第二部分：从“九一八”事变到西安事变锦州作战及其失陷  The Jinzhou battle and its fall to the enemy .
第二部分：从“九一八”事变到西安事变哈尔滨保卫战  The defense of Harbin .
In 1597  Japan renewed its offensive by invading Korea a second time.
The pattern of the second invasion largely mirrored that of the first.
The second invasion  1597–1598  is called the  Second War of Jeong yu   丁酉 .
Collectively  the invasions are referred to as the Imjin War.
Imjin is the Korean reading of the Chinese word renchen  壬辰 .
In Japanese  the war is called Bunroku no eki  文禄の役 .
The second invasion  1597–1598  is called  Keichō no eki   慶長の役 .
Japan s ultimate purpose was the invasion of Ming China.
These trends  with some exceptions on both sides  held true throughout much of the conflict.
The pattern of the second invasion largely mirrored that of the first.
Because of close trade and common enemies  Joseon and Ming had a friendly alliance.
Turnbull also suggests personal ambition and megalomania of Hideyoshi as reasons for the invasion.
He made preparations on many fronts.
However Philip refused Hideyoshi  preferring not to upset China.
He also helped to police the trade routes against the wokou.
Upon his return  they exchanged ceremonial gifts and delivered King Seonjo s letter to Hideyoshi.
Hideyoshi mistakenly assumed that the Koreans had come to pay a tributary homage to Japan.
They nonetheless pressed that a war was imminent.
Kim Saung il claimed that Hideyoshi s letter was nothing but a bluff.
Samurai never carried shields  with the katana being used to deflect blows.
In Turnbull s estimate  he was  one of Ming China s most accomplished generals .
Although Li was defeated at the battle of P yǒkjeyek  his defeat was temporary.
After helping win the war  Chen was celebrated as a hero in Korea and China.
Chen was given the nickname Guangdong Master for his naval and military accomplishments.
Korean infantrymen wore a Chinese style hat and helmet  but no armor.
Turnbull wrote that Korea s salvation was its navy.
Ming troops never numbered more than 60 000 troops in Korea at any point of the war.
It had the ability to fire up to 200 singijeon  a type of rocket arrow  all at one time.
The Japanese defeated successive Korean armies with a combination of muskets  spears  and swords.
Thus Korean soldiers were unable to hold their line against charging Japanese soldiers.
Why  then  are Korean armies having great problem with defeating them?
However  there is a limit to executing deserting soldiers since there are so many of them.
Archery often becomes useless because Koreans  fearing the Japanese arme blanche  can barely shoot.
However  the Koreans seldom do this and merely run for their lives.
Today  the Japanese exclusively use muskets to attack fortifications.
They can reach  the target  from several hundred paces away.
Our country’s bows and arrows cannot reach them.
In the end the fortifications are taken.
One cannot blame  the defenders  for their situation.
Japanese soldiers also relied on their advantage in ranged combat.
One of the Japanese commanders wrote home in 1592   Please arrange to send us guns and ammunition.
There is absolutely no use for spears.
It is vital that you arrange somehow to obtain a number of guns.
The arrangements for guns should receive your closest attention.
Give strict orders that all men  even the samurai  carry guns.
The Chinese were more active in employing field artillery than the Koreans.
The Koreans actively deployed their cavalry divisions in action.
After winning the war  General Chen Lin would later return to Guizhou to quell the uprisings.
Konishi Yukinaga attacked the nearby fort of Dadaejin the next morning.
Konishi ordered that no prisoners be taken  and the entire garrison was massacred.
Konishi and the First Division then turned north  marching to take Seoul.
The disciplined Japanese brought down a rain of bullets that was lethal to anyone not taking cover.
On the morning of May 25  1592  the First Division arrived at Dongnae eupseong.
The resulting Siege of Dongnae lasted twelve hours  killed 3 000  and resulted in Japanese victory.
The Second Division took the abandoned city of Tongdo on May 28  and captured Gyeongju on May 30.
By June 3  the Third Division captured Unsan  Changnyong  Hyonpung  and Songju.
By June 3  the First Division crossed the Nakdong River  and stopped at the Sonsan mountain.
The Korean troops  watching him fall  were greatly demoralized.
General Kim Myong won  in charge of the defenses along the Han River  had retreated.
The Korean troops under General Kim Myong won retreated with heavy losses to the Kaesong fortress.
A total of 10 000 Korean troops guarded the city against the 30 000 advancing Japanese.
On July 20  1592  the First and Third Divisions entered the deserted city of Pyongyang.
In the city  they managed to capture 100 000 tons of military supplies and grain.
Among the castles captured was Hamhung  the provincial capital of Hamgyong Province.
Katō Kiyomasa retreated with his forces to avoid heavy losses.
The Koreans spotted five more Japanese vessels that night  and destroyed four.
After one day s fighting  Yi s fleet had destroyed 26 Japanese ships.
The next day  the Koreans approached 13 Japanese ships at Jeokjinpo.
The design prevented enemies from boarding the ship and aiming at the personnel inside.
The Japanese decided to give chase  embarked their 12 ships  and pursued the Korean fleet.
Furious flames burst out and the enemy commander fell dead from an arrow hit .
Not a single Korean ship was lost during the battle.
Several Korean prisoners of war were rescued by the Korean soldiers throughout the fight.
Wakisaka escaped due to the speed of his flagship.
After a brief skirmish he ordered a false retreat to the open ocean.
The Japanese fleet pursued the Korean fleet  with the flagship taking the lead.
Surrounded  the Japanese fleet was destroyed.
It was a Korean surprise attack on the fleet of Toyotomi Hideyoshi stationed at Busan.
Over the course of the battle  Japanese forces lost 100 ships while no Korean ships were lost.
Officer Woon  ko  and six Korean soldiers  as well as countless Japanese soldiers were killed.
However  ultimately  the Korean fleet retreated  failing to take over Busan.
Modern historians have also summarized the battle as a decisive Korean victory.
He was a land owner in the town of Uiryong situated by the Nam River in the Gyeongsang Province.
In Korea  Gwak is remembered as an enigmatic  romantic hero.
The Sixth Division marched to Songju through the established Japanese route  i.e.
The units began their march to Uiryong at Changwon  and arrived at the Nam River.
Upon hearing the news that the capital had already been sacked  the governor withdrew his army.
Go returned to his own territory.
Having joined forces with General Gwak Yong  Go then led his soldiers to Geumsan.
The destiny of the land is on the decline.
Siege of Jinju      Jinju  진주  was a strategic stronghold that defended Gyeongsang Province.
Accordingly  a large army under Hosokawa Tadaoki approached Jinju.
The other five men also attacked and took some excellent heads .
If anyone climbs I will take his head!
Because of this the ladder did not break and the men who saw him were loud in their praise.
One of their leading generals  Shi Ru  was killed in this engagement.
Ming general Li Rusong was appointed the supreme commander of all armies in Korea.
On the morning of February 6  Li ordered an all out assault on three sides of the city.
On the night of the seventh day we evacuated the caste  and made our escape.
Song Ying Chang s letters on March 1  1593  described the battle in full to the Ming court.
After their defeat  the Japanese shifted their strategy to hit and run tactics and ambushes.
The Ming forces gradually retreated north while fighting off several waves of attacks.
At that point  the Japanese gave up further attacks and both sides pulled back.
An army of a few thousand led by Kwon Yul was garrisoned at the fortress  waiting for the Japanese.
The women of Hanseong joined their menfolk  bringing up rocks in their skirts.
Today  the site of Haengju fortress has a memorial built to honor Kwon Yul.
With the situation untenable  the Japanese retreated to the coast.
The Ming forces had their own set of problems.
As the time went on the situation only become more serious.
These events created an increasing level of distrust between the two sides.
The soldiers inside the tortoise wagons were also burned and retreated .
A ceasefire was imposed  and a Ming emissary was sent to Japan to discuss peace terms.
Early in 1597  both sides resumed hostilities.
Ryu Seong ryong  the Prime Minister  spoke out about the Korean disadvantages.
He noted how Korean castles had incomplete fortifications and walls that were too easy to scale.
He also wanted cannons set up in the walls.
Ryu proposed building strong towers with gun turrets for cannons.
Besides castles  Ryu wanted to form a line of defenses in Korea.
The agency carefully divided the army into units and companies.
Within the companies were squads of archers  arquebusiers  swordsmen  and spear infantry.
The agency set up divisional units in each region of Korea and garrisoned battalions at castles.
The agency  which originally had less than 80 troops  soon grew to about 10 000.
All males had to enter military service to be trained and familiarized with weapons.
Japan s second force arrived unopposed on the southern coast of Gyeongsang Province in 1596.
A naval force of 21 000 was included in the effort.
In the early Autumn of 1597  the Japanese began a more focused and sustained advance.
Ultimately  Won Gyun was appointed in Yi Sun sin s place at the head of the Korean navy.
After one day at sea  Won Gyun was informed of a large Japanese fleet near Busan.
He decided to attack immediately  despite reports of exhaustion among the crew of the ship.
The Battle of Chilcheollyang was Japan s only decisive naval victory of the war.
The garrison of Namwon became their next key target.
Namwon was located fifty kilometres southeast of Jeonju.
The two sides exchanged volleys with arquebuses and bows.
Eventually the Japanese forces scaled the walls and sacked the fortress.
The Korean forces and its leaders were almost entirely killed.
He was later executed by the Ming court because of his defeat in battle.
The chief negotiator  Shen Weijing  was executed.
The Ming leadership quickly pulled in many units stationed near its border with Korea.
However  the plans were foiled by a Ming defense around Jiksan  modern day Cheonan .
On the first day  they beat back a small scouting party.
On the second day  the two forces clashed in earnest  with the Japanese being beaten back.
Soon afterwards  a larger Japanese force showed up and the Ming forces also retreated.
The Japanese army moved forward and occupied Gyeonggi Province.
Yi Sun sin quickly returned to Yeosu  where he found the majority of his navy destroyed.
The advancing Ming forces attempted to take advantage of this situation by attacking Ulsan.
This siege was the first major offensive from the Ming forces in the second phase of the war.
The retreating Ming and Joseon forces had 20 000 losses.
Xing Jie decided to remove his emotionally weakened brother Li Rumei in favor of Dong Yi Yuan.
At Ulsan  Kato Kiyomasa defended the castle with 10 000 Japanese soldiers.
The Ming and Joseon forces withdrew with heavy losses.
The Chinese Ming forces retreated with 30 000 losses  with the Japanese in pursuit.
Hideyoshi s death was kept a secret by the Council to preserve the morale of the army.
Battle of Noryang Point      The Battle of Noryang Point was the final naval battle in the war.
By dawn  nearly half of the Japanese fleet was scattered.
During the pursuit of the remaining Japanese ships  both Yi Sun sin and Deng Zilong were killed.
The last ships sailed to Japan on December 24  bringing an end to seven years of war.
He sent four peace missions to Joseon in 1599 to normalize relations.
After Hideyoshi s death  his young son Toyotomi Hideyori became head of the Toyotomi clan.
In Kyŏngsang Province alone 90  of the land under cultivation was destroyed.
Japanese typography advanced with the adoption of Chinese fonts.
Outside of the main battles  raids to acquire food and supplies from civilians were common.
Captured prisoners were often mistreated or worked to near death by starvation and neglect.
Ming forces often did not distinguish between loyal Joseon civilians and Japanese collaborators.
Legacy     The war left significant legacies in all three countries.
Henry Kissinger mentions   the conflict in World Order  2014 .
Nahm  Andrew C. Introduction to Korean History and Culture.
Lacquer was used in Japan as early as 7000 BCE  during the Jōmon period.
They learned to refine urushi  poison oak sap  – the process taking several months.
Iron oxide  colcothar  and cinnabar  mercury sulfide  were used for producing red lacquer.
Lacquer was used both on pottery  and on different types of wooden items.
In some cases  burial clothes for the dead were also lacquered.
The shrine is made of lacquered hinoki or Japanese cypress and camphor wood  both native species.
This made it possible to make the gold and silver of lacquerware brighter than before.
Togidashi maki e  a kind of maki e  was developed and completed in this period.
In the 18th century colored lacquers came into wider use.
Foremost among these was Shibata Zeshin  who has been called  Japan s greatest lacquerer .
He placed lacquer panels in frames  imitating Western oil paintings.
This style could be produced more quickly and cheaply than traditional lacquers.
This is due to the Japanese government s policy of local revitalization.
An object is formed from wood  sometimes leather  paper  or basketry.
Lacquer is applied to seal and protect the object  and then decoration is added.
The application of gold powder is known as maki e  and is a very common decorative element.
iro urushi  色漆   literally  color lacquer   was created by adding pigments to clear lacquer.
This method became popular in the 17th century in Takayama  Hida province.
Many articles for use in tea drinking were manufactured using this technique.
Negoro lacquerwares were produced at the Negoro ji temple complex in Izumi province.
This effect has since been copied and emulated elsewhere.
Silver or gold foil is used as well  and sealed under a layer of transparent lacquer.
Wajima nuri  輪島塗  can be dated back to late 15th century from Wajima  Ishikawa Prefecture.
Many of them are Buddhist items  dating from the Heian period.
See List of National Treasures of Japan  crafts others .
Nasser Khalili has run exhibitions focused on Shibata Zeshin s work in four countries.
The Charles A. Greenfield Collection in the United States covers the period from 1600 to 1900.
Little is known of the language s prehistory  or when it first appeared in Japan.
Sentence final particles are used to add emotional or emphatic impact  or make questions.
Nouns have no grammatical number or gender  and there are no articles.
Verbs are conjugated  primarily for tense and voice  but not person.
Japanese equivalents of adjectives are also conjugated.
Very little is known about the Japanese of this period.
Old Japanese      Old Japanese is the oldest attested stage of the Japanese language.
Through the spread of Buddhism  the Chinese writing system was imported to Japan.
The end of Old Japanese coincides with the end of the Nara period in 794.
Based on the Man yōgana system  Old Japanese can be reconstructed as having 88 distinct syllables.
The Kojiki has 88  but all later texts have 87.
The distinction between mo1 and mo2 apparently was lost immediately following its composition.
Man yōgana also has a symbol for  je   which merges with  e  before the end of the period.
kwa  and palatalised  kya  consonants are added.
Intervocalic  ɸ  merges with  w  by the 11th century.
Early Modern Japanese gradually evolved into Modern Japanese during the 19th century.
As a result  many elderly people in these countries can still speak Japanese.
The meanings of the two terms are almost the same.
Hyōjungo or kyōtsūgo is a conception that forms the counterpart of dialect.
Hyōjungo is taught in schools and used on television and in official communications.
It is the version of Japanese discussed in this article.
The two systems have different rules of grammar and some variance in vocabulary.
Dialects      Dozens of dialects are spoken in Japan.
Some even differ in vowel and consonant inventories  although this is uncommon.
Within each type are several subdivisions.
Dialects of Tōhoku and North Kantō are associated with typical farmers.
The imperial court also seems to have spoken an unusual variant of the Japanese of the time.
Young people mostly use Japanese and cannot understand the Ryukyuan languages.
Okinawan Japanese is a variant of Standard Japanese influenced by the Ryukyuan languages.
As it stands  only the link to Ryukyuan has wide support.
However  some of these allophones have since become phonemic.
This type of cluster only occurs in onsets.
Consonant length  gemination  is also phonemic.
The stresses differentiate the words.
The basic sentence structure is topic–comment.
For example  Kochira wa Tanaka san desu  こちらは田中さんです .
kochira   this   is the topic of the sentence  indicated by the particle  wa.
As a phrase  Tanaka san desu is the comment.
This sentence literally translates to  As for this person   it  is Mr. Ms.
The topic is zō  elephant   and the subject is hana  nose .
In Japanese  the subject or object of a sentence need not be stated if it is obvious from context.
A single verb can be a complete sentence  Yatta!
I   we   they   etc  did  it ! .
For instance  one does not say in English   The amazed he ran down the street.
Japanese often use titles of the person referred to where pronouns would be used in English.
人人  hitobito  usually written with an iteration mark as 人々 .
Words for people are usually understood as singular.
Thus Tanaka san usually means Mr. Ms.
A group described as Tanaka san tachi may include people not named Tanaka.
For others that represent a change of state  the  te iru form indicates a perfect aspect.
For example  kite iru means  He has come  and is still here    but tabete iru means  He is eating .
In the formal register  the question particle  ka is added.
For example  ii desu  いいです   It is OK  becomes ii desu ka  いいですか。   Is it OK? .
Negatives are formed by inflecting the verb.
Plain negative forms are i adjectives  see below  and inflect as such  e.g.
Pan o tabenakatta  パンを食べなかった。   I did not eat bread .
The word da  plain   desu  polite  is the copula verb.
This comes into use because only i adjectives and verbs can carry tense in Japanese.
For example  Neko ga iru  There s a cat   Ii kangae ga nai   I  haven t got a good idea .
and has been productive in creating modern slang words.
tobidasu  to fly out  to flee   from tobu  to fly  to jump    dasu  to put out  to emit  .
形容動詞 keiyōdōshi  or na adjectives  which are followed by a form of the copula  usually na.
For example  hen  strange  変なひと hen na hito  a strange person .
Examples include ookina  big   kono  this   iwayuru  so called  and taishita  amazing .
The grammatical function of nouns is indicated by postpositions  also called particles.
These include for example   が ga for the nominative case.彼がやった。Kare ga yatta.
に ni for the dative case.田中さんにあげて下さい。 Tanaka san ni agete kudasai  Please give it to Mr.
It is also used for the lative case  indicating a motion to a location.
日本に行きたい。 Nihon ni ikitai  I want to go to Japan.
However  へ e is more commonly used for the lative case.パーティーへ行かないか。 pātī e ikanai ka?
を o for the accusative case.何を食べますか。 Nani o tabemasu ka?
literally   As for me  sushi is good.
As for Mr. Ikeda  he is forty two years old.
Others in the group may also be of that age.
Absence of wa often means the subject is the focus of the sentence.
It is Mr. Ikeda who is forty two years old.
Strangers will also speak to each other politely.
For example  the  san suffix   Mr   Mrs.  or  Miss   is an example of honorific language.
Most nouns in the Japanese language may be made polite by the addition of o  or go  as a prefix.
Such a construction often indicates deference to either the item s owner or to the object itself.
Most Japanese people employ politeness to indicate a lack of familiarity.
This occurs regardless of age  social class  or gender.
A small number of words have come into Japanese from the Ainu language.
Words of different origins occupy different registers in Japanese.
Today most borrowings are from English.
This is when the history of Japanese as a written language begins in its own right.
Over time  a writing system evolved.
However  because of hiragana s accessibility  more and more people began using it.
Japanese students begin to learn kanji from their first year at elementary school.
As for kanji for personal names  the circumstances are somewhat complicated.
Names containing unapproved characters are denied registration.
For this reason  hiragana are appended to kanji to show verb and adjective conjugations.
Hiragana used in this way are called okurigana.
The JLPT is offered twice a year.
Indian literature also had an influence through the spread of Buddhism in Japan.
The earliest literary works in Japan were created in the Nara period.
One of the stories they describe is the tale of Urashima Tarō.
During this era  literature became centered on a cultural elite of nobility and monks.
Editing the resulting anthologies of poetry soon became a national pastime.
The volumes cover various tales from India  China and Japan.
Many literary works were marked by a nostalgia for the Heian period.
Notable examples of travel diaries include Fuji kikō  1432  and Tsukushi michi no ki  1480 .
Ihara s Life of an Amorous Man is considered the first work in this genre.
He made his life s work the transformation of haikai into a literary genre.
Fukuda Chiyo ni  1703–1775  is widely regarded as one of the greatest haiku poets.
Before her time  haiku by women were often dismissed and ignored.
While still a teenager  she had already become very popular all over Japan for her poetry.
The polymath Hiraga Gennai  1728–1780  was a scholar of Rangaku and a writer of popular fiction.
As a full blown translation from a Western language  it was the first of its kind in Japan.
The introduction of European literature brought free verse into the poetic repertoire.
It became widely used for longer works embodying new intellectual themes.
Ryūnosuke Akutagawa is known especially for his historical short stories.
Saneatsu Mushanokōji  Naoya Shiga and others founded a magazine Shirakaba in 1910.
They shared a common characteristic  Humanism.
Many authors wrote stories of disaffection  loss of purpose  and the coping with defeat.
Osamu Dazai s novel The Setting Sun tells of a soldier returning from Manchukuo.
Haruki Murakami is one of the most popular and controversial of today s Japanese authors.
Her breakout work was 1988 s Kitchen.
Non fiction covered everything from crime to politics.
Manga  comics  has penetrated almost every sector of the popular market.
Cell phone novels appeared in the early 21st century.
Individuals have brownish grey fur  pinkish red faces  and short tails.
Physical characteristics     The Japanese macaque is sexually dimorphic.
Males weigh on average 11.3 kg  25 lb   while females average 8.4 kg  19 lb .
Macaques from colder areas tend to weigh more than ones from warmer areas.
Male average height is 57.01 cm  22.44 in  and female average height is 52.28 cm  20.58 in .
Their brain size is about 95 g  3.4 oz .
The macaque has a pinkish face and posterior.
The rest of its body is covered in brown or greyish hair.
The macaque can cope with temperatures as low as −20 °C  −4 °F .Macaques mostly move on all fours.
They are also great swimmers and have been reported to swim over half a kilometer.
Macaque groups tend to contain a number of adults of both sexes.
In addition  a Japanese macaque troop contains several matrilines.
However  many males spend ample time away from any group and may leave and join several groups.
Males within a group have a dominance hierarchy  with one male having alpha status.
The dominance status of male macaques usually changes when a former alpha male leaves or dies.
The longer a male is in a troop  the higher his status is likely to be.
Females also exist in a stable dominance hierarchy  and a female s rank depends on her mother.
Younger females tend to rank higher than their older siblings.
Higher ranking matrilines have greater social cohesion.
Females which are matrilineally related groom each other more often than unrelated individuals.
Females enter into consortships with an average of four males a season.
Higher ranking males have longer consortships than their subordinates.
In addition  higher ranking males try to disrupt consortships of lower ranking males.
Females attempt to mate with males of any rank.
However  dominant males mate more as they are more successful in mate guarding.
The female decides whether mating takes place.
In addition  dominance does not mean a male will successfully mate with a female.
Males may also temporarily join another troop during the mating season and mate with the females.
Females also engage in same sex mounting.
In addition  females  faces and anogenital regions turn scarlet.
A female emits a  squawk    squeak   or produces an atonal  cackle  during copulation.
Males have no copulatory vocalizations.
Macaques usually give birth on the ground.
Infants are born with dark brown hair.
A mother carries her infant on her belly for its first four weeks.
After this time  the mother carries her infant on her back  as well.
Infants continue to be carried past a year.
In some populations  male infants tend to play in larger groups more often than females.
However  female infants have more social interaction than their male counterparts.
Males prefer to associate with other males around the same age when they are two years old.
Female infants will associate with individuals of all ages and sexes.
Communication     During feeding or moving  Japanese macaques often emit  coos .
These most likely serve to keep the troop together and strengthen social relations between females.
Macaques usually respond to coos with coos of their own.
Coos are also uttered before grooming along with  girney  calls.
Variants of the  girney  call are made in different contexts.
This call also serves as appeasement between individuals in aggressive encounters.
Intelligence and culture      The Japanese macaque is an intelligent species.
After a while  others started to copy her behavior.
Ecology    The Japanese macaque is diurnal.
In colder areas  from autumn to early winter  macaques feed in between different activities.
In the winter  macaques have two to four feeding bouts each day with fewer daily activities.
In the spring and summer  they have two or three bouts of feeding daily.
In warmer areas such as Yakushima  daily activities are more varied.
During the winter  macaques huddle together for warmth in sleeping grounds.
Diet      The Japanese macaque is omnivorous and eats a variety of foods.
Over 213 species of plants are included on the macaque s diet.
It also eats insects  bark  and soil.
On Yakushima Island  fruit  mature leaves  and fallen seeds are primarily eaten.
The macaque also eats fungi  ferns  invertebrates  and other parts of plants.
Distribution and habitat    The Japanese macaque is the northernmost living nonhuman primate.
It is found on three of the four main Japanese islands  Honshu  Shikoku  and Kyushu.
The northernmost populations live on the Shimokita Peninsula  the northernmost point of Honshu.
Several of Japan s smaller islands are also inhabited by macaques.
At first  many perished in the unfamiliar habitat  which consists of arid brushland.
The macaques flourished  and by 1995  the troop consisted of 500 to 600 individuals.
The replacement of natural forest with lumber plantations is the most serious threat.
The 19th century artist and samurai Watanabe Kazan created a painting of a macaque.
Japanese martial arts refer to the variety of martial arts native to the country of Japan.
The terms bujutsu and bugei have different meanings from budo  at least historically speaking.
The history of Japan is somewhat unusual in its relative isolation.
Nevertheless  the teaching and training of these martial arts did evolve.
However  what it means for an art to be either  traditional  or  modern  is subject to some debate.
As a rule of thumb  the primary purpose of a koryū martial art was for use in war.
Jujutsu      Jujutsu  柔術 じゅうじゅつ  jūjutsu   literally translates to  Soft Skills .
Defensive tactics included blocking  evading  off balancing  blending and escaping.
For this reason  they include extensive use of atemi waza  vital striking technique .
These tactics would be of little use against an armored opponent on a battlefield.
In Japan  the use of the katana is no different.
This development of the sword is paralleled by the development of the methods used to wield it.
During times of peace  the warriors trained with the sword  and invented new ways to implement it.
During war  these theories were tested.
The terminology used in Japanese swordsmanship is somewhat ambiguous.
Many names have been used for various aspects of the art or to encompass the art as a whole.
Kenjutsu       Kenjutsu  剣術 けんじゅつ  literally means  the art science of the sword .
The term came into use specifically during the Warring States Period  15th–17th centuries .
However  many koryu maintain naginatajutsu in their curriculum.
Also of note  during the late Edo period  naginata were used to train women and ladies in waiting.
Sōjutsu      Sōjutsu  槍術 そうじゅつ  is the Japanese art of fighting with the spear  yari .
For most of Japan s history  sōjutsu was practiced extensively by traditional schools.
In times of war  it was a primary skill of many soldiers.
Today it is a minor art taught in very few schools.
Other arts existed to teach military skills other than the use of weaponry.
Additionally  many of the gendai budō have included a sporting element to them.
Judo and  kendo are both examples of this.
Judo was created by Kano Jigoro  嘉納 治五郎 Kanō Jigorō  1860–1938  at the end of the 19th century.
Judo became an Olympic sport in 1964  and has spread throughout the world.
Aikido      Aikido  合氣道 あいきどう  aikidō  means  the way to harmony with ki .
It is a Japanese martial art developed by Morihei Ueshiba  植芝 盛平 Ueshiba Morihei  1883 – 1969 .
Archers were also used in sieges and sea battles.
Karate      Karate  空手  karate  literally means  empty hand .
It is also sometimes called  the way of the empty hand   空手道  karatedō .
It was originally called 唐手   Chinese hand    also pronounced  karate .
Karate is a fusion of pre existing Okinawan martial arts  called  te   and Chinese martial arts.
As a result  karate training was subsequently incorporated into Japan s public school system.
Many karate practitioners also participate in light  and no contact competitions while some  ex.
kyokushin karate  still compete in full contact competitions with little or no protective gear.
Japan Railways  it subsequently became popular in many other countries.
Generally  it is the principle of matching your opponent in order to defeat him.
One may  match  the opponent in a clash of force  possibly even resulting in a mutual kill.
Literally translating as  heart   in context it can also mean  character  or  attitude.
Gichin Funakoshi       Budō      Literally  martial way  is the Japanese term for martial art.
It emphasizes courage  bravery  and loyalty to their lord  daimyō  above all.
It is of prime importance not only in karate but in all modern martial arts.
He who would follow the way of karate must be courteous  not only in training but in daily life.
While humble and gentle  he should never be servile.
His performance of the kata should reflect boldness and confidence.
This seemingly paradoxical combination of boldness and gentleness leads ultimately to harmony.
One is the hard method  剛法  gōhō   and the other is the soft method  柔法  jūhō .
The hard method is characterized by the direct application of counter force to an opposing force.
Hard method techniques are generally conceptualized as being linear.
Soft method techniques are generally conceptualized as being circular.
Openings  隙  suki  are the foundation of a successful attack.
Each type of initiative complements the other  and has different advantages and weaknesses.
For example  a faster opponent s maai is farther away than a slower opponent.
Shuhari     The principle of Shuhari describes the three stages of learning.
Sōke  宗家 そうけ  translates as  headmaster  meaning the head of a ryu.
It has become part of the teaching process in Japanese martial arts schools.
The older system  usual prior to 1868  was based a series of licenses or menkyo.
Forms      It has often been said that forms  kata  are the backbone of the martial arts.
Nevertheless  different schools and styles put a varying amount of emphasis upon their practice.
Japan felt looked down on by Western countries during the late 19th century.
The Imperial Japanese Navy soon followed with the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff.
A turning point came with the ratification of the London Naval Treaty of 1930.
The revolt was put down by other military units  and its leaders were executed after secret trials.
Militarism was even reflected in the clothing trends of the 1930s.
Male kimono designs adopted explicitly militaristic imagery  including soldiers  bombers and tanks.
These designs were not on public display but on linings and undergarments.
This was one of various forms of Japanese dissidence during the Shōwa period.
The most organized open opposition to militarism was from the Japanese Communist Party.
Personal opposition included individuals from the fields of party politics  business and culture.
Three years later  however  Hara was assassinated.
He was murdered on March 5  1932 in the League of Blood Incident.
His constitutional interpretation was overwhelmingly accepted by bureaucrats until the 1930s.
Saitō Takao  a graduate of Yale University was a member of the Rikken Minseito party.
His analysis convinced Takagi of Japan s inevitable defeat.
Alternate sources list different causes of death  and some consider his passing to be suspicious.
Timeline    1931  Hamaguchi dies and Wakatsuki Reijirō becomes prime minister  April 14 .
Manchukuo is established with Henry Pu Yi as emperor  February 29 .
Inukai is assassinated during a coup attempt and Saitō Makoto becomes prime minister  May 15 .
Japan is censured by the League of Nations  December 7 .
1933  Japan leaves the League of Nations  March 27 .
1934  Keisuke Okada becomes prime minister  July 8 .
Japan withdraws from the Washington Naval Treaty  December 29 .
1936  Coup attempt  the February 26 Incident  crushed by Hirohito.
Kōki Hirota becomes prime minister  March 9 .
Mengchiang established in Inner Mongolia.
1937  Senjūrō Hayashi becomes prime minister  February 2 .
Prince Konoe Fumimaro becomes prime minister  June 4 .
The Sino Japanese War starts with the Battle of Lugou Bridge  July 7 .
Japan captures Peking  July 31 .
Japanese troops occupy Nanking  December 13   beginning the Nanking massacre.
Canton falls to Japanese forces  October 21 .
1939  Hiranuma Kiichirō becomes prime minister  January 5 .
Abe Nobuyuki becomes prime minister  August 30 .
1940  Mitsumasa Yonai becomes prime minister  January 16 .
Konoe becomes prime minister for a second term  July 22 .
1941  Japan and Soviet Union sign a non aggression pact  April 13 .
General Hideki Tōjō becomes prime minister  October 18 .
Japan bombs Australia  February 19 .
Indian Ocean raid  March 31 April 10 .
Japan defeated at the Battle of Midway  June 6 .
Japan defeated at Battle of Tarawa  November 23 .
1944  Tojo resigns and Kuniaki Koiso becomes prime minister  July 22 .
1945  U.S. bombers begin firebombing of major Japanese cities.
Japan defeated at Battle of Iwo Jima  March 26 .
Admiral Kantarō Suzuki becomes prime minister  April 7 .
Japan defeated at Battle of Okinawa  June 21 .
Soviets defeat the Kwantung Army and capture Manchukuo  August 20 .
Japan surrenders  September 2   Allied occupation begins.
Fukuzawa yukichi  from samurai to capitalist.
New York  New York  Pearson Education  Inc. p. 110.
The army as bureaucracy  Japanese militarism revisited.
Shinto and Buddhist traditions are the cornerstones of Japanese mythology.
The child s corpse creates even more gods.
After spending so much time in Yomi  Izanagi cleansed himself with a purification ceremony.
As Izanagi cleansed himself  the water and robes that fell from his body created many more gods.
Myths related the Sun  the Moon  and the Storm kami are full of strife and conflict.
Meanwhile  the sun goddess and the storm god Susanoo s conflicts were intense and bloody.
The sun goddess Amaterasu s importance in Japanese mythology is two fold.
Emperor Jimmu is considered to be the human descendant of Amaterasu the Sun goddess.
His ascension to the throne marked the  Transition from Age of the Gods to Human Age .
One example of a kami who looks almost human in depictions is the ruler of the Seas Ryujin.
It is important to note that Shintoism is still practiced today in Japan.
Contact with other cultures usually had some influence on Japanese myth.
However  during the Tokugawa shogunate Christians were executed in Japan.
Christianity was banned in Japan until well into the nineteenth century.
In Japanese folklore  heroes like Momotaro rescue women from violent kami and oni.
Although the exploits of heroes are well known  Japanese mythology also featured heroines.
The pronunciation of kanji Japanese names follow a special set of rules.
According to estimates  there are over 100 000 different surnames in use today in Japan.
The three most common family names in Japan are Satō  佐藤   Suzuki  鈴木   and Takahashi  高橋 .
Many Japanese surnames were created in the Muromachi period.
Japanese peasants had surnames in Edo period.
Teruo  or  Akio    or contain ichi  一  first  son    e.g.
Jirō    or dai  大  great  large   e.g.
Female names often end in  ko  子  child   e.g.
Keiko   or  mi  美  beauty   e.g.
Other popular endings for female names include  ka  香  scent  perfume  or 花  flower   e.g.
Conversely  a particular kanji can have multiple meanings and pronunciations.
A Japanese person can distinguish a Japanese name from a Chinese name by looking at it.
Many others use readings which are only used in names  nanori   such as the female name Nozomi  希 .
The majority of surnames comprise one  two or three kanji characters.
The suffix  ko increased in popularity after the mid 20th century.
By 2004 there was a trend of using hiragana instead of kanji in naming girls.
Hiragana names for women are not unusual.
Kana names for boys  particularly those written in hiragana  have historically been very rare.
Some names end in n  the male names Ken  Shin  and Jun are examples.
The consonant n needs to be paired with a vowel to form a syllable .
One large category of family names can be categorized as   tō  names.
The kanji 藤  meaning wisteria  has the on yomi tō  or  with rendaku  dō .
Many Japanese people have surnames that include this kanji as the second character.
As already noted  some of the most common family names are in this list.
Japanese family names usually include characters referring to places and geographic features.
For example  the surname written in kanji as 東海林 may be read either Tōkairin or Shōji.
A few Japanese names  particularly family names  include archaic versions of characters.
An example of such a name is Saitō.
There are two common kanji for sai here.
These names can also exist written in archaic forms  as 齊藤 and 齋藤 respectively.
Most Japanese people and agencies have adopted customs to deal with these issues.
Japanese nationals are also required to give a romanized name for their passport.
All of these complications are also found in Japanese place names.
However  spaces are sometimes used on business cards and in correspondence.
The first son would be known as  Ichirō   the second as  Jirō   and so on.
Both practices have become less common  although many children still have names along these lines.
It would have been ridiculous to apply to middle class or lower class women.
This faux pas  however  is readily excused for foreigners.
These are formed by adding the suffix  chan ちゃん to a stem.
One consists of the full given name.
The other type of stem is a modified stem derived from the full given name.
Examples of such names are  Ta chan from Tarō  Kii chan from Kimiko  and Yā chan from Yasunari.
Hypocoristics with modified stems are more intimate than those based on the full given name.
A mora 音節 is the unit of which a light syllable contains one and a heavy syllable two.
The segmental content is usually a left substring of that of the given name.
Japanese citizenship used to require adoption of a Japanese name.
Eric Shinseki  for instance  is referred to as エリック シンセキ  Erikku Shinseki .
Japan s Christians traditionally have Christian names in addition to their native Japanese names.
In medieval era  a family name  Minamoto  was often used.
In modern era  princely family names are used.
An example is Empress Michiko  whose name was Michiko Shōda before she married prince Akihito.
Thus  Minamoto no Yoritomo  源 頼朝  was Yoritomo  頼朝  of the Minamoto  源  clan.
These family names were recorded in the Shinsen Shōjiroku.
Before the government formalized the naming system in 1868  Japanese personal names were fluid.
During their employment  their temporary names were treated as their legal names.
People who entered religious orders adopted religious names.
Death added to the number of a person s names.
When a person died  their personal name was referred to as an imina  諱  and was no longer used.
Instead  the person was referred to by their posthumous name  諡  okurina .
Prior to Emperor Jomei  the imina of the emperors were very long and not used.
The famous writer Kyokutei Bakin  曲亭 馬琴  is known to have had as many as 33 names.
Sumo wrestlers take wrestling names called shikona  醜名 or 四股名 .
A typical shikona consists of two or three kanji  rarely just one or more than three.
In many cases  these come from the master under whom they studied.
Kabuki actors take one of the traditional surnames such as Nakamura  中村   Bandō or Onoe.
Historical figures are given surname first and with macrons  if available.
In popular journalism publications  the Western order of naming is used.
This is especially the case in scholarly works about Japan.
Some books  however  do not have consistent naming order practices.
So they are interested in learning something new or something as it is supposed to be.
Sometimes  a Japanese name includes kokuji.
For example  the word komu  込  read as Yū in Chinese  is rarely used in modern Chinese reading.
Which names are to be found where?
Japan s Name Culture 1995 ISBN 1 873410 42 5 Routledge Curzon Poser  William J.
How to read Japanese Names Japanese Names Dictionary
The most popular national daily English language newspaper in Japan is The Japan Times.
The first edition appeared on 22 June 1861.
These two papers were published for foreigners  and contained only foreign news.
The early readers of these newspapers mostly came from the ranks of the former samurai class.
WorldCat is a good starting point.
Microfilm versions are available from 1888  shukusatsuban versions are available from 1931.
Issues of the Asahi shinbun printed since August 1984 are available through Lexis Nexis Academic.
Issues of the Mainichi shinbun printed since 27 March 1998  are available through Factiva.
Noodles are a staple of Japanese cuisine.
They are often served chilled with dipping sauces  or in soups or hot dishes.
The dough is risen before being rolled.
They were imported from China during the Meiji period.
The noodles may vary in shape  width  and length.
These noodles are chewy or rubbery.
Shirataki are used to add texture to dishes such as sukiyaki and oden.
Soba is a noodle made from buckwheat and wheat flour.
Soba noodles are available dried or fresh.
They may be served  with hot broth or cold with dipping sauce  tsuyu .
Sōmen requires oil in its manufacture.
These noodles are often served in the same manner as sōmen and udon noodles.
While they are mostly white  there are bundles mixed with noodles of pinkish or brown hues.
Udon are the thickest of the noodles served in Japanese Cuisine.
Udon are white  wheat based noodles  that are 4 6mm in width.
Udon dishes include kitsune udon  Nabeyaki udon  curry udon  and yaki udon.
However  sara udon is made using a different kind of noodle which is crispy.
Harusame are glass noodles made from potato starch.
Tokoroten are jelly like slices of Agar with a rectangular cross section.
However  distinctively Japanese traditions have developed in all these fields.
However  by the mid Nara period  paintings in the style of the Tang dynasty became very popular.
These also include the wall murals in the Takamatsuzuka Tomb  dating from around 700 AD.
This style evolved into the  Kara e  genre  which remained popular through the early Heian period.
A noted early example is at the five story pagoda of Daigo ji  a temple south of Kyoto.
The Siege of the Sanjō Palace is another famous example of this type of painting.
There are many fine differences in the two styles.
Perhaps most easily noticeable are the differences in subject matter.
Kamakura period  1185–1333      These genres continued on through Kamakura period Japan.
The Kamakura period extended from the end of the twelfth through the fourteenth century.
But there is one artist who is known for his perfection to this new Kamakura period art style.
Mist fills the middle ground  and the background  mountains appear to be far in the distance.
A further development of landscape painting was the poem picture scroll  known as shigajiku.
The foremost artists of the Muromachi period are the priest painters Shūbun and Sesshū.
This period began the unification of  warring  leaders under a central government.
His successor  Toyotomi Hideyoshi  also constructed several castles during this period.
These castles represent the power and confidence of leaders and warriors in the new age.
Master Kuwayama Gyokushū was the greatest supporter of creating the bunjin style.
These paintings in the 16th century gave rise to the paintings and woodcut prints of ukiyo e.
The Taishō period saw the predominance of Yōga over Nihonga.
This trend was further developed by Leonard Foujita and the Nika Society  to encompass surrealism.
The arts of the Edo and prewar periods  1603–1945  was supported by merchants and urban people.
Counter to the Edo and prewar periods  arts of the postwar period became popular.
All the  isms  of the New York Paris art world were fervently embraced.
The tendency had been to synthesize East and West.
The term ethnic Japanese is used to refer to mainland Japanese people  specifically the Yamato.
Japanese people are one of the largest ethnic groups in the world.
The modern Japanese language has a tripartite writing system using hiragana  katakana and kanji.
In Japan the adult literacy rate in the Japanese language exceeds 99 .
Dozens of Japanese dialects are spoken in regions of Japan.
Shinto  a polytheistic religion with no book of religious canon  is Japan s native religion.
Mahayana Buddhism came to Japan in the sixth century and evolved into many different sects.
Twentieth century Japanese writers recorded changes in Japanese society through their works.
Arts     Decorative arts in Japan date back to prehistoric times.
Jōmon pottery includes examples with elaborate ornamentation.
In the Yayoi period  artisans produced mirrors  spears  and ceremonial bells known as dōtaku.
Later burial mounds  or kofun  preserve characteristic clay haniwa  as well as wall paintings.
Zen Buddhist tenets were also elaborated into the tea ceremony during the Sengoku period.
Popular artists created ukiyo e  woodblock prints for sale to commoners in the flourishing cities.
Pottery such as Imari ware was highly valued as far away as Europe.
In theater  Noh is a traditional  spare dramatic form that developed in tandem with kyōgen farce.
Later  Philipp Franz von Siebold argued that the Ainu people were indigenous to northern Japan.
1200–1000 BC  had a primitive rice growing agriculture.
They relied primarily on fish for protein.
Their primary descendants are the Ainu people of northernmost Japan.
The Yayoi brought wet rice farming and advanced bronze and iron technology to Japan.
According to Ann Kumar  the Yayoi created the  Japanese hierarchical society .
The Japanese Statistics Bureau  however  asks only about nationality in the census.
There is no distinction based on ethnicity.
There s no official ethnicity census data.
There is an increase of hāfu  half Japanese  people  but the amount is relatively small.
2015 estimate that 1 in 30 children born in Japan are born to interracial couples.
The largest of these foreign communities are in the Brazilian states of São Paulo and Paraná.
Hōnen  who initiated the Jodo sect of Buddhism  abandoned other ascetic practices entirely.
Ippen  who initiated the Jishu sect  began  the chanting religious dance .
Eisai learned the Rinzai sect in China.
Rinzai Zen was supported widely by the upper samurai class in the Kamakura period.
Dōgen learned the Sōtō sect in China.
Oppose to Eisai  he preached enlightenment by earnest sitting meditation  zazen .
Soto Zen was supported by the local samurais.
In his teachings he underlined the  to his mind  supremacy of the Lotus Sutra.
Confucianism      In the Edo period  Confucianism was the authorised study.
Various schools of neo Confucianism were popular.
He respected Japanese  Yamato spirit  instead of Chinese  Confucianism   Buddhism   Kara spirit .
According to him  Kokugaku should pursue the Japanese old way of  Shinto .
It was a driving force to the end of the Tokugawa shogunate and the Meiji Restoration.
Maeno Ryotaku and Sugita Genpaku translated the Dutch  Tafel Anatomie  into Japanese.
Their thoughts were criticisms for the dominant feudal order.
He recommended working hard at commerce as the effect of honesty and thrift.
Christianity and socialism also developed and became tied to various social movements.
In addition  nationalistic thought and study were formed while being opposed to foreign study.
They attempted to criticise Japanese traditional authority and feudalism.
In 1873  Mori Arinori formed Meirokusha.
Mori Arinori promoted national education as Minister of Education.
Nishi Amane affirmed a human behaviour based on interest.
He said that there is no single ideal form of government.
In 1874  Itagaki Taisuke introduced the establishment of the elected legislature.
It spread nationwide as the Freedom and People s Rights Movement.
Ueki Emori helped Itagaki and he drew up a radical draft.
According to him  the Imperial Constitution should be gradually revised by the Diet.
Yoshino Sakuzō argued for party cabinet politics and popular election.
Minobe Tatsukichi interpreted a sovereign as not an emperor but the state.
In 1911  Hiratsuka Raichō formed Seitosha.
She asked for awakening of women s own right and development of feminist movement.
In 1920  Raicho formed a new association for women with Ichikawa Fusae and Oku Mumeo.
Later  Ichikawa formed a new one and continued a movement for female suffrage.
Christianity  banned by the Tokugawa shogunate  influenced many Meiji intellectuals.
Uchimura Kanzō developed  two Js  to unite Bushido and Christian spirit.
He believed that his calling was to serve  Japan  and  Jesus .
He argued for the nonchurch movement.
He challenged the Imperial Rescript on Education and spoke against the Russo Japanese War.
Nitobe Inazō was a Quaker and attempted to unite Japanese culture and Christianity.
He introduced Japanese culture abroad and he became secretary general of the League of Nations.
Joseph Hardy Neesima studied theology abroad in the United States.
He established Doshisha University at Kyoto and he was engaged in Christian character building.
Kawakami Hajime wrote articles about poverty in a newspaper.
He was executed as the mastermind of the high treason incident of 1910.
Osugi Sakae argued for individual freedom using the principles of anarchism and unionism.
State Shinto was clearly distinguished from private sects of the Shinto religion.
However  its militaristic trend developed to ultra nationalism.
He named members of the general public who are not political leaders and intellectuals as “jomin”.
Other folklorists are Minakata Kumagusu  Yanagi Muneyoshi and Orikuchi Shinobu.
In pre war Japan  German philosophy was eagerly studied and introduced.
Nishida Kitaro established an original thought by fusion of Zen and Western thought.
His thought is called Nishida philosophy.
Watsuji Tetsuro criticized Western selfish individualism.
His ethics says human beings are not in an isolated existence but related existence.
Wataru Hiromatsu developed his theory of  multi subjective ontological structure of the world .
It occurs initially or medially in onomatopoeia.
enter the language   p  is increasingly used in transcription  initially or medially.
w  is the semivocalic equivalent of  u    ɰ   with little to no rounding.
Consonants inside parentheses are allophones of other phonemes  at least in native words.
When geminated  however   z  is always  d͡z .
Gohho ゴッホ   van  Gogh   Bahha バッハ  Bach   and rarely in Sino Japanese or mixed compounds  e.g.
juhhari 十針  ten stiches   zeffuchō 絶不調  terrible slump    realized as  hh    χχ   or  ɸɸ .
N  is a syllable final moraic nasal with variable pronunciation depending on what follows.
It may be considered an allophone of  n  m  in syllable final position or a distinct phoneme.
The retroflex lateral approximant  ɭ  is also found before  i  j .
In Tokyo s Shitamachi dialect  the alveolar trill  r  is a variant marked with vulgarity.
If a speaker pronounces a given word consistently with the allophone  ŋ   i.e.
a B speaker   that speaker will never have  ɣ  as an allophone in that same word.
If a speaker varies between  ŋ  and  ɡ   i.e.
an A speaker  or is generally consistent in using  ɡ   i.e.
a C speaker   then the velar fricative  ɣ  is always another possible allophone in fast speech.
There is a fair amount of variation between speakers  however.
The generalized situation is as follows.
Both sounds  however  are in free variation.
hɯ  is still not distinguished from  ɸɯ   e.g.
In any case  it undergoes a variety of assimilatory processes.
It is variously  uvular  ɴ  at the end of utterances and in isolation.
Dorsal occlusion may not always be complete.
laminal  n  before coronals  d  t  t͡s  n   never found utterance finally.
Apical  n̺  is found before liquid  r .
alveolo palatal  ɲ  before alveolo palatals  t͡ɕ  d͡ʑ  ɲ .
Before palatalized consonants  it is also palatalized  as in  ɡẽŋʲkʲi .
Most saliently  voiced geminates are prohibited in native Japanese words.
This can be seen with suffixation that would otherwise feature voiced geminates.
tapu    ri     tappɯɾi   a lot of  .
However  not all scholars agree that the use of this  moraic obstruent  is the best analysis.
The assimilated  Q  remains unreleased and thus the geminates are phonetically long consonants.
Q  does not occur before vowels or nasal consonants.
ɲipːoɴ    but this notation obscures mora boundaries.
See 連声  in Japanese  for further examples.
Vowels      u  is a close near back vowel with the lips unrounded   ɯ̟   or compressed   ɯ̟ᵝ  .
In conversational speech  compression may be weakened or completely dropped.
a  is central  ä .Except for  u   the short vowels are similar to their Spanish counterparts.
Vowels have a phonemic length contrast  i.e.
Nasalization     Japanese vowels are slightly nasalized when adjacent to nasals  m  n .
This is also found in interjections like あっ and えっ.
These words are likely to be romanized as ⟨a ⟩ and ⟨e ⟩.
Each mora occupies one rhythmic unit  i.e.
it is perceived to have the same time value.
A glide  j  may precede the vowel in  regular  moras  CjV .
Some analyses posit a third  special  mora   R   the second part of a long vowel  a chroneme .
In this table  the period represents a mora break  rather than the conventional syllable break.
Vowels may be long  and the voiceless consonants  p  t  k  s  n  may be geminate  doubled .
Factors such as pitch have negligible influence on mora length.
An accented mora is pronounced with a relatively high tone and is followed by a drop in pitch.
法  bofu ぼふ   bō ぼう    師  shi し    法師  botchi ぼっち   sometimes bōshi ぼうし.
ohayō  お早う、おはよう  Good morning   from hayai  早い、はやい   It is  early .
kurauzu  くらうず  is also found  as a variant of kuraudo  くらうど .
For example  in the Tale of Genji both kanshi and waka are frequently mentioned.
Kanshi from the early Heian period exists in the Kaifūsō anthology  compiled in 751.
Waka      Waka is a type of poetry in classical Japanese literature.
Tanka      Tanka are poems written in Japanese with five lines having a 5–7–5–7–7 metre.
The tanka form has shown some modern revival in popularity.
As previously stated  it used to be called waka.
This initial sally was followed by a stanza composed by the  host.
Other collaborative forms of Japanese poetry also evolved  such as the renku   linked verse   form.
Typical of Japanese haiku is the metrical pattern of 5  7  and 5 on  also known as morae .
Many haiku are objective in their depiction of personal experiences.
However  the early pre history and mythology of Japan involve or include some references to poetry.
They were said to have walked around the world pillar  and encountered each other.
In the court of Emperor Tenmu  c. 631 – 686  some nobles wrote Chinese language poetry  kanshi .
Chinese literacy was a sign of education and most high courtiers wrote poetry in Chinese.
It was the period  when Chinese influence reached a culmination.
These were mostly not long and had no fixed forms.
When he married Princess Kushinada in Izumo Province  the kami made an uta  or waka  a poem.
Many works in Kojiki were anonymous.
The order of its sections is roughly chronological.
Most of the works in the Man yōshū have a fixed form today called chōka and  tanka.
The Man yōshū begins with a waka without fixed form.
It is worthy of being attributed to an emperor and today is used in court ritual.
Significant poets among them were Nukata no Ōkimi and Kakinomoto no Hitomaro.
The Man yōshū also included many female poets who mainly wrote love poems.
These poems are called Yomibito shirazu  よみびと知らず   poems whose author is unknown.
Those poems were filled with rural flavors.
They were mainly waka by drafted soldiers leaving home.
Sometimes their poetry expressed nostalgia for their faraway homeland.
Tanka is a name for and a type of poem found in the Man yōshū  used for shorter poems.
Some poets like Kūkai studied in China and were fluent in Chinese.
Others like Sugawara no Michizane had grown up in Japan but understood Chinese well.
In that period  Chinese poetry in China had reached one of its greatest flowerings.
Some who went to China for study or diplomacy made the acquaintance of these major poets.
Japanese poets became skilled in those rules and produced much good poetry.
Some long poems with lines of 5 or 7 syllables were also produced.
These  when chanted  were referred to as shigin – a practice which continues today.
Emperor Saga himself was proficient at kanshi.
He ordered the compilation of three anthologies of kanshi.
Roei style waka      Roei was a favored style of reciting poetical works at that time.
It was a way of reciting in voice  with relatively slow and long tones.
Fujiwara no Kintō  966–1041  compiled Wakan rōeishū   Sino Japanese Anthology for Rōei   ca.
1013  from Japanese and Chinese poetry works written for roei.
In ancient times  it was a custom for kuge to exchange waka instead of letters in prose.
Sometimes improvised waka were used in daily conversation in high society.
In particular  the exchange of waka was common between lovers.
Soon  writing and reciting Waka became a part of aristocratic culture.
People recited a piece of appropriate waka freely to imply something on an occasion.
Uta awase  ceremonial waka recitation contests  developed in the middle of the Heian period.
The team with the higher overall score won the contest.
Both winning poet and team received a certain prize.
Holding Uta awase was expensive and possible only for Emperors or very high ranked kuge.
The size of Uta awase increased.
Uta awase were recorded with hundreds of rounds.
Uta awase motivated the refinement of waka technique but also made waka formalistic and artificial.
In the story most of those waka were created  as an exchange of letters or a conversation.
Many classic works of both waka and kanshi were quoted by the nobles.
Fujiwara no Teika had three lines of descendants  the Nijō  Reizei family and Kyōgoku family.
It was edited on the order of Emperor Daigo.
Inclusion in any imperial collection  and particularly the Kokin Wakashū  was a great honour.
The anthology also included a traditional Chinese preface authored by Ki no Tomonori.
During this time the Fujiwara clan was also active both politically and poetically.
Imayō consists of four lines in 8–5  or 7–5  syllables.
Usually it was sung to the accompaniment of instrumental music and dancing.
Female dancers  shirabyōshi  danced to the accompaniment of imayō.
Major works were compiled into the Ryōjin Hishō  梁塵秘抄  anthology.
Waka in the period of cloistered rule      Some new trends appeared in waka.
Both trends had their schools and won the honor to compile imperial anthologies of waka.
Fujiwara no Shunzei and his son Fujiwara no Teika were the leaders of the latter school.
At that time  renga was considered a variant of waka.
Go Toba himself joined the team of editors.
Other editors included Fujiwara no Teika and Kamo no Chōmei.
Haikai no renga appears – as a parody of renga Shinseninutusukbashu.
Noh play and poetry began to develop.
There was influence from waka and other poetry  and Noh play reading as verse.
Renga      Renga is a collaborative verse form between two or more poets.
Tsukubashū  the first imperial anthology of renga  was published in about 1356.
In Kyoto there were some artists who were simultaneously poets and painters.
Painters of the Shujo school were known as good poets.
Among such poet painters the most significant was Yosa Buson.
Buson began his career as a painter but went on to become a master of renku  too.
He left many paintings accompanied by his own haiku poems.
Such combination of haiku with painting is known as haiga.
Waka underwent a revival  too  in relation to kokugaku  the study of Japanese classics.
Kyōka  mad song   a type of satirical waka was also popular.
One poetry school of the era was the Danrin school.
Haikai      Haikai emerged from the renga of the medieval period.
Matsuo Bashō was a noted proponent.
Related to hokku formally  it was generically different.
In the late Edo period  a master of haikai  Karai Senryū made an anthology.
His style became known as senryū  after his pseudonym.
Senryū is a style of satirical poetry whose motifs are taken from daily life in 5–7–5 syllables.
Shintai shi  New form poetry  or Jiyu shi  Freestyle poetry  emerged at this time.
In contrast with this development  kanshi slowly went out of fashion and was seldom written.
As a result  Japanese men of letters lost the traditional background of Chinese literary knowledge.
Shi is also known as kindai shi  modern poetry .
Since World War II  poets and critics have used the name gendai shi  contemporary poetry .
This includes the poets Kusano Shinpei  Tanikawa Shuntarō and Ishigaki Rin.
Yosano Tekkan and later Masaoka Shiki revived those forms.
The words haiku and tanka were both coined by Shiki.
They laid the basis for development of this poetry in the modern world.
This magazine based activity by leading poets is a major feature of Japanese poetry even today.
Most Japanese poets  however  generally write in a single form of poetry.
Haiku      Haiku derives from the earlier hokku.
In 1989 the death of Emperor Hirohito officially brought Japan’s postwar period to an end.
It includes work dating back to the 15th century.
This idea was interrupted once Japan was defeated in World War II.
The desire to create fantasies was present but  the economy drove the entertainment industry.
Pop culture began to dominate the entertainment industry.
After the Japanese were banned from using metal to make toys  they used old cans instead.
In doing so  they were able to produce toys in exchange for food for the school children.
As time went on the film industry progressed from targeting adult audiences to targeting children.
As long as a product or person has  cute  elements  it can be seen as kawaii.
These photographic filters were similar to the Snapchat filters that later appeared in the 2010s.
Idols aim to play a wide range of roles as media personalities  tarento   e.g.
Fashion     Japan began to emulate Western fashion during the middle of the 19th century.
Such clothes are generally home made with the use of material purchased at stores.
These changes in demand were seen in national television throughout the world.
These Kaiju films were extremely popular in the 1960s and 1970s as the Kaiju Boom of Japan.
These traits are used in order to better the connection between a viewer and the characters.
Manga     The word Manga  when translated directly  means “whimsical drawings”.
Video games     Video gaming is a major industry in Japan.
One of the pioneers is a band called X Japan who are still active.
A third of the guests claim to have unstable jobs.
Japan has an exceptionally long and successful history of ceramic production.
Since the 4th century  Japanese ceramics have often been influenced by Chinese and Korean pottery.
In the 20th century  a modern ceramics industry  e.g.  Noritake and Toto Ltd.  grew up.
Japanese pottery is distinguished by two polarised aesthetic traditions.
Most raku ware  where the final decoration is partly random  is in this tradition.
The pottery was formed by coiling clay ropes and fired in an open fire.
Jōmon  Yayoi  and later Haji ware shared the firing process but had different styles of design.
Its manufacture began in the 5th century and continued in outlying areas until the 14th century.
Contemporary Haji ware and Haniwa funerary objects were earthenware like Yayoi.
Kamui ware appeared in this time  as well as Atsumi ware and Tokoname ware.
Among these  the Seto kiln in Owari Province  present day Aichi Prefecture  had a glaze technique.
The Seto kiln primarily imitated Chinese ceramics as a substitute for the Chinese product.
It developed various glazes  ash brown  iron black  feldspar white  and copper green.
Seto kiln also produced unglazed stoneware.
A number of Japanese monks who traveled to monasteries in China also brought pieces back home.
Japan also imported Chinese pottery as well as Korean and Vietnamese ceramics.
The Japanese also ordered custom designed ceramics from Chinese kilns.
The artist potter Hon ami Kōetsu made several tea bowls now considered masterpieces.
Soon the Satsuma  Hagi  Karatsu  Takatori  Agano and Arita kilns were begun.
Unlike Nabeshima ware  Hirado went on to be a significant exporter in the 19th century.
Their works were the models for later Kyōyaki.
Most of the works promoted internationally were in the decorative arts  including pottery.
These wares were highly praised in the West.
These artists won multiple awards at international exhibitions.
His work strongly influenced Western perceptions of Japanese design.
Its founding father was Yanagi Sōetsu  1889–1961 .
Most of the village wares were made anonymously by local potters for utilitarian purposes.
The modern potters operate in Shiga  Iga  Karatsu  Hagi  and Bizen.
Yamamoto Masao  Toushuu  of Bizen and Miwa Kyusetsu of Hagi were designated ningen kokuho.
1964  studied Leach and spent a number of years in Japan studying mingei style.
Clay    Clay is chosen largely based on local materials available.
There is an abundance of most basic types of clay in Japan.
Due to naturally occurring kaolin deposits  many porcelain clays are found in Kyushu.
Production methods     The earliest pieces were made by pressing the clay into shape.
Production by kneading and cutting slabs developed later  for example  for Haniwa clay figures.
Potter s wheel     The first use of the potter s wheel in Japan can be seen in Sue pottery.
From this beginning the two man wheel developed.
However  it is now difficult to find craftsmen who can make or repair them.
They are a traditional tool from Arita  Kyushu.
They can also be used to compress the bottoms of thrown forms.
tonbo –  dragonflies   are the functional equivalent of Western calipers with an added feature.
yumi – are wire and bamboo trimming harps that double as a fluting tool.
They are used to cut off uneven or torn rims as well as to facet leather hard forms.
The largest combs have about 20 teeth.
take bon bon – also not a throwing tool  but a Japanese slip trailer.
Wares    Hundreds of different wares and styles have existed throughout its history.
The most historic and well known ones have received recognition from the government.
For more information see the list of Japanese ceramics sites.
Museums and collections    A number of museums in Japan are dedicated entirely only to ceramics.
Most ceramic museums around the world have collections of Japanese pottery  many very extensive.
Japanese modern ceramic works are often very sought after and expensive.
External links    https   www.britannica.com art Japanese pottery http   www.e yakimono.net
As the tanuki  the animal has been significant in Japanese folklore since ancient times.
It is also a common theme in Japanese art  especially statuary.
They vocalize by growling or with groans that have pitches resembling those of domesticated cats.
A litter  typically with 4–6 pups  is born after a gestation period of 9 weeks.
Japanese raccoon dogs live for 7–8 years in the wild  and have reached the age of 13 in captivity.
The karyotype of Japanese raccoon dogs is different from that of the mainland raccoon dogs.
The Hangzhou Zoo in China and the River Safari in Singapore also have Japanese raccoon dogs.
In the UK  Chew Valley Animal Park near Bristol in the south west of England has a breeding pair.
An animal known as tanuki in one region may be known as mujina in another region.
In the modern Tokyo standard dialect  tanuki refers to raccoon dogs and anaguma refers to badgers.
In folklore and tradition     The tanuki has a long history in Japanese legend and folklore.
Bake danuki subsequently appear in such classics as the Nihon Ryōiki and the Uji Shūi Monogatari.
Apart from these places  tanuki are treated with special regard in a few cases.
The first exposure of non Japanese to tanuki usually comes through exported Japanese media.
This power up is based on the mythology of tanuki using leaves to help themselves transform.
The furniture that these characters sell transforms into leaves for easy transport.
In the 2019 Sonic game Team Sonic Racing  one of the characters is a tanuki named Dodon Pa.
Gensō sekai no jūnintachi  幻想世界の住人たち .
Regionality is also apparent in many dishes which are served throughout Japan such as zōni soup.
Ishikari nabe   a nabemono dish of salmon pieces stewed with vegetables in a miso based broth.
Thinly sliced raw  frozen salmon  traditionally frozen naturally outside   eaten like sashimi.
Miso grilled salmon with beansprouts and other vegetables.
Harako meshi   rice cooked in a salmon and soy stock and served topped with ikura  salmon caviar .
Kiritanpo   pounded rice cakes wrapped around a skewer and grilled.
Usually grilled but varies all the way to raw  sashimi style  tongue  originated in Sendai city .
This is usually served in a cast iron pot.
Yanagawa nabe and dojō nabe   a nabemono dish of loach cooked in a pot.
Yanagawa nabe also contains sliced burdock root and egg.
Kyoto  Osaka zushi   sushi pressed quadrangle sharp and also called Hako zushi   box sushi  .
Osaka  Battera zushi   a type of box sushi using mackerel and vinegared kelp.
Osaka style   ingredients are mixed into the batter before grilling.
Hiroshima style   made out of layers of batter  cabbage  toppings  yakisoba and fried egg.
Is now popular throughout Japan.
Fugu cuisine is also popular in Osaka.
Yatai stalls in Hakata and Tenjin are well known.
sake zushi   a type of sushi which uses rice flavored with sake instead of the usual rice vinegar.
Toriten   a tempura chicken that can be dipped in a soy sauce based sauce.
Okinawa soba   a noodle soup vaguely resembling udon  often topped with soki   soki soba  .
Naaberaa Nbushii   miso flavored luffa stir fry Taco rice  tako raisu    Invented in the 1960s.
Outside Japan it is sometimes labeled sushi rice  as this is one of its common uses.
It is also used to produce sake.
Akitakomachi is also quite popular.
Sasanishiki is a cultivar known for keeping the same taste when cooled down.
Yamada Nishiki is the most famous cultivar grown specifically for sake.
In recent years  Koshihikari rice is also being grown in the US and Australia.
Most rice in Japan is processed and consumed as white rice  the staple food of Japan.
Hatsuga genmai  発芽玄米  is brown rice that has been soaked in heated water until germinated.
It has a softer texture than ordinary brown rice and a pleasant fragrance.
It is sold in Japanese supermarkets  but it can also be made at home.
Some high end rice cookers have a GABA rice setting to automate the process.
It takes less time to cook than brown rice but retains more of the vitamins than white rice.
The rice polishing machines typically polish a 10 kg amount for 100 yen.
Most supermarkets in Japan sell ready polished rice in 10 kg  5 kg  and smaller bags.
It is used in sushi  寿司  and onigiri.
Plain rice is used in yōshoku dishes such as curry rice  omurice  and doria.
The rice is first washed to release excess starch.
Soaking times also depend on the quality and freshness of the rice.
After this  it is steamed until the centre of the rice becomes soft.
Prepared rice is usually served from the rice cooker into a chawan  or rice bowl.
After cooking  rice may also be held in a covered wooden box called an ohitsu.
This market ceased with economic controls in 1939.
As a result  most rice consumed in Japan is domestically produced.
The sculpture of Japan started from the clay figure.
The influence of the Western world was received since the Meiji era.
The sculptures were made at local shops  used for sculpting and painting.
Most sculptures were found at areas in front of houses and along walls of important buildings.
In particular  sculpture among all the arts came to be most firmly centered on Buddhism.
Some may have been used in fertility rites  and some in exorcism or other forms of ritual.
Although the statue has been destroyed twice and repaired  the minor original part has survived.
Generally the sculptors are secular and got official status and salary.
Some private ateliers offered Buddhist icons to people  and some monks made it themselves.
Government fed new esoteric Buddhism imported from Tang china.
The official factory Zo Tōdai ji shi　was closed in 789.
Sculptors got temple clergy status whether or not they were members of the order.
Wood became the primary medium.
On the style  Heian period was divided two  the early Heian period and the later.
Among esoteric Buddhism deities  Japanese like Acala and have produced enormous Acala images.
Sculptors Japanized faces of images.
Pure Land sect Amida Worship  leader Genshin and his work Ōjōyōshū influenced many sculpture.
The masterpiece is the Amida Buddha in Byōdō in in Uji by the master Jōchō.
He established a canon of Buddhist sculpture.
This technique allowed masters atelier production with apprentices.
It led the style more repetitious and mediocre after Jōchō.
En school a discipline of Jōchō  also established Sanjyō Atlier in Kyoto.
Kei school sculptures led this trend  they are descendants of Jōchō.
On the other side  clay  dry lacquer  embossing  and terracotta sculptures did not revive.
They used mainly wood and sometimes bronze.
Many sculptures were repaired and many buildings were rebuilt or repaired.
The  renaissance  character is reflected in the project.
Among the sculptors of the Kei school  Unkei is the most famous.
Unkei had six sculptor sons and their work was also imbued with the new humanism.
Tankei  the eldest son and a brilliant sculptor  became the head of the studio.
Kaikei was a collaborator of Unkei.
He was a devout adherent of the Pure Land sect.
He worked with the priest Chōgen  1121–1206   the director of the Tōdai ji reconstruction project.
More than 40 of his works have survived  many of which are signed by him.
His most important work is Amitabha Triad of Ono Jōdo ji  1195 .
Sculptors also worked for the Kamakura shogunate and other military clans.
They produced Buddhist and portrait sculptures for them.
The colossal bronze Amitabha Buddha in Kamakura Kōtoku in was made in 1252.
All classes of society contributed funds to make this colossal bronze.
Such patronage raised and sometimes replaced the former patronage of wealthy and powerful men.
Muromachi period and Sengoku period      Buddhist sculptures declined in quantity and quality.
The new Zen Buddhism deprecated images of Buddha.
Big temples of the old sects were depressed under civil wars.
Portrait sculptures of Zen masters became a new genre during this period.
The art of carving masks for Noh theatre flourished and improved from the 15th to 17th centuries.
The new sculptures were mostly conservatively carved from wood and gilt or polychromed.
They mostly lack artistic power.
However  some Buddhist monk sculptors produced unpainted  roughly hewn images of wood.
Enkū  1632–1695  and Mokujiki  1718–1810  are representative.
They traveled through Japan and produced enormous works for missionary and ceremonial purposes.
Their archaic and spiritual styles were reevaluated in the 20th century.
The art of carving masks for Noh also continued to produce better works in the 17th century.
In this period  inro and netsuke became popular as accessories for men.
Because netsuke is small and easy to collect  there are many collectors even now.
Video components and video art developed rapidly from the late 1970s throughout the 1980s.
Since the Meiji period Japan has been primarily influenced by western countries.
Language     Japanese is the national and primary language of Japan.
Japanese has a lexically distinct pitch accent system.
The earliest attestation of the Japanese language is in a Chinese document from 256 AD.
Japanese is written with a combination of three scripts  kanji  hiragana and katakana.
Shinto      Shinto is an ethnic religion focusing on ceremonies and rituals.
Humans can also be considered to possess a kami.
One of the goals of Shinto is to maintain a connection between humans  nature  and kami.
It arrived in Japan during the 6th century CE  where it was initially unpopular.
Chinese papermaking was introduced to Japan around the 7th century.
Later  washi was developed from it.
Ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arrangement.
Kimono come in a variety of colors  styles  and sizes.
The happi coat is another form of traditional clothing.
The oldest sculpture in Japan is a wooden statue of Amitābha at the Zenkō ji temple.
In the Nara period  Buddhist statues were made by the national government to boost its prestige.
Bronze and other metals are generally not used.
Recent attempts to reintroduce actresses in kabuki had not been well accepted.
The origin of bunraku  however is older  lies back in the Heian period.
Judo was developed by Kanō Jigorō  who studied some sects of jujutsu.
These sports are still widely practiced in present day Japan and other countries.
These sports are commonly practiced in schools  along with traditional martial arts.
Baseball  soccer  football  and ping pong are the most popular sports in Japan.
Japan also co hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
Dishes such as sushi  tempura  noodles  and teriyaki are some of the foods that are commonly known.
The healthy Japanese diet is often believed to be related to the longevity of Japanese people.
A wide variety of types of popular entertainment are available.
Minamitorishima is Japan s easternmost island.
Thus Japan is the land where the sun rises before the Asian continent.
The kanji 日本 that make up the name of Japan literally mean  sun origin .
It is pronounced as Nihon or Nippon in Japanese.
So it is often called by the epithet  Land of the Rising Sun .
The Nisshōki  日章旗   lit.  the  sun rise flag   is the national flag of Japan.
It symbolizes the rising sun and corresponds with the name of Japan.
The earliest accounts of the rising sun flag is in the 7th century CE.
Similarly  the Japan Self Defense Forces have flags that symbolize the sun.
She is seen as the goddess of the Sun and the universe in Shinto religion.
The emperor is  the symbol of the State and of the unity of the people.
Emperor Jimmu  神武天皇  Jinmu tennō   is the national founder of Japan.
The national animals are the Green pheasant  Koi fish and the Great purple emperor butterfly.
Japan s de facto national dish is sushi  Japanese curry and ramen.
The de facto national liquor is sake.Mount Fuji  富士山  Fujisan  is the national mountain of Japan.
It is one of Japan s  Three Holy Mountains   三霊山  Sanreizan  along with Mount Tate and Mount Haku.
It is also a Special Place of Scenic Beauty and one of Japan s Historic Sites.
The summit is considered a sacred place since ancient times.
It is properly distinguished  then  by the style of mount it currently inhabits.
Tachi were worn suspended  with the edge downward.
The tachi was in vogue before the 15th century.
The name derives from the way the sword would be stuck at one s side through the obi  sash belt .
Tantō  短刀   short blade    A sword with a blade shorter than 30 cm.
Tantō is generally classified as a sword  but its usage is the same as that of a knife.
Yari  槍   spear    A spear  or spear like polearm.
Modern  authentic Japanese swords  nihontō  are made by a few hundred swordsmiths.
These schools are known as Gokaden  The Five Traditions .
There were 19 commonly referenced wakimono.
Nara was the capital of ancient Japan.
However  the founder identified in the material is Yukinobu in the Heian period.
They forged the swords that were often worn by monk warriors called sōhei in Nara s large temples.
The Yamato school consists of five schools  Senjuin  Shikkake  Taima  Tegai  and Hōshō.
Each school forged swords under the supervision of a different temple.
It is often evaluated as a sword with a simple and strong impression.
When Emperor Kanmu relocated the capital to Kyoto in 794  swordsmiths began to gather.
The founder of the school was Sanjō Munechika in the late 10th century in the Heian period.
The Yamashiro school consisted of schools such as Sanjō  Ayanokōji  Awataguchi  and Rai.
In the Kamakura period  tachi from a magnificent rai school became popular among samurai.
After that  they also adopted the forging method of Sōshū school.
It is often evaluated as a sword with an elegant impression.
Bizen has been a major production area of high quality iron sand since ancient times.
The Ko bizen school in the mid Heian period was the originator.
The Bizen school consisted of schools such as Ko bizen  Fukuoka ichimonji  Osafune  and Hatakeda.
It is often evaluated as a sword with a showy and gorgeous impression.
Masamune  who learned from Shintōgo Kunimitsu  became the greatest swordsmith in Japan.
The Sōshū school declined after the fall of the Kamakura shogunate.
The production rate of katana was high because it was the newest school among 5 big schools.
Their swords are often characterized by a slightly higher central ridge and a thinner back.
The word nihontō became more common in Japan in the late Tokugawa shogunate.
The most prominent part is the middle ridge  or shinogi.
In the earlier picture  the examples were flat to the shinogi  then tapering to the blade edge.
Although it is not commonly known  the  chisel point  kissaki originated in Japan.
Examples of such are shown in the book  The Japanese Sword  by Kanzan Sato.
A hole is punched through the tang nakago  called a mekugi ana.
To remove the handle one removes the mekugi.
The swordsmith s signature mei is carved on the tang.
Length      What generally differentiates the different swords is their length.
Japanese swords are measured in units of shaku.
However the historical shaku was slightly longer  13.96 inches or 35.45 cm .
A blade longer than one shaku but less than two is considered a shōtō  short sword .
The wakizashi and kodachi are in this category.
Most blades that fall into the  shōtō  size range are wakizashi.
However  some daitō were designed with blades slightly shorter than 2 shaku.
These were called kodachi and are somewhere in between a true daitō and a wakizashi.
A shōtō and a daitō together are called  a daishō  literally   big little  .
The daishō was the symbolic armament of the Edo period samurai.
A blade longer than two shaku is considered a daitō  or long sword.
Before about 1500 most swords were usually worn suspended from cords on a belt  edge down.
It was not simply that the swords were worn by cords on a belt  as a  style  of sorts.
Such a statement trivializes an important function of such a manner of bearing the sword.
It was a very direct example of  form following function.
At this point in Japanese history  much of the warfare was fought on horseback.
The word ōdachi is also sometimes used as a synonym for Japanese swords.
Odachi means  great sword   and Nodachi translates to  field sword .
These greatswords were used during war as the longer sword gave a foot soldier a reach advantage.
These swords are now illegal  in Japan.
Citizens are not allowed to possess an odachi unless it is for ceremonial purposes.
Mokusa Area was famous for legendary swordsmiths in the Heian Period  AD 794 1185 .
Eight of the swordsmiths on this list were from Ōshū schools.
Ōshū swordsmiths appeared in books in quite early times compared to others.
Its shape may reflects the changing form of warfare in Japan.
Early models had uneven curves with the deepest part of the curve at the hilt.
The tachi was worn slung across the left hip.
It is imported at a great cost. .
Their main weapon was a long naginata and sasuga was a spare weapon.
They fought on foot using katana shorter than tachi.
On the battlefield in Japan  guns and spears became main weapons in addition to bows.
Ideally  samurai could draw the sword and strike the enemy in a single motion.
This kind of remake is called suriage  磨上げ .
This style of swords is called handachi   half tachi .
Japanese swords after shintō are different from kotō in forging method and steel  tamahagane .
In addition  the whole body of the blade became whitish and hard.
These short swords were wakizashi and tantō  and wakizashi were mainly selected.
This set of two is called a daishō.
Only samurai could wear the daishō  it represented their social power and personal honour.
Under the Tokugawa shogunate  swordmaking and the use of firearms declined.
Japanese swords made in this period is classified as shintō.
The Haitōrei Edict in 1876 all but banned carrying swords and guns on streets.
Swords forged after the Haitōrei Edict are classified as gendaitō.
The ban was overturned through a personal appeal by Dr. Junji Honma.
After the Edo period  swordsmiths turned increasingly to the production of civilian goods.
The Occupation and its regulations almost put an end to the production of Japanese swords.
Nowadays  iaitō is used for iaidō.
Some replica Japanese swords have been used in modern day armed robberies.
As of 2008  only 100 000 swords remain in Japan.
Subsequently  bronze swords were used for religious ceremonies.
The Yayoi period saw swords be used primarily for religious and ceremonial purposes.
During the Kofun Period  250 538CE  Animism was introduced into Japanese society.
Animism is the belief that everything in life contains or is connected to a divine spirits.
This connection to the spirit world premediates the introduction of Buddhism into Japan.
During this time  China was craving steel blades on the Korean Peninsula.
The Edo era saw swords became a mechanism for bonding between Daimyo and Samurai.
Daimyo would gift samurai s with swords as a token of their appreciation for their services.
Swords began to be simplified and altered to be durable  sturdy and made to cut well.
Swords were left to rust  sold or melted into more ‘practical’ objects for everyday life.
As a result  swords of this era are of poor quality.
As a means to preserve their warrior culture  martial arts became was put into school curriculum.
Swords and warriors are closely associated with Shinto in Japanese culture.
Shinto endorses self purification  ancestral worship  nature worship and imperial divinity.
It is said that swords are a source of wisdom and “emanate energy” to inspire the wielder.
Japanese mythology states that the sword is a “symbol of truth” and a “token of virtue”.
The sword represents the implement by which societies are managed.
Swords are a symbol of Japanese honour and esteem for hand to hand combat.
There is a rich relationship between swords  Japanese culture  and societal development.
As with many complex endeavors  rather than a single craftsman  several artists were involved.
The legitimate Japanese sword is made from Japanese steel  Tamahagane .
At this point in the process  the blank for the blade is of rectangular section.
This rough shape is referred to as a sunobe.
The surface of the blade is left in a relatively rough state  ready for the hardening processes.
The hardened edge is where most of any potential damage to the blade will occur in battle.
Altering the shape will allow more resistance when fighting in hand to hand combat.
One of the most important markings on the sword is performed here  the file markings.
The purpose is to show how well the steel ages.
Kenjutsu is the Japanese martial art of using the Japanese swords in combat.
The Japanese swords are primarily a cutting weapon  or more specifically  a slicing one.
The hilt was held with two hands  though a fair amount of one handed techniques exist.
For cutting  there was a specific technique called  ten uchi.
The segments of the swing are hardly visible  if at all.
As such  blocking an oncoming blow blade to blade was generally avoided.
A popular method for defeating descending slashes was to simply beat the sword aside.
The sword would be carried in a sheath and tucked into the samurai s belt.
Originally  they would carry the sword with the blade turned down.
The bulk of the samurai armor made it difficult to draw the sword from any other place on his body.
When unarmored  samurai would carry their sword with the blade facing up.
This made it possible to draw the sword and strike in one quick motion.
The list also includes 81 swords that had been destroyed in previous fires.
These 4 persons were designated both  Living National Treasures and Mukansa.
See also         References         Further reading    Irvine  Gregory  2000 .
History     The first documented evidence of tea in Japan dates to the 9th century.
By imperial order in 816  tea plantations began to be cultivated in the Kinki region of Japan.
Lu Yu s life had been heavily influenced by Buddhism  particularly the Zen–Chán Buddhist school.
This powdered green tea was first used in religious rituals in Buddhist monasteries.
Wabi  represents the inner  or spiritual  experiences of human lives.
Sabi   on the other hand  represents the outer  or material side of life.
Originally  it meant  worn    weathered   or  decayed .
By the 16th century  tea drinking had spread to all levels of society in Japan.
The symbiotic relationship between politics and tea was at its height.
One year later the regent ordered his teamaster to commit ritual suicide.
The way of tea was never so closely intertwined with politics before or after.
After the death of Rikyū  essentially three schools descended from him to continue the tradition.
For instance  a tea gathering can be held picnic style in the outdoors  known as nodate  野点 .
It also has an attached preparation area known as a mizuya.
A 4.5 mat room is considered standard  but smaller and larger rooms are also used.
Building materials and decorations are deliberately simple and rustic in wabi style tea rooms.
Chashitsu can also refer to free standing buildings for tea.
For each season  there are variations in the temae performed and utensils and other equipment used.
Equipment     The equipment for tea ceremony is called chadōgu  茶道具 .
The chakin is a small rectangular white linen or hemp cloth mainly used to wipe the tea bowl.
Bowls are frequently named by their creators or owners  or by a tea master.
Bowls over four hundred years old are in use today  but only on unusually special occasions.
The best bowls are thrown by hand  and some bowls are extremely valuable.
They are used to scoop tea from the tea caddy into the tea bowl.
Bamboo tea scoops in the most casual style have a nodule in the approximate center.
Different styles and colours are used in various tea traditions.
This is the implement used to mix the powdered tea with the hot water.
Tea whisks are carved from a single piece of bamboo.
The guests are served a cup of the hot water  kombu tea  roasted barley tea  or sakurayu.
When the preparation of the utensils is complete  the host prepares thick tea.
Bows are exchanged between the host and the guest receiving the tea.
The guest then bows to the second guest  and raises the bowl in a gesture of respect to the host.
The host then rekindles the fire and adds more charcoal.
This examination is done to show respect and admiration for the host.
The host then collects the utensils  and the guests leave the tea house.
The host bows from the door  and the gathering is over.
The procedures performed in chadō are called  collectively  temae.
The act of performing these procedures during a chaji is called  doing temae .
The following is a short  general list of common types of temae.
Chabako developed as a convenient way to prepare the necessary equipment for making tea outdoors.
Many of the items are smaller than usual  to fit in the box.
This gathering takes approximately 35–40 minutes.
It is possible  therefore  for ryūrei style temae to be conducted nearly anywhere  even outdoors.
The assistant also serves the tea and sweets to the guests.
The use of tatami flooring has influenced the development of tea.
For instance  when walking on tatami it is customary to shuffle  to avoid causing disturbance.
Therefore  tea students are taught to step over such joins when walking in the tea room.
In a 4.5 mat room  the mats are placed in a circular pattern around a centre mat.
Purpose built tea rooms have a sunken hearth in the floor which is used in winter.
A special tatami is used which has a cut out section providing access to the hearth.
There are dozens of real and imaginary lines that crisscross any tearoom.
Tatami provide a more comfortable surface for sitting seiza style.
Some contain only a single character  in summer  風  kaze  lit.
Scrolls are sometimes placed in the waiting room as well.
Unnatural or out of season materials are never used.
Also  props and other devices are not used.
The containers in which chabana are arranged are referred to generically as hanaire  花入れ .
Chabana arrangements typically comprise few items  and little or no filler material.
Courses are served in small servings in individual dishes.
Because cha kaiseki generally follows traditional eating habits in Japan  meat dishes are rare.
Other motions allow for the straightening of the kimono and the hakama.
Edo komon kimono may also be worn  as their patterns are small enough as to be unobtrusive.
Lined kimono are worn by both men and women in the winter months  and unlined ones in the summer.
Both men and women wear white tabi  divided toe socks .
There are also tea clubs at many junior and high schools  colleges and universities.
Classes may be held at community centres  dedicated tea schools  or at private homes.
This permission usually accompanies the granting of a chamei  or  tea name   to the student.
New students typically begin by observing more advanced students as they practice.
Only when the first offering has been mastered will students move on.
The cost of acquiring certificates increases as the student s level increases.
“The Tea Ceremony”  Kodansha International  Revised edition  May 1  2000.
Single episode  or  tanpatsu  dramas that are usually two hours in length are also broadcast.
The majority of dramas are aired weekdays in the evenings around 9pm through 11pm.
Structurally  Japanese dramas can be compared to American or British miniseries.
Many fans have even been able to visit their idols while shooting scenes as the show is airing.
The  trendy  formula was improved in the early 1990s  when the story lines changed with the times.
Even today  the success of Japanese dramas is a result of sticking with the trendy drama formula.
Many of these shows employ young actors who use them as springboards to bigger projects.
Fuji TV is widely known as the inventor of the drama formula.
Most modern  Getsuku  dramas have also abandoned the traditional love story format.
Other Japan television networks have their own focuses.
Most dramas will start off with one or two minutes of theme music during the opening credits.
Background music is placed and used at strategic points of the episode to set the mood.
Most television networks work with music companies to produce original soundtracks.
Closing themes are often sung by a popular J pop singer or band.
Most of the theme music heard in their taiga and asadora dramas were written and produced in house.
In recent years  many theme songs have been licensed from sources outside Japan.
When the Japanese drama is licensed outside Japan  theme music licensing becomes very costly.
Broadband is a complementary medium.
Television ratings are calculated by several researching firms.
Video Research Ltd. is one of the more reliable firms.
The ratings become available for the general public every Wednesday.
Rating system     The rating system is very simple.
The viewer count of a given episode is calculated using a variety of polling methods.
Ratings are calculated using a percentage or point system.
This is based on the episode s viewership numbers divided by the market size.
Finally  the numbers are published on the research firm s website.
There is no solid science on how to interpret these rating percentages.
For fans  simply the drama with the highest percentage is the  winner  for the week.
Finally  rating percentage plays a heavy role in the success of a drama artist.
A variation of the Mai style of Japanese dance is the Kyomai or Kyoto style dance.
Kyomai developed in the 17th century Tokugawa cultural period.
Dance genres     There are several types of traditional Japanese dance.
In Sagi Musume  The Heron Maiden  the dancer s role is the spirit of the heron.
In classical versions  the spirit assumes a handsome  strong pose at the end of the dance.
Kabuki        Kabuki  歌舞伎  is a classical Japanese dance drama.
Kabuki is therefore sometimes translated as  the art of singing and dancing .
These are  however  ateji characters which do not reflect actual etymology.
The kanji of  skill  generally refers to a performer in kabuki theatre.
During the Genroku era  kabuki thrived.
The structure of a kabuki play was formalized during this period  as were many elements of style.
Noh Mai      The origin of Noh mai can be traced back to as far as the thirteenth century.
Noh mai dances are put together by a series of forms.
Forms are patterns of body movements that are done elegantly and with beauty.
There are several types of Noh mai dances.
In otoko mai the performer does not wear a mask and is portraying the character as being heroic.
Another male dance is kami mai  where the dancer acts as though he is a deity.
The female version of this is called kagura and can be performed in various ways.
These are the six varieties that make up the Noh mai dance types.
Costumes are a major part of Noh theatre  including the Noh mai.
The most important part of the Noh costumes are the masks.
The Noh mai masks are thought to be the most artistic masks in Japan.
The masks are only worn by the main characters.
The masks have neutral expressions so it is the job of the actor to bring the character to life.
Nihon Buyō      Nihon buyō is different from most other traditional dances.
It is intended for entertainment on stage.
The second part of nihon buyō is Noh.
Thus  the present day form of nihon buyō was influenced by dance forms like ballet.
Folk dances      There are a wide variety of folk dances in Japan.
Folk dances are often the basis from which other dance forms developed.
The emblem of the Date clan incorporates two tree sparrows.
Bon Odori      Bon odori is a type of folk dance performed during the Obon Festival.
It was originally a dance to welcome the spirits of the dead.
These dances and the music that accompanies them are different for every region of Japan.
Usually  the bon dance involves people dancing around a yagura  a high wooden scaffold.
The people move either counter clockwise or clockwise  away and towards the yagura.
For the hanagasa odori  the dancers use straw hats with flowers on them.
This form of dance is intended to be performed only by women.
Japanese dolls  人形  ningyō  lit.
human form   are one of the traditional Japanese crafts.
They are good luck charms and symbols of perseverance and resilience.
Sets of dolls came to include larger and more elaborate figures  and more of them.
Types    It was during the Edo period that most of the traditional dolls developed.
Hina dolls are the dolls for Hinamatsuri  the doll festival on March 3.
Armor  helmets  and weapons are made of lacquered paper  often with metal accents.
Gosho dolls show fat  cute babies in a simplified form.
Kimekomi dolls  ja 木目込人形  are made of wood.
The cloth is glued on and the edges tucked in.
These dolls have become a very popular craft and kits with finished heads can be purchased.
They often depict legendary heroes.
Kokeshi dolls have been made for 150 years  and are from Northern Honshū  the main island of Japan.
They were originally made as toys for children of farmers.
They have no arms or legs  but a large head and cylindrical body  representing little girls.
Iki ningyō are life sized lifelike dolls  that were popular in misemono shows.
Daruma are spherical dolls with red bodies and white faces without pupils.
Usually daruma dolls are purchased without eyes.
One eye is filled when making a wish  the other when the wish is fulfilled.
Wishes can be made throughout the year  but it is common in Japan to do it on New Year s Day.
Teru teru bozu   shine shine monk   is strictly speaking not a doll.
Bisque dolls are made of fired clay.
Anesama ningyo tend to be three dimensional  whereas shiori ningyō are flat.
Anesama ningyo often have elaborate hairstyles and costumes made of high quality washi paper.
They often lack facial features.
Those from Shimane prefecture are especially famous.
BJDs can be very realistic looking or based more on the anime aesthetic.
They are made of polyurethane resin which makes them very durable.
Collectors     Japanese dolls  are broken down into several subcategories.
In the nineteenth century ningyo were introduced to the West.
Doll collecting has since become a popular pastime in the West.
James Tissot was known to be a religious history painter.
In 1862  after attending a London Exhibition  he was drawn to Japanese art.
Adeline was known as a working artist and he is also known as  Mikika .
Adeline produced many works throughout his career as a working artist.
Unlike Tissot  Adeline is recognized as a true collector.
The three men are referred to as  Gangu San Ketsu   the three great toy collectors .
The catalog was published in 1891  under the title Unai no Tomo.
Nishizawa  a banker  gathered a significant collection on hina ningyo.
Japanese Dolls  The Fascinating World of Ningyō.
History    Japanese variety shows have been around since the 1950s and there are many of them.
There are variety shows that deal with eating weird foods to playing weird games.
Japanese variety shows are seen abroad and Japan can be stereotyped because of these shows.
People were drawn to these quiz like shows with their bizarre questions and impossible scenarios.
Television in Japan made a big impact in the 1930s but then was put to a halt because of WWII.
After WWII NHK and Nippon television were able to start up again around 1953.
One of the first shows to have started on Nippon TV was Downtown no Gaki no Tsukai ya Arahende!
!  which started in 1989 and is still running to this day with 1378 episodes as of Oct 29  2017.
The only major changes have been the increasing disappearance of live backup music since the 1980s.
A once popular host Kyosen Ōhashi said   Weird shows that are called Variety only exists in Japan.
Some of these Japanese game show injuries even included spinal injuries.
The BBC would also find success with their own version in the UK.
Jag är med i en japansk Za Gaman      References
Some Japanese soldiers have admitted to committing these crimes.
The crimes committed also fall under other aspects of international and Japanese law.
This is because the treaty does not mention the legal validity of the tribunal.
This would have been unacceptable in international diplomatic circles.
According to this view  those convicted of war crimes are not criminals under Japanese law.
– establishing that Japan was at war from 1895 to 1945.
Only 56 Chinese prisoners of war were released after the surrender of Japan.
Unjust war are plainly crimes and not simply torts or breaches of contracts.
The Pearl Harbor attack breached the Kellogg–Briand Pact and the Hague Convention III.
In addition  it violated Article 23 of the Annex to the Hague Convention IV  of October 1907 ...
It did not eventuate only in the destruction of property.
It was an outright act of undermining and destroying the hope of a world for peace.
Mosques were also desecrated and destroyed by the Japanese  and Hui cemeteries were also destroyed.
After the Rape of Nanking mosques in Nanjing were found to be filled with dead bodies.
A similar crime was the Changjiao massacre in China.
One of the most infamous was Unit 731 under Shirō Ishii.
Unit 731 was established by order of Hirohito himself.
After both arms were gone  the doctors moved on to the legs until only a head and torso remained.
The victim was then used for plague and pathogens experiments.
According to one estimate  the experiments carried out by Unit 731 alone caused 3 000 deaths.
One case of human experimentation occurred in Japan itself.
Five were sentenced to death  four to life imprisonment  and the rest to shorter terms.
Most of Makino s victims were Moro Muslims.
A resolution adopted by the League of Nations on 14 May condemned the use of poison gas by Japan.
The area was crowded with Chinese civilians unable to evacuate.
Some 3 000 Chinese soldiers were in the area and 1 600 were affected.
Tortured prisoners were often later executed.
Torture was an unavoidable necessity.
Murdering and burying them follows naturally.
You do it so you won t be found out.
I believed and acted this way because I was convinced of what I was doing.
We carried out our duty as instructed by our masters.
We did it for the sake of our country.
When you re winning  the losers look really miserable.
We concluded that the Yamato  Japanese  race was superior.
The effectiveness of torture might also have been counterproductive to Japan s war effort.
They cut it  into  small pieces and fried it.
I personally saw this happen and about 100 prisoners were eaten at this place by the Japanese.
At this place  the Japanese again started selecting prisoners to eat.
These men were taken away ostensibly for carrying out duties  but they never reappeared.
The airmen were beheaded on Tachibana s orders.
Tachibana was sentenced to death  and hanged.
This notification also advised staff officers to stop using the term  prisoners of war .
Abe denied that it applied to comfort stations.
There is no evidence to prove there was coercion  nothing to support it.
Abe s comments provoked negative reactions overseas.
For example  a New York Times editorial on 6 March said  These were not commercial brothels.
Force  explicit and implicit  was used in recruiting these women.
What went on in them was serial rape  not prostitution.
The Japanese Army s involvement is documented in the government s own defense files.
America isn t the only country interested in seeing Japan belatedly accept full responsibility.
We were the emperor s soldiers.
Whether in military brothels or in the villages  we raped without reluctance.
These documents were initially made public at the war crimes trial.
Japanese soldiers often forced Chinese to carry the loot.
Only three Americans made it back to American lines in the Lunga Point perimeter alive.
Shocked ... because headquarters had believed anything a Jap had to say ...
The idea of taking prisoners was swept from our minds.
We saw 3 Japs come down the river bed out of the jungle.
The one in front was carrying a white flag.
We thought they were surrendering.
When they got up to us they dropped the white flag and then all 3 threw hand grenades.
We killed 2 of these Japs  but 1 got away.
Apparently they do not mind a sacrifice to get information.
A PT is a patrol torpedo boat and a bluejacket is an enlisted sailor.
Two Marines of Iwo Jima told cautionary tales.
You get a little bit leery of taking prisoners when they are fighting to the death and so are you.
On 23 April 6  1945 the USS Comfort  AH 6  was struck by a Japanese suicide plane.
The USS Relief was attacked and damaged at Guam on 2 April 1945.
Japanese forced her to transport their POWs.
On 20 December 1942  she became the Tenno Maru an official Japanese Hospital Ship.
The Dutch ship crew then became POWs.
With the war coming to an end  the ship was first changed and later sunk to cover the crime.
These numbers included 178 ethnic Taiwanese and 148 ethnic Koreans.
Other courts were formed in many different places in Asia and the Pacific.
High ranking officers who were tried included Kōichi Kido and Sadao Araki.
Many military leaders were also convicted.
Some historians criticize this decision.
Some 5 600 Japanese personnel were prosecuted in more than 2 200 trials outside Japan.
Additionally  the Chinese Communists also held a number of trials for Japanese personnel.
In 2006  the South Korean government  pardoned  83 of the 148 convicted Korean war criminals.
The movement quickly garnered the support of more than ten million Japanese.
He stated   The fact is  there is no evidence to prove there was coercion.
This provoked negative reaction from Asian and Western countries.
It was conducted under the supervision of Allied occupation forces.
It is considered that Korea was also entitled to the rights which were guaranteed in Clause 21.
Accordingly  the Philippines and South Vietnam received compensation in 1956 and 1959 respectively.
This opened the floodgates to debates which have continued ever since.
This interpretation is vigorously contested by Japanese peace groups and the political left.
They also argue that  the Kantōgun  also known as the Kwantung Army  was at least partly culpable.
Some of the officers involved in the Nanking Massacre were also promoted.
The chairman  Toru Miyoshi  is a former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Japan.
Former Prime Minister of Japan  Shinzo Abe  is a member of the Nippon Kaigi.
The Narrow Road to the Deep North chronicles Japanese brutality against Allied POWs in Thailand.
These workers were also the first to be laid off in difficult business conditions.
By 1995 the average annual hours in Japan had decreased to 1 884 hours and by 2009 to 1 714 hours.
At many companies  there is a written in overtime allowance per month in the contract.
Often the first 20–40 hours of overtime are  service overtime  and therefore unpaid.
Loyalty to one s company is paramount in the Japanese culture.
Disappointing coworkers  calling in sick  and having a poor attitude are unacceptable.
The welfare state and working conditions are interconnected.
As a result of declining working hours over the years  less stress was put on the welfare state.
Work hours vary between firms and company size.
In medium to large sized companies hours have increased.
The majority of Japanese hospitals are privately owned alluding to the conservative influence.
For example  overtime and night work both require an increase by a rate of 25  at the minimum.
Karoshi     Karoshi is death by overworking in the Japanese workplace.
According to the Japanese Labor Law  only 8 hours a day  or 40 hours a week  is allowed.
In 1991  a young Dentsu employee killed himself in a similar circumstance.
After her case  the Abe administration pitched a conference to improve working conditions in Japan.
The first meeting was held in September  2016.
In addition to that  the Japanese government announced their first report about over worked death.
Almost all written Japanese sentences contain a mixture of kanji and kana.
Japanese primary and secondary school students are required to learn 2 136 jōyō kanji as of 2010.
Certain names may be written in hiragana or katakana  or some combination of these and kanji.
Unusual or nonstandard kanji readings may be glossed using furigana.
Kanji compounds are sometimes given arbitrary readings for stylistic purposes.
The word 接続  meaning  connection   is normally pronounced setsuzoku.
furigana  振り仮名 —phonetic renderings of kanji placed above or beside the kanji character.
For example  the root of the verb 見る  miru   see   is normally written with the kanji 見.
Although rare  there are some words that use all three scripts in the same word.
Modern Japanese also uses another writing format  called yokogaki  横書き .
This writing format is horizontal and reads from left to right  as in English.
The exclamation mark  ！   is restricted to informal writing.
Colons and semicolons are available but are not common in ordinary text.
Quotation marks are written as 「 ... 」  and nested quotation marks as 『 ... 』.
Several bracket styles and dashes are available.
At the same time  native Japanese already had words corresponding to many borrowed kanji.
Authors increasingly used kanji to represent these words.
This Japanese derived reading is known as kun yomi  訓読み .
A kanji may have none  one  or several on yomi and kun yomi.
The same character may be read several different ways depending on the word.
the station sign at Tokyo reads 駅京東 .
The post war reforms have mostly survived  although some of the restrictions have been relaxed.
The jōyō kanji list was extended to 2 136 characters in 2010.
Romanization     There are a number of methods of rendering Japanese in Roman letters.
Other systems of romanization include Nihon shiki  JSL  and Wāpuro rōmaji.
Old Japanese  A Phonetic Reconstruction.
When that system was abandoned in 1971  the yen became undervalued and was allowed to float.
Since that time  however  the world price of the yen has greatly decreased.
Pronunciation and etymology    Yen derives from the Japanese word 圓  えん  en   eɴ   lit.
The coins and the name also appeared in Japan.
This was probably already fixed and has remained so ever since.
The yen was officially adopted by the Meiji government in an Act signed on June 27  1871.
The new currency was gradually introduced beginning from July of that year.
The yen replaced Tokugawa coinage  a complex monetary system of the Edo period based on the mon.
In that year  Japan adopted a gold exchange standard and hence froze the value of the yen at  0.50.
Undervalued yen     By 1971  the yen had become undervalued.
This agreement set the exchange rate at ¥308 per US 1.
The re emergence of trade surpluses drove the yen back up to ¥211 in 1978.
From ¥221 per US 1 in 1981  the average value of the yen actually dropped to ¥239 per US 1 in 1985.
Effect of the Plaza Accord      In 1985  a dramatic change began.
After declining somewhat in 1989 and 1990  it reached a new high of ¥123 to US 1 in December 1992.
Other major currencies  except the Swiss franc  have been declining relative to the yen.
The Bank of Japan hopes to bring Japan from deflation to inflation  aiming for 2  inflation.
The amount of purchases is so large that it is expected to double the money supply.
Coins     Coins were introduced in 1870.
There were silver 5   10   20  and 50 sen and 1 yen  and gold 2   5   10  and 20 yen.
Gold 1 yen were introduced in 1871  followed by copper 1 rin  ​1⁄2   1  and 2 sen in 1873.
Cupronickel 5 sen coins were introduced in 1889.
In 1920  cupro nickel 10 sen coins were introduced.
Clay 5  and 10 sen coins were produced in 1945  but not issued for circulation.
After the war  brass 50 sen  1  and 5 yen were introduced between 1946 and 1948.
In 1955  the current type of aluminium 1 yen was introduced  along with unholed  nickel 50 yen.
In 1957  silver 100 yen pieces were introduced  followed by the holed 50 yen coin in 1959.
These were replaced in 1967 by the current cupro nickel type  along with a smaller 50 yen coin.
Only one coin per customer is available from banks in each prefecture.
100 000 of each 1000 yen silver coin have been minted.
The Allied forces also issued some notes shortly after the war.
Since then  the Bank of Japan has been the exclusive note issuing authority.
The bank has issued five series after World War II.
The EURion constellation pattern is present in the designs.
The Ministry decided to not redesign the ¥2000 note due to low circulation.
This has helped to keep the value of the yen low compared to other currencies.
The percentage for the yen has  however  declined from 18  in 2000.
The SDR was created in 1969  to support the fixed exchange system.
Within 1945 1946  the rate tanked to 50 yen to the USD because of the ongoing inflation.
Somewhat later  Japonic languages also spread southward to the Ryukyu Islands.
The loanwords now account for about half the lexicon.
Hachijō is an endangered language  with a small population of elderly speakers.
The major varieties are  from northeast to southwest  Kikai  on the island of Kikaijima.
The prestige dialect is spoken in Naha  and the former city of Shuri.
Scholars differ on whether they represent the language of Goguryeo or the people that it conquered.
Glottalized consonants are common in North Ryukyuan languages but are rarer in South Ryukyuan.
Proto Japonic had only voiceless obstruents  like Ainu and proto Korean.
The mid vowels  e and  o were raised to i and u respectively in Old Japanese  except word finally.
These prints were created for the commercial market in Japan.
Western artists were intrigued by the original use of color and composition.
Ukiyo e prints featured dramatic foreshortening and asymmetrical compositions.
During the Meiji era  1868–1912   Japanese pottery was very successfully exported around the world.
Writings by critics  collectors and artists expressed considerable excitement about this  new  art.
Collectors including Siegfried Bing and Christopher Dresser displayed and wrote about these works.
Every year the Dutch arrived in Japan with fleets of ships filled with Western goods for trade.
In the cargoes arrived many Dutch treatises on painting and a number of Dutch prints.
Shiba Kōkan  1747–1818  was one of the notable Japanese artists that studied the imports.
They unearthed kaolin clay near Nagasaki and began to make high quality pottery.
Porcelain and lacquerware became the main exports from Japan to Europe.
Porcelain was used to decorate the homes of monarchs in the Baroque and Rococo style.
Japonisme began as a craze for collecting Japanese art  particularly ukiyo e.
Some of the first samples of ukiyo e were to be seen in Paris.
In the years following this discovery  there was an increase of interest in Japanese prints.
They were sold in curiosity shops  tea warehouses  and larger shops.
Artists and Japonisme    Ukiyo e prints were one of the main Japanese influences on Western art.
One of his most famous Japonisme influenced works is La parisienne japonaise  1872 .
Degas also continues the use of lines to create depth and separate space within the scene.
James McNeill Whistler     Japanese art was exhibited in Britain beginning in the early 1850s.
Instead  he found simplicity and technicality in the Japanese aesthetic.
The period from 1904 to 1918 saw a European boom in geisha dramas.
The most famous of these was  of course  Puccini s opera Madame Butterfly.
The Japanese influence on German drama first appeared in stage design.
Soon this revolving stage was a trend in Berlin.
This being the case  these performances tended toward pantomime and dance.
A second edition was required in 1912.
He also planted a large number of native Japanese species to give it a more exotic feeling.
“Far Eastern Art and French Impressionism ” The Art Quarterly 6 2  Spring  1943   116–143.
It broke out in 672 following the death of Emperor Tenji.
His uncle Ōama then succeeded to the throne as the Emperor Tenmu.
The next thing Tenji needed to do was to secure his successor.
His Empress consort was Yamato hime but there were no children between the two.
He had to find the right man from the sons of non Imperial wives.
Prince Takeru was the first son but he was mute by nature and died when he was seven years old.
Prince Ōtomo was the next prince of the Emperor.
He was a hard worker  and was very clever and intellectual.
He had enough ability to be the next Emperor.
Although Ōtomo was almost perfect  his mother was of low birth.
She was from the rural area landlord s family and was not Imperial Household born.
This was a great disadvantage in considering Ōtomo to ascend to the throne.
At the same time  a younger brother of the Emperor Tenji s was as excellent as Ōtomo.
He  Prince Ōama  had almost the same fitness as the Emperor  except that he was younger.
This was a major cause of the trouble to come.
In 670  the Emperor Tenji got sick.
Because Ōtomo s greatest rival was Ōama  the Emperor attempted to drive Ōama away.
He invited the prince to his bedroom and asked if Ōama had an intention to take the throne.
If Ōama answered yes  the Emperor would have arrested and punished him as a traitor.
Ōama went down to Yoshino the next day and became a monk.
The Emperor declared that Ōtomo was the next Emperor.
The Emperor nodded  and several days later he died.
He secretly collected weapons and soldiers to prepare for the coup d etat.
After a desperate struggle  Ōama gained the capital.
Nagara near the Palace  where he strangled himself to death.
The subjects who supported him were arrested by Ōama s troops and punished as war criminals.
Events in the War    Following dates are described in Julian Calendar.
July 24  Prince Ōama  leaving Yoshino  is about to proceed to the east.
Hata no Kimi Yakuni  羽田公矢国   an Ōmi general  comes and surrenders.
Prince Ōama appoints him general and lets him proceed northwards to Koshi.
August 1  Ōtomo no Fukei  大伴吹負  encamps on the top of Mt.
Aredao no Atae Akamaro  荒田尾直赤麻呂  addresses Fukei to let the Asuka old capital be well guarded.
Narayama  but he is defeated by Hatayasu and his men all run away.
August 4  Ō no Honji intercepts Tanabe no Osumi s troops  and smites them.
August 7  Oyori and his men attack the Ōmi general  Hada no Tomotari  秦友足   at Mt.
August 15  In Kurimoto  the Ōmi army is attacked and repulsed by Oyori.
August 20  Oyori and his men arrives at Seta.
Now the Prince Ōtomo and his Ministers are encamped together west of the bridge.
They fight a big battle  and finally Prince Ōtomo and his Ministers escape with their lives.
A brave soldier named Kume  来目  rushes straight into the midst of Karakuni s army and defeats it.
Upon this  Prince Ōtomo has nowhere to go  turns and conceals himself on the side of Mt.
Nagara  where he strangles himself.
This has led researchers to regard the Jōmon as a morphologically homogeneous population.
2009  the majority of Jōmon appear similar to Bronze Age southern Siberians.
Nevertheless  there were likely multiple migrations into Jōmon period Japan.
Languages    It is not known what language or languages were spoken during the Jōmon period.
Culture    The culture of the Jōmon people is known as  Jōmon culture .
There is no agreement if they used sails or paddles.
The Jōmon also used Obsidian  Jade and different kinds of wood.
The Jōmon created many jewelry and ornamental items.
The Magatama was likely invented by one of the Jōmon tribes and is commonly found in Japan.
It was largely based on animism and possibly shamanism.
Other likely similar religions are the Ryukyuan and Ainu religion.
2019  suggests about 79.3  of the ancestry of the Ainu comes from the Hokkaido Jōmon.
From there  the ancestors of the Ainu speakers expanded into large parts of Honshu and the Kurils.
It is estimated that the Jōmon ancestry is less than 20 .
Another study estimates the Jōmon ancestry in people from Tokyo at approximately 12 .
2019  further confirms that modern Japanese  Yamato  descend mostly from the Yayoi people.
The Jōmon ancestry is estimated at approximately 28  or 50 60   depending on various studies.
The study did not find much evidence for a strong Jōmon influence on Ryukyuans.
Genetics          Proposed Origin     There are several theories about their origin.
Haplogroup D M55 is found in about 35  and haplogroup C1a1 in about 6  of modern Japanese people.
In addition  it is assumed that the haplogroup C2 existed in a small amount of Jōmon people.
D M55 is only found in Japanese  Ainu  Ryukyuans  and Yamato .
Haplogroup C1a1 has been found in modern Japanese at a frequency of 6 .
Elsewhere it was found at low frequency in Koreans  and northeast Chinese.
Haplogroup M7a now has its highest frequency in Okinawa.
The Jōmon female skeleton which was analyzed shows typical Jōmon morphology.
While The Jōmon individual is modeled as a mix of Hòabìnhian  La368  and East Asian ancestry.
An ancestral component unique to IK002 is the most prevalent in the Hokkaido Ainu  average 79.3  .
The microblade culture is suggested to have arrived in Japan about  25 000 years ago.
However geneflow from IK002 into Japanese is detected.
The Funadomari Jōmon are not related to Australo Melanesians  including Andamanese  or Africans.
The Jōmon are closer to Eurasian populations and form a cluster near the “Basal East Asians”.
According to the authors  more data is needed to explain these results and possible consequences.
The sample also showed a higher alcohol tolerance than other Eastern Eurasian populations.
The Jōmon sample had wet earwax  which is rare among modern East Asian populations.
Despite the strong differences  the Rebun Jōmon sample is relative closest to modern Japanese.
Additionally  analysis revealed that the woman had blood type A .
The results were  rather surprising  and complicate the peopling of Asia.
Jordan is bordered by Saudi Arabia  Iraq  Syria  Israel and Palestine  West Bank .
Jordan is strategically located at the crossroads of Asia  Africa and Europe.
Three stable kingdoms emerged there at the end of the Bronze Age  Ammon  Moab and Edom.
Later rulers include the Nabataean Kingdom  the Roman Empire  and the Ottoman Empire.
Jordan is a founding member of the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Co operation.
Jordan has been repeatedly referred to as an  oasis of stability  in a turbulent region.
The kingdom is also a refuge to thousands of Iraqi Christians fleeing persecution by ISIL.
The Old Testament refers to the area as  the other side of the Jordan .
Early Arab chronicles referred to the river as Al Urdunn  corresponding to the Semitic Yarden.
Jund Al Urdunn was a military district around the river in the early Islamic era.
Trade and movement of people in the Middle East peaked  spreading and refining civilizations.
Ancient Egyptians expanded towards the Levant and controlled both banks of the Jordan River.
The stele constitutes one of the most important direct accounts of Biblical history.
Babylonians took over the empire after its disintegration in 627 BC.
The kingdoms were reduced to vassals  which they remained under the Persian and Hellenic Empires.
The Edict of Thessalonka made Christianity the official state religion in 380 AD.
Transjordan prospered during the Byzantine era  and Christian churches were built everywhere.
Umm ar Rasas in southern Amman contains at least 16 Byzantine churches.
Transjordan was an essential territory for the conquest of Damascus.
The first  or Rashidun  caliphate was followed by that of the Ummayads  661–750 .
The Abbasid Caliphate s campaign to take over the Umayyad s began in Transjordan.
During Abbasid rule  750–969   several Arab tribes moved northwards and settled in the Levant.
Transjordan was of marginal importance to the Ottoman authorities.
As a result  Ottoman presence was virtually absent and reduced to annual tax collection visits.
In 1833 Ibrahim Pasha turned on the Ottomans and established his rule over the Levant.
His oppressive policies led to the unsuccessful peasants  revolt in Palestine in 1834.
Egyptian rule was forcibly ended in 1841  with Ottoman rule restored.
Muslim Circassians and Chechens  fleeing Russian persecution  sought refuge in the Levant.
Abdullah s successes drew the envy of the British  even when it was in their interest.
The name was shortened to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan on 26 April 1949.
25 May is now celebrated as the nation s Independence Day  a public holiday.
In response  some Arab countries demanded Jordan s expulsion from the Arab League.
Talal established the country s modern constitution in 1952.
Hussein ascended to the throne in 1953 at the age of 17.
Jordan witnessed great political uncertainty in the following period.
The 1950s were a period of political upheaval  as Nasserism and Pan Arabism swept the Arab World.
The Arab states were defeated and Jordan lost control of the West Bank to Israel.
The fedayeen activities soon became a threat to Jordan s rule of law.
The Israel Jordan Treaty of Peace was signed on 26 October 1994.
He also set up five other special economic zones.
The bombings  which targeted civilians  caused widespread outrage among Jordanians.
No major terrorist attacks have occurred since then.
Major towns in the eastern part of the country are the oasis towns of Azraq and Ruwaished.
The rift valley contains the Jordan River and the Dead Sea  which separates Jordan from Israel.
Climate      The climate in Jordan varies greatly.
The country s average elevation is 812 m  2 664 ft   SL .
Winter also sees frequent showers and occasional snowfall in some western elevated areas.
Ecology      Over 2 000 plant species have been recorded in Jordan.
Politics and government     Jordan is a unitary state under a constitutional monarchy.
The king retains wide executive and legislative powers from the government and parliament.
The judiciary is independent according to the constitution.
The king is the head of state and commander in chief of the army.
Although Islam is the state religion  the constitution preserves religious and personal freedoms.
He refocused the government s agenda on economic reform  during his first year.
King Abdullah s eldest son  Prince Hussein  is the current Crown Prince of Jordan.
However  the underdevelopment of political parties in the country has hampered such moves.
Jordan s score was 44 on a scale from 0  most free  to 105  least free .
Popular Jordanian newspapers include Al Ghad and the Jordan Times.
Al Mamlaka  Ro ya and Jordan TV are some Jordanian TV channels.
Internet penetration in Jordan reached 76  in 2015.
Control for each administrative unit is in a  chief town   administrative centre  known as a nahia.
The Legion grew from 150 men in 1920 to 8 000 in 1946.
This is due to Jordan s critical position in the Middle East.
Until 1956 police duties were carried out by the Arab Legion and the Transjordan Frontier Force.
After that year the Public Safety Directorate was established.
The number of female police officers is increasing.
In the 1970s  it was the first Arab country to include females in its police force.
Economy     Jordan is classified by the World Bank as an  upper middle income  country.
Tourist arrivals have dropped sharply since 2011.
In 2016  the debt reached  35.1 billion representing 93  of its GDP.
Foreign aid covers only a small part of these costs  63  of the total costs are covered by Jordan.
Currently  the railway has little civilian activity  it is primarily used for transporting goods.
Two are in Amman and the third is in Aqaba  King Hussein International Airport.
In 2010  there were 8 million visitors to Jordan.
The majority of tourists coming to Jordan are from European and Arab countries.
The tourism sector in Jordan has been severely affected by regional turbulence.
The most recent blow to the tourism sector was caused by the Arab Spring.
Jordan experienced a 70  decrease in the number of tourists from 2010 to 2016.
Alcohol is widely available in tourist restaurants  liquor stores and even some supermarkets.
Hiking is getting more and more popular among tourists and locals.
Places such as Dana Biosphere Reserve and Petra offer numerous signposted hiking trails.
Jordan also is a hub for natural treatment methods in both Ma in Hot Springs and the Dead Sea.
The Dead Sea is often described as a  natural spa .
It contains 10 times more salt than the average ocean  which makes it impossible to sink in.
The high salt concentration of the Dead Sea has been proven therapeutic for many skin diseases.
The trail aims to revive the Jordanian tourism sector.
Natural resources      Jordan is among the most water scarce nations on earth.
The Dead Sea is receding at an alarming rate.
The first phase of the project is scheduled to begin in 2019 and to be completed in 2021.
This led to a reliance on importing oil to generate almost all of its electricity.
Official figures estimate the kingdom s oil shale reserves at more than 70 billion tonnes.
Jordan also aims to benefit from its large uranium reserves by tapping nuclear energy.
More than 21  of Jordan s labor force was employed in industry in 2002.
In 2014  industry accounted for 6  of the GDP.
The main industrial products are potash  phosphates  cement  clothes  and fertilisers.
The most promising segment of this sector is construction.
In 2015  KADDB exported  72 million worth of industries to over 42 countries.
Jordan contributes 75  of the Arabic content on the Internet.
In 2014  the ICT sector accounted for more than 84 000 jobs and contributed to 12  of the GDP.
More than 400 companies are active in telecom  information technology and video game development.
Around 2.9 million  30   were non citizens  a figure including refugees  and illegal immigrants.
The population of Amman was 65 754 in 1946  but exceeded 4 million by 2015.
Arabs make up about 98  of the population.
About 84.1  of the population live in urban areas.
370 000 of these Palestinians live in UNRWA refugee camps.
In 2015  their number in Jordan was 130 911.
Immigrants also include 15 000 Lebanese who arrived following the 2006 Lebanon War.
Kurds number some 30 000  and like the Assyrians  many are refugees from Iraq  Iran and Turkey.
A small number of ethnic Mandeans also reside in Jordan  again mainly refugees from Iraq.
Religion      Sunni Islam is the dominant religion in Jordan.
There are also a small number of Ahmadi Muslims  and some Shiites.
Many Shia are Iraqi and Lebanese refugees.
Christians are also influential in the media.
Smaller religious minorities include Druze  Baháʼís and Mandaeans.
Most Jordanians natively speak one of the non standard Arabic dialects known as Jordanian Arabic.
Jordanian Sign Language is the language of the deaf community.
Chechen  Circassian  Armenian  Tagalog  and Russian are popular among their communities.
French is offered as an elective in many schools  mainly in the private sector.
Museums outside Amman include the Aqaba Archaeological Museum.
The Jerash Festival is an annual music event that features popular Arab singers.
Pianist and composer Zade Dirani has gained wide international popularity.
Several military vehicles  including tanks  troop carriers and a helicopter are in the museum.
They previously reached the quarter finals of the Asian Cup in 2004 and 2011.
The women s football team gaining reputation  and in March 2016 ranked 58th in the world.
In 2016  Jordan hosted the FIFA U 17 Women s World Cup   with 16 teams representing six continents.
The tournament was held in four stadiums in the three Jordanian cities of Amman  Zarqa and Irbid.
Less common sports are gaining popularity.
Ful medames is another well known appetiser.
A typical worker s meal  it has since made its way to the tables of the upper class.
Jordanian wine and beer are also sometimes used.
The dish is a symbol for Jordanian hospitality and is influenced by the Bedouin culture.
Mansaf is eaten on different occasions such as funerals  weddings and on religious holidays.
As an old tradition  the dish is eaten using one s hands  but the tradition is not always used.
Health and education     Life expectancy in Jordan was around 74.8 years in 2017.
The leading cause of death is cardiovascular diseases  followed by cancer.
The country s health care system is divided between public and private institutions.
The King Hussein Cancer Center is a leading cancer treatment centre.
Scholars may attend either private or public schools.
There are over 200 000 Jordanian students enrolled in universities each year.
UJ and JUST occupy 8th and 10th between Arab universities.
Jordan has 2 000 researchers per million people.
As of 2012 the editor in chief is Stephan Haggard.
It encompasses a wide body of texts  practices  theological positions  and forms of organization.
Judaism has its roots as an organized religion in the Middle East during the Bronze Age.
And not only do ordinary things and occurrences bring with them the experience of God.
Ethical monotheism is central in all sacred or normative texts of Judaism.
However  monotheism has not always been followed in practice.
For some  observance of Jewish law is more important than belief in God per se.
Jewish scholars have held points of view diverging in various ways from Maimonides  principles.
Maimonides  principles were largely ignored over the next few centuries.
Many of these have advanced search options available.
According to rabbinic tradition  there are 613 commandments in the Torah.
These have been further expounded by commentaries of various Torah scholars during the ages.
The Halakha has developed slowly  through a precedent based system.
Modern Jewish philosophy consists of both Orthodox and non Orthodox oriented philosophy.
But the study of the Torah is equal to them all.
In Judaism   the study of Torah can be a means of experiencing God .
These two principles make possible a great variety of interpretations.
Eliezer b. Jose ha Gelili listed 32  largely used for the exegesis of narrative elements of Torah.
Judah Hadassi incorporated Ishmael s principles into Karaite Judaism in the 12th century.
Thus Ioudaïsmós should be translated not as  Judaism  but as Judaeanness.
21   Those that behaved themselves manfully to their honour for Iudaisme.
Converts are called  ben Abraham  or  bat Abraham    son or daughter of Abraham .
Conversions have on occasion been overturned.
This is still not settled  and occasionally resurfaces in Israeli politics.
In 2002  according to the Jewish Population Survey  there were 13.3 million Jews around the world.
The Jewish Year Calendar cites 14.6 million.
It is 0.25  of world population.
Jewish population growth is currently near zero percent  with 0.3  growth from 2000 to 2001.
Centrist  Orthodoxy  Joseph B. Soloveitchik  is sometimes also distinguished.
Men and women participate equally in prayer.
At the heart of each service is the Amidah or Shemoneh Esrei.
Another key prayer in many services is the declaration of faith  the Shema Yisrael  or Shema .
Communal prayer requires a quorum of ten adult Jews  called a minyan.
The approach to prayer varies among the Jewish denominations.
In addition  many Reform temples use musical accompaniment such as organs and mixed choirs.
The tallit is worn by Jewish men and some Jewish women during the prayer service.
Customs vary regarding when a Jew begins wearing a tallit.
In the Sephardi community  boys wear a tallit from bar mitzvah age.
In some Ashkenazi communities  it is customary to wear one only after marriage.
A tallit katan  small tallit  is a fringed garment worn under the clothing throughout the day.
In some Orthodox circles  the fringes are allowed to hang freely outside the clothing.
It plays a pivotal role in Jewish practice and is governed by a large corpus of religious law.
It is customary to have challah  two braided loaves of bread  on the table.
Outside Israel  Passover is celebrated for eight days.
In ancient times  it coincided with the barley harvest.
It is the only holiday that centers on home service  the Seder.
Matzo is eaten instead of bread.
It is celebrated through the construction of temporary booths called sukkot  sing.
sukkah  that represent the temporary shelters of the Israelites during their wandering.
It coincides with the fruit harvest and marks the end of the agricultural cycle.
The occasion is celebrated with singing and dancing with the Torah scrolls.
Yom Kippur    Day of Atonement   is the holiest day of the Jewish year.
It is a day of communal fasting and praying for forgiveness for one s sins.
Many non religious Jews make a point of attending synagogue services and fasting on Yom Kippur.
On the eve of Yom Kippur  before candles are lit  a prefast meal  the  seuda mafseket   is eaten.
Synagogue services on the eve of Yom Kippur begin with the Kol Nidre prayer.
The following day  prayers are held from morning to evening.
The final prayer service  called  Ne ilah   ends with a long blast of the shofar.
Spiritually  Hanukkah commemorates the  Miracle of the Oil .
They are the 17th Tamuz  the 10th of Tevet and Tzom Gedaliah  the 3rd of Tishrei .
Synagogues and religious buildings      Synagogues are Jewish houses of prayer and study.
The Reform movement mostly refer to their synagogues as temples.
Dietary laws  kashrut      The Jewish dietary laws are known as kashrut.
For example  in order to be considered kosher  mammals must have split hooves and chew their cud.
The pig is arguably the most well known example of a non kosher animal.
Although it has split hooves  it does not chew its cud.
For seafood to be kosher  the animal must have fins and scales.
Concerning birds  a list of non kosher species is given in the Torah.
However  traditions exist about the kashrut status of a few birds.
For example  both chickens and turkeys are permitted in most communities.
Without the proper slaughtering practices even an otherwise kosher animal will be rendered treif.
The slaughtering process is intended to be quick and relatively painless to the animal.
These laws are also known as niddah  literally  separation   or family purity.
The baby boy is also given his Hebrew name in the ceremony.
In the Reform movement  both girls and boys have their bat bar mitzvah at age thirteen.
Marriage – Marriage is an extremely important lifecycle event.
A wedding takes place under a chuppah  or wedding canopy  which symbolizes a happy house.
Death and Mourning – Judaism has a multi staged mourning practice.
In the Temple  the kohanim were charged with performing the sacrifices.
Today  a Levite is called up second to the reading of the Torah.
A Jew can fulfill most requirements for prayer by himself.
A congregation does not necessarily require a rabbi.
Hassidic Rebbe – rabbi who is the head of a Hasidic dynasty.
Any adult capable of reciting the prayers clearly may act as shatz.
The Baal kriyah or baal koreh  master of the reading  reads the weekly Torah portion.
The requirements for being the baal kriyah are the same as those for the shatz.
These roles are not mutually exclusive.
The same person is often qualified to fill more than one role and often does.
Rosh yeshiva – A Torah scholar who runs a yeshiva.
Must be an expert in the laws of kashrut and trained by a rabbi  if not a rabbi himself.
Abraham is hailed as the first Hebrew and the father of the Jewish people.
At Mount Sinai  they received the Torah—the five books of Moses.
Correspondingly  two bodies of analysis developed  and two works of Talmud were created.
The older compilation is called the Jerusalem Talmud.
It was compiled sometime during the 4th century in Palestine.
The Judean elite was exiled to Babylonia and this is regarded as the first Jewish Diaspora.
A new Second Temple was constructed  and old religious practices were resumed.
After the Great Revolt  66–73 CE   the Romans destroyed the Temple.
After the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE  these sects vanished.
These included the Isunians  the Yudganites  the Malikites  and others.
Karaites exist in small numbers today  mostly living in Israel.
This was different in quality from the repressions of Jews which had occurred in ancient times.
Hasidic Judaism eventually became the way of life for many Jews in Eastern Europe.
Waves of Jewish immigration in the 1880s carried it to the United States.
The movement itself claims to be nothing new  but a refreshment of original Judaism.
As some have put it   they merely re emphasized that which the generations had lost .
Nevertheless  early on there was a serious schism between Hasidic and non Hasidic Jews.
European Jews who rejected the Hasidic movement were dubbed by the Hasidim as Misnagdim   lit.
Orthodox Jews who opposed the Haskalah formed Haredi Orthodox Judaism.
Religious prejudice was an underlying source against Jews in Europe.
Non Muslim monotheists living in these countries  including Jews  were known as dhimmis.
Many of the laws regarding dhimmis were highly symbolic.
Most have chosen to live in Israel.
Among Christianity these are a number of denominations of ancient and contemporary Judaizers.
Some members of Messianic Judaism argue that it is a sect of Judaism.
An article on this survey is printed in The New York Jewish Week  November 2  2001.
Jon Bloomberg  Samuel Kapustin  eds. .
An Introduction to Karaite Judaism  History  Theology  Practice and Culture.
The Jews of Arab Lands  A History and Source Book.
In many instances  the Hebrew versions of these projects are more fully developed than the English.
In the Summary Courts  the numbers were 186 808 and 40 509 respectively.
After 1948  the courts in Japan were influenced by the American adversarial system.
Courts    Japan s court system is divided into four basic tiers.
Summary court judges are not career judges.
Qualification as a regular judge is not required.
They are only able to imprison defendants in a few special cases.
Summary courts are presided over by one judge.
There are 50 district courts with additional 203 branches.
These are the courts of general jurisdiction and the principal court of first instance.
They also handle bankruptcy hearings.
Attorneys sit on either side of the courtroom  facing the center.
In a criminal case  the accused faces the judges from the rear of the courtroom.
The witness box is in the center  also facing the judges.
There are eight high courts  高等裁判所 Kōtō saibansho .
A high court usually sits in the same manner as a three judge district court.
Each court is led by a President  who is appointed by the Cabinet.
An appeal to a high court is called kōso  控訴 .
The Chief Justice is nominated by the Cabinet and appointed to office by the Emperor.
Typically  there are six lay judges and three professional judges for one case.
The decision has to be by majority and include at least one of the professional judges.
This is provided in the Act on Criminal Trials with the Participation of Saiban in.
Some of his works present a shocking world of sexuality and destructive erotic obsessions.
His parents were Kuragorō and Seki Tanizaki.
Tanizaki described his admittedly pampered childhood in his Yōshō Jidai  Childhood Years  1956 .
Early literary career     Tanizaki began his literary career in 1909.
In the story  a tattoo artist inscribes a giant spider on the body of a beautiful young woman.
Tanizaki later adopted Emiko  the daughter of his third wife  Matsuko Morita.
In 1918  Tanizaki toured Korea  northern China and Manchuria.
In his early years he became infatuated with the West and all things modern.
This outlook is reflected in some of his early writings.
He relocated from Kyoto to Kobe in 1928.
Until his death  he was widely regarded as Japan s greatest contemporary author.
Tanizaki s characters are often driven by obsessive erotic desires.
His grave is at the temple Hōnen in  in Kyoto.
Legacy    The Tanizaki Prize is one of Japan s most sought after literary awards.
Thomas J. Harper and Edward G. Seidensticker  Leete s Island Books 1977  Charles E. Tuttle 1984.
ISBN 0 679 76022 9 The Reed Cutter and Captain Shigemoto s Mother  tr.
In A Tokyo Anthology  Literature from Japan’s Modern Metropolis  1850 1915  ed.
Visions of Desire   Tanizaki s Fictional Worlds.
This Perversion Called Love  Reading Tanizaki  Feminist Theory  and Freud.
Recent findings have refined the final phase of the Jōmon period to 1 000 BCE.
The Yayoi period started between 1 000 and 800 BCE according to radio carbon evidence.
Small fragments  dated to 14 500 BCE  were found at the Odai Yamamoto I site in 1998.
This seems to be confirmed by recent archaeology.
The pottery may have been used as cookware.
Within the archipelago  the vegetation was transformed by the end of the Ice Age.
This was already similar to modern cultivated forms.
This domesticated type of peach was apparently brought into Japan from China.
A study in 2015 found that this form of dwelling continued up until the Satsumon culture.
Using archaeological data on pollen count  this phase is the warmest of all the phases.
By the end of this phase the warm climate starts to enter a cooling trend.
Comparatively few archaeological sites can be found after 1500 BCE.
11 February 660 BCE is the traditional founding date of the Japanese nation by Emperor Jimmu.
Recent studies however support a predominantly Yayoi ancestry for contemporary Japanese people.
The Jōmon people were not one homogenous ethnic group.
Haplogroups N9b  D4h2  G1b  and M7a were observed in these individuals.
A genome research  Takahashi et al.
2019  shows that modern Japanese  Yamato  do not have much Jōmon ancestry at all.
Nuclear genome analysis of Jōmon samples and modern Japanese samples show strong differences.
main text 337 pages  Jomon text 92 pages  ISBN 0 12 045280 4 Habu  Junko  2004 .
main text 496 pages  Jomon text 92 pages  Temple  DH  2007 .
Dating     Odai Yamamoto I site in Aomori Prefecture currently has the oldest pottery in Japan.
This appears to be plain  undecorated pottery.
Such a date puts the development of pottery before the warming at the end of the Pleistocene.
Linear relief  pottery was also found at Fukui Cave Layer III dating to 13 850–12 250 BC.
This site is located in Nagasaki Prefecture  Kyushu.
Some sources claim archaeological discoveries as far back as the 14th millennium BCE.
Chronology     The Jōmon Period in Ancient Japan lasted until roughly 300 BCE.
It was later followed by the Yayoi pottery.
This shows that the vessels would typically be used to boil food  perhaps fitting into a fire.
Kabuki  歌舞伎  is a classical Japanese dance drama.
This form of theatre was perfected in the late 17th and mid 18th century.
Kabuki is therefore sometimes translated as  the art of singing and dancing .
These are  however  ateji characters which do not reflect actual etymology.
The kanji of skill generally refers to a performer in kabuki theatre.
The expression kabukimono  歌舞伎者  referred originally to those who were bizarrely dressed.
It originated in the 17th century.
Female performers played both men and women in comic playlets about ordinary life.
The style was immediately popular  and Okuni was asked to perform before the Imperial Court.
For this reason  kabuki was also known as  遊女歌舞妓   lit.   prostitute kabuki   during this period.
The area surrounding kabuki theatres also featured a number of shops selling kabuki souvenirs.
Despite its popularity  the ruling shogunate held unfavorable views of kabuki performances.
Following this ban  young boys began performing in wakashū kabuki  which was also soon banned.
Kabuki switched to adult male actors  called yaro kabuki  in the mid 1600s.
This occurred partly because of the emergence of several skilled bunraku playwrights in that time.
Kawatake Mokuami commonly wrote plays that depicted the common lives of the people of Edo.
He introduced shichigo cho  seven and five syllable meter  dialogue and music such as kiyomoto.
In 1868  the Tokugawa ceased to exist  with the restoration of the Emperor.
Of the many popular young stars who performed with the Takechi Kabuki  Nakamura Ganjiro III  b.
1931  was the leading figure  first known as Nakamura Senjaku before taking his current name.
Kabuki also appears in works of Japanese popular culture such as anime.
There have even been kabuki troupes established in countries outside Japan.
Kabuki was inscribed on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists in 2005.
Okuni also performed on a hanamichi stage with her entourage.
The hanamichi creates depth and both seri and chunori provide a vertical dimension.
Mawari butai  revolving stage  developed in the Kyōhō era  1716–1735 .
The trick was originally accomplished by the on stage pushing of a round  wheeled platform.
Later a circular platform was embedded in the stage with wheels beneath it facilitating movement.
This stage was first built in Japan in the early eighteenth century.
These traps raise and lower actors or sets to the stage.
This technique is often used to lift an entire scene at once.
This is sometimes accomplished by using a Hiki Dōgu  or  small wagon stage .
The curtain consists of one piece and is pulled back to one side by a staff member by hand.
These are more ornate in their appearance and are woven.
Quick costume change techniques may sometimes be employed in such pieces.
Notable examples include Musume Dōjōji and Renjishi.
An even greater compliment can be paid by shouting the name of the actor s father.
Emotions are also expressed through the colours of the costumes  a key element in kabuki.
Nearly every full length play occupies five acts.
In contrast  Kamigata kabuki focused on natural and realistic styles of acting.
Only towards the end of the Edo period did the two styles begin to merge to any significant degree.
Many actors will go through at least three names over the course of their career.
Most often  a number of actors will participate in a single ceremony  taking on new stage names.
Kabuki  a Mirror of Japan  Ten Plays that Offer a Glimpse into Evolving Sensibilities.
Kyūichirō was a scholar  bureaucrat  and businessman who later became known for his Chinese poetry.
Kafū had three brothers and one sister.
When the second son was born in 1883  Kafū was sent to live with his mother s family.
Kafū returned to his parents  home in January 1886  when he started elementary school.
In 1891  he attended a private English language school in Kanda  Tokyo.
He began studying the shakuhachi and Chinese poetry in 1896 at the age of 17.
The same year  he graduated from middle school and failed the entrance exam for university.
In 1898  he began writing short stories and studied with the novelist Hirotsu Ryūrō  広津 柳浪 .
In 1900  he began publishing short stories.
In 1901  he got a job briefly as a newspaper reporter and later began studying French.
Had I  born in Japan  no choice but to sing Japanese songs?
I belonged to a nation that had no music to express swelling emotions and agonized feelings.
1904  Visits the St. Louis Exposition.
1905  Moves to New York City and begins working for a Japanese bank.
1907  Publishes Furansu Monogatari  French Stories   which is immediately suppressed.
1916  Launches a literary magazine.
1920  Play performed at Imperial Theater.
1923–44  Continues to write  though publications become less frequent.
Nagai Kafu became one of the rebels who opposed the government and continued to write.
As a result  he was able to maintain his status as a popular novelist throughout the war.
Writing style    Nagai s writing style varied depending on his genre and audience.
Kagawa Prefecture  香川県  Kagawa ken  is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku.
The Sanuki Mountains run along the southern border.
Kagawa is currently the smallest prefecture  by area  in Japan.
Kagawa is a relatively narrow prefecture located between the mountains of Shikoku and the sea.
In 2008  there were over 700 udon restaurants in this prefecture alone.
Olives and olive related products have also come to be recognized as Kagawa foods.
Waste organic matter from olive pressing is used as feed for cattle and the Yellowtail Amberjack.
Other local specialties include wasanbon sugar sweets  sōmen noodles and shōyu soy sauce.
Rare sugar researches are thriving and have discovered mass production culture enzymes.
Native creator Sōichirō Yamamoto was also raised in Tonosho Town.
This became known only recently under the Koizumi administration.
The most important group is the Amami Islands.
Its position made it a  gateway  to Japan at various times in history.
While Kyushu has about 13 million people  there are less than 2 million in this prefecture.
On active days in Kagoshima city an umbrella is advisable to ward off the ash.
Sakurajima is one of Japan s most active volcanoes.
Many beaches around the Kagoshima Bay are littered with well worn pumice stones.
Kagoshima prefecture s production of bonito flakes is second only to that of Shizuoka.
In addition  it produces Japan s largest volume of unagi eels.
Kagoshima is also Japan s largest beef and pork producing prefecture.
The prefecture s gross domestic product is approximately 4.834 trillion yen.
Kagoshima United FC  a soccer team  was founded in 2014 and competes in the J3 League.
Also hosts regular season games.
Kaidō  街道   road   were roads in Japan dating from the Edo period.
They act important roles in transportation like the Appian way of ancient Roman roads.
Major examples include the Edo Five Routes  all of which started at Edo  modern day Tokyo .
Minor examples include sub routes such as the Hokuriku Kaidō and the Nagasaki Kaidō.
These names were used for administrative units  and the roads within these units.
Many highways and railway lines in modern Japan follow the ancient routes and carry the same names.
These had lodgings for travelers and grew as commercial centers.
Some woodblock prints show their stately processions.
Kamakura  鎌倉市  Kamakura shi  is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture  Japan.
Kamakura was designated as a city on 3 November 1939.
Rokkokuken  六国見   147 m or 482 ft   Mt.
Jubu  鷲峰山   127 m or 417 ft   Mt.
Tendai  天台山  141 m or 463 ft   and Mt.
The river marks the border between Zaimokuza and Yuigahama.
Its name at the time used to be Sakado gō  尺度郷 .
A 1.8 kilometre  1.1 mi  road  参道  sandō  runs from Sagami Bay directly to the shrine.
This road is known as Wakamiya Ōji  the city s main street.
Its entire length is under the direct administration of the shrine.
Near the remains of Hama no Ōtorii runs Kuruma Ōji Avenue  also called Biwa Koji .
The only one to have been modified is Kuruma Ōji  a segment of which has disappeared.
In the late Jōmon period the sea receded and civilization progressed.
There are various hypotheses about the origin of the name.
Kamatari enshrined it in a place called Ōkura.
Kamayari plus Ōkura then turned into the name Kamakura.
It used to be also called Renpu  鎌府   short for Kamakura Bakufu  鎌倉幕府  or Kamakura Shogunate  .
In 1179  Yoritomo married Hōjō Masako  an event of far reaching consequences for Japan.
It was then transferred to Utsunomiya Tsuji  宇津宮辻 .
For the same reason  in 1193 he had his other brother Noriyori killed.
Yoriie plotted to take back his power  but failed and was assassinated on July 17  1204.
From then on all power would belong to the Hōjō  and the shōgun would be just a figurehead.
In what is referred to as the Heizen Gate Incident  Yoritsuna and 90 of his followers were killed.
The Hōjō family crest in the city is therefore still ubiquitous.
This  and not lack of legitimacy  was the primary cause of the Hōjō s fall.
Almost the entire clan vanished at once  the city was sacked and many temples were burned.
In the end  Kamakura had to be retaken by force in 1454.
A long period of chaos and war followed the departure of the last Kantō kubō  the Sengoku period .
in Sagami which for several centuries was the second capital of Japan.
The total death toll from earthquake  tsunami  and fire exceeded 2 000 victims.
Founder Nichiren wasn t a native  he was born in Awa Province  in today s Chiba Prefecture.
Nichiren had been condemned to death for having written the Risshō Ankoku Ron.
Every year  on September 12  Nichiren devotees gather to celebrate the anniversary of the miracle.
Kōtoku in  with its monumental outdoor bronze statue of Amida Buddha  is the most famous.
Kamakura also hosts the so called Five Great Zen Temples  the Kamakura Gozan .
The ceremony takes place at 1 00 pm at Tsurugaoka Hachiman gū.
Beans are scattered in the air to ensure good luck.
The pass is presently closed to all traffic because of the danger posed by falling rocks.
Transportation          Rail     JR East s Yokosuka Line has three stations within the city.
Ōfuna Station is the northernmost.
In the center of the city is Kamakura Station  the central railway station in the city.
Kamakura Station is the terminal for the Enoshima Electric Railway.
This railway runs westward to Fujisawa  and part of its route runs parallel to the seashore.
After leaving Kamakura Station  trains make eight more station stops in the city.
One of them is Hase Station  closest to Hase dera and Kōtoku in.
Highway     National Route 134      Education    Kamakura has many educational facilities.
The city operates sixteen public elementary schools and nine middle schools.
At the next level are four prefectural and six private high schools.
Also in Kamakura is a prefectural special school.
Kamakura Women s University is the city s sole university.
Government and administration    Kamakura has a mayor and a city council  all publicly elected.
The mayor is Takashi Matsuo  Politician .
The City Council consists of 28 members.
Sister cities    Kamakura has six sister cities.
Yokohama Burning  The Deadly 1923 Earthquake and Fire that Helped Forge the Path to World War II.
Shin Nihon Koten Bungaku Taikei  Man yōshū 3  in Japanese .
Shin Nihon Koten Bungaku Taikei  Man yōshū 4  in Japanese .
Kamakura in central Sagami was the capital of Japan during the Kamakura period  1185–1333 .
After the Meiji period  many foreigners lived in Yokohama City  and visited Hakone.
At Kamakura  the total death toll from earthquake  tsunami  and fire exceeded 2 000 victims.
Total Casualties amounted to more than several thousand.
The population as of September 1  2014  is estimated to be 9.1 million.
Kanagawa became the second most populous prefecture in 2006.
Topography     Topographically  the prefecture consists of three distinct areas.
The mountainous western region features the Tanzawa Mountain Range and Hakone Volcano.
The hilly eastern region is characterized by the Tama Hills and Miura Peninsula.
The Sagami River flows through the middle of the prefecture.
The mountain range is lower in height southward leading to Hadano Basin to the Ōiso Hills.
Cities      Nineteen cities are located in Kanagawa Prefecture.
The board of education also directly operates most of the public high schools in the prefecture.
Hakone Ekiden Course—from Tokyo to Hakone  108.0 km  mostly on Japan National Route 1 and Route 15.
Lake Sagami—hosted canoeing and rowing for the 1964 Summer Olympics.
The main team in the Japanese manga and anime series Slam Dunk  Shohoku  is from Kanagawa.
The Japanese anime and  manga series Area no Kishi takes place in Kanagawa  mostly Kamakura.
The Japanese anime and  manga series Hamatora takes place in Kanagawa  mainly in Yokohama.
Yokohama Burning  The Deadly 1923 Earthquake and Fire that Helped Forge the Path to World War II.
Lords required the loyal services of vassals  who were rewarded with fiefs of their own.
The fief holders exercised local military rule.
As shōgun  Yoritomo was both the steward and the constable general.
Often the Shikken was also the Tokuso and Rensho.
Under the Hōjō  the shogun became a powerless figurehead.
Although deprived of political power  the court retained extensive estates.
Several significant administrative achievements were made during the Hōjō regency.
The Hōjō regent presided over the council  which was a successful form of collective leadership.
As might be expected  the literature of the time reflected the unsettled nature of the period.
Shinran  1173–1263  founded the Jōdo Shinshū sect.
Eisai  1141–1215  founded the Rinzai school of Zen.
Dōgen  1200–1253  founded the Sōtō school of Zen.
Nichiren  1222–1282  founded the Nichiren school.
For example  all of the above six reformers had studied at the Tendai Mt.
Dōgen rejected affiliations with the secular authorities whereas Eisai actively sought them.
These changing conditions created a climate that encouraged religious innovation.
This culminated in the state sanctioned formalized schools of the Tokugawa period.
After further unsuccessful entreaties  the first Mongol invasion took place in 1274.
Long standing fears of the Chinese threat to Japan were reinforced.
The victory also convinced the warriors of the value of the shogunate form of government.
Roving bands of rōnin further threatened the stability of the shogunate.
In 1331 the shogunate exiled Go Daigo  but loyalist forces  including Kusunoki Masashige  rebelled.
The long War Between the Courts lasted from 1336 to 1392.
This inadvertently spread the Pure Land doctrine to a wider audience.
1293  On May 27  a major earthquake and tsunami hit Sagami Bay and Kamakura  killing 23 034 people.
The Hōjō clan were the de facto rulers of Japan as shikken  regent  of the Shōgun from 1203.
Military affairs were handled under the auspices of the civil government.
In 1192  Yoritomo and the Minamoto clan established a military government in Kamakura.
The Minamoto clan remained the titular shōguns  with the Hōjō holding the real power.
In 1219  Sanetomo was assassinated by his nephew Kugyō.
Since Sanetomo died childless  the line of shōguns from the Minamoto clan ended with him.
As long as she lived  regents and shōguns would come and go  while she stayed at the helm.
The shogunate had rejected Kublai s demands to submit with contempt.
Thousands of invading troops were not able to embark in time and were slaughtered by the samurai.
The  divine wind   or kamikaze  was credited for saving Japan from foreign invasion.
Construction of defensive walls added further expenses to the strained regime.
Once there  however  Takauji decided to switch sides and support Go Daigo.
Later  under the Hōjō  a separate institution  the hyōjōshū became the focus of government.
The shogunate appointed new military governors  shugo  over the provinces.
These stewards received revenues from the manors in return for their military service.
Thus the dual governmental system reached to the manor level.
The Kamakura bakufu   a study in documents.
Kamakura in central Sagami was the capital of Japan during the Kamakura period  1185–1333 .
After the Meiji period  many foreigners lived in Yokohama City  and visited Hakone.
At Kamakura  the total death toll from earthquake  tsunami  and fire exceeded 2 000 victims.
Total Casualties amounted to more than several thousand.
The population as of September 1  2014  is estimated to be 9.1 million.
Kanagawa became the second most populous prefecture in 2006.
Topography     Topographically  the prefecture consists of three distinct areas.
The mountainous western region features the Tanzawa Mountain Range and Hakone Volcano.
The hilly eastern region is characterized by the Tama Hills and Miura Peninsula.
The Sagami River flows through the middle of the prefecture.
The mountain range is lower in height southward leading to Hadano Basin to the Ōiso Hills.
Cities      Nineteen cities are located in Kanagawa Prefecture.
The board of education also directly operates most of the public high schools in the prefecture.
Hakone Ekiden Course—from Tokyo to Hakone  108.0 km  mostly on Japan National Route 1 and Route 15.
Lake Sagami—hosted canoeing and rowing for the 1964 Summer Olympics.
The main team in the Japanese manga and anime series Slam Dunk  Shohoku  is from Kanagawa.
The Japanese anime and  manga series Area no Kishi takes place in Kanagawa  mostly Kamakura.
The Japanese anime and  manga series Hamatora takes place in Kanagawa  mainly in Yokohama.
Yokohama Burning  The Deadly 1923 Earthquake and Fire that Helped Forge the Path to World War II.
Kansas    listen   is a state in the center of the United States.
Its capital is Topeka and its largest city is Wichita.
For thousands of years  what is now Kansas was home to numerous and diverse Native American tribes.
Tribes in the eastern part of the state generally lived in villages along the river valleys.
Tribes in the western part of the state were semi nomadic and hunted large herds of bison.
Kansas was first settled by Americans in 1827 with the establishment of Fort Leavenworth.
Residents of Kansas are called Kansans.
Mount Sunflower is Kansas s highest point at 4 039 feet  1 231 meters .
Between 1763 and 1803 the territory of Kansas was integrated into Spanish Louisiana.
From 1812 to 1821  Kansas was part of the Missouri Territory.
Wagon ruts from the trail are still visible in the prairie today.
Missouri and Arkansas sent settlers into Kansas all along its eastern border.
These settlers attempted to sway votes in favor of slavery.
At the same time  the Chisholm Trail was opened and the Wild West era commenced in Kansas.
Wild Bill Hickok was a deputy marshal at Fort Riley and a marshal at Hays and Abilene.
Kansas is located equidistant from the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.
The geographic center of the 48 contiguous states is in Smith County near Lebanon.
The geographic center of Kansas is in Barton County.
Spring River is located between Riverton and Baxter Springs.
Most of the precipitation falls during both the summer and the spring.
Summers are hot  often very hot  and generally less humid.
Winters are highly changeable between warm and very cold.
Frost free days range from more than 200 days in the south  to 130 days in the northwest.
Thus  Kansas is the country s ninth or tenth sunniest state  depending on the source.
Western Kansas is as sunny as parts of California and Arizona.
Kansas is prone to severe weather  especially in the spring and the early summer.
Kansas averages more than 50 tornadoes annually.
Severe thunderstorms sometimes drop some very large hail over Kansas as well.
Furthermore  these storms can even bring in flash flooding and damaging straight line winds.
Alton and Lebanon are approximately 50 miles  80 km  apart.
As of 2004  the population included 149 800 foreign born  5.5  of the state population .
Mexicans are present in the southwest and make up nearly half the population in certain counties.
They have sometimes successfully raised lawsuits against the city of Topeka.
Kansas has 627 incorporated cities.
Historic Leavenworth  founded in 1854  was the first incorporated city in Kansas.
North of the city  Fort Leavenworth is the oldest active Army post west of the Mississippi River.
To the west  nearly a quarter million people reside in the Topeka metropolitan area.
Topeka is the state capital and home to Washburn University and Washburn Institute of Technology.
Wichita is the largest city in the state in terms of both land area and population.
Before Wichita was  The Air Capital  it was a Cowtown.
The population of Goddard has grown by more than 11  per year since 2000.
Other fast growing cities include Andover  Maize  Park City  Derby  and Haysville.
To the southwest of Wichita is Freeport  the state s smallest incorporated city  population 5 .
It was also the home of newspaper man William Allen White.
Big Brutus  is located 1.5 miles  2.4 km  outside the city of West Mineral.
South of Salina is the small city of Lindsborg with its numerous Dala horses.
Much of the architecture and decor of this town has a distinctly Swedish style.
To the west is Lucas  the Grassroots Art Capital of Kansas.
The city of Liberal is located along the southern Santa Fe Trail route.
The first wind farm in the state was built east of Montezuma.
Garden City has the Lee Richardson Zoo.
As of 2018  there were 59 600 farms in Kansas  86  0.14   of which are certified organic farms.
Approximately 40  of all winter wheat grown in the US is grown in Kansas.
Roughly 95  of the wheat grown in the state is hard red winter wheat.
Kansas is ranked eighth in US petroleum production.
Kansas is also ranked eighth in US natural gas production.
Average monthly production was over 32 billion cubic feet  0.91 cubic kilometers .
The state s economy is also heavily influenced by the aerospace industry.
Boeing ended a decades long history of manufacturing in Kansas between 2012 and 2013.
Many of those airfields live on today as municipal airports.
Taxes     Tax is collected by the Kansas Department of Revenue.
In 2003  Kansas had three income brackets for income tax calculation  ranging from 3.5  to 6.45 .
The state sales tax in Kansas is 6.15 .
Various cities and counties in Kansas have an additional local sales tax.
However  they instead amounted to  1 630 million an inflation adjusted reduction of 10 .
Groceries are subject to sales tax in the state.
In May 2012  Governor Brownback signed into law the Kansas Senate Bill Substitute HB 2117.
He made cuts to education and some state services to offset lost revenue.
The economic growth that Brownback anticipated never materialized.
He argued that it was because of  low wheat and oil prices and a downturn in aircraft sales .
In 2016  Governor Brownback earned the title of  most unpopular governor in America .
In the summer of 2016 S P Global Ratings downgraded Kansas s credit rating.
The drastic tax cuts had  threatened the viability of schools and infrastructure  in Kansas.
I 35 is a major north–south route connecting to Oklahoma City  Oklahoma and Des Moines  Iowa.
Spur routes serve as connections between the two major routes.
I 335  a southwest–northeast route  connects I 35 at Emporia to I 70 at Topeka.
I 335 and portions of I 35 and I 70 make up the Kansas Turnpike.
Bypasses include I 470 around Topeka  I 235 around Wichita  and I 670 in downtown Kansas City.
U.S. Route 69  US 69  travels south to north  from Oklahoma to Missouri.
Kansas also has the country s third largest state highway system after Texas and California.
This is because of the high number of counties and county seats  105  and their intertwining.
Weather and road condition information is updated every 15 minutes.
For those in the far western part of the state  Denver International Airport is a popular option.
Stops in Kansas include Lawrence  Topeka  Newton  Hutchinson  Dodge City  and Garden City.
Plans call for shortening the route to Los Angeles to Albuquerque.
The governor and lieutenant governor are elected on the same ticket.
Judicial branch  The judicial branch of the state government is headed by the Kansas Supreme Court.
In 2005  voters accepted a constitutional amendment to ban same sex marriage.
The next year  the state passed a law setting a minimum age for marriage at 15 years.
The state backed Republicans Wendell Willkie and Thomas E. Dewey in 1940 and 1944  respectively.
As an agricultural state  Kansas is particularly vulnerable.
In 2010  Sam Brownback was elected governor with 63 percent of the state vote.
He was sworn in as governor in 2011  Kansas s first Republican governor in eight years.
Hundreds rallied against the decision.
This is the longest Senate losing streak for either party in a single state.
Senator Sam Brownback was a candidate for the Republican party nomination for president in 2008.
The 2008 election brought similar results as John McCain won the state with 57  of the votes.
State laws      The legal drinking age in Kansas is 21.
The power to regulate cereal malt beverage remains with the cities and counties.
Today there are more than 2 600 liquor and 4 000 cereal malt beverage licensees in the state.
The state s public colleges and universities are supervised by the Kansas Board of Regents.
Joe Walsh  guitarist for the famous rock band the Eagles  was born in Wichita.
Danny Carey  drummer for the band Tool  was raised in Paola.
The state anthem is the American classic Home on the Range  written by Kansan Brewster Higley.
Also Keystone City is a Kansas city where The Flash works and  lives.
It was written by Kansan Clare Vanderpool.
Lawrence is the setting for a number of science fiction writer James Gunn s novels.
Film      The first film theater in Kansas was the Patee Theater in Lawrence.
The Patee Theater was one of the first of its kind west of the Mississippi River.
Like the other theaters listed here  The Fox still plays first run movies to this day.
A 1996 TV miniseries was also based on the book.
The 2013 film Man of Steel is set primarily in Kansas.
Superboy grew up in Smallville.
The 2012 film Looper is set in Kansas.
The film was shot in the small towns of Hays  McCracken  Wilson  and St. Joseph  Missouri.
took place in the fictional town of Perkinsville.
Scenes taking place in Kansas were filmed in Burns  Lawrence  and Wichita.
The 2007 film The Lookout is set mostly in Kansas  although filmed in Canada .
The 2017 documentary When Kings Reigned was filmed in Lawrence.
The 2019 film Brightburn took place in the fictional town of Brightburn.
Gunsmoke  a radio series western  ran from 1952 to 1961  took place in Dodge City  Kansas.
The 2009 Showtime series United States of Tara is set in Overland Park  a suburb of Kansas City.
Two major auto racing facilities are located in Kansas.
The Kansas Speedway located in Kansas City hosts races of the NASCAR  IndyCar  and ARCA circuits.
Also  the National Hot Rod Association  NHRA  holds drag racing events at Heartland Park Topeka.
The Sports Car Club of America has its national headquarters in Topeka.
However  Topeka was unable to support the team  and it disbanded after one year.
The teams are rivals in the Big 12 Conference.
Both KU and K State have tradition rich programs in men s basketball.
In 1988  KU and K State met in the Elite Eight  KU taking the game 71–58.
Conversely  success on the gridiron has been less frequent for both KSU and KU.
However  there have been recent breakthroughs for both schools  football teams.
The team won the Fiesta Bowl in 1997  achieved an undefeated  11–0  regular season and No.
1 ranking in 1998  and took the Big 12 Conference championship in 2003.
In baseball  the Shockers won the College World Series in 1989.
The school also fielded a football team from 1897 to 1986.
Pittsburg State became the winningest NCAA Division II football program in 1995.
Washburn University  in Topeka  won the NAIA Men s Basketball Championship in 1987.
Many junior colleges also have active athletic programs.
In 2010 the team won the NCAA Division II National Championship.
The Osaka Plain with the cities of Osaka and Kyoto forms the core of the region.
Four of Japan s national parks lie within its borders  in whole or in part.
The area also contains six of the seven top prefectures in terms of national treasures.
Other geographical features include Amanohashidate in Kyoto Prefecture and Awaji Island in Hyōgo.
This East West rivalry has deep historical roots  particularly from the Edo period.
京の着倒れ、大阪の食い倒れ  Kyō no Kidaore  Ōsaka no Kuidaore .
Popular Osakan dishes include takoyaki  okonomiyaki  kitsune udon and kushikatsu.
Kyoto is considered a mecca of traditional Japanese cuisine like kaiseki.
Kansai is one of the most prosperous areas for baseball in Japan.
Two Nippon Professional Baseball teams  Hanshin Tigers and Orix Buffaloes  are based in Kansai.
During the Kamakura period  this border was redefined to include Ōmi and Iga Provinces.
It is not until the Edo period that Kansai came to acquire its current form.
The Kansai region lays claim to the earliest beginnings of Japanese civilization.
During this golden age  the Kansai region would give birth to traditional Japanese culture.
Keihanshin region also contains strong medical and electronics industries within its economy.
Outside of Tokyo and Yokohama  Kansai has the largest number of international schools.
In 1913  Canadian Methodist Academy opened its doors to sixteen children.
The school is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.
In 1957  a missionary homeschooled her son  his best friend and another student in their home.
The next year  the home turned into Kyoto Christian Day School and a full time teacher was hired.
The school was renamed Kyoto International School in 1966.
Today  the school serves students from two to fourteen years old.
The Kanto region  関東地方  Kantō chihō  is a geographical area of Honshu  the largest island of Japan.
Within its boundaries  slightly more than 45 percent of the land area is the Kanto Plain.
The rest consists of the hills and mountains that form the land borders.
Most of the United States military bases on the island of Honshu are situated on the Kantō plain.
South Kantō is often regarded as synonymous with the Greater Tokyo Area.
Note that Yamanashi is out of Kantō region in the orthodox definition.
Keirin s South Kantō  南関東  Minami Kantō  consists of Chiba  Kanagawa and Shizuoka Prefectures.
East and West     This division is not often but sometimes used.
Inland and Coastal     This division is sometimes used in economics and geography.
The border can be modified if the topography is taken for prefectural boundaries.
Coastal Kantō  関東沿岸部  Kantō engan bu   Ibaraki  Chiba  Tokyo and Kanagawa Prefectures.
Smaller cities  farther away from the coast  house substantial light and automotive industries.
The average population density reached 1 192 persons per square kilometre in 1991.
The Kanto region at 2018 has a population at around 43.3 million people.
The music is an instrumental version of a well known popular song.
The global karaoke market has been estimated to be worth nearly  10 billion.
The primary difference between Karaoke and sing along songs is the absence of the lead vocalist.
In Japan  it has long been common to provide musical entertainment at a dinner or a party.
Although lacking the live atmosphere of a real performance  it caught on as popular entertainment.
Karaoke machines were initially placed in restaurants and hotel rooms.
Later new businesses called karaoke boxes  with compartmented rooms  were opened.
The patent holder of the karaoke machine is Roberto del Rosario  from the Philippines .
1990s      Karaoke soon spread to the rest of Asia and other countries all over the world.
In home karaoke machines soon followed but lacked success in the American and Canadian markets.
It is not uncommon for some bars to have karaoke performances seven nights a week.
Dance floors and lighting effects are also becoming common sights in karaoke bars.
Lyrics are often displayed on multiple television screens around the bar.
Recent years have seen the development of new techniques based on the fast Fourier transform.
The game soon spawned several follow ups including Karaoke Revolution Vol.
VCDs     Many VCD players in Southeast Asia have a built in karaoke function.
So  to sing karaoke  users play the music only track through both speakers.
In the past  there were only pop song karaoke VCDs.
Nowadays  different types of karaoke VCDs are available.
Cantonese opera karaoke VCD is now a big hit among the elderly in Hong Kong.
More usual is to contain the lyrics within the same MIDI file.
Researchers have also developed karaoke games for cell phones to boost music database training.
Additionally  new software permits singers to sing and listen to one another over the Internet.
Karaoke is often also found as a feature in aftermarket in car DVD players.
These devices often support advanced features  such as pitch correction and special sound effects.
CD G  DVD  VCD and microphone based players are most popular for home use.
In Japan  this is called jūhachiban in reference to Kabuki Jūhachiban  the 18 best kabuki plays.
Amateur actors replace their favorite movie stars in popular movies.
Usually facilitated by software or remote control muting and screen blanking freezing.
Karaoke jockey or KJ A karaoke jockey plays and manages the music for a venue.
Recently this trend has become very popular amongst amateur singers in Japan  India and China.
In South Korea  karaoke boxes are called norebangs.
In Taiwan and China  a karaoke establishment is called a KTV.
The result is fewer complaints about boredom  but more noise.
Noise regulations can be an issue  especially when karaoke is brought into residential areas.
Less commonly  the patron wishing to sing must pay a small fee for each song they sing.
Many establishments offer karaoke on a weekly schedule  while some have shows every night.
Karaoke is very popular in Scotland with dedicated karaoke venues in most reasonably large towns.
Throughout much of North America  live band karaoke is also popular.
With live band karaoke  singers sing with a live band instead of the prerecorded backing track.
Karaoke is a highly popular form of recreation in Taiwan.
The biggest KTV chains in Taiwan are Partyworld Cashbox  Holiday KTV and NewCBParty.
A The New York Times article estimated the number of killings to be about six up to 2010.
This model became a popular device and had been exported to other countries.
This device also provides singing scores  and later models have a recording feature.
Australia     In Australia  karaoke was gradually popularized in the late 1980s.
Projected lyrics on TV screens became very common as the main source of karaoke renditions.
Prior to this  karaoke was generally unknown to the broader population.
Each system came complete with up to 24 discs containing a maximum of 576 music video tracks.
Karaoke s popularity in Adelaide waned from mid 1992 and was virtually extinguished by early 1993.
Sunfly Karaoke is probably the major karaoke brand in Australia as well as the UK.
In September 2011  Karaoke World Championships took place in Killarney  Ireland.
It lasted for 1011 hours  1 minute  between 20 July 2011  and 31 August 2011.
Each song was over 3 minutes long and the gap between songs was no longer than 30 seconds.
The plant is owned and operated by Tokyo Electric Power Company  TEPCO .
It is the largest nuclear generating station in the world by net electrical power rating.
The plant was completely shut down for 21 months following the earthquake.
Unit 7 was restarted after seismic upgrades on May 19  2009  followed later by units 1  5  and 6.
Units 2  3  and 4 were not restarted by the time of the March 2011 earthquake .
As of June 2020  no units have been restarted and the date for resuming operations remains unknown.
Reactors    There are seven units  all lined up along the coast line.
Capital costs increased through the 1980s but have become cheaper in modern times.
The last two units were the first Advanced Boiling Water Reactors  ABWRs  ever built.
Units  1  2  and 3 on the other hand  generated no electricity during the fiscal year of 2003.
A public referendum in the Kariwa village in 2001 voted 53  against use of the new fuel.
Basements of the reactor buildings extend several levels down  maximum of 42 m below grade .
Units 5 and 6 also recorded shaking over this limit.
The fire was put out by noon on the day of the quake  about 2 hours after it started.
Unit 2 was in startup mode and not online.
Units 1  5  and 6 were already shut down for inspection at the time.
The governor of Niigata prefecture then sent a petition to Shinzo Abe.
The schedule was confirmed on 10 July 2008 by the site superintendent  Akio Takahashi.
On July 15  Akira Amari said his ministry was also continuing their own tests.
The IAEA sent a team for a follow up visit in January 2008.
The water contained 80 Bq L  totaling 90 000 Bq in the release.
The leaked water from the plant did not pose a health risk even before being diluted.
Towels were used to mop up the water.
This was said to have been one 10 millionth of the legal limit.
TEPCO s president made a comment the site was a  mess  after visiting post quake.
This made the event even more costly to the company than the 2002 data falsification scandal.
To endure this  an embankment was under construction to resist tsunami waves up to 15 meters high.
Two faults  named  Alpha  and  Beta   are present under Reactors 1 and 2.
The Kashiwazaki Kariwa plant would be number 7.
–  This shows output power  click on icons at top left to see three different radiation monitors.
Following tachi  it was used by samurai in feudal Japan and worn with the blade facing upward.
In Portuguese the designation  spelled catana  means  large knife  or machete.
Their main weapon was a long naginata and sasuga was a spare weapon.
Starting around the year 1400  long swords signed with the katana style mei were made.
Japanese swords are traditionally worn with the mei facing away from the wearer.
They fought on foot using katana shorter than tachi.
On the battlefield in Japan  guns and spears became main weapons in addition to bows.
Ideally  samurai could draw the sword and strike the enemy in a single motion.
From this period  the tang  nakago  of many old tachi were cut and shortened into katana.
This kind of remake is called suriage  磨上げ .
This style of sword is called handachi   half tachi .
Japanese swords after shintō are different from kotō in forging method and steel  tamahagane .
In addition  the whole body of the blade became whitish and hard.
Almost no one was able to reproduce midare utsurii until Kunihira Kawachi reproduced it in 2014.
These short swords were wakizashi and tantō  and wakizashi were mainly selected.
This set of two is called a daishō.
Only samurai could wear the daishō  it represented their social power and personal honour.
Japanese swords made in this period is classified as shintō.
Katana made after this is classified as a shinshintō.
Japanese military swords produced between 1875 and 1945 are referred to as guntō  military swords .
During this period of war  older antique swords were remounted for use in military mounts.
Outside Japan  however  they are collected as historical artifacts.
Many swords were confiscated and destroyed  and swordsmiths were not able to make a living.
Shinogi zukuri was originally produced after the Heian period.
Instead  the edge curves smoothly and uninterrupted into the point.
Kissaki Moroha Zukuri is a katana blade shape with a distinctive curved and double edged blade.
This process helps remove impurities and even out the carbon content of the steel.
The resulting block of steel is then drawn out to form a billet.
At this stage  it is only slightly curved or may have no curve at all.
This process is called tsuchioki.
When steel with a carbon content of 0.7  is heated beyond 750 °C  it enters the austenite phase.
Each hamon and each smith s style of hamon is distinct.
After the blade is forged  it is then sent to be polished.
The polishing takes between one and three weeks.
However  the blunt edge of the katana is often given a matte finish to emphasize the hamon.
The list also includes 81 swords that had been destroyed in previous fires.
These 4 persons were designated both  Living National Treasures and Mukansa.
The traditional oil used is chōji oil  99  mineral oil and 1  clove oil for fragrance .
Those who violate the ban would be jailed up to six months and charged a fine of £5 000.
Martial arts practitioners  historical re enactors and others may still own such swords.
It is also legal to buy if it can be classed as a  martial artist s weapon .
This ban applies to England  Wales  Scotland and Northern Ireland.
See also         References         Further reading    Perrin  Noel  1980 .
Dr. T s  Nihonto Random Thoughts  Page .
The company was founded in August 1927.
History     Koichi Kawai  the company founder  was born in Hamamatsu  Japan in 1886.
His neighbor  Torakusu Yamaha  a watchmaker and reed organ builder  took him in as an apprentice.
Kawai became a member of the research and development team that introduced pianos to Japan.
Yamaha died in 1916  and in the 1920s the piano industry faltered in Japan.
In 1980  he opened the Ryuyo Grand Piano Factory.
Shigeru Kawai s son  Hirotaka Kawai  was appointed president in 1989.
In 1996  Kawai introduced the RX Series grand pianos featuring the Ultra Responsive ABS Action.
The RX BLAK Series pianos also incorporated many cosmetic changes.
In 1999  Kawai introduced the Shigeru Kawai grand piano series.
In Japanese  the word kuro  black  suggests wisdom  experience and nobility.
During the second half of the  80s  Kawai developed and released a number of digital synthesizers.
These machines follow different synthesis approaches.
Uniquely for their price range  all instruments feature aftertouch.
A Knobs Macro Box was sold separately for use with the W and R models.
Shortly thereafter the company stopped producing synthesizers.
The Kawai XD 5  a drum synthesizer based on the K4 engine  was produced in 1989 1990.
The MORE series was merged into  Dreamatone  family in fall 1979.
Other products     The company also manufactures MIDI controllers.
Kamakura in central Sagami was the capital of Japan during the Kamakura period  1185–1333 .
After the Meiji period  many foreigners lived in Yokohama City  and visited Hakone.
At Kamakura  the total death toll from earthquake  tsunami  and fire exceeded 2 000 victims.
Total Casualties amounted to more than several thousand.
The population as of September 1  2014  is estimated to be 9.1 million.
Kanagawa became the second most populous prefecture in 2006.
Topography     Topographically  the prefecture consists of three distinct areas.
The mountainous western region features the Tanzawa Mountain Range and Hakone Volcano.
The hilly eastern region is characterized by the Tama Hills and Miura Peninsula.
The Sagami River flows through the middle of the prefecture.
The mountain range is lower in height southward leading to Hadano Basin to the Ōiso Hills.
Cities      Nineteen cities are located in Kanagawa Prefecture.
The board of education also directly operates most of the public high schools in the prefecture.
Hakone Ekiden Course—from Tokyo to Hakone  108.0 km  mostly on Japan National Route 1 and Route 15.
Lake Sagami—hosted canoeing and rowing for the 1964 Summer Olympics.
The main team in the Japanese manga and anime series Slam Dunk  Shohoku  is from Kanagawa.
The Japanese anime and  manga series Area no Kishi takes place in Kanagawa  mostly Kamakura.
The Japanese anime and  manga series Hamatora takes place in Kanagawa  mainly in Yokohama.
Yokohama Burning  The Deadly 1923 Earthquake and Fire that Helped Forge the Path to World War II.
Lines     The Keio network is based around the central Keiō Line  37.9 km  32 stations.
The Keio Inokashira Line does not share track with the Main Line.
It intersects with the Keio Line at Meidaimae Station.
It began operating its first stretch of railway between Sasazuka and Chōfu in 1913.
The company s English name was changed to Keio Corporation on June 29  2005.
Rolling stock    All Keio trains have longitudinal  commuter style  seating.
It is a key element of the manufacturing industry in Japan.
Some assets were also severely damaged by the destruction of the war.
Shareholders succeeded over the family control of the cartel.
Types    Cartels and groupings of various kinds are common in Japan.
The bank assists these companies with a range of financial services.
Horizontal keiretsu may also have vertical relationships  called branches.
Since then  banks have gradually reduced their cross shareholdings.
Examples of this type include Toyota  Toshiba  and Nissan.
One or more sub companies are created to benefit the parent company  for example  Toyota or Honda .
Banks have less influence on distribution keiretsu.
This vertical model is further divided into levels called tiers.
Banks play a crucial role in the smooth functioning of this organization.
They assess the investment projects and provide loans when required.
One of them was  interlocking  or  cross holding  of shares.
This method was established by Article 280 of Commerce Law.
By doing so  each company held a stake in the other s company.
The keiretsu have great influence on Japanese industrial and economic policy.
However  the companies formed from the dismantling of the zaibatsu were later reintegrated.
The Japanese recession in the 1990s had profound effects on the keiretsu.
While they still exist  they are not as centralized or integrated as they were before the 2000s.
Outside Japan     The keiretsu model is fairly unique to Japan.
Some industry consortiums and alliances have also been described in this way.
Today  it is widely practiced within Japan and has spread to many other nations across the world.
History     Swordsmen in Japan established schools of kenjutsu  the ancestor of kendo .
These continued for centuries and form the basis of kendo practice today.
This led to the rise of the Battotai  抜刀隊  lit.
This integration effort led to the development of modern kendo.
He draws a particular example from his experience with the Satsuma Rebellion.
The Dai Nippon Butoku Kai  DNBK  was established in 1895 to promote martial arts in Japan.
Today  IMAF includes kendo as one of the Japanese disciplines.
Since 2012  it has been one of the disciplines taught in Japanese colleges with judo and sado.
Ryutaro Hashimoto  Prime Minister of Japan from 1996 to 1998  was 6th dan.
He had a small dojo set up in the finance ministry.
He reports that “the practice of kendo is associated with success”.
Purpose     To mold the mind and body.
To hold in esteem courtesy and honor.
To associate with others with sincerity.
Protective armor is worn to protect specified target areas on the head  arms  and body.
This is because kendōka use a shout  or kiai  気合い   to express their fighting spirit when striking.
Thrusts  突き  tsuki  are only allowed to the throat.
Hikitate geiko  引立稽古  Practice where a senior kendōka guides a junior through practice.
Shiai geiko  試合稽古  Competition practice which may also be judged.
This is a process that requires patience.
Always hold kisei and strike quickly.
Hikibana wazaBody and shinai will lose balance as the initiator strikes or when being attacked.
This technique takes advantage of this to help execute a strike.
The former requires a continuous rhythm of correct strikes.
The latter requires continuous execution of waza  to take advantage of the opponent s opening.
Debana wazaThis technique involves striking the opponent as they are about to strike.
This can also be achieved by inducing the opponent to attack  then employing one of the Oji waza.
Here  timing has to be correct.
A response that is too slow or fast may not be effective.
Therefore  close attention to an opponent s every move is required.
This technique needs to be smooth.
Uchiotoshi wazaThis waza knocks an opponent s shinai to the right or left.
Valid strikes include  do uchiotoshi men and Tsuki uchiotoshi men.
Kaeshi wazaThis technique is a response.
As the opponent strikes  the opponent parries their shinai with the initiator s.
They then flip over  turn over the hands  and strike their opposite side.
Kote bu  a padded area of the right or left wrist protector  migi kote and hidari kote .
In competition  there are usually three referees  審判  shinpan .
Each referee holds a red flag and a white flag in opposing hands.
Usually  at least two referees must agree for a point to be awarded.
Play is stopped after each point is awarded.
Kendo competitions are usually a three point match.
The first competitor to score two points  therefore  wins the match.
If the time limit is reached and only one competitor has a point  that competitor wins.
In the case of a tie  there are several options   Hiki wake  引き分け   The match is declared a draw.
Enchō  延長   The match is continued until either competitor scores a point.
Hantei  判定   The victor is decided by the referees.
The three referees vote for victor by each raising one of their respective flags simultaneously.
The World Kendo Championships have been held every three years since 1970.
Kendo is also one of the martial arts in the World Combat Games.
The dan levels are from first dan  初段  sho dan  to tenth dan  十段  jū dan .
There are usually six grades below first dan  known as kyu.
The exam for 1st kyu  ikkyū  is often their first exam and grade.
Adults generally will do their 1st dan  shodan  as their first exam.
A larger  more qualified panel is usually assembled to assess the higher dan grades.
The eighth dan kendo exam is extremely difficult  with a reported pass rate of less than 1 percent.
These are renshi  錬士   kyōshi  教士   and hanshi  範士 .
The title is affixed to the front of the dan grade when said  for example renshi roku dan  錬士六段 .
The qualifications for each title are below.
Kata     Kata are fixed patterns that teach kendōka the basic elements of swordsmanship.
There are ten Nihon Kendō Kata  日本剣道形 .
These are generally practiced with wooden swords  木刀  bokutō or bokken .
The uchidachi makes the first move or attack in each kata.
The major organizing body is the International Kendo Federation  FIK .
The FIK was established in 1970 with 17 national federations.
The FIK is recognized by SportAccord as a  Full Member .
The current DNBK has no connection to the pre war organization  although it shares the same goals.
Kendo magazine    Kendo Jidai and Kendo Nippon offer kendo magazines in Japanese.
Nakagami was at the height of his fame when he died  of kidney cancer  at the age of 46.
The city was finally reached  besieged  and taken.
These errors are the key to understanding the events of the next few decades.
In so doing  however  he failed to return control of the provinces to civilians.
By the end of 1335 the Emperor and the nobility had lost all support of the warrior class.
It kept order in the city and in general took over the original s function.
His only obstacle to the shogunate was Prince Morinaga.
Tadayoshi had to flee  so before leaving he ordered the beheading of Prince Morinaga.
Kamakura was therefore temporarily in Tokiyuki s hands.
He then installed himself in Kamakura s Nikaidō neighborhood.
On February 25  1336  Ashikaga Takauji entered the capital and the Kenmu Restoration ended.
par M. Isaac Titsingh avec l aide de plusieurs interprètes attachés.
He was the third son of seven children.
Ōe s grandmother taught him art and oral performance.
His grandmother died in 1944  and later that year  Ōe s father died in the Pacific War.
Ōe always replied   I would die  sir.
I would cut open my belly and die.
At home in bed at night he would acknowledge his reluctance to die and feel ashamed.
After the war  he realized he had been taught lies and felt betrayed.
This sense of betrayal later appeared in his writing.Ōe attended high school in Matsuyama.
The same year he met Mao Zedong on a trip to China.
The magazine soon apologized to offended readers  but Ōe did not.Ōe lives in Tokyo.
In 1994 Ōe won the Nobel Prize in Literature and was named to receive Japan s Order of Culture.
He refused the latter because it is bestowed by the Emperor.
Ōe said   I do not recognize any authority  any value  higher than democracy.
Once again  he received threats.
In March 2008  the Osaka District Court dismissed all charges against Ōe.
In a news conference following the trial  Ōe said   The judge accurately read my writing.
While also discussing Ōe s Okinawa Notes  Chomsky s reply included a story from his childhood.
In 2013  he organized a mass demonstration in Tokyo against nuclear power.
Ōe has also criticized moves to amend Article 9 of the Constitution  which forever renounces war.
But there is a big difference between us and classic Japanese literature.
Ōe believes that novelists have always worked to spur the imagination of their readers.
About his son Hikari      Ōe credits his son Hikari for influencing his literary career.
Ōe tried to give his son a  voice  through his writing.
2006–2008     Ōe did not write much during the nearly two years  2006–2008  of his libel case.
Named Bannen Yoshikishu and published by Kodansha  English title is In Late Style .
Order of Culture  1994 – refused.
The winning work is selected solely by Ōe.
The winner receives no cash award  but the novel is translated into other languages.
The few translations have often appeared after a marked lag in time.
Ōe stated   Yeats is the writer in whose wake I would like to follow.
Tange was also an influential patron of the Metabolist movement.
He was a member of CIAM  Congres Internationaux d Architecture Moderne  in the 1950s.
His ideas were explored in designs for Tokyo and Skopje.
Tange s work influenced a generation of architects across the world.
It was here that he first encountered the works of Swiss modernist  Le Corbusier.
He spent two years doing so and during that time  he read extensively about western philosophy.
He studied under Hideto Kishida and Shozo Uchida.
His graduation project was a seventeen hectare  42 acre  development set in Tokyo s Hibiya Park.
In 1963  he was promoted to professor of the Department of Urban Engineering.
He submitted plans for Hiroshima and Maebashi.
The building is raised on massive columns  which frame the view along the structure s axis.
The district is mainly devoted to business.
The project of the Centro Direzionale dates back to 1964.
It was designed in 1982 by Tange.
The layout includes 18 blocks of buildings  with high rises up to 100 meters.
There are office buildings as well as residential flats.
It also includes a pedestrian zone at ground level with shops  restaurants and hotels.
The Centro Direzionale is home to the tallest building in southern Italy  the Telecom Italia Tower.
Peace Center in Hiroshima      Work on the Peace Center commenced in 1950.
The rhythmical facade comprises vertical elements that repeat outwards from the centre.
The shrine has been reconstructed every 20 years and in 1953 it was the 59th iteration.
Its expressive construction could be likened to the Daibutsu style seen at the Tōdai ji in Nara.
The house is topped with a two tier roof.
The stair to this hall ascends in cantilevered straight flights to the left and right.
At the time it was built  the gymnasium had the world s largest suspended roof span.
In the interior  this structural anchor is used to support the grandstand seats.
3.3 square kilometres  1.3 sq mi  of land in the Senri Hills near Osaka were put aside for its use.
Tange and Uzo Nishiyama were appointed as planners for the masterplan by the Theme Committee.
The zones were interconnected with moving pathways.
This led to a series of proposals on urban planning known as  The Athens Charter .
Tange presented various designs to Team X in their meetings.
He also looked at the sketches for the new capital of Punjab at Chandigarh  India.
In his speech he used words such as  cell  and  metabolism  in relation to urban design.
The Metabolist movement grew out of discussions with other members of the conference.
The sheer size of the proposal meant that it would stretch out across the water of Tokyo Bay.
The town had been heavily destroyed by an earthquake in 1963.
Tange won 60  of the prize  the other 40  was awarded to the Yugoslav team.
The Urbanists and Architects Team was founded in 1961 and became Kenzō Tange Associates.
Multiple options were developed simultaneously  and research on individual schemes was encouraged.
The external skin of the building makes dual references to both tradition and the modern condition.
His funeral was held in one of his works  the Tokyo Cathedral.
So I called her Le Corbusier instead.
The Metabolist movement gave momentum to Kikutake s career.
He became the president of Kenzo Tange Associates in 1997 before founding Tange Associates in 2002.
Age of the Masters  A Personal View of Modern Architecture  Revised ed. .
Modern Architecture a Critical History  Revised and enlarged ed. .
Its length of 11 measures is currently among the world s shortest.
Ōyama agreed  and selected the lyrics.
After selecting the anthem s lyrics  Ōyama then asked Fenton to create the melody.
This was the first version of  Kimigayo .
The composer is often listed as Hiromori Hayashi  who was their supervisor and Akimori s father.
Akimori was also one of Fenton s pupils.
It was also associated as a part of Japanese education.
This was different from the regulations issued that restricted the use of the Hinomaru flag.
This is not the first time legislation was considered for establishing both symbols as official.
The CPJ was further opposed for not allowing the issue to be decided by the public.
Meanwhile  the Democratic Party of Japan  DPJ  could not develop party consensus on it.
The House of Representatives passed the bill on July 22  1999  by a 403 to 86 vote.
The legislation was sent to the House of Councilors on July 28 and was passed on August 9.
It was enacted into law on August 13.
The anthem is composed in 4 4  common time  in the Dorian mode.
While standing  the teachers are required to sing  Kimigayo  while facing the Hinomaru.
At sumō tournaments   Kimigayo  is played before the awards ceremony.
Controversies surrounding the use of the anthem in school events still remain.
Schools have been the center of controversy over both it and the national flag.
The order requires school teachers to respect both symbols or risk losing their jobs.
As the tension arose between them  a vice principal committed suicide.
In 2011  nine more teachers joined the rebellion  along with another eight in 2012.
The ruling was appealed by the Metropolitan Government.
Polydor did not want to attract harassment from far right groups.
In response  Imawano re released the album through an independent label with the track in question.
The way a person wears their kimono is known as kitsuke  着付け   lit.   dressing  .
Modern kimono are widely available in fabrics considered easier to care for  such as polyester.
Terms     The fabrics that kimono are made from are classified in two categories within Japan.
These techniques range from intricate shibori tie dye to rice paste resist dyeing.
Kimono linings are made from bolts of the same width.
Historically  kimono were taken apart entirely to be washed   a process known as arai hari.
Terms     A number of different terms are used to refer to the different parts of a kimono.
These terms refer to parts of a kimono   Dōura  胴裏   the upper lining of a kimono.
Hakkake  八掛   the lower lining of a kimono.
Furi  振り   lit.   dangling  — the part of the sleeve left hanging below the armhole.
Maemigoro  前身頃   lit.   front body  — the front panels on a kimono  excluding the okumi.
The panels are divided into the  right maemigoro  and  left maemigoro .
Miyatsukuchi  身八つ口   the opening under the sleeve on a woman s kimono.
Okumi  衽   the overlapping front panel.
Sodeguchi  袖口   the wrist opening of the sleeve.
Sodetsuke  袖付   the kimono armhole.
Tamoto  袂   the sleeve pouch of a kimono.
Tomoeri  共衿   lit.   over collar  — the collar cover sewn on top of the uraeri.
Ushiromigoro  後身頃   lit.   back body  — the back panels.
The back panels consist of the  right ushiromigoro  and  left ushiromigoro .
Court appropriate dress continued to resemble the previous eras.
Men s sleeves continued to be sewn shut to the body down most of their length.
wide collar   as opposed to bachi eri  a normal width collar .
Hobbyists may also buy cheaper synthetic kimono  marketed as  washable   brand new.
In both cases  formality is also determined by the number and type of kamon  crests .
The type of crest adds formality as well.
A  shadow   kage  crest is the least formal  with the outline of the crest relatively faint.
Yukata      Yukata  浴衣  are casual cotton summer kimono.
They are always made of silk  and are considered more formal than the tsukesage.
The hōmongi s close relative  the tsukesage  has its patterns dyed on the bolt before sewing up.
However  the two can prove near indistinguishable at times.
They may also be worn to formal parties.
The edo komon dyeing technique originated within the samurai classes during the Edo period.
Mofuku kimono are plain black silk with five kamon  worn with white undergarments and white tabi.
Irotomesode with five kamon are of the same formality as any kurotomesode.
Irotomesode may be made of figured silk such as rinzū.
Uchikake       Uchikake  打ち掛け  are highly formal kimono worn only in bridalwear or on stage.
Uchikake are designed to trail along the floor as a sort of coat.
Bridal uchikake are typically red or white  and often decorated heavily with auspicious motifs.
Because they are not designed to be worn with an obi  the designs cover the entirety of the back.
The bride may later change into a red uchikake after the ceremony to symbolise good luck.
Those who do possess shiromuku already are likely to have inherited them from close family members.
red silk   wrap  which is then covered by the obi  rendering it not visible.
The total weight of the jūnihitoe could be up to 20 kg.
In the modern era  the principal distinctions between men s kimono are in the fabric.
Some have a subtle pattern  and textured fabrics are common in more casual kimono.
Sumo wrestlers have occasionally been known to wear quite bright colours such as fuchsia.
Religious garments     Some related garments are specific to certain religious roles.
The jittoku has a wrist opening that is entirely open along the sleeve s vertical length.
The garment originated in the Kamakura Period  1185 1333 CE   and are worn without hakama.
The wata bōshi is always white and worn with shiromuku.
Both geisha and maiko wear variations on common accessories that are not found in everyday dress.
For certain traditional holidays and occasions some specific types of kimono accessories are worn.
Okobo are also worn by young women on seijin no hi  Coming of Age Day .
Datejime can be made of a variety of fabrics  including silk  linen and elastic.
Hachimaki  鉢巻  Traditional Japanese stylized headband  worn to keep sweat off of one s face.
Hadagi are made of either linen  silk crepe  or cotton cloth.
The sleeves on this type of shirt are rather narrow  and are at times omitted altogether.
A hakama is typically pleated at the waist and fastened by waist ties over the obi.
For women  shorter kimono may be worn underneath the hakama for ease of movement.
Hakama are worn in several budō arts such as aikido  kendo  iaidō and naginata.
They are also worn by Miko in Shintō shrines.
half wrap   The worker s version of the more formal haori.
The jinbaori  陣羽織  was specifically made for armoured samurai to wear.
Haori himo  羽織紐  A tasseled  woven string fastener for haori.
The most formal colour is white  see also fusa above .
belly wrap   Are items of Japanese clothing that cover the stomach.
They are worn for health  fashion and superstitious reasons.
It is worn with a slip like wrap tied around the waist  with the nagajuban worn on top.
They are often highly decorated  in a variety of materials and techniques  often using lacquer.
rack   A rack or stand used for holding and displaying kimono.
They are often made of silk or wool.
Only the collar edge of the nagajuban shows from beneath the outer kimono.
They are often as beautifully ornate and patterned as the outer kimono.
Obi age are often silk  and are typically worn with more formal varieties of kimono.
Obidome  帯留め  A decorative fastening accessory piece  strung onto the obijime.
Some obijime are woven specially to allow the obidome to be pinned on.
Ojime  緒締め  A type of bead used to fasten a obijime in place  like a cordlock.
They are also worn between the inrō and netsuke and are typically under an inch in length.
Each is carved into a particular shape and image  similar to the netsuke cordlock  though smaller.
Sarashi  晒し  Sarashi is Japanese for  bleached cloth   usually cotton  or less commonly linen.
Suzu  鈴  A round  hollow Japanese Shinto bell or chime.
They are somewhat like a jingle bell in form  though the materials produce a coarse  rolling sound.
As an accessory to kimono wear  suzu are often part of kanzashi.
Tabi  足袋  Ankle high  divided toe socks usually worn with zōri or geta.
There also exist sturdier  boot like jikatabi  which are used for example to fieldwork.
Yumoji  湯文字  A traditional kimono undergarment  a simple wrap around skirt  worn with a susoyoke.
Zōri  草履   Traditional sandals worn by both men and women  similar in design to flip flops.
Their formality ranges from strictly informal to fully formal.
The hiyoku can also be seen on some bridal kimono.
This traditional washing method is called arai hari.
Because the stitches must be taken out for washing  traditional kimono need to be hand sewn.
These stitches are called shitsuke ito.
They are sometimes replaced for storage.
They help to prevent bunching  folding and wrinkling  and keep the kimono s layers in alignment.
Like many other traditional Japanese garments  there are specific ways to fold kimono.
These methods help to preserve the garment and to keep it from creasing when stored.
Kimono are often stored wrapped in paper called tatōshi.
Kimono need to be aired out at least seasonally and before and after each time they are worn.
Many people prefer to have their kimono dry cleaned.
The Hakim also held the honorific title of sheikh.
The Emir also held the honorific title of sheikh.
The King also holds the honorific title of sheikh.
He is the head of the Saudi Arabian royal family  the House of Saud.
Restoring his family as emirs of Riyadh  he then established Nejd as his headquarters in 1922.
He was proclaimed king malik of Hejaz in 1926  and raised Nejd to a kingdom as well in 1927.
On 23 September 1932  he formally united his territories into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Sons of Ibn Saud are considered to have primary claim on the throne of Saudi Arabia.
Legal position    Saudi Arabia is ruled by Islamic law  Sharia  and is an Islamic state.
The crown prince is also the  deputy prime minister .
The script on the flag is written in the Thuluth script.
Its railway system is the largest in Japan  excluding Japan Railways Group.
On June 28  2003  Kinki Nippon Railway Co.  Ltd. was renamed Kintetsu Corporation.
The corporation was split on April 1  2015.
This means that Kintetsu is the owner and operator of the lines.
It will consist of eight six car sets and three eight car sets  72 vehicles in total.
The intermediate  Regular  cars will have 2 2 abreast seating and a seat pitch of 1 160 mm  46 in .
Seating in both types of accommodation will consist of fixed back shell seats.
Pearl Card is used for purchase of tickets and others are used in lieu of tickets.
Legend       Ticket gates of all stations on the line accept the card  some exceptions may exist .
No stations on the line accept the card  some exceptions may exist .
It is one of Japan s 20 designated cities  one of three on Kyushu  and is divided into 7 wards.
The old wooden built Kokura Prefectural Office is still standing and is being restored.
It is opposite Riverwalk Kitakyūshū.
In 1876  Kokura Prefecture was absorbed by Fukuoka Prefecture.
The city of Kokura was founded in 1900.
Major Charles Sweeney had orders to drop the bomb visually.
The bomb was ultimately dropped on the city of Nagasaki  the secondary target  at 11 02 JST.
The average population density is 1 922 persons  km2  4 980 sq mi .
It is now the country s 15th most populated city.
It has a much larger total area than that of Fukuoka which is only 343.39 km2  132.58 sq mi .
Culture    The 1986 family movie Koneko Monogatari was filmed here.
He is celebrated in the Kokura Gion Yamagasa festival.
Toshiro Mifune plays the taiko drum in this movie.
Kurosaki Gion  July It has been designated as an intangible cultural asset of Fukuoka Prefecture.
People spin highly decorated “battle floats” as they pull them through the streets.
Kokura Gion  July People pull yamagasa parade floats along the street.
They were instituted to celebrate surviving an epidemic.
Kitakyushu was formed by the merging of Kokura  Yahata  Wakamatsu  Moji  and Tobata.
As a result  the city began  on its tenth anniversary  to combine these local festivals into one.
Green Park Flea Market  monthly  except August and December There are over 200 shops.
Notable places     Kokura Castle  小倉城  Kokura jō  was built by Hosokawa Tadaoki in 1602.
It was the property of the Ogasawara clan  from Harima  between 1632 and 1860.
The castle was burnt down in 1865 in the war between the Kokura and Choshu clans.
Some of the limestone caverns are open to the public.
The area contains the Sugao and Nanae Waterfalls.
The GDP in Greater Kitakyushu  Kitakyushu Metropolitan Employment Area was US 55.7 billion in 2010.
It is served by local and express trains on JR Kyushu s Kagoshima and Nippō Main Lines.
In the city  transport is provided the Kitakyushu Monorail and buses.
Air     The Kitakyushu Airport opened on March 16  2006.
It will eventually be connected with Kokura Station by a new fast rail link.
A new airline based in the city called StarFlyer began operations when the airport opened.
Sea      Kitakyushu is the largest ferry port in Kyushu  Chūgoku  and Shikoku.
The main ferry port is at Shin Moji  and there are ferries at Moji and near Kokura Station.
Some of these expressways are elevated  especially around the city center.
Route 1 serves the city center  while route 2 serves the port area.
Route 5 is a short link serving the inner port area.
The new Higashikyushu Expressway begins in Kitakyushu and runs along the eastern coast of Kyushu.
Bridges       There are several bridges in Kitakyushu and between the city and other places.
There are smaller bridges over the Onga River on the western border of the city.
He wrote Kokura Nikki  Kokura diary  here.
It is a ten minute walk from Kokura Station.
The writer Seichō Matsumoto was born in Kokura.
The writer Ashihei Hino was born in Wakamatsu ward and his birthplace can be visited.
Ropes have tensile strength and so can be used for dragging and lifting.
Rope is thicker and stronger than similarly constructed cord  string  and twine.
Synthetic fibres in use for rope making include polypropylene  nylon  polyesters  e.g.
Twaron  Technora and Kevlar  and acrylics  e.g.
Some ropes are constructed of mixtures of several fibres or use co polymer fibres.
Wire rope is made of steel or other metal alloys.
Rayon is a regenerated fibre used to make decorative rope.
In metric systems of measurement  nominal diameter is given in millimetres.
Use     Rope has been used since prehistoric times.
Winches and capstans are machines designed to pull ropes.
Such ropes are of kernmantle construction  as described below.
Oppositely   static  ropes have minimal stretch and are not designed to arrest free falls.
They are used in caving  rappelling  rescue applications  and industries such as window washing.
Any rope bearing a GUIANA or CE certification tag is suitable for climbing.
Keeping them away from sharp rock edges is imperative.
Rock climbing ropes are designated as suitable for single  double or twin use.
A single rope is the most common  and is intended to be used by itself.
Smaller diameter ropes are lighter  but wear out faster.
Double ropes are thinner than single  usually 9 mm and under  and are intended for use in pairs.
This adds security in situations where a rope may get cut.
Egyptian rope dates back to 4000 to 3500 BC and was generally made of water reed fibres.
Starting from approximately 2800 BC  rope made of hemp fibres was in use in China.
The cable length was thus set by the length of the available rope walk.
This is related to the unit of length termed cable length.
This allowed for long ropes of up to 300 yards long or longer to be made.
By the late 18th century several working machines had been built and patented.
The handedness of the twist is the direction of the twists as they progress away from an observer.
Thus Z twist rope is said to be right handed  and S twist to be left handed.
Twisted ropes are built up in three steps.
First  fibres are gathered and spun into yarns.
A number of these yarns are then formed into strands by twisting.
The strands are then twisted together to lay the rope.
One property of laid rope is partial untwisting when used.
This can cause spinning of suspended loads  or stretching  kinking  or hockling of the rope itself.
Normal right laid rope should be coiled clockwise  to prevent kinking.
Coiling this way imparts a twist to the rope.
Rope of this type must be bound at its ends by some means to prevent untwisting.
Nylon is chosen for its strength and elastic stretch properties.
However  nylon absorbs water and is 10–15  weaker when wet.
It has somewhat better UV resistance  and is more abrasion resistant.
The strands can interlock with either twill or plain weave.
It is not as round as twisted rope and coarser to the touch.
This construction exposes all fibres as well  with the same drawbacks as described above.
Due to its excellent energy absorption characteristics  it is often used by arborists.
It is also a popular rope for anchoring and can be used as mooring warps.
This type of construction was pioneered by Yale Cordage.
Endless winding is pioneered by SmartRigging and FibreMax.
To prevent kinking it is usually coiled.
There is no substitute for a properly made whipping.
Serious inspection should be given to line after that point.
However  the use to which a rope is put affects frequency of inspection.
Ropes may be flemished into coils on deck for safety   presentation  and tidiness.
Care should be taken around lines under load.
Terminology     Rope  is a material  and a tool.
A line may get a further distinction  for example sail control lines are known as “sheets”   e.g.
A halyard is a line used to raise and lower a sail  typically  with a shackle on its sail end.
Other maritime examples of “lines” include anchor line  mooring line  fishing line  marline.
Common items include clothesline and a chalk line.
In some marine uses the term rope is retained  such as man rope  bolt rope  and bell rope.
Strunk  P.  Abels  J. Das große Abenteuer 2.Teil  Verlag Karl Wenzel  Marburg  1986.
The Kofun and the subsequent Asuka periods are sometimes collectively called the Yamato period.
It was a period of cultural import.
From China  Buddhism and the Chinese writing system were introduced near the end of the period.
The mounds contained large stone burial chambers  and some are surrounded by moats.
The keyhole tomb is a distinct style found only in Japan  with a square front and round back.
During the 6th century  the Yamato clans began to dominate the southern half of Japan.
However  the Yamato clan ruled just one polity among others during the Kofun era.
Craftsmen were organized into guilds.
Another frontier  in Kyūshū  was apparently north of present day Kumamoto Prefecture.
It is unclear if the rival country was near the Yamato nucleus or further away.
Ōkimi      During the Kofun period  an aristocratic society with militaristic rulers developed.
The period was a critical stage in Japan s evolution into a cohesive  recognized state.
The society was most developed in the Kinai region and the eastern Setouchi region.
Japan s rulers petitioned the Chinese court for confirmation of royal titles.
After the clan declined  late in the century  it was replaced by the Ōtomo clan.
They introduced numerous  significant aspects of Chinese culture to Japan.
They may have immigrated to Japan between 356 and 645.
The Yamato imperial court edited the directory in 815  listing 163 Chinese clans.
According to the Shinsen Shōjiroku  Achi received permission to establish the province of Imaki.
The Takamuko clan is descended from Cao Cao.
Takamuko no Kuromaro observed the Taika Reforms.
In 2001  Emperor Akihito confirmed his ancient royal Korean heritage through Emperor Kanmu.
Another funerary piece  the magatama  勾玉   curved jewel    became symbolic of imperial power.
However  due to lack of evidence  this story is considered to be mythological in nature.
Known as Amenohiboko  his descendant is Tajima Mori.
However  they could not agree on the position of the Japanese people in Korea at that time.
The full text of the minutes concerning the joint research is disclosed by the Japanese side.
The primacy of poems about the seasons pioneered by the Kokinshū continues even today.
The anthology also included a Classical Chinese preface authored by Ki no Yoshimochi.
Inclusion in any imperial collection  and particularly the Kokinshū  was a great honour.
It is the oldest manuscript to contain both the Chinese and Japanese prefaces.
The manuscript was purchased from a used book store in 1982 for 4 280 000 yen.
One famous emotion appealed to by the kokugakusha is  mono no aware .
Eventually  the thinking of kokugaku scholars influenced the sonnō jōi philosophy and movement.
The  Chinese heart  was considered different from the  true heart  or  Japanese Heart .
This true Japanese spirit needed to be revealed by removing a thousand years of Chinese learning.
This usage was adopted into Chinese  where it is still in use today  C  guoxue .
External links    The Kokugaku  Native Studies  School.
The upgrade involves a series of installations and flight tests to take place from 2007 to 2010.
JS Kongo was the first ship to have the BMD upgrade installed.
She had been equipped with analog version of the Tartar Guided Missile Fire Control System.
In 1984  with the prospect of deploying AWS  concrete implementation plans began.
Equipment    The class is equipped with the Aegis Weapon System  AWS .
These cells contain not only SM 2 and SM 3  but also VL ASROCs.
The OQS 102 sonar is equivalent to the U.S. SQS 53C.
In previous tests they provided tracking and communications.
While one test aboard Chōkai in November 2008 failed to intercept the target.
Overview of World s Aegis ships  Kongo class .
Its name means Temple of the Diamond Mountain Peak.
External links    Kongōbuji official site34°12′51″N 135°35′03″E
Between 1910 and 1945  the Empire of Japan placed Korea under Japanese rule or Japanese Occupation.
The public works included developing railroads  Gyeongbu Line  Gyeongui Line  Gyeongwon Line  etc.
Japanese officials then published Korea s first newspaper  Chōsen shinpō  朝鮮新報   in 1881.
Few of these goals came to pass.
It ceased publication sometime after May 1882.
While the former sought Japan s support  the latter sought China s support.
On 3 May 1894  1 500 Qing forces appeared in Incheon.
Japan won the First Sino Japanese War  and China signed the Treaty of Shimonoseki in 1895.
At the same time  Japan suppressed the Donghak revolution with Korean government forces.
With the exception of czarist Russia  Japan now held military predominance in Korea.
Weber was the chargé d affaires at the Russian legation in Seoul at that time.
When he heard the news  Heungseon Daewongun returned to the royal palace the same day.
During this period  the Korean government conducted a westernization policy.
Out of despair  one of the Korean representatives  Yi Tjoune  committed suicide at The Hague.
In response  the Japanese government took stronger measures.
Neither Gojong nor Sunjong was present at the  accession  ceremony.
Sunjong was to be the last ruler of the Joseon dynasty  founded in 1392.
The treaty became effective the same day and was published one week later.
Japan was in control of the media  law as well as government by physical power and regulations.
This meant the March 1st Movement was not an illegal movement.
The Righteous Army was formed by Yu In seok and other Confucian scholars during the Peasant Wars.
Shin Dol seok  an uneducated peasant commanded over 3 000 troops.
During the Japan Korea Treaty of 1907  the Korean army was disbanded on August 1  1907.
The Army came within 12 km of Seoul but could not withstand the Japanese counter offensive.
The Righteous Army retreated from Seoul and the war went on for two more years.
Over 17 000 Righteous Army soldiers were killed and more than 37 000 were wounded in combat.
According to the Doosan Encyclopedia  some mythology was incorporated.
In 1915  to hold an exhibition  more than 90  of the buildings were torn down.
Restoration of Gyeongbokgung has been undertaken since 1990.
The worst of the rioting occurred in Pyongyang on 5 July.
This brought about the abolishment of the Korean caste system.
Those who were brought to Japan were often forced to work under appalling and dangerous conditions.
In the name of humanitarian assistance  Japan paid South Korea four billion yen  approx.
The first and the best known general was Lieutenant General and Crown Prince Yi Un.
The other six were graduates of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy.
Starting in 1944  Japan started the conscription of Koreans into the armed forces.
Before 1944  18 000 Koreans passed the examination for induction into the army.
Koreans provided workers to mines and construction sites around Japan.
The number of conscripted Koreans reached its peak in 1944 in preparation for war.
From 1944  about 200 000 Korean males were inducted into the army.
Like their Japanese counterparts  many of them were killed.
Korean guards were sent to the remote jungles of Burma  where Lt. Col. William A.
These women were euphemistically called  comfort women .
In many cases  women were lured with promises of work in factories or restaurants.
In some cases propaganda advocated equity and the sponsorship of women in higher education.
Its first proponent was journalist and independence activist Shin Chaeho  1880–1936 .
Protestant Christian missionary efforts in Asia were quite successful in Korea.
American Presbyterians and Methodists arrived in the 1880s and were well received.
In 1914 of 16 million Koreans  there were 86 000 Protestants and 79 000 Catholics.
By 1934 the numbers were 168 000 and 147 000  respectively.
Presbyterian missionaries were especially successful.
Harmonizing with traditional practices became an issue.
A declaration of independence was read in Seoul.
It is estimated that 2 million people took part in these rallies.
Many were forced to either flee to China  or to join the Red Army backed forces in eastern Russia.
Within Korea itself  anti Japanese rallies continued on occasion.
Such events deepened the hostility of many Korean civilians towards the Japanese government.
Kim Gu organized many of the exiled Korean resistance groups  forming the  Korean Liberation Army .
There were some modernization efforts by the late 19th century prior to annexation.
This export trade had little impact  positive or negative  on the welfare of Japanese consumer.
However  under Japanese rule  many Korean resources were only used for Japan.
However  the Korean nationalists attribute to them a sinister significance.
After the Korean Educational Ordinance was published in 1938  this situation has changed slightly.
Besides  the Korean modern educational institutions were excluded from the colonial system.
Towards the end of Japanese rule  Korea saw elementary school attendance at 38 percent.
As a response  the Korean Language Society was created by ethnic Koreans.
Teaching and speaking of Korean was prohibited.
The issue over where these articles should be located began during the U.S. occupation of Japan.
The Japanese colonial authorities destroyed 85 percent of all the buildings in Gyeongbokgung.
American Presbyterians and Methodists arrived in the 1880s and were well received.
Presbyterian missionaries were especially successful.
Harmonizing with traditional practices became an issue.
The Catholics tolerated Shinto rites.
Legacy    Many Koreans became victims of Japanese brutalities during the colonial period.
There were several reports of atrocities.
They also shot through the burning windows of the church to ensure that no one made it out alive.
Many participants of the 1 March Movement were subjected to torture and execution.
This was heavily resisted by the Korean people.
Faced with such compulsion  many Koreans ended up complying with the Name Change Order.
Historical estimates range from 10 000 to 200 000  including an unknown number of Koreans.
However  of the 500 000  less than 50 are alive today.
Some historians estimate up to 250 000 total people were subjected to human experiments.
In Korea  many leprosy patients were also subjected to hard labor.
The Japanese government compensated inpatients.
In 2010  the commission concluded its five volume report.
For example  Dae Jang Geum  2003  was sold to 91 countries.
Format     South Korea started to broadcast television series in the 1960s.
A single director usually leads Korean dramas  which are often written by a single screenwriter.
This often leads to each drama having distinct directing and dialogue styles.
Dramas in these slots are in the telenovela format  rarely running over 200 episodes.
Unlike American soap operas  these daily dramas are not broadcast during the daytime.
Instead  the daytime schedule often includes reruns of the flagship dramas.
The night time dailies can achieve very high ratings.
Jumong  which aired on IRIB  Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting  in 2008  had 85  viewership.
1980s–present      The 1980s saw a change in Korean television  as color TV became available.
Modern dramas tried to evoke nostalgia from urban dwellers by depicting rural life.
The series led the viewers through turbulent times from the Japanese rule to the Korean War.
New channel SBS also produced successful series  one of them being Sandglass in 1995.
In this decade  the new miniseries format became widespread  with 12 to 24 episodes.
This era marked the start of export for Korean dramas  setting off the Korean Wave.
Naver  or video channels  e.g.YouTube .
Some of well known web dramas includes Idol Drama Operation Team and Pongdang Pongdang Love.
In 2012  as much as 75  of all K dramas were produced this way.
If top stars and famous scriptwriters are employed  they may cover even more.
The rest of the budget has to be brought in by the production company with the help of sponsors.
In the case of product placements  income is shared by the producer and the channel.
Often  production companies overrun their budgets and cannot pay salaries.
Actors are usually paid after the last episode is aired at the end of the month.
The biggest stars may earn as much as ₩100 million per episode.
Kim Jong hak Production  Logos Film  iWill Media  Owned by the broadcast companies  e.g.
The Story Works  MBC C I  Monster Union  Drama House  Owned by entertainment companies  e.g.
Studio Dragon  studio NEW  Big tiered  e.g.
In the 2000s  it became customary to cast popular K pop idols in dramas.
Initially  this generated mixed reactions.
Also  some idols were criticized for poor acting.
Famous scriptwriters tend to have a say in their field.
Music     Music plays an important role in Korean dramas.
The chart performance of the OST songs usually co relate to the popularity of the drama.
It also won the Best OST award at the 2014 Baeksang Arts Awards.
The soundtrack album of You re Beautiful sold 57 000 physical copies.
link The song was used in only two episodes despite the hard process.
OST composers usually look for singers who have previously had success in the genre.
Songs are written to reflect the mood of the series and their structure.
Sometimes performers give their own songs for a series.
There are popular OST singers who are often employed  like Baek Ji young  Lyn  and Lee Seung cheol.
Sometimes  foreign singers are invited to perform songs for Korean OST.
programs that may be inappropriate for children under 15.
Most dramas and talk shows are rated this way.
programs intended for adults only.
However  the impact of their social media activity goes beyond the fan community.
Facebook friends or followers on Twitter  and thereby generally raises its popularity.
But it also has an effect on the creation of new dramas.
Following the success of Full House  more Korean dramas have been dubbed into the Khmer language.
It was viewed 40 billion times on numerous Chinese video sites.
Full House and Hwang Jini started airing on Firangi channel in 2008.
Reliance Big TV offered KBS World to its subscribers from 2009 on satellite television.
With COVID 19 pandemic  Dish TV started premium K dramas dubbed in Hindi and Tamil.
Netflix is increasing investment on Korean content to capture the Indian market.
Korean dramas and films became most visited category for ShortsTV in India.
The program was aired twice in the same year due to high demand from viewers.
NHK also hosted a classical concert featuring Winter Sonata s tunes performed by Korean musicians.
Dae Jang Geum and Autumn In My Heart were also aired in Malaysia.
Dae Jang Geum achieved success in the country and was broadcast five times due to this.
Autumn in My Heart  Winter Sonata and Stairway to Heaven were other popular dramas.
When Dae Jang Geum was on air  the drama sparked an interest in Korean cuisine in the country.
The hairstyles and fashion of Korean actors have influenced the fashion sense of Nepali youth.
Since 2001  they are shown on Chinese language channel MediaCorp Channel U daily.
Since then  Korean dramas have seen high ratings and further success.
Marketing sales  including DVD sets and novels  exceeded  3.5 million in Japan.
In 1999  TNS Media Korea also began such service  and later changed its name to TNmS.
TV producer s suicide causes troubled industry to reflect .
Lee  Yong cheol  24 January 2014 .
Japan s Competing Modernities  Issues in Culture and Democracy  1900–1930.
The High Tide of the Korean Wave III  Why do Asian fans prefer Korean pop culture? .
영원한 제국  Eternal Empire  and Chungmuro s Love Hate for History .
Sageuk  Korea s 80 Year Long Love for History .
Korean people are considered the 16th largest ethnic group in the world.
As of 2020  there were an estimated 8.3 million ethnic Koreans residing outside Korea.
Korean Americans refer to themselves as Hangukgye Migukin  Korean  한국계 미국인  Hanja  韓國系美國人 .
Genetics      Koreans display high frequencies of the Y DNA Haplogroup O M176.
And Koreans weren t that homogenous at first  according to the study.
According to him the vast majority Koreans do not know their actual genealogical history.
There are more than 78 million speakers of the Korean language worldwide.
After 1963 demographers used varying methods to estimate the population.
Significant Korean populations are present in China  Japan  Argentina  Brazil and Canada as well.
In Australia  Korean Australians comprise a modest minority.
The Koreans  Who They Are  What They Want  Where Their Future Lies.
Korean settlements in the Yuan Dynasty were mostly war related.
In the next years  another ten thousand Goryeo households were brought under his administration.
76The Korean population in China surged during the Ming Dynasty.
Many Koreans moved from the Korean Peninsula to Northeast China to enjoy such favorable policies.
In 1537  the Korean population in Dongningwei  Chinese  東寧衛  had decreased by 60 .
As a result  the areas became obsolete with no human settlements.
5 76–87 In 1740  the Qing government extended the ban to the whole Northeast China region.
The Russian Empire meanwhile seized the opportunity to encroach this region.
Korean emigrants attempted to cultivate rice in the Hun River valley as early as 1848.
The experiment by Korean farmers in the Dandong region was successful in 1861.
In June 1906  14 Korean farmers built the earliest irrigation system in Yanbian.
The total length of canals built exceeded 1.3 kilometer  irrigating 33 hectare of paddy fields.
After receiving the administration s approval  Jinlin Province started to promote rice production.
Han Chinese farmer began to hire Korean emigrants to learn how to grow rice.
This offered a favorable condition for the Japanese population migration policy.
They sometimes cooperated with the Japanese and sometimes were at odds with them.
Relationship between local Chinese and Korean emigrants became tense.
Naturalized Korean emigrants  however  continue to have the rights to own farm lands.
This is the first massive grassroot anti Japanese demonstration in Yanbian.
121 A declaration of independence drafted by Yanbian Koreans was read out at the rally.
Bullets were fired towards the demonstrators.
There were 19 people dead  48 injured and 94 arrested.
This led to the  Jiandao massacre  a few months later in Yanbian.
Local Korean residents provided vital support for the Korean Liberation Army.
Most of its members were ethnic Koreans in China.
Li later became a Key member of The Northeast Anti Japanese United Army.
Koreans had a long history of friendship with the Chinese communists.
Korean farms in China received farmland just as other Chinese farmers did.
671 133 135 From October 1947  the land reform was expanded to nationwide.
Soldiers in the 164th  166th and 156th of the Fourth Field Army are mostly Koreans.
The total population of Koreans in China was 1.1 million  47.6  of them living in Yanbian.
He also attended the grand ceremony for the founding of the People’s Republic of China.
Zhao Nanqi  Li Yongtai are two of the most notable Korean figures who participated in the war.
Koreans in Longjing also organized the  Yanji Jet  donation campaign.
Donations from Koreans in Yanbian reached the equivalent value of 6.5 jet fighters.
On 20 July 1954  the first session of People s Congress was held in Yanbian.
Many faculty members of Yanbian University were also prosecuted.
The number of Yanbian University’s faculty and staff decreased to 23.7  of that in 1966.
Even Korean Language was criticized as Four Olds.
After the Cultural Revolution ended  things gradually restored to normal.
It is the first autonomy regulations in China’s history.
119      Culture          Education      Koreans in China have a tradition of education.
The Chinese government is also very supportive in preserving their language and culture.
There is also the Korean International School of Hong Kong.
The so called Korean Wave  Hallyu  has influenced fashion styles.
By 2007  the South Korean Embassy in Beijing stated their population had reached 700 000.
A Bloomberg News article initially stated the proportion as 20   roughly 140 000 people .
The chamber uses rented space in the OCT Primary School as the Korean weekend school s classroom.
Statistics     In 2014  there were over 855 725 ethnic Koreans resident in Japan.
During World War II  a large number of Koreans were also conscripted by Japan.
Another wave of migration started after South Korea was devastated by the Korean War in the 1950s.
The survey excluded those who were under 12 when they arrived in Japan.
There were about 800 Koreans living in Japan before Japan annexed Korea.
This coincidence of interests boosted the migration to Japan.
A majority of the immigrants consisted of farmers from the southern part of Korea.
To accomplish this  the Japanese government devoted resources to the Korean Peninsula.
About 60 000 are estimated to have died between 1939 and 1945.
Most of the wartime laborers returned home after the war  but some elected to remain in Japan.
The Yeosu Suncheon rebellion also increased the illegal immigration to Japan.
It is estimated that between 1946 and 1949  90  of illegal immigrants to Japan were Koreans.
Bodo League massacre .Fishers and brokers helped immigrants enter Japan through Tsushima Island.
One year after the Seoul Olympics  traveling abroad was further liberalized.
For example  author Lee Yangji studied at Seoul National University in the early 1980s.
65  of Zainichi are now said to be affiliated to Mindan.
This made their lives even more difficult.
In order to protect themselves  many Zainichi Koreans protested against this law.
Mindan and many Zainichi Koreans opposed this law  but the law wasn t repealed until 1993.
About 9 000 to 11 000 Koreans naturalize in Japan every year out of slightly less than 600 000.
This means that the rate of naturalisation can be taken as a rough measure of assimilation.
Therefore  Japanese citizens  especially the parents were refusing marriage with Zainichi Koreans.
However  there were also some problems about marriage between Zainichi Koreans too.
The highest number of marriages between Japanese men and Korean women was 8 940  in 1990.
Since 1991  it has fluctuated around 6 000.
On the other hand  there were 2 335 marriages between Korean men and Japanese women in 2006.
In fact  he quoted only 15  18  Korean marriage during 1990 to 1994.
There were 1 792 births and 4 588 deaths resulting in a 2 796 natural decrease.
The fingerprint requirement for Zainichi Koreans was terminated by 1993.
There had been a discussion about Zainichi South Koreans’ right to vote in South Korea.
In 1997  Kawasaki became the first municipality to hire a Korean national.
All lessons  and all conversations within the school are conducted in Korean.
It is also much less than the amount received by state schools.
Until recently  only those who have completed compulsory education  i.e.
In 1999 the requirement was amended so that anyone over a certain age is qualified.
During the Korea Japan 2002 World Cup  a Mindan newspaper conducted a survey regarding their use.
Thirty three percent stated that they use either depending on the situation.
Exodus to North Korea  Shadows from Japan s Cold War.
The Self Identities of Zainichi Koreans – a paper on Zainichi.
The koto  箏  is a Japanese plucked half tube zither and the national instrument of Japan.
17 string koto are also common  and act as bass in ensembles.
Names and types    The character for koto is 箏  although 琴 is often used.
However  琴 usually refers to another instrument  the kin  琴の琴  kin no koto .
箏  in certain contexts  is also read as sō  箏の琴  sō no koto .
The term is used today  but usually only when differentiating the koto and other zithers.
The word for an Asian zither with adjustable bridges is “So”.
History    The ancestor of the koto was the Chinese guzheng.
It was first introduced to Japan from China in the 7th and 8th century.
The first known version had five strings  which eventually increased to seven strings.
The modern koto originates from the gakusō used in Japanese court music.
It was a popular instrument among the wealthy  the instrument koto was considered a romantic one.
According to Japanese literature  the koto was used as imagery and other extra music significance.
The koto of the chikuso was made for the Tsukushigato tradition and only for blind men.
Women could not play the instrument in the professional world nor teach it.
The two main koto varieties still used today are the gakuso and zokuso.
Yatsuhashi is now known as the  Father of Modern Koto .
It was named the taishōgoto after the Taishō period.
At the beginning of the Meiji Period  1868–1912   western music was introduced to Japan.
Koto may or may not be adorned.
Adornments include inlays of ivory and ebony  tortoise shell  metal figures  etc.
Kiri is also important to Japan because it is the Imperial family crest for the Empress.
Kiri is dried and cut into precise measurements.
The size of the soundboard on a standard modern koto has remained approximately 182 centimeters.
In the past the measurement ranged from 152 to 194 centimeters.
One can alter the pitch of a string by manipulating or moving the bridge.
Of course  such an arrangement is unstable  and the bridge would have a tendency to fall down.
The strings are made from a variety of materials.
Various types of plastic strings are popular.
Silk strings are still made  and are usually yellow in color.
They cost more and are not as durable  but claimed to be more musical.
Strings can be tightened by a special machine  but often are tightened by hand  and then tied.
Some instruments may have tuning pins  like a piano  installed  to make tuning easier.
The makura ito  the silk thread used in the instrument  is a pivotal part of its construction.
The makura ito was used in paper so the fine silk was in abundance in Japan.
There are also 20   21   and 25 string koto.
Works are being written for 20  and 25 string koto and 17 string bass koto.
The members of the band Rin  are popular jūshichi gen players in the modern music scene.
Another Sawai disciple  Masayo Ishigure  holds down a school in New York City.
Yukiko Matsuyama leads her KotoYuki band in Los Angeles.
Her compositions blend the timbres of world music with her native Japanese culture.
A synthesized koto also appears in their cover of the song  I ll Try Something New .Dr.
Dre s 1999 album 2001 prominently features a synthesized koto on two of its tracks   Still D.R.E.
A 2020 acoustic cover of Led Zeppelin s Battle of Evermore by PianoRock feat.
Dean McNeill also prominently features a synthesized koto.
word spirit soul   refers to the Japanese belief that mystical powers dwell in words and names.
Mythology    Kotodama is a central concept in Japanese mythology  Shinto  and Kokugaku.
It is the means by which one realizes his true nature as a god and finds ultimate freedom.
It was enacted by Shōgun Tokugawa Yoshimune in 1742.
Greater Kumamoto  熊本都市圏  had a population of 1 461 000  as of the 2000 census.
As of 2010  Kumamoto Metropolitan Employment Area has a GDP of US 39.8 billion.
It is not considered part of the Fukuoka–Kitakyushu metropolitan area  despite their shared border.
The city was designated on April 1  2012  by government ordinance.
Afterwards  Kiyomasa built Kumamoto Castle.
After Kiyomasa died in 1611  his son  Tadahiro  succeeded him.
In 1632  Tadahiro was removed by Tokugawa Iemitsu and replaced with the Hosokawa clan.
The current administrative body of the City of Kumamoto was founded on April 1  1889.
On October 6  2008  the town of Tomiai  from Shimomashiki District  was merged into Kumamoto.
There is significant precipitation throughout the year  especially during June and July.
The castle was assaulted during the Satsuma Rebellion and sacked and burned after a 53 day siege.
It was during this time that the tradition of eating basashi  raw horse meat  originated.
This traditional wooden mansion has a fine Japanese garden located on its grounds.
The team now uses the larger KKWing Stadium in Higashi Ward.
Other notable sites     Miyamoto Musashi lived the last part of his life in Kumamoto.
He penned the famous Go Rin no Sho  The Book of Five Rings  whilst living here.
Many local festivals are held in or near the arcades.
Cultural venues include the Kumamoto Prefectural Museum of Art and Kumamoto Prefectural Theater.
Government    Kazufumi Ōnishi has been the city s mayor since December 2014.
Transport     Local public transport is provided by the Kumamoto City Transportation Bureau.
Trams run to a few suburbs near the downtown area.
The JR Kumamoto station provides rail links to Japan s extensive rail network.
Kumamoto Airport is located in nearby Mashiki.
Sports    Roasso Kumamoto in J.League is the local football club.
Kumamoto Volters of the basketball B.League are based in Kumamoto.
Sporting events     The Kumamoto Castle Marathon is a yearly event in Kumamoto City.
It was established in commemoration of Kumamoto becoming a designated city in 2012.
The city also hosted the 1997 World Men s Handball Championship.
Sister cities    Kumamoto City is twinned with the following cities.
Kumamoto Prefecture  熊本県  Kumamoto ken  is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū.
The creation of prefectures was part of the abolition of the feudal system.
Mount Aso  1 592 m  5 223 ft    an extensive active volcano  is in the east of Kumamoto Prefecture.
This volcano is located at the centre of the Aso caldera.
The prefecture ranks 23rd in Japan.
Economy     There is a Honda motorcycle plant.
Tourism     Mount Aso is one of the world s largest active volcanoes.
The number of fluent native speakers of Kunigami is not known.
The language of one s own community was referred to as  simaagu⸢tsʰii  or  sima a kʰu⸢t˭uu⸣ba .
The Yonamine dialect was part of Nakijin s western dialect called  ʔirinsimaa kʰut˭uba .
The islands separate the Sea of Okhotsk from the Pacific Ocean.
Although Japan was a main ally of Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany  with which USSR was at war.
Millions of Soviet and Japanese soldiers were facing each other along the border.
So  the USSR used its legal right and renounced the Pact.
The Soviet operation to occupy the Kuril Islands took place between August 18 and September 3.
Japanese inhabitants were repatriated two years later.
The Kurile Islands shall be handed over to the Soviet Union.
I was not speaking of any territory of the Soviet Republic.
The Soviet Union—and subsequently  Russia—rejected this position.
The Potsdam Declaration states the following regarding the Japanese territories   8.
Japan signed and ratified the San Francisco treaty.
The timing of this claim is disputed by Russia and by some western historians.
However  the U.S. government intervened and blocked the deal.
Visa issues      Russia has given several concessions to Japan in the dispute.
For example  Russia has introduced visa free trips for Japanese citizens to the Kuril Islands.
A Japanese fisherman was shot dead by a Russian patrol in 2006.
The Japanese Foreign Ministry criticized Medvedev s statement  calling it regrettable.
On November 1  Medvedev visited Kunashir Island  sparking a row with Japan.
Russia signed a deal with France in January 2011 to buy four such vessels.
However the deal has since been cancelled.
Japan Air Self Defense Force F 2s were scrambled in response.
This is the first incursion by Russian aircraft since 2008.
At the end of April 2013  he visited Moscow for discussion with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Putin and Abe agreed that the terms of the 1956 deal would be part of a bilateral peace treaty.
He also said that Japan must recognize them as sovereign Russian territory as a start.
They are part of the territory of the Russian Federation.
There were already short range anti aircraft missiles systems on Iturup.
Such visits to family graves have been allowed for humanitarian reasons since 1964.
The processing had previously been limited to Kunashiri Island.
Territorial issues should be settled by a peace treaty.
Furthermore  Japan is not bound by this document  to which it did not agree.
Also  the Soviet Union did not sign the San Francisco treaty.
The attitudes of the Russian public have hardened in the 2000s.
The Zemlyak movement in Russia advocates a return of the islands to Japan.
This news generated a wave of Japanese dissatisfaction.
Nemuro raid survivor longs for homeland   Newspaper article .
In 1946  crude oil was exported for the first time.
In 1990  Kuwait was invaded  and later annexed  by Iraq under Saddam Hussein.
Kuwait has a World Bank high income economy backed by the world s sixth largest oil reserves.
The Kuwaiti dinar is the highest valued currency in the world.
According to the World Bank  the country has the nineteenth highest per capita income.
The Constitution was promulgated in 1962.
Kuwait is home to the largest opera house in the Middle East.
The Kuwait National Cultural District is a member of the Global Cultural Districts Network.
Traders from the Sumerian city of Ur inhabited Failaka and ran a mercantile business.
The Neolithic inhabitants of Kuwait were among the world s earliest maritime traders.
Dilmun s commercial power began to decline after 1800 BC.
Piracy flourished throughout the region during Dilmun s decline.
After 600 BC  the Babylonians added Dilmun to their empire.
Failaka was settled following 2000 BC after a drop in sea level.
Under Nebuchadnezzar II  Failaka was under Babylonian control.
Some elements of Greek mythology were mixed with the local cults in Failaka.
Ikaros  was also the name of a prominent city situated in Failaka.
Characene was centered in the region encompassing southern Mesopotamia  including Failaka island.
The small farms and villages were eventually abandoned.
Remains of Byzantine era Nestorian churches were found at Al Qusur in Failaka.
At the time  Kuwait was under the control of the Sassanid Empire.
The city functioned as a trade port and resting place for pilgrims on their way from Iraq to Hejaz.
The city was controlled by the kingdom of Al Hirah in Iraq.
The poet Al Farazdaq was born in the Kuwaiti city of Kazma.
Al Farazdaq is recognized as one of the greatest classical poets of the Arabs.
1521–1918  Founding      In 1521  Kuwait was under Portuguese control.
In the late 16th century  the Portuguese built a defensive settlement in Kuwait.
In 1613  Kuwait City was founded as a fishing village predominantly populated by fishermen.
Administratively  it was a sheikhdom  ruled by local sheikhs from Bani Khalid clan.
The East India Company was diverted to Kuwait in 1792.
The East India Company secured the sea routes between Kuwait  India and the east coasts of Africa.
After the Persians withdrew from Basra in 1779  Kuwait continued to attract trade away from Basra.
Instability in Basra helped foster economic prosperity in Kuwait.
In the late 18th century  Kuwait was a haven for Basra merchants fleeing Ottoman persecution.
Kuwaitis also developed a reputation as the best sailors in the Persian Gulf.
The richest were involved in general trade.
This caused a diplomatic crisis with Najd  but Britain intervened  discouraging Sheikh Salim.
The Battle of Jahra happened as the result of the Battle of Hamdh.
The war occurred because Ibn Saud of Najd wanted to annex Kuwait.
The sharpened conflict between Kuwait and Najd led to the death of hundreds of Kuwaitis.
The war resulted in sporadic border clashes throughout 1919–1920.
The Great Depression harmed Kuwait s economy  starting in the late 1920s.
International trading was one of Kuwait s main sources of income before oil.
Kuwaiti merchants were mostly intermediary merchants.
Some Kuwaiti merchant families became rich from this smuggling.
Kuwait s pearl industry also collapsed as a result of the worldwide economic depression.
During the economic depression  luxuries like pearls were in little demand.
At the time of the discovery of oil in 1936–1937  most of Kuwait s inhabitants were impoverished.
Throughout the 1930s  Kuwaiti people opposed the British imposed separation of Kuwait from Iraq.
By 1952  the country became the largest oil exporter in the Persian Gulf region.
In the 1960s and 1970s  Kuwait was considered the most developed country in the region.
Kuwait was the pioneer in the Middle East in diversifying its earnings away from oil exports.
The Kuwait Investment Authority is the world s first sovereign wealth fund.
From the 1970s onward  Kuwait scored highest of all Arab countries on the Human Development Index.
Kuwait University was established in 1966.
Kuwait was the pioneer in the literary renaissance in the Arab region.
In 1958  Al Arabi magazine was first published.
The magazine went on to become the most popular magazine in the Arab world.
Kuwaiti society embraced liberal and non traditional attitudes throughout the 1960s and 1970s.
For example  most Kuwaiti women did not wear the hijab in the 1960s and 70s.
As they retreated  Iraqi forces carried out a scorched earth policy by setting oil wells on fire.
During the Iraqi occupation  more than 1 000 Kuwaiti civilians were killed.
In March 2003  Kuwait became the springboard for the US led invasion of Iraq.
Sabah Al Sabah was sworn in as Emir.
From 2001 to 2009  Kuwait had the highest Human Development Index ranking in the Arab world.
In 2005  women won the right to vote and run in elections.
In 2014 and 2015  Kuwait was ranked first among Arab countries in the Global Gender Gap Report.
In November 2016  the Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmad Cultural Centre opened.
It is the largest cultural centre in the Middle East.
The Kuwait National Cultural District is a member of the Global Cultural Districts Network.
Kuwait City is located on Kuwait Bay  a natural deep water harbor.
Sand and oil residue had reduced large parts of the Kuwaiti desert to semi asphalt surfaces.
The oil spills during the Gulf War also drastically affected Kuwait s marine resources.
Climate      The spring season in March is warm with occasional thunderstorms.
The frequent winds from the northwest are cold in winter and hot in summer.
Hot and dry south winds prevail in spring and early summer.
The shamal  a northwesterly wind common during June and July  causes dramatic sandstorms.
Summers in Kuwait are some of the hottest on earth.
On average  every single inhabitant released 25.2 metric tons of CO2 in the atmosphere that year.
In comparison  the world average was 5.0 tons per capita the same year.
Access to biocapacity in Kuwait is lower than world average.
This means they use about 14.5 times as much biocapacity as Kuwait contains.
As a result  Kuwait is running a biocapacity deficit.
National parks     At present  there are five protected areas in Kuwait recognized by the IUCN.
The reserve is home to the world s largest breeding colony of crab plover.
Large carnivores  such as the wolf  caracal and jackal  are not found.
Among the endangered mammalian species are the red fox and wild cat.
Causes for wildlife extinction are habitat destruction and extensive unregulated hunting.
Forty reptile species have been recorded although none are endemic to Kuwait.
Water and sanitation     Kuwait does not have any permanent rivers.
There are currently more than six desalination plants.
For a sixth site  the Emir of Kuwait  Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmed  wanted a more spectacular design.
Water from the desalination facility is pumped up to the tower.
The thirty three towers have a standard capacity of 102 000 cubic meters of water.
There are three major municipal wastewater treatment plants.
Most water demand is currently satisfied through seawater desalination plants.
Government     Kuwait is a constitutional emirate with a semi democratic political system.
Kuwait is among the Middle East s freest countries in civil liberties and political rights.
It guarantees a wide range of civil liberties and rights.
Professional groups like the Chamber of Commerce maintain their autonomy from the government.
The National Assembly is the legislature and has oversight authority.
The parliament can be dissolved under a set of conditions based on constitutional provisions.
Executive power is executed by the government.
The Emir appoints the prime minister  who in turn chooses the ministers comprising the government.
According to the constitution  at least one minister has to be an elected MP from the parliament.
Kuwaiti women outnumber men in the workforce.
In 2014 and 2015  Kuwait was ranked first among Arab countries in the Global Gender Gap Report.
In 2013  53  of Kuwaiti women participated in the labor force.
Once elected  many deputies form voting blocs in the National Assembly.
Kuwaiti law does not recognize political parties.
Unlike other Arab states of the Persian Gulf  Kuwait does not have Sharia courts.
Sections of the civil court system administer family law.
Kuwait has the most secular commercial law in the Gulf.
The parliament criminalized alcohol consumption in 1983.
Kuwait s Code of Personal Status was promulgated in 1984.
The first foreign affairs department bureau was established in 1961.
Kuwait became the 111th member state of the United Nations in May 1963.
Before the Gulf War  Kuwait was the only  pro Soviet  state in the Persian Gulf region.
In July 1987  Kuwait refused to allow U.S. military bases in its territory.
The Military of Kuwait consists of several joint defense forces.
The Emir of Kuwait is the commander in chief of all defense forces by default.
The governorates are further subdivided into areas.
Expatriates account for 70  of Kuwait s total population.
The kafala system leaves foreign workers prone to exploitation.
Kuwait has the most liberal labor laws in the GCC.
Economy     Kuwait has a petroleum based economy  petroleum is the main export product.
The Kuwaiti dinar is the highest valued unit of currency in the world.
According to the World Bank  Kuwait is the seventh richest country in the world per capita.
Kuwait is the second richest GCC country per capita  after Qatar .
In 1974  the fund s lending mandate was expanded to include all developing countries in the world.
In 2018 Kuwait enacted certain measures to regulate foreign labor.
Workers from Bangladesh are also banned.
According to the constitution  all natural resources in the country are state property.
The KIA is the world s oldest sovereign wealth fund.
As of 2015  the holdings were valued at  592 billion in assets.
It is the 5th largest sovereign wealth fund in the world.
The bank was the first local publicly traded corporation in the Persian Gulf region.
The relative strength of Kuwait in the financial industry extends to its stock market.
There are outpatient clinics in every residential area in Kuwait.
A public insurance scheme exists to provide reduced cost healthcare to expatriates.
Many new hospitals are under construction.
To date  Kuwait has registered 384 patents  the second highest figure in the Arab world.
Kuwait produces the largest number of patents per capita in the Arab world and OIC.
The government has implemented various programs to foster innovation resulting in patent rights.
Between 2010 and 2016  Kuwait registered the highest growth in patents in the Arab world.
This opportunity allows students from around the world to send and execute their own code in space.
QMR KWT is scheduled to be launched to space in February 2021 on SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket.
QMR KWT is Kuwait s first satellite.
The station was named Um Alaish 4 to continue the legacy of  Um Alaish  satellite station.
Education      Kuwait has the highest literacy rate in the Arab world.
Schooling at primary and intermediate level is compulsory for all students aged 6 – 14.
The curriculum is set to be implemented in the next two or three years.
In 2016  the tourism industry generated nearly  500 million in revenue.
In November 2016  the Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmad Cultural Centre opened.
It is the largest cultural centre in the Middle East.
The Kuwait National Cultural District is a member of the Global Cultural Districts Network.
Transport      Kuwait has an extensive and modern network of highways.
Roadways extended 5 749 km  3 572 mi   of which 4 887 km  3 037 mi  is paved.
On major highways the maximum speed is 120 km h  75 mph .
Since there is no railway system in the country  most people travel by automobiles.
The country s public transportation network consists almost entirely of bus routes.
The state owned Kuwait Public Transportation Company was established in 1962.
It runs local bus routes across Kuwait as well as longer distance services to other Gulf states.
The main private bus company is CityBus  which operates about 20 routes across the country.
Another private bus company  Kuwait Gulf Link Public Transport Services  was started in 2006.
It runs local bus routes across Kuwait and longer distance services to neighbouring Arab countries.
There are two airports in Kuwait.
Kuwait International Airport serves as the principal hub for international air travel.
State owned Kuwait Airways is the largest airline in the country.
In 2004  the first private airline of Kuwait  Jazeera Airways  was launched.
In 2005  the second private airline  Wataniya Airways was founded.
Kuwait has one of the largest shipping industries in the region.
The Kuwait Ports Public Authority manages and operates ports across Kuwait.
Mina Al Ahmadi  the largest port in the country  handles most of Kuwait s oil exports.
Construction of another major port located in Bubiyan island started in 2007.
The port is expected to handle 1.3 million TEU when operations start.
Indians and Egyptians are the largest expat communities respectively.
Most Shia Kuwaiti citizens are of Persian ancestry.
There is also a small number of Kuwaiti citizens who follow the Baháʼí Faith.
Kuwait also has a large community of expatriate Christians  Hindus  Buddhists  and Sikhs.
Kuwaiti Arabic is the variant of Arabic used in everyday life.
English is widely understood and often used as a business language.
Society     Kuwaiti society is markedly more open than other Gulf Arab societies.
Kuwaiti citizens are ethnically diverse  consisting of both Arabs and Persians   Ajam .
Kuwait stands out in the region as the most liberal in empowering women in the public sphere.
Kuwaiti women outnumber men in the workforce.
Kuwait is the production centre of the Gulf television drama and comedy scene.
Most Gulf television drama and comedy productions are filmed in Kuwait.
Kuwaiti soap operas are the most watched soap operas from the Gulf region.
Soap operas are most popular during the time of Ramadan  when families gather to break their fast.
Kuwait is the only country in the Gulf Arab region with a theatrical tradition.
The theatrical movement in Kuwait constitutes a major part of the country s cultural life.
Theatrical activities in Kuwait began in the 1920s when the first spoken dramas were released.
Theatre activities are still popular today.
Abdulhussain Abdulredha is the most prominent actor.
Kuwait is the main centre of scenographic and theatrical training in the Gulf region.
The institute has several divisions.
Every urban district has a public theatre.
The public theatre in Salmiya is named after Abdulhussain Abdulredha.
Arts      Kuwait has the oldest modern arts movement in the Arabian Peninsula.
Beginning in 1936  Kuwait was the first Gulf Arab country to grant scholarships in the arts.
He is regarded as the founder of portrait art in the region.
In recent years  Kuwait s contemporary art scene has boomed.
Khalifa Al Qattan was the first artist to hold a solo exhibition in Kuwait.
He founded a new art theory in the early 1960s known as  circulism .
Other notable Kuwaiti artists include Sami Mohammad  Thuraya Al Baqsami and Suzan Bushnaq.
Prominent participants include Layla Al Attar.
In 2004  the Al Kharafi Biennial for Contemporary Arab Art was inaugurated.
Music      Kuwait is the birthplace of various popular musical genres  such as sawt.
Kuwait pioneered contemporary Khaliji music.
Kuwaitis were the first commercial recording artists in the Gulf region.
Kuwait has several academic institutions specializing in university level music education.
In addition  the College of Basic Education offers bachelor s degrees in music education.
The Institute of Musical Studies offers degrees equivalent to secondary school.
The Abdullah Salem Cultural Centre is the largest museum complex in the Middle East.
There are several art libraries in Kuwait.
Khalifa Al Qattan s Mirror House is the most popular art museum in Kuwait.
Many museums in Kuwait are private enterprises.
Bait Al Othman is the largest museum specializing in Kuwait s history.
The Scientific Center is one of the largest science museums in the Middle East.
The Museum of Modern Art showcases the history of modern art in Kuwait and the region.
The National Museum  established in 1983  has been described as  underused and overlooked .
The state owned Kuwait News Agency  KUNA  is the largest media house in the country.
The Ministry of Information regulates the media industry in Kuwait.
The Kuwait Football Association  KFA  is the governing body of football in Kuwait.
The KFA organises the men s  women s  and futsal national teams.
The Kuwaiti Premier League is the top league of Kuwaiti football  featuring eighteen teams.
The biggest football rivalry in Kuwait is between Al Arabi and Al Qadsia.
Basketball is one of the country s most popular sports.
The Kuwait national basketball team is governed by the Kuwait Basketball Association  KBA .
Kuwait made its international debut in 1959.
The national team has been to the FIBA Asian Championship in basketball eleven times.
The Kuwaiti Division I Basketball League is the highest professional basketball league in Kuwait.
Cricket in Kuwait is governed by the Kuwait Cricket Association.
Other growing sports include rugby union.
Ice hockey in Kuwait is governed by the Kuwait Ice Hockey Association.
Kuwait was re admitted into the IIHF in May 2009.
In 794  Kyoto  then known as Heian kyō  was chosen as the new seat of Japan s imperial court.
The modern municipality of Kyoto was established in 1889.
Kyoto is considered the cultural capital of Japan and a major tourist destination.
Name    In Japanese  Kyoto was previously called Kyō  京   Miyako  都   or Kyō no Miyako  京の都 .
Kyoto is also sometimes called the thousand year capital  千年の都 .
During the Ōnin War  the shugo collapsed  and power was divided among the military families.
The city has not seen such widespread destruction since.
Hideyoshi also built earthwork walls called odoi  御土居  encircling the city.
The subsequent move of the emperor to Tokyo in 1869 weakened the economy.
The modern city of Kyoto was formed on April 1  1889.
The construction of Lake Biwa Canal in 1890 was one measure taken to revive the city.
Kyoto became a city designated by government ordinance on September 1  1956.
In 1997  Kyoto hosted the conference that resulted in the protocol on greenhouse gas emissions.
Kyoto sits atop a large natural water table that provides the city with ample freshwater wells.
In 1947  it went back to being 3rd.
By 1960 it had fallen to 5th again  and by 1990 it had fallen to 7th  in 2015 it is now 9th.
Summers are hot and humid  but winters are relatively cold with occasional snowfall.
The legislative city assembly has 67 elected members.
Together  they make up the city of Kyoto.
Like other cities in Japan  Kyoto has a single mayor and a city council.
Kyoto has been  and still remains  Japan s cultural center.
The government of Japan is relocating the Agency for Cultural Affairs to Kyoto in 2021.
The  Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto  are listed by the UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
Other sites outside the city are also on the list.
Kyoto is renowned for its abundance of delicious Japanese foods and cuisine.
Many jidaigeki  action films featuring samurai  were shot at Toei Uzumasa Eigamura.
Actual film shooting takes place occasionally  and visitors are welcome to observe the action.
Courtesans performing duties at Tokyo were referred to as  Edokko   bourgois .
Tourists are hugely fond of Kyoto  contributing significantly to its economy.
Sake brewing is Kyoto s traditional industry.
Gekkeikan and Takara Holdings are major sake brewers headquartered in Kyoto.
Encompassing ¥10.12 trillion  Kyoto MEA has the fourth largest economy in the country in 2010.
Kyoto University is considered to be one of the top national universities nationwide.
Some buses go further  make stops at major hotels and terminals in the downtown area.
Buses      Kyoto s municipal bus network is extensive.
Private carriers also operate within the city.
Many tourists join commuters on the public buses  or take tour buses.
Cycling     Cycling is a very important form of personal transportation in the city.
The geography and scale of the city are such that the city may be easily navigated on a bicycle.
There are five bicycle rental stations and 21 EcoStations in central Kyoto.
Because of the large number of cyclists  permitted bicycle parking areas can be difficult to find.
Bicycles parked in non permitted areas are impounded.
The Kyoto Jukan Expressway connects the city to northern regions of Kyoto Prefecture.
The Daini Keihan Road is a new bypass  completed in 2010  to Osaka.
They link to the other subway line  the Tōzai Line  at Karasuma Oike.
At Shijō Karasuma  the subway station is named Shijō  whereas Hankyu s station is called Karasuma.
All the stations are located in the city proper.
This line runs from the southeastern area of the city  then east to west  i.e.
All the stations except Rokujizō are located in Kyoto.
The trip from Tokyo takes about two hours and eighteen minutes.
From Hakata in Fukuoka  Nozomi takes you to Kyoto in just over three hours.
There are a number of rivers  canals and other navigable waterways in Kyoto.
Lake Biwa Canal was a significant infrastructural development.
Tourism     Kyoto contains roughly 2 000 temples and shrines.
The site was designated as World Heritage in 1994.
The first is the Aoi Matsuri on May 15.
The October 22 Jidai Matsuri  Festival of the Ages  celebrates Kyoto s illustrious past.
Sanga Stadium by Kyocera is its home stadium.
Many foreign scholars  artists and writers have stayed in Kyoto over the centuries.
Siyun sai Rin siyo Hayashi Gahō  1652   Nihon Ōdai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
Kyoto Prefecture  京都府  Kyōto fu  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu.
The city s history can be traced back as far as the 6th century.
In 544  the Aoi Matsuri was held in Kyoto to pray for good harvest and good weather.
Kyoto did not start out as Japan s capital.
A noteworthy earlier capital was Nara.
In 784  the capital was moved to Nagaokakyō  also in present day Kyoto Prefecture.
Japan plunged into the age of warring feudal lords.
A new strong man  Tokugawa Ieyasu  established the shogunate at Edo  today s Tokyo  in 1603.
Emperor Meiji  who was now the absolute sovereign  went to stay in Tokyo during the next year.
The imperial court has not returned to Kyoto since then.
During the instigation of Fuhanken Sanchisei in 1868  the prefecture received its suffix fu.
During the occupation  the U.S. Sixth Army was headquartered in Kyoto.
Geography     Kyoto Prefecture is almost in the center of Honshu and of Japan.
It covers an area of 4 612.19 square kilometres  1 780.78 sq mi   which is 1.2  of Japan.
To the north  it faces the Sea of Japan and Fukui Prefecture.
To the south  it faces Osaka and Nara Prefectures.
To the east  it faces Mie and Shiga Prefectures.
To its west is Hyōgo Prefecture.
The prefecture is separated in the middle by the Tanba Mountains.
This makes its climate very different in the north and south.
The prefecture produces 13  of the domestic sake and green tea.
As of September 2020  the minimum wage in the prefecture was ¥909 per hour.
Culture    Kyoto has been  and still remains  Japan s cultural center.
For over 1000 years it was Japan s capital.
When the capital was changed to Tokyo  Kyoto remained Japan s cultural capital.
Every shrine and temple holds some sort of event  and many of them are open for public viewing.
It will be co located with a JASDF facility already based in the city.
A hundred and sixty personnel will be based at the station.
Prefectural symbols    The prefectural flower of Kyoto is the weeping cherry.
The Protocol s first commitment period started in 2008 and ended in 2012.
All 36 countries that fully participated in the first commitment period complied with the Protocol.
The financial crisis of 2007–08 helped reduce the emissions.
As of October 2020  147 states have accepted the Doha Amendment.
It will enter into force as of 31 December 2020  following its acceptances by 144 states.
Of the 37 parties with binding commitments  34 have ratified.
The treaty follows the main principles agreed in the original 1992 UN Framework Convention.
These emissions limitation commitments are listed in Annex B of the Protocol.
The Protocol establishes a structure of rolling emission reduction commitment periods.
The first period emission reduction commitments expired on 31 December 2012.
Carbon dioxide  CO2  is the most important anthropogenic GHG.
Accounting  Reporting and Review in order to ensure the integrity of the Protocol.
Establishing a Compliance Committee to enforce compliance with the commitments under the Protocol.
The six GHG are translated into CO2 equivalents in determining reductions in emissions.
Emission limits do not include emissions by international aviation and shipping.
Marginal cost  is the cost of abating the last tonne of CO2 eq for an Annex I non Annex I Party.
Asia      Japan  emissions trading in Tokyo started in 2010.
This scheme is run by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government.
This is run by the European Commission.
Norway  domestic emissions trading in Norway started in 2005.
This was run by the Norwegian Government  which is now a participant in the EU ETS.
United Kingdom  the UK Emissions Trading Scheme  which ran from 2002–06.
This was a scheme run by the UK Government  which is now a participant in the EU ETS.
the UK CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme  which started in 2010  and is run by the UK Government.
North America      Canada  emissions trading in Alberta  Canada  which started in 2007.
This is run by the Government of Alberta.
United States  the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative  RGGI   which started in 2009.
This is a collective ETS agreed between 11 US states and Canadian provinces.
New Zealand  the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme  which started in 2008.
This excess of allowances were viewed by the EITs as  headroom  to grow their economies.
The proceeds from the AAU sales should be  greened   i.e.
Trade in AAUs      Latvia was one of the front runners of GISs.
World Bank  2011  reported that Latvia has stopped offering AAU sales because of low AAU prices.
In 2010  Japan and Japanese firms were the main buyers of AAUs.
However  firms regulated under the EU ETS are unable to use AAUs in meeting their emissions caps.
In November 2008  only 22 JI projects had been officially approved and registered.
The total projected emission savings from JI by 2012 are about one tenth that of the CDM.
Emission savings include cuts in methane  HFC  and N2O emissions.
2007  also looked at what 450 ppm scenarios projected for non Annex I Parties.
Only Parties to the UNFCCC can become Parties to the Kyoto Protocol.
Kyoto Parties can use land use  land use change  and forestry  LULUCF  in meeting their targets.
LULUCF activities are also called  sink  activities.
Particular criteria apply to the definition of forestry under the Kyoto Protocol.
Annex I Parties use of forest management in meeting their targets is capped.
China was not a member of the group but an associate.
The G77 and China were in favour of strong uniform emission cuts across the developed world.
In the end  negotiations on the second period were set to open no later than 2005.
The principle was originally agreed in UNFCCC.
See United Nations Climate Change Conference.
Reduction limitations expired in 2013.
Yet  the compliance section of the treaty was highly contested in the Marrakesh Accords.
At the end of the signature period  82 countries and the European Community had signed.
The EU and its Member States ratified the Protocol in May 2002.
One of the 191 ratifying states—Canada—has renounced the protocol.
...  Almost all world leaders  e.g.
As of 2020  the US is the only signatory that has not ratified the Protocol.
The US accounted for 36  of emissions in 1990.
He also suggested that the recently signed Durban agreement may provide an alternative way forward.
The Harper government claimed it would find a  Made in Canada  solution.
Furthermore  the Protocol is not applied to UNFCCC observer the Holy See.
Several factors have contributed to this decline.
Energy use also decreased during the economic crisis in 2007–2008.
All of them complied with the Protocol.
Their average annual emissions in 2008–2012 were 24.2  below the 1990 level.
Hence  they surpassed their aggregate commitment by a large margin.
If the United States and Canada are included  the emissions decreased by 11.8 .
Cost estimates    Barker et al.
2007  p. 79  assessed the literature on cost estimates for the Kyoto Protocol.
2007  assessed the literature on climate change policy.
In these assessments  it was assumed that the UNFCCC or its Protocol would not be changed.
The Framework Convention and its Protocol include provisions for future policy actions to be taken.
Furthermore  seeking to compromise the freedoms of both private and public citizens.
China  India  Indonesia and Brazil weren t required to reduce their CO2 emissions.
It is held every year  it serves as the formal meeting of UNFCCC.
The first conference was held in 1995 in Berlin.
The 2013 conference was held in Warsaw.
Later COPs were held in Lima  Peru in 2014 and in Paris  France in 2015.
COP 22 was planned for Marrakesh  Morocco and COP 23 for Bonn  Germany.
It is the birthplace of the Kyoto School of philosophy.
The university claims eleven Nobel Laureates and two Fields Medalists among its faculty and alumni.
The university is also known as the starting point for the Kyoto School philosophical movement.
It can be seen in the several rankings such as shown below.
The following rankings are examples of Kyodai s positions in world rankings.
According to Thomson Reuters  Kyodai is the No.1 research university in Japan.
Popularity and selectivity     Kyodai is one of the most selective universities in Japan.
Evaluation from Business World         Athletics    Kyoto University competes in 48 sports.
The university is a member of the Kansai Big Six Baseball League.
West Sea Circuit  referred to Kyushu and its surrounding islands.
There are many other signs of tectonic activity  including numerous areas of hot springs.
The most famous of these are in Beppu  on the east shore  and around Mt.
The island is separated from Honshu by the Kanmon Straits.
Except for Oita and Miyazaki  the eastern seaboard shows a general decline in population.
The Ryukyuans are an indigenous minority group in Japan.
The island is noted for various types of porcelain  including Arita  Imari  Satsuma  and Karatsu.
The Kanmon Bridge also connects the island with Honshu.
Railways on the island are operated by the Kyushu Railway Company  and Nishitetsu Railway.
Kyōgen  狂言   mad words  or  wild speech   is a form of traditional Japanese comic theater.
It also has parallels with the Greek satyr play  a short  comical play performed between tragedies.
By the 14th century  these forms of sarugaku had become known as Noh and kyōgen  respectively.
Kyōgen provided a major influence on the later development of kabuki theater.
Following the Meiji Restoration  however  this support ceased.
Elements of slapstick or satire are present in most kyōgen plays.
As with Noh  jo ha kyū is a fundamental principle  which is particularly relevant for movement.
As with Noh and kabuki  all kyōgen actors  including those in female roles  are men.
Consequently  the masks of kyōgen are less numerous in variety than Noh masks.
Both masks and costumes are simpler than those characteristic of Noh.
Few props are used  and minimal or no stage sets.
As with Noh  a fan is a common accessory.
which in modern Japanese one uses kashikomarimashita  畏まりました .
Plays often begin with set phrases such as Kore wa kono atari ni sumai itasu mono de gozaru.
This is the person who resides in this place.
I won t do it  I won t do it! .
Lines are delivered in a characteristic rhythmic  sing song voice  and generally quite loudly.
Pace  pitch  and volume are all varied for emphasis and effect.
When walking  the body seeks to remain at the same level  without bobbing up or down.
Arms and legs are kept slightly bent.
However  the emphasis of kyōgen is on dialogue and action  rather than on music or dance.
The movements are broadly similar to Noh dances.
New kyogen are written regularly  though few new plays enter the repertoire.
In rare cases bilingual kyōgen or fusion of kyōgen with Western forms has been done.
Kuchimane in particular is frequently performed.
The priest later gets his revenge by chanting and summoning supernatural forces.
But in the end  the farmer refuses to nurse the priest back to health.
Inexorable Modernity  Japan s Grappling with Modernity in the Arts.
Miracles   mischief   Noh and Kyōgen theater in Japan.
West Sea Circuit  referred to Kyushu and its surrounding islands.
There are many other signs of tectonic activity  including numerous areas of hot springs.
The most famous of these are in Beppu  on the east shore  and around Mt.
The island is separated from Honshu by the Kanmon Straits.
Except for Oita and Miyazaki  the eastern seaboard shows a general decline in population.
The Ryukyuans are an indigenous minority group in Japan.
The island is noted for various types of porcelain  including Arita  Imari  Satsuma  and Karatsu.
The Kanmon Bridge also connects the island with Honshu.
Railways on the island are operated by the Kyushu Railway Company  and Nishitetsu Railway.
It is bordered by Ehime to the north west and Tokushima to the north east.
It is the largest but least populous of Shikoku s four prefectures.
Kōchi is famous for its many rivers.
The film shows views of Kōchi Prefecture.
The 2009 movie The Harimaya Bridge starring Danny Glover was set in Kochi.
Katsuo no tataki is skipjack tuna or bonito  lightly seared.
Traditionally this is done over the straw generated as a by product of the rice harvest.
They surround  Sawachi   feasts on large dishes  and take own portions by themselves.
Sports     The sports teams listed below are based in Kōchi.
It has also been called the Library of Congress Catalog Card Number  among other names.
This is known as centralized cataloging.
Each set of cards was given a serial number to help identify it.
Format    In its most elementary form  the number includes a year and a serial number.
The year has two digits for 1898 to 2000  and four digits beginning in 2001.
The hyphen that is often seen separating the year and serial number is optional.
More recently  the Library of Congress has instructed publishers not to include a hyphen.
The relationship would be dissolved once the boy reached adulthood  or left the monastery .
The man was permitted  if the boy agreed  to take the boy as his lover until he came of age.
As Japan progressed into the Meiji era  same sex practices continued.
However  there was a growing animosity towards these practices.
The practice of nanshoku began to die out after the Russo Japanese War.
Legality of same sex sexual activity     Homosexuality is legal in Japan.
Since then  Japan has had no laws against homosexuality.
The national minimum age of consent in Japan is 13 years old under the Japanese Criminal Law Code.
As an added note  even though the age of consent in Japan can be 13  the voting age is 18.
Adoption and parenting    Same sex couples are not allowed to legally adopt in Japan.
The law outlaws expressing hateful rhetoric in public.
Japan is the only country within the G7 to still not recognise same sex couples at all legally.
By that date  7 000 persons had legally changed gender.
The changes are scheduled to take effect on 1 April 2022.
Support for LGBT rights has been expressed by corporate executives and Olympic athlete Dai Tamesue.
She later briefly served on the House of Councillors in 2013.
It may be attributed to something genetic.
I feel sorry for them being a minority.
Companies review their accomplishments and congratulate their workers for their dedication.
Families get together and have dinner at home on this holiday.
In addition  individuals themselves are encouraged to relax and take care of themselves.
Also  increase in numbers of foreign nationals in the labor force is foreseen.
As of 2019 Japan s unemployment rate was the lowest in the G7.
Its employment rate for the working age population  15 64  was the highest in the G7.
This could have negative effect on the long term development.
Employment wise  female labor participation rate has gone up from 62.7  in 1997  to 70.1  in 2015.
Postwar generations were accustomed to prosperity and were also better educated than their elders.
As might be expected  these socioeconomic changes have affected workers  attitudes.
During the 1980s  the percentage of people who felt this way was declining.
Workers  identification with their employers was weakening as well.
In 2019  restaurant  retail shop and factory production line workers were added to the list.
Japanese companies have also established foreign subsidiaries to profit from low wages overseas.
This trend started in Singapore in the 1970s.
Hours are long  pay sub standard  and the freedom of the workers while in Japan is restricted.
There is also a substantial number of workers from Vietnam.
Brazil     Japanese Brazilians are descendants of Japanese who have immigrated to Brazil.
During that time  western stakes were greatly reduced or eliminated.
Japan      External links     Quotations related to Labor in Japan at Wikiquote
The land reclaimed is known as reclamation ground or land fill.
In Oceania it is frequently referred to as land rehabilitation.
Draining of submerged wetlands is often used to reclaim land for agricultural use.
Land dredging is also another method of land reclamation.
It is the removal of sediments and debris from the bottom of a body of water.
Habitation        Instances where the creation of new land was for the need of human activities.
Notable examples include        Asia     The whole 3 km2.
It took over 150 years to join the original Seven Islands of Bombay.
It is estimated that nearly 65  of tidal flats around the Yellow Sea have been reclaimed.
The entire island of The Pearl Qatar situated in West Bay  Doha   Qatar.
It is one of the six divisions of Malé City.
It was one of the most ambitious projects ever taken during the Colonial Hong Kong era.
Some 20  of land in the Tokyo Bay area has been reclaimed  most notably Odaiba artificial island.
Le Portier  Monaco and Gibraltar are also expanding due to land reclamation.
The city of Rio de Janeiro was largely built on reclaimed land  as was Wellington  New Zealand.
Artificial islands are an example of land reclamation.
Creating an artificial island is an expensive and risky undertaking.
It is often considered in places with high population density and a scarcity of flat land.
Agriculture     Agriculture was a drive for land reclamation before industrialisation.
The species of rice that grow on these grounds are more salt tolerant.
Another use of such enclosed land is the creation of fish ponds.
It is commonly seen on the Pearl River Delta and Hong Kong.
These reclaimed areas also attract species of migrating birds.
It is also an important method of mosquito control.
By 1977  the amount of land reclaimed totalled 172.03 square kilometres  66.42 sq mi .
An example of this is the city of Mumbai.
Some of the most common usages are for parks  golf courses and other sports fields.
Increasingly  however  office buildings and industrial uses are made on a completed landfill.
Aerial photographs prior to 1965 show this area to be tidelands of the San Francisco Bay.
The commission was created in response to growing concern over the shrinking size of the bay.
Parts of Singapore Airport are also on reclaimed land.
Hong Kong – 67 square kilometres  26 sq mi  of land was reclaimed up to 2013.
This was done to develop Mumbai as a harbour city.
Bahrain – 76.3  of original size of 410 square kilometres  160 sq mi   1931–2007 .
There are several man made islands in Abu Dhabi  such as Yas Island and Al Lulu Island.
Land grabbing titans who changed HK s profit for good .
Language isolates are in effect language families consisting of a single language.
For instance  Albanian  Armenian and Greek are commonly called Indo European isolates.
Similarly  within the Romance languages  Sardinian is a relative isolate.
Some languages once seen as isolates may be reclassified as small families.
Looking for relationships    In some situations  a language with no ancestor can arise.
Eventually  it could develop into the full fledged language of a population.
Extinct isolates    Caution is required when speaking of extinct languages as isolates.
Many extinct languages of the Americas such as Cayuse and Majena may likewise have been isolates.
Endangered  languages are either acquired irregularly or spoken only by older generations.
Data for several African languages  like Kwadi and Kwisi  are not sufficient for classification.
American Indian languages  The Historical Linguistics of Native America.
External links    Ethnologue s list of language isolates
In the 1st millennium AD  Chinese culture came to dominate East Asia.
Classical Chinese was adopted by scholars in Vietnam  Korea  and Japan.
There was a massive influx of Chinese vocabulary into these and other neighboring languages.
Some larger groupings have been proposed  but are not widely supported.
Other hypothetical groupings include the Sino Austronesian languages and Austro Tai languages.
Most MSEA languages are very analytic  with no inflection and little derivational morphology.
Grammatical relations are typically signalled by word order  particles and coverbs or adpositions.
Modality is expressed using sentence final particles.
The usual word order in MSEA languages is subject–verb–object.
Bengali also lacks gender  unlike most Indo European languages.
Some dialects bordering southeast Asia such as Chittagonian have even developed phonemic tone.
However  similar noun class systems are also found among most Sub Saharan African languages.
the topic  was often placed first  which was then followed by a statement about the topic.
This is especially true when speaking of the southern Chinese varieties.
With modernization and other trends  politeness language is evolving to be simpler.
See also    EALC      References          Citations           Sources cited
All of the spoken Ryukyuan languages are classified by UNESCO as endangered.
Speakers of Korean  and Zainichi Korean  which stems from Korean  also reside in Japan.
It is believed that they spoke a language  however it is unknown what kind of language it was.
Chinese characters were adopted and records of spoken language were made in Japan.
Details concerning the language before then are not well known.
According to 16th century records  Ainu languages had no written form.
Only from the 19th century did the Ainu languages begin to use katakana.
Orok language     The Orok language emerged before the common era.
It is unknown whether speakers of Nivkh still remain in Japan.
The Japanese government conducted negotiations with Western authorities in Dutch until around 1870.
Since then English became the primary language of interaction with Western countries.
Kanbun is a mandatory subject in the curricula of most Japanese secondary schools.
Laps is a commune in the Puy de Dôme department in Auvergne in central France.
Furthermore  abbreviations or smaller overlapping letters were often used.
This habit continued even in the Middle Ages.
Hundreds of symbols and abbreviations exist  varying from century to century.
An attempt by the emperor Claudius to introduce three additional letters did not last.
⟨Z⟩ was given its Greek name  zeta.
However  in place of taking an apex  the letter i was written taller  ⟨á é ꟾ ó v́⟩.
This script evolved into the medieval scripts known as Merovingian and Carolingian minuscule.
Later  it was adopted by non Catholic countries.
Vox Latina – a guide to the pronunciation of classical Latin.
Since Latvia s independence in 1918  it has been referred to as one of the Baltic states.
Latvia has 1 957 200 inhabitants and a territory of 64 589 km2  24 938 sq mi .
The country has a temperate seasonal climate.
Latvia is a democratic sovereign state  parliamentary republic.
Capital city Riga served as the European Capital of Culture in 2014.
Latvian is the official language.
Latvians and Livonians are the indigenous people of Latvia.
Latvian and Lithuanian are the only two surviving Baltic languages.
Until World War II  Latvia also had significant minorities of ethnic Germans and Jews.
The Russian population is largely Eastern Orthodox Christians.
The Balts established trade routes to Rome and Byzantium  trading local amber for precious metals.
Pope Celestine III had called for a crusade against pagans in Northern Europe in 1193.
At the beginning of the 13th century  Germans ruled large parts of what is currently Latvia.
After the Polish–Swedish War  northern Livonia  including Vidzeme  came under Swedish rule.
Riga became the capital of Swedish Livonia and the largest city in the entire Swedish Empire.
Under Swedish and largely German rule  western Latvia adopted Lutheranism as its main religion.
The native dialect remained distinct  although it acquired many Polish and Russian loanwords.
National awakening      During the 19th century  the social structure changed dramatically.
Since then  it has been amended and is still in effect in Latvia today.
In the north  Latvia  Finland and Estonia were assigned to the Soviet sphere.
State administrators were liquidated and replaced by Soviet cadres.
Elections were held with single pro Soviet candidates listed for many positions.
Latvia  then a puppet government  was headed by Augusts Kirhenšteins.
The Soviet Union incorporated Latvia on 5 August 1940  as The Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic.
There were some spontaneous uprisings by Latvians against the Red Army which helped the Germans.
30 000 Jews were shot in Latvia in the autumn of 1941.
In 1944  part of the Latvian territory once more came under Soviet control.
The Soviets immediately began to reinstate the Soviet system.
This operation had the desired effect of reducing the anti Soviet partisan activity.
Some managed to escape arrest and joined the partisans.
In the post war period  Latvia was made to adopt Soviet farming methods.
Rural areas were forced into collectivization.
Latvia had its own film industry and musical records factory  LPs .
However  there were not enough people to operate the newly built factories.
The population of Latvia reached its peak in 1990 at just under 2.7 million people.
However  universal citizenship for all permanent residents was not adopted.
Still  today there are 290 660 non citizens in Latvia  which represent 14.1  of the population.
The Saeima  Latvia s parliament  was again elected in 1993.
The major goals of Latvia in the 1990s  to join NATO and the European Union  were achieved in 2004.
In 2015 Latvia held the presidency of Council of the European Union.
On 1 July 2016  Latvia became a member of the OECD.
The longest river on Latvian territory is the Gauja  at 452 km  281 mi  in length.
Latvia s highest point is Gaiziņkalns  311.6 m  1 022 ft .
The length of Latvia s Baltic coastline is 494 km  307 mi .
An inlet of the Baltic Sea  the shallow Gulf of Riga is situated in the northwest of the country.
Winter starts in mid December and lasts until mid March.
Summer starts in June and lasts until August.
Summers are usually warm and sunny  with cool evenings and nights.
Summers have average temperatures of around 19 °C  66 °F   with extremes of 35 °C  95 °F .
Spring and autumn bring fairly mild weather.
Environment      Most of the country is composed of fertile lowland plains and moderate hills.
Mires occupy 9.9  of Latvia s territory.
Of these  42  are raised bogs  49  are fens  and 9  are transitional mires.
The first laws and regulations were promulgated in the 16th and 17th centuries.
This means they use less biocapacity than Latvia contains.
As a result  Latvia is running a biocapacity reserve.
The white wagtail  Motacilla alba  Latvian  baltā cielava  is Latvia s national bird.
Its national insect is the two spot ladybird  Adalia bipunctata  Latvian  divpunktu mārīte .
Amber  fossilized tree resin  is one of Latvia s most important cultural symbols.
The president is elected by the Saeima in a separate election  also held every four years.
This system also existed before World War II.
The most senior civil servants are the thirteen Secretaries of State.
It is also a member of the Council of the Baltic Sea States and Nordic Investment Bank.
It was a member of the League of Nations  1921–1946 .
Latvia is part of the Schengen Area and joined the Eurozone on 1 January 2014.
Latvia has established diplomatic relations with 158 countries.
There are 37 foreign embassies and 11 international organisations in Latvia s capital Riga.
The secretariat of the Northern Dimension Partnership on Culture  NDPC  will be located in Riga.
Latvia held the Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2015.
In November 2012  the three countries agreed to create a joint military staff in 2013.
On 1 January 2014  the euro became the country s currency  superseding the Lats.
A law expanding the scope for selling land  including to foreigners  was passed in 1997.
Rating agency Standard   Poor s raised its outlook on Latvia s debt from negative to stable.
Infrastructure      The transport sector is around 14  of GDP.
Most transit traffic uses these and half the cargo is crude oil and oil products.
Free port of Ventspils is one of the busiest ports in the Baltic states.
It has direct flight to over 80 destinations in 30 countries.
The only other airport handling regular commercial flights is Liepāja International Airport.
Latvia s railway network is currently incompatible with European standard gauge lines.
In 2012  45.0  of births were to unmarried women.
The life expectancy in 2013 was estimated at 73.19 years  68.13 years male  78.53 years female .
In 2017  there were 1 054 433 females and 895 683 males living in Latvian territory.
Every year  more boys are born than girls.
Until the age of 39  there are more males than females.
From the age of 70  there are 2.3 times as many females than males.
250 people identify as Livonians  Baltic Finnic people native to Latvia .
English is also widely accepted in Latvia in business and tourism.
Religion      The largest religion in Latvia is Christianity  79  .
In 2011  there were 416 religious Jews  319 Muslims and 102 Hindus.
About 21  of the total population is not affiliated with a specific religion.
Both nowadays cover a variety of different fields.
The University of Daugavpils is another significant centre of education.
The greatest number of patents  both nationwide and abroad  are in medical chemistry.
There were 59 hospitals in Latvia in 2009  down from 94 in 2007 and 121 in 2006.
They developed distinct cultural heritage  characterised by both Latvian and German influences.
However  most indigenous Latvians did not participate in this particular cultural life.
In the 19th century  Latvian nationalist movements emerged.
They promoted Latvian culture and encouraged Latvians to take part in cultural activities.
It has been held since 1873  normally every five years.
Approximately 30 000 performers altogether participate in the event.
Fish is commonly consumed due to Latvia s location on the Baltic Sea.
Latvian cuisine has been influenced by the neighbouring countries.
Sorrel soup  skābeņu zupa  is also consumed by Latvians.
Rupjmaize is a dark bread made from rye  considered the national staple.
Sport      Ice hockey is usually considered the most popular sport in Latvia.
Dinamo Riga is the country s strongest hockey club  playing in the Kontinental Hockey League.
The national tournament is the Latvian Hockey Higher League  held since 1931.
The 2006 IIHF World Championship was held in Riga.
The second most popular sport is basketball.
Latvia was one of the EuroBasket 2015 hosts.
They are checked by an independent judiciary and monitored by a free and active press.
The Peace Preservation Law of 1925 gave police the authority to arrest people for  wrong thoughts .
The National Public Safety Commission system has been retained.
It has an incarceration rate of 41 per 100 000 people.
According to the UNODC it ranks 219 out of 230 countries.
It has a rate of just 0.20 per 100 000 inhabitants.
There were 306 in 2017.The number of firearm related deaths is low.
However  the suicide rate is relatively high with 21.7 per 100 000 in 2013.
Nationwide  there are approximately 23 400 female police officers and 13 000 female civilian staff.
The citizen oversight is provided by the National Public Safety Commission.
The Hokkaido Prefectural Police Department is known as Dō keisatsu  道警察 .
His title is not a rank  but rather denotes his position as head of the NPA.
In 1990 there were 2 846 incidents in and on the waters.
In those incidents  1 479 people drowned or were lost and 1 347 people were rescued.
Their activities are not generally known to the public.
Importing or using any type of narcotics is illegal and there is generally no leniency.
Authorities can detain a suspect for up to three weeks without charges.
Solitary confinement is common and you only get access to a lawyer.
The Japanese Constitution enacted after World War II is the supreme law in Japan.
An independent judiciary has the power of review laws and government acts for constitutionality.
These immigrants  wherever they came from  had significant influence on the development of Japan.
As a result  the whole legal system formed a primitive legal pluralism of court law and clan law.
Nevertheless  there are doubts that the document was fabricated later.
Japan began to dispatch envoys to China s Sui Dynasty in 607.
Later  in 630  the first Japanese envoy to the Tang Dynasty was dispatched.
The envoys learned of Tang Dynasty s laws  as a mechanism to support China s centralized state.
Other provisions correspond to modern family law and procedural law.
Ritsuryō was strongly influenced by Confucian ethics.
One major reform on the law was the Taihō  Great Law  Code  promulgated in 702.
Furthermore  as the power of the samurais rose  samurai laws  武家法 bukehō  came to be established.
It was the first systematic code for the samurai class.
Following neo Confucian ideas  the populace was divided into classes  with the samurai on top.
Daimyos had considerable autonomy within their domains  han  and issued their own edicts.
The Constitution also renounced war  introduced a Bill of Rights  and authorized judicial review.
Statutory law originates from the National Diet  with the approval of the Emperor as a formality.
Other codes were also periodically amended.
For example  company law was separated from the Civil Code in 2005.
For example  in the area of administrative law  there isn t a comprehensive administrative code.
1 .Delegated legislation is implicitly recognized under Art.
The Supreme Court tend to allow broad delegations of power to the government.
709  and was developed by a substantial body of case law.
The Civil Code of Japan  民法 Minpō  was created in 1896.
Book Two is entitled Real Rights  物権  and covers property and security rights over real property.
Book Three is the Law of Obligations  債権 .
Book Four deals with family relations  親族   including marriage and guardianship.
Other parts of the Civil Code remained substantially unchanged even after the occupation.
A Company Law was separated from the Commercial Code in 2005.
Similar provisions can be found in French and German law.
These provisions are often invoked by Japanese courts to reach equitable results.
Acts by juridical persons may be ultra vires if they exceed their scope of purposes.
Consideration is not required and gifts are also considered contracts.
Some acts are voidable  meaning that they are valid until an entitled person rescinds the act.
Tort law was gradually developed largely based on case law  including cases on pollution.
Property     Property rights  or real rights  物権   are outlined in Book Two of the Civil Code.
It concerns the rights of a person over a thing  a right in rem rather than in personam.
Narita International Airport is another well known example of eminent domain power in Japan.
The reformed Code came into effect in 1998.
The defendant s lawyer must then file an answer to the complaint.
In a complex dispute  there are usually multiple Preparatory Proceedings.
The Oral Proceedings are held in open court  either by a single judge or three judges.
After the close proceedings  the court renders a judgment on the merits of the case.
Shareholder liability rules generally follow American example.
The  employment  or  service  contract is recognised under article 623 of the Japanese Civil Code.
These are to be maintained through the right to work  s. 27  and the right to property  s. 29 .
The Constitution also guarantees certain work related rights.
Capital punishment was the main measure of dealing with offenders in the criminal justice system.
Under feudalism  authorities frequently used the death penalty against political rivals.
Under this system  the roles of the police  the prosecutor  and the judge changed.
In addition  professional judges have always enjoyed a high level of trust in Japanese society.
The government attempts to reform older laws by issuing a series of supplements.
Criminal law     Japanese criminal law is primarily based on the Criminal Code  刑法  of 1907.
As a result  crimes against the imperial family and the state were highly emphasized.
Crimes against property include theft  fraud  robbery  extortion  and embezzlement.
Bribery is considered a crime against the state.
There are a large number of traffic offenses  indicating serious problems on roads in Japan.
Annually  there are 11 000 deaths caused by traffic accidents.
Persons younger than 20 years of age are legally considered juveniles.
According to the Juvenile Law  juvenile cases go to Family court.
There are special laws regulating cannabis  narcotics and psychotropics  stimulants and opium.
Drug regulations cover punishment for the use  trade  possession  and production of drugs.
Toluene  thinner  and bonding substances are regulated by special law as well.
Their abuse is a serious problem among the youth  partly because of their cheap price.
The Ministry of Justice summarizes their statistics and publishes a book  White Paper on Crime.
Japan is widely regarded to have exceptionally low levels of crime.
In 2018  crime fell to a new low since World War II  declining for the 16th consecutive year.
Investigation is conducted by police officers and public prosecutors.
Suspects can be detained for 10 days prior to indictment  renewable once  Art.
Judges deliver the verdict and determine sentencing.
Both the prosecution and the defense may appeal to a higher court.
There are seven bureaus in the major cities  excluding Tokyo and the northern island of Hokkaido.
In practice  the PP forces are located in each of the 47 prefectures.
At times  there is an excess of intervention by police.
There are two types of police budgets  the national budget and the prefectural budget.
In all  74.2  of the total  147 301 billion yen  went toward NPA expenses.
In 1990  there were about 258 800 authorized full time police personnel.
The ratio of police to population is about one officer to 556 citizens.
Motor vehicles are assigned to all police boxes throughout the country.
In addition  about 200 police boats and 60 helicopters are assigned to each jurisdiction.
However  few guns are actually used.
One problem is that offenders may initially attack police in order to obtain guns.
Japan introduced a new legal training system in 2004 as part of a justice system reform.
The justice system reform has been criticized for failing to incorporate a gender perspective.
There is also one Family Court tied to each District Court.
The state must provide legal counsel if the defendant cannot afford a private lawyer.
There are no procedures equivalent to a guilty plea.
They have a large amount of discretion in controlling and directing criminal cases.
Japan has a low rate of acquittals and a high rate of convictions.
The Spirit of Japanese Law  revised edn.
The Great Powers were often reluctant to do so.
Sanctions could hurt League members  so they were reluctant to comply with them.
At its greatest extent from 28 September 1934 to 23 February 1935  it had 58 members.
Germany withdrew from the League  as did Japan  Italy  Spain and others.
In the midst of the War  Wilson refused.
The British committee was finally appointed in February 1918.
Lodge gained a majority of Senators.
They symbolised the Earth s five continents and  five races.
In addition  there were several auxiliary agencies and commissions.
It met in Geneva and  after its initial sessions in 1920  it convened once a year in September.
The Council met  on average  five times a year and in extraordinary sessions when required.
In total  107 sessions were held between 1920 and 1939.
The Council and the Assembly established its constitution.
Its judges were elected by the Council and the Assembly  and its budget was provided by the latter.
The Court was open to all the nations of the world under certain broad conditions.
Albert Thomas was its first director.
The French philosopher Henri Bergson became the first chairman of the committee.
Records were kept to control slavery  prostitution  and the trafficking of women and children.
Nonetheless  in 1920 the Council of the League called for a financial conference.
In 1923  a permanent economic and financial Organization came into being.
Brazil was the first founding member to withdraw  14 June 1926   and Haiti the last  April 1942 .
The Allies tended to refer only particularly difficult matters to the League.
This change can be seen in the relationship between the League and non members.
They also used the League s machinery to try to improve relations and settle their differences.
By 1920  the dispute had escalated to the point that there was danger of war.
After the First World War  Poland laid claim to Upper Silesia  which had been part of Prussia.
The settlement produced peace in the area until the beginning of the Second World War.
Greek troops conducted military operations in the south of Albania.
The League sent a commission of representatives from various powers to the region.
Italian forces then withdrew from Corfu.
In December 1923  the League Council appointed a Commission of Inquiry.
The commission chose to cede Memel to Lithuania and give the area autonomous rights.
The League of Nations failed to prevent the secession of the Memel region to Germany.
It was annexed by Turkey with French consent in mid 1939.
In March 1921  the League abandoned plans for the plebiscite.
The Peruvian Army occupied Leticia  leading to an armed conflict between the two nations.
Three days after the initial incident  Greek troops invaded Bulgaria.
The resulting commission was jointly appointed by the League  the United States  and Liberia.
In 1930  a League report confirmed the presence of slavery and forced labour.
The League of Nations sent observers.
The Lytton Report appeared a year later  October 1932 .
It declared Japan to be the aggressor and demanded Manchuria be returned to China.
It also brought both countries to the brink of economic disaster.
Mussolini was prepared to agree to the pact  but news of the deal leaked out.
In February 1937  the League did ban foreign volunteers  but this was in practice a symbolic move.
Finland and the Baltic states  as well as eastern Poland  fell into the Soviet sphere.
After invading Poland on September 17  1939  on November 30 the Soviets invaded Finland.
Then  the League of Nations for the first time expelled a member who had violated the Covenant.
The Soviet Union was the only League member ever to suffer such an indignity.
Members of the League held different views towards the issue.
In fact  League members themselves re armed.
Additionally  the power of the League was limited by the United States  refusal to join.
The League s neutrality tended to manifest itself as indecision.
Global representation     Representation at the League was often a problem.
The most conspicuous absentee was the United States.
The League was further weakened when major powers left in the 1930s.
That is a terrible thing  but it is an essential part of collective security.
What is there to ensure that it will not  like other treaties  be broken?
Universal disarmament was a practical impossibility  Crowe warned.
Delegates from 34 nations attended the assembly.
It is located at the United Nations Office at Geneva.
It is scheduled for completion in 2022.
A collection of charters  speeches  etc.
In 1919  104 of the world s territories were LHT and an equal number were RHT.
Similarly  many of the countries that were a part of the French colonial empire adopted RHT.
Boat traffic on rivers is effectively RHT.
Boats are traditionally piloted from the starboard side to facilitate priority to the right.
There are many myths that attempt to explain why one or the other is preferred.
About 90 percent of people are right handed  and many explanations reference this.
So people walking horses might use RHT  to keep the animals separated.
It later was legislated as the London Bridge Act 1765  29 Geo.
Rotterdam was LHT until 1917  although the rest of the Netherlands was RHT.
Nazi Germany introduced the switch in Czechoslovakia in 1938–1939.
Rome was reported by Goethe as LHT in the 1780s.
Naples was also LHT although surrounding areas were often RHT.
The accident rate then dropped sharply  but soon rose to near its original level.
The day was known as Högertrafikomläggningen  or Dagen H for short.
Most passenger cars in Iceland were already LHD.
Africa      LHT was introduced in British West Africa.
These include Ghana  Gambia  Sierra Leone  and Nigeria.
All of these have remained LHT.
Despite it sharing land borders with two LHT countries  South Sudan has retained RHT.
The Portuguese Empire  then LHT  introduced LHT to Portuguese Mozambique and Portuguese Angola.
France introduced RHT in French West Africa and the Maghreb  where it is still used.
New York formalized RHT in 1804  New Jersey in 1813  and Massachusetts in 1821.
A common example is the Grumman LLV  which is used nationwide by the United States Postal Service.
As former French colonies  the provinces of Quebec and Ontario were always RHT.
The province of British Columbia changed to RHT in stages from 1920 to 1923.
Most cars are used RHD vehicles imported from Japan.
Mainland China is RHT except the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau.
LHT was uniform in the 1930s  then the northern provinces were RHT.
Nationalist China adopted RHT in 1946.
This convention was preserved when the CCP took the mainland and the KMT retreated to Taiwan.
It was returned to Japan in 1972 but did not convert back to LHT until 1978.
Okinawa is one of few places to have changed from RHT to LHT in the late 20th century.
Vietnam became RHT as part of French Indochina  as did Laos and Cambodia.
There were no reported incidents.
The change coincided with more restrictive enforcement of speeding and seat belt laws.
That day and the following day were declared public holidays  to reduce traffic.
A survey in 2009 found that 54  of Rwandans favoured the switch.
The survey indicated that RHD cars were 16  to 49  cheaper than their LHD counterparts.
Such borders are mostly located in Africa and southern Asia.
LHT Thailand has three RHT neighbours  Cambodia  Laos  and Myanmar.
In 2006  the daily average number of vehicle trips recorded at Lok Ma Chau was 31 100.
In LHT jurisdictions  the reverse is true.
Most American cars produced before 1910 were RHD.
Examples include   Where the driver needs a good view of the nearside  e.g.
Where it is more convenient for the driver to be on the nearside  e.g.
The Grumman LLV postal delivery truck is widely used with RHD configurations in RHT North America.
Some jurisdictions prohibit fitting a sidecar to a motorcycle s offside.
Rail traffic     In most countries  rail traffic travels on the same side as road traffic.
In Indonesia it is the reverse  RHT for rails  even for LRT systems  and LHT for roads .
China is basically LHT for long distance trains and RHT for metro systems.
Spain  which is RHT for railways has LHT for metros in Madrid and Bilbao.
Trams generally operate at the same side as other road traffic because they frequently share roads.
A country and its territories and dependencies are counted as one.
Legends may be transformed over time  in order to keep them fresh  vital  and realistic.
The Old French noun legende derives from the Medieval Latin legenda.
In its early English language usage  the word indicated a narrative of an event.
The term  urban legend   as used by folklorists  has appeared in print since at least 1968.
The Liancourt Rocks are a group of small islets in the Sea of Japan.
While South Korea controls the islets  its sovereignty over them is contested by Japan.
The Liancourt Rocks lie in rich fishing grounds that may contain large deposits of natural gas.
The western islet consists of a single peak and features many caves along the coastline.
The cliffs of the eastern islet are about 10 to 20 metres  33 to 66 ft  high.
Distances    The Liancourt Rocks are located at about 37°14′N 131°52′E.
Climate     Owing to their location and small size  the Liancourt Rocks can have harsh weather.
Overall  the climate is warm and humid  and heavily influenced by warm sea currents.
In summer  southerly winds dominate.
Ecology     The islets are volcanic rocks  with only a thin layer of soil and moss.
Since the early 1970s trees and some types of flowers were planted.
Cetaceans such as Minke whales  orcas  and dolphins are known to migrate through these areas.
The pollution is also causing loss of biodiversity in the surrounding seas.
In November 2004  eight tons of malodorous sludge was being dumped into the ocean every day.
He also helped install facilities from May 1968.
He died there in September 1987.
His son in law  Cho Jun ki  and his wife also resided there from 1985 until they moved out in 1992.
Since March 2005  more tourists have received approval to visit.
Tour companies charge around 350 000 Korean won per person  about US 310 as of 2019 .
In 2007  two desalination plants were built capable of producing 28 tons of clean water every day.
There are conflicting interpretations about the historical state of sovereignty over the islets.
According to the South Korean view  these refer to today s Liancourt Rocks.
North Korea and South Korea agree that the islands are Korean territory and reject Japan s claim.
The most commonly used measure is life expectancy at birth  LEB   which can be defined in two ways.
In the Bronze Age and the Iron Age  human LEB was 26 years  the 2010 world LEB was 67.2 years.
In recent years  LEB in Eswatini  Swaziland  is about 49  while LEB in Japan is about 83.
Longevity  maximum lifespan  and life expectancy are not synonyms.
Maximum lifespan is the age at death for the longest lived individual of a species.
The term  maximum lifespan  has a quite different meaning and is more related to longevity.
Therefore  the capacity for equivalent hidden errors make maximum lifespan records highly dubious.
However  this view has been questioned on the basis of error patterns.
In many instances  life expectancy varied considerably according to class and gender.
Life expectancy at birth takes account of infant mortality but not prenatal mortality.
The impact of AIDS on life expectancy is particularly notable in many African countries.
In South Africa  life expectancy was 63 in 1990  57 in 2000  and 58 in 2011.
This 3.8 year gap  however  is the lowest it has been since 1975 at the latest.
The greatest difference was 7.1 years in 1993.
The life expectancy of Hispanic Americans is 81.2 years.
Multi generational poverty found in struggling neighborhoods also contributes.
Economic circumstances      Economic circumstances also affect life expectancy.
This may reflect factors such as diet and lifestyle  as well as access to medical care.
This is one way that occupation can have a major effect on life expectancy.
There are many reasons for this.
These far outweigh the female mortality rate from breast cancer and cervical cancer.
A paper from 2015 found that female fetuses have a higher mortality rate than male fetuses.
At the other extreme  about 90  of individuals aged 110 are female.
Data from the UK shows the gap in life expectancy between men and women decreasing in later life.
This thus suggests that females tend to live longer than males.
Before 1880 death rates were the same.
The mentally ill have been shown to have a 10  to a 25 year reduction in life expectancy.
For instance  psychiatric medications can increase the risk of developing diabetes.
This association may be due partly to higher income  which can lead to increased life expectancy.
Pre school education also plays a large role in life expectancy.
It was found that high quality early stage childhood education had positive effects on health.
are likely to have genes that code for slow aging  which often translates to good cellular repair.
That is the key to why animals like giant tortoises can live so long.
The life of a product  more often termed shelf life  is also computed using similar methods.
That is a probability  not a mortality rate.
displaystyle e  x   sum   k 1    infty        k p  x .
Life expectancy is by definition an arithmetic mean.
For cohorts with some survivors  it is estimated by using mortality experience in recent years.
The estimates are called period cohort life expectancies.
Approaches being explored include fasting  exercise  and senolytic drugs.
A strongly associated indirect measure is income inequality.
There is a similar relationship among states in the US  r   −0.620 .
childbirth  war   and those who live unimpeded until old age.
Science author Christopher Wanjek said  has the human race increased its life span?
This is one of the biggest misconceptions about old age.
The maximum life span  or oldest age a human can live  may be constant.
He writes    a ge specific mortality rates have declined across the adult lifespan.
A smaller fraction of adults die at 20  at 30  at 40  at 50  and so on across the lifespan.
As a result  we live longer on average...
See also          Increasing life expectancy          Notes    a.
It is the most powerful position in the country  and has a prominent role in foreign relations.
Since 25 June 2013  Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani is the current Emir.
The order of succession in Qatar is determined by appointments within the House of Al Thani.
This is a list of Asian stock exchanges.
In the Asian region  there are multiple stock exchanges.
Later Baekje became a Japanese ally in further fighting on the Korean peninsula.
This claim is disputed by Korean historians due to a lack of evidence in non Japanese histories.
In 663 Silla  allied with Tang China and destroyed the Japanese naval fleet along the Korean coast.
The Japanese invaded again in 1597–1598.
His second chief Shioko  disembarked at Parañaque with 600 seamen  who were Japanese.
His intent was to take Manila  but he was defeated by the Spanish.
The Chinese Japanese War occurred in 1894–1895.
The Boxer Rebellion      20th century    The Russian Japanese War occurred in 1904–1905.
This was part of a plan to capture them  but the plan was suspended.
Japan acquired the Liaotung Peninsula  South Manchurian Railway Zone  and Karafuto island in 1905.
Japan annexed Korea in 1905–1910.
The  Asama  patrolled in the Gulf of California  Cortes Sea  in April 1915.
The Japanese took over South Pacific Mandate and territories in Shantung in 1918–1919.
The Japanese landed at Petropavlovsk Kamchatsky and captured of Kamchatka.
Japan retained this area until 1927.
Japan gained partial control of the northern sector of Sakhalin island from 1918 until 1925.
This was during the times of the White Russian anti communist administration of Admiral Kolchak.
These Russian leaders were under the effective control of the Japanese Army s General Ohi.
On December 12  1937  the  Panay incident  occurred.
U.S. Japanese hostilities almost began in the same year.
The Changkufeng Incident took place in 1938.
The Nomonhan Incident occurred in 1939.
The Pacific War was fought from 1941 to 1945.
Some heavy flying boats from the Marshall Islands area stuck Hawaii.
Soviet paratroopers were dropped over Kwantung and began the invasion of North Korean lands.
This is a list of significant Japanese poetry anthologies.
Heian period  794 to 1185      Imperial waka anthologies  anthologies as a national project.
Twenty one Imperial anthologies were created  they are collectively known as the Nijūichidaishū.
They were one of sources of the imperial anthologies.
Hitomarokashū An anthology of Kakinomoto no Hitomaro works.
Many misattributed waka are included.
Tsurayukishū An anthology of Ki no Tsurayuki works  one of editors of Kokin Wakashū.
It gave influence to the waka poetry in the middle Heian period.
Till Meiji it had been read as elementary book for waka poets.
Fujiwara no Teika Kashū An anthology of Fujiwara no Teika works.
The significant anthology of early haikai renga from which haiku later developed.
This is a list of monarchs who have reigned over the Pacific island of Niue.
Before that time  there appears to have been no national government or national leader in Niue.
From then on  a succession of patu iki  kings  ruled the island  the first of whom was Puni mata.
Elizabeth II was the first monarch to be explicitly titled Queen of New Zealand  however  in 1952.
Today  Niue is part of the Realm of New Zealand  the successor political entity to the dominion.
The Sultan s full title is  His Majesty The Sultan and Yang Di Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam.
Japan accepted the UNESCO World Heritage Convention on 30 June 1992.
This is a list of cities in Japan sorted by prefecture and within prefecture by founding date.
The list is also sortable by population  area  density and foundation date.
Most large cities in Japan are cities designated by government ordinance.
Some regionally important cities are designated as core cities.
Tokyo is not included on this list  as the City of Tokyo ceased to exist on July 1  1943.
The source websites of each prefectures  populations are according to ja Template 自治体人口 doc.
This is a list of cities in Japan sorted by prefecture and within prefecture by founding date.
The list is also sortable by population  area  density and foundation date.
Most large cities in Japan are cities designated by government ordinance.
Some regionally important cities are designated as core cities.
Tokyo is not included on this list  as the City of Tokyo ceased to exist on July 1  1943.
The source websites of each prefectures  populations are according to ja Template 自治体人口 doc.
All 193 member states of the United Nations plus the Vatican City are given a rank number.
Largely unrecognised states not in ISO 3166 1 are included in the list in ranked order.
Coastal internal waters  some small bays  may be included.
Territorial seas are not included unless otherwise noted.
Sovereign states with areas greater than 100 000 km2 are shown in green.
Areas include inland water bodies  lakes  reservoirs  rivers .
Claims to parts of Antarctica by various countries are not included.
This is a list of countries and dependencies by population.
In addition  this list includes certain states with limited recognition not found in ISO 3166 1.
Furthermore  the addition of figures from all countries may not equal the world total.
In addition  sovereign states with limited recognition are not assigned a number rank.
The list also includes but does not rank unrecognized but de facto independent countries.
All 193 member states of the United Nations plus the Vatican City are given a rank number.
The list does not include entities not on ISO 3166 1  except for states with limited recognition.
Main table    The names of dependent territories are shown in italics.
Data are in millions of international dollars  they were compiled by the World Bank.
The third table is a tabulation of the CIA World Factbook GDP  PPP  data update of 2017.
In addition  non sovereign entities are marked in italics.
China s entry does not include the two special administrative regions  namely Hong Kong and Macau.
For rankings regarding wealth  see list of countries by wealth per adult.
Such calculations are prepared by various organizations  including the IMF and the World Bank.
See Standard of living and GDP.
These non sovereign entities  former countries and other special groupings are in italics.
They are listed in dollar order  but are not given a numerical rank.
places rich in Oil   Gas reserves tend to have high GDP per capita figures .
It is estimated that over 15  of global jurisdictions are tax havens  see tax haven lists .
These investments in empty corporate shells almost always pass through well known tax havens.
Ireland is one of the world s largest corporate tax havens.
Ireland has  more or less  stopped using GDP to measure its own economy.
Non sovereign entities are marked in italics.
Therefore  these figures should be used with caution.
On the whole  PPP per capita figures are more narrowly spread than nominal GDP per capita figures.
In addition  non sovereign entities are marked in italics.
Note that many of leading GDP per capita  nominal  jurisdictions  such as Ireland  are tax havens.
All data are in current United States dollars.
Historical data can be found here.
2015 Irish GDP is 143  of 2015 Irish GNI .
These investments in empty corporate shells almost always pass through well known tax havens.
Rarely when one of the indicators is missing cross country regression models are used.
Can sort in ascending or descending order.
CIA Data from the Central Intelligence Agency s The World Factbook.
However  the ISBN remains the same.
Canada     Canada represented 2.63  of the world s economy in 1969.
In 2012 Canada s share was 2.54 .
It accounted for 17.2  of the world s economy in 1870.
France     France represented 5.8  of the world s economy in 1969.
France represented 6.5  of the world s economy in 1870.
It accounted for 5.5  of the world s economy in 1820  6.5  in 1870  and 8.8  in 1913.
India made up 16  of the world s economy in 1820 and 25  in the 1500s .
Italy     Italy represented 5.11  of the world s economy in 1969.
Although the very lowest since 1960 was in the year 1960 when it produced 3.28  of the world s GDP.
It accounted for 5.2  of the world s economy in 1820  9.1  in 1870  and 8.3  in 1913.
England  Scotland and Wales generated 1.8  of the world s GDP in 1600.
It accounted for 1.8  of the world s economy in 1820  8.9  in 1870  and 19.1  in 1913.
This article contains a list of countries by length of coastline  in kilometers.
A coastline of zero indicates that the country is landlocked.
Overview    The coastline paradox states that a coastline does not have a well defined length.
This  magnifying  effect is greater for convoluted coastlines than for relatively smooth ones.
This ratio measures how many metres of coastline correspond to every square kilometer of land area.
It may include territories whose status have changed.
2  The length between two vertices is calculated on the surface of a sphere.
Coastline length for overseas territories and dependencies are listed separately.
Disputed areas are not included in country or regional totals.
Several non sovereign entities are also included in this list.
The following table shows the life expectancy at birth for the period 2010 to 2015.
World Bank s Hazard Risk Management .
US news site focused on disaster related news.
Includes country profiles  disaster profiles and a disaster list.
This is a list of countries by oil imports based on The World Factbook   and other sources.
Many countries also export oil  and some export more oil than they import.
The list also includes but does not rank unrecognized but de facto independent countries.
All 193 member states of the United Nations plus the Vatican City are given a rank number.
The list does not include entities not on ISO 3166 1  except for states with limited recognition.
Main table    The names of dependent territories are shown in italics.
List    Only those nations which annually spend more than 50 million dollars have been included.
The world s total nominal R D spending was approximately one trillion dollars in 2010.
This is a list of countries by unemployment rate.
Unemployment rates are often seasonally adjusted to avoid variations that depend on time of year.
It is a standard means of measuring well being  especially child welfare.
Their titles  however  are recognised by the state.
Entries are listed beside their respective dominions  and are grouped by country.
Styles and names are listed in their conventional local form.
The state became a republic in 1987  abolishing the title by establishing a new constitution.
Retrieved 19 April 2010.CS1 maint  ref harv  link  Tick  Donald P.  2004–2008 .
In many cases  a monarch will also be linked with a state religion.
These monarchs reign as head of state in their respective sovereign states.
For current claimants to abolished thrones  see pretenders.
The Han people are the largest ethnic group in mainland China.
In 2010  91.51  of the population were classified as Han   1.2 billion .
At least 126 000 people from Canada  the US and Europe are living in Mainland China.
Although that  the speakers of Bumang are also included in this Dai nationality.
The term Gaoshan has a different connotation in Taiwan than it does in mainland China.
Presumably  other members of such groups may have been counted within larger  recognized  groups.
The highest point in Japan is the summit of Mount Fuji at 3 776.24 m  12 389 ft .
At 150 m  492 ft  below sea level  the bottom of Hachinohe mine is the country s lowest point.
The surface of Hachirōgata is Japan s lowest natural point at 4 m  13 ft  below sea level.
All of these points are accessible to the public.
Google Earth makes use of the WGS84 geodetic reference system.
It is between Honshu and Kyushu.
These islands are called the Chishima Islands.
Largest islands of Japan     These are the 50 largest islands of Japan.
It excludes the disputed Kuril islands known as the northern territories.
The King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan is Jordan s head of state and monarch.
He serves as the head of the Jordanian monarchy—the Hashemite dynasty.
The king is addressed as His Majesty  صاحب الجلالة .
Jordan is a constitutional monarchy.
Once independence was gained  Abdullah was crowned the country s first monarch.
The current monarch is Abdullah II  who succeeded his father on 7 February 1999.
The list of lakes in Japan ranked by surface area.
The UN figures are a mixture of city proper  metropolitan area  and urban area.
The UN figures are a mixture of city proper  metropolitan area  and urban area.
These cities are already well within their MMAs and should not greatly alter their formation.
These cities therefore formed major metropolitan areas in the 2010 census.
Shizuoka  Hamamatsu major metropolitan area Hamamatsu also became a designated city in 2007.
The monarch also represents peace  stability  and prosperity to the Khmer people.
Acting as  supreme arbiter  to enable the functioning of state institutions.
This article list the monarchs of Lesotho  also known as Basutoland until 1966 .
The current King is Letsie III.
Compensation    The king is granted a privy purse amounting to 52 778 USD annually.
The first monarch of Tonga was George Tupou I.
Lists of earlier monarchs of Tonga    Tuʻi Tonga  rulers of Tonga from c. 950 to c. 1470.
Tuʻi Haʻatakalaua  rulers of Tonga from c. 1470 to c. 1800.
George Tupou I  the first king of Tonga  was the 19th Tuʻi Kanokupolu.
National Parks are designated and in principle managed by the Ministry of the Environment.
In 1929 the National Parks Association was formed.
In 1931 the first National Parks Law  国立公園法  was passed.
In addition  there were 314 Prefectural Parks covering 19 726 km²  5.2  of the land area .
The state owns only approximately half of the land in the parks.
Map of National Parks    This map shows the locations of the national parks in Japan.
Note Ogasawara National Park is not visible on the map.
In Japan any organization that supports a candidate needs to register itself as a political party.
Each of these parties have some local or national influence.
Political parties receive public party funding  ¥ 250 per citizen  about ¥ 32 bill.
Green Party    created in 2012 as successor of Greens Japan  Midori no Mirai  lit.
Affiliated with the Osaka Ishin no Kai that was formed in October 2015.
assembly of independents   centrist   1999–2004  The Spirit of Japan Party  Nippon Sōshintō  lit.
Lost all of its seats and dissolved into Green Wind in 2013.
2012–2013  Green Wind   Another short lived anti nuclear party.
List of railway companies in Japan lists Japanese railway operators.
Those in italics are the third sector operators  being half public  half private.
Category 3 railway operators and subsidiary companies are not listed.
Some English names are unofficial.
Japan is divided into eight regions.
Each region contains one or more of the country s 47 prefectures.
The eight traditional regions are marked in bold.
The Mogami  the Fuji and the Kuma are regarded as the three most rapid rivers of Japan.
Most rivers are dammed to supply both water and electricity.
The longest river of Japan is the Shinano  which flows from Nagano to Niigata.
List of rivers in Japan    The list below is in geographical order  from north to south .
Class A rivers      There are 13 class A river systems as follows.
Their tributaries are also listed.
This is the list of rulers in Morocco  since the establishment of the first in 789.
The common and formal titles of these rulers has varied  depending on the time period.
Since 1957  the designation King has been used.
The annual salary of the King is 488 604 USD.
A period of Umayyad overlordship followed then.
The Sultan of the Sultanate of Oman is the monarch and head of state of Oman.
It is the most powerful position in the country.
Since 11 January 2020  Haitham bin Tariq Al Said has been the current sultan.
1811   d. 1870  1871   13 Aug 1873         Thuwayni bin Muhammad al Busa idi   b.
1838   d. 1873  1873   1888                Sa id bin Muhammad al Busa idi  1st time   b.
It is also stated the Heir apparent must be a muslim and Legitimate son of Omani Muslim parents.
The system of the trusteeship council shall be issued by a Royal Decree.
Oman s Rulers Through History  13th Century AD – 18th Century AD  .
Retrieved 2010 07 19.Specific      Bibliography    Salil Ibn Razik  2004   First published 1871 .
This title in English usage usually refers to the head of the Catholic Church.
His list ends in 1049 with Leo IX as number 154.
Several changes were made to the list during the 20th century.
Christopher was considered a legitimate pope for a long time.
Pope elect Stephen was listed as Stephen II until the 1961 edition  when his name was removed.
Of the first 31 popes  28 died as martyrs  see List of murdered popes .
Popes with unique names are not identified by ordinals.
However  there are anomalies in the numbering of the popes.
Donus  The name has only been used by one pope.
Felix  Antipope Felix II  356–357  was kept in the numbering sequence.
John  The numbering of the Johns is particularly confused.
In the modern sequence  the Johns are identified by the numbers they used during their reigns.
Antipope John XVI  997–998  was kept in the numbering sequence.
In reality  John XIV had been counted twice.
She was never listed in the Annuario Pontificio.
Martin  Pope Martin I  649–655  is followed by Martin IV  1281–1285 .
Stephen  Pope elect Stephen  752  died before being consecrated.
This is because they consider all popes since the Second Vatican Council to be heretics.
A town  町  chō or machi  is a local administrative unit in Japan.
Geographically  a town is contained within a district.
This is a list of traditional Japanese games.
A village  村  mura  is a local administrative unit in Japan.
Geographically  a village s extent is contained within a prefecture.
The six villages in the Northern Territories dispute are not included in the list below.
Lithuania has an estimated population of 2.8 million people as of 2019.
The capital and largest city is Vilnius  other major cities are Kaunas and Klaipėda.
Lithuanians belong to the ethnic and linguistic group of Balts.
For centuries the southeastern shores of the Baltic Sea were inhabited by various Baltic tribes.
In the Second World War  Lithuania was first occupied by the Soviet Union and then by Nazi Germany.
As World War II neared an end and the Germans retreated  the Soviet Union reoccupied Lithuania.
It participates in the Nordic Baltic Eight  NB8  regional co operation format.
Lithuania is rated a developed country  ranking 34th out of 189 on the Human Development Index.
It ranks favourably in terms of civil liberties  press freedom and internet freedom.
The Chronicle recorded a Latinized form of the name Lietuva  Litua  pronounced  litua  .
Due to the lack of reliable evidence  the true meaning of the name is unknown.
Nowadays  scholars still debate the meaning of the word and there are a few plausible versions.
Since Lietuva has a suffix   uva   the original word should have no suffix.
Usually  such names evolved through the following process  hydronym → toponym → ethnonym.
They were traveling hunters and did not form stable settlements.
In the 8th millennium BC  the climate became much warmer  and forests developed.
Crafts and trade also started to form at this time.
The Western Balts differentiated and became known to outside chroniclers first.
From the mid 12th century  it was the Lithuanians who were invading Ruthenian territories.
Siege of Pilėnai is noted for the Lithuanians  defense against the intruders.
Some thirty years  worth of conquests on the left bank of Daugava were lost.
Krivis  pagan priest  Lizdeika interpreted the dream that the Iron Wolf represents Vilnius Castles.
Lithuania was one of the last pagan areas of Europe to adopt Christianity.
After two civil wars  Vytautas the Great became the Grand Duke of Lithuania in 1392.
The battle destroyed a military alliance against Lithuania and Poland.
The truce was broken when the Poles invaded Muscovy in 1605.
The Commonwealth reached its Golden Age in the early 17th century.
The Russian army looted the city  splendid churches  and manors.
Between 8 000 and 10 000 citizens were killed  the city burned for 17 days.
Those who returned after the catastrophe could not recognise the city.
The Russian occupation of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania lasted up to 1661.
Almost all territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was occupied by Swedish and Russian armies.
This period is known as Tvanas  The Deluge .
Before it could fully recover  Lithuania was ravaged during the Great Northern War  1700–1721 .
The war  a plague  and a famine caused the deaths of approximately 40  of the country s population.
Foreign powers  especially Russia  became dominant in the domestic politics of the Commonwealth.
It was drafted in relation to a copy of the United States Constitution.
The largest area of Lithuanian territory became part of the Russian Empire.
In 1840 the Third Statute of Lithuania was abolished.
A new administrative entity  Ober Ost  was established.
On 18–22 September 1917  the Vilnius Conference elected the 20 member Council of Lithuania.
At the same time  the army and other state institutions began to be organized.
The region became an autonomous region of Lithuania.
On 15 May 1920  the first meeting of the democratically elected constituent assembly took place.
Land  finance  and educational reforms started to be implemented.
The currency of Lithuania  the Lithuanian litas  was introduced.
The University of Lithuania was opened.
All major public institutions had been established.
As Lithuania began to gain stability  foreign countries started to recognize it.
Augustinas Voldemaras was appointed to form a government.
In 1927  the Seimas was dissolved.
A new constitution was adopted in 1928  which consolidated presidential powers.
The purchase price of agricultural products had declined significantly.
In 1935  farmers began strikes in Suvalkija and Dzūkija.
In addition to economic ones  political demands were made.
The government cruelly suppressed the unrest.
In the spring of 1936  four peasants were sentenced to death for starting the riots.
Two days later  the Lithuanian government accepted the ultimatum.
At the outbreak of World War II  Lithuania declared neutrality.
The next day  identical ultimatums were presented to Latvia and Estonia.
The Baltic states were occupied.
Lithuanians proclaimed independence and organized the Provisional Government of Lithuania.
This government quickly self disbanded.
Lithuania became part of the Reichskommissariat Ostland  German civil administration.
Nearly 100 000 Jews  Poles  Russians and Lithuanians were murdered at Paneriai.
The Lietuvos saugumo policija targeted the communist underground.A new occupation had begun.
Nationalized assets were not returned to the residents.
The massive deportations to Siberia were resumed and lasted until the death of Stalin in 1953.
All Lithuanian national symbols were banned.
About 50 000 Lithuanians took to the forests and fought Soviet occupants with a gun in their hands.
Very soon it began to seek country s independence.
Vytautas Landsbergis became movement s leader.
The supporters of Sąjūdis joined movement s groups all over Lithuania.
On 23 August 1988 a big rally took place at the Vingis Park in Vilnius.
Lithuania became the first Soviet occupied state to announce restitution of independence.
Gradually  economic relations had been restored.
However  tensions had peaked again in January 1991.
The coup ended with a few casualties of peaceful civilians and caused huge material loss.
Soviet soldiers killed 14 people and injured hundreds.
A large part of the Lithuanian population participated in the January Events.
On 17 September 1991  Lithuania was admitted to the United Nations.
On 31 August 1993 the last units of the Soviet Army left the territory of Lithuania.
Since 29 March 2004  Lithuania has been part of the NATO.
The rest of the coast is sheltered by the Curonian sand peninsula.
Lithuania lies at the edge of the North European Plain.
Its highest point is Aukštojas Hill at 294 metres  965 ft  in the eastern part of the country.
Drūkšiai is the largest  Tauragnas is the deepest and Asveja is the longest lake in Lithuania.
Climate      Lithuania has a temperate climate with both maritime and continental influences.
Average temperatures on the coast are −2.5 °C  27.5 °F  in January and 16 °C  61 °F  in July.
In Vilnius the average temperatures are −6 °C  21 °F  in January and 17 °C  63 °F  in July.
−20 °C  −4 °F  occurs almost every winter.
Winter extremes are −34 °C  −29 °F  in coastal areas and −43 °C  −45 °F  in the east of Lithuania.
Snow occurs every year  it can snow from October to April.
In some years sleet can fall in September or May.
Severe storms are rare in the eastern part of Lithuania but common in the coastal areas.
Lithuania is a particularly watered region with more than 3 000 lakes  mostly in the northeast.
The country is also drained by numerous rivers  most notably the longest Nemunas.
Wetlands  raised bogs  fens  transitional mires  etc.
Currently  Lithuania has approximately 250 000 larger wild animals or 5 per each square kilometer.
They are followed by boars  55 000 .
Other ungulates are the deer   22 000   fallow deer   21 000  and the largest one  moose   7 000 .
Among the Lithuanian predators  foxes are the most common   27 000 .
Wolves are  however  more ingrained into the mythology as there are just 800 in Lithuania.
Even rarer are the lynxes   200 .
There were intense debates concerning the constitution  particularly the role of the president.
Through compromise  a semi presidential system was agreed on.
Ordinary elections to the Seimas take place on the second Sunday of October every four years.
Same President may serve for not more than two terms.
1 524 municipal council members were elected in 2015.
Starting with 2015  the mayor is elected directly by the majority of residents of the municipality.
Ordinary elections take place on a Sunday on the same day as in other EU countries.
Candidates are not allowed to stand for election in more than one country.
Six political parties and one committee representatives gained seats in the 2019 elections.
The current Constitution of Lithuania was adopted on 25 October 1992.
In 2001  the Civil Code of Lithuania was passed in Seimas.
It was succeeded by the Criminal Code and Criminal Procedure Code in 2003.
Crime in Lithuania has been declining rapidly.
Of these  thefts comprised a large part with 19 630 cases  13.2  less than in 2016 .
Lithuania has the highest number of prison inmates in the EU.
Each has its own elected government.
The council appoints elders to govern the elderships.
During the second half of 2013  Lithuania assumed the role of the presidency of the European Union.
Lithuania is also active in developing cooperation among northern European countries.
It has been a member of the Baltic Council since its establishment in 1993.
Lithuania also cooperates with Nordic and the two other Baltic countries through the NB8 format.
A similar format  NB6  unites Nordic and Baltic members of EU.
Its main aim is to promote integration and to close contacts between the region s countries.
In 2019 Lithuania condemned the Turkish offensive into north eastern Syria.
The Reserve Forces are under command of the Lithuanian National Defence Volunteer Forces.
Compulsory conscription ended in 2008 but was reintroduced in 2015.
The PRT includes personnel from Denmark  Iceland and the US.
There are also special operation forces units in Afghanistan  placed in Kandahar Province.
A special security department handles VIP protection and communications security.
In 2015 National Cyber Security Centre of Lithuania was created.
Paramilitary organisation Lithuanian Riflemen s Union acts as civilian self defence institution.
According to NATO  in 2017 Lithuania allocated 1.77  of its GDP to the national defense.
As a result  the country was often termed as a Baltic Tiger.
Sweden is historically the largest investor with 20  – 30  of all FDI in Lithuania.
The US was the leading source country in 2017  24.59  of total FDI.
Next up are Germany and the UK  each representing 11.48  of total project numbers.
Unemployment rate in 2017 was 8.1 .
Average wage adjusted for purchasing power parity  is  2 202 per month  one of the lowest in EU.
The country has the lowest implicit rate of tax on capital  9.8   in the EU.
Corporate tax rate in Lithuania is 15  and 5  for small businesses.
Europe s first international Blockchain Centre launched in Vilnius in 2018.
In 2018 Google set up a payment company in Lithuania.
It has been one of Lithuania s most important occupations for many centuries.
Lithuania s accession to the European Union in 2004 ushered in a new agricultural era.
The EU pursues a very high standard of food safety and purity.
The reform of the agricultural market has been carried out on the basis of these two laws.
In 2016  agricultural production was made for 2.29 billion euros in Lithuania.
The status of organic growers and producers in the country is granted by the public body Ekoagros.
In 2016  there were 2539 such farms that occupied 225541 78 hectares.
and in the European Innovation Scoreboard ranked 15th among EU countries.
Lasers and biotechnology are flagship fields of the Lithuanian science and high tech industry.
Lithuania has launched three satellites to space  LitSat 1  Lituanica SAT 1 and LituanicaSAT 2.
Lithuanian Museum of Ethnocosmology and Molėtai Astronomical Observatory is located in Kulionys.
Hot air ballooning is very popular in Lithuania  especially in Vilnius and Trakai.
Bicycle tourism is growing  especially in Lithuanian Seaside Cycle Route.
EuroVelo routes EV10  EV11  EV13 go through Lithuania.
Currently there are up to 1000 places of attraction in Lithuania.
The country has 2 8 million citizens and 5 million SIM cards.
The largest LTE  4G  mobile network covers 97  of Lithuania s territory.
Lithuania was also top 7 in 2017 in the List of countries by 4G LTE penetration.
The project was funded by the European Union and the Lithuanian government.
Number of households with internet access is expected to increase and reach 77  by 2021.
It included a stretch from Daugavpils via Vilnius and Kaunas to Virbalis.
The first and only still operating tunnel was completed in 1860.
This railway network is incompatible with European standard gauge and requires train switching.
However  Lithuanian railway network also has 115 km  71 mi  of standard gauge lines.
More than half of all inland freight transported in Lithuania is carried by rail.
Transportation is the third largest sector in Lithuanian economy.
It served 3.8 million passengers in 2016.
The inland river cargo port in Marvelė  linking Kaunas and Klaipėda  received first cargo in 2019.
Drilling depth usually reaches 30–50 meters  but in Klaipėda Region it even reaches 250 meters.
Water is cleaned without chemicals in Lithuania.
About 20  of the consumed water in the state is a non filtered very high quality water.
Long term aims were defined in National Energy Independence strategy in 2012 by Lietuvos Seimas.
2 was closed down on 31 December 2009.
Proposals have been made to construct a new – Visaginas Nuclear Power Plant in Lithuania.
The country s main primary source of electrical power is Elektrėnai Power Plant.
As of 2015  66  of electrical power was imported.
As of 2014  29  of births were to unmarried women.
The age at first marriage in 2013 was 27 years for women and 29.3 years for men.
Russians in Lithuania are the second largest minority  concentrated mostly in two cities.
Yiddish is spoken by members of the tiny remaining Jewish community in Lithuania.
By the early 21st century  about two thirds of the total population lived in urban areas.
Private healthcare is also available in the country.
It started in 2003–2005 with the expansion of ambulatory services and primary care.
Access to hospital treatment is normally by referral by a General Practitioner.
Lithuania also has one of the lowest health care prices in Europe.
Religion      According to the 2011 census  77.2  of residents of Lithuania were Catholics.
Catholicism has been the main religion since the official Christianisation of Lithuania in 1387.
4.1  of the population are Eastern Orthodox  mainly among the Russian minority.
Protestants are 0.8   of which 0.6  are Lutheran and 0.2  are Reformed.
Before World War II  according to Losch  1932   the Lutherans were 3.3  of the total population.
They were mainly Germans and Prussian Lithuanians in the Klaipėda Region  Memel territory .
It has three centres in Lithuania  in Vilnius  Klaipėda and Kaunas.
Brahma Kumaris maintains the Centre Brahma Kumaris in Antakalnis  Vilnius.
The historical communities of Lipka Tatars maintain Islam as their religion.
Romuva claims to continue living pagan traditions  which survived in folklore and customs.
According to the 2001 census  there were 1 270 people of Baltic faith in Lithuania.
That number jumped to 5 118 in the 2011 census.
5.4  of GDP or 15.4  of total public expenditure was spent for education in 2016.
According to the World Bank  the literacy rate among Lithuanians aged 15 years and older is 100 .
School attendance rates are above the EU average and school leave is less common than in the EU.
Insufficient funding  quality issues  and decreasing student population are the most prevalent.
Lithuanian teacher salaries are the lowest in the entire EU.
Salaries in the higher education sector are also low.
Many Lithuanian professors have a second job to supplement their income.
PISA report from 2015 reconfirmed these findings.
The population ages 6 to 19 has decreased by 36  between 2005 and 2015.
There are about 2.96 million native Lithuanian speakers in Lithuania and about 0.2 million abroad.
It is written in an adapted version of the Roman script.
There are two main dialects of the Lithuanian language  Aukštaitian dialect and Samogitian dialect.
He also introduced the letter ū into Lithuanian writing.
The edicts of the Lithuanian King Mindaugas is the prime example of the literature of this kind.
The Letters of Gediminas are another crucial heritage of the Lithuanian Latin writings.
Albertas Kojalavičius Vijūkas wrote first printed Lithuanian history Historia Lithuania.
He was followed by Mikalojus Daukša with Katechizmas.
Vilnius is considered as a capital of the Eastern Europe Baroque.
Lithuania is also known for numerous castles.
About twenty castles exist in Lithuania.
Some castles had to be rebuilt or survive partially.
Lithuanian village life has existed since the days of Vytautas the Great.
Zervynos and Kapiniškės are two of many ethnographic villages in Lithuania.
Rumšiškės is an open space museum where old ethnographic architecture is preserved.
One of them is Oskaras Koršunovas.
He was awarded more than forty times with special prizes.
Possibly most prestigious award is Swedish Commander Grand Cross  Order of the Polar Star.
Today s the most famous theatres in Lithuania are in Vilnius  Kaunas  Klaipėda and Panevėžys.
Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis is the most renowned Lithuanian painter and composer.
During his short life he created about 200 pieces of music.
His works have had profound influence on modern Lithuanian culture.
His symphonic poems In the Forest  Miške  and The Sea  Jūra  were performed only posthumously.
There is a long standing tradition of the Dainų šventė  Lithuanian Song and Dance Festival .
The first one took place in Kaunas in 1924.
Most known annual events are Vilnius Jazz Festival  Kaunas Jazz  Birštonas Jazz.
Fish dishes are very popular in the coastal region.
Dairy products are an important part of traditional Lithuanian cuisine.
Freshwater fish  herring  wild berries and mushrooms  honey are highly popular diet to this day.
One of the oldest and most fundamental Lithuanian food products was and is rye bread.
Rye bread is eaten every day for breakfast  lunch and dinner.
Beer  alus  is the most common alcoholic beverage.
Lithuania has a long farmhouse beer tradition  first mentioned in 11th century chronicles.
Beer was brewed for ancient Baltic festivities and rituals.
Eight Lithuanian restaurants are listed in the White Guide Baltic Top 30.
Sports      Basketball is the most popular and national sport of Lithuania.
Lithuania hosted the Eurobasket in 1939 and 2011.
Numerous other Lithuanians won Olympic medals representing Soviet Union.
Lithuania will host the 2021 FIFA Futsal World Cup.
It will be the first time Lithuania has hosted and participated in any FIFA tournament.
Lithuanians annually participate in the Dakar Rally.
Antanas Juknevičius  Vaidotas Žala and Benediktas Vanagas are well known internationally.
In doing so they helped inflate the bubble economy to grotesque proportions.
This sharp policy caused the bursting of the bubble  and the Japanese stock market crashed.
Many Japanese firms were burdened with heavy debts  and it became very difficult to obtain credit.
Many borrowers turned to sarakin  loan sharks  for loans.
In 1989  of the world s top 50 companies by market capitalization  32 were Japanese.
By 2018  only one such company  Toyota  remains in the top 50.
As of 2009  these non traditional employees made up more than a third of the labor force.
For the wider Japanese workforce  wages have stagnated.
It took 12 years for Japan s GDP to recover to the same levels as 1995.
And as a greater sign of economic malaise  Japan also fell behind in output per capita.
However  the impact on wages and consumer sentiment was more muted.
In so doing they helped inflate the bubble economy to grotesque proportions.
Japanese firms overall became net savers after 1998  as opposed to borrowers.
In his view  this avoided a U.S. type Great Depression  in which U.S. GDP fell by 46 .
The 1990s in Japan  A lost decade.
Will the US and Europe avoid a lost decade?
The lower house typically is the larger of the two chambers  i.e.
Is able to override the upper house in some ways.
Has the sole power to impeach the executive  the upper house then tries the impeachment .
Its members may be elected with a different voting system to the upper house.
In a parliamentary system  can be dissolved by the executive.
It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north  Germany to the east  and France to the south.
Foreigners account for nearly half of Luxembourg s population.
Siegfried s descendants increased their territory through marriage  war and vassal relations.
At the end of the 13th century  the counts of Luxembourg reigned over a considerable territory.
In 1308  Count of Luxembourg Henry VII became King of the Germans and later Holy Roman Emperor.
The House of Luxembourg produced four emperors during the High Middle Ages.
In 1354  Charles IV elevated the county to the Duchy of Luxembourg.
The Congress of Vienna formed Luxembourg as a Grand Duchy within the German Confederation.
The Dutch king became  in personal union  the grand duke.
The Fortress of Luxembourg was manned by Prussian troops for the German Confederation.
In 1842 Luxembourg joined the German Customs Union  Zollverein .
This allowed Germany the military advantage of controlling and expanding the railways there.
This enabled Germany to use the railway lines  while at the same time denying them to France.
In 1999 Luxembourg joined the Eurozone.
The Constitution of Luxembourg  the supreme law of Luxembourg  was adopted on 17 October 1868.
Twelve of the communes have city status  the city of Luxembourg is the largest.
The army is under civilian control  with the grand duke as Commander in Chief.
The Minister for Defence  François Bausch  oversees army operations.
Being a landlocked country  Luxembourg has no navy.
Seventeen NATO AWACS aeroplanes are registered as aircraft of Luxembourg.
Luxembourg troops have also deployed to Afghanistan  to support ISAF.
The northern third of the country is known as the Oesling  and forms part of the Ardennes.
It is also more diverse and can be divided into five geographic sub regions.
Little Switzerland  in the east of Luxembourg  has craggy terrain and thick forests.
The Moselle valley is the lowest lying region  running along the southeastern border.
Other major rivers are the Alzette  the Attert  the Clerve  and the Wiltz.
The valleys of the mid Sauer and Attert form the border between the Gutland and the Oesling.
The country wants to cut GHG emissions by 55  in 10 years and reach zero emissions by 2050.
Luxemburg wants to increase fivefold its organic farming.
The summers are warm and winters cool.
Its GDP per capita in purchasing power standards was 261  of the EU average  100   in 2019.
In 2013  Luxembourg is ranked as the 2nd safest tax haven in the world  behind Switzerland.
Transport      Luxembourg has road  rail and air transport facilities and services.
This encourages the investment in networks and services.
In 2011  Luxembourg had an NGA coverage of 75 .
The interconnection points are in Frankfurt  London  New York and Hong Kong.
In 2000 there were 162 000 immigrants in Luxembourg  accounting for 37  of the total population.
There were an estimated 5 000 illegal immigrants in Luxembourg in 1999.
Culture     Luxembourg has been overshadowed by the culture of its neighbours.
There are several notable museums  located mostly in the capital.
It represented Luxembourg as the  Green Heart in Europe .
Media     The main languages of media in Luxembourg are French and German.
The newspaper with the largest circulation is the German language daily Luxemburger Wort.
The League of Nations General Assembly adopted the report  and Japan quit the League.
The recommendations went into effect after Japan surrendered in 1945.
Soviet Union interests in the region were also mentioned.
Still  the report held that both China and Japan had legitimate grievances.
It is hoped that the parties will agree to direct negotiations.
Japan gave formal notice of its withdrawal from the League of Nations on March 27  1933.
London  UK  Oxford University Press  1960. pg 491 492.
These entries are maintained by volunteer editors who follow community written style guidelines.
A separate application  such as MusicBrainz Picard  must be used for this.
This feature attracted many users and allowed the database to grow quickly.
TRMs were phased out and replaced by MusicDNS in November 2008.
In October 2009 MusicIP was acquired by AmpliFIND.
Some time after the acquisition  the MusicDNS service began having intermittent problems.
Additional post processing is then applied to compress this fingerprint while retaining patterns.
The relational database management system is PostgreSQL.
The server software is covered by the GNU General Public License.
The gateway was shut down on March 18  2019.
The colony remained under Portuguese rule until 1999  when it was transferred to China.
The earliest Portuguese spelling for this was Amaquão.
The islands Taipa  Coloane  and Hengqin were collectively called Shizimen  十字門 .
The region is first known to have been settled during the Han dynasty.
The initially small population of Portuguese merchants rapidly became a growing city.
Foreign ships were required to first stop at Macau before further proceeding to Canton.
This agreement also prohibited Portugal from ceding Macau without Chinese approval.
Portugal was later given over US 20 million in compensation for the damage in 1950.
Refugees from mainland China swelled the population as they fled from the Chinese Civil War.
The Government of Macau has yet to make this request.
Administrative divisions      The territory is divided into seven parishes.
Sociopolitical issues and human rights     Sex trafficking in Macau is a problem.
The territory consists of Macau Peninsula  Taipa  and Coloane.
Both natural sedimentation and land reclamation expanded the area enough to support urban growth.
Further reclamation is currently underway to develop parts of the Macau New Urban Zone.
Typhoons also occur most often then  bringing significant spikes in rainfall.
Folk practices are also common among the citizens.
Cancer  heart disease  and respiratory disease are the territory s three leading causes of death.
Rising living costs have also pushed a large portion of non resident workers to live in Zhuhai.
Economy     Macau has a capitalist service economy largely based on casino gaming and tourism.
The vast majority of government funding  79.6 per cent of total tax revenue  comes from gaming.
This license was renegotiated and renewed several times before ending in 2002 after 40 years.
The government then allowed open bidding for casino licenses to attract foreign investors.
Casinos employ about 24 per cent of the total workforce in the region.
The bulk of these exports were cotton textiles and apparel  but also included toys and electronics.
About 1 500 black taxicabs are licensed to carry riders in the territory.
Daily helicopter service is also available to Hong Kong and Shenzhen.
The Taipa line connects 11 metro stations throughout Taipa and Cotai.
Local nurses are trained at the Macau Polytechnic Institute and the Kiang Wu Nursing College.
Currently there are no training courses in midwifery in Macau.
Mandatory education has contributed to an adult literacy rate of 96.5 per cent.
Out of the 77 non tertiary schools  10 are public and the other 67 are privately run.
A minority of private schools use English or Portuguese as the primary teaching language.
The University of Macau  founded in 1981  is the territory s only public comprehensive university.
Five other institutes specialise in specific vocations or provide continuing education.
The Pou Tai Un Temple in Taipa is the place for the Feast of Tou Tei  the Earth god  in February.
In Coloane Village  the Taoist god Tam Kong is also honoured on the same day.
Macau preserves many historical properties in the urban area.
Pastel de nata  pork chop buns  and almond biscuits are popular street food items.
Machine tools employ some sort of tool that does the cutting or shaping.
This lathe  produced screw threads out of wood and employed a true compound slide rest .
Machine slides constrain tool or workpiece movement linearly.
If a stop is added  the length of the line can also be accurately controlled.
But it is economically practical to make them only with machine tools.
These processes are a type of deformation that produces swarf.
Thus presses are usually included in the economic definition of machine tools.
It is common to hear machinists refer to their machine tools simply as  machines .
Until that time  machinery was made mostly from wood  often including gearing and shafts.
Red hot wrought iron could be hammered into shapes.
The process begins with three square plates each given an identification  ex.  1 2 and 3 .
Next  plate number 3 is compared and scraped to conform to plate number 1 in the same two trials.
In this manner plates number 2 and 3 would be identical.
These would then be scraped until no high spots existed and then compared to plate number 1.
This led to the bar length standards of the 19th and early 20th centuries.
American production of machine tools was a critical factor in the Allies  victory in World War II.
Production of machine tools tripled in the United States in the war.
Machine tool innovation continues in several public and private research centers worldwide.
David Wilkinson Machine tools can be powered from a variety of sources.
Factories also used hydraulic and pneumatic power.
Automatic control     Machine tools can be operated manually  or under automatic control.
Soon after World War II  the numerical control  NC  machine was developed.
In the 1960s  computers were added to give even more flexibility to the process.
Such machines became known as computerized numerical control  CNC  machines.
These are known as machining centers  and have dramatically changed the way parts are made.
The Moore firm epitomized the art and science of the tool and die maker.
A memoir that contains quite a bit of general history of the industry.
It includes Hong Kong and Macau.
Nèidì  内地  內地   literally  inland  or  inner land .
Background    In the 1930s  the region faced Japanese invasion.
Until the late 1970s  both the PRC and ROC envisioned a military takeover of the other.
The territories also have their distinct identities.
The term is also used in economic indicators  such as the IMD Competitiveness Report.
Additionally  the islands contained within Hong Kong  e.g.
However  these terms suggest that there exist  two Chinas .
The initial MNNAs were Australia  Egypt  Israel  Japan  and South Korea.
The designation of New Zealand as an MNNA reflected the warming of relations between the two.
Around the same time  invitations were sent to Thailand and the Philippines  both of whom accepted.
Representatives Ted Poe  R TX  and Rick Nolan  D MN  introduced H.R.
The bill never received a vote.
In 2021  U.S. Representative Andy Biggs introduced H.R.
It espouses neutrality as a principle of its foreign policy.
The bill did not reach a vote  and as such did not pass or become law.
Major Defence Partner    In 2018 USA recognized India as a “major defence partner”.
Sanskrit loanwords can be found in Old Malay vocabulary.
It is a small stone of 45 by 80 centimetres  18 by 31 in .
The earliest surviving manuscript in Malay is the Tanjung Tanah Law in post Pallava letters.
During this period  the Malay language developed rapidly under the influence of Islamic literature.
Malay was used solely as a lingua franca for inter ethnic communications.
Many roots have come virtually unchanged from their common ancestor  Proto Austronesian language.
Numbers  especially  show remarkable similarities.
Latin script is official in Malaysia  Singapore  and Indonesia.
Malay uses Hindu Arabic numerals.
Rumi and Jawi are co official in Brunei only.
Names of institutions and organisations have to use Jawi and Rumi  Latin  scripts.
Historically  Malay has been written using various scripts.
Brunei  in addition to Standard Malay  uses a distinct vernacular dialect called Brunei Malay.
Other minority languages are also commonly used by the country s large ethnic minorities.
The situation in Brunei is similar to that of Malaysia.
However  they mostly speak it in a form of creole resembling Sabah Malay.
Historically  it was the primary trading language of the archipelago prior to Spanish occupation.
Phonology     Malay  like most Austronesian languages  is not a tonal language.
Consonants     The consonants of Malaysian and also Indonesian are shown below.
Otherwise they tend to be replaced with native sounds.
The vowels  e  o  are much less common than the other four.
Orthographic note  both  e  and  ə  are written as  e .
Some analyses regard  ai  au  oi  as diphthongs.
There is no grammatical plural in Malay either  thus orang may mean either  person  or  people .
Malay does not have a grammatical subject in the sense that English does.
In intransitive clauses  the noun comes before the verb.
OVA  commonly but inaccurately called  passive   is the basic and most common word order.
Para Malay includes the Malayan languages of Sumatra.
They are Jakun  Orang Kanaq  Orang Seletar  and Temuan.
Other minority languages are also commonly used by the country s large ethnic minorities.
The situation in Brunei is similar to that of Malaysia.
In Singapore  Malay was historically the lingua franca among people of different nationalities.
In addition  parade commands in the military  police and civil defence are given only in Malay.
Minangkabau  Kerinci and Bengkulu are believed to be Sumatran Malay descendants.
Meanwhile  the Jakarta dialect  known as Betawi  also belongs to the western Malay group.
The differences among both groups are quite observable.
Another difference is the lack of possessive pronouns  and suffixes  in eastern dialects.
Malaysia    listen  mə LAY zee ə   ⁠zhə  Malay   məlejsiə   is a country in Southeast Asia.
With a population of over 32 million  Malaysia is the world s 43rd most populous country.
The southernmost point of continental Eurasia is in Tanjung Piai.
In the tropics  Malaysia is one of 17 megadiverse countries  home to a number of endemic species.
Peninsular Malaysia was unified as the Malayan Union in 1946.
Malaya united with North Borneo  Sarawak  and Singapore on 16 September 1963 to become Malaysia.
The country s official language is Malaysian  a standard form of the Malay language.
English remains an active second language.
The head of state is an elected monarch  chosen from among the nine state sultans every five years.
The head of government is the Prime Minister.
After independence  the Malaysian GDP grew at an average of 6.5  per annum for almost 50 years.
The origin of the word  Melayu  is subject to various theories.
Another suggestion is that it derives from the Pamalayu campaign.
It may have specifically referred to local Malays speakers thought loyal to the Malaccan Sultan.
Dumont d Urville described Malaysia as  an area commonly known as the East Indies .
The name Malaysia gained some use to label what is now the Malay Archipelago.
History     Evidence of modern human habitation in Malaysia dates back 40 000 years.
In the Malay Peninsula  the first inhabitants are thought to be Negritos.
Sanskrit inscriptions appear as early as the fourth or fifth century.
Islam began to spread among Malays in the 14th century.
In 1511  Malacca was conquered by Portugal  after which it was taken by the Dutch in 1641.
Development on the peninsula and Borneo were generally separate until the 19th century.
Under British rule the immigration of Chinese and Indians to serve as labourers was encouraged.
During this time  ethnic tensions were raised and nationalism grew.
Popular support for independence increased after Malaya was reconquered by Allied forces.
On 31 August 1957  Malaya became an independent member of the Commonwealth of Nations.
The economy shifted from being agriculturally based to one based on manufacturing and industry.
The head of state is the King  whose official title is the Yang di Pertuan Agong.
The other four states  which have titular Governors  do not participate in the selection.
In July 2019  a bill to lower the voting age to 18 years old was officially passed.
Executive power is vested in the Cabinet  led by the Prime Minister.
The Cabinet is chosen from members of both houses of Parliament.
The Prime Minister is both the head of cabinet and the head of government.
Malaysia also has a special court to hear cases brought by or against royalty.
Homosexuality is illegal in Malaysia  and the authorities can impose punishment such as caning.
However  it has generated greater interethnic resentment.
Freedom House noted Malaysia as  partly free  in its 2018 survey.
He was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Each state is divided into districts  which are then divided into mukim.
The King is elected by and from the nine rulers to serve a five year term.
Each state has its own written constitution.
It has chaired ASEAN  the OIC  and the NAM in the past.
A former British colony  it is also a member of the Commonwealth of Nations.
The Philippines has a dormant claim to the eastern part of Sabah.
There is no conscription  and the required age for voluntary military service is 18.
It has land borders with Thailand in West Malaysia  and Indonesia and Brunei in East Malaysia.
It is linked to Singapore by a narrow causeway and a bridge.
The country also has maritime boundaries with Vietnam and the Philippines.
Malaysia is the only country with territory on both the Asian mainland and the Malay archipelago.
Tanjung Piai  located in the southern state of Johor  is the southernmost tip of continental Asia.
These mountains are heavily forested  and mainly composed of granite and other igneous rocks.
Much of it has been eroded  creating a karst landscape.
The range is the origin of some of Peninsular Malaysia s river systems.
East Malaysia  on the island of Borneo  has a coastline of 2 607 km  1 620 mi .
It is divided between coastal regions  hills and valleys  and a mountainous interior.
The Crocker Range extends northwards from Sarawak  dividing the state of Sabah.
The highest mountain ranges form the border between Malaysia and Indonesia.
The temperature is moderated by the presence of the surrounding oceans.
Humidity is usually high  and the average annual rainfall is 250 cm  98 in .
Local climates can be divided into three regions  highland  lowland  and coastal.
The country is megadiverse with a high number of species and high levels of endemism.
It is estimated to contain 20 per cent of the world s animal species.
There are about 210 mammal species in the country.
A high number of endemic bird species are also found in Malaysian Borneo.
There are about 150 species of frogs  and thousands of insect species.
It is mainly in the South China Sea.
Some of its waters are in the Coral Triangle  a biodiversity hotspot.
The waters around Sipadan island are the most biodiverse in the world.
The forests are dominated by dipterocarps.
There are around 14 500 species of flowering plants and trees.
At higher altitudes  oaks  chestnuts  and rhododendrons replace dipterocarps.
Over 80 per cent of Sarawak s rainforest has been logged.
Most remaining forest is found inside reserves and national parks.
Habitat destruction has proved a threat for marine life.
Leatherback turtle numbers have dropped 98 per cent since the 1950s.
28 national parks have been established  23 in East Malaysia and five in the Peninsular.
Tourism has been limited in biodiverse areas such as Sipadan island.
Economic inequalities exist between different ethnic groups.
Malaysia is an exporter of natural and agricultural resources  and petroleum is a major export.
Malaysia has once been the largest producer of tin  rubber and palm oil in the world.
Malaysia remains one of the world s largest producers of palm oil.
Knowledge based services are also expanding.
Science policies in Malaysia are regulated by the Ministry of Science  Technology  and Innovation.
The government has invested in building satellites through the RazakSAT programme.
The country has seven international ports  the major one being the Port Klang.
The other two electric utility companies in the country are Sarawak Energy and Sabah Electricity.
In 2013  Malaysia s total power generation capacity was over 29 728 megawatts.
Most of the federal roads in Malaysia are 2 lane roads.
In town areas  federal roads may become 4 lane roads to increase traffic capacity.
The railway network covers most of the 11 states in Peninsular Malaysia.
In East Malaysia  only the state of Sabah has railways.
The network is also connected to the Thai railway 1 000 mm  3 ft 3 3⁄8 in  network in the north.
If the Burma Railway is rebuilt  services to Myanmar  India  and China could be initiated.
Malaysia has 118 airports  of which 38 are paved.
The national airline is Malaysia Airlines  providing international and domestic air services.
Major cargo airlines include MASkargo and Transmile Air Services.
Kuala Lumpur International Airport is the main and busiest airport of Malaysia.
According to a 2012 estimate  the population is increasing by 1.54 percent per year.
In 1960  when the first official census was recorded in Malaysia  the population was 8.11 million.
They play a dominant role politically.
Laws over who gets bumiputera status vary between states.
There are also two other non Bumiputera local ethnic groups.
24.6 per cent of the population are Malaysian Chinese  while 7.3 per cent are Malaysian Indian.
The local Chinese have historically been more dominant in the business community.
Local Indian are majority of Tamil descent.
Dual citizenship is not permitted.
Secondary education is conducted for five years.
The number of live births in Malaysia stood at 508 203 babies in the year 2016.
This is a decline compared to 521 136 the previous year.
There was also a decline in crude birth rate from 16.7  2015  to 16.1  2016  per 1 000 population.
Male babies account for 51.7  of all babies born in the year 2016.
The total fertility rate in Malaysia remains below the replacement level at 1.9 babies in 2017.
This is a decline of 0.1 compared to the previous year.
70 per cent of the population is urban.
Malaysia hosts a population of refugees and asylum seekers numbering approximately 171 500.
Muslims are obliged to follow the decisions of Syariah Courts  i.e.
In Sarawak  English is an official state language alongside Malaysian.
Peninsular Malaysia contains speakers of 41 of these languages.
Chinese Malaysians predominantly speak Chinese dialects from the southern provinces of China.
Other South Asian languages are also widely spoken in Malaysia  as well as Thai.
Culture     Malaysia has a multi ethnic  multicultural  and multilingual society.
Other cultural influences include the Persian  Arabic  and British cultures.
It also promoted the Malay language above others.
The two countries have a similar cultural heritage  sharing many traditions and items.
Strong feelings exist in Indonesia about protecting their national heritage.
Feelings are not as strong in Malaysia  where most recognise that many cultural values are shared.
Common artworks included ornamental kris  beetle nut sets  and woven batik and songket fabrics.
Indigenous East Malaysians are known for their wooden masks.
Each ethnic group have distinct performing arts  with little overlap between them.
There are at least 14 types of traditional drums.
Drums and other traditional percussion instruments and are often made from natural materials.
It was once used as a form of long distance communication.
The first Malay literature was in the Arabic script.
The earliest known Malay writing is on the Terengganu stone  made in 1303.
English has also become a common literary language.
In 1971  the government took the step of defining the literature of different languages.
Malay poetry is highly developed  and uses many forms.
The Hikayat form is popular  and the pantun has spread from Malay to other languages.
Cuisine      Malaysia s cuisine reflects the multi ethnic makeup of its population.
Rice is popular in many dishes.
Chili is commonly found in local cuisine  although this does not necessarily make them spicy.
A divide exists between the media in the two halves of the country.
The government has previously tried to crack down on opposition papers before elections.
Some are federally gazetted public holidays and some are observed by individual states.
Wesak Day is observed and celebrated by Buddhists.
The Malaysian Lawn Bowls Federation was registered in 1997.
The Squash Racquets Association Of Malaysia was created on 25 June 1972.
Malaysia has proposed a Southeast Asian football league.
The men s national field hockey team ranked 13th in the world as of December 2015.
The 3rd Hockey World Cup was hosted at Merdeka Stadium in Kuala Lumpur  as well as the 10th cup.
The country also has its own Formula One track–the Sepang International Circuit.
It runs for 310.408 kilometres  192.88 mi   and held its first Grand Prix in 1999.
It first participated in the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games.
The largest number of athletes ever sent to the Olympics was 57 to the 1972 Munich Olympic Games.
The anthology is one of the most revered of Japan s poetic compilations.
The chronologically last datable poem in the collection is from AD 759  No.
The precise significance of the title is not known with certainty.
Unlike later collections  such as  the Kokin Wakashū  there is no preface.
The Man yōshū is widely regarded as being a particularly unique Japanese work.
Periodization    The collection is customarily divided into four periods.
He composed the last dated poem of the anthology in 759.
Not surprisingly  his translation was anything but accurate.
Three mokkan that have been excavated contain text from the Man yōshū.
It is dated between 750 and 780  and its size is 23.4 by 2.4 by 1.2 cm  9.21 by 0.94 by 0.47 in .
It is dated to the middle of the 8th century  and is 2 cm wide by 1 mm thick.
There are dozens of these gardens around Japan.
The first Man yō shokubutsu en opened in Kasuga Shrine in 1932.
Man yōshū Jiten  Man yōshū zen yakuchū genbun tsuki bekkan   paperback ed. .
The Ten Thousand Leaves  A Translation of the Man yoshu.
The Man yo shu   a complete English translation in 5–7 rhythm.
They can be found in 31 Chinese provincial regions.
They also form the largest minority group in China without an autonomous region.
About half of the population live in Liaoning and one fifth in Hebei.
Name    The Jiu Manzhou Dang contains the earliest use of Manchu.
However  the actual etymology of the ethnic name  Manju  is debatable.
Man was from the word mangga  ᠮᠠᠩᡤᠠ  which means  strong   and ju  ᠵᡠ  means  arrow.
In 1019  Jurchen pirates raided Japan for slaves.
Only 270 or 259 Japanese on 8 ships were returned when Goryeo managed to intercept them.
The Jurchen pirates slaughtered Japanese men while seizing Japanese women as prisoners.
Fujiwara Notada  the Japanese governor was killed.
Only 259 or 270 were returned by Koreans from the 8 ships.
The woman Uchikura no Ishime s report was copied down.
Khitan envoys among the Jurchens were treated to guest prostitutes by their Jurchen hosts.
Unmarried Jurchen girls and their families hosted the Liao envoys who had sex with the girls.
Song envoys among the Jin were similarly entertained by singing girls in Guide  Henan.
His brother and successor  Wanyan Wuqimai defeated the Liao dynasty.
During the Jin dynasty  the first Jurchen script came into use in the 1120s.
It was mainly derived from the Khitan script.
The Wealthy Jurchens feasted and drank and wore damask and silk.
They adopted Mongolian customs  names  and the Mongolian language.
As time went on  fewer and fewer Jurchens could recognize their own script.
The Mongol led Yuan dynasty was replaced by the Ming dynasty in 1368.
In 1403  Ahacu  chieftain of Huligai  paid tribute to the Yongle Emperor of the Ming dynasty.
Yi Seong gye  the Taejo of Joseon  asked the Ming Empire to send Möngke Temür back but was refused.
Since then  more and more Jurchen tribes presented tribute to the Ming Empire in succession.
The Ming divided them into 384 guards  and the Jurchen became vassals to the Ming Empire.
During the Ming dynasty  the name for the Jurchen land was Nurgan.
The stele was inscribed in Chinese  Jurchen  Mongolian  and Tibetan.
In 1449  Mongol taishi Esen attacked the Ming Empire and captured the Zhengtong Emperor in Tumu.
Many Jurchen chieftains lost their hereditary certificates granted by the Ming government.
The Zhengtong Emperor s capture directly caused Jurchen guards to go out of control.
Tribal leaders  such as Cungšan and Wang Gao  brazenly plundered Ming territory.
At about this time  the Jurchen script was officially abandoned.
The Manchu way of life  economy  was agricultural  farming crops and raising animals on farms.
Manchus practiced slash and burn agriculture in the areas north of Shenyang.
Han Chinese society resembled that of the sedentary Jianzhou and Maolian  who were farmers.
The Manchus also partook in hunting but were sedentary.
Their primary mode of production was farming while they lived in villages  forts  and walled towns.
Village clusters were ruled by beile  hereditary leaders.
They fought each other s and dispensed weapons  wives  slaves and lands to their followers in them.
This was how the Jurchens who founded the Qing lived and how their ancestors lived before the Jin.
His armies had black  blue  red  white and yellow flags.
The Qing accused them of desertion.
It is the same with us Manchus  Jušen  and Mongols.
Our languages are different  but our clothing and way of life is the same.
Later Nurhaci indicated that the bond with the Mongols was not based in any real shared culture.
My people till the fields and live on grain.
We two are not one country and we have different languages.
It was only later in the dynasty that these policies allowing intermarriage were done away with.
There were only 1524 Bannermen left in Manchuria at the time of the initial Manchu conquest.
In particular  they restricted the migration of Han settlers to the region.
Normal Manchus were called jingkini Manjusa.
Dulimbai Gurun ᡩᡠᠯᡳᠮᠪᠠᡳᡤᡠᡵᡠᠨ is the Manchu name for China  中國  Zhōngguó   Middle Kingdom  .
The process was called taiqi  擡旗   raising of the banner   in Chinese.
The German Minister Clemens von Ketteler was assassinated by a Manchu.
That they spoke Beijing dialect made recognizing Manchus relatively easy.
Most intermarriage consisted of Han Bannermen marrying Manchus in areas like Aihun.
Han Chinese Bannermen wedded Manchus and there was no law against this.
There was no particular persecution of Manchus.
It was also reported that the resurgence of interest also spread among Han Chinese.
There are approximately 12 000 Manchus now in Taiwan.
Most of them moved to Taiwan with the ROC government in 1949.
There are also Manchus who settled in the United States.
Its standard form is called  Standard Manchu .
Beijing dialect  is one of the most commonly used.
Beijing dialect is very close to Standard Manchu.
Other dialects include Ningguta and Alcuka.
After the Jin dynasty collapsed  the Jurchen script was gradually lost.
This persisted until Nurhaci revolted against the Ming Empire.
Due to its hurried creation  the script has its defects.
Some vowels and consonants were difficult to distinguish.
His achievement is called  script with dots and circles  or  new Manchu script .
In an effort to encourage learners  these classes were oftentimes free.
Fundamentally  it succeeds the Jurchen family name of the Jin dynasty.
The Manchu Cuigiya  崔佳氏  clan claimed that a Han Chinese founded their clan.
The Tohoro  托活络  clan  Duanfang s clan  claimed Han Chinese origin.
Given names       Manchus given names are distinctive.
One of the common first name for the Manchus is Nikan  Han Chinese .
For example  Nikan Wailan was a Jurchen leader who was an enemy of Nurhaci.
Nurhaci s first son was Cuyen  one of whose sons was Nikan.
Princes were cremated on pyres.
Manchu women wore their hair in a distinctive hairstyle called liangbatou  兩把頭 .
The new cuff was made out of fur.
Scholars from the west wrongly thought they were purely Manchu.
Qing long pao were similar unofficial clothing during the Qing dynasty.
The Yuan robes had hems flared and around the arms and torso they were tight.
Ming dragon robes derive from these Tang dynasty hanpi in construction.
Cross over closures are present in both the hanpi and Ming garments.
The early phase of Manchu clothing succeeded from Jurchen tradition.
Over the robe  a surcoat is usually worn  derived from the military uniform of Eight Banners army.
The Manchu people also have traditional jewelry which evokes their past as hunters.
High heeled shoes were worn by Manchu women.
They were well trained horsemen from their teenage years.
Huangtaiji said   Riding and archery are the most important martial arts of our country .
Every generation of the Qing dynasty treasured riding and archery the most.
Their test results could even affect their rank in the nobility.
The most difficult is shooting a candle hanging in the air at night.
It was common to see Manchus putting signs in front of their houses to invite challenges.
At the time  Mongol wrestlers were the most famous and powerful.
Among many branches  Beijing wrestling adopted most Manchu wrestling moves.
Compared to the falconry of Manchuria  it is more like an entertainment.
Imperial Household Department of Beijing had professional falconers  too.
They provided outstanding falcons to the emperor when he went to hunt every fall.
Even today  Manchu traditional falconry is well practised in some regions.
The Qianlong Emperor called it a  national custom .
The battalion consisted of 1600 soldiers.
He frequently appeared in many of Beijing s skating rinks.
It primarily recounts how Nisan Shaman helps revive a young hunter.
The story also spread to Xibe  Nanai  Daur  Oroqen  Evenk and other Tungusic peoples.
The four versions are similar  but Haišenwei s is the most complete.
The drum is composed of wood surrounded by bells.
The drumhead is made by wyrmhide with tassels at the bottom.
Traditionally  octagonal drum is performed by three people.
Additionally  there are many works that depict the lives of Bannermen.
Different from octagonal drum  ulabun is popular among the Manchu people living in Manchuria.
Akšan Akxan  ᠠᡴᡧᠠᠨ  is a famous artist in performing ulabun.
Every Manchu King started his royal title with Buddha.
After the conquest of China in the 17th century  Manchus came into contact with Chinese culture.
They adopted Confucianism along with Buddhism and discouraged shamanism.
Qing emperors were always entitled  Buddha .
Still  Huangtaiji patronized Tibetan Buddhism extensively and publicly.
Guan Yu worship is a typical example.
He was considered as the God Protector of the Nation and was sincerely worshipped by Manchus.
They called him  Lord Guan   关老爷 .
In addition  Manchus worshipped Cai Shen and the Kitchen God just as the Han Chinese did.
The worship of Mongolian and Tibetan gods has also been reported.
The earliest Manchu Catholics appeared in the 1650s.
His wife was also baptised and named  Maria .
At the same time  the sons of Doro Beile Sunu were devout Catholics  too.
In the Jiaqing period  Tong Hengšan and Tong Lan were Catholic Manchu Bannermen.
Traditional holidays     Manchus have many traditional holidays.
Some are derived from Chinese culture  such as the  Spring Festival  and Duanwu Festival.
This day in 1635  Hong Taiji changed the ethnic name from Jurchen to Manchu.
The villagers who lived near the battlefield heard the emergency and came to help.
There was no tableware on the battlefield.
They had to use perilla leaves to wrap the rice.
Afterwards  they won the battle.
Mandarin    listen   simplified Chinese  官话  traditional Chinese  官話  pinyin  Guānhuà  lit.
The group includes the Beijing dialect  the basis of the phonology of Standard Chinese.
Most Mandarin varieties have four tones.
Some form of Mandarin has served as a national lingua franca since the 14th century.
It is used as one of the working languages of the United Nations.
It also functions as the language of instruction in Mainland China and in Taiwan.
It is one of the six official languages of the United Nations  under the name  Chinese .
Traditionally  seven major groups of dialects have been recognized.
The dialects in this area are now relatively uniform.
He used this classification in the Language Atlas of China  1987 .
Many border varieties have a mixture of features that make them difficult to classify.
The Beijing dialect forms the basis of Standard Chinese.
Tones and vocabulary are markedly different.
In general  there is substantial intelligibility with Beijing Mandarin.
There is moderate intelligibility with Beijing.
There are significant phonological differences  with partial intelligibility with Beijing.
The Dungan language spoken in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan belongs to this group.
Lower Yangtze Mandarin has been significantly influenced by Wu Chinese.
In the traditional analysis  the medial  vowel and coda are combined as a final.
The unique pronunciation used in Peking opera falls into this category.
For example  fei  fei   to fly  and hui  xwei   grey  may be merged in these areas.
In some dialects  initial  l  and  n  are not distinguished.
Common variants include  j    l    n  and  w .
Some dialects have initial  ŋ  corresponding to the zero initial of the standard language.
This initial is the result of a merger of the Middle Chinese zero initial with  ŋ  and  ʔ .
The medial  w   is lost after apical initials in several areas.
Thus Southwestern Mandarin has  tei   correct  where the standard language has dui  twei .
This is a stereotypical feature of southwestern Mandarin  since it is so easily noticeable.
Mandarin dialects typically have relatively few vowels.
In some areas  especially the southwest  final  ŋ  has also merged with  n .
This is especially prevalent in the rhyme pairs  en  eng  ən əŋ  and  in  ing  in iŋ .
In Lower Yangtze dialects and some north western dialects they have merged as a final glottal stop.
In other dialects they have been lost  with varying effects on the vowel.
p    t  or  k   were considered to belong to a special category known as the  entering tone .
In Lower Yangtze dialects  a minority of Southwestern dialects  e.g.
In Sichuan  one hears bāobāo  包包   handbag  where Beijing uses bāo r  包儿 .
Dialects of Mandarin agree with each other quite consistently on these pronouns.
Southern Chinese varieties have borrowed from Tai  Austroasiatic  and Austronesian languages.
The least variation occurs in  formal  vocabulary—terms dealing with science  law  or government.
Other Chinese varieties tend to use different particles  e.g.
Like much vocabulary  particles can vary a great deal with regards to the locale.
For example  the suffix  er which means the person who is doing the action  e.g.
Manga  Japanese  漫画  maŋga   are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan.
The term manga is used in Japan to refer to both comics and cartooning.
Many manga are translated into other languages.
Since the 1950s  manga has become an increasingly major part of the Japanese publishing industry.
Manga have also gained a significant worldwide audience.
In 2008  in the U.S. and Canada  the manga market was valued at  175 million.
According to Jean Marie Bouissou  Manga represented 38  of the French comics market in 2005.
If a manga series is popular enough  it may be animated after or during its run.
The term  ani manga  is used to describe comics produced from animation cels.
During the Edo period  1603–1867   Toba Ehon embedded the concept of manga.
Tezuka and Hasegawa both made stylistic innovations.
This kind of visual dynamism was widely adopted by later manga artists.
The group included Moto Hagio  Riyoko Ikeda  Yumiko Ōshima  Keiko Takemiya  and Ryoko Yamagishi.
Groups  or sentais  of girls working together have also been popular within this genre.
Boys and young men became some of the earliest readers of manga after World War II.
Popular themes include science fiction  technology  sports  and supernatural settings.
Marketeers primarily classify manga by the age and gender of the target readership.
Due to cross readership  consumer response is not limited by demographics.
For example  male readers may subscribe to a series intended for female readers  and so on.
Japan has manga cafés  or manga kissa  kissa is an abbreviation of kissaten .
At a manga kissa  people drink coffee  read manga and sometimes stay overnight.
Manga series can run for many years if they are successful.
If these are successful and receive good reviews  they are continued.
Magazines often have a short life.
Eshinbun Nipponchi had a very simple style of drawings and did not become popular with many people.
Eshinbun Nipponchi ended after three issues.
Shōnen Pakku was made and is considered the first children s manga magazine.
The children s demographic was in an early stage of development in the Meiji period.
In 1924  Kodomo Pakku was launched as another children s manga magazine after Shōnen Pakku.
During the boom  Poten  derived from the French  potin   was published in 1908.
All the pages were in full color with influences from Tokyo Pakku and Osaka Puck.
It is unknown if there were any more issues besides the first one.
Manga no Kuni handed its title to Sashie Manga Kenkyū in August 1940.
In 2007  dōjinshi sales amounted to 27.73 billion yen  US 245 million .
In 2006 they represented about a tenth of manga books and magazines sales.
Web manga     In recent years  there has been a rise in manga released digitally.
It has grown to be the most visited site for artwork in Japan.
Both Sunday Webry and Ura Sunday have become one of the top web manga sites in Japan.
While paper manga has seen a decrease overtime  digital manga have been growing in sales each year.
Comico was launched by NHN Japan  the Japanese subsidiary of Korean company  NHN Entertainment.
Traditionally  manga stories flow from top to bottom and from right to left.
Some publishers of translated manga keep to this original format.
This practice is known as  flipping .
European publishers also translate manga into Dutch  German  Italian  and other languages.
Some U.S. fans became aware of manga in the 1970s and early 1980s.
Matters changed when translator entrepreneur Toren Smith founded Studio Proteus in 1986.
By 2008  the U.S. and Canadian manga market generated  175 million in annual sales.
In 2004 eigoMANGA launched the Rumble Pak and Sakura Pakk anthology series.
Seven Seas Entertainment followed suit with World Manga.
Boilet has worked in France and in Japan  sometimes collaborating with Japanese artists.
Shuho Sato  who wrote Umizaru and Say Hello to Black Jack  has created some controversy on Twitter.
Sato says   Manga school is meaningless because those schools have very low success rates.
Then  I could teach novices required skills on the job in three months.
Manga  il Giappone alla conquista del mondo   Archive  Limes  rivista italiana di geopolitica.
External links    Manga at Curlie  Anime and manga in Japan travel guide from Wikivoyage
Japanese manufacturing industry is heavily dependent on imported raw materials and fuels.
Steel    In 2018  Japan was the second largest steel exporter in the world.
Japan’s exports represented about 8 percent of all steel exported globally in 2017.
Over the decade from Q2 2009  Japan experienced an export growth of 27 .
The top three export markets for Japan were  South Korea  Thailand and China.
See  Defense industry of Japan.
The highest growth came in the production of plastics  polystyrene  and polypropylene.
They also increased merger and acquisition activity overseas.
In 2006  the Japanese pharmaceutical market was the second largest individual market in the world.
In addition  Honda  Suzuki  Yamaha and Kawasaki are global motorcycle companies.
Japan is home to six of the top ten largest vehicle manufacturers in the world.
For example  it is home to multinational companies such as Toyota  Honda  Nissan  Suzuki and Mazda.
Just under 46 percent of the Japanese output was exported.
Since then  tensions have greatly decreased.
Canada and Western Europe  like the U.S.  repealed restrictions on Japanese auto imports.
Nissan has an assembly plant in Sunderland in England.
Only 21 124 units were imported from the United States at that time.
Some of these companies cross over to automobile and finance sectors as part of a keiretsu.
Japan s computer industry developed with extraordinary speed and moved into international markets.
Japanese computer technologies are some of the most advanced in the world.
Imports of computer equipment in 1988 came to US 3.2 billion  including parts .
A common feature of all sectors of the food industry was their internationalization.
This is comparable to the food industries of the United States and the EU.
Acer  is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples.
The genus is placed in the family Sapindaceae.
Only one species  Acer laurinum  extends to the Southern Hemisphere.
The closest relatives of the maples are the horse chestnuts.
Maple syrup is made from the sap of some maple species.
Morphology     Most maples are trees growing to a height of 10–45 m  33–148 ft .
There are a few exceptions such as sugar maple.
Maples are distinguished by opposite leaf arrangement.
Maple species  such as Acer rubrum  may be monoecious  dioecious or polygamodioecious.
The flowers are regular  pentamerous  and borne in racemes  corymbs  or umbels.
Some maples are an early spring source of pollen and nectar for bees.
They are shaped to spin as they fall and to carry the seeds a considerable distance on the wind.
People often call them  helicopters  due to the way that they spin as they fall.
However  one tree can release hundreds of thousands of seeds at a time.
The green seeds are released in pairs  sometimes with the stems still connected.
The yellow seeds are released individually and almost always without the stems.
When put in family Sapindaceae  genus Acer is put in subfamily Hippocastanoideae.
Aphids are also very common sap feeders on maples.
In horticultural applications a dimethoate spray will solve this.
Death of maples can rarely be caused by Phytophthora root rot and Ganoderma root decay.
There are 10 species naturally growing in the country  with at least one in each province.
Other maples  especially smaller or more unusual species  are popular as specimen trees.
Some delicate cultivars are usually grown in pots and rarely reach heights of more than 50–100 cm.
Bonsai       Maples are a popular choice for the art of bonsai.
Commercial uses     Maples are important as sources of syrup and wood.
Dried wood is often used for the smoking of food.
They are also cultivated as ornamental plants and have benefits for tourism and agriculture.
It takes about 40 litres  42 US qt  of sugar maple sap to make 1 litre  1.1 US qt  of syrup.
The maple bat was introduced to Major League Baseball  MLB  in 1998 by Sam Bat founder Sam Holman.
Today it is the standard maple bat most in use by professional baseball.
Maple wood is often graded based on physical and aesthetic characteristics.
The Cherokee Indians would produce a purple dye from maple bark  which they used to dye cloth.
Electric guitar necks are commonly made from maple  having good dimensional stability.
Many drums are made from maple.
Some of the best drum building companies use maple extensively throughout their mid pro range.
Maple drums are favored for their bright resonant sound.
Certain types of drum sticks are also made from maple.
Pulpwood      Maple is used as pulpwood.
The fibers have relatively thick walls that prevent collapsing upon drying.
This gives good bulk and opacity in paper.
Maple also gives paper good printing properties.
In Japan  the custom of viewing the changing colour of maples in the autumn is called momijigari.
Nikko and Kyoto are particularly favoured destinations for this activity.
Other ocean related festivities are observed as well.
History    The day was known as Marine Memorial Day  海の記念日  umi no kinen bi  until 1996.
Celebration    On this day  families may visit the sea and swim  snorkel  surf  or dive.
People may also participate in an event called ‘mud ball throwing’.
National aquariums also host special water related events on this day.
Marriage in Japan is a legal and social institution at the center of the household  ie .
History    The institution of marriage in Japan has changed radically over the last millennium.
It was neither ceremonial nor necessarily permanent.
The most weddings were in Edo  Modern day Tokyo .
Nearly all adoptions are of adult men.
Marriage with a foreigner required the Japanese national to surrender his or her social standing.
One British observer remarked   If you love your wife you spoil your mother s servant.
A proverb said   Those who come together in passion stay together in tears.
looking at one another    although some would meet for the first time at the wedding ceremony.
However  their objections carried little weight.
Boys and girls were separated in schools  in cinemas  and at social gatherings.
Love was thought to be inessential to marriage.
The fight for divorce rights marked the beginning of Japanese feminism.
Women received the right to vote and the right to request a divorce on the basis of infidelity.
The Meiji emphasis on Confucian values and national mythology disappeared from education.
Men who do not aggressively pursue marriage are known as herbivore men  草食男子  sōshoku danshi .
Of the 1 million children born in Japan in 2013  2.2  had one or more non Japanese parent.
The rise in international households has sometimes led to conflicts over custody.
Biracial Japanese children are often called hāfu  ハーフ   although the term has its discontents.
This violence almost always occurred after marriage.
Dating abuse has also been reported by 13.5  of women and 5.2  of men.
No ceremony is required under Japanese law.
When marriage is used to adopt a male heir  the husband takes his wife s family name.
International marriages are subject to separate rules within Japan.
In practice  however  elements of all three major traditions tend to be practiced side by side.
In recent years  the custom of lowering the veil has also become popular.
The guests consist primarily of the couple s friends  who pay an attendance fee.
Variety shows  serial dramas  and news constitute a large percentage of Japanese evening shows.
Western movies are also shown  many with a subchannel for English.
There are all English television channels on cable and satellite  with Japanese subtitles .
Line is an app used for instant communication on electronic devices.
The Yomiuri exchanged a special contract with The Times.
Third ranked in daily circulation—around 4 million per day.
Fourth ranked in daily circulation at around 3 million copies per day.
Sixth ranked in daily circulation at around 2 million copies per day.
Other niches include papers devoted entirely to predicting the results of horse races.
One of the best known papers in the genre is Keiba Book  競馬ブック .
Why is mass media called mass garbage?
The definition of key station has changed a little in recent years.
The broadcasting companies which send out many programs to these networks are called key stations.
Presently the broadcasting stations located in Tokyo send out the programs for the whole country.
Broadcasting stations in Nagoya and other areas are older than those in Tokyo.
The surrounding woodland was cleared by Nemed s folk and named Magh Mhacha   Macha s plain .
She is often mentioned together with her sisters   Badb and Morrigu  whose name was Anand .
The three  with varying names  are often considered a triple goddess associated with war.
Macha is said to have been killed by Balor during the battle with the Fomorians.
Her father Áed rotated the kingship with his cousins Díthorba and Cimbáeth  seven years at a time.
Díthorba and Cimbáeth refused to allow a woman to take the throne  and a battle ensued.
Macha won  and Díthorba was killed.
She won a second battle against Díthorba s sons  who fled into the wilderness of Connacht.
She married Cimbáeth  with whom she shared the kingship.
The Lebor Gabála synchronises her reign to that of Ptolemy I Soter  323–283 BC .
Some time after the death of Cruinniuc s first wife  Macha appears at his house.
Without speaking  she begins keeping the house and acting as his wife.
Soon she becomes pregnant by him.
As long as they were together Cruinniuc s wealth grew.
However  during a chariot race  he boasts that his wife can run faster than the king s horses.
The king orders Cruinniuc be held on pain of death unless he can make good on his claim.
Macha is also named as the daughter of Midir and Aed the Red.
He is quoted as saying   Many of my followers can write hokku as well as I can.
Where I show who I really am is in linking haikai verses.
Biography          Early life      Matsuo Bashō was born in 1644  near Ueno  in Iga Province.
The hokku would be followed by a related 7 7 mora verse by another poet.
In 1662  the first extant poem by Bashō was published.
In 1666  Yoshitada s sudden death brought Bashō s peaceful life as a servant to an end.
In about the spring of that year he moved to Edo  to further his study of poetry.
He began to practice Zen meditation  but it seems not to have calmed his mind.
In the winter of 1682 his hut burned down  and shortly afterwards  in early 1683  his mother died.
He then traveled to Yamura  to stay with a friend.
In the winter of 1683 his disciples gave him a second hut in Edo  but his spirits did not improve.
However  as his trip progressed  his mood improved  and he became comfortable on the road.
Bashō met many friends and grew to enjoy the changing scenery and the seasons.
Bashō and Sora headed north to Hiraizumi  which they reached on June 29.
The first edition was published posthumously in 1702.
He wrote to a friend that  disturbed by others  I have no peace of mind .
He became sick with a stomach illness and died peacefully  surrounded by his disciples.
Some western scholars even believe that  Bashō invented haiku.
Utagawa Hiroshige s 53 Stations of the Tokaido  Kindle ed. .
Bashō saihakken  ningen Bashō no jinsei 芭蕉再発見  人間芭蕉の人生  in Japanese .
An Account of Our Master Basho s Last Days  translated by Nobuyuki Yuasa in Springtime in Edo.
Introduction to Classic Japanese Literature.
An Account of Our Master Bashō s Last Days .
Travels along the path Matsuo Bashō followed for Oku no Hosomichi.
In August 2012  Perry began starring as Ryan King  a sportscaster  on the NBC sitcom Go On.
The series was canceled on May 10  2013.
Early life    Perry was born in Williamstown  Massachusetts  on August 19  1969.
His father  John Bennett Perry  born 1941   is an American actor and former model.
He was raised by his mother in Ottawa  Ontario  and was enrolled at Ashbury College.
While growing up  he took a keen interest in lawn tennis and became a top ranked junior player.
In 1991  he made a guest appearance on Beverly Hills  90210 as Roger Azarian.
When he did eventually get a reading  he landed the part of Chandler Bing.
Perry played small town teacher Ron Clark who relocates to the toughest class in the country.
Perry received a Golden Globe nomination as well as an Emmy nomination for his performance.
From 2006 to 2007  Perry appeared in Aaron Sorkin s drama Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip.
In 2006  he began filming Numb  a film based on a man suffering from depersonalization disorder.
He also appeared in David Mamet s Sexual Perversity in Chicago in London.
In 2009  he starred in the film 17 Again playing the older Mike O Donnell.
Perry was set to portray a middle aged man with an identity crisis.
The project was picked up to series in May 2012.
The pilot aired on August 8  2012 as a  sneak preview  after the 2012 Summer Olympics.
The series premiered on September 11  2012.
On October 2  2012  NBC ordered a full season of 22 episodes.
Perry portrayed  a charismatic man  who enchanted onlookers by throwing his dog in the air.
In 2018  Business Insider reported Perry s net worth to be around  80 million.
He also dated Julia Roberts from 1995 to 1996.
He lost 20 pounds  9.1 kg  in 2000 due to pancreatitis.
Perry s publicist  Lisa Kasteler  confirmed his rehab stay.
Perry is a fan of the Fallout video game series.
On a 2009 episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show  he gifted DeGeneres a copy of Fallout 3.
Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi was assassinated by 11 young naval officers.
Consequences    The eleven officers who murdered Prime Minister Inukai were court martialed.
Indirectly  it led to the February 26 Incident and the increasing rise of Japanese militarism.
Variety shows  serial dramas  and news constitute a large percentage of Japanese evening shows.
Western movies are also shown  many with a subchannel for English.
There are all English television channels on cable and satellite  with Japanese subtitles .
Line is an app used for instant communication on electronic devices.
The Yomiuri exchanged a special contract with The Times.
Third ranked in daily circulation—around 4 million per day.
Fourth ranked in daily circulation at around 3 million copies per day.
Sixth ranked in daily circulation at around 2 million copies per day.
Other niches include papers devoted entirely to predicting the results of horse races.
One of the best known papers in the genre is Keiba Book  競馬ブック .
Why is mass media called mass garbage?
The definition of key station has changed a little in recent years.
The broadcasting companies which send out many programs to these networks are called key stations.
Presently the broadcasting stations located in Tokyo send out the programs for the whole country.
Broadcasting stations in Nagoya and other areas are older than those in Tokyo.
The period corresponded to the reign of Emperor Meiji.
Evil customs of the past shall be broken off and everything based upon the just laws of nature.
Furthermore  a new State Shinto had to be constructed for the purpose.
The government supported Shinto teachers  a small but important move.
Shinto was released from Buddhist administration and its properties restored.
Although Buddhism suffered from state sponsorship of Shinto  it had its own resurgence.
Christianity also was legalized  and Confucianism remained an important ethical doctrine.
Itagaki sought peaceful  rather than rebellious  means to gain a voice in government.
Such movements were called The Freedom and People s Rights Movement.
The restrictions hindered the political parties and led to divisions within and among them.
He led a constitutional study mission abroad in 1882  spending most of his time in Germany.
The Constitution of the Empire of Japan was enacted on November 29  1890.
It was a form of mixed constitutional and absolute monarchy.
The Emperor of Japan was legally the supreme leader  and the Cabinet were his followers.
The Prime Minister would be elected by a Privy Council.
In reality  the Emperor was head of state but the Prime Minister was the actual head of government.
The samurai lost their status as the only class with military privileges.
Party participation was recognized as part of the political process.
The Emperor shared his authority and give rights and liberties to his subjects.
The House of Peers was composed of nobility and imperial appointees.
A cabinet was responsible to the Emperor and independent of the legislature.
The Meiji Constitution lasted as the fundamental law until 1947.
Although not fully realized  the trend toward party politics was well established.
The Meiji era saw a flowering of public discourse on the direction of Japan.
Fukuzawa Yukichi s descriptions of Western clothing and customs were influential.
In the 1890s the kimono reasserted itself  with people wearing bolder and brighter styles.
Another trend was for outer and inner garments of the same design.
Japanese exports led to kimono becoming an object of fascination in the West.
Economy     The Industrial Revolution in Japan occurred during the Meiji era.
The industrial revolution began about 1870 as Meiji era leaders decided to catch up with the West.
The result was a deliberate state led industrialisation policy to enable Japan to quickly catch up.
The Bank of Japan  founded in 1877  used taxes to fund model steel and textile factories.
In 1886  62  of yarn in Japan was imported  by 1902  most yarn was produced locally.
Hand in hand  the zaibatsu and government guided the nation  borrowing technology from the West.
The private sector—in a nation with an abundance of aggressive entrepreneurs—welcomed such change.
The same year  Ōmura Masujirō established Japan s first military academy in Kyoto.
The Osaka Arsenal was responsible for the production of machine guns and ammunition.
Also  four gunpowder facilities also were opened at this site.
Japan s production capacity gradually expanded.
This corps was composed of the warrior classes from the Tosa  Satsuma  and Chōshū clans.
Avoidance methods included maiming  self mutilation  and local uprisings.
Indeed  the new Japanese army used the same rank structure as the French.
The enlisted corps ranks were  private  noncommissioned officers  and officers.
The French government also contributed greatly to the training of Japanese officers.
That all changed in 1877  when Saigō Takamori led the last rebellion of the samurai in Kyūshū.
In February 1877  Saigō left Kagoshima with a small contingent of soldiers on a journey to Tokyo.
Rather than leave an enemy behind him  Saigō laid siege to the castle.
After a short battle  both sides withdrew to reconstitute their forces.
Both sides suffered nearly four thousand casualties during this engagement.
Saigō s troops fled north and were pursued by the national army.
The national army caught up with Saigō at Mt.
Saigō s army was outnumbered seven to one  prompting a mass surrender of many samurai.
The remaining five hundred samurai loyal to Saigō escaped  travelling south to Kagoshima.
The period from 1890 to 1910 was known as  the  Golden age  of Japanese enamels.
Foremost among these was Shibata Zeshin  who has been called  Japan s greatest lacquerer .
He placed lacquer panels in frames  imitating Western oil paintings.
In 1896 he was appointed Artist to the Imperial Household.
The career of porcelain artist Makuzu Kōzan is an archetype for the trajectory of Meiji art.
These wares were highly praised in the West.
Very large  colourful pictorial works were being produced in Kyoto.
The Japanese have assimilated Western culture and its music with the same surprising speed.
The military bands played prominent role in the society.
However  soon the Christianity with its institutions was banned.
Thus  the Orthodox mission introduced the traditional choral music in Japan.
All of them became Orthodox Christians and adopted Christian names.
Education      The educational field also was a major way for adopting Western style music.
The educational reforms were made by Isawa Shūji  1851 1917  and Luther Whiting Mason  1828 1896 .
Thus  the first music scores “The First Collection for Primary School” was published in 1881.
Western music was regarded as an essential contributory factor for modernization.
The curriculum of a new type was improved  the number and quality of the musical events increased.
Clad in the aesthetics of tradition  from kosode to kimono .
Osaka army arsenal  osaka hohei kosho .
40 photographic prints  1 box    hand colored   sizes vary.
The Diet primarily dictated domestic policy matters.
It also created an independent judiciary.
Free speech  freedom of association and freedom of religion were all limited by laws.
It was the struggle between these tendencies that dominated the government of the Empire of Japan.
The United States Constitution was rejected as  too liberal .
The French and Spanish models were rejected as tending toward despotism.
The Meiji Constitution was drafted in secret by the committee  without public debate.
Laws were issued and justice administered by the courts  in the name of the Emperor .
Article 11 declares that the Emperor commands the army and navy.
had no legal force within themselves  but required the signature of a “Minister of State”.
These included the right to  Freedom of movement  Article 22 .
Not have one s house searched or entered  Article 25 .
Right to petition government  Article 30 .
Under the Meiji Constitution  a legislature was established with two Houses.
Amendments    Amendments to the constitution were provided for by Article 73.
No amendment to the constitution was permitted during the time of a regency.
Jansen  Marius B.  and Gilbert Rozman  eds.
External links    The Constitution of the Empire of Japan National Diet Library
2  The goals of the restored government were expressed by the new Emperor in the Charter Oath.
After Kōmei s death on January 30  1867  Meiji ascended the throne on February 3.
Officers are being appointed by us to the conduct of foreign affairs.
It is desirable that the representatives of the treaty powers recognize this announcement.
If the daimyōs peacefully complied  they were given a prominent voice in the new Meiji government.
The oligarchs also endeavored to abolish the four divisions of society.
Throughout Japan at the time  the samurai numbered 1.9 million.
First  in 1873  it was announced that the samurai stipends were to be taxed on a rolling basis.
Later  in 1874  the samurai were given the option to convert their stipends into government bonds.
This led to a series of riots from disgruntled samurai.
This sent a strong message to the dissenting samurai that their time was indeed over.
The oligarchs also embarked on a series of land reforms.
Japan s economic powers are a major influence on the industrial factor of its country as well.
Economics and market both influenced how the people used the market as a place of growth.
The nation of Japan had gone under a mass transformation that helped them economically.
Japan had help from Western nations when it came to industrial growth.
The government sent officials such as the samurai to monitor the work that was being done.
With industrialization came the demand for coal.
There was dramatic rise in production  as shown in the table below.
Coal was needed for steamships and railroads.
The growth of these sectors is shown below.
2.  At that time  the new government used the phrase  Itten banjō   一天万乗 .
However  the more generic term 天下 is most commonly used in modern historiography.
Jansen  Marius B.  Gilbert Rozman  eds.
The period corresponded to the reign of Emperor Meiji.
Evil customs of the past shall be broken off and everything based upon the just laws of nature.
Furthermore  a new State Shinto had to be constructed for the purpose.
The government supported Shinto teachers  a small but important move.
Shinto was released from Buddhist administration and its properties restored.
Although Buddhism suffered from state sponsorship of Shinto  it had its own resurgence.
Christianity also was legalized  and Confucianism remained an important ethical doctrine.
Itagaki sought peaceful  rather than rebellious  means to gain a voice in government.
Such movements were called The Freedom and People s Rights Movement.
The restrictions hindered the political parties and led to divisions within and among them.
He led a constitutional study mission abroad in 1882  spending most of his time in Germany.
The Constitution of the Empire of Japan was enacted on November 29  1890.
It was a form of mixed constitutional and absolute monarchy.
The Emperor of Japan was legally the supreme leader  and the Cabinet were his followers.
The Prime Minister would be elected by a Privy Council.
In reality  the Emperor was head of state but the Prime Minister was the actual head of government.
The samurai lost their status as the only class with military privileges.
Party participation was recognized as part of the political process.
The Emperor shared his authority and give rights and liberties to his subjects.
The House of Peers was composed of nobility and imperial appointees.
A cabinet was responsible to the Emperor and independent of the legislature.
The Meiji Constitution lasted as the fundamental law until 1947.
Although not fully realized  the trend toward party politics was well established.
The Meiji era saw a flowering of public discourse on the direction of Japan.
Fukuzawa Yukichi s descriptions of Western clothing and customs were influential.
In the 1890s the kimono reasserted itself  with people wearing bolder and brighter styles.
Another trend was for outer and inner garments of the same design.
Japanese exports led to kimono becoming an object of fascination in the West.
Economy     The Industrial Revolution in Japan occurred during the Meiji era.
The industrial revolution began about 1870 as Meiji era leaders decided to catch up with the West.
The result was a deliberate state led industrialisation policy to enable Japan to quickly catch up.
The Bank of Japan  founded in 1877  used taxes to fund model steel and textile factories.
In 1886  62  of yarn in Japan was imported  by 1902  most yarn was produced locally.
Hand in hand  the zaibatsu and government guided the nation  borrowing technology from the West.
The private sector—in a nation with an abundance of aggressive entrepreneurs—welcomed such change.
The same year  Ōmura Masujirō established Japan s first military academy in Kyoto.
The Osaka Arsenal was responsible for the production of machine guns and ammunition.
Also  four gunpowder facilities also were opened at this site.
Japan s production capacity gradually expanded.
This corps was composed of the warrior classes from the Tosa  Satsuma  and Chōshū clans.
Avoidance methods included maiming  self mutilation  and local uprisings.
Indeed  the new Japanese army used the same rank structure as the French.
The enlisted corps ranks were  private  noncommissioned officers  and officers.
The French government also contributed greatly to the training of Japanese officers.
That all changed in 1877  when Saigō Takamori led the last rebellion of the samurai in Kyūshū.
In February 1877  Saigō left Kagoshima with a small contingent of soldiers on a journey to Tokyo.
Rather than leave an enemy behind him  Saigō laid siege to the castle.
After a short battle  both sides withdrew to reconstitute their forces.
Both sides suffered nearly four thousand casualties during this engagement.
Saigō s troops fled north and were pursued by the national army.
The national army caught up with Saigō at Mt.
Saigō s army was outnumbered seven to one  prompting a mass surrender of many samurai.
The remaining five hundred samurai loyal to Saigō escaped  travelling south to Kagoshima.
The period from 1890 to 1910 was known as  the  Golden age  of Japanese enamels.
Foremost among these was Shibata Zeshin  who has been called  Japan s greatest lacquerer .
He placed lacquer panels in frames  imitating Western oil paintings.
In 1896 he was appointed Artist to the Imperial Household.
The career of porcelain artist Makuzu Kōzan is an archetype for the trajectory of Meiji art.
These wares were highly praised in the West.
Very large  colourful pictorial works were being produced in Kyoto.
The Japanese have assimilated Western culture and its music with the same surprising speed.
The military bands played prominent role in the society.
However  soon the Christianity with its institutions was banned.
Thus  the Orthodox mission introduced the traditional choral music in Japan.
All of them became Orthodox Christians and adopted Christian names.
Education      The educational field also was a major way for adopting Western style music.
The educational reforms were made by Isawa Shūji  1851 1917  and Luther Whiting Mason  1828 1896 .
Thus  the first music scores “The First Collection for Primary School” was published in 1881.
Western music was regarded as an essential contributory factor for modernization.
The curriculum of a new type was improved  the number and quality of the musical events increased.
Clad in the aesthetics of tradition  from kosode to kimono .
Osaka army arsenal  osaka hohei kosho .
40 photographic prints  1 box    hand colored   sizes vary.
In other places the Neolithic lasted longer.
The term was coined by Sir John Lubbock in 1865 as a refinement of the three age system.
Early development occurred in the Levant  e.g.
The grain was ground into flour.
However  these houses were for the first time made of mudbrick.
The settlement had a surrounding stone wall and perhaps a stone tower  as in Jericho .
Some of the enclosures also suggest grain and meat storage.
As with the PPNA dates  there are two versions from the same laboratories noted above.
A settlement of 3 000 inhabitants was found in the outskirts of Amman  Jordan.
The settlement included two temples dating to 9650 BC.
Around 9000 BC during the PPNA  one of the world s first towns  Jericho  appeared in the Levant.
Around 6400 BC the Halaf culture appeared in Syria and Northern Mesopotamia.
Southern Mesopotamia      Alluvial plains  Sumer Elam .
Low rainfall makes irrigation systems necessary.
The farm was dated between 3600 and 3000 BC.
Pottery  stone projectile points  and possible houses were also found.
During this period the bow and arrow and ceramic pottery were also introduced.
In later periods cities of considerable size developed  and some metallurgy by 700 BC.
In the Paleolithic  people did not normally live in permanent constructions.
In the Neolithic  mud brick houses started appearing that were coated with plaster.
The roof was supported by beams from the inside.
The rough ground was covered by platforms  mats  and skins on which residents slept.
Stilt houses settlements were common in the Alpine and Pianura Padana  Terramare  region.
Surpluses could be stored for later use  or possibly traded for other necessities or luxuries.
Another significant change undergone by many of these newly agrarian communities was one of diet.
At Çatalhöyük  houses were plastered and painted with elaborate scenes of humans and animals.
In Europe  long houses built from wattle and daub were constructed.
Elaborate tombs were built for the dead.
These tombs are particularly numerous in Ireland  where there are many thousand still in existence.
Exceptions include copper hatchets and spearheads in the Great Lakes region.
In the Americas  the Eneolithic ended as late as the 19th century AD for some peoples.
Rare double burials discovered at one of the largest Neolithic burial sites in Europe.
This presentation exposed the fledgling Metabolist movement to its first international audience.
It included transportation  services and a manufacturing plant for prefabricated houses.
It is a single space divided by storage units with the kitchen and bathroom on the outer edge.
In 1958 they formed a preparation committee led by Junzo Sakakura  Kunio Maekawa and Kenzo Tange.
He answered questions until after midnight with Maki acting as translator.
A number of the Metabolists were inspired by this.
The translation he found was the word Metabolism.
We regard human society as a vital process   a continuous development from atom to nebula.
Ocean City     Kikutake s Ocean City is the first essay in the pamphlet.
Kawazoe referred to  artificial land  in an article in the magazine Kindai Kenchiku in April 1960.
Administrative buildings were found at the tangent point.
The population would have been rigidly controlled at an upper limit of 500 000.
This enforced the Metabolist idea that the expansion of cities could be a biological process.
He proposed a wall shaped city that could extend indefinitely.
Dwellings would be on one side of the wall and workplaces on the other.
It consisted of a grid like city supported on 4 metre stilts above the ground.
He envisaged that his Mushroom Houses would sprout through the slab of Agriculture City.
Tange went on to expand the idea of the linear city in 1964 with the Tōkaidō Megalopolis Plan.
Unlike Tange however its simple presentation graphics put many people off.
These he placed on a grid into which he inserted the functional group facilities and offices.
The capsules are 2.5 metres wide and four metres long with a 1.3 metre diameter window at one end.
Although the capsules were designed with mass production in mind there was never a demand for them.
Since 1996 the tower has been listed as an architectural heritage by DoCoMoMo.
However  in 2007 the residents voted to tear the tower down and build a new 14 storey tower.
The tower still stands today and has approximately 15 people living inside.
The project acted as a catalyst to the redevelopment of the whole area around Daikanyama Station.
Ideas of nuclear physics and biological growth were linked with Buddhist concepts of regeneration.
The theme for the Expo became  Progress and Harmony for Mankind .
The architects included Moshe Safdie  Yona Friedman  Hans Hollein and Giancarlo De Carlo.
It was built of a vertical ball and joint space onto which was attached a series of cabins.
However  both were put on hold by the outbreak of the Fourth Arab Israeli War in 1973.
Likewise  the plan for a new city center in Tehran was cancelled after the 1979 revolution.
Pflumio  Cyril  2011  Je est une cabane dans le désert.
Notes sur l espace et l architecture japonaise.
As of April 2011  its circulation was claimed to be 30 000.
History    The magazine was first published in 1994 as the Tokyo Classified.
It is also one of the world s 17 megadiverse countries  ranking fiftth in natural biodiversity.
The official name of the country has changed as the form of government has changed.
The phrase República Mexicana   Mexican Republic   was used in the 1836 Constitutional Laws.
The formative era of Mesoamerica is considered one of the six independent cradles of civilization.
The Mesoamerican writing tradition reached its height in the Classic Maya Hieroglyphic script.
The Aztec were noted for practicing human sacrifice on a large scale.
Along with this practice  they avoided killing enemies on the battlefield.
The Spanish gained other indigenous allies  who also joined in the war for their own reasons.
The Spanish captured him  holding him hostage.
He died while in their custody and the Spanish retreated from Tenochtitlan in great disarray.
The native population declined 80–90  by 1600 to 1–2.5 million.
The territory became part of the Spanish Empire under the name of New Spain in 1535.
Mexico City was systematically rebuilt by Cortés following the Fall of Tenochtitlan in 1521.
The Kingdom of New Spain was created from the remnants of the Aztec empire.
The viceroy was highest official of the State.
Castilian Spanish was the language of rulers.
The capital Mexico City was and remains the premier city.
The total population ranged from 3 799 561 to 6 122 354.
Administration was based on the racial separation.
There were formal legal designations of racial categories.
Taxes on silver production became a major source of income for Spain.
The Camino Real de Tierra Adentro connected Mexico City with the interior of New Spain.
Mexican silver pesos became the first globally used currency.
Most rebellions were small scale and local  posing no major threat to the ruling elites.
Among the best known pirate attacks are the 1663 Sack of Campeche and 1683 Attack on Veracruz.
The volatility of the urban poor in Mexico City was evident in the 1692 riot in the Zócalo.
The Academy of San Carlos  1781  was the first major school and museum of art in the Americas.
Morelos was captured and executed on 22 December 1815.
The Constitution of 1824 declared that the official religion of the Republic would be Catholic.
The army  another Conservative institution  also retained its privileges.
Central America  including Chiapas  left the union.
During his short term in office  April to December 1829  he abolished slavery.
Mexico s ability to maintain its independence and establish a viable government was in question.
Santa Anna lost a leg in combat during this conflict  which he used for political purposes.
The region bordered the United States  and was territory controlled by Comanches.
There were few settlers from central Mexico moving to this remote and hostile territory.
Some brought their black slaves  which after 1829 was contrary to Mexican law.
When he suspended the 1824 Constitution  civil war spread across the country.
It was a prelude to more civil wars and yet another foreign invasion.
Liberalism became synonymous with patriotism.
Díaz then rebelled  crushed by Juárez.
Díaz had more support and waged guerrilla warfare against Lerdo.
On the verge of Díaz s victory on the battlefield  Lerdo fled from office  going into exile.
Another army general assumed the presidency of Mexico.
The period was also marked by economic inequality and political repression.
From the late nineteenth century  Protestants began to make inroads in Mexico.
The government encouraged British and U.S. investment.
The Mexican government ordered a survey of land with the aim of selling it for development.
An industrial manufacturing sector also developed  particularly in textiles.
Díaz ruled with a group of advisors that became known as the científicos   scientists  .
The most influential cientifco was Secretary of Finance José Yves Limantour.
The Porfirian regime was influenced by positivism.
As an integral aspect of the liberal project was secular education.
Díaz s long success did not include planning for a political transition beyond his own presidency.
He made no attempt  however  to establish a family dynasty  naming no relative as his successor.
The September centennial celebration of independence was the last celebration of the Porfiriato.
The Mexican Revolution starting in 1910 saw a decade of civil war  the  wind that swept Mexico.
In 1914 that army was dissolved as an institution.
Carranza became the de facto head of Mexico  and the U.S. recognized his government.
With amendments  it remains the governing document of Mexico.
Wilson ordered troops to occupy the strategic port of Veracruz in 1914  which was lifted.
Carranza pushed back against U.S. troops being in northern Mexico.
Mexico remained neutral in the conflict.
Consolidating power  President Carranza had peasant leader Emiliano Zapata assassinated in 1919.
Carranza chose a political and revolutionary no body to succeed him.
Since 1946  no member of the military has been President of Mexico.
Obregón instigated land reform and strengthened the power of organized labor.
The Church State conflict was mediated and ended with the aid of the U.S.
Calles could not become president again  since he has just ended his term.
This movement would result in the creation of the state owned Mexican oil company Pemex.
The government poured huge resources into building new facilities.
His government had to contend with mistrust of Mexicans and increasing economic problems.
He instituted some with electoral reforms.
Echeverría chose José López Portillo as his successor in 1976.
Pemex did not have the capacity to develop these reserves itself  and brought in foreign firms.
When the price of oil dropped  Mexico s economy collapsed in the 1982 Crisis.
In the 1980s the first cracks emerged in the PRI s complete political dominance.
In Baja California  the PAN candidate was elected as governor.
There were massive protests in Mexico City to the stolen election.
Salinas took the oath of office on 1 December 1988.
In order to do that  the Constitution of 1917 was amended in several important ways.
However  he won with a plurality of about 38   and did not have a legislative majority.
The coalition also won a majority in both the upper and lower congress chambers.
From its farthest land points  Mexico is a little over 2 000 mi  3 219 km  in length.
Land north of the Tropic of Cancer experiences cooler temperatures during the winter months.
This gives Mexico one of the world s most diverse weather systems.
In the Sonoran Desert temperatures reach 50 °C  122 °F  or more.
With over 200 000 different species  Mexico is home of 10–12  of the world s biodiversity.
In Mexico  170 000 square kilometres  65 637 sq mi  are considered  Protected Natural Areas .
Most of these names come from indigenous languages like Nahuatl.
They also have their own civil and judicial codes.
The Chamber of Deputies has 500 deputies.
The Senate is made up of 128 senators.
The President also appoints the Cabinet and other officers.
The President is responsible for executing and enforcing the law  and has the power to veto bills.
Crime      Drug cartels are a major concern in Mexico.
The Mexican drug cartels have as many as 100 000 members.
In 2008  Mexico contributed over 40 million dollars to the United Nations regular budget.
Mexico signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
GDP annual average growth was 2.9  in 2016 and 2  in 2017.
Mexico s GDP in PPP per capita was US 18 714.05.
Mexico is now firmly established as an upper middle income country.
Daily minimum wages are set annually being set at  102.68 Mexican pesos  US 5.40  in 2019.
In Puebla alone  70 industrial part makers cluster around Volkswagen.
In the 2010s expansion of the sector was surging.
In 2014 alone  more than  10 billion in investment was committed.
In August 2010 Mexico surpassed France to become the 9th largest holder of US debt.
According to Mexico s central bank  remittances in 2008 amounted to  25bn.
Other players in the domestic industry are Axtel  Maxcom  Alestra  Marcatel  AT T Mexico.
The Mexican satellite system is domestic and operates 120 earth stations.
Satmex maintains its own satellite fleet with most of the fleet being designed and built in Mexico.
Mexico is the sixth largest oil producer in the world  with 3.7 million barrels per day.
UNAM provides world class education in science  medicine  and engineering.
Most of the new research institutes were created within UNAM.
Twelve institutes were integrated into UNAM from 1929 to 1973.
It was designed to observe regions of space obscured by stellar dust.
A smaller number also come from other Latin American countries.
Just offshore is the beach island of Isla Mujeres  and to the east is the Isla Holbox.
A day trip to the south of Cancún is the historic port of Tulum.
In addition to its beaches  the town of Tulum is notable for its cliff side Mayan ruins.
On the Pacific coast is the notable tourist destination of Acapulco.
Closer to the United States border is the weekend draw of San Felipe  Baja California.
Demographics     Throughout the 19th century  the population of Mexico had barely doubled.
Life expectancy went from 36 years  in 1895  to 72 years  in the year 2000 .
The second largest group comes from neighboring Guatemala  54 500   followed by Spain  27 600 .
It was also reported that 7.4  of Afro Mexicans speak an indigenous language.
The largest group were the Lebanese and an estimated 400 000 Mexicans have some Lebanese ancestry.
Smaller ethnic groups in Mexico include South and East Asians  present since the colonial era.
At the turn of the 21st century  this figure more than doubled to 9.5 million.
The letters b and v have the same pronunciation as well.
Furthermore  English is the most commonly taught foreign language in Mexico.
However  a high level of English proficiency is limited to only 5  of the population.
47  percent of them attend church services weekly.
According to the 2020 census  there are 58 876 Jews in Mexico.
Islam in Mexico  with 7 982 members  is practiced mostly by Arab Mexicans.
There is often a syncretism between shamanism and Catholic traditions.
Another religion of popular syncretism in Mexico  especially in recent years  is the Santería.
In general  popular religiosity is viewed with bad eyes by institutionally structured religions.
One of the most exemplary cases of popular religiosity is the cult of Holy Dead  Santa Muerte .
Social determinants of health can be used to evaluate the state of health in Mexico.
Private business schools also stand out in international rankings.
Women were granted suffrage in 1953.
In 2014  Mexico had the 16th highest rate of homicides committed against women in the world.
The remains of the victims were frequently mutilated.
This is the first new and major movement with which his presidency has had to deal.
Exogenous cultural elements have been incorporated into Mexican culture as time has passed.
Amerindian  element is the core.
Painting      Painting is one of the oldest arts in Mexico.
Hermenegildo Bustos is one of the most appreciated painters of the historiography of Mexican art.
The Oaxacan School quickly gained fame and prestige  diffusion of ancestral and modern culture.
Federico Cantú Garza  Juan O Gorman  and Rufino Tamayo are also important artists.
Some of Rivera s murals are displayed at the Mexican National Palace and the Palace of Fine Arts.
Verónica Ruiz de Velasco is a neofigurative painter and muralist.
Both Verónica Ruiz de Velasco and Francisco Toledo were students of Rufino Tamayo.
Gilberto Aceves Navarro is also considered an important contemporary artist.
Mexico  as the center of New Spain has some of the most renowned buildings built in this style.
The Jalisco School was a proposal of those socio political movements that the country demanded.
After the revolution  Mexican photographers created photographs as art images.
Aztec poetry was sung  chanted  or spoken  often to the accompanyment of a drum or a harp.
Bernal Díaz del Castillo s True History of the Conquest of Mexico is still widely read today.
Sor Juana was famous in her own time  called the  Ten Muse.
Mexican films were exported and exhibited in all of Latin America and Europe.
Numerous Mexican actors have achieved recognition as Hollywood stars.
Other Indigenous products are many beans.
Sports      Mexico s most popular sport is association football.
By 1902 a five team league had emerged with a strong British influence.
Mexico s top clubs are América with 12 championships  Guadalajara with 11  and Toluca with 10.
Mexican teams have won the Caribbean Series nine times.
Not until the Qing dynasty  1644–1911  do more finely grained distinctions appear in writing.
Even then  discerning which ethnic groups are included in various classifications can be complex.
Miao women exercise relatively more independence  mobility and social freedom.
They are known to be strong willed and politically minded.
Miao women demonstrate great skill and artistry when making traditional clothing and handicrafts.
Additionally  Miao silver jewelry is distinctive for its design  style and craftsmanship.
Miao silver jewelry is completely handmade  carved with fine decorative patterns.
It’s not easy to make and there is not one final masterpiece exactly the same as another.
The Miao embroidery and silver jewelry are highly valued  delicate and beautiful.
Silver jewelry is a highly valuable craftwork of the Miao people.
Apart from being a cultural tradition  it also symbolises the wealth of Miao women.
Silver jewelry is an essential element of Miao marriages  particularly to the bride.
Hence  there is a big time gap between Tang and Zhou dynasty  approximately 1 500 years apart.
There are no actual evidence that Chi You is Miao.
There is no universally accepted origin for the Miao  Hmong  people.
The Miao may have ruled a kingdom known as Jiu Li 6 000 years ago.
It was founded by Tao Tie and Huan Tuo and was defeated by Yu the Great.
Its people were called the Da Mong.
In the following period  the Miao migrated throughout southern China and Southeast Asia.
Mass castrations of Miao boys also took place.
During the Qing Dynasty the Miao fought three wars against the empire.
Eight counties involving 1 224 villages fought until 1738 when the revolt ended.
According to Xiangtan University Professor Wu half the Miao population were affected by the war.
The second war  1795–1806  involved the provinces of Guizhou and Hunan.
Shi Sanbao and Shi Liudeng led this second revolt.
Zhang Xiu mei led this revolt in Guizhou until his capture and death in Changsha  Hunan.
This revolt affected over one million people and all the neighbouring provinces.
This defeat led to the Hmong people migrating out of China into Laos and Vietnam.
During Qing times  more military garrisons were established in southwest China.
During the Ming and Qing times  the official position of Kiatong was created in Indochina.
Most Hmong in Thailand also supported a brief Communist uprising during the war.
Fifty years later in Chiangmai two of their Hmong boy descendants were Catholics.
They claim that the Han borrowed a lot of words from the Miao in regard to rice farming.
This indicated that the Miao were among the first rice farmers in China.
Recent DNA samples of Miao males contradict this theory.
Altogether  there are approximately 10 million speakers in the Miao language family.
There are 789 000 Hmong spread throughout northern Vietnam  Laos  Burma  and on other continents.
174 000 live in Thailand  where they are one of the six main hill tribes.
London  Printed   Sold by C.   R. Baldwin  New Bridge Street  Black Friars.
Mie Prefecture  三重県  Mie ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu.
Transport networks  including the Tokaido and Ise Roads  were built.
Pilgrimages to Ise Shrine also became very popular.
Traditionally  though  the Iga region of Mie is considered to have always been a part of Kansai.
The remaining 10.3 percent are not classified.
The Ise Plain has a relatively moderate climate  averaging 14 to 15 °C  57 to 59 °F  for the year.
Mie also produces tea  beef  cultured pearls and fruit  mainly mandarin oranges.
Tsubaki Grand Shrine   Japan s oldest Shinto shrine.
Yunoyama Onsen   Famous onsen near Yokkaichi that sits atop Mount Gozaisho.
Nagashima Spa Land   One of the largest amusement parks in Japan  located in Kuwana.
Saikū   Site of Heian Imperial residence  with modern museum and reconstructed Heian building.
The first prefectural assembly was elected in March 1879 and convened in April.
As in all prefectures except Okinawa  the governor of Mie is directly elected since 1947.
The prefectural assembly has 51 members.
Both prefectural elections in Mie are currently held as part of unified local elections.
As such  it now connotes any activity performed by armed force personnel.
Military history has a number of facets.
Still  another may be to learn to prevent wars more effectively.
For example  in 2000 the British Army declared   Man is still the first weapon of war.
Colonel   non commissioned officers  e.g.
infantry   combat support roles  e.g.
combat engineers   and combat service support roles  e.g.
Obligations       The obligations of military employment are many.
For example   Individuality is suppressed  e.g.
It was practically impossible to make an estimation of the actual training of the armed forces.
The scope of strategic military planning can span weeks  but is more often months or even years.
A common synonym is operational art.
This concept was pioneered by the German army prior to and during the Second World War.
The Classical Greeks and the Romans wrote prolifically on military campaigning.
De Re Militari formed the basis of European military tactics until the late 17th century.
Evolution of aerial warfare introduced its own air combat tactics.
This was mainly employed in World War I in the Gallipoli campaign  and the Western Front.
Stone weapons gave way to Bronze Age weapons  and later  the Iron Age weapons.
These developed into the powerful composite and recurve bows  and crossbows of Ancient China.
In a democracy or other political system run in the public interest  it is a public force.
One difficult matter in the relation between military and society is control and transparency.
However transparency in the military sector is crucial to fight corruption.
Most nations have separate military laws which regulate conduct in war and during peacetime.
His theme was echoed by Gustavus Adolphus.
The term military humanism is used to refer to such actions.
It is usually carried out by military workers.
The 1947 Japanese Constitution prohibits Japan from offensively using war against other nations.
This led to the establishment of the Japan Self Defense Forces in 1954.
In 2015 the Constitution was reinterpreted to allow collective self defense of Japan s allies.
Japan has a long military tradition with extensive militarism.
As of 2015 Japan had the  fourth most powerful military in the world.
The  Prime Minister is the commander in chief of the Japan Self Defense Forces.
Battles were fought with weapons like the sword  sling  spear  bow and arrow.
Some human remains were found with arrow wounds.
Japan transitioned to a settled agricultural society.
There was a big influx of farmers from the Asian continent to Japan.
The Yayoi culture flourished from southern Kyūshū to northern Honshū.
About 30 communities had been united by a sorceress queen named Himiko.
The Five kings of Wa sent envoys to China to recognize their dominion of the Japanese Islands.
Yamato Japan had close relations with the southwestern Korean kingdom of Baekje.
As a result  the Japanese were banished from the peninsula.
To defend the Japanese archipelago  a military base was constructed in Dazaifu  Fukuoka  on Kyushu.
Yamato period  250–710 AD       This period is divided into the Kofun and Asuka period.
Ancient Japan had close ties with the Gaya confederacy and Baekje on the Korean Peninsula.
According to the Gwanggaeto Stele  Silla and Baekje were client states of Japan.
These gifts triggered a powerful burst of interest in Buddhism.
In 663  near the end of the Korean Three Kingdoms period  the Battle of Baekgang  白村江  took place.
However  these ships were intercepted and defeated by a Silla Tang fleet.
The Japanese then turned directly to China.
The country was unified and centralized  with basic features of the later feudal system.
Succession disputes were prevalent during this period  just as in most of the later periods.
Otomaro was declared  Sei i Taishōgun  which means  Barbarian subduing Great General .
This was a national civil war between the two most powerful clans  the Taira and Minamoto clans.
They fought for control over the declining Imperial Court in Kyoto.
Each side had a large number of smaller allied clans.
The Battle of Dan no Ura was a major naval battle between these clans on April 25  1185.
Minamoto had a fleet of 300 ships and Taira had 400 to 500 ships.
It resulted in a decisive victory for the Minamoto clan and the destruction of the Taira clan.
The Shogunates were military governments and de facto rulers of Japan.
The Daimyō were protected by samurai and they dominated Japan s internal politics.
This brought the Japanese archipelago into a period of 150 years of fractious disunity and war.
Military affairs were handled under the auspices of the civil government.
Emperor Go Toba and the aristocracy remained the de jure rulers.
In 1192  Yoritomo was awarded the title of Sei i Taishōgun by Emperor Go Toba.
This brought a period of peace.
Yoritomo s wife s family  the Hōjō  seized power from the Kamakura shōguns.
The Kamakura shogunate lasted for almost 150 years  from 1192 to 1333.
Japan s remote location makes it secure against invaders from the Asian continent.
That s almost 6 times farther away than from England to France 33.3 km  20.7 mi .
Throughout history  Japan was never fully invaded nor colonized by foreigners.
He created the finest swords and daggers  called tachi and tantō   in the Soshu tradition.
Subsequently  they attempted to invade Japan twice.
In early October 1274  the Battle of Bun ei began with a combined force of Mongols and Koreans.
The Mongol army and Hong Dagu withdrew to their ships towards the Yuan Dynasty.
The Japanese army conducted night attacks and killed as many soldiers as they could.
This typhoon was called the Kamikaze which means  divinely conjured wind .
The second Mongol invasion was the largest naval invasion in history until D Day.
In the spring of 1281  Kublai Khan sent two separate forces.
The Mongols planned an overwhelming coordinated attack by the combined imperial Yuan fleets.
The Eastern Route Army arrived at Hakata Bay in Kyushu on June 21  1281.
They proceeded without the larger southern force.
Waves of samurai responded and prevented the Mongols from forming a beachhead.
The samurai used a harassment tactic by boarding the Yuan ships with small boats at night.
They killed many of the Yuan forces in the bay and the samurai left before dawn.
This caused the Yuan to retreat to Tsushima.
During the next few weeks up to 3000 Yuan were killed in close quarters.
On July 16  the first of the Southern force ships arrived.
By August 12  the two fleets were ready to attack Japan.
However  on August 15 a major typhoon  kamikaze  struck the Tsushima Strait.
It lasted two full days and destroyed most of the Yuan fleet.
Kusunoki Masashige       One of the greatest samurai was Kusunoki Masashige.
He lived during the Kamakura period and represents the ideal of samurai loyalty.
Kusunoki was also a brilliant tactician and strategist.
In 1333  Go Daigo rewarded Kusunoki with governorship of Settsu Province and Kawachi Province.
Battles grew larger in this period  and were less ritualized.
This was a civil war between the Ashikaga shogunate and numerous daimyō.
There were a total of five engagements at Kawanakajima.
Only the fourth battle was a serious  all out battle between the two.
Kenshin attacked Shingen with his sword while Shingen defended with his Japanese war fan  tessen .
Many of these designs were used by the Tokugawa shogunate.
The Takeda  under Takeda Shingen  developed the Japanese equivalent of the cavalry charge.
Azuchi–Momoyama period  1568–1600       This was the final phase of the Sengoku period.
There were 3 powerful daimyō who unified the Japanese archipelago.
The third daimyō who unified Japan was Tokugawa Ieyasu after the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600.
The Battle of Sekigahara was the last major battle of the Sengoku period on October 21  1600.
This was a huge battle between the forces loyal to Toyotomi Hideyori versus Tokugawa Ieyasu.
Hideyori s Western Army consisted of many clans from Western Japan with a total of 120 000 men.
The Eastern Army was 75 000 men strong with clans from Eastern Japan.
The decisive victory of the Eastern Army solidified the rule of Tokugawa Ieyasu.
In 1603  Ieyasu was appointed with the title of shōgun by Emperor Go Yōzei.
This made Ieyasu the nominal ruler of the whole country of Japan.
The Tokugawa shogunate was the last shogunate until the Meiji Restoration in 1867.
Since 1660  Japan had 200 years of peace with no major domestic or foreign conflicts.
The conduct of samurai served as role model behavior for the other social classes.
He became the Kensei  sword saint  of Japan.
He had a unique double bladed swordsmanship  Nito Ichi ryū  and an undefeated record in 61 duels.
In 1789  another Ainu revolt  the Menashi–Kunashir Rebellion  was crushed.
Japan had antiquated and decentralized military forces.
The purpose was to protect Edo from another American incursion.
Thereafter Industrial developments started in order to build modern cannons.
A reverbatory furnace was established by Egawa Hidetatsu in Nirayama to cast cannons.
In 1868 Tokugawa Yoshinobu resigned which ended the Tokugawa dynasty and the last shogunate.
The Meiji Restoration restored practical abilities and the political system under Emperor Meiji.
Japan was the first non European country to industrialize.
Japan was the last major power to enter the race for global colonization.
It expanded rapidly  with colonial acquisitions  from 1895 till 1942.
The Empire of Japan was one of the largest in history.
In 1937  Japan had one sixth the industrial capacity than the USA.
The bakufu army was a large force  but only one among others.
The first foreign military mission in Japan was held by France in 1867.
It consisted exclusively of 10 000 strong samurai.
Yamagata modernized and modeled it after the Prussian Army.
Duke Yamagata Aritomo was born in a lower ranked samurai family from Hagi.
He was a field marshal in the Imperial Japanese Army and twice Prime Minister of Japan.
He was one of the main architects of the military and political foundations of early modern Japan.
The second Army Academy was built by the second French Military Mission to Japan.
This was an important Military Academy for Japanese Army officers.
It is on the same ground as the modern Japan Ministry of Defense.
The samurai lost their status as the only class with military privileges.
They shared a set of values and outlooks that supported Japanese militarism.
Thus the military class that began with the samurai in 1192 CE continued to rule Japan.
The Constitution of the Empire of Japan was enacted on November 29  1890.
It was a form of mixed constitutional and absolute monarchy.
The Emperor of Japan was legally the supreme leader  and the Cabinet were his followers.
The Prime Minister would be elected by a Privy Council.
In reality  the Emperor was head of state but the Prime Minister was the actual head of government.
It was the first major conflict between Japan and an overseas military power in modern times.
The conflict was primarily over influence in Korea.
The Qing s loss of Korea as a tributary state sparked an unprecedented public outcry.
Japan s victory of the First Sino Japanese War put Korea completely under Japanese control.
Korea became a Japanese vassal state.
The Treaty of Shimonoseki  下関条約  Shimonoseki Jyoyaku  signed between Japan and China ended the war.
China also had to pay a war indemnity of 200 million Kuping taels.
These dispositions culminated with the Russo Japanese War  1904–1905 .
The battleship Mikasa was the flagship of admiral Tōgō Heihachirō.
On the other hand  the Japanese only lost 117 men and 3 torpedo boats.
This overwhelming victory made admiral Tōgō one of Japan s greatest naval heroes.
The war concluded with the Treaty of Portsmouth.
The complete victory of the Japanese military surprised world observers.
The consequences transformed the balance of power in East Asia.
It was also the first victory in decades of an Asian power over a European power.
As an ally of Great Britain  Japan declared war on Germany in 1914.
On 6 September 1914 was the very first air sea battle in history.
Four seaplanes bombarded German land targets.
The Empire of Japan sent the largest military force of 70 000 soldiers to the eastern region.
They supported anti communist White forces in Russia.
The Allied Powers withdrew in 1920.
Japan subsequently developed a fleet of aircraft carriers that was second to none.
The Chinese suffered greatly in both military and civilian casualties.
In September 1940  Germany  Italy  and Japan became allies under the Tripartite Pact.
Meanwhile  American economic support to China began to increase.
Hideki Tojo was a politician and general of the Imperial Japanese Army.
Politically  he was a fascist  nationalist  and militarist.
The Second Sino Japanese War became part of the global conflict of World War II.
They also undertook major offensives in Burma and launched air and naval attacks against Australia.
The Allies turned the tide of war at sea in mid 1942  at the Battle of Midway.
Very few Japanese ended up in POW camps.
This may have been due to Japanese soldiers  reluctance to surrender.
The Battle of Okinawa was the bloodiest battle of the Pacific War.
This was in particular the mistreatment of prisoners of war and civilians.
... Bushido therefore explains why the Japanese in the NEI so mistreated POWs in their custody.
Japan also paid billions of dollars in war reparations for 23 years from 1955 till 1977.
Other countries have exploited the war guilt to boost nationalism and hostility against Japan.
The anti Japan protests in China in April 2005 were mostly young people with nationalist views.
An estimated 150 000–246 000 people died as a direct result of these two bombings.
Japan didn t have nuclear weapon technology so this new type of atomic bomb was a surprise.
69  of Hiroshima s buildings were destroyed and 6  damaged.
At this time  on August 8  the Soviet Union entered the war against Japan.
A separate surrender ceremony between Japan and China was held in Nanking on September 9  1945.
Throughout history Japan has never been fully invaded nor conquered by a foreign power.
Japan also never capitulated to a foreign power  thus Japan was unwilling to surrender.
However  Japan couldn t counter the destructive nuclear bombs of America.
On August 15  1945  a broadcast of a recorded speech of Emperor Shōwa was released to the public.
U.S. President Harry Truman officially proclaimed an end to hostilities on December 31  1946.
The Empire of Japan was dismantled and all overseas territories were lost.
However  the Kuril Islands weren t included due to a dispute with the Soviet Union.
Among them were the Yamato class battleship  aircraft carrier innovation  e.g.
The U.S. occupation forces were fully responsible for protecting Japan from external threats.
Japan only had a minor police force for domestic security.
Japan was under the sole control of the United States.
West Germany was allowed to write its own constitution under supervision of the Allies.
Meanwhile  general Douglas MacArthur had near complete control over Japanese politics.
The constitution guarantees civil and human rights.
Japan became a pacifist country since September 1945.
The trauma of World War II produced strong pacifist sentiments among the nation.
This left Japan virtually defenseless and vulnerable.
This consisted of 75 000 men equipped with light infantry weapons.
This was the first step of its postwar rearmament.
On 8 September 1951 the Security Treaty Between the United States and Japan was signed.
Thus soldiers  sailors and airforce members cannot be involved in political activities.
165 of 1954  reorganized the National Security Board as the Defense Agency on July 1  1954.
The Japan Air Self Defense Force  JASDF  was established as a new branch of the JSDF.
Conscription was abolished on 3 May 1947.
Japan and the United States are required to maintain capacities to resist common armed attacks.
This established a security alliance between Japan and the United States.
This treaty doesn t obligate Japan to defend the United States.
Japan is the only country to have suffered nuclear attacks in history.
Thus many analysts consider Japan a de facto nuclear state.
They should be kept at a minimum and used as tactical weapons.
The 1951 US Japan Security Treaty puts Japan under the US nuclear umbrella.
Onoda was an intelligence officer and second lieutenant in the Imperial Japanese Army.
He was stationed on Morotai Island  Indonesia and discovered by a pilot in mid 1974.
By the 1970s Japan ascended to great power status again.
It had the world s second largest economy.
Japan exerted disproportionately small political and military influence in the world.
This made Japan an abnormal great power.
However  Japan did make a financial contribution of  10 billion and sent military hardware.
Japan s inability to send troops was regarded as a big humiliation.
Furthermore  Japan couldn t provide much support to US forces which caused frustration.
In 1992 a law was passed to permit the JSDF to participate in UN Peacekeeping missions.
From 1991 to 2016 the JSDF had approximately 32 overseas dispatches.
These were mainly in Southeast Asia  South Asia and the Middle East.
Japan is one of the G4 nations seeking to gain permanent membership of the Security Council.
The Anti Terrorism Special Measures Law was passed on October 29  2001.
The spy ship was heavily armed and 400 km north west of the Japanese island Amami Ōshima.
The spy ship didn t heed warnings of the Japanese Coast Guard and tried to escape.
12 patrol boats and 13 planes of the JCG and 2 MSDF destroyers chased the ship.
JSDF activities abroad were elevated from  miscellaneous regulations  to  basic duties.
JMSDF ships can be dispatched worldwide such as in activities against pirates.
The JSDF s first postwar overseas base was established in Djibouti  Somalia  July 2010 .
Resurgence       Since 2010  Japan reemerged as a major military power.
Various policies increased the role of Japan s military in its foreign policy.
The Cabinet of Japan approved the National Security Strategy  NSS  in December 2013.
This is based on China s assertions that are incompatible with the established order.
Most US military are in Okinawa Prefecture.
The United States Seventh Fleet is based in Yokosuka  Kanagawa Prefecture.
The 3rd Marine Expeditionary Force  III MEF  is based in Okinawa.
130 USAF fighters are stationed in the Misawa Air Base and Kadena Air Base.
Kadena Air Base is the largest and most active US Air Force base in the Far East.
Japan pays 75    4.4 billion  of all US basing costs.
This helps the U.S. to project military force in the Pacific and Asia.
It removed the regional restrictions that the alliance was only for Japan and the surrounding area.
This allowed Japan to assume a global military role such as in the Indo Pacific.
It was the first defense cooperation guidelines revision since 1997.
The Self Defense Forces may provide material support to allies engaged in combat internationally.
The FOIP strategy became the official policy of Japan and the United States in 2017.
They re trained to counter invaders from occupying Japanese islands.
Japan didn t have an amphibious force since the Imperial Japanese Navy Land Forces.
The purpose was to improve their strategic partnership and security cooperation.
It could travel five times the speed of sound  Mach 5  or faster.
It included a total of 57 000 sailors  marines and airmen.
47 000 service members were from the JSDF and 10 000 from the U.S. Armed Forces.
A naval supply ship and frigate of the Royal Canadian Navy also participated.
There were simulations of air combat  ballistic missile defense and amphibious landings.
In 2010 there were scrambles against 31 Chinese aircraft and 193 Russian aircraft.
That is the second highest amount of scrambles by the JASDF since 1958.
638  64   were Chinese aircraft and 343  34   were Russian aircraft.
This will be judged on a case by case basis.
They have an increased range of 300 km and will be used to protect the southern Ryukyu Islands.
Japan is also developing high speed gliding missiles with a range of 1000 km.
This puts the Southern Ryukyu Islands at the forefront of Japan s national defense.
By 2030 China could have four aircraft carriers.
Meanwhile  Japan only has two relatively small Izumo class carriers.
Each Izumo can carry just 10 F 35s.
In 2019 China was the second highest military spender with  250 billion  1.9  of GDP .
This strengthened its military power in the seas and skies around Japan.
Comparatively  Japan s expenditure was  46.6 billion  0.9  of GDP .
In May 2019  the JMSDF participated for the first time in two quadrilateral naval exercises.
It included the JS Izumo and JS Murasame.
This was the first ever inspection by a U.S. president of a Japanese warship.
This was prevented by an anti war sentiment among the populace and politicians.
The pact allows them to exchange logistical support and supplies.
This will enhance and streamline strategic and defense co operation.
Prime Minister Morrison said it is a  pivotal moment in the history of Japan Australia ties .
The Emperor was above the shōgun and revered as the sovereign  but merely a figurehead.
The Imperial Court nobility was a nominal ruling court with little influence.
The samurai were idolized and their conduct was role model behavior for other social classes.
This resulted in Japanese culture to have a long militaristic heritage.
Few military governments lasted more than 600 years.
Feudal China had four classes  Confucian literati and landlords  peasants  artisans and merchants.
The Confucian literati and landlords were at the top of Chinese social structure.
Francis described Japan as follows  Japan is a very large empire entirely composed of islands.
One language is spoken throughout  not very difficult to learn.
This country was discovered by the Portuguese eight or nine years ago.
In short  they value arms more than any people I have ever seen.
They are very polite to each other  but not to foreigners  whom they utterly despise.
Nakamura explained in 1843  Our nation is a nation of arms.
The land to the west  China  is a nation of letters.
Nakamura 1843 cited in Watanabe 2012  285 .
The shogun and daimyo were abolished.
Their domains were returned to the emperor.
The Genrō were retired senior statesmen and informal advisers to the emperor.
They lost their privileges such as the only class allowed to wield weapons.
Many samurai volunteered as soldiers  and many advanced to be trained as officers.
Many samurai were literate and well educated.
They shared a set of values and outlooks.
This caused Japanese militarism to dominate the political and social life of the Empire of Japan.
The 1947 constitution transformed Japan into a pacifist country.
The former soldiers gained other professions such as salaryman.
The ideals of the samurai and bushido are integral parts of Japanese culture.
The ideologies that originated from Japan s military class are adapted and utilized when necessary.
Japanese military museums    These are significant museums about Japanese military history.
It has a museum with real combat equipment and vehicles of the JGSDF.
Japanese Sword Museum – dedicated to the art of Japanese swordmaking.
See also         Notes         References         Sources    Connaughton  R. M.  1988 .
Japan s military foreign policies.
Hoyt  E. P. Yamamoto  The Man Who Planned Pearl Harbor  1990 .
Lone S. Japan s First Modern War  Army and Society in the Conflict with China  1894–95  1994 .
From ally to enemy  Anglo Japanese military relations  1900–45  Global Oriental  2006 .
External links     Media related to Military history of Japan at Wikimedia Commons
They are controlled by the Ministry of Defense  with the Prime Minister as commander in chief.
The Security Treaty Between the United States and Japan was signed on 8 September 1951.
The enabling legislation for this was the 1954 Self Defense Forces Act  Act No.
The U.S. is required to pre inform Japan of any mobilization by the U.S. Army.
The U.S. is also prohibited from exerting any power on domestic issues within Japan.
This established a security alliance between Japan and the United States.
Thus many analysts consider Japan a de facto nuclear state.
21st century     The Anti Terrorism Special Measures Law was passed on October 29  2001.
While on duty  the JSDF can use weapons to protect itself and others who come under its control.
JSDF activities abroad were elevated from  miscellaneous regulations  to  basic duties.
JMSDF ships can be dispatched worldwide such as in activities against pirates.
The Self Defense Forces may provide material support to allies engaged in combat internationally.
It could travel five times the speed of sound  Mach 5  or faster.
It included a total of 57 000 sailors  marines and airmen.
47 000 service members were from the JSDF and 10 000 from the U.S. Armed Forces.
A naval supply ship and frigate of the Royal Canadian Navy also participated.
This will be judged on a case by case basis.
The missiles have a range of 300 km and will be used to protect the southern Ryukyu Islands.
The pact enables the exchange of logistical support and supplies.
Japan already had such agreements with Australia  Canada  France  UK and USA.
Structure     The Prime Minister is the commander in chief of the Japan Self Defense Forces.
NSS sets the basic orientation of diplomatic and defense policies related to national security.
The article is interpreted as meaning that armed forces are legitimate for self defense.
This limits the capabilities of the JSDF as primarily for national defense.
The United States military is primarily responsible for offensive duties.
These are meant to guard against missile strikes.
But the officials also said the ministry will maintain its order to destroy any incoming missiles.
Particular elements of each force s mission were also identified.
The Koizumi administration  however  decided to send troops to respond to a request from the US.
Japanese forces withdrew from Iraq in 2006.
In 2003  Japan created a law to deal with armed attacks and amended the Self Defense Forces law.
Recruitment and conditions of service    As of 2016  the total strength of the JSDF was 247 154.
In addition  the JSDF maintained a total of 47 900 reservists attached to the three services.
The Japanese Constitution abolished conscription on 3 May 1947.
Naval and air recruits normally enlist for three years.
In total  20  of JSDF recruits are women.
There are no commissary or exchange privileges.
Soundproofing was installed in homes and public buildings near airfields.
It is celebrated every year in Japan since 1966.
The JGSDF  JMSDF and JASDF hold annual reviews in rotation.
There is also a three day music event called the JSDF Marching Festival.
Fleet reviews     The 28th Fleet Review was held in Sagami Bay on 18 October 2015.
There were 4 000 troops  260 tanks and other military vehicles and 40 warplanes.
It usually takes place in Nippon Budokan for three days.
It also features guest bands from other countries.
It is one of the oldest military tattoos in the Asia Pacific region.
That was the first time that the Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade participated.
JSDF museums    These are museums about the JSDF.
The company is a major component of the Fujikura group.
The company s current Japanese trading name is Nichiyu Kabushikigaisha.
His Buddhist name was Bukōshōgendaizenmon  武皇嘯原大禅門 .
He was the husband of Hōjō Masako who acted as regent  shikken  after his death.
Yoritomo was born in the family villa in Atsuta in Nagoya  Owari Province  present day Seigan ji .
At that time Yoritomo s grandfather Minamoto no Tameyoshi was the head of the Minamoto.
Like Benkei  his childhood name was Oniwakamaru  鬼武丸 .
This is known as the Hōgen Rebellion.The Minamoto clan were split.
The head of the clan  Tameyoshi  sided with Sutoku.
Sutoku was placed under house arrest  and Yorinaga was fatally wounded in battle.
Tameyoshi was executed by the forces of Yoshitomo.
However  Yoshitomo supported Fujiwara no Nobuyori.
This was known as the Heiji Rebellion.
The ex emperor mansion were burned  while Shinzei was captured and decapitated.
Nonetheless  the Minamoto were not well prepared  and the Taira took control of Kyoto.
Yoritomo  the new head of the Minamoto  was exiled.
Yoritomo was not executed by Kiyomori because of pleas from Kiyomori s stepmother.
He married into the Hōjō clan  led by Hōjō Tokimasa  marrying Tokimasa s daughter  Hōjō Masako.
Meanwhile  he was notified of events in Kyoto.
Nonetheless  Yoritomo was well protected in Kamakura.
The Taira took Emperor Antoku with them.
Yoritomo practiced shudō with Yoshinao  a member of the Imperial Guard.
In the summer of 1189  Yoritomo invaded and subjugated Mutsu Province and Dewa Province.
In 1199  he ordained as a Buddhist monk.
Nihon Ōdai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
Minamoto no Yoritomo  jidai daihyō Nihon eiyūden 源頼朝  時代代表日本英雄伝.
1989   Yoshikawa Eiji Rekishi Jidai Bunko  Eiji Yoshikawa s Historical Fiction   Vols.
Former Ministres d État include former French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Japan  Minister of State is the title borne by all members of the Japanese Cabinet.
As Minister of State  his role is to control and coordinate the activities of the other Ministers.
However  this initiative did not last since his successors did not follow this path.
Scandinavian states  The equivalent title statsminister is used for the head of government  i.e.
It is also used as the title of cabinet ministers of certain German states.
The Constitution of India restricts the number of ministers of state in the federal government.
Ministers of State are responsible to their Secretaries of State.
There can be more than one Minister of State at any government Department.
Ministers of State may have departmental PPSs  or a PPS might be assigned to them.
Ministers of State are bound by the Ministerial Code.
It is given on a personal basis  for life rather than for a specified period.
Ministers of state are often former cabinet members or party leaders.
The title first appeared under Louis XIII.
Each ministry is headed by a Minister of State appointed by the Prime Minister.
Thus  most of the power lies within the ministries  with the senior bureaucrats.
The Japanese Defense Agency was established on 1 July 1954.
Until May 2000  it was based in Akasaka  currently occupied by Tokyo Midtown .
Its head has the rank of Minister of State.
In times of extreme emergency  that approval might be obtained after the fact.
Defense Agency     In July 1986  the Security Council was established.
Its principal functions are to advise the director general and to plan and execute joint exercises.
The three branches maintain staff offices to manage operations in their branches.
Cooperation between the JSDF and other civilian agencies in contingency planning is limited.
JSDF training includes instilling a sense of mission.
Modern equipment is gradually replacing obsolescent materiel in the JSDF.
Bills on transition to the Ministry of Defense became laws on 15 December 2006.
He is supported by the Vice Chief of Staff  Joint Staff.
He is appointed by the Minister of Defense  approved by the Cabinet.
In the practice of religion  analogous attributes can be identified in a social group.
Cultural universals are found in all human societies.
Such perspectives are common in the discipline of cultural studies.
Culture is the set of knowledge acquired over time.
Culture repositioning means the reconstruction of the cultural concept of a society.
Cultures are internally affected by both forces encouraging change and forces resisting change.
These social shifts may accompany ideological shifts and other types of cultural change.
Environmental conditions may also enter as factors.
War or competition over resources may impact technological development or social dynamics.
Against this intellectual cowardice  Kant urged  Sapere Aude   Dare to be wise!
In 1860  Adolf Bastian  1826–1905  argued for  the psychic unity of mankind.
This view paved the way for the modern understanding of culture.
According to this theory  religion evolves from more polytheistic to more monotheistic forms.
This view paved the way for the modern understanding of religion.
Culture can be any of two types  non material culture or material culture.
As a result  there has been a recent influx of quantitative sociologists to the field.
It has since become strongly associated with Stuart Hall  who succeeded Hoggart as Director.
Cultural studies is concerned with the meaning and practices of everyday life.
It also studies the meanings and uses people attribute to various objects and practices.
Specifically  culture involves those meanings and practices held independently of reason.
Similarly  the discipline widens the concept of  culture.
The last two  in fact  have become the main focus of cultural studies.
The distinction between American and British strands  however  has faded.
Some researchers  especially in early British cultural studies  apply a Marxist model to the field.
Culture may affect the way that people experience and express emotions.
Cognitive tools may not be accessible or they may function differently cross culture.
Cultural lenses may also make people view the same outcome of events differently.
Culture is important for psychologists to consider when understanding the human mental operation.
Under international law  the UN and UNESCO try to set up and enforce rules for this.
Sports can bring positive results to one s physical health.
A number of contests may be arranged in a tournament producing a champion.
However  a number of competitive  but non physical  activities claim recognition as mind sports.
Winning can be determined by physical events such as scoring goals or crossing a line first.
Sport betting is in some cases severely regulated  and in some cases is central to the sport.
children taking part in sport    with  sports  used to describe multiple activities  e.g.
football and rugby are the most popular sports in England  .
American English uses  sports  for both terms.
In a race  for example  the time to complete the course is an objective measurement.
In gymnastics or diving the result is decided by a panel of judges  and therefore subjective.
History     Artifacts and structures suggest sport in China as early as 2000 BC.
Gymnastics appears to have been popular in China s ancient past.
Other Egyptian sports included javelin throwing  high jump  and wrestling.
Among other sports that originated in ancient Persia are polo and jousting.
These trends continued with the advent of mass media and global communication.
Female players account for 39  of the total participation in US interscholastic athletics.
Youth sport in the US is a  15 billion industry including equipment up to private coaching.
This has led to the specific phenomenon of spectator sport.
Technology     Technology plays an important part in modern sport.
Some sports also use it to allow off field decision making.
In some sports  players can now challenge decisions made by officials.
Hawk Eye is also used in tennis to challenge umpiring decisions.
Until recently the GAA continued to ban the playing of football and rugby union at Gaelic venues.
Masked men entered the hotel of the Israeli Olympic team and killed many of their men.
This was known as the Munich massacre.
A study of US elections has shown that the result of sports events can affect the results.
Religious views     Sport was an important form of worship in Ancient Greek religion.
... Well  how shall this be made to accord with the shows?
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Each committee reports on its deliberations to plenary sessions of the chamber to which it belongs.
Ad hoc committees are formed occasionally to consider special questions.
Treaties with foreign countries require ratification by the Diet.
Almost all ambassadorial appointments since the 1950s have been made from among veteran diplomats.
Diplomacy in postwar Japan was not a monopoly of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The current Minister for Foreign Affairs is Toshimitsu Motegi.
The Bluebook was first issued in 1957.
The report can trigger reactions from other countries upset with relevant Japanese policy.
Most executive governments in the world are divided into departments or ministries.
In most such cases  there is a department or ministry responsible for health.
Counties  cities  metropolitan areas  districts  and tribes may also have a department of health.
It is commonly known as Kōrō shō  厚労省  in Japan.
The ministry provides services on health  labour and welfare.
Investigations were carried out at a total of 339 businesses.
The ministry said it took  corrective measures  with those who violated the laws.
This includes roads  bridges  railways  etc.
The United States has received a rating of “D ” on its infrastructure.
This aging infrastructure is a result of governmental neglect and inadequate funding.
The goal of personal infrastructure is to determine the quality of the economic agents’ values.
It compromises the grown and sets norms.
The second characteristic is the non availability of infrastructure goods and services.
Today  there are various materials that can be used to build infrastructure.
The most prevalent ones are asphalt  concrete  steel  masonry  wood  polymers and composites.
Social infrastructures are created to increase social comfort and promote economic activity.
Core     Core assets provide essential services and have monopolistic characteristics.
To complement something  means to bring to perfection or complete it.
Public works generally refers to physical assets needed to deliver public services.
Public services include both infrastructure and services generally provided by the government.
Many financial institutions invest in infrastructure.
There are severe constraints on the supply side of the provision of infrastructure in Asia.
In fragile states  over thirty seven percent of GDP would be required.
In irrigation  governments represent almost all spending.
In transport and energy a majority of investment is government spending.
Overall  between them aid  the private sector  and non OECD financiers exceed government spending.
China  in particular  has emerged as an important investor.
The pandemic has increased unemployment and has widely disrupted the economy.
This has serious impacts on households  businesses  and federal  state and local governments.
The concern is whether this same pattern will repeat itself.
There is twice as much concrete used in construction than all other building materials combined.
However  concrete is not sustainable.
The production of concrete contributes up to 8  of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions.
A tenth of the world’s industrial water usage is from producing concrete.
Even transporting the raw materials to concrete production sites adds to airborne pollution.
Green Infrastructure     Green infrastructure is a type of sustainable infrastructure.
It also includes additional layers  including a root barrier and drainage and irrigation systems.
This process is depicted in Figure 1 below.
Tree Planting     Tree planting provides a host of ecological  social  and economic benefits.
As a result  they soak 30  more water than conventional gardens.
In a sustainable city  urban resilience as well as infrastructure reliability must both be present.
Recycling and other waste management and waste reduction methods will be encouraged.
Instead  alternative transportation options will be prioritized during infrastructure development.
On the grid  a plot of land  an average neighborhood  and the systems that make our world work.
And added it to the Ministry of Land  Infrastructure  Transport and Tourism.
The revenue budget is 81 445 570 000 yen.
This is the responsibility of the local government  58 583 382 800 yen .
The campaign was repeated in 2012 and 2013.
There are two extant species referred to as  mink   the American mink and the European mink.
The extinct sea mink is related to the American mink but was much larger.
Therefore  any mink without the patch is certainly of the American species.
Their treatment on fur farms has been a focus of animal rights and animal welfare activism.
In the UK  under the Wildlife   Countryside Act 1981  it is illegal to release mink into the wild.
Farm bred males can reach 3.2 kg  7 lb 1 oz .
The female weighs about 600 g  1 lb 5 oz  and reaches a length of about 51 cm  20 in .
The sizes above do not include the tail  which can be from 12.8 to 22.8 cm  5 1⁄16 to 9 in .
Color     A mink s rich glossy coat in its wild state is brown and looks silky.
Farm bred mink can vary from white to almost black  which is reflected in the British wild mink.
Breeding and gestation    Mink show the curious phenomenon of delayed implantation.
Between 45 and 52 days is normal.
There is only one litter per year.
They typically have between six and 10 kits per litter.
Litters as large as 16 have been recorded at fur farms.
This often results in a condition referred to as stereotypies  an abnormal behavior.
A farm with 3 000 mink may use as much as two tons of food per day.
Even when roaming  they tend to follow streams and ditches.
In some places  particularly in Scotland and in Iceland  they live along the seashore.
Sometimes they live in towns if suitable water is available.
Mink may be present at all hours  even when people are nearby.
Territory    Mink are very territorial animals.
Very occasionally  it may be totally within a male s.
Territory sizes vary  but they can be several miles long.
Female territories are smaller than those of males.
Each territory has one or two central areas  core areas  where the mink spends most of its time.
These excursions seem to be associated with the defense of the territory against intruders.
Their treatment on fur farms has been a focus of animal rights and animal welfare activism.
In the UK  under the Wildlife   Countryside Act 1981  it is illegal to release mink into the wild.
In some countries  any live mink caught in traps must be humanely killed.
Ireland      There are three mink farms in Ireland  in Donegal  Kerry  and Laois.
Mink farming was introduced into the country by two veterinarians.
Three thousand mink were released by campaigners into the wild from a farm in the 1960s.
The decision was later halted due to the legality of the proposed legislation.
The term is most commonly used for Christian missions  but can be used for any creed or ideology.
The Emperor Ashoka was a significant early Buddhist missioner.
Gradually  all India and the neighboring island of Ceylon were converted.
Dharmarakṣa was one of the greatest translators of Mahayana Buddhist scriptures into Chinese.
In 528  Baekje officially adopted Buddhism as its state religion.
According to Chinese records  all these requests were granted.
This has traditionally been considered the official introduction of Buddhism to Japan.
An account of this is given in Gangōji Garan Engi.
This group has a relatively large centre where a teacher and some students live permanently.
As the exiled political leader of Tibet  he has become a popular cause célèbre.
His early life was depicted in Hollywood films such as Kundun and Seven Years in Tibet.
He has attracted celebrity religious followers such as Richard Gere and Adam Yauch.
The Dalai Lama maintains a North American headquarters at Namgyal Monastery in Ithaca  New York.
Missionaries can be found in many countries around the world.
In some regions  however  they are still in course.
The Byzantines expanded their missionary work in Ukraine after the mass baptism in Kiev in 988.
The Russian St. Nicholas of Japan  1836–1912  took Eastern Orthodoxy to Japan in the 19th century.
He also got to know a slave from the Danish colony in the West Indies.
The fastest growing area of the work is in Tanzania in Eastern Africa.
The focus for these organizations transitioned from a  country focus  to a  people group focus .
From  What is a People Group?
There are two parts to that word  ethno and linguistic.
Language is a primary and dominant identifying factor of a people group.
But there are other factors that determine or are associated with ethnicity.
Korean and African missionaries can now be found all over the world.
These missionaries represent a major shift in church history.
Many of the network of churches they established became the Anglican Communion.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints  LDS Church  has an active missionary program.
Retired couples also have the option of serving a mission.
Together  they formulated plans to establish a seminary for foreign missionaries.
Hindu missions     Hinduism was introduced into Java by travelers from India in ancient times.
Several centuries ago  many Hindus left Java for Bali rather than convert to Islam.
Hinduism has survived in Bali ever since.
Dang Hyang Nirartha was responsible for facilitating a refashioning of Balinese Hinduism.
He was an important promoter of the idea of moksha in Indonesia.
Initially  the spread of Islam came through the Dawah efforts of Muhammad and his followers.
With the coming of the Sufism tradition  Islamic missionary activities increased.
Previously  the only connection was through Trans Saharan trade routes.
There is evidence of Arab Muslim traders entering Indonesia as early as the 8th century.
Indonesia s early people were animists  Hindus  and Buddhists.
Recently  Muslim groups have engaged in missionary work in Malawi.
Much of this is performed by the African Muslim Agency based in Angola.
Islam made its entry into the northern territories of modern Ghana around the 15th century.
Trade relations have existed between Arabia and the Indian subcontinent from ancient times.
Shaykh Zainuddin Makhdum s  Tuhfat al Mujahidin   also is a reliable work.
It was with the advent of Islam that the Arabs became a prominent cultural force in the world.
A small mosque was built to serve as a starting point and he began preaching Islam in earnest.
In 1390  the Minangkabau s Prince Rajah Baguinda and his followers preached Islam on the islands.
This is mentioned in the Sunni Hadith Sahih al Bukhari  5 59 628.
For some two centuries the Jains remained a small community of monks and followers.
Samprati  according to Jain historians  is considered more powerful and famous than Ashoka himself.
Samprati is said to have erected Jain temples throughout his empire.
In his time he was a world famous personality.
Judaism     Judaism has never been a faith that seeks converts.
Contemporary Judaism teaches that missionary activities to gentiles are taboo.
The believe that gentiles are under the Seven Laws of Noah.
These movements encourage Jews to become more knowledgeable and observant of halakha  Jewish law .
People who become more observant are known as baalei teshuva.
There are also many such organizations in the United States.
It was said that he was gone for three days.
When he reappeared  it is said he was  filled with the spirit of God .
His first words after his re emergence were   there is no Hindu  there is no Muslim .
With this secular principle he began his missionary work.
Its first missionary was a woman named  Kokan  who worked on the streets of Osaka.
In 2003  it operated approximately twenty thousand mission stations worldwide.
Potential destruction of social structure among the converts has also been a concern.
These two simple modifications lead to the breakdown of Woodberry s results.
Areas that had Jesuit missions are today indistinct from the areas that had no missions.
Many languages today exist only in missionary records.
online Dwight  Henry Otis et al.
Missionaries in India  Continuities  changes  dilemmas.
Also in 1880  The Mitsubishi Bank  Ltd. was founded by former samurai Yataro Iwasaki.
In April 1996  The Mitsubishi Bank  Ltd. and The Bank of Tokyo  Ltd. merged.
The merger of the two bank holding companies was completed on October 1  2005.
The UFJ is one of the largest shareholders of Toyota.
The Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group ultimately prevailed in the fight to acquire UFJ.
At the time  it was one of the largest shareholders of Toyota.
In July 2004  UFJ announced plans to merge with the Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group.
In June 2011  MUFG took a 9.99 percent stake in Lynas Corp  the Australian rare earths developer.
The bank s local branch office is integrated and functions as a Thai corporation.
Dai Shin Bank ...a medium sized bank in Hong Kong.
A subsidiary of MUSHD  BTMU is the second largest shareholder.
Since July 2011  it has been an equity method affiliate  .
History     Miyagi Prefecture was formerly part of the province of Mutsu.
Residents were told to flee for inner land at that time.
Visitor attractions    Sendai was the castle town of the daimyō Date Masamune.
The remains of Sendai Castle stand on a hill above the city.
Miyagi Prefecture boasts one of Japan s three greatest sights.
Matsushima  the pine clad islands  dot the waters off the coast of the prefecture.
Nihon Odai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
The combined population of the islands is about 52 000  as of 2011 .
Miyakoan is a Southern Ryukyuan language  most closely related to Yaeyama.
Variants    The most divergent variant is that of Tarama Island  the farthest island away.
Central Miyakoan variants do not have pitch accent  therefore  they are of ikkei type.
Tarama distinguishes accent on the phonological word  stem plus clitics   e.g.
ɯ  is truly unrounded  unlike the compressed Japanese u.
u  is rounded normally  but varies as  ʊ .
Historical  i and  u centralized and merged to  ɨ  as  e and  o rose to  i  and  u .
Consonants     In Ōgami there are nine consonants  without a voicing contrast.
Most Miyakoan variants do distinguish voicing.
The plosives tend to be somewhat aspirated initially and voiced medially.
There are maybe a dozen words with optionally voiced initial consonants  such as babe   pape  a sp.
It tends to devoice after  s  and  f .
It can be syllabic  as can all sonorants in Ōgami  vv  v̩ː   to sell .
These can be typologically unusual    mmtɑ   sp.
There is a contrast between ff꞊mɑi  comb꞊INCL  and ffu꞊mɑi  shit꞊INCL .
There are no V or CV words  however  CCV and CVV words are found  as shown above.
There are 15 16 consonants in Irabu  which do have a voicing contrast.
École des hautes études en sciences sociales.CS1 maint  ref harv  link  Shimoji  Michinori  2008 .
He is considered a Kensei  a sword saint of Japan.
Musashi himself simply states in The Book of Five Rings that he was born in Harima Province.
Musashi was most probably born here.
Hirata was relied upon by Lord Shinmen and so was allowed to use the Shinmen name.
Fujiwara  was the lineage from which Musashi claimed descent.
Another story claims that he never took a bath because he did not want to be surprised unarmed.
While the former claim may or may not have some basis in reality  the latter seems improbable.
My opponent was called Arima Kihei  a sword adept of the Shinto ryū  and I defeated him.
The main source of the duel is the Hyoho senshi denki   Anecdotes about the Deceased Master  .
Musashi wrote his name on the challenge.
He spent his time traveling and engaging in duels.
While Hosokawa officials banned spectators  the island was filled with them anyway.
Kojirō arrived at the appointed time  but was then left to wait for hours  Musashi had overslept.
In some variants of the tale  Musashi intentionally arrives late as a sign of disrespect.
Musashi  too  jumped and swung his weapon with a shout  and the two sword strokes met.
Musashi s strike  meanwhile  had struck true  crushing Kojirō s skull.
Musashi would officially become the retainer of the Hosokowa lords of Kumamoto in 1640.
This was the year that his third son  Hirao Yoemon  became Master of Arms for the Owari fief.
In 1642  Musashi suffered attacks of neuralgia  foreshadowing his future ill health.
In 1643 he retired to a cave named Reigandō as a hermit to write The Book of Five Rings.
He finished it in the second month of 1645.
He died in Reigandō cave around June 13  1645  Shōhō 2  19th day of the 5th month .
He had his belt tightened and his wakizashi put in it.
He died in this posture  at the age of sixty two.
Then they set up a tomb on Mount Iwato on the order of the lord.
Miyamoto Musashi died of what is believed to be thoracic cancer.
He was an accomplished artist  sculptor  and calligrapher.
Records also show that he had architectural skills.
He made various Zen brush paintings  calligraphy  and sculpted wood and metal.
Going back to the Book of Five Rings  Musashi talks deeply about the ways of Buddhism.
He makes particular note of artisans and foremen.
When he wrote the book  the majority of houses in Japan were made of wood.
He proved this by creating recognized masterpieces of calligraphy and classic ink painting.
His paintings are characterized by skilled use of ink washes and an economy of brush stroke.
It was built in Ōhara Cho in the province of Mimasaka  the birthplace of the samurai.
Inside the building  the life and journey of Miyamoto Musashi are remembered everywhere.
It is therefore quite difficult to separate fact from fiction when discussing his life.
There have been numerous works of fiction made about or featuring Musashi.
was based around his life and personality.
Miyazaki Prefecture  宮崎県  Miyazaki ken  is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū.
The first Miyazaki existed only until 1876 when it was merged  back  into Kagoshima Prefecture.
It is one of only two locations on Earth where the fungus Chorioactis geaster is found.
Miyazaki is the home of the hyuganatsu fruit.
Then Kumamoto station was watched.
See Gokase Relay Station for the situation in Gokase Town.
The land reserved for the new Miyazaki station later became a parking lot.
The rice is pounded into paste and molded into the desired shape.
In Japan it is traditionally made in a ceremony called mochitsuki.
Mochi is a multicomponent food consisting of polysaccharides  lipids  protein and water.
Mochi has a heterogeneous structure of amylopectin gel  starch grains  and air bubbles.
Accounts of it can also be found in the oldest Japanese novel  The Tale of Genji.
A kagami mochi   is placed on family altars  kamidana  on December 28 each year.
Zōni is a soup containing rice cakes.
It is also eaten on New Year s Day.
Kinako mochi is traditionally made on New Year s Day as an emblem of luck.
Children s Day     Children s Day is celebrated in Japan on May 5.
On this day  the Japanese promote the happiness and well being of children.
Kashiwa mochi and chimaki are made especially for this celebration.
Hishi mochi is rhomboid shaped mochi with layers of red  green  and white.
The three layers are coloured with jasmine flowers  water caltrop  and mugwort.
The steamed rice is mashed and pounded with wooden mallets  kine  in a traditional mortar  usu .
The work involves two people  one pounding and the other turning and wetting the mochi.
They must keep a steady rhythm or they may accidentally injure each other with the heavy kine.
The sticky mass is cut or formed into shapes  for example spheres.
Modern preparation    Mochi is prepared from a flour of sweet rice  mochiko .
The rice is chosen for tensile strength and compressibility.
For mass production  the rice variety should be chewy  but easy to separate.
Generally  two types of machines are used for mochi production in an assembly line.
The first type of machine controls the temperature at which the rice gelatinizes.
One study found that a temperature of 62 °C corresponds to the gelatinization of mochi.
When the temperature fell below 62 °C  the hardening was too slow.
It was concluded that a processing temperature below 62 °C was unsuitable for dough preparation.
Processing    Mochi is a variation of a low calorie  low fat rice cake.
The cake has two essential raw materials  rice and water.
Sticky rice  also called sweet rice  Oryza sativa var.
Water is essential in the early stages of preparation.
The cake must be steamed  rather than boiled  until it gains a smooth and elastic texture.
The balls of rice are then flattened  cut into pieces  or shaped into rounds.
Preservation    The best preservation for mochi is refrigeration for a short storage period.
For preserving larger batches over an extended time  freezing is recommended.
The best method for freezing involves wrapping each mochi cake tightly in a sealed plastic bag.
The main ingredient is either Shiratamako or Mochiko  Japanese sweet glutinous rice flours.
The difference between Shiratamako and Mochiko comes from texture and processing methods.
Shiratamako flour has been more refined and is a finer flour with a smoother  more elastic feel.
Mochiko is less refined and has a doughier texture.
Other ingredients may include water  sugar  and cornstarch  to prevent sticking .
Additional other ingredients can be added to create different variations flavors.
Mochi is gluten  and cholesterol free  as it is made from rice flour.
This phenomenon occurs when iodine is mixed with iodide to form tri iodide and penta iodide.
During this process  glutinous rice decreases in protein content as it is soaked in water.
Viscoelasticity    Mochi s characteristic chewiness is due to the polysaccharides in it.
These results can also be brought about by an increase in heating time.
In 2011  Japanese media reported eight mochi related deaths in Tokyo in January.
Every year  Japanese authorities warn people to cut mochi into small pieces before eating it.
When daifuku is made with kusa mochi  it is called yomogi daifuku.
Soup     Oshiruko or ozenzai is a sweet azuki bean soup with pieces of mochi.
In winter  Japanese people often eat it to warm themselves.
See New Year specialties below.
Other variations    Dango is a Japanese dumpling made from mochiko  rice flour .
Manjū   饅頭 まんじゅう is not a true mochi  but a popular traditional Japanese confection.
Yōkan  羊羮  is a thick  jelly like dessert.
It is made of red bean paste  agar  and sugar.
There are two main types  Neri yōkan and mizu yōkan.
More recently   Moffles   a waffle made from a toasted mochi  has been introduced.
It is made in a specialized machine as well as a traditional waffle iron.
Sakumochi  索餅  is deep fried rice cake twisted into a rope shape.
It is often consumed during the Japanese Star Festival called Tanabata.
Sakubei was made from a mixture of wheat flour and rice flour .
Traditional Hakka tauchi is served as glutinous rice dough  covered with peanut or sesame powder.
Not until the Japanese era was Japanese style mochi introduced and gain popularity.
Nowadays  Taiwanese mochi often comes with bean paste fillings.
It can come in a variety of modern flavors such as green tea  mango  taro  strawberry  and more.
These are small steamed rice balls with bean paste or peanut fillings.
In Indonesia  kue moci is usually filled with sweet bean paste and covered with sesame seeds.
Kue Moci comes from Sukabumi  West Java.
The cast plate glass process was invented in 1848  allowing the manufacture of very large windows.
Wagner declared his intention to express the function of the building in its exterior.
The fame of the new movement  which became known as the Vienna Secession spread beyond Austria.
A large pool in front of the house reflected its cubic forms.
For the 1914 Cologne exhibition  Bruno Taut built a revolutionary glass pavilion.
Like Le Corbusier and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe  he had no formal architectural training.
Wright set out to break all the traditional rules.
The first steel framed  skyscraper   The Home Insurance Building in Chicago  was ten stories high.
He was also a passionate advocate of a new urbanism  based on planned cities.
To illustrate his ideas  in the 1920s he built a series of houses and villas in and around Paris.
They were always white  and had no ornament or decoration on the outside or inside.
The Bauhaus was a fusion of the prewar Academy of Arts and the school of technology.
Gropius became an important theorist of modernism  writing The Idea and Construction in 1923.
It was a work of pure modernism  with glass and concrete walls and clean  horizontal lines.
His Mossehaus in Berlin was an early model for the streamline moderne style.
It was constructed of dark brick  and used external piers to express its vertical structure.
Its external decoration borrowed from Gothic cathedrals  as did its internal arcades.
Hans Poelzig was another notable expressionist architect.
Bruno Taut specialized in building large scale apartment complexes for working class Berliners.
A number of architects from the pre Soviet period also took up the constructivist style.
Architecture  which previously had been predominantly national  began to become international.
The architects traveled  met each other  and shared ideas.
A delegation of Soviet architects was invited to attend  but they were unable to obtain visas.
Later members included Josep Lluís Sert of Spain and Alvar Aalto of Finland.
No one attended from the United States.
Instead the delegates held their meeting on a cruise ship traveling between Marseille and Athens.
On board  they together drafted a text on how modern cities should be organized.
It reveled in the symbols of modernity  lightning flashes  sunrises  and zig zags.
In Europe  Art Deco was particularly popular for department stores and movie theaters.
The style appeared in the late 1920s and 1930s in all major American cities.
It also brought in a new style  called  Streamline Moderne  or sometimes just Streamline.
He considered his architecture to be entirely unique and his own.
He experimented for a time with modular mass produced housing.
Most of the pavilions were in a neoclassical Deco style  with colonnades and sculptural decoration.
Adolf Hitler intended to turn Berlin into the capital of Europe  more grand than Rome or Paris.
They became leaders in the postwar modernist movement.
The semi circular metal Nissen hut of World War I was revived as the Quonset hut.
His rebuilt city was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2005.
it contained 337 duplex apartment units  fit into the framework like pieces of a puzzle.
Each unit had two levels and a small terrace.
He designed nine new buildings in a style that he described as  The Child of the Sun .
Wright originally planned the structure for an apartment building in New York City.
The design is asymmetrical   each side is different.
Work began in 1946 but it was not completed until 1959  the year that he died.
He returned to Germany in 1962–68 to build the new Nationalgallerie in Berlin.
The frame of the house was assembled in sixteen hours by five workmen.
Neutra scaled the house to the physical dimensions of its owner  a small woman.
It features a reflecting pool which meanders under of the glass walls of the house.
The roof is connected with the ground by curtain walls of glass.
He borrowed from a wide variety of styles  and idioms  including neoclassicism.
From 1957 until his death he was professor of architecture at the University of Pennsylvania.
Pei was forced to construct a tunnel so visitors could enter the building during high winds.
He worked the rest of his life side by side with Architect Bruce Graham.
Khan introduced design methods and concepts for efficient use of material in building architecture.
His first building to employ the tube structure was the Chestnut De Witt apartment building.
According to Stephen Bayley of The Daily Telegraph   Khan invented a new way of building tall.
So Fazlur Khan created the unconventional skyscraper.
... Burj Khalifa is the ultimate expression of his audacious  lightweight design philosophy.
The first of the towers was finished in 1970.
This narrow windowed style arose from his own personal fear of heights.
The space saved was then used for office space.
Lasdun s best known work is the Royal National Theatre  1967–1976  on the south bank of the Thames.
After World War II  he taught architecture in the United States.
He served as Dean of Architecture at the Harvard School of Design.
4.2 million housing units needed to be replaced.
His first major commission was the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum .
He designed many notable office buildings and cultural centers.
The gymnasium  built of concrete  features a roof suspended over the stadium on steel cables.
Much discussion around modernist architecture took place in the journal MARG.
In Sri Lanka  Geoffrey Bawa pioneered tropical modernism.
Minnette De Silva was an important Sri Lankan modernist architect.
In 2006  the World Monuments Fund launched Modernism at Risk  an advocacy and conservation program.
is working to document and preserve modernist architecture in Morocco.
Modernization theory is used to explain the process of modernization within societies.
Modernization theory stresses not only the process of change but also the responses to that change.
It is also a subject taught in traditional Advanced Placement World History classes.
It is argued that globalization is related to the spreading of modernization across borders.
Communication is another major area that has grown due to modernization.
Communication industries have enabled capitalism to spread throughout the world.
They say political regimes do not transition to democracy as per capita incomes rise.
Contrary to Przeworski  this study finds that the modernization hypothesis stands up well.
Technology    New technology is a major source of social change.
Rather  it is the response to technology that causes change.
Technology makes it possible for a more innovative society and broad social change.
Cell phones  for example  have changed the lives of millions throughout the world.
Modernization theory supplied the design  rationale  and justification for these programs.
It was benevolence with a foreign policy purpose.
Opponents argue that modernity is independent of culture and can be adapted to any society.
Japan is cited as an example by both sides.
Some see it as proof that a thoroughly modern way of life can exist in a non western society.
Others argue that Japan has become distinctly more western as a result of its modernization.
Dependency theory     One alternative model on the left is Dependency theory.
See also         References         Bibliography    Bernstein  Henry  1971 .
Theories That Won t Pass Away  The Never ending Story .
Misa  Thomas J.  Brey  Philip  Feenberg  Andrew  eds.
It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north  east  and south.
The constitution of Moldova was adopted in 1994.
It is the second poorest country in Europe by GDP per capita.
The origin of the name of the river remains unclear.
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union  the country began to use the Romanian name  Moldova.
Officially  the name Republic of Moldova is designated by the United Nations.
Anisjutkin discovered Oldowan flint tools at Bayraki that are 800 000–1.2 million years old.
Dragoș established a polity there as a vassal to the Kingdom of Hungary in the 1350s.
Prince Petru also expanded his rule southwards to the Danube Delta.
His reign was one of the most successful in Moldavia s history.
Moldavia finally returned to Ottoman vassalage in 1621.
The Sfatul Țării proclaimed the Moldavian Democratic Republic  December 15  O.S.
2 December  1917  within a federal Russian state  and formed a government  21 December  O.S.
Of the latter  approximately 90 000 died.
Similar events occurred in the 1930s in the Moldavian ASSR.
Its identity with the Romanian language was also established.
In 1989  as opposition to the Communist Party grew  there were major riots in November.
Mircea Snegur was elected as Speaker of the Parliament  and Mircea Druc as Prime Minister.
Moldova received official recognition on 25 December.
On 26 December 1991  the Soviet Union ceased to exist.
Declaring itself a neutral state  Moldova did not join the military branch of the CIS.
The motives behind this move were fear of the rise of nationalism in Moldova.
Between 2 March and 26 July 1992  the conflict escalated into a military engagement.
The Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova managed to stay in power for eight years.
The fragmentation of the liberal bloc helped consolidate its power.
The controversial results of this election sparked civil unrest.
In 2015  Shor was still at large  after a period of house arrest.
This new government was also supported by Igor Dodon.
Moldova reported 29 cases of the disease on 17 March 2020.
Government     Moldova is a unitary parliamentary representative democratic republic.
The 1994 Constitution of Moldova sets the framework for the government of the country.
In 1995 the country was admitted to the Council of Europe.
In September 2010  the European Parliament approved a grant of €90 million to Moldova.
Military      The Moldovan armed forces consists of the Ground Forces and Air Force.
Moldova has accepted all relevant arms control obligations of the former Soviet Union.
It does not have nuclear  biological  chemical or radiological weapons.
Moldova joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation s Partnership for Peace on 16 March 1994.
Moldova signed a military agreement with Romania to strengthen regional security.
Moldova has 66 cities  towns   including 13 with municipality status  and 916 communes.
This makes for a total of 1 682 localities in Moldova  two of which are uninhabited.
The largest city in Moldova is Chișinău with a population of 635 994 people.
Ialpug flows into one of the Danube limans  while Cogâlnic into the Black Sea chain of limans.
In the south  the country has a small flatland  the Bugeac Plain.
Comrat is the administrative centre of Gagauzia.
Because of the irregular terrain  heavy summer rains often cause erosion and river silting.
The highest temperature ever recorded in Moldova was 41.5 °C  106.7 °F  on 21 July 2007 in Camenca.
They were considered a characteristic animal of Scythia in antiquity.
The economy subsequently declined from 1991 to 1999.
However  the near term economic outlook is weak.
The economy recovered from the drought related contraction in 2012.
Corporate governance in the banking sector is a major concern.
Structural fiscal reforms would help safeguard sustainability.
Monetary policy has been successful in maintaining inflation within the NBM s target range.
A political crisis in early 2013 led to policy slippages in the fiscal and financial areas.
Wine industry      The country has a well established wine industry.
Most of the country s wine production is made for export.
Mileștii Mici is the home of the largest wine cellar in the world.
The sole international air gateway of Moldova is the Chișinău International Airport.
The Giurgiulești terminal on the Danube is compatible with small seagoing vessels.
Gagauz  4.4  of the population  are Christian Turkic people.
Most of Moldova s Jewish population emigrated away between 1979 and 2004.
The urbanization rate was 45  of the total population living in urban areas  as of 2015 .
The urbanization rate was 69.9 .
About 14  of the population did not declare their nationality.
Also  for the first time  the population had the option to identify as  Transnistrian .
In the 21st century  the primary foreign language taught in the schools is English.
In 2013 more than 60  of schoolchildren took it as their first foreign language.
This was followed by French  taken by less than 50  of students.
Since 1996  the Republic of Moldova has been a full member of La Francophonie.
German was the third ranked choice.
The National Library of Moldova was founded in 1832.
There are about 264 physicians per 100 000 people.
Television in Moldova was introduced in April 1958  within the framework of Soviet television.
One Russian and two local channels are aired.
Infotag is the state news agency.
Main dishes include beef  pork  potatoes  cabbage  and a variety of cereals.
Popular alcoholic beverages are divin  Moldovan brandy   beer  and local wine.
Moldova has been participating in the Eurovision Song Contest since 2005.
Natalia squeezed into the final by a very small margin.
She took 10th place with 109 points.
Then Zdob și Zdub again represented Moldova in the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest finishing 12th.
He has been fittingly dubbed  Epic Sax Guy .
The group is still active and released their latest album in 2017.
The identity of the group members is still unknown.
Sports      Trîntă  a form of wrestling  is the national sport in Moldova.
Association football is the most popular team sport.
Rugby union is popular as well.
More than 10 000 supporters turn out for home internationals.
Since 2004  playing numbers at all levels have more than doubled to 3 200.
Despite the hardships and deprivations the national team are ranked 34th in the world.
The most prestigious cycling race is the Moldova President s Cup  which was first run in 2004.
It may have multiple trunks joining close to the ground.
In habit  its canopy often takes on a dome like form  especially when mature.
The first specimen of the tree reached Britain in 1820.
They are a popular choice for bonsai enthusiasts and have long been a subject in art.
Heights of mature specimens range from 0.5 to 25 m  1 1⁄2 to 82 ft   depending on type.
Preparations from the branches and leaves are used as a treatment in traditional Chinese medicine.
Almost all are adaptable and blend well with companion plants.
Many varieties of Acer palmatum are successfully grown in containers.
Japanese Maples are best to grow in hardiness zones 5 8.
Trees heal readily after pruning without needing aftercare.
They can also be pruned just to maintain a smaller size to suit a particular location.
Acer palmatum can also be used as espalier.
Some cultivars can scarcely be distinguished from others unless labeled.
Chitose Yama    agm  Crimson Queen     see var.
Even the new growth displays the linearlobum type leaf form.
Red Dragon    One of the finest of the lace leaf weeping umbrella shaped forms.
In commercial propagation  A. palmatum is often used as rootstock for many of these other species.
However  only three are currently sovereign  while the remaining are sub national monarchies.
The sub national monarchies are not sovereign  and exist within larger political associations.
In addition to these  there are also three dependencies of two European monarchies.
In response to this  a strong leadership with authority developed to meet the need for them.
Kingdoms of Takrur in Senegal and Kanem on the banks of the Lake Chad were also founded.
One such intervention was by Rome in North Africa.
Formal independence was granted in 1966 and a constitutional monarchy was established.
The College of Chiefs also appoints a regent if one is needed.
During that time  the inhabitants of Morocco were known as Moors.
He also chairs the Security Council  which oversees the military.
However  it pre dates Lesotho by approximately seventy five years to the mid eighteenth century.
In 1902  after the Boer War  the British assumed control of Swaziland.
It was not until 1967 that the Swazi regained control of internal affairs.
Independence was granted the following year.
The present ruler  King Mswati III  ascended to the throne in 1986.
Spain completed its conquest of the islands in 1496 and used them as a port of western exploration.
Ceuta  in particular  served as the base for the Moorish conquest of Spain during that time period.
In 1415  Ceuta was conquered by the Portuguese  with Melilla falling to the Spanish in 1497.
Autonomy was granted to both cities in 1995.
It is ruled by Elizabeth II  Queen of Saint Helena  who is represented locally by a governor.
Saint Helena was first discovered by a series of Portuguese explorers between 1602 and 1604.
For close to two hundred years afterwards  Company rule was maintained by the British.
It only came to an end in the early 1800s  upon which sovereignty passed to the British themselves.
Such figures as the Nigerian traditional rulers and the Zulu King of South Africa typify the class.
Asia has more monarchies than any other continent.
Princely states were only in the present day countries of India and Pakistan  and not Bangladesh.
Presently the rulers of the former princely states are pretenders who carry out ceremonial roles.
Since the end of World War I  however  most European monarchies have been abolished.
There remain  as of 2021  twelve sovereign monarchies in Europe.
Andorra  Liechtenstein  and Monaco are principalities  while Luxembourg is a Grand Duchy.
The Vatican City is a theocratic state ruled by the Pope.
Denmark  Norway  Sweden  the UK  Spain  and Andorra are the successors to premodern monarchies.
In 168  Macedon was subdued by the Romans  and partitioned into four client republics.
After defeating his rival Pompey  Caesar was appointed dictator to restore order.
The Kingdom of Portugal was abolished in 1910.
The Russian Empire ended in 1917  the Kingdom of Prussia in 1918.
Likewise  the Kingdom of Bohemia under Habsburg rule was dissolved in 1918.
The principality was briefly annexed in 1396 and again in 1512–1513 by the Crown of Aragon.
The first female prince to rule Andorra was Isabella  Countess of Foix  1398–1413 .
After the Empire s demise  Andorra became independent again.
The current monarch is Philippe.
The current monarch is Margrethe II.
Due to this status  the monarch has no separate title for these regions.
Luxembourg       Luxembourg has been an independent grand duchy since 9 June 1815.
In a referendum held on 28 September 1919  80.34 per cent voted in favor of keeping the monarchy.
Monaco       Monaco has been ruled by the House of Grimaldi since 1297.
The current monarch is Albert II.
He was born in the House of Nassau as Count of Nassau Dillenburg.
The current monarch is Willem Alexander.
Norway       Norway was united and thus established for the first time in 872  as a kingdom.
It is thus one of the oldest monarchies in the world  along with the Swedish and Danish ones.
Norway became completely independent again on 7 June 1905.
Support for establishing a republic lies around 20 per cent.
His son Felipe VI is the current monarch.
The current royal family  the House of Bernadotte  has reigned since 1818.
The current monarch is Carl XVI Gustaf.
The current monarch is Elizabeth II.
Public opinion is  however  certain that the monarchy will still exist in thirty years.
About 30 per cent are in favour of discontinuing the monarchy after Elizabeth s death.
Some of these realms have significant levels of support for republicanism.
Since then  the elected monarch of the Vatican City state has been the current pope.
The absolute monarch of Vatican City  the Pope  is elected by the College of Cardinals.
The current ruler is Pope Francis.
The Revolutions of 1848 were largely inspired by republicanism.
Also  some political parties  e.g.
Podemos in Spain  have stepped up and called for national referenda to abolish monarchies.
The Serbian Orthodox Church has openly supported the restoration of the monarchy.
Another poll in May 2013 had 39  of Serbians supporting the monarchy  with 32  against it.
On 27 July 2015  newspaper Blic published a poll  Da li Srbija treba da bude monarhija?
Another 2008 poll found that only 16  of Romanians are monarchists.
External links     Media related to Monarchies of Europe at Wikimedia Commons
The only sovereign monarchy in Oceania that does not share a monarch with another state is Tonga.
Eventually the British government granted Australians more and more powers to govern themselves.
The majority of all voters and all states rejected the proposal.
The present monarch of Papua New Guinea is Queen Elizabeth II.
It chose to become a kingdom with its own Queen and monarchy.
Solomon Islands      The Head of State of the Solomon Islands is Queen Elizabeth II.
Tuvalu      The first inhabitants of Tuvalu were Polynesian people.
The islands came under the UK s sphere of influence in the late 19th century.
Tuvalu became fully independent within The Commonwealth in 1978.
The King of Uvea is Kapiliele Faupala and the King of Sigave is Visesio Moeliku.
They have reigned since 2008 and 2004  respectively.
The others are dependencies of three European monarchies.
As such  none of the monarchies in the Americas have a permanently residing monarch.
A certain number of former colonies became republics immediately upon achieving self governance.
Elizabeth returned once more in 1985.
The Duke of York visited Antigua and Barbuda in January 2001.
The vote was  however  postponed again to a later point  due to administrative concerns.
The monarch is represented in the country by the Governor General of Belize  Sir Colville Young.
Patterson  advocated making Jamaica into a republic by 2007.
By 1833  however  the islands were under full British control.
Those possessions under the Danish and Dutch crowns already adhere to absolute primogeniture.
In the process  Orélie Antoine was captured in 1862  and imprisoned in an insane asylum in Chile.
A recent pretender  Prince Antoine IV  lived in France until 2017.
The conquerors installed other Sapa Inca beginning with Atahualpa s brother  Túpac Huallpa.
Another Russian outpost  Fort Ross  was established in 1812 in what is now California.
Saint Barthélemy  1784–1878  was operated as a porto Franco  free port .
The capital city of Gustavia retains its Swedish name.
When Norton died in 1880  he was given a lavish funeral attended by over 30 000 persons.
A monarch can reign in multiple monarchies simultaneously.
Some monarchies are non hereditary.
In an elective monarchy  the monarch is elected but otherwise serves as any other monarch.
In cases where the monarch serves mostly as a ceremonial figure  e.g.
most modern constitutional monarchies   real leadership does not depend on the monarch.
Spain today continues this model of succession law  in the form of cognatic primogeniture.
After the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 the monarchy was dissolved and Egypt became a republic.
Haile Selassie  the last Emperor of Ethiopia  was deposed in a communist coup.
Such titles were granted or recognised by the Emperor or Pope.
The legendary Dangun Wanggeom founded the first kingdom  Gojoseon.
Gyuwon Sahwa  1675  describes The Annals of the Danguns as a collection of nationalistic legends.
The title  Gun   prince  can refer to the dethroned rulers of the Joseon dynasty as well.
Oman is led by Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al Said.
The Kingdom of Jordan is one of the Middle East s more modern monarchies is also ruled by a Malik.
Nepal abolished their monarchy in 2008.
Sri Lanka had a complex system of monarchies from 543BC to 1815.
The Prime Minister of Brunei is a title held by the Sultan.
Cambodia has been a kingdom since the 1st century.
Bhutan has been an independent kingdom since 1907.
It became a constitutional monarchy in 2008.
Tibet was a monarchy since the Tibetan Empire in the 6th century.
Nepal was a monarchy for most of its history until becoming a federal republic in 2008.
Haiti again had an emperor   Faustin I from 1849 to 1859.
Between 1931 and 1983 nine other previous British colonies attained independence as kingdoms.
All  including Canada  are in a personal union relationship under a shared monarch.
In addition to these sovereign states  there are also a number of sub national ones.
Monarchs in Oceania      Polynesian societies were ruled by an ariki from ancient times.
The title is variously translated as  supreme chief    paramount chief  or  king .
The Kingdom of Tahiti was founded in 1788.
The Kingdom of Hawaii was established in 1795 and overthrown in 1893.
An independent Kingdom of Rarotonga was established in 1858.
It became a protectorate of the United Kingdom at its own request in 1893.
Tonga is the only remaining sovereign kingdom in Oceania.
It has had a monarch since the 10th century and became a constitutional monarchy in 1875.
In New Zealand the position of Māori King was established in 1858.
The role is largely cultural and ceremonial and has no legal power.
A Prince may be a person of royal blood  some languages uphold this distinction  see Fürst .
A Duke may belong to a peerage and hold a dukedom  title  but no duchy  territory .
In Imperial Russia  a Grand Duke was a son or patrilineal grandson of the Tsar or Tsarina.
There are at least five cases of this   Claiming an existing title  challenging the current holder.
This has been very common historically.
Other cases include the numerous antipopes who have claimed the Holy See.
An example of the first case is the Prince of Seborga.
This is common in fairy tales and other works geared to children  as well as works of fantasy.
Examples include Princess Leia and Princess Summerfall Winterspring.
The Cook Islands are a constitutional monarchy within the Realm of New Zealand.
The viceregal position is currently held by Tom Marsters.
The heir apparent is Elizabeth II s eldest son  Prince Charles  Prince of Wales.
Succession     Royal succession is governed by the Royal Succession Act 2013.
The Queen undertook a royal tour of the Cook Islands between 28 January and 29 January 1974.
As such she is Antigua and Barbuda s sovereign and officially called Queen of Antigua and Barbuda.
This situation applies symmetrically in all the other realms  including the UK.
This rule applies equally to other members of the Royal Family.
Succession      The heir apparent is Elizabeth II s eldest son  Charles.
As such  the rules for succession are not fixed  but may be changed by a constitutional amendment.
This legislation restricts the succession to the natural  i.e.
Hence arises the phrase  The King is dead.
Nevertheless  it is customary for the accession of the Sovereign to be publicly proclaimed.
After an individual ascends the Throne  he or she continues to reign until death.
Monarchs are not allowed to unilaterally abdicate  no Antiguan and Barbudian monarch has abdicated.
The new constitution for Antigua and Barbuda was made by Order in Council  1981 No.
It came  into operation on 31 October 1981.
Although the Royal Prerogative is extensive  it is not unlimited.
The Crown is responsible for appointing a Prime Minister.
The appointment of Senators and the Speaker of the Senate also falls under the Royal Prerogative.
In addition  all Antiguan and Barbudian passports are issued in the Monarch s name.
The Monarch or the Governor General may theoretically refuse a dissolution.
The Monarch has the power to disallow a bill  within a time limit specified by the Constitution .
Pardons may be awarded before  during  or after a trial.
To be omitted in affirmation .
The Duke of York visited Antigua and Barbuda in January 2001.
The future of the monarchy has been a recurring topic of public discussion.
Prior to 1953  the title had simply been the same as that in the United Kingdom.
Australia  however  wished to have the United Kingdom mentioned as well.
Queen Elizabeth II signed her assent at Government House  Canberra  on 19 October 1973.
The constitution does not mention the term  head of state .
The Constitution defines the Governor General as the monarch s representative.
This view has some support within the group Australians for Constitutional Monarchy.
So the system as it is has worked very well.
As with other uses of the royal prerogative  no parliamentary approval is required.
This power  however  has never been used.
Courts     In the United Kingdom  the sovereign is deemed the fount of justice.
Crowns are also visible on police and military badges.
The Queen s Birthday is observed as a public holiday in all states.
God Save the Queen  is Australia s royal anthem.
However  unlike in England  Anglicanism was never established as a state religion in Australia.
The Australian monarch stays there when visiting Canberra  as do visiting heads of state.
When the Queen is in Canberra  she lays a wreath at the Australian War Memorial.
Her son Prince Charles attended school in Australia in 1967.
The monarch of Barbados is the sovereign and head of state of Barbados.
As the sovereign  she is the personal embodiment of the Barbadian Crown.
However  the Queen is the only member of the Royal Family with any constitutional role.
Further  the royal sign manual is required for letters patent and orders in council.
Only Barbadian ministers of the Crown may advise the sovereign on matters of the Barbadian state.
This applies equally to other members of the Royal Family.
This legislation limits the succession to the natural  i.e.
After an individual ascends the throne  he or she typically continues to reign until death.
The government of Barbados is also thus formally referred to as Her Majesty s Government.
Members of various executive agencies and other officials are appointed by the Crown.
As with other uses of the Royal Prerogative  no parliamentary approval is required.
Second in precedence is the personal flag of the governor general.
The main symbol of the monarchy is the sovereign herself.
Thus  portraits of her are displayed in public buildings and on stamps.
Thus  they refused to pay their taxes to a governor they recognised as having no authority.
Following the election  David Thompson replaced Arthur as prime minister.
The Barbados Labour Party has a two thirds majority in both houses of the Barbadian parliament.
There have been seven Belgian monarchs since independence in 1830.
The Congress voted on the question on 22 November 1830  supporting monarchy by 174 votes to 13.
This day has since become a national holiday for Belgium and its citizens.
Belgium s monarchs are inaugurated in a purely civil swearing in ceremony.
The Kingdom of Belgium was never an absolute monarchy.
The family is  of course  a legal institution as is the state.
He is only a piece on the chessboard  but a piece which matters.
Members of the Belgian royal family are often known by two names  a Dutch and a French one.
She is also Duchess of Brabant  the traditional title of the heir apparent to the Belgian throne.
This title precedes the title  Princess of Belgium .
In the other official language of German  monarchs are usually referred to by their French names.
The procedure usually begins with the nomination of the  Informateur  by the monarch.
Article 37 of the Constitution of Belgium vests the  federal executive power  in the monarch.
The monarch sanctions and promulgates all laws passed by Parliament.
The names of the nominees are sent to the monarch by the Ministry of Defence.
Belgians may write to the monarch when they meet difficulties with administrative powers.
All laws passed by the Federal Parliament must be signed and promulgated by the monarch.
This right was abolished in 2014 as part of the Sixth Belgian state reform.
Similar traditions are attached to the Russian Tsar and the President of Argentina.
Popular support for the monarchy had historically been higher in Flanders and lower in Wallonia.
Each Head of Department is responsible for his department and is accountable to the King.
The Military Household is also responsible for managing the Palace s computer system.
The King s Aides de Camp and the King s Equerries are also attached to the Military Household.
The equerry accompanies the King on his trips except for those of a strictly private nature.
He is also Director of the Royal Hunts.
He is also responsible for maintaining contacts with foreign diplomatic missions.
The other members of the royal family have a service at their disposal.
They have five children  HI RH Prince Amedeo of Belgium  Archduke of Austria Este.
He married Elisabetta Maria Rosboch von Wolkenstein on 5 July 2014.
She has been in a relationship with James O Hare since 2000.
HRH Princess Léa of Belgium  born 2 December 1951 .
HRH Princess Marie Christine  Mrs Gourgues  born 6 February 1951 .
HRH Princess Marie Esméralda  Lady Moncada  born 30 September 1956 .
Princess Marie Esméralda is a journalist  writing under the name Esméralda de Réthy.
She married Sir Salvador Moncada  a Honduran British pharmacologist  in London on 4 April 1998.
The monarch of Belize is the head of state of Belize.
The incumbent Queen of Belize is Elizabeth II  who has reigned since 21 September 1981.
Succession      The heir apparent is Elizabeth II s eldest son  Charles  Prince of Wales.
The Act of Settlement restricts the succession to the natural  i.e.
Monarchs are not allowed to unilaterally abdicate.
Most of the Queen s domestic duties are performed by this vice regal representative.
Although the Royal Prerogative is extensive  it is not unlimited.
In addition  all Belizean passports are issued in the monarch s name.
Legal role    All laws in Belize are enacted with the sovereign s  or the viceroy s signature.
Instead  judicial functions are performed in their name.
In this capacity  all Crown copyright is held by the Queen.
The kingdom itself though is probably a couple of hundred years older than that.
Furthermore  the Jelling stones attests that Harald had also  won  Norway.
The last monarch descended from Valdemar IV  Christopher III of Denmark  died in 1448.
Later a Coronation Charter was signed by the king to restrict the powers of the Danish monarch.
But the Second Northern War was not yet over.
Once again the Swedish army arrived outside Copenhagen.
However  this time the Danes did not panic or surrender.
Instead  they decided to fight and prepared to defend Copenhagen.
Charles X Gustav suddenly died of an illness in early 1660  while planning an invasion of Norway.
Following his death  Sweden made peace in the Treaty of Copenhagen.
This treaty established the boundaries between Norway  Denmark  and Sweden that still exist today.
Male primogeniture succession was laid down in law in the Royal Decree of 1665.
His son Vilhelm went on to become George I of Greece.
Further  his grandson Carl became Haakon VII of Norway.
He refused the order and resigned several days later after a heated exchange with the king.
In light of this  negotiations were opened between the king and members of the Social Democrats.
In other words  the first born child would become heir to the throne regardless of gender.
Once it has been formed  the Queen formally appoints it.
Succession     Denmark has had absolute primogeniture since 2009.
The National Church is by law the State Church  though the monarch is not its head.
Out of the articles in this law  all except for Article 21 and Article 25 have since been repealed.
The Danish monarch holds the fount of honour to bestow new titels of nobility in Denmark.
Since then  a varying number of these have been put at the disposal of the monarchy.
The agreement on which is renewed at the accession of every new monarch.
The main part of the current palace  finished in 1928  is in the historicist Neo Baroque style.
The chapel dates to 1826 and is in a Neoclassical style.
The showgrounds were built 1738–46  in a Baroque style.
The royal parts of the palace are open to the public when not in use.
It is often the site of state visits and ceremonial events in the royal family.
The palace may be visited by the public on guided tours when not in use.
Graasten Palace       In Jutland  Graasten Palace is at the disposal of the monarch.
It was used as the summer residence of King Frederick IX and Queen Ingrid.
Sorgenfri Palace       Finally  Sorgenfri Palace is at the disposal of the monarch.
Style     The monarchs of Denmark have a long history of royal and noble titles.
Historically Danish monarchs also used the titles  King of the Wends  and  King of the Goths .
The monarch of Grenada is the head of state of Grenada since 1765.
The Queen s constitutional roles are mostly delegated to the Governor General of Grenada.
Fifty three states are members of the Commonwealth of Nations.
This situation applies symmetrically in all the other realms  including the UK.
On all matters of the Grenadian State  the Monarch is advised solely by Grenadian ministers.
The Governor General is appointed by the Monarch upon the advice of the Prime Minister of Grenada.
As such  the Queen herself does not exercise reserve powers.
The order was made under the West Indies Act 1967  and came into operation on 7 February 1974.
Duties     Most of the Queen s domestic duties are performed by the Governor General.
The Monarch has the power to disallow a bill  within a time limit specified by the constitution .
Pardons may be awarded before  during  or after a trial.
This applies equally to other members of the royal family.
This legislation limits the succession to the natural  i.e.
Thus  Jamaica s line of succession remains identical to that of the United Kingdom.
After an individual ascends the throne  he or she typically continues to reign until death.
The government of Jamaica is also thus formally referred to as Her Majesty s Government.
Members of various executive agencies  and other officials are appointed by the Crown.
An image of the Queen or the Coat of arms of Jamaica is always displayed in Jamaican courtrooms.
Let this visit not so much renew old ties as cement new ones.
and polls suggested that 55  of Jamaicans desired the country become a republic.
The right of the parishes that make up the principality to secede was simultaneously recognised.
Formally  Hans Adam remains head of state.
In 2017  the Luxembourg budget included €10.1 million for the grand duke s household costs.
The current heir apparent is Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume.
The present reigning prince is Albert II.
Executive power is retained by the Prince.
Titles and styles    The Prince is styled His Serene Highness.
Elizabeth s eldest son  Charles  Prince of Wales  is heir apparent.
However  the Queen is the only member of the royal family with any constitutional role.
Thus  New Zealand s line of succession remains identical to that of the United Kingdom.
As such  the rules for succession are not fixed  but may be changed by a constitutional amendment.
the Queen    continue to mean the reigning sovereign of New Zealand.
Parliament     The sovereign is one of the two components of the New Zealand Parliament.
The governor general commissions officers to command the forces.
Similar to coats of arms  flags are utilised to represent royal authority.
A personal flag for use by the Queen in New Zealand was adopted in 1962.
It features the shield design of the New Zealand coat of arms in the form of an oblong or square.
Celebrations are mainly official  including the Birthday Honours list and military ceremonies.
Some members have also expressed support for the monarchy.
History     Lieutenant James Cook first sailed to New Zealand in 1769.
Beginning in 1790  an increasing number of European settlers came to New Zealand.
Despite Busby s presence  trouble increased.
The resultant Treaty of Waitangi was signed on 6 February 1840  at Waitangi in the Bay of Islands.
The first  Moehanga  or Te Mahanga  met King George III and Queen Charlotte in 1806.
He landed in Wellington on April 11  1869  aboard his ship HMS Galatea.
Originally  these monarchs reigned in their right as British sovereigns.
The Queen s Other Realms  The Crown and Its Legacy in Australia  Canada and New Zealand.
Sites  A Journal of Social Anthropology and Cultural Studies.
The crown prince also acts as regent in the king s absence.
This information was verified by the prime minister himself.
The King does not  by convention  have direct participation in government.
He has a more tangible influence as the symbol of national unity.
Harald Fairhair was the first king of Norway.
In practice the king was elected by the Riksråd in a similar way to Denmark.
Many farms were deserted and rents and taxes suffered.
In the following centuries the Norwegian monarchs mostly resided abroad.
The church was an important factor in trying to maintain the separate Norwegian monarchy.
When both failed the effects were harsh.
This gave the king the upper hand in the negotiations for the håndfesting.
As a result  Jemtland  Herjedalen  Båhuslen  Shetland and Orkney were lost to Sweden and Scotland.
In addition all contact with Greenland ceased.
Until then the law of Magnus the law mender given in 1274 and 1276 had been the law of Norway.
Christian IV s Norwegian law was in effect a translation into Danish of that older law.
On 10 April  a national assembly met at Eidsvoll to decide on a constitution.
The end result was that the Norwegian monarchy became a constitutional monarchy.
In this new union the King was much more a King of Norway than under the previous Danish system.
The only area of policy not in the hands of the Norwegians was foreign policy.
Norway had been brought along into the new developments of the world as they arrived in Denmark.
Denmark introduced a constitutional monarchy 35 years after Norway.
Parliamentarism was introduced in Norway 17 years before Denmark and 33 years before Sweden.
This was however rejected in Norway  where calls for self determination were already mounting.
A Norwegian constituent assembly was called  and a liberal constitution was adopted on 17 May 1814.
The King would occasionally enact laws unfavourable to Sweden.
The Storting would propose laws to reduce the king s power or to assert Norwegian independence.
Despite royal objections  this was removed from the Norwegian flag in 1898.
The Royal Palace in Oslo was built during this period.
There were separate coronations in Trondheim  as stipulated in the Constitution.
King Oscar II spoke and wrote Norwegian fluently.
The Storting proposed a law establishing a separate Norwegian consulate corps.
King Oscar II refused to ratify the law and subsequently the Norwegian cabinet resigned.
The last king with that name had been Haakon VI  who died in the year 1380.
Thus the new king became Haakon VII  King of Norway.
His two year old son Alexander  the heir apparent  was renamed Olav and became Crown Prince Olav.
Haakon VII was sworn in as king of Norway on 27 November.
The Norwegian state was poor and funds were needed elsewhere than in the upkeep of a large court.
The Labour party later dropped the abolition of monarchy from their programme.
Immunity     Article 5 stated  The King s person is sacred  he cannot be censured or accused.
The responsibility rests with his Council.This article applies to the king personally.
This has never been tested in practice.
The Council of State is the Government of Norway and is chaired by the King.
It meets under the King s chairmanship at least once a week usually on Fridays.
But it rests with the King to make a decision according to his own judgment.
...        Veto of laws     The King has to sign all laws in order for them to become valid.
The Crown has not vetoed any law since the dissolution of the union with Sweden.
In that case the Bill must not again be submitted to the King by the Storting then assembled.
A pardon may entail a complete or partial withdrawal of punishment.
The formal approval of a pardon has to be done by the King in Council.
King Haakon VII told the government he would abdicate if they decided to accept.
The first coronation in Norway and in all Scandinavia took place in Bergen in 1163 or 1164.
For a long time both ceremonies were used in Norway.
That way the king was invested with powers both from the noblemen and from the church.
The last acclamation took place on Akershus Castle in 1648.
The last medieval coronation in Norway took place 29 July 1514.
This re established the relationship to the sacred king s burial church.
The constitutional article about the coronation was annulled in 1908.
The regalia is currently located in the old Archbishop s Palace in Trondheim.
Only people descended from the reigning monarch are entitled to succeed to the throne.
If the line of succession comes to an end then the Storting may elect a new king or queen.
Other members of the royal family have lost that privilege upon marriage.
16.5 million was also given to the monarchs as appanage.
20.9 million was in addition allocated to rehabilitation of royal property.
However  the large expense was criticised in the media.
All of the official residences are partially open to the public.
Ledaal       Ledaal is a large manor house in Stavanger.
The restoration was finalized in 2007 and has been frequently used by the royal family ever since.
Oscarshall palace  a maison de plaisance  also situated in Oslo  but seldom used.
In the late Middle Ages  the axe handle gradually grew longer and came to resemble a halberd.
The Royal coat of arms is not used frequently.
Instead  the king s monogram is extensively used  for instance in military insignia and on coins.
There is also broad political consensus on this issue.
The current monarch  since 16 September 1975  is Queen Elizabeth II.
However  the Queen is the only member of the Royal Family with any constitutional role.
Duties      Most of the Queen s domestic duties are performed by the governor general.
The heir apparent is Elizabeth II s eldest son  Prince Charles  Prince of Wales.
Pardons may be awarded before  during  or after a trial.
He returned in 1975 to represent the  Queen at PNG s independence celebrations.
He then opened the new parliament building in Port Moresby.
Saint Kitts and Nevis is a constitutional monarchy in which a monarch is head of state.
The present monarch is Elizabeth II  who is also Sovereign of the other Commonwealth realms.
52 states are members of the Commonwealth of Nations.
This situation applies symmetrically in all the other realms  including the UK.
The order was made under the West Indies Act 1967 and came into operation on 23 June 1983.
Duties     Most of the Queen s domestic duties are performed by the Governor General.
Previously succession had been governed by the Act of Settlement and English Bill of Rights.
The Monarch has the power to disallow a bill  within a time limit specified by the constitution .
Pardons may be awarded before  during  or after a trial.
The Queen s constitutional roles are mostly delegated to the Governor General of Saint Lucia.
Queen Elizabeth II has reigned since independence on 22 February 1979.
International and domestic role    Fifty two states are members of the Commonwealth of Nations.
The monarch is briefed by regular communication for her Saint Lucian government.
The governor general is appointed entirely upon the advice of her Saint Lucian government.
The monarch maintains direct contact with the governor general.
The present Governor General is His Excellency Sir Emmanuel Neville Cenac GCMG.
This situation applies symmetrically in all the other realms  including the UK.
The island became self governing in 1967 and achieved independence in 1979.
Duties     Most of the Queen s domestic duties are performed by the Governor General.
The Monarch has the power to disallow a bill  within a time limit specified by the constitution .
Pardons may be awarded before  during  or after a trial.
Royal presence    Elizabeth II first visited Saint Lucia as part of her Caribbean tour of 1966.
During her visit she opened the new Winban Research Centre.
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh travelled on HMY Britannia.
They were treated to traditional Saint Lucian Dances and a firework display.
The Prince of Wales visited in 1989 to commemorate the tenth anniversary of these celebrations.
In 2012  the Earl and Countess of Wessex  were part of independence anniversary celebrations.
However  the Queen is the only member of the Royal Family with any constitutional role.
Under the new constitution the Oath of Allegiance to the sovereign was to continue.
The Crown also sits at the pinnacle of the Royal Saint Vincent Police Force.
Cultural role     Members of the Royal Family undertake official royal tours.
Each realm  including Solomon Islands  is a sovereign and independent state.
Formally  the monarch appoints the Governor General on the advice of parliament.
It had never formed part of Her Majesty’s dominions.
The new sovereign democratic state was established with the Queen as head of state.
It was made under the Foreign Jurisdiction Act 1890  and came into operation on 7 July 1978.
Duties     The monarch s duties are performed by the Governor General.
As in the other Commonwealth realms  the monarch s role is almost entirely symbolic and cultural.
The heir apparent is Elizabeth II s eldest son  Charles.
No Commonwealth realm can alter the succession without the agreement of the other realms.
This situation applies symmetrically in all the other realms.
Henry II became the first of the House of Trastámara to rule over a Spanish kingdom.
Each kingdom retained its basic structure.
First Spanish Republic      In September 1873  the First Spanish Republic was founded.
A coup d état restored the Bourbon dynasty to the throne in 1874.
Faced with unrest in the cities  Alfonso XIII went into exile  but did not abdicate.
The ensuing provisional government evolved into the relatively short lived Second Spanish Republic.
Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany aided Franco in the Spanish Civil War.
The monarch exercises the functions expressly conferred on him by the constitution and the laws.
The King is Head of State  the symbol of its unity and permanence.
His acts shall always be countersigned in the manner established in section 64.
Without such countersignature they shall not be valid  except as provided under section 65 2 .
The widows and widowers of monarchs are to retain these styles until they remarry.
Titles may revert to the Crown when their vacancy is observed.
All successive politicians remain active within politics.
The Laureate Cross of Saint Ferdinand is Spain s highest military award for gallantry.
This immunity applies to both civil and criminal cases.
Sovereign immunity is reserved  exclusively for the current holder of the Office of King.
It does not apply to any other member of the royal family.
The Person of the King of Spain is inviolable and shall not be held accountable.
His acts shall always be countersigned in the manner established in section 64.
Without such countersignature they shall not be valid  except as provided under section 65 2 .
Breaching Spain s lèse majesté laws may carry fines and up to two years in prison.
The government consists of the President of the Government and ministers of state.
Additionally  the government exercises executive authority and statutory regulations.
Constitutionally  the monarch may nominate anyone he sees fit as is his prerogative.
The king is normally able to announce his nominee the day following a General Election.
A simple majority confirms the nominee and his program.
Additionally  if the Government loses the confidence of the Cortes  then it must resign.
However  the government of the day manages diplomatic policy on behalf of the monarch.
Since 2000  Felipe has represented Spain in half of all diplomatic engagements.
It is incumbent upon the King ... to exercise Supreme Command of the Armed Forces.
The king s ranks include Captain General of the Army  the Navy and the Air Force.
The king is the only officer in the military to hold this 5 star General rank.
So when I see you joyful  I am joyful.
1 ambassador   said César Alierta  chairman of the Spanish telecommunications giant Telefónica.
Seventy two per cent thought the monarchy was an important factor for political stability.
57.5 per cent believed the Felipe VI could restore the royal family s lost prestige.
The Head of the Household is assisted by a Secretary General.
Before his father s abdication  Felipe VI had his own secretariat as Prince of Asturias.
In 2004  the royal household employed 100 staff members.
Spanish royal sites are open to the public when members of the royal family are not in residence.
Maintenance and upkeep includes groundskeeping  domestic staffing and catering.
There have been kings in what now is the Kingdom of Sweden since time immemorial.
Following the Black Death  the union weakened  and Scania reunited with Denmark.
Crown tax revenues increased  but more importantly the new system was perceived as fairer.
His reign was marked by Sweden s entrance into the Livonian War and the Northern Seven Years  War.
In 1568 Eric was dethroned and succeeded by John III.
In 1604  the Estates finally recognized the regent and de facto ruler as King Charles IX.
His short reign was one of uninterrupted warfare.
Gustavus Adolphus inherited three wars from his father when he ascended to the throne.
Brandenburg was torn apart by a quarrel between the Protestants and the Catholics.
Gustavus Adolphus was killed at the 1632 Battle of Lützen.
His defeat of the Russians at Narva when just 18 years old was to be his greatest victory.
Some years later he was killed at the Siege of Fredriksten during an attempt to invade Norway.
The Swedish Age of Greatness  Swedish  stormaktstiden  had ended.
Despite having many extra marital affairs  Frederick I never sired a legitimate heir to the throne.
The childless uncle of the former king was almost immediately elected as King Charles XIII.
He ranks as a four star admiral in the Swedish Navy and general in the Swedish Army and Air Force.
Other members of the Royal Family may also represent the country abroad at lesser functions.
The title Svea Konung  King of the Swedes  dated to an older era.
Upon his accession  Carl XVI Gustaf chose for his title simply Sveriges Konung  King of Sweden .
This was reflected in his personal motto För Sverige  i tiden   For Sweden  with the times  .
Female dynasts are titled princess  prinsessa .
The Swedish Succession Act was altered in 1980 to allow for female succession to the throne.
Since 1980  they have been conferred to all royal heirs  male and female.
His son and successor  Gustaf V  abstained from having a coronation.
The Royal Palace is used for representative purposes and State occasions by the king.
In 1692  work began on the northern row.
However  much of the old castle was destroyed in a disastrous fire on 7 May 1697.
Tessin rebuilt the damaged palace  and work continued for another 63 years.
The royal family moved to the palace with the southwest  southeast  and northeast wings finished.
The northwest wing was finished in 1760.
In the north  Lejonbacken  the  Lion s Slope   was rebuilt from 1824 to 1830.
It was originally built in the late 16th century.
It was added to the World Heritage List in 1991.
They moved into the palace in the autumn after their wedding on 19 June 2010.
The King of Thailand is the head of state and head of the ruling Royal House of Chakri.
The king currently resides in quarantine at the Grand Hotel Sonnenbichl in Germany.
These ideas were briefly replaced in 1279  when King Ramkhamhaeng came to the throne.
Brahmins took charge in the royal coronation.
The king was treated as a reincarnation of Hindu gods.
Seemingly  Rama was the most popular  as in  Ramathibodhi .
The two former concepts were re established  with a third  older concept taking hold.
There he established the House of Chakri  the current ruling dynasty of Thailand.
This first reign was later designated as that of Rama I in the list of Rama Kings of Thailand.
On the other hand  they continued to not relinquish any authority of the throne.
As a prince  he had been tutored in Western traditions by the governess  Anna Leonowens.
He transformed the monarchy along Western lines of an  enlightened ruler .
In 1905  37 years after his coronation  Chulalongkorn ended slavery with the Slave Abolition Act.
In 1867 slaves accounted for one third of the Siamese population.
From then on the role of the monarch was relegated to that of a symbolic head of state.
His powers from then on were exercised by a prime minister and the national assembly.
He lived in exile in the United Kingdom until his death in 1941.
The king was replaced by his young nephew Ananda Mahidol  Rama VIII .
The new king was 10 years old and was living abroad in Switzerland.
A council of regents was appointed in his place.
By the end of the war Phibunsongkhram was removed and the young king returned.
He died on 13 October 2016 at the age of 88.
All bills passed by the legislature  however  require his royal assent to become law.
This is not propaganda   Prayut Chan o cha  the leader of the junta  said.
The youth must be educated on what the king has done.
The regalia is presently on display in the Museum of the Grand Palace in Bangkok.
Royal Nine Tiered Umbrella  Phra Maha Swetachatra  พระมหาเศวตฉัตร   the most important regalia.
Currently there are seven  distributed at various palaces.
However  sometimes recommendations are made by the Cabinet of Thailand and the Prime Minister.
There are twelve Royal Orders and some of these have separate classes.
The Vallabhabhorn Order  Established on 22 March 1919  B.E.
The Vajira Mala Order  Established on 28 May 1911  B.E.
The Queen s constitutional roles are mostly delegated to the Governor General of Tuvalu.
As set out in section 54 of the Constitution  the Queen s representative is the governor general.
International and domestic role    Fifty two states are members of the Commonwealth of Nations.
Tuvalu achieved independence in 1978 but retained the Queen as Head of State.
On all matters of the Tuvaluan State  the monarch is advised solely by Tuvaluan ministers.
16 June remains a public holiday in Tuvalu as the Queen s Official Birthday.
The Queen of Tuvalu and the Duke of Edinburgh toured Tuvalu between 26 and 27 October 1982.
A sheet of commemorative stamps was issued for the royal visit by the Tuvalu Philatelic Bureau.
As set out in section 54 of the Constitution  the Queen s representative is the governor general.
The preamble was changed and an introductory  Principles of the Constitution  was added.
The monarch has the power to disallow a bill  within a time limit specified by the constitution .
Pardons may be awarded before  during  or after a trial.
Former Prime Minister Kamuta Latasi also supported the idea.
The monarchy was retained with 1 260 votes to 679  64.98  .
Turnout was low  with about 2 000 voters of a potential 9 000 taking part.
The two acts are part of constitutional law.
This situation applies symmetrically in all the other realms  including the UK.
On all matters of the Bahamian State  the Monarch is advised solely by Bahamian ministers.
The Order came into operation on 10 July 1973.
Duties     Most of the Queen s domestic duties are performed by the Governor General.
The Monarch has the power to disallow a bill  within a time limit specified by the constitution .
Pardons may be awarded before  during  or after a trial.
The Queen returned again to The Bahamas in March 1994.
The current monarch and head of state is Queen Elizabeth II  who ascended the throne in 1952.
The monarch is also Head of the British Armed Forces.
The Government of the United Kingdom is known as Her  His  Majesty s Government.
Meanwhile  Magna Carta began a process of reducing the English monarch s political powers.
From 1603  the English and Scottish kingdoms were ruled by a single sovereign.
The sovereign is further both mentioned in and the subject of songs  loyal toasts  and salutes.
God Save the Queen   or  alternatively   God Save the King   is the British national anthem.
This role has been recognised since the 19th century.
Since 1945  there have only been three hung parliaments.
Although Wilson s Labour Party did not have a majority  they were the largest party.
The resulting general election gave Wilson a small majority.
The last monarch to remove the prime minister was William IV  who dismissed Lord Melbourne in 1834.
Many Crown prerogatives have fallen out of use or have been permanently transferred to Parliament.
Each parliamentary session begins with the monarch s summons.
Henry II faced rebellions from his own sons  the future monarchs Richard I and John.
He was killed besieging a castle  and John succeeded him.
John s reign was marked by conflict with the barons  particularly over the limits of royal power.
He attempted to establish English domination of Scotland.
Nevertheless  in 1327  Edward was deposed by his wife Isabella.
His 14 year old son became Edward III.
Edward III claimed the French Crown  setting off the Hundred Years  War between England and France.
His campaigns conquered much French territory  but by 1374  all the gains had been lost.
In 1377  Edward III died  leaving the Crown to his 10 year old grandson Richard II.
In 1399  while he was campaigning in Ireland  his cousin Henry Bolingbroke seized power.
Edward V disappeared  presumably murdered by Richard.
The reign of the second Tudor king  Henry VIII  was one of great political change.
Mary I married Philip of Spain  who was declared king and co ruler.
As a result  however  the rival dynastic lines clashed  often violently.
From 942 to 1005  seven consecutive monarchs were either murdered or killed in battle.
In 1005  Malcolm II ascended the throne having killed many rivals.
In exchange for his release  William was forced to acknowledge Henry as his feudal overlord.
William died in 1214  and was succeeded by his son Alexander II.
Edward chose Alexander s three year old Norwegian granddaughter  Margaret.
A court was set up and after two years of deliberation  it pronounced John Balliol to be king.
Edward proceeded to treat Balliol as a vassal  and tried to exert influence over Scotland.
In 1295  when Balliol renounced his allegiance to England  Edward I invaded.
However  only one year later  Robert died and was succeeded by his five year old son  David II.
He was assassinated by a group of nobles.
As his son and successor  James V  was an infant  the government was again taken over by regents.
Once again  a regency was established.
Mary  a Roman Catholic  reigned during a period of great religious upheaval in Scotland.
As a result of the efforts of reformers such as John Knox  a Protestant ascendancy was established.
Mary caused alarm by marrying her Catholic cousin  Lord Darnley  in 1565.
The nobility rebelled against the Queen  forcing her to abdicate.
Mary was imprisoned and later executed by the English queen Elizabeth I.
James VI ruled in England as James I after what was known as the  Union of the Crowns .
Cromwell ruled until his death in 1658  when he was succeeded by his son Richard.
The new Lord Protector had little interest in governing  he soon resigned.
William obliged  arriving in England on 5 November 1688 to great public support.
Mary died childless in 1694  leaving William as the sole monarch.
Soon after the passage of the Act  William III died  leaving the Crown to Anne.
His son  the future George IV  ruled in his stead as Prince Regent.
In the ensuing elections  however  Peel lost.
The king had no choice but to recall Lord Melbourne.
In recognition of British rule over India  Victoria was declared Empress of India in 1876.
An all island kingship of Ireland had been created in 854 by Máel Sechnaill mac Máele Ruanaid.
Diarmait and his Anglo Norman allies succeeded and he became King of Leinster again.
Northern Ireland remained within the Union.
Religious role    The sovereign is the supreme governor of the established Church of England.
The sovereign plays no formal role in the disestablished Church in Wales or Church of Ireland.
The monarch is usually crowned in Westminster Abbey  normally by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
It is held in trust  and cannot be sold or owned by the sovereign in a private capacity.
In 1993  the Lord Chamberlain said estimates of £100 million were  grossly overstated .
Residences     The sovereign s official residence in London is Buckingham Palace.
It is the site of most state banquets  investitures  royal christenings and other ceremonies.
The sovereign s official residence in Scotland is the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.
Whitehall was destroyed by fire in 1698  leading to a shift to St James s Palace.
Sandringham House in Norfolk and Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire are privately owned by the Queen.
Future monarchs will apply this policy.
Old French   Shame be to him who thinks evil of it  .
It is flown only from buildings  vessels and vehicles in which the sovereign is present.
The Ministry of Finance played an important role in Japan s postwar economic growth.
Most Japanese put money into savings accounts  mostly postal savings.
The budgetary process generally begins soon after the start of a new fiscal year on April 1.
The new bill increases the tax to 8  by April 2014 and 10  by October 2015.
However  it was delayed until at least October 2019.
The invasions were one of the earliest cases of gunpowder warfare outside of China.
However  it is doubtful if Mongol activities in Sakhalin were part of the effort to invade Japan.
Our relation is feudatory like a father and son.
We think you already know this.
Goryeo is my eastern tributary.
We are afraid that the Kingdom is yet to know this.
Hence we dispatched a mission with our letter particularly expressing our wishes.
We think all countries belong to one family.
How are we in the right  unless we comprehend this?
Nobody would wish to resort to arms.
However  the emissaries returned empty handed.
The second set of emissaries were sent in 1268 and returned empty handed like the first.
The Japanese plan of defense was simply to contest them at every point with gokenin.
Two days later they began landing on Tsushima Island.
The fight was engaged by 04 00.
They took the next few days to secure control of Tsushima.
Invasion of Iki     The Yuan fleet departed Tsushima on 13 November and attacked Iki Island.
The next morning  Yuan forces had surrounded the castle.
They wielded their polearms in a tightly packed fashion with no space between them.
When the enemy had moved into the pre arranged positions  the invaders attacked from all sides.
They also used firearms and  thus  slaughtered the enemy forces in countless numbers.
Thus the Japanese were put to rout.
The battle lasted for only a day and the fighting  though fierce  was uncoordinated and brief.
Kikuchi told him the  pirates  had already fled.
However the Yuan attack never came.
Liu convened with the other generals Holdon and Hong Dagu back on his ship.
There was also fear of being ambushed in the night.
Liu agreed with Hong and recalled the Yuan forces back to their ships.
Disappearance of the invaders     By morning  most of the Yuan ships had disappeared.
A few ships were beached and some 50 Yuan soldiers and sailors were captured and executed.
Some accounts offer casualty reports that suggest 200 ships were lost.
Bukkō replied that he had to sit in meditation to find the source of his cowardice in himself.
Tokimune went to Bukkō and said   Finally there is the greatest happening of my life.
Bukkō asked   How do you plan to face it?
as if he wanted to scare all the enemies in front of him.
Bukkō responded with satisfaction   It is true that the son of a lion roars as a lion!
Since then  Tokimune was instrumental in spreading Zen and Bushido in Japan among the samurai.
A coastal watch was instituted  and rewards were given to some 120 valiant samurai.
Tokimune responded by having them sent to Kamakura and then beheading them.
More than 1 000 ships were requisitioned for the invasion  600 from Southern China  900 from Korea.
Reportedly 40 000 troops were amassed in Korea and 100 000 in Southern China.
Nothing is known about the size of the Japanese forces.
More than 300 islanders were killed.
The soldiers sought out the children and killed them as well.
Instead  the Japanese launched raids at night on board small ships.
Takezaki Suenaga was also among those who raided the Yuan fleet.
After taking Taka island  the Yuan army advanced on Hakata.
Those which came up to attack were all beaten off.
The whole country therefore was trembling with fear.
In the markets there was no rice for sale.
The Japanese ruler went in person to visit the Hachiman Shrine to make supplication.
Thousands of soldiers were left drifting on pieces of wood or washed ashore.
So they all embarked and left the island and put out to sea.
They were moved to Hakata where the Japanese killed all the Mongols  Koreans  and Northern Chinese.
The Southern Chinese were spared but made slaves.
Chinese and Mongol sources indicate a casualty rate of 60 to 90 percent.
The failed invasions also mark the first use of the word kamikaze   Divine Wind  .
One of the most notable technological innovations during the war was the use of explosive bombs.
They argued that the combination of a violent samurai and a Japanese sword was a threat.
The player can play either as a Mongol invader or as Japan.
Ulaanbaatar  the capital and largest city  is home to about 45  of the country s population.
Buddhism is the majority religion  with the nonreligious being the second largest group.
Islam is the second largest religion  concentrated among ethnic Kazakhs.
His grandson Kublai Khan conquered China to establish the Yuan dynasty.
By the early 20th century  almost one third of the adult male population were Buddhist monks.
In 1924  the Mongolian People s Republic was founded as a socialist state.
This led to a multi party system  a new constitution of 1992  and transition to a market economy.
Etymology    The name Mongolia means the  Land of the Mongols  in Latin.
Modern humans reached Mongolia approximately 40 000 years ago during the Upper Paleolithic.
The wheeled vehicles found in the burials of the Afanasevans have been dated to before 2200 BC.
Agriculture may have first been introduced from the west or arose independently in the region.
Tocharians  Yuezhi  and Scythians inhabited western Mongolia during the Bronze Age.
The intrusions of northern pastoralists  e.g.
The Göktürks laid siege to Panticapaeum  present day Kerch  in 576.
They were succeeded by the Uyghur Khaganate  745–840  who were defeated by the Kyrgyz.
They made those who had heads bow their heads  and who had knees genuflect them.
In the east up to the Kadyrkhan common people  in the west up to the Iron Gate they conquered...
Their servants were wise and great too.
Officials were honest and direct with people.
They ruled the nation this way.
This way they held sway over them.
So many people came to mourn over the great Khagans.
He set up his capital in present day Beijing.
It was the second time this had occurred.
Abtai Khan of the Khalkha converted to Buddhism and founded the Erdene Zuu monastery in 1585.
His grandson Zanabazar became the first Jebtsundamba Khutughtu in 1640.
Following the leaders  the entire Mongolian population embraced Buddhism.
Each family kept scriptures and Buddha statues on an altar at the north side of their ger  yurt .
By 1636 most Inner Mongolian tribes had submitted to the Manchus  who founded the Qing dynasty.
The Jebtsundamba Khutuktu of Mongolia had immense de facto authority.
The Oirats who migrated to the Volga steppes in Russia became known as Kalmyks.
But the newly established Republic of China considered Mongolia to be part of its own territory.
Warfare erupted on the northern border.
Mongolia declared its independence again on July 11  1921.
As a result  Mongolia was closely aligned with the Soviet Union over the next seven decades.
The Mongolian People s Republic was established.
In 1928  Khorloogiin Choibalsan rose to power.
In Mongolia during the 1920s  approximately one third of the male population were monks.
The Stalinist purges in Mongolia  which began in 1937  killed more than 30 000 people.
Choibalsan died suspiciously in the Soviet Union in 1952.
Comintern leader Bohumír Šmeral said   People of Mongolia are not important  the land is important.
Mongolian land is larger than England  France and Germany .
This was the only time the Republic of China ever used its veto.
Faced with pressure from nearly all the other African countries  the ROC relented under protest.
Mongolia and Mauritania were both admitted to the UN on 27 October 1961.
It is significantly larger than the next largest country  Peru.
The whole of Mongolia is considered to be part of the Mongolian Plateau.
The basin of the Uvs Lake  shared with Tuva Republic in Russia  is a natural World Heritage Site.
In winter the whole of Mongolia comes under the influence of the Siberian Anticyclone.
Ulaanbaatar is strongly  but less severely  affected.
The Khangai Mountains play a certain role in forming this microclimate.
Mongolia is high  cold and windy.
The arid conditions in the Gobi are attributed to the rain shadow effect caused by the Himalayas.
Sea turtle and mollusk fossils have been found in the Gobi  apart from well known dinosaur fossils.
Tadpole shrimps  Lepidurus mongolicus  are still found in the Gobi today.
Mongolia s population growth rate is estimated at 1.2   2007 est. .
About 59  of the total population is under age 30  27  of whom are under 14.
This relatively young and growing population has placed strains on Mongolia s economy.
The first census in the 20th century was carried out in 1918 and recorded a population of 647 500.
The Khalkha make up 86  of the ethnic Mongol population.
In the west of the country  Kazakh and Tuvan  both Turkic languages  are also spoken.
Mongolian Sign Language is the principal language of the deaf community.
Schools are reintroducing the traditional alphabet.
Korean has gained popularity as tens of thousands of Mongolians work in South Korea.
Throughout much of the 20th century  the communist government repressed religious practices.
from 1911 on  the head of the Church had also been the Khan of the country .
The number of Buddhist monks dropped from 100 000 in 1924 to 110 in 1990.
In 2017 Seventh day Adventists reported 2 700 members in six churches up from zero members in 1991.
The people also elect the deputies in the national assembly  the State Great Khural.
The party initiated two changes of government from 2004 prior to losing power in the 2012 election.
In 2014  he was replaced by Chimediin Saikhanbileg.
The parliament can override that veto by a two thirds majority vote.
The president must also suspend their party membership.
Its members are directly elected  every four years  by popular vote.
About 130 troops are currently deployed in Afghanistan.
For questions of constitutional law there is a separate constitutional court.
Another share of the population lives in the sum centers.
The informal economy is estimated to be at least one third the size of the official economy.
Some 22.4  of the population lives on less than US 1.25 a day.
In 2011  GDP per capita was  3 100.
Two of the 16 commercial banks were taken into receivership.
In 2011  GDP growth was expected to reach 16.4 .
Fiscal revenues from mining represented 21  of government income in 2010 and rose to 24  in 2018.
About 3 000 mining licences have been issued.
Most herders in Mongolia follow a pattern of nomadic or semi nomadic pastoralism.
Due to the severe 2009–2010 winter  Mongolia lost 9.7 million animals  or 22  of total livestock.
This immediately affected meat prices  which increased twofold  the GDP dropped 1.6  in 2009.
A separate railroad link connects the eastern city of Choibalsan with the Trans Siberian Railway.
Many overland roads in Mongolia are only gravel roads or simple cross country tracks.
A number of road construction projects are currently underway.
Before the People s Republic  literacy rates were below one percent.
Primary and secondary education formerly lasted ten years  but was expanded to eleven years.
Almost three in five Mongolian youths now enroll in university.
There was a six fold increase in students between 1993 and 2010.
Thangkas were usually painted or made in applique technique.
Bronze sculptures usually showed Buddhist deities.
A number of great works are attributed to the first Jebtsundamba Khutuktu  Zanabazar.
In the late 19th century  painters like  Marzan  Sharav turned to more realistic painting styles.
The artist was purged as his work was censored.
All forms of fine arts flourished only after  Perestroika  in the late 1980s.
Architecture      The traditional Mongolian dwelling is known as a ger.
In the 16th and 17th centuries  lamaseries were built throughout the country.
Many of them started as ger temples.
Further enlargement led to a quadratic shape of the temples.
The roofs were made in the shape of marquees.
Among the first quadratic temples was Batu Tsagaan  1654  designed by Zanabazar.
An example of the ger style architecture is the lamasery Dashi Choiling in Ulaanbaatar.
The temple Lavrin  18th century  in the Erdene Zuu lamasery was built in the Tibetan tradition.
The temple of Maitreya  disassembled in 1938  is an example of the Tibeto Mongolian architecture.
The  tsam  is danced to keep away evil spirits and it was seen as reminiscent of shamanism.
The first rock band of Mongolia was Soyol Erdene  founded in the 1960s.
Their Beatles like manner was severely criticized by the communist censorship.
Mungunhurhree and Haranga were to become the pioneers in the Mongolia s heavy rock music.
Haranga approached its zenith in the late 1980s and 1990s.
Among the followers of Haranga was the band Hurd.
At Naadam  this contest is very popular and develops a serious audience among older Mongolians.
Horse riding is especially central to Mongolian culture.
Mongolian wrestling is the most popular of all Mongol sports.
It is the highlight of the Three Manly Games of Naadam.
Historians claim that Mongol style wrestling originated some seven thousand years ago.
More Mongolian table tennis players are competing internationally.
Freestyle wrestling has been practised since 1958 in Mongolia.
Mongolian freestyle wrestlers have won the first and the most Olympic medals of Mongolia.
Mongolian Olympic boxing national team was founded in 1960.
Professional boxing began in Mongolia in the 1990s.
Association football is also played in Mongolia.
The Mongolia Premier League is the top domestic competition.
It led to being chosen as the best Mongolian sports team of 2011.
2015 will have the sixth marathon that has been organized by Ar Mongol.
Mongolia holds other traditional festivals throughout the year.
Ulaanbaatar  the capital and largest city  is home to about 45  of the country s population.
Buddhism is the majority religion  with the nonreligious being the second largest group.
Islam is the second largest religion  concentrated among ethnic Kazakhs.
His grandson Kublai Khan conquered China to establish the Yuan dynasty.
By the early 20th century  almost one third of the adult male population were Buddhist monks.
In 1924  the Mongolian People s Republic was founded as a socialist state.
This led to a multi party system  a new constitution of 1992  and transition to a market economy.
Etymology    The name Mongolia means the  Land of the Mongols  in Latin.
Modern humans reached Mongolia approximately 40 000 years ago during the Upper Paleolithic.
The wheeled vehicles found in the burials of the Afanasevans have been dated to before 2200 BC.
Agriculture may have first been introduced from the west or arose independently in the region.
Tocharians  Yuezhi  and Scythians inhabited western Mongolia during the Bronze Age.
The intrusions of northern pastoralists  e.g.
The Göktürks laid siege to Panticapaeum  present day Kerch  in 576.
They were succeeded by the Uyghur Khaganate  745–840  who were defeated by the Kyrgyz.
They made those who had heads bow their heads  and who had knees genuflect them.
In the east up to the Kadyrkhan common people  in the west up to the Iron Gate they conquered...
Their servants were wise and great too.
Officials were honest and direct with people.
They ruled the nation this way.
This way they held sway over them.
So many people came to mourn over the great Khagans.
He set up his capital in present day Beijing.
It was the second time this had occurred.
Abtai Khan of the Khalkha converted to Buddhism and founded the Erdene Zuu monastery in 1585.
His grandson Zanabazar became the first Jebtsundamba Khutughtu in 1640.
Following the leaders  the entire Mongolian population embraced Buddhism.
Each family kept scriptures and Buddha statues on an altar at the north side of their ger  yurt .
By 1636 most Inner Mongolian tribes had submitted to the Manchus  who founded the Qing dynasty.
The Jebtsundamba Khutuktu of Mongolia had immense de facto authority.
The Oirats who migrated to the Volga steppes in Russia became known as Kalmyks.
But the newly established Republic of China considered Mongolia to be part of its own territory.
Warfare erupted on the northern border.
Mongolia declared its independence again on July 11  1921.
As a result  Mongolia was closely aligned with the Soviet Union over the next seven decades.
The Mongolian People s Republic was established.
In 1928  Khorloogiin Choibalsan rose to power.
In Mongolia during the 1920s  approximately one third of the male population were monks.
The Stalinist purges in Mongolia  which began in 1937  killed more than 30 000 people.
Choibalsan died suspiciously in the Soviet Union in 1952.
Comintern leader Bohumír Šmeral said   People of Mongolia are not important  the land is important.
Mongolian land is larger than England  France and Germany .
This was the only time the Republic of China ever used its veto.
Faced with pressure from nearly all the other African countries  the ROC relented under protest.
Mongolia and Mauritania were both admitted to the UN on 27 October 1961.
It is significantly larger than the next largest country  Peru.
The whole of Mongolia is considered to be part of the Mongolian Plateau.
The basin of the Uvs Lake  shared with Tuva Republic in Russia  is a natural World Heritage Site.
In winter the whole of Mongolia comes under the influence of the Siberian Anticyclone.
Ulaanbaatar is strongly  but less severely  affected.
The Khangai Mountains play a certain role in forming this microclimate.
Mongolia is high  cold and windy.
The arid conditions in the Gobi are attributed to the rain shadow effect caused by the Himalayas.
Sea turtle and mollusk fossils have been found in the Gobi  apart from well known dinosaur fossils.
Tadpole shrimps  Lepidurus mongolicus  are still found in the Gobi today.
Mongolia s population growth rate is estimated at 1.2   2007 est. .
About 59  of the total population is under age 30  27  of whom are under 14.
This relatively young and growing population has placed strains on Mongolia s economy.
The first census in the 20th century was carried out in 1918 and recorded a population of 647 500.
The Khalkha make up 86  of the ethnic Mongol population.
In the west of the country  Kazakh and Tuvan  both Turkic languages  are also spoken.
Mongolian Sign Language is the principal language of the deaf community.
Schools are reintroducing the traditional alphabet.
Korean has gained popularity as tens of thousands of Mongolians work in South Korea.
Throughout much of the 20th century  the communist government repressed religious practices.
from 1911 on  the head of the Church had also been the Khan of the country .
The number of Buddhist monks dropped from 100 000 in 1924 to 110 in 1990.
In 2017 Seventh day Adventists reported 2 700 members in six churches up from zero members in 1991.
The people also elect the deputies in the national assembly  the State Great Khural.
The party initiated two changes of government from 2004 prior to losing power in the 2012 election.
In 2014  he was replaced by Chimediin Saikhanbileg.
The parliament can override that veto by a two thirds majority vote.
The president must also suspend their party membership.
Its members are directly elected  every four years  by popular vote.
About 130 troops are currently deployed in Afghanistan.
For questions of constitutional law there is a separate constitutional court.
Another share of the population lives in the sum centers.
The informal economy is estimated to be at least one third the size of the official economy.
Some 22.4  of the population lives on less than US 1.25 a day.
In 2011  GDP per capita was  3 100.
Two of the 16 commercial banks were taken into receivership.
In 2011  GDP growth was expected to reach 16.4 .
Fiscal revenues from mining represented 21  of government income in 2010 and rose to 24  in 2018.
About 3 000 mining licences have been issued.
Most herders in Mongolia follow a pattern of nomadic or semi nomadic pastoralism.
Due to the severe 2009–2010 winter  Mongolia lost 9.7 million animals  or 22  of total livestock.
This immediately affected meat prices  which increased twofold  the GDP dropped 1.6  in 2009.
A separate railroad link connects the eastern city of Choibalsan with the Trans Siberian Railway.
Many overland roads in Mongolia are only gravel roads or simple cross country tracks.
A number of road construction projects are currently underway.
Before the People s Republic  literacy rates were below one percent.
Primary and secondary education formerly lasted ten years  but was expanded to eleven years.
Almost three in five Mongolian youths now enroll in university.
There was a six fold increase in students between 1993 and 2010.
Thangkas were usually painted or made in applique technique.
Bronze sculptures usually showed Buddhist deities.
A number of great works are attributed to the first Jebtsundamba Khutuktu  Zanabazar.
In the late 19th century  painters like  Marzan  Sharav turned to more realistic painting styles.
The artist was purged as his work was censored.
All forms of fine arts flourished only after  Perestroika  in the late 1980s.
Architecture      The traditional Mongolian dwelling is known as a ger.
In the 16th and 17th centuries  lamaseries were built throughout the country.
Many of them started as ger temples.
Further enlargement led to a quadratic shape of the temples.
The roofs were made in the shape of marquees.
Among the first quadratic temples was Batu Tsagaan  1654  designed by Zanabazar.
An example of the ger style architecture is the lamasery Dashi Choiling in Ulaanbaatar.
The temple Lavrin  18th century  in the Erdene Zuu lamasery was built in the Tibetan tradition.
The temple of Maitreya  disassembled in 1938  is an example of the Tibeto Mongolian architecture.
The  tsam  is danced to keep away evil spirits and it was seen as reminiscent of shamanism.
The first rock band of Mongolia was Soyol Erdene  founded in the 1960s.
Their Beatles like manner was severely criticized by the communist censorship.
Mungunhurhree and Haranga were to become the pioneers in the Mongolia s heavy rock music.
Haranga approached its zenith in the late 1980s and 1990s.
Among the followers of Haranga was the band Hurd.
At Naadam  this contest is very popular and develops a serious audience among older Mongolians.
Horse riding is especially central to Mongolian culture.
Mongolian wrestling is the most popular of all Mongol sports.
It is the highlight of the Three Manly Games of Naadam.
Historians claim that Mongol style wrestling originated some seven thousand years ago.
More Mongolian table tennis players are competing internationally.
Freestyle wrestling has been practised since 1958 in Mongolia.
Mongolian freestyle wrestlers have won the first and the most Olympic medals of Mongolia.
Mongolian Olympic boxing national team was founded in 1960.
Professional boxing began in Mongolia in the 1990s.
Association football is also played in Mongolia.
The Mongolia Premier League is the top domestic competition.
It led to being chosen as the best Mongolian sports team of 2011.
2015 will have the sixth marathon that has been organized by Ar Mongol.
Mongolia holds other traditional festivals throughout the year.
They form one of the 55 ethnic minorities officially recognized by the People s Republic of China.
There are approximately 5.8 million people classified as ethnic Mongols living in China.
Most of them live in Inner Mongolia  Northeast China  Xinjiang  etc.
The Mongol population in China is nearly twice as much as that of the sovereign state of Mongolia.
A non Mongolic ethnic group  the Tuvans are also classified as Mongols by China.
Prior to adulthood  a male human is referred to as a boy  a male child or adolescent .
However  there are exceptions to the above for some transgender and intersex men.
More directly  the word derives from Old English mann.
The Old English word for  man  was wer.
The actual determining factor is the SRY gene  which is normally found on the Y chromosome.
People with ambiguous genetic or physiological structure are referred to as intersex.
Sex chromosome aneuploidies  such as XYY syndrome  can also occur.
For men  primary sex characteristics include the penis and testicles.
Secondary sex characteristics are features that appear during puberty in humans.
Reproductive system      The male reproductive system includes external and internal genitalia.
The study of male reproduction and associated organs is called andrology.
Men have lower life expectancy and higher suicide rates compared to women.
While the majority of men are heterosexual  significant minorities are homosexual or bisexual.
Some people assigned male at birth may also identify as non binary.
There are also intersex people who may identify as either female or male.
To what extent masculinity is biologically or socially influenced is subject to debate.
In Western culture  for example  greater masculinity usually brings greater social status.
He wrote many works and created many writing styles.
The Wild Geese  1911–1913  is considered his major work.
After his death  he was considered one of the leading writers who modernized Japanese literature.
His family were hereditary physicians to the daimyō of the Tsuwano Domain.
He was commissioned as a deputy surgeon  lieutenant  in 1882.
During this time  he also developed an interest in European literature.
As a matter of trivia  Mori Ōgai is the first Japanese known to have ridden on the Orient Express.
The divorce was under acrimonious circumstances that irreparably ended his friendship with Nishi.
His second wife  whom he married in 1902  was Shigeko Arakawa.
Both daughters  Mari and Annu  as well his son Rui  became writers.
In May 1893  Mori was promoted to senior surgeon  first class  colonel .
In 1902  he was reassigned to Tokyo.
He was attached to a division in the Russo Japanese War  based out of Hiroshima.
Mori Ōgai then died of renal failure and pulmonary tuberculosis six years later  aged 60.
It was during the Russo Japanese War  1904–05  that Mori started keeping a poetic diary.
His later works can be divided into three separate periods.
From 1909 to 1912  he wrote mostly fiction based on his own experiences.
In 1909  he released his novel Vita Sexualis which was abruptly banned a month later.
Authorities deemed his work too sexual and dangerous to public morals.
From 1912 to 1916  he wrote mostly historical stories.
This period includes Sanshō Dayū  山椒大夫   and Takasebune  高瀬舟 .
From 1916 to 1921  he turned his attention to biographies of three Edo period doctors.
Legacy     As an author  Mori is considered one of the leading writers of the Meiji period.
Here he wrote Kokura Nikki   Kokura Diary  .
His birthhouse is also preserved in Tsuwano.
The two one story houses are remarkably similar in size and in their traditional Japanese style.
Mori s sister  Kimiko  married Koganei Yoshikiyo.
Hoshi Shinichi was one of their grandsons.
Mori is a character in the manga and anime adaptation of Bungo Stray Dogs.
Abe Ichizoku was referenced in the 2017 novel Killing Commendatore by Haruki Murakami.
Mori is a character in the anime Meiji Tokyo Renka.
Contains  The Dancing Girl   and  Down the Takase River.
Sansho Dayu and Other Short Stories  trans.
Youth and Other Stories  collection of stories   ed.
Mori Ôgai  A Bibliography of Western language Materials  Volume 10 of Izumi  Series  .
Language loss occurs when the language has no more native speakers and becomes a  dead language .
If no one can speak the language at all  it becomes an  extinct language .
Furthermore  96  of the world s languages are spoken by 4  of the population.
The first step towards language death is potential endangerment.
The second stage is endangerment.
The third stage of language extinction is seriously endangered.
During this stage  a language is unlikely to survive another generation and will soon be extinct.
The fourth stage is moribund  followed by the fifth stage extinction.
The majority of linguists in the early twentieth century refrained from making estimates.
This contemporary tally must be regarded as a variable number within a range.
Other hotspots are Oklahoma and the Southern Cone of South America.
A UNESCO study of endangered languages does not mention sign languages.
Methods are being developed to assess the vitality of sign languages.
That is  there are no new speakers  adults or children.
This is also the most common cause of language endangerment.
Immigrants moving into an area may lead to the endangerment of the autochthonous language.
This pattern is even more prominent in dialects.
This is sometimes characterized as anomie.
It reflects a communities practices when dealing with the environment and each other.
This process is also sometimes referred to as language revival or reversing language shift.
For case studies of this process  see Anderson  2014 .
Applied linguistics and education are helpful in revitalizing endangered languages.
Special issue  gender and endangered languages .
Spoken Here  Travels Among Threatened Languages.
The Last Speaker is Dead – Long Live the Last Speaker! .
Vanishing Voices  The Extinction of the World s Languages.
Assessing Endangerment  Expanding Fishman s GIDS.
Can Threatened Languages be Saved?
Reversing Language Shift  Revisited  A 21st Century Perspective.
“One Thousand Languages  Living  Endangered and Lost ” edited by Peter K. Austin.
University of California Press  2008  http   www.economist.com node 12483451.
Further reading     Endangered Languages at the UNESCO official Website .
Is There Hope for Europe s Endangered Native Tongues? .
Endangered Languages  What Role for the Specialist?
Morocco    listen   Arabic  المغرب‎  romanized  al maḡrib  lit.
The capital is Rabat and the largest city is Casablanca.
Morocco spans an area of 710 850 km2  274 460 sq mi  and has a population of over 37 million.
The Alaouite dynasty  which rules Morocco to this day  seized power in 1631.
In 1979  Mauritania relinquished its claim to the area  but the war continued to rage.
In 1991  a ceasefire agreement was reached  but the issue of sovereignty remained unresolved.
The king can issue decrees called dahirs  which have the force of law.
Morocco s predominant religion is Islam  and its official languages are Arabic and Berber.
The Berber language achieved official recognition in 2011.
The Moroccan dialect of Arabic  referred to as Darija  and French are also widely spoken.
Morocco is a member of the Arab League  the Union for the Mediterranean and the African Union.
The name can also be translated as  kingdom of the evening .
The modern Berber name for Marrakesh is Mṛṛakc  in the Berber Latin script .
In Turkish  Morocco is known as Fas  a name derived from its ancient capital of Fes.
That name is still used today in some languages  including Persian  Urdu  and Punjabi.
The English name  Morocco  is an anglicisation of the Spanish name for the country   Marruecos .
The Iberomaurusian culture was succeeded by the Beaker culture in Morocco.
Mogador was established as a Phoenician colony as early as the 6th century BC.
Mauretania became a client kingdom of the Roman Empire in 33 BC.
It brought both the Arabic language and Islam to the area.
They also paid taxes and tribute to the new Muslim administration.
It was founded by Salih I ibn Mansur in 710  as a client state to the Umayyad Caliphate.
The Idrissids were ousted in 927 by the Fatimid Caliphate and their Miknasa allies.
Dynasties      From the 11th century onwards  a series of Berber dynasties arose.
From the 13th century onwards the country saw a massive migration of the Banu Hilal Arab tribes.
They were followed by the Wattasids.
However  managing the territories across the Sahara proved too difficult.
After the death of al Mansur  the country was divided among his sons.
Morocco was facing aggression from Spain and the Ottoman Empire allies pressing westward.
Portuguese abandoned Mazagão  their last territory in Morocco  in 1769.
In 1860  a dispute over Spain s Ceuta enclave led Spain to declare war.
Victorious Spain won a further enclave and an enlarged Ceuta in the settlement.
In 1884  Spain created a protectorate in the coastal areas of Morocco.
In 1904  France and Spain carved out zones of influence in Morocco.
The matter was resolved at the Algeciras Conference in 1906.
The Agadir Crisis of 1911 increased tensions between European powers.
The 1912 Treaty of Fez made Morocco a protectorate of France  and triggered the 1912 Fez riots.
Spain continued to operate its coastal protectorate.
The Spanish lost more than 13 000 soldiers at Annual in July–August 1921.
The rebellion was eventually suppressed by French and Spanish troops.
That party subsequently provided most of the leadership for the nationalist movement.
Sultan Mohammed became king in 1957.
Morocco held its first general elections in 1963.
However  Hassan declared a state of emergency and suspended parliament in 1965.
In 1971  there was a failed attempt to depose the king and establish a republic.
Some 592 people were recorded killed during Hassan s rule according to the truth commission.
The Spanish enclave of Ifni in the south was returned to Morocco in 1969.
On 6 November 1975  King Hassan asked for volunteers to cross into the Spanish Sahara.
Some 350 000 civilians were reported as being involved in the  Green March .
Moroccan forces occupied the territory.Moroccan and Algerian troops soon clashed in Western Sahara.
Morocco and Mauritania divided up Western Sahara.
Fighting between the Moroccan military and Polisario forces continued for many years.
The prolonged war was a considerable financial drain on Morocco.
In 1983  Hassan cancelled planned elections amid political unrest and economic crisis.
Polisario claimed to have killed more than 5 000 Moroccan soldiers between 1982 and 1985.
Algerian authorities have estimated the number of Sahrawi refugees in Algeria to be 165 000.
Diplomatic relations with Algeria were restored in 1988.
King Hassan II died in 1999 and was succeeded by his son  Mohammed VI.
Morocco unveiled an autonomy blueprint for Western Sahara to the United Nations in 2007.
The Polisario rejected the plan and put forward its own proposal.
In 2002  Morocco and Spain agreed to a US brokered resolution over the disputed island of Perejil.
Morocco deported hundreds of the illegal migrants.
In 2006  the Spanish Premier Zapatero visited Spanish enclaves.
He was the first Spanish leader in 25 years to make an official visit to the territories.
Despite the reforms made by Mohammed VI  demonstrators continued to call for deeper reforms.
Hundreds took part in a trade union rally in Casablanca in May 2012.
Participants accused the government of failing to deliver on reforms.
Since Morocco controls most of Western Sahara  its de facto southern boundary is with Mauritania.
The geography of Morocco spans from the Atlantic Ocean  to mountainous areas  to the Sahara desert.
A large part of Morocco is mountainous.
The Atlas Mountains are located mainly in the centre and the south of the country.
The Rif Mountains are located in the north of the country.
Both ranges are mainly inhabited by the Berber people.
The Atlas Mountains run down the backbone of the country  from the northeast to the southwest.
Morocco s capital city is Rabat  its largest city is its main port  Casablanca.
This code was used as the basis for Morocco s internet domain  .ma.
Cloud forests can be found in the west of the Rif Mountains and Middle Atlas Mountains.
At higher elevations  the climate becomes alpine in character  and can sustain ski resorts.
That makes Morocco a country of contrasts.
Forested areas cover about 12  of the country while arable land accounts for 18 .
Approximately 5  of Moroccan land is irrigated for agricultural use.
Notable cities that fall into this zone are Tangier  Tetouan  Al Hoceima  Nador and Safi.
However  temperatures drop as the sun sets.
Also  snow can fall occasionally.
Fès for example registered −8 °C  17.6 °F  in winter 2005.
Winters on the other hand are cold  and lows usually go beyond the freezing point.
It often snows abundantly in this part of the country.
Notable cities are Khenifra  Imilchil  Midelt and Azilal.
Summers are very warm to moderately hot  and winters are longer  cold and snowy.
In winters  highs average around 8 °C  46.4 °F   and lows go well below the freezing point.
In this part of country  there are many ski resorts  such as Oukaimeden and Mischliefen.
Notable cities are Ifrane  Azrou and Boulmane.
However  these phenomena do not last for more than two to five days on average.
Climate change is expected to significantly impact Morocco on multiple dimensions.
Biodiversity      Morocco has a wide range of biodiversity.
The last Barbary lion in the wild was shot in the Atlas Mountains in 1922.
Politics     Morocco was an authoritarian regime according to the Democracy Index of 2014.
The Freedom of the Press 2014 report gave it a rating of  Not Free .
The current government is headed by Saadeddine Othmani.
The Moroccan Constitution provides for a monarchy with a Parliament and an independent judiciary.
The only time this happened was in 1965.
The King is formally the commander in chief of the armed forces.
The lower chamber of Parliament may dissolve the government through a vote of no confidence.
The latest parliamentary elections were held on October 12  2016.
Voter turnout in these elections was estimated to be 43  of registered voters.
Morocco s relationships vary greatly between African  Arab  and Western states.
Morocco has had strong ties to the West in order to gain economic and political benefits.
Morocco has been given the status of major non NATO ally by the US government.
Morocco was the first country in the world to recognise US sovereignty  in 1777 .
Its administrative headquarters are located in Tindouf  Algeria.
The project was presented to the United Nations Security Council in mid April 2007.
The proposal was encouraged by Moroccan allies such as the United States  France and Spain.
Violence against women and sexual harassment have been criminalized.
Tourism      Tourism is one of the most important sectors in Moroccan economy.
Morocco attracted more than 13 million tourists in 2019.
Tourism is the second largest foreign exchange earner in Morocco after the phosphate industry.
Most Europeans visit between April and August.
Low cost airlines offer cheap flights to the country.
Tourism is increasingly focused on Morocco s culture  such as its ancient cities.
Agadir is a major coastal resort and has a third of all Moroccan bed nights.
It is a base for tours to the Atlas Mountains.
The Majorelle botanical garden in Marrakech is a popular tourist attraction.
It was bought by the fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé in 1980.
These locations have excellent walking and trekking opportunities from late March to mid November.
The government is investing in trekking circuits.
They are also developing desert tourism in competition with Tunisia.
An extension of the line to Marrakesh is already being planned.
Energy      In 2008  about 56  of Morocco s electricity supply was provided by coal.
Narcotics      Since the 7th century  Cannabis has been cultivated in the Rif Region.
In 2012  Moroccan inventors applied for 197 patents  up from 152 two years earlier.
The government is encouraging public institutions to engage with citizens in innovation.
The report advocated making education egalitarian and  thus  accessible to the greatest number.
Demographics     Morocco has a population of around 36 029 093 inhabitants  2018 est. .
According to the CIA  99  of residents are Arab Berber.
It is estimated that between 41  to 80  of residents have Berber ancestral origins.
There are also a number of foreign residents of Spanish origin.
Prior to independence  Morocco was home to half a million Europeans  who were mostly Christians.
Also prior to independence  Morocco was home to 250 000 Spaniards.
Christians are estimated at 1    380 000  of the Moroccan population.
The remainder of the Jewish population is dispersed throughout the country.
This population is mostly elderly  with a decreasing number of young people.
Languages      Morocco s official languages are Arabic and Berber.
The country s distinctive group of Moroccan Arabic dialects is referred to as Darija.
Approximately 89.8  of the whole population can communicate to some degree in Moroccan Arabic.
The Berber language is spoken in three dialects  Tarifit  Tashelhit and Central Atlas Tamazight .
French is taught as an obligatory language in all schools.
Culture     Morocco is a country with a rich culture and civilisation.
All those civilisations have affected the social structure of Morocco.
Under the Almohad dynasty Morocco experienced a period of prosperity and brilliance of learning.
The Almohad Caliph Abu Yakub had a great love for collecting books.
Modern Moroccan literature began in the 1930s.
Two main factors gave Morocco a pulse toward witnessing the birth of a modern literature.
Three generations of writers especially shaped 20th century Moroccan literature.
The third generation is that of writers of the sixties.
Music      Moroccan music is of Arabic  Berber and sub Saharan origins.
Morocco is home to Andalusian classical music that is found throughout Northwest Africa.
Aita is a Bedouin musical style sung in the countryside.
Chaabi was originally performed in markets  but is now found at any celebration or meeting.
Studios were also opened in Rabat.
In 1968  the first Mediterranean Film Festival was held in Tangier.
In its current incarnation  the event is held in Tetouan.
This was followed in 1982 with the first national festival of cinema  which was held in Rabat.
In 2001  the first International Film Festival of Marrakech  FIFM  was also held in Marrakech.
This is a result of the centuries long interaction of Morocco with the outside world.
The cuisine of Morocco is mainly a fusion of Moorish  European and Mediterranean cuisines.
Spices are used extensively in Moroccan cuisine.
Chicken is the most widely eaten meat in Morocco.
The most commonly eaten red meat in Morocco is beef  lamb is preferred but is relatively expensive.
The main Moroccan dish most people are familiar with is couscous  the old national delicacy.
Poultry is also very common  and the use of seafood is increasing in Moroccan food.
Pork consumption is forbidden in accordance with Sharia  religious laws of Islam.
A big part of the daily meal is bread.
Bread in Morocco is principally from durum wheat semolina known as khobz.
The most common is whole grain coarse ground or white flour bread.
There are also a number of flat breads and pulled unleavened pan fried breads.
The most popular drink is  atai   green tea with mint leaves and other ingredients.
Tea occupies a very important place in the culture of Morocco and is considered an art form.
It is served to guests  and it is impolite to refuse it.
At the 1984 Olympic Games  two Moroccans won gold medals in track and field.
Saïd Aouita won the 5000 metres at the same games.
Tennis and golf have become popular.
Kickboxing is also popular in Morocco.
Education     Education in Morocco is free and compulsory through primary school.
The estimated literacy rate for the country in 2012 was 72 .
Child health  maternal health  and diseases are all components of health and well being.
Morocco is a developing country that has made many strides to improve these categories.
However  Morocco still has many health issues to improve on.
In 2005  The government of Morocco approved two reforms to expand health insurance coverage.
The second reform created a fund to cover services for the poor.
The country s under five mortality rate dropped by 60  between 1990 and 2011.
In 2014  Morocco adopted a national plan to increase progress on maternal and child health.
Morocco has made significant progress in reducing deaths among both children and mothers.
Based on World Bank data  the nation s maternal mortality ratio fell by 67  between 1990 and 2010.
In 2014  spending on healthcare accounted for 5.9  of the country s GDP.
Since 2014  spending on healthcare as part of the GDP has decreased.
However  health expenditure per capita  PPP  has steadily increased since 2000.
In 2015  the Moroccan health expenditure was  435.29 per capita.
In 2017  Morocco ranked 16th out of 29 countries on the Global Youth Wellbeing Index.
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Mosques typically have segregated spaces for men and women.
Mosques have played a number of political roles.
The rates of mosque attendance vary widely depending on the region.
Like the Imam Husayn Shrine  though  nothing of its original structure remains.
Minarets were initially prohibited by the state.
Muslim empires were instrumental in the evolution and spread of mosques.
Greater than forty percent of mosques in the United States were constructed after 2000.
The Abbasid caliph al Ma mun turned many churches into mosques.
Ramadan      Islam s holiest month  Ramaḍān  is observed through many events.
Sometimes  several such people  not necessarily of the local community  take turns to do this.
Frequently  hypostyle mosques have outer arcades  riwaq  so that visitors can enjoy the shade.
During Seljuq rule  as Islamic mysticism was on the rise  the four iwan arrangement took form.
The Persians also introduced Persian gardens into mosque designs.
These mosques have a large dome centered over the prayer hall.
This can be seen in the Abuja National Mosque in Nigeria and others.
Usually the mihrab is not occupied by furniture either.
The mihrab serves as the location where the imam leads the five daily prayers on a regular basis.
Makhphil       Women who pray in mosques are separated from men there.
Their part for prayer is called makhphil or maqfil  Bosnian makfil макфил .
Makhphil is completely used by men when Jumu ah is practised  due to lack of space .
The wall in which a mihrab appears is thus the  qibla wall.
The tallest minaret in the world is located at the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca  Morocco.
It has a height of 210 metres  689 ft  and completed in 1993  it was designed by Michel Pinseau.
The adhan is required before every prayer.
Thus  foyers with shelves to put shoes and racks to hold coats are commonplace among mosques.
One of these feature symbols is the spiral.
Mosques also often have floral patterns or images of fruit and vegetables.
These are allusions to the paradise after death.
Nevertheless  women prayer leaders are allowed to lead prayer in front of all female congregations.
Muslims before prayer are required to cleanse themselves in an ablution process known as wudu.
Shoes must not be worn inside the carpeted prayer hall.
Congregants and visitors to mosques are supposed to be clean themselves.
It is also undesirable to come to the mosque after eating something that smells  such as garlic.
Dress     Islam requires that its adherents wear clothes that portray modesty.
In addition  it is disrespectful to walk in front of or otherwise disturb Muslims in prayer.
However  traditional rules have segregated women and men.
By traditional rules  women are most often told to occupy the rows behind the men.
Muhammad told Muslims not to forbid women from entering mosques.
The works of such bear no fruit  In Fire shall they dwell.
Today  the decision on whether non Muslims should be allowed to enter mosques varies.
In April 2006  two explosions occurred at India s Jama Masjid.
Similar attacks occurred throughout the United Kingdom following the 7 July 2005 London bombings.
In 1900  the Gordon Bennett Cup was established.
Closed circuit racing arose as open road racing  on public roads  was banned.
Many others include the likes of Formula 3  Formula Ford  Formula Renault and Formula Palmer Audi.
However  in North America  the IndyCar series is the most followed open wheeled racing series.
Former  Formula  series include Formula 5000  GP2 and GP3.
The rules do allow for some variation  however.
The series has gained significant traction in recent years.
Its premier race is the Indianapolis 500 which began on May 11  1911 and a tradition was born.
Today  Indycar operates a full schedule with over 20 teams and 40 different drivers.
The current schedule includes 15 tracks over the course of 17 races per season.
Scott Dixon was crowned current champion of the IndyCar Series in October 2020.
NASCAR was organized in 1947  to combine flat track oval racing of production cars.
NASCAR has now held over 2 500 sanctioned events over the course of 70 seasons.
Off road racing is popular all over the world.
Premier off road events include the Dakar Rally and the Baja 1000 desert race.
Race organisation    Racing events are governed by Race Officials.
Parties can appeal its decisions to the country s motorsport governing organization.
Olympics    Motorsport was a demonstration event at the 1900 Summer Olympics.
The temple was built by the warlord Hideyoshi Toyotomi for the mass of his mother when she died.
Originally named Seiganji  it was later renamed Kongobuji in the Meiji Era.
Danjō Garan is one of the two sacred spots around the Mount Kōya.
This pagoda and the Okunoin Temple form a large sanctuary.
It is flanked on each side by Kongo warriors who guard the mountain.
This mausoleum was built by the third shōgun Iemitsu Tokugawa.
It took ten years to build and is architecturally representative of the Edo Period.
First Edo shōgun Ieyasu is enshrined on the right and the second shōgun Hidetada on the left.
The Structure is decorated with carvings and brass fittings.
A cable car from Gokurakubashi   Paradise Bridge   then whisks visitors to the top in 5 minutes.
The entire trip takes about 1.5 hours on an express train or 2 hours by non express.
Local automobile traffic can be very heavy on weekends until well into the evening.
Guest are also invited to participate in the morning services.
The bus is operated by Kansai Airport Transportion and Willer Express.
The bus is operated by Daijū Bus   大十バス.
Smith College declared its Mountain Day in 1877.
FAO is the U.N. organization mandated to lead observance of International Mountain Day.
The theme for International Mountain Day 2010 was  Mountain minorities and indigenous peoples.
Supporters of the holiday included legislator Seishiro Eto and the Japanese Alpine Club.
She continued to write during her service  adding scenes from court life to her work.
After five or six years  she left court and retired with Shōshi to the Lake Biwa region.
Murasaki wrote The Diary of Lady Murasaki  a volume of poetry  and The Tale of Genji.
Murasaki s mother was descended from the same branch of northern Fujiwara as Tametoki.
The couple had three children  a son and two daughters.
In the Heian era the use of names  insofar as they were recorded  did not follow a modern pattern.
Their mother died  perhaps in childbirth  when they were quite young.
Murasaki s education was unorthodox.
The couple s daughter  Kenshi  Kataiko   was born in 999.
Two years later Nobutaka died during a cholera epidemic.
In her diary she describes her feelings after her husband s death   I felt depressed and confused.
Mulhern thinks Michinaga wanted to have Murasaki at court to educate his daughter Shōshi.
Court life     Heian culture and court life reached a peak early in the 11th century.
Shōshi was 16 to 19 when Murasaki joined her court.
Indeed it does not seem to me that in herself she is really a poet at all.
Entries in Murasaki s diary show that the two may not have been on good terms.
Murasaki wrote   Sei Shōnagon ... was dreadfully conceited.
Murasaki contrasted herself to Shōnagon in a variety of ways.
Murasaki taught Chinese to Shōshi who was interested in Chinese art and Juyi s ballads.
There has of course been no question of formal lessons ...
I have thought it best to say nothing about the matter to anybody.
Murasaki wrote in her diary   How utterly ridiculous!
Would I  who hesitate to reveal my learning to my women at home  ever think of doing so at court?
Murasaki disliked the men at court whom she thought to be drunken and stupid.
However  some scholars  such as Waley  are certain she was involved romantically with Michinaga.
Yet  she wrote to him in a poem   You have neither read my book  nor won my love.
However  Michinaga s patronage was essential if she was to continue writing.
But when they get to know me  they find to their extreme surprise that I am kind and gentle .
Murasaki may have died in 1014.
She went on to become a well known poet as Daini no Sanmi.
Diary and poetry      Murasaki began her diary after she entered service at Shōshi s court.
The original set has been lost.
According to custom  the verses would have been passed from person to person and often copied.
She continued writing while at court and probably finished while still in service to Shōshi.
She would have needed patronage to produce a work of such length.
Michinaga provided her with costly paper and ink  and with calligraphers.
The first handwritten volumes were probably assembled and bound by ladies in waiting.
In Prince Genji she formed a gifted  comely  refined  yet human and sympathetic protagonist.
The story was popular  Emperor Ichijō had it read to him  even though it was written in Japanese.
Within a century of her death she was highly regarded as a classical writer.
She is often shown at her desk in Ishimyama Temple  staring at the moon for inspiration.
Tosa Mitsuoki made her the subject of hanging scrolls in the 17th century.
The Tale of the Genji is recognized as an enduring classic.
Japan has not seen another such genius.
Like Shakespeare  her work has been the subject of reams of criticism and many books.
The author and her work inspired museum exhibits and Genji manga spin offs.
The design on the reverse of the first 2000 yen note commemorated her and The Tale of Genji.
The album contains Mitsuoki s authentication slips for his ancestor s 16th century paintings.
Ashikaga Takauji obtained the samurai s strong support  and deposed Emperor Go Daigo.
In 1338 Takauji was proclaimed shōgun and established his government in Kyoto.
However  Emperor Go Daigo escaped from his confinement and revived his political power in Nara.
The power vacuum that ensued launched a century of anarchy.
Japanese pirates of this era and region were referred to as wokou by the Chinese  Japanese wakō .
The above mentioned Sesshu visited the Risshaku ji Temple in Yamagata City  Dewa Province.
In this respect they are superior to other Eastern peoples but also to Europeans as well .
They learn to read and write our language far more quickly and easily than children in Europe .
The provincial domains that emerged after the Ōnin War were smaller and easier to control.
Many new small daimyō arose from among the samurai who had overthrown their great overlords.
New house laws provided practical means of administration  stressing duties and rules of behavior.
Emphasis was put on success in war  estate management  and finance.
Threatening alliances were guarded against through strict marriage rules.
Aristocratic society was overwhelmingly military in character.
The rest of society was controlled in a system of vassalage.
By 1500 the entire country was engulfed in civil wars.
Western influence      By the end of the Muromachi period  the first Europeans had arrived.
Francis described Japan as follows   Japan is a very large empire entirely composed of islands.
One language is spoken throughout  not very difficult to learn.
This country was discovered by the Portuguese eight or nine years ago.
In short  they value arms more than any people I have ever seen.
They are very polite to each other  but not to foreigners  whom they utterly despise.
By 1560 Kyoto had become another major area of missionary activity in Japan.
By 1582 there were as many as 150 000 converts  two percent of the population  and 200 churches.
Proscriptions against Christianity began in 1587 and outright persecutions in 1597.
1450  Ryōan ji is built by Hosokawa Katsumoto.
Kagura uta  神楽歌   Azuma asobi  東遊  and Yamato uta  大和歌  are indigenous repertories.
Biwa hōshi began organizing themselves into a guild like association.
The biwa is Japan s traditional instrument.
From the seventeenth century they often played the koto or the shamisen.
Such taiko music is played by large drum ensembles called kumi daiko.
Chinese influences followed  but the instrument and its music remained uniquely Japanese.
Taiko continue to be used in the religious music of Buddhism and Shintō.
Modern ensemble taiko is said to have been invented by Daihachi Oguchi in 1951.
Later in the century  taiko groups spread across the world  especially to the United States.
The video game Taiko no Tatsujin is based around taiko.
One example of a modern Wadaiko band is Kodou.
In Okinawa the main instrument is the sanshin.
The typical folk song heard at Obon festival dances will most likely be an ondo.
A bushi is a song with a distinctive melody.
Its very name  which is pronounced  bushi  in compounds  means  melody  or  rhythm .
Bon uta  as the name describes  are songs for Obon  the lantern festival of the dead.
Komori uta are children s lullabies.
The names of min yo songs often include descriptive term  usually at the end.
Many of these songs include extra stress on certain syllables as well as pitched shouts  kakegoe .
Kakegoe are generally shouts of cheer but in min yō  they are often included as parts of choruses.
There are many kakegoe  though they vary from region to region.
In  Okinawa Min yō  for example  one will hear the common  ha iya sasa!
In mainland Japan  however  one will be more likely to hear  a yoisho!    sate!   or  a sore!
Others include  a donto koi!   and  dokoisho!
Do  Re  Mi  So  La in solfeggio  or scale degrees 1  2  3  5  and 6 .
A distinctively Japanese form of tango called dodompa also developed.
Kayōkyoku became associated entirely with traditional Japanese structures influenced by Enka.
Famous enka singers include Hibari Misora  Saburo Kitajima  Ikuzo Yoshi and Haruo Minami.
J pop was further defined by Japanese new wave bands such as Southern All Stars in the late 1970s.
The term was coined by the Japanese media to distinguish Japanese music from foreign music.
Since the end of the 2010s  more and more idol groups have emerged.
SMAP was a Japanese boy band  recognized.
Nogizaka 46 and Keyakizaka 46 were popular also.
In 1990  Avex Trax began to release the Super Eurobeat series in Japan.
Eurobeat in Japan led the popularity of group dance form Para Para.
John Lennon of The Beatles later became one of the most popular Western musicians in Japan.
After the boom of Group Sounds  there were several folk singer songwriters.
The Tigers was the most popular Group Sounds band in the era.
Kenji Sawada and Kenichi Hagiwara started their solo career in early 70s.
Late 70s  Creation and Char performanced Jeff Beck style rock sound.
This includes bands like Tulip  Banban  and Garo.
Rock artists of the rock movement include and early Southern All Stars  are popular.
Several Japanese musicians began experimenting with electronic rock in the 1970s.
Pop rock group such as C C B  Tokyo JAP  and Red Wariors gained hit songs.
They were followed by Sandii   the Sunsetz  who further mixed Japanese and Okinawan influences.
They remained active through 2005  with their later albums containing more electronic rock.
The first Fuji Rock Festival opened in 1997.
Rising Sun Rock Festival opened in 1999.
Summer Sonic Festival and Rock in Japan Festival opened in 2000.
Orange Range also adopts hip hop.
Other notable international touring indie rock acts are Mono and Nisennenmondai.
In 1985  the first Japanese metal act was signed to a major label in the United States.
Heavy metal bands reached their peak in the late 1980s and many disbanded until the mid 1990s.
This was brought about through viral YouTube hits like  Gimme Chocolate!!
Babymetal won numerous awards including Kerrang!
s The Spirit of Independence Award and Metal Hammer s Breakthrough Band Award.
Other notable acts are Sigh  Abigail  and Gallhammer.
Doom metal has also gained an audience in Japan.
Hip hop      Hip hop is a newer form of music on the Japanese music scene.
Many felt it was a trend that would immediately pass.
However  the genre has lasted for many years and is still thriving.
These different levels can be clearly seen at a genba  or nightclub.
Different  families  of rappers perform on stage.
Hip hop fans in the audience are the ones in control of the night club.
They are the judges who determine the winners in rap battles on stage.
Kan challenged Dabo to a battle on stage while Dabo was mid performance.
Another important part of night clubs was displayed at this time.
It showed  the openness of the scene and the fluidity of boundaries in clubs.
It wasn t until 2008 that MC s  primarily from Osaka  began to emerge.
The MC s were inspired by British grime crew Roll Deep  and their mixtape Rules And Regulations.
The Osaka MC s consisted of pioneers MC Dekishi  MC Duff and MC Tacquilacci.
MC Dekishi released the first ever Japanese grime mixtape in 2009  titled  Grime City Volume 1 .
Osaka MC s are known for rapping extremely fast.
New wave and techo pop bands such as Hikasyuu  P Model and The Plastics were popular.
In the 1990s  Denki Groove formed and have been mainstays of the Japanese electronica scene.
Today  newer artists such as Polysics pay explicit homage to this era of Japanese popular.
Okinawan roots bands like Nenes and Kina were also commercially and critically successful.
This led to the second wave of Okinawan music  led by the sudden success of Rinken Band.
Noise music      Another recognized music form from Japan is noise music.
The noise from this country is called Japanoise.
Its most prominent representative is Masami Akita with his project Merzbow.
Taiyaki kun    Ichirou Mizuki  all of the members of JAM Project  i.e.
Another well known author of video game music is Nobuo Uematsu.
In 2003  he took his rock based tunes from their original MIDI format and created The Black Mages.
Koji Kondo  the sound manager for Nintendo  is also prominent on the Japanese game music scene.
He is best known for his Zelda and Mario themes.
Jun Senoue is well known for composing music for Sonic the Hedgehog.
Motoi Sakuraba is another well known video game composer.
Today  game soundtracks are sold on CD  as well on digitally on websites such as iTunes.
Myanmar is the largest country in Mainland Southeast Asia and the 10th largest in Asia by area.
As of 2017  the population was about 54 million.
The Pagan Kingdom fell to Mongol invasions  and several warring states emerged.
In the 2015 election  Aung San Suu Kyi s party won a majority in both houses.
It is a country rich in jade and gems  oil  natural gas  and other mineral resources.
The renaming remains a contested issue.
She continued   I use Burma very often because I am used to using it.
But it does not mean that I require other people to do that as well.
And I’ll make an effort to say Myanmar from time to time so you all feel comfortable.
Countries that do not officially recognise that name use the long form  Union of Burma  instead.
In English  the country is popularly known as either Burma or Myanmar.
The name Burma has been in use in English since the 18th century.
The CIA s World Factbook lists the country as Burma as of February 2021.
Myanmar used to be known as Birmânia in Portuguese  and as Birmanie in French.
There is no established pronunciation of the name Myanmar in English.
Human remains and artefacts from this era were discovered in Monywa District in the Sagaing Region.
In the mid to late 9th century the Bamar people founded a small settlement at Bagan.
Pagan s rulers and wealthy built over 10 000 Buddhist temples in the Pagan capital zone alone.
Repeated Mongol invasions in the late 13th century toppled the four century old kingdom in 1287.
In 1527  the Confederation of Shan States conquered Ava and ruled Upper Myanmar until 1555.
Like the Pagan Empire  Ava  Hanthawaddy and the Shan states were all multi ethnic polities.
Despite the wars  cultural synchronisation continued.
This period is considered a golden age for Burmese culture.
Hanthawaddy monarchs introduced religious reforms that later spread to the rest of the country.
Many splendid temples of Mrauk U were built during this period.
The dynasty regrouped and defeated the Portuguese in 1613 and Siam in 1614.
Its trade and secular administrative reforms built a prosperous economy for more than 80 years.
In 1740  the Mon of Lower Myanmar founded the Restored Hanthawaddy Kingdom.
Hanthawaddy forces sacked Ava in 1752  ending the 266 year old Toungoo Dynasty.
In 1852  the British easily seized Lower Burma in the Second Anglo Burmese War.
With the fall of Mandalay  all of Burma came under British rule  being annexed on 1 January 1886.
Rangoon became the capital of British Burma and an important port between Calcutta and Singapore.
Buddhist monks became the vanguards of the independence movement.
He resigned from the Legislative Assembly and was arrested for sedition.
As a major battleground  Burma was devastated during World War II by the Japanese invasion.
A Burmese Executive Administration headed by Ba Maw was established by the Japanese in August 1942.
The battles were intense with much of Burma laid waste by the fighting.
Overall  the Japanese lost some 150 000 men in Burma with 1 700 prisoners taken.
But in July 1947  political rivals assassinated Aung San and several cabinet members.
Between 1962 and 1974  Myanmar was ruled by a revolutionary council headed by the general.
A new constitution of the Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma was adopted in 1974.
During this period  Myanmar became one of the world s most impoverished countries.
On 7 July 1962  the government broke up demonstrations at Rangoon University  killing 15 students.
Student protests in 1975  1976  and 1977 were quickly suppressed by overwhelming force.
In 1989  SLORC declared martial law after widespread protests.
The military government finalised plans for People s Assembly elections on 31 May 1989.
On 23 June 1997  Myanmar was admitted into the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
There were also rumours of disagreement within the Burmese armed forces  but none was confirmed.
In addition  al Qaeda signalled an intention to become involved in Myanmar.
However  uncertainties exist as clashes between Burmese troops and local insurgent groups continue.
One report documented 77 per cent as the official turnout rate of the election.
The military junta was dissolved on 30 March 2011.
Opinions differ whether the transition to liberal democracy is underway.
2015 general elections     General elections were held on 8 November 2015.
These were the first openly contested elections held in Myanmar since 1990.
Geography     Myanmar has a total area of 678 500 square kilometres  262 000 sq mi .
It lies between latitudes 9° and 29°N  and longitudes 92° and 102°E.
It is bounded by Laos and Thailand to the southeast.
Fertile plains exist in the valleys between the mountain chains.
Regions are predominantly Bamar  that is  mainly inhabited by Myanmar s dominant ethnic group .
States  in essence  are regions that are home to particular ethnic minorities.
The northern regions of Myanmar are the coolest  with average temperatures of 21 °C  70 °F .
Coastal and delta regions have an average maximum temperature of 32 °C  89.6 °F .
The environmental areas where Myanmar performs worst  ie.
Despite several issues  Myanmar also ranks 64 and scores very good  ie.
Coconut and betel palm and rubber have been introduced.
In much of central Myanmar  the dry zone   vegetation is sparse and stunted.
Typical jungle animals  particularly tigers  occur sparsely in Myanmar.
Smaller mammals are also numerous  ranging from gibbons and monkeys to flying foxes.
Among reptile species there are crocodiles  geckos  cobras  Burmese pythons  and turtles.
But in February 2021  the civilian government led by Aung San Suu Kyi  was deposed by the Tatmadaw.
Myanmar s army drafted constitution was approved in a referendum in May 2008.
Various foreign observers questioned the fairness of the elections.
Military      Myanmar has received extensive military aid from China in the past.
Myanmar has been a member of ASEAN since 1997.
The Tatmadaw comprises the Army  the Navy  and the Air Force.
The country ranked twelfth in the world for its number of active troops in service.
Official figures for military spending are not available.
Myanmar imports most of its weapons from Russia  Ukraine  China and India.
Myanmar is building a research nuclear reactor near Pyin Oo Lwin with help from Russia.
South Africa also voted against the resolution.
However  she did not comment on the government s progress towards reform in this area.
The military is also notorious for rampant use of sexual violence.
Human trafficking happens mostly to women who are unemployed and have low incomes.
In 2017  the government reported investigating 185 trafficking cases.
The government of Burma makes little effort to eliminate human trafficking.
Burmese armed forces compel troops to acquire labour and supplies from local communities.
They are forced into prostitution  marriages  and or pregnancies.
The government has also relaxed reporting laws  but these remain highly restrictive.
In a speech at Chatham House  he revealed that  We  Myanmar government  are reviewing all cases.
Foreigners are able to legally lease but not own property.
The United States and European Union eased most of their sanctions in 2012.
British Burma began exporting crude oil in 1853.
It produced 75  of the world s teak.
The wealth was however  mainly concentrated in the hands of Europeans.
Myanmar was bombed extensively by the Allies.
After independence  the country was in ruins with its major infrastructure completely destroyed.
With the loss of India  Burma lost relevence and obtained independence from the British.
Myanmar asked for admittance to a least developed country status in 1987 to receive debt relief.
In 2008 rice production was estimated at 50 million tons.
Thailand buys the majority of the country s gems.
They further state that  It is not possible for foreigners to go to from Myanmar by sea or river.
Expansions were expected in September 2013 but are mainly Thai and other Asian based airlines.
People who were out of the country at the time of the census are not included in these figures.
Burmese citizens account for 80  of all migrant workers in Thailand.
The fertility rate is much lower in urban areas.
Largest cities           Ethnic groups      Myanmar is ethnically diverse.
The government recognises 135 distinct ethnic groups.
10  of the population are Shan.
The Kayin make up 7  of the population.
The Rakhine people constitute 4  of the population.
Mon  who form 2  of the population  are ethno linguistically related to the Khmer.
Included in this group are the Anglo Burmese.
It is estimated that 52 000 Anglo Burmese remain in Myanmar.
The refugee camps are under the care of the Thai Burma Border Consortium  TBBC .
Many Rohingya Muslims have fled Myanmar.
Sino Tibetan languages are most widely spoken.
They include Burmese  Karen  Kachin  Chin  and Chinese  mainly Hokkien .
The primary Tai–Kadai language is Shan.
Mon  Palaung  and Wa are the major Austroasiatic languages spoken in Myanmar.
More than a hundred languages are spoken in total.
Burmese society has traditionally stressed the importance of education.
In villages  secular schooling often takes place in monasteries.
Secondary and tertiary education take place at government schools.
Religion      Many religions are practised in Myanmar.
Religious edifices and orders have been in existence for many years.
Theravāda Buddhism is the most widespread.
There are some 500 000 Buddhist monks and 75 000 nuns in this country of 54 million.
A tiny Jewish community in Yangon had a synagogue but no resident rabbi to conduct services.
Burmese folk religion is practised by many Bamars alongside Buddhism.
Health      The general state of health care in Myanmar is poor.
Public hospitals lack many of the basic facilities and equipment.
The 2010 maternal mortality rate per 100 000 births for Myanmar is 240.
This is compared with 219.3 in 2008 and 662 in 1990.
Historically  Myanmar has had high literacy rates.
The educational system of Myanmar is operated by the government agency  the Ministry of Education.
Factors influencing Myanmar s high murder rate include communal violence and armed conflict.
Myanmar is one of the world s most corrupt nations.
In a traditional village  the monastery is the centre of cultural life.
Monks are venerated and supported by the lay people.
Girls have ear piercing ceremonies  နားသ  at the same time.
Many villages have a guardian nat  and superstition and taboos are commonplace.
British colonial rule introduced Western elements of culture to Myanmar.
Myanmar s education system is modelled after that of the United Kingdom.
Colonial architectural influences are most evident in major cities such as Yangon.
According to The World Factbook  the Burman population is 68  and the ethnic groups constitute 32 .
In contrast  the exiled leaders and organisations claim the country is 40  ethnic.
Mohinga is the traditional breakfast dish and is Myanmar s national dish.
Myanmar previously hosted the games in 1961 and 1969.
Burmese contemporary art has developed quite rapidly on its own terms.
Artists born after the 1980s have had greater chances of art practice outside the country.
One of the first to study western art was Ba Nyan.
Later on most young children learned the concepts from them.
All programming must meet with the approval of the censorship board.
Internet       Internet use is estimated to be relatively low compared to other countries.
With 139 countries reported on  Myanmar ranked number 133 overall in the 2016 NRI ranking.
During the 1920s and 1930s  many Burmese owned film companies made and produced several films.
After World War II  Burmese cinema continued to address political themes.
Many of the films produced in the early Cold War era had a strong propaganda element to them.
Film stars who had been involved in the political activities were banned from appearing in films.
Most of the movies produced nowadays are comedies.
The graphic novel was translated into English under the title Burma Chronicles in 2008.
In 2009  a documentary about Burmese videojournalists called Burma VJ was released.
This film was nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the 2010 Academy Awards.
The author and artist are unknown.
Pictures are occasionally truncated by accompanying text.
In little need of divine intervention  Takezaki Suenaga s scrolls of the Mongol invasions of Japan.
Nihon emakimono zenshū  in Japanese .
It also administers the Electoral College.
Since 1964  the NHPRC has awarded some 4 500 grants.
NARA s mission also includes resolving FOIA disputes between Federal agencies and requesters.
The program was originally scheduled to end in 2007.
Records include paper documents  microfilm  still pictures  motion pictures  and electronic media.
However  records from other sources may still be protected by copyright or donor agreements.
Census records are among the most frequently requested at NARA  with the oldest entries from 1790.
These records often contain information such as addresses and names of family members.
The newest unrestricted census is from 1940 and was released to the general public in April 2012.
The subsequent census from 1950 will be released in 2022.
This includes naturalization records and vital records that reveal extensive personal data.
These events are free of charge and are designed for interested individuals of any skill level.
Materials from past Genealogy Fairs are available on the National Archives website.
Archival Recovery Teams     Archival Recovery Teams investigate the theft of records.
Federal government agencies pay a yearly fee for storage at the facility.
WNRC also offers research services and maintains a small research room.
A joint venture with Google will digitize and offer NARA video online.
Our new strategic plan emphasizes the importance of providing access to records anytime  anywhere.
This is one of many initiatives that we are launching to make our goal a reality.
A new teaching with documents Web site premiered in 2010 and was developed by the education team.
The site features 3 000 documents  images  and recordings from the holdings of the Archives.
It also features lesson plans and tools for creating new classroom activities and lessons.
Besides censoring language  the changes altered the meaning of some protest signs.
Further reading     Sixty Ton Statue Is Carved from a Single Slab of Stone .
Ten Ton Door Made of Bronze is Thirty Five Feet High .
The library is similar in purpose and scope to the United States Library of Congress.
In 1946  each house of the Diet formed its own National Diet Library Standing Committee.
The first Librarian of the Diet Library was the politician Tokujirō Kanamori.
The philosopher Masakazu Nakai served as the first Vice Librarian.
In 1961  the NDL opened at its present location in Nagatachō  adjacent to the National Diet.
This branch contains some 400 000 items of children s literature from around the world.
The originals of these documents are in the possession of the United States National Archives.
In addition  the NDL provides a fee based reproduction service for scholars residing overseas.
NDL Digitalized Contents was renamed to be NDL Digital Collections in 2014.
Meiji period periodicals are not included in this collection.
Digital Library from the Meiji Era was merged into NDL Digital Collections in 2015.
Japanese language searches by title  author  and call number are possible in this database.
It is directed by the Ministry of Culture.
The other half of the collection is stored in the district of Hostivař.
The library currently has around 20 000 registered readers.
A new storage building  the Central Depository in Hostivař  was inaugurated in 1996.
The Kramerius digital library contains digitised documents published after the year 1800.
So far  more than 2 000 periodical series have been digitised.
There was a fire at the library in December 2012  but nobody was injured in the event.
It is located in Parkes  Canberra  ACT.
The building was listed on the Australian Commonwealth Heritage List on 22 June 2004.
She conducted nearly 1300 interviews.
The Library has particular collection strengths in the performing arts  including dance.
The print collections are further supported by extensive microform holdings.
The Library also maintains the National Reserve Braille Collection.
Where possible  these are delivered these directly across the Internet.
The NLA has since May 2019 hosted and managed the National edeposit  NED  service.
National edeposit  NED   to fulfill legal deposit obligations.
It is used for reference  collection development  cataloguing and interlibrary lending.
Trove s most well known feature is the digitised collection of Australian newspapers.
Most NLA resource discovery services are now fully integrated with Trove.
Remarkable occurrences  the National Library of Australia’s first 100 years 1901 2001.
Ten years later  the Bet Midrash Abrabanel library  as it was then known  moved to Ethiopia Street.
By that time  the university collection included over one million books.
For lack of space  some of the books were placed in storerooms around the city.
New building     In 2014  the project for a new home of the Library in Jerusalem was unveiled.
The closure lasted for two weeks and the Library subsequently re opened.
In 2001  the law was amended to include audio and video recordings  and other non print media.
The library also possesses some of Isaac Newton s manuscripts dealing with theological subjects.
The National Library of Israel completed its collection of the Max Brod archive in August 2019.
Tanaka was voted out from office on August 6  2006 and was replaced by Jin Murai.
Tatsumi Yoda  aka Tom Yoda   former chairman of Avex  is from Chikuma shi.
Keiichi Tsuchiya  a professional racing driver  is from Tōmi in Nagano Prefecture.
The total area is 405.86 km2  156.70 sq mi .
His followers who remained behind converted a number of daimyōs.
The most notable among them was Ōmura Sumitada.
The Portuguese also brought with them many goods from other Asian countries such as China.
It became a refuge for Christians escaping maltreatment in other regions of Japan.
In 1587  however  Toyotomi Hideyoshi s campaign to unify the country arrived in Kyūshū.
Portuguese traders were not ostracized  however  and so the city continued to thrive.
In addition  the Dutch and English presence allowed trade without religious strings attached.
Thus  in 1614  Catholicism was officially banned and all missionaries ordered to leave.
Consequently  Nagasaki became a major center of what was called rangaku  or  Dutch Learning .
During this period  Nagasaki was designated a  shogunal city .
Various Chinese merchants and artists sailed between the Chinese mainland and Nagasaki.
Nagasaki became a treaty port in 1859 and modernization began in earnest in 1868.
Nagasaki was officially proclaimed a city on April 1  1889.
When the plane reached Kokura at 9 44 a.m.  10 44 am.
The first plutonium bomb was tested in central New Mexico  United States  on July 16  1945.
The pace of reconstruction was slow.
The first simple emergency dwellings were not provided until 1946.
New structures were also raised as memorials  such as the Atomic Bomb Museum.
Nagasaki remains primarily a port city  supporting a rich shipbuilding industry.
Nagasaki lies at the head of a long bay that forms the best natural harbor on the island of Kyūshū.
The main commercial and residential area of the city lies on a small plain near the end of the bay.
Two rivers divided by a mountain spur form the two main valleys in which the city lies.
Apart from Kanazawa and Shizuoka it is the wettest sizeable city in Japan.
August is the warmest month of the year.
On January 24  2016  a snowfall of 17 centimetres  6.7 in  was recorded.
In addition  the Nagasaki Electric Tramway operates five routes in the city.
The Nagasaki Expressway serves vehicular traffic with interchanges at Nagasaki and Susukizuka.
In addition  six national highways crisscross the city  Route 34  202  206  251  324  and 499.
Demographics    On August 9  1945 the population was estimated to be 263 000.
Sports    Nagasaki is represented in the J.
Kunchi  the most famous festival in Nagasaki  is held from October 7–9.
Nagasaki Prefecture  長崎県  Nagasaki ken  is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū.
Facing China and Korea  the region around Hirado was a traditional center for traders and pirates.
However  Kirishitan  Japanese Christian  worship continued underground.
Along with them  their children  half Japanese and half European  were forced to leave.
Nagasaki Prefecture contains many areas prone to heavy rain and landslide damage.
It also includes a large number of islands such as Tsushima  Iki and Goto.
Sports      The city has one football team  V Varen Nagasaki  which plays in the J2 League.
First elected in 2010 to succeed Genjirō Kaneko  he was reelected for a second term in 2014.
As of April 2014  the LDP led caucus has 23 members  the DPJ SDP led caucus 17.
Nagoya  名古屋市  Nagoya shi  is the largest city in the Chūbu region of Japan.
It is Japan s fourth largest incorporated city and the third most populous urban area.
This period saw the renovation of Nagoya Castle.
Nagoya was impacted by bombing from US air raids during World War II.
After the war  Nagoya developed into a major port and transport center.
Nagoya TV Tower is the oldest TV tower in Japan.
Etymology    The city s name was historically written as 那古野 or 名護屋  both read as Nagoya .
A town developed around the temple to support travelers.
The castle and shrine towns formed the city.
Nagoya became an industrial hub for the region.
Other industries included cotton and complex mechanical dolls called karakuri ningyō.
World War II and later     Nagoya was the target of US air raids during World War II.
It was estimated that 25  of its workers were engaged in aircraft production.
The bombing continued through the spring of 1945  and included large scale firebombing.
Nagoya was the target of two of Bomber Command’s attacks.
Reconstruction of the main building was completed in 1959.
The city was built on low level plateaus to ward off floodwaters.
The plain is one of the nation s most fertile areas.
The man made Hori River was constructed as a canal in 1610.
It flows from north to south  as part of the Shōnai River system.
The rivers allowed for trade with the hinterland.
Wards      Nagoya has 16 wards.
The summer is noticeably wetter than the winter  although rain falls throughout the year.
Demographics     One of the earliest censuses  carried out in 1889  counted 157 496 residents.
Automotive industry     Nagoya s main industry is automotive.
Mitsubishi Motors has an R D division in the suburb of Okazaki.
Major component suppliers such as Magna International and PPG also have a strong presence here.
During the war the Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter was constructed in Nagoya.
The Mitsubishi Regional Jet  MRJ  aircraft is produced at a factory adjacent to the airport.
It is the first airliner designed and produced in Japan since the NAMC YS 11 of the 1960s.
The MRJ s first flight was on November 11  2015.
Before and during the Edo period there were two main kilns in the region  Seto and Tokoname.
Almost every feudal lord had his own oniwa yaki  also to have gifts made.
It became widely known in Japan.
Toyoraku ware continued on until the Taishō era under the 8th generation.
Colourful pieces and gorgeous tea utensils were highly valued.
Sasashima ware also experienced its heyday during this time.
An early type of manufactured production was the blue and white Kawana ware.
Robot technology is another rapidly developing industry.
Retail     Retail is of importance in the city.
Oriental Nakamura was bought by Mitsukoshi from Tokyo in 1977.
Arts and crafts     The Owari province was historically well known for the cloisonné art form.
The Ando Cloisonné Company continues the long tradition.
Other     The confectionery company Marukawa is well known.
The airport has international flights and a high volume of domestic flights.
On February 17  2005  Nagoya Airport s commercial international flights moved to Centrair Airport.
JR Central  which operates the Tōkaidō Shinkansen  has its headquarters there.
Nagoya Subway provides urban transit service.
Nagoya Port is the largest port by international trade value in Japan.
Education     Nagoya has mostly state run primary and secondary schools.
The main campus was designed in the 1960s by the renowned architect Antonin Raymond.
The Nagoya City Archives store a large collection of documents and books.
Under his rule  actors and actresses began to visit Nagoya.
Arts and culture was further supported by the city s wealthy merchants.
During World War II many old buildings and artefacts were destroyed.
Nagoya Castle s collection is from the Owari Tokugawa era.
The main tower is a museum that details the history of the castle and the city.
The Nagoya City Museum showcases the history of the town.
Yōki sō is a villa and gardens located in Chikusa ku  close to Nittai ji.
Paintings and sculpture are exhibited at the Nagoya City Art Museum.
Modern art is displayed at the Aichi Arts Center.
The Aichi Arts Center also is the venue of rotating exhibitions.
The art of porcelain and ceramics can be seen at the Noritake Garden.
Meiji Mura is an open air museum with salvaged buildings from the Meiji  Taishō and Showa eras.
Another museum in Nagoya is the Mandolin Melodies Museum.
Most buildings date from the Meiji and Taishō era and are protected.
In 1912  the musician Gorō Morita invented the Nagoya harp music instrument.
In 1992  the large  modern Aichi Arts Center was opened in Sakae.
Ikebana     Ishida ryū  石田流  is a school of Ikebana  or Japanese floral art.
It was founded in 1922 and is headquartered in Nagoya.
It is also called Owari dialect  尾張弁  Owari ben .
Handicrafts     The industry of Japanese handicrafts in the city is centuries old.
Only the base fabric is dyed  leaving parts that were knotted as white spots.
This highly specialised process requires 6–12 months to complete.
Geta clog straps  wooden clogs called geta were the shoes of the feudal era.
The technique has developed over the generations.
The patterns appear almost transparent and are often used on pottery.
When cut in half  the candle looks as if it grew like a tree with rings.
Japanese candles produce less smoke and are harder to blow out  since the wick tends to be larger.
Artists paint the candles in coloured patterns.
Sekku Ningyo  festival dolls were introduced by markets during the Meiji era.
The city also gave its name to a type of obi  the sash that is used to tie a kimono.
The term Nagoya obi can refer to an older type of obi used centuries ago.
It was developed by a seamstress living in Nagoya at the end of the 1920s.
A more formal version is called the Fukuro Nagoya obi  袋名古屋帯?
or hassun Nagoya obi  八寸名古屋帯?   eight inch Nagoya obi    which is more formal.
Seto ware and Tokoname ware are from the region.
In the town itself Ofukei ware  Toyoraku ware  Sasashima ware and Kawana ware were produced.
This dish is enjoyed three ways  as unadon  with spice and as chazuke.
The city is also featured in Gamera vs. Gyaos and is the main setting of 2003 film Gozu.
Baseball starring Tom Selleck were also filmed in the city.
In 2010  Nagoya Grampus won the J.
League championship  their first in team history.
Nagoya is also the home of the Nagoya Barbarians semi pro rugby football club.
A honbasho sumo tournament is held every July at the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium.
Atsuta Shrine is the second most venerable shrine in Japan  after Ise Grand Shrine.
It holds around 70 festivals per year.
The shrine hosts over 4 400 national treasures that span its 2 000 year history.
Nagoya Castle was built in 1612.
The word Japan is an exonym  and is used  in one form or another  by many languages.
The Japanese names for Japan are Nippon  にっぽん  and Nihon  にほん .
They are both written in Japanese using the kanji 日本.
Before Nihon came into official use  Japan was known in China as Wa  倭  or Wakoku  倭國 .
Wa 和 was often combined with 大   great   to form the name 大和  which is read as Yamato.
It is believed that the name change within Japan itself took place sometime between 665 and 703.
Before Nihon came into official use  Japan was known as Wa  倭  or Wakoku  倭国 .
The first  submissive  obedient  explanation began with the  121 CE  Shuowen Jiezi dictionary.
Bowing is noted in early historical references to Japan.
Examples include  Respect is shown by squatting   Hou Han Shu  tr.
Tsunoda 1951 2   and  they either squat or kneel  with both hands on the ground.
This is the way they show respect.
jukujikun  is not uncommon in Japanese.
Other original names in Chinese texts include Yamatai country  邪馬台国   where a Queen Himiko lived.
The name of the country reflects this central importance of the sun.
The English word for Japan came to the West from early trade routes.
It is thought the Portuguese traders were the first to bring the word to Europe.
The official Japanese language name is Nippon koku or Nihon koku  日本国   literally  State of Japan .
A more poetic rendering of the name of Japan during this period was  Empire of the Sun.
Nifon     Historically  Japanese  h  has undergone a number of phonological changes.
Originally   p   this weakened into  ɸ  and eventually became the modern  h .
Modern  h  is still pronounced  ɸ  when followed by  ɯ .
Middle Japanese nifon becomes Modern Japanese nihon via regular phonological changes.
Jippon     Before modern styles of romanization  the Portuguese devised their own.
In it   zi  is written as either ii or ji.
In modern Hepburn style  iippon would be rendered as Jippon.
There are no historical phonological changes to take into account here.
Etymologically  Jippon is similar to Nippon in that it is an alternative reading of 日本.
The initial character 日 may also be read as  ziti  or  zitu .
Compounded with  hoɴ   本   this regularly becomes Jippon.
Unlike the Nihon Nippon doublet  there is no evidence for a  Jihon.
Nihon and Nippon    The Japanese name for Japan  日本  can be pronounced either Nihon or Nippon.
Both readings come from the on yomi.
Meaning     日  nichi  means  sun  or  day   本  hon  means  base  or  origin .
In compounds  however  final voiceless stops  i.e.
In other cases  uses are variable.
A sporting cheer used at international sporting events  roughly   do your best  Japan!
That is unrelated to  nipponium   a defunct synonym for the element rhenium.
The word was likely introduced to Portuguese through the Malay Jipan.
Cipangu was first mentioned in Europe in the accounts  of Marco Polo.
The modern Shanghainese pronunciation of Japan is Zeppen   zəʔpən .
Shiki District  came to be used in Japanese poetry as an epithet for the province of Yamato  i.e.
In China  Japan is called Rìběn  which is the Mandarin pronunciation for the characters 日本.
This has influenced the Malay name for Japan  Jepun  and the Thai word Yipun  ญี่ปุ่น .
In Mongolian  Japan is called Yapon  Япон .
Ue kok  倭國  is recorded for older Hokkien speakers.
In the past  Korea also used 倭國  pronounced Waeguk  왜국 .
The term also refers to paintings which Europeans brought to Japan.
History    Nanban art developed after the first Portuguese ships arrived in Kyushu in 1543.
Another popular subject within Nanban art was the depiction of foreign warriors.
They eat with their fingers instead of with chopsticks such as we use.
They show their feelings without any self control.
They cannot understand the meaning of written characters.
He is a heathen king  a vassal of the king of China.
Japan was to become a major exporter of copper and silver during the period.
He could charter a royal vessel or purchase his own  at about 40 000 xerafins.
His ship would set sail from Goa  called at Malacca and China before proceeding to Japan and back.
The Portuguese also exported surplus silk from Macau to Goa and Europe via Manila.
Dutch trade     The Dutch  who  rather than  Nanban  were called  Kōmō   Jp  紅毛  lit.
Their pilot was William Adams  the first Englishman to reach Japan.
Tanegashima guns      The Japanese were interested in Portuguese hand held guns.
The Jesuits managed to obtain jurisdiction over the trading city of Nagasaki.
Although close to a hundred churches were destroyed  most of the Jesuits remained in Japan.
The last major reaction of the Christians in Japan was the Shimabara rebellion in 1637.
Thereafter  Catholicism in Japan was driven underground as the so called  Hidden Christians .
Nanbangashi  南蛮菓子  is a variety of sweets derived from Portuguese or Spanish recipes.
These  Southern barbarian  sweets are on sale in many Japanese supermarkets today.
Nanbanji or Nanbandera  南蛮寺  was the first Christian church in Kyoto.
Eleven years later  1587   Nanbanji was destroyed by Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
Guns were almost completely eradicated to revert to the more  civilized  sword.
Travel abroad and the building of large ships were also prohibited.
Thence started a period of seclusion  peace  prosperity and mild progress known as the Edo period.
In China   紅毛  is pronounced Ang mo in Hokkien and is a racial slur against white people.
It can sometimes be used jokingly to refer to Western people or civilization in a cultured manner.
1549 – Francis Xavier arrives in Kagoshima.
1571 – Daimyō Ōmura Sumitada assists the Portuguese in establishing the port of Nagasaki.
1575 – Battle of Nagashino  where firearms are used extensively.
1577 – First Japanese ships travel to Cochinchina  southern Vietnam.
1579 – The Jesuit Alessandro Valignano arrives in Japan.
1580 – Ōmura Sumitada cedes Nagasaki  in perpetuity  to the Society of Jesus.
1584 – Mancio Itō arrives in Lisbon with three other Japanese  accompanied by a Jesuit father.
1588 – Hideyoshi prohibits piracy.
1609 – The Dutch open a trading factory in Hirado.
He returns in 1620.1614 – Expulsion of the Jesuits from Japan.
1615 – Japanese Jesuits start to proselytise in Vietnam.
Portuguese trade in Japan is prohibited for 3 years as a reprisal.
1641 – The Dutch trading factory is moved from Hirado to Dejima island.
The Nanpō Islands are all administered by Tokyo Metropolis.
It also administers the Electoral College.
Since 1964  the NHPRC has awarded some 4 500 grants.
NARA s mission also includes resolving FOIA disputes between Federal agencies and requesters.
The program was originally scheduled to end in 2007.
Records include paper documents  microfilm  still pictures  motion pictures  and electronic media.
However  records from other sources may still be protected by copyright or donor agreements.
Census records are among the most frequently requested at NARA  with the oldest entries from 1790.
These records often contain information such as addresses and names of family members.
The newest unrestricted census is from 1940 and was released to the general public in April 2012.
The subsequent census from 1950 will be released in 2022.
This includes naturalization records and vital records that reveal extensive personal data.
These events are free of charge and are designed for interested individuals of any skill level.
Materials from past Genealogy Fairs are available on the National Archives website.
Archival Recovery Teams     Archival Recovery Teams investigate the theft of records.
Federal government agencies pay a yearly fee for storage at the facility.
WNRC also offers research services and maintains a small research room.
A joint venture with Google will digitize and offer NARA video online.
Our new strategic plan emphasizes the importance of providing access to records anytime  anywhere.
This is one of many initiatives that we are launching to make our goal a reality.
A new teaching with documents Web site premiered in 2010 and was developed by the education team.
The site features 3 000 documents  images  and recordings from the holdings of the Archives.
It also features lesson plans and tools for creating new classroom activities and lessons.
Besides censoring language  the changes altered the meaning of some protest signs.
Further reading     Sixty Ton Statue Is Carved from a Single Slab of Stone .
Ten Ton Door Made of Bronze is Thirty Five Feet High .
It also administers the Electoral College.
Since 1964  the NHPRC has awarded some 4 500 grants.
NARA s mission also includes resolving FOIA disputes between Federal agencies and requesters.
The program was originally scheduled to end in 2007.
Records include paper documents  microfilm  still pictures  motion pictures  and electronic media.
However  records from other sources may still be protected by copyright or donor agreements.
Census records are among the most frequently requested at NARA  with the oldest entries from 1790.
These records often contain information such as addresses and names of family members.
The newest unrestricted census is from 1940 and was released to the general public in April 2012.
The subsequent census from 1950 will be released in 2022.
This includes naturalization records and vital records that reveal extensive personal data.
These events are free of charge and are designed for interested individuals of any skill level.
Materials from past Genealogy Fairs are available on the National Archives website.
Archival Recovery Teams     Archival Recovery Teams investigate the theft of records.
Federal government agencies pay a yearly fee for storage at the facility.
WNRC also offers research services and maintains a small research room.
A joint venture with Google will digitize and offer NARA video online.
Our new strategic plan emphasizes the importance of providing access to records anytime  anywhere.
This is one of many initiatives that we are launching to make our goal a reality.
A new teaching with documents Web site premiered in 2010 and was developed by the education team.
The site features 3 000 documents  images  and recordings from the holdings of the Archives.
It also features lesson plans and tools for creating new classroom activities and lessons.
Besides censoring language  the changes altered the meaning of some protest signs.
Further reading     Sixty Ton Statue Is Carved from a Single Slab of Stone .
Ten Ton Door Made of Bronze is Thirty Five Feet High .
Nara Prefecture  奈良県  Nara ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu.
Like Kyoto  Nara was one of Imperial Japan s earliest capital cities.
Historically  Nara Prefecture was also known as Yamato no kuni or Yamato Province.
It sought unification of most parts in Japan.
Since the historical beginning of Japan  Yamato was its political center.
The movement led to a collision between the Taira and the Nara temples in 1180.
With the reconstruction of Kōfuku ji and Tōdai ji  a town was growing again near the two temples.
The Nanboku chō period  starting in 1336  brought more instability to Nara.
Likewise  local clans were split into two.
In 1876  Nara was merged into Sakai which in turn became part of Osaka in 1881.
In 1887  Nara became independent again.
Further east are the Kasagi Mountains  which separate the Basin from the Yamato Highlands.
The tallest mountain in Nara Prefecture  and indeed in the Kansai region  is Mount Hakkyō.
To the east  bordering Mie Prefecture  is the Daikō Range  including Mount Ōdaigahara.
Heavy rainfall is observed in summer.
In the fall  the southern mountains are equally striking with the changing of the oak trees.
Net domestic migration has turned into a continuous outbound trend since 1998.
Shōgo Arai has been governor since 2007  a former LDP member of the national House of Councillors.
The only exception was the 72.1  voting right executed by citizens of 70 or older.
The per capita income was ¥2.6 million  which is a 1.3  decrease from previous year.
Nara is famed for its Kaki persimmon.
Brush and ink  sumi  are the best known products from Nara for calligraphy.
Culture     The culture of Nara is tied to the Kansai region in which it is located.
The Nara period  奈良時代  Nara jidai  of the history of Japan covers the years from AD 710 to 794.
Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō kyō  present day Nara .
Japanese society during this period was predominately agricultural and centered on village life.
The capital at Nara was modeled after Chang an  the capital city of the Tang dynasty.
Nara was Japan s first truly urban center.
Economic and administrative activity increased during the Nara period.
Roads linked Nara to provincial capitals  and taxes were collected more efficiently and routinely.
Coins were minted  if not widely used.
Factional fighting at the imperial court continued throughout the Nara period.
Fuhito was succeeded by four sons  Muchimaro  Umakai  Fusasaki  and Maro.
They put Emperor Shōmu  the prince by Fuhito s daughter  on the throne.
In 729  they arrested Nagaya and regained control.
Decentralization of authority became the rule despite the reforms of the Nara period.
Another major cultural development of the era was the permanent establishment of Buddhism.
During Shōmu s reign  the Tōdai ji  literally Eastern Great Temple  was built.
Within it was placed the Great Buddha Daibutsu  a 16 metre high  gilt bronze statue.
The central government established temples called kokubunji in the provinces.
The Tōdai ji was the kokubunji of Yamato Province  present day Nara Prefecture .
Buddhist influence at court increased under the two reigns of Shōmu s daughter.
As Empress Kōken  r. 749–758  she brought many Buddhist priests into court.
Kōken abdicated in 758 on the advice of her cousin  Fujiwara no Nakamaro.
Kōken charged the ruling emperor with colluding with Nakamaro and had him deposed.
Kōken reascended the throne as Empress Shōtoku  r. 764–770 .
The small scrolls  dating from 770  are among the earliest printed works in the world.
Shōtoku had the charms printed to placate the Buddhist clergy.
She may even have wanted to make Dōkyō emperor  but she died before she could act.
They are called Shōsōin treasures and illustrate the cosmopolitan culture known as Tempyō culture.
Shosoin stores more than 10 000 paper documents so called Shōsōin documents  正倉院文書 .
Two such gardens have been found at excavations  both were used for poetry writing festivities.
Many Japanese students  both lay and Buddhist priests  studied in Chang an and Luoyang.
He served as Governor General in Annam or Chinese Vietnam from 761 through 767.
However  they were eventually subjugated by the Ritsuryō.
However  the rise of Balhae north of Silla destabilized Japan Silla relations.
The oldest was founded in 705.
Japan s Medieval Population  Famine  Fertility  and Warfare in a Transformative Age.
Naruto is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto.
The English adaptation is still airing weekly on Adult Swim to this day.
Naruto is often ridiculed by the Konoha villagers for being the host of the Nine Tails.
The Akatsuki starts kidnapping the hosts of the powerful Tailed Beasts.
Team 7 and other Leaf ninja fight against them and search for their teammate Sasuke.
Meanwhile  Sasuke betrays Orochimaru and faces Itachi to take revenge.
He accepted it on the condition that he would be allowed to spare Sasuke.
Saddened by this revelation  Sasuke joins the Akatsuki to destroy Konoha in revenge.
The real Madara saved Obito s life  and they have since collaborated.
A reformed Obito sacrifices himself to help Team 7 stop her.
Once Kaguya is sealed  Madara dies as well.
After the war  Kakashi becomes the Sixth Hokage and pardons Sasuke for his crimes.
By the time Naruto debuted  the background art was sparse  instead emphasizing the characters.
Nagato s arc paved the way for the ending of Naruto to occur.
Nagato stood out as a villain due to suffering war and killing Naruto s mentor Jiraiya.
When Hinata first appeared  Kishimoto thought of expanding romantic plotlines.
The first 238 chapters are Part I and constitute the first section of the Naruto storyline.
The first tankōbon was released on March 3  2000.
All 27 volumes of Part I were released in a boxed set on November 13  2007.
Crunchyroll simulcasted the series  premiere on their website and streamed the following episodes.
The monthly series was preceded by a one shot written and illustrated by Kishimoto.
The staff from Shueisha asked Kishimoto if he would write a sequel to Naruto.
It was remastered in HD  with new 2D and 3D effects  under the name  Naruto  Shōnen Hen.
The first 26 volumes contain four episodes  later DVD volumes have five episodes.
It debuted on Japanese TV on February 15  2007  on TV Tokyo  and concluded on March 23  2017.
On December 17  2016  Kishimoto announced that he has been asked to help develop the movie.
Of these  the first two have been released in English in North America.
2003  was based on the second OVA of the anime.
Viz has also published 16 chapter books written by Tracey West with illustrations from the manga.
Music     Toshio Masuda composed and arranged the Naruto soundtracks.
The third  Naruto Original Soundtrack III  was released on April 27  2005  with 23 tracks.
On October 12  2011  a CD collecting the themes from Naruto Shōnen Hen was released.
Soundtracks from the Shippuden films have also been released  with the first one available in 2007.
Most Naruto video games have been released only in Japan.
In January 2012  Namco Bandai announced they had sold 10 million Naruto games worldwide.
Art and guidebooks      Three official artbooks based on the Naruto series have been released.
It has no text except a brief commentary by Kishimoto about his favorite artworks.
An interactive coloring book called Paint Jump  Art of Naruto was released in 2008.
These books contain character profiles  Jutsu guides  and drafts by Kishimoto.
For the anime  a series of guidebooks called Naruto Anime Profiles was released.
Extra cards are available in 10 card booster packs  and deck sets.
Four box sets sold in retailers are available for each series.
By October 2006  seventeen series had been released in Japan with 417 unique cards.
As of August 2008  ten of these series had been released in North America.
More than half of the sales were in Japan  with the remaining sales from 46 other countries.
The manga was nominated for Favorite Manga Series in Nickelodeon Magazine s 2009 Comics Awards.
Naruto Shippuden has been ranked several times as one of the most watched series in Japan.
In 2011  Naruto helped Viz Media generate  200 million in annual licensed merchandise sales.
It was also the top earning anime franchise for TV Tokyo in 2019 due to strong overseas sales.
Plumb also cites Sasuke s clan s heraldic symbol  a fan known as an uchiwa.
Sheuo Hui Gan considers the series to have a set of  traditional ethical values .
Shōnen Jump began to carry comedies such as Gintama and Reborn!
Fujimoto points out that this does not upset Sakura  who is now surpassed by Naruto.
If we naruto run  we can move faster than their bullets.
The National Diet  Japanese  国会  Hepburn  Kokkai  is Japan s bicameral legislature.
Both houses are directly elected under a parallel voting system.
In addition to passing laws  the Diet is formally responsible for selecting the Prime Minister.
Both houses meet in the National Diet Building  国会議事堂  Kokkai gijidō  in Nagatachō  Chiyoda  Tokyo.
Composition     The houses of the Diet are both elected under parallel voting systems.
However it does guarantee universal adult suffrage and a secret ballot.
All candidates must be Japanese nationals.
The Diet may conduct  investigations in relation to government   Article 62 .
Technically  only the House of Representatives is dissolved before an election.
But  while the lower house is in dissolution  the House of Councillors is usually  closed .
Each house elects its own presiding officer who casts the deciding vote in the event of a tie.
The Diet has parliamentary immunity.
They are immune outside the house for words spoken and votes cast in the House.
A member may be expelled  but only by a two thirds majority vote.
Legislative process     The vast majority of bills are submitted to the Diet by the Cabinet.
The first Imperial Diet of 1890 was plagued by controversy and political tensions.
The Imperial Diet was also limited in its control over the budget.
These are nowadays usually called in January  they last for 150 days and can be extended once.
Its length is negotiated between the two houses  it can be extended twice.
It is located at Nagatachō 1 chome 7–1  Chiyoda  Tokyo.
They drew up two plans for a Diet building.
The Itō government fell as Cram was en route to the United States  and the project was dropped.
An electrical fire burned down the first building in January 1891  only two months later.
Another Ende and Böckmann associate  Oscar Tietze  joined Yoshii to design its replacement.
This recommendation was criticized by many who thought that choice to be too arbitrary.
The first prize winner  Watanabe Fukuzo  produced a design similar to Ende and Böckmann s.
It is also used to allow visitors into the building in open house events.
They were drawn not by famous artists but by art students.
It is not clear why there is an empty pedestal.
The empty pedestal is displayed with a big pine bonsai on the first day of the Diet session.
The chandelier is made of crystal.
The chairman sits in the center accompanied by the secretary general on his right.
The podium stands in front of the chairman s seat  and the stenographer sits beneath the podium.
Each seat has a number and a name plate with white letters in a black background.
Diet members are also forbidden to read newspapers and literatures other than reference materials.
Public gallery     Above the back end of the Chamber is a public gallery.
According to those rules  visitors to the public gallery are forbidden from entering the Chamber.
Summoning of sworn and unsworn witnesses also takes place in this room.
This coincided with the switch from the lunisolar calendar to the Gregorian calendar in 1873.
In response  the government moved the holiday to February 11 of the Gregorian calendar in 1873.
Ten years later  the Bet Midrash Abrabanel library  as it was then known  moved to Ethiopia Street.
By that time  the university collection included over one million books.
For lack of space  some of the books were placed in storerooms around the city.
New building     In 2014  the project for a new home of the Library in Jerusalem was unveiled.
The closure lasted for two weeks and the Library subsequently re opened.
In 2001  the law was amended to include audio and video recordings  and other non print media.
The library also possesses some of Isaac Newton s manuscripts dealing with theological subjects.
The National Library of Israel completed its collection of the Max Brod archive in August 2019.
For the Deputy Commissioner General  次長  Jichō   the Senior Commissioner is supplemented.
The Commissioner General s Secretariat  長官官房  Chōkan Kanbō  are their staff.
The civilian political leadership is provided by the National Public Safety Commission.
The Peace Preservation Law of 1925 gave police the authority to arrest people for  wrong thoughts .
The National Public Safety Commission system has been retained.
The museum has exhibitions on pre Meiji science in Japan.
It is headed by the country s National Security Advisor  currently Shotaro Yachi.
The old Security Council had been beset by bureaucratic inefficiencies and lack of coordination.
Japan s National Security Council  filling the whole of government?.
In 1871  the government confiscated temple lands  considered symbolic of the ruling elite.
As a result  Buddhist and Shinto institutions became impoverished.
However  these efforts proved to be ineffective in the face of radical westernisation.
In 1880  the government allotted funds for the preservation of ancient shrines and temples.
Restoration works were financed directly from the national coffers  article 3 .
Most were  religious buildings dating from the 7th to early 17th century.
Restorations during the Meiji period often employed new materials and techniques.
The designation  National Treasure  was applied to objects of art and to historical buildings.
An architect supervised the reconstruction works on site.
The new law combined the laws of 1919  1929  and 1933.
Even by international standards  a broad spectrum of properties was covered by the 1950 law.
Some have been designated as new National Treasures since June 9  1951.
Some of these changes indirectly affected the protection of designated National Treasures.
In 1966  the Law for the Preservation of Ancient Capitals was passed.
This step was necessary because of the lack of skilled craftsmen resulting from industrialization.
In 1999 protective authority was transferred to prefectures and designated cities.
Properties in need of preservation and use are catalogued as  Registered Cultural Properties .
Important objects are designated as  Important Cultural Properties.
The designation policy is deliberately restrained  keeping the number of designated properties low.
In this respect the South Korean protective system is similar to that of Japan.
In the 21st century  up to nine properties were designated every year.
Each main category is divided into subcategories.
They also served as residences for the daimyō  his family  and retainers.
The structures include teahouses  shoin  and guest or reception halls.
In this manner  ancient styles have been replicated through the centuries to the present day.
Nikkō Tōshō gū has five National Treasures.
The façade of the church faces Nishizaka hill  the place of their execution.
There are 62 items or sets of items in this category  ranging from letters and diaries to records.
One National Treasure is a linen map  and another is an inscription on stone.
Approximately half of the entries in the category are located in Kyoto.
Other items listed include bronze mirrors and bells  jewellery  ancient swords  and knives.
The most recent object  a hexagonal stone column  dates to the Nanboku chō period  1361.
Currently 110 swords and 12 sword mountings are National Treasures.
The  treasures were dedicated to the enshrined deity of the respective shrine.
They comprise garments  household items  and other items.
A large proportion of items are housed in the national museums of Tokyo  Kyoto  and Nara.
With few exceptions  the sculptures are located in Buddhist temples.
Transfers of National Treasures are generally restrictive  and export is prohibited.
Subsidies are available to municipalities for purchasing land or cultural property structures.
Designated properties generally increase in value.
More than 90  are wooden buildings  and about 13  of designated buildings are in private ownership.
Together they comprise 149 or 66  of all structural National Treasures in Japan.
Of the 209 properties located in Tokyo  88 are at the Tokyo National Museum.
The history of Shinto shrines in Japan is even older than that of temples.
Consequently  there are no National Treasure sculptures from after the Kamakura period.
Architecture éternelle du Japon – De l histoire aux mythes  illustrated ed. .
Former Prime Minister Naoto Kan called the situation  urgent  due to the ballooning debt.
By 2014  Japan had the world s highest debt to GDP ratio.In 2019  Japan s debt reached 223  of GDP.
This increased the tax to 8  in April 2014.
The final increase to 10  was implemented on October 1  2019.
By 1990  the government did not issue a national bond due to the Japanese asset price bubble.
Bonds were issued again in 1994  and have been issued every year since.
With the breakdown of the economic bubble came a decrease in annual revenue.
The growth of annual revenue was slowed down by the prolonged depression.
This national bond is called renewal national bond.
Japan has continued to issue bonds to cover the debt since the asset price bubble collapse.
He said that printing notes will not work if the country is in a liquidity trap.
A national language is a language  or language variant  e.g.
dialect  that has some connection—de facto or de jure—with a nation.
There is little consistency in the use of this term.
National languages are mentioned in over 150 world constitutions.C.M.B.
National languages          Albania     Albanian is the national language of Albania.
Greek is the national language of the Greek communities  predominately in the south.
Aromanian serves as a national language of the Aromanian linguistic minority.
It is a co official but not a national language of North Macedonia.
Algeria     Arabic is the national language in Algeria.
Berber is also an official language.
French has no official status but is widely used in education  business and the media.
Armenian is widely spoken in Armenia as well as in its diaspora.
A considerable proportion of first and second generation migrants are bilingual.
According to Ethnologue  81  of people spoke English at home  including L2 speakers.
Only about 70 of these languages have survived and all but 30 of these are now endangered.
Azerbaijan     Azerbaijani language is the national language in Azerbaijan.
The Latin and Cyrillic alphabets both have official status.
Bulgaria     Bulgarian is the sole official language in Bulgaria.
Quebec nationalists consider Quebec French the language of the Quebec nation.
Two of Canada s northern territories legislate a variety of Indigenous languages.
Czech Republic     The Czech language is the national language of the Czech Republic.
Its people altogether speak over 80 different languages.
Afar  Amharic  Oromo  Somali  Tigrinya and English are the official working language of Ethiopia.
Haiti      Haiti s official languages are Haitian Creole and French.
Iceland      Icelandic is the official language of Iceland.
India      India has no national language.
But has two official languages which are English and Hindi.
And has 22 recognised languages . .
However  there are 22 1 23 official languages in India.
The state governments use their own languages as well as English for the purpose of communication.
States of India are free to adopt one or more local languages for official purposes of that state.
Hence India has 23 major official languages with Hindi having  Hindi  as national language status.
Indonesia      The official language of Indonesia is Indonesian.
These 700  languages  however  are without official status  and some are in danger of extinction.
The largest local language is Javanese.
Iran      Persian  or Farsi  is recognised as the national language of Iran.
Italy      The Italian language is the de jure and de facto official language of Italy.
None of the country s biggest languages  Gikuyu  Luo  Kamba  Kalenjin  etc.
Lebanon     In Lebanon  the Arabic language is the  official national  language.
French and English are also widespread in Lebanon.
Luxembourg      Luxembourg uses three official languages  Luxembourgish  French  and German.
Malta     The Maltese language is the national language of Malta.
It is also the official language of the island  together with English.
Maltese only is recognised as  national  in Chapter 1 of the Laws of Malta.
Nepal      Nepali is the official language of Nepal.
Over 123 languages are spoken in Nepal.
These are Hausa  Igbo  and Yoruba  each with some 20 million speakers or more.
Most higher education instruction is in English.
Portugal     Portuguese is the sole official language of Portugal.
Romania     The official and national language of Romania is the Romanian language.
There are 15 minority languages.
Since independence  the government has been promoting English as the main language of Singapore.
Malay is only offered to non Malay students as an optional third language in secondary schools.
As a result  English has displaced Bazaar Malay as the common language among Singaporeans.
Slovakia     The Slovak language is the national language of Slovakia.
Slovenia      The Slovene language is the national language of Slovenia.
There are 6 minority languages.
The Romansh speakers are concentrated in the Canton of Grisons in the south east.
This includes Formosan languages  Hakka  Mandarin and Taiwanese Hokkien.
Tunisia      The official language of the Tunisian state is Arabic.
Turkey      Turkish is the national language of Turkey per the Turkish constitution.
Uganda      The national language of Uganda is English.
Many of these have their own regional languages.
Crown dependencies  Isle of Man      English is de facto the only official language.
Cumbric was the historical language of Cumbria.
Cumbric is very similar to Welsh.
It also used to be spoken in parts of Lancashire and southern Scotland.
Most say that Cumbric became extinct in the 12th or 13th centuries.
The Cumbric numerical system is still used by many shepherds in the Lake District.
Cornwall       English is the de facto main language spoken in the county of Cornwall.
Historically  the main language of Cornwall was Cornish.
Recently  there has been an attempted revival of the Cornish language.
This bill would establish English as the official language of the United States.
Both bills were referred to committee.
Similar legislation has been introduced every year since 1973.
He was also a scholar of British literature and composer of haiku  kanshi  and fairy tales.
From 1984 until 2004  his portrait appeared on the front of the Japanese 1000 yen note.
When he was born  he already had five siblings.
Shiki tutored him in the art of composing haiku.
In 1890  he entered the English Literature department  and quickly mastered the English language.
He resigned his post in 1896  and began teaching at the Fifth High School in Kumamoto.
On June 10 of that year  he married Nakane Kyoko.
He studied instead at University College London  UCL .
Among English gentlemen I lived in misery  like a poor dog that had strayed among a pack of wolves.
The Leales were a Channel Island family  and Priscilla had been born in France.
In April he was appointed to the First National College in Tokyo.
He began writing one novel a year before his death from a stomach ulcer in 1916.
Sōseki took a strong interest in the writers of the Shirakaba  White Birch  literary group.
Legacy    In the 21st century  there has been a global emergence of interest in Sōseki.
In South Korea  the complete collection of Sōseki s long works began to be published in 2013.
In English speaking countries there has been a succession of English translations since 2008.
About 60 of his works have been translated into more than 30 languages.
He had a long term view of civilization.
Sōseki s grandson  Fusanosuke Natsume  voiced the 130 cm figure which depicted Sōseki at age 45.
Sōseki had been on good terms with the owner  Shotaro Kaga  who asked him to name the house.
Sōseki died before its completion in 1917.
Sōseki s diary was also on display during the exhibition.
In the game  he has a pet cat called Wagahai  a reference to I Am a Cat.
In the manga and anime Bungou Stray Dogs  a character is named and based around Sōseki.
3  Dawn to the West – Japanese Literature of the Modern Era  Fiction   paperback ed. .
Different philosophical outlooks guide conservationists towards these different goals.
This is a view common in the modern environmental movement.
These are often summarized as the priority to respect diversity.
Practice     Distinct trends exist regarding conservation development.
– a long time before there were national parks and national nature reserves.
This has led to costly and poor outcomes.
It is part of the larger movement towards evidence based practices.
Why Care for Earth s Environment?
History books do have records of Wu Taibo sending 4000 males and 4000 females to Japan.
They were defeated by the T ang Silla combined force.
Ships were used largely as floating platforms for what were largely land based melee tactics.
Between 1376 and 1385  no fewer than 174 instances of pirate raids were recorded in Korea.
Wakō piracy ended for the most part in the 1580s with its interdiction by Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
Official trading missions  such as the Tenryūji bune  were also sent to China around 1341.
The largest of these ships were called atakebune.
The Portuguese  who were called Nanban  lit.
Southern Barbarians  therefore found the opportunity to act as intermediaries in Asian trade.
The Dutch  who  rather than Nanban were called Kōmō  紅毛   lit.
Their pilot was William Adams  the first Englishman to reach Japan.
Subordinate commanders included Wakisaka Yasuharu and Katō Yoshiaki.
Also  they were somewhat susceptible to capsizing in choppy seas and seastorms.
The hulls of Japanese ships were not strong enough to support the weight and recoil of cannons.
Instead  the Japanese relied heavily on their muskets and blades.
The Korean Navy attacked a Japanese transportation fleet effectively and caused extensive damage.
Korean Admiral Yi Eokgi and Won Gyun of Korea were killed in this combat.
Hansan Island was occupied by Japan  consolidating the Japanese hold on the west coast of Korea.
Jeolla was finally occupied by the Japanese Navy  and the Gang Hang became the captive.
To rescue his comrades  Shimazu Yoshihiro attacked the allied fleet.
At the Battle of Noryang  Shimazu defeated Chinese general Chen Lin.
According to Adams  Ieyasu  came aboard to see it  and the sight whereof gave him great content .
He demanded that Japan open to trade with the West.
These ships became known as the kurofune  or Black Ships.
Within five years Japan had signed similar treaties with other western countries.
The Harris Treaty was signed with the United States on July 29  1858.
The Bakufu also established defensive coastal fortifications  such as at Odaiba.
In 1857  it acquired its first screw driven steam warship  the Kanrin Maru.
Naval students were sent abroad to study Western naval techniques.
The Imperial Japanese Navy was formally established in 1869.
Tōgō Heihachirō was trained by the British navy.
In 1885  the new Navy slogan became Kaikoku Nippon  海国日本   Maritime Japan  .
These dispositions culminated with the Russo Japanese War  1904–1905 .
The Japanese battleship Mikasa was the flagship of Admiral Tōgō Heihachirō.
On the other hand  the Japanese only lost 117 men and 3 torpedo boats.
It also flew some 205 fixed wing aircraft and 134 helicopters.
Most of these aircraft were used in antisubmarine and mine warfare operations.
The Nazi Party then began to eliminate all political opposition and consolidate its power.
A national referendum held 19 August 1934 confirmed Hitler as sole Führer  Leader  of Germany.
All power was centralised in Hitler s person and his word became the highest law.
The return to economic stability boosted the regime s popularity.
The first concentration camps were established in March 1933.
Education focused on racial biology  population policy  and fitness for military service.
Career and educational opportunities for women were curtailed.
Shortly after  Germany pressured Lithuania into ceding Memel to the Third Reich.
By early 1941  Germany and their European allies in the Axis powers controlled much of Europe.
Germany exploited the raw materials and labour of both its occupied territories and its allies.
Genocide and mass murder became hallmarks of the regime.
This genocide is known as the Holocaust.
Background     Germany was known as the Weimar Republic during the years 1919 to 1933.
It was a republic with a semi presidential system.
The Nazis proposed national and cultural renewal based upon the Völkisch movement.
Millions were thrown out of work and several major banks collapsed.
Hitler and the Nazis prepared to take advantage of the emergency to gain support for their party.
They promised to strengthen the economy and provide jobs.
Marinus van der Lubbe  a Dutch communist  was found guilty of starting the blaze.
Hitler proclaimed that the arson marked the start of a communist uprising.
The decree also allowed the police to detain people indefinitely without charges.
The remaining major political parties followed suit.
In response  Hitler used the Schutzstaffel  SS  and Gestapo to purge the entire SA leadership.
Germany was now a totalitarian state with Hitler at its head.
As head of state  Hitler became Supreme Commander of the armed forces.
Most Germans were relieved that the conflicts and street fighting of the Weimar era had ended.
Eventually the Nazis declared the Jews as undesirable to remain among German citizens and society.
France  Poland  Italy  and the Soviet Union each had reasons to object to Hitler s rise to power.
In the one party election held on 29 March  the Nazis received 98.9 percent support.
The aircraft of the Legion destroyed the city of Guernica in 1937.
The Nationalists were victorious in 1939 and became an informal ally of Nazi Germany.
The Nazis undertook a propaganda campaign to try to generate support for an invasion.
The Czechoslovak government was forced to accept the Sudetenland s annexation into Germany.
Poland       In January 1934  Germany signed a non aggression pact with Poland.
The British announced they would come to the aid of Poland if it was attacked.
Hungary was the fourth nation to join the Axis  signing the Tripartite Pact on 27 September 1940.
Bulgaria signed the pact on 17 November.
Germany assumed full control in France in 1942  Italy in 1943  and Hungary in 1944.
Honouring their treaty obligations  Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later.
Poland fell quickly  as the Soviet Union attacked from the east on 17 September.
Initially the intention was to deport them further east  or possibly to Madagascar.
Soviet forces advanced into Finland in the Winter War  and German forces saw action at sea.
Germany was particularly dependent on foreign supplies of oil  coal  and grain.
Thanks to trade embargoes and the blockade  imports into Germany declined by 80 per cent.
Denmark fell after less than a day  while most of Norway followed by the end of the month.
By early June  Germany occupied all of Norway.
France fell as well  surrendering to Germany on 22 June.
Payments for occupation costs were levied upon France  Belgium  and Norway.
Barriers to trade led to hoarding  black markets  and uncertainty about the future.
Food supplies were precarious  production dropped in most of Europe.
On 6 April  Germany launched an invasion of Yugoslavia and Greece.
The invasion conquered a huge area  including the Baltic states  Belarus  and west Ukraine.
This pause provided the Red Army with an opportunity to mobilise fresh reserves.
The Moscow offensive  which resumed in October 1941  ended disastrously in December.
On 7 December 1941  Japan attacked Pearl Harbor  Hawaii.
In Germany  rations were cut in 1942.
By the end of 1943  the Germans had lost most of their eastern territorial gains.
The Allies landed in Sicily in July 1943 and in Italy in September.
Meanwhile  American and British bomber fleets based in Britain began operations against Germany.
Many sorties were intentionally given civilian targets in an effort to destroy German morale.
On 20 July 1944  Hitler survived an assassination attempt.
Goebbels and his wife Magda committed suicide the next day after murdering their six children.
Between 4 and 8 May 1945  most of the remaining German armed forces unconditionally surrendered.
Suicide rates in Germany increased  particularly in areas where the Red Army was advancing.
Richard Overy estimated in 2014 that about 353 000 civilians were killed in Allied air raids.
Mass rapes of German women also took place.
Belgian Eupen Malmedy  which had been part of Germany until 1919  was annexed.
Hitler intended to eventually incorporate many of these areas into the Reich.
Creativity and art were stifled  except where they could serve as propaganda media.
He viewed the government structure as a pyramid  with himself—the infallible leader—at the apex.
The party used propaganda to develop a cult of personality around Hitler.
Historians such as Kershaw emphasise the psychological impact of Hitler s skill as an orator.
Members of the Party or party supporters were appointed in their place.
Any acts that were sanctioned by Hitler—even murder—thus became legal.
The courts issued and carried out far more death sentences than before the Nazis took power.
Thousands were arrested and confined indefinitely without trial.
This court handed out over 5 000 death sentences until its dissolution in 1945.
In September 1935  the Nuremberg Laws were enacted.
The Reich Citizenship Law stated that only those of  German or related blood  could be citizens.
Thus Jews and other non Aryans were stripped of their German citizenship.
This included the Heer  army   Kriegsmarine  navy   and the Luftwaffe  air force .
Attacks began with artillery bombardment  followed by bombing and strafing runs.
Next the tanks would attack and finally the infantry would move in to secure the captured area.
The Waffen SS  the military branch of the SS  evolved into a second army.
A third of the Einsatzgruppen members were recruited from Waffen SS personnel.
This organisation was tasked with locating and arresting communists and other political opponents.
This holding company owned housing corporations  factories  and publishing houses.
Capital projects were paid for with the issuance of promissory notes called Mefo bills.
When the notes were presented for payment  the Reichsbank printed money.
Any profits in excess of that amount would be turned over to the Reich.
By 1936  Farben regretted making the deal  as excess profits were by then being generated.
A prototype was displayed at the International Motor Show in Berlin on 17 February 1939.
With the outbreak of World War II  the factory was converted to produce military vehicles.
None were sold until after the war  when the vehicle was renamed the Volkswagen  people s car .
This was in part due to the removal of women from the workforce.
Large expenditures were made on rearmament in spite of growing deficits.
By January 1939  unemployment was down to 301 800 and it dropped to only 77 500 by September.
The wartime economy eventually relied heavily upon the large scale employment of slave labour.
Approximately 75 percent were Eastern European.
Many were casualties of Allied bombing  as they received poor air raid protection.
Each group was subject to different regulations.
The armaments industry began to break down by September 1944.
The Nazis exploited other conquered nations in a similar way.
France saw the greatest extent of Nazi plunder.
In addition  80 percent of the country s oil and 74 percent of its steel production were taken.
The valuation of this loot is estimated to be 184.5 billion francs.
During the course of the German occupation  some 12 million pigs and 13 million sheep were taken.
The value of this plunder is estimated at 4 billion Reichsmarks.
Nazi Germany s racial policy was based on their belief in the existence of a superior master race.
Citizens were harassed and subjected to violent attacks.
Members of the SA damaged or destroyed synagogues and Jewish property throughout Germany.
Many chose to stay in continental Europe.
The Romani were forbidden to marry people of German extraction.
They were shipped to concentration camps starting in 1935 and many were killed.
The survivors were likely exterminated at Bełżec  Sobibor  or Treblinka.
Himmler ordered their deportation from Germany in December 1942  with few exceptions.
A total of 23 000 Romani were deported to Auschwitz concentration camp  of whom 19 000 died.
Hitler focused his attention on Eastern Europe  aiming to conquer Poland and the Soviet Union.
Food supplies would be diverted to the German army and German civilians.
Cities would be razed and the land allowed to return to forest or resettled by German colonists.
One in four of the Soviet population were killed or wounded.
Historian Richard J. Evans states that most German citizens disapproved of the genocide.
Lack of funding for salaries led to many teachers leaving the profession.
Books deemed unacceptable to the regime were removed from school libraries.
Indoctrination in Nazi ideology was made compulsory in January 1934.
Detailed indoctrination of future holders of elite military rank was undertaken at Order Castles.
This was especially true of universities located in predominantly Catholic regions.
Role of women and family      Women were a cornerstone of Nazi social policy.
Courses were offered on childrearing  sewing  and cooking.
Large families received subsidies to help with expenses.
After the war started  slave labourers were extensively used.
Women were expected to be strong  healthy  and vital.
Organisations were created for the indoctrination of Nazi values.
Soldier s wives were frequently involved in extramarital relationships.
Sex was sometimes used as a commodity to obtain better work from a foreign labourer.
His hope was that each SS family would have between four and six children.
Both parents were examined for racial suitability before acceptance.
The resulting children were often adopted into SS families.
Smoking was banned in many workplaces  on trains  and among on duty members of the military.
That same year  Jewish doctors were forbidden to treat government insured patients.
Many of his victims died or were intentionally killed.
The government took several measures to ensure the protection of animals and the environment.
Hundreds more pastors were arrested.
Persecution of the Catholic Church in Germany followed the Nazi takeover.
Several Catholic leaders were targeted in the 1934 Night of the Long Knives assassinations.
In response  Goebbels renewed the regime s crackdown and propaganda against Catholics.
About 30 percent of Catholic priests were disciplined by police during the Nazi era.
The banned Communist and Social Democratic parties set up resistance networks in the mid 1930s.
These networks achieved little beyond fomenting unrest and initiating short lived strikes.
The group was detected by the Gestapo and more than 50 members were tried and executed in 1942.
The plan was to overthrow Hitler or possibly assassinate him.
The planned coup was cancelled after the signing of the Munich Agreement in September 1938.
Allied bombers used this information to carry out air attacks.
The resistance group was uncovered and most of its members were imprisoned  tortured  or killed.
Members of these professions were required to join their respective organisation.
Books and scripts had to be approved by the Propaganda Ministry prior to publication.
By July 1933  radio station staffs were purged of leftists and others deemed undesirable.
Nazi book burnings took place  nineteen such events were held on the night of 10 May 1933.
Many art museum directors lost their posts in 1933 and were replaced by party members.
New techniques such as telephoto lenses and cameras mounted on tracks were employed.
All but three of the defendants were found guilty and twelve were sentenced to death.
Twelve Subsequent Nuremberg trials of 184 defendants were held between 1946 and 1949.
Between 1946 and 1949  the Allies investigated 3 887 cases  of which 489 were brought to trial.
About 65 percent of the death sentences were carried out.
Germany itself suffered wholesale destruction  characterised as Stunde Null  Zero Hour .
Interest in Nazi Germany continues in the media and the academic world.
The current director is Mei Jianjun  a noted archaeo metallurgist.
The organization was founded as the East Asian History of Science Trust in August 1968.
In June 1983 the trustees conferred the title Needham Research Institute.
After several moves  it moved into its current purpose built structure in Robinson College in 1991.
In other places the Neolithic lasted longer.
The term was coined by Sir John Lubbock in 1865 as a refinement of the three age system.
Early development occurred in the Levant  e.g.
The grain was ground into flour.
However  these houses were for the first time made of mudbrick.
The settlement had a surrounding stone wall and perhaps a stone tower  as in Jericho .
Some of the enclosures also suggest grain and meat storage.
As with the PPNA dates  there are two versions from the same laboratories noted above.
A settlement of 3 000 inhabitants was found in the outskirts of Amman  Jordan.
The settlement included two temples dating to 9650 BC.
Around 9000 BC during the PPNA  one of the world s first towns  Jericho  appeared in the Levant.
Around 6400 BC the Halaf culture appeared in Syria and Northern Mesopotamia.
Southern Mesopotamia      Alluvial plains  Sumer Elam .
Low rainfall makes irrigation systems necessary.
The farm was dated between 3600 and 3000 BC.
Pottery  stone projectile points  and possible houses were also found.
During this period the bow and arrow and ceramic pottery were also introduced.
In later periods cities of considerable size developed  and some metallurgy by 700 BC.
In the Paleolithic  people did not normally live in permanent constructions.
In the Neolithic  mud brick houses started appearing that were coated with plaster.
The roof was supported by beams from the inside.
The rough ground was covered by platforms  mats  and skins on which residents slept.
Stilt houses settlements were common in the Alpine and Pianura Padana  Terramare  region.
Surpluses could be stored for later use  or possibly traded for other necessities or luxuries.
Another significant change undergone by many of these newly agrarian communities was one of diet.
At Çatalhöyük  houses were plastered and painted with elaborate scenes of humans and animals.
In Europe  long houses built from wattle and daub were constructed.
Elaborate tombs were built for the dead.
These tombs are particularly numerous in Ireland  where there are many thousand still in existence.
Exceptions include copper hatchets and spearheads in the Great Lakes region.
In the Americas  the Eneolithic ended as late as the 19th century AD for some peoples.
Rare double burials discovered at one of the largest Neolithic burial sites in Europe.
It is the largest of four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Its mixed market advanced economy had the eleventh highest per capita income globally.
There is diversity even within languages.
But this time the corresponding Upper region is Upper Lorraine  in nowadays Northern France.
This was translated as Neder landen in contemporary Dutch official documents.
It is used synonymously with the more neutral and geopolitical term Benelux.
die Niederlande  German   les Pays Bas  French  and los Países Bajos  Spanish .
In Indonesian  a former colony  the country is called Belanda  a name derived from  Holland .
Smiths travelled from settlement to settlement with bronze and iron  fabricating tools on demand.
The North Sea Germanic Ingaevones inhabited the northern part of the Low Countries.
They would later develop into the Frisii and the early Saxons.
This group consisted of tribes that would eventually develop into the Salian Franks.
The Rhine became fixed as Rome s northern frontier around 12 AD.
Notable towns would arise along the Limes Germanicus  Nijmegen and Voorburg.
The Batavi rose against the Romans in the Batavian rebellion of 69 AD but were eventually defeated.
Salian Franks appear in Roman texts as both allies and enemies.
However  recent excavations in Kennemerland show clear indication of a permanent habitation.
A Dutch French language boundary hence came into existence.
Between 600 and around 719 the cities were often fought over between the Frisians and the Franks.
In 734  at the Battle of the Boarn  the Frisians were defeated after a series of wars.
He established the Archdiocese of Utrecht and became bishop of the Frisians.
However  his successor Boniface was murdered by the Frisians in Dokkum  in 754.
However  as of 843  it was divided into three parts—East  Middle  and West Francia.
It comprised territories from Frisia in the north to the Kingdom of Italy in the south.
Around 879  another Viking expedition led by Godfrid  Duke of Frisia raided the Frisian lands.
The Viking raids made the sway of French and German lords in the area weak.
Wealthy cities started to buy certain privileges for themselves from the sovereign.
The Burgundian period is when the road to nationhood began.
The new rulers defended Dutch trading interests  which then developed rapidly.
The fleets of the County of Holland defeated the fleets of the Hanseatic League several times.
Amsterdam distributed grain to the major cities of Belgium  Northern France and England.
This trade was vital because Holland could no longer produce enough grain to feed itself.
The Duke of Alba ruthlessly attempted to suppress the Protestant movement in the Netherlands.
The first great siege was Alba s effort to capture Haarlem and thereby cut Holland in half.
To blood  to the flesh  to fire  to sack!
The Union of Utrecht is seen as the foundation of the modern Netherlands.
Parts of the southern provinces became de facto colonies of the new republican mercantile empire.
Science  military  and art  especially painting  were among the most acclaimed in the world.
By 1650  the Dutch owned 16 000 merchant ships.
In South Africa  the Dutch settled the Cape Colony in 1652.
At sea  it could successfully prevent the English and French navy from entering the western shores.
The stadtholder William V of Orange had fled to England.
Ascendancy laws prevented his daughter Queen Wilhelmina from becoming the next Grand Duchess.
The policy brought the Dutch enormous wealth and made the colony self sufficient.
The Netherlands abolished slavery in its colonies in 1863.
That changed in World War II  when Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands on 10 May 1940.
The Rotterdam Blitz forced the main element of the Dutch army to surrender four days later.
Soon after VE Day  the Dutch fought a colonial war against the new Republic of Indonesia.
In 2002  the euro was introduced as fiat money and in 2010  the Netherlands Antilles was dissolved.
Referendums were held on each island to determine their future status.
The special municipalities are collectively known as the Caribbean Netherlands.
Nearly 17  of the country s land area is reclaimed from the sea and from lakes.
As the continental ice sheet moved in from the north  it pushed moraine forward.
The ice sheet halted as it covered the eastern half of the Netherlands.
After the ice age ended  the moraine remained in the form of a long hill line.
The cities of Arnhem and Nijmegen are built upon these hills.
The impact of disasters was  to an extent  increased through human activity.
Relatively high lying swampland was drained to be used as farmland.
Even in flooded areas  peat extraction continued through turf dredging.
To guard against floods  a series of defences against the water were contrived.
In the first millennium AD  villages and farmhouses were built on man made hills called terps.
Later  these terps were connected by dikes.
As the ground level dropped  the dikes by necessity grew and merged into an integrated system.
By the 13th century windmills had come into use to pump water out of areas below sea level.
Since then  new projects have been periodically started to renovate and renew the Delta Works.
The Netherlands is actively preparing for a sea level rise.
To protect the country from river flooding  another program is already being executed.
On average  snow can occur from November to April but sometimes occurs in May or October too.
Precipitation throughout the year is distributed relatively equally each month.
The highest recorded temperature was reached on 25 July 2019.
Other activities include sailing  fishing  cycling  and bird watching.
These woods were planted on anthropogenic heaths and sand drifts  overgrazed heaths   Veluwe .
The Leeward Antilles have a mixed volcanic and coral origin.
Saba and Sint Eustatius are part of the SSS islands.
They are located east of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
The highest point is Mount Scenery  887 metres  2 910 ft   on Saba.
The Leeward Antilles are warmer and drier than the Windward islands.
In summer  the Windward Islands can be subject to hurricanes.
The Netherlands is described as a consociational state.
In 2017  The Economist ranked the Netherlands as the 11th most democratic country in the world.
The monarch is the head of state  at present King Willem Alexander of the Netherlands.
Constitutionally  the position is equipped with limited powers.
By law  the King has the right to be periodically briefed and consulted on government affairs.
The cabinet usually consists of 13 to 16 ministers and a varying number of state secretaries.
One to three ministers are ministers without portfolio.
The States Provincial are directly elected every four years as well.
Both houses send members to the Benelux Parliament  a consultative council.
They meet regularly with the government in the Social Economic Council.
This body advises government and its advice cannot be put aside easily.
The Netherlands has a long tradition of social tolerance.
In the 1994 election  the CDA lost its dominant position.
A  purple  cabinet was formed by the VVD  D66  and PvdA.
The VVD became the largest party with 31 seats  closely followed by the PvdA with 30 seats.
On 5 November 2012 they formed the second Rutte cabinet.
Informally in Limburg province this position is named Governor  Gouverneur .
The Dutch water boards are among the oldest democratic entities in the world still in existence.
Direct elections of the water boards take place every 4 years.
These islands have the status of openbare lichamen  public bodies .
In the Netherlands these administrative units are often referred to as special municipalities.
The Dutch economy is very open and relies strongly on international trade.
The most important colonies were present day Suriname and Indonesia.
Suriname became independent in 1975.
In addition  many people from these countries are living permanently in the Netherlands.
The Dutch army was used throughout the Dutch Empire.
After the defeat of Napoleon  the Dutch army was transformed into a conscription army.
The army was unsuccessfully deployed during the Belgian Revolution in 1830.
The Netherlands decided not to sign the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
The Netherlands has a high level of economic freedom.
The Netherlands is one of the world s 10 leading exporting countries.
Foodstuffs form the largest industrial sector.
In May 2013  inflation was at 2.8  per year.
In April 2013  unemployment was at 8.2   or 6.7  following the ILO definition  of the labour force.
The Netherlands also has a relatively low GINI coefficient of 0.326.
Amsterdam is the financial and business capital of the Netherlands.
It is situated near Dam Square in the city s centre.
Actual euro coins and banknotes followed on 1 January 2002.
One euro was equivalent to 2.20371 Dutch guilders.
In the Caribbean Netherlands  the United States dollar is used instead of the euro.
The pace of job growth reached 10 year highs in 2007.
Natural gas      Beginning in the 1950s  the Netherlands discovered huge natural gas resources.
Apart from coal and gas  the country has no mining resources.
The last coal mine was closed in 1974.
Exploitation of this field has resulted in €159 billion in revenue since the mid 1970s.
Around 35 000 homes are said to be affected.
The Netherlands have an estimated 25  of natural gas reserves in the EU.
The energy sector accounted for almost 11  of the GDP in 2014.
In addition  there is ambiguity surrounding the feasibility of producing unconventional gas.
Netherlands relies heavily on natural gas to provide energy.
Netherlands has set a 14  renewable energy target of the total energy mix by the year 2020.
This means the Dutch required nearly six times as much biocapacity as the Netherlands contains.
It is the 67th most populous country in the world.
Between 1900 and 1950  the country s population almost doubled from 5.1 to 10 million.
The estimated growth rate in 2013 is 0.44 .
The country has a migration rate of 1.9 migrants per 1 000 inhabitants per year.
The majority of the population of the Netherlands is ethnically Dutch.
People in the south are on average about 2 cm  0.8 inches  shorter than those in the north.
Over half the young people in Amsterdam and Rotterdam have a non western background.
There are close to 3 million Dutch descended Afrikaners living in South Africa.
West Frisian has a formal status for government correspondence in that province.
Secondly  Limburgish is also recognised as a regional language.
English has a formal status in the special municipalities of Saba and Sint Eustatius.
It is widely spoken on these islands.
Papiamento has a formal status in the special municipality of Bonaire.
Yiddish and the Romani language were recognised in 1996 as non territorial languages.
The Netherlands has a tradition of learning foreign languages  formalised in Dutch education laws.
English is a mandatory course in all secondary schools.
Only during the last three years in VWO one foreign language is mandatory.
Although significant religious diversity remains  there has been a decline of religious adherence.
The Netherlands is now one of the most secular societies in the world.
Groups that represent the non religious in the Netherlands include Humanistisch Verbond.
Protestantism in the Netherlands consists of a number of churches within various traditions.
Several orthodox Reformed and liberal churches did not merge into the PKN.
Islam is the second largest religion in the state.
In 2012  there were about 825 000 Muslims in the Netherlands  5  of the population .
The Muslim population increased from the 1960 as a result of large numbers of migrant workers.
Most of these are Indo Surinamese.
In addition  there are about 45 000 Jews in the Netherlands.
Conversely  Islam grew considerably as the result of immigration.
In 2013  a Roman Catholic became Queen consort.
The expected rise of spirituality  ietsism  has come to a halt according to research in 2015.
In 2006  40  of respondents considered themselves spiritual  in 2015 this has dropped to 31 .
Education      Education in the Netherlands is compulsory between the ages of 5 and 16.
It comprises eight grades  the first of which is facultative.
The VMBO has 4 grades and is subdivided over several levels.
With the MBO certification  a student can apply for the HBO.
The HAVO has 5 grades and allows for admission to the HBO.
A HBO degree gives access to the university system.
Doctoral candidates in the Netherlands are generally non tenured employees of a university.
The amount is about 10 000 euros for non EU students.
The Netherlands has been among the top three countries in each report published since 2005.
The difference between the Netherlands and other countries is that the chaos is managed.
If a person decides not to carry out an insurance coverage  the person may be fined.
A key feature of the Dutch system is that premiums may not be related to health status or age.
Children under 18 are covered for free.
Those on low incomes receive compensation to help them pay their insurance.
Cycling      Cycling is a ubiquitous mode of transport in the Netherlands.
Almost as many kilometres are covered by bicycle as by train.
Busy junctions are often equipped with bicycle specific traffic lights.
There are large bicycle parking facilities  particularly in city centres and at train stations.
From Rotterdam goods are transported by ship  river barge  train or road.
In 2007  the Betuweroute  a new fast freight railway from Rotterdam to Germany  was completed.
Schiphol is the main hub for KLM  the nation s flag carrier and the world s oldest airline.
In 2016  the Royal Schiphol Group airports handled 70 million passengers.
M. C. Escher is a well known graphics artist.
Various architectural styles can be distinguished in the Netherlands.
Over the years  various styles have been built and preserved.
The Romanesque architecture was built between the years 950 and 1250.
This architectural style is most concentrated in the provinces of Gelderland and Limburg.
The Gothic architecture came to in the Netherlands from about 1230.
Gothic buildings often had large windows  pointed arches and were richly decorated.
The Netherlands is the country of philosophers Erasmus  Rudolf Agricola and Spinoza.
Replicas of Dutch buildings can be found in Huis Ten Bosch  Nagasaki  Japan.
A similar Holland Village is being built in Shenyang  China.
Dutch value system      Dutch society is egalitarian and modern.
The Dutch have an aversion to the non essential.
Ostentatious behaviour is to be avoided.
As always  manners differ between groups.
Asking about basic rules will not be considered impolite.
On 1 April 2001  the Netherlands became the first nation to legalise same sex marriage.
Music      The Netherlands has multiple music traditions.
Themes can be light  but are often sentimental and include love  death and loneliness.
Artists in this genre include Jan Smit  Frans Bauer and André Hazes.
In the 1960s and 1970s the lyrics were mostly in English  and some tracks were instrumental.
Today Dutch rock and pop music thrives in both languages  with some artists recording in both.
Early 1990s Dutch and Belgian house music came together in Eurodance project 2 Unlimited.
Tracks like  Get Ready for This  are still popular themes of U.S. sports events  like the NHL.
Their most recent win was in 2019.
Ton Koopman is a Dutch conductor  organist and harpsichordist.
He is also professor at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague.
Notable violinists are Janine Jansen and André Rieu.
Headquartered in Amsterdam  Endemol has around 90 companies in over 30 countries.
A Dutch National Olympic Committee was established in 1912.
The Netherlands women s field hockey team is the most successful team in World Cup history.
The Netherlands baseball team have won the European championship 20 times out of 32 events.
Dutch K 1 kickboxers have won the K 1 World Grand Prix 15 times out of 19 tournaments.
They finished fourth at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Motorcycle racing at the TT Circuit Assen has a long history.
Recently cricket has made a remarkable progress in the Netherlands.
Netherlands have participated in 1996  2003  2007 and 2011 ODI cricket World Cup.
They have also qualified for 2009 and 2014 T20 World Cup.
Dutch cuisine is simple and straightforward  and contains many dairy products.
Breakfast and lunch are typically bread with toppings  with cereal for breakfast as an alternative.
Modern culinary writers distinguish between three general regional forms of Dutch cuisine.
Also smoked sausages are common  of which  Gelderse  rookworst is the most renowned.
The sausage contains a lot of fat and is very juicy.
Friese Nagelkaas  Friesian Clove  is a notable example.
The oliebol  in its modern form  and Zeeuwse bolus are good examples.
It is the only Dutch culinary region that developed an haute cuisine.
Pastries are abundant  often with rich fillings of cream  custard or fruits.
The traditional alcoholic beverage of the region is beer.
There are many local brands  ranging from Trappist to Kriek.
Beer  like wine in French cuisine  is also used in cooking  often in stews.
Over 350 years of mutual heritage has left a significant cultural mark on the Netherlands.
When the Dutch royal family was established in 1815  much of its wealth came from Colonial trade.
A dedicated Bronbeek Museum  a former home for retired KNIL soldiers  exists in Arnhem to this day.
Many Indonesian dishes and foodstuffs have become commonplace in the Netherlands.
New Zealand  Māori  Aotearoa  aɔˈtɛaɾɔa   is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean.
New Zealand s capital city is Wellington  and its most populous city is Auckland.
In 1642  the Dutch explorer  Abel Tasman  became the first European to sight New Zealand.
This set the names as North Island or Te Ika a Māui  and South Island or Te Waipounamu.
For each island  either its English or Māori name can be used  or both can be used together.
History     New Zealand is one of the last major landmasses settled by humans.
This represented a culmination in a long series of voyages through the Pacific islands.
In 1862 only 101 survived  and the last known full blooded Moriori died in 1933.
The introduction of the potato and the musket transformed Māori agriculture and warfare.
The Treaty of Waitangi was first signed in the Bay of Islands on 6 February 1840.
The colony gained a representative government in 1852  and the first Parliament met in 1854.
Elizabeth II is the queen of New Zealand and thus the head of state.
the power to dissolve parliament or refuse the royal assent of a bill into law .
It also included an upper house  the Legislative Council  until this was abolished in 1950.
Elections since the 1930s have been dominated by two political parties  National and Labour.
The current prime minister is Jacinda Ardern  who has been in office since 26 October 2017.
New Zealand has a strong presence among the Pacific Island countries.
New Zealand has been described as an emerging power.
New Zealand s national defence needs are modest since a direct attack is unlikely.
However  its military has had a global presence.
Five of the territorial councils are unitary authorities and also act as regional councils.
The Cook Islands and Niue are self governing states in free association with New Zealand.
It is divided along its length by the Southern Alps.
The North Island is less mountainous but is marked by volcanism.
North Island cities are generally warmest in February.
South Island cities are warmest in January.
The remaining vegetation types consist of grasslands  the majority of which are tussock.
Some  such as the tuatara  are so unique that they have been called living fossils.
Many seabirds breed in New Zealand  a third of them unique to the country.
Others are endangered or have had their range severely reduced.
It is a high income economy with a nominal gross domestic product  GDP  per capita of US 36 254.
New Zealand has experienced a series of  brain drains  since the 1970s that still continue today.
Today New Zealand s economy benefits from a high level of innovation.
Wool was New Zealand s major agricultural export during the late 19th century.
New Zealand ranks 21st in the OECD for its gross R D spending as a percentage of GDP.
As of February 2021  the total population has risen to an estimated 5 119 170.
New Zealand s population increased at a rate of 1.9  per year in the seven years ended June 2020.
Auckland  with over 1 million residents  is by far the largest city.
New Zealand cities generally rank highly on international livability measures.
In 2018 the median age of the New Zealand population was 38.1 years.
As of 2016  total expenditure on health care  including private sector spending  is 9.2  of GDP.
Over half  52.4   of New Zealand s overseas born population lives in the Auckland Region.
Another 48.5  indicated that they had no religion.
The Māori based Ringatū and Rātana religions  1.2   are also Christian in origin.
The Auckland Region exhibited the greatest religious diversity.
At the time  New Zealand was not known as an intellectual country.
The silver fern is an emblem appearing on army insignia and sporting team uniforms.
Certain items of popular culture thought to be unique to New Zealand are called  Kiwiana .
Surface patterns consisting of spirals  ridges  notches and fish scales decorate most carvings.
Dunedin is a UNESCO City of Literature.
Pipe bands became widespread during the early 20th century.
Recorded Music NZ also publishes the country s official weekly record charts.
Public radio was introduced in New Zealand in 1922.
A state owned television service began in 1960.
Deregulation in the 1980s saw a sudden increase in the numbers of radio and television stations.
The number of New Zealand films significantly increased during the 1970s.
Sport      Most of the major sporting codes played in New Zealand have British origins.
Rugby union is considered the national sport and attracts the most spectators.
Around 54  of New Zealand adolescents participate in sports for their school.
New Zealand has seen regular sailing success in the America s Cup regatta since 1995.
The country has ranked highly on a medals to population ratio at recent Games.
The book is also called the Nihongi  日本紀   Japanese Chronicles  .
It describes episodes from mythological eras and diplomatic contacts with other countries.
The process of compilation is usually studied by stylistic analysis of each chapter.
Although written in Literary Kanji  some sections use styles characteristic of Japanese editors.
It also includes documents and folklore submitted by clans serving the court.
The work s contributors refer to various sources which do not exist today.
Among those sources  three Baekje documents  Kudara ki etc.
undisplayed but Norton safeweb OK as of accessdate.
Retrieved 25 April 2018.  searchtext resource to retrieve kanbun text vs. English tr.
It faces the Sea of Japan and Sado Island.
The total area is 726.45 square kilometres  280.48 sq mi .
Niigata s city government was established in 1889.
Mergers with nearby municipalities in 2005 allowed the city s population to jump to 810 000.
On April 1  2007  it became the first government designated city on the Japan Sea coast of Honshu.
Toponymy    The place name  Niigata  was first recorded in 1520  Eisho 17 .
Its name in kanji can be translated as 新  new   潟  lagoon   市  city .
However  as there is no record about the origin of the name  this had led to several theories.
First  Niigata  was a large lagoon at the mouth of the Shinano river.
Second it was an inland bay at the river s entrance.
Third it was the name of a village that stood on an island within the estuary.
According to the Nihon Shoki  a fortress was built in the area in AD 647.
The area prospered beneath the rule of Uesugi Kenshin during the Sengoku Period.
Niigata annexed Nuttari in 1914.
A devastating fire in 1955 destroyed much of the downtown area  but eventually the city recovered.
The Niigata Thermal Power Station Unit 1 started operation in July 1963.
In 1964  the old canals that flowed throughout the city were filled in to make way for more roads.
The line was extended to Tokyo in 1991.
Big Swan Stadium in Niigata City hosted three games during the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
In May 2008  the city hosted the 2008 G8 Labor Ministers Meeting.
The Shinano River and Agano River flow through the city.
Numerous wetlands  such as the Fukushimagata wetlands  can be found within the city limits.
However  Niigata City does receive much precipitation  mostly in the form of rainfall.
It handles some international destinations as well as many domestic ones.
Railway     The largest station in Niigata City is Niigata Station.
Approximately 37 000 passengers use the station daily.
The Jōetsu Shinkansen  which terminates at Niigata Station  provides daily service to Tokyo.
These lines serve Myoko  Itoigawa  Akita  Sakata  and Aizuwakamatsu.
Niigata Prefecture  新潟県  Niigata ken  is a prefecture in the Chūbu region of Honshu of Japan.
He unified the leaders of Echigo Province and became its sole ruler.
It has since played an important role in trade with Russia and Korea.
These included the Jōetsu Shinkansen high speed rail line and the Kanetsu Expressway to Tokyo.
On January 9  2006  a heavy winter storm struck the prefecture and its neighbors.
At least 71 people died and more than 1 000 were injured.
On July 16  2007  another earthquake hit the area.
Niigata Prefecture hosts the Fuji Rock Festival  an annual event held at the Naeba ski resort.
The mouth of the Shinano River  the longest river in Japan  is located in Niigata Prefecture.
Rice related industries are also very important to the prefectural economy.
Niigata Prefecture is known throughout Japan for its high quality sake  senbei  mochi  and arare.
In sake production  the prefecture comes third after Gunma and Kyoto prefectures.
The prefecture was also the place of origin of the ornamental carp known as koi.
Along with Toyama Prefecture  it produces the highest volume of tulips in the country.
Kerosene heaters are also produced for use in the cold Niigata winters.
Kinzan  on Sado Island  was an active gold mine until it was closed in 1989.
Sanjō and Tsubame produce 90 percent of all the silverware made in Japan.
The two cities are second after Osaka in the production of scissors  kitchen knives  and wrenches.
It has been closed since the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster.
Demographics    In the Census of 2003  Niigata ranked as the 14th most populous.
The Ninth East Asia Summit was held in Nay Pyi Taw  Myanmar  Burma  on November 12–13  2014.
The summit also rejected any linkage between religion and terrorism.
Japan is divided into 47 administrative prefectures and eight traditional regions.
In 1937  Japan invaded China  in 1941  it entered World War II as an Axis power.
The characters 日本 mean  sun origin .
Clay vessels from the period are among the oldest surviving examples of pottery.
In 784  Emperor Kanmu moved the capital  settling on Heian kyō  modern Kyoto  in 794.
After Yoritomo s death  the Hōjō clan came to power as regents for the shōguns.
Go Daigo was defeated by Ashikaga Takauji in 1336  beginning the Muromachi period  1336–1573 .
When open war broke out  Ieyasu defeated rival clans in the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600.
The Edo period gave rise to kokugaku   national studies    the study of Japan by the Japanese.
Geography     Japan comprises 6852 islands extending along the Pacific coast of Asia.
The Ryukyu Islands  which include Okinawa  are a chain to the south of Kyushu.
The Nanpō Islands are south and east of the main islands of Japan.
Together they are often known as the Japanese archipelago.
As of 2019  Japan s territory is 377 975.24 km2  145 937.06 sq mi .
Japan has the sixth longest coastline in the world at 29 751 km  18 486 mi .
It has the 17th highest natural disaster risk as measured in the 2016 World Risk Index.
Japan has 111 active volcanoes.
In the summer  the region sometimes experiences extremely hot temperatures because of the foehn.
The Ryukyu and Nanpō Islands have a subtropical climate  with warm winters and hot summers.
Precipitation is very heavy  especially during the rainy season.
The main rainy season begins in early May in Okinawa  and the rain front gradually moves north.
In late summer and early autumn  typhoons often bring heavy rain.
Responding to rising concern  the government introduced environmental protection laws in 1970.
Japan is the world s fifth largest emitter of carbon dioxide.
In 2020 the government of Japan announced a target of carbon neutrality by 2050.
Japan s legislative organ is the National Diet  a bicameral parliament.
The Constitution of Japan  adopted in 1947  is the oldest unamended constitution in the world.
The main body of Japanese statutory law is called the Six Codes.
Military      Japan is the second highest ranked Asian country in the Global Peace Index 2020.
Japan maintains one of the largest military budgets of any country in the world.
As of 2019  Japan s labor force consisted of 67 million workers.
Japan has a low unemployment rate of around 2.4 percent.
Around 16 percent of the population were below the poverty line in 2017.
Its main exports are motor vehicles  iron and steel products  semiconductors and auto parts.
Japan ranks highly for competitiveness and economic freedom.
It is ranked sixth in the Global Competitiveness Report for 2015–2016.
Only 11.5  of Japan s land is suitable for cultivation.
Because of this lack of arable land  a system of terraces is used to farm in small areas.
Japan s small agricultural sector is highly subsidized and protected.
Japan has sparked controversy by supporting commercial whaling.
Japan s industrial sector makes up approximately 27.5  of its GDP.
For inbound tourism  Japan was ranked 11th in the world in 2019.
However  video gaming in Japan remains a major industry.
The space probe Akatsuki was launched in 2010 and achieved orbit around Venus in 2015.
Japan s plans in space exploration include building a moon base and landing astronauts by 2030.
The largest domestic airport  Haneda Airport in Tokyo  was Asia s second busiest airport in 2019.
Nuclear power was down from 11.2 percent in 2010.
Japan lacks significant domestic reserves and has a heavy dependence on imported energy.
Access to an improved water source is universal in Japan.
About 98  of the population receives piped water supply from public utilities.
In 2019  92  of the total Japanese population lived in cities.
The capital city Tokyo has a population of 13.8 million  2018 .
A growing number of younger Japanese are not marrying or remain childless.
Japan s population is expected to drop to around 100 million by 2050.
Today  1  to 1.5  of the population are Christians.
Almost all children continue their education at a three year senior high school.
The two top ranking universities in Japan are the University of Tokyo and Kyoto University.
Health      Health care is provided by national and local governments.
Another significant public health issue is smoking among Japanese men.
The Shrines of Ise have been celebrated as the prototype of Japanese architecture.
The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter is considered the oldest extant Japanese narrative.
In its literary forms  Japanese philosophy began about fourteen centuries ago.
Buddhism has profoundly impacted Japanese psychology  metaphysics  and esthetics.
Performing arts      Japanese music is eclectic and diverse.
Many instruments  such as the koto  were introduced in the 9th and 10th centuries.
Noh is one of the oldest continuous theater traditions in the world.
Isagiyosa  潔さ  is a virtue of the capability of accepting death with composure.
Cherry blossoms are a symbol of isagiyosa in the sense of embracing the transience of the world.
Seafood and Japanese rice or noodles are traditional staples.
Traditional Japanese sweets are known as wagashi.
Ingredients such as red bean paste and mochi are used.
Beer has been brewed in Japan since the late 17th century.
Japan is a world renowned powerhouse of animation.
Sports      Traditionally  sumo is considered Japan s national sport.
Baseball is the most popular spectator sport in the country.
Japan s top professional league  Nippon Professional Baseball  was established in 1936.
The country co hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup with South Korea.
Japan is the most successful Asian Rugby Union country and hosted the 2019 IRB Rugby World Cup.
Locally  it is often called Puro Yakyū  プロ野球   meaning Professional Baseball.
Outside Japan  it is often just referred to as  Japanese baseball .
Both leagues have since adopted 146 game seasons  73 each at home   on road.
The Japanese baseball is wound more tightly than an American baseball.
The strike zone is narrower  inside  than away from the batter.
Unlike North American baseball  Japanese baseball games may end in a tie.
This time included delays due to weather  but power failures would result in a called game.
Financial problems    Financial problems plague many teams in the league.
Most teams have never tried to improve their finances through constructive marketing.
In that year  the J.League professional soccer league was founded.
Free agents are not subject to the posting system  however.
The team was officially renamed the Yomiuri Giants in 1947.
Nagata became the first president of the Pacific League.
The league now known as Nippon Pro Baseball began play in the 1950 season.
This brought the number of Central League teams down to an ungainly arrangement of seven.
This enabled the Central League to shrink  to an even number of six teams.
The Unions existed for a single season  finishing in last place  43 1 2 games out of first.
In 1958  the Unions merged with the Mainichi Orions to form the Daimai Orions.
This enabled the Pacific League to contract from the ungainly seven team arrangement to six teams.
The Black Mist Scandal rocked Nippon Professional Baseball between 1969 and 1971.
In 1975  the Pacific League adopted the designated hitter rule.
Nomo pitched over the span of 14 seasons in the Major Leagues before retiring in 2008.
He won the Rookie of the Year Award in 1995.
He had ten consecutive 200 hit seasons  the longest streak by any player in history.
He was the first power hitter from Japan to succeed in Major League Baseball.
Kazuhiro Sasaki — a closer famed for his splitter  known as  The Fang .
In 2001 and 2002  he was an All Star.
After 2003  he returned to Japan to pitch in the NPB until his retirement in 2005.
His seven seasons in Major League Baseball were not as successful  and he later returned to NPB.
All these changes took place before the 2005 season.
This was reduced to two two game series in 2007.
All interleague play games are played in a seven week span near the middle of the season.
The winner becomes the representative of the Pacific League to the Japan Series.
Balantien finished the season with 60 home runs.
The goal of such a move would be to energize the economies of the regions receiving the new teams.
The shortened 120 game regular season began on 19 June.
If there are four  they cannot all be pitchers nor all be position players.
Hundreds of foreigners — particularly Americans — have played NPB.
American players began to steadily find spots on NPB rosters in the 1960s.
Franchise locations     Locations are listed from north to south.
Only the most prominent names of each franchise are listed.
FTTC or FTTB FTTH   it enjoys oligopolistic control over land lines in Japan.
NTT Communications is not regulated by the NTT Law.
In August 2011  its network capacity was expanded to 500 Gbit s.
NTT East  NTT West  NTT Communications  NTT Docomo  and NTT Data are most major subsidiaries.
NTT Docomo and NTT Data are listed on the stock markets.
NTT Urban Development is a subsidiary involved in real estate.
NTT Communications  business outside of Japan became part of NTT Ltd. on 1 July 2019.
In 2019  NTT also became title sponsor of the series.
Nobel Prizes were first awarded in 1901.
The prize ceremonies take place annually.
Each recipient  known as a  laureate   receives a gold medal  a diploma  and a monetary award.
Four individuals have received more than one Nobel Prize.
He was a chemist  engineer  and inventor.
It was Alfred s brother Ludvig who had died  the obituary was eight years premature.
The article disconcerted Nobel and made him apprehensive about how he would be remembered.
This inspired him to change his will.
He was 63 years old.Nobel wrote several wills during his lifetime.
Soon thereafter  the other prize awarding organizations were designated.
In 1905  the personal union between Sweden and Norway was dissolved.
The Nobel Prize was funded by Alfred Nobel s personal fortune.
Its function is to manage the finances and administration of the Nobel Prizes.
The Foundation is not involved in the process of selecting the Nobel laureates.
The distribution can vary by 10 percent.
Further costs to pay institutions and persons engaged in giving the prizes were 27.4 million krona.
The administration  Nobel symposium  and similar items had costs of 22.4 million krona.
The cost of the Economic Sciences prize of 16.5 Million krona is paid by the Sveriges Riksbank.
Subsequently  they sent a list of preliminary candidates to the prize awarding institutions.
In the last decades of the 19th century  many chemists had made significant contributions.
The Academy received 20 nominations  eleven of them for Jacobus van  t Hoff.
Each man was later able to receive the diploma and medal.
In 1939  the Peace Prize was not awarded.
No prize was awarded in any category from 1940 to 1942  due to the occupation of Norway by Germany.
Thus it was a safe haven from the German military  which was not at war with Sweden.
These members kept the work of the Committee going  but did not award any prizes.
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences became responsible for selecting laureates.
These individuals are generally prominent academics working in a relevant area.
The deadline for the return of the nomination forms is 31 January of the year of the award.
The Nobel Committee nominates about 300 potential laureates from these forms and additional names.
All nomination records for a prize are sealed for 50 years from the awarding of the prize.
The institutions meet to choose the laureate or laureates in each field by a majority vote.
Their decision  which cannot be appealed  is announced immediately after the vote.
A maximum of three laureates and two different works may be selected per award.
Since 1974  laureates must be thought alive at the time of the October announcement.
Early on  the awards usually recognised recent discoveries.
However  some of those early discoveries were later discredited.
The Peace Prize can also be awarded for a lifetime body of work.
However  they can also be awarded for specific recent events.
Not all scientists live long enough for their work to be recognised.
The recipients  lectures are normally held in the days prior to the award ceremony.
The award ceremonies and the associated banquets are typically major international events.
At first  King Oscar II did not approve of awarding grand prizes to foreigners.
The Nobel Peace Prize banquet is held in Norway at the Oslo Grand Hotel after the award ceremony.
In total  about 250 guests attend.
The Nobel lecture as a rhetorical genre took decades to reach its current format.
The lectures are organized by the same association which selected the laureates.
In 2011  the Mint of Norway  located in Kongsberg  made the medals.
For instance  the laureate s name is engraved on the rim of the Economics medal.
The image on the reverse of a medal varies according to the institution awarding the prize.
All medals made before 1980 were struck in 23 carat gold.
Since then  they have been struck in 18 carat green gold plated with 24 carat gold.
After the war  the gold was recovered from solution  and the medals re cast.
None of the Nobel Peace Prize laureates has ever had a citation on their diplomas.
The amount of prize money depends upon how much money the Nobel Foundation can award each year.
In 2009  the monetary award was 10 million SEK  US 1.4 million .
In June 2012  it was lowered to 8 million SEK.
They have also been accused of Eurocentrism  especially for the Literature Prize.
This led to the resignation of two Norwegian Nobel Committee members.
However  when the award was announced  both sides were still engaging in hostilities.
The 2009 Literature Prize to Herta Müller also generated criticism.
This made those critics feel the prizes were too Eurocentric.
Gandhi could do without the Nobel Peace Prize.
Whether Nobel committee can do without Gandhi is the question.
Other high profile individuals with widely recognised contributions to peace have been overlooked.
He consulted staff and later replied that he would.
The Literature Prize also has controversial omissions.
The heavy focus on European and Swedish authors has been a subject of criticism.
He died in 1963 without being awarded.
These are the three most nominated scientists without awards in the data published as of 2016.
All five physicists arrived at the same conclusion  albeit from different angles.
Political subterfuge may also deny proper recognition.
Only person to receive more than one unshared Nobel Prizes Linus Pauling  received the prize twice.
Linus Pauling  received the prize twice.
John Bardeen  received the prize twice.
Frederick Sanger  received the prize twice.
International Committee of the Red Cross  received the prize three times.
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees  received the prize twice.
Dag Hammarskjöld  received Nobel Peace Prize  1961 .
Marie Curie received the prizes in Physics  in 1903  and Chemistry  in 1911 .
Her husband  Pierre Curie  shared the 1903 Physics prize with her.
J. J. Thomson was awarded the Physics Prize in 1906 for showing that electrons are particles.
Niels Bohr was awarded the Physics prize in 1922  as was his son  Aage Bohr  in 1975.
Economics laureates Paul Samuelson and Kenneth Arrow were brothers in law.
In 2019  married couple Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo were awarded the Economics Prize.
Refusals and constraints     Two laureates have voluntarily declined the Nobel Prize.
All of them were awarded their diplomas and gold medals after World War II.
This is sometimes referred to as Nobel disease.
To learn how to add open license text to Wikipedia articles  please see this how to page.
For information on reusing text from Wikipedia  please see the terms of use.
Subtle is the Lord  The Science and the Life of Albert Einstein  Third ed. .
The Swedish Academy decides who  if anyone  will receive the prize.
The academy announces the name of the laureate in early October.
It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895.
On some occasions the award has been postponed to the following year  most recently in 2018.
In 1900  the Nobel Foundation s newly created statutes were promulgated by King Oscar II.
By April  the Academy narrows the field to around twenty candidates.
By May  a short list of five names is approved by the Committee.
The next four months are spent in reading and reviewing the works of the five candidates.
Other elements of the process are similar to those of other Nobel Prizes.
The amount of money awarded depends on the income of the Nobel Foundation that year.
It is the second richest literary prize in the world.
The image on the reverse of a medal varies according to the institution awarding the prize.
The medal for the Nobel Prize in Literature was designed by Erik Lindberg.
Diplomas     Nobel laureates receive a Diploma directly from the King of Sweden.
The prize has been shared between two individuals on four occasions.
It was not awarded on seven occasions.
The laureates have included writers in 25 different languages.
The youngest laureate was Rudyard Kipling  who was 41 years old when he was awarded in 1907.
It has been awarded posthumously once  to Erik Axel Karlfeldt in 1931.
In the early history of the prize Nobel s  idealism  was read as  a lofty and sound idealism .
In 2015 a rare prize to a non fiction writer was awarded to Svetlana Alexievich.
Shared prize     The Nobel Prize in Literature can be shared between two individuals.
Currently  only nominations submitted between 1901 and 1966 are available for public viewing.
Well  either it s just a rumour  or someone among the invited nominators has leaked information.
Since the nominations are kept secret for 50 years  you ll have to wait until then to find out.
As of 2016  16 of the 113 recipients have been of Scandinavian origin.
The Nobel Committee s interpretation has varied over the years.
In recent years  this means a kind of idealism championing human rights on a broad scale.
The pacifistic author Romain Rolland was awarded the prize for 1915.
His comments have been the source of much commentary and debate.
The French writer Pierre Assouline described the decision as  contemptuous of writers .
I love that the nobel committee opens up for other kinds of literature – lyrics and so on.
They don t translate enough and don t really participate in the big dialogue of literature.
We tend to relate more easily to literature written in Europe and in the European tradition.
And why should we ask them to do that?
Thus  Camus was awarded the prize in 1957.W.
Members are not allowed to leave  although they might refuse to participate.
For members who do not participate their board seat is left vacant until they die.
Arnault was accused by at least 18 women of sexual assault and harassment.
The pursuit of excellence in art was entangled with the pursuit of social prestige.
In contrast to the other prizes mentioned  the Neustadt International Prize is awarded biennially.
Like the Nobel Prize  it is awarded not for any one work  but for an entire body of work.
It is frequently seen as an indicator of who may be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The Hans Christian Andersen Award is sometimes referred to as  the Little Nobel .
Non sovereign entities are marked in italics.
The Korean Peninsula was inhabited as early as the Lower Paleolithic period.
Its first kingdom was noted in Chinese records in the early 7th century BCE.
The succeeding Korean Empire was annexed into the Empire of Japan in 1910.
It is a member of the OECD s Development Assistance Committee  the G20 and the Paris Club.
Its citizens enjoy one of the world s fastest Internet connection speeds.
The country is the world s fifth largest exporter and eighth largest importer.
Etymology     The name Korea derives from the name Goryeo.
The new official name has its origin in the ancient kingdom of Gojoseon  2333 BCE .
Under Japanese rule  the two names Han and Joseon coexisted.
Great Korean People s State   listen  was adopted as the legal English name for the new country.
However  it is not a direct translation of the Korean name.
Gojoseon was noted in Chinese records in the early 7th century.
Gojoseon expanded until it controlled the northern Korean Peninsula and parts of Manchuria.
Three of the commanderies fell or retreated westward within a few decades.
Balhae was founded by a Goguryeo general and formed as a successor state to Goguryeo.
Relationships between Korea and China remained relatively peaceful during this time.
Like Silla  Goryeo was a highly cultural state  and invented the metal movable type printing press.
However  the Mongol invasions in the 13th century greatly weakened the kingdom.
In October  the Soviet Union declared Kim Il sung s government as sovereign over both parts.
No peace treaty was ever signed  resulting in the two countries remaining technically at war.
In addition  virtually all of Korea s major cities were destroyed by the war.
This instability was broken by the May 16  1961  coup led by General Park Chung hee.
The Korean economy developed significantly during Park s tenure.
In 1979  General Chun Doo hwan led the Coup d état of December Twelfth.
Following the Coup d état  Chun Doo hwan planned to rise to power through several measures.
Meanwhile  South Korea and Japan jointly co hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
In 2010  there was an escalation in attacks by North Korea.
The COVID 19 pandemic affected the nation in 2020.
Its southern tip lies on the Korea Strait and the East China Sea.
Lowlands  located primarily in the west and southeast  make up only 30  of the total land area.
Jeju do is about 100 kilometers  62 miles  off the southern coast of South Korea.
It is the country s largest island  with an area of 1 845 square kilometers  712 square miles .
South Korea has four distinct seasons  spring  summer  autumn and winter.
Rainfall is concentrated in the summer months of June through September.
They are also more difficult to design and implement than a Feed in tariff.
Efforts have also been made with afforestation projects.
Local governments are semi autonomous  and contain executive and legislative bodies of their own.
The judicial branch operates at both the national and local levels.
South Korea is a constitutional democracy.
The first direct election was also held in 1948.
The capital city of Seoul is also the country s largest city and chief industrial center.
According to the 2005 census  Seoul had a population of 10 million inhabitants.
The population has also been shaped by international migration.
South Korea is nevertheless becoming a more multi ethnic society over time due to immigration.
The percentage of foreign nationals has been growing rapidly.
South Korea has the steepest decline in working age population of the OECD nations.
The schedules are not uniformly standardized and vary from school to school.
The country has one of the world s highest educated labour forces among OECD countries.
Of the people who are affiliated with a religious organization  most are Christians and Buddhists.
Freedom of religion is guaranteed by the constitution  and there is no state religion.
Among Christian denominations  Presbyterianism is the largest.
It remained the state religion in Later Silla  North South States Period  and Goryeo.
Today  South Korea has about 7 million Buddhists  most of them affiliated to the Jogye Order.
Most of the National Treasures of South Korea are Buddhist artifacts.
Health      South Korea has a universal healthcare system.
It also had the OECD s second largest number of hospital beds per 1000 people at 9.56 beds.
Foreign relations     South Korea maintains diplomatic relations with more than 188 countries.
Moon Jae in s administration has focused on increasing South Korea s consumption of natural gas.
On June 22  Moon Jae in and Putin signed a document for foundation of free trade area.
The Liancourt Rocks were the first Korean territories to be forcibly colonized by Japan in 1905.
When concerns arise at games time we look at them on a case by case basis.
The free trade agreement was approved in September 2010  and took effect on July 1  2011.
On October 12  2011  the U.S. Congress passed the long stalled trade agreement with South Korea.
It went into effect on March 15  2012.
As of 2019 South Korea has a defense budget of  43.1 billion.
Many of these forces are concentrated near the Korean Demilitarized Zone.
All South Korean males are constitutionally required to serve in the military  typically 18 months.
Previous exceptions for South Korean citizens of mixed race no longer apply since 2011.
From time to time  South Korea has sent its troops overseas to assist American forces.
A further 1 800 were deployed since 2007 to reinforce UN peacekeeping forces in Lebanon.
The vast majority of these are young men from the Jehovah s Witnesses Christian denomination.
See Conscription in South Korea.
It recorded  the fastest rise in average GDP per capita in the world between 1980 and 1990.
South Koreans refer to this growth as the Miracle on the Han River.
Korea Expressway Corporation operates the toll highways and service amenities en route.
Korail provides frequent train services to all major South Korean cities.
Two rail lines  Gyeongui and Donghae Bukbu Line  to North Korea are now being reconnected.
The Korean high speed rail system  KTX  provides high speed service along Gyeongbu and Honam Line.
Other international airports include Gimpo  Busan and Jeju.
A second carrier  Asiana Airlines also serves domestic and international traffic.
Combined  South Korean airlines serve 297 international routes.
Fuel production and waste handling technologies have also been developed locally.
South Korea ranked number 10 overall in the 2014 NRI ranking  up from 11 in 2013.
South Korea s pension system structure is primarily based on taxation and is income related.
Voluntarily insured persons are not subjected to mandatory coverage but can choose to be.
An estimated 90  of South Koreans own a mobile phone.
The launch of Naro 1 in August 2009 resulted in a failure.
The second attempt in June 2010 was also unsuccessful.
However  the third launch of the Naro 1 in January 2013 was successful.
The Korean tea ceremony  pansori  talchum and buchaechum are also notable Korean performing arts.
Establishing a harmony between man and nature was also a favorite of this time.
Because of social instability  social issues appeared as main subjects in the 1980s.
Traditional architecture may also be seen at the nine UNESCO World Heritage Sites in South Korea.
Western architecture was first introduced to Korea at the end of the 19th century.
Ingredients and dishes vary by province.
Korean cuisine is largely based on rice  noodles  tofu  vegetables  fish and meats.
Every meal is accompanied by numerous banchan.
Soups known as guk  국  are often made with meats  shellfish and vegetables.
Similar to guk  tang  탕  湯  has less water  and is more often served in restaurants.
Popular Korean alcoholic beverages include Soju  Makgeolli and Bokbunja ju.
Korea is unique among East Asian countries in its use of metal chopsticks.
Metal chopsticks have been discovered in Goguryeo archaeological sites.
South Korean television shows have become popular outside of Korea.
South Korean television dramas  known as K dramas  have begun to find fame internationally.
Holidays      There are many official public holidays in South Korea.
Korean New Year s Day  or  Seollal   is celebrated on the first day of the Korean lunar calendar.
Korean Independence Day falls on March 1  and commemorates the March 1 Movement of 1919.
Liberation Day  on August 15  celebrates Korea s liberation from the Empire of Japan in 1945.
On October 1  Armed Forces day is celebrated  honoring the military forces of South Korea.
October 3 is National Foundation Day.
Sports      The martial art taekwondo originated in Korea.
However  the polling did not indicate the extent to which respondents follow both sports.
At the 2012 Summer Olympics  South Korea won the bronze medal for football.
The Korea Professional Baseball league  a 10 team circuit  was established in 1982.
In the 2008 Summer Olympics  South Korea won the gold medal in baseball.
Also in 1982  at the Baseball Worldcup  Korea won the gold medal.
At the 2010 Asian Games  the Korean National Baseball team won the gold medal.
Several Korean players have gone on to play in Major League Baseball.
Basketball is a popular sport in the country as well.
Seoul hosted the 1967 and 1995 Asian Basketball Championship.
The Korea national basketball team has won a record number of 23 medals at the event to date.
South Korea hosted the Asian Games in 1986  Seoul   2002  Busan   and 2014  Incheon .
The Seoul Olympic Museum is dedicated to the 1988 Summer Olympics.
On July 6  2011  Pyeongchang was chosen by the IOC to host the 2018 Winter Olympics.
At the 2010 Winter Olympics  South Korea ranked fifth in the overall medal rankings.
South Korea is especially strong in short track speed skating.
In 2011  the South Korean city of Daegu hosted the 2011 IAAF World Championships in Athletics.
The two most popular games are League of Legends and StarCraft.
The gaming scene of South Korea is managed by the Korean e Sports Association.
The name of the city means North Kyushu in Japanese.
To avoid confusion the name of the region was changed.
Nuclear power energy was a national strategic priority in Japan.
All Japan s nuclear plants were closed  or their operations suspended for safety inspections.
The Atomic Energy Basic Law limited activities to only peaceful purposes.
It also omits a section on nuclear power expansion that was in last year s policy review.
On 1 July 2012 unit 3 of the Ōi Nuclear Power Plant was restarted.
This reactor can provide 1 180 MW of electricity.
On 21 July 2012 unit 4 was restarted  also 1 180 MW.
The additional fuel costs to compensate for its nuclear reactors being idled was ¥3.6 trillion.
In May 2014 the Fukui District Court blocked the restart of the Oi reactors.
In November 2016 Japan signed a nuclear cooperation agreement with India.
But all the lawsuits were unsuccessful .
The March 2011 earthquake was a magnitude 9.
Nuclear power plants     As of May 2019  there are 39 operable reactors in Japan.
Of these  9 reactors in 5 power plants are currently operating.
Kan wanted to avoid a possible repeat of the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
On 9 May 2011  Chubu Electric decided to comply with the government request.
A permanent exclusion zone could end up stretching beyond the plant’s perimeter.
37 workers were exposed to low doses of radiation.
Donen later acknowledged it had initially suppressed information about the fire.
Nuclear waste disposal    Japanese policy is to reprocess its spent nuclear fuel.
Kōchi Prefecture showed interest in 2007  but its mayor resigned due to local opposition.
It replaced the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency and the Nuclear Safety Commission.
Nuclear Safety Commission 原子力安全委員会 – The former Japanese regulatory body for the nuclear industry.
For more background information  see Energy in Japan.
The companies are listed below.
The following is an incomplete list of companies based in Japan that provide such services.
Japan operates a robust nuclear fuel cycle.
The Tōkai site produces BWR  HTR  and ATR fuel while the Kumatori site produces only PWR fuel.
Japan Nuclear Fuel Limited  JNFL  JNF    日本原燃 The shareholders of JNFL are the Japanese utilities.
MHI has also announced an alliance with Areva to form a new company called Atmea.
Its next generation reactor  the ESBWR has made significant progress with US regulators.
This organization operated Lojo and Monju experimental and demonstration reactors.
It was formed by a merger of JAERI and JNC in 2005.
The Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology is the academic journal run by the AESJ.
Construction of new plants continued to be strong through the 1980s and into the 1990s.
In July 2012  75 000 people gathered near in Tokyo for the capital s largest anti nuclear event.
Nuclear Power for Good  Articulations in Japan s Nuclear Power Hegemony.
Nuclear versus Natural Gas  An Assessment on the Drivers Influencing Japan s Energy Future.
Review of Japan s power generation scenarios in light of the Fukushima nuclear accident.
At MacArthur s insistence  Emperor Hirohito remained on the imperial throne.
On August 28  1945  150 US personnel flew to Atsugi  Kanagawa Prefecture.
MacArthur arrived in Tokyo on August 30  and immediately decreed several laws.
No Allied personnel were to assault Japanese people.
No Allied personnel were to eat the scarce Japanese food.
This restriction was partially lifted in 1948 and completely lifted the following year.
The Soviet Union had some intentions of occupying Hokkaidō.
As expressed by Kawai Kazuo   Democracy cannot be taught to a starving people .
In fiscal year 1946  this aid amounted to US 92 million in loans.
Once the food network was in place MacArthur set out to win the support of Hirohito.
By the end of 1945  around 350 000 US personnel were stationed throughout Japan.
Honshu was occupied by the First Cavalry Division.
Hokkaido was occupied by the 11th Airborne Division.
At its peak  the force numbered about 40 000 personnel.
During 1947  BCOF began to decrease its activities in Japan  and officially wound up in 1951.
As a result  a new National Police Reserve armed with military grade weaponry was created.
In 1954  the Japan Self Defense Forces were founded as a full scale military in all but name.
Historians emphasize the similarity to the American New Deal programs of the 1930s.
Economic deconcentration  for example  was left uncompleted as GHQ responded to new imperatives.
The hereditary peerage kazoku were abolished in 1947.
A new Trade Union Law was passed on June 1  1949  which remains in place to the present day.
The Imperial Rescript on Education was repealed  and the Imperial University system reorganized.
The directive ordered the release of political prisoners.
In the bureaucracy  the purge was negligible from the outset....
Two weeks into the occupation  the Occupation administration began censoring all media.
This included any mention of rape or other sensitive social issues.
The so called military government in Japan was therefore neither military nor government.
Political parties had begun to revive almost immediately after the occupation began.
Thereafter  the socialist party steadily declined in its electoral successes.
Over 5 000 Japanese Americans served in the occupation of Japan.
Thomas Sakamoto served as press escort during the occupation of Japan.
He escorted American correspondents to Hiroshima  and the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay.
Arthur S. Komori served as personal interpreter for Brig.
Kan Tagami witnessed Japanese forces surrender to the British in Malaya.
The Treaty of San Francisco  which was to end the occupation  was signed on September 8  1951.
Iwo Jima was returned to Japan in 1968  and most of Okinawa was returned in 1972.
Following the American departure  Japan gained military protection from the United States.
US bases in and around Tokyo  Hiroshima  Nagasaki  Aomori  Sapporo  and Ishikari are active.
Cultural reaction     Hirohito s surrender broadcast was a profound shock to Japanese citizens.
Alcohol and drug abuse became major problems.
Inflation was rampant and many people turned to the black market for even the most basic goods.
In the 1950s  kasutori culture emerged.
However  not everyone reacted the same way to the hardships of the postwar period.
While some succumbed to the difficulties  many more were resilient.
As the country regained its footing  they were able to bounce back as well.
Leftists looked upon the occupation forces as a  liberation army .
In the first postwar general elections of 1946  over a third of the votes were cast by women.
Indeed  the occupation also had a great impact on relationships between men and women in Japan.
Westerners  as a result  were thought to be promiscuous and sexually deviant.
Nippon Communists March Through Allied Ruled Tokyo  Ask Removal of Jap Emperor .
He is regarded as the first  Great Unifier  of Japan.
He then conquered most of Honshu  and defeated the Ikkō ikki rebels by the 1580s.
Toyotomi Hideyoshi would later unite Japan in 1591  and invade Korea a year later.
Oda Nobuhiro  Nobuhide s eldest son  became the new head of the Oda clan.
Afterwards  Nobuhiro was forced to step down and allow Nobunaga to be the new head of the Oda clan.
Nobunaga s main rival as head of the Oda clan was his younger brother  Oda Nobuyuki.
In 1556  Nobunaga destroyed and razed  a rival branch of the Oda clan located in Kiyosu Castle.
The Matsudaira clan also joined Yoshimoto s forces  and Sieged Marune Fortress.
Against this  the Oda clan could rally an army of only 2 000 to 3 000 men.
When the storm ceased  they charged down upon the enemy.
Eventually  they mounted a victorious final attack at the Siege of Inabayama Castle.
Remains of Nobunaga s residence in Gifu can be found today in Gifu Park.
The approaching Oda army influenced the Matsunaga clan to submit to the future Shogun.
However  Nobunaga refused the title of Shōgun s deputy  Kanrei   or any appointment from Yoshiaki.
With this pretext well in hand  Nobunaga raised an army and marched on Echizen.
Later  they clashed at the Battle of Anegawa.
Nobunaga advanced to the southern bank of the Anegawa.
The battle turned into a melee fought in the middle of the shallow Ane River.
After the Tokugawa forces finished off the Asakura  they turned and hit the Azai right flank.
This action gained him renown as the Demon Daimyo or Devil King.
Shortly thereafter  the Takeda forces were neutralized after Shingen died in April of 1573.
Ieyasu appealed to Nobunaga for help and  Nobunaga personally lead an army of about 30 000 men.
The end of the Takeda clan came in 1582  when Oda Tokugawa forces conquered Kai Province.
Takeda Katsuyori was defeated at the Battle of Tenmokuzan and then committed seppuku.
They clashed at the Battle of Tedorigawa in Kaga Province in November 1577.
The names of the wars are derived from the Tenshō era name  1573–92  in which they occurred.
By this point  Nobunaga was preparing to launch invasions into Echigo Province and Shikoku.
Although Nobunaga and his servants resisted the unexpected intrusion  they were soon overwhelmed.
As the Akechi troops closed in  Nobunaga decided to commit seppuku in one of the inner rooms.
Nobunaga s remains were never found  a fact often speculated about by writers and historians.
Hideyoshi continued and completed Nobunaga s conquest of Japan within the following decade.
Oda Nobunaga was the first for whom this goal seemed attainable.
Influence          Military     Militarily  Nobunaga changed the way war was fought in Japan.
They wore distinctive uniforms which fostered esprit de corps  red troops and black troops.
He was ruthless and cruel in battle  pursuing fugitives without compassion.
Through wanton slaughter  he became the ruler of 20 provinces.
This included setting standards for the road widths and planting trees along roadsides.
This was to ease the transport of soldiers and war material in addition to commerce.
He built extensive gardens and castles which were themselves great works of art.
It was his concubines Kitsuno and Lady Saka who bore his children.
Kitsuno gave birth to Nobunaga s eldest son  Nobutada.
Nobutada s son Hidenobu became ruler of the Oda clan after the deaths of Nobunaga and Nobutada.
These three nieces of Nobunaga became involved with important historical figures.
Chacha  also known as Lady Yodo   the eldest  became the mistress of Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
O Hatsu married Kyōgoku Takatsugu.
Served the Oda clan for two generations.
His original name was Hirate Kiyohide  平手 清秀 .
He was also known as Michikatsu  通勝 .
His court title was Sado no Kami.
Kotegiri Masamune sword     Kotegiri means  Kote cutter .
Oda Nobunaga gained possession of this sword and had it shortened to its present length.
The film Goemon portrays him as a saintly mentor of Ishikawa Goemon.
In James Clavell s novel Shōgun  the character Goroda is a pastiche of Nobunaga.
In the film Sengoku Jieitai 1549  Nobunaga is killed by time travellers.
He is the main character of the stage action and anime adaptation of Nobunaga the Fool.
Therein  he displays equal parts tactical brilliance and gleeful brutality.
The DAC first used the term in 1969.
It is widely used as an indicator of international aid flow.
Most ODA comes from the 30 members of the DAC  or about  135 billion in 2013.
Seven countries met the longstanding UN target for an ODA GNI ratio of 0.7  in 2015.
The OECD reports that in 2009 Africa received the largest amount of ODA  at  28 billion.
Asia received the second largest amount at  24 billion.
The Hungarian economist Peter Thomas Bauer has been one of the most vocal of them.
Another notable economist arguing against ODA is Dambisa Moyo in her book  Dead Aid.
The total area is 789.88 square kilometres  304.97 square miles .
The city is famous as the setting of the Japanese fable  Momotarō .
Okayama became the political and economical capital of Bizen Province.
The next year  Kobayakawa Hideaki came to Okayama and became the feudal lord of Okayama Domain.
Hideaki died in 1602  however  ending the Kobayakawa line.
Ikeda Tadatugu  who was the feudal lord of Himeji Domain  became the next lord of Okayama.
After this time  Okayama was ruled by the Ikedas until the latter part of the 19th century.
The Korakuen Garden was developed by the fourth feudal lord  Ikeda Tsunamasa.
Okayama became the capital of Okayama Prefecture.
In 1889  Okayama City was founded.
Okayama became one of the most important places in western Japan for transportation and education.
When World War II began  Okayama city had a Japanese Army base camp.
On June 29  1945  the city was attacked by the US Army Air Forces with incendiary bombs.
Almost all the city was burned  and more than 1700 people were killed.
Okayama suffered terrible damage in the war  losing more than 12 000 households.
In 1972  the San yō Shinkansen began service between Shin Ōsaka and Okayama stations.
Two years later  Shinkansen service was extended to Hakata.
The city became a core city in 1996 and a designated city on April 1  2009.
The city is bounded on the south by the Inland Sea.
Since Okayama became a designated city in 2009  the city has been divided into four wards  ku .
Climate    Okayama has a mild climate in comparison to most of Japan.
It has the most rain free days  less than 1mm of precipitation  of any city in Japan.
It is ranked as the second driest and the fourth sunniest city in the Chūgoku region.
Okayama is often called  Land of Sunshine  because of its low number of rainy days per year.
White peaches and grapes are cultivated in the mountainous  northern part of the city.
Greater Okayama  Okayama Metropolitan Employment Area  has a GDP of US 63.1 billion as of 2010.
The main industries are machine tools  chemicals  foodstuffs and printing.
Kōnan  a district in the southern part of the city  is the most developed industrial zone.
Omotechō has many covered shopping arcades.
Culture     Okayama Castle and Kōraku en are Okayama s most notable attractions.
It was destroyed by bombing in 1945 during World War II but reconstructed in 1966.
Kōrakuen was constructed by Ikeda Tsunamasa over 14 years  and completed in 1700.
Several of the abbots of major monasteries in Kyoto are from Sōgen ji.
Cuisine     Okayama has several traditional dishes.
Barazushi  ばらずし   a dish made with sushi rice  contains fresh fish from the Seto Inland Sea.
Media      The Sanyo Shimbun is the local newspaper serving the greater Okayama area.
There are six television stations serving the Okayama area and part of Kagawa Prefecture.
Three FM and three AM radio stations also serve the region.
TV StationsRadio Stations       Sports     Okayama has many sports teams.
In 2009  Fagiano Okayama FC gained promotion to the J.
Okayama was the birthplace of the 31st Yokozuna  Tsunenohana Kan ichi  in 1896.
He won 10 championships  8 during his time as a Yokozuna.
Tramway     Okayama has kept an operational tram system since the Meiji period.
Okayama Prefecture is home to the historic town of Kurashiki.
Most of the population is concentrated around Kurashiki and Okayama.
The emperor s government sent Kibitsuhiko no mikoto  Momotarō  to defeat Ura.
The city of Okayama holds an annual Momotarō matsuri  or Momotarō Festival.
Sports     The sports teams listed below are based in Okayama.
It is the smallest and least populated of the five main islands of Japan.
It is roughly 640 kilometres  400 mi  south of the main island of Kyushu and the rest of Japan.
It is 500 km  300 mi  north of Taiwan.
The total population of Okinawa Island is 1 384 762.
Naha is the seat of Okinawa Prefecture on the southwestern part of Okinawa Island.
Okinawa has a humid subtropical climate.
The Early Shell Mound period was a hunter gatherer society  with wave like opening Jōmon pottery.
On Okinawa  rice was not cultivated until the Middle Shell Mound period.
This period is called the Gusuku period.
Gusuku is the term used for the distinctive Ryukyuan form of castles or fortresses.
Ryukyuan kings  such as Shunten and Eiso  were important rulers.
An attempted Mongolian invasion in 1291 during the Eiso Dynasty ended in failure.
Hiragana was imported from Japan by Ganjin in 1265.
Noro  village priestesses of the Ryukyuan religion  appeared.
The Hongwu Emperor sent 36 families from Fujian in 1392 at the request of the Ryukyuan king.
Their job was to manage maritime dealings in the kingdom.
They assisted the Ryukyuans in developing their technology and diplomatic relations.
His descendants conquered the Amami Islands.
Ryukyu was forced to cede the Amami Islands and become a vassal of Satsuma.
The kingdom became both a tributary of China and a tributary of Japan.
In 1879  Japan annexed the entire Ryukyu archipelago.
The Meiji government then established Okinawa Prefecture.
The monarchy in Shuri was abolished  and the deposed King Shō Tai was forced to relocate to Tokyo.
Okinawa Island had the bloodiest ground battle of the Pacific War from April 1 to June 22  1945.
Very few Japanese ended up in POW camps.
This may have been because of Japanese soldiers  reluctance to surrender.
The Amami Islands were returned to Japanese control in 1953.
The remaining Ryukyu Islands were returned to Japan on June 17  1971 .
America kept numerous U.S. military bases on the islands.
On 31 October 2019  the main courtyard structures of Shurijo were destroyed in a fire.
The modern inhabitants of Okinawa are mainly ethnic Okinawan  Japanese  half Japanese and mixed.
Five times as many Okinawans reach 100 years old compared to the rest of Japan.
Okinawans are known for their longevity.
Geography     Okinawa is the fifth largest island of Japan.
The island has an area of 1 206.99 square kilometers  466.02 sq mi .
The coastline is 476 kilometers  296 mi  long.
The straight line distance is about 106.6 kilometers  66.2 mi  from north to south.
Okinawa is in the northeastern end of Okinawa Prefecture.
Since 1972 over 1 000 hectares  2 500 acres  of land reclamation has been conducted.
It is roughly 640 kilometres  400 mi  south of the main island of Kyushu.
In the center and south is mainly a Ryukyu limestone layer and mudstone.
The topography is flat  there are few hills over 100 m  328 ft  with very few rivers.
The subtropical rains accelerates erosion so there are many drainages and uvala.
The northernmost Cape Hedo is only 22 km  14 mi  away from Yoronjima.
Cape Arasaki is the southernmost location of Okinawa island.
It is sometimes confused with Cape Kiyanmisaki.
There are many endemic species of flora and fauna.
The critically endangered Okinawa woodpecker is also endemic on this island.
The island supports a dense northern forest and a rainy season occurring in the late spring.
This contrasts with the mainland soba  which is buckwheat noodles.
Rafute  which is braised pork belly  is another popular Okinawan dish.
There is also agriculture with tropical fruit such as Malpighia emarginata.
There are also a smaller contingent of Japanese military bases on the island.
Most U.S. military are in Okinawa Prefecture.
About 26 000 U.S. military personnel are on Okinawa Island.
There are 32 United States military bases on Okinawa Island.
Approximately 62  of all United States bases in Japan are on Okinawa.
They cover 25  of Okinawa island.
The major bases are Futenma  Kadena  Hansen  Torii  Schwab  Foster  and Kinser.
There are 28 U.S. military facilities on Okinawa.
They are mainly concentrated in the central area.
At one point  Okinawa hosted approximately 1 200 nuclear warheads.
There were several nuclear weapons incidents on Okinawa and in the sea near the islands.
Tokyo says the U.S. bases are important for national security.
This reduced the footprint of the U.S. forces by 20  on the island.
It was the biggest land return since 1972.
Shuri Castle is the most famous castle on Okinawa and an UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Nakagusuku Castle is a gusuku in the village of Kitanakagusuku  Okinawa.
This is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the 100 most famous castles in Japan.
Nearby is the Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Museum.
Nakamura House  ja 中村家住宅  沖縄県   is an original 18th century farmhouse in Kitanakagusuki.
Ferries     There are many ferries to many of the nearby islands  such as Ie Shima.
Tomarin Port in Naha  has ferries to nearby islands such as Aguni  Tokashiki and Zamami.
There is much nature with subtropical rainforest.
Most US military facilities are located here.
It has an area of 764 km2  295 sq mi  and a population of about 120 000.
Also during this period  many Gusukus  similar to castles  were constructed.
The dead  of all nationalities  are commemorated at the Cornerstone of Peace.
The Ryukyu independence movement was an Okinawan movement that clamored against the U.S. rule.
According to the Melvin Price Report  by 1955  the military had displaced 250 000 residents.
Most of the weapons were alleged to be stored in ammunition bunkers at Kadena Air Base.
By 1969  over 50 000 American military personnel were stationed on Okinawa.
United States Department of Defense began referring to Okinawa as  The Keystone of the Pacific .
Evacuations of residents took place over a wide area for two months.
A strong emotional response has emerged from certain incidents.
As a result  the media has drawn renewed interest in the Ryukyu independence movement.
A protest gathered hundreds of people.
This opposition grew in July 2016 after the construction of six new helipads.
Okinawa s inhabited islands are typically divided into three geographical archipelagos.
Fauna     The dugong is an endangered marine mammal related to the manatee.
Iriomote is home to one of the world s rarest and most endangered cat species  the Iriomote cat.
The region is also home to at least one endemic pit viper  Trimeresurus elegans.
Coral reefs found in this region of Japan provide an environment for a diverse marine fauna.
The sea turtles return yearly to the southern islands of Okinawa to lay their eggs.
Gyokusendo is an extensive limestone cave in the southern part of Okinawa s main island.
Climate     The island experiences temperatures above 20 °C  68 °F  for most of the year.
The islands of Okinawa are surrounded by some of the most abundant coral reefs found in the world.
The world s largest colony of rare blue coral is found off of Ishigaki Island.
Snowfall is unheard of at sea level.
There is also a sizable mainland Japanese minority in the prefecture.
The overall ethnic identity of Okinawa residents are rather split.
One of the Ryukyuan languages is spoken in Kagoshima Prefecture  rather than in Okinawa Prefecture.
These languages are in decline as the younger generation of Okinawans uses Standard Japanese.
Standard Japanese is almost always used in formal situations.
There is a radio news program in the language as well.
Cultural influences     Okinawan culture bears traces of its various trading partners.
One can find Chinese  Thai and Austronesian influences in the island s customs.
Karate is thought to be a synthesis of Chinese kung fu with traditional Okinawan martial arts.
Okinawan culture also features the eisa dance  a traditional drumming dance.
They are particularly well known for consuming purple potatoes  aka  the okinawan sweet potatoes.
Okinawans are known for their longevity.
Karate      Karate originated in Okinawa.
Over time  it developed into several styles and sub styles.
On Okinawa  the three main styles are considered to be Shōrin ryū  Gōjū ryū and Uechi ryū.
Shuri Castle in Naha is an UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Nakamura House  ja 中村家住宅  沖縄県   is an original 18th century farmhouse in Kitanakagusuki.
Roofs are typically red in color and are inspired by Chinese design.
The agency directly operates several public high schools including Okinawa Shogaku High School.
The U.S. Department of Defense Dependents Schools  DoDDS  operates 13 schools total in Okinawa.
Seven of these schools are located on Kadena Air Base.
Okinawa has many types of private schools.
Some of them are cram schools  also known as juku.
As of 2012 the bases accounted for 4 or 5 percent of the economy.
Uechi Kanbun was the founder of Uechi ryū  one of the primary karate styles of Okinawa.
Sato Eisaku was a Japanese politician and the 61st  62nd and 63rd Prime Minister of Japan.
While he was premier in 1972  Okinawa was returned to Japan.
Takuji Iwasaki  was a meteorologist  biologist  ethnologist historian.
Chinese and Japanese characters were first introduced by a Japanese missionary in 1265.
Okinawan became the official language under King Shō Shin.
In 1609  the Ryukyu Kingdom was colonized by the Satsuma Domain in the south of Japan.
By 1945  many Okinawans spoke Japanese  and many were bilingual.
This caused the modernization of Okinawa as well as language shift to Japanese.
This caused the linguistic stigmatization of many local varieties in Japan including Okinawan.
General Douglas MacArthur attempted to promote Okinawan languages and culture through education.
Multiple English words were introduced.
Okinawan is also grouped with Amami  or the Amami languages  as the Northern Ryukyuan languages.
As each community has its own distinct dialect  there is no  one language .
UNESCO has marked it as an endangered language.
The endangerment of Okinawan is largely due to the shift to Standard Japanese.
Throughout history  Okinawan languages have been treated as dialects of Standard Japanese.
The only consonant that can occur as a syllable coda is the archiphoneme  n .
It also lacks  z  as a distinctive phoneme  having merged it into  d͡ʑ .
Before the glide  j  and the high vowel  i   it is pronounced closer to  ç   as in Japanese.
The two sounds do  however  still remain distinct in a number of words and verbal constructions.
In isolation and at the end of utterances  it is realized as a velar nasal  ŋ̍ .
As a result  Okinawan gradually ceased to be written entirely until the American takeover in 1945.
Syllabary     Technically  they are not syllables  but rather morae.
Each mora in Okinawan will consist of one or two kana characters.
If two  then a smaller version of kana follows the normal sized kana.
high → height  hot → heat   suffixed with ari  Classical Japanese  有り ari  to exist  to have   i.e.
The conclusive form ends in ん  n .
The conclusive form ends in さん  san .
やん  yan  attaches to words that shows state.
There is a third complete artificial tetrapod cement islet.
The atoll is the southernmost part of Japan and the only Japanese territory in the tropics.
Etymology    The English meaning of the name is  remote bird islands .
The atoll has multiple designations in English  Okinotori coral reefs  Okinotori Islands .
The existence of the atoll might not have been known by the Japanese until 1888.
In 1922 and 1925  the Japanese navy ship Manshu investigated the area.
Funding for full repairs was finally allocated in early 2016.
The beacon is plotted on the hydrographic chart.
This back arc basin was formed by seafloor spreading between the late Oligocene and Miocene.
The Parece Vela Basin contains the longest megamullion in the world.
In 1925  there were still five above water rocks  which have eroded since.
The original rocks appeared barren  obviously without any terrestrial vegetation.
Administration    Administratively  the island is considered part of Ogasawara village  Tokyo.
Typhoons are constant threats to Okinotori s existence.
Fishing expeditions also support the claim of economic activity.
His government has helped fund expeditions to Okinotori by Japanese fishermen and scientists.
Japan claims that rock is not defined in the convention.
However  the number of such incidents rose to four in 2004.
The UK eventually dropped its claim in the 1990s when other countries objected.
He traveled for about 156 days altogether  covering almost 1 500 miles  2 400 km   mostly on foot.
Of all of Bashō s works  this is the best known.
This poetic diary is in the form known as haibun  a combination of prose and haiku.
It manages to strike a delicate balance between all the elements to produce a powerful account.
Back Roads to Far Towns  Bashō s Oku no hosomichi.
Back Roads to Far Towns  Bashō s Travel Journal.
He was a senior companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
He succeeded Abu Bakr  632–634  as the second caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate on 23 August 634.
He is viewed negatively in the Shia tradition.
In his youth he used to tend to his father s camels in the plains near Mecca.
His merchant father was famed for his intelligence among his tribe.
Omar himself said   My father  Al Khattab was a ruthless man.
Though not a poet himself  he developed a love for poetry and literature.
He was tall  physically powerful and a renowned wrestler.
As a merchant he was unsuccessful.
Like others around him  Omar was fond of drinking in his pre Islamic days.
However  like many others in Mecca  Omar opposed Islam and even threatened to kill Muhammad.
He resolved to defend the traditional polytheistic religion of Arabia.
He was adamant and cruel in opposing Muhammad  and very prominent in persecuting Muslims.
He recommended Muhammad s death.
The story was recounted in Ibn Ishaq s Sīrah.
Why don t you return to your own house and at least set it straight?
He started quarreling with his brother in law.
When his sister came to rescue her husband  he also started quarreling with her.
Yet still they kept on saying  you may kill us but we will not give up Islam .
He wept and declared   Surely this is the word of Allah.
I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.
On hearing this  Khabbab came out from inside and said   O  Omar!
Yesterday Muhammad prayed to Allah   O  Allah!
It seems that his prayer has been answered in your favour.
This further helped the Muslims to gain confidence in practicing Islam openly.
Omar s conversion to Islam granted power to the Muslims and to the Islamic faith in Mecca.
It was after this event that Muslims offered prayers openly in Masjid al Haram for the first time.
We didn t offer prayers in Al Haram Mosque until Umar had accepted Islam.
When he accepted Islam  the Quraysh were compelled to let us pray in the Mosque.
In 625 he took part in the Battle of Uhud.
Later in the year Omar was a part of a campaign against the Jewish tribe of Banu Nadir.
In 625 Omar s daughter Hafsah was married to Muhammad.
Later in 627 he participated in the Battle of the Trench and also in the Battle of Banu Qurayza.
In 628 Omar witnessed the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah.
In 628 he fought in the Battle of Khaybar.
In 630  when Muslim armies rushed for the conquest of Mecca  he was part of that army.
Later in 630  he fought in the Battle of Hunayn and the Siege of Ta if.
He also participated in the farewell Hajj of Muhammad in 632.
It is said that Omar promised to strike the head of any man who would say that Muhammad died.
If  then  he dies or is killed  will you turn back on your heel?
Hearing this  Omar fell on his knees in sorrow and acceptance.
Sunni Muslims say that this denial of Muhammad s death was occasioned by his deep love for him.
It was  he warned the community  to be no precedent for the future.
His policy was rather not isolating Banu Hashim as far as possible.
According to Tom Holland  Omar s historicity is beyond dispute.
Monks out in the Judaean desert had long been casting themselves as warriors of God.
Later  however  he came to agree with Abu Bakr s strategy to crush the rebellion by force.
Appointment as a caliph     Abu Bakr appointed Omar as his successor before dying in 634 CE.
Nevertheless  Abu Bakr decided to make Omar his successor.
Abu Bakr was aware of Omar s power and ability to succeed him.
Before his death  Abu Bakr called Uthman to write his will in which he declared Omar his successor.
In his will he instructed Omar to continue the conquests on Iraqi and Syrian fronts.
Omar ordered a general amnesty for the prisoners  and their immediate emancipation.
This made Omar quite popular among the Bedouin tribes.
Provinces were further divided into about 100 districts.
Other officers at the provincial level were   Katib  the Chief Secretary.
I have sent you as leaders instead  so that the people may follow your example.
Give the Muslims their rights and do not beat them lest they become abused.
Do not praise them unduly  lest they fall into the error of conceit.
Do not keep your doors shut in their faces  lest the more powerful of them eat up the weaker ones.
And do not behave as if you were superior to them  for that is tyranny over them.
Various other strict codes of conduct were to be obeyed by the governors and state officials.
The Department was under the charge of Muhammad ibn Maslamah  one of Omar s most trusted men.
Sometimes an Inquiry Commission was constituted to investigate the charge.
Omar was known for this intelligence service through which he made his officials accountable.
He also kept a record system for messages he sent to Governors and heads of state.
He was the first to appoint police forces to keep civil order.
Al Harith replied that he had some money and he engaged in trade with it.
Omar said  By Allah  we did not send you to engage in trade!
and he took from him the profits he had made.
After the city was built  Omar appointed Abu Musa Ashaari  17 29 638 – 650  as its first governor.
Omar also adopted a policy of assigning barren lands to those who undertook to cultivate them.
During his rule  the garrison cities  amsar  of Basra and Kufa were founded or expanded.
Omar also forbade non Muslims from residing in the Hejaz for longer than three days.
He was first to establish the army as a state department.
Omar was founder of Fiqh  or Islamic jurisprudence.
As a leader   Omar was known for his simple  austere lifestyle.
Visit to Jerusalem in 637 CE     Omar s visit to Jerusalem is documented in several sources.
Omar  after some consultation  permitted seventy Jewish households to return.
They returned to live in the southern part of the city  i.e.  the Market of the Jews.
Their aim was to be near the water of Silwan and the Temple Mount and its gates .
Then the Commander Omar granted them this request.
Kaab indicated the Temple Rock  now a gigantic heap of ruins from the temple of Jupiter.
To this day  the place is known as ḳubbat es ṣakhra  the Dome of the Rock.
According to one estimate more than 4 050 cities were captured during these military conquests.
Great famine     In 638 CE  Arabia fell into severe drought followed by a famine.
Soon after  the reserves of food at Medina began to run out.
His actions saved countless lives throughout Arabia.
Abu Ubaidah died in 639 of the plague  which also cost the lives of 25 000 Muslims in Syria.
After consulting with the poor  Omar established the first welfare state  Bayt al mal.
Omar also introduced a child benefit and pensions for the children and the elderly.
His motivation for the assassination is not clear.
One possible explanation was that it was done in response to the Muslim conquest of Persia.
The assassination was planned several months earlier.
Aftermath     On his deathbed  Omar vacillated on his succession.
He was excluded on the basis of being related by blood and of the same tribe as Omar.
After this revelation  it seemed clear that it had been planned by the Persians residing in Medina.
Ubaidullah was intercepted by the people of Medina  who prevented him from continuing the massacre.
Amr ibn al Aas is said to have intercepted him and convinced him to hand over his sword.
Physical appearance    Omar was strong  fit  athletic and good at wrestling.
Others say he had reddish white skin.
His teeth were ashnabul asnan  very white shining .
Omar was one of Muhammad s chief advisers.
During Abu Bakr s era  he actively participated as his secretary and main adviser.
It is said that Omar s whip was feared more than the sword of another man.
His soldiers were forbidden to own land outside of Arabia.
He didn t only have a vision  he truly transformed his vision into actions.
Abdullah ibn Masʿud would often weep whenever the subject of Omar was brought up.
He said   Umar was a fortress of Islam.
People would enter Islam and not leave.
When he died  the fortress was breached and now people are going out of Islam .
Abu Ubaidah ibn al Jarrah before Omar died famously said   If Omar dies  Islam would be weakened .
People asked him why and his reply was  You will see what I am speaking about if you survive.
His greatest achievement from a religious perspective was the compilation of the Qur an.
This had not been done during the time of Muhammad.
Omar fully availed himself of the opportunity by inducing the Byzantines to act prematurely.
A three pronged attack against Jazirah was launched from Iraq.
Omar himself led reinforcements there from Medina.
This was immediately followed by simultaneous attacks on Azerbaijan and Fars.
Next  Sistan and Kirman were captured  thus isolating the stronghold of Persia  the Khurasan.
On his ring is written the words  Enough is Death as a reminder to you O   Omar .
OpenStreetMap  OSM  is a collaborative project to create a free editable map of the world.
The geodata underlying the map is considered the primary output of the project.
Since then  it has grown to over two million registered users.
This crowdsourced data is then made available under the Open Database License.
Many users of GPS devices use OSM data to replace the built in map data on their devices.
Sponsors of the event included Google  Yahoo!
In October 2007  OpenStreetMap completed the import of a US Census TIGER road dataset.
The data is then entered into the OpenStreetMap database.
Special processes are in place to handle automated imports and avoid legal and technical problems.
The earlier Flash based application Potlatch is retained for intermediate level users.
Vespucci is the first full featured editor for Android  it was released in 2009.
is an iOS app that lets users create and edit information in OpenStreetMap.
Pushpin is another iOS app that lets users add POI on the go.
Others are GIS professionals who contribute data with Esri tools.
In April 2012  OpenStreetMap cleared 600 000 registered contributors.
On 6 January 2013  OpenStreetMap reached one million registered users.
Around 30  of users have contributed at least one point to the OpenStreetMap database.
Map data was typically recorded on a GPS unit.
A large number of less active users contribute corrections and small additions to the map.
In the United States  most roads originate from TIGER from the Census Bureau.
In the UK  some Ordnance Survey OpenData is imported.
In Canada Natural Resources Canada s CanVec vector data and GeoBase provide landcover and streets.
The basic map views offered are  Standard  Cycle map  Transport map and Humanitarian.
Map display and category options are available using OpenStreetBrowser.
GNOME Maps GNOME Maps is a graphical front end written in JavaScript and introduced in GNOME 3.10.
Marble Marble is a KDE virtual globe application which received support for OpenStreetMap.
FoxtrotGPS FoxtrotGPS is a GTK  based map viewer  that is especially suited to touch input.
Scientific research      OpenStreetMap data was used in scientific studies.
The event was originally planned to take place in Cape Town  South Africa.
This can include out of copyright information  public domain or other licences.
Contributors agree to a set of terms which require compatibility with the current licence.
This may involve examining licences for government data to establish whether it is compatible.
The application — what users access to edit maps and view changelogs  is powered by Ruby on Rails.
The application also uses PostgreSQL for storage of user data and edit metadata.
Relations are used for representing the relationship of existing nodes and ways.
Tags are key value pairs  both arbitrary strings .
Tags are not free standing  but are always attached to an object  to a node  a way or a relation.
A recommended ontology of map features  the meaning of tags  is maintained on a wiki.
There are over 89 million different kinds of tags in use as of June 2017.
Data storage     The OSM data primitives are stored and processed in different formats.
The main copy of the OSM data is stored in OSM s main database.
All edits happen in this database  and all other formats are created from it.
For data transfer  several database dumps are created  which are available for download.
The complete dump is called planet.osm.
Craigslist switched to OpenStreetMap in 2012  rendering their own tiles based on the data.
Foursquare started using OpenStreetMap via Mapbox s rendering and infrastructure of OSM.
Geotab uses OpenStreetMap data in their Vehicle Tracking Software platform  MyGeotab.
The online game was a limited time offering  its servers were shut down in the end of January 2010.
The site also has a  user diary  section which is basically a shared blog.
Strava switched to OpenStreetMap rendered and hosted by Mapbox from Google Maps in July 2015.
Tableau has integrated OSM for all their mapping needs.
It has been integrated in all of their products.
TCDD Taşımacılık uses OpenStreetMap as a location map on passenger seats on YHTs.
Webots uses OpenStreetMap data to create virtual environment for autonomous vehicle simulations.
Wikimedia projects uses OpenStreetMap as a locator map for cities and travel points of interest.
Wikipedia uses OpenStreetMap data to render custom maps used by the articles.
OpenStreetMap  Be Your Own Cartographer.
Modern origami practitioners generally discourage the use of cuts  glue  or markings on the paper.
Origami folders often use the Japanese word kirigami to refer to designs which use cuts.
The best known origami model is the Japanese paper crane.
The principles of origami are also used in stents  packaging  and other engineering applications.
These seem to have been mostly separate traditions  until the 20th century.
This included the ban on cuts  and the starting shape of a bicolored square.
Origami paper weighs slightly less than copy paper  making it suitable for a wider range of models.
Heavier weight papers of 100 g m2  approx.
25 lb  or more can be wet folded.
Foil backed paper  as its name implies  is a sheet of thin foil glued to a sheet of thin paper.
Foil backed paper is available commercially  but not tissue foil  it must be handmade.
Both types of foil materials are suitable for complex models.
Washi  和紙  is the traditional origami paper used in Japan.
Some folders believe that no tool should be used when folding.
However a couple of tools can help especially with the more complex models.
Some argue that  strictly speaking  only the latter is really  recognized  as action origami.
Action origami  first appearing with the traditional Japanese flapping bird  is quite common.
Often the individual pieces are simple  but the final assembly may be more difficult.
This style is most commonly known as  3D origami .
The paper is dampened so it can be moulded easily  the final model keeps its shape when it dries.
It can be used  for instance  to produce very natural looking animal models.
A tessellation is a collection of figures filling a plane with no gaps or overlaps.
Since then  the field has grown very quickly.
Kirigami      Kirigami is a Japanese term for paper cutting.
Strip folding     Strip folding is a combination of paper folding and paper weaving.
A number of technological advances have come from insights obtained through paper folding.
For instance paper folding may be used for angle trisection and doubling the cube.
The crease pattern is a layout of the creases required to form the structure of the model.
However  other polygonal shapes can be used to solve the packing problem as well.
The Japanese decision is arguably in agreement with the U.S.
Gallery    These pictures show examples of various types of origami.
In it  origami serves as a metaphor for history   It is not true that the dead cannot be folded.
Square becomes kite becomes swan  history becomes rumor becomes song.
Even the act of remembrance creases the truth .
In the skies  jerengjen unfolded into bombers with kestrel shaped shadows.
The story says that the word means the art of paper folding in the mercenaries  main language.
The 2010 video game Heavy Rain has an antagonist known as the origami killer.
See also         References         Further reading    Kunihiko Kasahara  1988 .
Instructions are in Japanese and English.
See a NASA Physicist s Incredible Origami   video .
In 1889  Osaka was officially established as a municipality.
Osaka is a major financial center of Japan.
Etymology    Ōsaka means  large hill  or  large slope .
The older kanji  坂  is still in very limited use  usually only in historical contexts.
The Uehonmachi area consisted of a peninsula with an inland sea  Seto Inland Sea  in the east.
It is estimated that the ruins contain 2 000 year old debris between the Jōmon and Yayoi period.
Four of these mounds can be seen in Ōsaka  in which important members of the nobility are buried.
They are located in the southern districts of the city and date back to the 5th century.
The port of Naniwa tsu was established and became the most important in Japan.
Trade with other areas of the country and the Asian continent intensified.
Four of these mounds can be seen in Ōsaka  in which important members of the nobility are buried.
They are located in the southern districts of the city and date back to the 5th century.
Sumiyoshi Taisha Grand Shrine was founded by Tamomi no Sukune in 211 CE.
Shitennō ji was first built in 593 CE and the oldest Buddhist temple in Japan.
Toyotomi Hideyoshi constructed Osaka Castle in its place in 1583.
Osaka Castle played a pivotal role in the Siege of Osaka  1614 1615 .
Its popular culture was closely related to ukiyo e depictions of life in Edo.
From being the capital of the economy and finance  it became a predominantly industrial center.
Osaka was the industrial center most clearly defined in the development of capitalism in Japan.
It became known as the  Manchester of the Orient .
Like its European and American counterparts  Osaka displayed slums  unemployment  and poverty.
The factories were rebuilt and trade revived.
The city occupies a larger area  about 13   than any other city or village within Osaka Prefecture.
The city rarely sees snowfall during the winter.
Spring in Osaka starts off mild  but ends up being hot and humid.
The average starting and ending dates of the rainy season are June 7 and July 21 respectively.
Summers are very hot and humid.
The Midōsuji boulevard runs through Semba and connects Kita and Minami.
Osaka numbered roughly 200 bridges by the Edo period  and 1629 bridges by 1925.
There were 1 280 325 households with approximately 2.1 persons per household.
The population density was 11 836 persons per km2.
The council elects its president and Vice President.
Toshifumi Tagaya  LDP  is the current and 104th president since May 2008.
Tōru Hashimoto  former governor of Osaka Prefecture is the 19th mayor of Osaka since 2011.
Below is a list of governmental offices housed in Osaka.
There were 692 996  50.6   votes against and 675 829  49.4   votes supported it.
the installation of new kind of thermal power generation to secure non nuclear supply of energy.
Osaka s GDP per capita  Nominal  was  59 958.
Many major companies have since moved their main offices to Tokyo.
It jumped up nine places from 11th place in 2008 and was the eighth most expensive city in 2007.
However  it was not ranked in the top ten places of the list in 2013.
Keihanshin has a GDP of approximately  953.9 billion in 2012  16th largest in the world .
Osaka Kobe has a GDP of  681 billion  2015   which is a bit more than Paris or Greater London.
Many of them are concentrated in the wards of Chuō  10 468 shops  and Kita  6 335 shops .
Shōtengai are seen across Japan  and Osaka has the longest one in the country.
The stores along the arcade include commodities  clothing  and catering outlets.
Osaka is known for its food  in Japan and abroad.
Osaka is known for its fine sake  which is made with fresh water from the prefecture s mountains.
At Osaka Shochiku za  close to Namba station  kabuki can be enjoyed as well as manzai.
The Hanjō tei opened in 2006  dedicated to rakugo.
The theatre is in the Ōsaka Tenman gū area.
Umeda Arts Theater opened in 2005 after relocating from its former 46 year old Umeda Koma Theater.
The theater has a main hall with 1 905 seats and a smaller theater drama hall with 898 seats.
The Hall was opened with a concert by the Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra  which is based in the city.
Osaka jō Hall is a multi purpose arena in Osaka jō park with a capacity for up to 16 000 people.
The hall has hosted numerous events and concerts including both Japanese and international artists.
The Bolshoi Ballet and the Philharmonia are among the many that were welcomed on stage in the past.
The hall has closed at the end of 2008  planned to re open in 2013 in a new facility.
The annual Osaka Asian Film Festival takes place in Osaka every March.
Its exhibits cover the history of Osaka from pre history to the present day.
There are two J.League clubs  Gamba Osaka  plays its home games at Suita City Football Stadium.
Another club Cerezo Osaka  plays its home games at Yanmar Stadium Nagai.
The city is home to Osaka Evessa  a basketball team that plays in the B.League.
Evessa has won the first three championships of the league since its establishment.
Kintetsu Liners  a rugby union team  play in the Top League.
Their base is the Hanazono Rugby Stadium.
The Osaka GP is the only IAAF games annually held in Japan.
In July 2012 the first Japan Bandy Festival was organised.
However major film productions are uncommon in the city.
Most major films are produced in nearby Kyoto or in Tokyo.
The Ad Council Japan is based in Osaka.
NHK has also its regional station based in the city.
As of February 2009  the city is fully covered by terrestrial digital TV broadcasts.
Its supervisory organization on educational matters is Osaka City Board of Education.
Likewise  public high schools are operated by the Osaka Prefectural Board of Education.
As a result  until 1991 the Osaka area had no schools catering to expatriate children.
Japan s World Cities  Tokyo  Osaka  Nagoya or Tokaido Megalopolis?
In the 2011 local elections the association was able to win the majority of the prefectural seats.
The plan was narrowly defeated in the 2015 referendum  49.62  yes and 50.38  no .
The Yodo and Yamato Rivers flow through the prefecture.
This represented approximately 48  of the Kinki region.
The per capita income was ¥3.0 million  seventh in the nation.
During the Japanese rule of Korea many ethnic Koreans came to the Osaka area to look for work.
Many people from Jeju came to the Osaka area after a 1922 ferry line between Osaka and Jeju opened.
Public high schools are operated by the Osaka Prefectural Board of Education.
Includes a Japanese garden  National Museum of Art  Osaka  and the amusement park  Expoland .
The IAAF World Championships in Athletics were held in 2007 at Nagai Stadium in this park.
Daimyōs  feudal lords  received most of their income in the form of rice.
As a result  a system of material transport and warehousing in Kyoto emerged.
Kyoto also saw the continuing emergence and development of a monetary economy.
Rice would not be fully replaced by coin  however  until the late Edo or early Meiji periods.
Osaka    By 1700 or so  Osaka had become the mercantile center of Japan.
Osaka merchants had organized themselves into a national clearinghouse system.
A new shōgun came to power at this time  motivated by Confucian ideals and seeking reform.
In all of this turmoil  the rice brokers were nearly the only ones to profit.
Easily one of the most damaging was a proscription against receiving loan payments from daimyōs.
https   web.archive.org web 20061130143059 http   www.ac.wwu.edu  kaplan  .
See also    ton ya – a type of guild za – another style of guild
Japan is an archipelago of 6 852 islands.
The entire island is now governed by Russia.
Embargoes of six to twelve months are the most common.
These articles are required to be included within 12 months of publication.
This system went live in January 2007.
On 1 November 2012  it became Europe PubMed Central.
A related DTD is available for books.
The Library of Congress and the British Library have announced support for the NLM DTD.
This includes NASA content  with the interface branded as  PubSpace .
Received articles are converted via XSLT to the very similar NLM Archiving and Interchange DTD.
This process may reveal errors that are reported back to the publisher for correction.
Graphics are also converted to standard formats and sizes.
The original and converted forms are archived.
PubMed links also lead to PubMed Central.
Articles thus submitted typically go through XML markup in order to be converted to NLM DTD.
The two identifiers are distinct however.
It consists of  PMC  followed by a string of seven numbers.
The PubMed system was offered free to the public starting in June 1997.
There was a critical reaction from many researchers who frequently use the site.
It is also useful when there is no suitable heading or the descriptor represents a partial aspect.
The search using the thesaurus MeSH is more accurate and will give fewer irrelevant results.
The related articles are then listed in order of  relatedness .
Mapping to MeSH     PubMed automatically links to MeSH terms and subheadings.
Terms like  nursing  are automatically linked to  Nursing  MeSH   or  Nursing  Subheading  .
The  My NCBI  area can be accessed from any computer with web access.
An earlier version of  My NCBI  was called  PubMed Cubby .
This feature was initially tested in a pilot mode  since 2013  and was made permanent in 2016.
The announcement about any corrections to original papers may be assigned a PMID.
Each number that is entered in the PubMed search window is treated by default as if it were a PMID.
Therefore  any reference in PubMed can be located using the PMID.
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth s oceanic divisions.
The centers of both the Water Hemisphere and the Western Hemisphere are in the Pacific Ocean.
The third deepest point on Earth  the Sirena Deep  is also located in the Mariana Trench.
He called it Mar Pacífico  which in both Portuguese and Spanish means  peaceful sea .
Trade  and therefore knowledge  extended to the Indonesian islands but apparently not Australia.
In 219 BC Xu Fu sailed out into the Pacific searching for the elixir of immortality.
From 1404 to 1433 Zheng He led expeditions into the Indian Ocean.
The ocean was often called the Sea of Magellan in his honor until the eighteenth century.
Magellan stopped at one uninhabited Pacific island before stopping at Guam in March 1521.
By occupying Easter Island  Chile joined the imperial nations.
The Japanese ruled Northern Mariana Islands came under the control of the United States.
Since the end of World War II  many former colonies in the Pacific have become independent states.
Geography     The Pacific separates Asia and Australia from the Americas.
It extends from the Antarctic region in the South to the Arctic in the north.
Many tropical storms batter the islands of the Pacific.
The lands around the Pacific Rim are full of volcanoes and often affected by earthquakes.
Later  the Diogo Ribeiro map of 1529 was the first to show the Pacific at about its proper size.
There are about 25 000 islands in the Pacific Ocean.
Some of these islands are structurally associated with nearby continents.
High islands are of volcanic origin  and many contain active volcanoes.
Its southern arm becomes the chilled slow  south flowing California Current.
On a worldwide scale  May is the least active month  while September is the most active month.
November is the only month in which all the tropical cyclone basins are active.
The Pacific Ocean is the only ocean which is mostly bounded by subduction zones.
Only the Antarctic and Australian coasts have no nearby subduction zones.
The oldest Pacific Ocean floor is only around 180 Ma old  with older crust subducted by now.
These include the Hawaiian–Emperor seamount chain and the Louisville Ridge.
Fishing     Fish are an important economic asset in the Pacific.
Overfishing has become a serious problem in some areas.
Marine pollution is a generic term for the harmful entry into the ocean of chemicals or particles.
The main culprits are those using the rivers for disposing of their waste.
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth s oceanic divisions.
The centers of both the Water Hemisphere and the Western Hemisphere are in the Pacific Ocean.
The third deepest point on Earth  the Sirena Deep  is also located in the Mariana Trench.
He called it Mar Pacífico  which in both Portuguese and Spanish means  peaceful sea .
Trade  and therefore knowledge  extended to the Indonesian islands but apparently not Australia.
In 219 BC Xu Fu sailed out into the Pacific searching for the elixir of immortality.
From 1404 to 1433 Zheng He led expeditions into the Indian Ocean.
The ocean was often called the Sea of Magellan in his honor until the eighteenth century.
Magellan stopped at one uninhabited Pacific island before stopping at Guam in March 1521.
By occupying Easter Island  Chile joined the imperial nations.
The Japanese ruled Northern Mariana Islands came under the control of the United States.
Since the end of World War II  many former colonies in the Pacific have become independent states.
Geography     The Pacific separates Asia and Australia from the Americas.
It extends from the Antarctic region in the South to the Arctic in the north.
Many tropical storms batter the islands of the Pacific.
The lands around the Pacific Rim are full of volcanoes and often affected by earthquakes.
Later  the Diogo Ribeiro map of 1529 was the first to show the Pacific at about its proper size.
There are about 25 000 islands in the Pacific Ocean.
Some of these islands are structurally associated with nearby continents.
High islands are of volcanic origin  and many contain active volcanoes.
Its southern arm becomes the chilled slow  south flowing California Current.
On a worldwide scale  May is the least active month  while September is the most active month.
November is the only month in which all the tropical cyclone basins are active.
The Pacific Ocean is the only ocean which is mostly bounded by subduction zones.
Only the Antarctic and Australian coasts have no nearby subduction zones.
The oldest Pacific Ocean floor is only around 180 Ma old  with older crust subducted by now.
These include the Hawaiian–Emperor seamount chain and the Louisville Ridge.
Fishing     Fish are an important economic asset in the Pacific.
Overfishing has become a serious problem in some areas.
Marine pollution is a generic term for the harmful entry into the ocean of chemicals or particles.
The main culprits are those using the rivers for disposing of their waste.
The Dutch government in exile  as the possessor of the Dutch East Indies  were also involved.
French Indochinese forces faced Japanese forces in a coup in 1945.
The commando corps continued to operate after the coup until liberation.
However these were not operational commands.
The Imperial Japanese Navy did not integrate its units into permanent theater commands.
The Marco Polo Bridge Incident on 7 July 1937 provoked full scale war between China and Japan.
In June 1938  Japan deployed about 350 000 troops to invade Wuhan and captured it in October.
In 1939  Japanese forces tried to push into the Soviet Far East from Manchuria.
Japan sponsored several puppet governments  one of which was headed by Wang Jingwei.
This was known as the Southern Plan.
The early period of the war was divided into two operational phases.
In the Central Pacific  Midway was targeted as were the Aleutian Islands in the North Pacific.
The Allies suffered many disastrous defeats in the first six months of the war.
Opposition to war in the US vanished after the attack.
The government of Thailand formally allied with Japan on 21 December.
American bases on Guam and Wake Island were lost at around the same time.
On 15 January  Wavell moved to Bandung in Java to assume control of ABDACOM.
The pace of conquest was rapid  Bali and Timor also fell in February.
The rapid collapse of Allied resistance left the  ABDA area  split in two.
The attack forced the Royal Navy to withdraw to the western part of the Indian Ocean.
This paved the way for a Japanese assault on Burma and India.
This cut the Burma Road  which was the western Allies  supply line to the Chinese Nationalists.
In March 1942  the Chinese Expeditionary Force started to attack Japanese forces in northern Burma.
The Japanese exploited this lack of unity to press ahead in their offensives.
Philippines      On 8 December 1941  Japanese bombers struck American airfields on Luzon.
Two days later  further raids led to the destruction of the Cavite Naval Yard  south of Manila.
On 10 December  Japanese forces began a series of small scale landings on Luzon.
The US Navy  under Admiral Chester Nimitz  had responsibility for the rest of the Pacific Ocean.
Curtin predicted the  battle for Australia  would soon follow.
Over the following 19 months  Australia was attacked from the air almost 100 times.
Two battle hardened Australian divisions were moving from the Middle East for Singapore.
Churchill wanted them diverted to Burma  but Curtin insisted on a return to Australia.
In early 1942 elements of the Imperial Japanese Navy proposed an invasion of Australia.
A council was established in London  with a subsidiary body in Washington.
However  the smaller powers continued to push for an American based body.
Representatives from India and the Philippines were later added.
Allied resistance  at first symbolic  gradually began to stiffen.
Australian and Dutch forces led civilians in a prolonged guerilla campaign in Portuguese Timor.
The Naval General Staff advocated an advance to the south to seize parts of Australia.
Yamamoto got his Midway operation  but only after he had threatened to resign.
These were enough to remove the Japanese margin of superiority in the coming Midway attack.
The strike force found and struck only an oiler  the Neosho  and the destroyer Sims.
On 8 May  the opposing carrier forces finally found each other and exchanged air strikes.
In return the Americans damaged Shōkaku.
Although they managed to sink a carrier  the battle was a disaster for the Japanese.
For the operation  the Japanese had only four carriers  Akagi  Kaga  Sōryū and Hiryū.
Yamamoto hoped that the attack would lure the Americans into a trap.
When the Americans arrived  he would concentrate his scattered forces to defeat them.
However  in May  Allied codebreakers discovered the planned attack on Midway.
The aircraft from Midway attacked  but failed to score a single hit on the Japanese.
A single Japanese carrier  Hiryū  remained operational  and launched an immediate counterattack.
Both of her attacks hit Yorktown and put her out of action.
On 7 August 1942  US Marines landed on the islands of Guadalcanal and Tulagi in the Solomons.
Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawa  commander of the newly formed Eighth Fleet at Rabaul  reacted quickly.
It was one of the worst Allied naval defeats of the war.
The victory was mitigated only by the failure of the Japanese to attack the vulnerable transports.
Had it been done so  the first American counterattack in the Pacific could have been stopped.
The airfield was temporarily disabled but quickly returned to service.
However  the Allies were much better able to replace these losses.
Ultimately nearly 20 000 Japanese died on Guadalcanal compared to just over 7 000 Americans.
Chinese estimates put the death toll at 250 000 civilians.
The Chinese then cut Japanese supply lines  provoking a retreat and Chinese pursuit.
During the battle  Japan used chemical weapons.
It also provoked the Japanese to mount major offensives themselves the following year.
The British and Indian Fourteenth Army was formed to face the Japanese in Burma.
Allied offensives  1943–44     Midway proved to be the last great naval battle for two years.
These landings prepared the way for Nimitz s island hopping campaign towards Japan.
The meeting was also known as the Cairo Conference and concluded with the Cairo Declaration.
By early 1945  Japanese oil supplies were so limited that its fleet was virtually stranded.
The Japanese military claimed its defenses sank 468 Allied submarines during the war.
The Dutch lost five submarines due to Japanese attack or minefields  and the British lost three.
American submariners also claimed 28  of Japanese warships destroyed.
Submarines also rescued hundreds of downed fliers  including future US president George H. W. Bush.
Allied submarines did not adopt a defensive posture and wait for the enemy to attack.
The Japanese promptly changed it  and the new code was not broken again by OP 20 G until 1943.
In all  Allied submarines destroyed 1 200 merchant ships – about five million tons of shipping.
Another 320 were passenger ships and troop transports.
The Joint Army–Navy Assessment Committee assessed US submarine credits.
The Japanese losses  130 submarines in all  were higher.
Operation Ichi go created a great sense of social confusion in the areas of China that it affected.
In February 1944 the Japanese mounted a local counter attack in Arakan.
As many Japanese had feared  Japan s supply arrangements could not maintain her forces.
The two Allied attacks met on 22 June  breaking the Japanese siege of Imphal.
The Japanese finally broke off the operation on 3 July.
They had lost over 50 000 troops  mainly to starvation and disease.
In the middle of 1944 the Chinese Expeditionary Force invaded northern Burma from Yunnan.
They captured a fortified position at Mount Song.
The Japanese then developed a new plan  known as A GO.
Then the Americans would be lured into the areas where the Mobile Fleet could defeat them.
A target date was set for 15 June.
All forces for the Marianas operation were to be commanded by Admiral Raymond A. Spruance.
However  Japanese fire was so effective that the first day s objective was not reached until Day 3.
After fanatic Japanese resistance  the Marines captured Aslito airfield in the south on 18 June.
US Navy Seabees quickly made the field operational for use for American aircraft.
This presented the Japanese with an opportunity to exploit it.
In the north  Mount Tapotchau  the highest point on the island  was taken on 27 June.
On 9 July  two days after the banzai attack  organized resistance on Saipan ceased.
The US Marines reached northernmost tip of Saipan  Marpi Point  twenty four days after the landing.
Instead of the predicted four days  it took until 27 November to secure the island.
The ultimate strategic value of the landings is still contested.
The clash was the largest carrier battle in history.
The battle did not turn out as the Japanese had hoped.
On 19 June  a series of Japanese carrier air strikes were shattered by strong American defenses.
The result was later dubbed the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot.
Only one American warship was slightly damaged.
The Taihō was also sunk by a single torpedo  from the submarine Albacore.
The four Japanese air strikes involved 373 carrier aircraft  of which 130 returned to the carriers.
These losses to the already outnumbered Japanese fleet air arm were irreplaceable.
The Japanese had only enough pilots left to form the air group for one of their light carriers.
The Mobile Fleet returned home with only 35 aircraft of the 430 with which it had begun the battle.
The battle ended in a total Japanese defeat and resulted in the virtual end of their carrier force.
The Americans then targeted the Musashi and sank it under a barrage of torpedo and bomb hits.
Many other ships of Center Force were attacked  but continued on.
Although fierce fighting continued on Leyte for months  the US Army was in control.
Almost 175 000 men followed across the twenty mile  32 km  beachhead within a few days.
Of the 250 000 Japanese troops defending Luzon  80 percent died.
Throughout the Philippines  Filipino guerrillas aided US forces to find and dispatch the holdouts.
In late January 1945  these two forces linked up with each other at Hsipaw.
During February  the Fourteenth Army secured bridgeheads across the Irrawaddy on a broad front.
While the Japanese attempted to recapture Meiktila  XXXIII Corps captured Mandalay.
Dracula was launched on 1 May  to find that the Japanese had already evacuated Rangoon.
They suffered 14 000 casualties  half their strength.
Overall  the Japanese lost some 150 000 men in Burma.
Natural caves were enlarged  and many new ones were blasted out.
A total of 11 miles  18 km s of tunnels were constructed.
The main underground command post had a concrete roof 10 feet  3.0 m  thick.
Pillboxes  bunkers and other defensive works were built close to the ground.
The hidden guns and defenses survived the constant bombardment virtually unscathed.
Suribachi  an inactive volcano  where most of the island s defenses were concentrated.
The Japanese held fire until the landing beaches were full.
As soon as the Marines pushed inland they came under devastating machine gun and artillery fire.
On 23 February  the 28th Marine Regiment reached the summit of Mt.
But it was not until 26 March that the island was finally secured.
American casualties were 6 821 killed and 19 207 wounded.
The Japanese losses totaled well over 20 000 men killed  with only 1 083 prisoners were taken.
Historians debate whether it was strategically worth the casualties sustained.
The Japanese were short of fuel  consequently the Yamato had only enough to reach Okinawa.
However  the main Japanese defenses were in the southern part of the island.
Organized resistance was not over until 21 June.
But many Japanese went into hiding and the campaign was not declared over until 2 July.
The Japanese had skillfully utilized terrain to inflict maximum casualties.
Total American casualties were 49 451  including 12 520 dead or missing and 36 631 wounded.
Japanese casualties were approximately 110 000 killed  and 7 400 were taken prisoner.
94  of the Japanese soldiers died along with many civilians.
Both nations were exhausted by years of battles  bombings and blockades.
The Imperial Japanese Army began preparations for the Battle of West Hunan in March 1945.
Chinese forces totaled 110 000 men in 20 divisions.
They were supported by about 400 aircraft from Chinese and American air forces.
Chinese forces achieved a decisive victory and launched a large counterattack in this campaign.
Concurrently  the Chinese managed to repel a Japanese offensive in Henan and Hubei.
Afterwards  Chinese forces retook Hunan and Hubei provinces in South China.
In August 1945  Chinese forces successfully retook Guangxi.
The campaign opened with a landing on the small island of Tarakan on 1 May.
Of the 117 000 Okinawan and Japanese troops defending Okinawa  94 percent died.
The US Navy proposed to force a Japanese surrender through a total naval blockade and air raids.
More than 140 000–240 000 people died as a direct result of these two bombings.
Soviet gains on the continent were Manchukuo  Mengjiang  Inner Mongolia  and northern Korea.
Surrender      The effects of the atomic bombings and the Soviet entry were profound.
In Japan  14 August is considered to be the day that the Pacific War ended.
Following this period  MacArthur went to Tokyo to oversee the post war development of the country.
This period in Japanese history is known as the occupation.
A large number of deaths were caused directly by Japanese war crimes.
New Zealand lost 578 men killed  with an unknown number wounded or captured.
Material losses included some 1 000 tanks and AFVs  5 landing ships  and 300 aircraft.
1 500 colonial and 900 Dutch soldiers were killed in action.
Most of the colonial soldiers were freed on the spot or deserted.
Of the ethnic Dutch troops  900 were killed in action and 37 000 became prisoners.
8 500 of these POWs would die in Japanese captivity.
Axis      800 000 Japanese civilians and over 2 million Japanese soldiers died during the war.
These four alone sank 420 467 gross tons of Allied shipping.
Biological weapons used by Japan killed around 500 000 Chinese.
Some 35 Dutch comfort women brought a successful case before the Batavia Military Tribunal in 1948.
Other Japanese leaders have apologized  including former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi in 2001.
Imperial Japan s World War Two  1931–1945.
Paddy field farming remains the dominant form of growing rice in modern times.
Etymology    The word  paddy  is derived from the Malay word padi  meaning  rice plant .
This occurred around 13 500 to 8 200 years ago south of the Yangtze River in present day China.
At Caoxieshan  a site of the Neolithic Majiabang culture  archaeologists excavated paddy fields.
Some archaeologists claim that Caoxieshan may date to 4000–3000 BC.
The Nanguanli site in Taiwan  dated to ca.
Korea     There are ten archaeologically excavated rice paddy fields in Korea.
However  iron tools for paddy field farming were not introduced until sometime after 200 BC.
Japan     The first paddy fields in Japan date to the Early Yayoi period  300 BC – 250 AD .
About 75  of the cultivated area is used for food crops.
Rice is China s most important crop  raised on about 25  of the cultivated area.
In India  West Bengal is the largest rice producing state.
The former cultivation is dependent on irrigation  while the latter depends on the Monsoon.
The paddy cultivation plays a major role in socio cultural life of rural India.
Gangavathi is known as rice bowl of Karnataka.
Italy      Rice is grown in northern Italy  especially in the valley of the river Po.
The paddy fields are irrigated by fast flowing streams descending from the Alps.
Ta  田  is used as a part of many place names as well as in many family names.
Fields may be rebuilt  and bund breaches are repaired.
Farmers usually dry the harvested grains in the sun before bringing them to market.
However  the specific Korean term for  paddy  is a purely Korean word   non   Korean  논 .
Vary Makalioka  is translucent long and thin grain rice.
Vary Rojofotsy  is a half long grain rice  Vary mena  or red rice  is exclusive to Madagascar.
Paddy fields can also be found on Malaysia s east coast region  in Kelantan and Terengganu.
It was for that reason  that people usually built their houses next to paddy fields.
Up until the later 1960s  Myanmar was the main exporter of rice.
In modern times  tractors are used  but traditionally  buffalos were employed.
The rice plants are planted in nurseries and then transplanted by hand into the prepared fields.
The rice is then harvested in late November –  when the rice bends with age .
Most of the rice planting and harvesting are done by hand.
The rice is then threshed and stored  ready for the mills.
Nepal      In Nepal  rice  Nepali  धान  Dhaan  is grown in the Terai and hilly regions.
It is mainly grown during the summer monsoon in Nepal.
Philippines      Paddy fields are a common sight in the Philippines.
It is currently the 9th richest province in the country.
It can be viewed best from the road to Mayoyao.
The Mayoyao Rice Terraces is located at Mayoyao  44 kilometers away from Poblacion  Banaue.
The town of Mayoyao lies in the midst of these rice terraces.
All dikes are tiered with flat stones.
The Hapao Rice Terraces can be reached within 55 kilometers from the capital town of Lagawe.
Other Ifugao stone walled rice terraces are located in the municipality of Hungduan.
Both upcountry and low country wetlands use for paddy cultivation.
The majority of paddy land extent is in the dry zone.
and it uses special irrigation systems for cultivation.
Agriculture in Sri Lanka mainly depends on rice production.
Around 879 000 farmer families are engaged in paddy cultivation in Sri Lanka.
They make up 20  of the country s population and 32  of the employment.
Thailand      Rice production in Thailand represents a significant portion of the Thai economy.
It jointly serves as transportation routes  allowing farmers to bring their produce to market.
Traditionally  the event was officiated with much pomp.
External links    How a paddy field works
Pakistan  officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan  is a country in South Asia.
It is the world s fifth most populous country with a population exceeding 212.2 million.
It has the world s second largest Muslim population.
It is the 33rd largest country by area  spanning 881 913 square kilometres  340 509 square miles .
Initially a dominion  Pakistan adopted a constitution in 1956  becoming an Islamic republic.
In 2008  Pakistan transitioned to civilian rule.
The country continues to face challenges including poverty  illiteracy  and corruption.
It references the word پاک  pāk   meaning  pure  in Persian and Pashto.
Multan was an important Hindu pilgrimage centre.
Islamic conquest     The Arab conqueror Muhammad bin Qasim conquered Sindh in 711 CE.
The Early Medieval period  642–1219 CE  witnessed the spread of Islam in the region.
In the early 16th century  the region remained under the Mughal Empire ruled by Muslim emperors.
Many historians see this as the start of the region s colonial period.
The language controversy further escalated the tensions between Hindus and Muslims.
It was the largest mass migration in human history.
Jinnah refused Mountbatten s offer to serve as Governor General of Pakistan.
The Constitution declared Pakistan an Islamic Republic and Islam as the state religion.
Zia bolstered the influence of the ulama  Islamic clergy  and the Islamic parties.
This region has the highest rates of seismicity and the largest earthquakes in the Himalaya region.
The Balochistan Plateau lies in the west and the Thar Desert in the east.
The western hills are home to juniper  tamarisk  coarse grasses  and scrub plants.
In the xeric regions of Balochistan  date palm and Ephedra are common.
These forests are mostly of mulberry  acacia  and eucalyptus.
About 2.2  or 1 687 000 hectares  16 870 km2  of Pakistan was forested in 2010.
The fauna of Pakistan also reflects the country s varied climate.
Palas  Kohistan  has a significant population of western tragopan.
The chinkara is the only animal that can still be found in significant numbers in Cholistan.
A small number of nilgai are found along the Pakistan–India border and in some parts of Cholistan.
Pakistan is a democratic parliamentary federal republic  with Islam as the state religion.
The first successful democratic transition occurred in May 2013.
However  the powers to pardon and grant clemency lie with the President of Pakistan.
Chief Ministers oversee the provincial governments and head the provincial cabinet.
It is common in Pakistan to have different ruling parties or coalitions in each of the provinces.
Provincial governors who are the ceremonial heads of the provinces are appointed by the President.
Saudi Arabia also maintains a respected position in Pakistan s foreign policy.
Pakistan has lobbied for the concept of  enlightened moderation  in the Muslim world.
Due to ideological differences  Pakistan opposed the Soviet Union in the 1950s.
Pakistan has had an  on and off  relationship with the United States.
However  an exchange took place between the two countries using Turkey as a communication conduit.
Pakistan had warm relations with Bangladesh  despite some initial strains in their relationship.
There are about 130 districts altogether  of which Azad Kashmir has ten and Gilgit–Baltistan seven.
India referred the dispute to the United Nations on 1 January 1948.
The ICT has its own police component  the Capital Police  to maintain law and order in the capital.
The Frontier Corps serves the similar purpose in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa  and the Balochistan.
Tensions in Kargil brought the two countries at the brink of war.
Pakistan s fighter pilots shot down ten Israeli planes in the Six Day War.
The economy is considered to be semi industrialized  with centres of growth along the Indus River.
As of 2019  Pakistan s estimated nominal GDP is US 284.2 billion.
The GDP by PPP is US 1.254 trillion.
21.04  of the population live below the international poverty line of US 1.25 a day.
The unemployment rate among the aged 15 and over population is 5.5 .
It is South Asia s second largest economy  representing about 15.0  of regional GDP.
Pakistan s economic growth since its inception has been varied.
The economy cooled again from 2007.
A year later  the Asian Development Bank reported that Pakistan s economic crisis was easing.
The inflation rate for the fiscal year 2010–11 was 14.1 .
The 7 million–strong Pakistani diaspora contributed US 19.9 billion to the economy in 2015–16.
Majority of the population  directly or indirectly  is dependent on this sector.
In 2013 Pakistan exported 7 708 557 metric tons of cement.
Pakistan s I.T sector is regarded as among the fastest growing sector s in Pakistan.
The sector employees 12 000 and count s among top five freelancing nations.
Pakistan is home to several mountain peaks over 7 000 metres  23 000 feet .
The five sites included Taxila  Lahore  the Karakoram Highway  Karimabad  and Lake Saiful Muluk.
The Sino Pakistani nuclear cooperation began in the early 1980s.
The cost quoted then was US 1.7 billion  with a foreign loan component of US 1.07 billion.
As of 2014  Pakistan has an installed electricity generation capacity of  22 797MWt.
Transport      The transport industry accounts for  10.5  of the nation s GDP.
The project was planned in 1990.
Road transport services are largely in the hands of the private sector.
Now the railway s share of inland traffic is below 8  for passengers and 4  for freight traffic.
Pakistan expects to use the rail service to boost foreign trade with China  Iran  and Turkey.
Seaports       		 		 Major seaports are in Karachi  Sindh  the Karachi port  Port Qasim .
Gwadar Port is the deepest sea port of the world.
The Orange line is the first of the three proposed rail lines part for the Lahore Metro.
The line consists of 26 subway stations and is designed to carry over 250 000 passengers daily.
The line became operational on 25 October 2020.
The Metrobus network’s first phase was opened in February  2013.
It was the first Metro bus system in Pakistan.
Multan Metrobus is a bus rapid transit  BRT  system in Multan.
Construction on the line began in May 2015  while operations commenced on 24 January 2017.
Green Line Metrobus is a first phase of Karachi Metrobus that is under construction in Karachi.
The Government of Pakistan is financing the majority of the project.
Construction of the Green Line began on February 26  2016.
These projects are the part of a mega project of China–Pakistan Economic Corridor.
KCR was fully operational between 1969 and 1999.
Since 2001  restoration of the railway and restarting the system had been sought.
In November 2020  the KCR partially revived operations.
The Government of Pakistan has planned to start a monorail system in the federal capital Islamabad.
The highest number of flyovers and under passes are located in Karachi  followed by Lahore.
The space program recorded a few notable feats and achievements.
Some students choose to take the O level and A level exams conducted by the British Council.
According to the International Schools Consultancy  Pakistan has 439 international schools.
The literacy rate of the population is 62.3  as of 2018.
The rate of male literacy is 72.5  while the rate of female literacy is 51.8 .
The 2017 Census of Pakistan provisionally estimated the population to be 207.8 million.
In 2016 Pakistan s fertility rate was estimated to be 2.68  higher than its neighbour India  2.45 .
Around 35  of the people are under 15.
Life expectancy at birth was 67 years for females and 65 years for males in 2013.
Approximately 19  of the population and 30  of children under five are malnourished.
Mortality of the under fives was 86 per 1 000 live births in 2012.
Pashto is the provincial language of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Brahui  a Dravidian language  is spoken by the Brahui people who live in Balochistan.
There are also speakers of Gujarati in Karachi.
Marwari  a Rajasthani language  is also spoken in parts of Sindh.
The Arabic language is officially recognised by the constitution of Pakistan.
Pakistan is home to one of the world s largest refugee populations.
Furthermore  more than 50  of Pakistanis live in towns of 5 000 people or more.
Religion      The state religion in Pakistan is Islam.
Most of Pakistanis are Muslims  96.0   followed by Hindus  1.85   and Christians  1.5  .
Islam       Islam is the dominant religion.
About 96  of Pakistanis are Muslim.
Pakistan has the second largest number of Muslims in the world after Indonesia.
In 1984  Ahmadiyya places of worship were banned from being called  mosques .
As of 2012  12  of Pakistani Muslims self identify as non denominational Muslims.
The first is the  populist  Sufism of the rural population.
Many rural Pakistani Muslims associate with pirs and seek their intercession.
As of 2010  Pakistan had the fifth largest Hindu population in the world.
Hindus are found in all provinces of Pakistan but are mostly concentrated in Sindh.
The influence of atheism is very small  with 1.0  of the population identifying as atheist in 2005.
However  the figure rose to 2.0  in 2012 according to Gallup.
Each province has its own style of Shalwar Kameez.
This regional fashion continues to evolve into both more modern and purer forms.
Pakistan s first fashion week was held in November 2009.
BBC calls the Pakistani media  among the most outspoken in South Asia .
In the 1960s–1970s  pop music and disco  1970s  dominated the country s music industry.
Pakistan has many famous folk singers.
Pakistan ranks 10th in the world for remittances sent home.
The largest inflow of remittances  as of 2016  is from Saudi Arabia  amounting to  5.9 billion.
The term Overseas Pakistani is officially recognised by the Government of Pakistan.
It also facilitates the reintegration into society of returning overseas Pakistanis.
The National Library publishes and promotes literature in the country.
Prose fiction is now very popular.
The national poet of Pakistan  Muhammad Iqbal  wrote poetry in Urdu and Persian.
Sadequain and Gulgee are known for their calligraphy and paintings.
Mirza Kalich Beg has been termed the father of modern Sindhi prose.
The high point of this era was the Gandhara style.
Most of those dishes have their roots in British  Indian  Central Asian and Middle Eastern cuisine.
Pakistan has also won the Hockey World Cup a record four times  held in 1971  1978  1982  and 1994.
Cricket  however  is the most popular game across the country.
Pakistan also won the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy by defeating arch rivals India in the final.
Football in Pakistan is as old as the country itself.
The highest football division in Pakistan is the Pakistan Premier League.
Pakistan is known as one of the best manufacturer of the official FIFA World Cup ball.
Pakistan is set to host the 2021 South Asian Games.
In modern politics and history  a parliament is a legislative body of government.
the Parliament of Ghana   even where it is not in the official name.
By the 15th century  in Britain  it had come to specifically mean the legislature.
The Parthians established the first Iranian empire since the conquest of Persia by Alexander.
Prelates  nobles and commoners met separately in the three estates of the Cortes.
This important set of laws is known as the Carta Magna Leonesa.
The Cortes  assent was required to pass new taxes  and could also advise the king on other matters.
The Cortes maintained some power  however  though it became more of a consultative entity.
After the conquest of Algarve in 1249  the Kingdom of Portugal completed its Reconquista.
Nonetheless  the exact extent of Cortes power was ambiguous.
Kings insisted on their ancient prerogative to promulgate laws independently of the Cortes.
But even that principle was often circumvented or ignored in practice.
For a period after the 1383–1385 Crisis  the Cortes were convened almost annually.
But as time went on  they became less important.
John II  r.1481 1495  used them to break the high nobility  but dispensed with them otherwise.
Manuel I  r.1495 1521  convened them only four times in his long reign.
By the time of Sebastian  r.1554–1578   the Cortes was practically an irrelevance.
But by the end of the 17th century  it found itself sidelined once again.
Under the Anglo Saxon kings  there was an advisory council  the Witenagemot.
The name derives from the Old English ƿitena ȝemōt  or witena gemōt  for  meeting of wise men .
The first recorded act of a witenagemot was the law code issued by King Æthelberht of Kent ca.
Only the executive government is no longer conducted in a royal court.
He also enlarged the court system.
The Reformation Acts supplied Parliament with unlimited power over the country.
This was significant  the monarch no longer had sole control over the country.
Later on  the legislative body even denied Elizabeth her request to marry.
The power of Parliament increased considerably after Cromwell s adjustments.
It also provided the country with unprecedented stability.
More stability  in turn  helped assure more effective management  organisation  and efficiency.
Parliament printed statutes and devised a more coherent parliamentary procedure.
Much of this compliance stemmed from how the English viewed and traditionally understood authority.
Frustrated with its decisions  Cromwell purged and suspended Parliament on several occasions.
This union created the new Parliament of Great Britain in 1707.
At the thing  disputes were solved and political decisions were made.
The place for the thing was often also the place for public religious rites and for commerce.
The jurisdiction of the Parliament of Paris covered the entire kingdom.
In the thirteenth century  judicial functions were added.
An institutionalized Hungarian parliament emerged during the 14th and 15th centuries.
Since the reign of the Jagiellonian dynasty  the parliament has regained most of its former power.
The idea of the wiec led in 1182 to the development of the Polish parliament  the Sejm.
The term  sejm  comes from an old Polish expression denoting a meeting of the populace.
The history of the national Sejm dates back to 1182.
From 1374  the king had to receive sejm permission to raise taxes.
From 1493 forward  indirect elections were repeated every two years.
With the development of the unique Polish Golden Liberty the Sejm s powers increased.
The term roughly means assembly of the land.
It could be summoned either by tsar  or patriarch  or the Boyar Duma.
The Boyar Duma was an advisory council to the grand princes and tsars of Muscovy.
This bell was a symbol of republican sovereignty and independence.
Separate assemblies could be held in the districts of Novgorod.
In Pskov the veche assembled in the court of the Trinity cathedral.
In effect  the movement sought – ultimately  in vain – to create an All Catholic Parliament.
Many nations with parliaments have to some degree emulated the British  three tier  model.
Legislation can originate from either the Lords or the Commons.
It is voted on in several distinct stages  called readings  in each house.
First reading is merely a formality.
Second reading is where the bill as a whole is considered.
Third reading is detailed consideration of clauses of the bill.
These Acts removed the veto power of the Lords over a great deal of legislation.
If a bill is certified by the Speaker of the House of Commons as a money bill  i.e.
acts raising taxes and similar  then the Lords can only block it for a month.
They cannot legislate on defence issues  currency  or national taxation  e.g.
During this period  civil rights were expanded and power shifted from the monarch to parliament.
In some parliamentary systems  the prime minister is a member of the parliament  e.g.
in the United Kingdom   whereas in others they are not  e.g.
Eventually  these councils have slowly evolved into the modern parliamentary system.
The committees of these Parliaments tend to be more important than the plenary chamber.
The head of state appoints a prime minister who will likely have majority support in parliament.
The head of state appoints a prime minister who must gain a vote of confidence within a set time.
If this fails  then the leader of the third largest party is given it and so on.
Example  Spain  where the King sends a proposal to the Congress of Deputies for approval.
they can be elected even if more members of parliament vote No than Yes .
These requirements can still be circumvented.
The last time this option was used was in 1958.
Parliamentarianism may also apply to regional and local governments.
have enacted a law which prohibits floor crossing or switching the party after election process.
In Canada and Australia  there is no restraint on legislators switching sides.
Afghanistan s minorities refused to go along with a presidency as strong as the Pashtuns desired.
the nationalisation of services during the world wars  does have its drawbacks.
Collectively  the laws were designed to suppress political dissent on the left.
It imposed stringent restrictions on the press  public speeches and political meetings.
A provision banning women from political associations was deleted in 1922.
Morito spent three months in jail on charges of treason.
His case set a precedent in Japanese law that effectively criminalized the discussion of ideas.
It was one of the most significant laws of pre war Japan.
Thus the government had carte blanche to outlaw any form of dissent.
In early February 1941  the Security Preservation Law of 1925 was completely re written.
The new provisions became effective on 15 May 1941.
Mitchell  Richard H.  Japan s Peace Preservation Law of 1925  Its origins and significance.
Permanent employees work for an employer and are paid directly by that employer.
Permanent employees do not have a predetermined end date to employment.
Permanent employees are often eligible to switch job positions within their companies.
Before the war period  Japanese companies owed more its fund on direct financing.
Significance      Lifetime employment took an important role in Japan’s economic prosperity.
In industrial corporations  wage system expects labor s future improvement in productivity.
Therefore  the first half of contract duration labor s productivity is below the wage.
However  as labor adept in their operation  the labor productivity exceeds the payment.
By the early nineteenth century  the Japanese policy of isolation was increasingly under challenge.
He went to Uraga Channel with Morrison  an American merchant ship.
The ship was attacked several times  and sailed back without completing its mission.
His research also included consultation with the renowned Japanologist Philipp Franz von Siebold.
Perry also refused to allow any professional diplomats to accompany the expedition.
Agricultural specialist Dr. James Morrow was assigned by the US State Department.
Several Japanese castaways were also taken on as unofficial interpreters.
To command his fleet  Perry chose officers with whom he had served in the Mexican–American War.
Commander Franklin Buchanan was captain of Susquehanna and Joel Abbot was captain of Macedonian.
Perry then switched his flag to Susquehanna and called on the Ryukyu islands from May 17–26.
Perry left with promises that the islands would be completely open to trade with the United States.
His fleet at this time consisted of four vessels  Susquehanna  Mississippi  Plymouth and Saratoga.
One boat carried a large sign in French ordering the American fleet to depart immediately.
Kayama asked for three days in order to respond.
Major Zuilin s Marines presented arms  and a band played  Hail Columbia .
Attempting to legitimize any decision taken  Abe polled all of the daimyōs for their opinions.
Perry thus returned on 13 February 1854 with a total of ten vessels and 1600 men.
The treaty was signed on the Japanese side by Hayashi Akira.
Two days later he was detached from his last post  an assignment to the Naval Efficiency Board.
Nicholson by order of Congress  1856  originally published in Senate Executive Documents  No.
The country has a variety of natural resources and a globally significant level of biodiversity.
Multiple ethnicities and cultures are found throughout the islands.
Following liberation  the Philippines became independent in 1946.
Some polities had exchanges with other states across Asia.
There is little evidence of large scale violence in the archipelago prior to the 2nd millennium AD.
Manila was the western hub of the trans Pacific trade.
Manila galleons were constructed in Bicol and Cavite.
Immigration blurred the racial caste system Spain maintained in towns and cities.
The Spanish–Moro conflict lasted for several hundred years.
Rizal was eventually executed on December 30  1896  on charges of rebellion.
This radicalized many who had previously been loyal to Spain.
In 1898  the Spanish–American War began and reached Philippines.
Aguinaldo returned  resumed the revolution  and declared independence from Spain on June 12  1898.
The First Philippine Republic was established on January 21  1899.
War resulted in the deaths of 250 000 to 1 million civilians  mostly due to famine and disease.
After the defeat of the First Philippine Republic  an American civilian government was established.
Allied troops defeated the Japanese in 1945.
By the end of the war it is estimated that over a million Filipinos had died.
On October 11  1945  the Philippines became one of the founding members of the United Nations.
Nearing the end of his term  Marcos declared martial law on September 21  1972.
Marcos called a snap presidential election in 1986.
Marcos was proclaimed the winner  but the results were widely regarded as fraudulent.
Duterte launched an anti drug campaign and an infrastructure plan.
The exclusive economic zone of the Philippines covers 2 263 816 km2  874 064 sq mi .
It measures up to 2 954 meters  9 692 ft  above sea level and is located on the island of Mindanao.
The longest river is the Cagayan River in northern Luzon  measuring about 520 kilometers  320 mi .
Around 20 earthquakes are registered daily  though most are too weak to be felt.
The last major earthquake was the 1990 Luzon earthquake.
There are many active volcanoes such as the Mayon Volcano  Mount Pinatubo  and Taal Volcano.
Other minerals include chromite  nickel  and zinc.
Biodiversity      The Philippines is a megadiverse country.
The total number of corals and marine fish species was estimated at 500 and 2 400 respectively.
New records and species discoveries continue.
The Tubbataha Reef in the Sulu Sea was declared a World Heritage Site in 1993.
Philippine waters also sustain the cultivation of fish  crustaceans  oysters  and seaweeds.
One species of oyster  Pinctada maxima  produces pearls that are naturally golden in color.
Deforestation  often the result of illegal logging  is an acute problem in the Philippines.
Forest cover declined from 70  of the Philippines s total land area in 1900 to about 18.3  in 1999.
Climate      The Philippines has a tropical maritime climate that is usually hot and humid.
Temperatures usually range from 21 °C  70 °F  to 32 °C  90 °F .
Altitude usually has more of an impact.
Historically typhoons were sometimes referred to as baguios.
Government attempts to reduce population growth have been a contentious issue.
The population s median age is 22.7 years with 60.9  aged from 15 to 64 years old.
Life expectancy at birth is 69.4 years  73.1 years for females and 65.9 years for males.
Across the country  the Philippines has a total urbanization rate of 51.2 percent.
At least some Negritos in the Philippines have Denisovan admixture in their genomes.
European DNA is present in many Filipinos today.
While a distinct minority  Chinese Filipinos are well integrated into Filipino society.
As of 2015  there were 220 000 to 600 000 American citizens living in the country.
Other important non indigenous minorities include Indians and Arabs.
The descendants of mixed race couples are known as Tisoy.
In addition  various Spanish based creole varieties collectively called Chavacano exist.
Filipino is a standardized version of Tagalog  spoken mainly in Metro Manila.
Religion      The Philippines is a secular state which protects freedom of religion.
Christianity is the dominant faith  shared by over 92  of the population.
Census data from 2015 found that about 79.53  of the population professed Catholicism.
29  of self identified Catholics consider themselves very religious.
An independent Catholic church  the Philippine Independent Church  has around 66 959 adherents.
Protestants were 10.8  of the population in 2010.
2.64  of the population are members of Iglesia ni Cristo.
The majority of Muslims live in Mindanao and nearby islands.
The 2015 Philippine Census reported the religion of about 0.02  of the population as  none .
Total health expenditure share in GDP for the year 2016 was 4.5 .
Retention of skilled practitioners is a problem.
Seventy percent of nursing graduates go overseas to work.
As of 2007  the Philippines was the largest supplier of nurses for export.
Cardiovascular diseases account for more than 35  of all deaths.
As of April 2020  there are only about 7 million individuals covered by these plans.
Education takes up a significant proportion of the national budget.
Classes start in June and end in March.
Rodrigo Duterte was elected to a six year term as president in 2016.
Carlos P. Romulo was a former President of the United Nations General Assembly.
The country is an active participant in peacekeeping missions  particularly in East Timor.
In 2003 the Philippines was designated a Major non NATO ally.
Japan is the biggest bilateral contributor of official development assistance to the country.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines are a volunteer force.
As of 2018   2.843 billion  or 1.1 percent of GDP is spent on military forces.
A 1991 law devolved some powers to local governments.
Gross international reserves as of October 2013 are  83.201 billion.
The country is a net importer but it is also a creditor nation.
Manila hosts the headquarters of the Asian Development Bank.
The extent it was affected initially was not as severe as that of some of its Asian neighbors.
There have been signs of progress since.
In 2014 the total worth of foreign exchange remittances was US 28 billion.
The Philippines has a high concentration of cellular phone users.
The country has a high level of mobile financial services utilization.
It is also the largest company in the country.
Social networking and watching videos are among the most frequent Internet activities.
The Philippine population is the world s top internet user.
Roads are the dominant form of transport  carrying 98  of people and 58  of cargo.
The 8.25 kilometre  5.13 mi  Cebu–Cordova Link Expressway in Cebu will be finished by 2021.
Jeepneys are a popular and iconic public utility vehicle.
There are plans to revive Freight transport to reduce road congestion.
Metro Manila is served by three rapid transit lines  LRT Line 1  LRT Line 2 and MRT Line 3.
The PNR South Commuter Line transports passengers between Metro Manila and Laguna.
The civil airline industry is regulated by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines.
Philippine Airlines is Asia s oldest commercial airline still operating under its original name.
Boats have always been important to societies in the Philippines.
Terms such as bangka and baroto are also used as general names for a variety of boat types.
Modern ships use plywood in place of logs and motor engines in place of sails.
These ships are used both for fishing and for inter island travel.
The common use of the English language is an example of the American impact on Philippine society.
It has contributed to the influence of American pop cultural trends.
This affinity is seen in Filipinos  consumption of fast food and American film and music.
Some of the most known were created from the 17th to 19th century.
This led to the construction of government buildings and Art Deco theaters.
Limestones were used as a building material  with houses being built to withstand typhoons.
Kundiman developed in the 1920s and 30 s  and had a renaissance in the postwar period.
The American colonial period exposed many Filipinos to US culture and popular forms of music.
The 1970s also saw the birth of Manila Sound and Original Pilipino Music  OPM .
Filipino hip hop traces its origins back to 1979  entering the mainstream in 1990.
Recently K pop has become popular.
Karaoke is a popular activity in the country.
Dance      In general  there are two types of Philippine traditional folk dance.
One example of such type is the Cariñosa.
Social approval  acceptance by a group  and belonging to a group are major concerns.
There are large numbers of both radio stations and newspapers.
The dominant television networks were ABS CBN and GMA  both being free to air.
English broadsheets are popular among executives  professionals and students.
Critically acclaimed Philippines films include Himala  Miracle .
Moving pictures were first shown in the Philippines on January 1  1897.
Antonio Ramos was the first known movie producer.
Meanwhile  Jose Nepomuceno was dubbed as the  Father of Philippine Movies .
His work marked the start of the local production of movies.
Nonetheless  some local films continue to find success.
The national martial art and sport of the country is Arnis.
The Philippines is fronting up to its Spanish heritage  and for some it s paying off .
Dean Worcester s Fantasy Islands  Photography  Film  and the Colonial Philippines.
For example   igh  is an English language phonogram that represents the hard  I  sound in  high .
A pit house  or pithouse  is a large house in the ground  usually circular  used for shelter.
Dating back 15 000 years to the Upper Paleolithic age  the houses were made of mammoth bones.
Presumably  animal hide was stretched around the exterior for insulation.
However  their use may have varied  especially on a regional basis.
In the Slavonic regions of Eastern Europe  Grubenhäuser are larger and often have a fireplace.
In most settlements there have been no features of buildings at ground level.
There are reconstructions of pit houses in several open air museums  e.g.
For cold winter months  pit houses provided the warm  protected shelter necessary for survival.
The last example is from the Yami who occupied a small island south of Formosa.
Other cultural patterns were common  but not universal across the sample.
Of these  64  had fewer than 100 people per settlement.
In only 6  of cases were there more than 400 persons per settlement.
Gilman attributes high population densities among the Arikara to the availability of buffalo.
Pit structure occupations are generally associated with simple political and economic systems.
However  some pit dwelling societies are characterized by chiefdom level complexity.
Many different prehistoric groups used pit houses.
Trowels are then used to excavate on either side of the profile wall.
Once the floor layer is reached  aerial pictures are taken once again.
The profile wall is then excavated to reveal the full pit house floor.
Along the way  all important finds are bagged and assigned artifact  X   numbers.
See also         Notes         References    Farwell  R. Y.
Their chloroplasts contain chlorophylls a and b  which gives them their green color.
The scientific study of plants is known as botany  a branch of biology.
Those which have been called  plants  are in bold  some minor groups have been omitted .
They undergo closed mitosis without centrioles  and typically have mitochondria with flat cristae.
This is the broadest modern definition of the term  plant .
a group that excludes some of the descendants of a common ancestor.
Streptophyte algae are either unicellular or form multicellular filaments  branched or unbranched.
Growing immersed in fresh water  they consist of a central stalk with whorls of branchlets.
In 1969  Robert Whittaker proposed the creation of the kingdom Fungi.
About 85–90  of all plants are flowering plants.
Several projects are currently attempting to collect all plant species in online databases  e.g.
the World Flora Online and World Plants both list about 350 000 species.
This chert preserved early plants in cellular detail  petrified in volcanic springs.
A newer proposed classification follows Leliaert et al.
Notice that the Prasinophyceae are here placed inside the Chlorophyta.
Later  a phylogeny based on genomes and transcriptomes from 1 153 plant species was proposed.
The classification of Bryophyta is supported both by Puttick et al.
2018  and by phylogenies involving the hornwort genomes that have also since been sequenced.
Embryophytes include the vascular plants  such as ferns  conifers and flowering plants.
They also include the bryophytes  of which mosses and liverworts are the most common.
Bryophytes first appeared during the early Paleozoic.
Most species of bryophytes remain small throughout their life cycle.
In the mosses and hornworts a cuticle is usually only produced on the sporophyte.
Root systems capable of obtaining soil water and nutrients also evolved during the Devonian.
A megasporangium enclosed in a protective layer called an integument is known as an ovule.
The integument becomes a seed coat  and the ovule develops into a seed.
The name gymnosperm comes from the Greek γυμνόσπερμος  a composite of γυμνός  gymnos lit.
Fossil land plants are recorded in terrestrial  lacustrine  fluvial and nearshore marine sediments.
These fossils resemble calcified multicellular members of the Dasycladales.
The earliest fossils attributed to green algae date from the Precambrian  ca.
Sequoia and its allies  magnolia  oak  and palms are often found.
Such specimens may be cut and polished using lapidary equipment.
Fossil forests of petrified wood have been found in all continents.
These sugars are then used as building blocks and form the main structural component of the plant.
Plants use oxygen and glucose  which may be produced from stored starch  to provide energy.
Factors affecting growth     The genome of a plant controls its growth.
These designations often depend on climate and other environmental factors.
This may or may not be lethal  depending on the hardiness of the tissue.
This dehydration is now considered the fundamental cause of freezing injury.
During germination repair processes are activated to deal with this accumulated DNA damage.
In particular  single  and double strand breaks in DNA can be repaired.
Just as in animals  plant cells differentiate and develop into multiple cell types.
Totipotent meristematic cells can differentiate into vascular  storage  protective  e.g.
The primary mechanism plants have for capturing light energy is the pigment chlorophyll.
All green plants contain two forms of chlorophyll  chlorophyll a and chlorophyll b.
The latter of these pigments is not found in red or brown algae.
Plants use pattern recognition receptors to recognize conserved microbial signatures.
This recognition triggers an immune response.
Plants also carry immune receptors that recognize highly variable pathogen effectors.
These include the NBS LRR class of proteins.
They also have roots for taking up water and minerals.
Genomics    Plants have some of the largest genomes among all organisms.
The first plant genome sequenced was that of Arabidopsis thaliana which encodes about 25 500 genes.
Many animals rely on plants for shelter as well as oxygen and food.
Plant roots play an essential role in soil development and the prevention of soil erosion.
Distribution     Plants are distributed almost worldwide.
Ecological relationships      Numerous animals have coevolved with plants.
Many animals pollinate flowers in exchange for food in the form of pollen or nectar.
Many animals disperse seeds  often by eating fruit and passing the seeds in their feces.
Myrmecophytes are plants that have coevolved with ants.
The plant provides a home  and sometimes food  for the ants.
In exchange  the ants defend the plant from herbivores and sometimes competing plants.
Ant wastes provide organic fertilizer.
The weight of large numbers of epiphytes may break tree limbs.
Many orchids  bromeliads  ferns and mosses often grow as epiphytes.
These shared resources commonly include space for growth  sunlight  water and nutrients.
Light is an important resource because it is necessary for photosynthesis.
Common nutrients competed for amongst plants include nitrogen and phosphorus.
Space is also extremely important for a growing and developing plant.
In the event that an old tree dies  competition arises amongst a number of trees to replace it.
Importance     The study of plant uses by people is called economic botany or ethnobotany.
Human cultivation of plants is part of agriculture  which is the basis of human civilization.
Plant agriculture is subdivided into agronomy  horticulture and forestry.
Food      Humans depend on plants for food  either directly or as feed for domestic animals.
Plants used in herbalism include ginkgo  echinacea  feverfew  and Saint John s wort.
Renewable fuels from plants include firewood  peat and other biofuels.
Wood is pulped to make paper and cardboard.
Thread used to sew cloth likewise comes in large part from cotton.
Arboretums and botanical gardens are public collections of living plants.
Venus Flytrap  sensitive plant and resurrection plant are examples of plants sold as novelties.
Scientific and cultural uses      Basic biological research has often been done with plants.
They are used as national and state emblems  including state trees and state flowers.
The arrangement of flowers may be used to send hidden messages.
Plants that produce windblown pollen invoke allergic reactions in people who suffer from hay fever.
A wide variety of plants are poisonous.
Toxalbumins are plant poisons fatal to most mammals and act as a serious deterrent to consumption.
Several plants cause skin irritations when touched  such as poison ivy.
See also         References         Further reading    General Evans  L.T.
requires Microsoft Silverlight  Chaw  S. M.   et al.
Japan is considered a constitutional monarchy with a system of civil law.
The Economist Intelligence Unit rated Japan a  flawed democracy  in 2019.
The Constitution does of course offer one of the most extensive catalogues of rights in the world.
That is not to say there have been no changes regarding it  however.
He performs ceremonial duties and holds no real power.
Political power is held mainly by the Prime Minister and other elected members of the Diet.
They are a member of either house of the Diet and must be a civilian.
The Cabinet members are nominated by the Prime Minister  and are also required to be civilian.
Both houses pass legislation in identical form for it to become law.
The cabinet then relies on the expertise of the bureaucracy to draft actual bills.
Political parties and elections     Several political parties exist in Japan.
LDP was the ruling party for decades since 1955.
Despite the existence of multiple parties  other parties were completely ignored.
Most of the prime ministers were elected from inner factions of the LDP.
This process often took place in deliberation councils  shingikai .
Thereafter  the socialist party steadily declined in its electoral successes.
LDP leadership was drawn from the elite who had seen Japan through the defeat and occupation.
In April 1994  Prime Minister Hosokawa resigned.
Prime Minister Hata resigned less than two months later.
Prime Minister Murayama served from June 1994 to January 1996.
He was succeeded by Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto  who served from January 1996 to July 1998.
Hashimoto resigned due to a poor electoral performance by the LDP in the Upper House elections.
The LDP Liberal coalition expanded to include the New Komeito Party in October 1999.
Koizumi was elected as Japan s 56th Prime Minister on 26 April 2001.
A similar event occurred during the 2004 Upper House elections as well.
The ruling LDP started losing hold since 2006.
No prime minister except Koizumi had good public support.
He was Japan s youngest post World War II prime minister and the first born after the war.
On 12 September 2007  Abe surprised Japan by announcing his resignation from office.
He was replaced by Yasuo Fukuda  a veteran of LDP.
Fukuda resigned suddenly on 1 September 2008  just a few weeks after reshuffling his cabinet.
The election results for the House of Representatives were announced on 30 and 31 August 2009.
Kan suffered an early setback in the 2010 Japanese House of Councillors election.
tax  nuclear energy  and elections were held on 16 December.
He was appointed as the 96th Prime Minister of Japan on 26 December 2012.
Together they managed to secure a huge majority by winning 325 seats for the Lower House.
Japan plays an important role in East Asia.
The Japanese Constitution prohibits the use of military forces to wage war against other countries.
The government maintains a  Self Defense Force   which include air  land and sea components.
Japan s Quest for Stability in Southeast Asia  Navigating the Turning Points in Postwar Asia.
Japan s Security Renaissance  New Policies and Politics for the Twenty First Century.
Japan Rearmed  The Politics of Military Power.
External links    Electronic journal of contemporary japanese studies JapanesePolitics
The official and national language is Portuguese.
After the Muslim conquest of the Iberian Peninsula  most of its territory was part of Al Andalus.
Portugal as a country was established during the early Christian Reconquista.
Founded in 868  the County of Portugal gained prominence after the Battle of São Mamede  1128 .
Democracy was restored after the Carnation Revolution  1974   ending the Portuguese Colonial War.
Shortly after  independence was granted to almost all its overseas territories.
It is a developed country with an advanced economy and high living standards.
Middle English variant spellings included Portingall  Portingale  Portyngale and Portingaill.
The spelling Portyngale is found in Chaucer s Epilogue to the Nun s Priest s Tale.
Roman Lusitania and Gallaecia      Romans first invaded the Iberian Peninsula in 219 BC.
The Carthaginians  Rome s adversary in the Punic Wars  were expelled from their coastal colonies.
It suffered a severe setback in 155 BC  when a rebellion began in the north.
The Roman leaders decided to change their strategy.
They bribed Viriathus s allies to kill him.
In 139 BC  Viriathus was assassinated and Tautalus became leader of the Lusitanians.
Rome installed a colonial regime.
The complete Romanization of Lusitania only took place in the Visigothic era.
In 27 BC  Lusitania gained the status of Roman province.
Some urban remains are quite large  like Conímbriga and Mirobriga.
Conímbriga lies 16 kilometres  10 miles  from Coimbra  which in turn was the ancient Aeminium.
The site also has a museum that displays objects found by archaeologists during their excavations.
Coins  some coined in Lusitanian land  as well as numerous pieces of ceramics  were also found.
In 448 Rechila died  leaving the state in expansion to Rechiar.
Both reigned from 456 to 457  the year in which Maldras  457–459  reunified the kingdom.
He was assassinated after a failed Roman Visigothic conspiracy.
He would be forced to adopt Arianism in 465 due to the Visigoth influence.
They became a threat to the Suebian rule.
He was succeeded by Theodemar  559–570  during whose reign the 1st Council of Braga  561  was held.
During his reign  the 2nd Council of Braga  572  was held.
The Visigothic civil war began in 577.
Later in 583 he also organized an unsuccessful expedition to reconquer Seville.
During the return from this failed operation Miro died.
In the Suebian Kingdom many internal struggles continued to take place.
Under the Visigoths  Gallaecia was a well defined space governed by a doge of its own.
Doges at this time were related to the monarchy acted as princes in all matters.
Another Germanic group that accompanied the Suebi and settled in Gallaecia were the Buri.
This rule lasted from some decades in the North to five centuries in the South.
Al Andaluz was divided into different districts called Kura.
The three kingdoms were eventually reunited in 924 under the crown of León.
Afonsine era      On 24 June 1128  the Battle of São Mamede occurred near Guimarães.
Afonso then turned his arms against the Moors in the south.
Afonso was recognized in 1143 by King Alfonso VII of León  and in 1179 by Pope Alexander III.
At this time  Portugal covered about half of its present area.
In 1348 and 1349 Portugal  like the rest of Europe  was devastated by the Black Death.
In the Oporto region  in particular  there is visible English influence to this day.
With this battle  the House of Aviz became the ruling house of Portugal.
Portugal spearheaded European exploration of the world and the Age of Discovery.
Thus  the Portuguese empire held dominion over commerce in the Indian Ocean and South Atlantic.
Magellan never made it back to Europe as he was killed by natives in the Philippines in 1521.
Subsequently  Philip II of Spain claimed the throne and was accepted as Philip I of Portugal.
Portugal did not lose its formal independence  briefly forming a union of kingdoms.
At this time Spain was a geographic territory.
This was the beginning of the House of Braganza  which reigned in Portugal until 1910.
After Afonso s death  Pedro came to the throne as King Pedro II.
King John V  however  was not pleased and recalled Carvalho e Melo to Portugal in 1749.
John V died the following year and his son  Joseph I  was crowned.
By 1755  Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo was made Prime Minister.
The city was razed to the ground by the earthquake and the subsequent tsunami and ensuing fires.
We bury the dead and take care of the living.
The new city centre of Lisbon was designed to resist subsequent earthquakes.
In 1758 Joseph I was wounded in an attempted assassination.
Joseph I ennobled Carvalho e Melo as Count of Oeiras in 1759.
Following the Távora affair  the new Count of Oeiras knew no opposition.
The Marquês de Pombal was banished to his estate at Pombal  where he died in 1782.
This decline was hastened by the independence of Brazil  the country s largest colonial possession.
In the autumn of 1807  Napoleon moved French troops through Spain to invade Portugal.
This episode is known as the Transfer of the Portuguese Court to Brazil.
Thus he returned to Portugal but left his son Pedro in charge of Brazil.
John VI s death in 1826 caused serious questions in his succession.
Pedro abdicated in favour of his daughter  Maria II  Mary II .
However  Pedro s brother  Infante Miguel  claimed the throne in protest.
First Republic and Estado Novo      The new republic had many problems.
Portugal had 45 different governments in just 15 years.
During World War 1  1914–1918   Portugal helped the Allies fight the Central Powers.
But the war hurt its weak economy.
Portugal remained neutral in World War II.
The outcome was the loss of the remaining Portuguese territories in the Indian subcontinent.
Mário Soares would be Prime Minister from 1976 to 1978 and again from 1983 to 1985.
In 1996  Jorge Sampaio became president.
He won re election in January 2001.
The Republic of Ireland was the only EU state to hold a democratic referendum on the Lisbon Treaty.
It was initially rejected by voters in 2008.
Geologically  these islands were formed by volcanic and seismic events.
In these places snow can fall any time from October to May.
In the South of the country snowfalls are rare but still occur in the highest elevations.
Some islands in Azores do have drier months in the summer.
Porto Santo Island in Madeira has a warm semi arid climate  BSh .
Boars were found recently roaming at night inside large urban areas  like in Setubal.
In Madeira  for example  it is possible to observe more than 250 species of land gastropods.
The Supreme Courts are institutions of last resort appeal.
A thirteen member Constitutional Court oversees the constitutionality of the laws.
He or she has also supervision and reserve powers.
The President is also the ex officio Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces.
It has essentially Executive powers  but has also limited legislative powers.
It is the main legislative body  although the Government also has limited legislative powers.
The Assembly of the Republic is a unicameral body composed of up to 230 deputies.
The supreme national courts are the Supreme Court of Justice and the Constitutional Court.
Maximum jail sentences are limited to 25 years.
LGBTI rights      LGBTI rights have increased substantially in the past years.
The law came into force on 5 June 2010.
This bill was adopted by the Parliament and signed by President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.
The global headquarters of the CPLP is in Penafiel Palace  in Lisbon.
It has a friendship alliance and dual citizenship treaty with its former colony  Brazil.
There are two international territorial disputes  both with Spain   Olivenza.
Portugal claimed it back in 1815 under the Treaty of Vienna.
Military      The armed forces have three branches  Navy  Army and Air Force.
As of 2008  the three branches numbered 39 200 active personnel including 7 500 women.
Portuguese military expenditure in 2009 was 5 billion US   representing 2.1 per cent of GDP.
Military conscription was abolished in 2004.
The minimum age for voluntary recruitment is 18 years.
The Air Force  7 500 personnel  has the Lockheed F 16 Fighting Falcon as the main combat aircraft.
This force is under the authority of both the Defense and the Interior Ministry.
It has provided detachments for participation in international operations in Iraq and East Timor.
The ratio of Portugal s debt to its overall economy  was 107 per cent when it received the bailout.
Persistent and lasting recruitment policies boosted the number of redundant public servants.
By the end of 2018  Portugal s GDP  PPP  was  32 554 per capita  according to OECD s report.
According to World Travel Awards  Portugal was Europe s Leading Golf Destination in 2012 and 2013.
The PSI 20 is Portugal s most selective and widely known stock index.
In 2001  the gross agricultural product accounted for 4  of the national GDP.
The nation is also a notable producer of tin  tungsten and uranium.
It has 5 more deposits in its possession.
The company said the estimated mineral resources at the mine now stood at 14 million tonnes.
Notable luxury destinations include the Portuguese Riviera and the Comporta Coast.
The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Fatima is one of the largest Roman Catholic shrines in the world.
The Rooster of Barcelos is bought by thousands of tourists as a national souvenir.
One of the oldest learned societies of Portugal is the Sciences Academy of Lisbon  founded in 1779.
Portugal is a member of several pan European scientific organizations.
On many highways  a toll needs to be paid  see Via Verde .
It also serves as a military air base for the United States Air Force.
The base remains in use to the present day.
All major cities and towns have their own local urban transport network  as well as taxi services.
As of June 2010  electricity exports had outnumbered imports.
Portugal s distribution system is also now a two way street.
With a low confidence range there are Scandinavian and East European genetical markers.
This emerging height gap took place in the 1840s and has increased since.
Another determinant was the delayed human capital formation.
In 2016  52.8  of births were to unmarried women.
The  Return Programme  is to run for two years.
Around 500 000 residents left Portugal between 2010 and 2015 after the Great Recession.
The following is a list of those with mainland Functional Urban Areas  FUA .
Romanians  Moldovans  Kosovo Albanians  Russians and Chinese have also migrated to the country.
The workers sometimes get paid less than half the minimum pay established by law.
Most are Indo Asians  from India  Bangladesh  Nepal  Pakistan and Thailand.
In the interior of the Alentejo there are many African workers.
Languages      Portuguese is the official language of Portugal.
There are still many similarities between the Galician and Portuguese cultures.
Galicia is a consultative observer of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries.
It is part of the Astur Leonese group of languages.
Universities are usually organized into faculties.
The total adult literacy rate is 99.4 per cent.
Portuguese primary school enrolments are 100 per cent.
All higher education students  both domestic and international  totalled 380 937 in 2005.
Portuguese universities have existed since 1290.
The oldest Portuguese university was first established in Lisbon before moving to Coimbra.
Presently  the largest university in Portugal is the University of Lisbon.
Most student costs are supported with public money.
The SNS provides universal coverage.
The Ministry of Health is responsible for developing health policy as well as managing the SNS.
The SNS is predominantly funded through general taxation.
Cancer is more frequent among children as well as among women younger than 44 years.
Portugal is home to 17 UNESCO World Heritage Sites  ranking it 9th in Europe and 18th in the world.
In Portugal Tomás Taveira is also noteworthy  particularly for stadium design.
1536  was one of the founders of Portuguese dramatic traditions.
Cuisine      Portuguese cuisine is very diverse.
There are more than enough bacalhau dishes  over one for each day of the year.
Portuguese cuisine is very diverse  with different regions having their own traditional dishes.
Today  the country is known by wine lovers and its wines have won several international prizes.
Port and Madeira are particularly appreciated in a wide range of places around the world.
Music      Portuguese music encompasses a wide variety of genres.
Coimbra fado  a unique type of  troubadour serenading  fado  is also noteworthy.
In 2005  Portugal held the MTV Europe Music Awards  in Pavilhão Atlântico  Lisbon.
Visual arts      Portugal has a rich history in painting.
During the renaissance Portuguese painting was highly influenced by north European painting.
In the Baroque period Josefa de Óbidos and Vieira Lusitano were the most prolific painters.
Among his best known works is Canção Popular a Russa e o Fígaro.
He was deeply influenced by both Cubist and Futurist trends.
Sport      Football is the most popular sport in Portugal.
The legendary Eusébio is still a major symbol of Portuguese football history.
Portuguese football managers are also noteworthy  with José Mourinho being among the most renowned.
At international level  Portuguese cyclists have already achieved good results.
Joaquim Agostinho finished on the podium in 1978 and 1979 Tour de France  and 1974 Vuelta a España.
Rui Costa has won the world title in the men s road race.
In water sports  Portugal has three major sports  swimming  water polo and surfing.
Portugal is one of the world s best golf destinations.
It has received several awards by the World Golf Awards.
In 1488 Bartolomeu Dias rounded the Cape of Good Hope  and in 1498 Vasco da Gama reached India.
The realms continued to have separate administrations.
The 1890 British Ultimatum led to the contraction of Portuguese ambitions in Africa.
In 1961 India annexed Goa and Dahomey  now Benin  annexed Fort of São João Baptista de Ajudá.
Portugal returned Macau to China in 1999.
At the time  Europeans did not know what lay beyond Cape Bojador on the African coast.
The main Portuguese goal was trade  not colonization or conquest.
The slave trade  for example  was conducted by a few dozen merchants in Lisbon.
Senegal and Cape Verde Peninsula were reached in 1445.
The Cape Verde Islands were discovered in 1456 and settled in 1462.
By the 1490s Madeira had overtaken Cyprus as a producer of sugar.
Trade between Elmina and Portugal grew throughout a decade.
From these bases  they engaged profitably in the slave and gold trades.
The second voyage to India was dispatched in 1500 under Pedro Álvares Cabral.
After the capture of Socotra  Cunha and Albuquerque operated separately.
In Goa  Albuquerque began the first Portuguese mint in India in 1510.
A strong gate  called the A Famosa  was erected to defend the city and remains.
Jorge de Meneses discovered New Guinea in 1526  naming it the  Island of the Papua .
He was also the first European to discover Hong Kong.
The Chinese claimed that Simão kidnapped Chinese boys and girls to be molested and cannibalized.
Portuguese pirating was second to Japanese pirating by this period.
However  they soon began to shield Chinese junks and a cautious trade began.
The expedition of García Jofre de Loaísa reached the Moluccas  docking at Tidore.
Each entity ultimately had to respect the sphere of influence of the other  albeit unofficially.
Portugal responded by aiding king Gelawdewos with Portuguese soldiers and muskets.
In 1506  King Manuel I created taxes for the cod fisheries in Newfoundland waters.
Several attempts to establish settlements in Newfoundland over the next half century also failed.
Sousa returned to Lisbon a year later to become governor of India and never returned to Brazil.
leaving settlers to come up with new revenue sources.
This foretaste of the riches of the East galvanized English interest in the region.
These developments allowed the entry of chartered companies into the East Indies.
Other European nations  such as Protestant England  assisted the Dutch Empire in the war.
In 1640 John IV was proclaimed King of Portugal and the Portuguese Restoration War began.
The exceptions were North Africa  Madeira  and the Azores.
All correspondence concerning overseas possessions were funneled through the council.
A distinguished seventeenth century member was Salvador de Sá.
Minas Gerais and the gold industry     In 1693  gold was discovered at Minas Gerais in Brazil.
The village became the new economic center of the empire  with rapid settlement and some conflicts.
By 1718  São Paulo and Minas Gerais became two captaincies  with eight vilas created in the latter.
The crown also restricted the diamond mining within its jurisdiction and to private contractors.
Slaves labeled as  Minas  and  Angolas  rose in high demand during the boom.
Those that became free partook in artisan jobs such as cobblers  tailors  and blacksmiths.
Slave labor increased as well as involvement from the textile economy.
Impoverished social conditions and a high cost of living were among reasons of the revolt.
More revolts would occur after the arrival of the court.
Luís Filipe s brother  Manuel  became King Manuel II of Portugal.
In 1916  after Portugal interned German ships in Lisbon  Germany declared war on Portugal.
Portugal followed suit  thus entering World War I.
Early in the war  Portugal was involved mainly in supplying the Allies positioned in France.
In 1916  there was only one attack on the Portuguese territory  in Madeira.
Midway in the year  Portugal suffered its first World War I casualty.
This was resisted by António de Oliveira Salazar  who had taken power in 1933.
Post Impressionism was extended to include a painting by Lyman  who had studied with Matisse.
Lyman wrote in defense of the term and defined it.
He referred to the British show which he described as a great exhibition of modern art.
In terms of political power it was more reluctant  especially in the nonuse of military force.
However  it operates small military forces  Japan Self Defense Forces  since 1954.
The  Liberal Democratic Party would like to see the Constitution and Article 9 amended.
The new treaty also gave Japan the freedom to engage in international defence blocs.
The Japan Socialist Party  too  was forced to abandon its once strict antimilitary stance.
In November 1984  Nakasone was chosen for a second term as LDP president.
The government was faced with growing crises.
By the mid 1950s  production matched prewar levels.
Japanese schools also encouraged discipline  another benefit in forming an effective work force.
The value added to manufacturing and mining grew at the rate of 17  per year between 1965 and 1970.
This growth pattern  Lost Decade  Japan  stagnated after 1991.
In 1968  the first modern office skyscraper called the Kasumigaseki Building was built in Japan.
Labor unions had been destroyed by the government by 1940.
The American occupation forces  reflecting their New Deal American values  supported a revival.
After 1970  union membership declined in both Japan and the United States.
Close cooperation in the economic sphere followed.
Timeline to 1989    1952  Allied occupation ends  April 28 .
1954  the Japan Self Defense Forces established.
1955  the Liberal Democratic Party formed.
1956  Japan joins the United Nations.
1965  Treaty on Basic Relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea signed.
Shin ichiro Tomonaga awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics.
1968  the nuclear aircraft carrier Enterprise arrives in Sasebo amid controversy.
Itai itai disease is formally recognized as a public hazard disease.
Nanpō Islands revert to Japanese control.
Yasunari Kawabata receives the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The occupation of Tokyo University forces the administration to cancel the entrance exams.
1970  a World Exposition  Expo  70  held in Osaka.
1972  control of Ryukyu Islands reverts to Japan.
Yomiuri Giants  Sadaharu Oh ends his career.
1981  Kenichi Fukui awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
1982  the Tohoku Shinkansen extended to Morioka from Omiya.
A color wall painting of Genbu is discovered in the Kitora Kofun at Asuka mura.
Kakuei Tanaka sentenced to four years in jail.
1985  the first AIDS patient is officially recognized.
1988  the Seikan Tunnel connecting Hokkaido and Honshū completed.
1989  The Shōwa Emperor dies on January 7.
Akihito ascends to the throne the next day and a new reign name  Heisei  is declared.
Japan’s evolving foreign policy doctrine  from Yoshida to Miyazawa  Springer  2016 .Garon  Sheldon.
Japan since 1945   from postwar to post bubble  Bloomsbury Academic  2013 Gordon  Andrew  ed.
The boom coincided with the marriage boom  a significant increase in nuptiality.
These two factors gave rise to a high relative income  which encouraged high fertility.
In 1946  live births in the U.S. surged from 222 721 in January to 339 499 in October.
The stereotype developed that women were going to college to earn their M.R.S.
In Canada  the baby boom is usually defined as occurring from 1947 to 1966.
5 of the  7 that a California couple spent to go to the movies in 1950 went to the babysitter.
United Kingdom     In the United Kingdom the baby boom occurred in two waves.
The marriage boom was even more prolonged and did not recede until the 1980s.
Western Europe     France and Austria experienced the strongest baby booms in Europe.
In the French case  pronatalist policies were an important factor in this increase.
Weaker baby booms occurred in Germany  Switzerland  Belgium and the Netherlands.
Its magnitude was largest in Costa Rica and Panama.
1988  Wells  Robert V. Uncle Sam s Family  1985   general demographic history Weiss  Jessica.
This process is typically active when freezing rain occurs.
Lake effect snowfall can be locally heavy.
Thundersnow is possible within a cyclone s comma head and within lake effect precipitation bands.
Most precipitation occurs within the tropics and is caused by convection.
Precipitation may occur on other celestial bodies.
Mechanisms of producing precipitation include convective  stratiform  and orographic rainfall.
Liquid forms of precipitation include rain and drizzle.
Frozen forms of precipitation include snow  ice needles  ice pellets  hail  and graupel.
Rainfall is sometimes  but rarely  expressed in centimeters  cm .
The corresponding English unit used is usually inches.
Adiabatic cooling occurs when air rises and expands.
When air turbulence occurs  water droplets collide  producing larger droplets.
Smaller drops are called cloud droplets  and their shape is spherical.
Contrary to the cartoon pictures of raindrops  their shape does not resemble a teardrop.
Rain drops associated with melting hail tend to be larger than other rain drops.
The METAR code for rain is RA  while the coding for rain showers is SHRA.
Ice pellets are usually  but not always  smaller than hailstones.
This causes the partial or complete melting of any snowflakes falling through the warm layer.
The storm s updraft blows the hailstones to the upper part of the cloud.
The updraft dissipates and the hailstones fall down  back into the updraft  and are lifted again.
Hail has a diameter of 5 millimetres  0.20 in  or more.
GR is derived from the French word grêle.
Stones just larger than golf ball sized are one of the most frequently reported hail sizes.
Hailstones can grow to 15 centimetres  6 in  and weigh more than 500 grams  1 lb .
The hailstone gains an ice layer and grows increasingly larger with each ascent.
Once a hailstone becomes too heavy to be supported by the storm s updraft  it falls from the cloud.
Once a droplet has frozen  it grows in the supersaturated environment.
This process is known as the Wegener–Bergeron–Findeisen process.
These aggregates are snowflakes  and are usually the type of ice particle that falls to the ground.
The exact details of the sticking mechanism remain a subject of research.
The METAR code for snow is SN  while snow showers are coded SHSN.
They are made of simple ice crystals  hexagonal in shape.
The METAR identifier for diamond dust within international hourly weather reports is IC.
Occluded fronts usually form around mature low pressure areas.
Precipitation may occur on celestial bodies other than Earth.
Convection      Convective rain  or showery precipitation  occurs from convective clouds  e.g.
It falls as showers with rapidly changing intensity.
Storm systems affect the state with heavy rains between October and March.
In the Northern Hemisphere  poleward is towards the North Pole  or north.
Within the Southern Hemisphere  poleward is towards the South Pole  or south.
The term green season is also sometimes used as a euphemism by tourist authorities.
Areas with wet seasons are dispersed across portions of the tropics and subtropics.
Savanna climates and areas with monsoon regimes have wet summers and dry winters.
Animals have adaptation and survival strategies for the wetter regime.
Areas in their path can receive a year s worth of rainfall from a tropical cyclone passage.
Mountainous locales near the equator in Colombia are amongst the wettest places on Earth.
The wedge and tipping bucket gauges have problems with snow.
Hydrometeor definition     A concept used in precipitation measurement is the hydrometeor.
Any particulates of liquid or solid water in the atmosphere are known as hydrometeors.
Formations due to condensation  such as clouds  haze  fog  and mist  are composed of hydrometeors.
This includes the vast expanses of ocean and remote land areas.
to scatter microwave radiant energy.
However  most precipitation data sets in current use do not employ these data sources.
In either case  of course  the less emphasized goal is also considered desirable.
In many cases  one of the modern multi satellite data sets is the best choice for general use.
The rainfall will be extreme and flooding to be worse than a 1 in 10 year event.
Most summer rainfall occurs during thunderstorms and from occasional tropical cyclones.
The climate is characterized by hot  dry summers and cool  wet winters.
Subarctic climates are cold with continuous permafrost and little precipitation.
Effect on agriculture     Precipitation  especially rain  has a dramatic effect on agriculture.
Plants need varying amounts of rainfall to survive.
Animals have adaptation and survival strategies for the wetter regime.
The Sahel  the Mediterranean  southern Africa and parts of southern Asia have become drier.
Hawaii was the only region to show a decrease  −9.25  .
Rainfall rates downwind of cities are increased between 48  and 116 .
Some cities induce a total precipitation increase of 51 .
Precipitation forecasts tend to be bound by synoptic hours such as 0000  0600  1200 and 1800 GMT.
Various skill scores can be determined to measure the value of the rainfall forecast.
Sunshower  an unusual meteorological phenomenon in which rain falls while the sun is shining.
Traffic cars  including unmarked cars  and police motorcycles are deployed in these units.
Community policing officers are organised into several police stations  警察署  Keisatsu sho .
His title is not a rank  but rather denotes his position as head of the NPA.
After that  in 1956  a new uniform was adopted.
The jacket became the turned down collar style with three buttons  and the vent was done away with.
And in case of gun violence  bulletproof vests are also equipped.
And from the 1960s  procurement began to migrate to the domestic Minebea  New Nambu  M60.
With the exception of unmarked vehicles  all PPHs vehicles are painted and marked in the same ways.
Motorcycles are usually all white.
Aviation      In Japan  the deployment of police helicopters began in 1960.
Total of about 80 helicopters are being operated in 47 prefectures nationwide.
Some helicopters are equipped with stabilised TV camera and microwave link systems.
As of 2014  159 vessels are deployed nationwide.
6  1   50–57.CS1 maint  ref harv  link  Kobayashi  Yoshihide  November 2008 .
ISBN 978 4063666137.CS1 maint  ref harv  link  National Police Agency  ed.
Its original sense in Portuguese  however  was closer to  municipality  than  province .
Those fiefs were headed by a local warlord or family.
The plan called for each region to have greater autonomy than existing prefectures.
As of August 2012  this plan was abandoned.
Powers     Japan is a unitary state.
During World War II  in 1943  Tokyo became a to  a new type of pseudo prefecture.
aꜜitɕi  and  keꜜɴ  become  aitɕi̥ꜜkeɴ  .
Dō     Hokkaidō is referred to as a dō  道   doꜜː   or circuit.
This term was originally used to refer to Japanese regions consisting of several provinces  e.g.
the Tōkaidō east coast region  and Saikaido west coast region .
This was also a historical usage of the character in China.
Since Hokkaidō did not fit into the existing dō classifications  a new dō was created to cover it.
In 1947  the department was dissolved  and Hokkaidō became a full fledged prefecture.
They now exist primarily to handle paperwork and other bureaucratic functions.
To     Tokyo is referred to as to  都   toꜜ    which is often translated as  metropolis .
In 1893  the three Tama districts and their 91 towns and villages became part of Tokyo.
Also  by 1940  there were two more cities in Tokyo  Hachiōji City and Tachikawa City.
All other cities  towns and villages in Tokyo fu stayed cities  towns and villages in Tokyo to.
Administratively  today s special wards are almost indistinguishable from other municipalities.
Some of these restrictions were removed again over the decades.
But the practice of ordering prefectures based on their geographic region is traditional.
This ordering is mirrored in Japan s International Organization for Standardization  ISO  coding.
This doesn t include all the territories of the Empire of Japan such as Manchukuo.
The President and Vice President are elected every five years by the Federal Supreme Council.
He was the UAE s first president  from the UAE s founding until his death on 2 November 2004.
The President is also the Commander in Chief of the UAE Armed Forces.
He is the head of the Cabinet and appoints and dismisses the other ministers of state.
The current prime minister of Japan is Yoshihide Suga.
It took its current form with the adoption of the Constitution of Japan in 1947.
To date  64 people have served this position.
For that purpose  each conducts a ballot under the run off system.
Qualifications    Must be a member of either house of the Diet.
This implies a minimum age of 25 and a Japanese nationality requirement.
This excludes serving members of the Japan Self Defense Forces.
Appoints all Cabinet ministers  and can dismiss them at any time.
May permit legal action to be taken against Cabinet ministers.
Must make reports on domestic and foreign relations to the Diet.
Must report to the Diet upon demand to provide answers or explanations.
May advise the Emperor to dissolve the Diet s House of Representatives.
Statutory roles     Presides over meetings of the Cabinet.
His countersignature is required for all laws and Cabinet orders.
The old Kantei was then converted into the Official Residence  or Kōtei  公邸 .
The Kōtei lies to the southwest of the Kantei  and is linked by a walkway.
Both Japanese aircraft were delivered in 1990.
The 747s will be replaced by new Boeing 777 300ER aircraft in fiscal year 2019.
The peerage was abolished when the Constitution of Japan came into effect in May 1947.
The primary source of the life and accomplishments of Prince Shōtoku comes from the Nihon Shoki.
In 603  he established the Twelve Level Cap and Rank System at the court.
He is credited with promulgating a Seventeen article constitution.
There are also some rumors that Prince Shōtoku was never alive.
The Prince asked the beggar to identify himself  but the man did not reply.
The Prince then sang for the starving man.
For The wayfarer lying And hungered for rice!
The second day  the Prince sent a messenger to the starving man  but he was already dead.
Hereupon  Shōtoku was greatly grieved and ordered his burial.
Struck by awe  the people praised the Prince   How true it is that a sage knoweth a sage.
Documentation at Hōryū ji claims that Suiko and Shōtoku founded the temple in the year 607.
He is said to have been buried at Shinaga in Kawachi Province  modern Osaka Prefecture .
He is also known as Toyotomimi  豊聡耳  or Kamitsumiyaō  上宮王 .
In the Kojiki  his name appears as Kamitsumiya no Umayado no Toyotomimi no Mikoto  上宮之厩戸豊聡耳命 .
The first syllable of his name  聖   can be read shō in Go on and can also be read sei in Kan on.
The characteristic of these bills is that they have a border around it to prevent its alteration.
These cloth tickets were used for the exchange of important values at that time.
His name at birth was Prince Ōama  大海人皇子 Ōama no ōji .
He was succeeded by Empress Jitō  who was both his niece and his wife.
The nieces he married included Princess Unonosarara  today known as Empress Jitō  and Princess Ōta.
Tenmu also had other consorts whose fathers were influential courtiers.
Through Prince Kusakabe  Tenmu had two emperors and two empresses among his descendants.
Empress Kōken was the last of these imperial rulers from his lineage.
Tenmu s father died while he was young  and he grew up mainly under the guidance of Empress Saimei.
During the Tenji period  Tenmu was appointed his crown prince.
He took with him his sons and one of his wives  Princess Unonosarara  a daughter of Tenji.
However  he left all his other consorts at the capital  Omikyō in Ōmi Province  today in Ōtsu .
A year later   in 672  Tenji died and Prince Ōtomo ascended to the throne as Emperor Kōbun.
They marched through Yamato  Iga and Mino Provinces to threaten Omikyō in the adjacent province.
Tenmu s army won and Kōbun committed suicide.
Shortly thereafter  Emperor Kōbun is said to have acceded to the throne  sokui .
In 673 Tenmu moved the capital back to Yamato on the Kiymihara plain  naming his new capital Asuka.
– Ōtomo Miyuki At Asuka  Emperor Tenmu was enthroned.
He elevated Unonosarara to be his empress.
His wife  Empress Jito became the emperor until their son became the 42nd Emperor.
The actual site of his grave is known.
This emperor is traditionally venerated at a memorial shrine  misasagi  in Nara Prefecture.
The Imperial Household Agency designates this location as Tenmu s mausoleum.
It is formally named Hinokuma no Ōuchi no misasagi.
Tenmu attempted to keep a balance of power among his sons.
He also showed favor to Buddhism  and built several large temples and monasteries.
This was aimed at preventing cults and stopping farmers from turning into priests.
In general  this elite group included only three to four men at a time.
and  2  Taika  which was four years long  695–698 .
The first year of this era was kinoto hitsuji  695 .
In the third year of the Taika era  697   Empress Jitō yielded the throne to the Crown Prince.
The Man yōshū  The Nippon Gakujutsu Shinkokai Translation of One Thousand Poems.
Nihon Ōdai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
Prince Ōtomo was only given his posthumous title and name in 1870.
Shortly thereafter  Emperor Kōbun is said to have acceded to the throne  sokui .
This emperor is traditionally venerated at a memorial Shinto shrine  misasagi  at Shiga.
The Imperial Household Agency designates this location as Kōbun s mausoleum.
It is formally named Nagara no Yamasaki no misasagi.
Non nengō period    The years of Kōbun s reign are not linked by scholars to any era or nengō.
and  2  Taika  which was four years long  695–698 .
The first year of this era was kinoto hitsuji  695 .
In the third year of the Taka era  697   Empress Jitō yielded the throne to the Crown Prince.
Nihon Ōdai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
It was largely used to limit the power of the Imperial Diet.
However  the council had no power to initiate legislation.
The president was the authority as he called and controlled meetings inside of the council.
The Council was empowered to deliberate on any matters upon which the Emperor desired an opinion.
It was first performed in 2000 and then repeated every three years.
This implies that those who set the PISA tests – e.g.
PISA also assesses students in innovative domains.
In 2018 the additional innovative domain was global competence.
The school year pupils are in is not taken into consideration.
Only students at school are tested  not home schoolers.
In PISA 2006  however  several countries also used a grade based sample of students.
This made it possible to study how age and school year interact.
To fulfill OECD requirements  each country must draw a sample of at least 5 000 students.
Some countries used much larger samples than required to allow comparisons between regions.
Test      Each student takes a two hour computer based test.
Part of the test is multiple choice and part involves fuller answers.
School directors fill in a questionnaire describing school demographics  funding  etc.
National add ons     Countries are allowed to combine PISA with complementary national tests.
Test items of PISA E are closer to TIMSS than to PISA.
This large sample is needed to allow an analysis by federal states.
NAEP and TIMSS use similar scaling methods.
Note that this does not represent the entirety of mainland China.
Hong Kong placed second in reading and science and third in maths.
Even in some of the very poor areas you get performance close to the OECD average.
In 2015  the participating provinces were Jiangsu  Guangdong  Beijing  and Shanghai.
Britain increased exchanges with Chinese teachers and schools to find out how to improve quality.
The performance of British schools in PISA improved after adopting China s teaching styles.
For the first time Finnish girls outperformed boys in mathematics  but only narrowly.
India s participation in the next PISA cycle will hinge on this .
The score in reading showed a drop from 516 in 2000 to 483 in 2012.
The country performed below the OECD average in all three subjects.
The United Kingdom had a greater gap between high  and low scoring students than the average.
That is leaving out many of the important things   he warned.
They simply don t get commented on.
What you are looking at is something that happens to be common.
PISA results are taken at face value as providing some sort of common standard across countries.
But as soon as you begin to unpick it  I think that all falls apart.
Professors Morrison and Goldstein expressed dismay at the OECD s response to criticism.
I was amazed at how unforthcoming they were   he told TES.
Pisa steadfastly ignored many of these issues   he says.
They didn t want to talk to me at all.
I am sure it is because they can t defend themselves.
Only the 2012 and 2015 results are available on a state basis.
Puerto Rico participated in 2015 as a separate US entity as well.
Prostitution in Japan has existed throughout the country s history.
When the Europeans  Nanbanjin  came to Japan  they too patronized Japanese prostitutes.
The districts were walled and guarded for taxation and access control.
In 1609 a post was set up there by the Dutch East India Company.
There were many choices in how to engage in relations between Japanese females and foreign men.
She killed herself to join him in death when he was executed for forgery in 1690.
Yanagawa Seigan and Rai Sanyu were his friends.
Her name also meant plum blossom.
The gekkin  yüeh ch’in  were used to play these Kyūrenhwan songs.
He became famous due to the Siebold Incident.
The emancipating law for prostitution was named Geishōgi kaihō rei  芸娼妓解放令 .
In 1900  the Japanese Government promulgated Ordinance No.
The restriction neither reduced the total number of prostitution nor granted more liberty to women.
Instead  prostitution thrived under the Meiji government.
The name   kingdom of whoring   baishun o¯koku  was to describe Japan during the Meiji Period.
The government  therefore  with the legislation  could legally collect taxation from prostitution.
The police forces mobilized both licensed and unlicensed prostitutes to serve in these camps.
Such clubs were soon established by cabinet councilor Yoshio Kodama and Ryoichi Sasakawa.
The U.S. Department of State later criticized Hashimoto s remarks.
Religious connotations          Shinto     The Shinto faith does not regard sex as a taboo.
Sacred prostitution was even once practised by the Miko within traditional  pre Meiji Shinto.
Paid sex between  specified persons   acquaintances  is not prohibited.
Types      The sex industry in Japan uses a variety of names.
Soaplands are bath houses where customers are soaped up and serviced by staff.
Call girls operate via delivery health services.
Freelancers can get in contact with potential customers via deai sites  Internet dating sites .
Tokyo prostitution     In Tokyo  prostitution dates back several hundred years.
The title of the law  Jidō kaishun shobatsu hō  児童買春処罰法  was used in 1999.
The term originates from a law regulating business affecting public morals.
Japan has 16 national  government recognized holidays.
Ideally  a computer in New York and in Hong Kong should have the same price.
The value of the PPP exchange rate is very dependent on the basket of goods chosen.
In general  goods are chosen that might closely obey the law of one price.
So  ones traded easily and are commonly available in both locations.
The PPP exchange rate may not match the market exchange rate.
The market rate is more volatile because it reacts to changes in demand at each location.
One use of PPP is to predict longer term exchange rates.
These numbers often come with the label PPP adjusted.
A well known purchasing power adjustment is the Geary–Khamis dollar  the international dollar .
Variations     There are variations to calculating PPP.
It seems to mirror the exchange rate closer than PPP does.
Market exchange rates are used for individual goods that are traded .
PPP rates are more stable over time and can be used when that attribute is important.
The PPP method is used as an alternative to correct for possible statistical bias.
The reason is it does not take into account how much 1 USD stands for in a respective country.
By contrast  the currency s black market exchange rate is artificially weak.
In such cases  a PPP exchange rate is likely the most realistic basis for economic comparison.
In 2011  the Big Mac Index was used to identify manipulation of inflation numbers by Argentina.
Argentina responded by manipulating the Big Mac Index.
People in different countries typically consume different baskets of goods.
It is necessary to compare the cost of baskets of goods and services using a price index.
Thus  it is necessary to make adjustments for differences in the quality of goods and services.
More comparisons have to be made and used as variables in the overall formulation of the PPP.
Some aspects of PPP comparison are theoretically impossible or unclear.
PPP levels will also vary based on the formula used to calculate price matrices.
Possible formulas include GEKS Fisher  Geary Khamis  IDB  and the superlative method.
Each has advantages and disadvantages.
Linking regions presents another methodological difficulty.
There are a number of reasons that different measures do not perfectly reflect standards of living.
Conversely  category 2 products tend to trade close to the currency exchange rate.
These act as a cheaper factor of production than is available to factories in richer countries.
It is difficult by GDP PPP to consider the different quality of goods among the countries.
As transport costs increase  the larger the range of exchange rate fluctuations.
Nontradables are primarily services and the output of the construction industry.
Over time  shifts in market structure and demand will occur  which may invalidate relative PPP.
One way of doing this is by using the country s GDP deflator.
UBS      The bank UBS produces its  Prices and Earnings  report every 3 years.
Educational     To teach PPP  the basket of goods is often simplified to a single good.
There are some problems with the Big Mac Index.
A Big Mac is perishable and not easily transported.
That means the law of one price is not likely to keep prices the same in different locations.
McDonald s restaurants are not present in every country  which limits the index s usage.
That is  ones where the Big Mac is expense or cheap  when measured using current exchange rates.
The implied PPP exchange rate is 3.58 HK  per US .
For example  the average price of KFC s Original 12 pc.
Therefore  the index states the Namibian dollar was undervalued by 33  at that time.
The Qiang people  Chinese  羌族  pinyin  Qiāngzú  Qiangic  Rrmea  are an ethnic group in China.
When Qiang was officially designated an ethnic group in 1950  they numbered only 35 600.
Another 49 200 people reclaimed their Qiang ethnicity from 1982 1989.
In total  some 200 000 Han people became Qiang.
The Qiangs also use Chinese characters.
The Qiang find marriage important.
In the past  marriages were arranged by an individual s parents  with approval from the individual.
The Qiang also have strict customs regarding birth and death.
After she has given birth  the woman is not allowed into the kitchen for one month thereafter.
It would be considered a sinful action against the kitchen and family gods.
Stillborn or premature babies are not considered human beings by the Qiang.
Culture and lifestyle     The Qiang today are mountain dwellers.
The inhabitants of fortress village or village cluster have close contact in social life.
Owing to its ethnic diversity  Qiang culture has influenced and been influenced by other cultures.
Following age old traditions  their hair and legs are bound.
Consumption of wine and smoking of orchid leaves are also popular among the Qiangs.
If the third floor does not exist  the grains will be kept on the first or second floor instead.
Using only wooden boards and piers  these bridges can stretch up to 100 meters.
Others who are excellent masons are good at digging wells.
Embroidery and drawn work are done extemporaneously without any designs.
Others  who live near the Tibetans  follow Tibetan Buddhism.
There are as well very small minorities of Muslims.
In certain places  Shanwang  the mountain god  is considered to represent the supreme god.
The Qiang people have also adopted many practices of the Taoists.
On top of the pagoda  a white stone is placed together with ox and sheep horns.
RERO is a syllabic abbreviation of  Réseau Romand    Romand Network  .
RERO includes most of the cantonal  academic  public  and specialized libraries in Switzerland.
The catalog also describes 222 400 periodicals  including 3 169 electronic journals.
Mei Yingzuo s 1615 dictionary Zihui made two further innovations.
These innovations were also adopted by the more famous Kangxi Dictionary of 1716.
Thus the standard 214 radicals introduced in the Zihui are usually known as the Kangxi radicals.
These were first called bùshǒu  部首  literally  section header   in the Kangxi Dictionary.
Shape and position within characters    Radicals may appear in any position in a character.
These are loose rules  though  and exceptions are plenty.
They may be narrowed  shortened  or may have different shapes entirely.
Changes in shape  rather than simple distortion  may result in fewer pen strokes.
In some cases  combinations may have alternates.
The shape of the component can depend on its placement with other elements in the character.
This has created a number of new radical forms.
A character using this radical is yín  silver   traditionally  銀  simplified  银.
If one does not know  then the component on the left side or top is often a good first guess.
Find the pages listing characters under that radical that have that number of additional strokes.
The various radicals will be organized by the number of strokes they themselves contain.
until one reaches the entries with seven additional strokes.
This means that the dictionary user need not know that the two are etymologically identical.
It is sometimes possible to find a single character indexed under multiple radicals.
For example  many dictionaries list 義 under either 羊 or 戈  the radical of its lower part 我 .
Harbaugh s Chinese Characters dictionary similarly allows searches based on any component.
This is because radicals are merely arbitrarily chosen categories for lexicographical purposes.
They serve as the basis for many computer encoding systems.
The count of commonly used radicals in modern abridged dictionaries is often less than 214.
The Oxford Concise English–Chinese Dictionary  ISBN 0 19 596457 8   for example  has 188.
They have become increasingly disconnected from meaning  etymology and phonetics.
Taipei  Yiwen Publishing  cited in Wu 1990 .
Radiocarbon is a scientific journal devoted to the topic of radiocarbon dating.
The journal is published six times per year.
As of 2016  it is published by Cambridge University Press.
See also    Carbon 14      References         External links    Official website
Rakugo  落語  literally  fallen words   is a form of Japanese verbal entertainment of yose.
The lone storyteller  落語家  rakugoka  sits on a raised platform  a kōza  高座 .
The story always involves the dialogue of two or more characters.
Lexical background    Rakugo was originally known as karukuchi  軽口 .
The monologue always ends with a narrative stunt  punch line  known as ochi  落ち  lit.
In many of these forms the ochi  which is essential to the original rakugo  is absent.
Many groups of performers were formed  and collections of texts were finally printed.
These were enacted in small public venues  or in the streets  and printed and sold as pamphlets.
Important contributors     Many artists contributed to the development of rakugo.
Some were simply performers  but many also composed original works.
Tatekawa Enba I  1743–1822  was author of the Rakugo rokugi  The Six Meanings of Rakugo .
An example from Yonezawa Hikohachi s collection   A man faints in a bathing tub.
Once the water has flowed completely out of the tub he says   Fine.
Now put a lid on it and carry the guy to the cemetery.
For the poor man is already dead.
Some examples include Akashiya Sanma  Shōfukutei Tsurube II  and Shōfukutei Shōhei.
Rakugo  The Popular Narrative Art of Japan.
History          Origin     Ramen is a Japanese adaptation of Chinese wheat noodles.
Early versions were wheat noodles in broth topped with Chinese style roast pork.
Etymology     The word ramen is a Japanese transcription of the Chinese lamian  拉麵 .
The US flooded the market with cheap wheat flour to deal with food shortages.
Thousands of ramen vendors were arrested during the occupation.
Some of them would have been familiar with wheat noodles.
Ramen yatai provided a rare opportunity for small scale postwar entrepreneurship.
The Americans also aggressively advertised the nutritional benefits of wheat and animal protein.
Gradually  ramen became associated with urban life.
Tsuta  a ramen restaurant in Tokyo s Sugamo district  received a Michelin star in December 2015.
Ramen can be broadly categorized by its two main ingredients  noodles and broth.
Eggs may also be substituted for kansui.
It may be thick  thin  or even ribbon like  as well as straight or wrinkled.
Some modern ramen broths can also be vegetable based.
Tare is often added to broth to make the soup.
Flavors      The resulting combination is generally divided into several categories.
Shōyu ramen usually has curly noodles rather than straight ones  but this is not always the case.
Shio  塩  salt   ramen is the oldest of the four types.
The noodles are typically thick  curly  and slightly chewy.
In Japan  several cities claim to be its place of origin.
Curry soup is mainly made with pork bones and vegetables and is seasoned with curry.
The noodles are thick and curly.
Toppings include chāshū  wakame  and bean sprouts.
Soup recipes and methods of preparation tend to be closely guarded secrets.
The area within the former city limits has the highest per capita number of ramen establishments.
Tokyo style ramen consists of slightly thin  curly noodles served in a soy flavored chicken broth.
Standard toppings are chopped scallion  menma  sliced pork  kamaboko  egg  nori  and spinach.
It has a rich  milky  pork bone tonkotsu broth and rather thin  non curly and resilient noodles.
Ramen stalls in Hakata and Tenjin are well known within Japan.
Related dishes    There are many related  Chinese influenced noodle dishes in Japan.
The following are often served alongside ramen in ramen establishments.
The noodles are thicker than ramen but thinner than udon.
Not to be confused with the tantan men  see after .
Wantan men has long straight noodles and wonton  served in a mild  usually salt tasted soup.
The noodles and soup are served in separate bowls.
The diner dips the noodles in the soup before eating.
Hiyashi chūka  冷やし中華   chilled Chinese  .
It was first produced at the Ryutei  a Chinese restaurant in Sendai.
Many ramen restaurants only have a counter and a chef.
Some restaurants also provide Halal ramen  using chicken  in Osaka and Kyoto.
As ramen ya restaurants offer mainly ramen dishes  they tend to lack variety in the menu.
Ramen ya interiors are often filled with Chinese inspired decorations.
Restaurant chains serve ramen alongside distinctly Japanese dishes  such as tempura and yakitori.
In Korea  ramen is called ramyeon  라면   拉麵 .
There are different varieties  such as kimchi flavored ramyeon.
Over time  the term  ramen  became used in North America to refer to other instant noodles.
It is intended as a quick snack  and includes a small folded plastic fork.
In popular culture          Emoji     In 2009  an emoji for ramen was proposed to Unicode.
The emoji was approved for Unicode 6.0 as U 1F35C  STEAMING BOWL  in October 2010.
See also         Notes         Further reading    Orkin  Ivan  2013 .
The art of the slurp  or  How to eat ramen  .
Adopted in 1971  it entered into force in 1975 and as of December 2015 had 169 contracting parties.
Japan was the twenty fourth party to accede  on 17 October 1980.
Altogether  thousands of such books were published  printed  and circulated.
In the large cities some shops  open to the general public  specialized in foreign curiosities.
Beginnings  1640–1720       The first phase of Rangaku was quite limited and highly controlled.
Western books were prohibited  with the exemption of books on nautical and medical matters.
A small  lucrative market for Western curiosities thus developed  focused on the Nagasaki area.
Red Hair Chitchat    recording much knowledge received from the Dutch.
In 1824  von Siebold began a medical school in the outskirts of Nagasaki.
The Rangaku increasingly disseminated contemporary Western innovations.
The edict was eventually repealed in 1842.
Understanding  of the  Body New Text   of 1774 became references.
In 1838  the physician and scholar Ogata Kōan established the Rangaku school named Tekijuku.
Electrical sciences      Electrical experiments were widely popular from around 1770.
The jars were reproduced and adapted by the Japanese  who called it  Elekiteru   エレキテル  Erekiteru .
Elekiterus were sold widely to the public in curiosity shops.
After 1640  the Dutch continued to inform the Japanese about the evolution of telescope technology.
Until 1676 more than 150 telescopes were brought to Nagasaki.
Four of his telescopes remain to this day.
They were powered by spring mechanisms similar to those of clocks.
These led to the development of an original Japanese clock  called Wadokei.
The book contains detailed descriptions of steam engines and steamships.
With this knowledge  Shibukawa Shunkai made the first Japanese globe in 1690.
Optics  Telescope Production  遠鏡製造  Enkyō Seizō .
Among them was a small telegraph and a small steam train complete with tracks.
These were promptly studied by the Japanese as well.
Some were built within a mere year or two of Perry s visit.
Similarly  steam engines were immediately studied.
The Bakufu relied heavily on Dutch expertise to learn about modern Western shipping methods.
The future Admiral Enomoto Takeaki was one of the students of the Training Center.
Hanaoka Seishū  華岡 青洲  1760–1835   first physician who performed surgery using general anaesthesia.
Aoji Rinsō  青地 林宗  1775–1833   author of Study of the Atmosphere  気海観瀾  Kikai Kanran   1825.
Hoashi Banri  帆足 万里  1778–1852   author of Physical Sciences  究理通  Kyūri Tsū .
Rangaku World maps  Japan  Kyoto U  archived from the original on 2004 08 29.
The paste is prepared by boiling the beans  then mashing or grinding them.
At this stage  the paste can be sweetened or left as it is.
The color of the paste is usually dark red  which comes from the husk of the beans.
Kong   beans   without qualifiers usually means soybeans.
Geopi  거피   hulled  skinned  peeled  shelled  etc.
Types    Red bean paste is graded according to its consistency  sweetness  and color.
The paste is smooth with bits of broken beans and bean husk.
Depending on the intended texture  the beans can be vigorously or lightly mashed.
Some unmashed beans can also be added back into the bean paste for additional texture.
This is the most common and popular type of red bean paste eaten in Chinese confections.
It can also be eaten on its own or in sweet soups.
Smooth  Azuki beans are boiled without sugar  mashed  and diluted into a slurry.
Smooth bean paste is mainly used as a filling for Chinese pastries.
The bean skins are often removed to make the paste smoother.
It is often cooked and eaten with tangyuan and lotus seeds.
This is almost always a dessert.
The glutinous rice used to make zongzi is usually specially prepared and appears yellow.
Mooncakes  月餅  yùe bĭng   A baked pastry consisting of thin dough surrounding a filling.
The texture of this filling is quite similar to straight red bean paste.
It is most commonly eaten during the Mid Autumn Festival.
Jiān dui  煎堆   Fried pastry made from glutinous rice flour  sometimes filled with red bean paste.
It is made primarily with azuki beans.
Red bean pancake 		       Japanese     Red bean paste is used in many Japanese sweets.
Anko dango  a dumpling made from rice flour that is sometimes topped or filled with red bean paste.
Imagawayaki  a paste is in the pancake.
Oshiruko or Zenzai  adzuki bean soup  commonly served with rice cake.
Taiyaki  a fish shaped cake stuffed with red bean paste.
Yōkan  a thick jellied dessert made of red bean paste  agar  and sugar.
Bungeo ppang  a fish shaped pastry filled with sweet danpat so.
Chalbori ppang  two small and sweet pancakes wrapping around sweet danpat so.
Chapssal doughnut  a glutinous rice doughnut filled with sweet danpat so.
Gyeongdan  a rice ball cake filled with sweet danpat so.
Hodu gwaja  a walnut shaped cookie filled with sweet danpat so.
Hwangnam ppang  a pastry with a chrysanthemum imprinted on the top  filled with sweet danpat so.
Kkulppang  a sweet pastry covered with sweet danpat so and covered with corn syrup.
Patbingsu  a type of shaved ice.
Ttongppang  a poo shaped pastry filled with sweet danpat so.
The rule of a regent or regents is called a regency.
A regent or regency council may be formed ad hoc or in accordance with a constitutional rule.
The equivalent Greek term is epitropos  επίτροπος   meaning overseer.
Other uses     The term regent may refer to positions lower than the ruler of a country.
Reiwa  Japanese  令和  pronounced  ɾeːɰa   listen   is the current era of Japan s official calendar.
Reiwa is interpreted as  beautiful harmony .
Predicted guess names included An ei  安永  and Heiwa  平和 .
It was co developed by the RIKEN research institute and Fujitsu.
An almost equally high number is reported as Buddhist.
Many researchers have dismissed the idea as a non useful tool in explaining Japanese society.
Some people identify as  without religion   無宗教  mushūkyō   yet this does not signify irreligion.
Total adherents exceed 100  because many Japanese people practice both Shintoism and Buddhism.
The oldest recorded usage of the word Shindo dates from the second half of the 6th century.
Shinto has 100 000  shrines and 78 890 priests in the country.
The Baekje king sent the Japanese emperor a picture of the Buddha and some sutras.
The Yamato state ruled over clans  uji  centered around the worship of ancestral nature deities.
The most popular was Zen  which became the most popular type of Buddhism of that time.
Two schools of Zen were established  Rinzai and Sōtō  a third  Ōbaku  formed in 1661.
Nowadays  the most popular branch is Pure Land Buddhism  arrived in the Kamakura period.
Pure Land attracted the merchant and farmer classes.
Today  many Japanese adhere to Nishi Honganji ha  a conservative sect of Jodo Shinshu.
In 1559  a mission to the capital  Kyoto  was started.
By 1569 there were 30 000 Christians and 40 churches.
Many Christians continued to practice in secret.
Nagasaki Prefecture has the highest percentage of Christians  about 5.1  in 1996.
As of 2007 there are 32 036 Christian priests and pastors in Japan.
For example  60 70  of weddings performed in Japan are Christian style.
The first Baháʼí convert on Japanese soil was Kikutaro Fukuta  福田菊太郎  in 1915.
Some of those who remained married locals and were assimilated into Japanese society.
There are community centres serving Jews in Tokyo and Kobe.
Various Hindu deities  including the aforementioned  are worshipped in Shingon Buddhism.
This denomination  and all other forms of Tantric Buddhism  borrow heavily from Tantric Hinduism.
Jainism      Jainism  ジャイナ教 Jainakyō  is a minority religion in Japan.
As of 2009  there were three Jain temples in the country.
This differs from Japanese Shinto  where men are seen as the embodiment of purity.
Holy narratives regarding some of these gods are codified into the body of Chinese mythology.
Taoism s influence in Japan has been less profound than that of Japanese Neo Confucianism.
The rationalism of Neo Confucianism was in contrast to the mysticism of Zen Buddhism in Japan.
Neo Confucianism also introduced elements of ethnocentrism into Japan.
Life cycle events are often marked by visits to a Shinto shrine and Buddhist temples.
91  of Japanese funerals take place according to Buddhist traditions.
Most matsuri are local events and follow local traditions.
People living away from their family homes return for visits with relatives.
Article 20 of the 1947 Constitution states   Freedom of religion is guaranteed to all.
No Japanese Giordano Bruno was ever burned at the stake for atheism .
Hiroyuki Kato  who headed the Imperial Academy from 1905–1909 and said   Religion depends on fear .
Haruki Murakami  a Japanese novelist who wrote   God only exists in people’s minds.
Especially in Japan  God s always has been a kind of flexible concept.
Look at what happened to the war.
For this purpose any religion will do.
I lack a religious nature  and have never believed in any religion.
I am thus open to the charge that I am advising others to be religious while I am not so.
Christian wedding ceremonies  “Nonreligiousness” in contemporary Japan.
The capital and largest city is Dublin  which is located on the eastern side of the island.
It is a unitary  parliamentary republic.
The state was created as the Irish Free State in 1922 as a result of the Anglo Irish Treaty.
It was officially declared a republic in 1949  following the Republic of Ireland Act 1948.
Ireland became a member of the United Nations in December 1955.
It joined the European Communities  EC   the predecessor of the European Union  in 1973.
In an Irish republican context it is often referred to as  the Free State  or  the 26 Counties .
During the Great Famine  from 1845 to 1849  the island s population of over 8 million fell by 30 .
This commenced on 24 April 1916 with the declaration of independence.
Instead  they set up an Irish parliament called Dáil Éireann.
The new Irish Republic was recognised internationally only by the Russian Soviet Republic.
The pro treaty IRA disbanded and joined the new National Army.
This replaced the Constitution of the Irish Free State and called the state Éire.
Ireland remained neutral during World War II  a period it described as The Emergency.
Ireland did not reapply when the rules were altered to permit republics to join.
Many Irish economists and politicians realised that economic policy reform was necessary.
However  in 1969 his successor  Georges Pompidou  was not opposed to British and Irish membership.
Negotiations began and in 1972 the Treaty of Accession was signed.
The western landscape mostly consists of rugged cliffs  hills and mountains.
The west coast is more rugged than the east  with numerous islands  peninsulas  headlands and bays.
Ireland is the least forested country in Europe.
The average woodland cover in European countries is over 33 .
Temperatures differ regionally  with central and eastern areas tending to be more extreme.
Rainfall is more prevalent during winter months and less so during the early months of summer.
Sunshine duration is highest in the southeast of the country.
The extreme southeast gets most sunshine  averaging over 7 hours a day in early summer.
Politics     Ireland is a constitutional republic with a parliamentary system of government.
Micheál Martin succeeded Leo Varadkar as Taoiseach on 27 June 2020.
The Government is constitutionally limited to fifteen members.
However  some identification is required at airports and seaports.
Dáil constituencies are required to follow county boundaries as much as possible.
Trials for serious offences must usually be held before a jury.
Except in exceptional circumstances  court hearings must occur in public.
It is headed by the Garda Commissioner  who is appointed by the Government.
Most uniformed members do not routinely carry firearms.
During the Cold War  Irish military policy  while ostensibly neutral  was biased towards NATO.
The Defence Forces are made up of the Army  Naval Service  Air Corps and Reserve Defence Force.
Using the metric global GDP per capita  Ireland ranks 5th of 187  IMF  and 6th of 175  World Bank .
Following three years of contraction  the economy grew by 0.7  in 2011 and 0.9  in 2012.
The unemployment rate was 14.7  in 2012  including 18.5  among recent immigrants.
Since then  Ireland has been able to sell long term bonds at record rates.
Ireland also became the largest foreign location for US  big cap  technology multinationals  i.e.
GNI  is 30  below GDP  or  GDP is 143  of GNI .
Tourism in Ireland contributes about 4  of GDP and is a significant source of employment.
Other goods exports include agri food  cattle  beef  dairy products  and aluminum.
Outside the EU  the United States accounted for 23.2  of exports and 14.1  of imports in 2010.
There are 19.82 billion cubic metres of proven reserves of gas.
Natural gas extraction previously occurred at the Kinsale Head until its exhaustion.
The Corrib gas field was due to come on stream in 2013 14.
In 2015  4.5 million people took the route  at that time  the world s second busiest.
Aer Lingus is the flag carrier of Ireland  although Ryanair is the country s largest airline.
After the Mesolithic  Neolithic and Bronze Age  migrants introduced a Celtic language and culture.
Migrants from the two latter eras still represent the genetic heritage of most Irish people.
Gaelic tradition expanded and became the dominant form over time.
Irish people are a combination of Gaelic  Norse  Anglo Norman  French  and British ancestry.
The population of Ireland stood at 4 588 252 in 2011  an increase of 8.2  since 2006.
In 2014  36.3  of births were to unmarried women.
This represents a 2  decrease from the 2011 census figure of 544 357.
Compared with 2011  the number of UK  Polish  Lithuanian and Latvian nationals fell.
In the 2006 census  39  of the population regarded themselves as competent in Irish.
Except in Gaeltacht regions  road signs are usually bilingual.
Most public notices and print media are in English only.
In the Irish Defence Forces  all foot and arms drill commands are given in the Irish language.
Most secondary school students choose to learn one or two foreign languages.
Some secondary schools also offer Ancient Greek  Hebrew and Latin.
The Minister for Health has responsibility for setting overall health service policy.
All maternity services are provided free of charge and children up to the age of 6 months.
Emergency care is provided to patients who present to a hospital emergency department.
Outpatient services are also provided for free.
Private health insurance is available to the population for those who want to avail of it.
Education      Ireland has three levels of education  primary  secondary and higher education.
The vast majority  92   are under the patronage of the Catholic Church.
In 2012  Irish students aged 15 years had the second highest levels of reading literacy in the EU.
There are charges to cover student services and examinations.
The Church of Ireland  at 2.7  of the population  is the second largest Christian denomination.
Other significant Protestant denominations are the Presbyterian Church and Methodist Church.
Immigration has contributed to a growth in Hindu and Muslim populations.
Saint Patrick is the only one commonly recognised as the patron saint.
It shall hold His Name in reverence  and shall respect and honour religion.
Religious studies was introduced as an optional Junior Certificate subject in 2001.
Bram Stoker is best known as the author of the 1897 novel Dracula.
Edith Somerville continued writing after the death of her partner Martin Ross in 1915.
However  most Irish playwrights went abroad to establish themselves.
It has occasionally been blended with styles such as rock and roll and punk rock.
Ireland also has three opera organisations.
Ireland has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest since 1965.
Its first win was in 1970  when Dana won with All Kinds of Everything.
Irish social dance can be divided into céilí and set dancing.
There are also many stylistic differences between these two forms.
In some places dances are deliberately modified and new dances are choreographed.
Performance dance is traditionally referred to as stepdance.
The solo dances can either be in  soft shoe  or  hard shoe .
As the Romans never conquered Ireland  architecture of Greco Roman origin is extremely rare.
The country instead had an extended period of Iron Age architecture.
The Irish round tower originated during the Early Medieval period.
Gaelic kings and aristocrats occupied ringforts or crannógs.
Significant urban settlements only developed following the period of Viking invasions.
These charters specifically governed the design of these towns.
Gothic cathedrals  such as St Patrick s  were also introduced by the Normans.
Many religious buildings were ruined with the Dissolution of the Monasteries.
RTÉ operates two national television channels  RTÉ One and RTÉ Two.
Additional channels included in the service are RTÉ News Now  RTÉjr  and RTÉ One  1.
Subscription based television providers operating in Ireland include Virgin Media and Sky.
The BBC s Northern Irish division is widely available in Ireland.
RTÉ Radio operates four national stations  Radio 1  2fm  Lyric fm  and RnaG.
It also operates four national DAB radio stations.
There are two independent national stations  Today FM and Newstalk.
Examples of popular Irish cuisine include boxty  colcannon  coddle  stew  and bacon and cabbage.
The most popular fish include salmon and cod.
Traditional breads include soda bread and wheaten bread.
They are administered by the Gaelic Athletics Association on an all Ireland basis.
Netball is represented by the Ireland national netball team.
Golf is another popular sport in Ireland  with over 300 courses countrywide.
Horse Racing has a large presence  with influential breeding and racing operations in the country.
Ireland has produced champion horses such as Galileo  Montjeu  and Sea the Stars.
Boxing is Ireland s most successful sport at an Olympic level.
Society      Ireland ranks fifth in the world in terms of gender equality.
A constitutional ban on divorce was lifted following a referendum in 1995.
The legislation which outlawed homosexual acts was repealed in 1993.
In 2015 Ireland became the second country in the world to introduce plain cigarette packaging.
State symbols      The state shares many symbols with the island of Ireland.
These symbols are used by state institutions as well as private bodies in the Republic of Ireland.
The flag of Ireland is a tricolour of green  white and orange.
This is necessary as well due to the fierce competition and the evolving preferences of consumers.
Risks     Business R D is risky for at least two reasons.
DOD s total research  development  test  and evaluation budget was roughly  108.5 billion.
It started in 1966 as a national holiday and was held on every September 15.
Its popularity spread nationwide  and in 1966 it took its present name and status.
Celebration    On this holiday  people return home to visit and pay respect to the elders.
Entertainments are sometimes provided by teenagers and children with various keirokai performances.
Special television programs are also featured by Japanese media on this holiday.
Paddy field farming remains the dominant form of growing rice in modern times.
Etymology    The word  paddy  is derived from the Malay word padi  meaning  rice plant .
This occurred around 13 500 to 8 200 years ago south of the Yangtze River in present day China.
At Caoxieshan  a site of the Neolithic Majiabang culture  archaeologists excavated paddy fields.
Some archaeologists claim that Caoxieshan may date to 4000–3000 BC.
The Nanguanli site in Taiwan  dated to ca.
Korea     There are ten archaeologically excavated rice paddy fields in Korea.
However  iron tools for paddy field farming were not introduced until sometime after 200 BC.
Japan     The first paddy fields in Japan date to the Early Yayoi period  300 BC – 250 AD .
About 75  of the cultivated area is used for food crops.
Rice is China s most important crop  raised on about 25  of the cultivated area.
In India  West Bengal is the largest rice producing state.
The former cultivation is dependent on irrigation  while the latter depends on the Monsoon.
The paddy cultivation plays a major role in socio cultural life of rural India.
Gangavathi is known as rice bowl of Karnataka.
Italy      Rice is grown in northern Italy  especially in the valley of the river Po.
The paddy fields are irrigated by fast flowing streams descending from the Alps.
Ta  田  is used as a part of many place names as well as in many family names.
Fields may be rebuilt  and bund breaches are repaired.
Farmers usually dry the harvested grains in the sun before bringing them to market.
However  the specific Korean term for  paddy  is a purely Korean word   non   Korean  논 .
Vary Makalioka  is translucent long and thin grain rice.
Vary Rojofotsy  is a half long grain rice  Vary mena  or red rice  is exclusive to Madagascar.
Paddy fields can also be found on Malaysia s east coast region  in Kelantan and Terengganu.
It was for that reason  that people usually built their houses next to paddy fields.
Up until the later 1960s  Myanmar was the main exporter of rice.
In modern times  tractors are used  but traditionally  buffalos were employed.
The rice plants are planted in nurseries and then transplanted by hand into the prepared fields.
The rice is then harvested in late November –  when the rice bends with age .
Most of the rice planting and harvesting are done by hand.
The rice is then threshed and stored  ready for the mills.
Nepal      In Nepal  rice  Nepali  धान  Dhaan  is grown in the Terai and hilly regions.
It is mainly grown during the summer monsoon in Nepal.
Philippines      Paddy fields are a common sight in the Philippines.
It is currently the 9th richest province in the country.
It can be viewed best from the road to Mayoyao.
The Mayoyao Rice Terraces is located at Mayoyao  44 kilometers away from Poblacion  Banaue.
The town of Mayoyao lies in the midst of these rice terraces.
All dikes are tiered with flat stones.
The Hapao Rice Terraces can be reached within 55 kilometers from the capital town of Lagawe.
Other Ifugao stone walled rice terraces are located in the municipality of Hungduan.
Both upcountry and low country wetlands use for paddy cultivation.
The majority of paddy land extent is in the dry zone.
and it uses special irrigation systems for cultivation.
Agriculture in Sri Lanka mainly depends on rice production.
Around 879 000 farmer families are engaged in paddy cultivation in Sri Lanka.
They make up 20  of the country s population and 32  of the employment.
Thailand      Rice production in Thailand represents a significant portion of the Thai economy.
It jointly serves as transportation routes  allowing farmers to bring their produce to market.
Traditionally  the event was officiated with much pomp.
External links    How a paddy field works
His best known work is A Dictionary of Japanese Food  ingredients and culture  1996 .
The Ring of Fire is not a single geological structure.
Many of these subaerial volcanoes are stratovolcanoes  e.g.
Other types of volcano are also found in the Ring of Fire  such as subaerial shield volcanoes  e.g.
Plosky Tolbachik   and submarine seamounts  e.g.
It forms part of the border between Argentina and Chile and it last erupted in AD 750.
The concept was later extended to other parts of the Pacific Ocean.
There are  however  a few regions on which there is no universal agreement.
See  § Distribution of volcanoes .
Although some volcanism occurs in this region  it is not related to subduction.
Tectonic plate configurations    The Ring of Fire has existed for more than 35 million years.
In Central America  the Cocos Plate is being subducted beneath the Caribbean Plate.
Farther west  the Pacific Plate is being subducted at the Kamchatka Peninsula and Kuril arcs.
An example in the Ring of Fire is the Mariana Arc in the western Pacific Ocean.
Older oceanic lithosphere is subducted in the western Pacific  with steeper angles of slab descent.
A spectrum of subduction zones exists between the Chilean and Mariana end members.
There are gaps in the Ring of Fire at some parts of the Pacific coast of the Americas.
The Antarctic Peninsula  Graham Land  is also sometimes included in the Ring.
About 25 scoria cones dot Villarica s flanks.
Lahars from the glacier covered volcanoes have damaged towns on its flanks.
The Llaima Volcano is one of the largest and most active volcanoes in Chile.
Lascar is a stratovolcano and the most active volcano of the northern Chilean Andes.
The latest series of eruptions began on April 18  2006 and was continuing as of 2011.
The volcano and the surrounding area are protected within Llanquihue National Reserve.
At least nine eruptions occurred since 1837  with the latest one in 1972.
One of the largest historical eruptions in southern Chile took place there in 1893–1894.
A minor  four hour eruption happened on August 26  1972.
Strong fumarolic emission from the main crater was observed on August 12  1996.
The cone is largely andesitic  though basaltic and dacitic rocks are present.
It is located in La Araucanía Region of Chile  immediately southeast of Tolhuaca volcano.
Sierra Nevada and Llaima are their neighbors to the south.
The snow capped volcano lies within the protected area Malalcahuello Nalcas.
The volcano last erupted in 1988  ending in 1990.
The eruption was from a flank vent and involved lava flows and explosive eruptions.
Some of the active volcanoes are international mountains shared with Chile.
The Central Volcanic Zone is a major late Cenozoic volcanic province.
It is the most active volcano in Peru  with an ongoing eruption that started in 2016.
It is the second highest summit in the country  reaching a height of 5 897 m  19 347 ft .
It exhibits mostly strombolian activity  An eruption  which started in 1934  ended in 2011.
More recent eruptions have occurred.
As such  it has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1983.
Reventador is an active stratovolcano that lies in the eastern Andes of Ecuador.
On March 30  2007  the volcano erupted ash again  which reached a height of about 3.2 km  2 mi .
The eruption had a volcanic explosivity index of 6.
Today  Santiaguito is one of the world s most active volcanoes.
United States       The Cascade Volcanic Arc lies in the western United States.
Further down dip  a transition from fully locked to aseismic sliding occurs.
Volcanoes are found not only in the mainland  but also in the Aleutian Islands.
Several mountains in populated areas of British Columbia are dormant volcanoes.
Most of these were active during the Pleistocene and Holocene epochs.
There are hot springs at some volcanoes.
The volcanoes are grouped into five volcanic belts with different tectonic settings.
It is thought to have formed as a result of back arc extension behind the Cascadia subduction zone.
It appears to have been active during the Pliocene and Pleistocene.
However  no Holocene eruptions are known  and volcanic activity in the belt has likely ceased.
It lies between the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Okhotsk Sea to the west.
Active  dormant and extinct volcanoes of Kamchatka are in two major volcanic belts.
The only active volcano in the central belt is found west of here  the huge remote Ichinsky.
They are formed by subduction of the Pacific Plate and the Philippine Sea Plate.
As many as 1 500 earthquakes are recorded yearly  and magnitudes of 4 to 6 are not uncommon.
Undersea earthquakes also expose the Japanese coastline to danger from tsunamis.
Mount Bandai  one of Japan s most noted volcanoes  rises above the north shore of Lake Inawashiro.
Summit eruptions dominated from 3 000 to 2 000 years ago  after which flank vents were active.
Some minor volcanic activity may occur in the next few years.
Mayon Volcano is the Philippines  most active volcano.
It has steep upper slopes that average 35–40° and is capped by a small summit crater.
Taal Volcano has had 33 recorded eruptions since 1572.
A devastating eruption occurred in 1911  which claimed more than a thousand lives.
An eruption occurred in January 2020.
It began erupting at least 250 000 years ago.
In recorded history  major eruptions have been about 50 years apart  in 1895  1945  and 1995–1996.
Minor eruptions are frequent  with at least 60 since 1945.
Between major eruptions  a warm acidic crater lake forms  fed by melting snow.
Major eruptions may completely expel the lake water.
They contain large proportions of volcanic glass.
In 1948  this unit was reinforced to the Police Reserve Units  予備隊  Yobi tai .
In 1957  the TMPD Reserve Units were also renamed the Riot Police Unit.
Until 1962  all PPHs had the same kind of units.
Most PPHs have only one unit  but some urban PPHs have multiple units.
The public relations divisions  known as  DJ cops   are placed in each unit headquarters.
They rely on eloquent and humorous speaking to prevent crowd disasters.
However  equipment used in riot control operations  such as protective gear  may differ.
And within the Riot Police Units  there are certain squads with specific equipment and training.
At this time  these squads were part time sniper teams called only when needed.
Its current strength is about 1 900 officers.
In some PPHs  they had been enhanced as an independent unit.
And they also assisted the detectives raiding into the facilities at Yamanashi Prefecture.
For this task  they borrowed personal protective equipments from the SDF.
NCID BN01929285.CS1 maint  ref harv  link  National Police Agency  ed.
National Police Agency.CS1 maint  ref harv  link  National Police Agency  ed.
National Police Agency.CS1 maint  ref harv  link  National Police Agency  ed.
Riot police officers work extensively and extensively   PDF .
National Police Agency.CS1 maint  ref harv  link  Strike And Tactical Magazine  ed.
NCID BB01834038.CS1 maint  ref harv  link  Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department  ed.
chestnut grove garden  is one of the most famous historical gardens in Japan.
The garden is situated in the city of Takamatsu and is considered one of its main attractions.
A tour through the garden generally takes one to two hours.
Beginning in 1642  Matsudaira Yorishige  松平頼重  took over the area and continued its construction.
Features    The garden covers 750 000 square meters.
Japan s Master Gardens    Lessons in Space and Environment  Hardback .
The political system in accord to Ritsuryō is called  Ritsuryō sei   律令制 .
Kyaku  格  are amendments of Ritsuryō  Shiki  式  are enactments.
Ritsuryō defines both a criminal code  律  Ritsu  and an administrative code  令  Ryō .
10–25 homes This system was abandoned in 740 CE.
First assistant to the chief pharmacist  典薬助   Ten yaku no suke .
Second assistant to the chief pharmacist  典薬允   Ten yaku no jō .
Alternate assistant to the chief pharmacist  典薬属   Ten yaku no sakan .
Below this  an initial rank called so i  初位  existed  but offered few rights.
Based on the keichō  a tax system was established called  租庸調 So yō chō .
Tax was levied on rice crops but also on several local products  e.g.
cotton  salt  tissue  sent to the capital.
Criminal code     A criminal system was introduced  with five levels of punishment  五刑  gokei .
The Handen Shūju regulated land ownership.
The area of each field was 2 tan  段  for men  approx.
However  the Shinuhi and Kenin castes were only entitled to 1 3 of this area .
The field was returned to the country at death.
Land belonging to shrines and temples was exempt from taxation.
Collection and redistribution of land took place every 6 years.
Citizens wore different colors according to their caste.
Evolution of Ritsuryō application    Several modifications were added over time.
This led to the appearance of large private lands  the first shōens.
At the beginning of Heian period  the system was almost not enforced.
The last collection distribution took place between 902 and 903.
The caste system was less and less strictly enforced.
Some Ryōmin would wed Senmin to avoid taxation  and Senmin Ryōmin children would become Ryōmin.
Nihon Odai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
Robotics is an interdisciplinary field that integrates computer science and engineering.
Robotics involves design  construction  operation  and use of robots.
The goal of robotics is to design machines that can help and assist humans.
Robotics develops machines that can substitute for humans and replicate human actions.
Robots can take on any form but some are made to resemble humans in appearance.
Such robots attempt to replicate walking  lifting  speech  cognition  or any other human activity.
Many of today s robots are inspired by nature  contributing to the field of bio inspired robotics.
Certain robots require user input to operate while other robots function autonomously.
Rossum s Universal Robots   which was published in 1920.
The word robot comes from the Slavic word robota  which means slave servant.
Karel Čapek himself did not coin the word.
predates that of  Runaround  by ten months  so the former is generally cited as the word s origin.
Fully autonomous robots only appeared in the second half of the 20th century.
For example  a robot designed to travel across heavy dirt or mud  might use caterpillar tracks.
Robots have electrical components that power and control the machinery.
A program is how a robot decides when or how to do something.
Hybrid is a form of programming that incorporates both AI and RC functions in them.
They are termed as  assembly robots .
For seam welding  some suppliers provide complete welding systems with the robot i.e.
Robots are increasingly used in manufacturing  since the 1960s .
In the auto industry  they can amount for more than half of the  labor .
1996 1998 research also proved that robots can perform a herding task.
Home examples are Rotimatic  flatbreads baking  and Boris  dishwasher loading .
This has developed from a hobby in the 1990s to several TV series worldwide.
Many different types of batteries can be used as a power source for robots.
Generators  often some type of internal combustion engine  can also be used.
They are used in some robot applications.
They have been used for some small robot applications.
Piezo motors       Recent alternatives to DC motors are piezo motors or ultrasonic motors.
Another type uses the piezo elements to cause a nut to vibrate or to drive a screw.
The advantages of these motors are nanometer resolution  speed  and available force for their size.
These motors are already available commercially  and being used on some robots.
Human biceps could be replaced with an 8 mm diameter wire of this material.
Such compact  muscle  might allow future robots to outrun and outjump humans.
The prosthesis has sensors which enable the patient to sense real feeling in its fingertips.
Vision       Computer vision is the science and technology of machines that see.
The image data can take many forms  such as video sequences and views from cameras.
The sensors are designed using solid state physics.
The process by which light propagates and reflects off surfaces is explained using optics.
Other      Other common forms of sensing in robotics use lidar  radar  and sonar.
Radar uses radio waves to determine the range  angle  or velocity of objects.
Mechanical grippers      One of the most common types of end effectors are  grippers .
Fingers can  for example  be made of a chain with a metal wire run through it.
Hands that resemble and work more like a human hand include the Shadow Hand and the Robonaut hand.
Hands that are of a mid level complexity include the Delft hand.
Mechanical grippers can come in various types  including friction and encompassing jaws.
Friction jaws use all the force of the gripper to hold the object in place using friction.
Encompassing jaws cradle the object in place  using less friction.
Some researchers have tried to create more complex wheeled robots with only one or two wheels.
Many different balancing robots have been designed.
An example of this use has been as NASA s Robonaut that has been mounted on a Segway.
These have also been referred to as an orb bot or a ball bot.
Tracked robots        Tank tracks provide even more traction than a six wheeled robot.
However  they are difficult to use indoors such as on carpets and smooth floors.
Examples include NASA s Urban Robot  Urbie .
Walking applied to robots      Walking is a difficult and dynamic problem to solve.
Typically  robots on two legs can walk well on flat floors and can occasionally walk up stairs.
None can walk over rocky  uneven terrain.
ASIMO s walking algorithm is not static  and some dynamic balancing is used  see below .
However  it still requires a smooth surface to walk on.
Initially  a robot with only one leg  and a very small foot could stay upright simply by hopping.
The movement is the same as that of a person on a pogo stick.
As the robot falls to one side  it would jump slightly in that direction  in order to catch itself.
Soon  the algorithm was generalised to two and four legs.
A bipedal robot was demonstrated running and even performing somersaults.
A quadruped was also demonstrated which could trot  run  pace  and bound.
For a full list of these robots  see the MIT Leg Lab Robots page.
Another example is the TU Delft Flame.
Other flying robots are uninhabited and are known as unmanned aerial vehicles  UAVs .
Some can even fire on targets under command.
Other flying robots include cruise missiles  the Entomopter  and the Epson micro helicopter robot.
Snaking        Several snake robots have been successfully developed.
The Japanese ACM R5 snake robot can even navigate both on land and in water.
It has four legs  with unpowered wheels  which can either step or roll.
Another robot  Plen  can use a miniature skateboard or roller skates  and skate across a desktop.
An example of this is Capuchin  built by Dr. Ruixiang Zhang at Stanford University  California.
It could also identify and circumvent obstacles automatically.
Its flexibility and speed were comparable to a natural gecko.
A third approach is to mimic the motion of a snake climbing a pole.
Therefore  many researchers studying underwater robots would like to copy this type of locomotion.
This build attained swimming speeds of 11.6BL s  i.e.
A typical sailboat robot is Vaimos built by IFREMER and ENSTA Bretagne.
If the robot is equipped with solar panels  the robot could theoretically navigate forever.
people and other obstacles that are not stationary  can cause problems or collisions.
It becomes even harder when the speaker has a different accent.
It was programmed to teach students in The Bronx  New York.
In both of these cases  making hand gestures would aid the verbal descriptions.
It is likely that gestures will make up a part of the interaction between humans and robots.
A great many systems have been developed to recognize human hand gestures.
The coating and servos are built on a metal skull.
A robot should know how to approach a human  judging by their facial expression and body language.
This decreased the amount of time needed to make the film.
These presets could possibly be transferred for use in real life robots.
Nevertheless  researchers are trying to create robots which appear to have a personality  i.e.
One commercial example is Pleo  a toy robot dinosaur  which can exhibit several apparent emotions.
Control     The mechanical structure of a robot must be controlled to perform tasks.
Sensors give information about the environment or the robot itself  e.g.
The processing phase can range in complexity.
At a reactive level  it may translate raw sensor information directly into actuator commands.
Sensor fusion may first be used to estimate parameters of interest  e.g.
Techniques from control theory convert the task into commands that drive the actuators.
Cognitive models try to represent the robot  the world  and how they interact.
Pattern recognition and computer vision can be used to track objects.
Mapping techniques can be used to build maps of the world.
Autonomy levels      Control systems may also have varying levels of autonomy.
An autonomous robot may go without human interaction for extended periods of time .
Higher levels of autonomy do not necessarily require more complex cognitive capabilities.
A human controls each movement  each machine actuator change is specified by the operator.
The operator specifies only the task and the robot manages itself to complete it.
The machine will create and complete all its tasks without human interaction.
Other investigations  such as MIT s cyberflora project  are almost wholly academic.
A first particular new innovation in robot design is the open sourcing of robot projects.
To describe the level of advancement of a robot  the term  Generation Robots  can be used.
The third generation robot should have the intelligence comparable to that of a monkey.
Over time the population improves  and eventually a satisfactory robot may appear.
This happens without any direct programming of the robots by the researchers.
Researchers use this method both to create better robots  and to explore the nature of evolution.
Dynamics and kinematics      The study of motion can be divided into kinematics and dynamics.
Direct dynamics is used in computer simulations of the robot.
This information can be used to improve the control algorithms of a robot.
For example  the design of BionicKangaroo was based on the way kangaroos jump.
This area has been referred to as quantum robotics.
Vocational schools offer robotics training aimed at careers in robotics.
Robotics competitions      There are many competitions around the globe.
The SeaPerch curriculum is aimed as students of all ages.
This is a short list of competition examples  for a more complete list see Robot competition.
This competition is associated with National Instruments.
Children use Lego Mindstorms to solve autonomous robotics challenges in this competition.
Robots are built specifically for that year s game.
All of the robots in these competitions must be autonomous.
Some of these competitions focus on simulated robots.
AUVSI runs competitions for flying robots  robot boats  and underwater robots.
The Microtransat Challenge is a competition to sail a boat across the Atlantic Ocean.
Federation of International Robot soccer Association holds the FIRA World Cup competitions.
Employment     Robotics is an essential component in many modern manufacturing environments.
These claims have been criticized on the ground that social policy  not AI  causes unemployment.
See also         References         Further reading    R. Andrew Russell  1990 .
Democracy has no clear answer for the mindless operation of bureaucratic and technological power.
We may indeed be witnessing its extension in the form of artificial intelligence and robotics.
Finally  there is the threat du jour   corporations and the technologies they promote.
The romanization of Japanese is the use of Latin script to write the Japanese language.
There are several different romanization systems.
Variants of the Hepburn system are the most widely used.
History    The earliest Japanese romanization system was based on Portuguese orthography.
It was developed around 1548 by a Japanese Catholic named Anjirō.
In general  the early Portuguese system was similar to Nihon shiki in its treatment of vowels.
The Hepburn system included representation of some sounds that have since changed.
The Nihon shiki romanization was an outgrowth of that movement.
However  that policy  failed and a more moderate attempt at Japanese script reform followed.
It is an intuitive method of showing Anglophones the pronunciation of a word in Japanese.
This system is widely used in Japan and among foreign students and academics.
It follows the Japanese syllabary very strictly  with no adjustments for changes in pronunciation.
It has also been standardized as ISO 3602 Strict.
Nihon shiki  on the other hand  will romanize づ as du  but ず as zu.
See the table below for full details.
Kunrei shiki is taught to Japanese elementary school students in their fourth year of education.
Written in Kunrei shiki  the name of the system would be rendered Kunreisiki.
It was created for Eleanor Harz Jorden s system of Japanese language teaching.
Wāpuro is a blend of wādo purosessā word processor.
This is valid JSL romanization.
This is also an example of wāpuro rōmaji.
nor for the sokuon or small tsu kana っ ッ when it is not directly followed by a consonant.
For example  NHK is read enu eichi kei  エヌ・エイチ・ケイ .
One of the two codes of rugby football  it is based on running with the ball in hand.
The field has H shaped goalposts at both ends.
Rugby union is a popular sport around the world  played by male and female players of all ages.
The Rugby World Cup  first held in 1987  is held every four years.
The first World Cup Sevens tournament was held at Murrayfield in 1993.
As a result of the expansion to four teams  the tournament was renamed The Rugby Championship.
Players in a team are divided into eight forwards  two more than in rugby league  and seven backs.
Forwards play a vital role in tackling and rucking opposing players.
The third position in the front row is the hooker.
Hookers normally throw the ball in at line outs.
Second row      The second row consists of two locks or lock forwards.
Locks are usually the tallest players in the team  and specialise as line out jumpers.
The three positions in the back row are the two flankers and the number 8.
They are usually the most mobile forwards in the game.
Their main role is to win possession through  turn overs .
Backs     The role of the backs is to create and convert point scoring opportunities.
They are generally smaller  faster and more agile than the forwards.
Half backs      The half backs consist of two positions  the scrum half and the fly half.
The fly half is crucial to a team s game plan  orchestrating the team s performance.
Many fly halves are also their team s goal kickers.
The scrum half is the link between the forwards and the backs.
They also feed the scrum and sometimes have to act as a fourth loose forward.
The wings are generally positioned on the outside of the backline.
Their primary function is to finish off moves and score tries.
Full back      The full back is normally positioned several metres behind the back line.
The values of each of these scoring methods have been changed over the years.
In actual gameplay the length of a pitch can vary.
Anywhere between 6 and 22 metres  7 and 24 yd  behind each try line serves as the in goal area.
The minimum height for posts is 3.4 metres  3.7 yd .
The dropkick must make contact with the ground before kicked.
The sides exchange ends of the field after the half time break.
Only the player with the ball may be tackled or rucked.
If the player kicks directly into touch  i.e.
Such a circumstance is called a breakdown and each is governed by a specific law.
The two props are typically amongst the strongest players on the team.
The second row consists of two locks and the two flankers.
Behind the second row is the number 8.
This formation is known as the 3–4–1 formation.
The referees are commonly addressed as  Sir .
The rugby ball is oval in shape  technically a prolate spheroid   and is made up of four panels.
Rugby boots have soles with studs to allow grip on the turf of the pitch.
Female players may also wear chest pads.
The WR headquarters are in Dublin  Ireland.
WR  founded in 1886  governs the sport worldwide and publishes the game s laws and rankings.
According to WR  rugby union is played by men and women in over 100 countries.
National unions oversee rugby union within individual countries and are affiliated to WR.
Since 2016  the WR Council has 40 seats.
In addition  the six regional associations have two seats each.
The rest of Europe were left to play amongst themselves.
The founding members were Italy  Romania  Netherlands  Portugal  Czechoslovakia  and Sweden.
It adopted its current name of Rugby Europe in 2014.
India began playing rugby in the early 1870s  the Calcutta Football Club forming in 1873.
In 1878  The Calcutta Football Club was disbanded  and rugby in India faltered.
The official union of Oman was formed in 1971.
Despite this enclaves of black participation developed notably in the Eastern Cape and in Harare.
The Rugby League World Cup dates from 1954 in contrast.
Ticket sales during the pool stages and finals of the same tournament was less than a million.
It was the ninth edition and the first time the tournament has been held in Asia.
Each country plays the other five once.
France joined the tournament in the 1900s and in 1910 the term Five Nations first appeared.
France has played in all the tournaments since WWII  the first of which was played in 1947.
The current Six Nations champions are England.
Rugby union has also been an Asian Games event since the 1998 games in Bangkok  Thailand.
In 2010  the women s rugby sevens event was introduced.
New Zealand are the current World Cup holders.
Professional rugby union    Rugby union has been professionalised since 1995.
Variants     Rugby union has spawned several variants of the full contact  15 a side game.
The two most common differences in adapted versions are fewer players and reduced player contact.
In rugby sevens  there are only seven players per side  and each half is normally seven minutes.
Mini rugby is a version aimed at fostering the sport in children.
Tag Rugby also varies in that kicking the ball is not allowed.
It went on to change its laws and became a football code in its own right.
The two sports continue to influence each other to this day.
This is an increase of 19 percent since the previous report in 2007.
In 2014 the IRB published a breakdown of the total number of players worldwide by national unions.
This record was equalled by England on 11 March 2017 with a win over Scotland at Twickenham.
L Équipe de Cardiff  1916  and André Lhote s Partie de Rugby  1917 .
The tournament is administered by World Rugby  the sport s international governing body.
Japan hosted the 2019 Rugby World Cup and France will host the next in 2023.
The remaining twelve positions were filled by continental qualifying tournaments.
Another two places were allocated for repechage.
The last place is determined by an intercontinental play off.
There were two stages  a pool and a knockout.
Nations were divided into four pools  A through to D  of five nations each.
A bonus points system is used during pool play.
The knockout stage consists of quarter  and semi finals  and then the final.
The winner of each pool is placed against a runner up of a different pool in a quarter final.
Losers of the semi finals contest for third place  called the  Bronze Final .
If a match in the knockout stages ends in a draw  the winner is determined through extra time.
As a last resort  a kicking competition is used.
It expanded to the Five Nations in 1910  when France joined the tournament.
A proposal was again put to the IRFB in 1985 and this time passed 10–6.
New Zealand became the first ever champions  defeating France 29–9 in the final.
With their return to test rugby  South Africa were selected to host the 1995 Rugby World Cup.
England emerged as champions defeating Australia in extra time.
England s win was unique in that it broke the southern hemisphere s dominance in the event.
South Africa claimed their second title by defeating defending champions England 15–6.
It was also New Zealand s first title victory on foreign soil.
South Africa defeated England 32–12 in the final.
The trophy is also referred to simply as the Rugby World Cup.
The trophy is restored after each game by fellow Royal Warrant holder Thomas Lyte.
In Australia the trophy is colloquially known as  Bill  — a reference to William Webb Ellis.
The selection of host is decided by a vote of World Rugby Council members.
The voting procedure is managed by a team of independent auditors  and the voting kept secret.
The tournament has been hosted by multiple nations.
For example  the 1987 tournament was co hosted by Australia and New Zealand.
France will host the 2023 tournament.
Attendance      †Typhoon Hagibis caused 3 group stage matches to be cancelled.
As a result  only 45 of the scheduled 48 matches were played in the 2019 Rugby World Cup.
Revenue     Notes   The host union keeps revenue from gate receipts.
Welsh lock Huw Richards was the first  while playing against New Zealand in 1987.
No player has been red carded more than once.
The Game is not the Same – a History of Professional Rugby in New Zealand  Thesis .
The country is one of the world s most sparsely populated and urbanised.
Russia is administratively divided into 85 federal subjects.
The East Slavs emerged as a recognisable group in Europe between the 3rd and 8th centuries AD.
The medieval state of Rus  arose in the 9th century.
Russia s economy is the world s eleventh largest by nominal GDP and the sixth largest by PPP.
Russia also hosts the ninth greatest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Times remained difficult  with frequent Mongol Tatar raids.
Agriculture suffered from the beginning of the Little Ice Age.
As in the rest of Europe  plague was a frequent occurrence between 1350 and 1490.
He was also the first to take the title  Grand Duke of all the Russias .
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth occupied parts of Russia  including Moscow.
Russia continued its territorial growth through the 17th century  which was the age of Cossacks.
On the Baltic Sea  Peter founded a new capital named Saint Petersburg.
Later  his reforms brought considerable Western European cultural influences to Russia.
During this conflict Russia annexed East Prussia for a while and even took Berlin.
Catherine II   the Great    who ruled in 1762–96  presided over the Age of Russian Enlightenment.
Catherine s successor   her son Paul  was unstable and focused predominantly on domestic issues.
In 1820  a Russian expedition discovered the continent of Antarctica.
The late 19th century saw the rise of various socialist movements in Russia.
The Stolypin agrarian reform led to a massive peasant migration and settlement into Siberia.
All this formed the climate for the Russian Revolution of 1917  carried out in two major acts.
The next day the Constituent Assembly was dissolved by the All Russian Central Executive Committee.
The rule of the new authorities only aggravated the crisis in the country  instead of resolving it.
By the end of the civil war  Russia s economy and infrastructure were heavily damaged.
There were an estimated 7–12 million casualties during the war  mostly civilians.
Following Lenin s death in 1924  a troika was designated to govern the Soviet Union.
Nearly 3 million Soviet POWs in German captivity were murdered in just eight months of 1941–42.
The 1941–45 period of World War II is known in Russia as the  Great Patriotic War .
The full demographic loss to the Soviet peoples was even greater.
Dependent socialist governments were installed in the Eastern Bloc satellite states.
The general easement of repressive policies became known later as the Khrushchev Thaw.
In 1979  after a Communist led revolution in Afghanistan  Soviet forces entered that country.
On 25 December 1991  the USSR was dissolved into 15 post Soviet states.
Millions plunged into poverty  from a level of 1.5  in the late Soviet era to 39–49  by mid 1993.
During the crisis  Yeltsin was backed by Western governments and over 100 people were killed.
Despite significant attempts at economic restructuring  Russia s debt outpaced GDP growth.
Yeltsin left office widely unpopular  with an approval rating as low as 2  by some estimates.
Putin then won the 2000 presidential election and suppressed the Chechen insurgency.
Putin went on to win a second presidential term in 2004.
On 2 March 2008  Dmitry Medvedev was elected President of Russia while Putin became Prime Minister.
The Constitution of Russia prohibited Putin from serving a third consecutive presidential term.
This quick succession in leadership change was coined  tandemocracy  by outside media.
In 2018  Putin was elected for a fourth presidential term overall.
These subjects have equal representation—two delegates each—in the Federation Council.
However  they differ in the degree of autonomy they enjoy.
Republics are meant to be home to specific ethnic minorities.
Russia maintains positive relations with other SCO and BRICS countries.
Military      The Russian Armed Forces are divided into the Ground Forces  Navy  and Air Force.
More than half of the world s 14 000 nuclear weapons are owned by Russia.
Russia has the fourth highest military expenditure in the world  spending  65.1 billion in 2019.
It has a large and fully indigenous arms industry  producing most of its own military equipment.
Since 2004  Freedom House has ranked Russia as  not free  in its Freedom in the World survey.
It is a transcontinental country spanning much of Eurasia  in both Europe and Asia.
It has the fourth longest coastline in the world  at 37 653 km  23 396 mi .
Other major lakes include Ladoga and Onega  two of the largest lakes in Europe.
Russia is second only to Brazil in volume of the total renewable water resources.
The Siberian rivers of Ob  Yenisey  Lena and Amur are among the world s longest rivers.
Winter precipitation in most parts of the country usually falls as snow.
The coldest month is January  February on the coastline   the warmest is usually July.
Great ranges of temperature are typical.
In winter  temperatures get colder both from south to north and from west to east.
Summers can be quite hot  even in Siberia.
Siberia supports a similar sequence but is largely taiga.
There are 266 mammal species and 780 bird species in Russia.
A total of 415 animal species were included in the RDBRF in 1997  and are now protected.
There are 40 UNESCO biosphere reserves  41 national parks and 101 nature reserves.
It has the world s eleventh largest economy by nominal GDP and the sixth largest by PPP.
According to the World Bank  Russia s GDP per capita by PPP was  29 181 in 2019.
By the end of December 2019  Russian foreign trade turnover reached  666.6 billion.
In 2016  the oil and gas sector accounted for 36  of federal budget revenues.
Russia has one of the lowest foreign debts among major economies.
It ranked 28th of 190 countries in the 2019 Ease of Doing Business Index.
As of 2016  Russia had 1 452.2 km of roads  and its road density is the lowest among the BRICS.
Fossil fuels cause most of the greenhouse gas emissions by Russia.
In 2019  Russia was ranked tenth worldwide in the number of scientific publications.
Dmitry Mendeleev invented the Periodic table  the main framework of modern chemistry.
Nine Soviet Russian mathematicians were awarded with the Fields Medal.
Soyuz rockets are the only provider of transport for astronauts at the International Space Station.
Luna Glob is a Russian Moon exploration programme  with first planned mission launch in 2021.
Russia is ranked 39th in the Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report 2019.
Russia s international tourism receipts in 2018 amounted to  11.6 billion.
In 2020  tourism accounted for about 4  of country s GDP.
Since the 1990s  Russia s death rate has exceeded its birth rate.
In 13 of them  ethnic Russians consist a minority.
Language      Russia s official language is Russian.
However  Russia s 193 minority ethnic groups speak over 100 languages.
It has the world s largest Orthodox population.
It has a free education system  which is guaranteed for all citizens by the constitution.
Since 1990  the 11 year school education has been introduced.
Education in state owned secondary schools is free.
University level education is free  with exceptions.
In practice  however  free health care is partially restricted because of mandatory registration.
Russia has one of the world s most female biased sex ratios  with 0.859 males to every female.
The Russian Academy of Arts was created in 1757.
The early 19th century saw many prominent paintings by Karl Briullov and Alexander Ivanov.
In the mid 19th century  the group of mostly realists Peredvizhniki broke with the Academy.
Some influential Soviet sculptures were Vera Mukhina  Yevgeny Vuchetich and Ernst Neizvestny.
Aristotle Fioravanti and other Italian architects brought Renaissance trends into Russia.
The 16th century saw the development of the unique tent like churches  and the onion dome design.
The second half of the 19th century was dominated by the Byzantine and Russian Revival style.
Russian conservatories have turned out generations of famous soloists.
Cuisine      Russian cuisine widely uses fish  caviar  poultry  mushrooms  berries  and honey.
Black bread is very popular in Russia.
Flavourful soups and stews include shchi  borsch  ukha  solyanka and okroshka.
Smetana  a heavy sour cream  is often added to soups and salads.
Pirozhki  blini and syrniki are native types of pancakes.
Other meat dishes include stuffed cabbage rolls  golubtsy  usually filled with meat.
Salads include Olivier salad  vinegret and dressed herring.
The 1960s and 1970s saw a greater variety of artistic styles in Soviet cinema.
In 2002  Russian Ark was the first feature film ever to be shot in a single take.
Today  Russian cinema industry continues to expand and receive international recognition.
Sports      Football is one of the most popular sports in Russia.
In 1956 and 1988  the Soviet Union won gold at the Olympic football tournament.
Russian clubs CSKA Moscow and Zenit Saint Petersburg won the UEFA Cup in 2005 and 2008.
The Russian national football team reached the semi finals of Euro 2008.
Bandy is another traditionally popular ice sport in the country.
Formula One is also becoming increasingly popular in Russia.
Larisa Latynina holds the record for the most gold Olympic medals won by a woman.
Olympic gold medalist Alexander Popov is widely considered the greatest sprint swimmer in history.
Figure skating is another popular sport in Russia  especially pair skating and ice dancing.
Russia has produced a number of famous tennis players.
Chess is also a widely popular pastime.
Russia sought a  warm water port on the Pacific Ocean for both its navy and for maritime trade.
The war eventually concluded with the Treaty of Portsmouth  5 September  O.S.
By the late 19th century  Japan had transformed itself into a modernized industrial state.
The Japanese wanted to be recognized as equal with the Western powers.
The Russian Empire stretched from Poland in the west to the Kamchatka Peninsula in the east.
In the Tsushima incident of 1861 Russia had directly assaulted Japanese territory.
The first war Japan fought was the First Sino Japanese War  fought in 1894 and 1895.
Between 1897 and 1903  the Russians built the Chinese Eastern Railway  CER  in Manchuria.
Russian encroachment     In December 1897  a Russian fleet appeared off Port Arthur.
The two parties further agreed that the convention could be extended by mutual agreement.
Japan decided to attack before the Russians completed the Trans Siberian Railway.
After the Boxer Rebellion  100 000 Russian soldiers were stationed in Manchuria.
With such an alliance  Japan felt free to commence hostilities  if necessary.
The war might not have broken out had not the issues of Korea and Manchuria become linked.
Instead  Russia s goal was buying time—via diplomacy—to further build up militarily.
This would not had happened if our governments had not been in agreement!
telling his advisors  This is the language of an innocent angel.
On 21 December 1903  the Tarō cabinet voted to go to war against Russia.
By 4 February 1904  no formal reply had been received from Saint Petersburg.
Crucially  Nicholas mismanaged his government.
This attitude by the Tsar led to repeated delays in negotiations with the Japanese government.
Declaration of war    Japan issued a declaration of war on 8 February 1904.
Native Manchurians joined the war on both sides as hired troops.
These attacks developed into the Battle of Port Arthur the next morning.
From Incheon the Japanese occupied Hanseong and then the rest of Korea.
Blockade of Port Arthur      The Japanese attempted to deny the Russians use of Port Arthur.
A similar attempt to block the harbour entrance during the night of 3–4 May also failed.
The Russians quickly learned  and soon employed  the Japanese tactic of offensive minelaying.
By the end of the month  Japanese artillery were firing shells into the harbour.
Siege of Port Arthur      The Siege of Port Arthur commenced in April 1904.
Thus  all capital ships of the Russian fleet in the Pacific were sunk.
Stessel  therefore  decided to surrender to the surprised Japanese generals on 2 January 1905.
Many Chinese tended to see the Japanese as the lesser evil.
This caught the Japanese by surprise.
Battle of Mukden      The Battle of Mukden commenced on 20 February 1905.
Approximately half a million men were involved in the fighting.
Both sides were well entrenched and were backed by hundreds of artillery pieces.
The Russians suffered 90 000 casualties in the battle.
The Japanese themselves had suffered heavy casualties and were in no condition to pursue.
The fleet finally reached the Sea of Japan in May 1905.
The logistics of such an undertaking in the age of coal power was astounding.
The weight of the ships  stores needed for such a long journey was to be another major problem.
Admiral Rozhestvensky s only hope now was to reach the port of Vladivostok.
Battle plans were laid down and ships were repaired and refitted to intercept the Russian fleet.
The Japanese engaged the Russians in the Tsushima Straits on 27–28 May 1905.
Only three Russian vessels escaped to Vladivostok  while six others were interned in neutral ports.
The defeats of the Army and Navy shook up Russian confidence.
Throughout 1905  the Imperial Russian government was rocked by revolution.
The population was against escalation of the war.
Both sides accepted the offer of United States President  Theodore Roosevelt to mediate.
The Treaty of Portsmouth was signed on 5 September 1905 at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard .
Witte became Russian Prime Minister the same year.
Japan would annex Korea in 1910  Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910   with scant protest from other powers.
The total number of dead for both sides is generally stated as around 130 000 to 170 000.
Russia s defeat was met with shock in the West and across the Far East.
Japan s prestige rose greatly as it came to be seen as a modern nation.
Twelve years later  that discontent boiled over into the February Revolution of 1917.
Riots erupted in major cities in Japan.
Without them  they were at a loss.
The U.S held strength in the Asian region from aggravating European imperialist encroachment.
To Japan  this represented a developing threat to the autonomy of the region.
Weapons and armaments were more technological than ever before.
The improved capability of naval forces was also demonstrated.
For East Asia it was the first confrontation after thirty years involving two modern armed forces.
The advanced weaponry led to massive casualty counts.
Numerous aspects of total war characterize the Russo Japanese War.
Encompassed on both ends was the mass mobilization of troops into battle.
Rather more than the possibilities of diplomatic partnership were emerging  however.
Du Bois and Lothrop Stoddard saw the victory as a challenge to western supremacy.
We regarded the Japanese victory as our own victory .
Military results     Russia had lost two of its three fleets.
Military and economic exhaustion affected both countries.
Only five years after the war  Japan de jure annexed Korea as part of its colonial empire.
Both would become dominant factors in World War I.
Around 300 were made before their creation was banned by the Russian government.
Their Japanese equivalents were woodblock prints.
Other depictions appeared after the event.
Originally only the music was published  and the words by Stepan Petrov were added later.
Poetry     Some Japanese poetry dealing with the war still has a high profile.
Jane H. Oakley attempted an epic treatment of the conflict in 86 cantos.
Fiction     Fictional coverage of the war in English began even before it was over.
An early example was Allen Upward s The International Spy.
Set in both Russia and Japan  it ends with the Dogger Bank incident involving the Baltic Fleet.
The political thinking displayed there is typical of the time.
There is great admiration for the Japanese  who were British allies.
The causes which formerly led to war between nation and nation have ceased to operate   p. 40 .
W. W. Walker s Canadian novella  Alter Ego  is an exception.
Various aspects of the war were also common in contemporary children s fiction.
It is the story of an armoured ram armed submarine involved in a Russo Japanese conflict.
Published in Berlin in 1908  it was translated into English the following year.
The work is considered one of the best historical novels of the Soviet period.
A later novel in which the war appears is Valentin Pikul s The Three Ages of Okini San  1981 .
A much later Russian genre novel uses the period of the war as background.
Admiral Togo is portrayed by Toshiro Mifune.
Several of its principal characters are Japanese army men who fought in the Siege of Port Arthur.
The larger are mostly high islands and the smaller mostly coral.
Precipitation is very high and is affected by the rainy season and typhoons.
The islands beyond the Tokara Strait are characterized by their coral reefs.
The islands are listed from north to south where possible.
Names and extents    The English and Japanese uses of the term  Ryukyu  differ.
Japan has used the name on nautical charts since 1907.
There is  however  no good name for the group.
The Ōsumi Islands are not included because they are culturally part of Kyushu.
There is a high degree of confusion in use of Ryukyu in English literature.
Historical usage       Ryūkyū  is an exonym and is not a self designation.
The word first appeared in the Book of Sui  636 AD .
Nevertheless  the Book of Sui shaped perceptions of Ryūkyū for a long time.
The island was referred to as Okinawa  阿児奈波  in the 8th century biography of Jianzhen  唐大和上東征伝 .
It was not until the 18th century that Okinawa was specified in its own script as 沖縄.
People from the Amami Islands  Kagoshima Prefecture object to being included in  Okinawa .
Japanese scholars use  Amami–Okinawa  while American and European scholars use  Northern Ryukyuan .
This term was originally used by the imperial court of Ancient Japan.
The Eastern Islands are again mentioned as the land of immortals in the Annals of the Han Dynasty.
In 601  the Chinese sent an expedition to the  Country of Liukiu   流求國 .
They noted that the people were small but pugnacious.
The Chinese couldn t understand the local language and returned to China.
In 607  they sent another expedition to trade  and brought back one of the islanders.
In 610  a final expedition was sent with an army that demanded submission to the Chinese Emperor.
In 629  the imperial court dispatched an expedition to Yaku.
In 677  the imperial court gave a banquet to people from Tane Island  多禰島  Tanejima .
In 679  the imperial court sent a mission to Tane Island.
Historians identify Dokan as Tokunoshima of the Amami Islands.
Shigaki should be Ishigaki Island of the Yaeyama Islands.
Others consider that Kumi corresponded to Kume Island of the Okinawa Islands.
After a rebellion was crushed  Tane Province was established around 702.
Tane Province consisted of four districts and covered Tanegashima and Yakushima.
The imperial court brought some of them to the capital to serve the emperor.
The latter seems to correspond to Okinoerabu Island.
The missions of 714  733 and 752 probably took the same route.
In 754 the Chinese monk Jianzhen managed to reach Japan.
However  the missions from 777 onward chose another route that directly connected Kyūshū to China.
Thereafter the central government lost its interest in the southern islands.
In response  Dazaifu ordered  Kika Island   貴駕島  Kikashima  to arrest the Nanban.
The goods he obtained from the southern islands included shells of Green Turban Shell and sulfur.
What were found instead were goods imported from mainland Japan  China and Korea.
He became the founder of the Shimazu clan.
Tadahisa lost power when his powerful relative Hiki Yoshikazu was overthrown in 1203.
The Nagoe family sent the Higo clan to rule Ōsumi.
After the Jōkyū War in 1221  the jitō of Kawanabe District was assumed by the Hōjō Tokusō family.
The Tokusō family let its retainer Chikama clan rule Kawanabe District.
An extant map of Japan held by the Hōjō clan describes Amami as a  privately owned district .
The Shimazu clan also claimed the rights to the Twelve.
After the Kamakura shogunate was destroyed  the Shimazu clan increased its rights.
In 1364  it claimed the  eighteen islands  of Kawanabe District.
The latter must be the Amami Islands.
The Tanegashima clan was given Yakushima and Kuchinoerabu Island by Shimazu Motohisa in 1415.
Tanegashima is known in Japanese history for the introduction of European firearms to Japan.
Around 1543  a Chinese junk with Portuguese merchants on board was driven to Tanegashima.
Tanegashima Tokitaka succeeded in reproducing matchlock rifles obtained from the Portuguese.
Within a few decades  firearms  then known as tanegashima  were spread across Sengoku Japan.
It was relocated to Chiran of mainland Kyūshū in 1595.
These islands all constituted Satsuma Domain during the Edo period.
Gaja Island is only 80 miles from Satsuma s capital at Kagoshima City.
The Koreans noted that the Ryukyuans used guns  as advanced as in  Korea  .
The islands were finally conquered by Satsuma during the 1609 Invasion of Ryukyu.
The Tokugawa shogunate granted Satsuma the islands in 1624.
During the Edo Period  Ryukyuans referred to Satsuma s ships as  Tokara ships .
The kingdom conquered the Miyako and Yaeyama Islands.
At its peak  it also subjected the Amami Islands to its rule.
In 1655  the tributary relations between Ryukyu and Qing were formally approved by the shogunate.
In 1875  jurisdiction over the Ryukyus changed from the Foreign Ministry to the Home Ministry.
Today  numerous issues arise from Okinawan history.
Additionally  there is some discussion of secession from Japan.
Nawa  the chief port of Tsju San  is open to foreign commerce.
The islands enjoy a magnificent climate and are highly cultivated and very productive.
Among the productions are tea  rice  sugar  tobacco  camphor  fruits  and silk.
The principal manufactures are cotton  paper  porcelain  and lacquered ware.
The people  who are small  seem a link between the Chinese and Japanese.
The residents of the island chain are Japanese citizens.
Now  they usually express self identity as the native of a particular island.
Yakushima in Ōsumi is the southern limit of the Palearctic realm.
It features millennium old cedar trees.
The coral reefs are among the World Wildlife Fund s Global 200 ecoregions.
Approximately one half of the amphibian species of the islands are endemic.
Along with the Japanese language  they make up the Japonic language family.
The languages are not mutually intelligible with each other.
Glottalized consonants are common  e.g.
Some Ryukyuan languages have phonemic central vowels  e.g.
Ikema Miyako has a voiceless nasal phoneme  n̥ .
Many Ryukyuan languages mark both nominatives and genitives with the same marker.
This marker has the unusual feature of changing form depending on an animacy hierarchy.
The Kagoshima dialect of Japanese  however  is 80  lexically similar to Standard Japanese.
Speakers of Yonaguni are also likely to know the Yaeyama language due to its proximity.
There is wide diversity among them.
A new mixed language  based on Japanese and Okinawan  has developed  known as  Okinawan Japanese .
It’s locally known as トン普通語  Ton Futsūgo  literally meaning  potato  i.e.
Students who regularly wore the card would receive corporal punishment.
The former is in the Kagoshima Prefecture  while the latter three are in the Okinawa Prefecture.
Orthography     Older Ryukyuan texts are often found on stone inscriptions.
Within the Ryukyu Kingdom  official texts were written in kanji and hiragana  derived from Japan.
In Ryukyu  katakana was hardly used.
Omoro Sōshi  1531–1623   a noted Ryukyuan song collection  was mainly written in hiragana.
Under Japanese influence  all of those numerals became obsolete.
Nowadays  perceived as  dialects   Ryukyuan languages are not often written.
When they are  Japanese characters are used in an ad hoc manner.
There are no standard orthographies for the modern languages.
However  many individual Ryukyuan languages diverge significantly from this pan Japonic base.
For instance  in the Amami dialect Yuwan the word  ʔma   ˀma   horse  is bimoraic.
Tsuken  Central Okinawan  restricts glottalization to glides and the vowels  a i .
Southern Ryukyuan mostly has little to no glottalization  with some exceptions  e.g.
These consonants are contextually nucleic  becoming syllabic when not adjacent to a vowel.
Vowels     Amami has high and mid central vowels.
Yonaguni only has three contrasting vowels   i    u  and  a .
Suprasegmentals     The Ryukyuan languages operate based on the mora.
They commonly either have two or three distinctive types of pitch accent which may be applied.
However  Irabu Miyakoan does not have lexical accent.
Property concept  adjectival  words are generally bound morphemes.
These may be formed by reduplication of the root  e.g.
Irabu Miyako imi   small  → imii imi  small  adj.  .
They may also be compounded with a grammaticalized noun munu  thing   e.g.
They are also pro drop languages.
However  Ryukyuan has the unusual feature that these markers vary based on an animacy hierarchy.
Pronouns    Thorpe  1983  reconstructs the following pronouns in Proto Ryukyuan.
For the first person  the singular and plural are assumed based on the Yonaguni reflex.
In 1609 the Satsuma Domain  based in Kyushu  invaded the Ryukyu Kingdom.
China renounced its claims to the islands in 1895.
During this time many violations of human rights occurred.
An investigation into  fundamental human rights was suggested.
These terms are rarely used  and are politicized markers of a distinct culture.
The Jomon ancestry is estimated at approximately 28 .
The genome wide differentiation was pronounced  especially between Okinawa and Miyako.
It is considered that the Y haplogroups expanded in a demic diffusion.
Haplogroup M12 is considered as mitochondrial counterpart of Y chromosome D lineage.
The Amami Islands seem to be the islands with the most mainland Japanese influence.
The islands  by the Chinese named Liuqiu  would be pronounced by the Japanese as Ryukyu.
Shunten Dynasty made two additional chieftains  Shunbajunki  1237 1248  and Gihon  1248–1259 .
To Eiso s reign period is also ascribed the introduction of Buddhism into Okinawa.
In 1392  all three polities began to send extensive missions to the Korean Joseon kingdom.
They assisted the Ryukyuans in advancing their technology and diplomatic relations.
From the same year onward Ryukyu was allowed to send official students to China i.e.
Later in the 1870s this was used as a  justification  of Japan s sovereignty.
The production was encouraged because Satsuma s annual tax deprived Ryukyu s internal resources.
In the Sakishima Islands great part of the tax was paid in textiles made of ramie.
By 1935  roughly 15  of the population had emigrated.
Only twenty years later  on 15 May 1972  Okinawa and nearby islands were returned to Japan.
The presence of the military remains a sensitive issue in local politics.
82  of Okinawa citizens chose  I m glad that Okinawa has returned as a Japanese prefecture .
Within them and on specific islands exist local dialects  of which many vanished.
Some younger people speak Okinawan Japanese which is a type of Japanese.
It is not a dialect of the Okinawan language.
The status of women in traditional society is higher than in China and Japan.
The office became hereditary  usually of the noro s brother s female child.
The center of worship was represented by three heartstones within or near the house.
It was mostly important to the upper class families.
Kōrēgusu is a common hot sauce condiment used in various dishes including noodle soup Okinawa soba.
Some specifically consumed algae include Caulerpa lentillifera.
Traditional sweets include chinsuko  hirayachi  sata andagi  and muchi.
These tattoos were banned in 1899 by the Meiji government.
Hateruma  socio religious aspects of a South Ryukyuan island culture.
Patrick Heinrich  Fija Bairon  3 November 2007     Wanne Uchinanchu – I am Okinawan.
He committed suicide at the age of 35 through an overdose of barbital.
In 1916 he became engaged to Fumi Tsukamoto  whom he married in 1918.
In November  he published his short story Rashomon on Teikoku Mongaku  a literary magazine.
These stories reinterpreted classical works and historical incidents.
Akutagawa was a strong opponent of naturalism.
Shortly after his return he published Yabu no naka   In a Grove   1922 .
His aunt Fuki played the most significant role in his upbringing.
In 1927 he attempted suicide  together with a friend of his wife  but the attempt failed.
Legacy    Akutagawa wrote over 150 short stories during his brief life.
Akira Kurosawa s classic 1950 film Rashōmon retells Akutagawa s  In a Grove .
The title and the frame scenes set in the Rashomon Gate are taken from Akutagawa s  Rashōmon .
Japanese composer Mayako Kubo wrote an opera named Rashomon  based on Akutagawa s story.
Akutagawa Ryunosuke  Shosetsuka to haijin.
The government budget of 1965 created a research library council  Forskningsbiblioteksrådet  FBR .
It is maintained by the Bibliographic Agency for Higher Education  ABES .
Saga Prefecture  佐賀県  Saga ken  is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū.
After the Boshin War  many people from Saga Domain assisted in the Meiji Restoration.
After the Japanese invasions of Korea the castle fell in 1598.
1607  Control of Saga Domain moved from the Ryūzōji clan to the Nabeshima clan.
All of the han became prefectures.
1872  May 29  Imari Prefecture renamed Saga Prefecture.
1889  April 1  The city of Saga is founded.
1891  The Kyushu Railroad Nagasaki Line opens  beginning with a section from Tosu to Saga.
1932  January 1  The city of Karatsu is founded.
1935  The Japanese National Railways Saga Line opens.
1954  During the Great Showa Merger the cities of Tosu  Imari  Takeo  Kashima and Taku are formed.
At this point there are 7 cities  8 districts  18 towns and 35 villages in Saga Prefecture.
1972  With the closing of the Nishiki coal mine  all coal mines in Saga are closed.
1975  The Genkai Nuclear Power Plant begins operation.
1987  The Japanese National Railways Saga Line closes.
1992  The Yoshinogari History Park opens to the public.
1998  The Saga Airport opens in Kawasoe  in what is now the city of Saga.
2005  As a part of the Great Heisei Merger various municipalities are reorganized.
2006  The Great Heisei Merger continues.
2011  March 12  The Kyushu Shinkansen opens.
There are six prefectural parks and one quasi national park in Saga.
Regional agricultural specialties include Saga beef  onions  and strawberries.
Demographics    As of 2002  the census recorded a population 873 885 in Saga.
Of these  15.9  were aged 0–14  62.7  were age 15–64  and 21.4  were over 65 years old.
There were 3 596 foreigners  0.4   and 307 exchange students  0.03   living in the prefecture.
Language    Saga ben  Saga dialect  is Saga s own variation of Japanese.
This is a popular event and attracts competitors from all over the world.
Karatsu Kunchi     The Karatsu Kunchi is held at the beginning of November in Karatsu City.
This is Saga s largest festival and attracts around 500 000 visitors every year.
Kashima Gatalympics     The Kashima Gatalympics are held every May–June in the city of Kashima.
This event involves playing a variety of sports in the mudflats of the Ariake Sea.
The Gatalympics are not held if the weather is raining.
Located in Imari City  the festival is one of the three great fighting festivals in Japan.
The name  Ton Ten Ton  represents the sound of drums used in the festival.
Sports          Sports teams     Teams listed below are based in Saga Prefecture.
The remains of a Yayoi village in Yoshinogari also attract large numbers of sightseers.
Another place to visit is Yūtoku Inari Shrine  one of Japan s three biggest Inari shrines.
Former TV personality Masashi Tashiro was born in Saga Prefecture.
World War II fighter ace Saburō Sakai was born in Saga Prefecture.
Even today  this era shines impressively in Saga s history.
Sano Tsunetami founded the Japanese Red Cross.
Shima Yoshitake contributed to the exploration of Hokkaidō.
Ōkuma Shigenobu served two terms as Prime Minister of Japan.
He also established Waseda University.
External links    Saga City website Saga Prefecture website SagaJET website Hagakure
Sagamihara  相模原市  Sagamihara shi  is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture  Japan.
As a result of this  three wards were established  Midori ku  Chūō ku and Minami ku.
The Kōza District portion was administratively divided into six villages on April 1  1889.
At the time of its formation  it was the largest town in Japan in terms of area.
On September 1  1948  Zama was administratively separated into Zama Town.
The remaining portion became Sagamihara City on November 20  1954.
It was designated a core city with increased autonomy in 2003.
In 2007  the population of Sagamihara exceeded 700 000.
Geography    Sagamihara covers a large area of northwestern Kanagawa Prefecture.
Western Sagamihara is within the Tanzawa Mountains.
Biography     Ihara Saikaku was born in 1642 into a well off merchant family in Osaka.
From the age of fifteen he composed haikai no renga  linked verse .
In 1662 at the age of twenty he became a haikai master.
Under the pen name Ihara Kakuei  he began to establish himself as a popular haikai poet.
During this time he owned and ran a medium sized business in Osaka.
In 1673 he changed his pen name to Saikaku.
However  the death of his dearly beloved wife in 1675 had an extremely profound impact on him.
It was the first time that Saikaku had attempted to compose such a lengthy piece of literature.
He started his travels after the death of his blind daughter.
From then on he pursued a career as a professional writer.
All act as one who steps on dog dung in the dark.
Not once did I fail to encounter trouble of some kind.
No one knows the lengths I went to in order to meet you!
Its area incorporates the former cities of Urawa  Ōmiya  Yono and Iwatsuki.
It is a city designated by government ordinance.
Its total area is 217.43 square kilometres  83.95 sq mi .
The pronunciation has changed from Sakitama to Saitama over the years.
Despite this  government officials decided to name the new city Saitama in hiragana  not kanji.
In third place in the poll was Ōmiya  大宮市 .
The rest of the area mostly resides on the Ōmiya Plateau lying in the north south direction.
Dispersed in this region  major rivers flow southward  almost paralleling to one another.
Calsonic Kansei  a global automotive company is headquartered in the city.
Iwatsuki is famous for manufacturing of hinamatsuri dolls and ornate kabuto  samurai helmets .
Transportation     Representative station is Urawa Station.
Saitama is a regional transportation hub for both passengers and freight train lines.
Honda Airport in Okegawa is for general aviation and offers no scheduled transport services.
Commuter helicopter flights to Narita Airport are offered from Kawajima.
The city assembly of Saitama has 64 elected members.
Mass media     Most of Saitama Prefecture s mass media presence is concentrated in this city.
See Mass media in Saitama Prefecture for details.
Sister cities    Saitama has six sister cities.
Chichibu Province was in western Saitama.
Saitama District  Saitama gun  was one of Musashi s 21 ritsuryō districts.
During the Edo period  many fudai daimyōs ruled small domains within the Saitama area.
The prefectural capital  Urawa in North Adachi  remained a town until 1934.
The Great Heisei mergers of the 2000s pushed the number below 70.
It became the prefecture s first  and so far only  designated major city in 2003.
At 3 797.75 km2  it ranks as the ninth smallest prefecture.
The eastern border with Chiba Prefecture is defined by the Edo River.
The latter are mainly surrounded by alluvial flood plains.
Most of the land is contained in Chichibu Tama Kai National Park.
The area to east of the basin consists of relatively low mountains.
Circular routes were constructed as bypasses to avoid congestion in central Tokyo.
National highway Routes 4  16  and 17 are important routes in Kantō region.
The Musashino serves as a freight bypass line as well as a passenger line.
The Tsukuba Express line crosses the southeastern corner of the prefecture.
A wheelchair using version of Kobaton also exists.
Sakal is the flagship newspaper of the foundation publication  Sakal Media Group.
Nanasaheb Parulekar was the founder of Sakal.
When Dr. Parulekar died in 1973  he left the paper with many good practices and rich traditions.
Pratap Pawar took over Sakal in 1985.
Under his leadership  group has launched the first and only agriculture daily  Agrowon.
A traditional Marathi newspaper  Sakal adopted ‘Today’  an English title of the pullout.
In 2006   2007  ‘Today’ was launched across all major cities of Maharashtra.
Pune edition initiated the pull out on 14 August 2006.
It opened new avenues for local content as well local advertisers.
Garcia Design – It concentrated on multimedia activities and emerged as a Multimedia House.
Newspaper designer Mario Garcia  Sr.  redesigned Sakal newspaper in year 2007–2008.
The new look of Sakal was flashy  energetic and colorful.
The masthead of Sakal changed to blue reverse.
Garcia Design was implemented successfully across the Maharashtra.
Newzine – In 2010 Sakal adopted Newzine style of presenting the news.
Newzine is the newly coined word derived from the News in the Form of Magazine.
The word Newzine is in use since 2008 – 2009.
It took initiatives in solving key issues affecting the people.
Features – It has weekly supplements for the targeted sectors.
Masthead – Its masthead is dark blue in color.
Earlier the masthead was black.
Each Sunday it used to publish red masthead.
In year 2008 the masthead was changed to blue reverse.
Masthead undergone many changes from style to typography.
Tagline – Present tagline of Daily Sakal is ‘Uday Bhavishyapatracha’  उदय भविष्यपत्राचा .
Its literally meaning is  rise of the future newspaper .
Earlier the tag line was ‘Mitra Navya Shatkacha’  मित्र नव्या शतकाचा .
Its literally meaning is ‘A friend of the New Century.’Sakal s multimedia platforms are as follows.
Mobile app – Sakal news was made available on smart mobiles through native apps.
SMS – Sakal initiated Push SMS service  Sakal Live  for its registered users.
Many of users receive regular news updates from this service.
It s an initiative by Sakal and Powered by Bulb and Key.
Events    Events and activities is integral part of new Sakal.
It arranges events targeting Education  Agriculture  Travel Tourism  Business etc.
are other some of the other events.
Pune Bus Day     Pune bus day is an event created by Sakal Media Group.
The tagline of the initiative is  Come  let s travel by PMPML bus on 1 November 2012 .
The event was incepted in 2018 with  wellness  and  fitness  of residents of Pune at its core.
Sakal also publishes several books each month.
Health  poverty  education  environment  governance are some of its prime areas of work.
Magazines    Sakal Group has variety of magazines.
Sakal Saptahik stands at top in IRS  Indian Readership Survey .
Tanishka  तनिष्का  is a monthly magazine targeting women readers.
Like other rice wines  when sake is brewed  these conversions occur simultaneously.
History     The origin of sake is unclear.
In the Heian period  sake was used for religious ceremonies  court festivals  and drinking games.
The brewing of shōchū  called  Imo–sake  started  and was sold at the central market in Kyoto.
Around 30 000 breweries sprang up around the country within a year.
Landowners who grew rice crops would have surplus rice at the end of the season.
Rather than letting these leftovers go to waste  they shipped it to their breweries.
At the time  sake comprised 30  of Japan s tax revenue.
75  of today s sake is made using this technique.
There were a few breweries producing  sake  that contained no rice at all.
Sake consumption continued to decrease while the quality of sake steadily improved.
More breweries are also turning to older methods of production.
The number of sake breweries is also declining.
While there were 3 229 breweries nationwide in fiscal 1975  the number had fallen to 1 845 in 2007.
It is estimated to be utilized until the Onin War  1467–1477 .
Sake was brewed at Tenryū ji during the Muromachi Period  1336–1573 .
There are at least 80 types of sake rice in Japan.
Among these  Yamadanishiki  Gohyakumangoku  Miyamanishiki and Omachi rice are popular.
Sake rice is used only for making sake  because some say it is unpalatable for eating.
Premium sake is mostly made from sake rice however non premium sake is mostly made from table rice.
The reason for polishing is a result of the composition and structure of the rice grain itself.
That desirable pocket of starch in the center of the grain is called the shinpaku  心白  しんぱく .
It usually takes two to three days to polish rice down to less than half its original size.
The mineral content of the water can be important in the final product.
Manganese  when exposed to ultraviolet light  will also contribute to discoloration.
The first region known for having great water was the Nada Gogō in Hyōgo Prefecture.
Breweries may use tap water and filter and adjust components.
Kōji kin     Kōji kin  Aspergillus oryzae  spores are another important component of sake.
Kōji kin is an enzyme secreting fungus.
It is also used to make alcoholic beverages  notably sake.
This process of starch conversion into simpler sugars  e.g.
glucose or maltose  is called saccharification.
Yeast then turns this glucose into alcohol via fermentation.
To date  there have been several reported cases of animals  e.g.
Fermentation      Sake fermentation is a 3 step process called sandan shikomi.
This mixture becomes known as the moromi  the main mash during sake fermentation .
On the fourth day of the fermentation  the third step of the process  called tomezoe  takes place.
Maturation     Like other brewed beverages  sake tends to benefit from a period of storage.
Nine to twelve months are required for sake to mature.
Tōji     Tōji  杜氏  is the job title of the sake brewer  named after Du Kang.
The title of tōji was historically passed from father to son.
Today new tōji are either veteran brewery workers or are trained at universities.
Futsū shu is the equivalent of table wine and accounts for the majority of sake produced.
This method was the standard for 300 years  but it is rare today.
Yamahai  山廃  is a simplified version of the kimoto method  introduced in the early 1900s.
Yamahai skips the step of making a paste out of the starter mash.
Sokujō  速醸    quick fermentation   is the modern method of preparing the starter mash.
Sokujō sake tends to have a lighter flavor than kimoto or yamahai.
Different handling after fermentation      Namazake  生酒  is sake that has not been pasteurized.
It requires refrigerated storage and has a shorter shelf life than pasteurized sake.
Nigorizake  濁り酒  is cloudy sake.
The sake is passed through a loose mesh to separate it from the mash.
It is not filtered thereafter and there is much rice sediment in the bottle.
Before serving  the bottle is shaken to mix the sediment and turn the sake white or cloudy.
Taruzake  樽酒  is sake aged in wooden barrels or bottled in wooden casks.
The wood used is Cryptomeria  杉  sugi   which is also known as Japanese cedar.
Sake casks are often tapped ceremonially for the opening of buildings  businesses  parties  etc.
Because the wood imparts a strong flavor  premium sake is rarely used for this type.
The result is usually a more acidic   greener  sake.
Sake produced this way is sometimes called shizukuzake  雫酒   meaning  drip sake .
Doburoku  濁酒  is the classic home brew style of sake  although home brewing is illegal in Japan .
It is created by simply adding kōji mold to steamed rice and water and letting the mixture ferment.
The resulting sake is somewhat like a chunkier version of nigorizake.
Jizake  地酒  is locally brewed sake  the equivalent of microbrewing beer.
Kuroshu  黒酒  is sake made from unpolished rice  i.e.  brown rice   and is more like huangjiu.
Teiseihaku shu  低精白酒  is sake with a deliberately high rice polishing ratio.
When the SMV was first used  0 was designated the point between sweet sake and dry sake.
Kasu  粕  are pressed sake lees  the solids left after pressing and filtering.
Taste and flavor    The label on a bottle of sake gives a rough indication of its taste.
Aminosan do  アミノ酸度  indicates a taste of umami or savoriness.
As the proportion of amino acids rises  the sake tastes more savory.
Sake can have many flavor notes  such as fruits  flowers  herbs  and spices.
Hot sake that has cooled  kanzamashi 燗冷まし  may be reheated.
Seasonality     Traditionally sake was brewed only in the winter.
The leaves start green  but turn brown over time  reflecting the maturation of the sake.
These are now hung outside many restaurants serving sake.
When premium sake is opened it begins to oxidize  which affects the taste.
If the sake is kept in the refrigerator more than three days  it will lose its  best  flavor.
This does not mean it should be disposed of if not consumed.
Generally  sake can keep very well and taste good after weeks in the refrigerator.
Ceremonial use    Sake is often consumed as part of Shinto purification rituals.
Sake served to gods as offerings prior to drinking are called o miki  御神酒  or miki  神酒 .
This sake  called iwai zake   celebration sake    is served freely to all to spread good fortune.
At the New Year many Japanese people drink a special sake called toso.
In some regions  the first sips of toso are taken in order of age  from the youngest to the eldest.
Events    October 1 is the official  Sake Day   日本酒の日   Nihonshu no Hi   of Japan.
It is also called  World Sake Day .
It was designated by the Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association in 1978.
Sake and Beer Spoilage Lactic Acid Bacteria – A review .
It is administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast.
Sakhalin was later claimed by both Russia and Japan over the course of the 19th and 20th centuries.
In 1875  Japan ceded its claims to Russia in exchange for the northern Kuril Islands.
In 1905  following the Russo Japanese War  the island was divided  with the south going to Japan.
Japan no longer claims any of Sakhalin  although it does still claim the southern Kuril Islands.
However  there was no formalized border around the island.
The island was also called  Kuye Fiyaka .
History          Early history      Sakhalin was inhabited in the Neolithic Stone Age.
On 30 November 1264  the Mongols attacked the Ainu.
The Ainu resisted Mongol rule and rebelled in 1284 but by 1308  had been subdued.
In 1431  one such assistant commander  Alige  brought marten pelts as tribute to the Wuliehe post.
In return for tribute  the Ming awarded them with silk uniforms.
The Manchus called it  Saghalien ula anga hata   Island at the Mouth of the Black River .
The Qing imposed a fur tribute system on the region s inhabitants.
In 1732  6 hala  18 gasban  and 148 households were registered as tribute bearers in Sakhalin.
There were 500 600 people at the market during Mamiya s stay there.
The Jesuits were told that the islanders were believed to be good at reindeer husbandry.
Russia also agreed to dismantle its military base at Ootomari.
In 1857 the Russians established a penal colony.
A large number of migrants were brought in from Korea.
Whaling      Between 1848 and 1902  American whaleships hunted whales off Sakhalin.
They cruised for bowhead and gray whales to the north and right whales to the east and south.
All hands were saved as well as 300 barrels of whale oil.
The Soviet attack started on August 11  1945  a few days before the surrender of Japan.
Japanese resistance grew weaker after this landing.
From August 22 to August 23  most remaining Japanese units agreed to a ceasefire.
All 269 passengers and crew died  including a U.S.
Total damage was  64.1–300 million  with 1 989 deaths and 750 injured.
The settlement was not rebuilt.
It lies at similar latitudes to England  Wales and Ireland.
Its orography and geological structure are imperfectly known.
One theory is that Sakhalin arose from the Sakhalin Island Arc.
Nearly two thirds of Sakhalin is mountainous.
Tym Poronaiskaya Valley separates the two ranges.
Sakhalin has two smaller islands associated with it  Moneron Island and Ush Island.
Ush Island is an island off of the northern coast of Sakhalin.
Smaller minorities were the Ainu  Ukrainians  Tatars  Yakuts and Evenks.
Flora and fauna     The whole of the island is covered with dense forests  mostly coniferous.
The underwoods abound in berry bearing plants  e.g.
The rivers swarm with fish  especially species of salmon  Oncorhynchus .
The ferry is owned by Penguin International Limited and operated by Sakhalin Shipping Company.
The original Japanese D51 steam locomotives were used by the Soviet Railways until 1979.
Gauge conversion was complete in 2019.
The island was formerly served by Alaska Airlines from Anchorage  Petropavlovsk  and Magadan.
The project was abandoned under Premier Nikita Khrushchev.
It was claimed that construction work could begin as early as 2001.
In 2018  president Vladimir Putin ordered a feasibility study for a mainland bridge project.
In addition  Sakhalin III through VI are in various early stages of development.
It has completed the first production sharing agreement  PSA  with the Russian Federation.
The oil and gas are also bound for East Asian markets.
The consortium has  as of January  2006  rerouted the pipeline to avoid the whale migration.
By 2006 it is expected to account for 80  of the island s industrial output.
Sakhalin s economy is growing rapidly thanks to its oil and gas industry.
The conquest of Ainu lands   ecology and culture in Japanese expansion  1590–1800.
It was preceded by a period of largely unrestricted trade and widespread piracy.
Trade with Korea was limited to the Tsushima Domain  today part of Nagasaki Prefecture .
Trade under sakoku    Japan traded at this time with five entities  through four  gateways .
The Matsumae clan domain in Hokkaidō  then called Ezo  traded with the Ainu people.
Through the Sō clan daimyō of Tsushima  there were relations with Joseon dynasty Korea.
It became obsolete after the country was opened and the sakoku policy collapsed.
In 1647 Portuguese warships attempted to enter Nagasaki.
The Japanese formed a blockade of almost 900 boats to stop the ships.
In 1738  a Russian naval squadron  including Martin Spangberg  visited the island of Honshu.
The Russians landed in a scenic area which is now part of the Rikuchu Kaigan National Park.
He offered gifts  and politely asked to trade in vain.
In 1787  Jean François de Galaup  comte de Lapérouse navigated in Japanese waters.
Kendrick was the first known American to have visited Japan.
In 1792 the Russian subject Adam Laxman visited the island of Hokkaido.
The Russian envoy Nikolai Rezanov requested trade exchanges.
The Bakufu refused the request and the ships had to leave in spring 1805.
The Phaeton sailed away before Japanese authorities arrived from Kyoto.
This was the first time a ship ever visited Japan from what are now Australian waters.
He went to Uraga Channel with Morrison  an unarmed American merchant ship.
The ship was fired upon several times  and finally sailed back unsuccessfully.
In 1844  a French naval expedition under Captain Fornier Duplan visited Okinawa on April 28  1844.
Trade was denied  but Father Forcade was left behind with a translator.
In 1845  whaling ship Manhattan  1843  rescued 22 Japanese shipwrecked sailors.
They were given several presents and allowed to leave unmolested  but told never to return.
In 1849  the Royal Navy s HMS Mariner entered Uraga Harbour to conduct a topographical survey.
Onboard was the Japanese castaway Otokichi  who acted as a translator.
In 1853  the Russian embassy of Yevfimy Putyatin arrived in Nagasaki  August 12  1853 .
He demanded that Japan open to trade with the West.
These ships became known as the kurofune  the Black Ships.
The United Kingdom signed the Anglo Japanese Friendship Treaty at the end of 1854.
Within five years  Japan had signed similar treaties with other western countries.
The Harris Treaty was signed with the United States on July 29  1858.
A Japanese Embassy to the United States was sent in 1860  on board the Kanrin Maru.
An Embassy to Europe was sent in 1862  and a Second Embassy to Europe in 1863.
Japan also sent a delegation and participated to the 1867 World Fair in Paris.
See also    Haijin – Maritime restrictions  kaikin in Japanese.
2009  Sakoku to iu Gensetsu.（大島明秀『「鎖国」という言説』）Kyoto in Japan  Minerva Publisher.
The lava flows of the 1914 eruption connected it with the Ōsumi Peninsula.
Earlier eruptions built the white sand highlands in the region.
The most recent eruption started on November 12  2019.
Kita dake is Sakurajima s highest peak  rising to 1 117 m  3 665 ft  above sea level.
The mountain is in a part of Kagoshima Bay known as Kinkō wan.
The former island is part of the city of Kagoshima.
The surface of this volcanic peninsula is about 77 km2  30 sq mi .
The resulting caldera is over 20 km  12 mi  across.
Tephra fell as far as 1 000 km  620 mi  from the volcano.
Sakurajima is a modern active vent of the same Aira caldera volcano.
Sakurajima was formed by later activity within the caldera  beginning about 13 000 years ago.
It is about 8 km  5 mi  south of the centre of the caldera.
Its first eruption in recorded history was in 963 AD.
Since 2006  activity has centred on Showa crater  to the east of the summit of Minami dake.
1914 eruption      The 1914 eruption began on January 11.
It was the most powerful in twentieth century Japan.
The volcano had been dormant for over a century until 1914.
The area around Sakurajima contains several hot spring resorts.
An eruption had been expected following a series of smaller explosions over the weekend.
Sakurajima was also the name of Japanese singer Tsuyoshi Nagabuchi s song.
They were the well paid retainers of the daimyo  the great feudal landholders .
They had high prestige and special privileges such as wearing two swords.
In the 1870s samurai families comprised 5  of the population.
Their memory and weaponry remain prominent in Japanese popular culture.
It was called  Gundan Sei   ja 軍団制  by later historians and is believed to have been short lived.
Those of 6th rank and below were referred to as  samurai  and dealt with day to day affairs.
Military men  however  would not be referred to as  samurai  for many more centuries.
Ultimately  Emperor Kanmu disbanded his army.
From this time  the emperor s power gradually declined.
The Taira and the Minamoto clashed again in 1180  beginning the Genpei War  which ended in 1185.
Instead of ruling from Kyoto  he set up the shogunate in Kamakura  near his base of power.
Thus  the samurai class became the political ruling power in Japan.
Japan mustered a mere 10 000 samurai to meet this threat.
The Yuan army was eventually recalled  and the invasion was called off.
Completed in 1277  this wall stretched for 20 kilometers around the border of the bay.
It would later serve as a strong defensive point against the Mongols.
The graves of the five executed Mongol emissaries exist to this day in Kamakura at Tatsunokuchi.
In 1281  a Yuan army of 140 000 men with 5 000 ships was mustered for another invasion of Japan.
Northern Kyūshū was defended by a Japanese army of 40 000 men.
These winds became known as kami no Kaze  which literally translates as  wind of the gods .
This is often given a simplified translation as  divine wind .
The craft was perfected in the 14th century by the great swordsmith Masamune.
Groups of mercenaries with mass produced arquebuses began playing a critical role.
He died in 1582 when one of his generals  Akechi Mitsuhide  turned upon him with his army.
In the end  only Ieyasu tastes it.
Hashiba is the family name that Toyotomi Hideyoshi used while he was a follower of Nobunaga.
It can be said that an  all against all  situation continued for a century.
In most cases  however  it is difficult to prove these claims.
The conduct of samurai served as role model behavior for the other social classes.
Perry used his superior firepower to force Japan to open its borders to trade.
From 1854  the samurai army and the navy were modernized.
A naval training school was established in Nagasaki in 1855.
French naval engineers were hired to build naval arsenals  such as Yokosuka and Nagasaki.
Samurai now became Shizoku  士族  this status was abolished in 1947 .
Zen meditation became an important teaching because it offered a process to calm one s mind.
Some were killed as they came to terms with these conclusions in the battlefield.
Honour with them is placed above everything else.
There are a great many poor among them  but poverty is not a disgrace to any one.
The nobles  however poor they may be  receive the same honour from the rest as if they were rich.
It is that exactly that will be the great fame of one s descendants.
It is forbidden that one should ... attach little importance to his duties to his master ...
Such a neglect means a disloyalty toward humanity.
Therefore such a man doesn t deserve to be called  samurai .
A man should be assigned according to his ability and loyalty.
By his civility   all were willing to sacrifice their lives for him and become his allies.
Katō Kiyomasa was one of the most powerful and well known lords of the Sengoku period.
He commanded most of Japan s major clans during the invasion of Korea.
Thus it is essential to engrave this business of the warrior into one s mind well.
He is best known for his saying  The way of the samurai is in desperateness.
Ten men or more cannot kill such a man.
Torii Mototada  1539–1600  was a feudal lord in the service of Tokugawa Ieyasu.
Torii and Tokugawa both agreed that the castle was indefensible.
As was custom  Torii vowed that he would not be taken alive.
Torii s actions changed the course of Japanese history.
Ieyasu Tokugawa successfully raised an army and won at Sekigahara.
These writings were a required study among traditional Japanese until World War II.
They were hard workers and respectful of authority.
Tadanori was a great general  pre eminent in the arts of both sword and poetry.
These practices were adapted from the Chinese arts.
Musō  as well as other monks  served as a political and cultural diplomat between Japan and China.
Musō was particularly well known for his garden design.
Another Ashikaga patron of the arts was Yoshimasa.
His cultural advisor  the Zen monk Zeami  introduced the tea ceremony to him.
Previously  tea had been used primarily for Buddhist monks to stay awake during meditation.
One such library held 20 000 volumes.
In this way  all were willing to sacrifice their lives for him and become his allies.
They are discreet  magnanimous and lovers of virtue and letters  honouring learned men very much.
The distance from Cagoxima is three hundred leagues.
They say that there are several lesser academies besides those which we have mentioned.
Samurai normally used only a small part of their total name.
A man was addressed by his family name and his title  or by his yobina if he did not have a title.
A samurai could take concubines  but their backgrounds were checked by higher ranked samurai.
In many cases  taking a concubine was akin to a marriage.
Kidnapping a concubine  although common in fiction  would have been shameful  if not criminal.
After a divorce  samurai had to return the betrothal money  which often prevented divorces.
Women     Maintaining the household was the main duty of women of the samurai class.
These women married members of enemy clans of their families to form a diplomatic relationship.
These alliances were stages for many intrigues  wars and tragedies throughout Japanese history.
Too much love and affection was also said to indulge and spoil the youngsters.
Thus  a woman was also to exercise discipline.
This does not mean that women in the samurai class were always powerless.
Powerful women both wisely and unwisely wielded power at various occasions.
Tachibana Ginchiyo was chosen to lead the Tachibana clan after her father s death.
Yamauchi Chiyo  wife of Yamauchi Kazutoyo  has long been considered the ideal samurai wife.
The source of power for women may have been that samurai left their finances to their wives.
Nearly all women of the samurai class were literate by the end of the Tokugawa period.
Some of them served daimyōs as retainers.
Letters  His estate was valued at 250 koku.
Joosten likewise became a hatamoto samurai and was given a residence within Ieyasu s castle at Edo.
Today  this area at the east exit of Tokyo Station is known as Yaesu  八重洲 .
Yaesu is a corruption of the Dutchman s Japanese name  Yayousu  耶楊子 .
Joosten was given a Red Seal Ship  朱印船  allowing him to trade between Japan and Indo China.
On a return journey from Batavia  Joosten drowned after his ship ran aground.
Yasuke  弥助  was a Retainer of Oda Nobunaga originally from Portuguese Mozambique  Africa.
He served in the Honnō ji incident.
Di Chiara was also tortured and eventually became an apostate as well.
Weapons     Japanese swords are the weapons that have come to be synonymous with the samurai.
Chokutō  swords from the Nara period  featured a straight blade.
By 900  curved tachi appeared  and ultimately the katana.
Smaller commonly known companion swords are the wakizashi and the tantō.
During the Edo period only samurai were allowed to wear a daisho.
the skill of the bow  was a major weapon of the Japanese military.
The practice of shooting from horseback became a Shinto ceremony known as yabusame  流鏑馬 .
Pole weapons including the yari  spear  and naginata were commonly used by the samurai.
Tanegashima were introduced to Japan in 1543 through Portuguese trade.
By the end of the 16th century  there were more firearms in Japan than in many European nations.
Production of tanegashima declined sharply as there was no need for massive amounts of firearms.
Cannon became a common part of the samurai s armory by the 1570s.
The Arima clan of Kyushu used cannon like this at the Battle of Okinawate against the Ryūzōji clan.
Clubs and truncheons made of iron or wood  of all shapes and sizes were used by the samurai.
The first types of Japanese armor identified as samurai armor were known as ō yoroi and dō maru.
These early samurai armors were made from small individual scales known as kozane.
This new armor  which used itazane  was referred to as tosei gusoku  gusoku   or modern armor.
The gusoku armour added features and pieces of armor for the face  thigh  and back.
The back piece had multiple uses  such as for a flag bearing.
Various other components of armor protected the samurai s body.
The helmet  kabuto  was an important part of the samurai s armor.
It was paired with a shikoro and fukigaeshi for protection of the head and neck.
Samurai armor changed and developed as the methods of samurai warfare changed over the centuries.
At the beginning of the samurai battles  it was an honor to be the first to enter battle.
This act was considered an honor.
In addition  through it they gained respect among the military class.
These were covered with salt and shipped in wooden barrels.
Similarly  they were instructed in the use of these weapons while riding a horse.
Modern traditional martial arts are called gendai budō.
The programs typically feature a samurai.
One of Japan s most renowned directors  Akira Kurosawa  greatly influenced western film making.
There is also a 26 episode anime adaptation  Samurai 7  of Seven Samurai.
Along with film  literature containing samurai influences are seen as well.
Eiji Yoshikawa is one of the most famous Japanese historical novelists.
The samurai have also appeared frequently in Japanese comics  manga  and animation  anime .
In the 21st century  samurai have become more popular in America.
Festivals    There are a variety of festivals held in Japan.
The event is held on the first Saturday of April.
Other events also take place throughout the day to celebrate the founding of the city.
The festival started during the Showa era in 1926 at Kasugayama Shrine.
Additionally  the battle of Kawanakajima is reenacted as a part of this festival.
It is held annually on the first or second weekend of April in Kōfu  Yamanashi Prefecture.
There are more than 100 000 visitors per festival.
Usually a famous Japanese celebrity plays the part of Takeda Shingen.
Ordinary people can participate too after applying.
It is one of the biggest historical reenactments in Japan.
Famous samurai     These are some famous samurai with extraordinary achievements in history.
Japanese Sword Museum   dedicated to the art of Japanese swordmaking.
Samurai Museum in Shinjuku  Tokyo   about the history of the samurai with armor  weapons etc.
It consists of the northern part of the Chūgoku region  facing the Sea of Japan.
Etymology    The name San in in the Japanese language is formed from two kanji characters.
The first  山   mountain   and the second  陰 represents the  yin  of yin and yang.
Modern usage     The San in region now has no administrative authority.
The northern areas of Hyōgo and Kyōto prefectures are sometimes included in the region as well.
The area is primarily mountainous with few plains.
The northern portion of Yamaguchi Prefecture composes of Abu  Hagi  and Nagato.
The agricultural output of the San in region  however  remains very high.
Projects to connect the region to the wider highway network of Japan continue.
Nihon Ōdai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
The San yō Region  山陽地方 San yō chihō  is an area in the south of Honshū  the main island of Japan.
It consists of the southern part of the Chūgoku region  facing the Seto Inland Sea.
The region is generally considered to include the prefectures of Okayama  Hiroshima and Yamaguchi.
Transport    The region is served by the Sanyō Main Line and Sanyō Shinkansen.
The northern portion of Yamaguchi Prefecture composes of Abu  Hagi  and Nagato.
Nihon Odai Ichiran  ou  Annales des empereurs du Japon.
It is the capital city of Hokkaido Prefecture and Ishikari Subprefecture.
Sapporo is considered the cultural  economic  and political center of Hokkaido.
Starting in the late 19th century  Sapporo saw increasing settlement by Japanese migrants.
Additionally  Sapporo has hosted the Asian Winter Games three times  in 1986  1990  and 2017.
The annual Sapporo Snow Festival draws more than 2 million tourists from abroad.
It is home to Hokkaido University  just north of Sapporo Station.
The city is served by Okadama Airport and New Chitose Airport in nearby Chitose.
As a result  it was determined that a new capital on the Ishikari Plain should be established.
The city closely followed a grid plan with streets at right angles to form city blocks.
Edwin Dun came to Sapporo to establish sheep and cattle ranches in 1876.
He also demonstrated pig raising and the making of butter  cheese  ham and sausage.
He was married twice  to Japanese women.
He once went back to the US in 1883 but returned to Japan as a secretary of government.
It was later moved to Nakajima Park where it remains today.
After that year  Sapporo ku was away from the control of Sapporo gun.
In Hokkaido at that time  Hakodate ku and Otaru ku also existed.
The Sapporo Municipal Bus System was started in 1930.
The first Sapporo Snow Festival was held in 1950.
In 1989  Atsubetsu ku and Teine ku were separated from Shiroishi ku and Nishi ku.
A professional football club  Consadole Sapporo  was established in 1996.
In 1997  Kiyota ku was separated from Toyohira ku.
Fumio Ueda  was elected as Sapporo mayor for the first time in 2003.
It is part of Ishikari Subprefecture.
Roadways in the urban district are laid to make a grid plan.
Wards     Sapporo currently has ten wards  区  ku .
The total area is 1 121.26 km2  432.92 sq mi .
Economy     The tertiary sector dominates Sapporo s industry.
In April 2004  Air Nippon Network was headquartered in Higashi ku.
The district also has the Tanuki Kōji Shopping Arcade  the oldest shopping mall in the city.
The district of Jōzankei in Minami ku has many resort hotels with steam baths and onsen.
Another portion was presented to Mikhail Gorbachev by the Nipponzan Myohoji monk  Junsei Terasawa.
This park also serves as one of the main habitats in Hokkaido for many types of wild birds.
The Asahiyama Memorial Park offers great views of the city.
Lilac was brought to Sapporo in 1889 by an American educator  Sarah Clara Smith.
At the festival  people enjoy the flowers  wine and live music.
People enjoy drinking at the beer garden in Odori Park and on the streets of Susukino.
From November through January  many citizens enjoy the Sapporo White Illuminations.
It attracts many tourists throughout the year.
Haskap  a local variety of edible honeysuckle  similar to blueberries  is a specialty in Sapporo.
Sapporo is also well known for fresh seafood including salmon  sea urchin and crab.
In 1972  Sapporo hosted the 11th Winter Olympics.
The plans were presented to the Japanese Olympic Committee on 8 November 2016.
In 2002  Sapporo hosted three group matches of the FIFA World Cup at the Sapporo Dome.
Sapporo will also host some games during the 2019 Rugby World Cup.
The Makomanai Ice Arena  in Makomanai Park  was one of the venues of the Sapporo Olympics in 1972.
Toyota Big Air is a major international snowboarding event held annually in Sapporo Dome.
Sapporo Subway trains have rubber tyred wheels.
The Sapporo Tokyo route between New Chitose and Haneda is one of the busiest in the world.
The prehistory of Saudi Arabia shows some of the earliest traces of human activity in the world.
The world s second largest religion  Islam  emerged in modern day Saudi Arabia.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was founded in 1932 by Ibn Saud.
The state s official language is Arabic.
Its inclusion expresses the view that the country is the personal possession of the royal family.
Al Magar could be considered as a  Neolithic Revolution  in human knowledge and handicraft skills.
The settlement of the region picks up again in the period of Dilmun in the early 3rd millennium.
It is likely that Tarout Island was the main port and the capital of Dilmun.
Centered in Tabouk  it stretched from Wadi Arabah in the north to the area of al Wejh in the south.
The city hosted as many as 10 to 12 thousand inhabitants.
It started as a Sheikdom of Dedan  which developed into the Kingdom of Lihyan tribe.
The earliest attestation of state regality  King of Lihyan  was in the mid sixth century BC.
In antiquity  Gulf of Aqaba used to be called Gulf of Lihyan.
The Islamic prophet Muhammad was born in Mecca in about 571 CE.
Most of the remainder of what became Saudi Arabia reverted to traditional tribal rule.
They were overthrown by the Usfurids in 1253.
Ufsurid rule was weakened after Persian rulers of Hormuz captured Bahrain and Qatif in 1320.
The vassals of Ormuz  the Shia Jarwanid dynasty came to rule eastern Arabia in the 14th century.
Al Muntafiq tribe later took over the region and came under Ottoman suzerainty.
The Bani Khalid tribe later revolted against them in the 17th century and took control.
Their rule extended from Iraq to Oman at its height and they too came under Ottoman suzerainty.
A much smaller second  Saudi state   located mainly in Nejd  was established in 1824.
By 1891  the Al Rashid were victorious and the Al Saud were driven into exile in Kuwait.
With the aid of the Ikhwan  Ibn Saud captured Al Ahsa from the Ottomans in 1913.
Following the latter s final defeat  he took the title Sultan of Nejd in 1921.
A year later  he added the title of King of Nejd.
At the same time  the government became increasingly wasteful and extravagant.
By 1976  Saudi Arabia had become the largest oil producer in the world.
The first was the Iranian Islamic Revolution.
The government regained control of the mosque after 10 days and those captured were executed.
However  Saudi Arabia condemned the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990 and asked the US to intervene.
King Fahd allowed American and coalition troops to be stationed in Saudi Arabia.
Islamism was not the only source of hostility to the government.
Although now extremely wealthy  Saudi Arabia s economy was near stagnant.
In response  a number of limited  reforms  were initiated by King Fahd.
In December 1993  the Consultative Council was inaugurated.
It is composed of a chairman and 60 members—all chosen by the King.
In February–April 2005  the first ever nationwide municipal elections were held in Saudi Arabia.
Politics     Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy.
No political parties or national elections are permitted.
Critics regard it as a totalitarian dictatorship.
However  open protest against the government  even if peaceful  is not tolerated.
The royal family dominates the political system.
The following year Prince Nayef also died before ascending to the throne.
The Saudi government and the royal family have often  over many years  been accused of corruption.
Prince Bandar denied the allegations.
However  nepotism and patronage are widespread when doing business in the country.
In 2005  the first municipal elections were held.
In 2007  the Allegiance Council was created to regulate the succession.
However  these changes have been criticized as being too slow or merely cosmetic.
The preferred ulema are of the Salafi persuasion.
Additionally  traditional tribal law and custom remain significant.
Extra Sharia government tribunals usually handle disputes relating to specific royal decrees.
The 345 reported executions between 2007 and 2010 were all carried out by public beheading.
The last reported execution for sorcery took place in September 2014.
Homosexual acts are punishable by flogging or death.
Majority of Saudi Arabians also expressed a favorable view of China.
In August 2014 both countries appeared to be exploring ways of ending the rift.
In 2017  Saudi Arabia imposed a land  naval and air blockade on Qatar.
The relations have the potential of evolving into a crisis at any moment.
More than 50 000 children in Yemen died from starvation in 2017.
Pompeo has asked Saudi Arabia and the UAE to stop their airstrikes on populated areas in Yemen.
Theresa May backed the US call to end the coalition.
The film was based on the 2018 murder of Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi authorities.
The US called for a ceasefire within 30 days.
The Saudi government denies these claims or that it exports religious or cultural extremism.
They are not funding terrorism.
In addition  there is an Al Mukhabarat Al A amah military intelligence service.
Saudi Arabia received 41 percent of UK arms exports in 2010–14.
France authorized  18 billion in weapons sales to Saudi Arabia in 2015 alone.
In 2017  Saudi Arabia signed a 110 billion dollar arms deal with the United States.
There are no jury trials in Saudi Arabia and courts observe few formalities.
Most trials are held in secret.
It is geographically the largest country in the Middle East and the Arabian Plate.
Wadis  non permanent rivers  however  are very numerous.
The fertile areas are to be found in the alluvial deposits in wadis  basins  and oases.
Saudi Arabia is home to approximately 1300 islands.
There are several species of snakes  many of which are venomous.
Saudi Arabia is home to a rich marine life.
The Red Sea in particular is a rich and diverse ecosystem.
The Red Sea also contains many offshore reefs including several true atolls.
The date palm  Phoenix dactylifera  is widespread.
The regions are further divided into 118 governorates  Arabic  محافظات‎  muhafazat  sing.
The governorates are further subdivided into sub governorates  Arabic  مراكز‎  marakiz  sing.
It also has the fifth largest proven natural gas reserves.
Saudi Arabia is considered an  energy superpower .
In November 2005  Saudi Arabia was approved as a member of the World Trade Organization.
Saudi Arabia has had five year  Development Plans  since 1970.
Among its plans were to launch  economic cities   e.g.
As of 2013 four cities were planned.
Authors of the video claim that 22 percent of Saudis may be considered poor  2009 .
Observers researching the issue prefer to stay anonymous because of the risk of being arrested.
However  the private sector still remains hugely dominated by foreigners.
The rate of local unemployment is 12.9   its highest in more than a decade.
Agriculture      Serious large scale agricultural development began in the 1970s.
As a result  there has been a phenomenal growth in the production of all basic foods.
Dates  once a staple of the Saudi diet  are now mainly grown for global humanitarian aid.
In 1978  the country built its first grain silos.
By 1984  it had become self sufficient in wheat.
Saudi Arabia is a major exporter of fruits and vegetables to its neighbors.
Among its most productive crops are watermelon  grapes  citrus fruits  onions  squash and tomatoes.
The farm covers 7730 hectares and has 5 million olive trees.
Sakaka dates back more than 4 000 years.
Given the substantial oil wealth  water is provided almost for free.
Despite improvements service quality remains poor.
Most Saudis live in the Hejaz  35    Najd  28    and the Eastern Province  15  .
A large fraction are foreign nationals.
Slavery was officially abolished in 1962.
Languages     The official language of Saudi Arabia is Arabic.
Faifi is spoken by about 50 000.
In November 2013  Saudi Arabia expelled thousands of illegal Ethiopian residents from the Kingdom.
Various Human Rights entities have criticised Saudi Arabia s handling of the issue.
The migrants were captured by Saudi guards when they tried to escape from the border area.
They were beaten  tortured and electrocuted.
The migrants lack proper living condition  provision of food and water.
Neither Saudi citizens nor guest workers have the right of freedom of religion.
More than a billion Sunnis have simply had enough of them.
The weekend is Friday Saturday  not Saturday Sunday  because Friday is the holiest day for Muslims.
For many years only two religious holidays were publicly recognized – ʿĪd al Fiṭr and ʿĪd al Aḍḥā.
In the state school system  about half of the material taught is religious.
No churches  temples or other non Muslim houses of worship are permitted in the country.
In legal compensation court cases  Diyya  non Muslim are awarded less than Muslims.
Atheists are legally designated as terrorists.
For rare chilly days  Saudi men wear a camel hair cloak  bisht  over the top.
Ghutrah  Arabic  غتره‎  is a traditional headdress typically worn by Arab men.
The agal is usually black in colour.
Thawb  Arabic  ثوب‎  is the standard Arabic word for garment.
It is ankle length  usually with long sleeves  similar to a robe.
Abaya  Arabic  عبائة‎  is a woman s garment.
It is a black cloak which loosely covers the entire body except the head.
Some women choose to cover their faces with a niqāb and some do not.
Some abayas cover the top of the head as well.
Music and dance have always been part of Saudi life.
Traditional music is generally associated with poetry and is sung collectively.
These include Ghazi Algosaibi  Abdelrahman Munif  Turki al Hamad and Rajaa al Sanea.
The first concerts in Riyadh for 25 years took place the following year.
The concert also included shows by Enrique Iglesias and The Black Eyed Peas.
Sport      Football is the national sport in Saudi Arabia.
More traditional sports such as horse racing and camel racing are also popular.
A stadium in Riyadh holds races in the winter.
Until 2018 women were not permitted in sport stadiums.
The night race is said to be held on a street circuit in Jeddah.
Arabic coffee is a traditional beverage in Arabian cuisine.
In practice  it is very difficult for a Saudi woman to obtain a judicial divorce.
Education     Education is free at all levels.
The school system is composed of elementary  intermediate  and secondary schools.
The rate of literacy is 97.1  among males and is about 92.71  among females  2017 .
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology  known as KAUST  founded recently in 2009.
Institutes devoted to Islamic studies  in particular  abound.
Women typically receive college instruction in segregated institutions.
This makes Saudi Arabia the best performing Middle Eastern  Arab and Muslim country.
Religion taught in this manner is also a compulsory subject for all University students.
Anti Semitic expressions and calls to fight the Jews became fewer.
The Foreign Ministry supports a training program for Saudi teachers.
Infant mortality in 2018 was 6 per 1 000.
In 2016  69.7  of the adult population was overweight and 35.5  was obese.
It has developed a series of rockets.
These provide 34.5  of Japan s electricity.
140 000 residents within 20 km of the plant were evacuated.
See Radiation effects from Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster 900.
The best hypotheses lead to predictions that can be tested in various ways.
A hypothesis is a conjecture  based on knowledge obtained while seeking answers to the question.
The hypothesis might be very specific  or it might be broad.
Scientists then test hypotheses by conducting experiments or studies.
Experiments can take place anywhere from a garage to CERN s Large Hadron Collider.
There are difficulties in a formulaic statement of method  however.
Overview     The scientific method is the process by which science is carried out.
The scientific method is of necessity also an expression of an opposition to claims that e.g.
There are difficulties in a formulaic statement of method  however.
but can also be open ended  as in  How can I design a drug to cure this particular disease?
If the answer is already known  a different question that builds on the evidence can be posed.
A statistical hypothesis is a conjecture about a given statistical population.
For example  the population might be people with a particular disease.
The conjecture might be that a new drug will cure the disease in some of those people.
Researchers normally want to show that the null hypothesis is false.
The alternative hypothesis is the desired outcome  that the drug does better than chance.
Prediction      This step involves determining the logical consequences of the hypothesis.
One or more predictions are then selected for further testing.
Scientists  and other people  test hypotheses by conducting experiments.
If they agree  confidence in the hypothesis increases  otherwise  it decreases.
Agreement does not assure that the hypothesis is true  future experiments may reveal problems.
For example  tests of medical treatments are commonly run as double blind tests.
Such hints can bias the responses of the test subjects.
Furthermore  failure of an experiment does not necessarily mean the hypothesis is false.
Astronomers do experiments  searching for planets around distant stars.
As a result  evidence about broader topics is usually accumulated gradually.
Prediction  If DNA had a helical structure  its X ray diffraction pattern would be X shaped.
Experiment  Rosalind Franklin used pure DNA to perform X ray diffraction to produce photo 51.
Each step of the example is examined in more detail later in the article.
The specific journal that publishes the results indicates the perceived quality of the work.
That is  no theory can ever be considered final since new problematic evidence might be discovered.
Theories can also become subsumed by other theories.
When a narrative is constructed its elements become easier to believe.
Such proto ideas are at first always too broad and insufficiently specialized.
The subjects can also be called unsolved problems or the unknowns.
I am not accustomed to saying anything with certainty after only one or two observations.
The uncertainty is often estimated by making repeated measurements of the desired quantity.
Definition      Measurements demand the use of operational definitions of relevant quantities.
But the mechanism of storing genetic information  i.e.  genes  in DNA was unclear.
Newton was able to include those measurements into consequences of his laws of motion.
His relativistic calculations matched observation much more closely than did Newtonian theory.
The difference is approximately 43 arc seconds per century.
Normally hypotheses have the form of a mathematical model.
Michael Polanyi made such creativity the centerpiece of his discussion of methodology.
In general scientists tend to look for theories that are  elegant  or  beautiful .
DNA hypotheses       Linus Pauling proposed that DNA might be a triple helix.
This hypothesis was also considered by Francis Crick and James D. Watson but discarded.
The prediction can also be statistical and deal only with probabilities.
It is essential that the outcome of testing such a prediction be currently unknown.
Only in this case does a successful outcome increase the probability that the hypothesis is true.
A new technology or theory might make the necessary experiments feasible.
Therefore  science itself can have little to say about the possibility.
This implied that DNA s X ray diffraction pattern would be  x shaped .
This prediction followed from the work of Cochran  Crick and Vand  and independently by Stokes .
Experiments      Once predictions are made  they can be sought by experiments.
The experimental control is a technique for dealing with observational error.
We vary the conditions for each measurement  to help isolate what has changed.
Mill s canons can then help us figure out what the important factor is.
Factor analysis is one technique for discovering the important factor in an effect.
Depending on the predictions  the experiments can have different shapes.
They will also assist in reproducing the experimental results  likely by others.
Franklin immediately spotted the flaws which concerned the water content.
This rekindled Watson and Crick s model building and led to the correct structure.
DNA characterizations       Evaluation and improvement     The scientific method is iterative.
Other scientists may start their own research and enter the process at any stage.
Its successes can shine but tend to be transitory.
The method of authority – which overcomes disagreements but sometimes brutally.
Thereby it depends on fashion in paradigms and goes in circles over time.
Thus  his theory of inquiry boils down to  Do the science.
Abduction is the most fertile but least secure mode of inference.
Peirce calls his pragmatism  the logic of abduction .
Then  your conception of those effects is the whole of your conception of the object .
A simple but unlikely guess  if uncostly to test for falsity  may belong first in line for testing.
Such cooperation can be regarded as an important element of a scientific community.
Various standards of scientific methodology are used within such an environment.
This may lead  unavoidably  to problems later if some supposedly irrelevant feature is questioned.
The observations are hence sometimes described as being  theory laden .
These assumptions from methodological naturalism form a basis on which science may be grounded.
Kuhn and Feyerabend acknowledge the pioneering significance of his work.
The postmodernist critiques of science have themselves been the subject of intense controversy.
This may explain why scientists so often express that they were lucky.
Eventually  the researcher decides the error is too persistent and systematic to be a coincidence.
A model can be a simulation  mathematical or chemical formula  or set of proposed steps.
logically true  by rewriting them  as did Poincaré  Proofs and Refutations  1976 .
Lakatos proposed an account of mathematical knowledge based on Polya s idea of heuristics.
Much research in metascience seeks to identify poor use of statistics and improve its use.
The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean.
The sea has no large islands  bays or capes.
Few rivers discharge into the sea and their total contribution to the water exchange is within 1 .
Therefore  fishing is the dominant economic activity in the region.
It had long been navigated by Asian and  from the 18th century  by European ships.
They also documented the cyclonal character of the sea currents.
The aquatic life was described by V. K. Brazhnikov in 1899–1902 and P. Yu.
They primarily targeted right whales  but began catching humpbacks as right whale catches declined.
Right whales were caught from March to September  with peak catches in May and June.
The onset of formation of the Japan Arc was in the Early Miocene.
The south part of the Japanese archipelago remained as a relatively large landmass.
The land area had expanded northward in the Late Miocene.
The straits were formed in recent geologic periods.
The oldest of them are the Tsugaru and Tsushima straits.
All the straits are rather shallow with a minimal depth of the order of 100 meters or less.
The bottom of this part is relatively flat  but has a few plateaus.
Yamato Ridge is of continental origin and is composed of granite  rhyolite  andesite and basalt.
It has an uneven bottom covered with boulders of volcanic rock.
Most other areas of the sea are of oceanic origin.
Pelagic sediments of red mud dominate the deeper regions.There are no large islands in the sea.
Most of the smaller ones are near the eastern coast  except for Ulleungdo  South Korea .
The deepest  and thus the last to close  is the western channel of the Korea Strait.
Climate     The sea climate is characterized by warm waters and monsoons.
The evaporation is blown further south causing snowfall in the mountainous western coasts of Japan.
Tsunami waves were also recorded in the sea.
In addition  the monsoon enhances the surface water convection  down to the depths of 30 m  98 ft .
Ice cover is continuous only in the bays and forms floating patches in the open sea.
Hydrology     The sea currents circulate in the counterclockwise direction.
They also feed the Sōya Current and exit through the La Perouse Strait to the Sea of Okhotsk.
Winter temperatures are 0 °C  32 °F  or below in the north and 10–14 °C  50–57 °F  in the south.
In winter  the temperature is almost constant with the depth in the northern part of the sea.
Heating by the sun and tropical monsoons increases the depth gradient in spring–summer.
In the north the surface layer  down to 15 m or 49 ft  may heat up to 18–20 °C  64–68 °F .
A typical variation of salinity across the sea in summer is 31.5‰ to 34.5‰ from north to south.
The depth distribution of salinity is relatively constant.
The surface layer tends to be more fresh in the sea parts which experience ice melting and rains.
The average water density is 1.0270 g cm3 in the north and 1.0255 g cm3 in the south in winter.
It lowers in summer to 1.0253 and 1.0215 g cm3  respectively.
Rainfall  evaporation and riverine inflow make only 1  of the water balance.
Mixed tides occur in Peter the Great Gulf and Korea strait.
The tidal waves have a speed of 10–25 cm s  3.9–9.8 in s  in the open sea.
The amplitude of the tides is relatively low and strongly varies across the sea.
Similar low tides are observed in Hokkaidō  Honshū and south Sakhalin.
The coastal areas contain several kg m2 of biomass.
The demersal  sea bottom  fishes include cod  pollock and Atka mackerel.
Flora and fauna unique to the region near the Sea of Japan are known as  Japan Sea elements .
Economy     Fishery had long been the main economic activity on the Sea of Japan.
These species are however depleted from after World War II.
Squid is mostly caught near the sea center and salmon near the northern and south western shores.
The northeast corner is the Shelikhov Gulf.
The sea is named after Okhotsk  the first Russian settlement in the Far East.
In winter  navigation on the Sea of Okhotsk is impeded by ice floes.
As the ice forms it expels salt into the deeper layers.
Warming inhibits the formation of sea ice and also drives fish populations north.
South Sakhalin and the Kuril islands were administered by Japan until 1945.
Japan claims the southern Kuril islands and refers to them as  northern territories .
From Cape Tuik  51°45 N  to Cape Sushcheva .On the Southeast.
Ivan Krusenstern explored the eastern coast of Sakhalin in 1805.
They primarily caught right and bowhead whales.
A number of ships were wrecked in the sea.
The Kuril islands were Japanese from 1855 and 1875 till the end of World War II in 1945.
Afterward the Soviet Union occupied the territory.
Reportedly its pumps failed  causing it to take on water and sink.
The platform was subcontracted to a company working for the Russian energy giant Gazprom.
In the western world they were traditionally known by traders as chop marks or simply chops.
The process started in China and soon spread across East Asia.
These seals typically bore the titles of the offices  rather than the names of the owners.
The inscription reads  Seal of the Central People s Government of the People s Republic of China .
The name of the governmental institution is arranged around the star in a semicircle.
Personal    There are many classes of personal seals.
Name 名印     Denotes the person s name.
These can be any shape  ranging from ovals to dragon shaped.
These are more or less rectangular in shape.
The silk strands bind the mixture together to form a very thick substance.
It has a very oily appearance and tends to be a bright red in colour.
Plant  The red paste is made from finely pulverized cinnabar  mixed with castor oil and moxa punk.
Depending on the paper used  plant pastes can dry in 10 to 15 minutes.
The more absorbent the paper is  the faster it dries as the paper absorbs most of the oil.
Also  plant pastes tend to smudge more easily than silk pastes due to the loose binding agent.
For plant based paste  the user simply applies light pressure.
A well made seal made from semi precious stones can cost between 400 and 4000 yuan.
Seals are still used for official purposes in a number of contexts.
In banks  traditionally the method of identification was also by a seal.
Seals remain the customary form of identification on cheques in mainland China and Taiwan.
Today  personal identification is often by a hand signature accompanied by a seal imprint.
This practice is an act of appreciation towards the work.
Seals are usually carved by specialist seal carvers  or by the users themselves.
The seals are kept in a constant environment  especially seals made of sandalwood or black ox horn.
Tall thin seals are best kept on their sides  in case they should wobble and fall down.
In the past  seals have been used by businesses on documents related to transactions.
In addition  seals have been used in lieu of a signature for the city s illiterate population.
Japanese usage      In Japan  seals in general are referred to as inkan  印鑑  or hanko  判子 .
Samurai were permitted exclusive use of red ink.
After modernization began in 1870  hanko came into general use throughout Japanese society.
In size  they are comparatively large  measuring 2 to 4 inches  5.1 to 10.2 cm  across.
For personal use  there are at least four kinds of seals.
A registered seal is needed to conduct business and other important or legally binding events.
A jitsuin is used when purchasing a vehicle  marrying  purchasing land  and so on.
The size  shape  material  decoration  and lettering style of jitsuin are closely regulated by law.
It must contain the individual s full family and given name  without abbreviation.
Ancient forms of ideographs are commonplace.
It is sometimes carved by machine.
New  modern intō range in price from less than US 1 to US 100.
The jitsuin is kept in a very secure place such as a bank vault or hidden carefully in one s home.
The paste is usually stored separately.
A ginkō in  銀行印  is used specifically for banking  ginkō means  bank .
The lettering can be red or white  in any font  and with artistic decoration.
They are usually hidden carefully in the owner s home.
Banks always provide stamp pads or ink paste  in addition to dry cleaning tissues.
A mitome in s form is governed by far fewer customs than jitsuin and ginkō in.
The size is the attribute most strongly governed by social custom.
It is usually the size of an American penny or smaller.
They are always geometric figures.
They can have red lettering on a blank field  shubun  or the opposite  hakubun .
Borderlines around their edges are optional.
Inexpensive prefabricated seals are called sanmonban  三文判 .
Prefabricated rubber stamps are unacceptable for business purposes.
They often display only a single hiragana  kanji ideograph  or katakana character carved in it.
They are as often round or oval as they are square.
They vary in size from 0.5 to 1.5 centimetre wide  0.20 to 0.59 in   women s tend to be small.
Gagō in  雅号印  are used by graphic artists to both decorate and sign their work.
The practice goes back several hundred years.
A gago in can be any size  design  or shape.
Their carving is a form of calligraphic art.
Foreign names may be carved in rōmaji  katakana  hiragana  or kanji.
Inkan for standard Japanese names may be purchased prefabricated.
In modern Japan  most people have several inkan.
A certificate of authenticity is required for any hanko used in a significant business transaction.
Chinese style seals were also utilized by the Ryūkyū Kingdom.
He aims to establish a new digital agency to put the idea into practice.
Korean usage     The seal was first introduced to Korea in approximately 2nd century BC.
The use of seals became popular during the Three Kingdoms of Korea period.
This was used only in communications with China and for the coronation of kings.
Seals were also used by government officials in documents.
These types of seals were called gwanin  관인  官印  and it was supervised by specialist officials.
In modern Korea  the use of seals is still common.
The legal system of registered seals was introduced by the Japanese colonial government in 1914.
The government did pass the  Act on Confirmation  etc.
Thus most Koreans have more than two seals.
These types of seals were called Nakkwan  낙관  落款 .
As seal carving itself was considered a form of art  many artists carved their own seals.
Korean seals are made of wood  jade  or sometimes ivory for more value.
State Seals were generally made of gold or high quality jade.
Rare cases of bronze or steel seals exist.
The seal  now known as the Butuan Ivory Seal  has been declared as a National Cultural Treasure.
The seal is inscribed with the word  Butwan  through a native suyat script.
The ivory seal is now housed at the National Museum of the Philippines.
Introduction to Chinese Seal Carving Seal Culture still remains Electronic Commerce
Since its establishment  ASEAN has held the central role and leadership in the forum.
The first summit was held in Kuala Lumpur  Malaysia on 14 December 2005.
However  the issue was to which countries beyond those in ASEAN the EAS was to be extended.
At the time there were difficulties in the relationship between the  Plus Three  members  i.e.
The next EAS was to be held on 13 December 2006 in Metro Cebu  Philippines.
However  in the face of Tropical Typhoon Utor the summit was postponed until January 2007.
It was rescheduled for 15 January 2007  approximately a month after the original scheduled date.
Internal issues      Internal ASEAN issues were significant for the next Summits.
In the lead up to the summit there were several border clashes between Thailand and Cambodia.
It was rescheduled and held on 25 October 2009.
The summit adopted statements on disaster relief and the Nalanda University.
We welcomed Japan s proposal for an Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia  ERIA .
The reality appears however that movement towards such a relationship is a long way off.
India has launched several Look East connectivity projects with China and ASEAN nations.
On any view  community building is not a short term project.
This may be significant for those advocating a broader role for EAS in the future.
Not all members of the EAS  notably India  are members of APEC.
ASEAN formally invited the United States and Russia to join the group from 2011.
In 2006  Pakistan and Mongolia were proposed as future members by Malaysia.
Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau attended as guest.
He had arrived directly from the APEC 2017 summit held in Da Nang  Vietnam.
The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Theater of the Second World War.
The Second Sino Japanese War was the largest Asian war in the 20th century.
The war has been called  the Asian holocaust.
The period after World War I brought about increasing stress on the Japanese polity.
Leftists sought universal suffrage and greater rights for workers.
In 1931  the Mukden Incident helped spark the Japanese invasion of Manchuria.
This view has been adopted by the PRC government.
With Burma cut off it airlifted material over the Himalayas.
In 1944  Japan launched Operation Ichi Go  the invasion of Henan and Changsha.
However  this failed to bring about the surrender of Chinese forces.
Japan formally surrendered on 2 September 1945.
China regained all territories lost to Japan.
In 1940  Japanese Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe launched the Taisei Yokusankai.
Unifying the nation and repelling imperialism seemed a very remote possibility.
Some warlords even aligned themselves with various foreign powers in their battles with each other.
His son  Zhang Xueliang  took over as the leader of the Fengtian clique in Manchuria.
Manchuria was central to Japan s East Asia policy.
The 1929 Red Army victory shook that policy to the core and reopened the Manchurian problem.
By 1930  the Kwantung Army realized they faced a Red Army that was only growing stronger.
The time to act was drawing near and Japanese plans to conquer the Northeast were accelerated.
Japan invaded Manchuria outright after the Mukden Incident in September 1931.
Militarily too weak to challenge Japan directly  China appealed to the League of Nations for help.
No country took action against Japan beyond tepid censure.
Incessant fighting followed the Mukden Incident.
In 1932  Chinese and Japanese troops fought the January 28 Incident battle.
In 1933  the Japanese attacked the Great Wall region.
Other sections of China were essentially in the hands of local Chinese warlords.
Japan sought various Chinese collaborators and helped them establish governments friendly to Japan.
The northern provinces affected by this policy were Chahar  Suiyuan  Hebei  Shanxi  and Shandong.
This Japanese policy was most effective in the area of what is now Inner Mongolia and Hebei.
In the same year  the Chin–Doihara Agreement was signed expelling the KMT from Chahar.
Thus  by the end of 1935 the Chinese government had essentially abandoned northern China.
There in the empty space of Chahar the Mongol Military Government was formed on 12 May 1936.
Japan provided all the necessary military and economic aid.
The Chinese then set fire to and destroyed much of the city.
The KMT  however  determined that the  breaking point  of Japanese aggression had been reached.
Finally  on 9 November  the NRA began a general retreat.
These campaigns involved approximately 350 000 Japanese soldiers  and considerably more Chinese.
400 000 people including Japanese soldiers drowned and an additional 10 million became refugees.
Rivers were filled with corpses as Tanka boat dwellers drowned from boat capsize.
Damage to plantations also affected the population which generated later hunger.
In 1937  the Japanese Imperial Army quickly marched into the heart of Chinese territory.
Ma Hongbin s father Ma Fulu had fought against Japanese in the Boxer Rebellion.
By 1943  Guangdong had experienced famine.
American general Joseph Stilwell called this strategy  winning by outlasting .
It was during this period that the bulk of Japanese war crimes were committed.
The United States strongly supported China starting in 1937 and warned Japan to get out.
Philippine and Japanese ocean weather was affected by weather originating near northern China.
It caused more than 16 million civilians to evacuate far away deep inward China.
Chiang was named Allied commander in chief in the China theater in 1942.
For many reasons  relations between Stilwell and Chiang soon broke down.
This brought major cities in Hunan  Henan and Guangxi under Japanese occupation.
In 1944  China came off of several victories against Japan in Burma leading to overconfidence.
In Spring 1945 the Chinese launched offensives that retook Hunan and Guangxi.
By the mid 1930s about 80 000 soldiers had received German style training.
This pact enabled the Soviet Union to avoid fighting against Germany and Japan at the same time.
The Soviets also continued to support the Chinese Communist Party.
In total  3 665 Soviet advisors and pilots served in China  and 227 of them died fighting there.
America exported far more raw material to Japan than to China in the years 1937–1940.
From 1937 to 1940  the US exported a total of  986.7 million to Japan.
The total value of military supplies was  703.9 million.
On 22 June 1941  Germany attacked the Soviet Union.
On 24 July 1941  Roosevelt requested Japan withdraw all its forces from Indochina.
This was a decisive moment in the Second Sino Japanese War.
The mission conducted two operations  mostly in the provinces of Yunnan and Jiangxi.
In Guangxi  Chinese military leaders were organizing Vietnamese nationalists against the Japanese.
The VNQDD had been active in Guangxi and some of their members had joined the KMT army.
Under the umbrella of KMT activities  a broad alliance of nationalists emerged.
Roosevelt offered Chiang Kai shek control of all of Indochina.
It was said that Chiang Kai shek replied   Under no circumstances!
The invasion was resisted by General Ma Hushan of the KMT 36th Division.
General Ma Buqing was in virtual control of the Gansu corridor at that time.
Ma became chairman  governor  of Qinghai in 1938 and commanded a group army.
Hui Muslims      Hui cemeteries were destroyed for military reasons.
Qinghai Tibetans served in the Qinghai army against the Japanese.
General Han Youwen directed the defense of the city of Xining during air raids by Japanese planes.
The bombing resulted in Han being buried in rubble  though he was later rescued.
The attack was made by three Soviet army groups.
Japanese Emperor Hirohito officially capitulated to the Allies on 15 August 1945.
Many towns and cities were destroyed  and millions were rendered homeless by floods.
Meanwhile  the war strengthened the Communists both in popularity and as a viable fighting force.
The Chinese Red Army fostered an image of conducting guerrilla warfare in defense of the people.
Communist troops adapted to changing wartime conditions and became a seasoned fighting force.
The war remains a major roadblock for Sino Japanese relations.
The ROC proclaimed Taiwan Retrocession Day on 25 October 1945.
On a de facto basis  sovereignty over Taiwan has been and continues to be exercised by the ROC.
Most Korean comfort women left behind in China married Chinese men.
In addition  the war created 95 million refugees.
Another 54 000 soldiers also died after the war had ended  mostly from illness and starvation.
From 1937 to 1941  185 647 Japanese soldiers were killed in China and 520 000 were wounded.
Disease also incurred critical losses on Japanese forces.
From 1937 to 1941  430 000 Japanese soldiers were recorded as being sick.
Chinese forces also report that by May 1945  22 293 Japanese soldiers were captured as prisoners.
Yet even now  top Chinese generals seemed unable to work with each other.
At Xinyang  Li Zongren s Guangxi troops were battered to exhaustion.
They were also used during the invasion of Changde.
Those orders were transmitted either by Prince Kan in Kotohito or General Hajime Sugiyama.
These attacks caused epidemic plague outbreaks.
A gǎnsǐduì was effectively used against Japanese units at the Battle of Taierzhuang.
Suicide bombing was also used against the Japanese.
A Chinese soldier detonated a grenade vest and killed 20 Japanese at Sihang Warehouse.
Forgotten Armies  The Fall of British Asia  1941–1945.
Cambridge  MA  Belknap Press of Harvard University Press  2005. xxxiii  555p.
Cambridge  MA  Belknap Press of Harvard University Press  2007. xxx  674p.
1992   China s Bitter Victory  The War with Japan  1937–1945  Armonk  NY  M.E.
從大歷史的角度讀蔣介石日記  Reading Chiang Kai shek s Diary from a Macro History Perspective .
Rays of the Rising Sun  Japan s Asian Allies 1931–45 Volume 1  China and Manchukuo.
– Book about the Chinese and Mongolians who fought for the Japanese during the war.
Des Français en Chine  2ème partie    The French in China .
Stanford University Press  2007. xviii  380p.
Edward Drea  and Hans van de Ven  eds.
ISBN 9781781251942.CS1 maint  location  link  Wilson  Dick  1982 .
When Tigers Fight  The story of the Sino Japanese War  1937–1945.
Junior high school     Lower secondary schools cover grades seven  eight  and nine.
Ages are roughly 12 15 with increased focus on academic studies.
Each class is assigned a homeroom teacher who doubles as counselor.
The subject teachers usually move to a new room for each 50 minute period.
Usually students  lunch is provided by the school itself.
Instruction      Instruction tends to rely on the lecture method.
Teachers also use other media  such as television and radio  and there is some laboratory work.
Students are expected to have mastered daily routines and acceptable behavior.
All course contents are specified in the Course of Study for Lower Secondary Schools.
Moral education and special activities continue to receive attention.
Extracurricular activities     Many students participate in after school clubs.
Soccer  football  clubs are gaining popularity.
Other popular sports clubs include tennis  basketball  gymnastics  Judo and volleyball.
Schools have limited autonomy in developing their curriculum or choosing their textbooks.
There are the large number of mandatory courses  and a few number of electives.
Upper secondary teachers are university graduates.
Teaching depends largely on the lecture system  with the main goal of covering the curriculum.
Approach and subject coverage tends to be uniform  at least in the public schools.
By 2005 participants numbered over 6 000.
A main aim of the reform is to equip students with the basic knowledge needed for citizenship.
A further revision to the Fundamental Law of Education was carried out on 22 December 2006.
Another problem concerns Japanese children returning from abroad.
Even making the adjustment does not guarantee acceptance.
Foreign Policy Research Institute s website  http   www.fpri.org Eades  J.S.
Intense Years  How Japanese Adolescents Balance School  Family  and Friends.
Asia s Educational Edge  Current Achievements in Japan  Korea  Taiwan  China  and India.
Letendre  Gerald K. Learning to Be Adolescent  Growing Up in U.S. and Japanese Middle Schools.
Full text at http   www.indiana.edu  japan Digests textbook.html.
This system is one means of achieving the goal of political privacy.
Secret ballots are used in conjunction with various voting systems.
This box is later emptied for counting.
This may be done with a physical or electronic in person system or through a roll call vote.
Small balls or other objects  such as corn  pebbles  beans  bullets  colored marbles  or cards.
This is the origin of the term ballot  originally meaning  small ball .
United Kingdom      The demand for a secret ballot was one of the six points of Chartism.
New Zealand implemented secret voting in 1870.
Consequently  it is also known as the  Massachusetts ballot.
Seven states did not have government printed ballots until the 20th century.
Georgia started using them in 1922.
In some U.S. states  a political party nominating caucus requires an open ballot system.
This includes  most notably  the leadoff Presidential nominating state of Iowa.
This does not assure secrecy of the ballot.
Each ballot paper is individually numbered and each elector also has a number.
Sometimes the ballots themselves are numbered  making the vote trackable.
She is the author of The Pillow Book  枕草子  makura no sōshi .
Name    Sei Shōnagon s actual given name is not known.
Early life    Little is known about her life except what can be found in her writing.
Her grandfather Kiyohara no Fukayabu was also a waka poet.
She married Tachibana no Norimitsu  a government official at 16  and gave birth to a son  Norinaga.
Four main variants of the text are known to modern scholars.
The two considered to be the most complete and accurate are the Sankanbon and Nōinbon texts.
Because of the risk of fire  the Imperial family did not live in the Heian Palace.
In particular  Shōnagon paid special attention to  morning after letters .
In Japanese court society  heterosexual sex between courtiers was illicit but happened very often.
One of her waka is included in the famous anthology Ogura Hyakunin Isshu as No.62.
According to one tradition  she lived out her twilight years in poverty as a Buddhist nun.
The sewage service continued through the American occupation until 1951.
Station numbering was introduced on all Seibu Railway lines during fiscal 2012.
Tsutsumi refused to respond to the Cerberus tender offer at the urging of Seibu management.
They fall into two separate groups.
Tokorozawa Station is the crossing point of Ikebukuro Line and Shinjuku Line.
Seibu Railway is well known for its bright yellow colored trains.
Ikebukuro Line Group     The Ikebukuro Line group includes the Ikebukuro Line and its branches.
The city was founded in 1600 by the daimyō Date Masamune.
In the summer  the Sendai Tanabata Festival  the largest Tanabata festival in Japan  is held.
The previous ruler of the Sendai area had used a castle located on Aobayama.
The grid plan roads in present day central Sendai are based upon his plans.
The city grew  however  through seven annexations that occurred between 1928 and 1988.
Thousands were killed  and countless more were injured and or made homeless.
Sendai s port was heavily damaged and temporarily closed  reopening on 16 April 2011.
Geography    Sendai is located at lat.
As a result  the city s geography is quite diverse.
The basin consists of urban areas  paddy fields and forests.
The mid and upstream areas have forests.
Sendai Castle was built close to the river to use the river as a natural moat.
However  many hot springs can be found in the city  indicating hydrothermal activity.
The Miyagi Oki earthquake occurs offshore Sendai once every 25 to 40 years.
Although  the recent event ruptured a part of the focal region of the expected earthquake.
Extremes range from −11.7 to 37.2 °C  10.9 to 99.0 °F .
Winters are cool and relatively dry  with January temperatures averaging 1.5 °C  34.7 °F .
Snowfall is much lower than cities on the Sea of Japan coast  such as Niigata and Tottori.
The city s total area was 786.30 km².
Most people in the city at this time lived in urban areas close to train and subway stations.
Approximately 10 000 people in Sendai were non Japanese citizens.
Sendai had 525 828 households in 2020.
The average household had approximately 2.07 members.
This is a result of the first and second baby booms in Japan  and university students.
The average age in Sendai is 38.4  which makes the city one of the youngest major cities in Japan.
However  Sendai is a designated city  so it has the same jurisdiction as prefectures in some areas.
The number of assembly members allocated to each ward is based upon population.
The City Assembly elects an Assembly Chairperson and Vice Chairperson.
Sendai has two vice mayors  who are not elected by the populace.
Miyagi contributes 24 seats to the Miyagi Prefectural legislature.
Sendai city by itself has a nominal GDP of approximately US 50 billion as of 2015.
Sendai s economic growth rate has stabilized since the 2011 Japan earthquake.
The growth rate was only 0.4  in 2011 after the quake created economic turmoil in coastal areas.
The year after  in 2012 the rate spiked to 10.4  after reconstruction efforts.
Transport     JR East s Sendai Station is the main transport hub for the city.
An underground passage connects the station to the Sendai Subway.
A rail link to Sendai began service on March 18  2007.
These are symbols of  The City of Trees .
Jozenji Dori has a promenade and a few sculptures.
Aoba Dori is the main business road in Sendai.
Other major roads in the city include Hirose Dori  ginkgo  and Higashi Nibancho Dori.
The Jōzenji Streetjazz Festival is one of the largest amateur music festivals in Japan.
It began as a jazz festival in 1991  but soon began to accept applications from all genres.
Trees in downtown Sendai are decorated with lights during the Sendai Pageant of Starlights.
In 2005  the streets were lit up with one million miniature bulbs.
However  robatayaki was later introduced to Kushiro  which developed and popularized the dish.
As a result  many people believe Kushiro is the origin of Robatayaki.
Sendai is also known for good sashimi  sushi  and sake.
Also  Sendai station offers the most types of ekiben of any station in Japan.
Examples are Sendai Hira  a hand woven silk fabric  Tsutsumiyaki pottery  and Yanagiu Washi paper.
Kokeshi dolls were popularized by hot spring resorts that sold them as gifts.
Sites of interest     Sendai is home to historical sites related to the Date clan.
The Zuihōden is the tomb of Date Masamune and is home to artifacts related to the Date family.
It is on a hill called Kyogamine  which is the traditional resting place for Date family members.
Mutsu Kokubun ji Yakushidō is the provincial temple of Mutsu Province.
The nearby Site of Tagajō was an important early fort and administrative centre.
The Miyagi Museum of Art is Sendai s largest art museum.
The Tatsunokuchi Gorge offers a view of a petrified wood next to the Otamaya bashi bridge.
Nishi Park and Tsutsujigaoka Park are appreciated for their cherry blossom in the spring.
The Hirose River and the Gamo tideland are home to diverse wildlife.
Matsushima  which is one of the Three Views of Japan  is near Sendai  in Matsushima.
The statue was built during Japan s bubble economy by a now defunct company.
It was once the tallest statue in the world.
Sendai also contains a Peace Pagoda  built by Nipponzan Myōhōji Daisanga in 1974.
Mototerakoji  the Cathedral of the diocese  is located a few blocks north of Sendai Station.
The team achieved this goal when the J.
League expanded in 1999 with the creation of a second division.
The name of the team was simultaneously changed to Vegalta Sendai.
Currently the city also host semi professional outfit Sony Sendai FC.
In 2005  the number of professional sports teams based in Sendai suddenly increased to three.
In 2006  Sendai hosted some games of the 2006 FIBA World Championship.
The fictional city of Morioh that appears in JoJo s Bizarre Adventure is based on Sendai.
The two 846 MW net reactors are owned and operated by the Kyūshū Electric Power Company.
Sendai is the first of Japan s nuclear power plants to be restarted.
The plant is on a site of 1.45 km2  358 acres   employs 277 workers  and indirectly employs 790.
Reactors on Site    Sendai has two nuclear reactors  Sendai 1 and Sendai 2.
The reports were sent to the Japanese Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency.
However  Hideo Kishimoto  the mayor of Genkai said that it would be difficult to resume operations.
Furthermore  a 10 meter high protection wall was built.
Further details on the tests may be found in the Special Bulletin.
Restarting    On 10 September 2014 the NRA declared that the plant was safe to be operated.
Owner Kyushu Electric Power Company then had all approvals necessary for restart.
On July 7  2015  fuel loading of Sendai unit  1 began.
1 was restarted on August 11  2015.
No major problems occurred in the process.
It was the first time a reactor was shut down for this reason in Japan.
Timeline    The Ōnin War in 1467 is usually considered the starting point of the Sengoku period.
During his short reign as Kampaku  Toyotomi attempted two invasions of Korea.
In 1598  Toyotomi called for retreat from Korea prior to his death.
Nakanu nara  nakasete miyō  hototogisu  If the cuckoo does not sing  coax it.
Nakanu nara  naku made matō  hototogisu  If the cuckoo does not sing  wait for it.
In Okinawan they are called yukunkubajima.
This text  which was published in Japan in 1785  described  the Ryūkyū Kingdom.
Reference was made to the islands in Edward Belcher s 1848 account of the voyages of HMS Sammarang.
Captain Belcher observed that  the names assigned in this region have been too hastily admitted.
The business failed around 1940 and the islands have remained deserted ever since.
Kunioki Kurihara owned Uotsuri  Kita Kojima  and Minami Kojima.
Japan s Ministry of Defense rents Kuba island for an undisclosed amount.
Kuba is used by the U.S. military as a practice aircraft bombing range.
China condemned Ishigaki s actions.
In 2014  Japan constructed a lighthouse and wharf featuring Japanese flag insignia on the islets.
He also described the air of Uotsuri as swarming with bluebottle flies and mosquitoes.
The striped field mouse  Apodemus agrarius  has also been noted to be present on Uotsuri.
Reception of the film was positive in Chinese media.
Sentō  銭湯  is a type of Japanese communal bathhouse where customers pay for entrance.
Another type of Japanese public bath is onsen  which uses hot water from a natural hot spring.
Most traditional sentō  however  are very similar to the layout shown on the right.
The curtain is usually blue and shows the kanji 湯  yu  lit.
The men s and the women s side are very similar and differ only slightly.
The other entrance variety is the bandai style.
Above the bandai is usually a large clock.
Immediately in front of the bandai is usually a utility door  to be used by the attendants only.
Often  there is a large shelf storing equipment for regular customers.
There are a number of tables and chairs  including some coin operated massage chairs.
Usually  there is also a scale to measure weight  and sometimes height.
Similarly  in old sentō the height scale may go only to 180 cm.
Local business often advertises in the sentō.
The women s side usually has some baby beds  and may have more mirrors.
The decoration and the advertising is often gender specific on the different sides.
There is usually a refreshment cooler here where customers can self serve and pay the attendant.
Milk drinks are traditional favorites and sometimes there is ice cream.
The bathing area is usually tiled.
Near the entrance area is a supply of small stools and buckets.
The separating wall between the men and the women side is also about 1.5 m high.
The ceiling may be 4 m high  with large windows in the top.
On rare occasions  the separating wall also has a small hole.
On rarer occasions  it may also show a group of warriors or a female nude on the male side.
Playing children or a female beauty often decorate the women s side.
This may use oil or electricity  or any other type of fuel such as wood chippings.
The tall chimneys of the boilers are often used to locate the sentō from far away.
Etiquette    This section describes the basic procedure to use a sentō.
Subsequently  a few bathhouses chose not to allow foreign customers at all.
It is common to hear people say   gokuraku  gokuraku  when they get into the bath.
It means something to the level of divine pleasure  it is a good feeling for the body and the soul.
Attendants usually sell these items for 100 200 yen.
Many people bring two towels  a hand towel for drying and a handtowel or washcloth for washing.
A nylon scrubbing cloth or scrub brush with liquid soap is normally used for washing.
Similarly  shoes are removed before entering the bathing area in a sentō.
They are kept in a shoe locker.
The locker is usually available free of charge.
In a gender segregated sentō  bathers go through one of the two doors.
In a regular sentō  people usually rinse off at the faucets.
Tattoos     Some public baths have signs refusing entry for people with tattoos.
However  one may be allowed in if the tattoos are not too obvious.
In order to prevent such problems  the sentō union adds chlorine to its baths.
Pricing     Rules and pricing are regulated per prefecture based on local committees.
Basic entrance fee for adults at a sentō in Tokyo is ¥450.
In other prefectures  the cut off age can be as high as 16 in Hokkaidō or as low as 5 in Hyōgo.
This option is usually called a sauna  since at least sauna is included.
Initially  due to its religious background  baths in Japan were usually found in a temple.
These baths were called yūya  湯屋  lit.
hot water shop   or later when they increased in size ōyuya  大湯屋  lit.
These baths were most often steam baths  蒸し風呂  mushiburo  lit.
These mixed sex bathhouses were only vaguely similar to modern bathhouses.
After entering the bath  there was a changing room called datsuijo  脱衣場 .
In Edo  present day Tokyo   bath houses contained sizable pools and were called yuya  湯屋  lit.
In Osaka  however  bathing establishments were primarily steam baths called mushiburo  蒸し風呂  lit.
steam bath  that had only shallow pools.
In spite of this  laws regarding mixed sex bathing were soon relaxed again.
These attendants helped cleanse customers by scrubbing their backs.
Such establishments are often called sōpu rando  ソープランド  soapland .
Up until 1870  there were also male washing assistants called sansuke  三助  lit.
three helps  who would wash and massage customers of both genders.
Unlike the yuna  these male attendants were not known to engage in prostitution.
On September 1  1923 the great Kantō earthquake devastated Tokyo.
The earthquake and the subsequent fire destroyed most baths in the Tokyo area.
These faucets were called karan  カラン  after the Dutch word kraan for faucet .
Golden era      During World War II  for Japan 1941–1945   many Japanese cities were damaged.
Subsequently  most bathhouses were destroyed along with the cities.
In 1965 many baths also added showerheads to the faucets in the baths.
The number of public baths in Japan peaked around 1970.
These bathhouses are also often located in scenic areas and may include an open air bath.
Note  The Ōedo Onsen Monogatari is not a sentō.
Some of these modern facilities may require the use of swimsuits and are similar to a water park.
At the equinox  the Sun as viewed from the equator rises due east and sets due west.
In this context  the Chinese character 分 means   equal  division   within a season .
In Japan Autumnal Equinox Day  秋分の日  Shūbun no hi  is a public holiday.
Dożynki is a Slavic harvest festival.
It serves as a waterway connecting the Pacific Ocean to the Sea of Japan.
The Setouchi region encompasses the sea and surrounding coastal areas.
Geographical features     The Seto Inland Sea is 450 km  280 mi  long from east to west.
In most places  the water is relatively shallow.
Each part of the Seto Inland Sea has a separate name in Japanese.
Almost 3 000 islands are located in the Seto Inland Sea.
The largest island is Awaji shima  and the second largest is Shōdo shima.
Many of the smaller islands are uninhabited.
Fauna    Over 500 marine species are known to live in the Seto Inland Sea.
History     During the last ice age the sea level was lower than today.
It was also a main transport line between Japan and other countries  including Korea and China.
There are records that some foreign emissaries from China and Korea sailed on the Seto Inland Sea.
The importance of water traffic gave rise to private navies in the region.
In many documents  these navies were called suigun  水軍   water army    or simply pirates.
During the feudal period  suigun seized power in most coastal areas.
This transfer was unsuccessful  and soon after Kyoto became the capital again.
Later  the Battle of Yashima took place off the coast of present day Takamatsu.
In the Edo period  the Seto Inland Sea was one of the busiest transport lines in Japan.
It was a part of a navigational route around Japan s islands via the Sea of Japan.
Major ports in the Edo period were Osaka  Sakai  Shimotsui  Ushimado  and Tomonoura.
Thanks to transport through the Seto Inland Sea  Osaka became the economic center of Japan.
Each han had an office called Ozakayashiki in Osaka.
One of the headquarters of the Japanese Navy was built in the town of Kure.
Major ports are Kobe  Okayama  Takamatsu  Tokushima  Matsuyama  and Hiroshima.
Two coastal railways  San yō Main Line in Honshū and Yosan Main Line  were built.
Those railway lines stimulated the local economy and once invoked a rail mania.
This improves land transportation between the connected islands.
Kobe Awaji Naruto Highway      The easternmost highway was built between 1976 and 1998.
The high speed Shinkansen does not go to or on Shikoku.
Construction started in 1975  but was fully completed in 1999.
Approximately 100 000 people live on those islands.
The Kurushima Kaikyō Bridge connects the island of Ōshima to the main island of Shikoku.
Some historic sites  including Yashima in Takamatsu and Kurashiki  also attract many visitors.
In the central area of Seto Inland Sea is Mount Ishizuchi on Shikoku.
It is the highest mountain in western Japan and the highest mountain in Shikoku.
In the western end of the Sea is Mimosusogawa Park  ja みもすそ川公園  in Shimonoseki.
Since some sites were used as places of exile  their feeling and landscape were evoked in waka.
The Seventh East Asia Summit was held in Phnom Penh  Cambodia on 19–20 November 2012.
The other members  leaders attended.
Japan is a country of origin  destination  and transit for sexually trafficked persons.
Foreign victims are sex trafficked into the country.
Sex trafficked victims are deceived  threatened  and forced into prostitution.
Their passports and bank documents are often confiscated.
Debt bondage is often employed.
They suffer from physical and psychological trauma.
Some rescued victims face ostracization  depression  and or commit suicide.
Traffickers have used the internet websites  email  and apps to lure victims.
The Japanese government has been criticized for its lacking anti sex trafficking efforts and laws.
Some Japanese officials have been accused of being apathetic to the issue.
Children    Girls  including runaways  are lured  coerced  or forced into prostitution in Japan.
Akihabara has been referred to as a hub for child sex trafficking.
Media    The manga  ‘Blue Heart ’ includes real stories of victims of sex trafficking in Japan.
Classifying shunga as a kind of medieval pornography can be misleading in this respect.
Lotion play is a popular element in Japanese pornography.
The adult manga anime medium carries its own distinct subgenres as well.
Futanari or sexual attraction to androgynous people is an extensive subgenre of seijin manga.
Bakunyū is the subgenre that features females with very large breasts.
In Japan lolicon refers to an attraction to underage girls.
Prostitution     Prostitution has existed in some form throughout Japan s history.
In Japan  the  sex industry  is not synonymous with prostitution.
This limitation also impacted the ways that a man could enjoy the company of his wife.
Fetish scene     Japan has a thriving fetish scene  especially BDSM fetishes.
Indeed  Japanese game show style videos have been created which center around the use of fetishes.
This act has become an icon of Japanese food play.
Homosexuality     In Japan  sodomy was restricted by legal prohibition in 1873.
As of 2007 only about 100 people die each year in Japan due to AIDS.
As of 2004  condoms accounted for 80 percent of birth control used in Japan.
This might explain Japan s comparably lower incidence of AIDS.
It was also found that 28  of men and 26  of women aged 35–39 had no sexual experience.
Some are too stressed out from work  others have  more fun things to do .
A near 18  and 12  increase respectively  since the survey was last conducted in 2008.
It is played with a plectrum called a bachi.
The construction of the shamisen varies in shape  depending on the genre in which it is used.
Construction     The shamisen is a plucked stringed instrument.
The neck of the shamisen is fretless and slimmer than that of a guitar or banjo.
The skin used depends on the genre of music and the skill of the player.
The three strings of the shamisen are made of either silk  traditionally  or nylon.
The head of the instrument known as a tenjin may also be protected by a cover.
The material of the strings will depend on the skill of the player.
Traditionally  silk strings are used.
However  silk breaks easily over a short time  so this is reserved for professional performances.
The bachi used will also be different according to genre  if it is used at all.
Shamisen are classified according to size and genre.
There are three basic sizes  hosozao  chuzao and futozao.
The hosozao is also often used in kouta  geisha music   where it is plucked with the fingernails.
Chuzao The chuzao  中棹  literally  middle neck   is a size up from the hosozao.
As its name implies  the neck is slightly thicker.
The result is an extended fingerboard that gives the chuzao a higher register than the hosozao.
The chuzao is favored for jiuta style playing  with a broader  more mellow timbre.
It is also an  all round  instrument that can actually be used across many genres.
The bachi used for nagauta shamisen are made out of three possible materials  i.e.
There are sometimes also jiuta bachi that are made with a buffalo horn handle.
The material however makes no difference in the sound.
The bachi used for tsugaru jamisen is the smallest.
It is almost always tipped with tortoiseshell.
The higher the koma  the louder the sound will be  and the harder it is to control a rapid  sukui .
The higher koma are not suitable for beginners.
Ox Bone or shari is the most popular koma for practice and with students who are performing.
Jiuta Koma Heights used  2.6 and 2.8 are the standard.
Other heights may be available if specially ordered.
Koma for jiuta are made out of a few select materials   i.e.
yellow or black water buffalo horn  suigyu  are the standard for jiuta.
Yellow suigyu is the most widely used for jiuta style shamisen  both in practice and performance.
Plastic is available because of the higher price tag of suigyu.
Plastic makes a deader sound  which is not the most favorable for jiuta.
Shari is used from time to time in practice  but never for jiuta performances.
Tsugaru koma are very thin in width  and are not very high.
There is little room for variation.
As a more open instrument  variations of it exist for show.
Variations in playing     In most genres  the shamisen strings are plucked with a bachi.
Sometimes  the shamisen is bowed with a violin bow  similar to the kokyū  a similar instrument.
Tuning    The shamisen is played and tuned according to genre.
The nomenclature of the nodes in an octave also varies according to genre.
E  A  D  G  B  E  or a violin  i.e.
As a consequence  tablature for each genre is written differently.
The nodes are also labeled differently for Tsugaru style shamisen.
What tuning a work calls for is usually indicated on the tablature.
Both men and women traditionally played the shamisen.
The virtuosic Tsugaru jamisen style is sometimes compared to bluegrass banjo.
Kouta  小唄  is the style of song learned by geisha and maiko.
Jiuta  地唄   or literally  regional song  is a more classical style of shamisen music.
Japanese American jazz pianist Glenn Horiuchi played shamisen in his performances and recordings.
One of their members  Beni Ninagawa  plays a tsugaru shamisen on albums and during concerts.
One of their song Illusion Of Love is based on the traditional jiuta song  Rokudan No Shirabe.
The main guitarist Guillaume Fiat is also a shamisen Jiuta player.
A magical shamisen is featured in the 2016 movie Kubo and the Two Strings.
Shiga Prefecture  滋賀県  Shiga ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu.
Omi was a neighbor of Nara and Kyoto  at the junction of western and eastern Japan.
During the period 667 to 672  Emperor Tenji founded a palace in Otsu.
In 742  Emperor Shōmu founded a palace in Shigaraki.
In those times  Ninja were active in Kōka  See also Kōga ryū .
After the battle  Ieyasu made Ii Naomasa a new lord of Sawayama.
Naomasa established the Hikone Domain  later famous for Ii Naosuke.
Besides the Hikone Domain  many domains ruled Omi such as Zeze.
With the abolition of the han system  eight prefectures were formed in Omi.
They were unified into Shiga Prefecture in September 1872.
Lake Biwa  Japan s largest  is located at the center of this prefecture.
It occupies one sixth of its area.
The Seta River flows from Lake Biwa to Osaka Bay through Kyoto.
This is the only natural river that flows out from the lake.
Most other natural rivers flow into the lake.
There were many lagoons around Lake Biwa  but most of them were reclaimed in 1940s.
Plains stretch to the eastern shore of Lake Biwa.
Mount Ibuki is the highest mountain in Shiga.
Economy     Cultivated areas occupy nearly one sixth of the prefecture.
Rice is the principal crop  over 90 percent of the farmlands are rice fields.
Most farms are small  producing only a slight income.
Most farmers depend on income from other sources.
Eastern Shiga is famous for cattle breeding and southeastern Shiga is famous for green tea.
On Lake Biwa  some people are engaged in fishery and freshwater pearl farming.
The lake s western and northern shores are more rural and resort oriented with white sand beaches.
In recent years  many Brazilians settled in Shiga to work in nearby factories.
25 040 foreigners live in Shiga and 30  of foreigners were Brazilians as of December 2016.
Toyosato and Higashiomi are known to a mecca of Goshu ondo.
In Kōka  a ninja house is preserved as a visitor center.
Cuisine     Since ancient times  Shigans have eaten fish from Lake Biwa.
The most famous lake food is fermented sushi of crucian carp  鮒寿司  funa zushi .
It retains the ancient style of sushi and has a pungent odor.
Shiga is also famous for high quality wagyū  Ōmi beef.
The Hikone Domain presented beef as medicinal food to shōguns.
Mass media     Biwako Broadcasting broadcasts local TV programs.
NHK has a broadcasting station in Otsu.
Shiga is the only prefecture which has no regional newspapers.
Kyoto Shimbun is a de facto regional newspaper of Shiga.
It is easy to go to Ōtsu from Kyoto and Osaka by high speed trains.
Shiga s most prominent feature is Lake Biwa.
The western shore has white sand beaches  popular among Kyotoites during the summer.
Most of the original eight views are now almost gone or changed from centuries ago.
In Ōtsu  the Ōtsu Prince Hotel s Top of Otsu restaurant provides views of the lake and city.
The Michigan paddlewheel boat offers lake cruises.
The castle tower is well preserved and has many cherry trees.
The neighboring city of Nagahama has tourism in addition to its hikiyama festival.
Higashiomi  formerly Yōkaichi  city holds a Giant Kite Festival every May along the riverbank.
Ordinary people are invited to pull the rope that sends the kites aloft.
Two bridges span southern part of Lake Biwa.
He is also active as the first Cultural Ambassador for Shiga.
Sister states    Shiga has cooperative agreements with three states.
Shikoku  四国  literally  four provinces   is one of the five main islands of Japan.
Shikoku is the second smallest main island after Okinawa.
It is 225 km or 139.8 mi long and between 50 and 150 km or 31.1 and 93.2 mi wide.
It has a population of 3.8 million  as of 2015  3.1  .
It is south of Honshu and northeast of Kyushu.
The Hydrangea hirta species can be found in these mountain ranges.
Mount Ishizuchi  石鎚山  in Ehime at 1 982 m  6 503 ft  is the highest mountain on the island.
The larger southern area of Shikoku is mountainous and sparsely populated.
The only significant lowland is a small alluvial plain at Kōchi  the prefectural capital.
Two crops of rice can be cultivated annually in the southern area.
The pulp and paper industry took advantage of the abundant forests and hydroelectric power.
The major river in Shikoku is the Yoshino River.
The island s northernmost point is in Takamatsu  Kagawa.
Population    Shikoku has a total population of 3 845 534 in 2015.
The largest city is Matsuyama  population  509 835  and is the capital of Ehime Prefecture.
There are many Buddhist temples.
Ashizuri Uwakai National Park is located in the south western part of Shikoku.
Traditions      Shikoku is also famous for its 88 temple pilgrimage of temples.
The pilgrimage was established by the ancient Buddhist priest Kūkai  a native of Shikoku.
According to legend  the monk would still appear to pilgrims today.
Most modern day pilgrims travel by bus  rarely choosing the old fashioned method of going by foot.
Kōchi Prefecture is home to the first annual Yosakoi festival.
Food      One of the major foods of Shikoku is udon.
It is usually topped with thinly chopped scallions.
A thin slice of kamaboko  a halfmoon shaped fish cake  is often added.
Shichimi can be added to taste.
Another specialty is Kōchi s signature dish  seared bonito.
The warm climate of Shikoku lends itself to the cultivation of citrus fruits.
Therefore  the Kobe Awaji Naruto Expressway carries a large traffic volume.
Many highway buses are operated between Kansai and Tokushima Prefecture.
Until completion of the bridges  the region was isolated from the rest of Japan.
Within the island  a web of national highways connects the major population centers.
These include Routes 11  32  33  55  and 56.
There are periodic international charter flights as well.
Ferries link Shikoku to destinations including Honshu  Kyushu  and islands around Shikoku.
The Shinto god Ōkuninushi was believed to live in Izumo  an old province in Shimane.
Izumo Shrine  which is in the city of Izumo  honors the god.
At that time  the current Shimane prefecture was divided into three parts  Iwami  Izumo  and Oki.
That lasted until the abolition of the han system took place in 1871.
Middle Ages     During the Muromachi period  Izumo and Oki were controlled by the Kyogoku clan.
However  in 1566 Mōri Motonari conquered Izumo  Iwami  and Oki.
Later that year  Oki became part of Tottori.
In 1876  Hamada Prefecture was merged into the Shimane Prefecture.
Also  Tottori Prefecture was added in the same year.
Geography    Shimane Prefecture is situated on the Sea of Japan side of the Chūgoku region.
Another major landform is the Shimane peninsula.
Also  the peninsula created two sea water lakes  Lake Shinji and Nakaumi.
The island of Daikon is located in Nakaumi.
Off the main island of Honshū  the island of Oki is in Shimane prefecture as well.
The island itself is in the Daisen Oki National Park.
Towns and villages     These are the towns and villages of each district.
The number of towns and villages greatly decreased during the mergers.
However  they hold about one third of the prefecture s population.
Mergers          Climate    The prefecture has a sub tropical climate.
Winter is cloudy with a little snow  and summer is humid.
The average annual temperature is 14.6 °C  58.3 °F .
It rains almost every day in the rainy season  from June to mid July.
The highest average monthly temperature occurs in August with 26.3 °C  79.3 °F .
Transportation          Airports      Three airports serve Shimane.
The Iwami Airport has two flights each day to Haneda and Osaka and 2 arrivals.
Oki Airport has scheduled flights to Osaka and Izumo Airports.
Izumoshi and Matsue stations are the major stops in the prefecture.
Hamada Expressway forks from the Chūgoku Expressway at Kita Hiroshima and stretches to Hamada.
The manufacturing industry has the second number of employees with 49 000 workers.
Otherwise  over two thirds of the population is on the coastline.
The reason is that the Chūgoku Mountains make the land inland harder to inhabit.
The capital  Matsue  has the smallest population out of all the 47 prefectural capitals.
Shimane has also the largest percentage of the elderly.
Sanbe Tamatsukuri Onsen      Prefectural symbols    The prefectural flower is the mountain peony.
On the island of Daikonjima  they were grown from at least the 18th century.
Shin etsu  信越地方  Shin etsu Chihō  is a geographical region of Japan.
The area encompasses the old provinces of Shinano and Echigo.
It is located in the modern day prefectures of Nagano and Niigata.
The Shinkansen  Japanese  新幹線  pronounced  ɕiŋkaꜜɰ̃seɴ   lit.
It is operated by five Japan Railways Group companies.
The maximum operating speed is 320 km h  200 mph   on a 387.5 km section of the Tōhoku Shinkansen .
In English  the trains are also known as the bullet train.
History     Japan was the first country to build dedicated railway lines for high speed travel.
All three had worked on aircraft design during World War II.
These plans were abandoned in 1943 as Japan s position in World War II worsened.
Thus the first Shinkansen  the 0 series  was built on the success of the Romancecar.
Sixteen car trains were introduced for Expo  70 in Osaka.
Two new lines  the Tōhoku Shinkansen and Jōetsu Shinkansen  were built following this plan.
By the early 1980s  the company was practically insolvent  leading to its privatization in 1987.
The lines have been built without road crossings at grade.
Tracks are strictly off limits with penalties against trespassing strictly regulated by law.
The slab track consists of rails  fasteners and track slabs with a cement asphalt mortar.
It uses a comprehensive system of Automatic Train Protection.
The AC frequency of the power supply for the Tokaido Shinkansen is 60 Hz.
The coaches are air sealed to ensure stable air pressure when entering tunnels at high speed.
In Japan  significant engineering desirability exists for the electric multiple unit configuration.
Therefore  there is no through service between those lines.
Construction is proposed to commence in 2030  and take 15 years.
Relay  services are to be provided on this route.
Chuo Shinkansen  Tokyo–Nagoya–Osaka  is a planned maglev line.
Construction of the project commenced in 2014.
Parts of its planned right of way were used by the Narita Sky Access Line which opened in 2010.
The current minister has not indicated whether this proposal remains supported.
The system shuts down between midnight and 06 00 every day for maintenance.
With each car measuring 25 m  82 ft  in length  the longest trains are 400 m  1 4 mile  end to end.
Stations are similarly long to accommodate these trains.
Maximum operating speed was 220 km h  135 mph .
More than 3 200 cars were built.
Maximum operating speed was 230 km h  145 mph .
500 series  Introduced on Nozomi services in 1997  with an operating speed of 300 km h  185 mph .
700 series  Introduced in 1999  with maximum operating speed of 285 km h  175 mph .
N700 series  In service since 2007  with a maximum operating speed of 300 km h  185 mph .
All N700 series sets are now converted to N700A.
First trainset was rolled out in 2019 with passenger services commencing on 1 July 2020.
Maximum speed was 240 km h  150 mph .
The final configuration was as 10 car sets.
12 car and 16 car sets also operated at earlier times.
Maximum speed was 240 km h  150 mph .
E2 series  8 10 car sets in service since 1997 with a maximum speed of 275 km h  170 mph .
E4 series  Bilevel 8 car trains in service since 1997 with a maximum speed of 240 km h  150 mph .
E5 series  10 car sets in service since March 2011 with a maximum speed of 320 km h  200 mph .
This includes delays due to uncontrollable causes  such as natural disasters.
The record in 1997 was 18 seconds.
There have  however  been suicides by passengers jumping both from and in front of moving trains.
The first one occurred during the Chūetsu earthquake on 23 October 2004.
325 train on the Jōetsu Shinkansen derailed near Nagaoka Station in Nagaoka  Niigata.
A new anti derailment device was installed after detailed analysis of the Jōetsu derailment.
The initial megalopolitan Shinkansen lines were profitable and paid for themselves.
Such expansion had a significant cost.
Its noise is now limited to less than 70 dB in residential areas.
It enables automatic braking of Shinkansen trains in the event of large earthquakes.
Snow related treefalls have also caused service interruptions.
Only systems with 200 km h or higher regular service speed are considered.
The ALFA X is currently undergoing testing.
The five routes that were under investigation are detailed in the Hokuriku Shinkansen page.
However  significant technical issues with the axles of the GCT resulted in its cancellation.
However  due to the issues with the development of the GCT  the proposal has not advanced.
The entire project is scheduled for completion by fiscal 2022.
As a result of this extensive testing  maglev technology is almost ready for public usage.
A subsequent extension to Osaka is planned to be completed by 2037.
The planned travel time from Shinagawa to Shin Osaka is 1 hour 7 minutes.
The route for the Nagoya to Osaka section is also contested.
It is planned to go via Nara  about 40 km south of Kyoto.
Two mini shinkansen routes have been constructed  the Yamagata Shinkansen and Akita Shinkansen.
At present they are the E3 and E6 series trains.
It was anticipated the train would travel approximately 600 000 km over the three year trial.
Shinkansen fares are generally competitive with domestic air fares.
Shinkansen runs between these cities in about two hours or less.
Osaka – Fukuoka  554 km   One of the most competitive sections.
Again the location of the airports involved helps with the popularity of air travel.
Tokyo – Aomori  675 km   The fastest Shinkansen service between these cities is 3 hours.
Tokyo – Hokuriku  345 km   The fastest Shinkansen service between these cities is 2​1⁄2 hours.
Class 801 EMUs were built by Hitachi for London North Eastern Railway.
The trains are proposed to operate at over 320 km h  200 mph .
Other potential joint ventures are being explored under the patronage of NHSRC.
The line is expected to be operational by 2023.
Total project costs are estimated in excess of 1 trillion yen   8.1 billion .
Several hurdles remain  however  including securing the funding.
If the project is realized  it would mark the fifth time Shinkansen technology has been exported.
President Lula asked a consortium of Japanese companies to participate in the bidding process.
Vietnam rejected a funding proposal in 2010  so funding for the  56 billion project is uncertain.
The 1 560 kilometre  970 mi  line would replace the current colonial era rail line.
Vietnam Railways had sent engineers to Central Japan Railway Company for technical training.
Shinto  also known as kami no michi  is a religion which originated in Japan.
There is no central authority in control of Shinto and much diversity exists among practitioners.
The kami are worshiped at kamidana household shrines  family shrines  and jinja public shrines.
This is done to cultivate harmony between humans and kami and to solicit the latter s blessing.
Other common rituals include the kagura dances  rites of passage  and seasonal festivals.
Public shrines also supply religious paraphernalia such as amulets to the religion s adherents.
Buddhism entered Japan at the end of the Kofun period  300 to 538 CE  and spread rapidly.
In ensuing centuries  shinbutsu shūgō was adopted by Japan s Imperial household.
Following Japan s defeat in World War II  Shinto was formally separated from the state.
Numerically  it is Japan s largest religion  the second being Buddhism.
Aspects of Shinto have also been incorporated into various Japanese new religious movements.
Definition      There is no universally agreed definition of Shinto.
Categorization     Many scholars describe Shinto as a religion.
Japanese religion is therefore highly pluralistic.
Scholars of religion have debated how to classify Shinto.
Inoue considered it part of  the family of East Asian religions .
Many scholars regard this classification as inaccurate.
Different types of Shinto have been identified.
It appears in this form in texts such as Nakatomi no harai kunge and Shintōshū tales.
The term Shinto became common in the 15th century.
This use of the term Shinto became increasingly popular from the 18th century.
Dead humans are sometimes venerated as kami  being regarded as protector or ancestral figures.
In Japanese culture  ancestors can be viewed as a form of kami.
In Western Japan  the term jigami is used to describe the enshrined kami of a village founder.
Hachiman for instance has around 25 000 shrines dedicated to him.
The new  subsidiary shrine is known as a bunsha.
In some periods  fees were charged for the right to enshrine a particular kami in a new place.
Shinto cosmology also includes bakemono  spirits who cause malevolent acts.
Bakemono include oni  tengu  kappa  mononoke  and yamanba.
Three kami then appeared  Amenominakanushi  Takamimusuhi no Mikoto  and Kamimusuhi no Mikoto.
Other kami followed  including a brother and sister  Izanagi and Izanami.
The kami instructed Izanagi and Izanami to create land on earth.
Izanagi and Izanami then descended to Earth  where the latter gave birth to further kami.
One of these was a fire kami  whose birth killed Izanami.
Susanoo was then banished to earth  where he married and had children.
There is no eschatology in Shinto.
The mythological texts nevertheless do not draw firm demarcations between these realms.
In Japanese thought  humans are seen as fundamentally pure.
An alternative is immersion beneath a waterfall.
Fire  also  is perceived as a source of purification.
Makoto is regarded as a cardinal virtue in Japanese religion more broadly.
Shojiki is regarded as a virtue  encompassing honesty  uprightness  veracity  and frankness.
They added that in the modern world  Shinto tends toward conservatism and nationalism.
Shinto priests may face various ethical conundrums.
Another issue of considerable debate has been the activities of the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo.
Practice    Shinto tends to focus on ritual behavior rather than doctrine.
They are found all over the country  from isolated rural areas to dense metropolitan ones.
The inner sanctuary in which the kami is believed to live is known as a honden.
Typically  worshippers carry out their acts outside of the honden.
At some places  halls of worship have been erected  termed haiden.
On a lower level can be found the hall of offerings  known as a heiden.
Together  the building housing the honden  haiden  and heiden is called a hongū.
The exact details of these torii varies and there are at least twenty different styles.
More broadly  torii are internationally recognised symbols of Japan.
Large lanterns  known as tōrō  are often found within these precints.
Various kiosks often sell amulets to visitors.
Shrines may have legends about their foundation  which are known as en gi.
These sometimes also record miracles associated with the shrine.
From the Heian period on  the en gi were often retold on picture scrolls known as emakimono.
Many kannushi take on the role in a line of hereditary succession traced down specific families.
Priests can rise through the ranks over the course of their careers.
A white silk version of the ikan  used for formal occasions  is known as the saifuku.
Another priestly robe is the kariginu  which is modeled on heian style hunting garments.
This costume is generally more ornate than the sombre garments worn by Japanese Buddhist monks.
The chief priest at a shrine is known as a gūji.
Larger shrines may also have an assistant head priest  the gon gūji.
In the early 21st century  male priests have still dominated Shinto institutions.
Male priests are free to marry and have children.
Before certain major festivals  priests may undergo a period of abstinence from sexual relations.
These miko are typically unmarried  although not necessarily virgins.
In many cases they are the daughters of a priest or a practitioner.
They are subordinate to the priests in the shrine hierarchy.
Their most important role is in the kagura dance  known as otome mai.
They generally do not live at the shrines.
They also assist Kannushi in ceremonial rites.
Individual worship conducted at a shrine is known as hairei.
A visit to a shrine  which is known as jinja mairi in Japanese  typically takes only a few minutes.
Some individuals visit the shrines every day  often on their route to work each morning.
These rituals usually take place not inside the honden itself but in an oratory in front of it.
Then  they bow  clap  and stand while silently offering a prayer.
The clapping is known as kashiwade or hakushu  the prayers or supplications as kigan.
More broadly  ritual prayers to the kami are called norito  while the coins offered are saisen.
When at the shrine  individuals offering prayers are not necessarily praying to a specific kami.
Many individuals approach the kami asking for pragmatic requests.
Other prayers reflect more contemporary concerns.
An individual leading these pilgrims  is sometimes termed a sendatsu.
Harae and hōbei      Shinto rituals begin with a process of purification  or harae.
Using fresh water or salt water  this is known as misogi.
When not in use  the haraigushi is usually kept in a stand.
Offerings are then presented to the kami by being placed on a table.
This act is known as hōbei  the offerings themselves as saimotsu or sonae mono.
Historically  the offerings given the kami included food  cloth  swords  and horses.
The choice of offerings will often be tailored to the specific kami and occasion.
After the offerings have been given  people often sip rice wine known as o miki.
Drinking the o miki wine is seen as a form of communion with the kami.
One style of music performed at shrines is gagaku.
Other musical styles performed at shrines can have a more limited focus.
These usually consist of shelves placed at an elevated position in the living room.
The popularity of kamidana increased greatly during the Meiji era.
Kamidana can also be found in workplaces  restaurants  shops  and ocean going ships.
Some public shrines sell entire kamidana.
A small shrine for the ancestors of a household are known as soreisha.
Small village shrines containing the tutelary kami of an extended family are known as iwai den.
Other open spaces used for the worship of kami are iwasaka  an area surrounded by sacred rocks.
Among the ancient forms of divination found in Japan are rokuboku and kiboku.
The use of amulets are widely sanctioned and popular in Japan.
The ofuda is then wrapped inside white paper and tied up with a colored thread.
Ofuda are provided both at Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples.
A daruma is a round  paper doll of the Indian monk  Bodhidharma.
While this is a Buddhist practice  darumas can be found at shrines  as well.
These bells are usually in the shapes of the zodiacal animals.
Inuhariko are paper dogs that are used to induce and to bless good births.
There is a mythological tale of how kagura dance came into existence.
There are two broad types of kagura.
One is Imperial kagura  also known as mikagura.
The other main type is sato kagura  descended from mikagura and performed at shrines across Japan.
These actors are accompanied by a hayashi band using flutes and drums.
The songs are used as magical devices to summon the kami and as prayers for blessings.
Other days  known as ke no hi  were generally avoided for festivities.
Many festivals are specific to particular shrines or regions.
They sometimes involve ta asobi ceremonies  in which rice is ritually planted.
The Niiname sai  or festival of new rice  is held across many Shinto shrines on 23 November.
There is little difference between winter festivals and specific new year festivals.
The season of the new year is called shogatsu.
There  they buy amulets and talismans to bring them good fortune over the coming year.
A common ritual  the hatsumiyamairi  entails a child s first visit to a Shinto shrine.
Wedding ceremonies are often carried out at Shinto shrines.
Bocking noted that most Japanese people are  still  born Shinto  yet  die Buddhist .
Although not common  there have been examples of funerals conducted through Shinto rites.
Five years later  this was extended to cover the entire Japanese population.
The invocation of the dead  and especially the war dead  is known as shokon.
Through contacting these spirits  she is able to convey their messages to the living.
Itako usually carry out their rituals independent of the shrine system.
Korean migration during the Kofun period brought Confucianism and Buddhism to Japan.
Buddhism had a particular impact on the kami cults.
The Jingikan was located in the palace precincts and maintained a register of shrines and priests.
An annual calendar of state rites were introduced to help unify Japan through kami worship.
Several years later  the Nihon shoki was written.
Quickly  the Nihon shoki eclipsed the Kojiki in terms of its influence.
Other texts written at this time also drew on oral traditions regarding the kami.
While the emperor and court performed Buddhist rites  they also performed others to honor the kami.
Nara period     This period hosted many changes to the country  government  and religion.
New shrines are built and assimilated each time the city is moved.
It is in this period that various scholars have argued that Shinto was essentially  invented .
In 1871  a new hierarchy of shrines was introduced  with imperial and national shrines at the top.
In 1872  the Jingikan was closed and replaced with the Kyobusho  or Ministry of Edification.
This campaign was discontinued in 1884.
The number and name of the sects given this formal designation varied.
Post war      During the U.S. occupation  a new constitution was drawn up.
Post war  various legal debates have occurred over the involvement of public officials in Shinto.
Shinto perspectives also influenced Japanese popular culture.
There are no formal rituals to become a practitioner of  folk Shinto .
Shinto has about 81 000 shrines and about 85 000 priests in the country.
Many of these were then disbanded.
Japanese migrants established several shrines in Brazil.
From the 1980s onward  there was a renewed academic interest in Shinto both in Japan and abroad.
In the west  the prefecture extends deep into the Japan Alps.
League  are known as the Shizuoka Derby.
Preceding smoothbore firearms  such as the musket  were widely used by armies in the 18th century.
The common characteristics that make a shotgun unique center on the requirements of firing shot.
The term cartridges is standard usage in the United Kingdom.
It is favored by law enforcement for its low penetration and high stopping power.
On the other hand  the hit potential of a defensive shotgun is often overstated.
This means the shotgun must still be aimed at the target with some care.
These involve shooting clay discs  also known as clay pigeons  thrown in by hand and by machine.
Both skeet and trap competitions are featured at the Olympic Games.
This is well within the range of the majority of kill shots by experienced hunters using shotguns.
Typically  a sabot slug is used in these barrels for maximum accuracy and performance.
They have greater ranges than older Foster and Brenneke type slugs.
People often use semiautomatic or pump action shotguns for hunting waterfowl to small game.
Some police forces are replacing shotguns in this role with carbine rifles such as AR 15s.
Shotguns are also often used as breaching devices to defeat locks.
Military      Shotguns are common weapons in military use  particularly for special purposes.
Shotguns are also used by military police units.
Shotguns were also used in the Iraq War  being popular with soldiers in urban combat environments.
The average shooter can engage multiple targets faster than with a handgun.
They are generally perceived as more intimidating.
The use of a rifled barrel blurs the distinction between rifle and shotgun.
Hunting laws may differentiate between smooth barreled and rifled barreled guns.
Combat shotgun is a shotgun designed for offensive purposes  typically for the military.
Riot shotgun has long been a synonym for a shotgun  especially a short barrelled shotgun.
To this day specialized police and defensive shotguns are called riot shotguns.
Snake Charmer shotguns are commonly used by gardeners and farmers for pest control.
They typically have a cylinder bore and sometimes are available in modified choke as well.
Snake Charmers are popular for  home defense  purposes and as  survival  weapons.
Variants have been used by Israeli  Canadian  and American armed forces.
A firearm intended for use in wing shooting of birds was known as a fowling piece.
Of Fowling Pieces  those are reputed the best  which have the longest Barrel  vis.
The first recorded use of the term shotgun was in 1776 in Kentucky.
It was noted as part of the  frontier language of the West  by James Fenimore Cooper.
The double barreled shotgun has changed little since the development of the boxlock action in 1875.
The shotgun has fallen in and out of favor with military forces several times in its long history.
Shotguns and similar weapons are simpler than long range rifles  and were developed earlier.
But armies have  rediscovered  the shotgun for specialty uses many times.
19th century     During the 19th century  shotguns were mainly employed by cavalry units.
Both sides of the American Civil War employed shotguns.
The shotgun was also favored by citizen militias and similar groups.
Daniel Myron LeFever is credited with the invention of the American hammerless shotgun.
This gun was cocked with external cocking levers on the side of the breech.
He went on to patent the first truly automatic hammerless shotgun in 1883.
This gun automatically cocked itself when the breech was closed.
He later developed the mechanism to automatically eject the shells when the breech was opened.
While working for Winchester Firearms  Browning revolutionized shotgun design.
Before this time most shotguns were the  break open  type.
And in 1900  he patented the Browning Auto 5  America s first semi automatic shotgun.
The Browning Auto 5 remained in production until 1998.
Shotguns fitted in this fashion became known as trench guns by the United States Army.
Those without such modifications were known as riot guns.
After World War I  the United States military began referring to all shotguns as riot guns.
Due to the cramped conditions of trench warfare  the American shotguns were extremely effective.
This is the only occasion the legality of the shotgun s use in warfare has been questioned.
It has been deployed for specialized tasks where its strengths were put to particularly good use.
On the other hand  the shotgun has become a standard in law enforcement use.
The shotgun has become a ubiquitous firearm in the hunting community.
Design factors          Action     The action is the operating mechanism of a gun.
Although very rare  drillings with three and even four  a vierling  shotgun barrels were made.
Pump action       In pump action shotguns  a linearly sliding fore end handguard  i.e.
Well known examples include the Winchester Model 1897  Remington 870 and Mossberg 500 590.
Pump action shotguns are common hunting  fowling and sporting shotguns.
Hunting models generally have a barrel between 600 and 700 mm  24  28  .
A riot shotgun has many advantages over a handgun or rifle.
This allows easy  fast use by novices.
Bolt action      Bolt action shotguns  while uncommon  do exist.
The U.S. military M26 is also a bolt action weapon.
Typically  goose guns have long barrels  up to 36 inches   and small bolt fed magazines.
The Colt Model 1839 Shotgun was manufactured between 1839 and 1841.
The MTs255  Russian  МЦ255  is a shotgun fed by a 5 round internal revolving cylinder.
It is produced by the TsKIB SOO  Central Design and Research Bureau of Sporting and Hunting Arms.
They are available in 12  20  28 and 32 gauges  and .410 bore.
Other well known examples include the Remington 1100  Benelli M1  and Saiga 12.
This design has only been repeated once  by Beretta with their UGB25 automatic shotgun.
The spent hulls are ejected downwards.
Different gauges have different typical applications.
Twenty gauge shotguns are often used for gamebirds such as doves  smaller ducks  and quail.
Twenty eight gauge shotguns are not common  but are classic quail hunting guns.
Other  less common shotgun cartridges have their own unique uses.
Ammunition manufacturer CCI produces 9 mm  .355 in.
These are commonly called snake shot cartridges.
It uses a relatively small charge of shot.
It is used for hunting and for skeet.
Because of its very light recoil  approx 10 N   it is often used as a beginner s gun.
However  the small charge and typically tight choke make it more difficult to hit targets.
This reduces the compression forces on the shot when it transitions from the chamber to the barrel.
Shot is termed either birdshot or buckshot depending on the shot size.
Thus   4 bird shot is 17 – 4   13   0.13 inches  3.3 mm  in diameter.
Different terminology is used outside the United States.
As the shot leaves the barrel it begins to disperse in the air.
The resulting cloud of pellets is known as the shot pattern  or shotgun shot spread.
The cylindrical section is shorter  usually 0.6 to 0.75 inches  15 to 19 millimetres .
The choke should be tailored to the range and size of the targets.
Cylinder barrels  have no constriction.
Other specialized choke tubes exist as well.
The Briley Diffusion uses a 1 in 36 cm twist  as does the FABARM Lion Paradox shotgun.
They were available for aftermarket addition in the 1970s from companies like A   W Engineering.
It arguably increased effectiveness in close range engagements against multiple targets.
The second was that the shot would spread too quickly providing a limited effective zone.
Barrel length     Shotguns generally have longer barrels than modern rifles.
The short  low angular momentum barrels swing faster  but are less steady.
Shotguns for use against larger  slower targets generally have even shorter barrels.
Shotshells  are the most commonly used round  filled with lead or lead substitute pellets.
Larger sizes are used for hunting larger upland game birds and waterfowl.
Like birdshot  buckshot is described by pellet size  with larger numbers indicating smaller shot.
Slug rounds are rounds that fire a single solid slug.
They are used for hunting large game  and in certain military and law enforcement applications.
Modern slugs are moderately accurate  especially when fired from special rifled slug barrels.
Sabots are a common type of slug round.
Flechette rounds contain aerodynamic darts  typically from 8 to 20 in number.
Grenade rounds use exploding projectiles to increase long range lethality.
The bean bag round is by far the most common less lethal round used.
The rounds can also fly in a frisbee like fashion and cut the person or animal being fired at.
These are primarily used by riot police.
They normally contain pepper gas or tear gas.
Other variations launch a gas grenade like projectile.
Rock salt shells could be seen as the forerunners of modern less lethal rounds.
British gamekeepers have used rock salt shells to deter poachers.
just before firing  to avoid hitting the now fleeing subject in the eyes.
Rubber slugs or rubber buckshot are similar in principle to the bean bag rounds.
The XREP projectile is fin stabilized  and travels at an initial velocity of 100 m s  300 ft s .
A twenty second burst of electrical energy is delivered to the target.
This product was expected to be released to market in 2008.
They are designed to scare animals  such as birds that congregate on airport runways.
These are also used to scare animals.
Blank shells contain only a small amount of powder and no actual load.
When fired  the blanks provide the sound and flash of a real load  but with no projectile.
Novelty and other      Bolo rounds are made of two or more slugs molded onto steel wire.
Dragon s breath usually refers to a zirconium based pyrotechnic shotgun round.
When fired  a gout of flame erupts from the barrel of the gun  up to 20 feet or 6 metres .
The visual effect it produces is impressive  similar to that of a short ranged flamethrower.
However  it has few tactical uses  mainly distraction disorientation.
Flare rounds are sometimes carried by hunters for safety and rescue purposes.
They are available in low and high altitude versions.
Some brands claim they can reach a height of up to 200 m  660 ft .
Shotguns are found in all three classes.
All non restricted shotguns must have an overall length of at least 660 mm  26 in .
Shotgun barrels may only be reduced in length to a minimum of 457 mm  18.0 in .
The long gun portion of the registry was scrapped in 2011.
See online for an official Canadian list of non restricted and restricted and prohibited firearms.
No certificate is required to own shotgun ammunition  but one is required to buy it.
There is no restriction on the amount of shotgun ammunition that can be bought or owned.
There are also no rules regarding the storage of ammunition.
An FAC costs £50 but is much more restrictive than an SGC.
Personal defense is not an acceptable reason.
For other uses  a capacity of any number of shells is generally permitted.
A shotgun is defined as a weapon  with a buttstock  designed to be fired from the shoulder.
The classification varies depending on how the weapon was originally manufactured.
Like curtains  shōji give visual privacy  but they do not block sounds.
The traditional wood and paper construction is highly flammable.
It is assembled from interlocking laths of wood or bamboo called kumiko.
No fasteners are traditionally used to hold the frame together.
Shōji with kōshi made of split bamboo are called take shōji  竹障子 .
Kōshi are sometimes made of aluminium  shaped to resemble wood.Most shōji lattices are rectangular.
This is the standard pattern used in most shoji.
These are somewhat archaic  as they were designed to protect against rain.
The outside of the koshi may covered with wickerwork  or the outside papered.
The rails are often grouped in clusters  this clustering is called fukiyose  吹寄 .
Washi began to be mass produced in the 1800s  making it much more affordable.
Synthetic fibers were first used in washi paper in the 1960s  mid Shōwa period .
A small proportion of synthetic fibers may be used to increase tear strength.
This made them water resistant  so they were used where rain might reach under the eaves.
In Japan  deep eaves were conventional  and oiled paper windows were rare.
Fiberglass reinforced acrylic is also used.
A peel and stick film made of epoxy and white non woven fiberglass is also used.
Cheaper plate glass was introduced to Japan circa the late 1800s.
Glass can be used in large sheets or in small panes  the kumiko becoming muntins .
Yukimi shoji also contain non transparent translucent sections  for privacy.
When closed  these then look much like standard shoji  see images .
The upper groove is substantially deeper than the lower groove.
The upper groove is cut in the kamoi  a lintel between adjacent posts.
A well made traditional groove system is light enough that the door can be slid with one finger.
When closed  adjacent sliding shoji overlap by the width of the wooden frame edge.
Shoji are also mounted four panels to the opening.
They slide on rails mounted on a solid wall  and when open partly or fully overlap the wall.
They are used for smaller windows in opaque walls  this is common in chashitsu  see image .
This avoids fit problems caused by humidity related changes in the dimensions of wood.
Kake shōji  hanging shoji  are mostly used in traditionally rustic chashitsu  tea rooms .
Some are single doors  some double doors.
The hashira ma might be filled with fixed walls  in cheaper Japanese homes.
Bark and bamboo walls  clapboard  and board and batten walls were also used.
Where affordable  though  the tendency was against permanent walls.
When paper came to be used instead of cloth  fusuma shoji were also called karakami shoji.
Early sliding doors were heavy  some were made of solid wood.
The Shoin style also made extensive use of sliding doors.
Maira do replaced shitomi do as rain protection doors.
The to bukuro might be designed to swing out of the way.
Lightweight shoji could be lifted out and carried away easily.
Japan had developed substantial domestic float glass production by 1965.
A layer of paper shoji behind a layer of glass helps to insulate the house.
This attribute has been valued since at least Heian times.Paper shoji can be painted on.
While paint blocks the light  shoji were sometimes used for signage  see images .
Portability has encouraged the use of shoji on ceremonial occasions and in theater.
A person being thrown through shoji is an action movie cliché.
It was preceded by the Taishō period.
Defeat in the Second World War brought about radical change in Japan.
Allied occupation brought forth sweeping democratic reforms.
In 1952  with the Treaty of San Francisco  Japan became a sovereign nation again.
The postwar Shōwa period was characterized by the Japanese economic miracle.
The Shōwa era was longer than the reign of any previous Japanese emperor.
Finally   he united and harmonized the myriad states.
There were two other candidates at the time – Dōwa  同和  and Genka  元化 .
It outlawed groups that sought to alter the system of government or to abolish private ownership.
The meaning of the law was gradually stretched to academic spheres.
Kokutai was seen as the barrier against communist and socialist movements in Japan.
In 1924  however  friendly U.S. Japanese relations were torpedoed by the Japanese Exclusion Act.
It was a precursor of the Great Depression.
From 1928 to 1932  domestic crisis could no longer be avoided.
Silk and rice prices plummeted and exports decreased 50 .
Its purpose was to extend the Washington Treaty System.
By this time  the civilian government had lost control of the populace.
A New York Times correspondent called Japan a country ruled by  government by assassination.
Since the Russo Japanese War of 1905  Japan had maintained a military presence in Manchuria.
In 18 September 1931  the Mukden Incident occurred.
There was a small explosion on the tracks of a Japanese railway  north of Mukden.
Japan invaded Manchuria in the aftermath.
The Japanese army mobilized the Kwantung Army and attacked Chinese troops.
The last Emperor of China  Puyi  was installed as the puppet ruler of Manchukuo.
The Diet  now dominated by army officials  voted to withdraw from the League of Nations.
The first seeds of the coming conflict had been sown.
The Meiji era changed all of that.
In this way  loyalty to feudal domains was supplanted with loyalty to the state.
Moreover  successful foreign wars gave the populace a sense of martial pride in their nation.
The rise of Japanese nationalism paralleled the growth of nationalism within the West.
Here is one great reason for Japan s superiority.
In 1985  Israel honored him as Righteous Among the Nations for his actions.
They had little time for the pragmatic ideas of the business elite and party politicians.
From 1932 to 1936  the country was governed by admirals.
Mounting nationalist sympathies led to chronic instability in government.
Moderate policies were difficult to enforce.
The crisis culminated on February 26  1936.
Their mission was to assassinate the government and promote a  Shōwa Restoration .
Within the state  the idea of a Greater East Asian Co Prosperity Sphere began to foment.
The idea drew influence in the paternalistic aspects of Confucianism and Koshitsu Shinto.
The reality during this period differed from the propaganda.
Some of the atrocities were motivated by racism.
For instance  Japanese soldiers were taught to think of captured Chinese as not worthy of mercy.
These were easily conquered by the superior Japanese army.
By October  Chiang Kai shek s best armies had been defeated at Shanghai.
By the end of the year  the Chinese capital at Nanjing had also been seized.
Countless Chinese civilians were executed on the suspicion of being resistance fighters.
Japanese war crimes at Nanking and other sites in China and Manchukuo have been well documented.
By 1939  the Japanese war effort had become a stalemate.
On September 27  1940  the Tripartite Pact was signed  creating the Rome Tokyo Berlin Axis.
The Emperor became fatalistic about going to war  as the military assumed more and more control.
If we miss the present opportunity to go to war  we will have to submit to American dictation.
Japan declared war to the US  Dutch and British.
This marked the start of the Pacific War theatre of World War II.
For the next six months  the Japanese had the initiative and went on the offensive.
Hong Kong was overrun on December 8  1941.
The Empire of Japan was one of the largest in history.
The decisive naval aerial Battle of Midway took place in early June 1942.
That changed the momentum of the war.
Japan was put on the defensive as the Americans pursued their policy of island hopping.
Finally  the death agony of the Empire of Japan came in August 1945.
On August 8  the Soviet invasion of Manchuria began.
These attacks with the new atomic weapons were a surprise.
Japan lacked any atomic bomb technology and couldn t counter it.
The government of the Empire of Japan surrendered on August 14.
The official surrender ceremony was held on September 2.
Imperial rule     Japan launched multiple attacks in East Asia.
On 22 September 1940  the Japanese invasion of French Indochina began.
Thailand managed to stay independent by becoming a satellite state of Japan.
On 13 April 1941  the Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact was signed.
Japan suddenly had achieved its goal of ruling the Greater East Asia Co Prosperity Sphere.
It was fascism based on technology and rejected Western norms of democracy.
The main goal was to obtain oil.
The Dutch destroyed their oil wells but the Japanese reopened them.
Japan sponsored an Indonesian nationalist movement under Sukarno.
Sukarno finally came to power in the late 1940s after several years of battling the Dutch.
The United States took responsibility for the rest of Japan s possessions in Oceania.
China  meanwhile  plunged back into its civil war  with the Communists in control by 1949.
A War Crimes Tribunal  similar to that at Nuremberg  was set up in Tokyo.
On 3 May 1946  the prosecution began of Japanese military leaders for war crimes.
Parliamentary party politics was restored.
The first post war elections were held in 1946  and for the first time  women were allowed to vote.
On 3 May 1947  the Constitution of Japan went into effect.
Article 9 turned Japan into a pacifist country without a military.
This consisted of 75 000 men equipped with light infantry weapons.
This was the first step of its post war rearmament.
Shigeru Yoshida was elected as Prime Minister of Japan from 1946 to 1947 and from 1948 to 1954.
It restored the sovereignty of Japan.
The treaty requires the U.S. to protect Japan from external aggression.
It allows United States forces to be stationed in Japan.
Meanwhile  Japanese ground and maritime forces deal with internal threats and natural disasters.
This established the U.S.–Japan alliance.
In mid 1952  The Coastal Safety Force  海上警備隊 Kaijō Keibitai  was founded.
It was the waterborne counterpart of National Police Reserve.
By 1955 the political system stabilized in what was called the 1955 System.
The two chief parties were the conservative LDP and the leftist Social Democratic Party.
Throughout the period 1955 to 2007  the LDP was dominant  with a brief interlude in 1993–94 .
The LDP was pro business  pro American  and had a strong rural base.
It was achieved virtually without foreign capital.
By 1954  the MITI system was in full effect.
165 of 1954  reorganized the National Security Board as the Defense Agency on July 1  1954.
The Coastal Safety Force was reorganized as the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force  JMSDF .
The Japan Air Self Defense Force  JASDF  was established as a new branch of the JSDF.
These are the de facto postwar Japanese army  navy and air force.
On 12 December 1956  Japan joined the United Nations.
In 1957  Japan was the first country to build dedicated railway lines for high speed travel.
The village of Ōgata was established.
Land reclamation work began at Lake Hachirōgata in April 1957.
This marked the first time that the Olympic Games were held in Asia.
In 1968  Japan surpassed West Germany to become the second largest economic power in the world.
In the same year  The Ogasawara Islands were returned from US occupation to Japanese sovereignty.
Japanese citizens were allowed to return.
By the 1970s Japan ascended to great power status again.
It had the world s second largest economy after the United States.
They wanted to remove all American military presence.
In 1974  Prime Minister Eisaku Satō was the first Asian to accepted the Nobel Peace Prize.
excerpt and text search Allinson  Gary D. Japan s Postwar History  2nd ed 2004 .
online free Gluck  Carol   and Stephen R. Graubard  eds.
Global War Studies 15.1  2018   35 46. online Nish  Ian.
Shōwa Day  昭和の日  Shōwa no Hi  is a Japanese annual holiday held on April 29.
It honors the birthday of Emperor Shōwa  Hirohito   the reigning emperor from 1926 to 1989.
History    Emperor Hirohito died on January 7  1989.
It has the second greatest population density in the world.
The country has almost 5.7 million residents  61   3.4 million  of whom are Singaporean citizens.
Singapore is the only country in Asia with an AAA sovereign rating from all major rating agencies.
The name possibly means  Sea Town   being derived from the Malay tasek  meaning  sea  or  lake .
However  the precise time and reason for the name change is unknown.
Seeing this as an omen  he established the town of Singapura where he encountered the beast.
After then being driven into exile by the Javanese  he usurped control over Temasek.
By then Singapore was nominally part of the Johor Sultanate.
With the Temenggong s help  Raffles managed to smuggle Tengku Long back into Singapore.
A formal treaty was signed on 6 February 1819.
In 1824  a further treaty with the Sultan led to the entire island becoming a British possession.
Singapore became the regional capital in 1836.
By 1860 the population had swelled to over 80 000  more than half being Chinese.
Many of these early immigrants came to work on the pepper and gambier plantations.
The plan was for the Home Fleet to sail quickly to Singapore in the event of an emergency.
About 5 000 were killed or wounded  of which Australians made up the majority.
Japanese casualties during the fighting in Singapore amounted to 1 714 killed and 3 378 wounded.
Japanese newspapers triumphantly declared the victory as deciding the general situation of the war.
Between 5 000 and 25 000 ethnic Chinese people were killed in the subsequent Sook Ching massacre.
A shortage of food led to malnutrition  disease  and rampant crime and violence.
A series of strikes in 1947 caused massive stoppages in public transport and other services.
He led a delegation to London  but Britain rejected his demand for complete self rule.
During the subsequent May 1959 elections  the People s Action Party  PAP  won a landslide victory.
To obtain a mandate for a merger  the PAP held a referendum on the merger.
It was the deadliest of at least 42 bomb incidents which occurred during the confrontation.
Talks soon broke down  and abusive speeches and writing became rife on both sides.
This led to communal strife in Singapore  culminating in the 1964 race riots.
In 1967  the country co founded the Association of Southeast Asian Nations  ASEAN .
Race riots broke out once more in 1969.
Singapore Changi Airport was opened in 1981 and Singapore Airlines was formed.
Nominated members of parliament were introduced in 1990 to allow non elected non partisan MPs.
The president is head of state and exercises executive power on the advice of her ministers.
The prime minister and Cabinet are responsible for administering and enforcing laws and policies.
At least one MP in a GRC must be of an ethnic minority background.
All elections are held using first past the post voting.
An underlying principle is political and economic stability in the region.
This was agreed to in 2007 for implementation by 2015.
It is also a member of the Non Aligned Movement  the United Nations and the Commonwealth.
Piracy in the Strait of Malacca has been a cause of concern for all three countries.
The Defence Science and Technology Agency is responsible for procuring resources for the military.
In general  military exercises are held with foreign forces once or twice per week.
The RSAF has one squadron—the 150 Squadron—based in Cazaux Air Base in southern France.
The SAF also helped in relief efforts during Hurricane Katrina  and Typhoon Haiyan.
In 2019  the nation was placed 7th most peaceful country on the Global Peace Index.
Singapore s judicial system is considered one of the most reliable in Asia.
Sex trafficking in Singapore is a significant problem.
A law dating from 1938 bans sexual relations between men  however the law is rarely enforced.
Geography     Singapore consists of 63 islands  including the main island  Pulau Ujong.
Jurong Island  Pulau Tekong  Pulau Ubin and Sentosa are the largest of Singapore s smaller islands.
The highest natural point is Bukit Timah Hill at 163.63 m  537 ft .
The country is projected to reclaim another 56 km2  20 sq mi  by 2030.
Since then  nearly 10  of Singapore s land has been set aside for parks and nature reserves.
The government has created plans to preserve the country s remaining wildlife.
Temperatures usually range from 23 to 32 °C  73 to 90 °F .
Roughly 44 percent of the Singaporean workforce is made up of non Singaporeans.
It is interchangeable with the Brunei dollar at par value since 1967.
This is different from most central banks  which use interest rates to manage policy.
Singapore does not have a minimum wage  believing that it would lower its competitiveness.
It also has one of the highest income inequalities among developed countries.
Changi Airport connects over 100 airlines to more than 300 cities.
Over ten free trade agreements have been signed with other countries and regions.
Singapore is the second largest foreign investor in India.
It is the 14th largest exporter and the 15th largest importer in the world.
Singapore is the 5th most visited city in the world  and 2nd in the Asia Pacific.
Other popular tourist attractions include the Singapore Zoo  River Safari and Night Safari.
A Global Navigation Satellite System will replace the physical gantries by 2020.
Two companies run the train transport system—SBS Transit and SMRT Corporation.
There are six taxi companies  who together put out over 28 000 taxis on the road.
The national airline is Singapore Airlines.
According to the country s most recent census in 2010  nearly 23  of Singaporean residents  i.e.
The next most practised religion is Christianity  followed by Islam  Taoism  and Hinduism.
17  of the population did not have a religious affiliation.
Tibetan Buddhism has also made slow inroads into the country in recent years.
Languages      Singapore has four official languages  English  Malay  Mandarin  and Tamil.
English is the lingua franca and the main language used in business  government  law and education.
It has a symbolic  rather than functional purpose.
English is the most spoken language at home at 36.9  of the population  just ahead of Mandarin.
All institutions  private and public  must be registered with the Ministry of Education.
Only the primary level is compulsory.
5 000 Malaysian students cross the Johor–Singapore Causeway daily to attend schools in Singapore.
In 2019  Singaporeans have the longest life expectancy of any country at 84.8 years.
Females can expect to live an average of 87.6 years with 75.8 years in good health.
The averages are lower for men.
There is a high level of immunisation.
In 2008  32  of healthcare was funded by the government.
It accounts for approximately 3.5  of Singapore s GDP.
Singapore has a reputation as a nanny state.
Major religious festivals are public holidays.
The Singapore Art Museum focuses on contemporary art.
The lotus shaped ArtScience Museum hosts touring exhibitions that combine art with the sciences.
The Esplanade is Singapore s largest performing arts centre.
Singapore is increasingly regarded as having four sub literatures instead of one.
Many orchestras and ensembles are also found in secondary schools and junior colleges.
Many international celebrity chef restaurants are located within the integrated resorts.
In Singapore  street food has long been associated with hawker centres with communal seating areas.
In 2018  there were 114 hawker centres spread across the city centre and heartland housing estates.
Despite its size  the country has dominated swim meets in the Southeast Asia Games.
The island is home to ONE Championship  the biggest Mixed Martial Arts promotion in Asia.
Singapore s women s table tennis team were silver medalists at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
It was the inaugural F1 night race  and the first F1 street race in Asia.
It is considered a signature event on the F1 calendar.
Media      Companies linked to the government control much of the domestic media in Singapore.
There are a total of seven free to air TV channels offered by Mediacorp.
Self censorship among journalists is said to be common.
Overall mobile phone penetration rate is at 148 mobile phone subscribers per 100 people.
They are used alongside the Japanese syllabic scripts hiragana and katakana.
The Japanese term kanji for the Chinese characters literally means  Han characters .
Chinese coins from the first century AD have been found in Yayoi period archaeological sites.
It is a record of trading for cloth and salt.
Major works of Heian era literature by women were written in hiragana.
Some characters were given simplified glyphs  called shinjitai  新字体 .
Kyōiku kanji      The kyōiku kanji  教育漢字  lit.
In publishing  characters outside this category are often given furigana.
Originally numbering 1 945 characters  the jōyō kanji list was expanded to 2 136 in 2010.
These are generally written using traditional characters  but extended shinjitai forms exist.
They have had numerous revisions.
The current standards are   JIS X 0208  the most recent version of the main standard.
This standard is rarely used  mainly because the common Shift JIS encoding system could not use it.
Gaiji can be either user defined characters or system specific characters.
A total of 13 108 characters can be encoded in various Japanese Industrial Standards for kanji.
From the reader s point of view  kanji are said to have one or more different  readings .
They cover all readings adopted from the Heian era to the Edo period.
This is also known as Tōsō on  唐宋音  Tang and Song sound .
For instance  the character for east  東  has the on yomi tō  from Middle Chinese tung.
However  Japanese already had two words for  east   higashi and azuma.
Thus the kanji 東 had the latter readings added as kun yomi.
Kun yomi are characterized by the strict  C V syllable structure of yamato kotoba.
It has an alternative spelling as 受け賜る u ke  tamawa ru   hence  1 1  3 5.
志 is a nominalization of the verb 志す which has a long reading kokoroza su .
This is due to its being derived from a noun verb compound  心指す kokoro za su .
The nominalization removes the okurigana  hence increasing the reading by one mora  yielding 4 1 5.
In a number of cases  multiple kanji were assigned to cover a single Japanese word.
Typically when this occurs  the different kanji refer to specific shades of meaning.
For instance  the word なおす  naosu  when written 治す  means  to heal an illness or sickness .
When written 直す it means  to fix or correct something .
Sometimes the distinction is very clear  although not always.
Ateji     Ateji  当て字  宛字 or あてじ  are characters used only for their sounds.
Therefore  only the full compound—not the individual character—has a reading.
It is the other way around with yutō  kun on .
These are the Japanese form of hybrid words.
Ateji often use mixed readings.
Jukujikun are when the standard kanji for a word are related to the meaning  but not the sound.
The word is pronounced as a whole  not corresponding to sounds of individual kanji.
Examples of jukujikun for inflectional words follow.
See 義訓 and 熟字訓 for many more examples.
Many jukujikun  established meaning spellings  began life as gikun  improvised meaning spellings .
The readings are also written in katakana  unlike the usual hiragana for native kun yomi.
Place names sometimes also use nanori or  occasionally  unique readings not found elsewhere.
For example  鉄  iron  is usually read with the on yomi tetsu rather than the kun yomi kurogane.
For example  赤い aka i  red   新しい atara shii  new   見る mi ru   to  see .
These rules of thumb have many exceptions.
Kun yomi compound words are not as numerous as those with on yomi  but neither are they rare.
Examples include 手紙 tegami  letter   日傘 higasa  parasol   and the famous 神風 kamikaze  divine wind .
In addition  上手い has the reading umai  skilled .
Furigana  reading glosses  is often used to clarify any potential ambiguities.
For example  私立  privately established  esp.
As stated above  jūbako and yutō readings are also not uncommon.
Indeed  all four combinations of reading are possible  on on  kun kun  kun on and on kun.
Names often use characters and readings that are not in common use outside of names.
Japanese family names are also usually read with kun yomi  山田 Yamada  田中 Tanaka  鈴木 Suzuki.
Japanese given names often have very irregular readings.
Some common Japanese names can be written in multiple ways  e.g.
Alternatively  they may be written in kanji with katakana furigana.
Many such cities have names that come from non Chinese languages like Mongolian or Manchu.
Kaohsiung was originally pronounced Takao  or similar  in Hokkien and Japanese.
The English name  Kaohsiung  derived from its Mandarin pronunciation.
Today it is pronounced either カオシュン or タカオ in Japanese.
This is especially true in texts for children or foreign learners.
Further  kanji dictionaries often list compounds including irregular readings of a kanji.
Specifically  kanji made in Japan are referred to as Wasei kanji  和製漢字 .
For example  働 is composed of 亻  person radical  plus 動  action   hence  action of a person  work .
This is in contrast to kanji generally  which are overwhelmingly phono semantic compounds.
In terms of meanings  these are especially for natural phenomena  esp.
There are hundreds of kokuji in existence.
Similar coinages occurred to a more limited extent in Korea and Vietnam.
An illustrative example is ankō  鮟鱇  monkfish .
鱇 is considered kokuji  as it has not been found in any earlier Chinese text.
Casual listings may be more inclusive  including characters such as 鮟.
For example  目 is an eye  while 木 is a tree.
These pictographic characters make up only a small fraction of modern characters.
These make up a tiny fraction of modern characters.
An example of this type is 休  rest  from 亻  person radical  and 木  tree .
Another is the kokuji 峠  mountain pass  made from 山  mountain   上  up  and 下  down .
These make up a tiny fraction of modern characters.
It may refer to kanji where the meaning or application has become extended.
Kasha moji  仮借文字      Kasha  Mandarin  jiǎjiè  are rebuses  sometimes called  phonetic loans .
A character was appropriated to represent a similar sounding word.
For example  来 in ancient Chinese was originally a pictograph for  wheat .
The two characters swapped meaning  so today the more common word has the simpler character.
This borrowing of sounds has a very long history.
This mark also appears in personal and place names  as in the surname Sasaki  佐々木 .
This symbol is a simplified version of the kanji 仝  a variant of dō  同   same  .
It is pronounced  ka  when used to indicate quantity  such as 六ヶ月  rokkagetsu  six months  .
The way how these symbols may be produced on a computer depends on the operating system.
In macOS  typing じおくり will reveal the symbol 々 as well as ヽ  ゝ and ゞ.
In this system  common components of characters are identified  these are called radicals.
Other kanji sorting methods  such as the SKIP system  have been devised by various authors.
The gojūon ordering of kana is normally used for this purpose.
The order in which these characters are learned is fixed.
This larger list of characters is to be mastered by the end of the ninth grade.
Schoolchildren learn the characters by repetition and radical.
Pictorial mnemonics  as in the text Kanji Pict o graphix  are also seen.
Old Japanese  A Phonetic Reconstruction.
KanjiQ—Kanji flashcard tool that runs on mobile phones.
Genetic Kanji  etymologically organized lists for learning kanji.
As a result  there are several layers of Chinese loanwords in Vietnamese.
Stops and affricates could also be voiced  voiceless or voiceless aspirated.
For example  Tōkyō 東京  is Dōngjīng in Mandarin Chinese.
Middle Chinese had a three way tonal contrast in syllables with vocalic or nasal endings.
As Japanese lacks tones  Sino Japanese borrowings preserve no trace of Chinese tones.
Old Japanese syllables had the form  C V  with vowel sequences being avoided.
Sometimes  the term is also used to describe the six major areas of law.
Furthermore  it may refer to all or part of a collection of statutes.
Legislation in Japan tends to be terse.
Such reform was based on the similar laws adopted in Germany  France  and Japan.
As a result  the terms Six Codes and Book of Six Codes are also widely used in Taiwan.
The Sixth East Asia Summit was held in Bali  Indonesia on November 18–19  2011.
She reiterated Australia always will have an ally in Washington and a friend in Beijing.
This also has the effect of countries having stronger individual voices to negotiate with China.
The Burmese government is civilian run since March 2011.
The other members  leaders attended.
The capital and largest city is Bratislava  and the second largest city is Košice.
The Slavs arrived in the territory of present day Slovakia in the 5th and 6th centuries.
In the 7th century  they played a significant role in the creation of Samo s Empire.
In 1241 and 1242  after the Mongol invasion of Europe  much of the territory was destroyed.
At the end of World War II  Czechoslovakia was re established as an independent country.
In 1989  the Velvet Revolution peacefully ended the Communist rule in Czechoslovakia.
As such  it is a cognate of the words Slovenia and Slavonia.
The present Slovak form „Slovensko“ is first attested in the year 1675.
The statue was found in the 1940s in Moravany nad Váhom near Piešťany.
Copper became a stable source of prosperity for the local population.
The inhabitants of the area manufactured arms  shields  jewellery  dishes  and statues.
The burial rites consisted entirely of cremation.
Common people were buried in flat urnfield cemeteries.
A special role was given to weaving and the production of textiles.
This culture is often connected with the Celtic tribe mentioned in Roman sources as Cotini.
The military fort was surrounded by a civilian vicus and several farms of the villa rustica type.
The name of this settlement was Gerulata.
However  Attila s death in 453 brought about the disappearance of the Hun tribe.
After 626  the Avar power started a gradual decline but its reign lasted to 804.
Western Slovakia was the centre of Samo s empire in the 7th century.
Rastislav was also preoccupied with the security and administration of his state.
The rebellious prince allied himself with the Franks and overthrew his uncle in 870.
Similarly to his predecessor  Svätopluk I  871–894  assumed the title of the king  rex .
He also named the German cleric Wiching the Bishop of Nitra.
and Svatopluk II succeeded him as the Prince of Great Moravia and the Prince of Nitra respectively.
However  they started to quarrel for domination of the whole empire.
In three battles  4–5 July and 9 August 907  near Bratislava  the Magyars routed Bavarian armies.
Great Moravia left behind a lasting legacy in Central and Eastern Europe.
It became part of the Austrian Habsburg monarchy  marking the beginning of a new era.
For a short period in the 17th century  most Slovaks were Lutherans.
In the Austro Turkish War  1663–1664  a Turkish army led by the Grand Vizier decimated Slovakia.
The Slovaks were not consulted.
The borders were set by the Treaty of Saint Germain and Treaty of Trianon.
In the peace following the World War  Czechoslovakia emerged as a sovereign European state.
It provided what were at the time rather extensive rights to its minorities  at least on paper.
Both Czechs and Slovaks enjoyed a period of relative prosperity.
Revision of the borders was called for  as Czechs constituted only 43  of the population.
This  however  failed to materialize.
Secession had created the first Slovak state in history.
A bloody German occupation and a guerilla war followed.
The territory of Slovakia was liberated by Soviet and Romanian forces by the end of April 1945.
Out of about 130 000 Carpathian Germans in Slovakia in 1938  by 1947 only some 20 000 remained.
Czechoslovakia became a puppet state of the Soviet Union.
Borders with the West were protected by the Iron Curtain.
In November  the federal parliament voted to dissolve the country officially on 31 December 1992.
Slovakia has  nevertheless  remained a close partner with the Czech Republic.
Both countries co operate with Hungary and Poland in the Visegrád Group.
Slovakia became a member of NATO on 29 March 2004 and of the European Union on 1 May 2004.
On 1 January 2009  Slovakia adopted the Euro as its national currency.
In 2019  Zuzana Čaputová became Slovakia s first female president.
Forests cover 41  of Slovak land surface.
They are divided into several parts.
The Tatra mountain range is represented as one of the three hills on the coat of arms of Slovakia.
Most of the caves have stalagmites rising from the ground and stalactites hanging from above.
There are currently five Slovak caves under UNESCO s World Heritage Site status.
They are Dobšiná Ice Cave  Domica  Gombasek Cave  Jasovská Cave and Ochtinská Aragonite Cave.
Rivers      Most of the rivers arise in the Slovak mountains.
The total length of the rivers on Slovak territory is 49 774 kilometres  30 928 mi .
The Danube is the largest river that flows through Slovakia.
During night it may be freezing  but usually not below −10 °C  14 °F .
The dry continental air brings in the summer heat and winter frosts.
In contrast  oceanic air brings rainfalls and reduces summer temperatures.
In the lowlands and valleys  there is often fog  especially in winter.
In Slovakia  the weather and climate in the spring are very unstable.
The average temperature in September is around 14 °C  57 °F   in November to 3 °C  37 °F .
Late September and early October is a dry and sunny time of year  so called Indian summer .
Winter starts on 21 December with temperatures around −5 to −10 °C  23 to 14 °F .
In December and January  it is usually snowing  these are the coldest months of the year.
At lower altitudes  snow does not stay the whole winter  it changes into the thaw and frost.
The geographical position of Slovakia determines the richness of the diversity of fauna and flora.
Forests cover 44  of the territory of Slovakia.
In terms of forest stands  60  are broadleaf trees and 40  are coniferous trees.
Of these  nearly 1 500 are lichen forming species.
Some of these fungi are undoubtedly endemic  but not enough is known to say how many.
Of the lichen forming species  about 40  have been classified as threatened in some way.
About 7  are apparently extinct  9  endangered  17  vulnerable  and 7  rare.
The president is elected by direct  popular vote under the two round system for a five year term.
The prime minister is appointed by the president.
Delegates are elected for a four year term on the basis of proportional representation.
The civil law system is based on Austro Hungarian codes.
Slovakia accepts the compulsory International Court of Justice jurisdiction with reservations.
The ministry s director is Ivan Korčok.
Slovakia joined the European Union and NATO in 2004 and the Eurozone in 2009.
There are 44 embassies and 35 honorary consulates in Bratislava.
The U.S. Department of Defense programs has contributed significantly to Slovak military reforms.
Slovakia joined NATO in March 2004.
The country has been an active participant in US  and NATO led military actions.
There is a joint Czech Slovak peacekeeping force in Kosovo.
Slovak Ground Forces are made up of two active mechanised infantry brigades.
Some officials engaged in corrupt practices with impunity.
Two former ministers were convicted of corruption during the year.
Regions have enjoyed a certain degree of autonomy since 2002.
Their self governing bodies are referred to as Self governing  or autonomous  Regions  sg.
The kraje are subdivided into many okresy  sg.
Slovakia currently has 79 districts.
The okresy are further divided into obce  sg.
There are currently 2 890 municipalities.
In terms of economics and unemployment rate  the western regions are richer than eastern regions.
The country has difficulties addressing regional imbalances in wealth and employment.
GDP per capita ranges from 188  of EU average in Bratislava to 54  in Eastern Slovakia.
Although regional income inequality is high  90  of citizens own their homes.
The country used to be dubbed the  Tatra Tiger .
Slovakia successfully transformed from a centrally planned economy to a market driven economy.
The euro in Slovakia was approved by the European commission on 7 May 2008.
The main industry sectors are car manufacturing and electrical engineering.
275 000 people are employed directly and indirectly by the automotive industry.
ESET is an IT security company from Bratislava with more than 1 000 employees worldwide at present.
In recent years  service and high tech oriented businesses have prospered in Bratislava.
Today  Bratislava is the road  railway  waterway and airway hub.
Currently there is another block  V2  with two active reactors in Jaslovské Bohunice.
It is scheduled for decommissioning in 2025.
Two new reactors are under construction in Mochovce plant.
Transportation      There are four main highways D1 to D4 and eight expressways R1 to R8.
Many of them are still under construction.
Bratislava s M. R. Štefánik Airport is the main and largest international airport.
It is located 9 kilometres  5.6 miles  northeast of the city centre.
It serves civil and governmental  scheduled and unscheduled domestic and international flights.
The current runways support the landing of all common types of aircraft currently used.
Košice International Airport is an airport serving Košice.
It is the second largest international airport in Slovakia.
The Port of Bratislava is one of the two international river ports in Slovakia.
It lies at the confluence of two rivers   the Danube and Váh.
A historical centre with at least one square has been preserved in many towns.
Historical centres have been going through a restoration in recent years.
Historical churches can be found in virtually every village and town in Slovakia.
It is based on internal tourism  where Slovaks spend holidays within the country.
Major areas are  Bratislava and Vysoké Tatry.
Castles and châteauxThere are many castles located throughout the country.
CavesCaves opened for public are mainly located in Northern Slovakia.
In the south west of the country only Jaskyňa Driny is opened to the public.
Spa resortsThere are many spas throughout the whole country.
Dielo shop chain sells works of Slovak artists and craftsmen.
These shops are mostly found in towns and cities.
Slovaks have made notable scientific and technical contributions during history.
Slovakia is currently in the negotiation process of becoming a member of the European Space Agency.
Full membership of Slovakia in the ESA is expected in 2020 after signing the ESA Convention.
Slovakia will be obliged to set state budget inclusive ESA funding.
Demographics     The population is over 5.4 million and consists mostly of Slovaks.
The average population density is 110 inhabitants per km2.
According to the 2011 census  the majority of the inhabitants of Slovakia are Slovaks  80.7  .
Hungarians are the largest ethnic minority  8.5  .
In the 1990 US census  1.8 million people self identified as having Slovak ancestry.
Languages      The official language is Slovak  a member of the Slavic language family.
The best known foreign language in Slovakia is Czech.
In 2004  about one third of the church members regularly attended church services.
The Slovak Greek Catholic Church is an Eastern rite sui iuris Catholic Church.
Slovakia is the only member state of the European Union without a mosque.
Education in Slovakia is compulsory from age 6 to 16.
If approved  the state provides basic study necessities for the child.
After finishing elementary school  students are obliged to take one year in high school.
After finishing high school  students can go to university and are highly encouraged to do so.
Slovakia has a wide range of universities.
The biggest university is Comenius University  established in 1919.
Most universities in Slovakia are public funded  where anyone can apply.
Every citizen has a right to free education in public schools.
Universities have different criteria for accepting students.
Anyone can apply to any number of universities.
The manifestation of Slovak folklore culture is the  Východná  Folklore Festival.
SĽUK is the largest Slovak folk art group  trying to preserve the folklore tradition.
The Prešov Region preserves the world s most remarkable folk wooden churches.
The legend says he was taking from the rich and giving to the poor.
One of the most popular is a film Jánošík directed by Martin Frič in 1935.
The Slovak National Gallery founded in 1948  is the biggest network of galleries in Slovakia.
Literature      For a list of notable Slovak writers and poets  see List of Slovak authors.
The worldly literature also emerged and chronicles were written in this period.
Two leading persons codified the Slovak language.
The first was Anton Bernolák whose concept was based on the western Slovak dialect in 1787.
It was the codification of the first ever literary language of Slovaks.
It is relatively closely related to Hungarian  Czech  Polish and Austrian cuisine.
On the east it is also influenced by Ukrainian  including Lemko and Rusyn.
Boar  rabbit  and venison are generally available throughout the year.
Lamb and goat are eaten but are not widely popular.
Bryndza is a salty cheese made of sheep milk  characterised by a strong taste and aroma.
A typical soup is a sauerkraut soup   kapustnica  .
Wine is enjoyed throughout Slovakia.
Beer  mainly of the pilsener style  though dark lagers are also consumed  is also popular.
Ice Hockey One of the most popular team sports in Slovakia is ice hockey.
The most recent success was a silver medal at the 2012 IIHF World Championship in Helsinki.
The country has 8 280 registered players and is ranked 7th in the IIHF World Ranking at present.
Both competitions took place in Bratislava and Košice.
Football Football is the most popular sport in Slovakia  with over 400 000 registered players.
Since 1993  the Slovak national football team has qualified for the FIFA World Cup once  in 2010.
They progressed to the last 16  where they were defeated by the Netherlands.
The most notable result was the 3–2 victory over Italy.
This helped the team reach its best ever position of 14th in the FIFA World Rankings.
They remain the only Slovak club that has won a match at the group stage.
Slovenia covers 20 271 square kilometers  7 827 sq mi  and has a population of 2.095 million.
Over half of the territory is covered by forest.
Ethnic Slovenes make up more than 80  of the population.
Serbs are the largest minority.
The South Slavic language Slovene is the official language throughout the country.
This is especially true with Germany  Slovenia s biggest trade partner.
It ranks 9th in the inequality adjusted human development index.
It is thus a cognate of the words Slavonia  Slovakia and Slavia.
The etymology of Slav itself remains uncertain.
There is evidence of human habitation from around 250 000 years ago.
It shows that wooden wheels appeared almost simultaneously in Mesopotamia and Europe.
In the transition period between the Bronze Age to the Iron Age  the Urnfield culture flourished.
A crucial battle between Theodosius I and Eugenius took place in the Vipava Valley in 394.
During the same period Carniola  too  came under the Franks  and was Christianised from Aquileia.
Consequently  the Frankish feudal system reached the Slovene territory.
Carantania  being the most important  was elevated into the Duchy of Carinthia in 976.
Patria del Friuli ruled present western Slovenia until Venetian takeover in 1420.
In 1572 and 1573 the Croatian Slovenian peasant revolt wrought havoc throughout the wider region.
Such uprisings  which often met with bloody defeats  continued throughout the 17th century.
Despite this emigration  the population of Slovenia increased significantly.
Entire areas of the Slovene Littoral were destroyed.
Those who remained organized several connected networks of both passive and armed resistance.
Axis forces invaded Yugoslavia in April 1941 and defeated the country in a few weeks.
Around 30 000 to 40 000 Slovene men were drafted to the German Army and sent to the Eastern front.
The most infamous ones were Rab and Gonars.
Slovenia joined the federation as a constituent republic  led by its own pro Communist leadership.
Approximately 8  of the entire Slovene population died during World War II.
Until the 1980s  Slovenia enjoyed relatively broad autonomy within the federation.
In 1956  Josip Broz Tito  together with other leaders  founded the Non Aligned Movement.
Particularly in the 1950s  Slovenia s economy developed rapidly and was strongly industrialised.
Demands for democratisation and more Slovenian independence were sparked off.
On 25 June 1991  Slovenia became independent through the passage of appropriate legal documents.
At the end of the month  the last soldiers of the Yugoslav Army left Slovenia.
In 2004 Slovenia also joined NATO.
Over half of the country  11 823 km2 or 4 565 sq mi  is covered by forests.
This makes Slovenia the third most forested country in Europe  after Finland and Sweden.
Remnants of primeval forests are still to be found  the largest in the Kočevje area.
Grassland covers 5 593 km2  2 159 sq mi  and fields and gardens  954 km2 or 368 sq mi .
There are 363 km2  140 sq mi  of orchards and 216 km2  83 sq mi  of vineyards.
Scientists have been able to identify 60 destructive earthquakes in the past.
Additionally  a network of seismic stations is active throughout the country.
Many parts of Slovenia have a carbonate ground  and an extensive subterranean system has developed.
These are the Alpine  the Mediterranean  the Dinaric  and the Pannonian landscapes.
These are often quite interwoven.
Climate      Slovenia is located in temperate latitudes.
In the coastal region  there is sub Mediterranean climate.
The average wind speeds are lower than in the plains of the nearby countries.
Due to the rugged terrain  local vertical winds with daily periods are present.
The jugo and the bora are characteristic of the Littoral.
Whereas the jugo is humid and warm  the bora is usually cold and gusty.
The foehn is typical of the Alpine regions in the north of Slovenia.
Generally present in Slovenia are the northeast wind  the southeast wind and the north wind.
Around 12.5  of the territory is protected with 35.5  in the Natura 2000 ecological network.
Despite this  because of pollution and environmental degradation  diversity has been in decline.
There are 75 mammal species  among them marmots  Alpine ibex  and chamois.
There are numerous deer  roe deer  boar  and hares.
The edible dormouse is often found in the Slovenian beech forests.
Trapping these animals is a long tradition and is a part of the Slovenian national identity.
There are hedgehogs  martens  and snakes such as vipers and grass snakes.
Among these are the Karst Shepherd  the Carniolan honeybee  and the Lipizzan horse.
They have been preserved ex situ and in situ.
The marble trout or marmorata  Salmo marmoratus  is an indigenous Slovenian fish.
Slovenia is also home to the wels catfish.
Many more remain to be discovered.
The forests are an important natural resource  and logging is kept to a minimum.
In the interior of the country are typical Central European forests  predominantly oak and beech.
In the mountains  spruce  fir  and pine are more common.
The lime linden tree  common in Slovenian forests  is a national symbol.
Politics     Slovenia is a parliamentary democracy republic with a multi party system.
The president is elected for five years and at maximum for two consecutive terms.
The bulk of power is concentrated in the National Assembly  which consists of ninety members.
Election takes place every four years.
It later attracted much criticism by neo liberal economists  who demanded a less gradual approach.
The proposed reforms were postponed in a referendum.
The left wing government was ousted with a vote of no confidence.
The municipalities are the only bodies of local autonomy in Slovenia.
In the urban municipalities  the municipal councils are called town  or city  councils.
Since conscription was abolished in 2003  it is organized as a fully professional standing army.
In 2016  military spending was an estimated 0.91  of the country s GDP.
They have participated in peace support operations and humanitarian activities.
Slovenia is also among the top global economies in terms of human capital.
Since 2010  it has been member of the Organisation for Economic Co operation and Development.
There is a big difference in prosperity between the various regions.
The growth surge was fuelled by debt  particularly among firms  and especially in construction.
The real economic growth rate was at 2.5  in 2016 and accelerated to 5  in 2017.
Energy      In 2018  the net energy production was 12 262 GWh and consumption was 14 501 GWh.
A large pumped storage hydro power plant Kozjak on the Drava River is in the planning stage.
Tourism      Slovenia offers tourists a wide variety of natural and cultural amenities.
Different forms of tourism have developed.
The tourist gravitational area is considerably large  however the tourist market is small.
The best known caves are Postojna Cave and the UNESCO listed Škocjan Caves.
The hills around Slovenia s second largest town  Maribor  are renowned for their wine making.
European tourists create more than 90  of Slovenia s tourist income.
Transport      Since Antiquity  geography has dictated transport routes in Slovenia.
Slovenia has a very high highway and motorway density compared to the European Union average.
The railway passenger transport has been recovering after a large drop in the 1990s.
All international transit trains in Slovenia serve the Ljubljana Railway Hub.
Ports      The major Slovenian port is the Port of Koper.
It is much closer to destinations east of the Suez than the ports of Northern Europe.
In addition  the maritime passenger traffic mostly takes place in Koper.
Passenger transport mainly takes place with Italy and Croatia.
Air       Air transport in Slovenia is quite low  but has significantly grown since 1991.
Since 2003  several new carriers have entered the market  mainly low cost airlines.
There are also 12 public airports in Slovenia.
The working age group is diminishing in spite of immigration.
In addition  the difference among the genders regarding life expectancy is still significant.
Nonetheless  from 2000 until 2010  the rate has decreased by about 30 .
The differences between regions and the genders are pronounced.
Other  medium sized  towns include Maribor  Celje  and Kranj.
Overall  there are eleven urban municipalities in Slovenia.
Other sources characterize the number of dialects as nine or as eight.
The most taught foreign languages are English  German  Italian  French and Spanish.
Italian is widely spoken on the Slovenian Coast and in some other areas of the Slovene Littoral.
Additionally 16.4  had EU citizenships and 7.6  had citizenships of other countries.
They have settled mainly in cities and suburbanised areas.
In 2007  Slovenia had one of the fastest growing net migration rates in the European Union.
These areas attracted first many single men  who often boarded with Slovenian families .
After 1945  the country underwent a process of gradual but steady secularization.
According to the 2002 census  57.8  of the population is Catholic.
In 1991  71.6  were self declared Catholics which means a drop of more than 1  annually.
Most Slovenian Muslims came from Bosnia.Slovenia has long been home to a Jewish community.
According to the 1991 census there is 99.6  literacy in Slovenia.
Lifelong learning is also increasing.
Primary school is divided into three periods  each of three years.
The latter concludes with matura  the final exam that allows the graduates to enter a university.
84  of secondary school graduates go on to tertiary education.
In addition  there is a private University of Nova Gorica and an international EMUNI University.
The castle above the lake is a museum and restaurant with a view.
Near Postojna there is a fortress called Predjama Castle  half hidden in a cave.
Ljubljana has medieval  Baroque  Art Nouveau  and modern architecture.
Pršut prosciutto is known as  pršut  in the Slovene Littoral.
The best known sausage is kranjska klobasa.
Between 1952 in 1954 they again led State opera ballet in Munich.
The most notable music festival of Slovene music was historically the Slovenska popevka festival.
Many of these were directed by Matjaž Klopčič.
He also performed in television and radio drama.
Altogether  Bibič played over 150 theatre and over 30 film roles.
Slovene screenwriters  who are not film directors  include Saša Vuga and Miha Mazzini.
Women film directors include Polona Sepe  Hanna A. W. Slak  and Maja Weiss.
Among the post 1990 authors best known are Aleš Debeljak  Miha Mazzini  and Alojz Ihan.
By the time of Protestant Reformation in the 16th century  music was used to proselytize.
The first Slovenian hymnal  Eni Psalmi  was published in 1567.
The Slovene National Opera and Ballet Theatre serves as the national opera and ballet house.
Slovenian folk songs  thus  usually resounds soft and harmonious  and are very seldom in minor.
In eastern Slovenia  fiddle and cimbalon bands are called velike goslarije.
Many musicians followed Avsenik s steps  including Lojze Slak.
In the 21st century  there have been many successful artsists from Slovenia.
Ana Monró Theatre   theatresports championship Impro League  and improvisational theatre  e.g.
A popular form is puppetry  mainly performed in the Ljubljana Puppet Theatre.
Conceptual artA number of conceptual visual art groups formed  including OHO  Group 69  and IRWIN.
Jakov Brdar and Mirsad Begić returned to human figures.
Gojmir Anton Kos was a notable realist painter and photographer between First World War and WW II.
Association football gained popularity in the interwar period.
Of Slovenian clubs  NK Maribor played three times in the group stages of the UEFA Champions League.
Slovenia also hosted the EuroBasket 2013.
In women s handball  RK Krim won the Champions League in 2001 and 2003.
The small Japanese field mouse  Apodemus argenteus  is a species of rodent in the family Muridae.
Smoking age    Since 1876  smoking age in Japan has remained 20.
As of August 2020  the price of a typical pack of cigarettes ranged from ¥400 to ¥530.
R.J. Reynolds  Tokyo billboards for Salem s Pianissimo cigarettes are green and pink.
Philip Morris advertised its Virginia Slims brand with the slogan  Be You  in an ad campaign.
Other factors contribute to the rise in female smokers.
Others argue that smoking is one arena in which women can have equality with men.
Media influence is also cited  as many women on popular Japanese television dramas smoke.
Introduced in 2008  the card is necessary to purchase cigarettes from vending machines.
Japan to Seek Total Smoking Ban in Public Places  Yomiuri Says .
It was founded by Ignatius of Loyola and six companions with the approval of Pope Paul III in 1540.
The members are called Jesuits    Latin  Iesuitæ .
The society is engaged in evangelization and apostolic ministry in 112 nations.
The headquarters of the society  its General Curia  is in Rome.
He composed the Spiritual Exercises to help others follow the teachings of Jesus Christ.
The meeting has been commemorated in the Martyrium of Saint Denis  Montmartre.
In the words of one historian   The use of the name Jesus gave great offense.
Pope Paul III gave them a commendation  and permitted them to be ordained priests.
These initial steps led to the official founding in 1540.
They were ordained in Venice by the bishop of Arbe  24 June .
They devoted themselves to preaching and charitable work in Italy.
Again in 1540  they presented the project to Paul III.
This is the founding document of the Society of Jesus as an official Catholic religious order.
Ignatius was chosen as the first Superior General.
Paul III s bull had limited the number of its members to sixty.
This limitation was removed through the bull Exposcit debitum of Julius III in 1550.
First  they founded schools throughout Europe.
One of the original seven arrived in India already in 1541.
Further  he used it as a means of rebuilding the spiritual life of the church.
Today  Jesuit colleges and universities are located in over one hundred nations around the world.
Despite their dedication  they had little success in Asia  except in the Philippines.
This was removed in 1587 due to fears over their growing influence.
Jesuits did  however  have much success in Latin America.
He died in China after a decade of evangelism in Southern India.
The inquisition was also a method of confiscating property and enriching the Inquisitors.
The Portuguese Jesuit António de Andrade founded a mission in Western Tibet in 1624.
Two Jesuit missionaries  Johann Grueber and Albert Dorville  reached Lhasa  in Tibet  in 1661.
The Jesuits were often the only force standing between the Native Americans and slavery.
These were societies set up according to an idealized theocratic model.
The Jesuits became involved in the Huron mission in 1626 and lived among the Huron peoples.
Brébeuf learned the native language and created the first Huron language dictionary.
It became the Jesuit headquarters and an important part of Canadian history.
They killed missionaries and burned villages  and the Hurons scattered.
In 1653 the Iroquois nation had a fallout with the Dutch.
They then signed a peace treaty with the French and a mission was established.
The Iroquois took the treaty lightly and soon turned on the French again.
The English barred the immigration of more Jesuits to New France.
By 1763  there were only twenty one Jesuits stationed in New France.
By 1773 only eleven Jesuits remained.
Mexico       The Jesuits in New Spain distinguished themselves in several ways.
They had high standards for acceptance to the order and many years of training.
A number of these haciendas were donated by wealthy elites.
They argued that they were exempt  due to special pontifical privileges.
As elsewhere in the Spanish empire  the Jesuits were expelled from Mexico in 1767.
Motezuma s Corona mexicana  o Historia de los nueve Motezumas was completed in 1696.
He was martyred by an apostate native in 1610.
These missions were continually attacked by the Brazilian Bandeirantes beginning in the year 1705.
By 1732  the Jesuits had gathered into 30 missions or reductions a total of 141 382 Guarani.
The bandeirantes captured Indians and sold them as slaves to planters in Brazil.
A Guarani army defeated the slave raiders at the battle of Mbororé.
Subsequently  the viceroy of Peru conceded the right of bearing arms to the Guarani.
The victory at Mbororé set the stage for the golden age of the Jesuits in Paraguay.
The Spanish king Charles III  1759–88  expelled the Jesuits in 1767 from Spain and its territories.
Within a few decades of the expulsion  most of what the Jesuits had accomplished was lost.
The missions were mismanaged and abandoned by the Guaraní.
Today  these ruins of a 160 year experiment have become a tourist attraction.
The Jesuits took part in the foundation of the city of Rio de Janeiro in 1565.
The Jesuits had frequent disputes with other colonists who wanted to enslave the natives.
On his death in 1820 the Jesuits were expelled from Russia by tsar Alexander I.
Those inhabitants  who confess thereto  are bound to raise their children to the same.
Jesuits and monastic orders are not permitted.
Jews are still prohibited from entry to the Realm.
Post Vatican II     The 20th century witnessed both growth and decline.
In 1983 John Paul gave leave for the Jesuits to appoint a successor to Arrupe.
He was  at his passing  one of ten Jesuit cardinals in the Catholic Church.
In 2013  Jesuit Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio became Pope Francis.
A vicar general and secretary of the society run day to day administration.
The Superior General meets more regularly with smaller councils composed of just the provincials.
The Jesuits have experienced a decline in numbers in recent decades.
Twenty eight novices took first vows in the Jesuits in the United States and Haiti in 2019.
The degree to which the Jesuits are involved in the administration of each institution varies.
As of September 2018  15 of the 27 Jesuit universities in the US had non Jesuit lay presidents.
Worldwide it runs 322 secondary schools and 172 colleges and universities.
Habit and dress    Jesuits do not have an official habit.
Jesuits in tropical countries use a white cassock.
The Jesuits were accused of inspiring Châtel s attack.
Two of his former teachers were exiled and a third was hanged.
The Collège de Clermont was closed  and the building was confiscated.
Another Jesuit  Oswald Tesimond  managed to escape arrest for his involvement in this plot.
The 16th century Decree de genere was repealed in 1946.
Nazi persecution     The Catholic Church faced persecution in Nazi Germany.
Hitler was anticlerical and had particular disdain for the Jesuits.
Lapomarda lists some 30 Jesuits as having died at Dachau.
The Nazi persecution of the Catholic Church in Poland was particularly severe.
Several Jesuits were prominent in the small German Resistance.
Mayer was a Bavarian Jesuit who clashed with the Nazis as early as 1923.
The Jesuit China missions of the 16th and 17th centuries introduced Western science and astronomy.
Antonio Ruiz de Montoya was an important missionary in the Jesuit reductions of Paraguay.
Baltasar Gracián was a 17th century Spanish Jesuit and baroque prose writer and philosopher.
He was born in Belmonte  near Calatayud  Aragon .
In Scotland  John Ogilvie  a Jesuit  is the nation s only post Reformation saint.
Gerard Manley Hopkins was one of the first English poets to use sprung verse.
He was the first to derive what is now known as Hubble s law  or the Hubble–Lemaître law.
Since the inception of the order  Jesuits have been teachers.
The Brothers of the Christian Schools have over 560 Lasallian educational institutions.
They also run elementary schools at which they are less likely to teach.
Many of the schools are named after Francis Xavier and other prominent Jesuits.
Publications     Jesuits are also known for their involvement in publications.
The printed version of Signum is published eight times per year.
Saint Ignatius Loyola  The Pilgrim Years 1491–1538  1998 .
Brill Research Perspectives in Jesuit Studies 1.1  2019   1 118. online Healy  Róisin.
Jesuit Political Thought  The Society of Jesus   the State  c. 1540–1640  2004 .
Mercurian Project  Forming Jesuit Culture  1573–1580  2004   30 advanced essays by scholars .
Jesuit on the Roof of the World  Ippolito Desideri s Mission to Tibet.
From Immolation to Restoration  The Jesuits  1773–1814.
Mission to Tibet  The Extraordinary Eighteenth Century Account of Father Ippolito Desideri.
SoftBank owns stakes in many technology  energy  and financial companies.
They went into the publishing business in May 1982 with the launches of the Oh!
Oh!PC had a circulation of 140 000 copies by 1989.
In 1994  the company went public and was valued at  3 billion.
In September 1995  SoftBank agreed  to purchase US based Ziff Davis publishing for  2.1 billion.
This investment turned into  60 billion when Alibaba went public in September 2014.
In April 2006  they bought a 23  stake of Betfair  an Internet betting exchange.
This cellphone contains more than 400 platinum diamonds  totalling more than 20 carats.
The cost is said to be more than 100 000 000 yen.
eAccess was merged with Willcom  which resulted in a new subsidiary and brand from Yahoo!
The transaction was financed via cash and a bridge loan from a consortium of banks.
In October 2013  SoftBank acquired 51  stake in Supercell for a reported  2.1 billion.
In 2014  teams from both companies co designed Pepper  a humanoid robot.
Arora has been heading SoftBank s investment arm.
On 21 June 2016  SoftBank sold its 84  stake in Supercell for reported US 7.3 billion to Tencent.
On 20 March SoftBank bought a  300m stake in WeWork.
On 14 February 2017  SoftBank Group agreed to buy Fortress Investment Group LLC for  3.3 billion.
At the time  Softbank was also working on a takeover of Flipkart s Snapdeal.
Other investors include Apple  Qualcomm  ARM  Foxconn  Sharp  Larry Ellison and Mubadala.
On 25 August 2017  SoftBank finalized a  4.4 billion investment in WeWork.
On 14 November 2017  Softbank agreed to invest  10 billion into Uber.
On 1 March 2018  Softbank s Vision Fund led a  535 million investment in DoorDash.
The offer of the shares was going to last for a month.
2019–2021     On 25 September 2019  Softbank Robotics launched Whiz in Singapore.
After the programme was unveiled  the shares in Softbank soared almost 19 percent.
The remaining 33  will be held by public shareholders.
For Q2 of 2020  the company grossed a revenue of  12 billion.
The firm also announced that it will be arranging a new fund worth  555 million.
SBI Group is a Japanese financial services company that began in 1999  as a branch of SoftBank.
Ymobile Corporation is another telecommunications subsidiary of SoftBank  established in 2014.
SoftBank also operate SoftBank Capital  a US based venture capital company.
The COMDEX expo in the US was owned by SoftBank from 1995 to 2001.
Since 2005  SoftBank also owns the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks professional baseball team.
SoftBank also operates in the eco power industry through its SB Energy subsidiary.
Japan Telecom owned a stake of 45.1 .
Vodafone Japan gained about 4.8  of Japan s 3G market.
has its origin in J Phone s J Sky.
had 12.907 million subscribers in Japan.
subscribers had fallen by 138 000 to 12 769 600.
In March 2006  Vodafone began discussing the sale of the Vodafone Japan unit to SoftBank.
SoftBank started the rebranding around 14 June 2006.
SoftBank offers 4G speeds of more than 110 Mbit s.
SoftBank Wi Fi Spots are available almost everywhere in Japan.
Commenced operations as a distributor of packaged software 1984  Japan Telecom was founded.
1986  Japan Telecom launches leased circuit services.
1991  Tokyo Digital Phone established.
1994  J Phone starts PDC cellular service in the 1.5 GHz band  10 MHz bandwidth.
The fixed line telecommunications business was also separated to found a new Japan Telecom.
and the company name is changed to Vodafone K.K.
Masayoshi Son became CEO and Representative Director of Vodafone K.K.
2012  SoftBank Mobile unveils the Pantone 5 107SH  a mobile phone with a built in geiger counter.
Sponsorship     SoftBank was sold a  team  for the America s Cup.
The team was named SoftBank Team Japan  and Yanmar came on board.
SoftBank Team Japan raced in the 2017 races held in Bermuda.
SoftBank is also the sponsor of the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks  a Japanese professional baseball team.
In December 2018  SoftBank invested in a startup called ParkJockey.
The startup was invested in 2013 and deals with monetizing parking lots.
Some sources said that the total amount of investment could reach  1.5 billion.
The payments range from US 400 for a first child to US 40 000 for a fifth child.
It also invests in companies to revolutionize real estate  transportation  and retail.
Son makes personal connections with the CEOs of all companies funded by Vision Fund.
It can also be described as a southern subcontinent of the Americas.
The major dependency are the Falkland Islands  a British Overseas Territory.
South America has an area of 17 840 000 square kilometers  6 890 000 sq mi .
Its population as of 2018 has been estimated at more than 423 million.
Most of the continent lies in the tropics.
Geography     South America occupies the southern portion of the Americas.
Almost all of mainland South America sits on the South American Plate.
South America s major mineral resources are gold  silver  copper  iron ore  tin  and petroleum.
Fauna      South America is one of the most biodiverse continents on earth.
The Amazon rainforests possess high biodiversity  containing a major proportion of Earth s species.
Outlying islands     Physiographically  South America also includes some of the nearby islands.
The Atacama Desert  along this stretch of coast  is one of the driest regions in the world.
Besides their use as sources of meat and wool  these animals were used for transportation of goods.
Chavín civilization spanned 900 BC to 300 BC.
The Muisca were the main indigenous civilization in what is now Colombia.
They were goldsmiths and farmers.
Terrace farming was a useful form of agriculture.
Eventually  the natives and the Spaniards interbred  forming a mestizo class.
After independence  most mestizos had native fathers and European or mestizo mothers.
It became a Dutch colony in 1667.
Nearly 40  of all African slaves trafficked to the Americas went to Brazil.
After independence  all South American countries maintained slavery for some time.
First  Napoleon invaded Portugal  but the House of Braganza avoided capture by escaping to Brazil.
Napoleon also captured King Ferdinand VII of Spain  and appointed his own brother instead.
The Juntas  in both Spain and the Americas  promoted the ideas of the Enlightenment.
However  it was not as strong as in Central America.
The  country  was reincorporated at the United Provinces in 1821.
Paraguay was virtually destroyed by Argentina  Brazil and Uruguay in the Paraguayan War.
The result was a stalemate  ending with the British arranging for the independence of Uruguay.
Meanwhile  the Argentine Civil Wars plagued Argentina since its independence.
The pro Brazilian Uruguayan government showed its support by sending troops.
In 1865 the three countries signed the Treaty of the Triple Alliance against Paraguay.
This was the second total war experience in the world after the American Civil War.
The Bolivians were completely defeated in 1880 and Lima was occupied in 1881.
The peace was signed with Peru in 1883 while a truce was signed with Bolivia in 1884.
Brazil was the only South American country that fought in WWI.
Later in 1932 Colombia and Peru entered a short armed conflict for territory in the Amazon.
The continent became a battlefield of the Cold War in the late 20th century.
Economically  they began a transition to neoliberal economic policies.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s  Peru suffered from an internal conflict.
In 1982  Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands  a British dependent territory.
There is a high percentage of Mestizos that vary greatly in composition by place.
There is also a minor population of Asians  especially in Brazil  Peru  and Argentina.
Portuguese is the official language of Brazil.
English is also spoken in the Falkland Islands.
French is the official language of French Guiana and the second language in Amapá  Brazil.
There are also small clusters of Japanese speakers in Brazil  Colombia and Peru.
Kardecist Spiritism can be found in several countries.
Almost all Muslims in Suriname are either Javanese or Indians and in Guyana  most are Indian.
In Ecuador  Amerindians are a large minority that comprises two fifths of the population.
In Colombia  people who identify as European descendant are about 37 .
South America is also home to one of the largest populations of Africans.
Guyana and Suriname have the largest ethnic East Indian community.
There are still some uncontacted tribes residing in the Amazon Rainforest.
Populace      The most populous country in South America is Brazil with 209.5 million people.
The second largest country is Colombia with a population of 49 661 048.
Argentina is the third most populous country with 44 361 150.
Next in size are Caracas  Belo Horizonte  Medellin and Salvador.
Five of the top ten metropolitan areas are in Brazil.
South America has also been witness to the growth of megapolitan areas.
The others are the Greater Rio  Greater Belo Horizonte and Greater Porto Alegre.
Livestock raising for meat exports is important in Argentina  Paraguay  Uruguay and Colombia.
On the coast of Peru  northeast and south of Brazil  cotton is grown.
The Pacific coastal waters of South America are the most important for commercial fishing.
The anchovy catch reaches thousands of tons  and tuna is also abundant  Peru is a major exporter .
Chile  Argentina and Brazil have recovered fastest  growing at an average of 5  per year.
Brazil is the world s largest exporter of chicken meat  3.77 million tons in 2019.
It was also the 3rd largest world producer of milk in 2018.
This year  the country produced 35.1 billion liters.
Uruguay is also a major meat producer.
In 2018  it produced 589 thousand tons of beef.
In beef production  Colombia is one of the 20 largest producers in the world.
In terms of production of cow s milk  Argentina ranks among the 20 largest producers in the world.
The World Bank annually lists the top manufacturing countries by total manufacturing value.
In the footwear industry  in 2019  Brazil ranked 4th among world producers.
In 2019  the country was the 8th producer of vehicles and the 9th producer of steel in the world.
In 2018  the chemical industry of Brazil was the 8th in the world.
In 2016 Brazil hosted the 2016 Summer Olympics.
South American nations have a rich variety of music.
Brazil has a Portuguese language pop rock industry as well a great variety of other music genres.
Bahia  Brazil  is especially well known for its West African–influenced cuisine.
The Paraguayan version  terere  differs from other forms of mate in that it is served cold.
Pisco is a liquor distilled from grapes in Peru and Chile.
Brazil holds the record at the FIFA World Cup with five titles in total.
Argentina and Uruguay have two titles each.
The other three were Brazil  1950  2014   Chile  1962   and Argentina  1978 .
Also  in South America  a multi sport event  the South American Games  are held every four years.
The first edition was held in La Paz in 1978 and the most recent took place in Santiago in 2014.
Irrigation is an important factor for agriculture from northwestern Peru to Patagonia.
Less than 10  of the known electrical potential of the Andes had been used until the mid 1960s.
In 1991 these countries signed a peaceful nuclear cooperation agreement.
Brazil was the 10th largest oil producer in the world in 2019  with 2.8 million barrels   day.
Production manages to supply the country s demand.
It remains the second largest operating hydroelectric in the world.
It has an installed generation capacity of 14  GW for 20 generating units of 700  MW each.
In 2019  wind energy represented 9  of the energy generated in the country.
Nuclear energy is produced by two reactors at Angra.
In 2019  solar power represented 1.27  of the energy generated in the country.
There is also a considerable infrastructure of ports and airports.
The railway and fluvial sector  although it has potential  is usually treated in a secondary way.
The two most important highways in the country are BR 101 and BR 116.
The three most important highways in the country are Route 9  Route 7 and Route 14.
Colombia has about 210 000 km of roads  and about 2 300 km are divided highways.
There are more than 2 000 airports in Brazil.
The country has the second largest number of airports in the world  behind only the United States.
Argentina has ports such as Port of Buenos Aires and Port of Rosario.
Peru has important ports in Callao  Ilo and Matarani.
It s basically used for transporting ores.
Chile has almost 7 000 km of railways  with connections to Argentina  Bolivia and Peru.
In Argentina  the waterway network is made up of the La Plata  Paraná  Paraguay and Uruguay rivers.
The main river ports are Zárate and Campana.
Brazil and Argentina also stand out in the road sector.
The two main merchant fleets also belong to Brazil and Argentina.
The following are those of Chile  Venezuela  Peru and Colombia.
The main public transport in major cities is the bus.
Rio de Janeiro installed the first railroad of the continent in 1854.
The Korean Peninsula was inhabited as early as the Lower Paleolithic period.
Its first kingdom was noted in Chinese records in the early 7th century BCE.
The succeeding Korean Empire was annexed into the Empire of Japan in 1910.
It is a member of the OECD s Development Assistance Committee  the G20 and the Paris Club.
Its citizens enjoy one of the world s fastest Internet connection speeds.
The country is the world s fifth largest exporter and eighth largest importer.
Etymology     The name Korea derives from the name Goryeo.
The new official name has its origin in the ancient kingdom of Gojoseon  2333 BCE .
Under Japanese rule  the two names Han and Joseon coexisted.
Great Korean People s State   listen  was adopted as the legal English name for the new country.
However  it is not a direct translation of the Korean name.
Gojoseon was noted in Chinese records in the early 7th century.
Gojoseon expanded until it controlled the northern Korean Peninsula and parts of Manchuria.
Three of the commanderies fell or retreated westward within a few decades.
Balhae was founded by a Goguryeo general and formed as a successor state to Goguryeo.
Relationships between Korea and China remained relatively peaceful during this time.
Like Silla  Goryeo was a highly cultural state  and invented the metal movable type printing press.
However  the Mongol invasions in the 13th century greatly weakened the kingdom.
In October  the Soviet Union declared Kim Il sung s government as sovereign over both parts.
No peace treaty was ever signed  resulting in the two countries remaining technically at war.
In addition  virtually all of Korea s major cities were destroyed by the war.
This instability was broken by the May 16  1961  coup led by General Park Chung hee.
The Korean economy developed significantly during Park s tenure.
In 1979  General Chun Doo hwan led the Coup d état of December Twelfth.
Following the Coup d état  Chun Doo hwan planned to rise to power through several measures.
Meanwhile  South Korea and Japan jointly co hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
In 2010  there was an escalation in attacks by North Korea.
The COVID 19 pandemic affected the nation in 2020.
Its southern tip lies on the Korea Strait and the East China Sea.
Lowlands  located primarily in the west and southeast  make up only 30  of the total land area.
Jeju do is about 100 kilometers  62 miles  off the southern coast of South Korea.
It is the country s largest island  with an area of 1 845 square kilometers  712 square miles .
South Korea has four distinct seasons  spring  summer  autumn and winter.
Rainfall is concentrated in the summer months of June through September.
They are also more difficult to design and implement than a Feed in tariff.
Efforts have also been made with afforestation projects.
Local governments are semi autonomous  and contain executive and legislative bodies of their own.
The judicial branch operates at both the national and local levels.
South Korea is a constitutional democracy.
The first direct election was also held in 1948.
The capital city of Seoul is also the country s largest city and chief industrial center.
According to the 2005 census  Seoul had a population of 10 million inhabitants.
The population has also been shaped by international migration.
South Korea is nevertheless becoming a more multi ethnic society over time due to immigration.
The percentage of foreign nationals has been growing rapidly.
South Korea has the steepest decline in working age population of the OECD nations.
The schedules are not uniformly standardized and vary from school to school.
The country has one of the world s highest educated labour forces among OECD countries.
Of the people who are affiliated with a religious organization  most are Christians and Buddhists.
Freedom of religion is guaranteed by the constitution  and there is no state religion.
Among Christian denominations  Presbyterianism is the largest.
It remained the state religion in Later Silla  North South States Period  and Goryeo.
Today  South Korea has about 7 million Buddhists  most of them affiliated to the Jogye Order.
Most of the National Treasures of South Korea are Buddhist artifacts.
Health      South Korea has a universal healthcare system.
It also had the OECD s second largest number of hospital beds per 1000 people at 9.56 beds.
Foreign relations     South Korea maintains diplomatic relations with more than 188 countries.
Moon Jae in s administration has focused on increasing South Korea s consumption of natural gas.
On June 22  Moon Jae in and Putin signed a document for foundation of free trade area.
The Liancourt Rocks were the first Korean territories to be forcibly colonized by Japan in 1905.
When concerns arise at games time we look at them on a case by case basis.
The free trade agreement was approved in September 2010  and took effect on July 1  2011.
On October 12  2011  the U.S. Congress passed the long stalled trade agreement with South Korea.
It went into effect on March 15  2012.
As of 2019 South Korea has a defense budget of  43.1 billion.
Many of these forces are concentrated near the Korean Demilitarized Zone.
All South Korean males are constitutionally required to serve in the military  typically 18 months.
Previous exceptions for South Korean citizens of mixed race no longer apply since 2011.
From time to time  South Korea has sent its troops overseas to assist American forces.
A further 1 800 were deployed since 2007 to reinforce UN peacekeeping forces in Lebanon.
The vast majority of these are young men from the Jehovah s Witnesses Christian denomination.
See Conscription in South Korea.
It recorded  the fastest rise in average GDP per capita in the world between 1980 and 1990.
South Koreans refer to this growth as the Miracle on the Han River.
Korea Expressway Corporation operates the toll highways and service amenities en route.
Korail provides frequent train services to all major South Korean cities.
Two rail lines  Gyeongui and Donghae Bukbu Line  to North Korea are now being reconnected.
The Korean high speed rail system  KTX  provides high speed service along Gyeongbu and Honam Line.
Other international airports include Gimpo  Busan and Jeju.
A second carrier  Asiana Airlines also serves domestic and international traffic.
Combined  South Korean airlines serve 297 international routes.
Fuel production and waste handling technologies have also been developed locally.
South Korea ranked number 10 overall in the 2014 NRI ranking  up from 11 in 2013.
South Korea s pension system structure is primarily based on taxation and is income related.
Voluntarily insured persons are not subjected to mandatory coverage but can choose to be.
An estimated 90  of South Koreans own a mobile phone.
The launch of Naro 1 in August 2009 resulted in a failure.
The second attempt in June 2010 was also unsuccessful.
However  the third launch of the Naro 1 in January 2013 was successful.
The Korean tea ceremony  pansori  talchum and buchaechum are also notable Korean performing arts.
Establishing a harmony between man and nature was also a favorite of this time.
Because of social instability  social issues appeared as main subjects in the 1980s.
Traditional architecture may also be seen at the nine UNESCO World Heritage Sites in South Korea.
Western architecture was first introduced to Korea at the end of the 19th century.
Ingredients and dishes vary by province.
Korean cuisine is largely based on rice  noodles  tofu  vegetables  fish and meats.
Every meal is accompanied by numerous banchan.
Soups known as guk  국  are often made with meats  shellfish and vegetables.
Similar to guk  tang  탕  湯  has less water  and is more often served in restaurants.
Popular Korean alcoholic beverages include Soju  Makgeolli and Bokbunja ju.
Korea is unique among East Asian countries in its use of metal chopsticks.
Metal chopsticks have been discovered in Goguryeo archaeological sites.
South Korean television shows have become popular outside of Korea.
South Korean television dramas  known as K dramas  have begun to find fame internationally.
Holidays      There are many official public holidays in South Korea.
Korean New Year s Day  or  Seollal   is celebrated on the first day of the Korean lunar calendar.
Korean Independence Day falls on March 1  and commemorates the March 1 Movement of 1919.
Liberation Day  on August 15  celebrates Korea s liberation from the Empire of Japan in 1945.
On October 1  Armed Forces day is celebrated  honoring the military forces of South Korea.
October 3 is National Foundation Day.
Sports      The martial art taekwondo originated in Korea.
However  the polling did not indicate the extent to which respondents follow both sports.
At the 2012 Summer Olympics  South Korea won the bronze medal for football.
The Korea Professional Baseball league  a 10 team circuit  was established in 1982.
In the 2008 Summer Olympics  South Korea won the gold medal in baseball.
Also in 1982  at the Baseball Worldcup  Korea won the gold medal.
At the 2010 Asian Games  the Korean National Baseball team won the gold medal.
Several Korean players have gone on to play in Major League Baseball.
Basketball is a popular sport in the country as well.
Seoul hosted the 1967 and 1995 Asian Basketball Championship.
The Korea national basketball team has won a record number of 23 medals at the event to date.
South Korea hosted the Asian Games in 1986  Seoul   2002  Busan   and 2014  Incheon .
The Seoul Olympic Museum is dedicated to the 1988 Summer Olympics.
On July 6  2011  Pyeongchang was chosen by the IOC to host the 2018 Winter Olympics.
At the 2010 Winter Olympics  South Korea ranked fifth in the overall medal rankings.
South Korea is especially strong in short track speed skating.
In 2011  the South Korean city of Daegu hosted the 2011 IAAF World Championships in Athletics.
The two most popular games are League of Legends and StarCraft.
The gaming scene of South Korea is managed by the Korean e Sports Association.
Southern Kyushu  南九州  Minami Kyūshū  is a subregion of the Kyushu region of Japan.
This southern region encompasses the prefectures of Kagoshima  Miyazaki  and Okinawa.
It has more of a subtropical climate than the rest of Kyushu.
It has also been referred to as the Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation.
Meanwhile  the Soviets continued their Far Eastern buildup.
The Soviets had decided that they did not wish to renew the Neutrality Pact.
Stalin expressed interest  and the Japanese awaited the Soviet response.
The Soviets continued to avoid providing a response.
The Potsdam Conference was held from 16 July to 2 August 1945.
On 24 July the Soviet Union recalled all embassy staff and families from Japan.
This secondary objective was to be carried out by the 25th Army.
Meanwhile  the 35th Army was tasked with capturing the cities of Boli  or Poli   Linkou and Mishan.
Each front had  front units  attached directly to the front instead of an army.
Approximately one third of its strength was in combat support and services.
In fact  only six of the Kwantung Army s divisions existed prior to January 1945.
This created confusion in the minds of many listeners who were not sure if Japan had surrendered.
The Emperor of Manchukuo  and former Emperor of China   Puyi  was captured by the Red Army.
In South Sakhalin and the Kurils  it meant a sudden establishment of Soviet sovereignty.
The forces already in Korea were able to establish control in the peninsula s northern area.
Later  on 8 September 1945  American forces landed at Incheon.
Japanese law only allowed children fathered by Japanese fathers to become Japanese citizens.
Property of the Japanese were also looted by the Soviet soldiers and Chinese.
The Japanese army often took part in the killings of its civilians.
In Harbin  Chinese posted slogans such as  Down with Red Imperialism!
Rays of the Rising Sun  Japan s Asian Allies 1931–45 Volume 1  China and Manchukuo.
At the conclusion of the mission  the orbiter fired its OMS to deorbit and reenter the atmosphere.
In the late 1950s  the Air Force began developing the partially reusable X 20 Dyna Soar.
The Air Force collaborated with NASA on the Dyna Soar  and began training six pilots in June 1961.
Additionally  the Air Force required a larger payload capacity than Faget s design allowed.
Enterprise was designed as a test vehicle  and did not include engines or heat shielding.
Previous NASA spacecraft had used ablative heat shields  but those could not be reused.
Later that month  Rockwell began converting STA 099 to OV 099  later named Challenger.
After the loss of Challenger  NASA resumed production of Endeavour in September 1987.
President Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy met the crew  and delivered a speech.
After STS 4  NASA declared its Space Transportation System  STS  operational.
Crew      The Space Shuttle crew varied per mission.
A Space Shuttle crew typically had seven astronauts  with STS 61 A flying with eight.
The mid deck contained a port side hatch that crew used for entry and exit while on Earth.
Additionally  each orbiter was originally installed with an internal airlock in the mid deck.
During reentry  the crew deployed two air data probes once they were traveling slower than Mach 5.
The orbiter contains two star trackers to align the IMUs while in orbit.
The star trackers are deployed while in orbit  and can automatically or manually align on a star.
In 1993  NASA flew a GPS receiver for the first time aboard STS 51.
Payloads were secured in the payload bay to the attachment points on the longerons.
The SSPTS was first used on STS 118  and was installed on Discovery and Endeavour.
The Spacelab module was tested STS 2 and STS 3  and the first full mission was on STS 9.
The engine nozzle is 287 cm  113 in  tall and has an interior diameter of 229 cm  90.3 in .
RS 25 upgrade versions were denoted as Block I and Block II.
The normal maximum throttle was 104 percent  with 106  or 109  used for mission aborts.
The AJ10 engines used monomethylhydrazine  MMH  oxidized by dinitrogen tetroxide  N2O4 .
The pods carried a maximum of 2 140 kg  4 718 lb  of MMH and 3 526 kg  7 773 lb  of N2O4.
The OMS engines were used after main engine cut off  MECO  for orbital insertion.
The TPS primarily consisted of four types of tiles.
The LOX tank was housed in the nose of the ET  and was 15 m  49.3 ft  tall.
The LH2 comprised the bulk of the ET  and was 29 m  96.7 ft  tall.
In 1998  a super light weight ET  SLWT  first flew on STS 91.
The SRB s subcomponents were the solid propellant motor  nose cone  and rocket nozzle.
The solid propellant motor comprised the majority of the SRB s structure.
Its casing consisted of 11 steel sections which made up its four main segments.
Once they were returned to Cape Canaveral  they were cleaned and disassembled.
The crawler transporters carried the MLP and the Space Shuttle from the VAB to the launch site.
The SRBs were assembled and attached to the external tank on the MLP.
At T−3 hours 45 minutes  the LH2 fast fill was complete  followed 15 minutes later by the LOX.
The Space Shuttle continued its ascent using only the RS 25 engines.
The 17 day 15 hour STS 80 mission was the longest Space Shuttle mission duration.
The primary alternate was Edwards AFB  which was used for 54 landings.
Space Shuttle program     The Space Shuttle flew from April 12  1981 until July 21  2011.
Throughout the program  the Space Shuttle had 135 missions  of which 133 returned safely.
The life of the shuttle program has cost  113.7 billion.
Retirement      The Space Shuttle retirement was announced in January 2004.
One additional Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission was approved in October 2006.
Originally  STS 134 was to be the final Space Shuttle mission.
The name given is the English version  with the native language version below.
Where there are multiple acronyms in common use  the English one is given first.
The date of the founding of the space agency is the date of first operations where applicable.
If the space agency is no longer running  then the date when it was terminated  i.e.
the last day of operations  is given.
The budgets are not normalized to the expenses of space research in different countries  i.e.
higher budget does not necessarily mean more activity or better performance in space exploration.
Budget could be used for different projects  e.g.
The data for authoritarian countries are unreliable.
Space exploration is the use of astronomy and space technology to explore outer space.
Space exploration  like its classical form astronomy  is one of the main sources for space science.
The Orbiting Astronomical Observatory 2 was the first space telescope launched on 7 December 1968.
As of 2 February 2019  there was 3 891 confirmed exoplanets discovered.
The Milky Way is estimated to contain 100–400 billion stars and more than 100 billion planets.
There are at least 2 trillion galaxies in the observable universe.
GN z11 is the most distant known object from Earth  reported as 32 billion light years away.
The results indicated that the satellite was not punctured by a meteoroid.
Sputnik 1 was launched by an R 7 rocket.
It burned up upon re entry on 3 January 1958.
The spacecraft completed one orbit around the globe  lasting about 1 hour and 48 minutes.
Pioneer 6 was the first satellite to orbit the Sun  launched on 16 December 1965.
The probe passed the heliopause at 121 AU to enter interstellar space.
Wernher von Braun was the lead rocket engineer for Nazi Germany s World War II V 2 rocket project.
Robert Gilruth was the NASA head of the Space Task Force and director of 25 crewed space flights.
Also  probes were sent throughout the known Solar system  and into Solar orbit.
The Sun     The Sun is a major focus of space exploration.
Parker Solar Probe  launched in 2018  will approach the Sun to within 1 8th the orbit of Mercury.
Mercury        Mercury remains the least explored of the Terrestrial planets.
A third mission to Mercury  scheduled to arrive in 2025  BepiColombo is to include two probes.
BepiColombo is a joint mission between Japan and the European Space Agency.
In 1967 Venera 4 became the first probe to enter and directly examine the atmosphere of Venus.
The Moon      The Moon was the first celestial body to be the object of space exploration.
The U.S. exploration of the Moon began with the Ranger 4 impactor in 1962.
In 1969  the Apollo 11 mission marked the first time humans set foot upon another world.
Crewed exploration of the Moon did not continue for long  however.
The Apollo 17 mission in 1972 marked the sixth landing and the most recent human visit there.
Artemis 2 will flyby the Moon in 2022.
Robotic missions are still pursued vigorously.
This phenomenon is also informally known as the  Mars Curse .
The first mission to Mars by any Arab country has been taken up by the United Arab Emirates.
Called the Emirates Mars Mission  it is scheduled for launch in 2020.
Hayabusa was launched on 9 May 2003 and rendezvoused with Itokawa in mid September 2005.
In November 2005  it landed on the asteroid twice to collect samples.
The spacecraft returned to Earth on 13 June 2010.
The Galileo and Juno spacecraft are the only spacecraft to have entered the planet s orbit.
The closest approach to Uranus occurred on 24 January 1986.
Voyager 2 studied the planet s unique atmosphere and magnetosphere.
Great effort was required to even identify a few clouds in the images of the planet.
It discovered 900 complete rings and additional partial ring  arcs  around Neptune.
New Horizons was launched successfully on 19 January 2006.
It was founded in 2016 by Yuri Milner  Stephen Hawking  and Mark Zuckerberg.
Such expeditions could generate a lot of revenue.
Some of the reasons are lack of natural resources  comets  nuclear war  and worldwide epidemic.
There are too many accidents that can befall life on a single planet.
We will reach out to the stars.
Satellites      Satellites are used for a large number of purposes.
Space stations and human spacecraft in orbit are also satellites.
The next step of commercialization of space was seen as human spaceflight.
Flying humans safely to and from space had become routine to NASA.
Great names like Buzz Aldrin supported the use of making a reusable vehicle like the space shuttle.
It is focused primarily on the study of the origin  distribution and evolution of life.
It is also known as exobiology  from Greek  έξω  exo   outside  .
As one can see  travelling and possibly living in space poses many challenges.
Women        The first woman to ever enter space was Valentina Tereshkova.
She flew in 1963 but it was not until the 1980s that another woman entered space again.
Since then  eleven other countries have allowed women astronauts.
The first all female space walk occurred in 2018  including Christina Koch and Jessica Meir.
These two women have both participated in separate space walks with NASA.
The first woman to go to the moon is planned for 2024.
Approximately 15 missions are currently operational.
To reach another planet  the simplest practical method is a Hohmann transfer orbit.
Luna 3     First mission to photograph the far side of the Moon  launched in 1959.
Luna 16     First robotic sample return probe from the Moon.
After 20 seconds  transmission stopped for unknown reasons.
They were each launched in 2003 and landed in 2004.
Communication with Spirit stopped on sol 2210  March 22  2010 .
Sakigake      This Japanese probe was the first non US  non Soviet interplanetary probe.
Suisei      A second Japanese probe  it made ultraviolet wavelength observations of the comet.
Genesis     First solar wind sample return probe from sun earth L1.
Stardust     First sample return probe from a comet tail.
NEAR Shoemaker     First probe to land on an asteroid.
Hayabusa     First sample return probe to launch from an asteroid.
Pioneer 11     First probe to fly by Saturn.
Communications were later lost due to power constraints and vast distance.
Voyager 1      Voyager 1 is a 7200 kilogram  with fuel  spaceprobe launched September 5  1977.
Voyager 2     Voyager 2 was launched by NASA on August 20  1977.
It is currently the only spaceprobe to have visited the ice giants.
It is the fourth of five spacecraft to have left the solar system.
It has been operational for 41 years and 2 months as of October 20  2018.
The NASA probe was launched with ESA lander Huygens on October 1  1997 from Cape Canaveral.
New Horizons     First probe to be launched to Pluto.
Launched on January 19  2006  it flew by the Pluto–Charon system on July 14  2015.
Juno     First probe to Jupiter without atomic batteries  launched August 8  2011.
Most information on the unit has been confidential  its existence officially revealed only in 1996.
Recruitment and training     Members are recruited from Riot Police Units.
It is said that they will be subject to inspection and inspection for officers under 30 years old.
The Howa Type 64 rifle was also used as designated marksman rifles.
Posthumously promoted to Captain  he is the first SAT officer killed in action.
Sports in Japan is a significant part of Japanese culture.
Sumo wrestling is considered Japan s national sport.
Baseball was introduced to the country by visiting Americans in the 19th century.
Some new sports were invented by changing elements of imported sports.
Many sumo rituals are closely associated with Shinto belief.
if a well liked fisherman competed and won  a good catch was predicted for the year.
The Kamakura period was a starting point for many martial arts.
Kyūdō became popular as kyujutsu  literally bow skill  as a pastime for the samurai class.
Yabusame also started as a sport in this period  but is now considered a sacred ceremony.
Edo period     In the Edo period  sports became a popular way to spend time.
The only problem was that they were often accompanied by gambling.
In the Olympic Games  archers shoot over a distance of only 70 meters.
Playing sports was adopted as a school activity and matches between universities became popular.
In 1911  an Austrian gave skiing instruction to the Japanese army.
There were also some minor sports like table tennis and fencing.
They are not national sports  but are also mildly popular.
Keirin racing has also become an Olympic Games event since the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.
In 2021  Japan will host the Tokyo 2020 Olympics  due to the delay due to the COVID 19 pandemic.
Note that most practitioners in the martial arts are not professional  but played by amateurs.
Notes    Ladies professional soccer league  WE League will start in the 2021 22 season.
Japan has no professional American Football teams.
Horse racing   25 races have international Grade I ratings.
Arima Kinen is the world s biggest betting race.
Most martial arts can be started as little as 5 to 6 years old.
Middle and high schools also encourage their students to join school sport clubs.
The event was documented in Tokyo Olympiad by filmmaker  Kon Ichikawa.
Tokyo will host the 2020 Summer Olympics.
The 2019 Rugby World Cup  or  RWC 2019  will be hosted by Japan.
Many major figure skating events are regularly held in Japan.
Individual sports          Sumo wrestling      Sumo wrestling is the national sport in Japan.
Life as a wrestler is highly regimented  with rules regulated by the Japan Sumo Association.
It was the first example of boxing conveyed to Japan.
Figure skating events in Japan are well attended and TV broadcasts attract a large audience.
Skater Dorothy Hamill is known to have received pearls from the Japanese royal family in the 1970s.
The NHK Trophy  a major figure skating Grand Prix event  is hosted in Japan every year.
In the 1990s  Noriaki Kasai and Kazuyoshi Funaki scored many wins in the FIS Ski Jumping World Cup.
More recently  Ryoyu Kobayashi won the overall title in the 2018 19 season.
Table Tennis     Table tennis is popular both as competition and recreation.
Takuma Sato won the Indianapolis 500 twice  in 2017 and 2020.
It was introduced to Japan in 1872  by Horace Wilson  who taught at the Kaisei School in Tokyo.
The first baseball team was called the Shimbashi Athletic Club and was established in 1878.
Baseball has been a popular sport ever since.
It is called 野球  やきゅう  yakyū  in Japanese  combining the characters for fielding and ball.
The match was the first recorded international baseball game in Asia.
Since then  teams from Japan have traveled to learn from their American counterparts.
Waseda University was one of the first teams to cross the ocean to improve their skills.
Other universities in Japan made similar trips  and U.S. teams traveled to Japan to play.
In 1913 to 1922  American MLB stars visited Japan and played against university teams.
They also held clinics on technique.
Baseball is also played in Japan s junior and senior high schools.
Association Football      Association football is one of the most popular sports in Japan.
The Japan Football Association  JFA   is the governing body of Japanese football.
The JFA organizes the men s  women s  and futsal national teams.
Their best result was Round 2 in 2002  2010 and 2018.
The team s highest ranking was 9th in the world in February 1998.
The prime basketball league in the country is the B.League.
He is a son between a Beninese father and Japanese mother.
Cricket      Cricket is one of the fastest growing sports in the country at grassroots level.
It is an associate member of the International Cricket Council.
Ice hockey      Ice hockey is a minor sport but growing in popularity.
Currently  4 Japanese teams compete in the Asia League Ice Hockey.
Rugby union      Rugby union is a moderately popular sport in Japan.
The Japanese rugby team has been playing in international tournaments since the 1930s.
The 2016 season saw the addition of three new teams  including the first ever entry from Argentina.
In 2015 an amateur form of mud tag rugby was invented.
American football      The X League is the top league in Japan.
It was founded in 1971  it has 60 teams split into 4 divisions.
The final game is the Japan X Bowl.
Japan hosted the 2007 IFAF World Championship  but placed 2nd to the United States.
Japan placed 3rd in the 2011 IFAF World Championship.
Additionally  Japan has eight major college football leagues.
At the most recent event  2018   it finished 6th out of 46.
JBF sent a team to 2012 Bandy World Championship and has participated ever since.
Already in 2012 they started having plans to build a full sized bandy arena similar to Medeu.
2  Many cities are interested in hosting teams.
In terms of licensed athletes  bandy is the second biggest winter sport in the world.
Tokyo  Japan  Baseball Magazine Sha Co.  Ltd. p. 61.
It is maintained by Stanford University.
Approach and history    As of March 2018  the SEP has nearly 1 600 published entries.
It is sometimes also referred to as Shōwa nationalism or Japanese fascism.
The complicity of the politicians with the zaibatsu corporate monopolies also came under criticism.
During the Meiji Restoration  there had been a surge in the creation of monopolies.
The state itself owned some of the monopolies  and others were owned by the zaibatsu.
Over 30 000 such arrests were made between 1930 and 1933.
Some of the distinctive features of this policy were also used outside Japan.
These  he combined with Japanese militarist thinking.
However  the Shōwa Restoration had different meanings for different groups.
This was the purpose behind the February 26 Incident and other similar uprisings in Japan.
This was part of a program to create a classless national unity.
The TRTA is now the Tokyo Metro.
The Kami  Japan s gods and goddesses  have Japan under their special protection.
Thus  the people and soil of Dai Nippon and all its institutions are superior to all others.
The final idea that was modified in modern times was the concept of Bushido.
In later years  the code of Bushido found a resurgence in belief following the Meiji Restoration.
During the 1930s Japan drifted further away from Western Europe and the United States.
After the surrender of Japan  Japan was put under Allied occupation.
Bulletin of Concerned Asian Scholars v. 14 pp.
Subtropical climates are often characterized by hot summers and mild winters with infrequent frost.
Plants such as palms  citrus  mango  pistachio  lychee  and avocado are grown in the subtropics.
Temperatures     Several methods have been used to define the subtropical climate.
The frost line separates the warm temperate region from the subtropical region.
It represents the dividing line between two major physiological groups of evolved plants.
On the warmer side of the line  the majority of the plants are sensitive to low temperatures.
They can be killed back by frosts as they have not evolved to withstand periods of cold.
This definition  though restricted to dry regions  is almost similar to Holdridge s.
This circulation is known as the Hadley cell and leads to the formation of the subtropical ridge.
Apple  pear and pomegranate also grow well in the subtropics.
Normally  rainfall is concentrated in the warmest months of the year.
Other classifications such as the Köppen climate classification do not include it as subtropical.
The climate is characterized by hot dry summers and cooler winters with rainfall.
In Japan  suicide  自殺  jisatsu  is considered a major social issue.
The  Not Employed  category also includes pensioners  homemakers and others.
The motives for suicides may be related to bullying  but can also be due to abuse from teachers.
In the period leading up to 1988  around 30 suicides occurred there every year.
The area is patrolled by police looking for suicides.
The National Police Agency states that one fourth of all suicides are financially motivated.
This cultural tolerance may stem from the historical function of suicide in the military.
Traditionally  seppuku involved the slashing open of one s stomach with a sword.
For the Japanese  acceptance and conformity are valued above one s individuality.
As a result of this perspective  one s worth is associated with how one is perceived by others.
Another difference is that mutual consent from those who die by historical shinjū was not required.
Furthermore  stigma surrounding mental health care still exists in Japan.
In 2009  the Japanese government committed 15.8 billion yen towards suicide prevention strategies.
In 2012  the number of annual suicides in Japan dropped below 30 000.
It seeks to decrease the number of suicides to no more than 16 000 by 2025.
The government has pledged to screen the mental health of post natal mothers.
This came after a huge increase on Japan s suicide rate during the COVID 19 pandemic in 2020.
Judo  柔道  jūdō  Japanese pronunciation   dʑɯꜜːdoː   lit.
It was also referred to as Kanō Jiu Jitsu until the introduction to the Olympic Games.
A judo practitioner is called a  judoka   and the judo uniform is called  judogi .
Kano was born into a relatively affluent family.
Another frequent visitor  Imai Genshiro of Kyūshin ryū  扱心流  school of jujutsu  also refused.
The Eisho ji dōjō was originally shoin.
It was a relatively small affair  consisting of a 12 jo  214 sq ft  training area.
This is the theory of ju yoku go o seisu.
Even if I wanted to teach jujitsu most people had now stopped thinking about it.
Thus Kano renamed it Jūdō  柔道  judo .
Atemi waza are not permitted outside of kata.
Attacks are made unarmed and armed with a dagger and a sword.
This kata utilises atemi waza  striking techniques  that are forbidden in randori.
This kata incorporates various jujutsu techniques such as wrist locks and atemi waza.
Itsutsu no kata  五の形  The five forms .
The kata predates the creation of Kodokan and originated in Tenjin Shinyō ryū.
Koshiki no kata  古式の形  Traditional forms .
Derived from Kitō ryū Jujutsu  this kata was originally intended to be performed wearing armour.
Kano chose to preserve it as it embodied the principles of judo.
A series of exercises designed to develop the physique for judo.
Nage waza ura no kata  投げ技裏の形  Another kata of counter techniques  created by Kyuzo Mifune.
Finger  toe and ankle locks were prohibited.
These were further added to in 1925.
Prof. Jigoro Kano for a long time wished to see judo as an Olympic discipline.
My view on the matter  at present  is rather passive.
If it be the desire of other member countries  I have no objection.
But I do not feel inclined to take any initiative.
For one thing  judo in reality is not a mere sport or game.
I regard it as a principle of life  art and science.
In fact  it is a means for personal cultural attainment.
Human sacrifice is a matter of ancient history.
There were only two dissenting votes in the final poll.
The Olympic Committee initially dropped judo for the 1968 Olympics  meeting protests.
Fighting must be stopped if a participant is outside the designated area on the mat.
Two scores of waza ari equal an ippon waza ari awasete ippon  技あり合わせて一本    .
This rule was cancelled in 2017  but it was resumed in 2018.
In January 2013  the Hantei was removed and the  Golden Score  no longer has a time limit.
Penalties      Two types of penalties may be awarded.
A shido  指導 –  literally  guidance   is awarded for minor rule infringements.
A shido can also be awarded for a prolonged period of non aggression.
Recent rule changes allow for the first shidos to result in only warnings.
Note  Prior to 2017  the 4th shido was hansoku make.
Kosen judo s focus on newaza has drawn comparisons with Brazilian jiu jitsu.
Vasili Oshchepkov was the first European judo black belt under Kano.
Oshchepkov died during the political purges of 1937.
Freestyle Judo is currently backed by the International Freestyle Judo Alliance  IFJA .
Safety    Kano s vision for judo was one of a martial way that could be practiced realistically.
Safety necessitated some basic innovations that shaped judo s development.
For these reasons  throws are normally taught in order of difficulty for both tori and uke.
Judoka  practitioner     A practitioner of judo is known as a judoka  柔道家 .
A judo teacher is called sensei  先生 .
The word sensei comes from sen or saki  before  and sei  life  – i.e.
In Western dōjō  it is common to call an instructor of any dan grade sensei.
Traditionally  that title was reserved for instructors of 4th dan and above.
A judoka s position within the kyu dan ranking system is displayed by the color of their belt.
Filmography    Akira Kurosawa  Sanshiro Sugata  姿三四郎  Sugata Sanshirō  aka Judo Saga   1943.
Akira Kurosawa  Sanshiro Sugata Part II  續姿三四郎  Zoku Sugata Sanshirō  aka Judo Saga II   1945.
The series was created based on the European Formula Two Championship.
Due to this difference  the series did not fit in with the Formula Two regulations in those days.
Therefore  the series was renamed  Formula 2000   not  Formula Two .
With this change the reasoning behind the name  Formula 2000  disappeared.
It led to the series being renamed the  All Japan Formula Two Championship  from 1978.
The JAF considered starting a new Formula Two series from 1988.
However  all entrants ran Formula 3000 cars in 1987.
So  the 1987 Formula Two Championship was cancelled due to no entry of any cars for that format.
It attracted many promising young drivers outside of Japan to compete in the series.
Inevitably  the bubble burst led to the decline of the series.
The 2006 season got off to one of the strangest starts in motorsport history.
In 2006 Formula Nippon underwent a drastic revision of its regulations.
A new Lola FN06 chassis was introduced  while the engine formula underwent drastic revision.
Super GT  stylized as SUPER GT  is a grand touring car racing series that began in 1993.
It is the top level of sports car racing in Japan.
Autobacs has served as the title sponsor of the series since 2005.
The cars     The cars are divided into two groups  GT300 and GT500.
However  the current generation of GT500 powerplants produce in excess of 650 horsepower.
A longtail version of the F1 GTR would later score a race victory in 2001.
The Ferrari F40 also won a race in the early years of GT500.
Turbocharger      The standard turbochargers are introduced from the start of 2014 season.
Lexus  Nissan  and Subaru also campaign works supported cars in the class.
Both cars were heavily modified from their production counterparts.
All adjustments to the regulations and the balance of performance are publicly accessible.
Stickers on the cars display every car s weight handicap level.
Teams missing only one round receive halved ballast in the final race instead.
In 2017  the weight handicap system for GT500 cars was amended to add fuel flow restrictions.
Actual weight ballast will be capped at 50 kilograms for reasons of practicality and safety.
Japanese drivers has produced the most winning drivers with 26.
Italian driver Ronnie Quintarelli won the most drivers championship titles with four.
The Race – International live streaming  except Japan  – free access.
Astro – Malaysia live telecast on Astro SuperSport  Astro SuperSport HD and Astro GO App.
This  Miyamoto Affair  resulted in significant media coverage and protest by other judges.
Since then  no judge has failed to be reappointed.
Composition     The composition of the Supreme Court is defined by the 1947 Judiciary Act.
The Supreme Court is composed of a Chief Justice and fourteen other Justices.
These Justices are divided into three Petty Benches of five  which adjudicate most appeals.
Justices are required to be over the age of forty and possess an extensive knowledge of the law.
It moved to the Tokyo District Court building in September of that year.
Construction began in 1971 and concluded in 1974.
The new and now current Supreme Court building is located at 4 2 Hayabusa cho  Chiyoda  Tokyo.
There are five floors above ground and two floors below ground.
On August 28  the occupation of Japan led by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers began.
The state of war formally ended when the Treaty of San Francisco came into force on April 28  1952.
After the Japanese loss of the Philippines  Koiso in turn was replaced by Admiral Kantarō Suzuki.
The Allies captured the nearby islands of Iwo Jima and Okinawa in the first half of 1945.
Only Mitsumasa Yonai  the Navy minister  was known to desire an early end to the war.
However  many historians reject this.
Japanese leaders had always envisioned a negotiated settlement to the war.
This policy was adopted by the Big Six on June 6.
Tōgō opposed it  while the other five supported it.
Kido proposed that the Emperor take action  by offering to end the war on  very generous terms.
This confirmed my opinion that we were no longer in a position to continue the war.
On June 22  the Emperor summoned the Big Six to a meeting.
It was agreed to solicit Soviet aid in ending the war.
Satō was to discuss the status of Manchuria and  any matter the Russians would like to bring up.
Satō finally met with Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov on July 11  but without result.
Soviet intentions      Security concerns dominated Soviet decisions concerning the Far East.
Chief among these was gaining unrestricted access to the Pacific Ocean.
The Japanese would have to surrender unconditionally to all the Allies.
To prolong the war  the Soviets opposed any attempt to weaken this requirement.
Groves formed a committee that met in April and May 1945 to draw up a list of targets.
This would allow for an accurate assessment of the damage done by the atomic bomb.
The targeting committee s list included 18 Japanese cities.
At the top of the list were Kyoto  Hiroshima  Yokohama  Kokura  and Niigata.
In a June 21 meeting  it reaffirmed that there was no alternative.
To this end  access to  as distinguished from control of  raw materials shall be permitted.
Eventual Japanese participation in world trade relations shall be permitted.
The alternative for Japan is prompt and utter destruction.
As for the Government  it does not attach any important value to it at all.
The only thing to do is just kill it with silence  mokusatsu .
We shall destroy their docks  their factories  and their communications.
Let there be no mistake  we shall completely destroy Japan s power to make war.
Their leaders promptly rejected that ultimatum.
The Soviet 16th Army—100 000 strong—launched an invasion of the southern half of Sakhalin Island.
The Soviet declaration of war also changed the calculation of how much time was left for maneuver.
Japanese intelligence was predicting that U.S. forces might not invade for months.
Soviet forces  on the other hand  could be in Japan proper in as little as 10 days.
The Soviet invasion made a decision on ending the war extremely time sensitive.
The Supreme Council met at 10 30.
By the time the meeting ended  the Big Six had split 3–3.
We have laid down the general terms on which they can surrender.
Our warning went unheeded  our terms were rejected.
Since then the Japanese have seen what our atomic bomb can do.
They can foresee what it will do in the future.
The world will note that the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima  a military base.
But that attack is only a warning of things to come.
I realize the tragic significance of the atomic bomb.
Its production and its use were not lightly undertaken by this Government.
But we knew that our enemies were on the search for it.
We know now how close they were to finding it.
We won the race of discovery against the Germans.
Having found the bomb we have used it.
We shall continue to use it until we completely destroy Japan s power to make war.
Only a Japanese surrender will stop us.
The cabinet meeting adjourned at 17 30 with no consensus.
Suzuki presented Anami s four condition proposal as the consensus position of the Supreme Council.
The cabinet debated  but again no consensus emerged.
I cannot bear to see my innocent people suffer any longer.
It is now August and the fortifications still have not been completed.
There are those who say the key to national survival lies in a decisive battle in the homeland.
I do not believe that the discrepancy in the case of Kujūkuri can be rectified.
Since this is also the shape of things  how can we repel the invaders?
He then made some specific reference to the increased destructiveness of the atomic bomb.
Nevertheless  the time has come to bear the unbearable.
Once the Emperor had left  Suzuki pushed the cabinet to accept the Emperor s will  which it did.
The Allies sent their response  via the Swiss Foreign Affairs Department  on August 12.
Anami returned to his position that there be no occupation of Japan.
This way we don t have to say that we have quit the war because of domestic circumstances.
That day  Hirohito informed the imperial family of his decision to surrender.
The Emperor simply replied  of course.
Meanwhile  the Allies grew doubtful  waiting for the Japanese to respond.
The Allies took this coded response as non acceptance of the terms.
A total of 1 014 aircraft were used with no losses.
This was the last operational refinery in the Japan Home Islands  and it produced 67  of their oil.
The Emperor met with the most senior Army and Navy officers.
While several spoke in favor of fighting on  Field Marshal Shunroku Hata did not.
The cabinet immediately convened and unanimously ratified the Emperor s wishes.
General Anami refused to say whether he would help the young officers in treason.
Tanaka refused  and ordered Hatanaka to go home.
Whether the crime involved losing the war  or the coup  remains unclear.
At some time after 01 00  Hatanaka and his men surrounded the palace.
Mori was in a meeting with his brother in law  Michinori Shiraishi.
The cooperation of Mori  as commander of the 1st Imperial Guards Division  was crucial.
These were the only two murders of the night.
The two men were hiding in the  bank vault   a large chamber underneath the Imperial Palace.
Many of the names of the rooms were unrecognizable to the rebels.
The rebels did find the chamberlain Tokugawa.
Hiranuma escaped through a side gate and the rebels burned his house as well.
He convinced them to return to their barracks.
Shiizaki stabbed himself with a dagger  and then shot himself.
But now the war has lasted for nearly four years.
We are keenly aware of the inmost feelings of all of you  Our subjects.
In addition  the Emperor did not explicitly mention surrender in his speech.
The Soviet Union continued to fight until early September  taking the Kuril Islands.
August 14 and 15 are commemorated as Victory over Japan Day in many Allied countries.
The Soviet Union had some intentions of occupying Hokkaidō.
The Japanese pilots were acting without authorization from the Japanese government.
They caused only minor damage and were held at bay by the B 32 gunners.
One of the bomber s crewmen was killed and two others wounded.
It was the last aerial engagement of the war.
The 11th Airborne Division was airlifted from Okinawa to Atsugi Airdrome  50 km  30 mi  from Tokyo.
No Allied personnel were to eat the scarce Japanese food.
Flying the Hinomaru or  Rising Sun  flag was severely restricted.
The Kuomintang took over the administration of Taiwan on October 25.
It was not until 1947 that all prisoners held by America and Britain were repatriated.
As late as April 1949  China still held more than 60 000 Japanese prisoners.
Some may never have heard of it.
The Last Raid  How World War Two Ended .
The Last Mission  The Secret Story of World War II s Final Battle.
The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb.
The Atomic Bombs and the Soviet Invasion  What Drove Japan s Decision to Surrender? .
Dongpo pork  a prominent dish in Hangzhou cuisine  is named in his honor.
Life    Su Shi was born in Meishan  near Mount Emei today Sichuan province.
His brother Su Zhe and his father Su Xun were both famous literati.
Su s early education was conducted under a Taoist priest at a local village school.
Later his educated mother took over.
Su Shi s first remote trip of exile  1080–1086  was to Huangzhou  Hubei.
This post carried a nominal title  but no stipend  leaving Su in poverty.
During this period  he began Buddhist meditation.
With help from a friend  Su built a small residence on a parcel of land in 1081.
Su Shi lived at a farm called Dongpo   Eastern Slope    from which he took his literary pseudonym.
His most famous piece of calligraphy  Han Shi Tie  was also written there.
Family     Su Shi had three wives.
Wang chided Su for his silliness  prompting Su to write the domestic poem Young Son  《小兒》 .
Wang was only about ten  eleven sui  when she became his personal slave.
After she taught  herself to read though she was formerly illiterate.
Zhaoyun was probably the most famous of Su s companions.
Zhaoyun bore Su a son  Su Dun  蘇遁  on 15 November 1083  who died in his infancy.
After Zhaoyun s death  Su never married again.
In 1078  he was serving as prefect of Suzhou.
It was written to be sung to the tune of  Yang Pass.
Su Dai  蘇迨  and Su Guo  蘇過  are his other sons.
Su Shi also founded the haofang school  which cultivated an attitude of heroic abandon.
Gastronome      Su is called one of the four classical gastronomes.
The other three are Ni Zan  1301–74   Xu Wei  1521–93   and Yuan Mei  1716–97 .
Perhaps it is just because he would have liked it.
A story runs that once Su Dongpo decided to make stewed pork.
Selected Poems of Su Tung p o  English only   Copper Canyon Press  1994  Xu Yuanchong  translator .
Hunan  Hunan People s Publishing House  2007.
Adagio for Su Tung p o  Poems on How Consciousness Uses Flesh to Float through Space Time.
87  of Swedes live in urban areas  which cover 1.5  of the entire land area.
The highest concentration is in the central and southern half of the country.
Sweden is part of the geographical area of Fennoscandia.
The climate is in general mild for its northerly latitude due to significant maritime influence.
An independent Swedish state emerged during the early 12th century.
This led to the forming of the Scandinavian Kalmar Union in 1397  which Sweden left in 1523.
This became one of the great powers of Europe until the early 18th century.
In 2014  Sweden celebrated 200 years of peace  breaking even Switzerland s record for peace.
It is a unitary state  currently divided into 21 counties and 290 municipalities.
Etymology     The word Sweden is derived from 17th century Middle Dutch and Middle Low German.
In Old English the country was named Swéoland and Swíoríce  Old Norse Svíaríki .
In Scots Swane  Swaine  appears in the 16th century.
Suetidi is considered to be the Latin form of Svíþjóð  the Old Norse name for the Swedes.
Jordanes describes the Suetidi and Dani as being of the same stock and the tallest of people.
He later mentions other Scandinavian tribes as being of a same stature.
The Swedish Vikings  called Rus are believed to be the founding fathers of Kievan Rus .
Each man has an axe  a sword  and a knife  and keeps each by him at all times.
The swords are broad and grooved  of Frankish sort.
Its members are commemorated on the Ingvar runestones  none of which mentions any survivor.
What happened to the crew is unknown  but it is believed that they died of sickness.
Sweden and Gothia were two separate nations long before that and since antiquity.
North of Halland  Denmark had a direct border to Norway and its province Bohuslän.
But there were Swedish settlements along the southern coastline of Norrland.
Indeed  both slavery and serfdom were abolished altogether by a decree of King Magnus IV in 1335.
Former slaves tended to be absorbed into the peasantry  and some became labourers in the towns.
The population of Sweden and most of Europe was seriously decimated.
One third of the population died in the triennium of 1349–1351.
This is sometimes considered as the foundation of modern Sweden.
In exchange  they offered a certain amount of protection to the joining cities.
Having their own navy  the Hansa were able to sweep the Baltic Sea free of pirates.
They sought agreement to be free of all customs and taxes.
History now views Gustav I as the father of the modern Swedish nation.
The foundations laid by Gustav would take time to develop.
Swedish Empire      During the 17th century  Sweden emerged as a European great power.
After more than half a century of almost constant warfare  the Swedish economy had deteriorated.
This gave Russia time to rebuild and modernise its army.
The defeat meant the beginning of the end for the Swedish Empire.
The 1814 campaign was the last time Sweden was at war.
Modern history      The Swedish East India Company  Ostindiska Kompaniet  began in 1731.
Between 1750 and 1850  the population in Sweden doubled.
Many looked towards America for a better life during this time.
It is thought that between 1850 and 1910 more than one million Swedes moved to the United States.
In 1889 The Swedish Social Democratic Party was founded.
Sweden also supplied steel and machined parts to Germany throughout the war.
Sweden received aid under the Marshall Plan and participated in the OECD.
In the 1980s several key Swedish industries were significantly restructured.
Eventually the government began to spend over half of the country s gross domestic product.
Swedish GDP per capita ranking declined during this time.
Sweden s GDP declined by around 5 .
Sweden joined the European Union on 1 January 1995.
In a 2003 referendum the Swedish electorate voted against the country joining the Euro currency.
Among others  Swedish companies export weapons that were used by the American military in Iraq.
Sweden also participated in enforcing a UN mandated no fly zone over Libya during the Arab Spring.
Sweden held the chair of the European Union from 1 July to 31 December 2009.
The influx of immigrants has brought new social challenges.
Finland is located to its north east.
Its border with Norway  1 619 km long  is the longest uninterrupted border within Europe.
The highest point is Kebnekaise at 2 111 m  6 926 ft  above sea level.
Sweden has 25 provinces or landskap  based on culture  geography and history.
The sparsely populated Norrland encompasses almost 60  of the country.
About 15  of Sweden lies north of the Arctic Circle.
Southern Sweden is predominantly agricultural  with increasing forest coverage northward.
Around 65  of Sweden s total land area is covered with forests.
Gotland and Öland are Sweden s largest islands  Vänern and Vättern are its largest lakes.
Vänern is the third largest in Europe  after Lake Ladoga and Lake Onega in Russia.
Because of Sweden s high latitude  the length of daylight varies greatly.
Sweden receives between 1 100 and 1 900 hours of sunshine annually.
During July there is not much difference in temperature between the north and south of the country.
The cold winters occur when low pressure systems are weaker.
Nights normally remain cool  especially in inland areas.
Summers can be cool  especially in the north of the country.
Despite northerly locations  southern and central Sweden may have almost no snow in some winters.
Sweden is divided in five major vegetation zones.
The region is characterised by a large wealth of trees and shrubs.
The beech are the most dominant tree  but oak can also form smaller forests.
elm at one time formed forests  but have been heavily reduced due to Dutch Elm disease.
Spruce is not native but between approximately 1870 and 1980  large areas were planted with it.
This is however not the case with oak and ash.
The northern coniferous forest zone  or the Taiga begins north of the natural boundary of the oak.
Of deciduous species the birch is the only one of significance.
The local authorities have self rule  as mandated by the Constitution  and their own tax base.
General elections are held every four years  on the second Sunday of September.
Legislation may be initiated by the Government or by members of the Riksdag.
Members are elected on the basis of proportional representation to a four year term.
There is no stare decisis in that courts are not bound by precedent  although it is influential.
After 1932  most governments have been dominated by the Social Democrats.
The 1994 election saw the return of the Greens and the demise of New Democracy.
The Alliance won a plurality of 173 seats  but remained two seats short of a 175 seat majority.
The non aligned Sweden Democrats more than doubled their support and won the remaining 49 seats.
Every county council corresponds to a county  län  with a number of municipalities per county.
Municipalities are also divided into a total of 2 512 parishes  församlingar .
Political history      The actual age of the kingdom of Sweden is unknown.
Many of these kings are only mentioned in various saga and blend with Norse mythology.
This title was used up until 1973.
The monarchy became hereditary in 1544.
In 1971 the parliament became unicameral.
Legislative power was  symbolically  shared between the King and the Riksdag until 1975.
Swedish taxation is controlled by the Riksdag.
Sweden has low levels of burglary  car theft and drug problems.
Prisons were closed in the towns of Åby  Håja  Båtshagen  and Kristianstad.
During World War II Sweden joined neither the allied nor axis powers.
The function of the Swedish military was to deter attack.
In 1952  a Swedish DC 3 was shot down over the Baltic Sea by a Soviet MiG 15 jet fighter.
Later investigations revealed that the plane was actually gathering information for NATO.
The incident triggered a diplomatic crisis between Sweden and the Soviet Union.
Military      The law is enforced in Sweden by several government entities.
The Swedish police is a Government agency concerned with police matters.
The National Task Force is a national SWAT unit within the police force.
The armed forces are divided into Army  Air Force and Navy.
By law  all soldiers serving abroad must be volunteers.
In 1975  the total number of conscripts was 45 000.
By 2003  it was down to 15 000.
The total forces gathered would consist of about 60 000 personnel.
The first recruits began their training in 2018.
As the law is now gender neutral  both men and women may have to serve.
Sweden is an export oriented mixed economy.
Sweden is the ninth largest arms exporter in the world.
Large organisations  both in manufacturing and services  dominate the Swedish economy.
The typical worker receives 40  of his or her labour costs after the tax wedge.
Total tax collected by Sweden as a percentage of its GDP peaked at 52.3  in 1990.
Sweden is the top performing country in the 2014 Global Green Economy Index  GGEI .
Sweden is ranked fourth in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2013.
In the following two decades the property sector strengthened.
Energy      Sweden s energy market is largely privatised.
At the same time  the use of biofuels  peat etc.
produced 13 TWh  9   of electricity  while wind power produced 1 TWh  1  .
Sweden was a net importer of electricity by a margin of 6 TWh.
Since then  electricity has been generated mostly from hydropower and nuclear power.
The use of nuclear power has been limited  however.
In March 2005  an opinion poll showed that 83  supported maintaining or increasing nuclear power.
Motorways run through Sweden and over the Øresund Bridge to Denmark.
The counties have financing  ticket and marketing responsibility for local trains.
For other trains the operators handle tickets and marketing themselves.
Operators include SJ  Veolia Transport  DSB  Green Cargo  Tågkompaniet and Inlandsbanan.
Most of the railways are owned and operated by Trafikverket.
Most tram nets were closed in 1967  as Sweden changed from left side to right side driving.
A new tram line is set to open in Lund in 2019.
Copenhagen Airport also is the largest international airport in Scandinavia and Finland.
Sweden also has a number of car ferry connections to several neighbouring countries.
This includes a route from Umeå across the Gulf of Bothnia to Vaasa in Finland.
Trelleborg is the busiest ferry port in Sweden in terms of weight transported by lorry.
Sweden has two domestic ferry lines with large vessels  both connecting Gotland with the mainland.
A smaller car ferry connects the island of Ven in Øresund with Landskrona.
Public policy      Sweden has one of the most highly developed welfare states in the world.
After World War II a succession of governments expanded the welfare state by raising the taxes.
During this period Sweden s economic growth was also one of the highest in the industrial world.
Growth has been higher than in many other EU 15 countries.
Sweden is starting to look like the USA.
Nevertheless  it remains far more egalitarian than most nations.
Since the 1930s  the agricultural sector had been subject to price controls.
As a result  food prices fell somewhat.
Certain items are subject to additional taxes  e.g.
Only Denmark has a larger public sector  38  of Danish workforce .
Spending on transfers is also high.
In 2015 and 2016  69 per cent of the employed workers is organised in trade unions.
Sweden has state supported union unemployment funds  Ghent system .
Science and technology      In the 18th century  Sweden s scientific revolution took off.
Previously  technical progress had mainly come from mainland Europe.
Many of the companies founded by early pioneers still remain major international brands.
Gustaf Dalén founded AGA  and received the Nobel Prize for his sun valve.
Alfred Nobel invented dynamite and instituted the Nobel Prizes.
Tetra Pak was an invention for storing liquid foods  invented by Erik Wallenberg.
For several decades the Swedish government has prioritised scientific and R D activities.
Sweden tops other European countries in the number of published scientific works per capita.
Both installations will be built in Lund.
The MAX IV  costing some SEK 3 billion  was inaugurated on 21 June 2016.
Both facilities have strong implications on material research.
Total tax collected by Sweden as a percentage of its GDP peaked at 52.3  in 1990.
Pensions      Every Swedish resident receives a state pension.
Swedish Pensions Agency is responsible for pensions.
A person can receive a combination of the various types of pensions.
Demographics     The total resident population of Sweden was 10 377 781 in October 2020.
63  of Swedes are in large urban areas.
It is substantially higher in the south than in the north.
The second  and third largest cities are Gothenburg and Malmö.
The mountains and most of the remote coastal areas are almost unpopulated.
There are more than 4.4 million Swedish Americans according to a 2006 US Census Bureau estimate.
In addition  780 199 persons had one parent born abroad with the other parent born in Sweden.
Sweden has one of the oldest populations in the world  with the average age of 41.1 years.
Swedish became Sweden s official language on 1 July 2009  when a new language law was implemented.
Most students also study one and sometimes two additional languages.
These include  but are not limited to  German  French and Spanish.
Some Danish and Norwegian is at times also taught as part of Swedish courses for native speakers.
However  until 1860 it remained illegal for Lutherans to convert to another religion.
In 2000  the Church of Sweden was disestablished.
Approximately 2  of the church s members regularly attend Sunday services.
Since 1996  only children and adults who are christened become members.
45  answered that  they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force .
Religion continues to play a role in Swedish cultural identity.
A total of 21 councils are in charge with primary and hospital care within the country.
The city councils regulates the rules and the establishment of potential private practices.
It also ranks high in life expectancy and in safe drinking water.
Between the ages of 6 and 16  children attend compulsory comprehensive school.
The school system is largely financed by taxes.
This is  however  not to be confused with the migrants  national backgrounds  which are recorded.
Immigrants in Sweden are mostly concentrated in the urban areas of Svealand and Götaland.
Violence  both lethal and non lethal  has been on a downward trend the last 25 years.
In total seven Nobel Prizes in Literature have been awarded to Swedes.
The image of  hot love and cold people  emerged.
As of 2009  Sweden is experiencing a baby boom.
Sweden has a significant folk music scene.
Notable composers include Carl Michael Bellman and Franz Berwald.
Sweden also has a prominent choral music tradition.
Sweden has a rather lively jazz scene.
Early Swedish stone buildings are the Romanesque churches on the country side.
As so happens  many of them were built in Scania and are in effect Danish churches.
Cathedrals in other parts of Sweden were also built as seats of Sweden s bishops.
The Skara Cathedral is of bricks from the 14th century  and the Uppsala Cathedral in the 15th.
Some of the more magnificent include Kalmar Castle  Gripsholm Castle and the one at Vadstena.
In the next two centuries  Sweden was designated by Baroque architecture and later the rococo.
The style came to dominate in the following decades.
The two largest evening tabloids are Aftonbladet  social democratic  and Expressen  liberal .
Licence funded radio broadcasts started in 1925.
Non profit community radio was allowed in 1979 and in 1993 commercial local radio started.
The licence funded television service was officially launched in 1956.
A second channel  TV2  was launched in 1969.
It was followed by Kanal 5 in 1989  then known as Nordic Channel  and TV4 in 1990.
Around half the population are connected to cable television.
Therefore  there are only a few texts in the Old Swedish from that period.
This translation is the so called Gustav Vasa Bible.
6 June is the National Day of Sweden and has since 2005 been a public holiday.
Furthermore  there are official flag day observances and a Namesdays in Sweden calendar.
In August many Swedes have kräftskivor  crayfish dinner parties .
The traditional flat and dry crisp bread has developed into several contemporary variants.
Cinema      Swedes have been fairly prominent in the film area through the years.
The two main spectator sports are football and ice hockey.
Tre Kronor also won Olympic gold medals in 1994 and 2006.
Due to its northerly latitude numerous world class winter sports athletes have come from Sweden.
It is a federal republic composed of 26 cantons  with federal authorities based in Bern.
The main international airports of Switzerland are also located in these cities.
In 2019  IMD placed Switzerland first in attracting skilled workers.
The World Economic Forum ranks it the 5th most competitive country globally.
The English adjective Swiss is a loan from French Suisse  also in use since the 16th century.
One of the most important tribal groups in the Swiss region was the Helvetii.
Modern day Switzerland was therefore then divided between the kingdoms of Alemannia and Burgundy.
The expansion led to increased power and wealth for the confederation.
In 1501  Basel and Schaffhausen joined the Old Swiss Confederacy.
This ended the so called  heroic  epoch of Swiss history.
The new regime  known as the Helvetic Republic  was highly unpopular.
When war broke out between France and its rivals  Russian and Austrian forces invaded Switzerland.
The Swiss refused to fight alongside the French in the name of the Helvetic Republic.
In 1803 Napoleon organised a meeting of the leading Swiss politicians from both sides in Paris.
Swiss troops still served foreign governments until 1860 when they fought in the Siege of Gaeta.
Switzerland s borders have not changed since  except for some minor adjustments.
Federal state      The restoration of power to the patriciate was only temporary.
The war convinced most Swiss of the need for unity and strength towards its European neighbours.
Referendums were made mandatory for any amendment of this constitution.
This new constitution also brought a legal end to nobility in Switzerland.
It introduced the facultative referendum for laws at the federal level.
It also established federal responsibility for defence  trade  and legal matters.
Modern history      Switzerland was not invaded during either of the world wars.
Over 100 Allied bombers and their crews were interned during the war.
Between 1940 and 1945  Switzerland was bombed by the Allies causing fatalities and property damage.
All remaining plans for building nuclear weapons were dropped by 1988.
Switzerland was the last Western republic to grant women the right to vote.
Switzerland joined the Council of Europe in 1963.
Switzerland is a founding member of the EFTA  but is not a member of the European Economic Area.
The majority of the Swiss population live in the Swiss Plateau.
Switzerland has more than 1500 lakes  and contains 6  of Europe s stock of fresh water.
Lakes and glaciers cover about 6  of the national territory.
The largest lake is Lake Geneva  in western Switzerland shared with France.
The Rhône is both the main source and outflow of Lake Geneva.
Both are located within the Pennine Alps in the canton of Valais  on the border with Italy.
Switzerland has no exclaves in other countries.
Precipitation tends to be spread moderately throughout the year with a peak in summer.
In 2020 it was ranked third out of 180 countries.
This means they used about 4.6 times as much biocapacity as Switzerland contains.
As a result  Switzerland is running a biocapacity deficit.
When both houses are in joint session  they are known collectively as the Federal Assembly.
The judges are elected by the Federal Assembly for six year terms.
Each canton has its own constitution  and its own parliament  government  police and courts.
Municipalities      The cantons comprise a total of 2 222 municipalities as of 2018.
Its policy of neutrality was internationally recognised at the Congress of Vienna in 1815.
However  Switzerland does participate in the Schengen Area.
Swiss neutrality has been questioned at times.
Some organisations and political parties find this practice controversial.
Men usually receive military conscription orders for training at the age of 18.
Of those  120 000 are active in periodic Army training and 80 000 are non training reserves.
The first one was held on the occasion of the Franco Prussian War of 1870–71.
The second was in response to the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914.
It was defeated with about two thirds of the voters against the proposal.
From the Swabian War in 1499 onwards until Reformation  most conferences met in Zurich.
After 1712 Frauenfeld gradually dissolved Baden.
In 1875  a law  RS 112  fixed the compensations owed by the city of Bern for the federal seat.
The 1999 new constitution  however  does not contain anything concerning any Federal City.
It is the seventeenth largest exporter.
Zürich and Geneva are regarded as global cities  ranked as Alpha and Beta respectively.
Basel is the capital of the pharmaceutical industry in Switzerland.
Switzerland also has one of the world s largest account balances as a percentage of GDP.
Product market liberalisation is lagging behind many EU countries according to the OECD.
Nevertheless  domestic purchasing power is one of the best in the world.
Switzerland is a member of the European Free Trade Association  EFTA .
The foreign citizen population was 28.9  in 2015  about the same as in Australia.
There are both public and private schools  including many private international schools.
Primary school continues until grade four  five or six  depending on the school.
It is listed 87th on the 2019 Academic Ranking of World Universities.
The largest university in Switzerland is the University of Zurich with nearly 25 000 students.
Another important research centre is the Paul Scherrer Institute.
The economy grew at 3  in 2010  1.9  in 2011  and 1  in 2012.
The application for membership of the EU was formally withdrawn in 2016  having long been frozen.
These agreements were signed in 1999 and took effect in 2001.
This first series of bilateral agreements included the free movement of persons.
Virtually 100  of the network is electrified.
The vast majority  60   of the network is operated by the Swiss Federal Railways  SBB CFF FFS .
Swiss International Air Lines is the flag carrier of Switzerland.
Its main hub is Zürich  but it is legally domiciled in Basel.
With Mexico and the Republic of Korea it forms the Environmental Integrity Group  EIG .
Demographics     In 2018  Switzerland s population slightly exceeded 8.5 million.
Most of these  64   were from European Union or EFTA countries.
A third of this population  853 000  held Swiss citizenship.
However  federal laws and other official acts do not need to be decreed in Romansh.
6.9  reported speaking another language at home.
The French spoken in Switzerland has similar terms  which are equally known as Helvetisms.
From 1990  a steady increase can be observed  reflecting the high costs of the services provided.
Urbanisation      Between two thirds and three quarters of the population live in urban areas.
Switzerland has gone from a largely rural country to an urban one in just 70 years.
Switzerland played an exceptional role during the Reformation as it became home to many reformers.
Geneva converted to Protestantism in 1536  just before John Calvin arrived there.
In 1541  he founded the Republic of Geneva on his own ideals.
Anabaptists Felix Manz and Conrad Grebel also operated there.
They were later joined by the fleeing Peter Martyr Vermigli and Hans Denck.
One canton  Appenzell  was officially divided into Catholic and Protestant sections in 1597.
Culture     Three of Europe s major languages are official in Switzerland.
Some 1000 museums are distributed through the country  the number has more than tripled since 1950.
Folk art is kept alive in organisations all over the country.
In Switzerland it is mostly expressed in music  dance  poetry  wood carving and embroidery.
Her creator  Johanna Spyri  1827–1901   wrote a number of other books on similar themes.
SRG SSR studios are distributed throughout the various language regions.
The first world ski championships were held in Mürren  1931  and St. Moritz  1934 .
The latter town hosted the second Winter Olympic Games in 1928 and the fifth edition in 1948.
Among the most successful skiers and world champions are Pirmin Zurbriggen and Didier Cuche.
Many other headquarters of international sports federations are located in Switzerland.
The Swiss Super League is the nation s professional football club league.
In 2009  Switzerland hosted the IIHF World Championship for the 10th time.
It also became World Vice Champion in 2013 and 2018.
The numerous lakes make Switzerland an attractive place for sailing.
He has won 20 Grand Slam tournaments overall including a record 8 Wimbledon titles.
He has also won a record 6 ATP Finals.
He ended 2004  2005  2006  2007 and 2009 ranked no.
Fellow swiss tennis stars Martina Hingis and Stan Wawrinka also hold multiple Grand Slam titles.
Switzerland won the Davis Cup title in 2014.
Switzerland also won the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport in 2007–08 with driver Neel Jani.
Swiss motorcycle racer Thomas Lüthi won the 2005 MotoGP World Championship in the 125cc category.
It is an old tradition from the rural central cantons and considered the national sport by some.
Hornussen is another indigenous Swiss sport  which is like a cross between baseball and golf.
Steinstossen is the Swiss variant of stone put  a competition in throwing a heavy stone.
Cuisine      The cuisine of Switzerland is multifaceted.
Also a breakthrough was the invention of solid milk chocolate in 1875 by Daniel Peter.
The most popular alcoholic drink in Switzerland is wine.
The most widespread varieties are the Chasselas  called Fendant in Valais  and Pinot noir.
The Merlot is the main variety produced in Ticino.
the symbol for ka does not resemble in any predictable way the symbol for ki  nor the symbol for a.
Some systems provide katakana language conversion.
They are therefore sometimes referred to as logosyllabic.
It is therefore sometimes called a moraic writing system.
A  pure  syllabary based on English would require a separate glyph for every possible syllable.
However  such pure systems are rare.
Another common approach is to simply ignore the coda  so that  bag  would be written ba.
Encyclopedia of Islam  is a Turkish academic encyclopedia for Islamic studies.
DİA was completed in 44 volumes in December 2013.
Two additional  supplement  volumes are being prepared.
There are few differences between the İA and the DMG transliteration systems.
1  Âb ı Hayat – El ahkâmü ş şer i̇yye Vol.
24  Kāânî i Şîrâzî – Kastamonu Vol.
The Wall Street Journal has called him  an ardent champion of the U.S. Japan alliance.
His family moved to Hong Kong when he was three months old.
The family then moved to Bombay  British India  where they lived for seven months.
Yamamoto and his family returned to Japan in 1940.
In response  Yamamoto launched the first ever US Japan parliamentary exchange in 1968.
He played an important role in efforts to strengthen regional cooperation among Asian countries.
He became the recipient of the US Japan Foundation Distinguished Service Award in 2008.
His funeral was held at St. Ignatius Catholic Church in Tokyo on April 18.
He was liked by everyone  he came into contact with .
It was historically one of the Ritsuryō sei  律令制  ritsuryō sei .
It was compiled at the direction of Prince Osakabe  Fujiwara no Fuhito and Awata no Mahito.
The revised edition was named the Yōrō Code  養老律令  Yōrō ritsuryō .
Major work on the Yōrō Code was completed in 718.
However  for some elements of the Code  Chinese logic and morals were taken to extremes.
The Taihō Code contained only two major departures from the Tang model.
The Daijō kan handled all secular and administrative matters.
The number of provinces was not fixed  however.
As new land was developed  new provinces came into being.
At the time of the Code s enactment  there were sixty six provinces comprising 592 districts.
Of these  the first forms the main text  while the other two are comments on it.
645  8th month  The eastern governors are appointed and instructions given to them.
Appeals of the people from their group heads to the government and Emperor granted.
645  9th month  The revolt and fall of Prince Furubito  an opposition party eliminated.
The powerful men forbidden to engross land.
Armories ordered to be built in the kuni and kiri.
646  8th month  Intention of establishing a new order of rank and office announced.
647  1st month  Intention of establishing a new order of rank and office announced.
652  4th month  The allotment of land completed  and the census made.
A maiko  舞妓  IPA   MY koh  Japanese   ma.iko   is an apprentice geisha in Kyoto and Western Japan.
short songs    and  in Kyoto only  learn the Kyoto dialect.
Maiko are known by other terms in areas such as Tokyo  such as hangyoku  半玉   lit.
half jewel   referring to one euphemistic term for a geisha s wages   jewel money  .
Work    In the morning  maiko take lessons in the traditional arts.
They dance  sing  play the shamisen  and serve visitors at exclusive ochaya  teahouses .
For formal occasions  gold darari obi are worn.
Taira no Kiyomori gained power in Kyoto forging alliances with retired emperors Shirakawa and Toba.
Kiyomori  sent Minamoto no Yoritomo  1147–1199   the third son of Yoshimoto  into exile.
Taira Montoku  Montoku Heishi  文徳平氏    descended from princes  children of 55th Emperor Montoku.
Clan members    These were important members of the Taira clan.
Gallery         See also    Japanese name Japanese clans Taira no Masakado      References
The term could be roughly understood as meaning  great rectitude   or  great righteousness .
The influence of Western culture experienced in the Meiji period continued.
Mori Ōgai studied in the West and introduced a more modern view of human life.
On February 12  1913  Yamamoto Gonnohyōe succeeded Katsura as prime minister.
In April 1914  Ōkuma Shigenobu replaced Yamamoto.
Crown Prince Yoshihito married Sadako Kujō on 10 May 1900.
Their coronation took place on November 11  1915.
On November 7  Jiaozhou surrendered to Japan.
On October 9  1916  Terauchi Masatake took over as prime minister from Ōkuma Shigenobu.
From July to September 1918   rice riots erupted due to increasing price of rice.
Similarly  Germany s former north Pacific islands were put under a Japanese mandate.
Calls were raised for universal suffrage and the dismantling of the old political party network.
New elections brought still another Seiyūkai majority  but barely so.
Hara was followed by a succession of nonparty prime ministers and coalition cabinets.
Japan subsequently developed a fleet of aircraft carriers that was second to none.
Thereafter  until 1932  the Seiyūkai and the Rikken Minseitō alternated in power.
Timeline    1912  The Taishō Emperor assumes the throne  July 30 .
General Katsura Tarō becomes prime minister for a third term  December 21 .
1914  Ōkuma Shigenobu becomes prime minister for a second term  April 16 .
Japan declares war on Germany  joining the Allies of World War I side  August 23 .
1915  Japan sends the Twenty One Demands to China  January 18 .
1916  Terauchi Masatake becomes prime minister  October 9 .
1917  Lansing–Ishii Agreement goes into effect  November 2 .
Hara Takashi becomes prime minister  September 29 .
1920  Japan helps found the League of Nations.
1921  Hara is assassinated and Takahashi Korekiyo becomes prime minister  November 4 .
Hirohito becomes regent  November 29 .
Four Power Treaty is signed  December 13 .
1922  Five Power Naval Disarmament Treaty is signed  February 6 .
Admiral Katō Tomosaburō becomes prime minister  June 12 .
Japan withdraws troops from Siberia  August 28 .
Yamamoto becomes prime minister for a second term  September 2 .
1924  Kiyoura Keigo becomes prime minister  January 7 .
Katō Takaaki becomes prime minister  June 11 .
1925  General Election Law was passed  all men above age 25 gained the right to vote  May 5 .
Besides  Peace Preservation Law is passed.
Princess Shigeko  Hirohito s first daughter  is born  December 9 .
1926  Emperor Taishō dies  Hirohito becomes emperor  December 25 .
The term could be roughly understood as meaning  great rectitude   or  great righteousness .
The influence of Western culture experienced in the Meiji period continued.
Mori Ōgai studied in the West and introduced a more modern view of human life.
On February 12  1913  Yamamoto Gonnohyōe succeeded Katsura as prime minister.
In April 1914  Ōkuma Shigenobu replaced Yamamoto.
Crown Prince Yoshihito married Sadako Kujō on 10 May 1900.
Their coronation took place on November 11  1915.
On November 7  Jiaozhou surrendered to Japan.
On October 9  1916  Terauchi Masatake took over as prime minister from Ōkuma Shigenobu.
From July to September 1918   rice riots erupted due to increasing price of rice.
Similarly  Germany s former north Pacific islands were put under a Japanese mandate.
Calls were raised for universal suffrage and the dismantling of the old political party network.
New elections brought still another Seiyūkai majority  but barely so.
Hara was followed by a succession of nonparty prime ministers and coalition cabinets.
Japan subsequently developed a fleet of aircraft carriers that was second to none.
Thereafter  until 1932  the Seiyūkai and the Rikken Minseitō alternated in power.
Timeline    1912  The Taishō Emperor assumes the throne  July 30 .
General Katsura Tarō becomes prime minister for a third term  December 21 .
1914  Ōkuma Shigenobu becomes prime minister for a second term  April 16 .
Japan declares war on Germany  joining the Allies of World War I side  August 23 .
1915  Japan sends the Twenty One Demands to China  January 18 .
1916  Terauchi Masatake becomes prime minister  October 9 .
1917  Lansing–Ishii Agreement goes into effect  November 2 .
Hara Takashi becomes prime minister  September 29 .
1920  Japan helps found the League of Nations.
1921  Hara is assassinated and Takahashi Korekiyo becomes prime minister  November 4 .
Hirohito becomes regent  November 29 .
Four Power Treaty is signed  December 13 .
1922  Five Power Naval Disarmament Treaty is signed  February 6 .
Admiral Katō Tomosaburō becomes prime minister  June 12 .
Japan withdraws troops from Siberia  August 28 .
Yamamoto becomes prime minister for a second term  September 2 .
1924  Kiyoura Keigo becomes prime minister  January 7 .
Katō Takaaki becomes prime minister  June 11 .
1925  General Election Law was passed  all men above age 25 gained the right to vote  May 5 .
Besides  Peace Preservation Law is passed.
Princess Shigeko  Hirohito s first daughter  is born  December 9 .
1926  Emperor Taishō dies  Hirohito becomes emperor  December 25 .
Taipei is the capital as well as the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan.
Other major cities include New Taipei  Kaohsiung  Taichung  Tainan and Taoyuan.
With 23.57 million inhabitants  Taiwan is among the most densely populated countries.
In the 17th century  partial Dutch colonization opened the island to mass Han Chinese immigration.
Taiwan is a developed country  ranking 15th in GDP per capita.
The ROC is no longer a member of the UN  having been replaced by the PRC in 1971.
This colony lasted 16 years until 1642  when the last Spanish fortress fell to Dutch forces.
Koxinga established the Kingdom of Tungning  1662–1683   with his capital at Tainan.
Immigrants mostly from southern Fujian continued to enter Taiwan.
The French occupied Keelung on 1 October 1884  but were repulsed from Tamsui a few days later.
The French evacuated both Keelung and the Penghu archipelago after the end of the war.
This was accompanied by a modernization drive that included building China s first railway.
Japanese forces entered the capital at Tainan and quelled this resistance on 21 October 1895.
Japanese rule ended the practice of headhunting.
By 1939  Taiwan was the seventh greatest sugar producer in the world.
Still  the Taiwanese and aborigines were classified as second  and third class citizens.
The  South Strike Group  was based at the Taihoku Imperial University in Taipei.
During World War II  tens of thousands of Taiwanese served in the Japanese military.
From its founding until 1949 it was based in mainland China.
These people came to be known in Taiwan as  Mainlanders   Waishengren .
These territories have remained under ROC governance until the present day.
It was not repealed until 38 years later  in 1987.
Martial law was used as a way to suppress the political opposition during the years it was active.
In the 1970s  Taiwan was economically the second fastest growing state in Asia after Japan.
Thus  competitive democratic elections did not exist.
It ranks 11th globally as of 2021.
Geography     Taiwan is an island country in East Asia.
There are also many active submarine volcanoes in the Taiwan Straits.
Climate      Taiwan lies on the Tropic of Cancer  and its general climate is marine tropical.
The entire island experiences hot  humid weather from June through September.
Typhoons are most common in July  August and September.
Carbon emissions increased 0.92  between 2005 and 2016.
These have produced major quakes throughout the history of the island.
On 21 September 1999  a 7.3 quake known as the  921 earthquake  killed more than 2 400 people.
In 2017  Taiwan again began to be excluded from the WHO even in an observer capacity.
The president replied that the relations are neither between two Chinas nor two states.
The constitution was drafted while the ROC still governed the Chinese mainland.
The constitution went into effect on 25 December 1947.
This process of amendment continues.
The president has authority over the Yuan.
Historically  the ROC has been dominated by strongman single party politics.
They are nominated and appointed by the president  with the consent of the Legislative Yuan.
Between 2005 and 2009  capital punishment was stopped.
It is based on the old imperial examination system used in dynastic China.
They favour eventual re unification of China.
Corruption among some DPP administration officials had been exposed.
In early 2006  President Chen Shui bian was linked to possible corruption.
China has been accused of conducting hybrid warfare against Taiwan.
There are three types of subnational divisions  special municipalities  counties  and cities.
Special municipalities and cities are further divided into districts for local administration.
Some divisions are indigenous divisions which have different degrees of autonomy to standard ones.
In addition  districts  cities and townships are further divided into villages and neighbourhoods.
It was later reformed into the Republic of China Army.
Control of the armed forces has also passed into the hands of the civilian government.
Current plans call for a transition to a predominantly professional army over the next decade.
Conscription periods are planned to decrease from 14 months to 12.
It also decided to strengthen both defensive and offensive capabilities.
Taiwan is one of the  Four Asian Tigers  alongside Hong Kong  South Korea and Singapore.
The Japanese also improved public education and made it compulsory for all residents of Taiwan.
These efforts significantly slowed inflation.
Computex Taipei is a major computer expo  held since 1981.
Real growth in GDP has averaged about 8  during the past three decades.
Exports have provided the primary impetus for industrialization.
The trade surplus is substantial  and foreign reserves are the world s fifth largest.
The currency of Taiwan is the New Taiwan dollar.
In 2001  agriculture constituted only 2  of GDP  down from 35  in 1952.
High technology industrial parks have sprung up in every region in Taiwan.
This became a major issue in the 2004 presidential election.
Civilian transport in Taiwan is characterised by extensive use of scooters.
Major airports include Taiwan Taoyuan  Kaohsiung  Taipei Songshan and Taichung.
There are currently seven airlines in Taiwan  the largest ones being China Airlines and EVA Air.
There are four international seaports  Keelung  Kaohsiung  Taichung  and Hualien.
Taiwan is one of the top performing countries in reading literacy  mathematics and sciences.
The remainder live on Penghu  101 758   Kinmen  127 723   and Matsu  12 506 .
Their use among aboriginal minority groups has been in decline as usage of Mandarin has risen.
Of the 14 extant languages  five are considered moribund.Taiwan is officially multilingual.
Freedom of religion in Taiwan is strong.
9 202 of those temples were dedicated to Taoism and Buddhism.
Taiwan is clearly an outlier in the top 3  all clear countries.
It is non European  and demographically much more religious.
Taiwanese films have won various international awards at film festivals around the world.
Other famous Taiwanese directors include Tsai Ming liang  Edward Yang  and Hou Hsiao hsien.
Tour buses that travel around Taiwan have several TVs  primarily for singing Karaoke.
The entertainment counterpart of a KTV is MTV Taiwan  particularly in urban areas.
There  DVD movies can be played in a private theatre room.
They also provide a service for mailing packages.
Taiwanese culture has also influenced other cultures.
Sports      Baseball is Taiwan s national sport and is a popular spectator sport.
A semi professional Super Basketball League  SBL  has also been in play since 2003.
In 2009  Taiwan hosted two international sporting events on the island.
The World Games 2009 were held in Kaohsiung between 16 and 26 July 2009.
Taipei hosted the 21st Summer Deaflympics in September of the same year.
Furthermore  Taipei hosted the Summer Universiade in 2017.
Taiwan has a long history of strong international presence in table tennis.
Lee Kuo ting won the men s singles at the 1958 Asian Table Tennis Championships.
17 year old Lin Yun Ju upset both reigning world champion Ma Long and world ranked No.
The sisters Chan Yung jan  Latisha Chan  and Chan Hao ching are doubles specialists.
The most successful men s player was Lu Yen hsun  who reached No.
33 in the ATP rankings in 2010.Taiwan is also a major Asian country for Korfball.
In 2008  Taiwan hosted the World Youth Korfball Championship and took the silver medal.
Calendar      The standard Gregorian calendar is used for most purposes in Taiwan.
2021 is year 110 Minguo  民國110年 .
The bulk of contemporary Taiwanese indigenous peoples now live in the mountains and in cities.
These divisions did not always correspond to distinctions drawn by the aborigines themselves.
During Japanese rule  1895–1945   anthropologists from Japan maintained the binary classification.
The latter group included the Atayal  Bunun  Tsou  Saisiat  Paiwan  Puyuma  and Amis peoples.
The Tao  Yami  and Rukai were added later  for a total of nine recognized peoples.
The KMT later adopted the use of all the earlier Japanese groupings except Peipo.
The Amis  Saisiat  Tao and Kavalan are all traditionally Eastern Plains cultures.
The remaining twelve recognized groups are traditionally regarded as mountain aboriginals.
Commonly cited examples of this ambiguity include  Seediq Sediq Truku Taroko  and  Tao Yami .
Nine people groups were originally recognized before 1945 by the Japanese government.
Previously the Sakizaya had been listed as Amis and the Sediq as Atayal.
Hla alua and Kanakanavu were recognized as the 15th and 16th ethnic group on 26 June 2014.
high mountain   and recognize them as one of the 56 ethnicities officially.
According to the 2000 Census  4 461 people were identified as Gāoshān living in mainland China.
Hoklo Taiwanese has replaced Pazeh and driven it to near extinction.
Aboriginal status has been requested by Plains Aboriginals.
Current forms of assimilation     Many of these forms of assimilation are still at work today.
However  some groups are seeking to revive their indigenous identities.
Surnames and identity     Several factors encouraged the assimilation of the Plains Aborigines.
Taking a Han name was a necessary step in instilling Confucian values in the aborigines.
One family of Pazeh became members of the local gentry.
The practice was so widespread that today s family books are largely unreliable.
The degree to which any one of these forces held sway over others is unclear.
This suggests heavy sea traffic took place between these islands and Taiwan at this time.
This was the beginning of the Austronesian expansion.
This increased degree of control over the Mountain peoples continued during Kuomintang rule.
At numerous other times changes from the outside world were forcibly imposed.
The village sites in southern Taiwan were more populated than other locations.
The third ring was for exclusive hunting and deer fields for community use.
Women were also often found in the office of priestesses or mediums to the gods.
The Spanish also established a small colony in northern Taiwan  1626–1642  in present day Keelung.
Dutch schools taught a romanized script  Sinckan writing   which transcribed the Siraya language.
This script maintained occasional use through the 18th century.
Today only fragments survive  in documents and stone stele markers.
Several Han took up residence in Siraya villages.
The Dutch used Han agents to collect taxes  hunting license fees and other income.
Despite this  local alliances transcended ethnicity during the Dutch period.
However  the impact of the Dutch was deeply ingrained in aboriginal society.
Therefore  it often recognized the Plains peoples  claims to deer fields and traditional territory.
The Plains peoples were often cheated out of land or pressured to sell at unfavorable rates.
The aborigines traded cloth  pelts and meat for iron and matchlock rifles.
If the head was that of a woman it was even better because it meant she could not bear children.
The last groups to practice headhunting were the Paiwan  Bunun  and Atayal groups.
Nationalist Japanese claim Aboriginals were treated well by Kabayama.
Aboriginals continued to fight against the Japanese after 1915.
Aboriginals were subjected to military takeover and assimilation.
This was included in the Shandi Pingdi Hua  山地平地化  policy to  make the mountains like the plains .
Modern studies show a high degree of genetic intermixing.
The KMT continued to hold the reins of power for another decade under President Lee Teng hui.
However  they did so as an elected government rather than a dictatorial power.
The elected KMT government supported many of the bills that had been promoted by aboriginal groups.
Aborigines have realized gains in both the political and economic spheres.
On the other hand  bright spots are not hard to find.
To some degree the movement has been successful.
The Hoklo Taiwanese term was forced upon Aborigines like the Pazeh.
A racist  anti Aboriginal slur was also used by Chiu Yi ying  a DPP Taiwanese legislator.
Chiu Yi ying said the racist words were intended for Aboriginal KMT members.
In response to the  apology  ceremony held by Tsai  KMT Aboriginals refused to attend.
Aboriginals demanded that recompense from Tsai to accompany the apology.
Tkdaya land was given to the Truku  Taroko  and Toda by the Japanese after the incident.
Manufacturing and construction jobs were generally available for low wages.
Often  young aborigines in the cities fall into gangs aligned with the construction trade.
The Siraya were reported by Dutch sources to incorporate bird imagery into their material culture.
The use of female spirit mediums  tongji  can also be traced to the earlier matrilineal Inibs.
The inhabitants are the 4 000 members of the Tao  or Yami .
Large scale construction began in 1978 on a site 100 m  330 ft  from the Immorod fishing fields.
The lease on the land has expired  and an alternative site has yet to be selected.
The rarer the animals are witnessed by tourists  the higher the pay will be to the hunters.
Although these create new jobs  aborigines are seldom given management positions.
The Wulai Atayal in particular have been active in this area.
Thus  the role of the local community in influencing the tourism development activities is clear.
This way  the awareness of indigenous resources constitutes an attraction to tourists.
The rock musician Chang Chen yue is a member of the Ami.
Music has given aborigines both a sense of pride and a sense of cultural ownership.
The main chorus was sung by Difang and his wife  Igay.
The TNSC plays a pivotal role in satellite launches among Japan’s space development activities.
The H IIA first stage engine  the LE 7A  is test fired at the Yoshinobu Firing Test Stand.
The older Osaki Launch Complex was retired in 1992.
It was used for the launch and development of N I  N II  and H I space rockets.
The Space Science and Technology Museum is near TNSC.
It offers an intricate view of rocket history and technology in Japan.
Though most of the displays are in Japanese  there are English tour pamphlets available.
It is also featured in the anime.
The roots of Taoism go back at least to the 4th century BCE.
Shamans revealed basic texts of Taoism from early times down to at least the 20th century.
Throughout Chinese history  Taoism was nominated several times as a state religion.
After the 17th century  however  it fell from favor.
In the 12th century  the Quanzhen School was founded in Shandong.
By the beginning of the 20th century  Taoism went through many catastrophic events.
The government regulates its activities through the Chinese Taoist Association.
However  the concepts of those keystone texts cannot be equated with Taoism as a whole.
In Taoism  it is  the One  which is natural  spontaneous  eternal  nameless  and indescribable.
It is at once the beginning of all things and the way in which all things pursue their course.
Common translations are  nonaction    effortless action  or  action without intent .
Taoism does not identify one s will as the root problem.
Rather  it asserts that one must place their will in harmony with the natural universe.
self such    self organization   is regarded as a central value in Taoism.
It is usually referred to as a state one returns to.
Within this framework  they play an important role in neidan   Taoist Inner Alchemy  .
Evolution and  extremes meet  are main characters.
The school s tenets harmonized the concepts of the Wu Xing  Five Elements  and yin and yang.
Qi is in a perpetual transformation between its condensed and diluted state.
Lesser deities also may be promoted or demoted for their activity.
The Tao Te Ching is not thematically ordered.
Tao is said to be ineffable  and accomplishing great things through small means.
Ancient commentaries on the Tao Te Ching are important texts in their own right.
Perhaps the oldest one  the Heshang Gong commentary  was most likely written in the 2nd century CE.
Other important commentaries include the one from Wang Bi and the Xiang er.
It was originally compiled during the Jin  Tang  and Song dynasties.
The extant version  was published during the Ming Dynasty.
The Ming Taotsang includes almost 1500 texts.
They are arranged from  highest  to  lowest   The Zhen   real  or  truth  眞  grotto.
It is believed that by reciting certain texts often enough one will be rewarded with immortality.
It asserts that those in harmony with Tao will live long and fruitful lives.
The wicked  and their descendants  will suffer and have shortened lives.
According to Song dynasty sources  it originated around the 10th century CE.
They also stand for the harmony of yin and yang  with the phoenix representing yin .
This could include slaughtered animals  such as pigs and ducks  or fruit.
The Taoist Celestial Master Zhang Taoling rejected food and animal sacrifices to the Gods.
He tore apart temples which demanded animal sacrifice and drove away its priests.
Also on particular holidays  street parades take place.
Mediumship is also widely encountered in some sects.
Enlightened and immortal beings are referred to as xian.
A characteristic method aiming for longevity is Taoist alchemy.
It was disbanded during the Cultural Revolution under Mao Zedong  but was reestablished in 1980.
Taoist literature and art has influenced the cultures of Korea  Japan  and Vietnam.
Organized Taoism seems not to have attracted a large non Chinese following until modern times.
In Taiwan  7.5 million people  33  of the population  identify themselves as Taoists.
Followers of Taoism are also present in Chinese émigré communities outside Asia.
In addition  it has attracted followers with no Chinese heritage.
Membership of these temples is entirely of non Chinese ancestry.
Political aspects     Taoism never had a unified political theory.
The philosophical terms Tao and De are indeed shared by both Taoism and Confucianism.
Zhuangzi explicitly criticized Confucian and Mohist tenets in his work.
On the other hand  Taoism also incorporated Buddhist elements during the Tang dynasty.
A tatami  畳  is a type of mat used as a flooring material in traditional Japanese style rooms.
The lower classes had mat covered earth floors.
Rooms completely spread with tatami came to be known as zashiki  座敷  lit.
Having just one is not uncommon.
In modern practice  the  auspicious  layout is ordinarily used.
This is partially balanced by not having to dial an area code for the neighboring city.
Television in Japan was introduced in 1939.
Households on welfare may be excused from the license fee.
History     In 1924  Kenjiro Takayanagi began a research program on electronic television.
In 1925  he demonstrated a cathode ray tube  CRT  television with thermal electron emission.
In 1927  he increased the television resolution to 100 lines  which was unrivaled until 1931.
Regular television broadcasts in Japan only started in 1950  several years after the war.
The old system is not compatible with the new digital standards.
It has been reported that 27 million HD receivers had been sold in Japan as of October 2007.
In those areas  analog broadcasting ended on March 31  2012.
These companies currently compete with the Japanese satellite television platforms SKY PerfecTV!
NHK started experimental broadcasting of TV program using BS 2a satellite in May 1984.
The satellite BS 2a was launched in preparation for the start of full scale 2 channel broadcasts.
The satellite was equipped with 3 TV transponders  including reserve units .
Such electronic goods had a specific BS logo.
In 1996 total number of households that receive satellite broadcasting exceeded 10 million.
Most commercial television stations sign on between the hours of 4 00 AM and 5 00 AM every morning.
Early morning hours are dominated by news programs  and these run from around 9 00 to 9 30 AM.
They are then replaced by late morning shows that target wives who have finished their housework.
7 00 PM to 9 00 PM are the time periods into which TV stations pour the most resources.
Appearing in this time slot is a certain sign that an actor or actress is a TV star.
Other stations do filler programming to fill time before the start of early morning news.
NHK is required to broadcast 24 hours a day  7 days a week.
A six month period of 26 episodes is also used for subdivision in some television series.
Science fiction      Japan has a long history of producing science fiction series for TV.
Non anime science fiction are still largely unknown to foreign audiences.
TV networks regularly broadcast anime programming.
Smaller regional stations broadcast anime on UHF.
Fairy Tail  Naruto  Pokémon  Bleach  Dragon Ball  Case Closed and One Piece are examples of anime.
The only major changes have been the increasing disappearance of live backup music since the 1980s.
Ecology     The typical structure of these forests includes four layers.
Below the sub canopy is the shrub layer  composed of low growing woody plants.
Typically the lowest growing  and most diverse  layer is the ground cover or herbaceous layer.
Typical coniferous trees include pines  Pinus spp.
Temperate coniferous forest is a terrestrial biome defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature.
A separate habitat type  the tropical coniferous forests  occurs in more tropical climates.
Many species of trees inhabit these forests including pine  cedar  fir  and redwood.
The understory also contains a wide variety of herbaceous and shrub species.
However  some forests may support a layer of shrubs.
The Tenth East Asia Summit was held in Kuala Lumpur  Malaysia on November 21–22  2015.
This type of landscaping is therefore called terracing.
Graduated terrace steps are commonly used to farm on hilly or mountainous terrain.
Terraces were used by many groups  notably the Mafa  Ngas  Gwoza  and the Dogon.
Even more recently farmers are experimenting with use of small reaper harvester attachments.
These terraced farms are found wherever mountain villages have existed in the Andes.
Canary Islands    Terraced fields are common in islands with steep slopes.
England    In Old English  a terrace was also called a  lynch   lynchet .
An example of an ancient Lynch Mill is in Lyme Regis.
The water is directed from a river by a duct along a terrace.
This set up was used in steep hilly areas in the UK.
This territory fell to Russia upon the Dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Okinotorishima     Okinotorishima is an uninhabited atoll in the Philippine Sea.
The capital and largest city is Bangkok  a special administrative area.
Siam joined World War I siding with the allies  a political decision to amend the unequal treaties.
Thailand was a satellite of Japan in World War II.
Thailand is a founding member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations  ASEAN .
Etymology of Siam     The country has always been called Mueang Thai by its citizens.
The names Shan and A hom seem to be variants of the same word.
The word Śyâma is possibly not its origin  but a learned and artificial distortion.
The Chinese called this region Xian  which the Portuguese converted into Siam.
Thailand was renamed Siam from 1946 to 1948  after which it again reverted to  Thailand .
Ratcha Anachak Thai  Thai  ราชอาณาจักรไทย  means  kingdom of Thailand  or  kingdom of Thai .
The earliest evidence of rice growing is dated at 2 000 BCE.
Bronze appeared circa 1 250–1 000 BCE.
The Khmer people established the Khmer empire  centred in Angkor  in the 9th century.
Tambralinga  a Malay state controlling trade through the Malacca Strait  rose in the 10th century.
He later crowned himself the first king of Sukhothai Kingdom in 1238.
Mainstream Thai historians count Sukhothai as the first kingdom of Thai people.
Sukhothai expanded furthest during the reign of Ram Khamhaeng  r. 1279–1298 .
He is believed have invented Thai script and Thai ceramics were an important export in his era.
Sukhothai embraced Theravada Buddhism in the reign of Maha Thammaracha I  1347–1368 .
Its initial expansion was through conquest and political marriage.
Ayutthaya then became a regional power in place of the Khmer.
The Portuguese were followed in the 17th century by the French  Dutch  and English.
In 1765  a combined 40 000 strong force of Burmese armies invaded it from the north and west.
The Burmese were under the new Alaungpaya dynasty quickly rose to be a new local power by 1759.
After a 14 month siege  the capital city s wall fell and the city was burned in April 1767.
He also quickly subdued the other warlords.
He also created suzerainty over large portions of Laos and Cambodia.
Bangkok signed the Burney Treaty in 1826  after the British victory in the First Anglo Burmese War.
The Front Palace crisis of 1874 stalled attempts at further reforms.
He established twelve krom in 1888  which were equivalent to present day ministries.
The crisis of 1893 erupted  caused by French demands for Laotian territory east of Mekong.
The advent of the monthon system marked the creation of the modern Thai nation state.
Vajiravudh  r. 1910–1925  responded by propaganda for the entirety of his reign.
He promoted the idea of the Thai nation.
Prajadhipok s conflict with the government eventually led to abdication.
His government adopted nationalism and Westernisation  anti Chinese and anti French policies.
In 1940  there was a decree changing the name of the country from  Siam  to  Thailand .
The Thai government declared war on the United States and the United Kingdom.
Most Allied powers had not recognised Thailand s declaration of war.
In June 1946  young King Ananda was found dead under mysterious circumstances.
His younger brother Bhumibol Adulyadej ascended to the throne.
Field Marshal Sarit Thanarat launched a coup in 1957  which removed Khana Ratsadon from politics.
His government improved the country s infrastructure and education.
Rapid urbanisation occurred when the rural populace sought work in growing cities.
Rural farmers gained class consciousness and were sympathetic to the Communist Party of Thailand.
Economic development and education enabled the rise of a middle class in Bangkok and other cities.
The communists abandoned the insurgency by 1983.
This caused a popular demonstration in Bangkok  which ended with a military crackdown.
Bhumibol intervened in the event and Suchinda then resigned.
Chuan Leekpai s government took an IMF loan with unpopular provisions.
A South Thailand insurgency escalated starting from 2004.
The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami hit the country  mostly in the south.
The junta installed a military government which lasted a year.
In 2007  a civilian government led by the Thaksin allied People s Power Party  PPP  was elected.
The crisis ended with another coup d état in 2014  the second coup in a decade.
Civil and political rights were restricted  and the country saw a surge in lèse majesté cases.
Political opponents and dissenters were sent to  attitude adjustment  camps.
The referendum and adoption of Thailand s current constitution happened under the junta s rule.
In 2019  the junta agreed to schedule a general election in March.
Politics and government     Prior to 1932  Thai kings were absolute monarchs.
The system of government was a network of tributaries ruled by local lords.
Thailand has had the fourth most coups in the world.
Uniformed or ex military men have led Thailand for 55 of the 83 years  between 1932 and 2009.
Most recently  the National Council for Peace and Order ruled the country between 2014 and 2019.
The current King of Thailand is Vajiralongkorn  or Rama X   who has reigned since October 2016.
The powers of the king are limited by the constitution and he is primarily a symbolic figurehead.
He has the power to appoint his heirs  the power to grant pardons  and the royal assent.
The king is aided in his duties by the Privy Council of Thailand.
The monarchy is widely revered and lèse majesté is a severe crime in Thailand.
Its most recent election is the 2019 general election.
The coalition led by Palang Pracharath Party currently holds the majority.
The cabinet was appointed by the king on the advice of the prime minister.
The prime minister is the head of government.
Most parties in Thailand are short lived.
Between 1992 and 2006  Thailand had a two party system.
Thailand has been rated not free on the Freedom House Index since 2014.
The northeast  Isan  consists of the Khorat Plateau  bordered to the east by the Mekong River.
Southern Thailand consists of the narrow Kra Isthmus that widens into the Malay Peninsula.
The diversity of the regions is the most pronounced attribute of Thailand s physical setting.
The Chao Phraya and the Mekong River are the indispensable water courses of rural Thailand.
Industrial scale production of crops use both rivers and their tributaries.
The Andaman Sea is a precious natural resource as it hosts popular and luxurious resorts.
Most of the country is classified as Köppen s tropical savanna climate.
The majority of the south as well as the eastern tip of the east have a tropical monsoon climate.
Parts of the south also have a tropical rainforest climate.
Thailand is divided into three seasons.
Rainfall is also contributed by Intertropical Convergence Zone  ITCZ  and tropical cyclones.
The country receives a mean annual rainfall of 1 200 to 1 600 mm  47 to 63 in .
Winter or the northeast monsoon occurs from mid–October until mid–February.
Most of Thailand experiences dry weather with mild temperatures.
Summer or the pre–monsoon season runs from mid–February until mid–May.
Poachers have long hunted elephants for ivory and hides  and now increasingly for meat.
However  their use has declined since the government banned logging in 1989.
Poaching of protected species remains a major problem.
Tigers  leopards  and other large cats are hunted for their pelts.
Many are farmed or hunted for their meat  which supposedly has medicinal properties.
There are also two specially governed districts  the capital Bangkok and Pattaya.
Bangkok is at provincial level and thus often counted as a province.
The name of each province s capital city  เมือง  mueang  is the same as that of the province.
Thailand s provinces are sometimes grouped into four to six regions  depending on the source.
Thailand participates fully in international and regional organisations.
It is a major non NATO ally and Priority Watch List Special 301 Report of the United States.
The country remains an active member of ASEAN Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
Regional co operation is progressing in economic  trade  banking  political  and cultural matters.
In 2003  Thailand served as APEC  Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation  host.
In 2005 Thailand attended the inaugural East Asia Summit.
In recent years  Thailand has taken an increasingly active role on the international stage.
Its troops remain there today as part of a UN peacekeeping force.
Thailand has contributed troops to reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq.
It withdrew its troops on 10 September 2004.
Two Thai soldiers died in Iraq in an insurgent attack.
Abhisit appointed Peoples Alliance for Democracy leader Kasit Piromya as foreign minister.
Two Cambodian and three Thai soldiers were killed.
Both armies blamed the other for firing first and denied entering the other s territory.
It also incorporates various paramilitary forces.
Thailand still use active draft system for males over the age of 21.
Those who have completed three years or more of reserve training will be exempted entirely.
The practice has long been criticized  as some media question its efficacy and value.
It also has anti democracy mission.
The military is deeply entrenched in politics.
Education     In 2018 the literacy rate was 93.8 .
The youth literacy rate was 98.1  in 2015.
Thailand is the 3rd most popular study destination in Asean.
The two top ranking universities in Thailand are Chulalongkorn University and Mahidol University.
Issues concerning university entrance has been in constant upheaval for a number of years.
Nevertheless  Thai education has seen its greatest progress in the years since 2001.
Most of the present generation of students are computer literate.
Thailand was ranked 74th out of 100 countries globally for English proficiency.
The average IQ was found to be 98.59  which is higher than previous studies have found.
and their use has been increasing.
Economy     Thailand is an emerging economy and is considered a newly industrialised country.
Thailand had a 2017 GDP of US 1.236 trillion  on a purchasing power parity basis .
Thailand is the 2nd largest economy in Southeast Asia after Indonesia.
The baht was pegged at 25 to the US dollar from 1978 to 1997.
Growth in 2002  2003  and 2004 was 5–7  annually.
Growth in 2005  2006  and 2007 hovered around 4–5 .
Top quintile households had a 45.0  share of all income  while bottom quintile households had 7.1 .
The top 10  richest held 79  of the country s assets.
The top 1  richest held 58  of the assets.
At the end of 2017  Thailand s total household debt was ฿11.76 trillion.
In 2010  3  of all household were bankrupt.
In 2016  there were estimated 30 000 homeless persons in the country.
Eight manufacturers  five Japanese  two US  and Tata of India  produce pick up trucks in Thailand.
As of 2012  Thailand was the second largest consumer of pick up trucks in the world  after the US.
In 2014  pick ups accounted for 42  of all new vehicle sales in Thailand.
Tourism      Tourism makes up about 6  of the country s economy.
The region hosting the fewest tourists is Isan.
The country is also Asia s number one.
Campaigns promote Thailand as exotic to attract tourists.
It is believed that at least 10  of tourist dollars are spent on the sex trade.
Furthermore  access to biocapacity in Thailand is lower than world average.
This means they use about twice as much biocapacity as Thailand contains.
As a result  Thailand is running a biocapacity deficit.
Bangkok Railway Station  Hua Lamphong Station  is the main terminus of all routes.
Phahonyothin and ICD Lat Krabang are the main freight terminals.
As of 2017 SRT had 4 507 km  2 801 mi  of track  all of it meter gauge except the Airport Link.
There are also three rapid transit rail systems in the capital.
Thailand has 390 000 kilometres  240 000 miles  of highways.
According to the BBC Thailand has 462 133 roads and many multi lane highways.
As of 2017 Thailand has 37 million registered vehicles  20 million of them motorbikes.
A number of undivided two lane highways have been converted into divided four lane highways.
A Bangkok – Chon Buri motorway  Route 7  now links to the new airport and Eastern Seaboard.
There are 4 125 public vans operating on 114 routes from Bangkok alone.
As of 2012  Thailand had 103 airports with 63 paved runways  in addition to 6 heliports.
The busiest airport in the county is Bangkok s Suvarnabhumi Airport.
Energy      75  of Thailand s electrical generation is powered by natural gas in 2014.
It is the second largest importer of oil in SE Asia.
Thailand is a large producer of natural gas  with reserves of at least 10 trillion cubic feet.
A 2012 study found that 64  of informal workers had not completed education beyond primary school.
Many informal workers are also migrants  only some of which have legal status in the country.
Demographics     Thailand had a population of 66 558 935 as of 2019.
In 1970  an average of 5.7 people lived in a Thai household.
At the time of the 2010 census  the average Thai household size was 3.2 people.
Ethnic groups      Thai nationals make up the majority of Thailand s population  95.9  in 2010.
Some 41 000 Britons and 20 000 Australians live in Thailand.
It is the principal language of education and government and spoken throughout the country.
In the far south  Kelantan Pattani Malay is the primary language of Malay Muslims.
Active participation in Buddhism is among the highest in the world.
Thailand has the second largest number of Buddhists in the world after China.
The constitution does not name official state religion  and provides for freedom of religion.
Thailand had 62 hospitals accredited by Joint Commission International.
In 2002  Bumrungrad became the first hospital in Asia to meet the standard.
The current Minister for Public Health is Anutin Charnvirakul.
In December 2018 the interim parliament voted to legalise the use of cannabis for medical reasons.
The vote makes Thailand the first Southeast Asian country to allow the use of medical cannabis.
Thailand s national religion  Theravada Buddhism  is central to modern Thai identity.
The official calendar in Thailand is based on the Eastern version of the Buddhist Era  BE .
Thai identity today is a social construct of Phibun regime in 1940s.
Overseas Chinese also form a significant part of Thai society  particularly in and around Bangkok.
Thai Chinese businesses prosper as part of the larger bamboo network.
Respects for elderly and superiors  by age  position  monks  or certain professions  is Thai mores.
Thais have strong sense of social hierarchy  reflecting in many classes of honorifics.
Elders have by tradition ruled in family decisions or ceremonies.
Older siblings have duties to younger ones.
Thai art was influenced by indigenous civilisations of the Mon and other civilisations.
The size of each element in the picture reflected its degree of importance.
This eliminated the intermediate ground  which would otherwise imply perspective.
Perspective was introduced only as a result of Western influence in the mid 19th century.
The temples in Ayutthaya seldom built eaves stretching from the masterhead.
The dominant feature of this style is sunlight shining into buildings.
A temple has an enclosing wall that divides it from the secular world.
Wat architecture has seen many changes in Thailand in the course of history.
Although there are many differences in layout and style  they all adhere to the same principles.
Literature      Thai literature has had a long history.
Even before the establishment of the Sukhothai Kingdom there existed oral and written works.
Major works include King Ram Khamhaeng Inscription.
King Ram Khamhaeng s Stone Inscription is considered the first Thai literary work in Thai script.
Trai Phum Phra Ruang  was written in 1345 by King Maha Thammaracha I  the fifth king of Sukhothai.
The work could be considered the nation s first piece of research dissertation.
It was written in beautiful prose rich in allusions and imagery.
It is a treatise on Buddhist cosmology  ethics  biology and belief system.
During the Ayutthaya  The period produced a variety of forms on diverse subjects.
New poetic forms were created  with different rhyme schemes and metres.
It is common to find a combination of different poetic forms in one poetic work.
Traditionally  the verse is sung during the colourful royal barge procession.
It has been the model for subsequent poets to emulate.
After sporadic fighting at the beginning of the period  the country gradually returned to normal.
Other recitals include Sri Thanonchai.
Both ram muay and wai khru take place before all traditional muay Thai matches.
These ensembles  while being influenced by older practices are today uniquely Thai expressions.
Each employs small ching hand cymbals and krap wooden sticks to mark the primary beat reference.
Thai classical music has had a wide influence on the musical traditions of neighboring countries.
Entertainment      Thai films are exported and exhibited in Southeast Asia.
They also directly supported 86 600 jobs.
Cuisine      Thai cuisine is one of the most popular in the world.
Thailand had more dishes on the list than any other country.
The country has hosted the Asian Cup twice  in 1972 and in 2007.
The 2007 edition was co hosted together with Indonesia  Malaysia and Vietnam.
Another widely enjoyed pastime  and once a competitive sport  is kite flying.
Volleyball is rapidly growing as one of the most popular sports.
They have won the Asian Championship twice and Asian Cup once.
By the success of the women s team  the men team has been growing as well.
Sepak takraw is a form of this sport which is similar to volleyball.
The players must volley a ball over a net and force it to hit the ground on the opponent s side.
It is also a popular sport in other countries in Southeast Asia.
A rather similar game but played only with the feet is buka ball.
Thailand has been called the golf capital of Asia as it is a popular destination for golf.
Basketball is a growing sport in Thailand  especially on the professional sports club level.
The Chang Thailand Slammers won the 2011 ASEAN Basketball League Championship.
It is currently used mostly for football matches.
It is on Thammasat University s Rangsit campus.
Rajamangala National Stadium is the biggest sporting arena in Thailand.
It currently has a capacity of 65 000.
Pictures of the Thai King s Consort Broke the Internet – But What s a Consort? .
Extremely Evil Misconduct   Thailand s Palace Intrigue Spills into View .
Each one is devoted to an aspect of warfare and how it applies to military strategy and tactics.
Sun also stressed the importance of intelligence operatives and espionage to the war effort.
The first annotated English translation was completed and published by Lionel Giles in 1910.
This text was traditionally identified with the received Master Sun s Art of War.
I have read The Art of War by Sun Tzu.
He continues to influence both soldiers   politicians.
Finnish Field Marshal Mannerheim and general Aksel Airo were avid readers of Art of War.
Many Japanese companies make the book required reading for their key executives.
In season 3  episode 8   He Is Risen    Dr. Melfi suggests to Tony Soprano that he read the book.
On Survivor  China  the castaways were given Sun Tzu s Art of War book to help them win the game.
The Art of War  Sunzi s Military Methods.
The Science of War  Sun Tzu s Art of War re translated and re considered.
In Loewe  Michael  Shaughnessy  Edward  eds. .
The Art of War  Sun Zi s Military Methods.
Deciphering Sun Tzu  How to Read  The Art of War .
Еволюція воєнного мистецтва  у 2 ч.
The original book is partly written in Chinese  so PDF format is generally preferable.
The Atlantic is an American magazine and multi platform publisher.
James Russell Lowell was its first editor.
It is known for publishing literary pieces by leading writers.
In 2010  The Atlantic posted its first profit in a decade.
In 2016  the periodical was named Magazine of the Year by the American Society of Magazine Editors.
Imagine your uncle as the head of such a table  with such guests.
The above named were the only ones invited  and they were all present.
We sat down at three P.M.  and rose at eight.
At that dinner he announced his idea for a magazine   Mr. Cabot is much wiser than I am.
Dr. Holmes can write funnier verses than I can.
Mr. Motley can write history better than I. Mr. Emerson is a philosopher and I am not.
Mr. Lowell knows more of the old poets than I.
But none of you knows the American people as well as I do.
In 2005  the magazine won a National Magazine Award for fiction.
The magazine published many of the works of Mark Twain  including one that was lost until 2001.
Editors have recognized major cultural changes and movements.
Its published books included Drums Along the Mohawk  1936  and Blue Highways  1982 .
The magazine was purchased in 1908 by its then editor  Ellery Sedgwick  but remained in Boston.
He also hired writers  including Jeffrey Goldberg and Andrew Sullivan.
David G. Bradley and Atlantic Media retained a minority share position in this sale.
Since the election  the magazine has become a strong critic of President Trump.
Trump called it a  fake story  and suggested the magazine would soon be out of business.
In  2011 it created its Video Channel.
It later expanded to feature news and original reporting.
CityLab     CityLab was launched in September 2011 as The Atlantic Cities.
Its co founders included Richard Florida  urban theorist and professor.
In 2014  it was rebranded as CityLab.com.
CityLab.com covers transportation  environment  equity  life  and design.
The site was last updated in 2018.
The modern day Hyōhō Niten Ichi ryū employs it as a manual of technique and philosophy.
Musashi establishes a  no nonsense  theme throughout the text.
Though ideas are taken from other sources  the text is predominantly seminal.
The term  Ichi School  is referred to in the book  Go Rin No Sho.
Alternative translations include  Two Swords  One spirit   and  Two Swords  One Entity .
The Book of Water chapter describes Musashi s style  Ni ten ichi ryu  or  Two Heavens  One Style .
It describes some basic technique and fundamental principles.
It is said to be how to distinguish the Way through  Sword Fencing   or  Swordsmanship .
As if it were a straight road mapped out on the ground ...
These things cannot be explained in detail.
From one thing  know ten thousand things.
When you attain the Way of strategy there will not be one thing you cannot see.
However  it is unsatisfactory in sieges  or when the enemy is more than forty yards away.
For this reason there are nowadays few traditional schools of archery.
There is little use for this kind of skill.
One of the principles of the Niten Ichi ryū is that one should be versed in many weaponry skills.
In all skills and abilities there is timing....
Similarly  there is timing in the Way of the merchant  in the rise and fall of capital.
All things entail rising and falling timing.
You must be able to discern this.
In strategy there are various timing considerations.
This is the main thing in strategy.
The Book of Earth ends with nine basic principles    the  ground  upon which the samurai must rely.
The principles are   Do not think dishonestly.
Become acquainted with every art.
Know the Ways of all professions   Distinguish between gain and loss in worldly matters.
Develop an intuitive judgement and understanding for everything.
Perceive those things which cannot be seen.
Do nothing which is of no use.
The meaning of water in relation to life is flexibility.
A person should master many aspects of life allowing them to possess both balance and flexibility.
Both in fighting and in everyday life you should be determined though calm.
This balance refers to what could be thought of as yin and yang within yourself.
This is part of what Musashi notes as wedging in.
You can then change your actions according to what you see.
Then his mind should adjust accordingly.
Your attitude should be large or small according to the situation.
Upper  Lower and Middle attitudes are decisive.
Left Side and Right Side attitudes are fluid.
Left and Right attitudes should be used if there is an obstruction overhead or to one side.
The decision to use Left or Right depends on the place.
This is similar to taking chances as opposed to making chances.
No Design  No Conception  refers to When word and actions are spontaneously the same.
This is the most important method of hitting.
You must train hard to understand it.
Ease and confidence will be attained when this technique is continuously practiced upon.
Fire and Stone s Cut  refers to when your swords clash together.
Without raising your sword  you cut as strongly as possible.
This means cutting quickly with hands  body  and legs.
The dependence of location according to the Go Rin No Sho is crucial.
These things cannot be clearly explained in words.
You must research what is written here.
In these three ways of forestalling  you must judge the situation.
Only a small amount of text is written about Tai Tai No Sen  Accompanying and Forestalling .
Musashi admits himself that this is a difficult thing to explain.
The idea of treading down the sword is a very simple technique.
Just as Musashi mentions in his philosophical style  there is a cause for a collapse.
He notes that an enemy s formation can fall if they lose rhythm.
The void book expressly deals with  That which cannot be seen .
By knowing things that exist  you can know that which does not exist.
The Book of Nothing  according to Musashi  is the true meaning of the strategy of Ni Ten Ichi Ryu.
In the void is virtue  and no evil.
Wisdom has existence  principle has existence  the Way has existence  spirit is nothingness.
This is The Blow Like a Spark from a Stone technique.
This blow will be rather difficult to perform if you do not train at it frequently.
This technique will be useful at a moment while fighting  so it should be trained for  regularly.
You are to think of getting your body close to your opponent before striking him.
However  if you think of reaching out both of your hands  your body will remain distant.
This is why you must always think of quickly getting your body close to the enemy.
Hokusai     Hokusai began painting when he was six.
At age twelve  his father sent him to work at a bookstore.
At sixteen  he was apprenticed as an engraver and spent three years learning the trade.
At the same time he began to produce his own illustrations.
In 1814  he published the first of fifteen volumes of sketches entitled Manga.
The series is considered his masterpiece.
After its success was assured  multicolored versions of the prints released.
It includes the signature in the upper left hand corner.
The boats  oriented to the southeast  are returning to the capital.
There are eight rowers per boat  clinging to their oars.
Sea and waves       The sea dominates the composition as an extending wave about to break.
The waves form a frame through which we see the mountain.
The gigantic wave is a yin yang of empty space beneath the mountain.
The inevitable breaking that we await creates a tension in the picture.
The little wave is larger than the mountain.
The small fishermen cling to thin fishing boats  slide on a sea mount looking to dodge the wave.
The violent Yang of nature is overcome by the yin of the confidence of these experienced fishermen.
Signature       The Great Wave off Kanagawa has two inscriptions.
In the process  the drawing is lost.
It is likely that the original woodblocks printed around 5 000 copies.
Hokusai s auction record is nearly  1.5 million as of 2012.
In turn  much Japanese art came to Europe and America and quickly gained popularity.
The influence of Japanese art on Western culture became known as Japonism.
The logo used by the Quiksilver clothing company was inspired by the woodcut.
Estampes japonaises  images d un monde éphémère.
Hokusai s Great Waves in Nineteenth Century Japanese Visual Culture   PDF .
Ukiyo e  an introduction to Japanese woodblock prints.
Henri Rivière  entre impressionnisme et japonisme.
Giants of Japan  The Lives of Japan s Most Influential Men and Women.
The Japan Times is Japan s largest and oldest English language daily newspaper.
It is headquartered in the Kioicho Building  紀尾井町ビル  Kioicho Biru  in Kioicho  Chiyoda  Tokyo.
Nifco sold The Japan Times to PR firm News2u Holdings  Inc. on 30 June 2017.
Opinion  editorials  op eds  and letters to the editor.
Entertainment  film  art  music  stage  books  event previews  festival listing.
Web     Printed stories from The Japan Times are archived online.
The Japan Times has a social media presence on Twitter  2007   Facebook  2007   and Google   2011 .
The book was completed in the year 1002.
The book was first translated into English in 1889 by T. Purcell and W. G. Aston.
Three types of classification were proposed by Kikan Ikeda.
“The Pillow Book” is written entirely in Japanese.
“The Pillow Book” is a part of a large tradition of women’s literature.
Though they describe her as freely expressing her feelings with sharp wit.
The Heian Period    The Heian period was essential to the aristocratic people.
The people in the imperial court were expected to be well educated in writing.
Literature was seen as a “key part in social interaction”  “History of Japan” .
One’s writing skills could make or break their reputation.
The newer  exclusively Japanese hiragana was used by women.
Educated women  like Shonagon  did occasionally include kanji within their work.
It was a way for Shonagon to show her intelligence simply through her way of writing.
In Japan such kind of idle notes are generally referred to as the zuihitsu genre.
Starring Vivian Wu and Ewan McGregor  it tells a modern story that references Sei Shōnagon s work.
See also    Heian literature Zuihitsu Nikki bungaku The Dog Pillow is an Edo period parody.
Academic Search Complete  doi 10.1080 00497878.1991.9978855.
www.womeninworldhistory.com Heian9.ht Accessed 27 February 2017.
The original manuscript  created around the peak of the Heian period  no longer exists.
The work is a unique depiction of the lifestyles of high courtiers during the Heian period.
The first English translation was attempted in 1882 but was of poor quality and incomplete.
The work does not make use of a plot  instead  events happen and characters simply grow older.
The characters are instead referred to by their function or role  e.g.
His Excellency   or their relation to other characters  e.g.
Heir Apparent   which changes as the novel progresses.
Modern readers and translators have used various nicknames to keep track of the many characters.
Plot     Genji s mother dies when he is three years old  and the Emperor cannot forget her.
Genji loves her first as a stepmother  but later as a woman  and they fall in love with each other.
He engages in a series of love affairs with other women.
During this time Genji also meets Lady Fujitsubo secretly  and she bears his son  Reizei.
Everyone except the two lovers believes the father of the child is the Emperor Kiritsubo.
She gives birth to a son but dies soon after.
Genji is sorrowful but finds consolation in Murasaki  whom he marries.
Genji s father  the Emperor Kiritsubo  dies.
She gives birth to Genji s only daughter  who will later become the Empress.
His son by Lady Fujitsubo  Reizei  becomes the emperor.
However  when Genji turns 40 years old  his life begins to decline.
In the following chapter  Maboroshi   Illusion    Genji contemplates how fleeting life is.
Chapter 45–54 are known as the  Uji Chapters .
These chapters follow Kaoru and his best friend  Niou.
The tale ends abruptly  with Kaoru wondering if Niou is hiding Kaoru s former lover away from him.
Kaoru has sometimes been called the first anti hero in literature.
Completion    The tale has an abrupt ending.
Opinions vary on whether this was intended by the author.
Another aspect of the language is the importance of using poetry in conversations.
The poems in the Genji are often in the classic Japanese tanka form.
This has the effect of giving the story a very even  smooth flow.
It is not known for certain when the chapters acquired their titles.
This may suggest that the titles were added later.
The Waley translation completely omits the 38th chapter.
Manuscripts     The original manuscript written by Murasaki Shikibu no longer exists.
Numerous copies  totaling around 300 according to Ikeda Kikan  exist with differences between each.
These two manuscripts were used as the basis for many future copies.
On March 10  2008  it was announced that a late Kamakura period manuscript was found in Kyōto.
It is the sixth chapter  Suetsumuhana  and is 65 pages in length.
This newly discovered manuscript belongs to a different lineage and was not influenced by Teika.
The manuscript is the 5th chapter   Wakamurasaki   若紫   and is the oldest version of the chapter.
The original scroll is believed to have comprised 10–20 rolls and covered all 54 chapters.
The extant pieces include only 19 illustrations and 65 pages of text  plus nine pages of fragments.
This is estimated at roughly 15  of the envisioned original.
The scrolls are designated National Treasures of Japan.
The scrolls are so fragile that they normally are not shown in public.
The original scrolls in the Tokugawa Museum were shown from November 21 to November 29 in 2009.
Other notable versions are by Tosa Mitsuoki  who lived from 1617 to 1691.
The tale was also a popular theme in Ukiyo e prints from the Edo period.
Both scholars and writers have tried translating it.
The first translation into modern Japanese was made by the poet Yosano Akiko.
Other known translations were done by the novelists Jun ichirō Tanizaki and Fumiko Enchi.
There have been at least five manga adaptations of the Genji.
Significantly  only a few chapters were completed.
Others have criticized as overly free the manner in which Waley translated the original text.
Regardless  it continues to be well appreciated and widely read today.
When the Waley Genji was first published  it was eagerly received.
In limpid prose The Tale combines curiously modern social satire with great charm of narrative.
In 2008  a 4 400 page Braille version of the Seidensticker Genji was completed.
It is also available for download.
The great temptation for a translator is to say the unsaid things  and Tyler never gives in to it.
The translation has been received slightly more controversially than Tyler s.
I dare to recommend this book to those who read me.
It is noted for its internal consistency  psychological depiction  and characterization.
Even down to our day there has not been a piece of fiction to compare with it.
Others see these arguments as subjective and unconvincing.
Murasaki shikibu  The Tale of Genji.
The Steel belted Radial of Karma  The End of Genji .
Approaches to Teaching Murasaki Shikibu s The Tale of Genji.
Lady Murasaki Shikibu s the Tale of Genji  Search for the Mother .
Introduction to Classic Japanese Literature.
Musica e danza del principe Genji.
I Am I   Genji and Murasaki .
At the tale s end  Kaguya hime reveals her celestial origins and returns to the Moon.
Upon cutting it open  he is surprised to find an infant the size of his thumb inside.
They eventually persuade the old man to have Kaguya hime choose from among them.
The fifth noble falls from a great height while reaching into a swallow s nest.
She remains in contact with the Emperor  but continues to rebuff his proposals.
Three years pass as they continue to communicate by letter.
That summer  whenever Kaguya hime views the full moon  her eyes fill with tears.
The gold was a stipend from the people of the Moon  sent to pay for Kaguya hime s upkeep.
The old couple become very sad and are soon put to bed sick.
in response  one suggests the Great Mountain of Suruga Province.
It is said that the smoke from the burning still rises to this day.
In the past  Mount Fuji was a much more active volcano and therefore produced more smoke.
Literary connections    Elements of the tale were drawn from earlier stories.
In it  he meets a group of women and he recites a poem to them.
Legacy    The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter is a popular folk tale in Japan.
A manuscript illustration also depicts a round flying machine that resembles a flying saucer.
Turn A Gundam – 1999 Gundam anime series and film.
Both men and women were allowed to perform Kyōgen until 1430.
It uses wild costumes and intense choreography.
Until the 1680s  real swords were used in sword fights.
Tradition has it that Kabuki was first performed by Okuni in 1603.
Bunraku      Bunraku began in the 16th century.
Puppets and bunraku were used in Japanese theatre as early as the Nō plays.
medieval records prove the use of puppets in noh plays too.
The shamisen player also has the shortest hair.
Yose      Yose was a popular form of spoken theatre in the Edo period.
The term is the shortened form of Hito yose seki  人寄せ席   roughly  Where people sit together .
The entrance fee  the  wooden door penny   木戸銭  Kido zeni  was small.
Hōgetsu Shimamura and Kaoru Osanai were two figures influential in the development of shingeki.
Shinpa     Shinpa is a modern form of theatre.
Famous actors such as Natsuki Mari and Karawa Toshiaki were involved.
The EAS is a pan Asia forum held annually by the leaders of 16 countries in the East Asian region.
EAS meetings are held after annual ASEAN leaders’ meetings.
Third summit    The Third EAS was held on November 21  2007 in Singapore.
Dr Gambari was available for private briefings of the leaders.
The Chairman s Statement of the 3rd East Asia Summit Singapore  21 November 2007 said   13.
It would be useful to incorporate the views of the private sector in the work process.
The CEPEA should build upon and add value to our existing FTAs.
We encouraged the expeditious conclusion of our ASEAN Plus 1 FTAs.
The Thirteenth East Asia Summit was held in Central Area  Singapore on November 14–15  2018.
Their current population is estimated to be around 6.5 million.
Tibetan languages belong to the Tibeto Burman language group.
Tibetans account for 0.47  of the total population of the country.
There are also nearly 100 000 Tibetans living in exile in India since 1959.
Nepal is also home to other Tibetic people such as the Sherpa and Thakali.
There are also more than 10 000 Tibetan refugees in Nepal.
Tibetans predominantly belong to the paternal lineage O M175.
Tibetans inherited this adaptation thanks to their Denisovan admixture.
There is a minority Tibetan Muslim population.
Also there are some Tibetan Hindus who mainly live in China  India and Nepal.
Today  one can see Tibetans placing Mani stones prominently in public places.
It is widely seen among Tibetan people.
Culture     Tibet is rich in culture.
Each person takes part in the Bathing Festival three times  at birth  at marriage  and at death.
Tibetan art can be found in almost every object and every aspect of daily life.
Drama     Tibetan folk opera  known as lhamo  is a combination of dances  chants and songs.
The repertoire is drawn from Buddhist stories and Tibetan history.
The performance is usually a drama  held on a barren stage that combines dances  chants  and songs.
The performance starts with a stage purification and blessings.
A narrator then sings a summary of the story  and the performance begins.
Another ritual blessing is conducted at the end of the play.
They are commonly made of a mixture of rocks  wood  cement and earth.
Tibetan homes and buildings are white washed on the outside  and beautifully decorated inside.
One of his books includes paintings depicting the resetting of a broken bone.
In addition  he compiled a set of anatomical pictures of internal organs.
The most important crop is barley.
Dough made from barley flour  called tsampa  is the staple food of Tibet.
This is either rolled into noodles or made into steamed dumplings called momos.
Mustard seed is cultivated in Tibet and therefore features heavily in its cuisine.
Some men and women wear long thick dresses  chuba  in more traditional and rural regions.
The men wear a shorter version with pants underneath.
Nomads often wear thick sheepskin versions.
Marriage customs     Polyandry is practiced in parts of Tibet.
This is usually done to avoid division of property and provide financial security.
However  monogamy is more common throughout Tibet.
Winters are arid with dry winds  while summers are humid with frequent thunderstorms.
The population of Tochigi as of November 2010 is approximately 2 005 096.
Located in the center of the prefecture is the largest open plain in the Kantō region.
Tochigi is the 20th largest prefecture in Japan with a total area of 6 408.09 square km.
Saint Francis Xavier introduced Ashikaga to the world as the best university in Japan.
In the early 17th century  Japan was unified by the shōgun Tokugawa Ieyasu.
The establishment of the Nikkō Tōshō gū in 1617 brought Nikkō to national attention.
By 1884  however  the capital was transferred to Utsunomiya.
Geography     The chief city of Utsunomiya is famous for its many gyoza specialist shops.
Rice  vegetables  and livestock are produced in the region.
Approximately 55  of Tochigi is covered by forests.
Below is an alphabetical list of some of the universities located in Tochigi.
This encompasses Rinnō ji  Nikkō Tōshō gū  Mount Nantai  and Futarasan Shrine.
The Kegon Falls  also in Nikkō  is popular with tourists.
From east to west spans Route 50  connecting southern Tochigi with Ibaraki and Gunma Prefectures.
Shinkansen runs from Tokyo Station to Oyama in south Tochigi in 43 minutes.
To the east and west  the Mito and Ryōmō Lines connect Tochigi to Ibaraki and Gunma.
Freight is served by the Utsunomiya Freight Terminal.
He built his castle in the fishing village of Edo  now Tokyo .
After Toyotomi s death  Ieyasu seized power in 1600  after the Battle of Sekigahara.
Ieyasu was posthumously enshrined at Nikkō Tōshō gū with the name Tōshō Daigongen  東照大權現 .
Hirotada s main enemy was Oda Nobuhide  the father of Oda Nobunaga.
His mother and father were step siblings.
In 1543  Hirotada s uncle  Matsudaira Nobutaka defected to the Oda clan.
This gave Oda Nobuhide the confidence to attack Okazaki.
As a result  Hirotada divorced Odai no kata and sent her back to her family.
Oda Nobuhide learned of this arrangement and had Ieyasu abducted and taken to Sunpu.
Ieyasu was just five years old at the time.
Nobuhide threatened to execute Ieyasu unless his father severed all ties with the Imagawa clan.
At about the same time  Oda Nobuhide died during an epidemic.
Nobuhide s death dealt a heavy blow to the Oda clan.
Sessai made a agreement with Nobunaga to take Ieyasu to the Imagawa  and he agreed.
So Ieyasu  now nine years old  was taken as a hostage to Sunpu.
A year later  their son  Matsudaira Nobuyasu  was born.
He was then allowed to return to Mikawa Province.
The lord of Terabe  Suzuki Shigeteru  betrayed the Imagawa by defecting to Oda Nobunaga.
Imagawa Yoshimoto  leading a large army of 25 000 men  invaded Oda clan territory.
Motoyasu was assigned a separate mission to capture the stronghold of Marune.
Motoyasu then decided to ally with Oda Nobunaga.
Kaminogō was held by Udono Nagamochi.
In the same year in February  Motoyasu changed his name to Ieyasu.
For the next few years Ieyasu was occupied with reforming the Matsudaira clan and pacifying Mikawa.
He also strengthened his key vassals by awarding them land and castles.
Tokugawa clan      In 1565  Matsudaira Ieyasu became master of all of Mikawa Province.
However  there was no proof the Matsudaira clan are descendants of Emperor Seiwa.
At the same time  Ieyasu was eager to expand eastward to Tōtōmi province.
Meanwhile  Shingen s troops captured Suruga Province  including the Imagawa capital of Sunpu .
Imagawa Ujizane fled to Kakegawa Castle  which lead to Ieyasu to lead the Siege of Kakegawa.
Soon Nobunaga was ready to punish Nagamasa for his treachery.
Ieyasu led 5 000 of his men to support Nobunaga at the battle.
The Battle of Anegawa occurred near Lake Biwa in Ōmi Province  Japan.
It is notable as the first battle that involved the alliance between Nobunaga and Ieyasu.
Later  Ieyasu asked for help from Nobunaga  who sent him some 3 000 troops.
Early in 1573 the two armies met at the Battle of Mikatagahara  north Hamamatsu.
Despite his initial reticence  Ieyasu was convinced by his generals to retreat.
In 1574  Katsuyori took Takatenjin fortress.
Ieyasu appealed to Nobunaga for help and Nobunaga came with 30 000 strong men.
The Oda Tokugawa forces of 38 000 won a great victory and successfully defended Nagashino castle.
Though Takeda forces destroyed  Katsuyori survived the battle and retreated back to Kai Province.
For this reason  Ieyasu ordered his wife to be executed and forced his son to commit seppuku.
Takeda Katsuyori was defeated at the Battle of Tenmokuzan  and then committed seppuku.
Later  Ieyasu traveled back to Mikawa for gathering his forces.
He returned to his home Mikawa Province by sea.
Because of this  Ieyasu promptly invaded Kai and took control.
Hideyoshi defeated Katsuie at Battle of Shizugatake.
With this victory  Hideyoshi became the single most powerful daimyō in Japan.
Hideyoshi responded by sending an army into Owari.
First  Hideyoshi made peace with Oda Nobukatsu  and then he offered a truce to Ieyasu.
However  few other Tokugawa retainers followed this example.
The Hōjō clan ruled the eight provinces of the Kantō region in eastern Japan.
Hideyoshi ordered them to submit to his authority and they refused.
Odawara Campaign is the first battle of Ieyasu and Hideyoshi as allies.
He himself occupied the castle town of Edo in Kantō.
In the end  it worked out brilliantly for Ieyasu.
Within a few years  Ieyasu had become the second most powerful daimyō in Japan.
He stayed in Nagoya off and on for the next five years.
In 1593  Toyotomi Hideyoshi fathered a son and heir  Toyotomi Hideyori.
Mitsunari plotted Ieyasu s death and news of this plot reached some of Ieyasu s generals.
Ieyasu supported the anti Mitsunari Group  and formed them as his potential allies.
Ieyasu held a meeting with the daimyō  and they agreed to follow Ieyasu.
On August 23  Ieyasu s army took Gifu castle.
On October 20  they meet at Sekigahara  Gifu and the battle began.
Ieyasu had also sneaked in a supply of arquebuses.
Tozama daimyō were considered inferior to fudai daimyō.
He had outlasted all the other great men of his times  Nobunaga  Shingen  Hideyoshi  and Kenshin.
He claimed descent from the Minamoto clan  by way of the Nitta clan.
His descendants would marry into the Taira clan and the Fujiwara clan.
His successor was his son and heir  Tokugawa Hidetada.
The edict banned the practice of Christianity and led to the expulsion of all foreign missionaries.
He was now a young daimyō living in Osaka Castle.
Then in 1614  Tokugawa besieged the Osaka Castle against Hideyori.
His wife  Senhime  a granddaughter of Ieyasu   pleaded to save Hideyori and Yodo dono s lives.
Ieyasu refused and either required them to commit ritual suicide  or killed both of them.
Eventually  Senhime was sent back to Tokugawa alive.
After killing two people at Kamakura  who have escaped from Osaka Castle.
Death     In 1616  Ieyasu died at age 73.
The cause of death is thought to have been cancer or syphilis.
His remains were buried at the Gongens  mausoleum at Kunōzan  Kunōzan Tōshō gū  久能山東照宮 .
The mausoleum s architectural style became known as gongen zukuri  that is gongen style.
Ieyasu s character     Ieyasu had a number of qualities that enabled him to rise to power.
He was both careful and bold—at the right times  and in the right places.
Calculating and subtle  Ieyasu switched alliances when he thought he would benefit from the change.
In this he was like other daimyō of his time.
This was an era of violence  sudden death  and betrayal.
He was known for being loyal towards his personal friends and vassals  whom he rewarded.
He was said to have a close friendship with his vassal Hattori Hanzō.
However  he also remembered those who had wronged him in the past.
At the same time  he could be ruthless when crossed.
He regarded it as excellent training for a warrior.
You exercise your muscles and train your limbs.
Let thy step be slow and steady  that thou stumble not.
When ambitious desires arise in thy heart  recall the days of extremity thou hast passed through.
Forbearance is the root of all quietness and assurance forever.
The strong manly ones in life are those who understand the meaning of the word patience.
Patience means restraining one s inclinations.
I am not as strong as I might be  but I have long known and practiced patience.
And if my descendants wish to be as I am  they must study patience.
Toranaga was portrayed by Toshiro Mifune in the 1980 TV mini series adaptation.
Hyouge Mono  へうげもの  is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Yoshihiro Yamada.
It was adapted into an anime series in 2011  and includes a fictional depiction of Tokugawa s life.
In Sengoku Basara game and anime series  he was shown with Honda Tadakatsu.
Tokugawa is the leader of Japan in Sid Meier s Civilization IV.
He is an aggressive and organized leader with an emphasis on mercantilism.
However  Tadakatsu advised for his lord to avoid the risk and urged for a quick retreat to Mikawa.
Masanari led the way through Iga and they returned home by boat.
Together  they planned when to attack and went their separate ways.
After the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600  central authority fell to Tokugawa Ieyasu.
Baku is an abbreviation of bakufu  meaning  military government —that is  the shogunate.
The han were the domains headed by daimyō.
One koku was the amount of rice necessary to feed one adult male for one year.
They would provide an heir to the shogunate if the shogun didn t have an heir.
They were often placed in mountainous or far away areas  or placed between most trusted daimyos.
These four states are called the Four Western Clans  or Satchotohi for short.
Foreign trade was also permitted to the Satsuma and the Tsushima domains.
Rice was the main trading product of Japan during this time.
Isolationism was the foreign policy of Japan and trade was strictly controlled.
Merchants were outsiders to the social hierarchy of Japan and were thought to be greedy.
From 1603 onward  Japan started to participate actively in foreign trade.
His successors followed suit  compounding upon Ieyasu s laws.
Special levies were also imposed for infrastructure building.
The roju conferred on especially important matters.
However  there were exceptions to both criteria.
Irregularly  the shōguns appointed a rōjū to the position of tairō  great elder .
Three to five men titled the wakadoshiyori  若年寄  were next in status below the rōjū.
Under the wakadoshiyori were the metsuke.
Some shōguns appointed a soba yōnin.
This person acted as a liaison between the shōgun and the rōjū.
Fearing for his personal safety  Tsunayoshi moved the rōjū to a more distant part of the castle.
Some of the most famous soba yōnin were Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu and Tanuma Okitsugu.
The five ōmetsuke were in charge of monitoring the affairs of the daimyōs  kuge and imperial court.
They were in charge of discovering any threat of rebellion.
Early in the Edo period  daimyōs such as Yagyū Munefuyu held the office.
Soon  however  it fell to hatamoto with rankings of 5 000 koku or more.
The metsuke  reporting to the wakadoshiyori  oversaw the affairs of the vassals of the shōgun.
They were the police force for the thousands of hatamoto and gokenin who were concentrated in Edo.
Individual han had their own metsuke who similarly policed their samurai.
The jisha bugyō had the highest status of the three.
Also  they heard lawsuits from several land holdings outside the eight Kantō provinces.
The four holders of this office reported to the rōjū.
The shogun directly held lands in various parts of Japan.
Gaikoku bugyō     The gaikoku bugyō were administrators appointed between 1858 and 1868.
It is at the end of the Edo period and preceded the Meiji era.
History     Until the Meiji Restoration  Tokushima Prefecture was known as Awa Province.
At the time  it included the Awa region to the south and the Awaji Island regions as well.
In 1873 it further incorporated the region currently occupied by Kagawa Prefecture in its borders.
The Washi no Mon gate to Tokushima Castle is destroyed by fire.
1946 December  – The Nankai earthquake occurs  causing vast damage throughout the prefecture.
1947 May       – Naruto City is inaugurated.
1949 May       – Tokushima University is created.
1951 June      – Komatsushima City is inaugurated.
1958 May       – Anan City is inaugurated.
1959 April     – Shikoku Hoso begins TV broadcasts.
1960 May       – A tsunami caused by a quake in Chile causes damage in the prefecture s south.
1961 July      – The Lesser Naruto Bridge is opened in the Lesser Naruto Straits.
1963 April     – The Tokushima Municipal Culture Center is completed.
1963 July      – A new thermal electric power plant is created in Anan.
1967 January   – Construction of the Tokushima Airport terminal is completed.
1970 August    – Construction of the Koboke Dam on the Yoshino River is terminated.
1972 January   – Use of a railway connecting the towns of Itano and Kamiita is terminated.
1972 July      – Construction of Route 11 over the Yoshino River Ohashi is completed.
1973 April     – A railway is opened connecting the Mugi and Kaifu regions.
1974 October   – Tokushima born Takeo Miki is elected as Prime Minister of Japan.
1975 March     – Construction of the Ikeda Dam over the Yoshino River is completed.
1981 October   – The National University Naruto Kyoiku Daigaku is opened.
1982 August    – Ikeda Highschool takes first place in the 64th National Baseball Championships.
1985 March     – Use of the Komatsushima trainline is stopped.
1985           – The Onaruto Bridge  connecting Tokushima and Hyogo Prefectures  is completed.
1989 May       – The 40th National Planting Festival is held in the Kamiyama Shirin Park.
1990 January   – Plans for a seaside park in Tokushima City are called off.
1991 June      – Plans for a resort in the Kurozo Marsh in Ikeda cho are called off.
1992 March     – A railway is opened connecting the Kaifu and Kamoura regions.
1993 August    – Route 55 is extended from Komatsushima City down to Anan City.
1993 October   – The East Shikoku Autumna Athletics Festival is held.
1993 October   – Construction of Asty Tokushima is completed.
2000 October   – Construction of the Hosokawauchi Dam over the Naka River is terminated.
2001 August    – The 13th National Agricultural Youth Exchange takes place.
2002 March     – Governor Toshi Endo is arrested under charges of bribery.
2002 October   – The Prefectural Calligraphy Hall is opened.
2003 June      – The Komatsushima factory for Toyobo is shut down.
2004 October   – Yoshinogawa City is inaugurated.
2004 October   – The 28th National Planting Festival is held in Kamiyama s Shirin Park.
2005 March     – Mima City and the towns of Tsurugi and Naka are inaugurated.
2005 April     – Anan City is inaugurated  and the South District Administration Bureau is created.
2006 March     – Miyoshi City and Higashi Miyoshi Town are inaugurated.
2006 March     – The towns of Minami and Kaiyo are inaugurated.
2006 April     – The West District Administration Bureau is created.
2006 May       – The Tokushima Red Cross Hospital shifts location.
2007 May       – The sports stadium Aguri Anan Stadium is opened.
2007 October   – Tokushima becomes home for the 22nd National Culture Festival.
Geography     The Sanuki Mountains run along the northern border of the prefecture.
Much of the remaining land is used for vegetables and flowers.
Japanese indigo is only produced here.
Industrial development continues around the Tokushima and Naruto districts.
To combat this  the local Tokushima government now sends the  Fresh!
Further  the sports teams listed below are based in Tokushima.
As of 2021  the prefecture has an estimated population of 	13 960 236.
By the mid 18th century  Edo was one of the most populous cities in the world at over one million.
In 2019  it hosted 36 of the Fortune Global 500 companies.
Edo was first fortified by the Edo clan  in the late twelfth century.
In 1457  Ōta Dōkan built Edo Castle.
In 1590  Tokugawa Ieyasu moved from Mikawa Province  his lifelong base  to the Kantō region.
When he became shōgun in 1603  Edo became the center of his ruling.
After 265 years  the Pax Tokugawa came to an end.
The city was divided into Yamanote and Shitamachi.
The city of Tokyo was officially established on May 1  1889.
The 1970s brought new high rise developments.
In the 1980s  real estate prices skyrocketed during a real estate and debt bubble.
Tokyo still sees new urban developments on large lots of less profitable land.
The most prominent is the Odaiba area  now a major shopping and entertainment center.
These plans have been controversial within Japan and have yet to be realized.
Tokyo was supposed to be the first Asian city to host the Olympic Games twice.
The average elevation in Tokyo is 40 m  131 ft .
Its administrative structure is similar to that of Japan s other prefectures.
It is headed by a publicly elected governor and metropolitan assembly.
Its headquarters is in Shinjuku Ward.
The special wards use the word  city  in their official English name  e.g.
It is often called the  political center  of the country.
Collectively  these are often known as the Tama area or Western Tokyo.
Much of this area is mountainous and unsuitable for urbanization.
Lake Okutama  on the Tama River near Yamanashi Prefecture  is Tokyo s largest lake.
The district is composed of three towns  Hinode  Mizuho and Okutama  and one village  Hinohara .
The Izu Islands are a group of volcanic islands and form part of the Fuji Hakone Izu National Park.
The Izu Islands are grouped into three subprefectures.
Izu Ōshima and Hachijojima are towns.
The remaining islands are six villages  with Niijima and Shikinejima forming one village.
Local populations are only found on Chichi Jima and Haha Jima.
The islands form both Ogasawara Subprefecture and the village of Ogasawara  Tokyo.
There are also artworks and statues at several places in the park.
There is also a zoo in the park  and the park is a popular destination to view cherry blossoms.
Particularly active are offshore regions and to a lesser extent Chiba and Ibaraki.
Volcanic eruptions     Mount Fuji is about 100 km  62 mi  southwest of Tokyo.
There is a low risk of eruption.
Kanagawa had 16cm to 8cm ash and Saitama 0.5 to 0 cm.
If the wind blows north east it could send volcanic ash to Tokyo metropolis.
The affected areas would need to be evacuated.
Important rivers are Edogawa  Nakagawa  Arakawa  Kandagawa  Megurogawa and Tamagawa.
In 1947 Typhoon Kathleen struck Tokyo  destroying 31 000 homes and killing 1 100 people.
In 1958 Typhoon Ida inflicted 400mm rain in 1 week which flooded streets.
A huge system of dams  levees and tunnels was constructed.
The purpose is to manage heavy rain  typhonic rain  and river floods.
It took 13 years to build and was completed in 2006.
During floods  excess water is collected from rivers and drained to the Edo River.
Snowfall is sporadic  but does occur almost annually.
Tokyo also often sees typhoons every year  though few are strong.
Annual precipitation has ranged from 879.5 mm  34.63 in  in 1984 to 2 229.6 mm  87.78 in  in 1938.
Tokyo has experienced significant warming of its climate since temperature records began in 1876.
The climates of Tokyo s offshore territories vary significantly from those of the city.
Cityscape    Architecture in Tokyo has largely been shaped by Tokyo s history.
Environment    Tokyo has enacted a measure to cut greenhouse gases.
In the same year  a total of 779 foreign nationals were recorded as residing in Tokyo.
Economy     Tokyo has the largest metropolitan economy in the world.
The farmland is concentrated in Western Tokyo.
Tokyo Bay was once a major source of fish.
Most of Tokyo s fish production comes from the outer islands  such as Izu Ōshima and Hachijō Jima.
It is also one of the largest wholesale food markets of any kind.
It is located in the Toyosu area of Kōtō ward.
However  its airspace has been under the US military s exclusive control after World War II.
There are up to 62 electric train lines and more than 900 train stations in Tokyo.
Therefore  Japan constructed airports outside Tokyo.
Japan s flag carrier Japan Airlines  as well as All Nippon Airways  have a hub at this airport.
Haneda Airport on the reclaimed land at Ōta  offers domestic and international flights.
JR East is also responsible for Shinkansen high speed rail lines.
The Metropolitan Government and private carriers operate bus routes and one tram route.
To build them quickly before the 1964 Summer Olympics  most were constructed above existing roads.
Other transportation includes taxis operating in the special wards and the cities and towns.
Education     Tokyo has many universities  junior colleges  and vocational schools.
Tokyo has many theaters for performing arts.
These include national and private theaters for traditional forms of Japanese drama.
Noteworthy are the National Noh Theatre for noh and the Kabuki za for Kabuki.
Symphony orchestras and other musical organizations perform modern and traditional music.
Many different festivals occur throughout Tokyo.
The last features a parade with elaborately decorated floats and thousands of people.
Cuisine in Tokyo is internationally acclaimed.
As of 2017  227 restaurants in Tokyo have been awarded  92 in Paris .
Football clubs in Tokyo include F.C.
Basketball clubs include the Hitachi SunRockers  Toyota Alvark Tokyo and Tokyo Excellence.
Tokyo hosted the 1964 Summer Olympics  thus becoming the first Asian city to host the Summer Games.
In 2016  it was to be replaced by the New National Stadium.
Some Hollywood directors have turned to Tokyo as a backdrop for movies set in Japan.
Tokyo was also a founding member of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group.
JPX itself was launched on January 1  2013.
Ninety four domestic and 10 foreign securities companies participate in TSE trading.
The combined exchange was shut down and reorganized shortly after the bombing of Nagasaki.
A new facility  called TSE Arrows  東証アローズ  Tōshō Arrows   opened on May 9  2000.
The interruption in trading was the worst in the history of the exchange.
Trading was suspended for four and a half hours.
On 11 December  the TSE acknowledged that its system was at fault in the Mizuho trade.
This was called the  livedoor shock .
This was announced just minutes before 9 a.m.  when it was scheduled to open.
Other stock markets in Japan have also suspended trading.
There were a total of 3 607 companies listed in Tokyo Stock Exchange  as of March 31  2018.
There are also active bond market and futures market.
Etymology    The word  Tottori  in Japanese is formed from two kanji characters.
The first  鳥  means  bird  and the second  取 means  to get .
Early residents in the area made their living catching the region s plentiful waterfowl.
The imperial Prince Homatsu wake was unable to speak  despite being 30 years of age.
Yukuha Tana presented the swan to the emperor.
Homatsu wake no Mikoto played with this swan and at last learned to speak.
Therefore  Yukaha Tana was liberally rewarded  and was granted the title of Tottori no Miyakko.
Numerous kofun tumuli from the Kofun period  250 – 538  are located across the prefecture.
The Tokugawa shogunate installed the Ikeda clan at Tottori Castle.
Geography     Tottori is home to the Tottori Sand Dunes  Japan s only large dune system.
The prefecture is also a major producer of rice.
Language    Historically  the region had extensive linguistic diversity.
Many of them are grouped with Western Japanese  and include the Chugoku and Umpaku dialects.
Sports     The sports teams listed below are based in Tottori.
It was enacted in 1968 to celebrate the 100th year from the first year of the Meiji Era.
Japan attracted 31.19 million international tourists in 2018.
During this time  Japan was a closed country to foreigners  so no foreign tourism existed in Japan.
Its early leaders included Shibusawa Eiichi and Ekida Takashi.
Statistics     In 2018  31 191 856 foreign tourists visited Japan.
The country received 4.12 million foreign tourists in 2020.
They are parts of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara  WHS .
Ikaruga – Hōryū ji and Hōki ji are Buddhist Monuments in the Hōryū ji Area  WHS .
They are parts of the Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range  WHS .
They are parts of the Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu.
About US 15 million would be spent on this program.
On December 26  2011  The Japan Tourism Agency reported on their site that the  Fly to Japan!
Toyama Prefecture  富山県  Toyama ken  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu.
History     Historically  Toyama Prefecture was Etchū Province.
In 1872 Imizu District was returned by the new Ishikawa Prefecture.
It also has many fisheries along its Sea of Japan coastline.
and metal products  aluminum  copper etc.
Energy      Kurobe Dam generates electricity for the Kansai Electric Power Company.
It is located on the Kurobe River in Toyama Prefecture.
It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28  1937  1937 08 28 .
Toyota is also a market leader in hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.
Corporate governance     Toyota is headquartered in Toyota City  Aichi.
The main headquarters of Toyota is located in a four story building in Toyota.
As of 2006  the head office has the  Toyopet  Toyota logo and the words  Toyota Motor .
Vinod Jacob from The Hindu described the main headquarters building as  modest .
Its Nagoya office is located in Nakamura ku  Nagoya.
Looms were built on a small production line.
Its first vehicles were the A1 passenger car and the G1 truck in 1935.
The Toyota Motor Company was established as an independent company in 1937.
In April 1936  Toyoda s first passenger car  the Model AA  was completed.
The company continued to be supported by the state.
In 1949 the Bank of Japan  the central bank of the country  bailed out the company.
The so called  chicken tax  of 1964 placed a 25  tax on imported light trucks.
The factory was the old General Motors Fremont Assembly plant that had been closed for two years.
It is currently the site of Tesla  Inc. s assembly plant.
Bases in Indiana  Virginia  and Tianjin were also set up.
At the time  the UFJ was one of the largest shareholders of Toyota.
A youth oriented marque for North America  Scion  was introduced in 2003.
The company has also found recent success with its smaller models—the Corolla and Yaris.
The company plans to consolidate its corporate functions in Melbourne by the end of 2017.
The workforce is expected to be reduced from 3 900 to 1 300.
Toyota never agreed to be at fault for the problem.
More than 7 million vehicles are potentially affected in the United States.
The airbags were manufactured by Takata automotive manufacturing.
Toyota is offering a free repair to all affected vehicles worldwide.
The logo made its debut on the 1989 Toyota Celsior and quickly gained worldwide recognition.
The three ovals in the new logo combine to form the letter  T   which stands for Toyota.
In countries or regions using traditional Chinese characters  e.g.
Hong Kong and Taiwan  Toyota is known as  豐田 .
In countries using simplified Chinese characters  e.g.
These are the same characters as the founding family s name  Toyoda  in Japanese.
1983–present  Now You re Really Moving!
2000–2013  Fun to Drive  Again.
1979–1993  Who could ask for anything more?
Toyota s managerial values and business methods are known collectively as the Toyota Way.
Many businesses worldwide have adopted a similar approach to manufacturing.
The result is the development of the Toyota Production System.
It displaced GM and became the world s largest automobile maker for the year 2008.
The world headquarters of Toyota is located in its home country in Toyota City  Japan.
Toyota brands include Scion and Lexus and the corporation is part of the Toyota Group.
Toyota has a large market share in the United States  but a small market share in Europe.
It also sells vehicles in Africa and is a market leader in Australia.
Since the recession of 2001  it has gained market share in the United States.
Toyota s brand sales had risen 9.2  largely on demand for Corolla and Camry sedans.
The difference in performance was largely attributed to surging demand for fuel efficient vehicles.
In November 2006  Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas added a facility in San Antonio.
It sold 9.528 million vehicles globally despite a 11.3  drop in sales due to the covid pandemic.
This includes subsidiaries Daihatsu and Hino Motors.
The company invested  4 billion in a robotics and AI research institute to create safer vehicles.
For vehicle assembly  Toyota would use plants in Thailand  Indonesia  Argentina  and South Africa.
Its production engineering and manufacturing headquarters is located in Georgetown  Kentucky.
Its second assembly operation in Woodstock  Ontario  began manufacturing the RAV4 late in 2008.
In these assembly plants  the Camry and the Tundra were manufactured  among others.
At its peak in October 2007  Toyota manufactured 15 000 cars a month.
Cumulative sales of the Prius in Japan reached the 1 million mark in August 2011.
The 5 million hybrid sales milestone was reached in March 2013.
The 15 million milestone was reached in January 2020.
Global cumulative sales of Lexus brand hybrids reached the 500 thousand mark in November 2012.
The 1 million sales milestone was achieved in March 2016.
Toyota made 600 Prius plug in demonstration vehicles for lease to fleet and government customers.
France  the UK  and Germany had the largest fleets with 150 PHEVs.
The United States is the country market leader with 42 320 units delivered through April 2016.
Unlike the first generation model  it is available in all 50 states.
Sales in Japan started on February 15  2017.
As of mid 2012  there were almost 500 units still in use.
In May 2010  Toyota launched a collaboration with Tesla Motors to create electric vehicles.
The lithium metal oxide battery and other power train components were supplied by Tesla Motors.
Four years later  Toyota  along with Daimler  began to unwind its position in Tesla.
Production was limited to 2 600 units during a three year period.
As of 31 December 2015  a total of 2 340 RAV4 EVs were sold in the U.S. to retail customers.
The iQ EV eQ was scheduled to be released in both countries in December 2012.
The range is estimated at 100 km  62 mi   and it has a top speed of 60 km h  37 mph .
It will formally debut at the 2019 Tokyo Motor Show and will go on sale in Japan in late 2020.
Toyota also built a FCHV bus based on the Hino Blue Ribbon City low floor bus.
The Toyota FCV R fuel cell concept car was unveiled at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show.
Toyota said the car was planned for launch in about 2015.
Toyota expects to become a leader in this technology.
Sales in Japan began on December 15  2014  at a price of ¥6 700 000   US 57 400 .
Initially  the Mirai will only be available in California.
Vans include the Innova  Alphard Vellfire  Sienna  and others.
Several small cars  such as the xB and tC  were sold under the Scion brand.
Other crossovers include the Raize  Urban Cruiser.
Other SUVs include the Rush  Prado  FJ Cruiser  4Runner  and Sequoia.
It was followed in 1954 by the RK  renamed in 1959 as the Stout  and in 1968 by the compact Hilux.
It was criticized as being too small to appeal to the traditional American full size pickup buyer.
Another popular full size truck essential  a V8 engine  was never available.
In 1999 for the 2000 model year  Toyota replaced the T100 with the larger Tundra.
It also added the V8 engine that the T100 was criticized for not having.
These concerns were addressed with an even larger 2007 redesign.
A stronger V6 and a second V8 engine among other things were added to the option list.
As of early 2010  the Tundra has captured 16  of the full size half ton market in the US.
The all new Tundra was assembled in San Antonio  Texas  US.
Toyota assembled around 150 000 Standard and Double Cabs  and only 70 000 Crew Max s in 2007.
Luxury type sedans produced under the Toyota brand included the Century  Crown  and Crown Majesta.
A limited edition model produced for the Emperor of Japan was the Century Royal.
Toyota branded luxury vehicles tend to be Japan only.
Motorsports     Toyota has been involved in many global motorsports series.
They also represent their Lexus brand in other sports car racing categories.
Toyota enjoyed success in all these motorsports categories.
TRD also made Lexus s performance division  F Sport .
Toyota Technological Institute founded the Toyota Technological Institute at Chicago in 2003.
Robotics      In 2004  Toyota showcased its trumpet playing robot.
Toyota also played a part in the development of Kirobo  a  robotic astronaut .
In 2017  the company introduced T HR3  a humanoid robot with the ability to be remotely controlled.
The robot can copy the motions of a connected person.
The project is expected to break ground in 2021  and will be called  Woven City.
Environmental record    Toyota implemented its fifth Environmental Action Plan in 2005.
The money will be used to fund environmental programs at the park.
The proposal would reduce California s 2025 fuel efficiency standard from about 54.5 to 37 MPG.
This shift by Toyota away from fuel efficiency damaged the company s reputation as a green brand.
Production and sales numbers    Note Japan production numbers 1937 to 1987.
Toyotomi Hideyori  豊臣 秀頼  born September 8  1593   1615?
His mother  Yodo dono  was the niece of Oda Nobunaga.
However  Ieyasu continued to view the young Hideyori as a potential threat.
Tokugawa forces attacked Hideyori in the Siege of Osaka in the winter of 1614.
His widow remarried but later became a Buddhist nun.
Sanada at once told the rōnin to stop but they only doubled their efforts.
Hideyori began moving with his troops to leave Osaka.
Meanwhile  the Osaka troops had been doing quite well in spite of the numerical disadvantage.
The letter said  Do not let Hideyori leave the castle.
In the castle is a conspiracy and as soon as Hideyori leaves it he will be attacked from the rear.
It is because of this letter  according to Siebold  that Hideyori s portion of the plan miscarried.
Let Hideyori defend the castle to the last  when it fell  it would be time to take a decision!
And amidst the ensuing chaos  Hideyori fell back.
The castle was fired and general chaos ensued.
The rumors had enough merit to concern the Tokugawa shogunate  according to Murdoch.
The following extracts from Cocks  journal explain the matter at hand   September 18th  1616 Capt.
This is now the common report.
October 15th  1616 And it is said Fidaia Samme is alive  but what will come hereof I know not.
Zen Sanctuary of Purple Robes  Japan s Tokeiji Convent Since 1285.
The Moss at Tokeiji  A Sanctuary in Kamakura that Changed Women s Lives  1285–1902 .
His autobiography starts in 1577  but in it  Hideyoshi spoke very little about his past.
His mother is unknown but it is known that he had an older sister.
In 1564  Hideyoshi was very successful as a negotiator.
Hideyoshi s rear defense for his lord s escape is one of his fabled accomplishments under Nobunaga.
In 1576  Nobunaga sent Hideyoshi to Himeji Castle to conquer the Chūgoku region from the Mori clan.
Conflict with Katsuie      In 1583  Subsequently  Hideyoshi was in a very strong position.
He summoned the powerful daimyo to Kiyosu so that they could determine Nobunaga s heir.
The famous kirishitan daimyō and samurai Dom Justo Takayama fought on his side at this epic battle.
It ultimately resulted in a stalemate  although Hideyoshi s forces were delivered a heavy blow.
Hideyoshi sent Tokugawa Ieyasu his younger sister Asahi no kata and mother Ōmandokoro as hostages.
Ieyasu eventually agreed to become an ally of Hideyoshi.
Toyotomi clan      Like Nobunaga before him  Hideyoshi never achieved the title of shōgun.
They were allied with the Ikkō ikki  and with Tokugawa Ieyasu  one of Toyotomi s chief rivals.
The battles culminated in the siege of Ichinomiya Castle  which lasted for 26 days.
Toyotomi Hideyoshi carried out the Siege of Toyama castle.
Meanwhile  Hideyoshi took his own forces down a more westerly route  in Chikuzen Province.
They besieged Kagoshima castle  the Shimazu clan s home.
The swords were melted down to create a statue of the Buddha.
This eliminated the last resistance to Hideyoshi s authority.
His victory signified the end of the Sengoku period.
Rikyū had been a trusted retainer and master of the tea ceremony under both Hideyoshi and Nobunaga.
He even performed before the emperor.
The three year old was his only child.
Hideyoshi resigned as kampaku to take the title of taikō  retired regent .
Hidetsugu succeeded him as kampaku.
In August 1591  Hideyoshi ordered preparations for an invasion of Korea to begin.
In only four months  Hideyoshi s forces had a route into Manchuria and occupied much of Korea.
The Korean king Seonjo of Joseon escaped to Uiju and requested military intervention from China.
The Ming army of 43 000 soldiers headed by Li Ru song proceeded to attack Pyongyang.
They are known as the Twenty six Martyrs of Japan.
They were tortured  mutilated  and paraded through towns across Japan.
On February 5  they were executed in Nagasaki by public crucifixion.
Japanese troops remained pinned down in Gyeongsang Province.
He told his commander in Korea   Don t let my soldiers become spirits in a foreign land.
Death     Toyotomi Hideyoshi died on September 18  1598.
He was delirious  with Sansom asserting that he was babbling of the distribution of fiefs.
I have no other thoughts to leave behind.
Because of his failure to capture Korea  Hideyoshi s forces were unable to invade China.
He held the generals in contempt  and they sided with Tokugawa Ieyasu.
They had two sons  Sanada Daisuke and Sanada Daihachi  and some daughters.
Upon taking control  Hideyoshi decreed that all peasants be disarmed completely.
Conversely  he required samurai to leave the land and take up residence in the castle towns.
This solidified the social class system for the next 300 years.
Furthermore  he ordered comprehensive surveys and a complete census of Japan.
This ensured order in a period when bandits still roamed the countryside and peace was still new.
A council was created to include the most influential lords.
A Council of Five Elders  五大老  go tairō  was formed  consisting of the five most powerful daimyōs.
Ieyasu won and received the title of Seii Tai Shōgun two years later.
Hideyoshi is commemorated at several Toyokuni Shrines scattered over Japan.
Ieyasu left in place the majority of Hideyoshi s decrees and built his shogunate upon them.
This ensured that Hideyoshi s cultural legacy remained.
I desire you to understand this and to tell  it to everybody.
At birth  he was given the name Hiyoshi Maru  日吉丸 .
At genpuku  he took the name Kinoshita Tōkichirō  木下 藤吉郎 .
His full name was Hashiba Tōkichirō Toyotomi No Ason Hideyoshi  羽柴藤吉郎豐臣朝臣秀吉  in formal documents.
He was also known as the  bald rat  or a  naked mole rat .
He was portrayed by Lee Hyo jung in the 2004–2005 KBS1 TV series Immortal Admiral Yi Sun sin.
Jocular Fellow   is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Yoshihiro Yamada.
Moreover  services are the fastest growing sector  outperforming manufacturing.
The service sector covers many diverse activities.
The Japanese economic crisis of the 1990s helped  too.
There were several changes in wholesaling and retailing in the 1980s.
Japan s distribution system was becoming more efficient.
Supermarkets and superstores increased in market share from 6.5 to 7.3 percent.
The late 1990s brought a decline of the catalog mail order in favor of online shopping.
The fast food industry has been profitable for both foreign and domestic companies.
By 1989 family restaurants and fast food chains had grown into a US 138 billion business per year.
This fact is based on tertiary sector services.
Consumers have to see the suitability of products and services for their lifestyles.
Brands are seen as a means of identification and a guarantee for quality.
They comprise a range of string  wind  and percussion instruments.
Popular in Edo s pleasure districts  the shamisen was often used in Kabuki theater.
The strings  which are of different thickness  are plucked or struck with a tortoise shell pick.
There are eight traditional flutes  as well as more modern creations.
Transportation in Japan is modern and highly developed.
Japan s spending on roads has been large.
The 1.2 million kilometres of paved road are the main means of transport.
Often  strategies of these enterprises contain real estate or department stores next to stations.
Some 250 high speed Shinkansen trains connect major cities.
All trains are known for punctuality.
The largest ports include Nagoya Port.
Seven Japan Railways Group companies  state owned until 1987  cover most parts of Japan.
Most Japanese people travelled on foot until the later part of the 19th century.
Many more railways developed soon afterward.
Japan  as we know it today  is home to one of the world s most developed transport networks.
The Foreign Press Center Japan cites a total length of expressways at 7 641 km  fiscal 2008 .
Hokkaido has a separate network  and Okinawa Island has a highway of this type.
The aim of this policy is to encourage competition and decrease tolls.
The cargo sector grew rapidly in the 1980s  recording 274.2 billion tonne kilometres in 1990.
14 heliports are estimated to exist  1999 .
The two main airlines are Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways.
Domestic air travel in Japan has historically been highly regulated.
JAL and JAS have since been merged to help compete with ANA.
JAL also had a flag carrier monopoly on international routes until 1986.
There are overlapping classifications of these ports  some of which are multi purpose  e.g.
The five designated  super  container ports are  Yokkaichi  Yokohama  Nagoya  Kobe and Osaka.
However  only 17  of Japanese owned capacity is registered in Japan.
They also connect other smaller islands and the main islands.
The scheduled international passenger routes are to China  Russia  South Korea and Taiwan.
Transportation in Japan is modern and highly developed.
Japan s spending on roads has been large.
The 1.2 million kilometres of paved road are the main means of transport.
Often  strategies of these enterprises contain real estate or department stores next to stations.
Some 250 high speed Shinkansen trains connect major cities.
All trains are known for punctuality.
The largest ports include Nagoya Port.
Seven Japan Railways Group companies  state owned until 1987  cover most parts of Japan.
Most Japanese people travelled on foot until the later part of the 19th century.
Many more railways developed soon afterward.
Japan  as we know it today  is home to one of the world s most developed transport networks.
The Foreign Press Center Japan cites a total length of expressways at 7 641 km  fiscal 2008 .
Hokkaido has a separate network  and Okinawa Island has a highway of this type.
The aim of this policy is to encourage competition and decrease tolls.
The cargo sector grew rapidly in the 1980s  recording 274.2 billion tonne kilometres in 1990.
14 heliports are estimated to exist  1999 .
The two main airlines are Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways.
Domestic air travel in Japan has historically been highly regulated.
JAL and JAS have since been merged to help compete with ANA.
JAL also had a flag carrier monopoly on international routes until 1986.
There are overlapping classifications of these ports  some of which are multi purpose  e.g.
The five designated  super  container ports are  Yokkaichi  Yokohama  Nagoya  Kobe and Osaka.
However  only 17  of Japanese owned capacity is registered in Japan.
They also connect other smaller islands and the main islands.
The scheduled international passenger routes are to China  Russia  South Korea and Taiwan.
The 2007 report covered 124 major and emerging economies.
The last Travel   Tourism Competitiveness Report was published in 2019.
In general  the model was improved with better data and new concepts were introduced.
The 2009 and 2011 reports kept the same 14 variables.
Top 2 Oceania           References         External links    Official website
The latter part mentioned has been deleted in the revised version of the treaty in 1960.
It required both countries to act to meet the common danger.
To support that requirement  it provided for the continued presence of US military bases in Japan.
The treaty was finally approved by the Japanese House of Representatives on 20 May.
Massive demonstrations and rioting by students and trade unions followed.
The treaty also gave prominence to the United Nations in dealing with aggression.
Further  there was a shift in Japanese domestic politics.
He was succeeded by Hayato Ikeda.
The agreement  however  received very little support from Okinawans.
Defense co operation will increase for outer space warfare  cyberwarfare and electronic warfare.
The Pacific War s Biggest Battle .
Japan high court hears arguments in Futenma noise pollution lawsuit .
The Soviet delegation made several unsuccessful procedural attempts to stall the proceedings.
The Soviet Union s objections were detailed in a lengthy 8 September 1951  statement by Gromyko.
As a compromise  neither government was invited.
He ended the same speech by saying This treaty is as magnanimous as it is just to a defeated foe.
Minister Jayewardene s speech was received with resounding applause.
Indonesia did not ratify the San Francisco Peace Treaty.
The apparent illogical order of the two treaties is due to the difference between time zones.
There is also some ambiguity as to over which islands Japan has renounced sovereignty.
This has led to both the Kuril Islands dispute and the Senkaku Islands dispute.
Total amount of Japanese overseas assets in China was US 18 758 600 000 in 1945 USD.
Accordingly  Japan paid £4 500 000 to the Red Cross.
The last payment was made to the Philippines on July 22  1976.
Yugoslavia s accession provoked a coup d état in Belgrade two days later.
Germany  Italy and Hungary responded by invading Yugoslavia.
As such the Axis was only ever a loose alliance.
Accordingly  the Governments of Japan  Germany and Italy have agreed as follows ARTICLE 1.
Japan  Germany  and Italy agree to cooperate in their efforts on aforesaid lines.
He considered it especially important for Hungary to sign the pact before Romania did.
The Italian answer was similar.
In turn  Hungary s accession had been delayed until Romania s had been negotiated.
Hitler invited Monsignor Jozef Tiso to be the new nation s leader.
Soon after it was formed  Slovakia was involved in a war with neighboring Hungary.
Slovakia had signed a  Protection Treaty  with Germany  which  however  refused to intervene.
The war resulted in territorial gains by Hungary at Slovakia s expense.
From the beginning  the Germans pressured Bulgaria to join the Tripartite Pact.
On 17 November 1940  Tsar Boris III and Foreign Minister Ivan Popov met with Hitler in Germany.
He offered Soviet recognition of Bulgarian claims in Greece and Turkey.
The pact was ratified by a vote of 140 to 20.
On 27 March  the regime was overthrown in a military coup d état with British support.
Seventeen year old King Peter II was declared to be of age.
The German Air Force bombed Belgrade for three days and nights.
German ground troops moved in  and Yugoslavia capitulated on 17 April.
The Soviet government sent a revised version of the pact to Germany on 25 November.
—Adolf Hitler When they received the Soviet proposal in November  they simply did not reply.
Finland joined Operation Barbarossa on 25 June 1941  which started the Continuation War.
It began its first two month course for German officers and NCOs in December 1941.
In the summer of 1942  the German speaking Finnish instructors taught a course on forest warfare.
It was also attended by some Hungarian officers.
Thailand      Japan attacked Thailand at 02 00 local time on 8 December 1941.
Under the general commission were to be military and economic commissions.
The representatives set up a propaganda commission and then adjourned indefinitely.
Receiving no response  Japan approached Italy.
It was  intended as a propaganda accompaniment to the declaration of war .
References         Sources         External links    Signing of the Tripartite Pact on YouTube
The habitat type is sometimes known as jungle.
Forest composition is dominated by evergreen and semi evergreen deciduous tree species.
In general  biodiversity is highest in the forest canopy.
A tree here may grow over 23 metres  75 ft  in height in just 5 years.
An area the size of Ireland is destroyed every few years.
Some trees in these forests drop some or all of their leaves during the winter dry season.
Montane rain forests are found in cooler climate mountainous areas.
Searchable content also includes music  sound and videos  and transcripts of radio programs.
The  Single Business Discovery Project  was launched in August 2008.
Tight integration with the provider databases has allowed  Find and Get  functions  e.g.
It is continually updated to expand its reach.
Trove provides a free  public Application Programming Interface  API .
2010s     Trove has continued to evolve and take on new services and collections.
Bibliographic records from the ANBD are also uploaded into the WorldCat global union catalogue.
A filter for Australian content is also provided.
The text correcting community and other Trove users have been referred to as  Trovites .
Considerable numbers of images on Flickr with the appropriate licensing are donated as well.
Music  sound and videos  allows searching of digitised historic sheet music and audio recordings.
Also includes searchable transcripts from many Radio National programs.
Lists Users are able to create an account and log in to Trove.
It opens those resources to transformation.
The width and breadth of its audience adds to its uniqueness.
Exposing the deep web to increase access to library collections .
Wave heights of tens of metres can be generated by large events.
Tidal wave      Tsunamis are sometimes referred to as tidal waves.
A 1969 episode of the TV crime show Hawaii Five O entitled  Forty Feet High and It Kills!
The cause  in my opinion  of this phenomenon must be sought in the earthquake.
Without an earthquake I do not see how such an accident could happen.
They grow in height when they reach shallower water  in a wave shoaling process described below.
A tsunami can occur in any tidal state and even at low tide can still inundate coastal areas.
Between 165 and 173 were killed.
They dissipated before travelling transoceanic distances.
The cause of the Storegga sediment failure is unknown.
The wave did not travel far  as it struck land almost immediately.
The wave struck three boats—each with two people aboard—anchored in the bay.
Scientists named these waves megatsunamis.
Some geologists claim that large landslides from volcanic islands  e.g.
However  there is growing controversy about how dangerous these slopes actually are.
In Sicily they are called marubbio and in Nagasaki Bay  they are called abiki.
They are unable to propagate beyond their sources  as waves do.
Even during World War II consideration of the idea using conventional explosives was explored.
Nuclear testing in the Pacific Proving Ground by the United States seemed to generate poor results.
This is the formula used for calculating the velocity of shallow water waves.
Run up is measured in metres above a reference sea level.
They are caused by earthquakes  landslides  volcanic explosions  glacier calvings  and bolides.
Drawback     All waves have a positive and negative peak  that is  a ridge and a trough.
In the case of a propagating wave like a tsunami  either may be the first to arrive.
A typical wave period for a damaging tsunami is about twelve minutes.
Victims and debris may be swept into the ocean.
The process repeats with succeeding waves.
Maximum  Water Level  Maximum height above sea level as seen from trace or water mark.
Warnings and predictions     Drawbacks can serve as a brief warning.
Her parents warned others minutes before the wave arrived  saving dozens of lives.
She credited her geography teacher  Andrew Kearney.
The western pulse hit coastal Africa and other western areas.
It monitors Pacific Ocean seismic activity.
A sufficiently large earthquake magnitude and other information triggers a tsunami warning.
A tsunami warning system is being installed in the Indian Ocean.
Computer models can predict tsunami arrival  usually within minutes of the arrival time.
Bottom pressure sensors can relay information in real time.
If correct  monitoring their behaviour could provide advance warning of earthquakes and tsunamis.
However  the evidence is controversial and is not widely accepted.
The phenomenon was also noted by media sources in Sri Lanka in the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.
The elephants  reaction was to move away from the approaching noise.
By contrast  some humans went to the shore to investigate and many drowned as a result.
However  their effectiveness has been questioned  as tsunamis often overtop the barriers.
Tsunami Events and Lessons Learned  Environmental and Societal Significance.
The endonym Bizika means  native dwellers .
Most of the Tujia areas returned to central control during the period 1728–1735.
The Great Leap Forward led to mass famine in Tujia communities.
Culture    Today  traditional Tujia customs can only be found in the most remote areas.
For their spring festival they prepare handmade glutinous rice cakes called ciba cake.
Few monolingual Tujia speakers remain  nearly all are bilingual in some dialect of Chinese.
Among fluent Tujia speakers  Chinese borrowings and even sentence structures  are more common.
C. Ember  M. Ember   I. Skoggard  eds.
Ritual  Cultural Standardization  and Orthopraxy in China  Reconsidering James L. Watson’s Ideas .
Tujia s food getting pattern in west Hubei in the Qing Dynasty .
Tunisia  officially the Republic of Tunisia  is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa.
Tunisia s northernmost point  Cape Angela  is also the northernmost point of Africa.
From early antiquity  Tunisia was inhabited by the indigenous Berbers.
Tunisia has a high human development index and one of the highest GDP per capita in Africa.
Tunisia has also attained the status of major non NATO ally of the United States.
Persians went to the West and intermarried with the Gaetulians and became the Numidians.
The Medes settled and were known as Mauri  later Moors.
The Numidians and Moors belonged to the race from which the Berbers are descended.
Its coast was settled by Phoenicians starting as early as the 12th century BC  Bizerte  Utica .
The city of Carthage was founded in the 9th century BC by Phoenicians.
The people of Carthage worshipped a pantheon of Middle Eastern gods including Baal and Tanit.
The founders of Carthage also established a Tophet  which was altered in Roman times.
Following its conquest  the Romans renamed Carthage to Africa  incorporating it as a province.
During the Roman period  the area of what is now Tunisia enjoyed a huge development.
The economy  mainly during the Empire  boomed  the prosperity of the area depended on agriculture.
Additional crops included beans  figs  grapes  and other fruits.
Berber bishop Donatus Magnus was the founder of a Christian group known as the Donatists.
They founded the first Islamic city in Northwest Africa  Kairouan.
It was there in 670 AD that the Mosque of Uqba  or the Great Mosque of Kairouan  was constructed.
Communities of Tunisian Christians would still exist in Nefzaoua up to the 14th century.
After this success  the Almohads installed Walid Abu Hafs as the governor of Tunisia.
In the late 16th century the coast became a pirate stronghold.
Before long  however  Tunisia became in effect an autonomous province  under the local Bey.
Under its Turkish governors  the Beys  Tunisia attained virtual independence.
The Hussein dynasty of Beys  established in 1705  lasted until 1957.
This evolution of status was from time to time challenged without success by Algiers.
Tunisian international debt grew unmanageable.
This was the reason or pretext for French forces to establish a protectorate in 1881.
With this treaty  Tunisia was officially made a French protectorate  over the objections of Italy.
Thus  the persecution  and murder of the Jews from 1940 to 1943 was part of the Shoah in France.
From November 1942 until May 1943  Vichy Tunisia was occupied by Nazi Germany.
SS Commander Walter Rauff continued to implement the Final Solution there.
20 March is celebrated annually as Tunisian Independence Day.
A year later  Tunisia was declared a republic  with Bourguiba as the first President.
The anniversary of Ben Ali s succession  7 November  was celebrated as a national holiday.
Ben Ali and his family were accused of corruption and plundering the country s money.
In 2008  in terms of Press freedom  Tunisia was ranked 143rd out of 173.
Labour unions were said to be an integral part of the protests.
The protests inspired the Arab Spring  a wave of similar actions throughout the Arab world.
Eventually the new government gave in to the demands.
A Tunis court banned the ex ruling party RCD and confiscated all its resources.
It is bordered by Algeria on the west and southwest and Libya on the south east.
It lies between latitudes 30° and 38°N  and longitudes 7° and 12°E.
Its east–west extent is limited.
Inland from the Sahel  between the Dorsal and a range of hills south of Gafsa  are the Steppes.
Much of the southern region is semi arid and desert.
Tunisia has a coastline 1 148 kilometres  713 mi  long.
The south of the country is desert.
The south is semiarid  and merges into the Sahara.
There are now over 100 legal parties  including several that existed under the former regime.
The Law of Personal Status is applied to all Tunisians regardless of their religion.
The navy had 4 800 personnel operating 25 patrol boats and 6 other craft.
The Tunisian Air Force has 154 aircraft and 4 UAVs.
Tunisia s military spending was 1.6  of GDP as of 2006.
The army is responsible for national defence and also internal security.
Tunisia has participated in peacekeeping efforts in the DROC and Ethiopia Eritrea.
On 7 December 2016  two Tunisian men were arrested on suspicion of homosexual activity in Sousse.
Also  the law allowing rapists to escape punishment by marrying the victim was abolished.
According to Human Rights Watch  47  of Tunisian women have been subject to domestic violence.
Nevertheless  Tunisia could not accomplish anything more than freedom and democracy.
The main field is El Bourma.Oil production began in 1966 in Tunisia.
Both facilities are projected to produce 900–1000 MW.
As of 2015  Tunisia has abandoned these plans.
A new airport  Enfidha – Hammamet International Airport opened in 2011.
The railway network is operated by SNCFT and amounts to 2 135 kilometres  1 327 mi  in total.
The Tunis area is served by a Light rail network named Metro Leger which is managed by Transtu.
In 1974  ONAS was established to manage the sanitation sector.
The rate of non revenue water is the lowest in the region at 21  in 2012.
Speakers of Berber dialects comprised 2  of the population.
The history of the Jews in Tunisia goes back some 2 000 years.
In 2010  there were 6 639 000 French speakers in Tunisia  or about 64  of the population.
Italian is understood and spoken by a small part of the Tunisian population.
Shop signs  menus and road signs in Tunisia are generally written in both Arabic and French.
Judaism is the country s third largest religion with between 1 000 and 1 400 members.
The government believed the hijab is a  garment of foreign origin having a partisan connotation .
Mosques were restricted from holding communal prayers or classes.
The state in Tunisia has a role as a  guardian of religion  which was used to justify the arrests.
Education is given a high priority and accounts for 6  of GNP.
A basic education for children between the ages of 6 and 16 has been compulsory since 1991.
The Enseignement secondaire is divided into two stages  general academic and specialized.
Health      In 2010  spending on healthcare accounted for 3.37  of the country s GDP.
In 2009  there were 12.02 physicians and 33.12 nurses per 10 000 inhabitants.
Infant mortality in 2016 was 11.7 per 1 000.
It was founded in 1949 and brings together French and Tunisian Muslims  Christians and Jews.
Sadok Gmech draws his inspiration from national wealth while Moncef Ben Amor turns to fantasy.
Literature      Tunisian literature exists in two forms  Arabic and French.
As for literature in French  it is characterized by its critical approach.
In 2006 this figure had increased to 1 500 and 1 700 in 2007.
In 1930  The Rachidia  was founded well known thanks to artists from the Jewish community.
The institution did not take long to assemble a group of musicians  poets  scholars.
Most programs are in Arabic but some are in French.
In essence  the media was dominated by state authorities through the Agence Tunis Afrique Presse.
Sports      Football is the most popular sport in Tunisia.
The premier football league is the  Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 .
The Tunisia men s national handball team has participated in several handball world championships.
The national league consists of about 12 teams  with ES.
The most famous Tunisian handball player is Wissem Hmam.
The team won the 2011 Afrobasket and hosted Africa s top basketball event in 1965  1987 and 2015.
In 2012  Tunisia participated for the seventh time in her history in the Summer Paralympic Games.
She finished the competition with 19 medals  9 golds  5 silvers and 5 bronzes.
Tunisia was classified 14th on the Paralympics medal table and 5th in Athletics.
The Emergence and activity of Tunisia s most fearful terrorist group  137–150.
After Mehmed II conquered Constantinople in 1453  Ottoman expansion continued under Selim I.
During the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent  the Ottoman Empire became a global power.
After the Ottomans and the other Central Powers lost the war  the Ottoman Empire was partitioned.
The phrase land of Torke is used in the 15th century Digby Mysteries.
The modern spelling  Turkey  dates back to at least 1719.
The Turkish name Türkiye was adopted in 1923 under the influence of European usage.
The most powerful of Phrygia s successor states were Lydia  Caria and Lycia.
From the second half of the 18th century onwards  the Ottoman Empire began to decline.
During the war  the empire s Armenians were deported to Syria as part of the Armenian Genocide.
As a result  an estimated 800 000 to 1 500 000 Armenians were killed.
Mustafa Kemal became the republic s first President and subsequently introduced many reforms.
İsmet İnönü became Turkey s second President following Atatürk s death on 10 November 1938.
On 29 June 1939  the Republic of Hatay voted in favour of joining Turkey with a referendum.
On 26 June 1945  Turkey became a charter member of the United Nations.
In 1950 Turkey became a member of the Council of Europe.
More than 40 000 people have died as a result of the conflict.
In 1999 PKK s founder Abdullah Öcalan was arrested and sentenced for terrorism and treason charges.
On 15 July 2016  an unsuccessful coup attempt tried to oust the government.
Each province is divided into districts  ilçe   for a total of 973 districts.
Politics     Between 1923 and 2018  Turkey was a parliamentary representative democracy.
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is the first president elected by direct voting.
Turkey s constitution governs the legal framework of the country.
Since its foundation as a republic in 1923  Turkey has developed a strong tradition of secularism.
Each category includes first instance courts and high courts.
As of 2016  Turkey does not have an ambassador in either Syria or Egypt.
In 2020  Turkey openly intervened in Libya at the request of the GNA.
The Chief of the General Staff is appointed by the President.
Turkey supported the coalition forces in the First Gulf War.
Turkey maintains a force of 36 000 troops in Northern Cyprus since 1974.
Turkish Armed Forces have overseas military bases in Albania  Iraq  Qatar  and Somalia.
The initial reason given by the PKK for this was the oppression of Kurds in Turkey.
A full scale insurgency began in 1984  when the PKK announced a Kurdish uprising.
Since the conflict began  more than 40 000 people have died  most of whom were Turkish Kurds.
160 journalists have been imprisoned.
In 2015 Turkey s media was rated as not free by Freedom House.
European Turkey comprises only 3 percent of the country s territory.
Turkey is the world s 37th largest country by land area.
Turkey also contains the Sea of Marmara in the northwest.
East Thrace  the European portion of Turkey  is located at the easternmost edge the Balkans.
It forms the border between Turkey and its neighbours Greece and Bulgaria.
Southeastern Turkey is located within the northern plains of Upper Mesopotamia.
The uneven north Anatolian terrain running along the Black Sea resembles a long  narrow belt.
This region comprises approximately one sixth of Turkey s total land area.
The diversity of Turkey s fauna is even greater than that of its flora.
The Turkish pine is mostly found in Turkey and other east Mediterranean countries.
The national dog breeds are the Kangal  Malaklı  Akbaş and Anatolian Shepherd.
Temperatures of −30 to −40 °C  −22 to −40 °F  can occur in eastern Anatolia.
Snow may remain at least 120 days of the year.
In the west  winter temperatures average below 1 °C  34 °F .
Summers are hot and dry  with temperatures often above 30 °C  86 °F  in the day.
May is generally the wettest month  whereas July and August are the driest.
However  agriculture still accounted for a quarter of employment.
Turkey s gross external debt reached  453.2 billion at the end of December 2017.
The external costs of fossil fuel consumption in 2018 has been estimated as 1.5  of GDP.
As of 2014  the country has a roadway network of 65 623 kilometres  40 776 miles .
Turkish State Railways started building high speed rail lines in 2003.
The Osman Gazi Bridge  2016  connects the northern and southern shores of the Gulf of İzmit.
Many natural gas pipelines span the country s territory.
The Blue Stream  a major trans Black Sea gas pipeline  delivers natural gas from Russia to Turkey.
Turkey has the fifth highest direct utilisation and capacity of geothermal power in the world.
TÜBA is an autonomous scholarly society acting to promote scientific activities in Turkey.
TAEK is the official nuclear energy institution of Turkey.
According to the 2011 estimate  the population is increasing by 1.35 percent each year.
Turkey has an average population density of 97 people per km².
However approximately 70 to 80 percent of the country s citizens are ethnic Turks.
It is estimated that there are at least 47 ethnic groups represented in Turkey.
Kurds are the largest non Turkish ethnicity at anywhere from 12 25 per cent of the population.
Turkey is also home to a Muslim community of Megleno Romanians.
The vast majority of these are living in Turkey with temporary residence permits.
It is spoken by 85.54 percent of the population as a first language.
11.97 percent of the population speaks the Kurmanji dialect of Kurdish as their mother tongue.
Megleno Romanian is also spoken.
Education      The Ministry of National Education is responsible for pre tertiary education.
Health      The Ministry of Health has run a universal public healthcare system since 2003.
Air pollution in Turkey is a major cause of early death.
Impressionism  among the contemporary trends  appeared later on with Halil Pasha.
The arrival of Islam and the development of Islamic art also influenced Turkish carpet design.
The words tasvir or nakış were used to define the art of miniature painting in Ottoman Turkish.
The studios the artists worked in were called nakkaşhane.
The instructions for several ebru techniques in the text are accredited to this master.
Despite this  marbled motifs are commonly referred to as hatip designs in Turkey today.
Literature and theatre      Turkish literature is a mix of cultural influences.
Most of the roots of modern Turkish literature were formed between the years 1896 and 1923.
The origin of Turkish theatre dates back to ancient pagan rituals and oral legends.
In time  the ancient rituals  myths  legends and stories evolved into theatrical shows.
The first Turkish musicals were also written in this period.
Cuisine      Turkish cuisine is largely the heritage of Ottoman cuisine.
This book was based on recipes found in an 18th century Ottoman manuscript.
His second book was about palace cuisine during the reign of Mehmet II.
Sports      The most popular sport in Turkey is association football.
Galatasaray won the UEFA Cup and UEFA Super Cup in 2000.
Beşiktaş won the 2011–12 FIBA EuroChallenge  and Galatasaray won the 2015–16 Eurocup.
They also won multiple medals over multiple decades at the Mediterranean Games.
The traditional national sport of Turkey has been yağlı güreş  oil wrestling  since Ottoman times.
The first narrative film  Sedat Simavi s The Spy  was released in 1917.
Turkey s first sound film was shown in 1931.
Freedom House lists Turkey s media as not free.
The Twelfth East Asia Summit was held in Pasay  Philippines on November 13–14  2017.
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson attended in President Trump s place.
It is common to designate a 45 foot  13.7 m  container as 2 TEU  rather than 2.25 TEU.
Deadweight tonnage is generally measured now in metric tons  tonnes .
Register tons are measured in cu.
As the TEU is an inexact unit  it cannot be converted precisely into other units.
The related unit forty foot equivalent unit  however  is defined as two TEU.
This gives a volume range of 680 to 1 520 cubic feet  19 to 43 m3  for one TEU.
The maximum gross mass for a 20 foot  6.1 m  dry cargo container is 24 000 kilograms  53 000 lb .
ISO s container standards are nothing but good news .
The Philippines receive the brunt of the landfalls  with China and Japan being less often impacted.
However  some of the deadliest typhoons in history have struck China.
The Ancient Greek Τυφῶν  Typhôn   Typhon   is related and has secondarily contaminated the word.
The Persian term may originally have been influenced by the Greek word.
Tropical storms also receive official names from RSMC Tokyo.
These warm waters are needed to maintain the warm core that fuels tropical systems.
When one basin is active  the other is normally quiet  and vice versa.
This makes this basin the most active on Earth.
Pacific typhoons have formed year round  with peak months from August to October.
One of the most recent busy seasons was 2013.
Those that form near the Marshall Islands find their way to Jeju Island  Korea.
Typhoon paths follow three general directions.
A general westward path affects the Philippines  southern China  Taiwan  and Vietnam.
When all names on the list are used  it will start again from the left top corner.
A new name will be decided by the country whose name was retired.
Unlike tropical cyclones in other parts of the world  typhoons are not named after people.
Instead  they generally refer to animals  flowers  astrological signs  and a few personal names.
However  Philippines PAGASA  retains its own naming list  which does consist of human names.
Only 15 seasons had 30 or more storms developing since reliable records began.
There was only one tropical cyclone that moved through the Philippines in 1958.
The 2004 Pacific typhoon season was the busiest for Okinawa since 1957.
In the 20th century  tourism became a major industry in the Tōhoku region.
He built many palaces and worked on many projects to beautify the region.
He is also known to have encouraged foreigners to come to his land.
For 270 years  Tōhoku remained a place of tourism  trade and prosperity.
He showed sympathy for Christian missionaries and traders in Japan.
Tōhoku provided 20 percent of the nation s rice crop.
The name comes from the Tōkaidō  one of the Edo Five Routes.
Tōkai is a heavy manufacturing area and is one of the most industrial regions in Japan.
Its coast is lined with densely populated cities with economies that thrive on factories.
Automobile giants Toyota and Suzuki are located in Tōkai subregion.
Yamaha corporation is also located in Tōkai subregion.
Since around 2010 though  the Tōkai subregion has experienced population decline.
See also    Hokuriku region Kōshin etsu region Shin etsu region      Notes
Its constitution establishes the agency s goals  governing structure  and operating framework.
However  the onset of World War II largely interrupted the work of these predecessor organizations.
This was followed by the Dumbarton Oaks Conference proposals of 9 October 1944.
During the 20 year campaign  22 monuments and architectural complexes were relocated.
UNESCO started organizing training and education for journalists in the 1950s.
Since 1997  UNESCO has awarded the UNESCO   Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize every 3 May.
21st century     UNESCO admitted Palestine as a member in 2011.
As a result  the US withdrew its funding  which had accounted for about 22  of UNESCO s budget.
In 2008  Iowa City  Iowa became the City of Literature.
The project was carried out between September 2014 – December 2016.
Higher Education in Europe is its official journal.
There have been proposals to establish two new UNESCO lists.
Media    UNESCO and its specialized institutions issue a number of magazines.
Since March 2006 it is available online  with limited printed issues.
Its articles express the opinions of the authors which are not necessarily the opinions of UNESCO.
UNESCO also published Museum International Quarterly from the year 1948.
Most of these are what UNESCO calls  operational   a select few are  formal .
The United States and Israel left UNESCO on 31 December 2018.
Out of the 11 Directors General since inception  women have held the position only twice.
Qatar  the Philippines  and Iran are proposing for a Director General bid by 2021 or 2025.
There have never been a Middle Eastern or Southeast Asian UNESCO Director General since inception.
Qatar and Iran  on the other hand  have fragmented support in the Middle East.
Both Qatar and Egypt lost in the 2017 bid against France.
Its architect was Marcel Breuer.
Singapore withdrew also at the end of 1985  citing rising membership fees.
Following a change of government in 1997  the UK rejoined.
The United States rejoined in 2003  followed by Singapore on 8 October 2007.
Israel     Israel was admitted to UNESCO in 1949  one year after its creation.
Israel has maintained its membership since 1949.
Israel partially suspended ties with UNESCO.
The event was scheduled to run from 21 January through 30 January in Paris.
Palestinian leaders welcomed the decision.
Ambassador Crystal Nix Hines stated   This item should have been defeated.
These politicized and one sided resolutions are damaging the credibility of UNESCO.
The Jewish organization B nai B rith criticized the move as well.
UN Watch also condemned this selection by UNESCO.
The fact is UNESCO is one of the least dangerous international institutions ever created.
Israel and the US were among the 14 votes against the membership out of 194 member countries.
After complaints from the MET  the adverts were withdrawn.
CDS ISIS – a generalised information storage and retrieval system.
The Windows version may run on a single computer or in a local area network.
Furthermore  GenISIS allows the user to produce HTML Web forms for CDS ISIS database searching.
The ISIS DLL provides an API for developing CDS ISIS based applications.
Ukiyo e is a genre of Japanese art which flourished from the 17th through 19th centuries.
The term ukiyo e  浮世絵  translates as  picture s  of the floating world .
In 1603  the city of Edo  Tokyo  became the seat of the ruling Tokugawa shogunate.
Colour prints were introduced gradually  and at first were only used for special commissions.
By the 1740s  artists such as Okumura Masanobu used multiple woodblocks to print areas of colour.
Some ukiyo e artists specialized in making paintings  but most works were prints.
Until the 17th century  such printing was reserved for Buddhist seals and images.
The paintings of Iwasa Matabei  1578–1650  have a great affinity with ukiyo e paintings.
Chōshun allowed greater expressive freedom in his adherents  a group that later included Hokusai.
His restrained  graceful prints invoked the classicism of waka poetry and Yamato e painting.
The prolific Harunobu was the dominant ukiyo e artist of his time.
Colours tend to be softer and pigments thicker in Kamigata prints than in those of Edo.
In the 19th century many of the prints were designed by kabuki fans and other amateurs.
One of those rivals was Eisen  1790–1848   who was also adept at landscapes.
Ukiyo e prints were amongst the items he brought back to the United States.
Van Gogh was an avid collector  and painted copies in oil of prints by Hiroshige and Eisen.
He signed much of this work with his initials in a circle  imitating the seals on Japanese prints.
The movement favoured individuality in its artists  and as such has no dominant themes or styles.
Elements of images were often cropped  giving the composition a spontaneous feel.
In colour prints  contours of most colour areas are sharply defined  usually by the linework.
E hon books of illustrations were popular and continued be an important outlet for ukiyo e artists.
Nearly every ukiyo e master produced shunga at some point.
Trade  primarily with the Dutch and Chinese  was restricted to the island of Dejima near Nagasaki.
Outlandish pictures called Nagasaki e were sold to tourists of the foreigners and their wares.
Publishing was highly competitive  over a thousand publishers are known from throughout the period.
The woodblocks were also traded or sold to other publishers or pawnshops.
Publishers were usually also vendors  and commonly sold each other s wares in their shops.
Young designers could be expected to cover part or all of the costs of cutting the woodblocks.
An artist s name consisted of a gasei artist surname followed by an azana personal art name.
Retailers and travelling sellers promoted them at prices affordable to prosperous townspeople.
In some cases the prints advertised kimono designs by the print artist.
The mid 1760s brought full colour nishiki e prints made from ten or more woodblocks.
Printers first used natural colour dyes made from mineral or vegetable sources.
The colours were harsher and brighter than traditional pigments.
The Meiji government promoted their use as part of broader policies of Westernization.
Criticism and historiography    Contemporary records of ukiyo e artists are rare.
Ōta Nanpo compiled the first  no longer extant version around 1790.
The earliest comprehensive historical and critical works on ukiyo e came from the West.
Little record of the patrons of ukiyo e paintings has survived.
Little concrete is known about production and consumption habits.
Mounts must be flexible  as the sheets can tear under sharp changes in humidity.
There is wide variation in the condition  rarity  cost  and quality of extant prints.
Carvers may have altered the colours or composition of prints that went through multiple editions.
When cut after printing  the paper may have been trimmed within the margin.
These refreshed prints he resold as original printings.
The British Museum began a collection in 1860 that by the late 20th century numbered 70000 items.
Its capital and largest city is Kyiv.
The territory of modern Ukraine has been inhabited since 32 000 BC.
Ukraine gained its independence in 1991  following the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
It also maintains the third largest military in Europe after Russia and France.
During the Iron Age  the land was inhabited by Cimmerians  Scythians  and Sarmatians.
These colonies thrived well into the sixth century AD.
The Goths stayed in the area  but came under the sway of the Huns from the 370s AD.
Migrations from Ukraine throughout the Balkans established many Southern Slavic nations.
It laid the foundation for the national identity of Ukrainians and Russians.
Kyiv  the capital of modern Ukraine  became the most important city of the Rus .
The state soon fragmented as the relative importance of regional powers rose again.
Kyiv was totally destroyed in 1240.
Danylo was crowned by the papal archbishop in Dorohychyn 1253 as the first King of all Rus .
By 1392 the so called Galicia–Volhynia Wars ended.
The borderlands suffered annual Tatar invasions.
In 1688  Tatars captured a record number of 60 000 Ukrainians.
These were rejected by the Polish nobility  who dominated the Sejm.
Lithuanians and Poles controlled vast estates in Ukraine  and were a law unto themselves.
Occasionally the landowners battled each other using armies of Ukrainian peasants.
Religious warfare also broke out among Ukrainian groups.
However  within the Empire  Ukrainians rose to the highest Russian state and church offices.
Austro Hungarian authorities established the Ukrainian Legion to fight against the Russian Empire.
Those suspected of Russophile sentiments in Austria were treated harshly.
World War I destroyed both empires.
Ukraine became a founding member of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in December 1922.
The movement attracted a militant following among students.
Ukrainisation was part of the Soviet wide policy of Korenisation  literally indigenisation .
Women s rights were greatly increased through new laws.
Those who resisted were arrested and deported and agricultural productivity greatly declined.
Thus  Eastern Galicia and Volhynia with their Ukrainian population became part of Ukraine.
German armies invaded the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941  initiating nearly four years of total war.
The Axis initially advanced against desperate but unsuccessful efforts of the Red Army.
After the war  the UPA continued to fight the USSR until the 1950s.
By some estimates  93  of all German casualties took place there.
Of the estimated 8.6 million Soviet troop losses  1.4 million were ethnic Ukrainians.
Victory Day is celebrated as one of ten Ukrainian national holidays.
More than 700 cities and towns and 28 000 villages were destroyed.
The death toll of this famine varies  with even the lowest estimate in the tens of thousands.
Following the death of Stalin in 1953  Nikita Khrushchev became the new leader of the USSR.
In 1954  the 300th anniversary of the Treaty of Pereyaslav was widely celebrated.
Such an important role resulted in a major influence of the local elite.
Many members of the Soviet leadership came from Ukraine  most notably Leonid Brezhnev.
He later ousted Khrushchev and became the Soviet leader from 1964 to 1982.
A month earlier  a similar declaration was adopted by the parliament of the Russian SFSR.
This started a period of confrontation with the central Soviet authorities.
A new currency  the hryvnia  was introduced in 1996.
After 2000  the country enjoyed steady real economic growth averaging about seven percent annually.
Yushchenko strongly suspected Russian involvement in his poisoning.
Viktor Yanukovych was elected President in 2010 with 48  of votes.
Some Ukrainians took to the streets to show their support for closer ties with Europe.
Poroshenko also set 2020 as the target for EU membership application.
The ceasefire began at midnight on 15 February 2015.
COVID 19     The first case of COVID 19 in Ukraine was recorded on 3 March.
On 17 March  the international border was closed to foreigners.
The government also placed on the right to assembly a limit of 10 individuals.
As of 19 March  the number of infections had risen to 21  and three deaths had been reported.
To the southwest  the delta of the Danube forms the border with Romania.
Near the Sea of Azov can be found the Donets Ridge and the Near Azov Upland.
Recycling toxic household waste is still in its infancy in Ukraine.
All these soils are very fertile when sufficient water is available.
They become increasingly salinized to the south as they approach the Black Sea.
The climate is influenced by moderately warm  humid air coming from the Atlantic Ocean.
Ukraine is home to a diverse assemblage of animals  fungi  microorganisms and plants.
Animals       Ukraine falls into two main zoological areas.
The ruling on the 2004 Constitutional amendments became a major topic of political discourse.
Ukraine s legislative branch includes the 450 seat unicameral parliament  the Verkhovna Rada.
Other normative acts are subject to judicial review.
The Supreme Court is the main body in the system of courts of general jurisdiction.
Local self government is officially guaranteed.
Local councils and city mayors are popularly elected and exercise control over local budgets.
This practice was controversial and was subject to Constitutional Court review.
Judges are largely well protected from dismissal  except in the instance of gross misconduct .
One day later  he stated  We can no longer disgrace our country with such a court system.
The criminal judicial system and the prison system of Ukraine remain quite punitive.
Previously all court proceedings had to be held in Ukrainian.
Bloodshed was only avoided when Lt. Gen. Sergei Popkov heeded his colleagues  calls to withdraw.
Ukraine has consistently supported peaceful  negotiated settlements to disputes.
Ukraine also has made a substantial contribution to UN peacekeeping operations since 1992.
Ukraine–NATO relations are close and the country has declared interest in eventual membership.
Ukraine is the most active member of the Partnership for Peace  PfP .
Ukraine has been playing an increasingly larger role in peacekeeping operations.
Ukrainian troops are deployed in Kosovo as part of the Ukrainian Polish Battalion.
There was also a maintenance and training battalion deployed in Sierra Leone.
Populated places in Ukraine are split into two categories  urban and rural.
The transition was difficult for the majority of the population which plunged into poverty.
Ukraine s economy contracted severely in the years after the Soviet dissolution.
Day to day life for the average person living in Ukraine was a struggle.
For the year 1993  Ukraine holds the world record for inflation in one calendar year.
Those living on fixed incomes suffered the most.
Prices stabilised only after the introduction of new currency  the hryvnia  in 1996.
The country was also slow in implementing structural reforms.
Following independence  the government formed a legal framework for privatisation.
Many state owned enterprises were exempt from privatisation.
In the meantime  by 1999  the GDP had fallen to less than 40  of the 1991 level.
It recovered considerably in the following years.
In 2017  Ukraine s government debt was 75 .
Ukraine produces nearly all types of transportation vehicles and spacecraft.
Antonov airplanes and KrAZ trucks are exported to many countries.
The majority of Ukrainian exports are marketed to the European Union and CIS.
Ukraine became an active participant in scientific space exploration and remote sensing missions.
At the same time  85  of the Russian gas is delivered to Western Europe through Ukraine.
Growing sectors of the Ukrainian economy include the information technology  IT  market.
In 2016  for the first time since 2010  the economy grew more than 2 .
According to World Bank statement growth is projected at 2  in 2017 and 3.5  in 2018.
Transport      In total  Ukrainian paved roads stretch for 164 732 kilometres  102 360 mi .
The heaviest concentration of railway track is the Donbas region of Ukraine.
The largest ferry company presently operating these routes is Ukrferry.
However  the majority of these commodities are imported.
Until the 2010s  all of Ukraine s nuclear fuel was coming from Russia.
The core of the audience is the 25 to 34 year old age bracket  representing 29  of the population.
The IT industry ranks third in the export structure of Ukraine after agro industry and metallurgy.
Ukraine s IT sector employs close to 100 000 workers  including 50 000 software developers.
This number is expected to surpass the 200 000 mark by 2020.
There are over 1 000 IT companies in Ukraine.
In 2017  13 of them made it to the list of 100 best outsourcing service providers in the world.
78  of Ukrainian tech workers report having an intermediate or higher level of English proficiency.
It is unclear if those moving to work in the EU intend this to be temporary of permanent.
Language      According to the constitution  the state language of Ukraine is Ukrainian.
Russian is widely spoken  especially in eastern and southern Ukraine.
Most native Ukrainian speakers know Russian as a second language.
Russian can now be used in these cities  oblasts  administrative office work and documents.
In western Ukraine  Ukrainian is also the dominant language in cities  such as Lviv .
A further 1.1  were Muslims and 1.0  Latin Rite Catholics.
Judaism and Hinduism were the religions of 0.2  of the population each.
A further 16.3  of the population did not identify in one of those listed hitherto.
The union of the Ukrainian Churches has not been recognized by other Orthodox Churches.
Additionally  there are a small number of Latin Rite Catholic communities  1.0  .
Protestants had increased to 2.2  in the 2018 Razumkov Center survey.
At present  society involves more than 6.3 million supporters and activists.
Its Visiting Nurses Service has 3 200 qualified nurses.
Assistance for orphaned and disabled children is also rendered.
In 2008  the country s population was one of the fastest declining in the world at −5  growth.
General practitioners will provide basic care for patients.
The patient will have the right to choose one.
Emergency medical service is considered to be fully funded by the state.
Emergency Medicine Reform is also an important part of the healthcare reform.
There is also a small number of accredited private secondary and higher education institutions.
These tests are later used for university admissions.
Among the oldest is also the Lviv University  founded in 1661.
Rapid growth followed in the Soviet period.
By 1988 a number of higher education institutions increased to 146 with over 850 000 students.
Most HEIs established after 1990 are those owned by private organisations.
Higher education is either state funded or private.
For highest grades  the scholarship is increased by 25 .
For most students the government subsidy is not sufficient to cover their basic living expenses.
Most universities provide subsidised housing for out of city students.
Also  it is common for libraries to supply required books for all registered students.
The Law of Ukraine On Higher Education came into force on 6 September 2014.
It was approved in Ukrainian Parliament on 1 July 2014.
However  this geographical division is decreasing.
These are followed by 886 urban type settlements and 28 552 villages.
After the entire egg was dyed  the wax was removed leaving only the colourful pattern.
This tradition is thousands of years old  and precedes the arrival of Christianity to Ukraine.
Use of colour is very important and has roots in Ukrainian folklore.
National dress is woven and highly decorated.
Weaving with handmade looms is still practised in the village of Krupove  situated in Rivne Oblast.
The writings of the time were mainly liturgical and were written in Old Church Slavonic.
Literary activity faced a sudden decline during the Mongol invasion of Rus .
In general around 223 writers were repressed by what was known as the Executed Renaissance.
These repressions were part of Stalin s implemented policy of socialist realism.
These include initial roots which were established in the Eastern Slavic state of Kievan Rus .
The architectural style of the Kyivan state was strongly influenced by the Byzantine.
All can still be found in the Ukrainian capital.
Unfortunately little secular or vernacular architecture of Kievan Rus  has survived.
Russia eventually conquered the south of Ukraine and Crimea  and renamed them as New Russia.
New cities such as Nikolayev  Odessa  Kherson and Sevastopol were founded.
These would contain notable examples of Imperial Russian architecture.
In 1934  the capital of Soviet Ukraine moved from Kharkiv to Kyiv.
Previously  the city was seen as only a regional centre  hence received little attention.
All of that was to change  at great price.
Even the St. Sophia Cathedral was under threat.
Also  the Second World War contributed to the wreckage.
Music      Music is a major part of Ukrainian culture  with a long history and many influences.
It had a place of considerable importance in the curriculum of the Kyiv Mohyla Academy.
See  Dmytro Bortniansky  Maksym Berezovsky and Artemiy Vedel.
The music of these three groups differs considerably  as do the audiences for whom they cater.
Since the mid 1960s  Western influenced pop music has been growing in popularity in Ukraine.
Folk singer and harmonium player Mariana Sadovska is prominent.
Modern musical culture of Ukraine is presented both with academic and entertainment music.
Ukraine hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 and the Eurovision Song Contest 2017.
Cinema      Ukraine has had an influence on the history of the cinema.
Freedom House classifies the Internet in Ukraine as  free  and the press as  partly free .
Press freedom has significantly improved since the Orange Revolution of 2004.
However  in 2010 Freedom House perceived  negative trends in Ukraine .
The National News Agency of Ukraine  Ukrinform was founded here in 1918.
BBC Ukrainian started its broadcasts in 1992.
Several television channels operate  and many websites are popular.
Sport      Ukraine greatly benefited from the Soviet emphasis on physical education.
The most popular sport is football.
The top professional league is the Vyscha Liha   premier league  .
Ukrainian boxers are amongst the best in the world.
In 2011  Ukraine was granted a right to organize EuroBasket 2015.
Euroleague participant Budivelnyk Kyiv is the strongest professional basketball club in Ukraine.
Chess is a popular sport in Ukraine.
Ruslan Ponomariov is the former world champion.
There are about 85 Grandmasters and 198 International Masters in Ukraine.
Cuisine      The traditional Ukrainian diet includes chicken  pork  beef  fish and mushrooms.
Ukrainians also tend to eat a lot of potatoes  grains  fresh  boiled or pickled vegetables.
Ukrainian specialties also include Chicken Kiev and Kyiv cake.
Unitary states stand in contrast with federations  also known as federal states.
Such units exercise only the powers that the central government chooses to delegate.
Many unitary states have no areas possessing a degree of autonomy.
In such countries  sub national regions cannot decide their own laws.
Examples are Romania  Ireland and Norway.
Svalbard has even less autonomy than the mainland.
It is directly controlled by the government and has no local rule.
It borders Oman and Saudi Arabia  and has maritime borders in the Persian Gulf with Qatar and Iran.
Their boundaries have numerous enclaves within each other.
A further treaty was signed in 1843 and  in 1853 the Perpetual Treaty of Maritime Truce was agreed.
It was subsequently ratified by the Governor General of India and the British Government in London.
British maritime policing meant that pearling fleets could operate in relative security.
Khawr al Udayd was claimed by Abu Dhabi at that time  a claim supported by the British.
The British set up a development office that helped in some small developments in the emirates.
The council was terminated once the United Arab Emirates was formed.
The Trucial Oman Scouts was a small military force used by the British to keep the peace.
However  on 27 October 1960  the company discovered oil in commercial quantities at the Murban No.
In 1962  PDTC became the Abu Dhabi Petroleum Company.
The British Labour government rejected the offer.
The islands were taken by force  civilians and Arab defenders alike allowed to flee.
A British warship stood idle during the course of the invasion.
A destroyer group approached the island Abu Musa as well.
Ras al Khaimah joined it later  on 10 January 1972.
The UAE joined the Arab League on 6 December 1971 and the United Nations on 9 December.
A 19 year old Emirati from Abu Dhabi  Abdullah Mohammed Al Maainah  designed the UAE flag in 1971.
It was adopted on 2 December 1971.
The UAE joined international military operations in Libya in March 2011.
On 2 November 2004  the UAE s first president  Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan  died.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan was elected as the President of the UAE.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan succeeded Khalifa as Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
The first ever national elections were held in the UAE on 16 December 2006.
The UAE also disputes claim on other islands against the neighboring state of Qatar.
The smallest emirate  Ajman  encompasses only 259 km2  100 sq mi  see figure .
Most of the coast consists of salt pans that extend 8–10 km inland.
The smaller islands  as well as many coral reefs and shifting sandbars  are a menace to navigation.
The extensive Liwa Oasis is in the south near the undefined border with Saudi Arabia.
In the desert  the flora is very sparse and consists of grasses and thorn bushes.
Coastal fish and mammals consist mainly of mackerel  perch  and tuna  as well as sharks and whales.
Climate     The climate of the UAE is subtropical arid with hot summers and warm winters.
The climate is categorized as desert climate.
In the Al Hajar Mountains  temperatures are considerably lower  a result of increased elevation.
Average minimum temperatures in January and February are between 10 and 14 °C  50 and 57 °F .
Easterner   makes the coastal region especially unpleasant.
The region is prone to occasional  violent dust storms  which can severely reduce visibility.
A few years later  there were more sightings of snow and hail.
The Jebel Jais mountain cluster has experienced snow only twice since records began.
All responsibilities not granted to the national government are reserved to the individual emirate.
A percentage of revenues from each emirate is allocated to the UAE s central budget.
The President and Prime Minister are elected by the Federal Supreme Council.
All prime ministers but one have served concurrently as vice president.
He was the UAE s first president from the nation s founding until his death on 2 November 2004.
The Prime Minister  who is appointed by the Federal Supreme Council  appoints the ministers.
The FNC consists of 40 members drawn from all the emirates.
Each emirate is allocated specific seats to ensure full representation.
Half are appointed by the rulers of the constituent emirates  and the other half are elected.
By law  the council members have to be equally divided between males and females.
The UAE ranks poorly in freedom indices measuring civil liberties and political rights.
The UAE also ranks poorly in the annual Reporters without Borders  Press Freedom Index.
Our system of government is based upon our religion and that is what our people want.
Should they seek alternatives  we are ready to listen to them.
We have always said that our people should voice their demands openly.
We are all in the same boat  and they are both the captain and the crew.
Our doors are open for any opinion to be expressed  and this is well known by all our citizens.
No one should act as if they own others.
Substantial development assistance has increased the UAE s stature among recipient states.
Also  it is an observer in the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie.
The UAE maintains close relations with Egypt and is Egypt s largest investor from the Arab world.
The largest expatriate presence in the UAE is Indian.
The United Arab Emirates and the United States enjoy very close strategic ties.
The US maintains three military bases in the UAE.
The Taliban refused all three conditions  and the UAE withdrew its offer.
The UAE backed Saudi Arabia in its 2018 dispute with Canada.
Administrative divisions      The United Arab Emirates comprises seven emirates.
Dubai is the most populous emirate with 35.6  of the UAE population.
There are two areas under joint control.
One is jointly controlled by Oman and Ajman  the other by Fujairah and Sharjah.
There is an Omani exclave surrounded by UAE territory  known as Wadi Madha.
It is about eight kilometres  5.0 miles  on a dirt track west of the town of New Madha.
It consists of about forty houses with its own clinic and telephone exchange.
Law      The UAE has a federal court system.
There are three main branches within the court structure  civil  criminal and Sharia law.
The UAE s judicial system is derived from the civil law system and Sharia law.
The court system consists of civil courts and Sharia courts.
Verbal abuse pertaining to a person s honour is illegal and punishable by 80 lashes.
Between 2007 and 2014  many people in the UAE were sentenced to 100 lashes.
More recently in 2015  two men were sentenced to 80 lashes for hitting and insulting a woman.
As of November 2020  Alcohol consumption for Muslims and non Muslims is legal.
In the past  many Muslims have been sentenced to 80 or 40 lashes for alcohol consumption.
Illicit sex is sometimes penalized by 60 lashes.
80 lashes is the standard number for anyone sentenced to flogging in several emirates.
Sharia courts have penalized domestic workers with floggings.
In October 2013  a Filipino housemaid was sentenced to 100 lashes for illegitimate pregnancy.
Under UAE law  premarital sex is punishable by 100 lashes.Stoning is a legal punishment in the UAE.
In May 2014  an Asian housemaid was sentenced to death by stoning in Abu Dhabi.
Other expatriates have been sentenced to death by stoning for committing adultery.
Between 2009 and 2013  several people were sentenced to death by stoning.
Crucifixion is a legal punishment in the UAE.
Hence  both are enforceable simultaneously.
The Sharia based personal status law regulates matters such as marriage  divorce and child custody.
The Islamic personal status law is applied to Muslims and sometimes non Muslims.
In all emirates  it is illegal for Muslim women to marry non Muslims.
Expats in Dubai have been deported for kissing in public.
In Abu Dhabi  people have been sentenced to 80 lashes for kissing in public.
In 2013  an Emirati man was on trial for being accused of a  gay handshake .
Blasphemy law     Apostasy is a crime punishable by death in the UAE.
Blasphemy is illegal  expatriates involved in insulting Islam are liable for deportation.
In several cases  the courts of the UAE have jailed women who have reported rape.
The woman still had to serve one year in jail.
Exceptions are made for pregnant women and children.
Dancing in public is illegal in the UAE.
Human rights      Flogging and stoning are legal punishments in the UAE.
The requirement is derived from Sharia law  and has been federal law since 2005.
Since 2011  the UAE government has increasingly carried out forced disappearances.
Many foreign nationals and Emirati citizens have been arrested and abducted by the state.
Human rights organizations have spoken out against the secrecy of the trial.
An Emirati  whose father is among the defendants  was arrested for tweeting about the trial.
In April 2013  he was sentenced to 10 months in jail.
Foreign nationals were also subjected to a campaign of deportations.
He was arrested by UAE authorities  detained  imprisoned and then expelled from the country.
In December 2009  Issa appeared in court and proclaimed his innocence.
The trial ended on 10 January 2010  when Issa was cleared of the torture of Mohammed Shah Poor.
Lebanese Shia families in particular have been deported for their alleged sympathy for Hezbollah.
Worker protests have been suppressed and protesters imprisoned without due process.
In 2015  nationals from different countries were put in jail for offences.
About twenty non political groups operate on the territory without registration.
Prior to the bid  he was accused of being responsible for the torture of a British academic.
Many migrant workers racked up debt and depended on the help of charities.
Dress code     The UAE has a modest dress code  which is part of Dubai s criminal law.
Most malls in the UAE have a dress code displayed at entrances.
At Dubai s malls  women are encouraged to cover their shoulders and knees.
Despite this  people are allowed to wear swimwear at pools and beaches.
Those mosques which are open to tourists provide modest clothing for men and women if needed.
The UAE ranks poorly in the annual Press Freedom Index by Reporters without Borders.
Dubai Media City and twofour54 are the UAE s main media zones.
Between 2000 and 2018  average real Gross Domestic Product  GDP  growth was at close to 4 .
The non oil trade has grown to 1.2 trillion AED  a growth by around 28 times from 1981 to 2012.
Migrant workers who participate in a strike can have their work permits cancelled and be deported.
Even though as compared to retail and property  UAE banks fared well.
In 2017 and 2018 growth has been positive but on a low level of 0.8 and 1.4   respectively.
To support the economy the Government is currently following an expansionary fiscal policy.
Government debt has remained on a low level  despite high deficits in a few recent years.
Risks related to government debt remain low.
Inflation has been picking up in 2017 and 18.
In 2018  the oil and gas sector contributed 26  to overall GDP.
Tourism      Tourism acts as a growth sector for the entire UAE economy.
Dubai is the top tourism destination in the Middle East.
Dubai welcomed 10 million tourists in 2013.
The UAE has the most advanced and developed infrastructure in the region.
Since the 1980s  the UAE has been spending billions of dollars on infrastructure.
These developments are particularly evident in the larger emirates of Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
The Dubai Metro is the first urban train network in the Arabian Peninsula.
Etisalat operated a monopoly until du launched mobile services in February 2007.
Internet subscribers were expected to increase from 0.904 million in 2007 to 2.66 million in 2012.
Arabian and Persian inspired architecture is part of the expression of the local Emirati identity.
The United Arab Emirates has a diverse society.
The earliest known poet in the UAE is Ibn Majid  born between 1432 and 1437 in Ras Al Khaimah.
The Sharjah International Book Fair is the oldest and largest in the country.
Abu Dhabi has established a culture district on Saadiyat Island.
Six grand projects are planned  including the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi and the Louvre Abu Dhabi.
The cinema of the United Arab Emirates is minimal but expanding.
Cuisine      The traditional food of the Emirates has always been rice  fish and meat.
Seafood has been the mainstay of the Emirati diet for centuries.
Meat and rice are other staple foods  with lamb and mutton preferred to goat and beef.
Alcohol is allowed to be served only in hotel restaurants and bars.
All nightclubs are permitted to sell alcohol.
Specific supermarkets may sell alcohol  but these products are sold in separate sections.
Other popular sports include camel racing  falconry  endurance riding  and tennis.
In the past  child camel jockeys were used  leading to widespread criticism.
Ansar Burney is often praised for the work he has done in this area.
Football      Football is a popular sport in the UAE.
The UAE qualified for the FIFA World Cup in 1990  along with Egypt.
The country hosted the 2019 AFC Asian Cup.
Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi has also hosted international cricket matches.
Dubai has two cricket stadiums  Dubai Cricket Ground No.
Dubai is also home to the International Cricket Council.
They qualified for the 2015 Cricket World Cup held in Australia and New Zealand.
Icc cricket.com  10 April 2015 .
UAE has also hosted two IPLs.The 7th edition of Indian Premier League was held in UAE.
The UAE leg hosted 20 matches before moving to India.
The 2020 Indian Premier League was also held in UAE.
It consists of primary schools  middle schools and high schools.
There are also many private schools which are internationally accredited.
The higher education system is monitored by the Ministry of Higher Education.
The ministry also is responsible for admitting students to its undergraduate institutions.
Expatriates and immigrants account for 88.52  while Emiratis make up the remaining 11.48 .
More than 100 000 British nationals live in the country.
The average life expectancy was 76.7 in 2012  higher than for any other Arab country.
Religion      Islam is the largest and the official state religion of the UAE.
85  of the Emirati population are Sunni Muslims.
The country has at least 45 churches.
There is only one known synagogue  in Dubai  which has been open since 2008.
The synagogue also welcomes visitors.
The Gulf dialect of Arabic is spoken natively by the Emirati people.
As such  a knowledge of the language is a requirement when applying for most local jobs.
Health      The life expectancy at birth in the UAE is at 76.96 years.
The Irish Sea separates Great Britain and Ireland.
The total area of the United Kingdom is 94 000 square miles  240 000 km2 .
The United Kingdom is a unitary parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy.
The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II  who has reigned since 1952.
The United Kingdom consists of four countries  England  Scotland  Wales and Northern Ireland.
Their capitals are London  Edinburgh  Cardiff and Belfast  respectively.
Apart from England  the countries have their own devolved governments  each with varying powers.
Other major cities include Birmingham  Glasgow  Edinburgh  Leeds  Liverpool  and Manchester.
It is a recognised nuclear weapons state and is sixth in military expenditure in the world.
Northern Ireland is also referred to as a  province .
The official designation for a citizen of the United Kingdom is  British citizen .
In 1066  the Normans and their Breton allies invaded England from northern France.
With the founding of the Royal Society in 1660  science was greatly encouraged.
By the time of the Great Exhibition of 1851  Britain was described as the  workshop of the world .
Canada  Australia  and New Zealand became self governing dominions.
Social reform and home rule for Ireland were important domestic issues after 1900.
Britain had suffered 2.5 million casualties and finished the war with a huge national debt.
Northern Ireland remained part of the United Kingdom.
The 1928 Act widened suffrage by giving women electoral equality with men.
Winston Churchill became prime minister and head of a coalition government in 1940.
Urban areas suffered heavy bombing during the Blitz.
British scientists contributed to the Manhattan Project which led to the surrender of Japan.
Independence was granted to India and Pakistan in 1947.
In the following decades  the UK became a more multi ethnic society than before.
When the EC became the European Union  EU  in 1992  the UK was one of the 12 founding members.
The statutory incorporation followed acceptance of the European Convention on Human Rights.
The UK is still a key global player diplomatically and militarily.
It plays leading roles in the UN and NATO.
21st century      The 2008 global financial crisis severely affected the UK economy.
The coastline of Great Britain is 11 073 miles  17 820 km  long.
The main rivers and estuaries are the Thames  Severn and the Humber.
England s highest mountain is Scafell Pike  978 metres  3 209 ft   in the Lake District.
Wales is mostly mountainous  though South Wales is less mountainous than North and mid Wales.
Wales has over 2 704 kilometres  1 680 miles  of coastline.
Summers are warmest in the southeast of England  and coolest in the north.
United Kingdom is ranked 4 out of 180 countries in the Environmental Performance Index.
A law has been passed that UK greenhouse gas emissions will be net zero by 2050.
Since 2011  ten combined authorities have been established in England.
Eight of these have elected mayors  the first elections for which took place on 4 May 2017.
In 2008 the executive agreed on proposals to create 11 new councils and replace the present system.
British claims in Antarctica have limited international recognition.
Internationally  they are regarded as  territories for which the United Kingdom is responsible .
Since 2005 each Crown dependency has had a Chief Minister as its head of government.
Politics     The United Kingdom is a unitary state under a constitutional monarchy.
These 16 countries are sometimes referred to as  Commonwealth realms .
The monarch has  the right to be consulted  the right to encourage  and the right to warn .
No Parliament can pass laws that future Parliaments cannot change.
All bills passed are given Royal Assent before becoming law.
The Prime Minister is Boris Johnson  who has been in office since 24 July 2019.
Johnson is also the leader of the Conservative Party.
General elections are called by the monarch when the prime minister so advises.
The Northern Ireland Executive and Assembly have powers similar to those devolved to Scotland.
The Executive is led by a diarchy representing unionist and nationalist members of the Assembly.
Today the UK has three distinct systems of law  English law  Northern Ireland law and Scots law.
Scotland s prisons are overcrowded but the prison population is shrinking.
Since the end of the British Empire  the UK has remained a major military power.
Economy          Overview      The UK has a partially regulated market economy.
London also has the largest city GDP in Europe.
In 2015  the UK produced around 1.6 million passenger vehicles and 94 500 commercial vehicles.
BAE Systems plays a critical role in some of the world s biggest defence aerospace projects.
It also manufactures the Hawk  the world s most successful jet training aircraft.
Airbus UK also manufactures the wings for the A400 m military transporter.
Rolls Royce is the world s second largest aero engine manufacturer.
The UK space industry was worth £9.1bn in 2011 and employed 29 000 people.
Around two thirds of production is devoted to livestock  one third to arable crops.
The UK retains a significant  though much reduced fishing industry.
The poverty line in the UK is commonly defined as being 60 per cent of the median household income.
Scientific journals produced in the UK include Nature  the British Medical Journal and The Lancet.
The M25  encircling London  is the largest and busiest bypass in the world.
In 2009 there were a total of 34 million licensed vehicles in Great Britain.
Railways in Northern Ireland are operated by NI Railways  a subsidiary of state owned Translink.
Network Rail owns and manages most of the fixed assets  tracks  signals etc. .
Around twenty  mostly privately owned  train operating companies operate passenger trains.
In 2015  1.68 billion passengers were carried.
There are about 1 000 freight trains in daily operation.
HS2  a new high speed railway line   is estimated to cost £56 billion.
Production is now in decline and the UK has been a net importer of oil since 2005.
During the 1980s and 1990s the industry was scaled back considerably.
In 2011  the UK produced 18.3 million tonnes of coal.
In 2005 it had proven recoverable coal reserves of 171 million tons.
In 2012  the UK had 16 reactors normally generating about 19 per cent of its electricity.
All but one of the reactors will be retired by 2023.
It is estimated that 96.7 per cent of households are connected to the sewer network.
In Scotland water and sewerage services are provided by a single public company  Scottish Water.
Demographics     A census is taken simultaneously in all parts of the UK every 10 years.
In the 2011 census the total population of the United Kingdom was 63 181 775.
In mid 2012 and mid 2013 natural change contributed the most to population growth.
In 2011  47.3 per cent of births in the UK were to unmarried women.
In 2018 the median age of the UK population was 41.7 years.
Welsh people could be the oldest ethnic group in the UK.
The 1991 census was the first UK census to have a question on ethnic group.
Languages      The UK s de facto official language is English.
It is estimated that 95 per cent of the UK s population are monolingual English speakers.
In addition  it is estimated that about 200 000 Welsh speakers live in England.
The number of children being taught either Welsh or Scottish Gaelic is increasing.
French and German are the two most commonly taught second languages in England and Scotland.
A Tearfund survey in 2007 showed only one in 10 Britons actually attend church weekly.
It retains a representation in the UK Parliament and the British monarch is its Supreme Governor.
In Scotland  the Church of Scotland is recognised as the national church.
Migration      The United Kingdom has experienced successive waves of migration.
In 2011  citizens of new EU member states made up 13  of immigrants.
This figure fell to around 125 800 in 2014.
Universally free of charge state education was introduced piecemeal between 1870 and 1944.
Two non departmental public bodies have key roles in Scottish education.
Scotland first legislated for compulsory education in 1496.
Each National Health Service has different policies and priorities  resulting in contrasts.
Most British literature is in the English language.
It was written in Cumbric or Old Welsh and contains the earliest known reference to King Arthur.
Wales s most celebrated medieval poet  Dafydd ap Gwilym  fl.
1320–1370   composed poetry on themes including nature  religion and especially love.
He is widely regarded as one of the greatest European poets of his age.
Daniel Owen is credited as the first Welsh language novelist  publishing Rhys Lewis in 1885.
The best known of the Anglo Welsh poets are both Thomases.
Dylan Thomas became famous on both sides of the Atlantic in the mid 20th century.
These include Joseph Conrad  T. S. Eliot  Kazuo Ishiguro and Sir Salman Rushdie.
These include Oscar Wilde  Bram Stoker and George Bernard Shaw.
Sir Harrison Birtwistle is one of the foremost living composers.
Notable conductors include Sir Simon Rattle  Sir John Barbirolli and Sir Malcolm Sargent.
Andrew Lloyd Webber is a prolific composer of musical theatre.
In addition  British acts developed progressive rock  psychedelic rock  and punk rock.
Rock is not far behind  at 22.6 per cent of unit sales.
The Courtauld Institute of Art is a leading centre for the teaching of the history of art.
Cinema      The United Kingdom has had a considerable influence on the history of the cinema.
Many British actors have achieved international fame and critical success.
UK box office takings totalled £944 million in 2009  with around 173 million admissions.
The Norman conquest introduced exotic spices into England in the Middle Ages.
Each of the Home Nations has its own football association  national team and league system.
The English top division  the Premier League  is the most watched football league in the world.
The first international football match was contested by England and Scotland on 30 November 1872.
In 2003  rugby union was ranked the second most popular sport in the UK.
The team  tours Australia  New Zealand and South Africa.
Team members are drawn from the main county sides  and include both English and Welsh players.
Golf is the sixth most popular sport  by participation  in the UK.
Great Britain is still retained as the full national team.
Super League is the highest level of professional rugby league in the UK and Europe.
Shinty  or camanachd  is popular in the Scottish Highlands.
Britannia is a national personification of the United Kingdom  originating from Roman Britain.
She holds Poseidon s three pronged trident and a shield  bearing the Union Flag.
It has been associated with Winston Churchill s defiance of Nazi Germany.
A now rare personification is the character John Bull.
UNDP works with nations on their own solutions to global and national development challenges.
As they develop local capacity  they draw on the people of UNDP and its wide range of partners.
It works internationally to help countries achieve the Sustainable Development Goals  SDGs .
The rationale was to  avoid duplication of  their  activities .
The concept of SUNFED was dropped to form the Special Fund.
Budget    In 2019  UNDP s entire budget was approximately US 6 billion.
The UNDP s Strategic Plan 2014 2017 incorporates the recommendations of this poverty evaluation.
Currently the UNEG has 43 members and 3 observers.
The UNDG brings together the operational agencies working on development.
The Group is chaired by the Administrator of UNDP.
UNDP also provides the Secretariat to the Group.
32 UN agencies are members of the UNDG.
The Executive Committee consists of the four  founding members   UNICEF  UNFPA  WFP and UNDP.
It is now coordinated by the UNDG.
In 2015  the Innovation Facility invested in 62 initiatives across 45 countries to achieve 16 SDGs.
In its statement  Shin Bet said that Wahid had confessed to being recruited in 2014 to help Hamas.
The UNDP denied any wrongdoing  and keeping improper accounts.
Derviş started his four year term on 15 August 2005.
The position is currently held by Tegegnework Gettu  appointed on 1 December 2015.
He is also currently service as Director a.i.  for the Africa Region.
In 2016–2017 it has an estimated biannual budget of US 700 million.
The United Nations Secretary General appoints the agency s Executive Director.
UNODC incorporates the secretariat of the International Narcotics Control Board  INCB .
The Convention was adopted by the General Assembly on 31 October 2003.
In 2003  the United Nations adopted the UN Convention against Corruption  UNCAC .
The Convention came into force in December 2005.
UNODC serves as the Secretariat for the Conference of the States Parties  CoSP  to the UNCAC.
These three major international drug control treaties are mutually supportive and complementary.
They also include general provisions on trafficking and drug abuse.
Campaigns    UNODC launches campaigns to raise awareness of drugs and crime problems.
On 9 December every year  UNODC commemorates the International Anti Corruption Day.
Do Drugs Control Your Life?
The campaign encourages young people to put their health first and not to take drugs.
This despite the actions of United Nations bodies  i.e.
WHO and UNAIDS   who support these policies.
He has also defended the life imprisonment of a Qatari poet and human rights campaigner.
This is the proof of their involvement in drugs trade.
Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said that  Israel would not allow any Jew to be harmed.
See also         References         External links    Official website
The UNSC is the only UN body with the authority to issue binding resolutions on member states.
These were the great powers  or their successor states  that were the victors of World War II.
The remaining ten members are elected on a regional basis to serve a term of two years.
The body s presidency rotates monthly among its members.
The next day the representatives of twenty two other nations added their signatures.
The term United Nations was first officially used when 26 governments signed this Declaration.
By 1 March 1945  21 additional states had signed.
There have been two major seat changes since then.
They annually topped the list of countries with the highest military expenditures.
The same holds for certain decisions that directly regard permanent members.
But what will be your answer when you are asked   Where is the Charter ?
As of 2012  269 vetoes had been cast since the Security Council s inception.
Non permanent members may be involved in global security briefings.
They subsequently agreed to split the term of the Western European and Others Group.
It was the first time in over five decades that two members agreed to do so.
The chamber was designed by the Norwegian architect Arnstein Arneberg and was a gift from Norway.
The chamber reopened on 16 April 2013.
Delegations also stage walkouts to express their disagreement with actions of the Security Council.
No formal record is kept of the informal consultations.
In 2012  the Security Council held 160 consultations  16 private meetings  and 9 public meetings.
In 2016  the Security Council held 150 consultations  19 private meetings  and 68 public meetings.
This authority is also reflected in Rule 28 of the Provisional Rules of Procedure.
The subsidiary bodies established by the Security Council are extremely heterogenous.
These soldiers are sometimes nicknamed  Blue Helmets  for their distinctive gear.
The peacekeeping force as a whole received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1988.
They also see an 8  increase in aid from the United Nations  mainly from UNICEF.
There is also evidence of increased foreign aid to elected countries from Japan and Germany.
Elected members also experience a reduction in democracy and freedom of the press.
As British historian Paul Kennedy writes   Everyone agrees that the present structure is flawed.
But consensus on how to fix it remains out of reach.
There has been discussion of increasing the number of permanent members.
Currently the proposal has to be accepted by two thirds of the General Assembly  128 votes .
The national capital is Washington  D.C.  and the most populous city is New York City.
The United States emerged from the thirteen British colonies established along the East Coast.
It is a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council.
It is one of the most racially and ethnically diverse nations in the world.
Other common forms are the  U.S.   the  USA   and  America .
Colloquial names are the  U.S. of A.
The phrase  United States  was originally plural in American usage.
It described a collection of states—e.g.   the United States are.
Estimating the native population of North America at the time of European contact is difficult.
Many settlers were dissenting Christians who came seeking religious freedom.
Native Americans were also often at war with neighboring tribes and European settlers.
In many cases  however  the natives and settlers came to depend on one another.
Settlers traded for food and animal pelts  natives for guns  tools and other European goods.
Natives taught many settlers to cultivate corn  beans  and other foodstuffs.
All nonetheless had local governments with elections open to most free men.
They demanded their  rights as Englishmen  and  no taxation without representation .
Tensions with Britain remained  however  leading to the War of 1812  which was fought to a draw.
Nonetheless  large scale conflicts continued throughout the West into the 1900s.
The Union initially simply fought to keep the country united.
Reconstruction began in earnest following the war.
Blacks faced racial segregation  especially in the South.
Mainland expansion also included the purchase of Alaska from Russia in 1867.
Banking became a major part of the economy  with J. P. Morgan playing a notable role.
The American economy boomed  becoming the world s largest.
After his election as president in 1932  Franklin D. Roosevelt responded with the New Deal.
The U.S. developed a policy of containment towards the expansion of communist influence.
Millions moved from farms and inner cities to large suburban housing developments.
In 1959 Hawaii became the 50th and last U.S. state added to the country.
This brought about unipolarity with the U.S. unchallenged as the world s dominant superpower.
On January 20  2020  the first case of COVID 19 in the United States was confirmed.
Farther west are the rocky Great Basin and deserts such as the Chihuahua and Mojave.
The Great Plains west of the 100th meridian are semi arid.
Much of the Western mountains have an alpine climate.
Most of Alaska is subarctic or polar.
Altogether  the government owns about 28  of the country s land area  mostly in the western states.
The country joined the Paris Agreement in 2016 and has many other environmental commitments.
It left the Paris Agreement in 2020  and rejoined it in 2021.
Statistics from the formal 2020 U.S. Census will be reported to the president during early 2021.
The United States is the third most populous nation in the world  after China and India.
The total fertility rate was 1820.5 births per 1000 women in 2016.
In 2013  the average age at first birth was 26  and 41  of births were to unmarried women.
In 2019  the U.S. had the world s highest rate of children living in single parent households.
18  of all Americans claim to speak both English and another language.
The United States has the world s largest Christian population.
In 2014  5.9  of the U.S. adult population claimed a non Christian religion.
These include Judaism  1.9    Islam  0.9    Hinduism  0.7    and Buddhism  0.7  .
From 1999 to 2019  more than 770 000 Americans died from drug overdoses.
Approximately one third of the adult population is obese and an additional third is overweight.
In 2017  12.2  of the population did not carry health insurance.
The subject of uninsured and underinsured Americans is a major political issue.
The bill and its ultimate effect are still issues of controversy in the United States.
However  the U.S. is a global leader in medical innovation.
Just over 2  of children are homeschooled.
The basic literacy rate is approximately 99 .
As of 2018  student loan debt exceeded 1.5 trillion dollars.
It is the world s oldest surviving federation.
The U.S. ranked 25th on the Democracy Index in 2018.
The local government s duties are commonly split between county and municipal governments.
Article One protects the right to the writ of habeas corpus.
House seats are apportioned among the states by population.
Each state then draws single member districts to conform with the census apportionment.
The District of Columbia and the five major U.S. territories do not have senators.
The president serves a four year term and may be elected to the office no more than twice.
Political divisions      The 50 states are the principal political divisions in the country.
They are subdivided into counties or county equivalents and further divided into municipalities.
The states and the District of Columbia choose the president of the United States.
Of state governors  there are 27 Republicans and 23 Democrats.
Foreign relations      The United States has an established structure of foreign relations.
It is a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council.
New York City is home to the United Nations Headquarters.
Likewise  nearly all nations host American diplomatic missions.
It is a member of the G7  G20  and OECD.
Taxation in the United States is based on citizenship  not residency.
By 2012  total federal debt had surpassed 100  of U.S. GDP.
The U.S. has a credit rating of AA  from Standard   Poor s  AAA from Fitch  and AAA from Moody s.
In 2019  all six branches of the U.S. Armed Forces reported 1.4 million personnel on active duty.
The Reserves and National Guard brought the total number of troops to 2.3 million.
The Department of Defense also employed about 700 000 civilians  not including contractors.
From 1940 until 1973  conscription was mandatory even during peacetime.
The United States possesses the second largest stockpile of nuclear weapons in the world.
More than 40  of the world s 14 000 nuclear weapons are held by the United States.
In 2016  the U.S. murder rate was 5.4 per 100 000.
Since the decision  however  there have been more than 1 500 executions.
In 2010  the total U.S. trade deficit was  635 billion.
The country ranks ninth in the world in nominal GDP per capita and sixth in GDP per capita at PPP.
In August 2010  the American labor force consisted of 154.1 million people  50  .
With 21.2 million people  government is the leading field of employment.
The latter led to emergence of the worldwide entertainment industry.
Americans also make up roughly half of the world s population of millionaires.
According to the Federal Reserve  the top 1  controlled 38.6  of the country s wealth in 2016.
Energy      The United States energy market is about 29 000 terawatt hours per year.
In 2018  37  of this energy came from petroleum  31  from natural gas  and 13  from coal.
The remainder was supplied by nuclear and renewable energy sources.
Whether this perception is accurate has been a topic of debate.
Thirteen U.S. citizens have won the Nobel Prize in Literature.
John Rawls and Robert Nozick also led a revival of political philosophy.
Americans drink three times as much coffee as tea.
Aaron Copland and George Gershwin developed a new synthesis of popular and classical music.
More recent American creations include hip hop  salsa  techno  and house music.
College football and basketball attract large audiences.
The most watched individual sports are golf and auto racing  particularly NASCAR and IndyCar.
The four major broadcast television networks are all commercial entities.
In addition  there are 1 460 public radio stations.
Much public radio broadcasting is supplied by NPR.
It played the central role in the World War II defeat of Imperial Japan.
The U.S. Navy emerged from World War II as the most powerful navy in the world.
The Department of the Navy is headed by the civilian Secretary of the Navy.
The U.S. Navy is a seaborne branch of the military of the United States.
is the natural defense of the United States.
The rationale for establishing a national navy was debated in the Second Continental Congress.
In 1798–99 the Navy was involved in an undeclared Quasi War with France.
20th century      Our ships are our natural bulwarks.
It was not until 1921 US naval aviation truly commenced.
It also concentrated on laying the North Sea Mine Barrage.
Hesitation by the senior command meant that naval forces were not contributed until late 1917.
Naval Air Force units like the Northern Bombing Group contributed to the anti submarine operations.
The U.S. Navy continues to be a major support to U.S. interests in the 21st century.
Thus Navy officers and enlisted sailors fulfill these roles.
In times of war  the Coast Guard operates as a service in the Navy.
Many qualifications are denoted on a sailor s uniform with U.S. Navy badges and insignia.
The predominant colors of U.S. Navy uniforms are navy blue and white.
Navy officers serve either as a line officer or as a staff corps officer.
Navy warrant officers serve in 30 specialties covering five categories.
Warrant officers should not be confused with the limited duty officer  LDO  in the Navy.
Enlisted       Sailors in pay grades E 1 through E 3 are considered to be in apprenticeships.
Below are just a few of the many badges maintained by the Navy.
Maryland is home to NAS Patuxent River  which houses the Navy s Test Pilot School.
Also located in Maryland is the United States Naval Academy  situated in Annapolis.
The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard near Portsmouth  New Hampshire  which repairs naval submarines.
The other major collection of naval bases on the west coast is in Puget Sound  Washington.
There is also NS Rota in Spain and NSA Souda Bay in Greece.
The U.S. Navy previously operated nuclear powered cruisers  but all have been decommissioned.
Ready logistics support for the group is provided by a combined ammunition  oiler  and supply ship.
Amphibious assault ships are typically named after World War II aircraft carriers.
Amphibious transport docks are typically named after U.S. cities.
All dock landing ships are named after cities or important places in U.S. and U.S.
The Ticonderoga class is the only active class of cruiser.
All cruisers in this class are named after battles.
Constitution is currently the oldest commissioned warship afloat.
HMS Victory is older  and in commission  but is in permanent drydock.
MCM vessels have mostly legacy names of previous US Navy ships  especially WWII era minesweepers.
There have been many designs for patrol boats  though the navy currently only has a single class.
The navy s current class of patrol boats have names based on weather phenomena.
To these  attack submarines also add the battlegroup operations mission.
Initial operational capability of the F 35C is now expected to be February 2019.
The Navy is also looking to eventually replace its F A 18E F Super Hornets with the F A XX program.
For anti ship strikes  the navy s dedicated missile is the Harpoon Missile.
For surface strikes  navy aircraft utilize a combination of missiles  smart bombs  and dumb bombs.
On the list of available missiles are the Maverick  SLAM ER and JSOW.
Smart bombs include the GPS guided JDAM and the laser guided Paveway series.
To combat submarines  helicopters use Mark 46 and Mark 50 torpedoes.
Against small watercraft  they utilize Hellfire and Penguin air to surface missiles.
The navy s other nuclear weapon is the air deployed B61 nuclear bomb.
When underway  the ensign is raised on the mainmast.
Others included Lyndon B. Johnson  Richard Nixon  Gerald Ford  Jimmy Carter  and George H. W. Bush.
Many members of Congress served in the navy  notably U.S.
includes warship losses   U.S. Navy in World War II .
includes The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II   Our Fighting Ships .
It also lead to the election of the world s first female members of parliament the following year.
Greece recognized full male suffrage in 1844.
Dates by country    States have granted and revoked universal suffrage at various times.
The Pitcairn Islands granted restricted women s suffrage in 1838.
The first unrestricted women s suffrage in a major country was granted in New Zealand in 1893.
The women s suffrage bill was adopted mere weeks before the general election of 1893.
Māori men had been granted suffrage in 1867  white men in 1879.
The world s first female members of parliament were elected in Finland the following year  1907.
Campoamor however pleaded for women s rights regardless of political orientation.
Both Campoamor and Kent lost their seats.
The university has produced a total of ten Olympic medalists.
Approximately 900 students participate in 34 intercollegiate club sports annually as well.
The consolation prize for the losing city was to be home of the new Colorado State Prison.
Cañon City was at a disadvantage as it was already the home of the Colorado Territorial Prison.
There are now six prisons in the Cañon City area.
The cornerstone of the building that became Old Main was laid on September 20  1875.
The doors of the university opened on September 5  1877.
Its first African American female graduate  Lucile Berkeley Buchanan  received her degree in 1918.
It consists of academic and residential buildings as well as research facilities.
The University also offers Residential Academic Programs  RAPS  in many of its Residence Halls.
Norlin Library was the last building to be designed by Klauder.
There are two inscriptions on the western face of the building  overlooking the Norlin Quadrangle.
Both were composed by President Norlin.
The Auditorium opened its doors in 1923  thirteen years after construction started.
The UMC quickly became the central landmark of the Boulder campus.
The expansion was financed through bonds granted by student fees.
It also features Club 156  which hosts concerts from local and up and coming bands.
In 1986  students passed another bond issue to remodel the food services area.
The Alferd Packer Grill gets its name from Alferd Packer  a famous historical cannibal in Colorado.
Many exotic meals can be found here.
The facility was completed in September 2010 at a cost of  84.4 million.
Fees from Permit and Parking Services will contribute as well.
These services have been relocated to the C4C from various locations around campus.
For example  Career Services was previously housed in the basement of the Willard Dormitory.
Overall the Dining Center is projected to serve around one million meals per year.
It is currently about 300 000 square feet  28 000 m2  and operates on a  5 million annual budget.
It is located on the northern edge of campus next to Folsom Field.
The CU Art Museum features works of modern and contemporary art  as well as historical art works.
Seven galleries exhibit art and memorabilia associated with CU faculty and alumni.
The Fiske Planetarium and Science Center features a 60 ft  18 m .
planetarium dome and produces laser shows  live concerts  and an ongoing series of public programs.
Fiske also offers a hands on science museum with interactive exhibits and space themed art.
They present musical genres including classical  jazz  world music  and new music.
Academics    The University of Colorado Boulder is divided into several colleges and schools.
University of Colorado School of Law is the smallest and most selective of the colleges.
Undergraduates who seek an academic challenge may participate in CU s Honors Program.
The program extends into the residence halls through the Kittredge Honors Program.
Scholars participate in a four year leadership development program.
The program provides opportunities to the top fifty students at CU from every major and discipline.
Each RAP focuses on a curricular theme  and offer courses in the residence hall itself.
The programs also include educational activities.
CU Boulder s atomic molecular optical physics program is ranked 2nd nationally.
The middle 50  range of the ACT composite score was 25–31  24 32 for english and 24 29 for math.
Carl Wieman was also awarded a Nobel prize for his work with Eric Cornell.
Most contributors are journalism majors  but other CU programs are represented as well.
A managing editor and an editor in chief oversee the website.
The CU Independent serves as a testing pad for community news and multimedia.
Most of the authors are the students and graduates of the CU Boulder.
The blog is created and edited by Andrew D. Chapman  a philosophy lecturer at this university.
The essays generally include references or sources for more information.What’s Wrong?
It is edited by David Boonin  professor of philosophy and Associate Dean for Arts and Humanities.
After its founding in 1967 IBG led the resurging interest in genetic influences on behavior.
It is home to a state of the art fMRI system used to collect neuroimaging data.
The government contains three branches  executive  legislative  and judicial.
The club motto   half mile more   dates back to the 1940s of the club s tradition rich history.
It is also run by volunteers from the journalism program.
It was started in 1933  and has thrived on the CU campus as a student run  nonprofit organization.
From the club  many members have gone on into professional cycling  such as Tyler Hamilton.
A number of  A  riders will be chosen by the coaches to represent CU at the National Championships.
Program Council mainly focuses on organizing concerts around campus.
The Herd s main goal is increasing school spirit.
It encourages students to attend school activities such as sports games and club meetings.
Sixteen student leaders run the group  the group is open to currently enrolled students.
The CU Boulder campus was recently one of 3 U.S.
Universities to receive the Presidential Award for Exemplary Student Community Service in 2008.
On February 23  2018  the group celebrated its ten year anniversary.
Sports  clubs  and traditions    Sports teams at the school are called Buffaloes.
The official school colors are silver and gold  as opposed to the common belief of black and gold.
There are three official fight songs   Glory Colorado    Go Colorado   and  Fight CU.
In 1934  the University teams were officially nicknamed the  Buffaloes.
Previous nicknames used by the press included the  Silver Helmets  and  Frontiersmen.
A buffalo calf was rented from a local ranch and ran along the sidelines.
Conference championships have also been won in several sports.
The CU ski team has won 20 National Championships at the Division I level.
The sport is not sponsored by the Pac 12 Conference  however  nor was it sponsored by the Big 12 .
Club sports      CU also maintains one of the largest club sports departments in the U.S.
Mascot   spirit program      CU also includes a spirit program.
The spirit program consists of three teams  two cheerleading squads  and the CU Express Dance Team.
The school s live mascot is a female American Bison named Ralphie.
The costumed mascot CHIP is also a part of the CU Spirit Program.
Most students at CU Boulder are aligned with the American political left.
First to observe a  fermionic condensate  formed from pairs of atoms in a gas.
Established in 1877  it was the first of the imperial universities.
Its five campuses are in Hongō  Komaba  Kashiwa  Shirokane and Nakano.
In 1947 after Japan s defeat in World War II it re assumed its original name.
According to The Japan Times  the university had 1 282 professors in February 2012.
Academics    The University of Tokyo is organized into 10 faculties and 15 graduate schools.
Research     The University of Tokyo is considered a top research institution of Japan.
According to Thomson Reuters  Todai is the best research university in Japan.
Todai also has been recognized for its research in the social sciences and humanities.
And it is the only Japanese university within world top 100.
In 2015  Times Higher Education World University Rankings ranked the institution 23rd in the world.
It ranks 12th in the world according to the Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings 2016.
Global University Ranking ranked the University of Tokyo 3rd in the world and 1st in Asia.
In November 2018 Expertscape recognized it as  9 in the world for expertise in Pancreatic Cancer.
In fact  alumni of Todai have the highest average salary in Japan  according to PRESIDENT.
One of the university s best known landmarks  Akamon  the Red Gate   is a relic of this era.
The symbol of the university is the ginkgo leaf  from the trees found throughout the area.
The Hongo campus also hosts the University of Tokyo s annual May Festival.
It was at that time known as Ikutoku en  Garden of Teaching Virtue .
It has been commonly called Sanshiro Pond after the title of Natsume Sōseki s novel Sanshiro.
Notable alumni and faculty members     The university has produced many notable people.
15 prime ministers of Japan have studied at the University of Tokyo.
Several ethnic groups of the People s Republic of China are not officially recognized.
Some scholars have estimated that there are over 200 distinct ethnic groups that inhabit China.
Europe was peopled after c. 45 ka.
The Upper Paleolithic is divided by the Last Glacial Maximum  LGM   during about 25 to 15 ka.
Lifestyle and technology     Both Homo erectus and Neanderthals used the same crude stone tools.
Burins and racloirs were used to work bone  antler and hides.
In addition  flint becomes brittle at low temperatures and may not have functioned as a tool.
This period saw cultures such as the Solutrean in France and Spain.
During this time period  Melbourne  Australia was occupied by hunter gatherers.
Löwenmensch figure created in Hohlenstein Stadel  one of the earliest figurative art.
It is now in Ulmer Museum  Ulm  Germany.
The first flutes appear in Germany.
Most of the giant vertebrates and megafauna in Australia became extinct.
It is the oldest known ceramic in the world.
Venus of Willendorf  Austria  created.
It is now at the Natural History Museum  Vienna.
The Red Lady of Paviland lived around 29 000–26 000 years ago.
Recent evidence has come to light that he was a tribal chief.
Ibex headed spear thrower  from Le Mas d Azil  Ariège  France  is made.
It is now at Musée de la Préhistoire  Le Mas d Azil.
Hall of Bulls at Lascaux in France is painted.
Bird Headed man with bison and Rhinoceros  Lascaux  is painted.
Lamp with ibex design  from La Mouthe cave  Dordogne  France  is made.
It is now at Musée des Antiquités Nationales  Saint Germain en Laye.
Paleo Indians move across North America  then southward through Central America.
from Laugerie Basse  France was made.
Paleo Indians searched for big game near what is now the Hovenweep National Monument.
Bison  on the ceiling of a cave at Altamira  Spain  is painted.
Beginning of the Holocene extinction.12 000 BP  Wooden buildings in South America  Chile .
First pottery vessels  Japan .11 000 BP  First evidence of human settlement in Argentina.
Human remains deposited in caves which are now located off the coast of Yucatán  Mexico.
This culture lasted from approximately 45 000 BP to 40 000 BP.
The Gravettian culture was located across Europe.
The Solutrean culture was located in eastern France  Spain  and England.
Solutrean artifacts have been dated c. 22 000 to 17 000 BP.
In a presidential system  It may have equal or nearly equal power with the lower house.
It may have specific powers not granted to the lower house.
For example  It may give advice and consent to some executive decisions  e.g.
It may have the sole power to ratify treaties.
Members  terms may be longer than in the lower house and may be for life.
Members may be elected in portions  for staggered terms  rather than all at one time.
It has usually a higher age of candidacy than the lower house.
No absolute veto of proposed legislation  though suspensive vetoes are permitted in some states.
An example is the British House of Lords.
Even without a veto  an upper house may defeat legislation.
Nevertheless  some states have long retained powerful upper houses.
These conventions have tended to harden with a passage of time.
It frequently has the sole authority to give consent to or denounce foreign treaties.
In a very similar way  the Council of the European Union is composed of national ministers.
By a narrow margin  the Irish public voted to retain it.
This is a list of countries by urbanization.
Methodology    There are two measures of the degree of urbanization of a population.
Countries    The data is taken from the CIA World Factbook with estimates from 2020.
The Uyghurs are recognized as native to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in Northwest China.
They are considered to be one of China s 55 officially recognized ethnic minorities.
Islam has since played an important role in Uyghur culture and identity.
An estimated 80  of Xinjiang s Uyghurs still live in the Tarim Basin.
Smaller communities live in Saudi Arabia  Jordan  Australia  Russia and Sweden.
These reflect the various Cyrillic spellings Уиғур  Уигур and Уйгур.
The Uyghurs also appear in Chinese records under other names.
They are described as the 高车   高車  lit.
This in turn has been connected to the Uyghur Qangqil  قاڭقىل or Қаңқил .
They were later known as the Tiele  铁勒   鐵勒  Tiělè .
They represent 0.31  of the total population of China.
The Russians and other foreigners referred to them as  Sart    Turk  or  Turki .
The Turkic people also used  Musulman   which means  Muslim   to describe themselves.
Use of the term Uyghur was unknown in Xinjiang until 1934.
They demanded the names  Türk  or  Türki  be used instead as the ethnonyms for their people.
The use of the term Uyghur led to anachronisms when describing the history of the people.
Turkistani  is used as an alternate ethnonym by some Uyghurs.
For example  the Uyghur diaspora in Arabia  adopted the identity  Turkistani .
Saudi born Uyghur Hamza Kashgari s family originated from Kashgar.
Some have even claimed that the real number of Uyghurs is actually 35 million.
In total  Uyghurs ranges from 37 57  European South West Asian and 44 64  Siberian East Asian.
Uyghur historians viewed the Uyghurs as the original inhabitants of Xinjiang with a long history.
They overthrew the First Turkic Khaganate and established the Uyghur Khaganate.
The Uyghur Khaganate stretched from the Caspian Sea to Manchuria and lasted from 744 to 840.
The modern Yugurs are believed to be descendants of these Uyghurs.
Ganzhou was absorbed by the Western Xia in 1036.
The Uyghurs were originally Manichaean  but converted to Buddhism during this period.
The legacy of the Khojas lasted until the 19th century.
Qing rule     In the 17th century  the Buddhist Dzungar Khanate grew in power in Dzungaria.
The Aqtaghlik Khojas in the Tarim Basin then became vassals to the Dzungars.
In Dzungaria  the Qing established new cities like Ürümqi and Yining.
The Dzungarian basin itself is now inhabited by many Kazakhs.
The Qing therefore unified Xinjiang and changed its demographic composition as well.
Large Qing dynasty forces under Chinese General Zuo Zongtang attacked Yettishar in 1876.
Modern era      In 1912  the Qing Dynasty was replaced by the Republic of China.
Uyghurs staged several uprisings against Chinese rule.
Mao declared the founding of the People s Republic of China on October 1  1949.
Many Republican loyalists fled into exile in Turkey and Western countries.
A third group would like a  Uyghurstan  state  such as the East Turkestan independence movement.
In particular  the size of the operation was found to have doubled over 2018.
Activists have called for the camps to be opened to visitors to prove their function.
However  none of these countries were predominantly Islamic countries.
These countries included mainly countries in Asia  Africa and the Middle East.
The birth rate declined a further 24  across the region in 2019 alone.
That same month  the U.S. government declared it a genocide.
The 1982 census recorded 4 000 Uyghurs in Hunan.
They have genealogies which survive 600 years later to the present day.
Genealogy keeping is a Han Chinese custom which the Hunan Uyghurs adopted.
These Uyghurs were given the surname Jian by the Emperor.
There is some confusion as to whether they practice Islam or not.
Jian is the predominant surname among the Uyghur in Changde  Hunan.
Another group of Uyghur have the surname Sai.
Hui and Uyghur have intermarried in the Hunan area.
It is reported that they now number around 10 000 people.
The Uyghurs in Changde are not very religious and eat pork.
Some Uyghurs from Xinjiang visit the Hunan Uyghurs out of curiosity or interest.
Culture          Religion      The ancient Uyghurs believed in many local deities.
These practices gave rise to Shamanism and Tengrism.
In general  Muslims in the southern region  Kashgar in particular  are more conservative.
The veil  however  has been banned in some cities since 2014 after it became more popular.
The Uyghur language is an agglutinative language and has a subject object verb word order.
The Arabic script  known as the Chagatay alphabet  was adopted along with Islam.
This alphabet is known as Kona Yëziq  old script .
A new Latin version  the Uyghur Latin alphabet  was also devised in the 21st century.
In the 1990s many Uyghurs in parts of Xinjiang could not speak Mandarin Chinese.
The Turki language Tadhkirah i Khwajagan was written by M. Sadiq Kashghari.
Music      Muqam is the classical musical style.
The 12 Muqams are the national oral epic of the Uyghurs.
Dance     Sanam is a popular folk dance among the Uyghur people.
It is commonly danced by people at weddings  festive occasions  and parties.
The dance may be performed with singing and musical accompaniment.
Sama is a form of group dance for Newruz  New Year  and other festivals.
Other dances include the Dolan dances  Shadiyane  and Nazirkom.
There are 77 rock cut caves at the site.
The effect is of an entire ceiling covered with hundreds of Buddha murals.
They also introduced the written script for the Mongolian language.
In the Islamic era  education was provided by the mosques and madrassas.
In madrasas  poetry  logic  Arabic grammar and Islamic law were taught.
Today  traditional medicine can still be found at street stands.
A typical Uyghur dish is polu  or pilaf   a dish found throughout Central Asia.
Raisins and dried apricots may also be added.
Kawaplar  Uighur  Каваплар  or chuanr  i.e.  kebabs or grilled meat  are also found here.
Uyghurs like to treat guests with tea  naan and fruit before the main dishes are ready.
Sangza  ساڭزا‎  Саңза  are crispy fried wheat flour dough twists  a holiday speciality.
Samsa  سامسا‎  Самса  are lamb pies baked in a special brick oven.
Youtazi is steamed multi layer bread.
Göshnan  گۆشنان‎  Гөшнан  are pan grilled lamb pies.
Pamirdin  Памирдин  are baked pies stuffed with lamb  carrots and onions.
Shorpa is lamb soup  شۇرپا‎  Шорпа .
Other dishes include Toghach  Тоғач   a type of tandoor bread  and Tunurkawab  Тунуркаваб .
A cake sold by Uyghurs is the traditional Uyghur nut cake.
Clothing      Chapan  a coat and Doppa  a headgear for men  is commonly worn by Uyghurs.
Traditional handicrafts     Yengisar is famous for manufacturing Uyghur handcrafted knives.
Uyghur artisan craftsmen in Yengisar are known for their knife manufacture.
Limitations were placed on knife vending due to concerns over terrorism and violent assaults.
Livelihood     Most Uyghurs are agriculturists.
Cultivating crops in an arid region has made the Uyghurs excel in irrigation techniques.
Uyghurs may also have difficulty receiving non interest loans  per Islamic beliefs .
Some pre Islamic Uyghur names are preserved in Turpan and Qumul.
The government has banned some two dozen Islamic names.
The Virtual International Authority File  VIAF  is an international authority file.
The Bibliothèque nationale de France  BnF  joined the project on 5 October 2007.
In this file  identical records from the different data sets are linked together.
The data are made available online and are available for research and data exchange and sharing.
VIAF clusters    VIAF s clustering algorithm is run every month.
Since the 19th century  handwritten valentines have given way to mass produced greeting cards.
Saint Valentine          History      Numerous early Christian martyrs were named Valentine.
The Valentines honored on February 14 are Valentine of Rome  Valentinus presb.
He is buried on the Via Flaminia  but in a different location from Valentine of Rome.
His relics are at the Basilica of Saint Valentine in Terni  Basilica di San Valentino .
He was martyred in Africa with a number of companions  but nothing more is known about him.
The same events are also found in Bede s Martyrology  which was compiled in the 8th century.
Valentine refused and tried to convert Claudius to Christianity instead.
Because of this  he was executed.
The expression  From your Valentine  was later adopted by modern Valentine letters.
This legend has been published by both American Greetings and The History Channel.
Today  the almond tree remains a symbol of abiding love and friendship.
A proverb says that  Saint Valentine brings the keys of roots .
Plants and flowers start to grow on this day.
It has been celebrated as the day when the first work in the vineyards and in the fields commences.
It is also said that birds propose to each other or marry on that day.
Valentine s Day has only recently been celebrated as the day of love.
The patron of love was Saint Anthony  whose day has been celebrated on June 13.
Lupercalia was a festival local to the city of Rome.
Pope Gelasius I  492–496  abolished Lupercalia.
Readers have uncritically assumed that Chaucer was referring to February 14 as Valentine s Day.
Amid these festivities  the attending ladies would hear and rule on disputes from lovers.
This day more cheerfully than ever shine This day which might inflame thy selfe old Valentine.
The collection appears in Seddon s book Victorian Valentines  1996 .
It is in your handwriting   said he coldly.
Boxes of filled chocolates quickly became associated with the holiday.
An estimated 15 million e valentines were sent in 2010.
It is also common to see people perform  acts of appreciation  for their friends.
In Guatemala it is known as the  Día del Cariño   Affection Day .
Couples exchange gifts  chocolates  cards  and flower bouquets.
Amigo Secreto is also popular there.
This is an increase from  108 per person in 2010.
It commemorates a day on which a legendary cowherder and weaving maid are allowed to be together.
Right wing Hindu nationalists are also hostile.
Our activists will beat them up .
He said  We are not against love  but we criticize vulgar exhibition of love at public places .
Under Iran s Islamic law  unmarried couples are not allowed to mingle.
It has been progressively forgotten in favor of the Western celebration of Valentine s Day.
It is celebrated on the 15th day of the month of Av  usually in late August .
In 1958  the Isetan department store ran a  Valentine sale .
In particular  office ladies give chocolate to their co workers.
This contrasts with honmei choko  本命チョコ  lit.
Lebanon       Saint Valentine is the patron saint for a large part of the Lebanese population.
In Beirut  men take women out to dine and may buy them a gift.
Many women are asked to marry on that day.
In both the states of Sabah and Sarawak  the celebration is usually common with flowers.
The Jamaat e Islami political party has called for the banning of Valentine s Day celebration.
It is usually marked by a steep increase in the price of flowers  particularly red roses.
This ban has created a black market for roses and wrapping paper.
The date  11 11  is intended to resemble the long shape of the cookie.
The 14th of every month marks a love related day in Korea  although most of them are obscure.
Korean women give a much higher amount of chocolate than Japanese women.
However  the situation is the reverse of Japan s.
Men give gifts to women on Valentine s Day  and women return them on White Day.
The day commemorates St Dwynwen  the Welsh patron saint of love.
The Welsh name for Saint Valentine is Sant Ffolant.
There lies a book in which foreigners and locals have written their prayer requests for love.
As the name indicates  this day is more about remembering friends  not significant others.
The village gets dressed in its 19th century costume and put on the program with over 800 people.
However  it rose in popularity only in the 1990s.
Romania      In recent years  Romania has also started celebrating Valentine s Day.
In Sweden it is called Alla hjärtans dag   All Hearts  Day   but is not widely celebrated.
The holiday has only been observed since the 1960s.
Women s Memorial March  held on Valentine s Day in Vancouver  British Columbia.
Vernal Equinox Day became a public holiday in 1948.
Prior to that it was the date of Shunki kōreisai  春季皇霊祭   an event relating to Shintoism.
This however was difficult due to the Emperor being at the center of many Shinto rituals.
This would later on be a part of the new Japanese constitution ratified in 1948.
Celebrations    Shunbun no Hi is the holiday celebrating the spring  vernal  equinox.
It is part of a seven day period of festival called Haru no Higan.
Video gaming in Japan is a major industry.
The country has an estimated 67.6 million players in 2018.
The Namco Galaxian arcade system board also introduced multi colored animated sprites.
It also featured vertically scrolling backgrounds and enemies.
It was followed by the first successful Japanese console  Nintendo s Color TV Game  in 1977.
The game also introduced the idea of giving the player a number of  lives .
Taito s Space Invaders  in 1978  proved to be the first blockbuster arcade video game.
Its success marked the beginning of the golden age of arcade video games.
By 1981  the arcade video game industry was worth  8 billion   22.5 billion in 2019 .
Some games of this era were so popular that they entered popular culture.
The first to do so was Space Invaders.
It was the first scrolling shooter to offer multiple  distinct levels.
Vertical scrolling shooters emerged around the same time.
After the video game crash  analysts doubted the long term viability of the video game industry.
Masayuki Uemura designed the system.
By mid 1986  19   6.5 million  of Japanese households owned a Famicom  one third by mid 1988.
By the end of its run  over 60 million NES units had been sold throughout the world.
Japanese computers were also using Yamaha s FM synth sound boards from the early 1980s.
During the 16 bit era  the PC 98  Sharp X68000 and FM Towns became popular in Japan.
Hydlide influenced The Legend of Zelda  1986   an influential open world game.
Designed by Sega AM2 s Yu Suzuki  he stated that his  designs were always 3D from the beginning.
All the calculations in the system were 3D  even from Hang On.
I calculated the position  scale  and zoom rate in 3D and converted it backwards to 2D.
So I was always thinking in 3D.
The following year saw the emergence of one of Sega s forefront series with its game Fantasy Zone.
After Enix published the game in early 1986  it became the template for future console RPGs.
The origins of this type go back to Sheriff by Nintendo  released in 1979.
The console had an elegant   eye catching  design  and it was very small compared to its rivals.
It was a video game trade show that was hosted by Nintendo until 2001.
Console RPGs distinguished themselves from computer RPGs to a greater degree in the early 1990s.
This has since become a hallmark of the Megami Tensei series.
The game has influenced a number of later action RPGs.
Since 2002  the show has been held once a year.
It attracts more visitors every year.
2011 s show hosted over 200 000 attendees and the 2012 show bringing in 223 753.
The busiest TGS was in 2016 with 271 224 people in attendance and 614 companies had exhibits.
The event has been held annually since 1996 and was never canceled.
By 1995  personal computers followed  with 3D accelerator cards.
Both Radiant Silvergun and Ikaruga were later released on Xbox Live Arcade.
Its spiritual successor  Dark Souls  was released in 2011.
In March 2014  Dark Souls II  was released  while Dark Souls III was released in 2016.
A title inspired by the Souls series  Bloodborne  was released in March 2015.
He also stated   The lag with the US is very clear.
If something doesn t change  we re doomed.
In 2005  arcade ownership and operation accounted for a majority of Namco s for example.
In fiscal year  FY  2013  ending early 2013   Nintendo sold 23.7 million consoles.
By February 26  2014  Wii U sales had surpassed those of the Xbox 360 in Japan.
PS4 software unit sales surpassed 20.5 million on April 13  2014.
In 2017  Japanese video games gained further commercial success and greater critical acclaim.
Final Fantasy XV was also a major success  selling millions.
It formally announced the end of its production on January 31  2017.
Persona 5 won the Best Role Playing Game award at The Game Awards 2017.
Video gaming in Japan is a major industry.
The country has an estimated 67.6 million players in 2018.
The Namco Galaxian arcade system board also introduced multi colored animated sprites.
It also featured vertically scrolling backgrounds and enemies.
It was followed by the first successful Japanese console  Nintendo s Color TV Game  in 1977.
The game also introduced the idea of giving the player a number of  lives .
Taito s Space Invaders  in 1978  proved to be the first blockbuster arcade video game.
Its success marked the beginning of the golden age of arcade video games.
By 1981  the arcade video game industry was worth  8 billion   22.5 billion in 2019 .
Some games of this era were so popular that they entered popular culture.
The first to do so was Space Invaders.
It was the first scrolling shooter to offer multiple  distinct levels.
Vertical scrolling shooters emerged around the same time.
After the video game crash  analysts doubted the long term viability of the video game industry.
Masayuki Uemura designed the system.
By mid 1986  19   6.5 million  of Japanese households owned a Famicom  one third by mid 1988.
By the end of its run  over 60 million NES units had been sold throughout the world.
Japanese computers were also using Yamaha s FM synth sound boards from the early 1980s.
During the 16 bit era  the PC 98  Sharp X68000 and FM Towns became popular in Japan.
Hydlide influenced The Legend of Zelda  1986   an influential open world game.
Designed by Sega AM2 s Yu Suzuki  he stated that his  designs were always 3D from the beginning.
All the calculations in the system were 3D  even from Hang On.
I calculated the position  scale  and zoom rate in 3D and converted it backwards to 2D.
So I was always thinking in 3D.
The following year saw the emergence of one of Sega s forefront series with its game Fantasy Zone.
After Enix published the game in early 1986  it became the template for future console RPGs.
The origins of this type go back to Sheriff by Nintendo  released in 1979.
The console had an elegant   eye catching  design  and it was very small compared to its rivals.
It was a video game trade show that was hosted by Nintendo until 2001.
Console RPGs distinguished themselves from computer RPGs to a greater degree in the early 1990s.
This has since become a hallmark of the Megami Tensei series.
The game has influenced a number of later action RPGs.
Since 2002  the show has been held once a year.
It attracts more visitors every year.
2011 s show hosted over 200 000 attendees and the 2012 show bringing in 223 753.
The busiest TGS was in 2016 with 271 224 people in attendance and 614 companies had exhibits.
The event has been held annually since 1996 and was never canceled.
By 1995  personal computers followed  with 3D accelerator cards.
Both Radiant Silvergun and Ikaruga were later released on Xbox Live Arcade.
Its spiritual successor  Dark Souls  was released in 2011.
In March 2014  Dark Souls II  was released  while Dark Souls III was released in 2016.
A title inspired by the Souls series  Bloodborne  was released in March 2015.
He also stated   The lag with the US is very clear.
If something doesn t change  we re doomed.
In 2005  arcade ownership and operation accounted for a majority of Namco s for example.
In fiscal year  FY  2013  ending early 2013   Nintendo sold 23.7 million consoles.
By February 26  2014  Wii U sales had surpassed those of the Xbox 360 in Japan.
PS4 software unit sales surpassed 20.5 million on April 13  2014.
In 2017  Japanese video games gained further commercial success and greater critical acclaim.
Final Fantasy XV was also a major success  selling millions.
It formally announced the end of its production on January 31  2017.
Persona 5 won the Best Role Playing Game award at The Game Awards 2017.
Its capital city is Hanoi  and its most populous city is Ho Chi Minh City.
Archaeological excavations indicate that Vietnam was inhabited as early as the Paleolithic age.
The first independent monarchy emerged in the 10th century AD.
Modern Vietnam was born upon the Proclamation of Independence from France in 1945.
By 2010  Vietnam had established diplomatic relations with 178 countries.
The form Việt Nam  越南  is first recorded in the 16th century oracular poem Sấm Trạng Trình.
In 1802  Nguyễn Phúc Ánh  who later became Emperor Gia Long  established the Nguyễn dynasty.
The Qing Emperor  therefore  decided to call the area  Việt Nam  instead.
Between 1804 and 1813  the name Vietnam was used officially by Emperor Gia Long.
In 257 BC  the last Hùng king was defeated by Thục Phán.
For the next thousand years  what is now northern Vietnam remained mostly under Chinese rule.
Renamed Đại Việt  Great Viet   the nation enjoyed a golden era under the Lý and Trần dynasties.
During the rule of the Trần Dynasty  Đại Việt repelled three Mongol invasions.
Meanwhile  the Mahāyāna branch of Buddhism flourished and became the state religion.
First  the Chinese supported Mạc dynasty challenged the Lê dynasty s power.
After the Mạc dynasty was defeated  the Lê dynasty was nominally reinstalled.
Nguyễn Ánh unified Vietnam  and established the Nguyễn dynasty  ruling under the name Gia Long.
They also had less interest in the territory than they did in China and Japan.
The Vietnamese authorities began to feel threatened by continuous Christianisation activities.
The three Vietnamese entities were formally integrated into the union of French Indochina in 1887.
A Western style system of modern education introduced new humanist values into Vietnam.
Another large scale rebellion  the Thái Nguyên uprising  was also suppressed heavily.
The French developed a plantation economy to promote the export of tobacco  indigo  tea and coffee.
However  they largely ignored the increasing demands for civil rights and self government.
This led to the Vietnamese Famine of 1945  which resulted in up to two million deaths.
The Việt Minh sought independence for Vietnam from France and the end of the Japanese occupation.
This resulted in the Việt Minh launching a guerrilla campaign against the French in late 1946.
The resulting First Indochina War lasted until July 1954.
During this political instability  the communists began to gain ground.
The US also engaged in a sustained aerial bombing campaign.
During the offensive  communist troops massacred over 3 000 civilians at Huế.
This also entailed an unsuccessful effort to strengthen and stabilise South Vietnam.
The war left Vietnam devastated  with the total death toll between 966 000 and 3.8 million.
The government embarked on a mass campaign of collectivisation of farms and factories.
This  however  worsened relations with China  which had supported the Khmer Rouge.
It covers a total area of approximately 331 212 km2  127 882 sq mi .
Vietnam s land is mostly hilly and densely forested  with level land covering no more than 20 .
Mountains account for 40  of the country s land area  and tropical forests cover around 42 .
The exclusive economic zone of Vietnam covers 417 663 km2  161 261 sq mi  in the South China Sea.
Several minor earthquakes have been recorded in the past.
The northern part of the country consists mostly of highlands and the Red River Delta.
From north to south Vietnam  the country also has numerous islands  Phú Quốc is the largest.
The Ba Bể Lake and Mekong River are the largest lake and longest river in the country.
The country is also affected by tropical depressions  tropical storms and typhoons.
This was noted in the country s National Environmental Condition Report in 2005.
15 986 species of flora have been identified in the country  of which 10  are endemic.
840 birds and 310 mammals are found in Vietnam  of which 100 birds and 78 mammals are endemic.
In recent years  13 genera  222 species  and 30 taxa of flora have been newly described in Vietnam.
In the late 1980s  a small population of Javan rhinoceros was found in Cát Tiên National Park.
However  the last individual of the species in Vietnam was reportedly shot in 2010.
In agricultural genetic diversity  Vietnam is one of the world s twelve original cultivar centres.
The Vietnam National Cultivar Gene Bank preserves 12 300 cultivars of 115 species.
Environment      In Vietnam  wildlife poaching has become a major concern.
Plant construction costs were funded by the company itself.
The Vietnamese government began doing this at the end of the war.
These include the Vietnamese Fatherland Front and worker and trade unionist parties.
The National Assembly of Vietnam is the unicameral state legislature composed of 498 members.
Beneath the Supreme People s Court stand the provincial municipal courts and many local courts.
Vietnam maintains the death penalty for numerous offences.
It also maintains relations with over 650 non governmental organisations.
In 2017  Vietnam signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
Bauxite  an important material in the production of aluminium  is mined in central Vietnam.
This led to the five year economic plans being replaced by the socialist oriented market mechanism.
The United States ended its economic embargo against Vietnam in early 1994.
Subsequently  Vietnam is also the world s second largest exporter of coffee.
Other primary exports include tea  rubber and fishery products.
Almost 77  of all papers published between 2008 and 2014 had at least one international co author.
The vast majority of visitors in 2017  9.7 million   came from Asia.
All three are ranked in the top 100 most visited cities in the world.
Vietnam is home to eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Southeast Asia.
In 2018  Travel   Leisure ranked Hội An as one of the world s top 15 best destinations to visit.
It was extensively expanded and modernised following the partition of Vietnam.
The trains will travel at a maximum speed of 350 kilometres  220 mi  per hour.
The VNPT retained its monopoly until 1986.
VNPT s monopoly was finally ended by the government in 2003 with the issuance of a decree.
By 2012  the top three telecom operators in Vietnam were Viettel  Vinaphone and MobiFone.
The remaining companies included  EVNTelecom  Vietnammobile and S Fone.
Most of the clean water supply infrastructure is not widely developed.
Most industrial factories release their untreated wastewater directly into the water sources.
Health      By 2015  97  of the population had access to improved water sources.
Despite these improvements  malnutrition is still common in rural provinces.
After the national reunification in 1975  a nationwide health service was established.
Tuberculosis  TB  cases  however  are on the rise.
TB has become the second most infectious disease in the country after respiratory related illness.
The actual number of HIV positive individuals is estimated to be much higher.
On average between 40 and 50 new infections are reported daily in the country.
More than 1 000 stores in the capital city of Hanoi were found to be selling both meats.
Regardless  Vietnam s school enrolment is among the highest in the world.
According to the 2019 census  the country s population was 96 208 984.
The dominant Viet or Kinh ethnic group constitute 82 085 826 people or 85.32  of the population.
Most of their population is concentrated in the country s alluvial deltas and coastal plains.
However  there was income disparity amongst regions and income quintile groups.
The Hoa  ethnic Chinese  and Khmer Krom people are mainly lowlanders.
This led many of them to leave Vietnam.
This indirectly caused more Hoa people in the north to leave the country.
Urbanisation is said to have a positive correlation with economic growth.
Any country with higher urbanisation rates has a higher GDP growth rate.
In 1985  agriculture made up 37.2  of Vietnam s GDP  in 2008  that number had declined to 18.5 .
In 1985  industry made up only 26.2  of Vietnam s GDP  by 2008  that number had increased to 43.2 .
Urbanisation also helps to improve basic services which increase people s standards of living.
Their large numbers have been known to cause traffic congestion and air pollution in Vietnam.
With rapid development  factories have sprung up which indirectly pollute the air and water.
It has introduced more regulations for waste handling by factories.
Industrial solid waste accounted for 181  of that increase.
Religious beliefs cannot be misused to undermine state law and policies.
According to a 2007 survey 81  of  Vietnamese people did not believe in a god.
About 8 to 9  of the population is Christian—made up of Roman Catholics and Protestants.
In recent years  a number of sign languages have developed in the major cities.
In recent centuries  Western cultures have become popular among recent generations of Vietnamese.
The lạc is a holy bird representing Vietnam s national mother Âu Cơ.
Other prominent images that are also revered are the turtle  buffalo and horse.
For many decades  foreign cultural influences  especially those of Western origin  were shunned.
White áo dài is the required uniform for girls in many high schools across the country.
Traditional headwear includes the standard conical nón lá and the  lampshade like  nón quai thao.
Some literary genres play an important role in theatrical performance  such as hát nói in ca trù.
Some poetic unions have also been formed in Vietnam  such as the tao đàn.
Vietnamese folk literature is an intermingling of many forms.
Folk literature usually exists in many versions  passed down orally  and has unknown authors.
Northern classical music is Vietnam s oldest musical form and is traditionally more formal.
Another form of music called Hát chầu văn or hát văn is used to invoke spirits during ceremonies.
Hò can be thought of as the southern style of Quan họ.
The use of meats such as pork  beef and chicken was relatively limited in the past.
Instead freshwater fish  crustaceans  particularly crabs   and molluscs became widely used.
Fish sauce  soy sauce  prawn sauce and limes are among the main flavouring ingredients.
Black pepper is frequently used in place of chillis to produce spicy flavours.
The resulting lockdown is widely referred to as the  Bamboo Firewall .
Holidays and festivals      The country has eleven national recognised holidays.
Vietnam has never participated in the Winter Olympic Games.
In 2016  Vietnam won their first gold medal at the Olympics.
By the 2020s  Vietnam will host the inaugural Formula One Vietnam Grand Prix in the city of Hanoi.
Historical references    The earliest textual references to Japan are in Chinese classic texts.
The historian Wang Zhenping summarizes Wo contacts with the Han State.
by the Western Han court  they sought to benefit themselves by initiating contact.
There were periods of frequent contacts as well as of lengthy intervals between contacts.
No Wo ambassador  for example  came to China during the second century.
This interval continued well past the third century.
After the death of Himiko  diplomatic contacts with China slowed.
Iyoo  the female successor to Himiko  contacted the Wei court only once.
There were over 100 chiefdoms before the Civil War.
Himiko restored peace and gained control of the region around 180 CE.
Kai  cover  Land is south of Chü Yen and north of Wo.
1000 222 BCE  kingdom of Yan  state   and that Wo   Japan was first known by this name.
maintained a  possible tributary relationship  with Yan.
During the Chou time there was universal peace.
The Yuèshāng offered white pheasants to the court  the Japanese odoriferous plants.
82 CE Han Shu 漢書  Book of Han   covers the Former Han Dynasty  206 BCE 24 CE  period.
Beyond Lo lang in the sea  there are the people of Wo.
They comprise more than one hundred communities.
They formerly comprised more than one hundred communities.
Here there are more than twenty thousand households.
Tsunoda 1951 0  Tsunoda  1951 5  suggests this ancient Núguó 奴國  lit.
slave country    Japanese Nakoku 奴国  was located near present day Hakata in Kyūshū.
Some 12 000 li to the south of Wa is Gǒunúguó 狗奴國  lit.
This is over four thousand li distant from the Queen s land.
Then there is the land of the naked men  as well of the black teethed people.
裸國黒齒國  These places can be reached by boat if one travels southeast for a year.
Another passage relates Wa tattooing with legendary King Shao Kang of the Xia Dynasty.
Men great and small  all tattoo their faces and decorate their bodies with designs.
From olden times envoys who visited the Chinese Court called themselves  grandees   大夫 .
Later  however  the designs became merely ornamental.
Tsunoda 1951 10   Grandees  translates Chinese dàfū 大夫  lit.
He quotes the Weilüe that  Wō people call themselves posterity of Tàibó   倭人自謂太伯之後 .
The Wōrén 倭人  Japanese  are included under the 東夷伝  Encounters with Eastern Barbarians  section.
Each community has its king  whose office is hereditary.
The King of Great Wa resides in the country of Yamadai  邪馬台国 .
They are not the queen s subjects  however.
In …  57 CE   the Wa country Nu  倭奴國  sent an envoy with tribute who called himself ta fu  大夫 .
This country is located in the southern extremity of the Wa country.
Kuang wu bestowed on him a seal.
The country of Wa is in the midst of the great ocean  southeast of Koguryŏ.
From generation to generation   the Wa people  carry out their duty of bringing tribute.
313 319   of Wa sends tribute from a distance of tens of thousands of li.
The fact that he is loyal  though so far away  deserves appreciation.
Let him  therefore  be granted rank and title.
406 411    came to the throne  the latter sent an envoy to the Court with tribute.
An imperial edict confirmed his title of King of Wa and General Who Maintains Peace in the East.
The Wa say of themselves that they are posterity of Tàibó.
According to custom  the people are all tattooed.
Their territory is over 12 000 li from Daifang.
倭者自云太伯之後俗皆文身去帶方萬二千餘里大抵在會稽之東相去絶遠  Later texts repeat this myth of Japanese descent from Taibo.
The people dwell on mountainous islands.
These barbarians do not know how to measure distance by li and estimate it by days.
The land is high in the east and low in the west.
Her official message is quoted using the word Tiānzǐ 天子  Son of Heaven  Chinese Emperor .
We hope you are in good health.
When the Empress received Pei  he presented a proclamation  tr.
The Emperor  天皇  of the East respectfully addresses the Emperor  皇帝  of the West.
This last month of autumn is somewhat chilly.
The term Nippon was first used in the period … 618 626.
Another Chinese authority gives 670 as the date when Nippon began to be officially used in China.
The linguistic change is recorded in two official Tang histories.
The 945 CE Tang shu  Book of Tang  唐書  199A  has the oldest Chinese reference to Rìběn 日本.
Japan in former times was called Wa nu.
Tsunoda 1951 38   Regarding the change in autonyms  the Xin Tang Shu says.
As this envoy was not truthful  doubt still remains.
Thus  in another sense  the inscription may have been wishful thinking.
Wae did not denote Japan alone  as was the case later.
Around 757 CE  Japan officially changed its endonym from Wa 倭 to Wa 和  harmony  peace  sum  total .
The first two pronunciations are restricted to Classical Chinese bisyllabic words.
Wǒ 倭 occurs in wǒduòjì  倭墮髻  a woman s hairstyle with a bun  popular during the Han Dynasty .
6th 3rd centuries BCE  include  ʼwâ  Karlgren    ʼwər  Dong Tonghe   and  ʼwər  Zhou .
The first  submissive  obedient  explanation began with the  121 CE  Shuowen Jiezi dictionary.
Bowing is noted in early historical references to Japan.
Examples include  Respect is shown by squatting   Hou Han Shu  tr.
Tsunoda 1951 2   and  they either squat or kneel  with both hands on the ground.
This is the way they show respect.
Carr evaluates these four typologies for defining the Chinese 倭  bent people  graphic pejoration.
Overall Comparison of Definitions   summarizes how Chinese dictionaries define Wō 倭.
References         Notes         Bibliography    Aston  William G. 1924.
Lun hêng  Part 1  Philosophical Essays of Wang Ch ung.
Himiko and Japan s elusive chiefdom of Yamatai  archaeology  history  and mythology.
History     Present day Wakayama is mostly the western part of the province of Kii.
Many bridges and houses were destroyed.
In 2017  Wakayama is ranked 40th by population in Japan with a population of 944 320.
Tomogashima  a cluster of four islands  is part of the prefecture.
As of 2016  Wakayama made up about 70 percent of Japanese domestic production of Japanese apricots.
Tourism    Wakayama Prefecture has hot springs such as Shirahama  Kawayu  and Yunomine Onsen.
In some cases  waste can pose a threat to human health.
Health issues are associated throughout the entire process of waste management.
Health issues can also arise indirectly or directly.
Waste is produced by  human activity  for example  the extraction and processing of raw materials.
Effective waste management is quite expensive  usually comprising 20 –50  of municipal budgets.
The waste hierarchy is the cornerstone of most waste minimisation strategies.
The next is recycling which includes composting.
Following this step is material recovery and waste to energy.
The final action is disposal  in landfills or through incineration without energy recovery.
This last step is the final resort for waste which has not been prevented  diverted or recovered.
The hierarchy represents the latter parts of the life cycle for each product.
Globally  humanity extracts more resources to produce goods than the planet can replenish.
Tools made out of wood or metal were generally reused or passed down through the generations.
However  some civilizations have been more profligate in their waste output than others.
The streets became choked with filth due to the lack of waste clearance regulations.
The Garwood Load Packer was the first truck in 1938  to incorporate a hydraulic compactor.
This is often associated with curb side waste segregation.
In rural areas  waste may need to be taken to a transfer station.
Waste collected is then transported to an appropriate disposal facility.
Systems are in use in Europe and North America.
Waste segregation     This is the separation of wet waste and dry waste.
The purpose is to recycle dry waste easily and to use wet waste as compost.
It is important to practice waste management and segregation as a community.
One way to practice waste management is to ensure there is awareness.
Institutions should make it as easy as possible for their staff to correctly segregate their waste.
Waste is collected by the city council only if it is put in government issued rubbish bags.
Landfills must be open and available to users every day.
This process reduces the volumes of solid waste by 80 to 95 percent.
Incinerators convert waste materials into heat  gas  steam  and ash.
Incineration is carried out both on a small scale by individuals and on a large scale by industry.
It is used to dispose of solid  liquid and gaseous waste.
The materials from which the items are made can be made into new products.
The latter method is known as  single stream recycling.
PVC  LDPE  PP  and PS  see resin identification code  are also recyclable.
There are different types of composting and digestion methods and technologies.
The different methods of biological decomposition are classified as aerobic or anaerobic methods.
Some methods use the hybrids of these two methods.
This process is often called waste to energy.
Energy recovery from waste is part of the non hazardous waste management hierarchy.
The process usually occurs in a sealed vessel under high pressure.
Pyrolysis of solid waste converts the material into solid  liquid and gas products.
The solid residue  char  can be further refined into products such as activated carbon.
The gas is then burnt to produce electricity and steam.
In industrial applications  temperatures are above 430 °C  800 °F .
Slow pyrolysis produces gases and solid charcoal.
Pyrolysis hold promise for conversion of waste biomass into useful liquid fuel.
Pyrolysis of waste wood and plastics can potentially produce fuel.
However  pyrolysis of some waste yields gases which impact the environment such as HCl and SO2.
These activities are performed at a resource recovery facility.
Resource recovery is not only environmentally important  but it is also cost effective.
The recycled chips can cover paths  walkways  or arena surfaces.
Recycled materials can often be sold to the construction industry.
Many inorganic waste streams can be used to produce materials for construction.
Concrete and bricks can be recycled as artificial gravel.
Unlike solid wastes  liquid wastes cannot be easily picked up and removed from an environment.
Liquid wastes spread out  and easily pollute other sources of liquid if brought into contact.
This type of waste also soaks into objects like soil and groundwater.
Sewage sludge      Sewage sludge is produced by waste water treatment processes.
Common disposal practices of sewage sludge are incineration  composting  and landfill.
A major concern to many countries in the world has been hazardous waste.
The provisions of the Basel convention have been integrated into the EU waste shipment regulation.
Problems with governance complicate the situation.
Additionally  this practice prevents their children from further education.
This technology has been used widely by many organizations in some industrialized countries.
Water supply and sanitation in Japan is characterized by numerous achievements and some challenges.
Access and service quality    Access to an improved water source is universal in Japan.
All collected waste water is treated at secondary level treatment plants.
This applies to about 15  of waste water.
On average over the period 1971–2000  water resources in Japan stood at 420 km3 per year.
At 3 300m3 per capita this is below the global average.
During the drought in 1994 the piped water supply of 16 million people had to be restricted.
Most of the water for domestic use comes from surface water.
Water use      Water use is about 83.5 km3  or 20  of water availability in an average year.
However  there are large variations in the utilization rate between years and regions.
In the relatively dry north of Kyushu it is more than 50 .
They are common in areas not connected to sewers  but also exist in areas connected to sewers.
Sludge from jōkasōs can be used as fertilizer.
The government has a program to subsidize the installation of jōkasōs.
It has been attempted to transfer the technology to China and Indonesia.
However  there were also some piped water supply systems using wooden pipes.
At the time  people used to call the city the  Tokyo Desert .
In 1961  a Water Resources Development Promotion Law was passed.
However  the construction of some dams was substantially delayed.
Beginning in the 1960s investment in waste water treatment was initiated.
1  In December 2018  the Diet enacted the revision of the Water Supply Act.
4  However  this revision is very controversial.
5   Several municipalities are currently considering introducing this new scheme.
In 2007 there were 1 572 water utilities and 3 699 sewage utilities in Japan.
Most water utilities but only few  sewer utilities  213  are commercially operated companies.
The government s target is to reduce losses to 2  for large utilities and 5  for small utilities.
the amount of water that erroneously enters the sanitary sewer system e.g.
The average unaccounted for sewerage is 12   varying from 6  in Shiga to 30  in Sapporo.
It varies between 1.1 in Fukuoka to 2.5 in Kyoto.
This is an indicator of high labor productivity.
The cost recovery ratio is 97  for drinking water and 53  for sewerage.
Because of Japan s negative inflation rate during some years  e.g.
between 2003 and 2006  real tariffs increase even if nominal tariffs remain unchanged.
Investment subsidies are common for sanitation and uncommon for water supply.
Private financing remains the exception.
CNBC and the NBC Sports app will provide supplemental coverage.
Starting in 2019 the LMP2 cars were split into a separate Pro Am class.
Le Mans Prototype 2  LMP2   A new class for 2019  it features pro am driver lineups.
LMP2 and GTLM classes are compatible with regulations for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
They were specifically interested in the arche  the cause or first principle  of the world.
Thales  student Anaximander claimed that the arche was the apeiron  the infinite.
They also believed in metempsychosis  the transmigration of souls  or reincarnation.
Empedocles may have been an associate of both Parmenides and the Pythagoreans.
Socrates developed a critical approach  now called the Socratic method  to examine people s views.
He focused on issues of human life  eudaimonia  justice  beauty  truth  and virtue.
He was tried by the Athenian democracy  was found guilty  and was sentenced to death.
His execution consisted of drinking poison hemlock.
After Socrates  death  Plato founded the Platonic Academy and Platonic philosophy.
As Socrates had done  Plato identified virtue with knowledge.
This led him to questions of epistemology on what knowledge is and how it is acquired.
Aristotelian logic was the first type of logic to attempt to categorize every valid syllogism.
His epistemology comprised an early form empiricism.
His ethical views identified eudaimonia as the ultimate good  as it was good in itself.
Aristotle tutored Alexander the Great  who conquered much of the ancient Western world.
Roman philosophy was heavily influenced by the traditions of Greek philosophy.
In Imperial times  Epicureanism and Stoicism were particularly popular.
An alternative view was presented by the Cyrenaics and the Epicureans.
we mean the absence of pain in the body and trouble in the mind .
After Arcesilaus  Academic skepticism diverged from Pyrrhonism.
More extreme syncretism was done by Numenius of Apamea  who combined it with Neopythagoreanism.
Augustine adopted Plato s thought and Christianized it.
Augustinianism was the preferred starting point for most philosophers up until the 13th century.
Among the issues his philosophy touched upon were the problem of evil  just war and what time is.
On the problem of evil  he argued that evil was a necessary product of human free will.
For humans  the soul is the essence.
Modern     The term  modern philosophy  has multiple usages.
Many other contributors were philosophers  scientists  medical doctors  and politicians.
Charles Sanders Peirce and William James  who founded pragmatism.
They are neither exhaustive nor mutually exclusive.
Though the movement has broadened  it was a cohesive school in the first half of the century.
Frege took  the linguistic turn   analyzing philosophical problems through language.
Notable students of Quine include Donald Davidson and Daniel Dennett.
Their influence  however  has extended beyond existentialist thought.
Kant s account of things in themselves is both controversial and highly complex.
The most notable work of absolute idealism was G. W. F. Hegel s Phenomenology of Spirit  of 1807.
Hegel admitted his ideas were not new  but that all the previous philosophies had been incomplete.
His goal was to correctly finish their job.
Marxist analyses and methodologies influenced political ideologies and social movements.
Critical theory maintains that ideology is the principal obstacle to human emancipation.
It interpreted the meaning of a statement by the effect its acceptance would have on practice.
The interpretation of these principles has been subject to discussion ever since.
Then  our conception of these effects is the whole of our conception of the object.
Pragmatist thinkers include Dewey  George Santayana  and C. I. Lewis.
Neopragmatism has been described as a bridge between analytic and continental philosophy.
This tradition identifies metaphysical reality with change.
Adrian Kuzminski argues for direct influence between these two systems of thought.
This was allowed under IWC rules  although most IWC members opposed it.
They ordered Japan to cease operations.
In December 2015  Japan went ahead with their whaling program  renamed  NEWREP A .
Crew members quickly covered the carcass after seeing the helicopter.
These hunts are a source of conflict between pro  and anti whaling countries and organizations.
Techniques were developed in the 17th century in Taiji  Wakayama.
Wada Chubei Yorimoto established a fishery by organizing the group hunting system in 1606.
There harpooners would approach in four boats of their own.
The nets made escape more difficult and  in its struggle to escape  the whale got tired sooner.
Primarily right whales  humpback whales  gray  and fin whales were hunted.
Blue whales  sei  Bryde s and sperm whales were however also taken when possible.
The incident effectively marked the end of traditional Japanese whaling practice.
He also established the first modern whaling company in Japan in 1899  Nihon Enyo Gyogyo K.K.
returned significant profits to its investors which led to increased Japanese competition.
I am firmly convinced that we shall become one of the greatest whaling nations in the world.
In 1911 the conflict turned violent in Same Village  Aomori Prefecture.
In protest the fishermen burned a Toyo Hogei facility down.
In particular  see Wildlife of China for discussion of the effects in their waters.
As whale catches diminished in coastal waters  Japan looked to Antarctica.
Refrigerator ships were sent along to freeze and transport the meat back to Japan.
Some 230 were female  about 90  of these were pregnant  according to the report.
Whaling there was halted in March 1945 when the islands were taken by US forces.
In 1947 whale meat made up over 50 percent of the meat consumed in Japan.
The market significantly increased through commercial sale and public distribution.
Each Contracting Government may at any time revoke any such special permit which it has granted.
The Tonna is famous for its demise.
In 1978 with full holds the Tonna landed another 50 ton fin whale.
The Sierra was later  February 1980  sunk in port by unknown saboteurs with limpet mines.
The government will be doing all it can to actively support your efforts.
However  the UN resolution was not adopted by the IWC by a vote of 6 no  4 yes and 4 abstain.
Japan  the Soviet Union  Iceland  Norway and South Africa voted no.
Japan also continued to hunt sperm whales despite a 1981 IWC zero catch quota. .
A second resolution was also adopted on February 14  1988  recommending Japan not proceed.
To date  Japan has refrained from taking humpback whales.
Commercial whaling is prohibited within the sanctuary boundaries.
Additional support for whaling was gained in the Pacific  Africa and South East Asia.
In some cases cash was presented in envelopes by Japanese officials.
Japan  Norway and Iceland urged the organization to lift the ban.
The fleet included the ship the Nisshin Maru and three smaller boats.
The move was met with objections from the Australian and New Zealand governments.
The non binding agreement was backed by 40 countries  with 27 pro whaling states voting against.
Nikai s electorate includes the town of Taiji  Wakayama.
A harpoon cannon with a grenade tipped harpoon is fired at the target whale.
A rope is trailed from the harpoon in order to prevent the whale from being lost.
A past method of using a second harpoon to electrocute whales is now forbidden by the IWC.
Lines are later used to transfer the whales from the whale catcher to the factory ship.
Whales are next winched onto the factory ship through a slipway at the stern of the vessel.
On the flensing deck several workers use specialized tools to butcher the whale.
Non usable product is dumped back into the ocean.
The Japanese factory ship Nisshin Maru does not currently meet these IMO standards.
A series of nets are then used to corral the dolphins in.
The quota was limited to a total of 66 whales between four whaling towns.
Between 1997 and 2000 only 19–29 whales were annually reported caught as bycatch.
The number increased to 89 – 137 annually between 2001 and 2004.
The IWC Scientific Committee collects up to date data on catch limits and catches taken since 1985.
In 1997 the IWC scientific committee officially reviewed the JARPA program.
Problems were identified with age and mortality rate data.
The results were reviewed by the committee in February 2000.
Another Scientific Committee review was conducted in January 2009.
A subsidy of 5.1 billion yen  US 47.31 million  was budgeted for commercial whaling in 2019.
Greenpeace argues that whales are endangered and must be protected.
The meat ends up at Tokyo s famed Tsukiji fish market and other high end restaurants.
Cultural aspects     Japanese have a long history of whaling.
Some towns can show their whaling history for hundreds of years.
Norway and Iceland are also whalers  but the criticism of Japan is stronger.
Following that ruling  Japan proposed to launch a  reviewed  research hunt.
We  if we cannot resolve this matter diplomatically  will take international legal action.
The ICJ hearing concluded on July 16  2013.
Japan also confirmed firing a  warning shot  into the air.
2 collided as the Japanese vessel was attempting to transfer a whale.
The Ady Gil was abandoned and left to sink after it had taken on too much water to be towed.
The whalers harvested 506 southern minke whales and one fin whale.
The whaling chief at Japan s Fisheries Agency denied the allegation.
The delegates also visited the traditional whaling town of Taiji in western Japan.
As of 2009  Japan s 1.2 million ton seafood stockpile included nearly 5000 tons of whale meat.
Whale meat can also be contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls.
Critics claim that  because of contamination  it constitutes a health risk.
Thus children and pregnant women are advised to refrain from eating whale meat.
Media attention    Western media attention regarding Japan s whaling industry has increased.
Japan has denounced the program as deceptive and supportive of eco terrorists to increase ratings.
See also         References         Further reading    Christopher Aldous.
The wildlife of Japan includes its flora  fauna and natural habitats.
This results in a high diversity of wildlife despite Japan s isolation from the mainland of Asia.
In the south there are south east Asian species  typical of tropical regions.
Between these areas lies the temperate zone which shares many species with China and Korea.
The largest of these are the two bears.
The Asian black bear  Ursus thibetanus  inhabits mountainous areas in Honshū  Kyūshū and Shikoku.
Large numbers of migrant birds pass through Japan in spring and autumn including many waders.
In winter  several sites are important for swans  geese and cranes.
Fish      Over 3000 different types of fish have been recorded in Japan.
The common carp is the ancestor of the well known domestic koi carp.
Also present is the Japanese dace  Tribolodon hakonensis .
Important saltwater fish include the red sea bream  Pagrus major .
The winter spawning Japanese Flying Squid are associated with the Kuroshio Current.
There are around 190 dragonflies including the primitive Epiophlebia superstes.
Other well known insects in Japan include cicadas  crickets and fireflies.
Firefly viewing is a popular tourist attraction in some areas.
One example is Niphanda fusca  a parasitic butterfly that commonly resides in satoyama.
It is one of the four species that have disappeared in Shikoku.
Molluscs          Flora     Around 4000 to 6000 species of plants occur naturally in Japan.
In the subtropical zone  mangroves  cycads and tree ferns can be found.
Conifer plantations have replaced natural forest in many areas.
The last is Japan s tallest conifer reaching 40 metres in height.
Native food plants include the water dropwort  Oenanthe javanica  and wasabi.
The current champions are the Serbia  which won their first title at the 2018 tournament in Japan.
The 18 World Championship tournaments have been won by seven different national teams.
Russia have won seven times  five as Soviet Union .
The 2014 World Championship took place in Italy.
The 2018 World Championship was hosted again by Japan in 2018.
In 1949  the first edition of the Men s World Championship was played in Prague  Czechoslovakia.
At that point  the tournament was still restricted to Europe.
By the following edition  there were also teams from South  Central and North America.
The number of teams involved in the games has changed significantly over the years.
They were halfway to making it four  since the following edition was to be played in Moscow.
In the following edition  Japan took revenge and defeated the Soviet Union in straight sets.
In 2018  the Serbia achieved historical victory after defeating Italy in a 5th set tie breaker.
It became greatest international success for the short history of this national team.
The following rules usually apply   Twenty four teams participate in each event.
Qualification procedures for the World Championship are long and strenuous  lasting over two years.
Host nations are always pre qualified.
The competition is divided in at least two phases  a preliminary round and a final round.
In the preliminary round  teams are organized in pools.
Each team plays one match against all other teams in its pool.
The FIVB has tried various different formats for the final round s .
From the late Edo period  the status of women declined.
Modesty extended to the effective use of silence in both daily conversations and activities.
Tidiness included personal appearance and a clean home.
Self reliance of women was encouraged because needy women were seen as a burden on others.
This allowed them greater freedom  equality to men  and a higher status within Japanese society.
In 1986  the Equal Employment Opportunity Law took effect.
Legally  few barriers to women s equal participation in the life of society remain.
In a global survey of women in parliaments  Japan ranked 123rd out of 189 countries.
In the lower house of the Diet  women hold only 8  of seats  with 19  in the upper house.
Women are often found in part time or temporary jobs.
77  of these jobs were filled by women in 2012.
Among women who do work  women only unions are small in size and in relative power.
Japan has a strong tradition of women being housewives after marriage.
However  children were assumed to remain with the male head of the household.
Raising children and keeping household affairs in order were seen as women s role in the state.
Today  more than half of Japanese women are college or university graduates.
By 1910  very few universities accepted women.
In 2012  98.1  of female students and 97.8  of male students were able to reach senior high school.
The number per year has declined by 500 000 since 1975.
Stalking reports are growing at a faster rate in Japan than any other country.
They are raped in brothels and other locations and experience physically and psychological trauma.
Japanese anti sex trafficking legislation and laws have been criticized as being lacking.
Some suggest that the presence of the cars makes women who choose not to use them more vulnerable.
Multiple polls suggest that women worry about  fatness  breast size  hairiness and bust size .
The idealized figure of a Japanese woman is generally fragile and petite.
Japanese beauty ideals favor small features and narrow faces.
Big eyes are admired  especially when they have  double eyelids .Another ideal is pale skin.
Maiko  literally  dance girl   are apprentice geisha  and this stage can last for years.
Maiko learn from their senior geisha mentor and follow them to all their engagements.
Its use is still low  with many couples preferring condoms.
However  births outside marriage remain rare in Japan.
Copeland  Rebecca L. Lost leaves  women writers of Meiji Japan  U of Hawaii Press  2000 .
Women s history and local community in postwar Japan  Routledge  2013 .
Journal of Women s History 26.4  2014   83 107. online Patessio  Mara.
The Japanese water based inks provide a wide range of vivid colors  glazes  and transparency.
However  western printing press were discontinued after the ban on Christianity in 1614.
By 1640 woodblocks were once again used for nearly all purposes.
One of the most famous and successful was Tsuta ya.
Technique     The technique for printing texts and images was generally similar.
Oil could be used to make the lines of the image more visible.
An incision is made along both sides of each line or area.
Wood is then chiseled away  based on the drawing outlines.
The sheet of paper to be printed is placed in the  kento  then lowered onto the woodblock.
Printers often used gold  mica  and other substances to enhance the image further.
Urushi e can also refer to paintings using lacquer instead of paint.
Lacquer was rarely  if ever  used on prints.
A separate block was carved to apply only the part of the image designated for a single color.
However  many of the surviving examples speak to the contrary.
Print sizes    Following are common Tokugawa period print sizes.
The database includes other information sources in addition to member library collections.
WorldCat is used by the general public and by librarians for cataloging and research.
History    OCLC was founded in 1967 under the leadership of Fred Kilgour.
WorldCat operates on a batch processing model rather than a real time model.
What is WorldCat?—A shorter explanation at WorldCat  Bibliographic Formats and Standards .
Japan accepted the UNESCO World Heritage Convention on 30 June 1992.
The World Rally Car is the current car specification in the series.
It evolved from Group A cars which replaced the banned Group B supercars.
Waldegård was followed by German Walter Röhrl and Finn Ari Vatanen as drivers  world champions.
However  the season soon took a dramatic turn.
Kankkunen and Miki Biasion both took two drivers  titles with the Lancia Delta HF.
Mitsubishi also won the manufacturers  title in 1998.
Another notable car was the Ford Escort RS Cosworth  which was specifically designed for rallying.
It was the first production car to produce downforce both at front and rear.
Citroën s Sébastien Loeb went on to control the following seasons with his Citroën Xsara WRC.
New World Rally Car rules were introduced for 2017 which generated faster and more aggressive cars.
On average a day consists of a total of 400 kilometres  250 mi  of driving.
On Thursday  teams can run through the shakedown stage to practice and test their set ups.
Power Stage      First introduced in 2011  the  Power Stage  is the final stage of the rally.
For special stages  timing will be to the tenth of a second.
For the  Power Stage   timing will be to the thousandth of a second.
The name was also dropped to avoid confusion with the new Rally2 group of car.
The power output is limited to around 280 kW  380 hp .
Cars in the Super 2000 World Rally Championship are homologated under Super 2000 rules.
The WRC 2 being open to professional crews  whilst the WRC 3 being open to privateers.
Lancia  with ten Manufacturers  Championships  has won more championships than any other marque.
Volkswagen and Hyundai made their return to the championship in 2013 and 2014  respectively.
This is then shown in more than 150 markets in multiple languages.
In the United Kingdom  coverage of the 2017 season is split between four broadcasters.
Drivers and manufacturers who have participated in the 2021 World Rally Championship are in bold.
These championships are contested on the same events and stages as the WRC.
Power stage points are also awarded.
WRC2 replaced SWRC when Group R was introduced and the eligibility rules relaxed.
Power stage points are also awarded.
JWRC      JWRC is an FIA sanctioned championship run by M Sport for drivers under 29.
Ford Fiesta Rally4 cars are provided  maintained and serviced for each entrant.
Championships are awarded to drivers  co drivers and nations.
The highest scoring driver from each country registers points for the nations championship.
Uniquely for this series  points are also awarded for stage wins.
Cars in the championship were production based and homologated under Group N rules.
The Super 2000 World Rally Championship  S WRC  was started in 2010 using Super 2000 category cars.
Although not an FIA championship itself  it was approved to run on WRC rallies.
It was replaced in 2020 with the Rally2 based WRC3.
The video game series had its fifth game  WRC  Rally Evolved  in 2005.
Recent top selling games include Colin McRae  DiRT 2  Sega Rally Revo and Dirt 3.
Gran Turismo 5 includes WRC licensed cars from manufacturers such as Subaru and Ford.
The first WRC game by Kylotonn was WRC 5  released in 2015.
This was followed by WRC 6 in 2016  WRC 7 in 2017 and WRC 8 in 2019.
The Entrants Championship was won by the Eggenberger Texaco Ford No 7 entry.
In 2008  Frenchman Yvan Muller won the title after Race 1 in Macau in his SEAT León TDI.
2010 marked the start of Chevrolet s dominance of the championship with its Cruze model.
This gave Chevrolet a clean sweep of both titles.
The old 1.6L turbo cars were renamed TC2 for a year and were dropped for 2015.
Super 2000 engines are 1.6 L turbo charged 4 cylinder engines producing approximately 380 bhp.
Below is a timeline of manufacturer entries from the beginning of the championship in 2005.
Japan  which aimed to dominate Asia and the Pacific  was at war with the Republic of China by 1937.
Most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery and expansion.
This article uses conventional dating.
A peace treaty between Japan and the Allies was signed in 1951.
No formal peace treaty between Japan and the Soviet Union was ever signed.
In October 1936  Germany and Italy formed the Rome–Berlin Axis.
Japan withdrew from the League of Nations after being condemned for its incursion into Manchuria.
Italy subsequently dropped its objections to Germany s goal of absorbing Austria.
The Soviet Union supported the existing government of the Spanish Republic.
In March 1938  Germany annexed Austria  again provoking little response from other European powers.
The first German attack of the war came against the Polish defenses at Westerplatte.
On 8 September  German troops reached the suburbs of Warsaw.
Remnants of the Polish army broke through to besieged Warsaw.
Soon after  significant Soviet military contingents were moved there.
The Germans turned south against the weakened French army  and Paris fell to them on 14 June.
The air Battle of Britain began in early July with Luftwaffe attacks on shipping and harbours.
In September the United States further agreed to a trade of American destroyers for British bases.
The Axis expanded in November 1940 when Hungary  Slovakia and Romania joined.
On 18 December 1940  Hitler issued the directive to prepare for an invasion of the Soviet Union.
They were joined shortly by Finland and Hungary.
Despite several offensives by both sides  the war between China and Japan was stalemated by 1940.
Chinese nationalist forces launched a large scale counter offensive in early 1940.
All agreed that defeating Germany was the primary objective.
The Americans favoured a straightforward  large scale attack on Germany through France.
The Soviets were also demanding a second front.
Germany itself would be subject to a heavy bombing campaign.
In January 1942  the only Allied success against Japan was a Chinese victory at Changsha.
By the start of 1943  the Japanese were defeated on the island and withdrew their troops.
In Burma  Commonwealth forces mounted two operations.
In May 1943  Canadian and US forces were sent to eliminate Japanese forces from the Aleutians.
On 4 July 1943  Germany attacked Soviet forces around the Kursk Bulge.
This delay slowed subsequent Soviet operations in the Baltic Sea region.
By June  the Japanese had conquered the province of Henan and begun a new attack on Changsha.
After reassigning several Allied divisions from Italy  they also attacked southern France.
These landings were successful and led to the defeat of the German Army units in France.
In Italy  Allied advance also slowed due to the last major German defensive line.
The national uprising in Slovakia was also quelled by the Germans.
In September 1944  Chinese forces captured Mount Song and reopened the Burma Road.
By January  the offensive had been repulsed with no strategic objectives fulfilled.
In Italy  the Western Allies remained stalemated at the German defensive line.
On 4 February Soviet  British  and US leaders met for the Yalta Conference.
Several changes in leadership occurred during this period.
On 12 April  President Roosevelt died and was succeeded by Harry S. Truman.
Benito Mussolini was killed by Italian partisans on 28 April.
They landed on Luzon in January 1945 and recaptured Manila in March.
In May 1945  Australian troops landed in Borneo  over running the oilfields there.
These two events persuaded previously adamant Imperial Army leaders to accept surrender terms.
The Red Army also captured the southern part of Sakhalin Island and the Kuril Islands.
The former became a neutral state  non aligned with any political bloc.
By the 1950s  one fifth of West Germans were refugees from the east.
The rest of Europe was also divided into Western and Soviet spheres of influence.
In China  nationalist and communist forces resumed the civil war in June 1946.
The UK and US pursued a policy of industrial disarmament in Western Germany in the years 1945–1948.
The post 1948 West German recovery has been called the German economic miracle.
Italy also experienced an economic boom and the French economy rebounded.
China returned to its pre war industrial production by 1952.
A quarter of the people in the Soviet Union were wounded or killed.
Mitsuyoshi Himeta reported that 2.7 million casualties occurred during the Sankō Sakusen.
Japanese prisoner of war camps  many of which were used as labour camps  also had high death rates.
After 1942  the number reached 10 million.
Occupation      In Europe  occupation came under two forms.
Suzhou dialect is widely considered to be the most linguistically representative of the family.
More pressing concerns of the present are those of language preservation.
Saying one speaks Wu is akin to saying one speaks a Romance language.
It is not a particularly defined entity like Standard Mandarin or Hochdeutsch.
They do this by affixing  話   speech  to their location s endonym.
For example  溫州話  Wu Chinese   ʔy˧꜖ tɕiɤu˧꜖ ɦo˩꜒꜔   is used for Wenzhounese.
It was also used as an older term for what is now simply known as Wu Chinese.
These were coined however for purely historical reasons.
Goetian is among the alternative names listed by Ethnologue.
The northern language they brought formed the foundation of Wu Chinese.
This is recorded in contemporary texts such as the Shi Shuo Xin Yu.
Most linguists today refer to these remnants as dialectal strata or substrata.
Min languages notably retain the bilabial nasal coda for this word.
Chinese discussion of Wenzhounese often mentions the strong Tai affinities the dialect possesses.
The impact of these languages still appears to be fairly minimal overall.
They do often offer insight into lexical differences.
Wu was gradually excluded from most modern media and schools.
Public organizations were required to use Mandarin.
The usage of local dialects in all other spheres is officially tolerated.
However  they are no longer permitted to air during primetime.
Only old people use it to talk to relatives.
During the early Qing period  Wu speakers represented about 20  of the whole Chinese population.
In the original sense  a Wu variety was by definition one which retained voiced initials.
It furthermore would place Old Xiang in this category.
Therefore  more elaborate systems have developed  but they still mostly delineate the same regions.
This is often determined by the administrative boundaries established during imperial times.
The same phenomenon can be seen with Min varieties.
This group makes up the largest population among all Wu speakers.
The local varieties of this region are mostly mutually intelligible among each other.
This variety is the most distinctive and mutually unintelligible amongst all the Wu varieties.
Like Taizhou Wu  it is somewhat mutually intelligible with Taihu Wu.
For example  「凍 痛 洞」  t tʰ d   where other varieties have only  t tʰ .
In Shanghai  these are reduced to two word tones.
Wu varieties and Germanic languages have the largest vowel quality inventories in the world.
The Jinhui dialect spoken in Shanghai s Fengxian District has 20 vowel qualities.
Classifiers     All nouns could have just one classifier in Shanghainese.
Examples     All IPA transcriptions and examples listed below are from Shanghainese.
In Wu dialects  the morphology of the words are similar  but the characters are switched around.
Mandarin equivalents and their pronunciation on Wu Chinese are in parentheses.
All IPA transcriptions and examples listed below are from Shanghainese.
「衣裳」  衣服   i zã   i voʔ  clothing.
By the turn of the 20th century it was used in several novels that had prostitution as a subject.
In many of these novels  Wu is mainly used as dialog of prostitute characters.
In one work  Shanghai Flowers by Han Bangqing  all of the dialog is in Wu.
Wu originally developed in genres related to oral performance.
The cultural and linguistic diversity within China is also a significant concerning of this forum.
Yaeyama  Yaimamunii  is most closely related to Miyako.
The speech of Yonaguni Island  while related  is usually considered a separate language.
One example is the vowel system.
This is perhaps believed to be an innovation from earlier  w .
Hateruma is noted for having more vowels than any other dialect.
There are three accent pitches present in Hateruma  falling  level  and rising accents.
The Hateruma dialect is regarded as an innovative variety of Yaeyama Ryukyuan.
Miyara     The Miyara subdialect of Ishigaki has 21 consonants and 6 vowels in its inventory.
It is noted that e and o are always long  as in many varieties of Ryukyuan.
Long vowels are often shortened before the moraic nasal.
Following  s    z   and  t͡s   underlying  u  neutralizes to  ɨ .
Hateruma has a case system with nine case markings and particles.
There are eleven auxiliary verbs to denote forms of mood and aspect.
Omitting du from a wh phrase is considered incorrect grammar.
Yet  du marking is optional for adverbial or adjunct wh phrases.
In questions with multiple wh words  only one can be marked with du.
Further research is needed to learn more about Wh questions in Yaeyama.
A national language movement known as kokugo has developed in result of this.
History     The aboriginal Ezo  蝦夷  people once inhabited the area now known as Yamagata.
Demographics    As of October 2014  Yamagata Prefecture had a population of 1 131 000.
The prefecture also has one of the oldest populations in Japan.
In February  a snow lantern festival is held in Yonezawa at the Uesugi Shrine.
Hundreds of candle lit lanterns light pathways dug into the snow around the shrine.
Yonezawa is also the site of the Uesugi Festival  上杉祭り  uesugi matsuri  in mid spring.
The permanent collection consists of three types of art  Japanese and Asian  regional  and French.
Special exhibitions are held periodically.
Sports     The sports teams listed below are based in Yamagata.
History     Yamaguchi Prefecture was created by the merger of the provinces of Suō and Nagato.
The Ouchi clan imitated the city planning of Kyoto.
As a result  Yamaguchi came to be known as the  Kyoto of the West   and Ouchi culture flourished.
Sue Harutaka defeated the 31st ruler of the Ouchi clan.
Yamaguchi was ruled as part of the Mōri clan domain during the Sengoku period.
Mōri Terumoto was then defeated by Tokugawa Ieyasu in the battle of Sekigahara in 1600.
There is a large fireworks festival in summer.
Another attraction is the Kintai Bridge in the town of Iwakuni.
This five arched wooden structure is considered a symbol of Western Honshū.
Hagi City is in the north of Yamaguchi.
The usual color of Japanese post boxes is red  but in Hagi they are painted green or brown.
The Hagi Museum is modeled after a traditional samurai residence.
The exhibits are detailed and realistic  and are changed every year.
The permanent collection is data about Hagi s history and collections about Takasugi Shinsaku.
It was developed during the Seinan Rebellion that broke out in 1877.
Soldiers cooked wild grass and meat on hot tiles.
Now it is a local dish of Yamaguchi people.
Shinji Mikami  Video Game designer  the God father of the survival Horror genre of video games.
His live action film Shiki Jitsu features scenes set in his hometown of Ube.
Sister districts    Yamaguchi Prefecture has alliance with the following five districts.
Governor     The current governor of Yamaguchi is former MIC bureaucrat Tsugumasa Muraoka.
In the 2015 election  the LDP won a majority.
Liberal Democrats form several parliamentary groups together with independents.
From these remains it can be assumed that the people of Sone Hill had great influence.
During the Heian period  Kai Province was created in this area.
From this base  he attempted to unify and control Japan.
The province was renamed Kōfu Prefecture in 1869 and then Yamanashi Prefecture in 1871.
At the end of 2013 construction was already well advanced as far as Fuefuki.
The prefecture is landlocked  with high mountains surrounding the central Kōfu Basin.
Mount Fuji and the Fuji Five Lakes region is located on the southern border with Shizuoka.
Land cultivated for agriculture is mainly restricted to the lower elevations of the Kōfu basin.
Given the area s volcanic activity  natural hot springs  or onsens  are found in abundance.
Some of the more well known are Shimobe Onsen  Isawa Onsen and Yamanami Onsen.
Fujiyoshida Fire Festival  marks the end of the summer climbing season on Mount Fuji.
League Division 1 association football  soccer  team is based in Kōfu.
The team s home ground is the Yamanashi Chuo Bank Stadium.
Here there are about fifty thousand households.
Then going toward the south  one arrives at the country of Yamadai  where a Queen holds her court.
This journey  takes ten days by water and one month by land.
There are probably more than seventy thousands households.
Each community has its king  whose office is hereditary.
The King of Great Wa  Yamato  resides in the country of Yamadai.
The people dwell on mountainous islands.
…The capital is Yamato  known in the Wei history as Yamadai.
In many cases  the new kana were graphic simplifications of Chinese characters.
The c. 712 Kojiki  古事記  Records of Ancient Matters   is the oldest extant book written in Japan.
Therefore it received the name of Ahaji no Shima.
Next there was produced the island of Oho yamato no Toyo aki tsu shima.
The second is written with mǎ 馬  horse  or mó 摩  rub  friction .
Taiwan 臺灣  or duī 堆  pile  heap .
432 Hou Han Shu  was writing about earlier events based on written sources.
Hong says the San Guo Zhi uses ichi 壹 86 times and dai 臺 56 times  without confusing them.
Yamadai was Fan Yeh’s creation.
This debate originated from a puzzling account of the itinerary from Korea to Yamatai in Wei shu.
Yamatai and its queen Himiko are the main villains in the Steel Jeeg anime series.
Nihongi  Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to AD 697.
Himiko and Japan’s Elusive Chiefdom of Yamatai.
Old Japanese  A Phonetic Reconstruction.
The first  submissive  obedient  explanation began with the  121 CE  Shuowen Jiezi dictionary.
Bowing is noted in early historical references to Japan.
This is the way they show respect.
As the Yamato influence expanded  their Old Japanese language became the common spoken language.
If regarded as a single ethnic group  the Yamato people are among the world s largest.
They have ruled Japan for almost its entire history.
2019  confirmed that modern Japanese  Yamato  descend mostly from the Yayoi people.
Many modern day Japanese people in the Ryukyu Islands are a mixture of Yamato and Ryukyuan.
Constitutional role    The Yang di Pertuan Agong s role is that of a constitutional monarch.
The Constitution vests the executive power of the federal government in the monarch.
Thus  in practice  most of the actual day to day work of governing is performed by the Cabinet.
Conventionally  the Prime Minister is the head of the party with a majority in Parliament.
It  however  does not afford him the right and authority to dismiss the prime minister.
The constitution established procedures for such appointments.
The Yang di Pertuan Agong also appoints the Mayor and City Council of Kuala Lumpur.
In this role  he is advised by the State Islamic Affairs Council in each of the States.
The Yang di Pertuan Agong appoints the chairman and members of each council.
He also appoints the State Mufti in each of these states.
There is a single Islamic Affairs Council with jurisdiction for the three Federal Territories.
This council is also appointed by the Yang di Pertuan Agong.
As such  he is the highest ranking officer in the military chain of command.
He also appoints the service heads of each of the three branches of the military forces.
The new Yang di Pertuan Agong is elected for a full five year term.
Since then  the states have followed a de facto established rotation order.
Minors are automatically disqualified from office.
The Conference of Rulers has met regularly since 1985.
Qualifications     Only a ruler may be elected.
The ruler has notified the Keeper of the Rulers’ Seal that he does not wish to be elected.
The resolution requires at least five members of the Conference to vote in favour of it.
Election proceedings      The election is carried out by a secret ballot.
Only the Rulers participate in the election.
Rulers are named and stand for election in turn.
Usually  but not always  the regent is a close relative.
This cycle was originally established based on seniority.
As an elective monarchy  there is no line of succession to the throne of Malaysia.
Four of the states of Malaysia currently have no hereditary royal rulers.
The right to sue a ruler is limited to Malaysian citizens following a precedent.
The Special Court also have jurisdiction where a ruler initiates legal actions against any party.
In such case  they may request clemency from the Conference of Rulers.
Any claims can be made against the federal government.
It is also the venue of meetings of the Conference of Rulers.
Yang di Pertuan Agong in literal English is  He who is made Supreme Lord .
Agong   or Agung in standard Malay  means  supreme .
Formal address to the Yang di Pertuan Agong is taken seriously in Malaysia.
The current Deputy Yang di Pertuan Agong is Sultan Nazrin Shah of Perak since 31 January 2019.
RTM broadcasts the ceremony live  starting at 8 50am.
External links    Malaysian Parliament s Yang di Pertuan Agong page.
Malaysia National Library s Yang di Pertuan Agong page.
His works have enjoyed broad international appeal and are still widely read.
She died shortly after when he was 11.
Having lost all close paternal relatives  Yasunari moved in with his mother s family  the Kurodas .
Through many of Kawabata s works the sense of distance in his life is represented.
He graduated from university in March 1924.
Most of his subsequent works explored similar themes.
In the 1920s  Kawabata was living in the plebeian district of Asakusa  Tokyo.
During this period  Kawabata experimented with different styles of writing.
On the other hand  his Suisho genso  Crystalline Fantasy  is pure stream of consciousness writing.
Sembazuru is centered on the tea ceremony and hopeless love.
The tea ceremony utensils are permanent and forever  whereas people are frail and fleeting.
He equated his form of writing with the traditional poetry of Japan  the haiku.
The heart of the ink painting is in space  abbreviation  what is left undrawn.
The Japanese garden  too  of course symbolizes the vastness of nature.
A hierarchical social class structure dates from this period and has its origin in China.
Features     The Yayoi period is generally accepted to date from 300 BC to 300 AD.
Yayoi culture quickly spread to the main island of Honshū  mixing with native Jōmon culture.
Yayoi craft specialists made bronze ceremonial bells  dōtaku   mirrors  and weapons.
By the 1st century AD  Yayoi people began using iron agricultural tools and weapons.
As the Yayoi population increased  the society became more stratified and complex.
They also accumulated wealth through land ownership and the storage of grain.
Such factors promoted the development of distinct social classes.
Wet rice agriculture led to the development and growth of a sedentary  agrarian society in Japan.
They also have strikingly raised brow ridges  noses  and nose bridges.
The earliest archaeological sites are Itazuke or Nabata in the northern part of Kyūshū.
Some scholars claimed that Korean influence existed.
In addition  the Yayoi lived in the same type of pit or circular dwelling as that of the Jōmon.
The language family associated with both Mumun and Yayoi culture is Japonic.
This event was recorded in the Book of the Later Han compiled by Fan Ye in the 5th century.
The seal itself was discovered in northern Kyūshū in the 18th century.
Many excavated settlements were moated or built at the tops of hills.
In the coastal area of the Inland Sea  stone arrowheads are often found among funerary objects.
Society was characterized by violent struggles.
Recent archaeological research in Makimuku suggests that Yamataikoku was located in the area.
Some scholars assume that the Hashihaka kofun in Makimuku was the tomb of Himiko.
Its relation to the origin of the Yamato polity in the following Kofun period is also under debate.
It was followed by the Haji pottery of the Kofun period.
In most of these battles  he was outnumbered and lacked necessary supplies.
Yi died from a gunshot wound at the naval Battle of Noryang on December 16  1598.
His last words were   The battle is at its height.
His family was part of the Korean Deoksu Yi clan.
During the war  Ryu s support of Admiral Yi was critical to Yi s achievements.
Yi also became proficient in reading and writing Hanmun.
Military career    In 1576  Yi passed the military examination  무과  武科 .
However  he was the oldest junior officer at the age of thirty two.
After his return to the front line  Yi led a string of successful campaigns against the Jurchen.
Yi was stripped of his rank  imprisoned  and tortured.
After his release  Yi was allowed to fight as an enlisted soldier.
Yi assumed his new post at Yeosu on the 13th day of the 2nd lunar month of 1591  March 13  1591 .
After the Japanese attacked Busan  Yi began his naval operations from his headquarters at Yeosu.
His string of victories made the Japanese generals suddenly wary of the threat at sea.
Hideyoshi was fully aware of the need to control the seas during the invasion.
There were numerous reasons why Yi was so successful against the Japanese fleets.
The Joseon panokseon were structurally stronger than Japanese ships at the time.
Panokseon had stronger hulls and could carry at least 20 cannons  compared to the Japanese 4.
Japanese ship mounted cannons were inferior to the Koreans  in both range and power.
As such  the Korean side had several different types of cannons at their disposal in battle.
Admiral Yi was an excellent naval strategist.
The Japanese navy s strongest tactic was to board enemy ships and engage in hand to hand combat.
He was able to do so in every naval engagement he commanded.
As Yi s brilliance as a strategist revealed itself throughout the war  his legend grew.
However  Yi Sun sin was able to stay informed on all his enemy s activities.
The Koreans spotted five more Japanese vessels that night  and managed to destroy four.
On July 13  they destroyed 26 Japanese warship at the Battle of Danghangpo.
Several Korean prisoners of war were rescued by the Korean soldiers throughout the fight.
Admiral Wakisaka escaped due to the speed of his flagship.
Yi withdrew his forces from Busan harbor after the battle due to the absence of a landing force.
The ship s figurehead was in the shape of a dragon.
The roof was covered with planks and spikes.
The purpose of the spikes was to prevent the ship from being boarded by the enemy.
There were two masts that held two large sails.
The Joseon Dynasty used cannons as its primary offensive naval weapon.
Historically  they had often used guns and cannons against Japanese pirates as early as the 1390s.
The turtle ship was developed to support his tactic against Japanese fleets.
The turtle ships did not re appear in battle until the Battle of Noryang.
Turtle ships were mostly used to spearhead attacks.
They were best used in tight areas and around islands rather than the open sea.
At Busan  the Japanese warships were reinforced and some cannons added to larger ships.
Not a single Japanese ship would be safe for as long as he was commanding the sea.
Yoshira played this role until Kim began believing anything he would say.
Admiral Yi also refused because he did not trust the words of spies.
They advised that Admiral Yi be arrested.
This penalty was worse than death for Joseon generals at that time  since they lived by honor.
In response  Ming China sent thousands of reinforcements to aid Joseon.
What they did not know was that they were being lured into a masterfully devised trap.
There were several reasons why Admiral Yi decided on this location for battle.
The deep shadows of the surrounding hillsides provided the Joseon ships with concealment.
About 31 of the 333 Japanese ships that entered the Myeongnyang Strait were destroyed or damaged.
Joseon losses on the other hand were around ten casualties and no ships lost.
Today  the battle is celebrated in Korea as one of Admiral Yi s greatest victories.
As the Japanese retreated  Admiral Yi ordered a vigorous pursuit.
Only two people witnessed his death  Yi Hoe  Yi s eldest son  and Yi Wan  his nephew.
Since then  Yi and Chen were memorialized as national heroes in Korea.
Shrines  both official and unofficial  were constructed in his honor all throughout the land.
Legacy    Today  Admiral Yi is considered one of Korea s greatest heroes.
Along with Chen Lin  Yi helped win the Battle of Noryang.
Admiral Togo regarded Admiral Yi as his superior.
It may be proper to compare me with Nelson  but not with Korea’s Yi Sun sin  for he has no equal.
Anyone who can be compared to Yi should be better than Michiel de Ruyter from Netherlands.
Nelson is far behind Yi in terms of personal character and integrity.
Yi was the inventor of the covered warship known as the turtle ship.
He was a truly great commander and a master of the naval tactics of three hundred years ago.
Yi s fleet was cut off from any helping hand from the king s court and had to fend for itself.
His enemy was fully supplied  and always outnumbered him.
Yi himself had never been trained as a naval commander.
Korea  called Joseon at the time  did not have any naval training facilities.
Although Yi passed the military exams when he was young  he was never trained at an academy.
Yi s only military experiences came from fighting Jurchen tribes.
None of his subordinates  including his own staff  had ever fought at sea before.
Yi also took advantage of his knowledge of the surrounding sea.
Many times  he lured the enemy to a place where his fleet would have the upper hand.
At the Battle of Hansando  the Japanese commander broke ranks and Yi routed his fleet.
One of the greatest legacies of the admiral was the disruption of the Japanese supply line.
Yi s naval reforms did not persist and disappeared soon after his death.
The turtle ships faded into the annals of Korean history  reaching iconic legendary status today.
Also  much information about the turtle ships are written in his diaries.
Today  most of Yi s descendants live in or near Seoul and Asan.
His last words were  Do not let my death be known  나의 죽음을 알리지 마라 .
Defended by his loyal friend  Prime Minister Yu Seong ryong  Admiral Yi was spared execution twice.
Nearly all awards to Admiral Yi and his deeds were awarded posthumously.
From September 4  2004 to August 28  2005  a 104 episode drama series was aired on KBS.
Actors who have played Yi Sun sin      Park Joong hoon in the 2005 film Heaven s Soldiers.
Literature     Yi also inspired literary works.
He was posthumously granted the title of Prince of Deokpung Chungmuro  충무로  忠武路 .
An ITF style Taekwondo pattern is named after Yi s posthumous name of Chungmu.
A depiction of Admiral Yi is featured on the front of the 100 South Korean won coin.
The Yi speak various Loloish languages  closely related to Burmese.
The prestige variety is Nuosu  which is written in the Yi script.
The name  Sani  is also a variety of this group.
are related to the Yi people s worship of the tiger  as “lo” in their dialects means  tiger .
Lo  is also the basis for the Chinese exonym Luóluó 猓猓  倮倮 or 罗罗.
Languages reforms in the PRC replaced the 猓 character in Luóluó twice.
This group includes various other appellations of different groups of Yi.
Some of them may be of other ethnic groups but are recognised as Yi by the Chinese.
The  Pu  may be relevant to an ancient ethnic group Pu  濮 .
Within each section  larger groups are listed first.
Ni is another name for the Yi people.
It is sometimes translated as black because black is a revered color in Yi culture.
Apu Dumu had three wives  each of whom had two sons.
Guizhou kingdoms      The Heng clan divided into two branches.
The Bu clan fragmented into four branches.
The Mo clan  descended from Mujiji  慕齊齊   split into three branches.
Wuake led the second branch  the Ayuxi  to settle near Ma an Mountain south of Huize.
Wuana led the third branch to settle in Hezhang.
They defeated the king of Yi  ꂽꉼ  Mot Hop  孟获  and expanded their conquered territory in Yi area.
After that  the Jin Dynasty succeeded Shu as the suzerain of Yi area but with weak control.
The Cuanman people came to power in Yunnan during Zhuge Liang s Southern Campaign in 225.
Each tribe was known as a zhao.
This event occurred peacefully as Zhang made way for Xinuluo of his own accord.
The agreement was consecrated under an iron pillar in Dali.
Most Yi of that time were under the ruling of Dali.
Dali s sovereign reign lasted for 316 years until it was conquered by Kublai Khan.
Kublai Khan included Dali in his domain  grouping it with Tibet.
The gulf between aristocrats and the common people increased during this time.
The Qing dynasty suppressed these rebellions.
There are also ethnically Yi languages of Vietnam which use the Yi script  such as Mantsi.
Under the Communist government  the script was standardized as a syllabary.
Syllabic Yi is widely used in books  newspapers and street signs.
The White and Black Yi also lived in separate villages.
The Black Yi did not farm  which was traditionally done by White Yi and slaves.
Black Yi were responsible only for administration and military activities.
The White Yi were not technically slaves but lived as indentured servants to the Black Yi.
The Ajia made up 33 per cent of the population.
The Xiaxi were the lowest caste.
They were slaves who lived with their owners  livestock and had no rights.
They could be beaten  sold  and killed for sport.
Membership of all four castes was through patrilineal descent.
Folklore     The most famous hero in Yi mythology is Zhyge Alu.
He rode a nine winged flying horse called  long heavenly wings.
He also had the help of a magical peacock and python.
It was said to be able to detect leprosy  cure tuberculosis  and eradicate epidemics.
Like the Chinese mythological archer  Hou Yi  Zhyge Alu shoots down the suns to save the people.
The ghost was blamed for ailments and exorcism rituals were conducted to combat the ghost.
Torch Festival     The Torch Festival is one of the Yi people s main holidays.
According to Yi legend  there were once two men of great strength  Sireabi and Atilaba.
Sireabi lived in heaven while Atilaba on earth.
When Sireabi heard of Atilaba s strength  he challenged Atilaba to a wrestling match.
The Torch Festival is thus held in his honor.
Her series of pop up books  titled We are Tiger Dragon People  includes images of many Yi groups.
Religion          Bimoism     Bimoism is the ethnic religion of the Yi.
Shaman priests of this faith are known as bimo  which means  master of scriptures .
Bimo are the most revered  to the point that the Nuosu religion is called  bimo religion .
Bimo can read Yi scripts while suni cannot.
Both can perform rituals  but only bimo can perform rituals linked to death.
For most cases  suni only perform some exorcism to cure diseases.
They believe dragons protect villages against bad spirits  and demons cause diseases.
The Yi also believe in multiple souls.
Their traditional medicine system has been academically inventoried.
Only includes counties or county equivalents containing  1  of county population.
Paris  Les Indes savantes  2007 .
The Dishi septet Traditional music and dance Documentation.
It is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture.
It lies on Tokyo Bay  south of Tokyo  in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu.
It is a major commercial hub of the Greater Tokyo Area.
Etymology    Yokohama  横浜  means  horizontal beach .
This sandbar was the original Yokohama fishing village.
With the growth in trade increasing numbers of Chinese also came to settle in the city.
In 1887  a British merchant  Samuel Cocking  built the city s first power plant.
The city was officially incorporated on April 1  1889.
The early 20th century was marked by rapid growth of industry.
Many people believed that Koreans used black magic to cause the earthquake.
Martial law was in place until November 19.
Yokohama was rebuilt  only to be destroyed again by U.S. air raids during World War II.
The 860m long Yokohama Bay Bridge opened in the same year.
The 2002 FIFA World Cup final was held in June at the International Stadium Yokohama.
In November 2010  Yokohama hosted the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation  APEC  meeting.
The LDP has minority control with 30 seats with Democratic Party of Japan with a close 29.
The mayor is Fumiko Hayashi  who succeeded Hiroshi Nakada in September 2009.
Mishima describes the city s port and its houses  and the Western influences that shaped them.
The film is based on the serialized Japanese comic book of the same name.
The main setting of James Clavell s book Gai Jin is in historical Yokohama.
Vermillion City in the Kanto region from the Pokémon franchise is based on Yokohama.
One of the Pretty Cure crossover movies takes place in Yokohama.
The player must defend Yokohama and then lead a counterattack as the Empire.
The manga Bungo Stray Dogs is set in Yokohama.
The Japanese mixed media project Hamatora takes place in Yokohama.
Sumaru City in Persona 2  Innocent Sin and Persona 2  Eternal Punishment is based on Yokohama.
Nissan moved its headquarters to Yokohama from Chūō  Tokyo in 2010.
Yokohama s GDP per capita  Nominal  was  30 625  1  120.13 .
Yokohama Station is also a major station  with two million passengers daily.
The Yokohama Municipal Subway  Minatomirai Line and Kanazawa Seaside Line provide metro services.
It is most closely related to Yaeyama.
As classified by UNESCO  the Yonaguni language is the most endangered language in all of Japan.
Phonology          Vowels     The table below shows the vowels present in the Yonaguni language.
Vowels which are only allophonic appear in parentheses.
However  its distribution is very limited.
Consonants     The table below shows the consonants present in the Yonaguni language.
Consonants which are only allophonic appear in parentheses.
Yonaguni also has  d  where Japanese and other Ryukyuan languages have  j   orthographically y .
The nucleus can contain up to two vowels.
The only allowable coda is a moraic nasal.
During his time in the Diet  Suga became a close ally of then Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe.
This made him the longest serving Chief Cabinet Secretary in Japanese history.
He attended night school to obtain a Bachelor of Laws from Hosei University in 1973.
Suga resigned from this position in October 1986 to pursue his own career in politics.
He was affiliated with the openly nationalist organisation Nippon Kaigi.
He was also supportive of the aggressive measures by the Bank of Japan to counter deflation.
He continued to hold his seat in the 2014 general election and 2017 general election.
Suga served as a key Abe deputy during the country s response to the COVID 19 pandemic in 2020.
Shigeru Omi  the COVID 19 task force chief  said that this was due to Suga s GoTo promotions.
At the time  the government was advising people to avoid dining in groups of more than five.
Personal life    Suga is married and has three sons.
Seigoh  eldest son is former director of Tohokushinsha Film  discharged on Feb. 2021 .
He holds the third dan black belt.Suga is known to have a sweet tooth.
His lunch is almost always soba.
When that system was abandoned in 1971  the yen became undervalued and was allowed to float.
Since that time  however  the world price of the yen has greatly decreased.
Pronunciation and etymology    Yen derives from the Japanese word 圓  えん  en   eɴ   lit.
The coins and the name also appeared in Japan.
This was probably already fixed and has remained so ever since.
The yen was officially adopted by the Meiji government in an Act signed on June 27  1871.
The new currency was gradually introduced beginning from July of that year.
The yen replaced Tokugawa coinage  a complex monetary system of the Edo period based on the mon.
In that year  Japan adopted a gold exchange standard and hence froze the value of the yen at  0.50.
Undervalued yen     By 1971  the yen had become undervalued.
This agreement set the exchange rate at ¥308 per US 1.
The re emergence of trade surpluses drove the yen back up to ¥211 in 1978.
From ¥221 per US 1 in 1981  the average value of the yen actually dropped to ¥239 per US 1 in 1985.
Effect of the Plaza Accord      In 1985  a dramatic change began.
After declining somewhat in 1989 and 1990  it reached a new high of ¥123 to US 1 in December 1992.
Other major currencies  except the Swiss franc  have been declining relative to the yen.
The Bank of Japan hopes to bring Japan from deflation to inflation  aiming for 2  inflation.
The amount of purchases is so large that it is expected to double the money supply.
Coins     Coins were introduced in 1870.
There were silver 5   10   20  and 50 sen and 1 yen  and gold 2   5   10  and 20 yen.
Gold 1 yen were introduced in 1871  followed by copper 1 rin  ​1⁄2   1  and 2 sen in 1873.
Cupronickel 5 sen coins were introduced in 1889.
In 1920  cupro nickel 10 sen coins were introduced.
Clay 5  and 10 sen coins were produced in 1945  but not issued for circulation.
After the war  brass 50 sen  1  and 5 yen were introduced between 1946 and 1948.
In 1955  the current type of aluminium 1 yen was introduced  along with unholed  nickel 50 yen.
In 1957  silver 100 yen pieces were introduced  followed by the holed 50 yen coin in 1959.
These were replaced in 1967 by the current cupro nickel type  along with a smaller 50 yen coin.
Only one coin per customer is available from banks in each prefecture.
100 000 of each 1000 yen silver coin have been minted.
The Allied forces also issued some notes shortly after the war.
Since then  the Bank of Japan has been the exclusive note issuing authority.
The bank has issued five series after World War II.
The EURion constellation pattern is present in the designs.
The Ministry decided to not redesign the ¥2000 note due to low circulation.
This has helped to keep the value of the yen low compared to other currencies.
The percentage for the yen has  however  declined from 18  in 2000.
The SDR was created in 1969  to support the fixed exchange system.
Within 1945 1946  the rate tanked to 50 yen to the USD because of the ongoing inflation.
Some also live in the Yunnan  Guangdong  Guizhou and Hunan provinces.
They form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People s Republic of China.
Chinese characters typically combine a semantic element or radical and a phonetic element.
The Zhuang have their own scriptures written in poetic form such as the Baeu Rodo.
There are also a number of Buddhists  Taoists and Christians among the Zhuang.
The other portion of O2 belongs to subclade O2a1.
Qin Shihuang s southern invasions are detailed in Sima Qian s Records of the Grand Historian.
Despite his efforts  immigration of the Yao from near Changsha unsettled the region.
Parts of Guangxi were ruled by the powerful Cen clan  岑 .
The Cen were of Zhuang ethnicity and were recognized as tusi or local ruler by the Ming and Qing.
A Yao revolt in 1831 was followed by the Taiping Rebellion and Da Cheng Rebellion in 1850.
Huang Xianfan  Chinese historian and ethnologist  considered the founder of Zhuang studies.
Shanye Huang  Well known Chinese American artist whose art is rooted in Zhuang culture.
Wei Wei  singer   a Mandopop singer and actress.
Meanwhile  AEON CO.  M  BHD operates all the AEON Retail Stores directly in Malaysia.
ÆON is the largest retailer in Asia.
ÆON is Japan s single largest shopping mall developer and operator.
The name and symbolism used in the branding implies the eternal nature of the company.
History    The company was established in September 1926.
In 1970  three companies  Futagi  Okadaya  and Shiro  formed JUSCO Co.  Ltd.
The employees voted to name the company  Japan United Stores Company .
However  JUSCO stores still operate in the Greater China region and some others.
Ōita Prefecture  大分県  Ōita ken   is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū.
From this time that whole area became known as  Toyo no kuni   which means  Land of Abundance .
It shall be known as Okita Kuni!
Okita Kuni  meaning  Land of the Great Fields   later came to be written as  Ōita .
The region became well known for the money lending industry based out of Hita.
Funai was a very internationalized city which engaged in trade and exchange with other nations.
Sōrin dreamed of creating a Christian nation  he was baptized and given the name  Don Francisco .
He also worked in a hospital and had a good knowledge of astronomy.
He hand made an astronomical globe that was passed down through many generations.
Miura Baien is considered one of Ōita s three sages along with Hoashi Banri and Hirose Tansō.
In 1832 he was made Minister for the Feudal Lord to fix the financial problems of the Hiji clan.
Banri Hoashi is considered one of Ōita s three sages along with Miura Baien and Hirose Tansō.
Ōita s current governor Katsusada Hirose is a descendant of Tansō Hirose.
In Edo period Japan  education was limited to samurai families and the rich.
Both are in Mameda Town  about a 10 minute walk from Hita Station.
Tansō Hirose is considered one of the Oita s three sages along with Miura Baien and Hoashi Banri.
Fukuzawa Yukichi grew up in the Nakatsu domain and is pictured on the 10 000 yen bill.
The university now educates in a range of fields and produces influential and prominent alumni.
Geography    Ōita Prefecture is on the north eastern section of the island of Kyūshū.
There are several other tectonic lines running from east to west through the prefecture.
Mount Kujū  九重山  is surrounded by highlands called the Kujū Highlands and the Handa Highlands.
Ōita s coastal waters contribute to a prosperous fishing industry.
Kabosu are available year round but peak season for taste and quality is from August to October.
Kabosu are rich in vitamin C and contain beneficial acids  such as citric acid.
Kabosu have been produced in the Taketa and Usuki areas for many years.
Ōita s dried shiitake rank number one in Japan in production quantity and quality.
Shiitake are said to be beneficial in the prevention of high blood pressure and arterial sclerosis.
Ōita also ranks number one in Japan for the amount of limestone production.
Bungo beef is a well known local product. .
Demographics    As of October 1  2008  Ōita s total population was 1 201 715.
Culture    Oita is in the northeast corner of the island of Kyushu.
There are many festivals throughout the year to pray for healthy harvests and abundant crops.
Fukiji Temple is in Bungo Takada.
The information on it tells of the relationship between Usa Shrine and its branch shrine Mirokuji.
Oita s Hachiman Kohyo Shrine is in Nakatsu City.
These they fired in a cooperative kiln  kyōdō noborigama .
Mankoji Temple which was founded in 1352 is a place for practicing zen meditation.
Old samurai residences throughout the prefecture are points of architectural interest.
Arata Isozaki is a world renowned architect who is from Oita.
It takes place over 10 days and includes recitals and also lessons.
Applicants are accepted from within Japan and from several Asian countries.
Sports     The sports teams listed below are based in Oita.
It was started in 1981 to commemorate the International Year of Disabled Persons.
The city s ryokans and public onsen are amply supplied by the same volcanic source.
Visitors particularly relish the effects of burial in steaming hot volcanic sands.
Near the marine park  Mount Takasaki Monkey Park rises steeply from the shoreline.
Other attractions of Ōita Prefecture include the Sanrio theme park Harmonyland.
Hachimen was home to the popular music festival  Concert on the Rock.
The natural surroundings make it one of the most picturesque rock festivals in the world.
The event has since been discontinued.
The event went from March 4 to 13.
The event also took place in the Kyushu Prefecture.
Saiki Printing Co.      External links    https   www.discover oita.com
Ōnin refers to the Japanese era during which the war started  the war ended during the Bunmei era.
The war initiated the Sengoku period   the Warring States period .
In 1464  Yoshimasa had no heir.
In 1465  the unanticipated birth of a son to Yoshimasa put these plans in question.
This dispute for succession started the Ōnin War and led to the beginning of the Sengoku period.
War broke out in the city of Kyoto.
In the end  there was no clear cut winner.
The fighting started in March when a Hosokawa mansion was burned.
Then in May 1467  a Yamana mansion was attacked.
Yamana received 20 000 reinforcements under Ōuchi Masahiro in September.
Hosokawa then received Akamatsu troops as reinforcements.
On 1 November  Yamana was able to capture the Shōkoku ji after bribing a monk.
A central trench ten feet deep and twenty feet wide separated the two armies.
Several monasteries were burned  including the Tenryū ji.
In a strange switch of allegiances  the war became one of brother against brother.
During this ordeal  the shōgun was not instrumental in alleviating the situation.
No part of Japan escaped the violence.
Although the battles in Kyoto had been abandoned  the war had spread to the rest of Japan.
This stalemate was to have serious consequences.
Setting up their own army  the Ikki   they forced the clan armies to leave the province.
The Ikki became a powerful force  much more than simply an armed mob.
By 1488 the Ikkō ikki of Kaga Province overthrew Masachika and took control of the province.
Thence began a series of strange conflicts over control of the puppet government of the shogunate.
Kyoto     Kyoto was devastated by the war  not really recovering until the mid 16th century.
some 20 to 80 years after the conflict   which describes the causes and effects of the Ōnin War.
To say that the war began with a quarrel between angry warlords is too simplistic.
1445 Hosokawa Katsumoto becomes Kyoto kanrei.
1449 Ashikaga Shigeuji assumes office in the Kantō.
1457 Ōta Dōkan builds Edo Castle.
Ashikaga Masatomo sent to govern the Kantō.
1458 Yoshimasa builds a new Muromachi palace.
1464 Yoshimasa decided to abdicate his position as Shogun to his brother Ashikaga Yoshimi.
1465 Hino Tomiko gives birth to Ashikaga Yoshihisa and calls herself regent to her son.
In November  the Shōkoku ji  相国寺  is destroyed.
1468 Yoshimi goes over to Yamana s side.
Asakura Toshikage becomes Constable  shugo  of Echizen.
1492 Hōjō Sōun becomes master of Izu.
1494 Hosokawa Masamoto becomes Kyoto kanrei.
1545 Hōjō Ujiyasu defeats the Uesugi clan forces at Kawagoe.
1551 Mōri defeats the Ōuchi led by Sue Harukata at the Battle of Miyajima.
1554 Mōri succeeds to Ōuchi lands and power.
ISBN 978 0520208773.CS1 maint  ref harv  link  Ackroyd  Joyce.