I N T R O D U C T I O N T O J A PA N Japan is basically a mountainous volcanic Island Chain located in the western Pacific Ocean The country has four main Islands HOKKAIDO HONSHU SHIKOKU KYUSHU And then thousands of tiny Islands in the Ryukyu Island Chain near the East China Sea
BRAINSTORMING ACTIVITY
INTERESTING MCQ FOR YOU GUYS The closest neighbouring country to Japan is.? A. The Russian Federation B. The People s Republic of China C. North Korea D. South Korea
ARCHIPELAGO Basically means a chain of Islands
JAPAN Terrain: mostly rugged and mountainous, can easily be compared to Norway, both having about 70% of their land in the mountains. Natural resources: small deposits of coal, oil, iron, and minerals. Major fishing industry. Arable land: 11.65%
COMPARISON According to definitions and survey recommendations by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), used by for example Eurostat and the World Bank, arable land is agricultural land occupied by crops both sown and harvested during the same agricultural year, sometimes more than once
LET S TALK ABOUT MOUNTAINS Japan's highest mountain is Mount Fuji, with an elevation of 3,776 m (12,388 ft). It was added to the World Heritage List as a Cultural Site on June 22, 2013 Mount Fuji is one of Japan's "Three Holy Mountains" along with Mount Tate and Mount Haku.
COMPARISON The Kangchenjunga is the highest mountain peak in India and ranked 3rd highest summit in the world with an elevation of 8,586 m (28,169 ft)
VOLCANOES Japan is home to 10% of the world's active volcanoes The most active volcano in Japan, and one of the largest in the world is Mt Aso. It stands on the island of Kyushu. In 2014, Mount Ontake in central Japan erupted unexpectedly, killing 63 people in the worst volcanic disaster in the Japan for nearly nine decades
WHY DO SO MANY EARTHQUAKES STRIKE JAPAN? Japan is located along the Pacific ring of fire, on the edges of several continental and oceanic tectonic plates. This is an area of high seismic and volcanic activity from New Zealand, up through Japan, across to Alaska, and down the west coasts of North and South America. Japan s specific location in this ring, causes frequent earthquakes as well as many volcanoes and hot springs across the country.
WHAT IS THE REASON BEHIND JAPAN'S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT INSPITE OF BEING A NATION CURSED BY EARTHQUAKES? Proper political policies such as after WW2, the Japanese minimized their military expenses and focussed mainly on the recovery of their economy. It was known as the Yoshida doctrine. In initial stages of development, Japanese government aimed at doubling the incomes earned by their workers and improve their living standards. This was known as the Income Doubling Plan, 1960.
OCCUPATION AND RECONSTRUCTION OF JAPAN, 1945 52 After the defeat of Japan in World War II, the United States led the Allies in the occupation and rehabilitation of the Japanese state. Between 1945 and 1952, the U.S. occupying forces, led by General Douglas A. MacArthur, enacted widespread military, political, economic, and social reforms.
NOTES In September, 1945, General Douglas MacArthur took charge of the Supreme Command of Allied Powers (SCAP) and began the work of rebuilding Japan. SCAP dismantled the Japanese Army and banned former military officers from taking roles of political leadership in the new government. In the economic field, SCAP introduced land reform, designed to benefit the majority tenant farmers and reduce the power of rich landowners, many of whom had advocated for war and supported Japanese expansionism in the 1930s.
JAPAN S SECURITY PACT The final agreement allowed the United States to maintain its bases in Okinawa and elsewhere in Japan, and the U.S. Government promised Japan a bilateral security pact.
WHY IS JAPAN SO RICH? Strong currency Yen is a reliable currency. It is the third most traded currency in the foreign exchange market after the United States dollar and the euro. It is also widely used as a reserve currency after the U.S. dollar, the euro, and the pound sterling. According to a report published by the Bank of Korea on May 14, 2008, investigating 41 countries, there were 5,586 companies older than 200 years. Of these, 3,146 are in Japan, 837 in Germany, 222 in the Netherlands, and 196 in France.
JAPAN'S POPULATION CRISIS JUST HIT A 67 - YEAR LOW This is the 36th consecutive year the population has dropped. Japan's fertility rate is among the lowest in the world, at just 1.4 births per woman. Sociologists have found populations stay steady when a country has at least 2.1 births per woman. Beneath that threshold, and countries are likely to see their populations start to decline, which Japan has. Japan has gone to some great lengths to boost its fertility rate to the goal of 1.8 births per woman by 2025, as set by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.