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Japanese Manners and Etiquette
Social behaviour and etiquette are considered very important in Japan. While specific rules of courtesy are supposed to be universal, quite a few Japanese manners and habits are unique and should also...
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Akechi Mitsuhide (1528-1582)
Akechi Mitsuhide (明智光秀, 1528-1582), also known under the title Koretō Hyūga no Kami (惟任日向守), was one of the principal captains of hegemon Oda Nobunaga and his assassin. A man of obscure origins,...
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Noheji Castle
Noheji Castle (野辺地城 Noheji-jō) was a small flatland fortress (平山城) located in Noheji Town at the base of the Shimokita Peninsula. It is also known as Kinkei Castle (金鶏城 Kinkei-jō). Neither the owner...
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Yamanashi Travel Guide
Yamanashi Prefecture (山梨県 Yamanashi-ken) is located in central Honshū and bordered by Tōkyō, Kanagawa, Shizuoka, Nagano, and Saitama prefectures. It is one of only eight landlocked prefectures in...
View ArticleOkazaki Travel Guide
Okazaki City is located southeast of Nagoya in Aichi Prefecture and prospered in the Edo period (1600-1868) as a castle town and an important post-station along the Tōkaidō Road.HistoryIn the Sengoku...
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Hinohara Castle
Hinohara Castle (檜原城 Hinohara-jō) is a former mountain castle (山城 yamashiro) built in Hinohara Village in the mountains of Okutama, western Tōkyō. Although much remains unknown about the castle's...
View ArticleByakkotai - Aizu's White Tiger Brigade
The Byakkotai (白虎隊, "White Tiger Brigade") was one of four units consisting of a few hundred youths, the sons of samurai, organised after the Battle of Toba-Fushimi in March 1868 by the Aizu Domain...
View ArticleAizu Bukeyashiki
The Aizu Buke-yashiki (会津武家屋敷) are the reconstructed samurai mansions of the chief retainers of the Aizu-Matsudaira, the Saigō family. The Saigō had served the Matsudaira since the middle of the...
View ArticleAmami Oshima
Amami Ōshima (奄美大島) is the main island of the Amami archipelago, a part of the Satsunan Islands (薩南諸島 Satsunan-shotō) between Kyūshū and Okinawa. The Amami group is the southernmost island of Kagoshima...
View ArticleYayoi Period
The Yayoi period (弥生時代 Yayoi jidai) is a prehistoric period of Japan, usually dated from 300 BCE to ca 300 CE, during which wet-rice agriculture and the use of bronze and iron first appeared in Japan....
View ArticleBinzuru (Pindola Bharadvaja)
Binzuru (Sanskrit: Piṇḍola Bhāradvāja) was one of the original followers of the historical Buddha and was said to have been a close associate of the Buddha's cousin and attendant, Ananda. He is revered...
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Tokura Castle (Tokyo)
Tokura Castle (戸倉城 Tokura-jō) is a mountain castle built in Akiruno, western Tōkyō. It is located three kilometres west of Musashi-Itsukaichi Station, the terminus of the JR Itsukaichi Line. Historical...
View ArticleŌshōgatsu (お正月) - Japanese New Year
New Year's or ō-shōgatsu (お正月) is one of the most important and most elaborate of Japan's annual observances. There are regional differences in customs, but what is in common is that homes are...
View ArticleTakagari - Japanese Falconry
TakagariJapanese falconry (鷹狩 takagari) is said to have come to Japan from China around the 4th century CE and was practised by emperors, courtiers, and later by the samurai class well into the Edo...
View ArticleEmoji - Japanese emoticons
Emoticons (顔文字 (かおもじ, "Kaomoji" or "Emoji" are facial expressions pictorially represented by punctuation and letters to express the mood the writer is currently in. The term "emoticon" blends the words...
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Marriage in Japan
When Japanese tie the knot Over the past several centuries, the institution of marriage in Japan has changed radically. The changes reflect new social realities and influences from other cultures. They...
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Setsubun
Setsubun is a traditional ceremony to dispel demons, usually observed on 3 February. The practice of scattering beans (豆撒き mamemaki) to drive away demons is one of some magical rites performed to ward...
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Masakado Kubizuka
Masakado's head mound: appeasing a vengeful spiritLocated in the heart of Tōkyō's buzzing business district of Ōtemachi, just a stone's throw away from the Imperial Palace lies a speck of land that...
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Gion Castle
Gion Castle (祇園城 Gion-jō), also known as Oyama Castle (小山城), was built in Oyama City, Tochigi Prefecture. It was named after the Gion Shrine (祇園社). There is a legend that the castle was built by...
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Matsudaira Clan
The Matsudaira (松平氏 Matsudaira-shi) were a samurai family (武家 buke) from the Matsudaira area in Mikawa Province (modern-day Aichi Prefecture). Although its exact origins are unclear, the clan claimed...
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