Japanese Culture – Culture of Japan

Japanese Culture – Culture of Japan

Japanese culture including traditional culture like Geisha, Samurai, Japanese tea ceremony, Japanese gardens, kimonos and Japanese Language. Plus modern culture such as modern Japanese fashion.

Traditional Japanese culture has many roots in traditional Chinese culture, however Japanese culture, even historically differed from Chinese culture. This differentiation of the cultures is due in part to the separation of the two land masses, plus Japan’s periods of enforced isolation from the outside world, further extended the differences between the two cultures.

Japanese people

Japan is famous for its supposed ethnic and social homogeneity, but there is much more to the story of the Japanese people than this popular myth. Today's vision of Japanese society includes minority groups that historically have been sidelined, such as the Ainu of Hokkaido and the Ryukyuans of Okinawa, as well as Koreans, Chinese, Brazilians and many more.

Festivals

Japan is exceedingly fond of festivals (or matsuri as they are known in Japanese): religious ceremonies that are celebrated with music, dance, parades, costumes, food and drink. There are thousands of national and local festivals across Japan each year, and they are a fantastic way to learn about Japanese religious beliefs and mix with the locals.

 Sports

Try your hand at a martial art

If you would like to try your hand at a traditional Japanese martial art on your trip to Japan, just let us know. We can arrange lessons in all kinds of styles - from karate and aikido to iaido and tatedo.

Karate

Though arguably one of world's most famous martial arts, karate's beginnings are somewhat hazy. Often thought of as Japanese, the earliest antecedents of karate are said to have originated as far away as the Indian Subcontinent.
From there it passed into China, where it was developed and refined. Chinese traders brought these fighting skills to the Ryukyu Islands as early as the fourteenth century. Now incorporated in what is known as Okinawa, Japan's southernmost prefecture, the Ryukyus were once an independent kingdom with a culture completely distinct from that of Japan. It was here that karate as we know it today was developed.

Judo

Of all of Japan's martial arts, Judo is perhaps the one that has spread most successfully around the world. The essence lies in the speed, subtlety and skill of using the size and strength of the opponent against themselves.
Judo is practiced both recreationally and professionally; the epic bouts are one of the highlights of every Olympic Games. Judo means "gentle way" and was created by a man named Kano Jigoro in 1882. The inspiration for judo was born out of the bullying that Jigoro witnessed at the English medium boarding school he attended in Tokyo, when he was just fourteen years old.

Japanese food

Japanese cuisine is one of the best things about a trip to Japan. In fact, for many visitors it's the main event! Though Japan is principally famous for dishes like sushi, rice, noodles tempura, Kobe beef & teriyaki chicken - there is a veritable plethora of other superb dishes out there to try.

Seasonal & local food

Japan is very proud of its four very distinctive seasons and each season marks the beginning of more delicious offerings. This is very evident in supermarkets, hotels and inns and restaurants where menus are frequently changed to reflect what is available and what is in season.
In fact, there is such a diverse range of food on offer that it is not an exaggeration to say that many Japanese would struggle to name (for example) all the countless varieties of seaweed, mushrooms and fish on the shelves of their local shop.

Vending machines

Japan has the highest number of vending machines per capita in the world - a fact you'll readily believe when you see the ranks of vending machines on every street corner. Japan's vending machines serve a dazzling array of hot and cold drinks, and even the world's only hot fizzy drink: Canada dry ginger ale.

Kanpai!

Japan is a country of drinkers - and a few rituals should be considered before taking a tipple. Never pour a drink for yourself; your friend or host should do this for you and you in turn should keep your companions' glasses filled to the brim! A word you'll hear quite often is kanpai - "cheers" in Japanese.

Unlike in the West, the culture of going out for just a drink does not really exist in Japan. Drinking is almost always accompanied by a meal or otsumami (a light snack). Otsumami usually comes in the form of a plate of edamame (soy beans), surume (dried shredded squid) or arare (small rice crackers whose name literally translates as hailstones!).