Japan

Japan 日本 (Japanese)[a] Nippon-koku or Nihon-koku Nippon or Nihon
Flag Imperial Seal
Anthem:  "Kimigayo" 君が代 "His Imperial Majesty's Reign"[3][4]
Government Seal of Japan Go-Shichi no Kiri (五七桐)
Area controlled by Japan shown in green—claimed, but uncontrolled shown in light green
Capital and largest city	Tokyo[5] 35°41′N 139°46′E / 35.683°N 139.767°E / 35.683; 139.767
National language	Japanese
Ethnic groups (2011[6])	98.5% Japanese 0.5% Korean 0.4% Chinese 0.6% other
Religion	51.82% Shinto 34.9% Buddhism 4% Shinto sects 2.3% Christianity 7.0% no answer[7]
Demonym(s)	Japanese
Government	Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy
• Emperor	Naruhito
• Prime Minister	Shigeru Ishiba
• Deputy Prime Minister	Vacant
Legislature	National Diet
• Upper house	House of Councillors
• Lower house	House of Representatives
Formation
• National Foundation Day	February 11, 660 BC[8]
• Meiji Constitution	November 29, 1890
• Current constitution	May 3, 1947
Area
• Total	377,972 km2 (145,936 sq mi)[9] (61st)
• Water (%)	1.40 (as of 2015)[10]
Population
• 2017 census	126,572,604[11] (10th)
• Density	336/km2 (870.2/sq mi) (36th)
GDP (PPP)	2017 estimate
• Total	$5.420 trillion[12] (4th)
• Per capita	$42,960[12] (27th)
GDP (nominal)	2017 estimate
• Total	$4.841 trillion[12] (3rd)
• Per capita	$38,281[12] (20th)
Gini (2008)	37.6[13] medium · 76th
HDI (2015)	0.903[14] very high · 17th
Currency	Yen (¥) / En 円 (JPY)
Time zone	UTC+9 (JST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+9 (not observed)
Date format	yyyy-mm-dd yyyy年m月d日 Era yy年m月d日 (CE−1988)
Driving side	left
Calling code	+81
ISO 3166 code	JP
Internet TLD	.jp
Website www.japan.go.jp

Japan (Japanese: 日本; Romanized as Nihon or Nippon) is a country in East Asia. It is a group of islands close to the east coast of Korea, China and Russia. The Pacific Ocean is to the east of Japan and the Sea of Japan is to the west.^[15] Most people in Japan live on one of the four islands. The biggest of these islands, Honshu, has the most people. Honshu is the 7th largest island in the world. Tokyo is the capital of Japan and its biggest city.

The Japanese people call their country "Nihon" or "Nippon",^[15] which means "the origin of the Sun" in Japanese.^[16][17] Japan is a monarchy whose head of state is called the Emperor.^[15] Japan is the oldest monarchy in the world, lasting more than 2,000 years.^[18]

1. ↑ "Official Names of Member States (UNTERM)" (PDF). UN Protocol and Liaison Service. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 5, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
2. ↑ "National Flag and National Anthem". Retrieved January 29, 2017. The Rising Sun Flag and "Kimi Ga Yo" are respectively the national flag and anthem of Japan. This was formalized in 1999 with the Law Regarding the National Flag and National Anthem.
3. ↑ "Explore Japan National Flag and National Anthem". Retrieved January 29, 2017.
4. ↑ "National Symbols". Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved January 29, 2017.
5. ↑ "History of Tokyo". Retrieved January 29, 2017. The Edo Period lasted for nearly 260 years until the Meiji Restoration in 1868, when the Tokugawa Shogunate ended and imperial rule was restored. The Emperor moved to Edo, which was renamed Tokyo. Thus, Tokyo became the capital of Japan
6. ↑ "CIA Factbook: Japan". Cia.gov. Archived from the original on December 20, 2015. Retrieved November 9, 2011.
7. ↑ Dentsu Communication Institute, Japan Research Center: Sixty Countries' Values Databook (世界60カ国価値観データブック) (2000).
8. ↑ According to legend, Japan was founded on this date by Emperor Jimmu, the country's first Emperor.
9. ↑ "Facts about Japan, General Information". Retrieved January 29, 2017.
10. ↑ "Surface water and surface water change". OECD. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
11. ↑ "最新結果一覧 政府統計の総合窓口 GL08020101". Statistics Bureau of Japan. Retrieved April 27, 2016.
12. ↑ ^{12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3} "World Economic Outlook Database, April 2017 – Report for Selected Countries and Subjects". International Monetary Fund (IMF). Retrieved April 21, 2016.
13. ↑ "World Factbook: Gini Index". CIA. Archived from the original on June 13, 2007. Retrieved May 11, 2011.
14. ↑ "2016 Human Development Report" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 2016. Retrieved March 23, 2017.
15. ↑ ^{15.0 15.1 15.2} "Japan". CIA World Factbook. CIA. Archived from the original on 2015-12-20. Retrieved 2016-06-19.
16. ↑ "The etymology of Nihon and Nippon". 2010-04-26. Retrieved 2023-10-07.
17. ↑ "Etymology of Nippon". Retrieved 2023-10-07.
18. ↑ Wong-Anan, Nopporn (3 May 2019). "Emperor Naruhito and Japan's lonely republicans". BBC. BBC. Retrieved 2022-01-18.