The Ryukyu Islands /riˈuːkjuː/ (琉球諸島, Ryūkyū-shotō), known in Japanese as the Nansei Islands (南西諸島, Nansei-shotō, lit. "Southwest Islands") and also known as the Ryukyu Arc (琉球弧, Ryūkyū-ko), are a chain of volcanic Japanese islands that stretch sout…
The University of Tokyo (東京大学 Tōkyō daigaku?), abbreviated as Todai (東大 Tōdai?), is a research university located in Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan. The University has 10 faculties with a total of around 30,000 students, 2,100 of whom are foreign. Its five …
NHK (Japanese: 日本放送協会, Hepburn: Nippon Hōsō Kyōkai, official English name: Japan Broadcasting Corporation) is Japan's national public broadcasting organization.
Ōkunoshima (大久野島) is a small island located in the Inland Sea of Japan in the city of Takehara, Hiroshima Prefecture. It is accessible by ferry from Tadanoumi and Ōmishima. There are campsites, walking trails and places of historical interest on the…
Japan is an island nation in East Asia comprising a stratovolcanic archipelago extending along the Pacific coast of Asia. It lies between 24° to 46° north latitude and from 123° to 146° east longitude. The country is southeast of the Russian Far Eas…
The Shinto Kanamara Matsuri (かなまら祭り?, "Festival of the Steel Phallus") is held each spring at the Kanayama Shrine (金山神社 Kanayama-jinja?) in Kawasaki, Japan. The exact dates vary: the main festivities fall on the first Sunday in April. The penis, as…
Shikoku (四国, "four provinces") is the smallest (225 km or 139.8 mi long and between 50 and 150 km or 31.1 and 93.2 mi wide) and least populous (4,141,955 as of 2005) of the four main islands of Japan, located south of Honshū and east of the island o…
The Great Kantō earthquake (関東大震災, Kantō daishinsai) struck the Kantō Plain on the Japanese main island of Honshū at 11:58:44 a.m.
Tokyo Disneyland (東京ディズニーランド, Tōkyō Dizunīrando) is an 115-acre (465,000 m2) theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, near Tokyo. Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was …
Yoshiwara (吉原) was a famous yūkaku (遊廓、遊郭?, pleasure district, red-light district) in Edo, present-day Tōkyō, Japan.
The Great Hanshin earthquake (阪神・淡路大震災 Hanshin Awaji daishinsai?), or Kobe earthquake, occurred on January 17, 1995 at 05:46:53 JST (January 16 at 20:46:53 UTC) in the southern part of Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. It measured 6.9 on the moment magnitud…
The Yonaguni Monument (与那国島海底地形, Yonaguni-jima Kaitei Chikei, lit. "Yonaguni Island Submarine Topography") is an underwater structure off the coast of Yonaguni, the southernmost of the Ryukyu Islands, in Japan. There is a debate about whether the si…
Takeshi's Castle (風雲！たけし城, Fūun! Takeshi-jō, literally Showdown! Takeshi Castle) was a Japanese game show that aired between 1986 and 1990 on the Tokyo Broadcasting System. It featured the Japanese actor Takeshi Kitano (also known as Beat Takeshi) a…
Kinkaku-ji (金閣寺, lit. "Temple of the Golden Pavilion"), officially named Rokuon-ji (鹿苑寺, lit. "Deer Garden Temple"), is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan. The garden complex is an excellent example of Muromachi period garden design. The Muromach…
This is a list of earthquakes in Japan with either a magnitude greater than or equal to 7.0 or which caused significant damage or casualties. As indicated below, magnitude is measured on the Richter magnitude scale (ML) or the moment magnitude scale…
Tokyo Dome (東京ドーム, Tōkyō Dōmu, TYO: 9681) is a 55,000-seat baseball stadium located in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Construction on the stadium began on May 16, 1985, and it opened for business on March 17, 1988. It was built on the site of the Velodrome, …
The Akashi Kaikyō Bridge (明石海峡大橋, Akashi Kaikyō Ō-hashi), also known as the Pearl Bridge, links the city of Kobe on the mainland of Honshu to Iwaya on Awaji Island, in Japan. It crosses the busy Akashi Strait (Akashi Kaikyō in Japanese).
Kanagawa Prefecture (神奈川県, Kanagawa-ken) is a prefecture located in southern Kantō region of Japan. The capital of the prefecture is Yokohama.
Hōshi (法師) is a ryokan (Japanese traditional inn) in the Awazu Onsen area of Komatsu, in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan.
The National Diet (国会, Kokkai) is Japan's bicameral legislature. It is composed of a lower house that is called the House of Representatives, and an upper house, called the House of Councillors. Both houses of the Diet are directly elected under a p…
The Kansai region (関西地方, Kansai-chihō) or the Kinki region (近畿地方, Kinki-chihō) lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū. The region includes the prefectures of Mie, Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo, and Shiga. Depending o…
The Momofuku Ando Instant Ramen Museum (インスタントラーメン発明記念館, Insutanto-rāmen Hatsumei Kinenkan) is a museum dedicated to instant noodles and Cup Noodles, as well as its creator and founder, Momofuku Ando. The museum is located in Ikeda in Osaka, and is …
Itsukushima Shrine (Japanese: 厳島神社 Itsukushima-jinja) is a Shinto shrine on the island of Itsukushima (popularly known as Miyajima), best known for its "floating" torii gate. It is in the city of Hatsukaichi in Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan.
Waseda University (早稲田大学, Waseda Daigaku), abbreviated as Sōdai (早大), is a private university mainly located in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan. As the second private university to be founded in Japan, Waseda University is considered to be one of Japan's mos…
Hino Motors, Ltd. (日野自動車株式会社, Hino Jidōsha), commonly known as simply Hino, is a Japanese manufacturer of commercial vehicles and diesel engines (including trucks, buses and other vehicles) headquartered in Hino-shi, Tokyo. The company has been the …
Chiba Prefecture (千葉県, Chiba-ken) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region and the Greater Tokyo Area.
Tōdai-ji (東大寺, Eastern Great Temple), is a Buddhist temple complex, that was once one of the powerful Seven Great Temples, located in the city of Nara, Japan. Its Great Buddha Hall (大仏殿, Daibutsuden), houses the world's largest bronze statue of the …
Fushimi Inari Taisha (伏見稲荷大社) is the head shrine of Inari, located in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan. The shrine sits at the base of a mountain also named Inari which is 233 metres above sea level, and includes trails up the mountain to many smaller shrin…
Kiyomizu-dera (清水寺), officially Otowa-san Kiyomizu-dera (音羽山清水寺) is an independent Buddhist temple in eastern Kyoto. The temple is part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (Kyoto, Uji and Otsu Cities) UNESCO World Heritage site.
Yakushima (屋久島) is one of the Ōsumi Islands belonging to Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island, 504.88 km² in area, has a population of 13,178. Access to the island is by hydrofoil ferry (7 or 8 times a day from Kagoshima), slow car ferry (once or…
Osaka Castle (大坂城 or 大阪城,, Ōsaka-jō) is a Japanese castle in Chūō-ku, Osaka, Japan.
Hiroshima Peace Memorial (広島平和記念碑 Hiroshima heiwa kinenhi?), commonly called the Atomic Bomb Dome or Genbaku Dōmu (原爆ドーム?, A-Bomb Dome), in Hiroshima, Japan, is part of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Si…
The National Diet Library (国立国会図書館, Kokuritsu Kokkai Toshokan) is the only national library in Japan. It was established in 1948 for the purpose of assisting members of the National Diet of Japan (国会, Kokkai) in researching matters of public policy.…
Edo Castle (江戸城, Edo-jō), also known as Chiyoda Castle (千代田城, Chiyoda-jō), is a flatland castle that was built in 1457 by Ōta Dōkan. It is located in Chiyoda in Tokyo, then known as Edo, Toshima District, Musashi Province. Tokugawa Ieyasu establishe…
The Tsukiji Market (築地市場, Tsukiji shijō), supervised by the Tokyo Metropolitan Central Wholesale Market (東京都中央卸売市場, Tōkyō-to Chūō Oroshiuri Shijō) of the Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Industrial and Labor Affairs, is the biggest wholesale fish and se…
Comiket (コミケット, Komiketto), otherwise known as the Comic Market (コミックマーケット, Komikku Māketto), is the world's largest dōjinshi fair, held twice a year in Tokyo, Japan. The first Comiket was held on December 21, 1975, with only about 32 participating …