Early+Japan2

Early Japan

Ashoka's Empire, 250 B.C. Social - The People were organized into clans. They followed Confucianism because it held the same principles they believed in. Which included a type of honor code which meant they respected their elders and women were thought less of then men. The women were still treated well in their society.

Political - They were loosely governed by a emperor or empress and was mostly a clan based. Religion however played a part of it. The Yamato clan was the blood line of Amaterasu which was the royal family. The first emperor was Jimmu-Tenu who was said to be the direct assendent of the sun goddess.

Religion - The religion in Japan was Shinto and Buddhism at the same time. They sort of used both religion because Buddhism doesn't really have gods so they used the gods from Shinto religion. The gods were called Kami. Shinto however doesn't have a lot of philosophy behind it so they used Buddhism which made the two religions co - exist with each other.

Intellectual -They Expanded on Confucianism and added many things like bushido (code of the samurai) and added the shinobi code. Honoring ancestors and free thought other than opposing government was encouraged.

Trade/ Technology -They mostly traded with India, China, and Korea. This is how they got many of their cultural influences and other things from China. They used gun powder from their trades to advance pyro-technics. By hand, they had the most highly advanced sword crafts even to today. These swords are called katanas.

Economic - The economy was driven heavily by the import of foreign goods. These goods included paper, silk, spices, and gunpowder to name some important ones. Time Frame - **Yayoi** (300 BCE- 300 CE) intro to rice farming Short Bio - Empress Suiko was the first empress. Emperor Jimmu-Tenu was the first Emperor. (was belived to be son of the sun godess) How it Came to Power - The true natives were pushed North by immigrants and warring clans were united Reason for Fall - Japan never fell or was concurred. What makes it unique - They had two warrior factions unlike most other civilizations between the ninja and the samurai. The clan system was also rare. Reasources - Hanes III, William T., ed. World History. Orlando: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1997.
 * Yamato** (300 -710 )intro to buddhism
 * Nara** (710 -794 )Buddhism becomes soild
 * Heian** (794 -1192 )Start of Shogunate

"Ancient Japan Timeline." __Washington State University - Pullman, Washington__. 06 June 1999. 03 Feb. 2009 .

"Early Japan." The Samurai Archives Japanese History Page. 03 Feb. 2009 .