Land of the Rising Sun

Japan means "sun," and "origin" means "origin." Japan is the land of the sun, the place where the sun rises, the land of the sun.

Japan is also known as the "Land of Cherry Blossoms," because cherry blossom trees ( sakura ) grow throughout the country, from north to south. (Source: Mainichi)

According to historical records, the name Japan was transliterated as Cipangu by Marco Polo, a 13th-century Italian explorer and merchant, long ago in China. Portuguese merchants were the first to bring this word to Europe, where it was written as Giapan in English. Later, it was translated into English and German as Japan, and into French as Japon. The correct Japanese pronunciation is "Nihon" (Nippon or Nippon Koku - the origin of the sun or the land of the rising sun).

Upon arriving in Japan, tourists are reminded of the legend of the Two Rocks, the Rooster and the Hen, which supposedly created the country. This story is recounted in the Kojiki, the oldest surviving book in Japan, written in the 8th century. The book, written in Chinese characters, contains ancient folk legends about the creation of the world, the world of gods, the formation of the Japanese nation, and the emergence of the Japanese imperial lineage.

The story goes that: Once upon a time, before heaven and earth existed, there was only a strip of alluvial soil that split in two. The upper part was the dwelling place of the gods. The lower part was a vast expanse of water; two gods used spears to stir this ocean of alluvial soil until bubbles rose, creating a place to stand.

The male deity was named Izanagi, and the female deity was Izanami, both meaning "one who invites." The two looked at each other, their emotions overflowing. The female deity exclaimed, "I feel like something is missing inside me!" The male deity replied, "I feel like something is in excess inside me!" And so the couple engaged in sexual intercourse.

Later, Izanami gave birth to the islands that became Japanese territory. Today, in the sacred Ise Bay, near the city of Kobe (on Honshu Island), there are still two small rocky islands called the "husband and wife rocks," the "male rock" representing the husband and the "female rock" representing the wife, bound together by a red thread, a rope; every year, on the 5th day of the first lunar month, a ceremony is held to replace the rope. If the rope breaks during the year, it is considered an omen of misfortune, bringing calamities to the country.

The Sun Goddess (Amateraxu) is a tear shed by Izanagi upon his return to the mortal world, where he bathed in a spring to expel bodily fluids. The legend of the Sun Goddess gave Japan the name "Land of the Sun."

The legend of Mount Fuji explains another symbolic representation of the country. Fuji means "elixir of immortality." The story goes that an emperor was infatuated with a celestial maiden banished from the moon to be the adopted daughter of an old woodcutter and his wife. Their love was unrequited. After her exile ended, the maiden flew back to the moon, leaving her adoptive father a jade scroll and an elixir of immortality, which she threw into the highest volcano closest to the moon. To this day, sacred smoke still rises from Mount Fuji, a symbol of lingering affection.

Japan is also known as the "Land of Cherry Blossoms," because cherry blossom trees (sakura) grow throughout the country, from north to south. Japan is also called the "Land of Chrysanthemums," because the 16-petaled chrysanthemum, resembling the shining sun, is a symbol of the imperial family and is currently the national emblem of Japan.

Japan consists of four large islands and over a thousand smaller islands scattered in an arc shape approximately 3,800 km long off the eastern coast of mainland Asia. Honshu Island is the largest island, its size equal to that of Northern and Southern Vietnam combined.

The "island" characteristic is an extremely important geographical factor for Japan, perhaps even more so than for England, because the British Isles were early connected to the European mainland, while the Japanese archipelago is "a grain of millet far away at the edge of the universe."

Due to living on islands isolated from the mainland, Japanese ethnic groups had favorable conditions to mix and form a distinct nation with its own unique characteristics early in history. Some sociologists argue that the "island" nature of Japan has led to an introverted mentality, similar to that of the Swedish people (for different reasons).

Due to difficult transportation between the island and the mainland, foreign cultural elements did not gradually penetrate but sometimes entered in massive quantities. There were periods when Japan closed itself off from the outside world: during the Heian period, relations with China were interrupted for three hundred years; from 1630 to 1867, Japan closed itself off, especially from Western countries, for more than two hundred years.

The archipelago's location on the edge of the mainland also meant that Japan faced fewer constant foreign invasions than Vietnam; in fact, until 1945, Japan was virtually unoccupied by foreign powers.

The islands of Japan are the upper part of a submerged mountain range that extends 6,000-8,000 meters to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. In the center of each island is the upper part of a deep-seated mountain range; mountains occupy two-thirds of the country's area. Because it is situated in contact with several tectonic plates (Eurasian, North American, Pacific, and Philippine) and its mountain-building process is relatively young, Japan has two unique natural characteristics that have made it world-famous: numerous volcanoes and frequent earthquakes and tsunamis (due to offshore earthquakes).

Japan's natural environment, while beautiful, is truly harsh on its people. Arable land is scarce, the population is large (approximately 125 million people on 377,435 ^km² – almost the same as Vietnam – 100 million people on 329,600 ^km² ), natural resources are limited, and the country lacks favorable weather and geographical conditions.

Yet here, a brilliant civilization was born, a nation that rose from backwardness in a unique way. After more than a century of change, a world-leading economy emerged. That success is a victory of the Japanese people over nature.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/nhat-ban-vung-dat-mat-troi-moc-231812.html