Japanese Culture

Language: In Japan, people speak Japanese.

Religion: Shintoism and Buddhism are the the two main religions.

Cultural Traditions:

• Geisha are famous traditional Japanese artist-entertainers.
• Samurai is a common term for a warrior in pre-industrial Japan. Samurai were expected to be cultured and literate, and over time, they lost their military function.
•  Kimono is a traditional form of clothing worn by Japanese women and men. There are many different kimono styles. For example Wedding, Furisode, Yukata, Houmongi, Tomesoda, and Hadajuban.
• Sports :Sumo and Martial Arts: Perhaps no other sport on earth is as little known about, laden in mystery, or as misunderstood as the sport of Sumo. Fortunately though, it seems like there is now a better appreciation of Japan's old world culture even outside of Japan. This includes the traditional sports and now more than ever sumo, among other traditional sports- in particular the martial arts such as judo and karate, which have been popularized the world over, long before now.      
  
  Food: Buddhism in Japan led to the ban of meat. Because meat was banned, sushi was created. Two important dishes for Japanese culture are Sushi, which is fresh raw seafood with rice and Sashimi, which is fresh raw seafood with soy sauce. flavorful sauces.Rice,soy sauce, and noodles are part of every diet. foods consumed. The Japanese have a cooking method of dividing their food by color and taste. The Japanese are also known for using very fresh ingredients in their cooking and they have a way of arranging the food so the dish looks beautiful. 

         

Etiquette: A person should ever enter a house with their shoes on. When going to visit another person's house you must bring a gist (preferably food). Japanese people eat sitting down. It is not appropriate to eat while walking. Saying "itadakimasu" before eating or drinking and "gochisousama deshita" after eating or when leaving the place is considered polite.

Clothes: As you may already know, the kimono is the traditional Japanese garment. The colors used in the kimonos have meaning. Black was associated with wisdom. Purple represented elegance. Browns and grays were the traditional colors for commoners.

Art: Many Japanese paintings have beautiful back-rounds of mountains and valleys with flowers, streams and rivers while other paintings have backgrounds that are just plain white.To some people the painting look unrealistic, but still dreamlike. Origami or the use of paper to make figure is another form of art traditional to Japanese people.

                               


Dance: The Bon Ondori is Japan's traditional dance. Every summer the Bon Festival is held and people dance the Bon Ondori in the streets. The dances are done in the night because Japanese people believe their ancestor's souls come out at night. This festival is done to honor their ancestors. The Bon Ondori dance is supposed to be joyful. It consists of drum beats and many hand movements.

Music Rephrase!
Gagaku:
Ancient court music from China and Korea. It is the oldest type of Japanese, traditional music.




Biwagaku:
Music played with the Biwa, a kind of guitar with four strings.


Nohgaku:
Music played during Noh performances. It basically consists of a chorus, the Hayashi flute, theTsuzumi drum, and other instruments.


Sokyoku:
Music played with the Koto, a type of zither with 13 strings.


Shakuhachi:
Music played with the Shakuhachi, a bamboo flute that is about 55 cm long. The name of the flute is its length expressed in shaku an old Japanese unit of length.


Shamisenongaku:
Music played with the Shamisen, a kind of guitar with only three strings. Kabuki and Bunrakuperformances are accompanied by the shamisen.


Minyo:
Japanese folk songs.

Japanese Dance
Japanese Food
Japanese Etiquette