Hiroshima and Nagasaki Remembered

(Picture Source)

Hashima Island (Gunkanjima)

“Battleship Island” is one among 505 uninhabited islands in the Nagasaki Prefecture about 15 kilometers from Nagasaki itself. The island was populated from 1887 to 1974 as a coal mining facility. In 1959, its population density was 835 people per hectare (83,500 people/km2) for the whole island, or 1,391 per hectare (139,100 people/km2) for the residential district, the highest population density ever recorded worldwide.

Japan’s Apology to Prisoners of War

Sixty-seven years ago this month, on April 9, 1942, I was surrendered to the Japanese Imperial Army on the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines. At my first prison camp, the Japanese commandant turned to the American prisoners of war (POWs) and told us that we were “lower than dogs” and “they (the Japanese) would treat us that way for the rest of our lives.” Then he said, “We will never be friends with the piggish Americans.”

Modern Samurai: Gun vs Sword

Old Photographs of the Bakumatsu-Meiji Periods

Taken by Beato. Entitled “Japanese doctor, Azuma Ian and patient “. A bald doctor wearing a kimono with the family emblem and a sword takes the pulse of a young woman patient. A kettle sits on a brazier in the background, but this may be the residence of the doctor.

“Japanese Old Photographs of the Bakumatsu-Meiji Periods” at the University of Nagasaki Library is the largest collection of old photographs, approximately 6,000, taken all over Japan from the Bakumatsu through to the Meiji period.

The Origin of Japanese Snowman (Yuki-Daruma)

You might have noticed that Japanese snowmen look different from their Western counterparts. Let’s examine their origin.

Attack on Pearl Harbor

On Sunday morning of December 7, 1941, Japanese navy attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, which later played a role in the US involvement in the WWII.

How to Choose English Translation of The Tale of Genji

If you are planning to read what some consider the world’s first novel, The Tale of Genji, several translations can guide you through the fascinating world of the Heian Period. Let us examine major English translations of The Tale of Genji.

What Tokugawa Descendants are Doing Now?

Tokugawa Ieyasu (徳川 家康 January 31, 1543 – June 1, 1616) was the founder and first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan which ruled from the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. (Wiki)

Culture Day (Bunka no Hi) – November 3

Culture Day (文化の日, Bunka-no-hi) is a national holiday held annually in Japan on November 3 for the purpose of promoting culture, the arts, and academic endeavor. Festivities typically include art exhibitions, parades, and award ceremonies for distinguished artists and scholars.

Hiroshima Mayor to UN: 370,000 Signatures for Nuclear Disarmament

Izumo Taisha: Oldest Shinto Shrine in Japan

Izumo Taisha (出雲大社, Izumo Taisha , also called as Izumo Ōyashiro) is one of the most ancient and important of the Shinto shrines in Japan. Its name means “The Grand Shrine of Izumo.” (Wiki)