Japan, island country lying off the east coast of Asia.

Japan is in both the northern and eastern

hemispheres, and is positioned off the eastern coast of Asia, east of the Korean Peninsula .Japan
is bordered by the Philippine Sea, East China Sea, Sea of Japan (East Sea), Sea of Okhotsk and
the North Pacific Ocean.
It consists of a great string of islands in a northeast-southwest arc that stretches for approximately
1,500 miles (2,400 km) through the western North Pacific Ocean. Nearly the entire land area is
taken up by the country’s four main islands; from north to south these
are Hokkaido (Hokkaidō), Honshu (Honshū), Shikoku, and Kyushu (Kyūshū). Honshu is the
largest of the four, followed in size by Hokkaido, Kyushu, and Shikoku. In addition, there are
numerous smaller islands, the major groups of which are the Ryukyu (Nansei) Islands (including
the island of Okinawa) to the south and west of Kyushu and the Izu, Bonin (Ogasawara),
and Volcano (Kazan) islands to the south and east of central Honshu. The national
capital, Tokyo (Tōkyō), in east-central Honshu, is one of the world’s most populous cities.
The Japanese landscape is rugged, with more than four-fifths of the land surface consisting of
mountains. There are many active and dormant volcanoes, including Mount Fuji (Fuji-san), which,
at an elevation of 12,388 feet (3,776 metres), is Japan’s highest mountain. Abundant precipitation
and the generally mild temperatures throughout most of the country have produced a lush
vegetation cover and, despite the mountainous terrain and generally poor soils, have made it
possible to raise a variety of crops. Japan has a large and, to a great extent,
ethnically homogeneous population, which is heavily concentrated in the low-lying areas along
the Pacific coast of Honshu.
MOUNT FUJI, Japanese Fuji-san, also spelled Fujisan, also called Fujiyama or Fuji no Yama,
highest mountain in Japan. It rises to 12,388 feet (3,776 metres) near the Pacific Ocean coast
in Yamanashiand Shizuoka ken (prefectures) of central Honshu, about 60 miles (100 km) west
of the Tokyo-Yokohama metropolitan area. The location of Mount Fuji is 35.4 degrees north
latitude and 138.7 degrees east longitude. Mount Fuji is located near the Pacific coast of central
Honshu, one of the 4 major islands that make up the country of Japan. It straddles the boundary of
Shizuoka and Yamanashi prefectures just west of Tokyo. The map coordinates are 35°21′28.8″N
,138°43′51.6″E --or 35 degrees 21minutes 28.8 seconds North latitude (or 35 deg. 21' 28.8" N);
138 degrees 43 minutes 51.6 seconds East longitude (138 deg. 43' 51.6" E).
Mt. Fuji stands at 3,776 m (12,388 ft) high, and its climate is very cold due to the altitude (the cone
is covered by snow for several months of the year). At the summit, in July, the average temperature
is 6.5 deg. C (or 43.7 deg. F) during the day; 1.8 deg. C (or 35.24 deg. F) at night. It is
a volcano that has been dormant since its last eruption, in 1707, but is still generally classified as
active by geologists. The mountain is the major feature of Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park (1936),
and it is at the centre of a UNESCO World Heritage site designated in 2013.
It first appears as Fuji no Yama in Hitachi no kuni fudoki (713 CE), an early government record.
Among the several theories about the source of the name is that it is derived from an Ainu term
meaning “fire,” coupled with san, the Japanese word for “mountain.” The Chinese ideograms
(kanji) now used to write Fuji connote more of a sense of good fortune or well being.
Mount Fuji, with its graceful conical form, has become famous throughout the world and is
considered the sacred symbol of Japan. Among Japanese there is a sense of personal identification
with the mountain, and each summer thousands of Japanese climb to the shrine on its peak.
OSAKA (Japanese: 大 阪 市 Hepburn: Ōsaka-shi, pronounced [oːsakaɕi]; commonly just 大
阪 Ōsaka [oːsaka] Osaka is in South East Asia and the Kansi region. Osaka is in between
Hiroshima and Tokyo, and is also in the Kansi region. It is the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and
the largest component of the Keihanshin Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan
area in Japan and among the largest in the world with over 19 million inhabitants. Osaka will
host Expo 2025.[2] The current mayor of Osaka is Hirofumi Yoshimura.
Osaka is a large port city and commercial center on the Japanese island of Honshu. It's known for
its modern architecture, nightlife and hearty street food. The 16th-century shogunate Osaka Castle,
which has undergone several restorations, is its main historical landmark. It's surrounded by a moat
and park with plum, peach and cherry-blossom trees. Sumiyoshi-taisha is among Japan’s oldest
Shinto shrines.
Osaka has traditionally been regarded as a city of merchants while Tokyo traditionally has had a
reputation of being a city of bureaucrats and samurai. Osaka is also noted as the birthplace of
traditional Japanese theatricals like Kabuki and Bunraku puppet dramas and as the site of some of
Japan's most important battles.
For a long time Osaka was the major commercial center of Japan. Until the late 19th century, about
70 percent of the country's wealth was concentrated in Osaka even though Tokyo was the capital.
by the 1920s, Tokyo began to catch up. After World War II, it surpassed Osaka as big companies
began transferring their headquarters to Tokyo.
As is true with Tokyo, the majority of Osaka's historical monuments were destroyed during the
firing bombing raids of World War II and the vast majority of the city has been rebuilt since the
war. Osaka received worldwide attention in 1970 when it hosted a World Exposition. It wasn't
damaged much by the 1995 Kobe earthquake even though Kobe is only 45 minutes away by train.
OTTAWA is the capital city of Canada. Ottawa, city, capital of Canada, located in
southeastern Ontario. In the eastern extreme of the province, Ottawa is situated on the south bank
of the Ottawa River across from Gatineau, Quebec, at the confluence of the Ottawa (Outaouais),
Gatineau, and Rideau rivers. The absolute location of Ottawa, Canada is 45.4214° North and
75.6919° West. The relative location for Ottawa is on the Southeastern side of the
province Ontario.It stands on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern
portion of southern Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec; the two form the core of the
Ottawa–Gatineau census metropolitan area (CMA) and the National Capital Region(NCR).[12] As
of 2016, Ottawa had a city population of 964,743 and a metropolitan population of 1,323,783
making it the fourth-largest city and the fifth-largest CMA in Canada.
Founded in 1826 as Bytown, and incorporated as Ottawa in 1855, the city has evolved into the
political centre of Canada. Its original boundaries were expanded through numerous annexations
and were ultimately replaced by a new city incorporation and amalgamation in 2001 which
significantly increased its land area. The city name "Ottawa" was chosen in reference to the Ottawa
River, the name of which is derived from the Algonquin Odawa, meaning "to trade".[13]
KYOTO (also Kyōto) is former capital of Japan and for more than a thousand years the center of
traditional Japanese culture. Located in west-central Honshu, in the picturesque valley of the Kamo
River with surrounding mountains, it is one of the most historic and attractive of the world's cities.
KYOTO (315 miles southwest of Tokyo and 25 miles east of Osaka) was the home of the Japanese
Emperor, the center of Japanese civilization and the capital of Japan for about 1,100 years or its
1,200 years of existence. Today it known best for its geishas, great temples, beautiful gardens and
works of art. It is also the home of Nintendo and more than its share of urban sprawl.
Kyoto is home to about 1.5 million residents. Around 50 million tourists visit Kyoto every year--
-including 1 million foreigners, of whom 100,000 are Americans. The number of tourists dipped
somewhat after the Kobe earthquake, even though Kyoto was not seriously damaged (the Golden
Temple developed cracks and a 9th century statue of a Goddess of Mercy in the Koryuji Temple
lost a right arm, but that was about it) but soon returned to normal
Kyoto became Japan's capital at the beginning of the Heian Period (A.D. 794-1192) and flourished
until 1868 when the Edo Period ended and Emperor Meiji moved the imperial seat to Tokyo.
Although a variety of feudal lords have ruled Japan from different places during the country's long
history, Kyoto has always remained its cultural and artistic center and for most of Japan's history
the home of the imperial family.
Surrounded by beautiful hills and laid out in a checkerboard design of streets and avenues
developed more than 1,000 years ago, Kyoto is a repository for much of Japan's best art,
architecture, culture, religion and thought.
Kyoto boasts over 1,650 Buddhist temples, over 400 Shinto shrines, two vast Imperial complexes,
20 percent of Japan's national treasures, 15 percent of Japan's Important Cultural Properties, 24
museums, gardens and 37 universities and colleges.
TOKYO (officially Tokyo Metropolis (東京都 Tōkyō-to), one of the 47 prefectures of Japan,
has served as the Japanese capital since 1869. Tokyo is a city found in Tokyo, Japan. It is located
35.69 latitude and 139.69 longitude and it is situated at elevation 44 meters above sea level. Japan
43°N 141°E Japan is in Asia near China. As of 2018, the Greater Tokyo Area ranked as
the most populous metropolitan area in the world. The urban area houses the seat of the Emperor
of Japan, of the Japanese government and of the National Diet. Tokyo forms part of the Kantō
region on the southeastern side of Japan's main island, Honshu, and includes the Izu
Islands and Ogasawara Islands. Tokyo was formerly named Edo when ShōgunTokugawa
Ieyasu made the city his headquarters in 1603. It became the capital after Emperor Meiji moved
his seat to the city from Kyoto in 1868; at that time Edo was renamed Tokyo. Tokyo Metropolis
formed in 1943 from the merger of the former Tokyo Prefecture (東京府 Tōkyō-fu) and the city
of Tokyo (東京市 Tōkyō-shi). Tokyo is often referred to as a city but is officially known and
governed as a "metropolitan prefecture", which differs from and combines elements of a city and
a prefecture, a characteristic unique to Tokyo.
Tokyo, Japan’s busy capital, mixes the ultramodern and the traditional, from neon-lit skyscrapers
to historic temples. The opulent Meiji Shinto Shrine is known for its towering gate and surrounding
woods. The Imperial Palace sits amid large public gardens. The city's many museums offer exhibits
ranging from classical art (in the Tokyo National Museum) to a reconstructed kabuki theater (in
the Edo-Tokyo Museum).