Medieval Japanese Development and Influences

L.O. To understand how Japanese society formed and how it was unique to its neighbors in Asia.

Japan’s Geography
● Japan is an archipelago, or _____________________________.
● Located ____________ off the coast of mainland Asia and east of the
_______________________.
● Surrounded by water:
○ ___________
○ ___________
● Four main islands:
○
○
○
○ ____________
● Four-fifths of its land is ____________________________________.
● Most people settle in _____________________ and along _______
__________________________.
● Mild ___________ and sufficient ___________ help farmers.
● The seas surrounding Japan have both __________ and __________ the
country.
● Close enough to learn from __________ and _________ yet far enough
away to avoid ______________.
● Japan could accept or reject _________________________ easier than
other Asian lands.
● The seas helped Japan develop its own _________________.
● Seas also offered important _____________________.
○ Thriving _____________________.
● Japan lies in a region known as the _______________, which is made up of
a chain of ________________ that encircle the
__________________________.
● Makes area susceptible to ______________ and ______________.
● Underwater earthquakes can launch killer _____________________ called
______________, which sweep over the land without warning.

Early Japanese History

● The people we know as the Japanese migrated from _____________
__________________ more than _________ years ago.
● Early Japanese societies were divided into clans or _________.
● Each ______ had its own chief and a special ______ or _________ who
was seen as the clan’s original ______________.
● Some clan leaders were ________________.

Foreign Influence on Japan

● Japanese language is related to ______________ but completely different
from ________________.
● Korean ___________ introduced _____________ to Japan in
____________.
● This sparked Japanese interest in _________________________________.
● In the 600’s, __________________ of the _________________ sent nobles
to ____________________. For 200 years Japanese students, monks,
traders and officials visited the ____________________.
● As a result, Japan sets up government in similar ways. Does not affect
clan’s power in the _____________.
● Cultural Diffusion
○ Adopted ______________ architecture from Chinese
_____________.
○ In time, the Japanese kept some traditions from China and
abandoned others. This was called ______________________.
○ The Japanese adopted
■ ________________
● ______________
 Medieval Japanese Development and Influences

■ Chinese _____________- led to development of _______

■ Art, literature, and _________
○ The Japanese did not adopt:
■ _________________________
■ _________________________

Religion

● Early clans worshiped ____________, meaning “way of the __________.”

○ Worship of ____________________.
○ Traditions of Shinto still seen in Japan today.
● Buddhism came to Japan through ____________________.
● As it spread, the Japanese adopted Buddhist architecture such as
_____________ and _______________.
● For centuries, Korea and Japan were in continuous contact with each other.
This became known as the _____________________.

Mahayana/Amida Buddhism Zen Buddhism

 Medieval Japanese Development and Influences

Japanese Feudalism
● Original dynasty were the __________________.
● Ruled the government from the island of __________ and current
_______________ still trace their roots back to the ___________________.
● _________________ battled for control of the countryside.
● Armies would struggle for power and a __________________ would
emerge.
● A new ______________________ developed much like in
_______________________________.
● The ____________________ became a powerless figurehead.
● ___________________- supreme military commander; had the
____________________.
● ___________________- great warrior lord; received land from a shogun.
● ___________________- lesser warrior lords; fighting aristocracy.
● Samurai means “__________________.”
● Comparable to the medieval __________________ in Europe.
● They would develop their own code of values like _______________, but
called ___________, or way of the warrior

Europe Japan

Nobility

Warrior Class

Code of Conduct

● The shogun __________________set up the first of 3 military dynasties that

ruled Japan for 700 years.
○ 1st shogunate known as the ___________________________.
■ Later the _____________ and ______________ came.
● During the age of the samurai, the position of women declined and they
would become _____________________________.
● Unlike European chivalry, bushido __________________________.
○ __________________
○ Women were expected to ___________________________ and
_______________.
 Medieval Japanese Development and Influences

Review and Reflection:

1. How was medieval Japan similar to medieval China? How was it different?

a. Geography-

b. Government-

c. Society-

2. Compare and contrast Japanese and European feudalism.

3. Which aspects of Japanese culture and society in these notes have you experienced?