A CULTURAL VACATION &

SOCIOLGICAL ANALYSIS
OF JAPAN
MAIN ELEMENTS
OF CULTURE
1. Language

• The national language of Japan is Japanese.

• Japanese alphabet consist of three writing systems. Namely Hiragana, Katakana and Kanji.
2. Symbols

• The Zhen circle - This means emptiness and universe. In order to understand the universe
people must empty their minds.
• Salt - Salt means purification. Sumo wrestlers throw salt to clean the stage. Restaurants put salt
next to the entrance to protect from evil spirits.
• The cats - The cat: Maneki Neko. that brings luck. White cat brings health, black cat protects
from evil spirits. The gold-color cat brings money.
3. TECHNOLOGY

• Vehicle technology, consumer electronics, robotics, medical devices, space exploration

• Japan has received the most science Nobel prizes in Asia
• Sony, Panasonic, Canon, Fujitsu, Hitachi, Sharp, NEC, Nintendo, Epson and Toshiba are among the best-
known electronics companies in the world
• Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Suzuki, and Subaru are also very well-known automobile
companies in the world.
• Japan have built Japanese Experiment Module and added to the International Space Station
4. TABOOS

• Japanese People avoid sending 20,000 yen and or multiples of 2 as gifts to a couple as many believe that
the number “2” is likely to cause the couple’s feelings to break down. Therefore, they generally would
instead send out 30,000, 50,000 or 70,000 yen.
• There are many taboos in speaking in Japan, such as saying “bitter” or “death”. Even some words of
homophonic are also taboo, such as the pronunciation of the word “4” (shi), which is pronounced the
same as death (shi), or the pronunciation of “42” (shi-ni) which sounds the same as “to die”
CULTURAL UNIVERSALS

1. Arts and Leisure

• The highly refined traditional arts of Japan include such forms as the tea ceremony,
calligraphy, and ikebana (flower arranging) and gardening, as well as architecture,
painting, and sculpture.The performing arts are distinguished by their blending of music,
dance, and drama, rooted in different eras of the past.

2. Basic needs
• Material culture is the aspect of social reality grounded in the objects and architecture that
surround people. It includes the usage, consumption, creation, and trade of objects as well
as the behaviors, norms, and rituals that the objects create or take part in. Below
mentioned are some of the most important materials considered by Japanese citizens. (E.g.
Slip-on shoes, IC card, Bicycle, flooding Umbrella, Smartphone, Handkerchief, Business
card(meishi) holder). Nonmaterial culture is made up of ideas and thoughts, and includes
things like laws and standards for behavior at a funeral. The seven components of
nonmaterial culture are gestures, language, values, norms, sanctions, folkways, and mores
3. Beliefs

• Shintoism is Japan's indigenous spirituality. It is believed that every living thing in nature (e.g. trees,
rocks, flowers, animals - even sounds) contains kami, or gods. Consequently Shinto principles can be
seen throughout Japanese culture, where nature and the turning of the seasons are cherished.  Buddhism
was imported from the mainland in the 6th century. Since then, the two religions have been co-existing
relatively harmoniously and have even complimented each other to a certain degree.

4. Communication and Education

• Japanese people are generally indirect communicators. They may be ambiguous when answering
questions as a way to maintain harmony, prevent a loss of face, or out of politeness. People are often
attentive to non-verbal cues (such as body language, posture, expression and tone of voice) as a way to
draw meaning from a conversation. Disagreements that must be discussed are usually done so in private
and at a later time.
5. Government and Economy

• The economy of Japan is a highly developed free-market economy. It is the third-largest

in the world by nominal GDP and the fourth-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP). It
is the world's second largest developed economy. The Japanese government is a
democracy. Japan is a prosperous liberal democracy with the third largest economy and a
vibrant civil society. In July, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) won a solid
majority in an upper house election.

6. Technology

• Science and technology in Japan has developed rapidly after the Second World War,
which has affected the advancement of vehicle technology, consumer electronics,
robotics, medical devices, space exploration, and the film industry. ... Japan was ranked
16th in the Global Innovation Index in 2020, down from 15th in 2019.
CURRENT SOCIAL ISSUES
IN JAPAN

• Japan’s long overlooked “hostage” justice system, in which criminal suspects are held for long
periods in harsh conditions to coerce a confession, received renewed attention after the high-profile
arrest of former Renault and Nissan head Carlos Ghosn in November 2018 for alleged financial
misconduct.

• Japan has no law prohibiting racial, ethnic, or religious discrimination, or discrimination based on
sexual orientation or gender identity.
1. Death penalty
• In December 2018, Japan executed two men on death row for crimes including murder and robbery.

2. Disability Rights
• In April, the Japanese parliament enacted legislation to compensate people forcibly sterilized under
the Eugenic Protection Act between 1948 and 1996. Under the law, approximately 25,000 people were
sterilized.

3. Women’s Rights
• Protests erupted across Japan this year after a string of rape cases resulted in acquittals. Japan’s rape
law requires that prosecutors prove that violence or intimidation was involved, or that the victim was
“incapable of resistance.
4. Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity

• In January, the Supreme Court ruled that the 2004 Gender Identity Disorder Special Cases Act—
which requires that transgender people be sterilized to obtain documents reflecting their gender
identity—as constitutional