The Japanese culture has evolved over thousands of years, with influences from Asia, Europe and North America. After years of immigration from the Pacific islands, Japan experienced long periods of isolation from the rest of the world under a feudal military dictatorship.


Japanese paintings have been around for a very long time. With brushes traditionally used for writing, it only seems natural that their art is painted. Old style painting techniques are still being used today, as well as other techniques borrowed from Asia and the West.

As with most countries, Japan’s style of painting has evolved and changed over time, broken in time periods from the Nara period (6th and 7th century) to the more recent Showa period.



Calligraphy is the art of using a brush to draw characters, usually kanji, with black ink ground from an ink stick with water, or more recently ink poured from a bottle. The Japanese language and calligraphy have been heavily influenced by the Chinese.

On the right you should see a Japanese character. This character is said a.ki in English and is written in hiragana or in kanji as it is written on the left.

Today calligraphy is a compulsory subject at primary and intermediate school level. Some universities in Japan also offer calligraphy as a subject.



Large or small sculptures made of wood, bronze, other metals, stone, and even pottery, are a very traditional part of Japanese art. Some sculpting techniques were derived from Buddhist and Shinto traditions. One of the most famous sculptures is the 17m tall bronze Daibutsu, situated in Nara city.

The earliest forms of sculpture appeared in Japan during the Jōmon period. Twisted rope decorations were used to cover clay pots.




Ikebana is the art of Japanese flower arranging. Internationally, it is known for its focus on colour use, harmony and elegantly simple design. Commonly based around the seasons, it is intended to act as a symbol of something greater than the flower itself.

Ikebana began as a kind of ritual flower offering made in Buddhist temples in Japan during the sixth century. Today, ikebana is learnt mainly by women as Japanese believe it adds to their appeal.




Japan’s architecture has a very long history, and was originally influenced by Chinese architecture. Over time, Japanese architecture has been refined to reflect the Japanese culture and way of life. Some examples of traditional architecture are seen in temples, Shinto shrines, and castles in Kyoto and Nara city. They are commonly finished off with traditional gardens.

The merging of the traditional Japanese architecture and Western styles has created an interesting fusion of old and new. The change to modern technology and rebuilding after WW2 brought about a noticeable change in architecture around Japan.



Japanese fashion consists of a mixture of both traditional and modern styles. Most of the traditional Japanese fashion has evolved to what is known as street fashion, although in some areas of Japan you will still be able to see examples of kimono (pictured on the right) being worn.

Kimonos are worn mainly for special occasions and can be worn by children, women and men, although males tend to have less colourful kimono.





Over a long period of time the Japanese have developed classy yet simple cuisine. Japanese people enjoy traditional foods, with a staple diet of rice and miso soup, seafood, and many other types of Western style food. It is easy to find a wide selection of food from all around the world in Japan.

As with most things in the Japanese culture, food is responsive to the seasons.



Both playing and watching sports is very popular in Japan, whether it's traditional sports like karate, sumo and judo, or new sports like baseball or soccer. The Japanese are very faithful supporters of their favourite team; spectators learn multiple theme songs and even come and practise together hours before the event starts.

Some traditional sports like sumo wrestling (pictured on the right), have an important religious component to them, as well as being a sporting event. Many rituals preformed at sumo wrestling matches are associated with the Shinto belief.


Japanese popular culture has been defined over hundreds of years. Many popular films, comics and television programmes have themes developed from older artistic and literary traditions.

Japanese people are often thought of as hard working people with little time for leisure, but the Japanese seek entertainment wherever they can. It is extremely common to see people, young and old, listening to portable music players, reading manga or playing on their handheld gaming device while on the train. Bowling alleys, game arcades, and karaoke parlours are popular hangout places for teens, while older people may play shogi, pachinko or go in specialised parlours.