Arts & Culture of Japan
The Pond Garden, one of the six traditional Japanese gardens at the Adachi Museum of Art in Yasugi, Shimane Prefecture. The museum also houses a collection of modern Japanese art.
Image: Adachi Museum
Arts & Culture
The Japan Foundation
Organization for international cultural exchange in Japan.
Japanese cuisines
There's more than just sushi.
Japanese Food
This page provides an overview of Japanese cuisine, highlighting the variety of dishes, regional specialties, and dining etiquette. It's a good resource for travelers wanting to learn more about what to expect when eating in Japan.
MeijiShowa
Vintage Images of Japan. The agency licenses old photographs, illustrations, and maps of Japan for editorial, advertising, and special projects. The images depict everyday life in Japan during the Meiji, Taisho and early Showa periods (1860s-1930s).
Kyoko Date
Page about the first virtual cybergirl.
Tokyo Girls' Update
The magazine propagates the "in" things for Japanese gyarus (gals). The website provides news and information about the latest trends in fashion, music, and lifestyle for this specific demographic.
Japan's Most Influential Fashion Brands
Article explores both established and up-and-coming Japanese fashion brands, offering a glimpse into the diverse and innovative world of Japanese fashion.
Shift
This Japan-based online magazine delves into the world of creative culture, showcasing art, design, technology, and other creative endeavors with a global perspective.
Tokyo Fashion
The website is dedicated to Tokyo fashion, potentially featuring street style, designer collections, and fashion events happening in the city.
Virtual Japan
Pink colored page about everything Japan.
Museums
Art Museums
National Museum of Modern Art,
Kyoto - MOMAK
The National Museum of Modern Art in Kyoto was established in 1963. The Collection Gallery exhibits selected works of nihonga (Japanese-style painting), and yōga (Western-style painting).
National Museum of Modern Art,
Tokyo
The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo (MOMAT), consists of the main building and the Crafts Gallery in Kitanomaru Park near the Imperial Palace, and the National Film Center in Kyobashi near Ginza.
Mori Art Museum - MAM
A contemporary art museum in Roppongi Hills, Tokyo.
Other Museums
Kyoto
National Museum
The Kyoto National Museum was established as a National institution for the collection
and preservation of cultural properties.
Minpaku
The National Museum of Ethnology in Osaka is one of the major museums in Japan.
Osaka
Museum of Natural History
The museum shows more than 10,000 items of species, including a variety of animals, plants, insects; it also maintains a flower, greenery, and nature information center.
Tokyo National Museum
The museum collects, houses, and displays a comprehensive collection of artworks and antiquities from Japan as well as from other Asian countries.
Music
J-pop
The Wikipedia article on the phenomenon of Japanese pop music provides a comprehensive overview of the history, characteristics and subgenres of J-pop. It also lists influential artists and trends within the genre.
Billboard
This website is the Japanese version of the popular music chart Billboard. It displays the top 100 songs in Japan based on various factors like sales and streaming activity.
Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO or Human Audio Sponge)
Yellow Magic Orchestra was a Japanese electronic music band formed in Tokyo in 1978 by Haruomi Hosono, Yukihiro Takahashi and Ryuichi Sakamoto.
Otaku
Animage
Japanese anime and entertainment magazine.
Anime-Planet
All things anime and manga.
Cosplay
Wikipedia article about cosplay, a performance art where people dress up as characters from media such as anime, cartoons, comic books, and video games. The first documented instance of cosplay was in 1978 at a fan event in Japan.
HANAMARU CyberManga
The first Manga magazine in the world on the web.
Japanese in Anime & Manga
E-learning site that offers a fun way to learn a number of character/genre-based Japanese expressions that appear in anime and manga.
Manga Rock
The online Manga Reader features different manga artists and genres. Some of the artists are Yumi Unita, Yumi Tamura, and Yuki Yoshihara. The site also offers various genres such as shoujo, romance and fantasy.
Artificial Pets
Tamagotchi
The Tamagotchi is an egg-shaped digital pet mini computer and one of the biggest toy fads of the 1990s. As of June 2023, over 91 million units have been sold worldwide. In 2023, the keychain pet made a comeback at the Tokyo Toy Fair as
Tamagotchi Uni.
AIBO
Beagle-like robotic pets designed and manufactured by Sony. The production of the AIBO is now discontinued, you can not buy any new ones.
Hello Kitty
Hello Kitty, also known as Kitty White (Kiti Howaito), is a gijinka, a comic character of a Japanese Bobtail cat. It is the most famous character created by Sanrio, a Japanese entertainment company.
Pokémon (Official Japanese website)
Short for Pocket Monsters, the fictional creatures called "Pokémons," which humans, known as Pokémon Trainers, catch and train to battle each other for sport.
Gaming
Video gaming in Japan
Video gaming in Japan is a major industry. Wikipedia article about Game Boy and co.
Sports
Olympics
Tokyo 2020
Official website of the 2020 Summer Olympics, which took place in Tokyo from Friday, July 24 to Sunday, August 9, 2020. The 2020 Summer Olympics, originally scheduled for 2020, the games were postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the first time in Olympic history that the Games were rescheduled rather than canceled.
Martial Arts
Aikido
Aikikai is the original school of Aikido, a modern Japanese martial art developed by Morihei Ueshiba.
Judo (All Japan Judo Federation)
The Japanese martial art, the 'gentle way,' was created in 1882 by Japanese educator and athlete Kanō Jigorō.
Jujutsu (Jiu-Jitsu Global Federation)
Jiu-Jitsu Global Federation represents Jiu-Jitsu, a Japanese martial art known for using an attacker's own energy against them.
Japan Karate Association
The Japan Karate Association website provides information on Karate, a martial art originating from the Ryukyu Kingdom (modern-day Okinawa).
Kendo
The Art of the Sword. The All Japan Kendo Federation website offers information on Kendo, which translates to "the way of the sword." Kendo is a Japanese martial art that practices swordsmanship using bamboo swords (shinai).
Ogasawara-Ryu
The Ogasawara-ryū is a school of etiquette, archery, and mounted archery that views etiquette as the building block of its techniques.
Sumo
Sumo is a form of competitive full contact wrestling that originated in Japan. Sumo wrestlers (rikishi) aim to force their opponent out of the ring or make them touch the ground with any part of their body other than their feet.
An illuminated nebuta float kept in the Nebuta Museum in Aomori. The Aomori Nebuta Festival is a summer festival that takes place in early August in Aomori, a coastal city in the north of the island of Honshu. The festival is famous for the floats of brave warrior-figures which are carried through the center of the city.
Image: Wmpearl
Traditional Japan
Tea
Chado
The Way of Tea - The website of the Urasenke Tradition of Tea, a school practicing the Japanese tea ceremony.
East Asian tea ceremony
A Wikipedia article about the ritualized practice of making and serving tea in East Asia.
Ogasawara
Sencha Service School
An Introduction to Tea Ceremony by Head Tea Master of Ogasawara Sencha Service
School.
Traditional Culture
GODS of Japan
Comprehensive
A-to-Z Photo Dictionary of Japanese Buddhism. (Buddhist & Shinto Deities)
Ikebana International
The Art of Flower Arrangement.
Japanese Buddhism
Page about Buddhism in Japan by japan-guide.com
Three Great Gardens of Japan
Article about the most famous Japanese gardens.
Japanese Mythology
Japanese myths site by Shimane Prefecture.
Kabuki-za
Kabuki-za theater in the Ginza district of Chūō, Tokyo, is the principal theater in Tokyo for the traditional kabuki drama form.
Kunijo
Kabuki Ekotoba
An illustrated manuscript of Japanese classical play Kabuki.
Beautiful Japanese Women
Karyukai
Karyukai means "Flower and Willow World," a poetic term for the society of the
Geisha. (comprehensive Wikipedia entry for Geisha)
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Bijinga
The site refers to pictures of beautiful women in Japanese art - Bijinga.
Kimono
Kimono, meaning clothing in Japanese, an easy-to-read site about Japan's traditional high maintenance clothing.
Japanese games
Nihon Ki-in
Japan Go Association.
Shogi
Wikipedia article about Shogi, a Japanese board game comparable with chess.
Traditional Crafts
The Samurai Sword
The Japanese sword (日本刀 nihontō), Wikipedia article about the traditional Samurai swords and fittings.
The Japanese Sword Museum
The museum in Tokyo is dedicated to the art of Japanese swordmaking.
Traditional Crafts of Japan
From silk, the aristocratic fiber to paper and porcelain.
The Virtual Museum of
Traditional Japanese Arts
A virtual museum by the Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Wajima-Nuri
History and culture of Wajima-Nuri, the traditional Japanese lacquerware.
Japanese Zen
Zen - International Research
Institute for Zen
Established to promote basic research on Zen Buddhism.
The Institute for Zen Studies
Founded in 1964 to promote research in Zen teachings, thoughts, and various cultural
expressions. (in Japanese)