Key Figures and Events in Japanese History

Himiko

Yamatai queen

Prince Shōtoku

Buddhism prince

Amaterasu

Sun god

Oda Nobunaga

Killed Buddhists, unified

Toyotomi Hideyoshi

Unified, fought Korea

Tokugawa Ieyasu

Tokugawa founder

Admiral Perry

Opened Japan

Edward Morse

Excavation pioneer

Murasaki Shikibu

Genji author

Sei Shōnagon

Pillow Book

Taira Kiyomori

Late Heian (Shogunate)

Minamoto Yoritomo

First shogun

Priest Saigyō

Waka poet

Hōjō Masako

Shogun wife

Kamo Chōmei

10-Foot Hut

Ashikaga Takauji

Ashikaga shogunate founder

Zeami

Noh theater

Matsuo Bashō

Haiku master

Chikamatsu Monzaemon

Puppet playwright

Ihara Saikaku

Edo writer

Kaji of Gion

Kyoto courtesan

Hiraga Gennai

Polymath innovator

Motoori Norinaga

Kokugaku founder

Hokusai

Great Wave

Hiroshige

Ukiyo-e landscapes

Buson

Haiku artist

Kobayashi Issa

Simple haiku guy

Kanagaki Robun

Meiji writer

Emperor Meiji

Modernized Japan

William Clark

Modern education

Natsume Sōseki

Kokoro author

Yosano Akiko

Feminist poet

General Nogi

Russo-Japanese leader

Hiratsuka Raichō

Feminist magazine

Tamura Toshiko

Feminist writer

Tanizaki Junichirō

Shadows author

Hirohito

WWII emperor

Yasujiro Ozu

Tokyo Story

Akira Kurosawa

cool film director

Yoshimoto Banana

Modern novelist (silly)

Murakami Haruki

Norwegian Wood

Ōe Kenzaburō

Nobel writer

Kawabata Yasunari

Snow Country Author

Akihito

Reconciliation emperor

Naruhito

Reiwa emperor

Tezuka Osamu

Manga god

Asahara Shōkō

AUM founder

Torii

Shinto gate

Storehouses

Raised storage

Ise Shrine

Rebuilt Shinto

Tōdaiji

Nara temple

Shinden-zukuri

Aristocratic style

Kinkakuji

Golden Pavilion

Ginkakuji

Silver Pavilion

Tea Houses

Tea ceremony building

Shoin

traditional architecture

Momoyama Castle

Azuchi-Momoyama fort

Azuchi Castle

Nobunaga's castle

Kare Sansui

Zen garden name

Yoshiwara

Pleasure district

Kojiki

Oldest chronicle

Man'yōshū

Waka collection book

Pillow Book

Heian court essays

Waka

Classical poetry

Tale of Genji

First novel

Kokinwakashū

Court poetry

Tale of Heike

Genpei epic

10-Foot Hut

Chōmei essay

Otogi-zōshi

Muromachi stories

Shuten Dōji

Demon tale

Essays in Idleness

Kenkō's reflections

Shinkokinshū

Waka collection

Haikai

Humorous poetry

Haiku

5-7-5 poetry

Narrow Road

Bashō travelogue

Love Suicides

Puppet tragedy play

Chūshingura

47 Ronin title

Gesaku

Edo funny literature

Kibyōshi

Illustrated books

Daily Life

Women's experiences

Tokyo Story

Family conflict

Genbunitichi

Realism movement

In Praise Shadows

Tanizaki essay

Manga

Japanese comics

Shōjo

Girls' literature

Katakana

Foreign syllabary

Hiragana

Native script

Kanji

Chinese characters

Hard/Soft Impermanence

Nothing lasts forever

Kabuki

Classical theater

Bunraku

Puppet theater

Kyōgen

Noh comedy

Noh

Spiritual drama

Misogi

Water ritual

Miyabi

Courtly elegance

Mono no Aware

Fleeting beauty

Mujō

Buddhist impermanence

Tea Ceremony

Ritual matcha

Wabi

Simplicity

Sabi

Aged beauty