History of Japan in Timeline

Japan is an East Asian island country in the Pacific Ocean, comprising four major islands and over 14,000 smaller ones, totaling 377,975 square kilometers. Approximately 75% of its terrain is mountainous and forested, leading to a concentration of agriculture and urbanization along the eastern coastal plains. With a population exceeding 123 million, Japan ranks as the 11th most populous country. The country is divided into 47 prefectures and 8 regions with Tokyo serving as its capital and largest city.

1936: Nippon Professional Baseball League

In 1936, Japan's top professional baseball league, Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), was established.

1945: Soviet Union occupies the Southern Kuril Islands

In 1945, the Soviet Union occupied the Southern Kuril Islands, which are now contested by Japan.

1947: Fundamental Law of Education

Since the 1947 Fundamental Law of Education, compulsory education in Japan comprises elementary and junior high school, lasting nine years.

1948: Public Holiday Law

In 1948, the Public Holiday Law (国民の祝日に関する法律, Kokumin no Shukujitsu ni Kansuru Hōritsu) regulated public holidays in Japan.

1964: Summer Olympics in Tokyo

Japan hosted the Summer Olympics in Tokyo in 1964.

1968: Nobel Prize for Yasunari Kawabata

Yasunari Kawabata won the Nobel Prize in 1968.

1972: Winter Olympics in Sapporo

Japan hosted the Winter Olympics in Sapporo in 1972.

1973: Universal Healthcare for the Elderly

Since 1973, all elderly persons in Japan have been covered by government-sponsored health insurance.

1981: Principal Cause of Death

Since 1981, the principal cause of death in Japan has been cancer.

1987: Privatization of Japanese railway companies

Since privatization in 1987, dozens of Japanese railway companies compete in regional and local passenger transportation markets.

1992: Japan Professional Football League (J.League)

Since the establishment of the Japan Professional Football League (J.League) in 1992, association football gained a wide following.

1994: Nobel Prize for Kenzaburō Ōe

Kenzaburō Ōe won the Nobel Prize in 1994.

1998: Winter Olympics in Nagano

Japan hosted the Winter Olympics in Nagano in 1998.

2000: Happy Monday System

Beginning in 2000, Japan implemented the Happy Monday System, moving national holidays to Monday for long weekends.

2002: 2002 FIFA World Cup

In 2002, Japan co-hosted the FIFA World Cup with South Korea.

2006: Basketball World Championship

Japan hosted the official 2006 Basketball World Championship.

October 4, 2007: SELENE enters lunar orbit

On October 4, 2007, Japan's lunar explorer SELENE (Selenological and Engineering Explorer) entered a lunar orbit.

2008: Japanese Experiment Module added to the International Space Station

In 2008, the Japanese Experiment Module (Kibō) was added to the International Space Station during Space Shuttle assembly flights.

June 11, 2009: SELENE deliberately crashed into the Moon

On June 11, 2009, the lunar explorer SELENE was deliberately crashed into the Moon.

2010: Launch of Akatsuki space probe

In 2010, Japan launched the space probe Akatsuki.

2010: Energy sources in Japan

In 2010, Nuclear power was 11.2% of Japan's power.

March 2011: Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster

In March 2011, the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster occurred, leading to public opposition to nuclear power.

2011: FIFA Women's World Cup Win

In 2011, Japan won the FIFA Women's World Cup.

May 2012: Shutdown of nuclear power plants in Japan

By May 2012, all of Japan's nuclear power plants had been taken offline due to public opposition following the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in March 2011.

May 2014: Prime Minister Abe seeks increased regional security role for Japan

In May 2014, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expressed Japan's desire to take on more responsibility for regional security, moving away from its post-World War II passiveness.

2014: Ainu language status

As of 2014, the Ainu language was moribund, with only a few native speakers remaining.

2014: Japan's consumer video game market grossed $9.6 billion

In 2014, Japan's consumer video game market grossed $9.6 billion, with $5.8 billion coming from mobile gaming.

2015: Television Viewing

According to the 2015 NHK survey, 79% of Japanese watch television daily.

2015: Japan became the world's fourth-largest PC game market

By 2015, Japan had become the world's fourth-largest PC game market by revenue, behind China, the United States, and South Korea.

2015: Restart of Sendai Nuclear Power Plant

In 2015, the Sendai Nuclear Power Plant was restarted, and several other nuclear power plants have been restarted since then.

2015: Akatsuki achieves orbit around Venus

In 2015, the space probe Akatsuki achieved orbit around Venus.

April 2016: Integrated Schooling Program

Starting in April 2016, various schools in Japan began the academic year with elementary and junior high school integrated into one nine-year compulsory schooling program.

2016: Newspapers Circulation

As of 2016, Japanese newspapers are among the most circulated in the world.

2016: Muslims in Japan

As of 2016, approximately 90% of those practicing Islam in Japan were foreign-born migrants.

2016: Japan announces Free and Open Indo-Pacific vision

In 2016, Japan announced the Free and Open Indo-Pacific vision, which frames its regional policies.

2016: Japan's fish catch

In 2016, Japan ranked seventh in the world in tonnage of fish caught, capturing 3,167,610 metric tons of fish.

2017: Road infrastructure

As of 2017, Japan has approximately 1,200,000 kilometers of roads.

2017: Keihin and Hanshin superport hubs

As of 2017, the Keihin and Hanshin superport hubs are among the largest in the world, at 7.98 and 5.22 million TEU respectively.

2017: Japan joins the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue

In 2017, Japan joined the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, a multilateral security dialogue reformed to limit Chinese influence in the Indo-Pacific region, along with the United States, Australia, and India.

2017: Japan's robotics production

In 2017, Japan supplied 55% of the world's total robotics production.

2018: Japan's cooperative sector

As of 2018, Japan has a large cooperative sector, with three of the world's ten largest cooperatives, including the largest consumer cooperative and the largest agricultural cooperative.

2018: Low violent crime rates in Japan

As of 2018, Japan has very low rates of violent crimes such as murder, abduction, sexual violence, and robbery, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.

2018: Japan's agricultural sector accounts for 1.2% of total GDP

As of 2018, the Japanese agricultural sector accounts for about 1.2% of the country's total GDP.

2018: Christian Population

In 2018, Christians accounted for 1% to 1.5% of the population in Japan.

2018: Causes of Death

In 2018, cancer accounted for 27% of the total deaths in Japan, followed by cardiovascular diseases, which led to 15% of the deaths.

2018: Mosques and Muslims in Japan

In 2018, there were an estimated 105 mosques and 200,000 Muslims in Japan, with 43,000 being Japanese nationals.

April 1, 2019: Revised immigration law enacted

On April 1, 2019, Japan's revised immigration law was enacted, protecting the rights of foreign workers to help reduce labor shortages in certain sectors.

2019: Energy sources in Japan

As of 2019, 37.1% of energy in Japan is produced from petroleum, 25.1% from coal, 22.4% from natural gas, 3.5% from hydropower and 2.8% from nuclear power, among other sources.

2019: Haneda Airport was Asia's second-busiest airport

In 2019, Haneda Airport in Tokyo was Asia's second-busiest airport.

2019: Tourism ranking and receipts

In 2019, Japan was ranked eleventh in the world for inbound tourism, with international tourism receipts amounting to $46.1 billion.

2019: IRB Rugby World Cup

Japan hosted the 2019 IRB Rugby World Cup.

2020: Government initiative to increase shipbuilding exports

In 2020, a Japanese government initiative identified the shipbuilding sector as a target for increasing exports, in response to increasing competition from South Korea and China.

2020: Life Expectancy

In 2020, the overall life expectancy in Japan at birth was 85 years, the highest in the world.

2020: 2020 Summer Olympics Hosting

Tokyo hosted the 2020 Summer Olympics, which took place in 2021.

2021: Education Spending

In 2021, Japan spent 7.4% of its total GDP on education.

2021: 2020 Summer Olympics Hosting

Tokyo hosted the 2020 Summer Olympics in 2021, making Tokyo the first Asian city to host the Olympics twice.

December 2022: Prime Minister Kishida confirms increase in defense spending

In December 2022, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida instructed the government to increase Japan's defense spending by 65% until 2027.

2022: Japan's national debt

As of 2022, Japan has the highest ratio of public debt to GDP among advanced economies, with a national debt estimated at 248% relative to GDP.

2022: Service sector accounts for 71.4% of Japan's total economic output

As of 2022, Japan's service sector accounts for about 71.4% of its total economic output.

2022: Japan's ranking in global trade

In 2022, Japan was the world's fifth-largest exporter and fourth-largest importer.

2022: Tokyo Population

In 2022, the population of Tokyo was 13.9 million.

2022: Healthcare Spending

Japan spent 11.42% of its total GDP on healthcare in 2022.

2023: Japan's labor force

As of 2023, Japan's labor force is the world's tenth-largest, consisting of over 69.2 million workers.

2023: Japan's manufacturing output

As of 2023, Japan's manufacturing output is the fourth highest in the world.

2023: Research and development budget

As of 2023, Japan's research and development budget is the sixth or seventh highest in the world, with 907,400 researchers sharing a 22-trillion-yen research and development budget.

2023: Urban Population

In 2023, 92% of the Japanese population lived in cities.

2023: Tertiary Education Attainment

In 2023, Japan ranked third for the percentage of 25- to 64-year-olds that have attained tertiary education, at 56%.

2023: Exports contribute to Japan's GDP

In 2023, Japan's exports amounted to 21.9% of its total GDP.

2023: Basketball World Championship

Japan co-hosted the 2023 Basketball World Championship.

2024: Japan's unemployment rate

As of 2024, Japan has a low unemployment rate of around 2.6%.

2024: Population

As of 2024, Japan has a population of almost 123 million, of whom nearly 120 million are Japanese nationals.

2024: International Tourists in Japan

In 2024, Japan attracted 36.9 million international tourists.

2024: Japan's robotics production

In 2024, Japan supplies 38% of the world's total robotics production.

2024: Japan's military budget

In 2024, Japan was the third highest-ranked Asian country in the Global Peace Index, spending 1.4% of its GDP on defence and maintaining the tenth-largest military budget in the world.

2024: Main export and import markets for Japan

In 2024, Japan's main export markets were China (22.2%, including Hong Kong) and the United States (20.6%). Its main imports markets in 2024 were China (22.3%), the United States (10.5%), and Australia (7.1%). Japan's main exports are motor vehicles, iron and steel products, semiconductors, and auto parts. Japan's main imports are machinery and equipment, fossil fuels, foodstuffs, chemicals, and raw materials.

2024: Greater Tokyo Area Population

In 2024, the Greater Tokyo Area had a population of 37.4 million people, making it the world's largest metropolitan area.

August 5, 2025: Highest temperature ever measured in Japan

On August 5, 2025, Japan recorded its highest temperature ever measured at 41.8 °C (107.2 °F).

2025: Population of over 123 million

As of 2025, Japan's population exceeds 123 million, making it the 11th most populous country in the world.

2025: Population is over 65

As of 2025, over 29.3% of the population is over 65.

2025: Airports in Japan

As of 2025, there are 280 airports in Japan.

2025: Carbon-neutrality target

In 2025, Japan continues to aim for carbon-neutrality by 2050, set by the government of Japan in 2020.

2027: Planned increase in defense spending concludes

By 2027, the Japanese government plans to increase spending by 65%.

2030: Japan's plan for space exploration

Japan's space exploration plans include building a Moon base and landing astronauts by 2030.

2050: Target for carbon neutrality

By 2050, the government of Japan aims to achieve carbon neutrality, addressing ongoing environmental concerns such as urban air pollution and climate change.