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JAPAN OVERVIEW
AREA / POPULATION / CAPITAL /JAPANESE LANGUAGE / JAPAN'S SEASONS
 
AREA
Japan has a land area of around 380,000 km2. This is about 1/25th of the size of the USA about half the size of Chile, around 1.5 times that of the UK, and about 1.3 times that of the Philippines. Some 67% of Japan's landmass is covered with forests, while farmland accounts for around 13%, making this a country with quite a large amount of greenery.

POPULATION
The total Japanese population as of October 12th, 1999 was around 126,500,000, the 9th largest population is concentrated in 3 major metropolitan ares (Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya) that account for 6% of the landmass.
© Product/VGL/Clear Light Image Products/Geoscience
TOKYO, CAPITAL OF JAPAN
The capital of Japan is Tokyo. This is a massive city with a population of 11.9 million. At Tokyo's centre is a cluster of government buildings such as the National Diet Building, the Supreme Court, and many ministries and agencies, making it the centre of Japanese politics. It is also an economic centre, with many companies located here. It has a good deal of cultural facilities, newspaper companies, and TV stations, making it also a centre for culture and information. 
© Kodansha International
JAPANESE LANGUAGE
The language spoken in Japan is Japanese. To write it, we use a combination of Chinese kanji characters and two uniquely Japanese phonetic scripts called hiragana and katakana. 
© Alpina

 JAPAN'S SEASONS
Japan's climate is not uniform, as its landmass stretches far to the north and south. But generally the country enjoys the four seasons for spring, summer, autumn, and winter. The Japanese particularly appreciate the changing of these seasons and like to tune their daily lives to them.

SPRING (MARCH - MAY)

The cold of winter abates, a warm wind blows from the south, and beautiful blossoms of plum and cherry trees start to appear. The school and working year starts on April 1st, coinciding with this season.

The plum blossom is a good sign that the cold winter will soon end and spring is just around the corner, followed by the cherry blossom at its best in the Tokyo area between the end of March and the beginning of April to bring this beautiful season to a climax. Splendid views of mountains, fields and gardens all blanketed in gentle pink abound in this season.

Clothing: light jackets, light sweaters and other similar kinds of tops.


■SUMMER (JUNE - AUGUST)

With the exception of Hokkaido, Japan is visited by the tsuyu rainy season in June to July. But when it ends, summer comes on in full force, and the heat and humidity can be tremendous. Schools and companies have their summer breaks, and many people enjoy leisure activities like camping, going to the seaside or swimming pools, and mountaineering.

Clothing: light clothes (cardigans and other similar kinds are handy, since indoors are mostly air-conditioned.)


■AUTUMN (SEPTEMBER - NOVEMBER)

Autumn always brings such freshness with a light breeze and cool temperaturewe have the beatiful sight of autumn leaves and a time of fruits as we approach the harvest season. All forests are dyed in glorious autumn colors. Chrysanthemums create beautiful displays with their abundance of flowers to enchant visitors to parks and gardens. Autumn is also the season for many exhibitions, music concerts and sports tournaments in Japan.

Clothing: light jackets, light sweaters and other similar kinds of tops
© Aomori Prefectural Goverenment

WINTER (DECEMBER - FEBRUARY)

Winter in Japan is cold. Northern and central Japan receive heavy blankets of snow, offering many the pleasures of skiing. But in the plains along the Pacific coast, the temperature rarely drops below 0°C. It is also quite dry and very often sunny. Southern Japan is comparatively mild and pleasant in winter.

Clothing: overcoats, sweaters, etc.
   © Akita Prefecture
                                                                

Average Temperature & Precipitation in Major Cities:
 
Winter (Jan)
T(F)
T(C)
P
Spring (Apr)
T(F)
T(C)
P
Summer (Jul)
T(F)
T(C)
P
Autumn (Oct)
T(F)
T(C)
P
Sapporo
26.4
-4.1
110.7
44.1
6.7
60.9
68.9
20.5
67.2
52.3
11.3
124.1
Sendai
34.7
1.5
33.1
50.2
10.1
98.1
71.8
22.1
159.7
58.6
14.8
99.2
Tokyo
42.4
5.8
48.6
57.9
14.4
130.3
77.7
25.4
161.5
64.8
18.2
163.1
Nagoya
39.7
4.3
43.2
57.4
14.1
143.3
78.8
26.0
218.0
63.7
17.6
116.9
Osaka
42.4
5.8
43.7
58.6
14.8
121.1
81.0
27.2
155.4
65.7
18.7
109.3
Fukuoka
43.5
6.4
72.1
58.6
14.8
125.2
80.4
26.9
266.4
65.7
18.7
80.9
Naha
61.9
16.6
114.5
70.3
21.3
180.7
83.3
28.5
176.1
76.8
24.9
162.9
Key: "T" stands for temperature in (F) Fahrenheit and (C) Celsius;
    "P" stands for precipitation in mm.

Links to weather info in Japan:
  One-Week Forcasts
 

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