Hiroshima Entrance Social Studies cheat sheet

Japan's 47 prefectures group into 8 regions (Hokkaido, Tohoku, Kanto, Chubu, Kinki, Chugoku-Shikoku, Kyushu, Okinawa); the 5 largest prefectures by area are Hokkaido, Iwate, Fukushima, Nagano, Niigata.

Climate types: Pacific side (Nankai) gets summer rain and winter drought; Japan Sea side gets heavy winter snow from northwest monsoons; Seto Inland Sea is dry year-round; Hokkaido is subarctic (Dfa/Dfb).

Japan's land is about 70% mountainous; plains are small coastal lowlands (Kanto, Nobi, Osaka). Population concentrates on the Pacific Belt from Kanto through Setouchi to Kitakyushu.

Population: about 124 million, declining since 2008; aging rate (65+) over 29%, among the world's highest; total fertility rate around 1.2-1.3.

Agriculture: rice self-sufficiency near 100%, but overall food self-sufficiency (calorie basis) about 38%; Hokkaido leads in wheat, potatoes, dairy, and sugar beet.

Industry: Pacific Belt hosts heavy industry and petrochemicals; high-tech clusters in Kyushu (semiconductors) and Tohoku; Toyota in Aichi, steel in Kitakyushu and Kashima.

World regions: monsoon Asia is densely populated and rice-based; dry Asia (West Asia, Central Asia) is arid; Africa has the fastest population growth; Europe has low fertility and aging.

Map skills: read latitude/longitude, contour lines (interval = elevation difference between adjacent lines), scale (1:25,000 means 1 cm = 250 m), and orientation; north is up on standard maps.

Trade: Japan imports raw materials and energy, exports machinery and automobiles; major partners are China, the US, South Korea, and Taiwan; trade surplus with the US, deficit with China and Middle East oil.

Jomon (c. 14,000 BCE–300 BCE): pottery, hunting-gathering; Yayoi (c. 300 BCE–250 CE): wet-rice farming and bronze/iron from the continent; Kofun period: keyhole-shaped tombs.

Asuka (538–710): Prince Shotoku's Seventeen-Article Constitution (604), Taika Reform (645), ritsuryo codes; capital at Fujiwara-kyo.

Nara (710–794): Heijo-kyo capital; Todai-ji and the Great Buddha; Kojiki (712) and Nihon Shoki (720) compiled; Manyoshu poetry anthology.

Heian (794–1185): capital at Heian-kyo; Fujiwara regency; kokufu provincial government; Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu; Pure Land Buddhism spreads.

Kamakura (1185–1333): Minamoto no Yoritomo establishes shogunate; Go-Toba's Jokyu War (1221) strengthens warrior rule; Mongol invasions (1274, 1281) repelled with typhoons.

Muromachi (1336–1573): Ashikaga shogunate; Onin War (1467–1477) starts Sengoku period; Nanban trade brings firearms and Christianity (1543, 1549).

Azuchi-Momoyama (1573–1603): Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi unify Japan; sword hunts, land surveys (kenchi), and the 1588 sword edict; Hideyoshi's Korean invasions (1592, 1597).

Edo (1603–1868): Tokugawa shogunate; sankin kotai (alternate attendance), sakoku (closed country) from 1639; Genroku culture; famines and peasant uprisings; Perry arrives 1853.

Meiji (1868–1912): Charter Oath (1868), abolition of domains (1871), conscription (1873), land tax reform (1873), Meiji Constitution (1889), Imperial Rescript on Education (1890).

Wars: Sino-Japanese War (1894–95, Treaty of Shimonoseki), Russo-Japanese War (1904–05, Treaty of Portsmouth), annexation of Korea (1910).

Taisho (1912–1926): party cabinets, universal male suffrage (1925), Great Kanto Earthquake (1923), Washington Naval Treaty (1922).

Showa militarism: Manchurian Incident (1931), withdrawal from League of Nations (1933), Sino-Japanese War (1937), Pacific War (1941–45), atomic bombs and surrender (August 1945).

Occupation (1945–52): GHQ reforms - new Constitution (1946, effective 1947), land reform, zaibatsu dissolution, women's suffrage, Article 9 renunciation of war; San Francisco Peace Treaty (1951, effective 1952).

Postwar growth: income-doubling plan (1960), Tokyo Olympics (1964), Shinkansen (1964), oil shocks (1973, 1979), Plaza Accord (1985), bubble burst (early 1990s).

Contemporary: long deflation and low growth, 2011 Tohoku earthquake and Fukushima nuclear accident, aging population, 2019 Reiwa era, 2020 Tokyo Olympics postponed to 2021.

World context: Cold War (1947–1991), decolonization in Asia and Africa, globalization, and Japan's UN accession (1956) and G7 membership.

Constitution of Japan: three principles - popular sovereignty, fundamental human rights, and pacifism (Article 9); Emperor is symbol of the state (Article 1).

Rights: equality (Art. 14), freedom of thought and conscience (Art. 19), religion (Art. 20), expression (Art. 21), academic freedom (Art. 23), due process (Art. 31); public welfare limits rights.

Government: parliamentary cabinet system; Diet is the highest organ of state power and sole law-making body; House of Representatives can override the House of Councillors with a two-thirds vote.

Judiciary: independent courts; Supreme Court is the court of last resort with power of judicial review; lay judge (saiban-in) system began in 2009.

Local government: 47 prefectures and municipalities; direct election of governors and mayors; residents have initiative, recall, and audit request rights.

Economy: market economy with government regulation; GDP is among the world's largest; public debt exceeds 250% of GDP; BOJ sets monetary policy.

Taxes: income tax (progressive), corporate tax, consumption tax (10% standard rate since 2019, reduced 8% for food and newspapers).

International: UN member since 1956; Japan-US Security Treaty (1960); ODA charter; participation in G7, G20, WTO, and regional trade pacts such as CPTPP and RCEP.

Map scale: representative fraction 1:50,000 means 1 cm on map = 500 m on the ground; enlarge or reduce by changing the denominator.

Contour lines: closely spaced lines indicate steep slopes; hachures point downhill; elevation is read from labeled index contours.

Graph types: line graphs show trends over time; bar graphs compare categories; pie charts show composition; scatter plots show correlation.

Reading statistics: check units (%, per 1,000, per 100,000), base year, and whether values are absolute or per-capita before comparing.

Population pyramids: broad base = high birth rate (developing country); narrow base and wide top = aging society (Japan).

Primary vs secondary sources: diaries, official records, and photographs are primary; textbooks and encyclopedias are secondary; check authorship, date, and purpose.

Historical source criticism: distinguish fact from opinion, identify bias, and cross-check multiple sources before drawing conclusions.

Data expression: state the trend, cite specific figures, compare with a baseline, and note limitations such as small samples or missing data.

Index numbers: convert raw values to an index (base year = 100) to compare growth rates across different-sized regions.