History of Japan

The written history of Japan began with brief appearances in Chinese history texts from the first century AD. However, archaeological research indicates that people were living on the islands of Japan as early as the upper paleolithic period. Following the last ice-age, around 12,000 BC, the rich ecosystem of the Japanese Archipelago fostered human development, yielding the earliest known pottery during the Jōmon period. Japanese history has alternating periods of long isolation punctuated by radical, often revolutionary, influences from the outside world.
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