Chapter 11: The East Asian Rimlands: Early
Japan, Korea, and Vietnam
 Hanoi, Vietnam: Returned Sword Lake
 “Elder Brother” China, “Smaller Dragon”
Vietnam
 Yueh, Vietnam: advanced agricultural
society before conquered by the Han in
the 2nd century CE
 Sinification of Korea, Vietnam, and Japan
Japan: Land of the Rising Sun
 Geography: string of 4 main islands
 2 crops of rice annually
 Limited arable land: 20% suitable for
farming
 Some Japanese view themselves as the
most homogenous people in East Asia
A Gift from the Gods: Prehistoric Japan
 Marriage of god Izanagi and goddess
Izanami: Izanami gave birth to Japan, then
the sun goddess Amaterasu…descendant
of Amaterasu descended to earth and
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became the founder of the Japanese
nation
Emperor believed to be direct descendant
of the sun goddess Amaterasu
Early Neolithic inhabitants: Jomon
Ainu: early peoples who still live in
northern islands
“divine warrior” Jimmu: led his people
eastward from island of Kyushu to
establish a kingdom in the Yamato plain
Uji: clans that were ruled by a hereditary
chieftain- provided protection to the local
population in return for a proportion of
the annual harvest
The Rise of the Japanese State
 Early 7th century: rise of centralized and
expansionistic Tang dynasty in China
presented a challenge
 Yamato rulers attempted to deal with the
Chinese by seeking alliances with the
remaining Korean states and attempted
to centralize their authority so they could
mount a more effective resistance in the
event of a Chinese invasion
 Shotoku Taishi (572-622): leading
Yamato aristocrat- sent missions to Tang
capital of Chang’an to learn about the
political institutions there.
Emulating the Chinese Model
 Shotoku Taishi launched a series of
reforms to create a new system based on
Chinese model
 Seventeen-article Constitution: called for
a centralized government under a
supreme ruler and a merit system for
selecting and ranking public officials
(wanted to limit the powers of the
hereditary nobility)
 Yamato ruler: claimed divine status
 Taika reforms: mid-7th century: Grand
Council of State established…cabinet of 8
ministries…used Chinese written
language…law code was introduced…new
tax system…taxes paid to central
government…strong interest in Buddhism
 At first, mostly aristocrats converted to
Buddhism, eventually masses converted
with importation of Pure Land Sect
The Nara Period
 Fujiwara clan emerged and continued
Taika reforms
 710: New capital of Nara based on grid
like Chang’an
 Yamato ruler used title “son of heaven”
 In deference to the belief in the ruling
family’s divine character, the mandate
remained in perpetuity in the imperial
house rather than being bestowed on an
individual who was selected by heaven
because of his talent and virtue, as was
the case in China
 However, central government wasn’t able
to curb the power of the aristocrats
 Civil service exams restricted to those of
noble birth
The Heian Period
 Buddhist monasteries in Nara became
oppressive: 794: emperor moved the
capital to Heian
 Emperor ruled in name, but power was in
hands of Fujiwara clan
 Return to decentralization
 Rural areas came under the control of
powerful families, based on ownership of
tax-exempt farmland called SHOEN
 Local aristocrats took justice into their
own hands and used military force to
protect their interests
 SAMURAI: purpose to protect the security
and property of their patron
o Administrative and military function
o Life of simplicity and self-sacrifice:
BUSHIDO- “Way of the Warrior”
The Kamakura Shogunate and After
 Minamoto Yoritomo (1142-1199): set up
a power base…created the more
centralized Bakufu (tent government)
with powerful military leader
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SHOGUN…emperor was in titular
authority while Shogun held actual power
Mongols posed a threat
1266: Khubilai Khan demanded tribute
from Japan…Mongols invaded with
30,000 troops, but KAMIKAZE “divine
wind” typhoon destroyed most of their
fleet.
1333: Kamakura shogunate was
overthrown by Ashikaga family…heads of
great noble families: DAIMYO “Great
Names”…controlled vast landed estates
that owed no taxes to the
government…daimyo relied on samurai
for protection
Onin War (1467-1477): disastrous civil
war led to destruction of capital city of
Kyoto and disintegration of shogunate
Period of Warring States
Was Japan a Feudal Society?
 Political, social, and economic conditions
in Japan were similar in a number of
respects to medieval Europe
Economic and Social Structures
 Japan predominantly agrarian
society…cultivation of wet rice
Trade and Manufacturing
 Commerce was slow to develop in Japan
 Money economy began to develop…most
trade through barter through 12th
century…metal coins from China
 Paper, iron casting, and porcelain
 Foreign trade with Korea and China
 Exported raw materials, paintings,
swords and imported silk, porcelain,
books and copper cash
Daily Life
 Most people were peasants
 GENIN: landless laborers, who could be
bought and sold by their proprietors
 ETA: class of hereditary slaves: degrading
occupations
The Role of Women
 Polygyny was common
 A husband could divorce his wife if she :
did not produce a male child, committed
adultery, disobeyed her in-laws, talked
too much, engaged in theft, was jealous,
or had a serious illness…
 With Buddhism: women originally in
subordinate position, eventually nuns
 Lady Murasaki (978-1016) famous author
of Tale of Genji
In Search of the Pure Land: Religion in Early
Japan
 KAMI: nature spirits
 SHINTO: state religion native to
Japan…ritual acts…stress on beauty of
nature…divinity of the emperor
 Buddhism was introduced to Japan during
the 6th century CE from China
 PURE LAND: devotion alone could lead to
enlightenment…very popular among the
common people
 ZEN: austerity, self-discipline, and
communion with nature…part of
BUSHIDO
 SATORI: enlightenment in Japanese
 ZAZEN “seated ZEN”
Sources of Traditional Japanese Culture
 Art, architecture, sculpture, and
literature…very influenced by Tang China
Literature
 Adopted Chinese pictographic language
for writing
 Eventually simplified into phonetic
symbols that were used alongside Chinese
characters
 Japanese poetry is unique
o Zen Buddhism sought enlightenment
from a sudden perception
 Linked verse “HAIKU”
 Poetry had unique function in Heian
court: initial means of communication
between lovers
 No: classical Japanese drama
Art and Architecture
 art intended to evoke an emotional
response
 Hand scroll
 Zen reinforced Japanese prediliction for
self-discipline and simplicity….Japanese
gardens (BONSAI)
 Tea ceremony
Japan and the Chinese Model
* Incorporated a lot of Chinese elements, but
still maintained Shintoism
* Geographically, Japan was one of the most
isolated societies, due to the 120 miles of
frequently turbulent ocean…minimal contact
with outside world
* Japan came into contact with China during
the Tang Dynasty
* Japan adopted many aspects of Chinese
writing, Confucianism, and Buddhism
* Japanese political institutions didn’t follow
all aspects of China
* Prince Shotoku: tried to use the imperial
traditions of Tang China
* adoption of Confucian Civil Service
Exam
* Buddhist and Daoist doctrines merged
with Shintoism
* Sinification
Korea: Bridge to the East
 Conflict and tension between China and
Korea
 Disagreement about original settlement
of Korean peninsula…1/5 of peninsula
has arable land
 Dispute over first settlers being ethnically
Korean or Manchurian
 109BCE: northern part of Korean
peninsula came under direct Chinese rule
during the Han Dynasty…divided the
territory into provinces and introduced
Chinese institutions…with decline of Han
in 3rd century, power shifted to local
leaders
 Koguryo in North, Paekche in the
southwest, and Silla in the southeast
The Three Kingdoms
 4th to 7th centuries: 3 kingdoms were
bitter rivals…all adopted Chinese political
and cultural institutions
 Koguryo: Buddhism introduced in late 4th
century CE…Confucian Academy
established at Pyongyang
 3 kingdoms also accepted tributary status
to squabbling states in China, following
decline of Han
 Silla eventually dominated and forced the
Chinese to withdraw…Silla did accept
tributary status under the Tang dynasty.
 Silla: unified the peninsula and attempted
to use Chinese political institutions and
ideology to forge a centralized state
o Buddhism as state religion
o Korean monks on pilgrimage
o Written Chinese language as official
legal communication
o Powerful aristocratic families still
dominant
 Prevented adoption of Tang Civil
Service Exam
 King of Silla was assassinated in 780: civil
war erupted
The Rise of the Koryo Dynasty
 Early 10th century: new dynasty called
Koryo in the north
 Adopted Chinese political institutions
 Civil Service exam was introduced in
958…but bureaucracy continued to be
dominated by influential aristocratic
families
 Koryo dynasty remained in power for 400
years…protected from invasion because
of an absence of a strong dynasty in
neighboring China…industry and
commerce slowly began to
develop…agriculture was the prime
source of wealth
 Lands worked by peasants…similar to
serfs…bottom of society was CHONMIN
“base people,” composed of slaves,
artisans, and other specialized workers
 Buddhist monasteries for both Pure Land
and Zen (Chan)…monks as royal advisers
at court
 Buddhist themes dominated in Korean art
and sculpture and Tripitaka was printed
with wooden blocks.
Under the Mongols
 Kingdom of Koryo wasn’t able to
overcome the power of the nobility and
the absence of a reliable tax base
 13th century: Mongols seized the northern
part of the country and assimilated it into
the Yuan empire (China)…Koryo became
a tributary to the great khan in Khanbaliq
 Era of Mongol rule- profound suffering for
the Korean people…especially peasants
and artisans, conscripted to build ships in
preparation for Khubilai Khan’s invasion
of Japan
 With rise of Ming in China, Koryo
collapsed…power seized by the military
commander, Yi Song-gye…founded Yi
dynasty in 1392
Vietnam: The Smaller Dragon
 Vietnam also seeking to define its own
identity in shadow of China
 Vietnamese integrated agriculture in the
flooded regions of the Red River and
entered the Bronze Age around the 2nd
millennium BCE
 200BCE: young state begun to form in the
area but immediately encountered the
expanding power of the Qin
empire…eventually absorbed into the Han
 Chinese taxes were oppressive: 39CE:
revolt led by the Trung sisters (widows of
local nobles who had been executed by
the Chinese) briefly brought Han rule to
an end…Chinese suppressed the
rebellion…ruled area directly with
Chinese officials…eventually foreign
officials intermarried with
Vietnamese…Sino-Vietnamese ruling class
 Extensive Sinification
The Rise of Great Viet
 Vietnamese still maintained their own
distinct identity
 939: Vietnamese took advantage of the
collapse of the Tang to overthrow Chinese
rule
 Dai Viet (Great Viet)
 Came into conflict with Champa to the
south…trading society based on Indian
cultural traditions…established in 192CE
 1471: Dai Viet succeeded in conquering
Champa
 Le Tac (14th century) claimant to
Vietnamese throne ,seeking recognition
from the Song emperor, offering tribute to
the Son of Heaven
o “My people, who are wild mountaindwellers, have unpleasant and violent
customs; they are a people who live in
caves and have disorderly and
impetuous habits. I feared that
trouble would arise if I did not yield
to their wishes…”
 Song tried to subdue Dai Viet…use of
guerilla warfare, Chinese repelled
 Ming Dynasty later invaded but was
repelled by 1428
The Chinese Legacy
 After restoration of independence in 10th
century: Vietnamese rulers used a lot of
Confucian models for administration
 Ruler styled himself like a Chinese
Emperor (called himself a king)
 Mandate of Heaven...Vietnamese monarch
was viewed as the symbol and defender
of Vietnamese independence
 Chinese legacy: spread of Buddhist,
Daoist, and Confucian
ideas…supplemented traditional
beliefs…animism
 Chu nom: adaptation of Chinese
characters devised to provide a written
system for spoken Vietnamese
Society and Family Life
 Social institutions and customs strongly
influenced by China
 Confucian system and civil service exam
 Scholar-gentry class
 Majority of Vietnamese people were
peasants
o Landholders/ sharecroppers
 Importance of the family…filial piety/
gender inequality
 Heroic women: Trung sisters