Location
Japan is a country made up of four main islands surrounded by the Sea of Japan, the East China Sea, the South China Sea, and the Pacific Ocean. China and Japan are separated mainly by the Sea of Japan, and there has been a continuous flow of visitors or migrants from China to Japan from different parts of China, mostly from the northern, eastern, and southeast coastal areas.
History
Early Ages: First Chinese in Japan
The early groups of Chinese came to Japan mainly as foreign delegations sent by Chinese emperors. Historical records shows that Xu Fu, whose expedition to Japan is recorded in Shima Qian’s Shiji, led hundreds of Chinese to the East China Sea in search of the medicine for eternal life for the Qing Emperor. It was said that Xu Fu landed in Japan, and there is no record showing that he returned to China. Some believe that the group resided near Kumano or Mt. Fuji and became naturalized in Japan.
In around 500 c.e., a large number of Chinese and Koreans immigrated to...
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Chen, L.Ts. (2005). Chinese in Japan. In: Ember, M., Ember, C.R., Skoggard, I. (eds) Encyclopedia of Diasporas. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-29904-4_70
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