The origins of some countries. names are not clear. For example, before World War II, the Japanese name for China was Tire. Although the two names are clearly related, the origin of the name China is not clear. There are many theories why China has been called China; Notable is corruption in China, the first dynamic of China. The Chinese name for China is Zhongguo. This is similar to China and means the central country in Chinese.
The Japanese name of Japan is Nihon or Nippon. This means the land of the rising sun. The name comes from an ancient letter sent from the Japanese government to China. The first words of the letter say that this letter is from the land of the rising sun to the country of the sunset. It originates from the relative location of Japan, which is located east of China. So, how did the English name appear? Many Japanese believe this came from a book Marco Polo Travels , Marco Polo, thirteenth-century merchant who went to the East. He did not visit Japan, but he mentions in his book that there is a country full of gold and silver, called Zipangu.
This book forced European adventurers to go to the Far East to find the land of gold and silver. He later resolved in Christopher Columbus. discovery of North and South America in 1492. Japan today is far from the country of gold and silver, introduced in the book of Marco Polo. Why was Japan regarded as a golden utopia by European researchers?
In the eleventh and twelfth centuries, the Fujiwara clan of the Tohoku region built a golden utopia. The clan was associated with aristocrats in the central government of Kyoto. Although the clan had close relations with the central government of Kyoto, it maintained its independence because of its distance from Kyoto. Kyoto allowed this independence provided the clan remained loyal to the central government.
Hidhira Fujiwara was the head of the clan at the height of his influence. Taking advantage of the gold produced in the region, the clan built the golden Buddhist temple of Chuson-ji. The main hall of the temple, called Konjiki-do, was filled with a golden ornament. The name means the golden hall. People of that time talked about a hall resembling a building in heaven. It is clear that this golden utopia attracted the attention of Marco Polo along with other adventurers later in the fifteenth century, including Christopher Columbus.
Recently, the Tohoku area was hit by a recent earthquake and tsunami. Fortunately, none of the buildings of this utopia was damaged. The author hopes that the Tohoku area will quickly recover from earthquake and tsunami damage, and tourists return to admire the buildings.
