Japan and Inner Asia: Some Connections

A new issue of the Sino- Platonic Papers, No 209

Japan and Inner Asia: Some Connections By Mark A. Riddle

In 1966 pioneering Japanese ethnologist Ishida Ei’ichirou wrote that “Many of the Japanese legends preserved from ancient times have connections, not only with the neighboring cultures of Eastern Asia, but with the cultures of people living in regions far removed from Japan.”1 The purpose of this essay is to recognize not just these legends but also other features of Japanese culture whose provenance can be traced to “regions far removed from Japan.” For each of the eleven such features identified herein, an attempt will be made to identify a possible origin.