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Examples of Japanese ignorance of world history

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Maciamo

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17 Jul 2002
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I know that knowledge of history is not comparable in Europe, where people in most countries must learn history for 6 years of more, and in Japan, where people only have 3 years of compulsory history, then choose between Japanese history, world history or geography. But there are basic things which people should know without being taught about it in highschool, some things that an average 8-year old Europe instinctively know. These are the things that shock me about the Japanese. If they haven't learnt it at school, they will almost never know it from other sources (parents, friends, books, documentaries, movies, Internet, etc.). Even when they have learnt it, most of them only vaguely remember or have completely forgotten.

Here are examples of "extreme ignorance" about world history that I have noticed among educated Japanese people (most were university graduates, not primary school drop-outs) :

- while talking about the movie "Alexander", I aksed when the story took place, approximately. The first guess I got was "300 years ago". I made a strange face, to which she corrected "200 years ago ?". I would have been happy with 2000 or 2500 years ago, as I knew I could not expect her (a Japanese !) to give me a more accurate approximation, like 2300 years ago.

- Napoleon was a medieval knight

- The Vikings lived in the 18th century, at the time of the French revolution

- The Vikings were hunters because they had axes (!)

- The Japanese were farmers before the Europeans (one of the most aberrant so far, when we know that Europe developed agriculture up to 9000 years before Japan; yet I have been told this by about 20 Japanese people, including one with a PhD, a few with a Masters and most of the other with a bachelor's degree).

- European colonialism in Asia was as violent and bloody as the Japanese one between 1895 and 1945 (of course the Japanese still learn at school that Japan "liberated" China and South-East Asia from Western occupation, and do not learn about their own massacres, rapes, plundering, etc.)

- Europe only built great buildings because it got rich from colonisation (this was actually posted by one of our Japanese member here, who was obviously ignorant of Ancient and Medieval Europe, and the great constructions of the Greeks, Romans as well as the great cathedral and castles of the middle ages).


This thread is dedicated to examples you have heard of complete absurdities about history uttered by Japanese people.

Enjoy yourself !

Posting rules for this thread : all posts that do not give examples of Japanese ignorance of world history will be considered as offtopic and deleted.
 
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I would post in here, but ricecake would kick my ***...

So I'd guess not.
 
This isn't exactly history, but when I respond to questions about my ethnicity that I am Native American, a lot of them ask if I'm not actually an Eskimo, since I'm Canadian and not American.

But yeah, most Japanese don't know much about world history, but they all seem to know that they don't know it well at all and therefore don't make those kind of statements.
 
But yeah, most Japanese don't know much about world history, but they all seem to know that they don't know it well at all and therefore don't make those kind of statements.
Yes, that's why I ask them a lot a questions so as to know what they know.

On a side note : don't get me wrong, I am fairly tolerant toward their ignorance (amazed, speechless, but tolerant). I make fun of it, but they are forgiven because of their horrible education system.
 
I recall one casual chat with Japanese foreign-exchange student I've befriended some years ago,20 year-old Noriko said to me out of the blue " we Japanese like ALL things foreign ".I held back my inkling question,do you mean Western ?

We both never discussed world history or politics,she once voluntarily wrote the 4 Kanji characters meaning " great wall " of China on a piece of paper for me to see she could write Chinese beautifully.
 
I know that knowledge of history is not comparable in Europe, where people in most countries must learn history for 6 years of more, and in Japan, where people only have 3 years of compulsory history, then choose between Japanese history, world history or geography. But there are basic things which people should know without being taught about it in highschool, some things that an average 8-year old Europe instinctively know. These are the things that shock me about the Japanese. If they haven't learnt it at school, they will almost never know it from other sources (parents, friends, books, documentaries, movies, Internet, etc.). Even when they have learnt it, most of them only vaguely remember or have completely forgotten.
Here are examples of "extreme ignorance" about world history that I have noticed among Japanese people (in or outside Japan) :
- I asked my wife, as we were wacthing the movie "Alexander", if she had any idea when the story took place, approximately. Her first guess was "300 years ago". I made a strange face, to which she corrected "200 years ago ?". I would have been happy with 2000 or 2500 years ago, as I knew I could not expect her (a Japanese !) to give me a more accurate approximation, like 2300 years ago. I often ask her when we watch historical movies the period when it happened, and she usually has no idea, unless I have told her before.
Here are other things I heard from other adult Japanese, even the most educated ones (most were university graduates, not primary school drop-outs) :
- Napoleon was a medieval knight
- The Vikings lived in the 18th century, at the time of the French revolution
- The Vikings were hunters because they had axes (!)
- The Japanese were farmers before the Europeans (one of the most aberrant so far, when we know that Europe developed agriculture up to 9000 years before Japan).
This thread is dedicated to examples you have heard of complete absurdities about history uttered by Japanese people.
Enjoy yourself !
Maybe it is not a good idea to take your spouse and friends or people you've got to know through them as "examples" - it gives an impression quite diffrent what you obviously intended.
 
Maybe their idea of World History is what is contained within their own little world...they are islanders btw.
 
most Japanese don't know much about world history, but they all seem to know that they don't know it well at all and therefore don't make those kind of statements.
I think most Foreigner dont know what the history is.
yes they might know only events of chronology.☝
events of chronology is not so important.
I think "it is important why these things were happened?"
 
Yes, that's why I ask them a lot a questions so as to know what they know.
On a side note : don't get me wrong, I am fairly tolerant toward their ignorance (amazed, speechless, but tolerant). I make fun of it, but they are forgiven because of their horrible education system.

Wouldn't you say ,that american "ignorance" of non-american history surpasses japanese "ignorance" of non-japanese history?

I'm not trying to insult anyone here I just think it's a floor in the education system.
 
the human being's history is history of WAR
we know what war Is..that is, killing ,atrocit and so on..
However, it will never disappear...
Let's study the history a little more philosophically.
The cause and the result have been linked.
To say that the history will be studied is to find the cause and to exterminate
it in the future.
I think it is not what The cruelty is learnt and it is prevented.
 
Is this topics for racists ?

there are many japanese ppls who know world history more than you .

of course, there are many japanese who dont know that
 
Is this topics for racists ?

You could always try starting a thread inviting people to give anecdotal examples of negative things about Europeans, for example, and see how quickly it is deemed offensive and insulting.

If I were Japanese, I think I might be highly offended at the premise of this thread.
 
You could always try starting a thread inviting people to give anecdotal examples of negative things about Europeans, for example, and see how quickly it is deemed offensive and insulting.
Why were my comments that I wrote deleted, either?
 
Doesn't this belong in the All Things Japanese > Blatant Race-Baiting subfoum?
 
I am sure they omitted many world history credits in high school because of japanese history.
the part that were omitted might be from western colonization period.
If age of that is not understood, the war of Japan is not understood.
I feel the intended one of 日教組 something only because of no entrance Exam.
However I think kids took too many classes of asian history that japan was related, that is ,WAR2
We should convict the teacher's Union, too.
 
Posting rules for this thread : all posts that do not give examples of Japanese ignorance of world history will be considered as offtopic and deleted.

When I summarize it,
"The Japanese is ignorant, and this is an accomplished fact.
A Japanese must not do an argument about this."

Is it such a meaning? :shifty:
 
Never mind. Not only have I not recieved an apology, I have recieved an infraction from Maciamo in retaliation for objecting to his deleting my post. First time I've ever received one of those.
To avoid receiving a further infraction, I will add the requisite racism to this post:
This Japanese guy I know, he thought the Treaty of Westphalia was signed in France, when everyone knows it was signed in Holland. What an idiot, eh? This proves conclusively that all Japanese are totally ignorant of history, as Maciamo has suggested.
 
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You could always try starting a thread inviting people to give anecdotal examples of negative things about Europeans, for example, and see how quickly it is deemed offensive and insulting.
If I were Japanese, I think I might be highly offended at the premise of this thread.

I agree...there are people who are ignorant of history in all countries! And just because the people Maciamo associated with in Japan were ignorant doesn't mean that all Japanese people are ignorant of history.
 
As a conscientious and concerned member of this on-line community, JREF, I make the motion that this thread be totally and irrevocably deleted. I also ask you, Maciamo, to leave this post here until fair display to all members of Jref who can then have the chance to think over and answer to this motion, has been served. Mars Man Tuesday, November 7, 10:53 am
 
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