Glossary
Shogun - Military governer general; assumed the political power of the emperor and ruled with the support of a noble class of landowners
Dimeyo - Great landholders who swore allegiance to the Shogun, yet were also very powerful
Emperor - The ruler of the Japanese empire who had limited power in many areas, yet great power in determining the Shogun
Edo - Tokugawa capital city ; modern day Tokyo; centre of the Tokugawa shogunate
Shintoism - The native religion of Japan
Zen Buddhism - A form of Mahayana Buddhism; originating in China, practiced mainly in Japan
Shogunate - Period of rule in feudal Japan in which the Shogun held power
Samurai - Warriors who swore allegiance to a daimyo or to the Shogun, and in return for their loyalty, they were given land grants
Bushido - The ethical ideal and moral attitudes associated with the aim of the feudal Japanese warrior - the Samurai
Seppuku - Ritualized suicide or 'living to die', concerns itself witht the self sacrafice, something beneficial should come out of this sacrafice of ones self or life
Tokugawa Shogunate - Period of rule during which the Tokugawa family held power as Shoguns
Kyoto - The Imperial City (Emperor's capital) of Japan until the Meiji Restoration
Bakufu - Political system employed by the rulers of Japan during the feudal period which emphasized the use of military to control the population
Geographic Isolation - The separation of Japan's population from the rest of the world due to its geographic characteristic
Centralised Feudalism - A social, political and economic system based on personal loyalties, class distinctions and the granting of land rights
Sengoku - The period of warring states or when a country is at war with itself; civil war or strife
Meiji Restoration - The restoration of the emperor Meiji to power in Japan, overthrowing the Tokugawa Shogunate in 1868
Dimeyo - Great landholders who swore allegiance to the Shogun, yet were also very powerful
Emperor - The ruler of the Japanese empire who had limited power in many areas, yet great power in determining the Shogun
Edo - Tokugawa capital city ; modern day Tokyo; centre of the Tokugawa shogunate
Shintoism - The native religion of Japan
Zen Buddhism - A form of Mahayana Buddhism; originating in China, practiced mainly in Japan
Shogunate - Period of rule in feudal Japan in which the Shogun held power
Samurai - Warriors who swore allegiance to a daimyo or to the Shogun, and in return for their loyalty, they were given land grants
Bushido - The ethical ideal and moral attitudes associated with the aim of the feudal Japanese warrior - the Samurai
Seppuku - Ritualized suicide or 'living to die', concerns itself witht the self sacrafice, something beneficial should come out of this sacrafice of ones self or life
Tokugawa Shogunate - Period of rule during which the Tokugawa family held power as Shoguns
Kyoto - The Imperial City (Emperor's capital) of Japan until the Meiji Restoration
Bakufu - Political system employed by the rulers of Japan during the feudal period which emphasized the use of military to control the population
Geographic Isolation - The separation of Japan's population from the rest of the world due to its geographic characteristic
Centralised Feudalism - A social, political and economic system based on personal loyalties, class distinctions and the granting of land rights
Sengoku - The period of warring states or when a country is at war with itself; civil war or strife
Meiji Restoration - The restoration of the emperor Meiji to power in Japan, overthrowing the Tokugawa Shogunate in 1868