Japan

The Empire of Japan and East Asia (Japanese: 大日本帝国と東洋 (Dai Nippon Teikoku to Toyo); Korean: 일본의 제국과 동양 (ilbon ui jeguggwa dong-yang)) is an island empire in East Asia. Located primarily in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the China, and borders China, Russia, Malaya, Indonesia, and is west of the Confederate States of America, stretching from the island of Karafuto all the way to the city of Singapore. The characters that make up Japan's name mean "sun-origin", which is why Japan is often referred to as the "Land of the Rising Sun."

The Japanese home islands is a stratovolcanic archipelago of 6,852 islands. The four largest islands of the Home Islands are Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku, which together are just one small part of the greater Japanese Empire. Due to it's location in the Ring of Fire, Japan is more prone to earthquakes and tsunamis, having the highest natural disaster risk in the developed world. Japan has an extensively large population, with 338 million people overall living in the immediate Japanese Empire, discounting dominion states. 126million live on the Home Islands, 75million live in the Korean prefectures, 23million on the island of Formosa, 6 million live in the Singapore Administrative Area, 100 million live on the Meiji Islands, and 8 million live in the Joint Trust of Hong Kong.

The Greater Tokyo Area, Japan's capital province, is the largest metropolitan area in the world, with over 30 million people living inside of it's borders.

Archaeological research indicates that people lived in Japan as early as the Upper Paleolithic period. The first written mention of Japan is in Chinese history texts from the 1st century AD. Japan remained an isolated state from early on until the Sengoku War in the 14th century, which lead to the opening of Japan's borders and the beginnings of an empire...

Japan is a member of the UN (and one of the permanent members of the Security Council), the G7, the G8, the G20. Japan is one of the largest market economies in the world, aided on by the Greater East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere. Japan has one of the largest armed forces on the planet. Japan ranks high in metrics of prosperity such as the Human Development Index, with Japanese women enjoying the highest life expectancy of any country in the world and the infant mortality rate being the third lowest globally. Japan is also a nuclear state, having detonated it's first nuclear bomb Sengoku in 1947.

Rulers of Japan (1331-)

 * 1) Emperor  Daigo II 'the Restorer'  (b. 1288, d. 1339) (r. 1318-1339) -- Lead the glorious Imperial Restoration in 1331
 * 2) Emperor Daigo III 'the Expander' (b. 1336, d. 1414) (r. 1339-1414) -- Began "Hakkou Ichiu" program.
 * 3) Emperor Ogimachi (b. 1377, d. 1431) (r. 1414-1431)
 * 4) Emperor Youzei I (b. 1410, d. 1445) (r. 1431-1445)
 * 5) Emperor Youzei II (b. 1441, d. 1498) (r. 1445-1498)
 * 6) Emperor Daigo IV (b. 1472, d. 1506) (r. 1498-1506)
 * 7) Empress Meishou 'the Great' (b. 1490, d. 1570) (r. 1506-1549) -- Exposed Japan to foreign influences and created Japan's vast empire with European guarantees
 * 8) Empress Kasumi 'the Conqueror' (b. 1525, d. 1569) (r. 1549-1569) -- Empress who lead troops in a war against Korea
 * 9) Emperor Koumyou I (b. 1560, d. 1620) (r. 1569-1600)
 * 10) Emperor Koumyou II (b. 1594, d. 1630) (r. 1600-1630)
 * 11) Emperor  Junna II 'the Manchu'  (b. 1614, d. 1663) (r. 1630-1663) -- Emperor responsible for Qing Empire's ascent
 * 12) Empress Reigen (b. 1653, d. 1732) (r. 1663-1687)
 * 13) Emperor Higashiyama (b. 1675, d. 1709) (r. 1687-1709)
 * 14) Emperor Sakuramachi (b. 1702, d. 1735) (r. 1709-1735)
 * 15) Emperor Momozono (b. 1720, d. 1774) (r. 1735-1774)
 * 16) Empress Meiji 'the Prophet' (b. 1754, d. 1837) (r. 1774-1837)
 * 17) Emperor  George 'the Martyr'  (b. 1783, d. 1837) (r. 1837) -- Assassinated by Black Samurai Society in 1837
 * 18) Emperor  Alexander I 'the Victorious'  (b. 1819, d. 1898) (r. 1837-1898)
 * 19) Empress Elizabeth 'the Lost' (b. 1844, d. 1936) (r. 1898-1936) -- Assassinated by February 26th Traitors
 * 20) Emperor Alexander II (b. 1908, d. 2001) (r. 1936-1969) -- Grandson of Empress Elizabeth, Abdicated to daughter Akane in 1969
 * 21) Empress  Akane 'The Juche Empress'  (b. 1952) (r. 1969-2008) -- Abdicated to granddaughter Noriko in 2008
 * 22) Empress Noriko 'the Beautiful' (b. 1991) (r. 2008-)