The Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011 and subsequent tsunami devastated Japan's northeast coast and caused the Fukushima nuclear disaster.

Japan's victory over Russia in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905 was the first time an Asian power had defeated a European power in a modern war.

The Japanese green pheasant, also known as the "kiji," is the national bird of Japan and is often depicted in Japanese art and folklore.