Facts about Japan National Foundation Day

Japan is made up of 6,852 islands, although just four make up 97% of the land area. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

Despite being one of the world’s most densely populated countries, 80% of Japan is covered in forest. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

Tokyo is the largest metropolitan area in the world, with over 35 million people. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

In Japan, Kit Kat bars come in flavours like grilled corn, Camembert cheese, Earl Gray tea, grape, and wasabi. The Japanese pronounce Kit Kat like "Kitto Katsu," which sounds like "You are sure to pass" in Japanese, and so they make a popular gift to students during entrance exam season. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

Noodles are slurped somewhat loudly when eaten. It has been said slurping indicates the food is delicious. The slurping also serves to cool down the hot noodles for eating. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

The Japanese company, YKK makes half of the world’s zippers. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

Shinjuku station, Tokyo’s main train station, is the busiest in the world with over 2 million people passing through it every day. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

Haiku poetry, which was invented in Japan, consists of only three lines and is the world’s shortest poetic form. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

The first geishas were actually men, called taikomochi, and they had a role similar to court jesters. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

In Japanese, the name “Japan” is Nihon or Nippon, which means “Land of the Rising Sun.” It was once believed that Japan was the first country to see the sun rise in the East in the morning. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

Black cats are seen as a good luck charm in Japan. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

In 1633, the shogun, Tokugawa Iemitsu, created a law that made it illegal to leave the country under the penalty of death. He also made it illegal for any foreigner to enter Japan. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

Many Japanese words have been incorporated into the English language including the following - tycoon, tsunami, sumo, origami, soy and sushi. They even coined the word “emoji”, which is the name for the images that you see in your texts. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

Many people assume that “emoji” is derived from the word “emotion”. In reality, it means “picture letter” in Japanese. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

The image of a stick-man running for an exit to symbolize a fire exit was created by the Japanese during the 1940s. It is now used in almost every country. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

21% of the Japanese population is elderly, the highest proportion in the world. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

Japan uses more paper for comics than for toilet paper. Japan National Foundation Day Facts

KFC is so popular in Japan at Christmas, people have to queue for up to two hours to get a seat. Japan National Foundation Day Facts