The PREHISTORIC PERIOD is divided into PALEOLITHIC CULTURE characterized by the STONE TOOLS, JOMON CULTURE characterized by the polished STONE TOOLS and JOMON POTTERY, and YAYOI CULTURE characterized by the introduction of wet-rice cultivation. JOMON POTTERY meets the golden age from the Middle Jomon period (ca 3500 BC -ca 2500 BC).
The Kofun Period (ca300-710) was characterized by the construction of large tomb mound(kofun), indicating the stratification of the agricultural society inherited from the Yayoi Period. Many of these tombs were decorated with the hollow clay sculptures known as haniwa. The kofun period witnessed the introduction Buddhism and the Chinese writing system from the Asian continent and the rise of the Yamato Court, a powerful dynasty which established Japan's earliest unified state. The last century of the Kofun Period is called the Aska Period, which is generally considered Japan's first historical age. During the period, a series of institutional innovations, most notably The Taika Reform, created a centralized bureaucratic state based on the Chinese model.
The establishment of the capital city HEIJO-KYO (NARA) marked the beginning of the NARA PERIOD (710 - 794), which was characterized by the maturation of the Chinese-inspired RITSURYO SYSTEM of government and the active adoption of other aspects of Chinese culture and technology. Buddhism gained official recognition as the state religion, and temples were constructed throughout Japan in an effort to buttress the authority of the central state. This period also saw the flowering of the arts known as TEMPYO CULTURE, the compilation of Japan's first historical chronicles, the KOJIKI and NIHON SHOKI, and the first of the great anthologies of Japanese poetry the MANYOSHU.
The HEIAN PERIOD (794 - 1185), which began with the establishment of the imperial at HEIAN-KYO(KYOTO), saw the full assimilation of Chinese influences and the flowering of an indigenous aristocratic culture. The development of the Japanese KANA syllabary gave birth to a truly native literary tradition, including some of the finest works of Japanese poetry and prose, such as MURASAKI SHIKIBU's masterpiece, the TALE of GENJI. Politically, the Heian period was characterized by the domination of the imperial court by regents of the FUJIWARA FAMILY. This age also witnessed the growing power of provincial warrior bands and the proliferation of private estates(SHOEN), which together brought about the disintegration of the RITSURYO SYSTEM of centralized government.
MINAMOTO NO YORITOMO's victory in the TAIRA - MINAMOTO WAR heralded the beginning of the KAMAKURA PERIOD (1185 - 1333) and the rise to political power of the provincial warrior class. His appointment of provincial governors(SHUGO) and estate stewards(JITO) established the foundations of the KAMAKURA SHOGUNATE, the first in a series of military governments that would rule Japan until the mid-19th century. Other developments of this period included the eventual political ascendancy of the HOJO FAMILY, the MONGOL INVASIONS OF JAPAN, the introduction of ZEN Buddhism, and the emergence of new popular sects that spread the Buddhist religion among the common people.
The destruction of the KAMAKURA SHOGUNATE by the forces of ASHIKAGA TAKAUJI signified the beginning of the MUROMACHI PERIOD (1333 - 1568), an era of great culturalachievement and persistent social instability. The first decades of the MUROMACHI SHOGUNATE were disrupted by conflict between two rival imperial lines (NORTHERN and SOUTHERN COURTS). The shogunate was unable to restrain the ambitions of powerful provincial governors(SHUGO DAIMYO) and collapsed entirely after the ONIN WAR, which ushered in a century of civil strife known as the SENGOKU PERIOD (1467 - 1568).
At the same time, the Muromachi period saw the impressive development of new artistic forms such as NO and KYOGEN, as well as ZEN-insrired arts such as the TEA CEREMONY, FLOWER ARRANGEMENTS, and INK PAINTING.
The AZUCHI-MOMOYAMA PERIOD (1568 - 1600)defined by the rise of three successive hegemons, ODA NOBUNAGA, TOYOTOMI HIDEYOSHI and TOKUGAWA IEYASU, who brought about the political unification of Japan following a century of civil war. Warrior Patronage supported the construction of CASTLE throughout the country and a spectacular flourishing of the decorative arts, epitomized by the opulent style of artists such as KANO EITOKU. During this brief period, Japan was also exposed to Western(NAMBAN) culture through contact with European traders and missionaries.
Victory in Battle of SEKIGAHARA established TOKUGAWA IEYASU's hegemony over Japan, commencing the EDO PERIOD (1600 - 1868). Over two centuries of peace followed under the rule of the TOKUGAWA SHOGUNATE, which instituted a political structure known as the BAKUHAN SYSTEM and isolated Japan from potentially disruptive foreign influences through its policy of NATIONAL SECLUSION. The vibrant bourgeois spirit of the period's thriving merchant class(CHONIN) found expression in dramatic forms such as KABUI and BUNRAKU, in the popular literature known as GESAKU, and in artistic genres such as UKIYO-E. In the turbulent period following Commodore Matthew PERRY's arrival in 1853, the shogunate lost its ability to assert national authority, and the TOKUGAWA regime collapsed.
The MEIJI RESTORATION of direct imperial rule commenced the MEIJI PERIOD (1868 - 1912) and Japan's transformation into modern industrial society. Restoration leaders welded former feudal domains into a modem nation-state, established a centralized bureaucracy, enacted a new land tax system, and created a modern conscript army. Abolition of feudal classes and the establishment of universal education helped create a unified national polity.
The 1889 CONSTITUTION OF THE EMPIRE OF JAPAN established the first parliamentary government in Asia. During the latter part of the period Japan emerged as a major imperialist power through victories in the SINO-JAPANESE WAR OF 1894-1895 and the RUSSO-JAPANESE WAR and the annexation of Korea in 1910.
The TAISYO PERIOD (1912 - 1926) was marked by the advent of true party government, increased popular involvement in politics, the growth of organized labor and left-wing movements, and a domestic economic boom fueled by WORLD WAR I. The democratic tendencies of the period, often referred to as TAISYO DEMOCRACY, were supported by the emergence of an educated urban middle class and the rise of new forms of mass and paperback books. Eventually, however, an economic downturn and authoritarian measures such as the enactment of the PEACE PRESERVATION LAW OF 1925 and the expansion of the SPECIAL HIGHER POLICE began to erode the gains made by Japan's first experiment with democracy.
The SHOWA PERIOD (1926 - 1989), in its first decades on ultranationalist coalition of right-wing politicians and army officers seized control of the country, engaging in domestic political repression and setting Japan on a course of militarist expansionism in continental Asia that culminated in the SINO-JAPANESE WAR OF 1037-1945 and entry into WORLD WAR II. This period was one of the most turbulent in Japanese history. In its first decades on ultranationalist coalition of right-wing politicians and army officers seized control of the country. After WORLD WAR II ( - 1945), Japan's defeat ushered in a period of OCCUPATION by Allied military forces and sweeping democratic reforms that included a new CONSTITUTION OF JAPAN. The postwar decades saw recovery from the war, reentry into the international community, and phenomenal economic growth that transformed Japan into the world's second largest economy by the end of the period.
Death of Emperor SHOWA in 1989 and accession of Emperor AKIHITO start HEISEI Period of Japanese history.
Source: http://www.ingjapan.ne.jp/miurasn/history/history.htm