Anthropology of Japanese minorities?

Question

This is not a racist question but a multicultural one. I have met many people from various backgrounds. indo-europeans, italian americans, afro americans, chino europeans etc. however i have never met a black japanese person. I am lead to believe that the japanese are not very multi cultural and therefore it is hard to be accepted into their families. therefore as there are no endogenous black people to the islands of japan, does this cultural group exist?

Answer 1

To answer your question, we must first define what "Japanese" is. In traditional sense, Japanese are those who's ancesters were Japanese as far as it can be traced. While it is possible to naturalize and become Japanese, they are clearly different from bonafide Japanese.

If you are asking if there are bonafide black Japanese, the answer is NO. In the same sense, there are no bonafide white Japanese either. Keep in mind, the reasons why black people exist in US today, too.

Are there naturalized black Japanese today? Yes. There were several who were naturalized either by immigration process, or by marriage. It is not common, but they are there.

One interesting thing to note is, the prejudice in Japanese is a little different. They are targetted for anyone who is not Japanese... not by color. Unfortunately, Koreans, Chinese, etc. who are just about indistinguishable are severly prejudiced. Perhaps more so than white or black Americans and Europeans. I would say, because of TV and pop cultures, some see black and white Americans as sort of novelty. We also have indigenous minorities in Hokkaido (nothern most countries) that have similar lifestyle to eskimos. They are also subject of discrimination for they have different cultures and language.

About your assertion about Japanese not being multi-cultural, you'll find similar traits from people who's land has no mix of other cultures. Middle east, Asia, etc to name a few.

This is a very good question, and also highlights the uniqueness of the US culture. I agree your question is not a racist one, and neither as my response. Being intimately familier with Japanese culture, good or bad, it just IS.... although it does relate to one of the most uncomfortable subject for many in both countries.

Good luck on your study.

Answer 2

Genetically speaking, the DNA took from the bone of ancient people (10,000BC - 300BC) in Japan, it was close to the people in the northen Siberian territory, today's Russia. Maybe they were Mongoloid Siberian.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_people

After this period, many people had accossed the Sea of Japan and the East China sea. They were considered as Chinese, Mongolian, and Korean, from the S.E.A, from the Pacific islander etc.


I don't know much about anthropology. However you can say the East Asia, not only Japan but also China, Taiwan and Korea, is mono culture.

98% of the population in Japan is Japanese.
92% is Han people in China.
98% is Han Chinese origin in Taiwan.
Nearly 100% is Korean in S.Korea.

Yes, they are mono culture. And they do not think racial diversity is the best solution for them. They won't repeat same failure the west have been experienced, such as the riot in France, racial conflicts in London, etc.