Flag of Japan

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Japan
Nisshōki[1] or Hinomaru[2]
UseCivil and state flag, civil and state ensign
Proportion2:3
AdoptedAugust 13, 1999 (Heisei 11)
February 27, 1870 (January 27, Meiji 3 in the Japanese calendar) (as the civil ensign by Proclamation No. 57)
DesignA red sun-disc centered on a white field

The national flag of Japan is a white flag with a large red disc (representing the Sun) in the center. The flag's official name in Japanese is Nisshōki (日章旗, "sun flag") but the flag is more commonly known as Hinomaru (日の丸, "sun circle"). The Hinomaru was widely used on military banners in the Sengoku (Warring States) period of the 15th and 16th centuries. During the Meiji Restoration the flag was officially adopted for use as the civil ensign by Proclamation No. 57 on February 27, 1870 (January 27, Meiji 3 in the Japanese calendar). However, the flag was not adopted nationally until August 13, 1999, by the Law Concerning the National Flag and Anthem.

Along with the national anthem Kimigayo, the Hinomaru is considered a controversial symbol of the militaristic past of the country. Use of the Hinomaru was also severely restricted during the early years of the American occupation of the country after World War II, although restrictions were later relaxed. Japanese law did not designate any particular flag as the national flag from 1885 until 1999, although the Hinomaru was legally the national flag for the brief period from 1870 until 1885. Despite this, several military banners of Japan are based on the design of the Hinomaru, including the sun-rayed Naval Ensign. The Hinomaru was used as a template to design other Japanese flags for public and private use.

History

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A family gathers around a young boy in a military uniform, surrounded by banners and flags. Some of the children also hold flags.
1930s photo of a military enrollment. The Hinomaru is displayed on the house and held by several children.

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For a list of historical flags, see List of Japanese flags: Historical.

Before 1945

The exact origin of the Hinomaru is unknown. However, historically, the sun has had a religious connotation in Japan, and the rising sun has had an important symbolic meaning.[3] For example, in 607, Prince Shotoku sent a letter that began with "from the emperor of the rising sun" to Emperor Yang of Sui.[4] One legend related to the national flag is attributed to Buddhist priest Nichiren. During a Mongolian invasion into Japan during the 13th century, Nichiren gave a sun banner to the shogun to carry into battle.[5]

One of Japan's oldest known flags is housed at the Unpo-ji temple in Yamanashi Prefecture. A legend states that the flag was given by Emperor Reizei to Minamoto no Yoshimitsu, and was treated as the family treasure by the Takeda clan. However, the historical accuracy of this account is questionable.[6] The earliest recorded flags in Japan date from the unification period. The flags belonged to each Daimyo, and were used mostly in battle. Most of the flags were long banners, and were usually charged with the mon of the Daimyo. Members of the same family, such as a son, father and a brother, had different flags to carry to battle. The flags served for identification, and were displayed by soldiers on their backs and also on their horses. Generals also had their own flags, but most of these were square in shape.[7] The Hinomaru was the legal national flag from 1870 until 1885.[8] The Hinomaru was also decreed to become the merchant flag of Japan in 1870.[9] After the Meiji Restoration, the Hinomaru was the de facto national flag with no law in place.[10]

Postwar period

The Hinomaru being lowered in Seoul, Korea, on the day of the surrender, September 9, 1945

The Hinomaru was the de facto albeit not de jure flag throughout World War II and the occupation period.[10] During the Occupation of Japan after World War II, permission from the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers was needed to fly the Hinomaru.[11][12] Sources differ on the degree to which the use of the Hinomaru flag was restricted; some use the term "banned".[13] However, while the original restrictions were severe, they did not amount to an outright ban.[10]

In 1947, restrictions were lifted on displaying the Hinomaru in the grounds of the National Diet Building, on the Imperial Palace, on the Prime Minister's residence and on the Supreme Court building.[14] Those restrictions were further relaxed in 1948, when people were allowed to fly the flag on national holidays. The restrictions were abandoned in January 1949, and anyone could fly the Hinomaru at any time without permission.[15] As a result, schools and homes were encouraged to fly the Hinomaru until the early 1950s.[11]

After World War II, an ensign was used by Japanese civil ships of the U.S. Naval Shipping Control Authority for Japanese Merchant Marine.[16] Modified from the "E" signal code, the ensign was used from September 1945 until the American occupation of Japan ceased.[17] Despite what has been claimed, however, this was never used as a national flag for Japan during this time period.

Since the end of World War II, Japan's flag has been criticized for being associated with the country's militaristic past. Similar objections have also been raised to the current national anthem of Japan, Kimigayo.[6] Along with the national flag, Kimigayo was designated the national anthem in the Law Concerning the National Flag and Anthem in 1999. Schools have been the center of controversy over both the anthem and the national flag. The Tokyo Board of Education requires the use of both the anthem and flag at events under their jurisdiction. The order requires school teachers to respect both symbols or risk losing their jobs.[18][19] Some have protested that such rules violate the Japanese constitution, while the Board, for its part, has argued that since schools are government agencies, their employees have an obligation to teach their students how to be good Japanese citizens.[6] Teachers have brought criminal complaints against Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara and senior officials for ordering teachers to honor the Hinomaru and Kimigayo. However, these charges were later dismissed.[20] The latest incident involving the Hinomaru was right before the House of Representatives election in 2009. At a Democratic Party of Japan rally on August 8, a photograph was taken of a banner that was hanging down from a ceiling. It turned out that it was two Hinomaru flags sewn together to form the shape of the DPJ logo. This infuriated the governing party, the Liberal Democratic Party and party president (and also prime minister) Taro Aso, saying this act by the DPJ was not forgivable. In response, the President of the DPJ, Yukio Hatoyama, said that that banner isn't the Hinomaru and shouldn't be regarded as such.[21]

Design

Diagram on how to draw the Japanese flag, with lines and measurements in both English and Japanese.
Construction sheet

Passed in 1870, the Prime Minister's Proclamation No. 57 had two provisions related to the national flag. The first provision dealt with who flew the flag and how it was flown, the second dealt with how the flag was made.[22] The ratio, according to the proclamation, was seven units high and ten units wide (7:10). The red disc, which represents the sun, is calculated to be three-fifths of the total size of the hoist length. The disc is decreed to be in the center, but is usually placed one-hundredth (1/100) of the flag width towards the hoist.[23][24] The proportions of the merchant flag were set down in October 3, 1870, along with other naval flags.[25]

When the Law Concerning the National Flag and Anthem was passed on August 13, 1999, the dimensions of the flag were altered slightly. The overall ratio of the flag was changed to two units length by three units width (2:3). The red disc was shifted towards dead center, but the overall size of the disc stayed the same.[1] The background of the flag is white and the sun disc is red, but the exact color shades were not defined in the 1999 law.[1] However, there was a specification guideline issued by the Japan Defense Agency (now the Ministry of Defense) in 1973 (Showa 48) that lists the red color as 5R 4/12 and the white as N 9 in the Munsell color chart.[26] The document was changed on March 21, 2008 (Heisei 20) to not only change the construction of the flag but also the colors. The red sun disc was placed dead center, which is in line with current legislation. The document lists two kind of flags, acrylic fiber and nylon, that could be used by the military and the colors (listed in Munsell) for each. For acrylic, the red color is defined as 5.7R 3.7/15.5 and white as N9.4; nylon has 6.2R 4/15.2 for red and N9.2 for white.[26] In a document issued by the Official Development Assistance (ODA), the red color for the Hinomaru and the ODA logo is listed as DIC 156 and CMYK 0-100-90-0.[27]

Official color (White) Official color (Red) Color system Source Year URL
  N9 [28]   5R 4/12 [28] Munsell DSP Z 8701C Showa 48/1973 [26]
N/A   156 [29] DIC ODA Symbol Mark Guidelines Heisei 7/1995 [27]
N/A   0-100-90-0 CMYK ODA Symbol Mark Guidelines Heisei 7/1995 [27]
  N9.4 (Acrylic) [28]   5.7R 3.7/15.5 (Acrylic) [28] Munsell DSP Z 8701E Heisei 20/2008 [26]
  N9.2 (Nylon) [28]   6.2R 4/15.2 (Nylon) [28] Munsell DSP Z 8701E Heisei 20/2008 [26]

Present-day perception

A group of people wave flags at a palace.
Emperor Akihito prepares to greet the flag-waving crowd at the Imperial Palace on his birthday. Photo taken on December 23, 2004.

According to polls conduced by mainstream media, most Japanese people had perceived the flag of Japan as the national flag, even before it was officially designated as such in 1999.[30] Despite this, controversies surrounding the use of the flag in school events or media still remain. For example, liberal newspapers such as Asahi Shimbun and Mainichi Shimbun often feature articles critical of the flag of Japan, reflecting their readerships' political spectrum.[31]

Negative perceptions towards the Hinomaru still exist in former colonies of Japan and within Japan itself, such as in Okinawa. In one notable example of this, on October 26, 1987, an Okinawan supermarket owner burned the Hinomaru before the start of the National Sports Festival of Japan.[32] The flag burner, Chibana Shôichi, burned the Hinomaru not only to show opposition to Japanese and American crimes against the Okinawans, but to also prevent it from being displayed in public.[33] In China and South Korea, both occupied by Japan during Empire of Japan, Japanese flags were burnt during protests against Japan's foreign policies or if a Japanese prime minister visits the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo. Japanese laws allow the burning of the Hinomaru, but foreign flags cannot be burned in Japan.[34]

Use and customs

A white flag with a red disc that was written upon
An example of a Hinomaru Yosegaki; this one was presented to the late Eihachi Yamaguchi during World War II.

Before and during World War II, it was a popular custom for friends, classmates and relatives of a deploying soldier to sign a Hinomaru and present it to him. The flag is used as a good luck charm and also as a prayer to wish the soldier back safely from battle.　One term for this kind of charm is called the Hinomaru Yosegaki (日の丸寄せ書き).[35] During battles, these flags were captured or were later found among the remains of deceased Japanese soldiers. While these flags became souvenirs, there has been a growing trend of sending the signed flags back to Japan to the decedents of the soldier.[36] The tradition for signing the Hinomaru as a good luck charm still continues, but in a limited fashion. For example, a Hinomaru Yosegaki is shown at sporting events to give support to the Japanese national team.

A bus with a flag on the front
A bus displaying the flag of Japan on a national holiday

Since World War II, the display of the flag of Japan is mostly limited to buildings attached to national and local governments such as city halls, and it is rarely seen in private homes or commercial buildings.[37] On the other hand, some people or companies have advocated displaying the flag of Japan on holidays. For example, beginning on December 23, 2002 (The Emperor's Birthday), the Kyushu Railway Company has displayed Japan's flag on 330 manned stations.[38]　The Government of Japan is encouraging citizens and residents to fly the Hinomaru during national holidays, however they are not legally required to do so.[39][40][41]

Protocol

The flag is flown from sunrise until sunset, although a business or school is permitted to fly the flag from opening to closing. When flying the Japanese flag with that of another country, the Japanese flag takes the position of honor and the flag of the guest country flies to its right at the same height. When more than one foreign flag is displayed, Japan's flag is arranged in the alphabetical order prescribed by the United Nations. When the flag becomes unsuitable to use, it is preferred to burn the flag in private.[41]

A street with national flags displaying. The flags have black ribbons at the top to showcase mourning.
The national flag, with mourning ribbons, displayed after the death of Emperor Taisho.

There were two customs developed to designate mourning with the Hinomaru. One is to fly the flag at half-staff (半旗, Han-ki), as in other countries. This happens, for example, in the case of the death of a head of state. The other custom is to use a mourning flag (弔旗, Chō-ki). The custom dates back to the funeral of Emperor Meiji in 1912 when the government issued an ordinance stipulating how the national flag had to be raised in the mourning of emperors of Japan.[42] It said that the sphere finial of the pole must be covered by black cloth and the black cloth that extends to the width of the fly of the flag must be placed above the flag. Since then, mourning flags have been used on the deaths of emperors or members of the royal family. Mourning flags have also been used on other occasions and sometimes such a use has been controversial. For instance, when former Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto died in August 2006, the Japan Communist Party objected to the display of a mourning flag by the city of Uji, Kyoto, citing the objection to the flag from the brother of Hashimoto.[43] The Cabinet of the Prime Minister has the authority to place the flag at half-staff.[41]

The 1999 curriculum guideline issued by the Ministry of Education notes that "on entrance and graduation ceremonies, schools must raise the flag of Japan and instruct students to sing the "Kimigayo" (national anthem), given the significance of the flag and the song".[44] Also, the ministry's commentary on the 1999 curriculum guideline for elementary schools notes that "given the advance of internalization, along with fostering patriotism and awareness of being Japanese, it is important to nurture school children's respectful attitude toward the flag of Japan and Kimigayo as they grow up to be respected Japanese citizens in an internationalized society".[45]

Related flags

Military

For a list of military flags, see List of Japanese flags: Military. See also Rising Sun Flag.

The Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) and the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force use a version of the sun disc design with eight red rays extending outward, called Hachijō-Kyokujitsuki (八条旭日旗). A gold border lies partially around the edge.[46]

A well-known variant of the sun disc design is the sun disc with 16 red rays, which was also historically used by Japan's military, particularly the Imperial Japanese Navy. The ensign, known in Japanese as the Kyokujitsu-ki (旭日旗), was first adopted as the naval ensign on October 7, 1889, and was used until the end of World War II in 1945. It was re-adopted on June 30, 1954, and is now used again as the naval ensign of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF).[46][47] In the surrounding Asian countries that were occupied by Japan, this flag still carries a negative connotation.[48] The JMSDF also employs the use of a masthead pennant. First adopted in 1914 and readopted in 1965, the masthead pennant contains a simplified version of the naval ensign at the hoist end, with the rest of the pennant colored white. The ratio of the pennant is between 1:40 and 1:90.[49][50]

The Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF), established independently in 1952, has only the plain sun disc as its emblem. This is the only branch of service whose emblem does not invoke the rayed Imperial Standard. However, the branch does have an ensign to fly on bases and during parades. The ensign was created in 1972, which was the third used by the JASDF since their creation. The ensign contains the emblem of the branch centered on a blue background.[51][52]

Although not an official national flag, the Z signal flag played a major role in Japanese naval history. On May 27, 1905, Admiral Heihachiro Togo of the Mikasa was preparing to engage the Russian Baltic Fleet. Before the Battle of Tsushima began, Togo raised the Z flag on the Mikasa and engaged the Russian fleet, winning the battle for Japan. The raising of the flag said to the crew the following: "The fate of Imperial Japan hangs on this one battle; all hands will exert themselves and do their best." The Z flag was raised on the aircraft carrier Akagi on the eve of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in December 1941.[53]

Imperial

A golden flower centered on a red background.
The standard of the Japanese emperor
For a list of imperial flags, see List of Japanese flags: Imperial.

Starting in 1869, flags were created for the Japanese emperor (then Emperor Meiji), his wife (the empress), and for other members of the imperial family. At first, the emperor's flag was ornate, with a sun resting in the center of an artistic pattern. He had flags that were used on land, at sea, and when he was in a carriage. The imperial family were also granted flags to be used at sea and while on land (one for use on foot and a carriage flag). The carriage flags were a monocolored chrysanthemum, with 16 petals, placed in the center of a monocolored background.[54] These flags were discarded in 1889 when the emperor decided to use the chrysanthemum on a red background as his flag. With minor changes in the color shades and proportions, the flags adopted in 1889 are still being used by the imperial family.[55]

The current emperor's flag is a 16-petal chrysanthemum, colored in gold, centered on a red background with a 2:3 ratio. The empress uses the same flag, except the shape is that of a swallow tail. The crown prince and the crown princess use the same flags, except with a smaller chrysanthemum and a white border in the middle of the flags.[56]

Subnational

Three flags flying on poles
The Japanese flag flying with the flags of Okinawa Prefecture and Urasoe City
For a list of prefectural flags, see List of Japanese flags: Prefectural.
For a list of municipal flags, see List of Japanese municipal flags.

Each of Japan's 47 prefectures has a flag resembling the national flag insofar as consisting of a symbol, called a mon, charged on a monocolored field. Some of the mon display the name of the prefecture in Japanese characters; others are stylized depictions of the location or another special feature of the prefecture. An example of a prefectural flag is that of Nagano. In the center of the white disc, the orange katakana character ナ (na) appears. One interpretation of the mon is that the na symbol represents a mountain and the white disc, a lake. The orange color evokes the sun while the white color represents the snow of the region.[57][58]

Municipalities can also adopt flags of their own. The designs of the city flags are similar to the prefectural flags: a mon on a monocolored background. An example is the flag of Amakusa in Kumamoto Prefecture. The city symbol is composed of the Katakana character A (ア) and surrounded by waves.[59] Both the city emblem and the flag were adopted in 2006.[60] This symbol is centered on a white flag, with a ratio of 1:1.5.[60] Both the city emblem and the flag were adopted in 2006.[60]

Derivatives

A red disc placed above ropes tied together, all on a white background.
Japanese Vexillological Association flag

Other than the flags used by the military, several other flag designs are inspired by the national flag. In 2000, a new organization was established in Japan to promote the study of flags (vexillology) inside the country. The organization, the Japanese Vexillological Association (Nihon Kishougaku Kyoukai), also sought a flag and symbol for its own use. Out of the 61 entries, a flag based on the Hinomaru was chosen. The main field of the flag shows the red sun disc resting in the upper portion, below which are ropes joined in a sheet bend,[61] a motif used on the flag of the Fédération internationale des associations vexillologiques.[62] The joined knots represent fellowship, and ropes are devices used to raise and lower flags.[63]

Another Japanese flag that influences other flag designs is the naval ensign. One such flag design is used by the Asahi Shimbun. At the bottom hoist of the flag, one quarter of the sun is displayed. The kanji character 朝 is colored white, which covers most of the sun. The rays extending from the sun occur in a red and white order; culminating in 13 total stripes.[64] The flag is commonly seen at the national high school baseball tournament, as the Asahi Shimbun is a main sponsor of the tournament.

See also

References

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