Ethnic groups of Japan

Among the several native ethnic groups of Japan, the predominant group are the Yamato Japanese, who trace their origins back to the Yayoi period and have held political dominance since the Asuka period. Other historical ethnic groups have included the Ainu, the Ryukyuan people, the Emishi, the Hayato, and others; some of whom were dispersed or absorbed by other groups. Ethnic groups that inhabited the Japanese islands during prehistory include the Jomon people and lesser-known Paleolithic groups. In more recent history, a number of immigrants from other countries have made their home in Japan. According to census statistics in 2018, 97.8% of the population of Japan are Japanese, with the remainder being foreign nationals residing in Japan.^[1] The number of foreign workers has been increased dramatically in recent years, due to the aging population and the lack of labor force. A news article in 2018 states that approximately 1 out of 10 young people residing in Tokyo are foreign nationals.^[2]

Demographics[]

About 2.2% of Japan's total legal resident population are foreign citizens. Of these, according to 2018 data from the Japanese government, the principal groups are as follows.^[4][5]

Nationality	Number	Percentage of
		Foreign citizens	Total population
China	813,675	32.3%	0.73%
South Korea + Chōsen[note 1]	479,198	17.7%	0.40%
Vietnam	330,835	12.3%	0.28%
Philippines	325,000 (2020)[6]	13.0%	0.23%
Brazil	201,865	7.5%	0.17%
Nepal	88,951	3.3%	0.07%
Taiwan	60,684	2.2%	0.05%
United States	57,500	2.1%	0.04%
Indonesia	56,346	2.1%	0.04%
Thailand	52,323	1.9%	0.04%
Peru	48,362	1.8%	0.04%
India	35,419	1.3%	0.03%
Myanmar	26,456	1.0%	0.02%
Sri Lanka	25,410	0.9%	0.02%
United Kingdom	17,943	0.7%	0.02%
Pakistan	16,198	0.7%	0.02%
Bangladesh	15,476	0.6%	0.02%
France	13,355	0.5%	0.01%
Cambodia	12,174	0.5%	0.01%
Others	635,787	23.6%	0.50%
Total (as of 2018)	2,731,093	100%	2.2%

The above statistics do not include the approximately 30,000 U.S. military stationed in Japan, nor do they account for illegal immigrants. The statistics also do not take into account minority groups who are Japanese citizens such as the Ainu (an aboriginal people primarily living in Hokkaido), the Ryukyuans (from the Ryukyu Islands south of mainland Japan), naturalized citizens from backgrounds including but not limited to Korean and Chinese, and citizen descendants of immigrants. The total legal resident population of 2012 is estimated at 127.6 million.

Native Japanese people[]

Ainu[]

The Ainu people (also Aynu) are an indigenous people native to Hokkaido and northeastern Honshu, as well as the nearby Russian Sakhalin and Kuril Islands (both formerly part of the Japanese Empire), and Kamchatka Peninsula. They possess an alphabet and language distinct from modern Japanese, as they do not use kanji but the katakana alphabet. They traditionally practiced tattooing and followed religious beliefs that are considered animism.^{[citation needed]}

Ōbeikei (Bonin) Islanders[]

The Ōbeikei Islanders are an ethnic group native to the Bonin Islands (also called the Ogasawara Islands), part of Tokyo Prefecture. They are descendants of Westerners, Polynesians, and Kanaks who settled Hahajima and Chichijima in the 18th century. They speak a dialect of English, called Bonin English, and have traditionally practiced Christianity. Legal status of Bonin Islanders passed back and forth between the United States and Japan over the years and, during and after World War II, many Bonin Islanders were forced to leave their homes. Some emigrated to the United States, finding it easier to assimilate into an English-speaking Western culture than a Japanese-speaking Asian one. Today, roughly 200 Bonin Islanders remain in Japan, some still bearing the surnames of the original 18th-century settlers.

Yamato[]

The Yamato people are the dominant native ethnic group of Japan and because of their numbers, the term Yamato is often used interchangeably with the term Japanese. However, other ethnic groups native to Japan, who are genetically distinct from the Yamato, do exist.

Ryukyuans[]

The Ryukyuan people (also Lewchewan) are an indigenous people native to the Ryukyu Islands. There are different subgroups of the Ryukyuan ethnic group, the Okinawan, Amami, Miyako, Yaeyama and Yonaguni peoples. Their languages comprise the Ryukyuan languages,^[7] one of the two branches of the Japonic language family (the other being Japanese and its dialects).^[8] The Ryukyuans have a distinct culture with some matriarchal elements, native religion, and cuisine which had fairly late (12th century) introduction of rice.

East Asian[]

Chinese[]

Chinese people in Japan are the largest foreign minorities in Japan. They comprise 0.64% of Japan's population. Chinese people are mostly concentrated in the Osaka, Tokyo and Yokohama areas.

Koreans[]

Koreans in Japan are the fifth largest ethnic minorities in the country. Most of them arrived in the early 20th century.

As of 2012, there are 530,421 Koreans in Japan who are not Japanese citizens.^[9]

Mongolians[]

Orok[]

Nivkh[]

A small number of Nivkh people resettled in Hokkaido when Japan evacuated southern Sakhalin at the end of World War II.

South Asian[]

South Asians in Japan live mostly in Tokyo.^[10]

Bangladeshis[]

Indians[]

Nepalis[]

Pakistanis[]

Southeast Asian[]

Filipinos[]

Filipinos in Japan formed a population of 202,592 individuals at year-end 2007, making them Japan's third-largest foreign community along with Brazilians, according to the statistics of the Ministry of Justice. In 2006, Japanese/Filipino marriages were the most frequent of all international marriages in Japan.^[11] As of March 12, 2011, the Filipino population of Japan was 305,972.^[12] As of April 1, 2020, the number of Filipinos in Japan is estimated at 325,000.^[13]

Burmese[]

Vietnamese[]

More than 300,000 Vietnamese people are living in Japan by October 2018.

Indonesians[]

West Asian[]

Iranians[]

Kurds[]

Turks[]

Europeans[]

British[]

French[]

Irish[]

Russians[]

West African[]

Nigerians[]

Ghanaians[]

North American[]

Americans[]

South American[]

Brazilians[]

There is a significant community of Brazilians in Japan, which is home to the second largest Brazilian community outside of Brazil. They also constitute the largest number of Portuguese speakers in Asia, even greater than those of formerly Portuguese East Timor, Macao and Goa combined. Likewise, Brazil maintains its status as home to the largest Japanese community outside of Japan.

Peruvians[]

Like Brazilians in Japan, there are Peruvians in Japan, some of them lived in Peru when the country opened their doors for foreign workers. Alberto Fujimori is one example of Peruvian Japanese.

Notes[]

References[]