Names of Japan - wikipedia Names of Japan `` Land of the Rising Sun '' redirects here. For other uses, see Land of the Rising Sun ( disambiguation ). Not to be confused with Japanese name. This article contains Japanese text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of kanji and kana. The word Japan is an exonym, and is used ( in one form or another ) by a large number of languages. The Japanese names for Japan are Nippon ( にっぽん listen ( help info ) ) and Nihon ( にほん listen ( help info ) ). They are both written in Japanese using the kanji 日本. Contents 1 History 2 Historical 2.1 Nifon 2.2 Jippon 3 Nihon and Nippon 3.1 Meaning 3.2 History and evolution 3.3 Modern conventions 4 Jipangu 5 Other names 5.1 Classical names 5.2 Other Southeast and East Asian nations ' languages 5.3 Other non-East and non-Southeast Asian nations ' languages 6 See also 7 Notes 8 References History Further information : Wa ( Japan ) Cipangu on the 1453 Fra Mauro map, the first known Western depiction of the island. Both Nippon and Nihon literally mean `` the sun 's origin '', that is, where the sun originates, and are often translated as the Land of the Rising Sun. This nomenclature comes from Imperial correspondence with the Chinese Sui Dynasty and refers to Japan 's eastern position relative to China. Before Nihon came into official use, Japan was known as Wa ( 倭 ) or Wakoku ( 倭国 ). Wa was a name early China used to refer to an ethnic group living in Japan around the time of the Three Kingdoms Period. Although the etymological origins of `` Wa '' remain uncertain, Chinese historical texts recorded an ancient people residing in the Japanese archipelago ( perhaps Kyūshū ), named something like * ʼWâ or * ʼWər 倭. Carr ( 1992 : 9 -- 10 ) surveys prevalent proposals for Wa 's etymology ranging from feasible ( transcribing Japanese first - person pronouns waga 我 が `` my ; our '' and ware 我 `` I ; oneself ; thou '' ) to shameful ( writing Japanese Wa as 倭 implying `` dwarf '' ), and summarizes interpretations for * ʼWâ `` Japanese '' into variations on two etymologies : `` behaviorally ' submissive ' or physically ' short '. '' The first `` submissive ; obedient '' explanation began with the ( 121 CE ) Shuowen Jiezi dictionary. It defines 倭 as shùnmào 順 皃 `` obedient / submissive / docile appearance '', graphically explains the `` person ; human '' radical 亻 with a wěi 委 `` bent '' phonetic, and quotes the above Shijing poem. `` Conceivably, when Chinese first met Japanese, '' Carr ( 1992 : 9 ) suggests `` they transcribed Wa as * ʼWâ ' bent back ' signifying ' compliant ' bowing / obeisance. Bowing is noted in early historical references to Japan. '' Examples include `` Respect is shown by squatting '' ( Hou Han Shu, tr. Tsunoda 1951 : 2 ), and `` they either squat or kneel, with both hands on the ground. This is the way they show respect. '' ( Wei Zhi, tr. Tsunoda 1951 : 13 ). Koji Nakayama interprets wēi 逶 `` winding '' as `` very far away '' and euphemistically translates Wō 倭 as `` separated from the continent. '' The second etymology of wō 倭 meaning `` dwarf, pygmy '' has possible cognates in ǎi 矮 `` low, short ( of stature ) '', wō 踒 `` strain ; sprain ; bent legs '', and wò 臥 `` lie down ; crouch ; sit ( animals and birds ) ''. Early Chinese dynastic histories refer to a Zhūrúguó 侏儒 國 `` pygmy / dwarf country '' located south of Japan, associated with possibly Okinawa Island or the Ryukyu Islands. Carr cites the historical precedence of construing Wa as `` submissive people '' and the `` Country of Dwarfs '' legend as evidence that the `` little people '' etymology was a secondary development. Chinese, Korean, and Japanese scribes regularly wrote Wa or Yamato `` Japan '' with the Chinese character 倭 until the 8th century, when the Japanese found fault with it due to its offensive connotation, replacing it with 和 `` harmony, peace, balance ''. Retroactively, this character was adopted in Japan to refer to the country itself, often combined with the character 大, literally meaning `` Great '', so as to write the preexisting name Yamato ( 大和 ) ( in a manner similar to e.g. 大 清 帝國 Great Qing Empire, 大英 帝國 Greater British Empire ). However, the pronunciation Yamato can not be formed from the sounds of its constituent characters ; it refers to a place in Japan and is speculated to originally mean `` Mountain Gate '' ( 山戸 ). Such words which use certain kanji to name a certain Japanese word solely for the purpose of representing the word 's meaning regardless of the given kanji 's on'yomi or kun'yomi, a.k.a. jukujikun, is not uncommon in Japanese. Other original names in Chinese texts include Yamatai country ( 邪 馬 台 国 ), where a Queen Himiko lived. When hi no moto, the indigenous Japanese way of saying `` sun 's origin '', was written in kanji, it was given the characters 日本. In time, these characters began to be read using Sino - Japanese readings, first Nippon and later Nihon, although the two names are interchangeable to this day. Nippon appeared in history only at the end of the 7th century. The Old Book of Tang ( 舊 唐 書 ), one of the Twenty - Four Histories, stated that the Japanese envoy disliked his country 's name Woguo ( 倭 國 ), and changed it to Nippon ( 日本 ), or `` Origin of the Sun ''. Another 8th - century chronicle, True Meaning of Shiji ( 史記 正義 ), however, states that the Chinese Empress Wu Zetian ordered a Japanese envoy to change the country 's name to Nippon. The sun plays an important role in Japanese mythology and religion as the emperor is said to be the direct descendent of the sun goddess Amaterasu and the legitimacy of the ruling house rested on this divine appointment and descent from the chief deity of the predominant Shinto religion. The name of the country reflects this central importance of the sun. Cipangu described on the 1492 Martin Behaim globe. The English word for Japan came to the West from early trade routes. The early Mandarin Chinese or possibly Wu Chinese word for Japan was recorded by Marco Polo as Cipangu. In modern Shanghainese ( a language of the Wu Chinese subgroup ), the formal pronunciation of the characters 日本 ( Japan ) is still Zeppen ( zəʔpən ). The colloquial pronunciation of the character 日 is ( ɲəʔ ), which is closer to Nippon. The Malaysian and Indonesian words Jepang, Jipang, and Jepun were borrowed from Non-Mandarin Chinese languages, and this Malay word was encountered by Portuguese traders in Malacca in the 16th century. It is thought the Portuguese traders were the first to bring the word to Europe. It was first recorded in English in 1577 spelled Giapan. In English, the modern official title of the country is simply `` Japan '', one of the few nation - states to have no `` long form '' name. The official Japanese - language name is Nippon koku or Nihon koku ( 日本 国 ), literally `` State of Japan ''. From the Meiji Restoration until the end of World War II, the full title of Japan was the `` Empire of Greater Japan '' ( 大 日本 帝國 Dai Nippon Teikoku ). A more poetic rendering of the name of Japan during this period was `` Empire of the Sun. '' The official name of the nation was changed after the adoption of the post-war constitution ; the title `` State of Japan '' is sometimes used as a colloquial modern - day equivalent. As an adjective, the term `` Dai - Nippon '' remains popular with Japanese governmental, commercial, or social organizations whose reach extend beyond Japan 's geographic borders ( e.g., Dai Nippon Printing, Dai Nippon Butoku Kai, etc. ). Though Nippon or Nihon are still by far the most popular names for Japan from within the country, recently the foreign words Japan and even Jipangu ( from Cipangu, see below ) have been used in Japanese mostly for the purpose of foreign branding. Historical Portuguese missionaries arrived in Japan at the end of the 16th century. In the course of learning Japanese, they created several grammars and dictionaries of Middle Japanese. The 1603 -- 1604 dictionary Vocabvlario da Lingoa de Iapam contains two entries for Japan : nifon and iippon. The title of the dictionary ( Vocabulary of the Language of Japan ) illustrates that the Portuguese word for Japan was by that time Iapam. Nifon Historically, Japanese / h / has undergone a number of phonological changes. Originally * ( p ), this weakened into ( ɸ ) and eventually became the modern ( h ). Note that modern / h / is still pronounced ( ɸ ) when followed by / u /. Middle Japanese nifon becomes Modern Japanese nihon via regular phonological changes. Jippon Before modern styles of romanization, the Portuguese devised their own. In it, / zi / is written as either ii or ji. In modern Hepburn style, iippon would be rendered as jippon. There are no historical phonological changes to take into account here. Etymologically, jippon is similar to nippon in that it is an alternative reading of 日本. The initial character 日 may also be read as / ziti / or / zitu /. Compounded with - fon ( 本 ), this regularly becomes jippon. Unlike the nihon / nippon doublet, there is no evidence for a * jihon. Nihon and Nippon The Japanese name for Japan, 日本, can be pronounced either Nihon or Nippon. Both readings come from the on'yomi. Meaning 日 ( nichi ) means `` sun '' or `` day '' ; 本 ( hon ) means `` base '' or `` origin ''. The compound means `` origin of the sun '' or `` where the sun rises '' ( from a Chinese point of view, the sun rises from Japan ) ; it is a source for the popular Western description of Japan as the `` Land of the Rising Sun ''. Nichi, in compounds, often loses the final chi and creates a slight pause between the first and second syllables of the compound. When romanised, this pause is represented by a doubling of the first consonant of the second syllable ; thus nichi 日 plus kō 光 ( light ) is written and pronounced nikkō, meaning sunlight. History and evolution Japanese 日 and 本 were historically pronounced niti ( or jitu, reflecting a Late Middle Chinese pronunciation ) and pon, respectively. In compounds, however, final voiceless stops ( i.e. p, t, k ) of the first word were `` silent '' in Middle Chinese, and the pronunciation of 日本 was thus Nippon or Jippon ( with the adjacent consonants assimilating ). Historical sound change in Japanese has led to the modern pronunciations of the individual characters as nichi and hon. The pronunciation Nihon originated, possibly in the Kanto region, as a reintroduction of this independent pronunciation of 本 into the compound. This must have taken place during the Edo period, after another sound change occurred which would have resulted in this form becoming Niwon and later Nion. A Japanese survey showed that 61 percent of Japanese people reads the characters as Nihon while 37 percent reads it as Nippon. Nihon is also much more prevalent among younger Japanese people. Several attempts to decidedly determine an official reading were rejected by the Japanese government, who declared both as being correct. Modern conventions While both pronunciations are correct, Nippon is frequently preferred for official purposes, including money, stamps, and international sporting events, as well as the Nippon koku, literally the `` State of Japan '' ( 日本 国 ). Other than this, there seem to be no fixed rules for choosing one pronunciation over the other ; in some cases one form is simply more common. For example, Japanese speakers generally call their language Nihongo ; Nippongo, while possible, is rare. In other cases, uses are variable. The name for the Bank of Japan ( 日本 銀行 ), for example, is given as NIPPON GINKO on banknotes, but often referred to ( in the media, for example ) as Nihon Ginkō. Nippon is used always or most often in the following constructions : Nippon Yūbin, Nippon Yūsei ( Japan Post Group ) Ganbare Nippon ! ( A sporting cheer used at international sporting events, roughly, ' do your best, Japan ! ' ) Zen Nippon Kūyu Kabushiki - gaisha ( All Nippon Airways ) Nipponbashi ( 日本橋 ) ( a shopping district in Osaka ) Nippon Kōgaku Kōgyō Kabushikigaisha ( Japan Optical Industries Co. Ltd., ( also called Nippon Kōgaku ) which is known since 1988 as the Nikon Corporation since the Nikon brand name was used on its camera product line ) Nihon is used always or most often in the following constructions : JR Higashi - Nihon ( East Japan Railway, JR Group ) Nihonbashi ( 日本橋 ) ( a bridge in Tokyo ) Nihon Daigaku ( Nihon University ) Nihon - go ( Japanese language ) Nihon - jin ( Japanese people ) Nihon - kai ( Sea of Japan ) Nihon Kōkū ( Japan Airlines ) Nihon - shoki ( an old history book, never Nippon shoki ) In 2016, element 113 on the periodic table was named nihonium to honor its discovery in 2004 by Japanese scientists at RIKEN. Jipangu Another spelling, `` Zipangni '' ( upper left ), was used on a 1561 map by Sebastian Münster. As mentioned above, the English word Japan has a circuitous derivation ; but linguists believe it derives in part from the Portuguese recording of the early Mandarin Chinese or Wu Chinese word for Japan : Cipan ( 日本 ), which is rendered in pinyin as Rìběn ( IPA : ʐʅ ˥ ˩ pən ˨ ˩ ˦ ), and literally translates to `` sun origin ''. Guó ( IPA : kuo ˨ ˦ ) is Chinese for `` realm '' or `` kingdom '', so it could alternatively be rendered as Cipan - guo. The word was likely introduced to Portuguese through the Malay Jipang. Cipangu was first mentioned in Europe in the accounts of Marco Polo. It appears for the first time on a European map with the Fra Mauro map in 1457, although it appears much earlier on Chinese and Korean maps such as the Kangnido. Following the accounts of Marco Polo, Cipangu was thought to be fabulously rich in silver and gold, which in Medieval times was largely correct, owing to the volcanism of the islands and the possibility to access precious ores without resorting to ( unavailable ) deep - mining technologies. The Dutch name, Japan, may be derived from the southern Chinese pronunciation of 日本, Yatbun or Yatpun. The Dutch J is generally pronounced Y, hence Ja - Pan. The modern Shanghainese pronunciation of Japan is Zeppen ( zəʔpən ). In modern Japanese, Cipangu is transliterated as ジパング which in turn can be transliterated into English as Jipangu, Zipangu, Jipang, or Zipang. Jipangu ( ジパング ( Zipangu ) ) as an obfuscated name for Japan has recently come into vogue for Japanese films, anime, video games, etc. Other names Classical names These names were invented after the introduction of Chinese into the language, and they show up in historical texts for prehistoric legendary dates and also in names of gods and Japanese emperors : Ōyashima ( 大 八 洲 ) meaning the Great Country of Eight ( or Many ) Islands, Awaji, Iyo ( later Shikoku ), Oki, Tsukushi ( later Kyūshū ), Iki, Tsushima, Sado, and Yamato ( later Honshū ) ; note that Hokkaidō, Chishima, and Okinawa were not part of Japan in ancient times. The eight islands refers to the creation of the main eight islands of Japan by the gods Izanami and Izanagi in Japanese mythology as well as the fact that eight was a synonym for `` many ''. Yashima ( 八島 ), `` Eight ( or Many ) Islands '' Fusō ( 扶桑 ) Mizuho ( 瑞穂 ) refers to ears of grain, e.g. 瑞穂 国 Mizuho - no - kuni `` Country of Lush Ears ( of Rice ). '' From Old Japanese midu > Japanese mizu ( `` water ; lushness, freshness, juiciness '' ) + Old Japanese fo > Japanese ho ( `` ear ( of grain, especially rice ) '' ). Shikishima ( 敷島 ) is written with Chinese characters that suggest a meaning `` islands that one has spread / laid out, '' but this name of Japan supposedly originates in the name of an area in Shiki District of Yamato Province in which some emperors of ancient Japan resided. The name of Shikishima ( i.e. Shiki District ) came to be used in Japanese poetry as an epithet for the province of Yamato ( i.e. the ancient predecessor of Nara Prefecture ), and was metonymically extended to refer to the entire island of Yamato ( i.e. Honshū ) and, eventually, to the entire territory of Japan. Note that the word shima, though generally meaning only `` island '' in Japanese, also means `` area, zone, territory '' in many languages of the Ryūkyū Islands. Akitsukuni ( 秋津 国 ), Akitsushima ( 秋 津島 ), Toyo - akitsushima ( 豊秋 津島 ). According to the literal meanings of the Chinese characters used to transcribe these names of Japan, toyo means `` abundant, '' aki means `` autumn, '' tsu means `` harbor, '' shima means `` island, '' and kuni means `` country, land. '' In this context, - tsu may be interpreted to be a fossilized genitive case suffix, as in matsuge `` eyelash '' ( < Japanese me `` eye '' + - tsu + Japanese ke `` hair '' ) or tokitsukaze `` a timely wind, a favorable wind '' ( < Japanese toki `` time '' + - tsu + Japanese kaze `` wind '' ). However, akitu or akidu are also archaic or dialectal Japanese words for `` dragonfly, '' so `` Akitsushima '' may be interpreted to mean `` Dragonfly Island. '' Another possible interpretation would take akitsu - to be identical with the akitsu - of akitsukami or akitsumikami ( `` god incarnate, a manifest deity, '' often used as an honorific epithet for the Emperor of Japan ), perhaps with the sense of `` the present land, the island ( s ) where we are at present. '' Toyoashihara no mizuho no kuni ( 豊 葦原 の 瑞穂 の 国 ). `` Country of Lush Ears of Bountiful Reed Plain ( s ), '' Ashihara no Nakatsukuni, `` Central Land of Reed Plains, '' `` Country Amidst Reed Plain ( s ) '' ( 葦原 中国 ). Hinomoto ( 日 の 本 ). Simple kun reading of 日本. The katakana transcription ジャパン ( Japan ) of the English word Japan is sometimes encountered in Japanese, for example in the names of organizations seeking to project an international image. Examples include ジャパン ネット 銀行 ( Japan Netto Ginkō ) ( Japan Net Bank ), ジャパン カップ ( Japan Kappu ) ( Japan Cup ), ワイヤレス ジャパン ( Waiyaresu Japan ) ( Wireless Japan ), etc. Other Southeast and East asian nations ' languages Dōngyáng ( 東洋 ) and Dōngyíng ( 東瀛 ) -- both literally, `` Eastern Ocean '' -- are Chinese terms sometimes used to refer to Japan exotically when contrasting it with other countries or regions in eastern Eurasia ; however, these same terms may also be used to refer to all of East Asia when contrasting `` the East '' with `` the West ''. The first term, Dōngyáng, has been considered to be a pejorative term when used to mean `` Japan '', while the second, Dōngyíng, has remained a positive poetic name. They can be contrasted with Nányáng ( Southern Ocean ), which refers to Southeast Asia, and Xīyáng ( Western Ocean ), which refers to the Western world. In Japanese and Korean, the Chinese word for `` Eastern Ocean '' ( pronounced as tōyō in Japanese and as dongyang ( 동양 ) in Korean ) is used only to refer to the Far East ( including both East Asia and Southeast Asia ) in general, and it is not used in the more specific Chinese sense of `` Japan ''. In China, Japan is called Rìběn, which is the Mandarin pronunciation for the kanji 日本. The Cantonese pronunciation is Yahtbún ( jɐt ˨ pun ˧ ˥ ), the Shanghainese pronunciation is Zeppen ( zəʔpən ), and the Hokkien pronunciation is Ji̍tpún. This has influenced the Malaysian name for Japan, Jepun, and the Thai word Yipun ( ญี่ปุ่น ). The terms Jepang and Jipang, ultimately derived from Chinese, were previously used in both Malaysian and Indonesian, but are today confined primarily to the Indonesian language. The Japanese introduced Nippon and Dai Nippon into Indonesia during the Japanese Occupation ( 1942 -- 1945 ) but the native Jepang remains more common. In Korean, Japan is called Ilbon ( Hangeul : 일본, Hanja : 日本 ), which is the Korean pronunciation of the Sino - Korean name, and in Sino - Vietnamese, Japan is called Nhật Bản ( also rendered as Nhựt Bổn ). In Mongolian, Japan is called Yapon ( Япон ). Ue - kok ( 倭 國 ) is recorded for older Hokkien speakers. In the past, Korea also used 倭 國, pronounced Waeguk ( 왜국 ). Other non-East and non-Southeast Asian nations ' languages Language Contemporary Name for Japan ( Romanization ) Amharic ጃፓን ( japani ) Arabic اليابان ( al - yābān ) Armenian ճապոնիա ( Chaponia ) Azerbaijani Yaponiya Bangla জাপান ( Jāpāna ) Basque Japonia Catalan Japó Czech Japonsko Filipino Hapön ( Japòn ) Finnish Japani French Japon Galician Xapón Georgian იაპონია ( iaponia ) German Japan Greek Ιαπωνία ( Iaponía ) Hawaiian Iapana Hebrew יפן ( Yapan ) Hindi जापान ( jāpān ) Hungarian Japán Indonesian Jepang Irish An tSeapáin Italian Giappone Kazakh Жапония ( Japonïa ) Khmer ជប៉ុន ( japon ) Kurdish Japonya Malay جيڤون ( Jepun ) Maltese Ġappun Persian ژاپن ( žāpon ) Polish Japonia Portuguese Japão Russian Япония ( Yaponiya ) Scottish Gaelic Iapan Sinhala ජපානය ( Japanaya ) Spanish Japón Swedish Japan ( jɑ : pʌn ) Thai ญี่ปุ่น ( yīpun ) Turkish Japonya Urdu جاپان ( jāpān ) Vietnamese Nhật Bản Welsh Siapan Xhosa Japhan See also Japanese name ( names of Japanese people ) Japanese place names List of country - name etymologies Notes Jump up ^ Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric et al. ( 2005 ). `` Nihon '' in Japan encyclopedia, p. 707., p. 707, at Google Books ; n.b., Louis - Frédéric is pseudonym of Louis - Frédéric Nussbaum, see Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Authority File. Jump up ^ Joan, R. Piggott ( 1997 ). The emergence of Japanese kingship. Stanford University Press. pp. 143 -- 144. ISBN 0 - 8047 - 2832 - 1. Jump up ^ `` Ž × '' n'ä ? ' `` ã ? B ? à ''. Inoues.net. Retrieved 2011 - 09 - 26. Jump up ^ In Japanese, countries whose `` long form '' does not contain a designation such as republic or kingdom are generally given a name appended by the character 国 ( `` country '' or `` nation '' ) : for example, ドミニカ 国 ( Dominica ), バハマ 国 ( Bahamas ), and クウェート 国 ( Kuwait ). Jump up ^ Doi ( 1980 : 463 ) Jump up ^ Doi ( 1980 : 363 ) Jump up ^ Nippon or Nihon ? No consensus on Japanese pronunciation of Japan, Japan Today Jump up ^ Nussbaum, `` Nippon '' at p. 709., p. 709, at Google Books Jump up ^ Nihon Kokugo Daijiten Henshū Iin Kai, Shōgakukan Kokugo Daijiten Henshūbu ( 2002 ) ( 2000 ). Nihon Kokugo Daijiten ( 2nd edition ). Shōgakukan. ^ Jump up to : Nussbaum, `` Nihon Ginkō '' at p. 708., p. 708, at Google Books Jump up ^ Nussbaum, `` Nippon '' passim at pp. 717., p. 717, at Google Books Jump up ^ Nussbaum, `` Nihon '' passim at pp. 707 -- 711., p. 707, at Google Books Jump up ^ Nussbaum, `` Nihon University ( Nihon Daigaku ) '' at pp. 710 -- 711., p. 710, at Google Books Jump up ^ Nussbaum, `` Nihonjin '' at pp. 708 -- 709., p. 708, at Google Books Jump up ^ Nussbaum, `` Nihon shoki '' at p. 710., p. 710, at Google Books Jump up ^ Richard Gonzales ( 2016 - 06 - 10 ). `` Hello, Nihonium. Scientists Name 4 New Elements on the Periodic Table ''. Ww2.kqed.org. Retrieved 2016 - 07 - 05. Jump up ^ Forbes JD ( 2007 ). The American Discovery of Europe. University of Illinois Press. p. 21. ISBN 9780252091254. Jump up ^ `` Japan Omnibus - General - Facts and Figures ''. Japan-zone.com. Retrieved 2016 - 07 - 05. Jump up ^ Nussbaum, `` Ō - ya - shima no Kuni '' at p. 768., p. 768, at Google Books Jump up ^ Nussbaum, `` Akitsushima '' at p. 20., p. 20, at Google Books Jump up ^ `` www.chineselanguage.org message board ''. Chinalanguage.com. Retrieved 2011 - 09 - 26. References Doi, Tadao ( 1980 ) ( 1603 ). Hōyaku Nippo Jisho ( in Japanese ). Tōkyō : Iwanami Shoten. ISBN 4 - 00 - 080021 - 3. Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric ; Käthe Roth ( 2005 ). Japan Encyclopedia. Cambridge : Harvard University Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 674 - 01753 - 5 ; OCLC 48943301 Name of Asia Sovereign states Afghanistan Armenia Azerbaijan Bahrain Bangladesh Bhutan Brunei Cambodia China Cyprus East Timor ( Timor - Leste ) Egypt Georgia India Indonesia Iran Iraq Israel Japan Jordan Kazakhstan North Korea South Korea Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Lebanon Malaysia Maldives Mongolia Myanmar Nepal Oman Pakistan Philippines Qatar Russia Saudi Arabia Singapore Sri Lanka Syria Tajikistan Thailand Turkey Turkmenistan United Arab Emirates Uzbekistan Vietnam Yemen States with limited recognition Abkhazia Artsakh Northern Cyprus Palestine South Ossetia Taiwan Dependencies and other territories British Indian Ocean Territory Christmas Island Cocos ( Keeling ) Islands Hong Kong Macau Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Names_of_Japan&oldid=799530417 '' Categories : Names of Japan History of Japan Japanese language Country name etymology Hidden categories : Articles with hAudio microformats Articles containing Japanese - language text All articles lacking reliable references Articles lacking reliable references from August 2015 CS1 Japanese - language sources ( ja ) Talk Contents About Wikipedia Español Français 한국어 Italiano 日本 語 Português 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 8 September 2017, at 08 : 11. 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Question: what is the japanese word for the nation of japan
Answer: Nippon