Random Mode Keyboard shortcut: Command/Ctrl + Shift + R
thumbnail

Japan True or False?

Can you guess whether these statements about the country of Japan are true or false?
Quiz by Aaron197
Rate:
Last updated: February 23, 2024
You have not attempted this quiz yet.
First submittedJanuary 26, 2021
Times taken44,584
Average score80.0%
Rating4.53
4:00
The quiz is paused. You have remaining.
Scoring
You scored / = %
This beats or equals % of test takers also scored 100%
The average score is
Your high score is
Your fastest time is
Keep scrolling down for answers and more stats ...
1. Japan has a higher population density than the United States
True
False
2. Kyoto was the capital of Japan before Tokyo
True
False
3. "Kamikaze" was the family name of the first pilot who flew his plane into an enemy ship during WWII
True
False
The term Kamikaze, meaning "divine wind", comes from the typhoons which scattered the Mongol invasion forces thus protecting Japan
4. In Japanese religion, the Emperor is said to be the direct descendant of the sun goddess Amaterasu
True
False
5. Japan conquered about half of India during WWII
True
False
6. Baseball is the most popular spectator sport in Japan
True
False
7. Kimonos are worn by both men and women
True
False
8. Japan was conquered by the Mongols
True
False
The Mongolis twice attempted to conquer Japan, but failed both times
9. Hiroshima is today a radioactive ghost town
True
False
It is a thriving modern city
10. Christians were rarely persecuted during the Shogun rule
True
False
11. Japan has no territorial disputes with any country
True
False
Kuril Islands dispute with Russia is the most prominent
12. The Nikkei 225 is Japan's main stock market index
True
False
13. It is possible to be Buddhist and Shinto at the same time
True
False
14. Godzilla needs to eat people to survive
True
False
He is powered by nuclear energy
15. Japan has a high degree of ethnic diversity relative to other countries
True
False
Nearly 100% of Japanese residents belong to the same ethnic group. It is far less diverse than nearly every other country.
+6
Level 72
Jan 26, 2021
I thought sumo was more popular than baseball (#2).
+14
Level 84
Jan 30, 2021
Not as many spectators though. It's a vague question though, not clear how it is being measured.
+1
Level 75
Mar 15, 2021
I also thought sumo would win over baseball, and I found myself guessing on too many of these.
+10
Level 64
Mar 29, 2021
Sumo is the national sport, but Baseball is the most watched/popular.
+4
Level 81
Oct 20, 2022
There are six sumo tournaments a year in Japan, compared to 12 pro baseball teams that play 73 home games.
+1
Level 45
Feb 23, 2024
Don't forget high school baseball in Japan is basically on the same level of popularity and intensity as college football. They have designated cheer squads, and some high school baseball coaches are paid more than the rest of the school's staff combined.
+4
Level 77
Jan 26, 2021
The comment in 15 is wrong. The Japanese government does not track ethnicity among its citizens, so Okinawans, Ainu, people of mixed ancestry, naturalised citizens and so on are not tabulated. Japan is more diverse than many people think.
+22
Level 77
Jan 27, 2021
The Ainu make up only roughly 0.16% of the Japanese population, and that's being generous. The vast majority of Japanese people of identify just as Japanese because the other indigenous groups in Japan have been almost entirely assimilated. In terms of ethnicity, Japan is definitely comparatively homogeneous.
+4
Level 93
Dec 30, 2021
Also in the Japanese census the question about ethnicity would not distinguish between Japanese and someone with part non-Japanese parentage, recording that person as only Japanese. The wording resident may refer to permanent residents (>3 years), but should probably say citizens instead. If referring to residents, there are 3M non-Japanese which should be considered.
+12
Level ∞
Jan 27, 2021
Japan has the third lowest ethnic diversity in the world.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_ranked_by_ethnic_and_cultural_diversity_level

+2
Level 79
Jan 27, 2021
Got 14/15, only got the kimono question wrong (on which I spent the most time).
+4
Level 75
Jan 27, 2021
I almost always do worse if I start thinking about the questions. Best not even to read them tbh.
+1
Level 68
Apr 12, 2022
Exactly how I missed the first one, I read population instead of density
+5
Level 82
Jan 27, 2021
Bonus round - Some restaurants in Japan offer to eat sushi on the body of a naked woman

Answer : Although widely promoted as "traditional japanese culture" by occidentals (especially Hollywood movies), "nyotaimori" is very uncommon in Japan, the only few occurences being illegal due to sanitary and ethical laws.

"There apparently was one nyotaimori establishment in Shinjuku's red light district during the late 1990s [...] It soon closed before health officials could shutter the establishment." (source)

+3
Level 66
Jan 27, 2021
Never heard of that, sounds more like an American thing, like bodyshots. Well besides that it is sushi
+1
Level 32
Jan 27, 2021
I'm Japanese. But, I got 8/15.

They ware difficult questions.

+8
Level 76
Jan 27, 2021
I'm not Japanese (not even Asian) but I got 15/15. Half of them were random or educated guesses.
+2
Level 60
Feb 1, 2021
Same, I'm an Indian without any relation to Japan and got 14, only missed the Question 10
+2
Level 74
Mar 15, 2021
I got 100% and I'm not Japanese. But I lived there, had a boss from Hiroshima, and Godzilla is my bestie.
+1
Level 59
Feb 1, 2021
It is hard for me about kimono question.
+2
Level 43
Mar 15, 2021
Kind of funny I managed to get all of them right on the first go, even though I never been to Japan.
+1
Level 72
Mar 15, 2021
My beef with 14 is the "one movie" part. If you include remakes that is absolutely false. They have battled each other in the 1962 film, and again in 2021. That is 2 movies, not one.
+1
Level 72
Mar 16, 2021
Changed it! Nice. Thanks, Quizmaster.
+1
Level 65
Mar 15, 2021
The ethnicity one surprised me, considering that so much of their culture was actually borrowed from East and South Asia.
+10
Level 71
Mar 15, 2021
Ethnicity doesn't necessarily correlate with cultural influence. Even though Japan's culture borrows from other influences, I think the culture across Japan is pretty uniform (as in, a person from Hokkaido lives in similar ways to a person in Kyushu despite the large distance between the two).

Also, ethnicity depends a lot on how people identify themselves--if people feel they fit better with the dominant culture of Japan, they'll call themselves Japanese, even if they're partially descended from the Ainu or another minority group. This is common everywhere, but I'm guessing especially so in Japan, since it's a culture that values uniformity over diversity

+1
Level 63
Oct 20, 2022
It's also true that not being "Japanese" in Japan can mean you get treated differently, building on the whole idea of conforming
+2
Level 57
Mar 15, 2021
Despite the 2020 bull run, "The Japanese stock market is still lower than its peak in 1989" is astonishingly still true. Its intraday peak in 1989 was 38,915.87 vs. roughly 30,467 at its peak in January 2021.
+1
Level 72
Oct 20, 2022
But the wording of the statement appears to forecast the answer. Perhaps change "its peak" to "where it stood."
+1
Level 82
Oct 20, 2022
It says peak "in 1989". So a a peak in 2006 or 2020 could be higher.
+1
Level 36
Jul 27, 2021
Got 14/15. Somehow misread the Christian question and thought it was saying the opposite of what it was saying.
+1
Level 67
Jan 14, 2022
Glad to know that Godzilla is sustainable.
+2
Level 82
Oct 20, 2022
Anyone who got the Christian question wrong, should go watch Silence, which, in my admittedly controversial opinion, is Martin Scorsese's best film (there are definitely some who would regard it as his most boring). Brutal.

Still, unlike many instances of overbearing brutality throughout history, the Tokugawas got the result they were looking for: Japan has very few Christians today. Unlike neighbouring Korea, for example, which has a serious infestation going; or China which got into the whole Taiping Rebellion situation.

+1
Level 69
Oct 20, 2022
Isn't the sumo the most popular sport?
+1
Level 75
Nov 9, 2022
No. Sumo is the national sport but in terms of spectators, baseball is by far the most watched sport in Japan
+1
Level 45
Oct 24, 2022
14/15, I skipped over the "rarely" in the question about Christians
+2
Level 91
Feb 23, 2024
Stock market is the highest rate today
+3
Level 52
Feb 23, 2024
The Stock Market yesterday finally surpassed the 1989 peak
+2
Level 86
Feb 23, 2024
I had to look at the day of the last update (2021) in order to get that question but rather humorous this quiz came out today.
+2
Level 59
Feb 23, 2024
Nikkei just matched it's 1989 all time high yesterday. So that question should be updated to reflect 2024.
+1
Level 60
Feb 23, 2024
The stock market one needs to be updated. It just went over.
+1
Level ∞
Feb 23, 2024
Updated. All it took was 35 years!

Adjusted for inflation, it's still way below the 1989 highs.

+1
Level 39
Feb 23, 2024
Got only the baseball one wrong....R.I.P.