Kublai Khan, the Mongol leader, twice tried to invade Japan (1281). But his fleet of ships were defeated, both times, by Typhoon storms.

The flag of Japan was created in 1870 although the red sun had been used on war banners for centuries.

Japans ancestors were migrants from the mainland of Asia, the earliest known being the Ainu clan who arrived around 15000 BC to populate the islands. The first Emperor was said to be Jimmu Tenno 660 BC but the general history involves only legends up to 98 BC and cannot be proven to any great degree. Around 450 AD the Yamato clan united the population and lay claim to being the ancestors of the Imperial line. In the fifth and sixth centuries the religion of Buddhism, the art of writing and philosophy of Confucius spread from China to the Island of Japan. By the middle sixth century the central government was also modelled on the Chinese role model(known as the Taika reform by Emperor Kotoku). By the 12th century the first Shogun (Warrior King and General) emerged from a period of civil war and a succession then ruled Japan in the Emperors `name`.

Nippon is the usual name for the Japanese islands
and the term means 'The source of the sun'.