Flag Imperial Seal Anthem: Kimi ga Yo (???, Kimi ga Yo?)

Capital (and largest city) Tokyo1 35°41'N, 139°46'E Official languages Japanese (de facto) Demonym Japanese Government Parliamentary democracy and Constitutional monarchy  -  Emperor Akihito  -  Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda Formation  -  National Foundation Day February 11, 660 BC3   -  Meiji Constitution November 29, 1890   -  Current constitution May 3, 1947   -  Treaty of San Francisco April 28, 1952  Area  -  Total 377,873 km? (62nd) 145,883 sq mi   -  Water (%) 0.8 Population  -  2007 estimate 127,433,494 (10th)  -  2004 census 127,333,002   -  Density 337/km? (30th) 872.8/sq mi GDP (PPP) 2007 estimate  -  Total $4.346 trillion[1] (3rd)  -  Per capita $33,800[2] (34th) GDP (nominal) 2007 estimate  -  Total $4.346 trillion[3] (2nd)  -  Per capita $38,341 (14th) Gini  38.1 (2002)[4]  HDI (2007) ? 0.953 (high) (8th) Currency International Symbol ? Pronounced (Yen) Japanese Symbol ? Pronounced (En) (JPY) Time zone JST (UTC+9) Internet TLD .jp Calling code +81 1 Yokohama is the largest incorporated city. 2 World Factbook; Japan?Economy. CIA (2006-12-19). Retrieved on 2006-12-28. 3 According to legend, Japan was founded on this date by the Emperor Jimmu, first emperor of Japan; it is seen as largely symbolic. Japan (?? Nihon or Nippon ? , officially ??? Nippon-koku (help·info) or Nihon-koku) is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of China, Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea in the south. The characters that make up Japan's name mean "sun-origin", which is why Japan is sometimes identified as the "Land of the Rising Sun". Japan comprises over 3,000 islands,[5] the largest of which are Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku, together accounting for 97% of its land area. Most of the islands are mountainous, many volcanic; for example, Japan?s highest peak, Mount Fuji, is a volcano. Japan has the world's tenth largest population, with about 128 million people. The Greater Tokyo Area, which includes the capital city of Tokyo and several surrounding prefectures, is the largest metropolitan area in the world, with over 30 million residents. Archaeological research indicates that people were living on the islands of Japan as early as the Upper Paleolithic period. The first written mention of Japan begins with brief appearances in Chinese history texts from the first century AD. Influence from the outside world followed by long periods of isolation has characterized Japan's history. Since adopting its constitution in 1947, Japan has maintained a unitary constitutional monarchy with an emperor and an elected parliament, the Diet. A major economic power,[6] Japan has the world's second largest economy by nominal GDP. It is a member of the United Nations, G8, G4, OECD and APEC, with the world's fifth largest defense budget. It is also the world's fourth largest exporter and sixth largest importer and a world leader in technology and machinery.