お問合せThe Japanese Pre-History The Paleolithic Period The Japanese Paleolithic(旧石器時代) covers a period from the time in which human beings existed in Japan till around 12,000 BCE during the Ice-Age, which corresponds to the beginning of the Mesolithic Jomon period. (Any date of human presence before 30,000-35,000 BCE is controversial.) Due to the volcanic nature of the archipelago, large eruptions have covered the islands with levels of ash. A very important such layer covered all Japan around 21,000-22,000 years ago. The Japanese Islands are said to have been connected to the Eurasian Continent during the coldest periods of the Ice Age. ■Ground and Polished tools■ The earliest polished stone tools, such as stone axes, in the world were found in Japan. It is not known why such tools were created so early in Japan. Because of this originality, the Japanese Paleolithic Period in Japan does not exactly match the global definition of the Paleolithic Period. The Japanese Paleolithic implements thus display Mesolithic and Neolithic traits as early as 30,000 BCE in other regions of the world. The earliest Japanese stone tools, chipped stone hand axes and cleavers, were found at the site of Kami-Takamori in the Miyagi Prefecture, and dated to 500,000 BCE, but were later found to have been forgeries planted by Fujimura Shinichi. ■Paleo-Anthropology■ The Paleolithic population of Japan, as well as the later Jomon population, appears to relate to an ancient Paleo-Asian group, today's people of China, Korea and Vietnam. Based on archaeological evidence, most scholars agree that until around 40,000 BC glaciation connected the Japanese islands with the Asian Continent. And between 35,000 BC and 30,000 BC people probably migrated to the islands from eastern and southeastern Asia and established patterns of hunting, gathering and stone tool-making. Stone tools, inhabitation sites and human fossils from the Asian Continent have been found throughout all the islands of Japan. Skeletal characteristics also point to many similarities with other aboriginal people of the Asian Continent. Dental structures belong to those of South-East Asians. The aboriginal populations of Ainu, today mostly residing in Japan’s northern island, “Hokkaido”, are said to be the descendants of these Paleolithic population. Genetic analysis on today's populations tends to indicate a large amount of genetic intermixing between the indigenous and later arrivals. It is estimated that 10% of the Japanese population today derives from the aboriginal Paleolithic-Jomon ancestry, with the remainder coming from later migrations from the Asian Continent, especially during and after the Yayoi Period. |
The Japanese Pre-History...The Paleolithic Period |