Japanese in the Philippines

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Japanese Filipino, Japanese people in the Philippines
日系 / 日系人 / 日系フィリピン人
にっけい / にっけいじん
Hapon / Hapones / Haponesa
Pilipinong Hapones
Nikkei / Nikkeijin / Japino / Japinoy
daimyō who migrated to the Philippines together with 300 Kirishitan refugees in 1614.
Total population
Japanese nationals
15,728 (Dec. 2021)[1]
People of Japanese descent
120,000[2][3][4][5] (2006)
Regions with significant populations
Metro Manila, Davao, the Visayas, Ilocos Norte, La Union, Baguio, Laguna, Cavite, Rizal, Bulacan, Pampanga, Zambales
Languages
Japanese, Filipino, other Philippine languages, English
Religion
Christianity,[6] Shinto, Buddhism
Related ethnic groups
Japanese people, foreign-born Japanese, Japanese diaspora

Japanese in the Philippines, or Japanese Filipino, refers to one of the largest branches of Japanese diaspora having historical contact with and having established themselves in what is now the Philippines. This also refers to Filipino citizens of either pure or mixed Japanese descent residing in the country, the latter a result of intermarriages between the Japanese and local populations.[7]

History

Classical period

Settlements

After the establishment of a single state within

Red-seal ships
transported Japanese merchants
Red seal ship
, transporting Japanese merchants

Pottery trade

See also:
Rusun jar, Shimamono, and Luzon Sukezaemon
Traditional tapayan jar, used as a lawn ornament, water jar, or for bread baking, from the Philippines
Painted Tea-leaf jar, used as a tea canister, with wisteria designs by Nonomura Ninsei, Edo period Japan

Precolonial Philippines had a rich pottery tradition as verified by the finds at Ayub Cave in South Cotabato and other parts of the archipelago. Japanese texts mention trading expeditions to the island of Rusun (

Uji in Kyoto from the Philippines which was used in the Japanese tea ceremony.[17][18][19][20]

The Spanish historian Antonio de Morga in his Sucesos de la Islas Filipinas (1609) described Rusun jars as thus:[21]

In this island of

Ylocos the natives have ancient earthenware jars (tibores) which are brown in color and not especially attractive to look at. Some of these are medium-sized, others smaller, and they have certain marks and stamps on them but no one knows how to explain these, nor knows whence they came nor when, for they are no longer imported or made here. The Japanese seek them and think highly of them, for they have discovered that the root [sic] of a certain plant called cha (tea), which the kings and lords of Japan drink hot, both as a refreshment and medicine, can best be kept and preserved in these jars. Hence throughout Japan these jars are regarded highly as being the most precious jewels of their inner rooms and chambers, and the Japanese adorn them on the outside with fine, elegantly wrought gold and keep them in brocade cases. One of them is worth a great sum there, for some jars are valued at, and sold for, two thousand taels at the rate of eleven reales
per tael. It makes no difference whether they be cracked or chipped, for that does not prevent them from holding cha. The natives of these islands sell them to the Japanese for the best possible price and they are diligent in seeking them out for the sake of the profit to be made. However, few are to be found these days because of the zeal with which they have been sought up to the present.

Rusun jars were part of what is collectively known as Mishima ("three islands") ware. With the other two islands being indigenous Taiwan and the unidentified "Amakawa".[20]

Many of the important pottery traditions that spread into the Oceania region had their counterparts in the Philippines including the well-known Lapita culture. This quote from American anthropologist Wilhelm Solheim illustrates the matter:

I hypothesize that the Sa-huynh Kalanay and Lapita pottery traditions had a common origin somewhere in the Palawan-Sarawak-Sulu Sea-Sulawesi area and that it was at this point in time and space that a second and main stage in the spread of the Austronesian languages began.[17][8]

The finds at Ayub Cave in South Cotabato confirmed the great pottery tradition of the Philippines. In the Tokiko it mentions that all Rusun jars had this marking known as the rokuru (wheel mark). Those familiar with Philippine ethnography will know that this spiral is commonly used by many of the Philippine tribes. The following symbols were used to identify which kiln was used to make the jar: identified "Imbe" jars, meant jars coming from Bizen kiln, and mark three times meant a canister from the same oven. A jar with this mark is said to be made of Namban clay. This marking corresponds to the syllable la in Pampanga; Tagbanua for ka ("Chinese Pottery", Field Museum of Natural History-Anth., vol.xii, Jul.1912) Of course, the symbol for la can also be the same as that for lu, and so this might correspond to the symbol said to stand for Lu in Rusun-no kokuji (Luzon national writing). According to the Tokiko, certain types of Rusun jars were distinguished by this character. De Morga mentions that Japanese traders were still coming in large numbers for these jars during his time, and that they were willing to spend great sums for them. Apparently work on these jars continued in the North, possibly among the unconquered

archaeologists from the Sumitomo Foundation-funded Boljoon Archaeological Project conducted by the University of San Carlos with the National Museum of the Philippines, discovered ancient Japanese pottery that has been to believed to been in existence since the early 1700s. The ancient Japanese pottery that was discovered there, has proven that there was activity of trading activity between Japan and Cebu Island Philippines going back to the 16th century.[22]

Fishing technologies

A native Filipina with Chinese, American / European and Japanese settlers in the Philippines, (1900)

The Filipinos were skilled in all types of fishing and fisheries. In the south, the basnig, a Viking-like ship, was and is the vessel of choice among the Bisayans for ocean fishing. The salambao is a type of raft that utilizes a large fishing net which is lowered into the water via a type of lever made of two criss-crossed poles. Night fishing was accomplished with the help of candles similar to the copal of Mexico. These candles were made from a particular type of resin. Fish corrals, like the ones still used today, were also employed by the ancient Filipino. However, the area in which the Filipino most astonished Westerners was in their advanced aquaculture:

To the early Spaniards, the pisciculture of the Filipinos was regarded almost as a new art, so much more advanced it was than fish breeding methods in Europe.[23]

Many have looked to Japan for an explanation for these advanced methods. The roe was transplanted to safe pens for incubation and to guard the small fry from predators. Only when sufficiently mature to fend for themselves were they released back into the wild. These days this method is practiced by fisheries throughout the world. Before the Spanish came, the Filipinos also only used large mesh nets when fishing in rivers, lakes or in the sea. This ecologically sound practice protected the young ensuring future good catches. However, the competition brought by the Spaniards resulted in the use of such small mesh nets that the Spanish themselves eventually had to regulate the nets to prevent the destruction of the fisheries. Other Pre-Spanish Filipino industries included the manufacture of liquors and vinegars like tuba, basi, etc., the production of hides for export to Japan, export of edible bird's nests from Northern Palawan to China, the raising and trade of civet cats, the manufacture of gunpowder, the making of wax for export to China, and the making of cotton stockings for export.[citation needed]

Spanish era

A Japanese Kirishitan settler in the Philippines (right) talking to a Mardica (left). Velarde map 1734 .

The Japanese population in the Philippines has since included descendants of

Ukon Takayama, who was exiled to the Philippines in 1614 because he refused to disavow his Christian beliefs, stands a patch of land across the road from the Post Office building in the Paco, Manila. In the 17th century, the Spaniards referred to the Paco Area as the 'Yellow Plaza' because of the more than 3,000 Japanese who resided there.[6][24] In the 16th and 17th centuries, thousands of Japanese people traders also migrated to the Philippines and assimilated into the local population.[25]
pp. 52–3

Many of the Japanese men intermarried with

Dilao, Paco, and Ilocos Norte Province. This hybrid group tend to be re-assimilated either into the Filipino or the Japanese communities, and thus no accurate denominations could be established, though their estimates range from 100,000 to 200,000. Many were killed or expelled after World War II because of their alleged collaboration with the Imperial Japanese Army (mostly as translator). Many Japanese mestizos tended to deny their Japanese heritage and changed their family names in order to avoid discrimination.[citation needed
]

Little Tokyo in Davao City, Philippines (1936), Japanese school in Davao City (1939), where reportedly more than half of the students were mixed.[26]

American period and the Post-WWII era

WW2
Ohta Kyozaburo Historical Marker
Japanese Filipinos hard at work in an office, Manila, Philippines (1930s)
Japanese Filipinos relaxing in a dormitory, Manila, Philippines (1930s)
Japanese Filipinos playing baseball in Pre-War Manila, Philippines (October 1933)
Japanese Filipino ("Hojins" 「在留邦人」) WW2 collaborators meeting at the Japanese School in Manila (1942)
Imperial Japanese Army captures Manila on bicycle (1942)
Imperial Japanese Army captures Manila on motorcycle (1942)
Japanese immigration to pre-war Philippines (1920-1930s)
Japanese soldiers in Leyte, Philippines (1945)

During the

Chinese for the first time in Philippine history. They were very evident in Manila, and Davao where it was said to practically be a Japanese colony.[27] During this period, Japanese laborers were also brought in to build the Benguet Road (Kennon Road) to Baguio, but eventually after the project, many moved to work in abaca plantations in Davao, where Davao soon became dubbed as Davaokuo (in Philippine and American media) or (in Japanese: 小日本國「こにっぽんこく」, romanized: Ko Nippon Koku, lit. 'Little Japan'[citation needed]) with a Japanese school, a Shinto shrine and a diplomatic mission from Japan. The place that used to be "Little Tokyo" in Davao was around the areas of Mintal, Calinan, Tugbok.[28][29] Prominent scholars and historian like Lydia Yu-Jose and Macario Tiu wrote extensively on the lively presence of Japanese migrants in pre-war Davao due to its noticeably thriving local economy predicated by a huge concentration of rubber, copra, and hemp plantations. Unsurprisingly so, when World War II broke out, it was reported that there were more than 21,000 Japanese residents in the Philippines with about 18,000 or more in Davao,[30] though after the outbreak of war, the Japanese population in Davao dropped slightly.[31] There is even a popular restaurant called "The Japanese Tunnel", which includes an actual tunnel built by the Japanese during World War II.[32]

Tokyo Bazaar, Manila, Philippines (1941)
Miyako Hotel & Tokyo Bazaar, Manila, Philippines (1941)
Kobe Bazaar in the G. Kobayashi Building, Manila, Philippines (1940)
Nippon Bazaar, Manila, Philippines (1941)
Nippon Bazaar & Yap Anton & Co., Inc., Cebu, Philippines (1930-40s)
Taisho Bazaar in the YMCA Building, Cebu, Philippines (1930-40s)
Osaka Bazaar in Manila, Philippines (1934)
Osaka Bazaar in Davao, Philippines (1936)

Davao in Mindanao had a large population of Japanese immigrants who acted as a fifth column, welcoming the Japanese invaders during World War II. These Japanese were disliked by the Chinese and hated by the Moros.[33] The Moros were judged as "fully capable of dealing with Japanese fifth columnists and invaders alike."[34] The Moros were to fight the Japanese invaders when they landed at Davao on Mindanao.[35][36][37][38][39][40] The Japanese went back to their ships at night to sleep since the Moros struck so much fear into them, even though the Moros were outnumbered by the Japanese.[41][42][43][44][45][46][47] For fear of discrimination, some fled to the mountains after World War II while many others changed their names in the attempts to assimilate. Many were also killed (c. 10,000 Japanese Mestizos and Japanese) while others were deported as an act of retaliation. Their Japanese identity may take on extremes, some have completely lost their Japanese identity while others have "returned" to Japan, the homeland of their forebears. There is also a number of contemporary Japanese-mestizos, not associated with the history of the earlier established ones, born either in the Philippines or Japan. These latter are the resultant of unions between Filipinos and recent Japanese immigrants to the Philippines or Japanese and immigrant Filipino workers in Japan. Most Japanese mestizos speak Tagalog and/or other Philippine languages. They may also be known as Japinos, although this term is considered derogatory by many. There are believed to be between 100,000 and 200,000 Japanese-mestizos in the country, but no accurate figure is currently available. Thousands of war-displaced ethnic Japanese still live in the country and are denied recognition as Japanese nationals in order to return to Japan.

Modern times

Skyway Stage 3 Extension
in 2017)

The recent Japanese Filipinos are descendants of 1980s and 1990s Japanese settlers usually businesspeople, most of whom are men, and (mostly female) locals. Many are children of thousands of

overseas Filipino workers, who went to Japan mostly as entertainers. They are in the Philippines also to learn English. As the Filipina mothers return to the Philippines, most take their children along with them.[48] A significant number in the U.S. today are the product of Filipino- and Japanese American intermarriages, mostly in California, Hawaii
, or other U.S. states, or other U.S. territories in the Pacific, while others are Filipinos of Japanese ancestry who have migrated to the United States.

Several foundations today such as the Federation of Nikkeijin Kai Philippines & Manila Nikkeijin Kai exist throughout the country through the efforts of prosperous Japanese descendants and expatriates to assist Filipinos of Japanese ancestry to travel in Japan to trace their roots and visit relatives, and also charity purposes such as offering Long Term Resident visa and educational scholarships to out of school Japanese Filipino children. Similar organizations exist in the Philippines to commemorate and signify the historical settlement of Japanese Filipinos in the region. The Philippines also has the highest number of Japanese in the country than any other Southeast Asian country.

Japanese Filipina woman (left) wearing terno gowns (1920)

Japanese citizenship

The Supreme Court of Japan on June 4, 2008, ruled against a law that denied citizenship to children born out of wedlock to Japanese fathers and foreign mothers. It upheld the 2003 and 2005 separate suits (of 10 Japanese-Filipino children for Japanese citizenship), filed by Filipino mothers who proved the fathers of their children were Japanese. It affirmed the Tokyo District Court judgment that "the marital status of the parents had no bearing on nationality, and that denying the children citizenship violated constitutional guarantees of equality for all."[49] Mel Nuqui, executive director of the Development Action for Women Network (DAWN), stated that the "30-year migration of Filipino entertainers to Japan produced 100,000 Japanese-Filipino children,"[50] but very few children were legally acknowledged by their Japanese fathers. DAWN assists Filipino entertainers and Japanese-Filipinos, by helping Japanese-Filipinos locate their fathers in Japan. In 2007, it called for registration of Japanese-Filipinos, and 1,313 Japanese-Filipinos in the Philippines registered (August to October in 2007). However, only 60 of the 1,313 children had been registered in Japan, and of 2,800 children (born out of wedlock from foreign mothers who reside in Japan), 2,000 had Japanese fathers.[50]

Education

Notable people

  • Osaka Bazaar in Manila, Philippines (1934)
    Osaka Bazaar in Manila, Philippines (1934)
  • Shoppers crowd Osaka Bazar during a Christmas Sale in Manila (October 1934)
    Shoppers crowd Osaka Bazar during a Christmas Sale in Manila (October 1934)
  • Osaka Bazar Storefront, Manila, Philippines (October 1934)
    Osaka Bazar Storefront, Manila, Philippines (October 1934)
  • Sundry vendors near Osaka Bazar, Manila, Philippines (May 1934)
    Sundry vendors near Osaka Bazar, Manila, Philippines (May 1934)
  • Seiei Matsui & Employees of Osaka Boeki Kaisha (Osaka Bazar) disembark in either Manila or Davao in the Philippines (May 1934). Matsui, the general manager, is second from front.
    Seiei Matsui & Employees of Osaka Boeki Kaisha (Osaka Bazar) disembark in either Manila or Davao in the Philippines (May 1934). Matsui, the general manager, is second from front.
  • Japanese Filipino wholesale office workers in Osaka Boeki Kaisha (Osaka Bazar), Manila, Philippines (1930s)
    Japanese Filipino wholesale office workers in Osaka Boeki Kaisha (Osaka Bazar), Manila, Philippines (1930s)
  • Japanese Filipino employees in a dorm under Osaka Boeki Kaisha (Osaka Bazar), Manila, Philippines (1930s)
    Japanese Filipino employees in a dorm under Osaka Boeki Kaisha (Osaka Bazar), Manila, Philippines (1930s)
  • Japanese Filipino employees of Osaka Boeki Kaisha (Osaka Bazar) play baseball in Pre-War Manila, Philippines (October 1933)
    Japanese Filipino employees of Osaka Boeki Kaisha (Osaka Bazar) play baseball in Pre-War Manila, Philippines (October 1933)

See also

References

  1. ^ Japan-Philippines relations : Basic Data, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan.
  2. ^ "Filipino Amerasians dadagsa; pati Japinos, Kopinos, Chipinos". Pilipino Star Ngayon.
  3. ^ "Japanese Filipinos - Ethnic Groups of the Philippines". ethnicgroupsphilippines. Archived from the original on January 2, 2013.
  4. ^ Agnote, Dario (October 11, 2017). "A glimmer of hope for castoffs". The Japan Times. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved August 9, 2016.
  5. ISBN 978-1-135-98723-7
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    ISBN 9780429678257
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  7. ^ The Cultural Influences of India, China, Arabia, and Japan | Philippine Almanac Archived July 1, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ a b c "Philippines". Archived from the original on March 16, 2012.
  9. ^ Cortes, Rosario Mendoza (1991). A History of Pangasinan, 1572–1800. New Day.
  10. ^ General Archive of the Indies, Philippines, file 29, bunch 3, number 62. Letter from Juan Bautista Román to the Viceroy of México, June 25, 1582
  11. ^ General Archive of the Indies, Philippines, file 6, bunch 2, number 60. Letter from the Governor of the Philippines to the Viceroy of México, July 20, 1583
  12. ^ General Archive of the Indies, Philippines, file 74, bunch 1, number 24. Letter from Bishop of the Philippines to the King of Spain, January 18, 1583
  13. ^ [1] General Archive of the Indies, Council of the Indies, 339,L.1,F.286V-287R. Order to send men to the Philippines from Mexico, June 14, 1583
  14. ISBN 9789888028115
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  15. ^ Worcester, Dean C. (1906). "The Non-Christian Tribes of Northern Luzon". The Philippine Journal of Science. National Science Development Board
  16. ^ Inumaru, Tadashi; Yoshida, Mitsukuni, eds. (1992). The Traditional Crafts of Japan. Volume 3: Ceramics. Diamond, Inc. p. 7.
  17. ^ a b "Cerramic Artist". hadrianmendozapottery.
  18. ISBN 9789718822012
    .
  19. ^ Ocampo -, Ambeth R. (October 18, 2017). "Luzon jars in Japanese tea ceremony". Inquirer.net. Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  20. ^ a b Cole, Fay-Cooper (1912). "Chinese Pottery in the Philippines" (PDF). Field Museum of Natural History. Anthropological Series. 12 (1).
  21. ^ Ocampo, Ambeth R. (September 6, 2012). "The Mysterious Luzon Jars". Ingquirer.net. Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  22. ^ Candeze R. Mongaya (May 30, 2011). "Ancient Japanese pottery in Boljoon town". inquirer.net. Retrieved January 15, 2022.
  23. ^ Jurado, Antonio María Regidor y; Mason, Joseph Warren Teets (1905). Commercial Progress in the Philippine Islands. Dunn & Chidgey. p. 9.
  24. ^ "Japanese Christian". Philippines: Google map of Paco district of Manila, Philippines. Archived from the original on May 7, 2010. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  25. ISBN 9780826460745
    – via Google Books.
  26. ^ Kawai, Hiroyuki (June 2005). A study on the ideal policy for improving the legal and social status of Japanese in the Philippines (PDF). Tokyo Foundation Research Report.
  27. ISBN 971-1024-15-2. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help
    )
  28. ^ Villalon, Augusto F. (February 13, 2017). "'Little Tokyo' in Davao". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  29. ^ BARRIGA, MARIA CYNTHIA B. (2015). "The Asia-Pacific War in the Davao Settler Zone, December 1941" (PDF). Kasarinlan: Philippine Journal of Third World Studies 2015. 30 (1): 56–90.
  30. ^ "Davao of the Past: A Reexamination from the South (Part I)". September 12, 2017.
  31. JSTOR 42634299
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  32. ^ "A Little Tokyo Rooted in the Philippines". Philippines: Pacific Citizen. April 2007. Archived from the original on February 22, 2008. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  33. ^ Curtis, Herbert (January 13, 1942). "Japanese Infiltration into Mindanao". The Vancouver Sun. p. 4.
  34. ^ "80 Japanese Troop Ships Are Sighted Off Luzon" 1941, p. 7.
  35. ^ AP 1941, p. 1.
  36. ^ "SITUATION AT DAVAO OBSCURE AS JAPS LAND" 1941, p. 2.
  37. ^ "THE JAPS SWARM AT DAVAO BUT THE SITUATION OBSCURE" 1941, p. 3.
  38. ^ "Six Japanese Bombers In New Raid On Manila" 1941, p. 13.
  39. ^ THE NEW YORK TIMES 1941, p. 1.
  40. ^ "Large Force Is Attacking" 1941, p. 58.
  41. ^ LEE 1942, p. 8.
  42. ^ LEE 1942, p. 1.
  43. ^ LEE 1942, p. 7.
  44. ^ LEE 1942, p. 9.
  45. ^ Lee 1942, p. 2.
  46. ^ Lee 1942, p. 25.
  47. ^ Lee 1942, p. 4.
  48. ^ "Japanese-Filipino kids await fate, Top court to rule on nationality law tied to paternal recognition". Japan Times. Japan. June 4, 2008.
  49. ^ children GMA NEWS.TV, Japan high court rules in favor of 'Japanese-Filipino' children
  50. ^ a b Isagani de Castro Jr. (June 5, 2008). "(Update) Thousands of 'Japinos' seen to benefit from Japan high court ruling". ABS-CBN. Archived from the original on November 7, 2023. Retrieved November 7, 2023.
  51. ^ "アジアの補習授業校一覧（平成25年4月15日現在）" (). Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. Retrieved on February 13, 2015.
  52. ^ Battad, Do (August 18, 2012). "Make It Davao: Mindanao Kokusai Daigaku".
  53. ^ Corp, ABS-CBN. "IN PHOTOS: Meet the handsome brothers of Konichi-Wonder Vlogger ng Japan Fumiya Sankai!". entertainment.abs-cbn.com. Retrieved January 31, 2020.
  54. ^ "Aiko Melendez Confirms Misunderstanding with Son Andrei". Philnews.ph. May 25, 2016. Retrieved October 2, 2017.
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