Modern geography in Japan started late, mainly after the Meiji Restoration (1868), and developed with the introduction of western geographical ideas. The earliest people who introduced western geographical thoughts to Japan and gave them enlightenment education in geography were Fukuzawa Yukichi (the best in the world, 1869), Kenzo Yucun (taking geography exams, 1894) and Shiga Shiga (on Japanese scenery, 1894).

An analysis of the national character of East Asian nations: ugly Japanese

This book is the representative work of the national character of East Asian countries before Bai Yang analyzed Ugly China. This is not an abusive work to vent nationalist sentiment, but a scholar's theory that calmly describes and analyzes Japanese spirit, culture, life and society. This book is fluent and beautiful in writing, easy and lively in narration, and extremely readable, without losing academic details. It is an interesting and profound Japanese culture reader. The author of this book, Professor Gao Qiaofu, a Japanese anthropologist, taught in South America for eight years on the eve of 1970s. Taking his personal experience as a clue, he revealed the Japanese people's shortcomings in ideas, social etiquette, food, clothing, housing and transportation, personality, work attitude and sexual awareness with strong contrast. 1970 caused a sensation in Japan when it was first published, but it was also criticized and anonymous several times. Keita, a professor at Kyoto University who strongly recommended this book at that time, commented that it was "a book that constantly hit and stung readers' hearts" and "an article that Japanese people seeking new development are most worth reading and should be engraved in their hearts"