Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Hokkaido that had been Japanese territory . Japan claims
that these “Northern T Territories” are illegally occupied
and insists on repatriation as a condition for full eco-
nomic and diplomatic relations. This issue is a source of
frequent protest by Japanese right-wing political groups
who hold noisy demonstrations almost daily near the
Russian embassy in T Tokyo. Their favorite tactic is the use
of sound trucks to blast ear-splitting demands that
Russia give back the disputed islands.
are jumping on the bandwagon to produce senior-
oriented products and services.
Y oung Japanese are putting off marriage and having
fewer children than in the past. The average age of mar-
riage has risen to 26.3 for women and 28.5 for men. Fur-
thermore, many women are seeking careers and are less
likely to have or even want children.
Women complain about the high cost of education
and the dearth of affordable housing. They spurn the phys-
ical and emotional burden of raising children in their hus-
band' s absence. Japanese men work from dawn until late at
night only to come staggering home from the last subway
train at midnight. Some call them “7-11 husbands.”
In 2008, there were 9.0 births per 1,000 people, com-
pared with 28.1 births per 1,000 people in 1950. The av-
erage Japanese mother has about 1.4 children, well below
the 2.1 replacement level. Falling birth rates have resulted
in decreasing enrolments in elementary and secondary
schools and many of them have been forced to close.
Changing population dynamics have serious rami-
fications throughout both economy and society . The
working age group began to decline in 1997. The Japan-
ese government is concerned about its tax base and avail-
able work force. It must also face the fact that family
structure is changing from extended to nuclear. In 1960,
87 percent of Japanese over 65 lived with adult children.
By 1990 this number had dropped to 60 percent and now
Population and Society
A comparison of the population pyramid in Chapter 3
(Figure 3-5) with the one below (Figure 12-7) makes it
clear that Japan' is population of 127.6 million is expected
to decline during the twenty-first century . In fact,
demographers predict that the country will have 25 percent
fewer people by 2020!
Japan has an “old” population. The average life ex-
pectancy for women is 86 years, for men 79 years. For
the first time in history , Japan has more people over
65 (23 percent) than it does children under age 15
(13 percent). By 2035, the government estimates that more
than 30 percent of Japanese will be 65 or older. Japan is
preparing to launch a public nursing insurance program,
and several companies, such as Sanyo and Mitsubishi,
Japan: 2050
MALE
FEMALE
100
8
9
95
80
75
7
65
6
55
5
45
4
35
3
2
20
1
10
0
4
3.2
2.4
1.6
0.8
0
0
0.8
4
1.6
3.2
2.4
Population (in millions)
Figure 12-7
Japan' s population structure in 2050. Notice how the base of the pyramid gets increasingly
smaller . If this trend continues, what will happen to the Japanese population?
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, International Data Base.
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