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How about because the Japanese have been living on that island for what, 30,000 years? I think they have a sense of longevity in their culture that we could al
by funthree 16y ago
How about because the Japanese have been living on that island for what, 30,000 years? I think they have a sense of longevity in their culture that we could all really learn from.
- olivercameron 16y agoSo have the people of England, what's your point?
- michaeldhopkins 16y agoNo, they have not. Roman Briton was a different society than pre-Roman Briton. The Anglo-Saxons came about 1500 years ago and nearly completely replaced the Britons, genetically and culturally. The Norman invasion was about 950 years ago and greatly changed Anglo-Saxon culture, although not as much as the AS changed post-Roman Briton. There were several other invaders (Danes, etc.) as well. By contrast, the Japanese are perhaps 3,000 years old as a distinct ethnic group on the island.
- kstenerud 16y ago3000 years of writing bad Chinese poetry. edit: It's a JOKE, people.
- michaeldhopkins 16y agoNo, about 1,500 years of influence by Chinese poetry, and assimilation took a long time. I don't know enough about it to say if it really is bad, but I do know that Norman England produced some excellent poetry -- chiefly Chaucer, and that was only 300 years after William.
- kstenerud 16y agoWhile it was in vogue, the nobles would all try their hand, no matter how bad they were at it, and no matter how little they actually knew of the language. Think Janglish, but the Chinese version of it :P
- wyclif 16y agoThe Anglo-Saxons came about 1500 years ago and nearly completely replaced the Britons, genetically and culturally Replaced in that region, but the Celtic peoples were driven West and North (Wales, Cornwall, and Northumbria).
- michaeldhopkins 16y agoYes, that is true, and I should have mentioned Northumbria especially because that was a wonderful culture, but their numbers were still greatly reduced. Cornish culture is now completely wiped out. Edit: Cornishness wiped out as far as continuity. I respect the "revival movement" but the re-rooting process will take awhile even if most of the people there support it.
- DerekL 16y agoAccording to a 2003 study of genetics in Britain, the Britons weren't driven out. There's a great amount from Anglo-Saxons and Vikings, but the majority of the genes are from the Britons. Here's the paper from University College London: <http://www.ucl.ac.uk/tcga/tcgapdf/capelli-CB-03.pdf> http://www.ucl.ac.uk/tcga/tcgapdf/capelli-CB-03.pdf>
- vacri 16y agoEgyptians have been a distinct ethnic group along the Nile river for longer than the Japanese have been where they are. Let's not attribute magical properties to long-lived cultures.
- michaeldhopkins 16y agoNo, Egypt's domination by Islam alone was effectively a cultural reset. There were also other invaders, like Rome.
- funthree 16y agoI think Japan is a bit more unique geographically in this context. Sure there were people in England that long ago (and same for Greece too) but Japan has been isolated by more water, and their gene pool has remained more or less the same. They know their history and it's all their own. Citing 30,000 years as I did was just a bit in jest and probably an exaggeration.
- StavrosK 16y agoHah! You should visit Greece sometime. If it's not bolted down when your shop closes, it won't be there next morning. I've heard of people stealing couches from cafes just because they were drunk out of their minds.
- vacri 16y agoAfricans have been in Africa since the dawn of humankind. Do you think there'd be so many 'wallet' stories as in this thread if we were talking about Africa?