Quote:
Originally Posted by steve88
45. The sun is red in Japan and the country itself is referred to by Japanese people as "the land of the rising sun"
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Actually "the land of the rising sun" is kind of a translation of the kanji (Chinese characters) that make up the name Nihon. The reason the country is named so goes back to competition between China and Japan long ago. China's name in kanji is meant to symbolize "the center of the earth" or the most important kingdom in the world. Japan in the spirit of one-up-man-ship said you may be the center of the world but the sun rises on us before you since Japan is to the east.