Jomon is the longest and the first recorded culture in Japanese history. Jomon culture is also known as “Tree Culture" because trees were an important element in building construction, ceremonial ornaments, and for use as daily implements. The origin of the Jomon culture can be traced to 12000 years ago. Ruins and relics of the Jomon are found throughout Japan revealing how the culture flourished and spread. The invention of earthenware was the most significant turning point in the development of Jomon Culture. The advent of earthenware increasingly allowed people to become more sedentary and work together. The Jomon subsistence consisted of hunting, gathering, and horticulture. With increasing food surpluses, small villages gradually became big villages and there is evidence of trading among villages as well as the holding of ceremonies. The Jomon ceremonies and gathering styles still exist in Japanese culture today.
Jomon culture is the earliest culture found in Japan and is famous for its earthenware, the oldest earthenware known in the world. The earthenware caused a change of diet indicated by the remains of burned, smoked, dried, and boiled foods. As instruments were developed, the Jomon people traveled less for hunting and started to develop more permanent settlements. These settlements consisted of four or five related households located near a spring or river or possibly on a hill. These settlements were the precursors of small villages. Jomon people dug into the ground and made a floor several feet under the surface. The shape and size of the houses vary throughout each time period and region. The base of the house was 10~20 feet long and elliptical in shape. A hearth was set in the center of the house and the fire was used for lighting, cooking and heating. The Jomon used chestnut trees for the framework of these pit dwellings. Pit dwellings were common during the Jomon period.
The Jomon culture is also known as the tree culture because they created wooden crafts such as canoes, bows, buckets, combs, bangles, and ignition tools. These tools were sometimes lacquered. The Jomon knew the characteristic of the trees very well as was reflected through their woodcrafts. For example, the chestnut tree was used for building houses because the tree is hard and durable. Recent evidence shows that the Jomon employed building techniques used to construct large platforms. These platforms are evidence of large work forces, probably controlled by a highly organized society.
Hunting, gathering, and fishing were the major sources of food procurement in the early Jomon periods. People knew about animals and plants and adapted their diet according to the seasonal availability of resources. The Jomon ate birds, reptiles, amphibians, fishes, and other animals that were in close proximity to their village. Nuts, mushrooms, edible wild plants, and seashells were also gathered. Chestnut trees were managed for food stability and timbers because of the gradual increase in the size of the villages. The Jomon cooked and preserved foods and nuts were stored in holes for use throughout the year. Villages traded food products to allow people living near the sea access to resources from the mountains and mountain people accessed to seafood and salt. All of the above mentioned factors contributed to the development of skills of processing foods during this Jomon period.
Ceremonies were held in each region of the Jomon people. For example, people pulled out teeth as a coming-of-age ceremony when they became 14~16 years old. Large chestnut trees were cut, brought to villages, and dragged down on hills. People from other villages came to these ceremonies and danced, some wearing masks as signs of worship. These ceremonies were a good opportunity to find a marital partner for everyone. Jomon people settled in a place with other families after the invention of earthenware. Through time small village became larger and foods surpluses increased in proportion to the number of people in the village. People started trading foods widely. Jomon culture flourished for thousands of years with the foundation of Japanese culture originating during this time. A few ceremonies are still held in regions of Japan and many people still gather seashells in the spring. Even though 2300 years have passed since the Jomon culture changed, the culture has an influence on Japanese culture today.
Though this page has been carefully researched, the author does not claim expertise on Jomon culture.
Please send questions, comments, and corrections to emuseum@mnsu.edu and include the URL.
If you are a descendant of the Jomon, your feedback is much appreciated.
Kyoji Maeda. Taiko no Mukashi kara. (4 Sep, 1999) http://super.fureai.or.jp/%7Ekyoji-m/index.html 5 May, 2000.
Jomon jidai.http://www.ishikawa-maibun.or.jp/tenji/tenji_jyoumon.html 5 May, 2000.
Jomon nandemo hakase. Jomon network http://www.wnn.or.jp/wnn-jomon/q-a/qa1-000.html 5 May, 2000.
Kazue Sako. Mori to Umi no megumi. Tanoshii kouko gaku. http://www.wnn.or.jp/wnn-history/koukogaku/toku1/megum.html 5 May, 2000.
Written by: Rie Yamada