Departments
Intermediate Japanese - Free Online Course
YAMATO
大和
In ancient Japan, Yamato was a region south of Kyoto which became the center of early Japanese culture. Yamato rose to prominence during the so-called Kofun Jidai / 古墳時代, or “Burial Mound Period.”
Because of its historic significance as the cradle of Japanese civilization, Yamato has become synonymous with Japan in many poetic and idiomatic usages. During the Second World War, official propaganda appealed to the power of the “Japanese spirit,” or Yamato-damashii / 大和魂 (literally “the Yamato spirit.”) Throughout Japanese history, patriotic references to “the Japanese people” have employed the term Yamato minzoku / 大和民族 (“the people of Yamato.”) Classical Japanese language is often called Yamato-kotoba / 大和言葉 (“the language of Yamato.”)