Rising Sun Flag

The is a Japanese flag that consists of a red disc and sixteen red rays emanating from the disc. Like the Japanese national flag, the Rising Sun Flag symbolizes the sun.

The flag was originally used by feudal warlords in Japan during the Edo period (1603–1868 CE). On May 15, 1870, as a policy of the Meiji government, it was adopted as the war flag of the Imperial Japanese Army, and on October 7, 1889, it was adopted as the naval ensign of the Imperial Japanese Navy.

At present, the flag is flown by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, and an eight-ray version is flown by the Japan Self-Defense Forces and the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force. The rising sun design is also seen in numerous scenes in daily life in Japan, such as in fishermen's banners hoisted to signify large catches of fish, flags to celebrate childbirth, and in flags for seasonal festivities.

The flag is controversial in Korea and China, where it is associated with Japanese militarism and imperialism.

History and design

The flag of Japan and the symbolism of the rising Sun has held symbolic meaning in Japan since the Asuka period (538–710 CE). The Japanese archipelago is east of the Asian mainland, and is thus where the Sun "rises". In 607 CE, an official correspondence that began with "from the Emperor of the rising sun" was sent to Chinese Emperor Yang of Sui. Japan is often referred to as " the land of the rising sun". In the 12th century work '' The Tale of the Heike'', it was written that different samurai carried drawings of the Sun on their fans.

The Japanese word for Japan is , which is pronounced or , and literally means "the origin of the sun". The character means "sun" or "day"; means "base" or "origin". The compound therefore means "origin of the sun" and is the source of the popular Western epithet "Land of the Rising Sun". The red disc symbolizes the Sun and the red lines are light rays shining from the rising sun.

The design of the Rising Sun Flag (Asahi) has been widely used since ancient times, and a part of it was called and used as the samurai's crest (). The flag was especially used by samurai in the Kyushu region. Examples include the "twelve sun-rays" () of the Ryūzōji clan (1186–1607 CE) in Hizen Province and the Kusano clan () in Chikugo Province, and the "eight sun-rays" () of the Kikuchi clan (1070–1554 CE) in Higo Province. There is a theory that in many parts of the Kyushu region, Hizen and Higo are related to what was called "the country of Japan ()".There have been many types of Asahi flags since ancient times, and the design in which light rays spread in all directions without clouds expresses honored day or auspicious events, and was a design that was used for celebrate a good catch, childbirth and seasonal festivities.韓国世論「旭日旗とナチス党旗を同一視」の大いなる誤解
サーチナ 2013年4月16日 A well-known variant of the flag of the sun disc design is the sun disc with 16 red rays in a Siemens star formation. The has been used as a traditional national symbol of Japan since at least the Edo period (1603 CE). It is featured in artwork such as prints, one example being the ''Lucky Gods' visit to Enoshima'' print by Utagawa Yoshiiku in 1869 and the ''One Hundred Views of Osaka, Three Great Bridges'' print by Utagawa Kunikazu in 1854. The Fujiyama Tea Co. used it as a wooden box label of Japanese green tea for export in the Meiji period (1880s).The Rising Sun Flag was historically used by the and Japan's military, particularly the Imperial Japanese Army and the Imperial Japanese Navy. The ensign, known in Japanese as the , was first adopted as the war flag on May 15, 1870, and was used until the end of World War II