Japan, Geographical Background to Urban-industrial Development

"Japan has emerged in the years since the end of World War II from a basically agrarian society to its present position as one of the three leading industrial nations of the world. In this, a second edition of Professor's Kornhauser's standard work originally published under the title Urban Japan, the author examines this transformation of the Japanese landscape within an historical geographic framework. Professor Kornhauser begins with a description of the physical landscape, and then reviews the history of agricultural development and change before looking at the history of the city from the eighth century to the present time. The growing importance of a city network from the seventeenth century is emphasised but there are appropriate references to earlier periods of development and to outside influences, especially from China and Korea. The important periods in the rise of cities to dominance in the culture are stressed, with considerable discussion of the Edo Period (1600-1868), the transformations of pre-modern cities in the Meiji Period (1868-1912), and the periods before, during and after World War II. Considerable attention is paid to the effects of external influences such as wars and economic disruptions in shaping Japan's commercial successes and failures. In the concluding chapter Professor Kornhauser summarizes the changes in the Japanese landscape and examines the role of planning, especially in an urban-industrial context, and reviews the problems facing Japan at the present and in the future. For this new edition the text has been thoroughly revised to bring it right up-to-date. The book contains a selective but annotated bibliography and is profusely illustrated. This new edition will consolidate the book's position as an essential text for students and teachers of the geography of Japan, and it will be widely used in courses on urban and economic geography"--Unedited summary from book cover.