Had a kid in middle school from Japan wear his Grandfather’s Japanese imperial army uniform to class when we discussed World War Two on Veterans Day. Needless to say the Chinese and Korean students weren’t thrilled...

Hadnt realised the difference between the naval and army rising sun flags.

the best thing about simple flag is when in elementary school you're tasked to draw your country flag it won't cause a Headache

別に大日本帝国がキョクジツ旗って訳ではない

I was kinda hoping the answer was "it was too hard to draw"

I would rather compare "Rising sun flag" to german Iron Cross (military symbol, often associated with WW2, but not strictly representing any ideology, used by military of these countries to this day) , not to NSDAP flag (made specifically to be symbol of ideology and implemented as the symbol of ideology, being in use ONLY when country was run by followers of that ideology).

This flag has been in use since before the war. Many countries must have a history of war and colonization. It's like saying that the British flag should be abolished.

I was in Yokosuka Japan in 1979-1980 as a U.S. sailor. There were several Japanese naval vessels moored at the naval station there and I was startled to see a Hinari flag at the stern of each vessel. I looked into the history of Japanese national flags at that point. Your post recounts much of what I discovered, and I thank you for letting the world know. One small addition. The reason the naval ensign used the hinari was because it was visible at great distances to approaching or passing vessels. The reason the sun-disk is offset is that it gives observers some indication of the ship's direction or course (I was told this by a signalman aboard my own ship). Again, many thanks, good post!

They should change it to just a picture of Godzilla

There was never a change: the rising sun flag was not the official national flag of Japan even in those days - it was the country's military flag and was often popularly used with the regular national flag, but the national flag was the same as it is today.

Having lived in Japan for 25 years, and been preoccupied with other aspects of life in this amazing country I’ve never really had any opportunity to delve deeper into the questions surrounding Japan’s flags. This brief and informative documentary helped a lot. Of course, for all the time I’ve been living here I have been aware of the sensitivity surrounding Japan’s flags. Living here, you can’t help but notice its absence from daily life. Unlike in my native Australia, this country’s flag never gets used in TV commercials, billboards, or other forms of social education. In Japan, the Hinomaru is just simply missing from the public agenda. Yes, it hovers over city administration buildings and public schools. But its presence is part of that building’s design only, like a “wall” or “elevator” would be. The national flag rarely publicly reminds residents nor visitors which country they are in. The Hinomaru comes out on buses, trains, and urban street poles on public holidays only, and is quietly folded away the following day. On holidays perhaps one neighbor out of ten thousand might hang a Japanese flag up on their access to the street. People here seem to “be OK” with their flag, but the overall accepted Western version of historical events has obliged the individual Japanese not to “love it”. Those people who display the Hinomaru on days that are not public holidays are seen as extreme right-wing nationalists who are shunned by the majority. While there is much ongoing criticism internationally of Japan’s actions in history, one can’t help but feel sympathy for the confused typical young Japanese and their uneasy relationship with its flag. Sporting events are a rare opportunity for the individual Japanese to wave a flag that depicts the usual pride that peoples have towards a common identity, belongingness and success on the international stage, yet at international away sporting events though, particularly within Asia, Japanese supporters are warned by its government of the risks of flying any flag that symbolizes Japanese pride. All nations’ flags carry history. Few nations can be totally pride of its history. The Japanese certainly have issues of history it needs to deal with internally. Yet perhaps more than most people, the Japanese are aware of and struggle with the relationship between history and the flag that represents it, the present and the future.

(Rising Sun Flag) Westerners: I think it's a nice design.

The Japanese Rising Sun Flag is still flown on Navy ships as is our first union jack.

>School teacher committed suicide because of kids debating about the Hinomaru and the anthem Maximum Nihonjin

The Nissho flag(Hinomaru) was first adopted by the Shogunate as a ship flag on the high seas. The Rising Sun Flag has its roots in the military flag used in the Revolutionary War by the Revolutionary Army centered on the Satsuma Domain. As the new government, they adopted the Nissho flag(Hinomaru) as the national flag and the Rising Sun Flag as the military flag. Even now, the national flag is the Nissho flag(Hinomaru) , and the rising sun flag is used as the military flag.

im chinese. I am not offended by the flag and i think they should keep it. I am against cancel culture. If they have to change a centuries year old cultural flag because of one war then british should have to change their flag for also invading others and so should americans.

The Mitsubishi one was incorrect. That one was a merger of two symbols. One of 3 diamonds the the other (I think) was of a fern.

Keep up with the great work man, also Hilbert, I hope you're doing okay during this pandemic

The Japanese changing their flag because "empire bad" would be like the British changing the Union Jack because empire bad, I mean comparing it to the nazi flag is so over the top dramatic, it's not the same, if you compared the German imperial flag to the Japanese imperial flag then that would be accurate.

We also cannot forget, Clan Hojo was also the Hylian Royal Family.

Just for general knowledge: “land of the rising sun” doesn’t mean the people are “of the rising sun” or named themselves after the rising sun, but it represents, from a Chinese geographical perspective, the location of japan to the East. I like to translate it more as “the perceived origin of the sun as seen from China” lol. Kinda like how the name of China is “middle country.” Its more of a description of location than a true name. But then that’s where most Japanese family names come from, locations in nature.

“Japan has a lot of ruling families” 1:24 Mitsubishi

Terrifically informative video...thank you and keep up the great work! There was a lot of the word "actually" used in your narration, however. I actually might go back to count the number of times it was said. =)

the offset ray flag is actually quite nice from a design standpoint. i can see why they wouldn’t want it, but it’s still a nice design.

For centuries Sony Clan and Nintendo Clan fight with each other over the control of Japan. Now gamers.. I mean mercenaries from around the world support them in this endless war

All country's flag: had fancy design with lot of stripes Japanese being a badass: just put red circle in the middle.

Actually it never changed. “Sun Beam version “ is still the official flag of Today’s powerful Navy, Japan Maritime Self Defense Force , and it is “ Official “. Simple version on the other hand has been the “National Flag”. No charges. Both are appropriate Flags as the Land of Rising Sun.

Excellent video. You always learn something.

Fun fact: Finnish Air Force has used a swastika in their flag since 1919.

Me who plays hoi4: The Expert

Wow! I always wondered. Now I know. Thanks! And thanks to you commentators, much rich info there too! Thanks!

Japan: I got my army back officially. US: You are welcome.

This might be off topic, but in my school in Singapore we were made to sing Kimigayo once or Japan's national anthem in our history lesson to simulate the wartime experience of students in Singapore during the Japanese Occupation.

1:07 Me: hears “Amaterasu” Also me: *thinks of Itachi immediately*

Very informative, thank you for sharing

Very informative video. Thank you.

Fun fact: Paradox used the Hiashi flag for the Fascist Japan flag in HOI4 which is weird considered that the Fascist Japanese flag was a Pre-1999 flag

I have the rising sun flag on my wall

The flag is still being used actively by the Japanese Navy. I see it all the time (20 year resident of Japan) in the Yokosuka Navy Base and Tokyo area.

That’s like saying, “huh I haven’t heard from the Romanovs in a while…”

That "rising sun" thing became even more appropriate after the international date line.

If you want a Japanese equivalent of the German swastika, look up the symbol of “Taisei Yokusankai”. The purpose of the symbol actually comes from a political stance. The Japanese rising sun is more like the German iron cross, a cultural symbol thats rooted in their history.

It didn't change, the rising sun flag was the flag of the military, it was never the official flag of the country.

I love the incongruity of Mozart "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik" with the story of the Rising Sun flag.

Honestly if the Rising Sun flag is taboo then most other old military and national flags should also be. Few people want to Union Jack taken down despite the horrors done in the name of British imperialism. The flag of the Third Reich was designed specifically by Nazis as a symbol of Nazism, which is incomparable to flag that was adopted long before the militarists seized power in Japan.

Rising Sun flag is beautiful

Not even gonna lie Japan had probably the cleanest looking flag with that rising sun flag

I will point out three things about the video including misunderstanding ・ The Rising Sun Flag is not in the same line as the Haken Kreuz. The Rising Sun Flag corresponds to the flag such as German Iron Cross and White Ensign. If the theory of eliminating the Rising Sun Flag holds, then the flags of the countries that also controlled the colonies (such as White Ensign, US Navy flag, and other europian countries' flag) must also be eliminated. ・ The Rising Sun symbol has been used as a sign of good luck since before the Edo period. The main meaning of the Rising Sun Flag and the symbol itself is "I wish you good luck." The military element was added later. ・ The official flag of Japan is the Rising Sun Flag at any time. The official national flag of Japan before and after the war is the "Hinomaru".

Japan never changed the flag, Hinomaru is national flag, rising sun flag is used for a lot of usage and military organization.

“Rising the sun” flag which is called “Kyokujitsuki(旭日旗)” in Japan has ordinary 16 rays the reason why there are 16 rays on it is that Japanese imperial emblem, “Kikkagomon(菊花御紋)” which was designed based on flower of chrysantheum has 16 petals

That old flag design was hot 🔥

Holy shit 😂 I've always noticed the lighter shade of red but I thought that was just because the old rising sun pictures looked dimmer because they must have been older

No one ever complained about the flag until the 2002 soccer World Cup.

He nailed the Japanese “r” sound when he said Hinomaru

when I was still in middle school I always use the rising sun flag in the united nation event in our school

Great video!

I personally don't have a problem with Japan's Rising Sun flag, but my grand father working in Darwin as a home guard and my grand uncle as a private infantry man fighting in New Guinea during the 1940's would have thought VERY differently about it.

Who cares,,, just drive a Toyota.

The 'War Flag' with its sun rays radiating out from the centre disc was adopted in 1870, as part of Japan's modernisation. It was thought that modern, western countries such as Britain and the USA had national and military flags, so Japan must have them as well. In fact, the specific design of the Naval ensign with its offset sun disk and 16 red rays was formally adopted in 1889 - which was also the year that Japan became a constitutional monarchy with a democratically elected parliament, the Diet. The fact that the naval ensign was also used during the 1930s and 40s when Japan lapsed into militarism and dictatorship must be offset against the fact that the same flag was also used by democratic Japan in the preceding years - and it uses symbolism which has been associated with the country for over a millennium. This can be contrasted with flags such as Germany's swastika (Hakenkreuz) and the Soviet Union's hammer and sickle. They were the symbols of specific political movements, the Nazis and Communists, and were adopted as the national flag when those movements seized power in their respective countries. As such, when Nazism and Communism were overthrown, their flags were also abolished and banned. The Rising Sun flag, however, is not the symbol of an ideology but of a nation. In this context, the events after the Second World War should be considered. When the Americans occupied Japan in 1945, they banned all displays of nationalism. Any display of Japanese flags at all was prohibited without the permission of the occupation authorities, which was rarely given. These restrictions were partially lifted at a highly symbolic moment: in May 1947, when Japan adopted a new and fully democratic constitution, they were also permitted to fly their national flag over major public buildings such as the parliament building and supreme court. Over the next two years the ban on private citizens using the national flag was also lifted in two stages.

Originally, it is a lucky charm that expresses "Rising Sun". Sometimes a national flag, sometimes a military flag, sometimes a fishing boat's big catch flag, and sometimes a soccer cheering flag. It has nothing to do with Haken Kreuz. It's a lie made by South Korea. In 2011, Ki Sung-yueng performed a racial discrimination performance in the soccer match between Japan and Korea. Ki Sung-yueng made an excuse that he went to the Rising Sun Flag. Despite the fact that the Rising Sun Flag was not raised on that day. It has nothing to do with the Empire of Japan. The Rising Sun is an auspicious symbol, not that of militarism. There has been no criticism of this flag since the end of the war. There was none at all. 'Cause this flag is a celebration flag. Because it's an auspicious flag. Criticism began suddenly in 2011. Forged hoaxes with no historical background spread from South Korea. He got Japanese traditional flag dirty. When I see this flag, it reminds me of Korean criticism. We are really sad. Since 2011, South Korea has sharply linked it to the war. There is no sin in this beautiful flag. It all started with an excuse for Ki Sung-yueng to hide racism. The Japanese are confused by the large number of Koreans who criticize Japan. Please do not pollute the beautiful flag in the lie of Ki Sung-yueng. Please know the truth.

You can still see the imperial flags here in the Philippines, they’re usually on passenger jeepneys or as stickers on Oners (jeep like vehicle)

the old flag looks like it had a better graphic designer

JMSDF and RTN: Let's use the flag our neighbors hate lol

Good work! I didn’t know the name “Hiashi” for the rising sun flag. I found Hiashi means “the sun with legs”.

The perception of old symbols like this one strongly depends on where you live. For instance I live in Europe, so i don't perceive any negative connotations of the Rising Sun Flag. I even used to have a big decal of it on the roof my Honda because I liked the look of it, and nobody had a problem with it. Many fans of Japanese cars in Europe have some form of the Rising Sun Flag on their cars and it's perfectly fine. In the same way now I have a confederate flag on the roof of my Ford pickup truck and it's just a cool design feature (because of the Dukes of Hazzard) without any historical or ideological significance because in my country nobody cares about the american civil war. On the other hand I couldn't drive around with a Swastika on a Mercedes even if I wanted to, but in China I saw action figures of war criminals like Reinhard Heydrich in Nazi uniform, and nobody seemed to care. I presume that people in China perceive Nazi symbols just as some western exotic culture without any deeper meaning.

When I was little I loved ninjas so I made a Rising Sun Kamikaze headband. I had no idea what it meant, just thought of ninjas. One day we went to see my great grandparents and we went to eat at a Chinese restaurant. I made it a point to wear my Kamikaze headband. Nobody there was fucking happy with me at ALL

This channel has thought me more than my history class.

good video keep up work :D

8:05 Requesting a Naval Vessel to not fly its ensign upon entering one of your ports is actually quite a huge Diplomatic Affront no matter the circumstances.

A teacher straight up just killed themselves for a flags potential use

one : splashing period blood the other : one drop of period blood

Thank You for this great video about the difference between the Hinomaru and the Hiashi flags and the traffic I got from it! I really enjoyed this video and I hope you can educate plenty of people about Japan: The homeland of The Shinchoku Shogunate!

8:44 That was a dark time in history

It is kind of like the Dutch Prinsen Vlag, isn't it? We should use that one again.

Technically, in the 90s they made the color or the dot a slightly lighter shade of red so it's been changed even more recently.

Excellent research

The "army" is the JGSDF stands for Japanese Ground Self Defense Force

6:15 Stance? Maybe. Kinda condition of surrender. Most often we require that the nations deescalate their military capacity to only,being able to defend the nation and not have any forces able to go beyond that. Same with post-WW1 Germany when we effectively castrated their ability (in theory) to have a militsry.

The Rising Sun Flag of Japan is not a claim of militarism, but a flag that is displayed in front of the house when celebrating. In addition, the Rising Sun Flag of Japan has existed before 1900. Certain people are trying to give a bad impression to Japan's Rising Sun Flag, but the truth is this.

I can say without a doubt that the person who invented Rising Sun is a genius among geniuses and an artist of the highest level.

I love it when you relate everything with a meme

Normal Japanese flag Ww2 vet: Good ol japan heheheh Imperial Japanese flag Ww2 vet: *TENNO HEIKA BANZAI FLASHBACK INTENSIFIES*

Nice video!!!

very interesting, thank you

The rising sun flag is still flown (2021) from Japan's naval vessels. I have seen it flown from the stern in Port Melbourne on a rare occasion a Japanese navy ship visits.

As an Australian with family who served in WWII (and myself who serves) it always unnerves me to see the Japanese ensign, conducted several exercises with them and I get an eerie feeling seeing it.

The Clash made it look really cool .

It's really funny JSDF were allowed to fly the rising sun flag as their naval flag during visting Chinese harbor for PLA navy's 70th anniversary.

The rising sun which has a history of over 400 years, if anything, is equivalent to the German Iron cross, not the swastika.

I swear I've heard somewhere (maybe tv) that it is the color your rear will be if you take too much sun or burn it.

Japanese sunrise flag has good design 👏🏻✨

The red sun (Hinomaru) has been the flag of Japan since 1870. The army and navy used versions of the sunburst design since around the same time until 1945 when both services were disbanded. When the Japanese Self Defence Forces were created in the early 1950's the Ground Self Defence Force chose a similar but different design for its new flag. The Maritime Self Defence Force readopted the old naval ensign exactly. The new Air Self Defence Force which had no predecessors chose a completely different flag that shows distinctly US influences. It still, however, uses the old, pre-1945, "meatball" rondel to mark its aircraft. None of the service ensigns were ever the national flag of Japan any more than the White Ensign or the Gadsen Flag are the national flags of the United Kingdom or the United States respectively.

When you realized you learn so much in youtube than at school

Very strange because I'm from Newcastle and in old videos of the early 19 hundreds this flag was all over the place in our town

If you look into more of war images of Japan, you'll find that they only flew the rising sun flag when they won the battle. basically the rising sun flag was used for celebration. also the reason why Japanese imperial navy used the rising sun flag is simply because hinomaru just looked like a white flag from the distance on the sea when it's not waved. that's why japanese navy aka japanese maritime self defense force uses the rising sun flag still:)

I heard "flag de jour", like soup de jour. took me a while to realise you intended to say "de jure national flag"

The Rising Sun flag has been used during fishing for a long time.Not only the war. Also Japan's flag is The Rising sun flag not once.

you forgot to put the fact about the about the 2 variant flag which caused from Land army and naval army due to their differences and fighting/contesting each other resulting in another flag which is the one you talked about

Look up the Takenouchi document. It gives clear description of the yellow chrysanthemum with 16 petals that represented the 16 world nations. You can find this same symbol in ancient Sumer, Egypt, China, Etc

The rising sun flag isn't like the swastika that was used by the Germans in WW2 but more like the iron cross that was used by the Germans during WW1, WW2 and it is still used today. The equivalent to the swastika would be the taisei yokusankai, which is a white bird with the red sun between it's wings