The history of the Jews in Japan reaches back to the early 1700s.
Early settlements
Jewish travelers entered Japan as early as the 1700s, however no permanent settlements were established until after Commodore Matthew C. Perry's arrival in 1853. Early Jewish settlers were located in Yokohama. By 1895, this community had about fifty families, and dedicated the first synagogue in the country. Jews also settled in Nagasaki during the 1880s, which, as a significant port town, was more accessible to Jews fleeing Russian pogroms.[1]
Although the Jewish community in Nagasaki was much larger than the one in Yokohama, the effects of the Russo-Japanese War resulted in them largely disintegrating and passing on their Torah scroll to the Jewish community in Kobe. Until 1923, the Jewish community in Yokohama became the largest, however after the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, many relocated to Kobe, resulting in the Kobe Jewish community growing significantly.[1]
Antisemitism in Japan rose after World War I, in part due to the reaction to the October Revolution in Russia. Despite this, the Japanese government cooperated with Jewish communities in aiding Jewish refugees of Russia after this revolution.[1] In the 1930s, antisemitism became more prevalent, due to pacts signed with Germany in 1936 and 1940, as well as propaganda campaigns to turn the Japanese public against the "Jewish peril."[2]
Attitudes towards Jewish people were not uniform among individual diplomats and politicians, with many attempting to combat antisemitism, and stating that Japan owed Jewish people due to their participation in the Russo-Japanese War.[2]
Japanese diplomat Chiune Sugihara issued transit visas to Polish and Jewish refugees. While the exact number of visas issued is unknown, it is estimated that he helped five thousand to six thousand Jews escape via Japan.[3]
During World War II, Japanese policy towards Jewish people was that those holding citizenship of a country would be afforded the same treatment as those from that country, and Jewish people designated as stateless — typically German and Polish Jews who had their citizenship revoked — were placed under surveillance due to their racial characteristics, similarly to their treatment of Russians.[2]
While there were individual incidents of harassment and some Jews were held in detention camps in Japan occupied Malaya, now Malaysia, throughout the duration of the war, Jewish people as a whole were treated no worse than citizens of neutral countries. One exception was the request for French Indochina to institute similar restrictions of Jews to citizens of neutral countries with anti-Axis views.[2]
The main problem facing Jewish people in Japan and Japan occupied territories, such as Shanghai, was the shortage of supplies and money for refugees.[2]
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After the war, there was an attempt at propaganda by the Japanese government contrasting the treatment of Jews in Asia to the treatment of Jews in Nazi occupied Europe. The purpose of this was to gain influence with Jewish people around the world.[2]
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