Empire of Japan

==Terminology==
The historical state is frequently referred to as the "Empire of Japan", the "Japanese Empire", or "Imperial Japan" in English. In Japanese it is referred to as {{Nihongo|''Dai Nippon Teikoku''|大日本帝國}},<ref name="Shillony">{{cite book |title=Ben-Ami Shillony – Collected Writings |first=Ben-Ami |last=Shillony |publisher=Routledge |year=2013 |isbn=978-1134252305 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jQoNuRfzqNMC&pg=PA83 |page=83}}</ref> which translates to "Empire of Great Japan" ({{lang|ja-Latn|[[wikt:大#Japanese|Dai]]}} "Great", {{lang|ja-Latn|[[wikt:日本#Japanese|Nippon]]}} "Japanese", {{lang|ja-Latn|[[wikt:帝国#Japanese|Teikoku]]}} "Empire"). ''Teikoku'' is itself composed of the nouns {{lang|ja-Latn|[[wikt:帝#Japanese|Tei]]}} "referring to an emperor" and {{lang|ja-Latn|[[wikt:国#Japanese|-koku]]}} "nation, state", literally "Imperial State" or "Imperial Realm" (compare the [[German language|German]] ''[[German Empire|Kaiserreich]]'').

This meaning is significant in terms of geography, encompassing Japan, and its surrounding areas. The nomenclature ''Empire of Japan'' had existed since the anti-Tokugawa domains, [[Satsuma Domain|Satsuma]] and [[Chōshū Domain|Chōshū]], which founded their new government during the [[Meiji Restoration]], with the intention of forming a modern state to resist [[Western world|Western]] domination. Later the Empire emerged as a [[great power]] in the world.

Due to its name in ''[[kanji]]'' characters and its flag, it was also given the [[exonym]]s "Empire of the Sun" and "Empire of the Rising Sun."