List of territories acquired by the Empire of Japan
This is a list of regions occupied or annexed by the Empire of Japan until 1945, the year of the end of World War II in Asia, after the surrender of Japan. Control over all territories except most of the Japanese mainland (Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu, Shikoku, and some 6,000 small surrounding islands) was renounced by Japan in the unconditional surrender after World War II and the Treaty of San Francisco. A number of territories occupied by the United States after 1945 were returned to Japan, but there are still a number of disputed territories between Japan and Russia (the Kuril Islands dispute), South Korea and North Korea (the Liancourt Rocks dispute), the People's Republic of China and Taiwan (the Senkaku Islands dispute).
Members of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere; territory controlled at maximum height. Japan and its allies in dark red; Thailand and Free India. Occupied territories/client states in lighter red. Korea, Taiwan, and Karafuto (South Sakhalin) were integral parts of Japan.
Maximum extent of the Japanese empire
Pre-1945
Colonies
- Hokkaido — 1869–1918
- Chishima Islands – 1875–1918
- Ryukyu Islands – 1879–1918
- Nanpō Islands – 1891–1918
- Taiwan and the Penghu Islands – 1895–1945
- Minamitorishima – 1898–1918
- Karafuto – 1905–1943
- Kantō – 1905–1945
- Chōsen – 1910–1945
- Kiautschou Bay Leased Territory – 1914–1922
- Nan’yō 1919–1945
Occupied territories
- All ports and major towns in the Primorsky Krai and Siberia regions of Russia east of the city of Chita, from 1918 until gradually withdrawing in 1922.[1]
- North Sakhalin was occupied by Japan 1920-1925.
World War II
| Territory | Japanese name | Date | Population est. (1943) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Sakhalin | Karafuto Prefecture (樺太庁) | 1905–1943 | 406,000 | Elevated to naichi status in 1943. |
| Mainland China | Chūgoku tairiku (中国大陸) | 1931–1945 | 200,000,000 (est) | Manchukuo 50 million (1940), Rehe, Kwantung Leased Territory, Jiangsu, Shanghai, Shandong, Hebei, Beijing, Tianjin, plus parts of : Guangdong, Guangxi, Hubei, Hunan, Fujian, Guizhou, Inner Mongolia |
| Japan proper | naichi (内地) | 1868-1945 | 40,000,000 | Present day Japan, South Sakhalin (after 1943), and Kuril Islands |
| Korea | Chōsen (朝鮮) | 1910-1945 | 25,500,000 | |
| Taiwan | Taiwan (臺灣) | 1895-1945 | 6,586,000 | |
| Hong Kong | Hon Kon (香港) | December 12, 1941 – August 15, 1945 | 1,400,000 | Hong Kong (UK) |
| :: East Asia (subtotal) | Higashi Ajia (東アジア) | – | 306,792,000 | |
| Vietnam | Annan (安南) | July 15, 1940 – August 29, 1945 | 22,122,000 | As French Indochina (FR) |
| Cambodia | Kanbojia (カンボジア) | July 15, 1940 – August 29, 1945 | 3,100,000 | As French Indochina, Japanese occupation of Cambodia |
| Laos | Raosu (ラオス) | July 15, 1940 – August 29, 1945 | 1,400,000 | As French Indochina, Japanese occupation of Laos |
| Thailand | Tai (タイ) | December 8, 1941 – August 15, 1945 | 16,216,000 | Independent State but Allied with Japan |
| Malaysia | Maraya (マラヤ), Kita Boruneo (北ボルネオ), Marai (マライ) | March 27, 1942 – September 6, 1945 (Malaya), March 29, 1942 – September 9, 1945 (Sarawak, Brunei, Labuan, North Borneo) | 4,938,000 plus 39,000 (Brunei) | As Malaya (UK), British Borneo (UK), Brunei (UK) |
| Philippines | Firipin (フィリピン) | May 8, 1942 – July 5, 1945 | 17,419,000 | Philippines (US) |
| Dutch East Indies | Higashi Indo (東印度) | January 18, 1942 – October 21, 1945 | 72,146,000 | Dutch East Indies (NL) |
| Singapore | Syōnan-tō (昭南島) | February 15, 1942 – September 9, 1945 | 795,000 | Singapore (UK) |
| Myanmar | Biruma (ビルマ) | 1942–1945 | 16,800,000 | Burma (UK) |
| East Timor | Higashi Chimōru (東チモール) | February 19, 1942 – September 2, 1945 | 450,000 | Portuguese Timor (PT) |
| :: Southeast Asia (subtotal) | Tōnan Ajia (東南アジア) | – | 155,452,000 | |
| New Guinea | Nyū Ginia (ニューギニア) | December 27, 1941 – September 15, 1945 | 1,400,000 | As Papua and New Guinea (AU) |
| Guam | Ōmiya-tō (大宮島) | January 6, 1942 – October 24, 1945 | from Guam (US) | |
| South Seas Mandate | Nan'yō Guntō (南洋群島) | 1919–1945 | 129,000 | from German Empire |
| Nauru | Nauru (ナウル) | August 26, 1942 – September 13, 1945 | 3,000 | Occupied from the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand |
| Wake Island, US | Ōtori-shima, -jima (大鳥島) | December 27, 1941 – September 4, 1945 | nil | US |
| Kiribati | Kiribasu (キリバス) | December 1941 – January 22, 1944 | 28,000 | from Gilbert Islands (UK) |
| :: Pacific Islands (subtotal) | – | – | 1,433,000 | |
| :: Total Population | – | – | 463,677,000 |
Disclaimer: Not all areas were considered part of Imperial Japan but rather part of puppet states & sphere of influence, allies, included separately for demographic purposes. Sources: POPULSTAT Asia[2] Oceania[3]
Other occupied World War 2 islands:
- Andaman Islands (India) – March 29, 1942 – September 9, 1945
- Christmas Island (Australia) – March 1942 – October 1945
Areas attacked but not conquered
- Kohima and Manipur (India)
- Dornod (Khalkhin Gol, Mongolia)
- Midway Atoll (United States)
Raided without immediate intent of occupation
- Air raids
- Pearl Harbor (Hawaii, United States)
- Colombo and Trincomalee (Sri Lanka)
- Calcutta (India)
- Chittagong (Bangladesh)
- Air raids on Australia, including:
- Broome (Western Australia, Australia)
- Darwin (Northern Territory, Australia)
- Townsville (Queensland, Australia)
- Dutch Harbor (Alaska, United States)
- Lookout Air Raids (Oregon, United States)
- Naval bombardment by submarine
- British Columbia (Canada)
- Ellwood (Santa Barbara, California, United States)
- Fort Stevens (Oregon, United States)
- Newcastle (New South Wales, Australia)
- Gregory (Western Australia, Australia)
- Midget sub attack
- Sydney (New South Wales, Australia)
- Diego Suarez (Madagascar)
See also
References
- Leonard A. Humphreys (1995). 'The Way of the Heavenly Sword: The Japanese Army in the 1920s. Stanford University Press. p. 26.
- http://www.populstat.info/Asia/asia.html Archived 2020-02-23 at the Wayback Machine Populstat ASIA
- http://www.populstat.info/Oceania/oceania.html Archived 2020-02-25 at the Wayback Machine Populstat OCEANIA
| British Empire | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} | |
|---|---|---|
| United States | ||
| Other | ||
| 1931–1945 | ||
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