Japanese American
Heritage from Japan
Japanese American refers to an American of Japanese ancestry, or to things relating to this community: Japanese American internment, Japanese American cuisine.
The term encompasses multiple generations, from Issei (first-generation immigrants) through Sansei, Yonsei, and beyond.
Japanese Americans have been present in the United States since the mid-19th century, with the community's history marked by the mass incarceration during World War II.
Confinement in jail
- Executive Order 9066Wartime internment authorization decree
- ManzanarWWII incarceration site
- TopazGem-derived proper name
- JeromeName meaning sacred
barracks · watchtower · barbed wire · redress · reparations · pilgrimage
Legal path to belonging
- citizenshipStatus as state member
- visaTravel authorization stamp
- passportGovernment-issued travel credential
- expatriateOne living abroad permanently
emigrant · transpacific · picture brides · exclusion · quotas · integration · assimilation · settlement
Of two cultural backgrounds
- biracialHaving two racial ancestries
- multiracialOf multiple ethnicities
- dual identityHaving two distinct selves
- assimilationAbsorbing into a whole
acculturation · ethnic enclave · Japantown · Little Tokyo · community · cultural preservation · code-switching · belonging
Japanese stock average
- ancestryFamily line of descent
- traditionsLong-established customs passed down
- legacyWhat's passed down
- kimonoWraparound Japanese garment
sushi · origami · tea ceremony · bonsai · ikebana · taiko · mochi · shinto
Senior community members
- pioneersFirst to explore territory
- settlersThose who establish homes
- picture bridesWomen wed through exchanged photographs
- war bridesSpouses from conflict zones
incarceration
Confinement in jail
- Executive Order 9066Wartime internment authorization decree
- ManzanarWWII incarceration site
- TopazGem-derived proper name
Jerome · barracks · watchtower · barbed wire · redress · reparations · pilgrimage
naturalization
Legal path to belonging
- citizenshipStatus as state member
- visaTravel authorization stamp
- passportGovernment-issued travel credential
expatriate · emigrant · transpacific · picture brides · exclusion · quotas · integration · assimilation · settlement · homeland
bicultural
Of two cultural backgrounds
- biracialHaving two racial ancestries
- multiracialOf multiple ethnicities
- dual identityHaving two distinct selves
assimilation · acculturation · ethnic enclave · Japantown · Little Tokyo · community · cultural preservation · code-switching · belonging · hyphenated
Nikkei
Japanese stock average
- ancestryFamily line of descent
- traditionsLong-established customs passed down
- legacyWhat's passed down
kimono · sushi · origami · tea ceremony · bonsai · ikebana · taiko · mochi · shinto · zen
elders
Senior community members
- pioneersFirst to explore territory
- settlersThose who establish homes
- picture bridesWomen wed through exchanged photographs
- American EthnicityPuerto Rican, Hispanic, Latino, Chicano, Chicana
- Asian AmericansGuamanian, Hawaiian, Chinatown, Koreatown, Little Saigon
- JapantownJapantown, Little Tokyo, torii gate, ramen shop, ramen shops
- Nikkeiinternment
- JapanTokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Mount Fuji, Hokkaido
- East AsiansHan Chinese, Korean, Chinese, Koreans, Mongolian
Japanese AmericanNative American
Original inhabitants of America
WASP · enemy alien · European American · African American · Mexican American