Medieval Japan Focus Vocabulary
7th Grade World History
Cultural Diffusion• The spread of cultural elements from
one society to another
Pagoda
• A tower-shaped structure with several stories and roofs
Zen Buddhism• A form of Buddhism focusing on self-
discipline, simplicity, and meditation.
Meditation• A spiritual discipline that involves
deep relaxation and an emptying of distracting thoughts from the mind
Shinto• Means “way of the gods”, the
traditional religion of Japan based on respect for nature and ancestors.
Regent• A person who rules in place
of an absent or underage emperor.
Prince Shotoku• A powerful regent who
ruled Japan from A.D. 593 to 622.
Embassy• An office of a country’s
government in another country.
Figurehead• A ruler with no real
authority.
Haiku• A poem with 3
lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables each.
Samurai• A trained warrior who are
vassals to lords called daimyos in Medieval Japanese society.
Bushido• Code of honor OR warrior code of the
samurai that stressed honor, loyalty, and bravery.
Feudalism• System of local rule based
on a lord-vassal relationship where a vassal received land from a lord in return for their loyalty.
Daimyo• A Japanese lord with large
landholdings and owned samurai(vassal) armies.
Shogun• Supreme commander of the army who
ruled Japan for the emperor.
Fujiwara Clan• In the 800s, became the real rulers of
Japan and remained Japan’s most powerful family for 300 years.
Tokugawa Shogunate• A dynasty that held power in Japan
from 1603 to 1868, established Tokyo as the capital, banned Christianity, and put Japan in a period of isolation.