Gunka
Encyclopedia
is the Japanese
term for military music. While in standard use in Japan it applies both to Japanese songs and foreign songs such as Battle Hymn of the Republic, as an English language category it refers to songs produced by the Empire of Japan
in between roughly 1885 and 1943.
Japanese gunka were consciously constructed to engender loyalty and warm feelings towards the nation. Up until the surrender of the wartime Japanese government
in 1945, gunka were taught in schools both in Japan proper and in the larger Empire. As late as the 1970s, these gunka were still popular in Japanese-controlled Micronesia
and parts of Southeast Asia
, and they experienced a mild "boom" in Japan in the late 1960s. A famous example of Japanese Gunka was the song "Senyū" written during the Russo-Japanese war.
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
term for military music. While in standard use in Japan it applies both to Japanese songs and foreign songs such as Battle Hymn of the Republic, as an English language category it refers to songs produced by the Empire of Japan
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
in between roughly 1885 and 1943.
Japanese gunka were consciously constructed to engender loyalty and warm feelings towards the nation. Up until the surrender of the wartime Japanese government
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
in 1945, gunka were taught in schools both in Japan proper and in the larger Empire. As late as the 1970s, these gunka were still popular in Japanese-controlled Micronesia
Micronesia
Micronesia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising thousands of small islands in the western Pacific Ocean. It is distinct from Melanesia to the south, and Polynesia to the east. The Philippines lie to the west, and Indonesia to the southwest....
and parts of Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
, and they experienced a mild "boom" in Japan in the late 1960s. A famous example of Japanese Gunka was the song "Senyū" written during the Russo-Japanese war.