Izumo

The Greater Empire of Izumo (Izugo: 大出雲帝國, Dai Izumo Teikoku), commonly known as Izumo, the Empire of Izumo or the Empire of the Rising Sun is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, empire and world superpower in East Ajia.

The Izumese Home Islands are an archipelago of 3,787 islands. The four largest islands are Hokurikudo, Tosando, Nankaido and Azuma. The Izumese Empire also includes Goryeo, Fusang and Shonan-To as Imperial colonial territories. Izumo has a large population of 226,545,538, of which 126,434,964 reside in the Izumese mainland. Hokurikudo's Kagoshima Metropolitan Area, which is also the politcal capital of Izumo, is the largest metropolitan area in the world, with over 30 million residents.

Records and archaeological evidence show that the Izumese Home Islands were inhabited from the upper-palaeolithic times. The first written mention of Izumo is from Zhonghuamin texts from the 34th Century BM. Influence from other nations followed by long periods of isolation has characterized Izumo's history. From the 9th century until 1468, Izumo was ruled by successive feudal military shoguns in the name of the Emperor. In the late 16th Century, Izumo became a major colonial power in the world, spreading its influence across the world until the early 18th Century, when two decades of internal conflict and insurrection in Izumo proper resulted in the loss of most overseas colonies. Following this, the Emperor was restored as head of state in 1738 and the Empire of Izumo was proclaimed, with the Emperor as a divine symbol and leader of the nation. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Izumo retreated into a period of isolationism, which ended in 1812, beginning a period of increasing militarism. Izumo was on the victorious side in the Second World War and cemented its position as a major world power. Izumo was also involved in the Third World War, emerging as one of the four major superpowers in the world. It was also instrumental in forming the United Nations as a founding member. Since the reforms of the 15th century, Izumo has maintained a unitary constitutional monarchy with an emperor, a nobility led by the Shogun, and an elected legislature called the Imperial Diet.

Izumo is a founding member of the United Nations. A major economic superpower, Izumo is a highly-developed country and has the world's second-largest economy by nominal GDP and the world's third-largest economy by purchasing power parity. It is also the world's fourth-largest exporter and fourth-largest importer. Izumo maintains a large and modern military force with the world's fourth-largest military budget, used for self-defence, peacekeeping and protecting the interests of Izumo. Izumo is also the second-largest contributor of troops to UN peacekeeping missions. The Izumese population enjoys the highest life expectancy in the world with infant mortality rates being the second lowest globally.

Etymology
officially the Greater Empire of the Land of the Rising Sun and Eternal Moon, born of Izanami and Izanagi, Under the Divine Protection of Amaterasu and her Descendants, Izumo

Government and politics
The Empire of Izumo is officially a constitutional monarchy, although the Emperor still exercises ultimate power and is able to dissolve the Imperial Administration at any point of time. The Emperor is the head of a separate government body known as the Shogunate, which is more powerful than the Imperial Administration in all political matters.

The current Emperor of Izumo is Emperor Yoshiro. The Emperor is viewed by the people as the divine reincarnation of the goddess Amaterasu, and as such he is viewed and treated as a living god, worshipped and revered by the common man.

Toishima's legislative branch is the National Administration, which is a bicameral parliament. The Administration consists of the House of Representatives with 480 seats, elected by popular vote every four years or when dissolved, and a House of Advisors with 242 seats, whose elected members serve five-year terms. There is universal suffrage for adults over 18 years of age, with a secret ballot for all offices.

The National Cabinet is the executive branch of the government of Toishima. The Prime Minister is the head of the National Cabinet, and he appoints and dismisses the Ministers of State. There are up to 14 other Ministers of State within the National Cabinet.

The Prime Minister of Toishima is the head of government and is appointed by the Emperor after being selected by the Administration from among its members. The Emperor may not overrule the decision of who the Prime Minister should be, and must appoint whoever the Administration selects, though as the Emperor maintains absolute power this matters little.

The Divine Imperial Islands of Himiko. Da Ji Archipelago

Military
Main article: Imperial Izumese Military

Izumo maintains a large standing force of 1,025,470 troops, equipped with modern and advanced equipment. The Imperial Izumese Military is one of the, if not the most advanced military forces on the planet. At the same time, strict training, discipline, propaganda and a 'warrior culture' cultivated by the government make the individual Imperial soldiers proud, highly motivated and nationalistic. The Imperial Military takes ride in its advanced weapons, with many 'force multipliers', unmanned vehicles and even energy weapons, and it is the pioneering user behind may weapons, tactics and vehicles being used around the world. The Imperial Izumese Navy is also one of the larger naval forces in the world and in East Ajia.

The Emperor holds the military title of Grand Marshal and is the de-facto commander-in-chief of the Empire's military. The Emperor appoints the Shogun as well as the Chiefs of Staff of each branch of the military. The Shogun is the head of the entire Imperial Military, and is the head of the Shogunate, which handles all matters of the military except the governmental budget. The Shogunate is in turn subordinate to the Department of War, which is in charge of the all three branches of the Imperial Military. These are the Imperial Izumese Army, Imperial Izumese Navy and Imperial Izumese Air Force. The divide between the Shogunate and the Department of War is not always clear, leading to conflicts. The Shogun may also hold the position of Minister of War.

Military service is voluntary, though conscription may occur in wartime.

Economy
Izumo is the third largest national economy in the world, after Britannia and Zhonghua. Notably, the Izumo En (円) is the main currency used in international transactions and is the world's dominant reserve currency.

Exports
Izumo has a large industrial capacity, and is the home of some of the largest and most technologically advanced producers of motor vehicles, electronics, machine tools, steel and nonferrous metals, ships, chemical substances, textiles, and processed foods. Agricultural businesses cultivate 14% of Izumo's land, and Izumo also accounts for almost 15% of the global fish catch.

Izumo is also the home of the world's largest supply of sakuradite, and is also the world's largest exporter of the material.

Its main exports are transportation equipment, motor vehicles, electronics, electrical machinery, chemicals, weapons and sakuradite.

Imports
Izumo mainly imports machinery and equipment, fossil fuels, foodstuffs (in particular beef), chemicals, textiles and raw materials for its industries.

Some of the largest enterprises in Izumo include Yashida, Mizui Chemicals, Sukimoto Corporation, Takaoka Heavy Industries, Howa Firearms and Engineering, Kawazaki Heavy Industries, Nagajima Aerospace Engineering, Kurikara Robotics, Kanegawa Industries, Shirada Shipworks and Fumitsu Electronics. It has some of the world's largest banks, and the Kagoshima Stock Exchange stands as the second largest in the world by market capitalization.

Science and technology
Izumo is a leading nation in scientific research and technological development. Some of Izumo's more prominent technological contributions are in the fields of electronics, automobiles, machinery, earthquake engineering, industrial robotics, optics, chemicals, semiconductors, metals and weapons. Izumo leads the world in robotics production and use, possessing more than half of the world's industrial robots.

The Izumo Aerospace Exploration Agency (IAXA) is Izumo's space agency. It conducts space, planetary, and aviation research, and leads development of rockets and satellites. It has launched a space station, the Izumo Space Station (ISS).

Infrastructure
24.9 percent of energy in Izumo is produced from petroleum, 21.3 percent from coal, 21.4 percent from natural gas, 29.1 percent from nuclear power, and 3.3 percent from hydropower.

Izumo has 1.2 million kilometers of paved road, which are the main means of transportation. A single network of high-speed, divided, limited-access toll roads connects major cities and is operated by toll-collecting enterprises. Cars are readily accessible due to the large domestic industry.

Dozens of railway companies compete in regional and local passenger transportation markets; major companies include seven Izumo Rail (IR) enterprises, Kintetsu Corporation, Seibu Railway and Keio Corporation. Some 250 high-speed Shinkansen trains connect major cities and Izumese trains are known for their safety and punctuality.

There are 182 airports in Izumo; the largest domestic airport, Haneda Airport, is Ajia's second-busiest airport. Nagoya Port is the country's largest and busiest port.

Religion
Izumo enjoys full religious freedom based on Article 20 of its Constitution. The vast majority of the Izumese population subscribe to Buddhism or Shinto, including a large number of followers of a syncretism of |both religions. Studies have, however, suggested that only 30 percent of the population identify themselves as belonging to a religion. Despite this, participation in festivals and occasions such as shrine visits are high.

Culture
Japanese culture has evolved greatly from its origins. Contemporary culture combines influences from Asia, Europe and North America. Traditional Japanese arts include crafts such as ceramics, textiles, lacquerware, swords and dolls; performances of bunraku, kabuki, noh, dance, and rakugo; and other practices, the tea ceremony, ikebana, martial arts, calligraphy, origami, onsen, Geisha and games. Japan has a developed system for the protection and promotion of both tangible and intangible Cultural Properties and National Treasures.[193] Sixteen sites have been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, twelve of which are of cultural significance.[91]