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When did Japanese first come into contact with Chinese culture?

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Japanese calligraphy — Japanese language Record of a haiku exchange on *kaishi* writing paper by Japanese poet Bashō and one of his pupils in the teacher's own handwriting, 17th century, from a hanging scroll (ink on paper).

The Japanese archipelago began experiencing the influence of Chinese culture as early as the Yayoi period (c. 3rd century BCE – c. 250 CE).12

Evidence of this early contact is seen in the introduction of wet-rice cultivation techniques in western Japan around 400 BCE, as well as the adoption of iron and bronze metallurgy, which were influenced by Han dynasty China. Furthermore, Chinese emissarial records from the Han period provide some of the earliest written observations regarding the customs and sociopolitical structure of the Japanese population.123

While these cultural elements often reached Japan via the Korean peninsula—where Chinese colonies like Lelang served as hubs for the influx of continental practices—the interaction was foundational to the development of Japanese society. By the first four centuries CE, knowledge of Chinese civilization had reached Japan more systematically, eventually leading to the adoption of Chinese characters for writing and the later integration of Buddhism and Confucianism during the Asuka and Nara periods.1456