ABSTRACT
The review of scholarship on religion in archaic Japan has focused on the need to integrate research on the archaeological record—including material culture and site spatial arrangements—with the textual record. This is necessary in order to craft the most accurate historical narrative of ancient religious practices on the Japanese archipelago. The study of religion in archaic Japan—c.14,000 bce to c.700 ce—is predominately based on the archaeological record. Any discussion of religion in archaic Japan needs to be mindful of addressing two interrelated issues implied by the terms "religion" and "Japan". The archaeological record, particularly material culture and spatial arrangements, provide insights into the ritual worlds of early inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago. One of the most significant interpretive debates encountered in the study of religion in archaic Japan concerns issues of the origins of a distinctive Japanese identity and culture—including religion—and its continuity over time.
