A Japanese scholar visited Beijing University in 1973, that is, at the peak of the Cultural Revolution, and had a talk with professors and students.
A Chinese student said, "Though Chinese characters were invented in ancient China, modern Chinese academic terminologies were all imported from Japan, weren't they?"
It is true. Majority, namely about 70%, of modern Chinese terminologies related to natural science and social science were originally invented in Japan when Japan opened its door to the world late in the 19th century.
However, though they share the same writing expressions of those terminologies, pronounciation is very different between Japanese and Chinese, in addition to their grammar.
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When Japanese began to absorb Western Civilization, they encountered many unfamiliar or different-style concepts, such as Communism, Socialism, Economy, Freedom, and Market, though similar concepts had been in Japanese culture and society. Accordingly, Japanese invented a new expression to each of those new concepts.
In doing so, they first selected two or more conventional Kanji characters as elements related to a new concept. Then, by combining these Kanji characters in a very innovative way, Japanese invented many modern Japanese academic terminologies, each of which precisely matches a Western academic terminology.
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As Japanese Kanji letters had been originally imported from China and thus almost identical with Chinese letters, Chinese scholars and leaders decades ago or more than a century ago decided to import those Japanese Kanji-based terminologies, since until the mid 20th century China had been in wars, civil wars, and great social turmoil without any room for stable basement and development of academic activities.
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Modern Chinese terminologies related to natural science and social science are expressed in combination of two or more Chinese characters. But, those who first invented such combinations to mean modern concepts, which were imported from Europe and America, were Japanese, not Chinese, of almost 150 years ago.
China imported those terminologies expressed in Kanji letters from Japan, and they still continue to use them even under the regime of the Chinese Communist Party.
It is said almost 1000 terminologies were imported to China from Japan before WWII, WWI, and the Japanese-Russo War, which helped Chinese people develop modern science and culture.
Japan is the only country from which China imported such new words to use in its society as well as in daily lives and activities of the people to that extent.
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Now many Americans are learning Chinese.
More advanced they are in their study in Chinese, more they will learn terminologies Japanese invented and Chinese imported in the Meiji Era, late in the 19th century.
It is not a secret between Japan and China. Most of Chinese scholars love to use those Japanese-Kanji-based terminologies which give them new insight about depth of Japanese Kanji letters or their own Chinese characters.
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In other words, they are learning Japanese terminologies when foreigners are proudly learning Chinese.
Put extremely in favor of Japan, it is like they are actually using Japanese technologies, inventions, and funds, when foreigners are sometimes proudly using Chinese modern products, services, and systems.
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Other important issue is that due to the great work of those Japanese in the Meiji Era, Japanese as well as Chinese have not had to learn English, French, Germany, Latin or any other foreign languages to master Western science and culture.
Every valuable Western work can be translated into Japanese as well as Chinese using those terminologies expressed in Kanji letters.
In this respect, Japan has been a very exceptional country.
It is why, for example, African leaders are often astonished at and perplexed by a fact that while no Japanese speak English or French well they have such advanced technologies and economy.
While only one percent of African population had a chance to read and understand Western science and technologies with learnt Western languages, 100 percent of the Japanese had basically a chance to master it in their own language.
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Even without Japan in history, Chinese civilization might be well advanced until the late 19th century.
But, the whole world today must look very different.
The difference must be more significant than in case of no existence of New Continents, including the American Continent.
However, can you really imagine such a world of today?
The difference is only matched by that caused by assumed non-existence of the God-blessed Israelites for 4000 years of human history, in my view.
"BACK AND FORTH WITH THE SPEED OF LIGHTNING"