Japanese archipelago

American

[jap-uh-neez ahr-kuh-pel-uh-goh, jap-uh-nees] / ˈdʒæp əˌniz ˌɑr kəˈpɛl əˌgoʊ, ˈdʒæp əˌnis /

noun

the nearly 2,000-mile (3,220-kilometer) chain of more than 6,850 islands in the North Pacific Ocean that form the country of Japan and the Russian island of Sakhalin, with the Sea of Japan to the west and the Sea of Okhotsk to the northeast.

Etymology

Origin of Japanese archipelago

First recorded in 1850–55

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

She added that she wanted "a Japanese archipelago where, no matter where you live, you can live safely, where you can receive the medical care and welfare support you need, where you can receive high-quality education, and where proper workplaces and jobs exist."

From Barron's

Solo Travel Japan took me on long ferry trips up and down the Japanese archipelago.

From The Wall Street Journal

China has been the biggest source of tourists to the Japanese archipelago, with almost 7.5 million visitors in the first nine months of 2025 -- a quarter of all foreign tourists, according to official figures.

From Barron's

The strategy says that the U.S. will seek to deny aggression anywhere in the First Island Chain, a string of territory from the Japanese archipelago through Taiwan and the Philippines to the South China Sea.

From The Wall Street Journal

A fascinating blend of cultural and historical influences, the Japanese archipelago feels a world apart from Tokyo, Kyoto and other tourist hot spots in the country.

From The Wall Street Journal

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023