This is a list of regions occupied or annexed by the Empire of Japan until 1945, the year of the end of World War II in Asia, after the surrender of Japan. Control over all territories except most of the Japanese mainland (Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu, Shikoku, and some 6,000 small surrounding islands) was renounced by Japan in the unconditional surrender after World War II and the Treaty of San Francisco. A number of territories occupied by the United States after 1945 were returned to Japan, but there are still a number of disputed territories between Japan and Russia (the Kuril Islands dispute), South Korea and North Korea (the Liancourt Rocks dispute), the People's Republic of China and Taiwan (the Senkaku Islands dispute).
| Territory | Japanese name | Date | Population est. (1943) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Sakhalin | Karafuto Prefecture (樺太庁) | 1905–1943 | 406,000 | Elevated to naichi status in 1943. |
| Mainland China | Chūgoku tairiku (中国大陸) | 1931–1945 | 200,000,000 (est) | Manchukuo 50 million (1940), Rehe, Kwantung Leased Territory, Jiangsu, Shanghai, Shandong, Hebei, Beijing, Tianjin, plus parts of : Guangdong, Guangxi, Hubei, Hunan, Fujian, Guizhou, Inner Mongolia |
| Japan proper | naichi (内地) | 1868-1945 | 76,200,000 | Present day Japan, South Sakhalin (after 1943), and Kuril Islands |
| Korea | Chōsen (朝鮮) | 1910-1945 | 25,500,000 | |
| Taiwan | Taiwan (臺灣) | 1895-1945 | 6,586,000 | |
| Hong Kong | Hon Kon (香港) | December 12, 1941 – August 15, 1945 | 1,400,000 | Hong Kong (UK) |
| :: East Asia (subtotal) | Higashi Ajia (東アジア) | – | 310,092,000 | |
| Vietnam | Annan (安南) | July 15, 1940 – August 29, 1945 | 22,122,000 | AsFrench Indochina (FR) |
| Cambodia | Kanbojia (カンボジア) | July 15, 1940 – August 29, 1945 | 3,100,000 | AsFrench Indochina, Japanese occupation of Cambodia |
| Laos | Raosu (ラオス) | July 15, 1940 – August 29, 1945 | 1,400,000 | AsFrench Indochina, Japanese occupation of Laos |
| Thailand | Tai (タイ) | December 8, 1941 – August 15, 1945 | 16,216,000 | Independent State but Allied with Japan |
| Malaysia | Maraya (マラヤ), Kita Boruneo (北ボルネオ), Marai (マライ) | March 27, 1942 – September 6, 1945 (Malaya), March 29, 1942 – September 9, 1945 (Sarawak, Brunei, Labuan, North Borneo) | 4,938,000 plus 39,000 (Brunei) | AsMalaya (UK), British Borneo (UK), Brunei (UK) |
| Philippines | Firipin (フィリピン) | May 8, 1942 – July 5, 1945 | 17,419,000 | Philippines (US) |
| Dutch East Indies | Higashi Indo (東印度), Sumatora Nishikaigan (スマトラ西海岸) | January 18, 1942 – October 21, 1945 | 72,146,000 | Dutch East Indies (NL), West Coast Sumatra (NL) |
| Singapore | Syōnan-tō (昭南島) | February 15, 1942 – September 9, 1945 | 795,000 | Singapore (UK) |
| Burma (Myanmar) | Biruma (ビルマ) | 1942–1945 | 16,800,000 | Burma (UK) |
| East Timor | Higashi Chimōru (東チモール) | February 19, 1942 – September 2, 1945 | 450,000 | Portuguese Timor (PT) |
| :: Southeast Asia (subtotal) | Tōnan Ajia (東南アジア) | – | 155,452,000 | |
| New Guinea | Nyū Ginia (ニューギニア) | December 27, 1941 – September 15, 1945 | 1,400,000 | AsPapua and New Guinea (AU) |
| Guam | Ōmiya-tō (大宮島) | January 6, 1942 – October 24, 1945 | from Guam (US) | |
| South Seas Mandate | Nan'yō Guntō (南洋群島) | 1919–1945 | 129,000 | from German Empire |
| Nauru | Nauru (ナウル) | August 26, 1942 – September 13, 1945 | 3,000 | Occupied from the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand |
| Wake Island, US | Ōtori-shima, -jima (大鳥島) | December 27, 1941 – September 4, 1945 | nil | US |
| Kiribati | Kiribasu (キリバス) | December 1941 – January 22, 1944 | 28,000 | from Gilbert Islands (UK) |
| :: Pacific Islands (subtotal) | – | – | 1,433,000 | |
| :: Total Population | – | – | 465,544,000 |
Disclaimer: Not all areas were considered part of Imperial Japan but rather part of puppet states & sphere of influence, allies, included separately for demographic purposes. Sources: POPULSTAT Asia[2] Oceania[3]
Other occupied islands during World War II:
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| British Empire |
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| United States |
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| Other |
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| 1931–1945 |
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