JAN 
called Jankulum. Some authors make him fon of Ccelus 
and Hecate; and others make him a native of Athens. 
During his reign, Saturn, driven from heaven by his fon 
Jupiter, came to Italy, where Janus received him with 
much hofpitality, and made him his colleague on the throne. 
Janus is reprefented with two faces, becaufe he was ac¬ 
quainted w ith the paft and the future ; or, according to¬ 
others, becaufe he was taken for the fun, who opens the 
day at his riling, and fliuts it at his fetting. Some ftatues 
reprefented Janus with four heads. He fometimes ap¬ 
peared with a beard, and fometimes without. In religious 
ceremonies, his name was always invoked the firft, be¬ 
caufe he prefides over all gates and avenues, and it is 
through him only that prayers can reach the immortal 
ods. From that circumftance, he often appears with a 
ey in his right hand, and a rod in his left. Sometimes 
lie holds the number three hdndred in one hand, and in 
the other fixty-five,.to fhow that he prefides over the year, 
of which the firft month bears his name. Some fuppofe 
that he is the fame as the world, or Coelus; and, from 
that circumftance, they call him Eanus ab eundo, becaufe 
of the revolution of the heavens. He was called Patulcius 
et C/avJius, becaufe the gates of his temples were opened 
during the time of war, and (hut in time of peace. He 
was chiefly worfnipped among the Romans, where he had 
many temples, fome.erefted to Janus Bifrons, others to 
Janus Quadrifrons. The temples of Quadrifons were 
built with four equal fides, with a door and three win¬ 
dow's on each fide. The four doors were the emblems of 
the four feafons of the year, and the three windows in 
each of the fides the three months of each feafon, and, all 
together, the twelve months of the year. Janus was ge¬ 
nerally reprefented in ftatues as a young man. After 
death, Janus was ranked among the gods for his popu¬ 
larity, and the civilization which he had introduced among 
the wild inhabitants of Italy. His temple, w'hich was 
always open in times of war, was ftiut only three times 
during above feven hundred years, under Numa, 234. B.C. 
and under Auguftus ; and, during that long period of time, 
the Romans were continually employed in war. 
Dr. Bryant obferves, that all the chief circumftances in 
the life of Noah correfpond with the hiltory of Janus. 
By Plutarch (in Numa. Quteft. Rom.) he is called lavvoc, 
and reprefented as an ancient prince, who reigned in the 
infancy of the world; and who brought men front a rude 
and lavage way of life to a mild and rational fyftem : who 
was alfo the firft former of civil communities, and intro¬ 
ducer of national polity. He had generally near him fome 
Tefemblance of a (hip; particularly upon money, which 
in after-times was coined to his honour. Ovid feems 
to have been puzzled to find out the hiftory and pur¬ 
port of this deity: 
Quem tamen effe deum dicant te, Jane biformis ? 
Nam tibi par nullum Grtecia nurnen habet. Fojli, lib. i. 
The Romans indeed had in a manner appropriated him 
to themfelves. There were' however many divinities fimi- 
lar to him both in Greece and Egypt. To him was at¬ 
tributed the invention of alhip; and he is laid to have 
firft compofed a chaplet. Upon the Sicilian coins of Eryx 
his figure often occurs with a two-fold countenance; and 
on the reverfe is a dove encircled with a crown, which 
feems to be of olive. He was reprefented as a juft man, 
and a prophet; and the remarkable charafteriftic of being 
in a manner the author of time, and god of the year. 
He was ftiled Matutinus-, as if to him was owing the re¬ 
newal of light and day. There was a tradition that he 
raifed the firft temple to heaven ; though they looked 
upon him as a deity, and one of the eight original divi¬ 
nities. In the hymns of the Salii he was ftiled the god 
of gods. In this and many other refpeefs he was fimilar 
to the Cronos of the Greeks. He had the title of Juno- 
nius, from the Arkite dove Ionah, which the Latins ex- 
prefled Juno. He is ftiled templorum po/itor, lemplorum 
f.iutte rrfdlor : by which is meant, that he was a reuewer 
JAP 687 
of religious rites, and the worfnip of the deity. He was 
reputed the fame as Apollo; and had the title of ©vpoocf, 
or the deity of the door, or paflage ; and his altars were 
placed immediately before the door of the houfe, or tem¬ 
ple, where his rites were celebrated. In memorial of his 
hiftory, every door among the Latins had the name of 
Janua; and the firft month of the year was named Janua- 
rius, as being an opening to a new sera, and in fome de¬ 
gree a renewal of tiine. 
JA'NUSPOL, a towm of Poland, in the palatinate of 
Volhynia : twenty-four miles W'eft of Berdiczow. 
JANZE', a towimof France, ih the department of the 
I lie and Villaine, and chief place of a canton, in the dif- 
trict of La Guerche: three leagues and a half weft of La 
Guerclie, and one and three quarters fouth of Chateau 
Giron. 
JAO-PIN', a town of China, of the third rank, in the 
province of Quang-tong: twenty-two miles north-eaft of 
Tchao. 
JAPAN'. The kingdom, or rather empire, of Japan, 
has by moft geographers been clafied among the Afiatic 
ifles, and has in confequence been treated with more bre¬ 
vity than its importance demands; for, excepting China, 
no exilting Afiatic monarchy can afpire to a fuperior rank, 
or is more calculated to excite rational curiofity, from the 
Angularity of its government, abundant population, pro- 
grefs in the arts of life, and peculiar manners of the peo¬ 
ple. The Japanefe lflands may, in fome meafure, be com¬ 
pared with Great Britain and Ireland, forming a grand ' 
infular power near the eaftern extremity of Alia, like 
that of-the Britiih ifles near the weftern extremity of Eu¬ 
rope. 
Marco Polo, the father of modern Afiatic geography, 
mentions Japan by the name of Zipangri or Zipangu. The 
inhabitants themfelves Cali it Nipon or Nifon, and the 
Chinefe Sippon and Jepuen \ both names fignifying the Bails 
of the Sun. This empire extends from the 30th to the 
4-ift degree of north latitude ; and, according to the moft 
recent maps, from the 131ft to the 14.26 degree of eaft lon¬ 
gitude from Greenwich. Befides many fmaller ifles, it 
prefents two confiderable ones in the fouth-weft, that of 
Kiufiu, and that of Sikokf. But by far the moft impor-, 
tant ifland is that of Nipon, to the north-eaft of the two 
former. The geography of Ktempfer has been correfled 
by recent voyages, according to which the length of Ki¬ 
ufiu from north to fouth is about two degrees, or 14.0 
Britiih miles ; the greateft breadth about 90. Sikokf is 
about 90 Britiih miles in length by half the breadth. The 
grand iile of Nipon is in length from fouth to north-eaft 
not lefs than 750 Britiih miles ; but is fo narrow in pro¬ 
portion, that the media! breadth cannot be aifumed above* 
80, though in two projecting parts it may double that 
number. To the north of Nipon is another large iile, 
that of Jeflo or Chicha, which, having received fome Ja¬ 
panefe colonies, is generally regarded as iubjeft to Japan ; 
but, being inhabited by a favage people, is rather confi- 
dered as a foreign conqueft than as a part of this civilized 
empire. 
The original population of Japan has been little illus¬ 
trated ; but the Japanefe feem to be a kindred race with 
the Chinefe, though, according to Ktempfer, the lan¬ 
guages are radically diftinfit. The Japanefe, however, ac¬ 
knowledge their government and civilization to have been 
derived from China. Sin Noo, one of fhefie Chinele mo- 
narchs admitted by the Japanefe into their annals, is re¬ 
prefented with the head of a bull, or with two horns, as 
having taught the ufe of agriculture and herds ; perhaps 
the Ample and natural origin of the Jupiter Ammon, and 
fimilar images- of claflical antiquity. 
According to Dr. Thunberg’s refearches, the Japanefe 
have never been fubdued by any foreign power, not even 
in the moft remote periods; their chronicles contain fuch 
accounts of their valour, as one would rather incline to 
confider as fabulous inventions than aflual occurrences, 
if later ages had not furruihed equally ftriking proofs of it. 
W.hce -s 
