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Daniel Boone National Forest

The Daniel Boone National Forest (originally the Cumberland National Forest) is a national forest in Kentucky. Established in 1937, it includes 708000 acres of federally owned land within a 2100000 acres proclamation boundary. The name of the forest was changed in 1966 in honor of the explorer Daniel Boone.

The terrain of the forest is generally rugged, and includes multiple prominent water features. It is home to a range of plant and animal species, although many areas still bear evidence of industrial logging and other practices which took place mostly prior to federal protection. It is a popular recreational and tourist destination which serves a million or more visitors a year, and contains several widely recognized areas which are protected in their own right, including state parks, trails, wilderness areas, and landmarks.

Physical geography
As of 2017 the Daniel Boone National Forest encompasses 708000 acres of federally owned land within a 2100000 acres proclamation boundary. The land within the proclamation boundary contains both publicly and privately owned land, along with thousands of miles of marked boundary lines between the two. Most privately owned land, accounting for about 1378410 acres is held by individuals and ranges from 100 acres to 300 acres in size.

The forest is formed by two main areas: a 140 mi wide strip of land along the western edge of the Cumberland Plateau, and the Redbird Purchase, located on the east of the Cumberland Plateau. The terrain is generally rugged, hilly and mountainous, with reliefs of as much as 200 ft in the north and 2000 ft toward the south. Administratively, the forest is divided into four ranger districts: Cumberland London, Redbird, and Stearns.

Counties
The Daniel Boone National Forest includes land across 21 Kentucky counties, namely:

 * 1) Bath County
 * 2) Clay County
 * 3) Estill County
 * 4) Harlan County
 * 5) Jackson County
 * 6) Knox County
 * 7) Laurel County
 * 8) Lee County
 * 9) Leslie County
 * 10) McCreary County
 * 11) Menifee County
 * 12) Morgan County
 * 13) Owsley County
 * 14) Perry County
 * 15) Powell County
 * 16) Pulaski County
 * 17) Rockcastle County
 * 18) Rowan County
 * 19) Wayne County
 * 20) Whitley County
 * 21) Wolfe County

Water
Major river systems include the Licking River, Kentucky River, and Cumberland River, all of which flow into the Ohio River. Four reservoirs are located within the forest, administered by the US Army Corps of Engineers. These are Cave Run Lake, Buckhorn Lake, Lake Cumberland and Laurel River Lake. Taken together, at normal water levels these reservoirs comprise 63850 acre of water. The forest additionally encompasses thousands of miles of smaller streams, many of which flow only after heavy rain. About 12500 acre are classified as riparian zones, while 7000 acre are classified as floodplains or wetlands.

Water is of an overall good quality, but is impacted by activities related to mining, and exploration for oil and gas. The area averages 46 in of rainfall annually, with thunderstorms occurring an average of 46 days per year. Due to shallow soil, heavy rains may result in severe local flooding, and conversely, many tributaries may become completely dry during periods of little rainfall.

Air
Air quality in the forest is considered "excellent", due to the comparatively sparse population and lack of industry. The majority of air pollution results from the 128 average annual forest fires, in addition to controlled burning, the residential burning of coal, and dust from unpaved roads.

European exploration until statehood
By the early 16th century both the French and the British had laid claim to the land that would become the Daniel Boone National Forest. Among the first Europeans to enter the area was the French René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle in 1669. He was later followed by the party of the English Thomas Walker in 1750, who would go on to make the first European discoveries of the Cumberland Gap, Cumberland River, and the pass through Pine Mountain Several others made expeditions in the area over the following decades with mixed success.

Around 1760, Daniel Boone reached an understanding with Richard Henderson for the exploration and preparation of the wilderness beyond the Appalachian Mountains, so that it may be more easily settled by those who sought to move westward. Boone made an expedition in 1767 into the area of modern-day Prestonsburg, Kentucky, and then in 1769, he set out with five others on an extended expedition through the Cumberland Gap and into Kentucky, where he stayed until March 1771. Boone set out on a failed attempt at settlement in 1773, and then again in 1774, where he served as an officer in Lord Dunmore's War.

On March 17, 1775, the Transylvania Colony, founded by Henderson, and for which Boone was employed, reached an agreement (over the objections of the governors of Virginia and North Carolina) with a grand counsel of the Cherokee Nation to purchase all land from the Kentucky River to the Cumberland River, including large part of modern-day Kentucky and Tennessee, an area known as the Transylvania Purchase. In anticipation of this purchase, Boone and a party were dispatched on March 10, marking and clearing trails in the newly acquired lands, and eventually founding Fort Boone, near the confluence of Station Camp Creek and the Kentucky River. This became the fledgling Transylvania Colony, until being eliminated in 1778 by the Virginia House of Delegates, becoming Kentucky County, Virginia, and by 1792, the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

Industrial use
Up to the beginning of the 20th century, the Daniel Boone and surrounding forest were the subject of extensive logging, with logs sent downstream for processing in the sawmills of Louisville, Nashville, Frankfort and Cincinnati, only to be overtaken as rail extended into the area around the turn of the century. The industry reached its peak in 1907, with almost one billion board feet of lumber production. The forest was additionally harvested to provide charcoal for the developing iron industry, and as the railroad advanced, to produce crossties, and lumber for the building of bridges in addition to rail cars.

Federal protection
In 1900, Congress appropriated $5,000, and again in 1907, $25,000 for the investigation of areas in southern Appalachia, for potential purchase as a national forest. These efforts were further strengthened in 1911 by passage of the Weeks Act, which allocated millions in additional funding. As part of the Forest Service's examination of the area, E. Murray Bruner published in 1914 an extensive report covering 900000 acres of land in Kentucky, and concluded in part:

"Because of the general rugged topography of this section and very great influence it exerts upon navigation of the Kentucky River, it is very essential that its protection from extensive clearing be assured. For these reasons the section is eminently desirable as a purchase area, and therefore, in view of the fact that the prices of land now prevailing are very reasonable, there is a favorable prospect for making large purchases..."

Land acquisition began in 1933, based largely on the purchase of 48000 acres from Stearns Coal and Lumber, 27000 acres acres from Castle Craig Coal, and 22000 acres from the Warfork Land Company. By the time the area was officially declared the Cumberland National Forest in 1937, the tract spanned 409567 acres of federally owned land across 16 Kentucky counties.

Both Daniel Boone and Henry Clay were originally put forth in the 1930s as potential namesakes. However, it was not until 1966, following, among other things, a resolution to the United States Department of Agriculture by the Kentucky Senate, that the name was officially changed by Lyndon B. Johnson to Daniel Boone National Forest on April 11. The same year, some 300000 acres of the Redbird Unit were added.

Ecology
The Daniel Boone National Forest contains around 40 commercial species of trees, and as many non-commercial species of trees and shrubs. These include mixed hardwoods such as oaks and hickories, in addition to white and yellow pine. Because much of the area was intensely logged prior to federal land protections, much of the forest is of low quality, although areas of younger growth is of a higher quality, having been always a part of protected lands. As of 1985, when the forest service published their environmental evaluation of the area, about 92% of the land was considered "tentatively suitable" for the production of timber.

The area is home to 54 species and subspecies of mammals, 194 of birds, 44 of reptiles, 41 of amphibians, and 150 of fish. Notable animals that inhabit this forest frequently seen by visitors include black bear, coyote, bobcat, white-tailed deer, wild turkey, gray squirrel, muskrat, quail, opossum, ruffed grouse, rabbit, red and gray fox species, raccoon and mourning dove. Other species present are the woodchuck, red-cockaded woodpecker, mink, bald eagle, Virginia big-eared bat, Indiana bat and gray bat. Venomous species include the copperhead, timber rattlesnake, and southern devil scorpion. Fish species include rainbow trout, large and smallmouth bass, bluegill, crappie, and muskie.

Recreation
The Daniel Boone National Forest provides a range of recreational activities, including approximately 100 developed recreation areas and 600 mile of trails, that see more than a million visitors per year. Across the forest, developed recreation sites have a combined capacity to accommodate 15,830 visitors at-a-time, in addition to the capacity of dispersed recreational activities such as hiking, mountain biking, rock climbing, boating and horse riding.

Within the forest's boundaries lie three state managed parks, Buckhorn Lake, Cumberland Falls, and Natural Bridge. There is one designated National Recreation Area, the Big South Fork, located in the southwest corner of the forest, and one National Recreation Trail, the Sheltowee Trace, which stretches almost 290 mi from northern Kentucky to Pickett CCC Memorial State Park near Jamestown, Tennessee. There are two designated wilderness areas, Beaver Creek, consisting of 4877 acre set aside in 1975, and Clifty Wilderness, consisting of 12646 acre near the Red River Gorge. The Red River Gorge itself is a designated National Natural Landmark, along with the Rock Creek Natural Research Area.

Hunting is also popular as a recreational activity. One location, the Pioneer Weapons Wildlife Management Area, representing 7610 acre near Cave Run Lake, was created as a partnership between Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources and the US Forest Service, and is an area where hunters are permitted to use only comparatively primitive weapons, such muzzleloaders, bow and arrow, or crossbows.

title: Daniel Boone National Forest


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Religion in Japan

Religion in Japan is manifested primarily in Shinto and in Buddhism, the two main faiths, which Japanese people often practice simultaneously. According to estimates, as many as 80% of the populace follow Shinto rituals to some degree, worshiping ancestors and spirits at domestic altars and public shrines. An almost equally high number is reported as Buddhist. Syncretic combinations of both, known generally as shinbutsu-shūgō, are common; they represented Japan's dominant religion before the rise of State Shinto in the 19th century.

The Japanese concept of religion differs significantly from that of Western culture. Spirituality and worship are highly eclectic; rites and practices, often associated with well-being and worldly benefits, are of primary concern, while doctrines and beliefs garner minor attention. Religious affiliation is an alien notion. Although the vast majority of Japanese citizens follow Shinto, only some 3% identify as Shinto in surveys, because the term is understood to imply membership of organized Shinto sects. Some identify as "without religion" (無宗教), yet this does not signify rejection or apathy towards faith. The mushūkyō is a specified identity, which is used mostly to affirm regular, "normal" religiosity while rejecting affiliation with distinct movements perceived as foreign or extreme.

Shinto
Shinto (神道), also kami-no-michi, is the indigenous religion of Japan and of most of the people of Japan. George Williams classifies Shinto as an action-centered religion; it focuses on ritual practices to be carried out diligently in order to establish a connection between present-day Japan and its ancient roots. The written historical records of the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki first recorded and codified Shinto practices in the 8th century. Still, these earliest Japanese writings do not refer to a unified "Shinto religion", but rather to a collection of native beliefs and of mythology. Shinto in the 21st century is the religion of public shrines devoted to the worship of a multitude of gods (kami), suited to various purposes such as war memorials and harvest festivals, and applies as well to various sectarian organizations. Practitioners express their diverse beliefs through a standard language and practice, adopting a similar style in dress and ritual dating from around the time of the Nara (710–794) and Heian (794–1185) periods. The Japanese adopted the word Shinto ("way of the gods"), originally as Shindo, from the written Chinese Shendao, combining two kanji: shin (神), meaning "spirit" or kami; and tō (道), meaning a philosophical path or study (from the Chinese word dào). The oldest recorded usage of the word Shindo dates from the second half of the 6th century. Kami are defined in English as "spirits", "essences" or "gods", referring to the energy generating the phenomena. Since the Japanese language does not distinguish between singular and plural, kami refers to the divinity, or sacred essence, that manifests in multiple forms: rocks, trees, rivers, animals, places, and even people can be said to possess the nature of kami. Kami and people are not separate; they exist within the same world and share its interrelated complexity.

Shinto is the largest religion in Japan, practiced by nearly 80% of the population, yet only a small percentage of these identify themselves as "Shintoists" in surveys. This is due to the fact that "Shinto" has different meanings in Japan: most of the Japanese attend Shinto shrines and beseech kami without belonging to Shinto organisations, and since there are no formal rituals to become a member of folk "Shinto", "Shinto membership" is often estimated counting those who join organised Shinto sects. Shinto has 100,000 shrines and 78,890 priests in the country.

Shinto sects and new religions
Profound changes occurred in Japanese society in the 20th century (especially after World War II), including rapid industrialisation and urbanisation. Traditional religions, challenged by the transformation, underwent a reshaping themselves, and principles of religious freedom articulated by the 1947 constitution provided space for the proliferation of new religious movements.

New sects of Shinto, as well as movements claiming a thoroughly independent status, and also new forms of Buddhist lay societies, provided ways of aggregation for people uprooted from traditional families and village institutions. While traditional Shinto has a residential and hereditary basis, and a person participates in the worship activities devoted to the local tutelary deity or ancestor – occasionally asking for specific healing or blessing services or participating in pilgrimages – in the new religions individuals formed groups without regard to kinship or territorial origins, and such groups required a voluntary decision to join. These new religions also provided cohesion through a unified doctrine and practice shared by the nationwide community.

The officially recognized new religions number in the hundreds, and total membership reportedly numbers in the tens of millions. The largest new religion, Soka Gakkai, a Buddhist sect founded in 1930, gathers around 4 million members. Scholars in Japan have estimated that between 10% and 20% of the population belongs to the new religions, although more realistic estimates put the number at well below the 10% mark. there are 223,831 priests and leaders of the new religions in Japan, three times the number of traditional Shinto priests.

Many of these new religions derive from Shinto, retain the fundamental characters of Shinto, and often identify themselves as forms of Shinto. These include Tenrikyo, Konkokyo, Omotokyo, Shinrikyo, Shinreikyo, Sekai Shindokyo, Zenrinkyo and others. Others are independent new religions, including Aum Shinrikyo, Mahikari movements, the Church of Perfect Liberty, Seicho-no-Ie, the Church of World Messianity, and others.

Buddhism
Buddhism (仏教) first arrived in Japan in the 6th century, introduced in the year 538 or 552 from the kingdom of Baekje in Korea. The Baekje king sent the Japanese emperor a picture of the Buddha and some sutras. After overcoming brief yet violent oppositions by conservative forces, it was accepted by the Japanese court in 587. The Yamato state ruled over clans centered around the worship of ancestral nature deities. It was also a period of intense immigration from Korea, horse riders from northeast Asia, as well as cultural influence from China, which had been unified under the Sui dynasty becoming the crucial power on the mainland. Buddhism functioned to affirm the state's power and mold its position in the broader culture of East Asia. Japanese aristocrats set about building Buddhist temples in the capital at Nara. However, the government's vast investment in spreading Buddhism during the Nara period (646-794) led to corruption, and led to reformation period and a shift in focus from Nara to the new capital of Heian (now Kyoto). The six Buddhist sects initially established in Nara are today together known as "Nara Buddhism" and are relatively small. When the capital moved to Heian, more forms of Buddhism arrived from China, including the still-popular Shingon Buddhism, an esoteric form of Buddhism similar to Tibet's Vajrayana Buddhism, and Tendai, a monastic conservative form known better by its Chinese name, Tiantai.

When the shogunate took power in the 12th century and the administrative capital moved to Kamakura, more forms of Buddhism arrived. The most culturally influential was Zen, which focused on meditation and attaining enlightenment in this life. Two schools of Zen were established, Rinzai and Sōtō; a third, Ōbaku, formed in 1661.

With the Meiji Restoration in 1868 and its accompanying centralisation of imperial power and modernisation of the state, Shinto was made the state religion. An order of elimination of mutual influence of Shinto and Buddhism was also enacted, followed by a movement to thoroughly eradicate Buddhism from Japan.

Today, the most popular school in Japan is Pure Land Buddhism, which arrived in the form of independent schools in the Kamakura period, although elements of it were practiced in Japan for centuries beforehand. It emphasizes the role of Amitabha Buddha and promises that reciting the phrase "Namu Amida Butsu" will result in being taken by Amitabha upon death to the "Western Paradise" or "Pure Land", where Buddhahood is more easily attained. Pure Land attracted members from all of the different classes, from farmers and merchants to noblemen and samurai clans, such as the Tokugawa clan. There are two primary branches of Pure Land Buddhism today: Jōdo-shū, which focuses on repeating the phrase many times as taught by Honen, and Jōdo Shinshū, which claims that only saying the phrase once with a pure heart is necessary, as taught by Shinran. Two smaller schools of Pure Land Buddhism exist as well, those of Ji-shu and Yuzu Nembutsu, although these are significantly smaller than their larger counterparts.

Another prevalent form of Buddhism is Nichiren Buddhism, which was established by the 13th century monk Nichiren who underlined the importance of the Lotus Sutra. The main representatives of Nichiren Buddhism include sects such as Nichiren Shū and Nichiren Shōshū, and lay organisations like Risshō Kōsei Kai and Soka Gakkai—a denomination whose political wing forms the Komeito, Japan's third largest political party. Common to most lineages of Nichiren Buddhism is the chanting of Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō (or Nam Myoho Renge Kyo) and the Gohonzon inscribed by Nichiren.

, there were 355,000+ Buddhist monks, priests and leaders in Japan, an increase of over 40,000 compared to 2000.

Christianity
In 2022, there were 1.9 million Christians in Japan, most of them living in the western part of the country, where missionaries' activities were greatest during the 16th century.

Christianity (キリスト教 Kirisutokyō), in the form of Catholicism (カトリック教 Katorikkukyō), was introduced into Japan by Jesuit missions starting in 1549. In that year, the three Jesuits Francis Xavier, Cosme de Torres and Juan Fernández, landed in Kagoshima, in Kyushu, on 15 August. Portuguese traders were active in Kagoshima since 1543, welcomed by local daimyōs because they imported gunpowder. Anjirō, a Japanese convert, helped the Jesuits understanding Japanese culture and translating the first Japanese catechism.

These missionaries were successful in converting large numbers of people in Kyushu, including peasants, former Buddhist monks, and members of the warrior class. In 1559, a mission to the capital, Kyoto, was started. By the following year there were nine churches, and the Christian community grew steadily in the 1560s. By 1569 there were 30,000 Christians and 40 churches. Following the conversion of some lords in Kyushu, mass baptisms of the local populations occurred, and in the 1570s the number of Christians rose rapidly to 100,000.

Near the end of the 16th century, Franciscan missionaries arrived in Kyoto, despite a ban issued by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. In 1597, Hideyoshi proclaimed a more serious edict and executed 26 Franciscans in Nagasaki as a warning. Tokugawa Ieyasu and his successors enforced the prohibition of Christianity with several further edicts, especially after the Shimabara Rebellion in the 1630s. Many Christians continued to practice in secret. However, more importantly, the discourses on Christianity became the property of the state during the Tokugawa period. The state leveraged its power over to declare Christians enemies of the state in order to create and maintain a legally enforceable identity for Japanese subjects. As such, Christian identities or icons became the exclusive property of the Japanese state. Although often discussed as a "foreign" or "minority" religion, Christianity has played a key sociopolitical role in the lives of Japanese subjects and citizens for hundreds of years.

In 1873, following the Meiji Restoration, the ban was rescinded, freedom of religion was promulgated, and Protestant missionaries (プロテスタント Purotesutanto or 新教 Shinkyō, "renewed teaching") began to proselytise in Japan, intensifying their activities after World War II, yet they were never as successful as in Korea.

Nagasaki Prefecture had the highest percentage of Christians in 1996 (about 5.1%). As of 2007 there were 32,036 Christian priests and pastors in Japan. According to a poll conducted by the Gallup Organization in 2006, Christianity had increased significantly in Japan, particularly among youth, and a high number of teens were becoming Christians.

Throughout the latest century, some Western customs originally related to Christianity (including Western style weddings, Valentine's Day and Christmas) have become popular among many of the Japanese. For example, 60–70% of weddings performed in Japan are Christian-style. Christianity and Christian culture has a generally positive image in Japan.

Islam

Islam (イスラム教 Isuramukyō) in Japan is mostly represented by small immigrant communities from other parts of Asia. In 2008, Keiko Sakurai estimated that 80–90% of the Muslims in Japan were foreign-born migrants primarily from Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Iran. It has been estimated that the Muslim immigrant population amounts to 10,000–50,000 people, while the "estimated number of Japanese Muslims ranges from thousands to tens of thousands".

Bahá'í Faith
The Bahá'í Faith (バハーイー教 Bahāiikyō) in Japan began after a few mentions of the country by 'Abdu'l-Bahá first in 1875. The first Japanese convert was Kanichi Yamamoto (山本寛一), who lived in Honolulu, and accepted the faith in 1902; the second convert was Saichiro Fujita (藤田左弌郎). The first Bahá'í convert on Japanese soil was Kikutaro Fukuta (福田菊太郎) in 1915. Almost a century later, the Association of Religion Data Archives (relying on World Christian Encyclopedia) estimated some 15,700 Bahá'ís in 2005.

Judaism
Judaism (ユダヤ教 Yudayakyō) in Japan is practiced by about 2,000 Jews living in the country. With the opening of Japan to the external world in 1853 and the end of Japan's sakoku foreign policy, some Jews immigrated to Japan from abroad, with the first recorded Jewish settlers arriving at Yokohama in 1861. The Jewish population continued to grow into the 1950s, fueled by immigration from Europe and the Middle East, with Tokyo and Kobe forming the largest communities.

During World War II, some European Jews fleeing the Holocaust found refuge in Japan. These mainly Polish Jews received a so-called Curaçao visa from the Dutch consul in Kaunas, Jan Zwartendijk. This allowed one Japanese diplomat, Chiune Sugihara, the Japanese consul to Lithuania, to issue Japanese transit visa. In doing so, both Zwartendijk and Sugihara disregarded orders and helped more than 6,000 Jews escape the Nazis. After World War II, a large portion of Japan's Jewish population emigrated, many going to what would become Israel. Some of those who remained married locals and were assimilated into Japanese society.

There are community centres serving Jews in Tokyo and Kobe. The Chabad-Lubavitch organization has two centers in Tokyo.

In September 2015, Japan nominated a Chief Rabbi for the first time, the head of Tokyo's Chabad House, Rabbi Binyamin Edrei.

Hinduism
Hinduism (ヒンドゥー教 Hindūkyō or 印度教 Indokyō) in Japan is practiced by a small number of people, mostly migrants from China, India, Nepal, and Bali. Nevertheless, Hindu culture have had a significant but indirect role in Japanese culture, through the spread of Buddhism and the fascination of ancient world about Bharatvarsha. Four of the Japanese "Seven Gods of Fortune" originated as Hindu deities, including Benzaiten (Sarasvati), Bishamon (Vaiśravaṇa or Kubera), Daikoku (Mahakala/Shiva), and Kisshoutennyo (Laxmi). Various Hindu deities, including the aforementioned, are worshipped in Shingon Buddhism. This denomination and all other forms of Tantric Buddhism have multiple sources in common with Tantric Hinduism.

According to the Association of Religion Data Archives, there were 25,597 Hindus in Japan in 2020.

Sikhism
Sikhism (シク教 Sikukyō) is presently a minority religion in Japan mainly followed by families migrated from India.

Jainism
Jainism (ジャイナ教 Jainakyō) is a minority religion in Japan. , there were three Jain temples in the country.

Other religions of East Asia
Happy Science was founded in 1986 by Ryuho Okawa. This Japanese religion has been very active in its political ventures to re-militarize Japan.

Ryukyuan religion

The Ryukyuan religion is the indigenous belief system of the people of Okinawa and the other Ryukyu Islands. While specific legends and traditions may vary slightly from place to place and island to island, the Ryukyuan religion is generally characterized by ancestor worship (more accurately termed "ancestor respect") and the respecting of relationships between the living, the dead, and the gods and spirits of the natural world. Some of its beliefs, such as those concerning genius loci spirits and many other beings classified between gods and humans, are indicative of its ancient animistic roots, as is its concern with mabui (まぶい), or life essence.

One of its most ancient features is the belief, the spiritual superiority of women derived from the goddess Amamikyu, which allowed for the development of a class of noro (priestesses) cult and yuta (female media). This differs from Japanese Shinto, where men are seen as the embodiment of purity. Ryukyuan religion has been influenced by Japanese Shinto and Buddhism, and various Chinese religions. It includes sects and reformed movements such as Ijun or Ijunism (Ryukyuan: いじゅん Ijun; Japanese: 違順教 Ijunkyō), founded in the 1970s.

Ainu folk religion
The Ainu religion Ainu no shūkyō (アイヌの宗教) is the indigenous belief system of the Ainu people of Hokkaido and parts of Far Eastern Russia. It is an animistic religion centered around the belief that Kamuy (spirits or gods) live in everything.

Chinese folk religion
Most Chinese people in Japan practice the Chinese folk religion, also known as Shenism , that is very similar to Japanese Shinto.

The Chinese folk religion consists in the worship of the ethnic Chinese gods and ancestors, shen (神 "gods", "spirits", "awarenesses", "consciousnesses", "archetypes"; literally "expressions", the energies that generate things and make them thrive), which can be nature deities, city deities or tutelary deities of other human agglomerations, national deities, cultural heroes and demigods, ancestors and progenitors of kinships. Holy narratives regarding some of these gods are codified into the body of Chinese mythology.

Taoism

Taoism (道教 Dōkyō) was introduced from China between the 7th and 8th centuries, and influenced in varying degrees the Japanese indigenous spirituality. Taoist practices were absorbed into Shinto, and Taoism was the source of the esoteric and mystical religions of Onmyōdō, Shugendō and Kōshin.

Taoism, being an indigenous religion in China, shares some roots with Shinto, although Taoism is more hermetic while Shinto is more shamanic. Taoism's influence in Japan has been less profound than that of Japanese Neo-Confucianism. Today, institutional Chinese Taoism is present in the country in the form of some temples; the Seitenkyū was founded in 1995.

Confucianism

Confucianism (儒教 Jukyō) was introduced from Korea during the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598), and developed into an elite religion, yet having a profound influence on the fabric of Japanese society overall during the Edo period. The Confucian philosophy can be characterized as humanistic and rationalistic, with the belief that the universe could be understood through human reason, corresponding to the universal reason (li), and thus it is up to man to create a harmonious relationship between the universe (天 Ten) and the individual. The rationalism of Neo-Confucianism was in contrast to the mysticism of Zen Buddhism in Japan. Unlike the Buddhists, the Neo-Confucians believed that reality existed, and could be understood by mankind, even if the interpretations of reality were slightly different depending on the school of Neo-Confucianism.

The social aspects of the philosophy are hierarchical with a focus on filial piety. This created a Confucian social stratification in Edo society that previously had not existed, dividing Japanese society into four main classes: samurai, farmers, artisans and merchants. The samurai were especially avid readers and teachers of Confucian thought in Japan, establishing many Confucian academies.

Neo-Confucianism also introduced elements of ethnocentrism into Japan. As the Chinese and Korean Neo-Confucians had regarded their own culture as the center of the world, the Japanese Neo-Confucians developed a similar national pride. This national pride would later evolve into the philosophical school of Kokugaku, which would later challenge Neo-Confucianism, and its perceived foreign Chinese and Korean origins, as the dominant philosophy of Japan.

Religious practices and holidays
Most Japanese participate in rituals and customs derived from several religious traditions. Life cycle events are often marked by visits to a Shinto shrine and Buddhist temples. The birth of a new baby is celebrated with a formal shrine or temple visit at the age of about one month, as are the third, fifth, and seventh birthdays (Shichi-Go-San) and the official beginning of adulthood at age twenty (Seijin shiki). The vast majority of Japanese wedding ceremonies have been Christian for at least the last three and half decades. Shinto weddings and secular weddings that follow a "western-style" format are also popular but much less so and a small fraction (usually less than one percent) of weddings are Buddhist.

Japanese funerals are usually performed by Buddhist priests, and Buddhist rites are also common on death day anniversaries of deceased family members. 91% of Japanese funerals take place according to Buddhist traditions.

There are two categories of holidays in Japan: matsuri (temple fairs), which are largely of Shinto origin (some are Buddhist like Hanamatsuri) and relate to the cultivation of rice and the spiritual well-being of the local community; and nenjyū gyōji (annual feasts), which are largely of Chinese or Buddhist origin. During the Heian period, the matsuri were organized into a formal calendar, and other festivals were added. Very few matsuri or annual feasts are national holidays, but they are included in the national calendar of annual events. Most matsuri are local events and follow local traditions. They may be sponsored by schools, towns, or other groups but are most often associated with Shinto shrines.

Some of the holidays are secular in nature, but the two most significant for the majority of Japanese—New Year's Day and Obon—involve visits to Shinto shrines or Buddhist temples and only Buddhist temples for later. The New Year's holiday (January 1–3) is marked by the practice of numerous customs and the consumption of special foods. Visiting Shinto shrines or Buddhist temples to pray for family blessings in the coming year, dressing in a kimono, hanging special decorations, eating noodles on New Year's Eve, and playing a poetry card game are among these practices. During Obon, bon (spirit altars) are set up in front of Buddhist family altars, which, along with ancestral graves, are cleaned in anticipation of the return of the spirits. People living away from their family homes return for visits with relatives. Celebrations include folk dancing and prayers at Buddhist temples as well as family rituals in the home.

Religion and law
In early Japanese history, the ruling class was responsible for performing propitiatory rituals, which later came to be identified as Shinto, and for the introduction and support of Buddhism. Later, religious organization was used by regimes for political purposes; for instance, the Tokugawa government required each family to be registered as a member of a Buddhist temple. In the early 19th century, the government required that each family belong to a shrine instead, and in the early 20th century, this was supplemented with the concept of a divine right to rule bestowed on the emperor. The Meiji Constitution reads: "Japanese subjects shall, within limits not prejudicial to peace and order, and not antagonistic to their duties as subjects, enjoy freedom of religious belief".

Article 20 of the 1947 Constitution states: "Freedom of religion is guaranteed to all. No religious organization shall receive any privileges from the State, nor exercise any political authority. No person shall be compelled to take part in any religious act, celebration, rite or practice. The State and its organs shall refrain from religious education or any other religious activity". This change in constitutional rights provided mechanisms for limiting state educational initiatives designed to promote Shinto beliefs in schools and freed the populace from mandatory participation in Shinto rites.

In postwar years, the issue of the separation of Shinto and state arose in the Self-Defense Force Apotheosis Case. In 1973, Nakaya Takafumi, a member of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces and husband of Nakaya Yasuko, died in a traffic accident. Despite Yasuko's refusal to provide relevant documents for her husband's enshrinement at the Yamaguchi prefectural National-Protecting Shrine, the prefectural Veterans’ Association requested the information from the Self-Defense Forces and completed the enshrinement. As a result, in 1973, Yasuko sued the Yamaguchi Prefectural Branch of the Self-Defense Forces, on the grounds that the ceremony of apotheosis violated her religious rights as a Christian.

Although Yasuko won the case at two lower courts, the ruling was overturned by the Supreme Court of Japan on June 1, 1988, based on the precedent established by the Tsu City Shinto Groundbreaking Ceremony Case. First, the Supreme Court ruled that because the Veterans’ Association—which was not an organ of the state—had acted alone when arranging the ceremony of apotheosis, no violation of Article 20 had occurred. Second, the Supreme Court held that the Self-Defense Forces' provision of Takafumi's documents to the Veterans’ Association did not constitute a religious activity prohibited by Article 20, because neither the intention nor the effects of its action harmed or patronized any religion.

Third, the Supreme Court adopted a narrow interpretation of individual religious rights, by ruling that violation of individual rights to religion did not occur unless the state or its organs coerced individuals to perform some religious activity or limited their religious freedom. On June 2, 1988, a report by the Los Angeles Times described the Japanese Supreme Court's decision as “a major setback for advocates of stronger separation of religion and state in Japan.” On June 7, 1988, an article published in the New York Times expressed concern that the Japanese Supreme Court's decision was likely to encourage the resurgence of State Shinto and nationalism. Because the prefectural National-Protecting Shrines perform the same ceremony of apotheosis as the Yasukuni Shrine does, the significance of this case also lies in its implications for the constitutionality of state patronage of and official visits to the Yasukuni Shrine.

In 2023, the country was scored 4 out of 4 for religious freedom.

Opposition to organised religion
In the early 1990s, Shichihei Yamamoto argued that Japan has shown greater tolerance towards irreligion than the West.

Comments against religion by notable figures

 * Shin'ichi Hisamatsu, philosopher and scholar who rejected theism, claimed that God or Buddha, as objective beings, are mere illusions.
 * Ito Hirobumi, four-time Prime Minister of Japan, who reportedly said: "I regard religion itself as quite unnecessary for a nation's life; science is far above superstition, and what is religion – Buddhism or Christianity – but superstition, and therefore a possible source of weakness to a nation? I do not regret the tendency to free thought and atheism, which is almost universal in Japan because I do not regard it as a source of danger to the community".
 * Hiroyuki Kato, who headed the Imperial Academy from 1905 to 1909 and said: "Religion depends on fear".
 * Haruki Murakami, a Japanese novelist who wrote: "God only exists in people’s minds. Especially in Japan, God's always has been a kind of flexible concept. Look at what happened to the war. Douglas MacArthur ordered the divine emperor to quit being a God, and he did, making a speech saying he was just an ordinary person".
 * Ando Shoeki, who denounced Confucian scholars and Buddhist clergy as spiritual oppressors of his age, though he still venerated the gods of old Japan as a pantheist would, equating them with the nature.
 * Fukuzawa Yukichi, who was regarded as one of the founders of modern Japan and found it impossible to combine modern learning with belief in gods, openly declaring: "It goes without saying that the maintenance of peace and security in society requires a religion. For this purpose any religion will do. I lack a religious nature, and have never believed in any religion. I am thus open to the charge that I am advising others to be religious while I am not so. Yet my conscience does not permit me to clothe myself with religion when I have it not at heart...Of religions there are several kinds – Buddhism, Christianity, and what not. From my standpoint there is no more difference between those than between green tea and black...".

Anti-religious organisations
The Japan Militant Atheists Alliance (Nihon Sentoteki Mushinronsha Domei, also known as Senmu) was founded in September 1931 by a group of antireligious people. The alliance opposed the idea of kokutai, the nation's founding myth, the presence of religion in public education, and the practice of State Shinto. Their greatest opposition was towards the imperial system of Japan.

Two months later, in November 1931, socialist Toshihiko Sakai and Communist Takatsu Seido created the Japan Anti-religion Alliance (Nihon Hanshukyo Domei). They opposed "contributions to religious organizations, prayers for practical benefits (kito), preaching in factories, and the religious organizations of all stripes" and viewed religion as a tool used by the upper class to suppress laborers and farmers.

Demographics
According to the annual statistical research on religion in 2015 by the Agency for Culture Affairs, Government of Japan, followers of Shintoism make up 70.4% of the total population, followers of Buddhism make up 69.8% of the population, followers of Christianity make up 1.5% of the population, and followers of other religions make up 6.9%. The Japanese National Character Survey of 2013 showed 72.0% of Japanese had no personal faith and the Japanese General Social Survey of 2015 showed 69.6% did not follow any religion.

According to surveys carried out in 2006 and 2008, less than 40% of the population of Japan identifies with an organized religion: around 35% are Buddhists, 3% to 4% are members of Shinto sects and derived religions, and from fewer than 1% to 2.3% are Christians.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Religion in Japan


text:
Talk:Korpokkur

Source of info
What's this? Can someone show me source? I, as Japanese have never heard of it. -- Taku 02:14 Jan 7, 2003 (UTC)
 * I don't know where the name "Koro-pok-guru" comes from, but I've always heard of it as Korobokkuru. It's a legendary creature from Ainu folklore.  This article desperately needs to be rewritten, with more information on the actual creature and less focus on modern appearances in games and shows.  Shikino 20:47, 10 January 2007 (UTC)

Need timeframe
This article says nothing about timelines. The information is not particularly useful without time frames. --jaknouse

Moved info here
I moved the following here:
 * ''The name signifies 'the people having depressions', and is usually rendered by western writers as 'Pit-dwellers'. In the Japanese writings the Koro-pok-guru are referred to as 'the small people' and 'earth spiders'. (1)

These koro-pok-guru were of such small stature as to be considered dwarfs. They wore skins of animals for clothing, and that they understood the potter's art and used flint arrow-heads is clearly proved by excavations at the sites of their pits. The Ainu, on the contrary, never had any knowledge of pottery. (2)''

Since the article clearly says where it took the material from, it was pretty obviously copyrighted. -- Zoe

 * The Ainu name for these mythological sprites, korpokkur, cannot mean "the people having depressions" because Ainu is an SOV language, and the proper order for such a compound would be [depression] + kor ("have") + kur ("person"). The name is widely recognized to mean "people under the leaves of Petasites japonicus (Japanese butterbur)"; the common Ainu name for the entire Japanese butterbur plant is korkoni, but the noun kor (as opposed to the verb kor, which means "have; keep") is said to be an older word that refers specifically to the leaves of this plant. Ebizur (talk) 03:40, 30 May 2010 (UTC)

Is there some reason why it is spelled this way?
The word is Ainu, not Japanese, and it is korpokkur (made up of kor, fuki tree, pok under, kur person). I learned it from the Ainu class I took with Hiroshi Nakayama in 2004, though I'm sure there are many other sources. Can we rename the article so that it has the correct Ainu name? Mark Yaima (talk) 14 June 2019 (UTC)

 * There can be no doubt that "Koro-pok-guru" is a Japanese approximation, what with those surplus synonyms. As the actual word is Ainu, I support the move to change the name of the article to "Korpokkur" and move the Japanified version into the list of variants. Laodah 00:37, 13 October 2019 (UTC)

 * That sounds great, Laodah; how do we initiate this change? I would gladly do it but I'm something of a beginner to editing Wikipedia.  I would be happy to scan a page from one of my Ainu textbooks that contains this word if need be. Mark Yaima (talk) 00:39, 23 October 2019 (UTC)

 * Wish I knew, Mark. I've signaled title changes before and never knew how they actually happened, if indeed they did. Maybe a post in one of the fora? (By the way, in my first post above I meant "surplus syllables", not synonyms. Cerebral autocorrect, apparently.) Laodah 05:30, 23 October 2019 (UTC)

Hello. This article should be moved to Korpokkur. Please search the word "Korpokkur", and you will find many references such as: --miya (talk) 14:07, 16 April 2020 (UTC)
 * Ainu-Grammatik, vol.2 Hans Adalbert Dettmer O. Harrassowitz, 1997
 * 日本国語大辞典, vol.5 小学館, 2001
 * 国語大辞典 言泉 Ōki Hayashi 小学館, 1986
 * Early European writings on Ainu culture: religion and folklore, vol.5 Kirsten Refsing RoutledgeCurzon, 2002
 * European studies on Ainu language and culture Philipp-Franz-von-Siebold-Stiftung. Deutschen Institut für Japanstudien Iudicium-Verl., 1993
 * I corrected the spelling to Korpokkur per jawp article ja:コロポックル.--miya (talk) 14:15, 16 April 2020 (UTC)

I think the needs more citation banner should be removed
The needs more citation should be removed because there are three citations listed and there has been no edits for about three months.

Similarities to Heinzelmännchen
The Korpokkur share many similarities to the german mythical race of the Heinzelmännchen; as in they are small, had been benevolent to humans, did their good deeds in the middle of the night to be not seen and after they got caught by a human got upset and never reappeared again.

title: Talk:Korpokkur


text:
Elmore James

Elmore James ( Brooks; January 27, 1918 – May 24, 1963) was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and bandleader. Noted for his use of loud amplification and his stirring voice, James was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992. His slide guitar technique earned him the nickname "King of the Slide Guitar".

Biography
Elmore James was born Elmore Brooks in Richland, Holmes County, Mississippi, the son of 15-year-old Leola Brooks, a field hand. His father was probably Joe Willie "Frost" James, who moved in with Leola, and Elmore took his surname. He began making music at the age of 12, using a simple one-string instrument (diddley bow, or jitterbug) strung on a shack wall. As a teen he performed at dances under the names Cleanhead and Joe Willie James.

James was influenced by Robert Johnson, Kokomo Arnold and Tampa Red. He recorded several of Tampa Red's songs. He also inherited from Tampa Red's band two musicians who joined his own backing band, the Broomdusters, "Little" Johnny Jones (piano) and Odie Payne (drums). In the late 1930s, James worked alongside Sonny Boy Williamson II.

During World War II, James joined the U.S. Navy, was promoted to coxswain and took part in the invasion of Guam. Upon his discharge, he returned to central Mississippi and settled in the town of Canton with his adopted brother, Robert Holston.

He began recording with Trumpet Records in nearby Jackson in January 1951, first as a sideman again for Sonny Boy Williamson II and for their mutual friend Willie Love and possibly others. He made his debut as a session leader in August that year recording a Robert Johnson composition, "Dust My Broom", which was a surprise R&B hit in 1952. His backing musicians became known as the Broomdusters.

James broke his contract with Trumpet Records to sign with the Bihari brothers through their scout Ike Turner, who played guitar and piano on a couple of his early Bihari recordings. His "I Believe" was a hit a year later. During the 1950s he recorded for the Bihari brothers' Flair Records, Meteor Records, and Modern Records; he also recorded for Chess Records and Mel London's Chief Records. He played lead guitar on Big Joe Turner's 1954 top 10 R&B hit "TV Mama".

In 1959, he began recording for Bobby Robinson's Fire Records, which released "The Sky Is Crying", "My Bleeding Heart", "Stranger Blues", "Look on Yonder Wall", "Done Somebody Wrong", and "Shake Your Moneymaker", among others.

James died of a heart attack in Chicago in 1963, at the age of 45, as he was about to tour Europe with that year's American Folk Blues Festival. He was buried in the Newport Baptist Church Cemetery, in Ebenezer, Mississippi. Phil Walden of Capricorn Records raised funds for a granite headstone for James's grave. The headstone which reads "King of the Slide Guitar", features a bronze relief of James playing guitar. It was revealed at a dedication ceremony sponsored by the Mt. Zion Memorial Fund in 1992.

James was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992 as an "Early Influence" inductee. He had been inducted in the Blues Hall of Fame within its initial list of inductions in 1980. In 2012, he was honored with a marker on the Mississippi Blues Trail in Ebenezer.

Influence
James influenced many slide players, such as blues guitarists Homesick James, Hound Dog Taylor, and J. B. Hutto. His single string playing also influenced B.B. King and Chuck Berry. Rock guitarists Jimi Hendrix, Brian Jones, Jeremy Spencer, and Frank Zappa have acknowledged his influence. In the Beatles' song "For You Blue", John Lennon plays a slide solo on a Höfner lap steel guitar; George Harrison encourages him with "Go, Johnny, go... Elmore James got nothin' on this, baby".

Selected singles

 * "Dust My Broom" (1951 & 1965)
 * "I Believe" (1953)
 * "Standing at the Crossroads" (1954 & 1965)
 * "Dust My Blues" (1955)
 * "It Hurts Me Too" (1957 & 1965)
 * "The Sky Is Crying" (1960)
 * "I Can't Hold Out" (1960)
 * "Rollin' and Tumblin'" (1960)
 * "Shake Your Moneymaker" (1961)
 * "Look on Yonder Wall" (1961)
 * "Bleeding Heart" (1965)
 * "One Way Out" (1965)
 * "Every Day I Have the Blues" (1965)
 * "Madison Blues" (1968)

Selected compilation albums

 * Blues After Hours (1960)
 * Whose Muddy Shoes (1969) (split album with John Brim)
 * Street Talkin' (1975)
 * King of the Slide Guitar (1992)
 * The Classic Early Recordings: 1951–1956 (1993)
 * The Sky Is Crying: The History of Elmore James (1993)
 * Golden Hits (1996)

title: Elmore James


text:
V Corps (United States)

V Corps, formerly known as the Fifth Corps, is a regular corps of the United States Army headquartered at Fort Knox, Kentucky and Camp Kościuszko, Poland.

It previously served during World War I, World War II, the Cold War, Kosovo War, and the War on Terrorism.

Shoulder sleeve insignia
The corps's shoulder patch, a pentagon whose points lie on an imaginary circle 2+1/8 in in diameter whose edges are white lines 3/16 in in width and whose radial lines are white 1/8 in in width, was approved on 3 December 1918. The triangles thus outlined in white are flag blue. The pentagon represents the number of the Corps, while blue and white are the colors associated with Corps flags.

World War I
V Corps was organized 7–12 July 1918 in the Regular Army in France, as part of the American Expeditionary Forces. By the end of World War I, the Corps had fought in three named campaigns.

Interwar period
The V Corps was constituted in the Organized Reserve on 29 July 1921, allotted to the Fifth Corps Area, and assigned to the Second Army. The corps headquarters was activated on 17 February 1922 at Fort Thomas, Kentucky, with Regular Army and Organized Reserve personnel. The Headquarters Company was allotted to the Ohio National Guard, but was placed on the "Deferred National Guard" list on 2 July 1923 and allotted to the Organized Reserve.

The Headquarters Company was initiated late 1924 with Reserve personnel at Columbus, Ohio. The corps headquarters was responsible for providing and planning administration, organization, supply, and training for army, corps, and other non-divisional Reserve units, less field and coast artillery, in the Fifth Corps Area. The headquarters was relieved from active duty on 15 November 1924, and all Regular Army personnel were reassigned to the Headquarters, Non-Divisional Group, Fifth Corps Area, which assumed the responsibilities previously held by the V Corps. Both the Headquarters and Headquarters Company remained active in the Organized Reserve. The corps headquarters was relocated in late 1924 to Indianapolis, Indiana, where most of the Reserve personnel assigned to the unit were located. Headquarters, V Corps was withdrawn from the Organized Reserve on 15 August 1927 and allotted to the Regular Army; Headquarters Company, V Corps was withdrawn from the Deferred National Guard list on 15 September 1927 and permanently allotted to the Organized Reserve.

The headquarters company was further withdrawn from the Organized Reserve on 1 October 1933 and allotted to the Regular Army. At the same time, the corps headquarters was partially activated at Fort Hayes, Ohio, with Regular Army personnel from the headquarters, Fifth Corps Area, and Organized Reserve personnel from the corps area at large. Though a "Regular Army Inactive" unit from 1927 to 1940, the corps headquarters was organized provisionally for short periods using its assigned Reserve officers and staff officers from Headquarters, Fifth Corps Area. These periods of provisional active duty were generally for command post exercises and major maneuvers. Headquarters, V Corps was fully activated on 20 October 1940, less Reserve personnel, at Camp Beauregard, LA.

World War II
After Nazi Germany declared war on the United States on 11 December 1941, the corps deployed (January 1942) the first American soldiers to the European Theater of Operations, United States Army. That initial deployment was known as the U.S. Army Northern Ireland Force or MAGNET. On 6 June 1944, V Corps assaulted Omaha Beach, Normandy. Corps soldiers then broke out from the beachhead, liberated Paris and Sedan, Ardennes, and raced to the German border. After liberating Luxembourg, V Corps fought in the Battle of the Bulge, captured Leipzig, made first contact with the Red Army at Torgau, and, south in Czechoslovakia, liberated Plzeň by May 1945.

Cold War

In March 1947, United States European Command directed that its combat forces were to convert to "Occupation duties." On 1 December 1950, due to concern of a Soviet threat to Western Europe during the Korean War, Seventh Army was activated as a field army in Europe. Seventh Army absorbed the two main Occupation Duty forces then in Germany, namely the 1st Infantry Division and the United States Constabulary.

By middle 1948 limited combat training had been restored within the European Command.

In December, 1950 President Truman declared a National Emergency due to the Korean War, and four divisions were dispatched to reinforce U.S. forces in Europe, including the National Guard's 28th and 43rd Infantry Divisions. In May 1951 the 4th Infantry Division arrived in United States Army Europe (USAREUR) in Germany, and on 3 August 1951, V Corps was reactivated and assigned to the Seventh Army in USAREUR. In July the 2d Armored Division arrived in Germany, and on 25 August 1951 the 4th Infantry Division (HQ: Frankfurt) and 2d Armored Division (HQ: Bad Kreuznach) were assigned as V Corps divisions.

The Constabulary was inactivated upon the arrival of the four U.S. division augmentation forces to Germany. V Corps was assigned to the northern area of the U.S. Occupation Zone of Germany (which included the Fulda Gap), and the VII Corps was assigned to the southern area of the U.S. Zone (one of the National Guard divisions (the 43rd) was stationed in the Munich area, and the other (the 28th) was between Munich and Stuttgart). Several years later the newly forming West German Army displaced the GDP positions of some of the U.S. units stationed in the far southern area of West Germany. As a consequence, the U.S. units' GDP positions were moved further north, as was the U.S. VII Corps' wartime southern boundary line (even though the U.S. units remained in their original kasernes). This shifting action likely coincided with the same time frame as the Summer and Fall conversion of all Seventh Army units to the ROAD organization.

Although, as referenced above, in 1951 the 1st Infantry Division was assigned to the newly activated VII Corps, the significance of the V Corps assigned Fulda Gap and Meiningen Gap (AKA Grabfeld Gap) defense influenced not only the reassignment of the Wuerzburg-headquartered 1st Infantry Division to V Corps on 2 February 1952, but also the 1 October 1953 assignment of the newly formed 19th Armor Group, headquartered at Frankfurt, to V Corps.

As of June 1954, the main unit assignments to V Corps were 1st Infantry Division, 4th Infantry Division, 2d Armored Division, and 19th Armor Group (19th AG was the size of a large brigade, with 3 tank battalions and one mech. infantry battalion stationed from Mannheim to Wildflecken). The first U.S. armored division to be stationed east of the Rhine River in the Cold War, namely V Corps' 3d Armored Division, arrived in May/June 1956. (The 3d Armored Div. replaced the 4th Infantry Div.; later, the 2d Armored Div. was replaced by the Bad Kreuznach arriving 8th Infantry Div.) The 19th Armor Group (HQ Frankfurt) was replaced by the 4th Armor Group on 1 July 1955 (the 4th AG was approximately the size of the replaced 19th AG); the 4th Armor Group was deactivated in the 1963 ROAD conversion. In 1955 the 1st Infantry Division gyroscoped to CONUS, and was replaced in V Corps by the 10th Infantry Division from CONUS. In 1958 the 3rd Infantry Division gyroscoped from CONUS and the 10th Infantry Division gyroscoped to CONUS.

Due to the 1963 ROAD reorganization in USAREUR, V Corps ultimately lost two assigned units: (1) the 4th Armor Group was inactivated; (2) the 3rd Infantry Division, with its headquarters at Wuerzburg, was reassigned to VII Corps.

After the Cold War collapse of the Warsaw Pact, V Corps soldiers deployed both units and individuals to Saudi Arabia for the Gulf War; and to other operations in Kuwait, northern Iraq, Croatia, Somalia, Republic of Macedonia, Rwanda, and Zaire.

Organization 1989

At the end of the Cold War in 1989 V Corps consisted of the following units:

 * V Corps.svg V Corps, Frankfurt, West Germany
 * 3rd US Armored Division SSI.svg 3rd Armored Division, Frankfurt
 * 4th Infantry Division SSI.svg 4th Infantry Division (Mechanized), Fort Carson, Colorado (Operation Reforger unit)
 * 8th Infantry Division patch.svg 8th Infantry Division (Mechanized), Bad Kreuznach
 * V Corps.svg V Corps Artillery, Frankfurt
 * 41st Field Artillery Brigade SSI.svg 41st Field Artillery Brigade, Babenhausen
 * 42FABdeSSI.png 42nd Field Artillery Brigade, Giessen
 * 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment CSIB.svg 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, Fulda
 * 194th Armored Brigade CSIB.svg 194th Armored Brigade, Fort Knox, Kentucky (Operation Reforger unit)
 * 197thInfantryBrigade.svg 197th Infantry Brigade (Mechanized), Fort Benning, Georgia (Operation Reforger unit)
 * 12AvnBdeSSI.png 12th Aviation Brigade, Wiesbaden
 * 130thEngineerBrigadePatch.svg 130th Engineer Brigade, Hanau
 * 18th Military Police Brigade SSI.svg 18th Military Police Brigade, Frankfurt
 * US Army - 22nd Signal Brigade Shoulder Sleeve Insignia.jpg 22nd Signal Brigade (Corps), Frankfurt
 * US Army - 205th Military Intelligence Brigade Shoulder Sleeve Insignia.jpg 205th Military Intelligence Brigade, Frankfurt
 * 3rd Sustainment Command CSIB.svg 3rd Corps Support Command, Wiesbaden

1990s
In December 1994, as part of the realignment of United States Armed Forces, V Corps moved from the IG Farben Building to Campbell Barracks in Heidelberg, severing a forty-three-year tie with Frankfurt. The corps reached out to the armed forces of eastern Europe with numerous initiatives to foster closer ties and better understanding. Maintaining the NATO commitment, V Corps in 1994 created two bi-national corps with Germany. For Command Component Land Heidelberg missions, the corps commanded the 13th (German) Armored Infantry Division, while II (German) Corps commanded the 1st Armored Division.

In December 1995, V Corps deployed 1st Armored Division and elements of six separate brigades for the Implementation Force (IFOR). The corps headquarters and Headquarters Company, the 3d Support Command, and the separate brigades helped form the National Support Element headquartered in Hungary for United States Armed Forces in Bosnia. Brigades of the two divisions rotated in the peace enforcement mission for a number of years in Bosnia. Headquarters and Headquarters Company, V Corps, was decorated with the Army Superior Unit Award in 1998 in recognition of the unit's performance in Implementation Force (IFOR). In April 1999, V Corps deployed the headquarters and subordinate units to Albania as Task Force Hawk, a force involved in the ongoing crisis in Kosovo. The 1st Infantry Division served in Kosovo twice and the 1st Armored Division served once, in addition to V Corps separate brigades.

War on Terrorism
At the end of 2002, V Corps deployed to Kuwait under United States Central Command for the Iraq War. The United States-led coalition brought about a regime change in Iraq and satisfied international concerns about Iraq and weapons of mass destruction. The corps and its maneuver brigades crossed into Iraq on 21 March 2003 as the main effort. In sixteen days of fighting, V Corps advanced more than 540 miles straight-line distance from Kuwait to Baghdad, decisively defeated the Iraqi Armed Forces, and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein.

On 15 June 2003, the corps formed Combined Joint Task Force 7, based in Baghdad, and continued military operations to pacify the remainder of Iraq, rebuild the country, and create democratic institutions. As part of Combined Joint Task Force 7 mission, V Corps soldiers sought out and arrested or killed the major figures in the previous Iraqi regime, culminating in the arrest of Saddam Hussein himself. On 1 February 2004, V Corps was succeeded in Combined Joint Task Force 7 by III Corps and redeployed to its home station in Heidelberg, Germany. In recognition of its combat achievements in Iraq, the Department of the Army, in 2004, awarded the Headquarters and Headquarters Company the Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army).

In January 2006, the corps, deployed to Iraq and replaced XVIII Airborne Corps as the command and control element for Multi-National Corps–Iraq. During its second year-long deployment, which ended on 14 December 2006, V Corps continued to lead coalition forces and made great strides battling a widespread insurgency, and conducting a massive rebuilding effort.

From 2012 to 2013, V Corps served in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, providing command and control of all U.S. ground forces stationed there. On 16 February 2012, it was announced that Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, V Corps would inactivate upon redeployment from Afghanistan per guidance issued by the Department of the Army earlier that same year. On 12 June 2013, V Corps was awarded an Army Superior Unit Award, a Meritorious Unit Commendation, then ceremonially inactivated at Biebrich Palace, Wiesbaden, Germany.

Reactivation
On 11 February 2020, the United States Department of the Army announced the activation of corps headquarters (V Corps). V Corps Headquarters will have approximately 635 soldiers, with approximately 200 who will support an operational command post in Europe. The Corps Headquarters is projected to be operational by autumn 2020.

On 12 February 2020, the Army announced that V Corps' new headquarters would be located at Fort Knox, Kentucky.

United States Army Chief of Staff, General James McConville stated:"'The activation of an additional Corps headquarters provides the needed level of command and control focused on synchronizing U.S. Army, allied, and partner nation tactical formations operating in Europe. It will enhance U.S. Army Europe and U.S. European Command as they work alongside allies and partners to promote regional stability and security.'"The establishment of V Corps supports United States European Command's request for increased command and control capability.

In May 2020, MG John Kolasheski, commanding general of the 1st Infantry Division was nominated to command the newly reactivated V Corps. Once confirmed by the Senate he would receive a third star. Kolasheski was confirmed to the rank of lieutenant general on 21 May 2020. He was promoted by Army Chief of Staff James C. McConville on 4 August 2020 in Kraków, Poland. McConville announced that V Corps forward headquarters would be established in Poland after the next fiscal year starts on 1 October 2020. 200 of the expected 630 headquarters staff members would be stationed in Poznan on a rotational basis.

The forward headquarters will "conduct operational planning, mission command and oversight of the rotational forces in Europe", and work alongside allies and partners to build readiness and enhance interoperability.

On 21 July 2021 MG Jeffery Broadwater was announced as DCG, V Corps. (In May 2021, MG Matthew Van Wagenen was appointed as DCG-Manoeuvre to be based in Poznan, Poland, but who presently serves as a DCG for the Army component of SHAPE.)

On 7 March 2022 a V Corps headquarters element deployed to Germany, joining the forward element already in Europe, to "provide additional command and control of U.S. Army forces in Europe." The headquarters is also tasked to "provide a more robust presence in Europe and enable the Corps to synchronize current contingency operations, support the ongoing mission to reinforce NATO’s eastern flank and coordinate multinational exercises across the continent." This deployment is in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

At the 29 June 2022 NATO summit in Madrid US President Joe Biden announced that a permanent military base would be established in Poland that would serve as the new headquarters of V Corps and "strengthen the US-NATO interoperability across the entire eastern flank," in further response to the Russian campaign in Ukraine. On 30 July 2022 the headquarters of V Corps (Forward) in Poznan was renamed Camp Kosciuszko.

On 13 to 15 December 2023 V Corps and the Polish Armed Forces General Command co-hosted their first Warfighting Symposium, in Warsaw. The symposium included briefings on training, technical interoperability, operational development, scenario-based practical exercises, and intelligence assessments.

Organization

As of May 2023 V Corps consists of the following units:

 * V Corps.svg V Corps, in Poznań (Poland)
 * Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, in Poznań (Poland)
 * 2nd Cavalry Regiment, in Vilseck (Germany)
 * 41st Field Artillery Brigade, in Grafenwöhr (Germany)
 * 12th Combat Aviation Brigade, in Ansbach (Germany)
 * Atlantic Resolve rotational units:
 * Rotational Light Division at Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base (Romania)
 * 1x Rotational Infantry Brigade Combat Team
 * 1x Rotational Sustainment Brigade
 * Rotational Armor Division in Bolesławiec (Poland)
 * 2x Rotational Armor Brigade Combat Teams
 * 1x Rotational Combat Aviation Brigade
 * 1x Rotational Sustainment Brigade
 * NATO Enhanced Forward Presence (EFP) Poland

title: V Corps (United States)


text:
Wayne National Forest

The Wayne National Forest is located in the south-eastern part of the US state of Ohio, in the Unglaciated Allegheny Plateau. It is the first and only national forest in Ohio. Forest headquarters are located between The Plains and Nelsonville, Ohio, on US Route 33 overlooking the Hocking River.

The forest comprises three administrative and purchase units: Athens, Marietta, and Ironton. The Athens and Marietta Units are managed together as the Athens Ranger District, while the Ironton Unit is managed as the Ironton Ranger District. Many of the lands included in the national forest are former coal-mining lands, and much of this land is owned by the federal government without the mineral rights, those having been retained by former owners.

As of September 2018, Wayne National Forest has 244265 acre in federal ownership within a proclamation boundary of 832147 acre.
 * The Athens Unit is located in Athens, Hocking, Morgan, Perry, and Vinton Counties, and includes 67,224 acres (272 km²) as of 2002. It features the Wildcat Hollow Trail, a hiking trail just northeast of Burr Oak State Park in Morgan County; the Stone Church Horse Trail in Perry County; the Utah Ridge Recreation Area in Athens County, and the Dorr Run ATV Trails in Hocking County.
 * The Marietta Unit is located in Monroe, Noble, and Washington Counties, and includes 63,381 acres (256 km²) as of 2002, with over half of the total being within Washington County.
 * The Ironton Unit is located in Gallia, Jackson, Lawrence, and Scioto Counties, and includes 99,049 acres (401 km²) as of 2002, with over two-thirds of the total being within Lawrence County.

The North Country Trail passes through several areas of Wayne, in which it is coincident with the Buckeye Trail and the American Discovery Trail. The area of Ohio included within the national forest is based on late Paleozoic geology, heavy in sandstones and shales, including redbeds, with many coal beds. The topography is typically very rugged, with elevation changes typically in the 200–400-foot range.

Name
The Wayne National Forest was named in honor of General Anthony Wayne, an American soldier, officer, statesman, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He served in the American Revolutionary War and was later recalled from civilian life by President George Washington after St. Clair's defeat to command the Legion of the United States in the Northwest Indian War to gain control of the British controlled ceded Northwest Territory, including the region that is now Ohio.

On August 21, 2023, the U.S. Forest Service announced a proposal to rename Wayne National Forest, citing "complicated legacy includes leading a violent campaign against the Indigenous peoples of Ohio that resulted in their removal from their homelands". New proposed names include "Buckeye National Forest", "Ohio National Forest", and "Koteewa National Forest".

History
During the late 18th and 19th century, the forested land was cleared for agricultural and lumbering use, but years of poor timbering and agricultural practices led to severe erosion and poor soil composition. The Wayne National Forest was started as part of a reforestation program. It was established as a National Forest for the public in December 1992.

On April 4, 2024, A new Bureau of Land Management plan to open 40000 acre of the Wayne National Forest to fracking for oil and gas. The new proposal, released in late March 2024, is nearly identical to the fracking plan that was blocked in 2020 by a federal judge after conservation groups had challenged it in federal court.

On May 23, 2024, The Wayne National Forest planted a Moon Tree sapling at its Forest Headquarters building in Nelsonville, Ohio, as part of an initiative between NASA and the U.S. Forest Service. The sweetgum sapling was one of fewer than 1,500 seedlings flown thousands of miles beyond the moon aboard the unmanned Orion spacecraft, spending six weeks in space during NASA’s Artemis I mission that had launched on November 16, 2022.

title: Wayne National Forest