These political and religious changes were the outward signs of an
underlying movement of growth and expansion. A larger and larger area
of the islands was being occupied. The population was growing, and
additional economic units, or “guilds,” were being formed. Japanese
armies were fighting in Korea, where they dominated the southern
region of the peninsula for long periods. Through this contact with
the mainland, a stream of Korean immigrants, and even some Chinese,
flowed into Japan. Many of them were educated scribes, Buddhist priests
or expert artisans. By the fifth century the Japanese had learned the
rudiments of Chinese writing, and in the sixth century Buddhism was
officially introduced from Korea. The wealth of Chinese civilization
was thus opened up to the Japanese people.
[Illustration: INTERCOURSE WITH KOREA 5-6th Centuries]