A remark made by U.S. President Donald Trump while speaking to reporters quickly went viral on social media. During the exchange, Trump mistakenly referred to the “Islamic Republic of Japan” while describing a missile attack on the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln.
The statement was made on July 8, 2026, as Trump accompanied Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the NATO Summit. Trump said that 111 missiles had been launched at the U.S. aircraft carrier within approximately one hour and that all of them had been successfully intercepted.
However, public attention quickly shifted to his reference to the “Islamic Republic of Japan,” since Japan is clearly not an Islamic republic.
Behind Trump’s verbal slip lies an interesting question: How long has Japan interacted with the Muslim world throughout history? Here’s an overview.
The History of Islam in Japan
Although Japan is widely associated with Shintoism and Buddhism, the country has maintained a surprisingly long relationship with the Islamic world. In fact, traces of those interactions date back centuries before a significant Muslim community emerged in Japan.
Historically, Japan was known as a nation largely closed to the outside world. For about two centuries, from 1633 to 1853, the government enforced the sakoku policy of national isolation.
This policy severely restricted contact with foreign nations, limiting trade, diplomacy, and cultural exchange. As a result, relations between the Japanese people and Muslim communities developed much more slowly than in other parts of Asia, such as China and Southeast Asia, which had long served as major trading hubs for Muslim merchants.
Nevertheless, Japan had already become known among Muslim scholars by the 15th century. In Arabic literature, the country was referred to as “al-Yaaban.”
One example appears on a world map created around 1430 by the Persian scholar Hafiz-i Abru, which included Japan among the regions known to the Muslim world at the time.
Another historical account comes from an Ottoman historian in the 17th century, who described the Japanese as a people of high moral character with the unusual habit of bathing in cold water.
These accounts indicate that knowledge of Japan had already circulated within the Islamic world, even though direct contact remained limited.
Diplomacy Between Japan and the Ottoman Empire
Significant changes began toward the end of the 19th century.
At that time, the Islamic world was struggling under increasing European imperialism, while Japan was emerging as a new Asian power following the modernization reforms of the Meiji Era.
Japan’s rapid rise attracted the attention of Sultan Abdulhamid II of the Ottoman Empire, who viewed Japan as a potential strategic partner in Asia and sought to establish diplomatic ties.
As a symbol of friendship, Sultan Abdulhamid II dispatched the Ottoman warship Ertuğrul to Japan in 1889.
The vessel carried 609 crew members along with numerous gifts for Emperor Meiji. The mission became one of the most significant milestones in relations between the two nations.
The Ertuğrul delegation received a warm welcome from both the Japanese government and its people.
However, tragedy struck during the return voyage when the ship sank during a violent storm, claiming the lives of approximately 540 crew members.
Ironically, the disaster strengthened the emotional bond between Japan and Turkey, and it continues to be remembered today as a symbol of friendship between the two countries.
Islam Introduced Through Scholarship
Meanwhile, Japanese society began learning about Islam through academic works.
In 1877, several writings about Islam—including biographies of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)—were translated into Japanese.
At that time, Islam was not yet practiced by many Japanese people and was instead viewed primarily as a subject of Western academic study.
Japan’s Early Muslim Converts
Islam in Japan entered a new chapter when several Japanese citizens embraced the faith.
One of the earliest was Mitsutaro Takaoka, who converted to Islam in 1909 after performing the Hajj pilgrimage and adopted the name Omar Yamaoka.
Another notable figure was Bumpachiro Ariga, who embraced Islam while conducting business in India and later took the name Ahmad Ariga.
Some researchers also identify Torajiro Yamada as one of Japan’s earliest Muslims.
After traveling to Turkey to express condolences following the Ertuğrul disaster, Yamada is believed to have converted to Islam, adopting the name Abdul Khalil, and is also said to have completed the Hajj pilgrimage.
The Growth of Japan’s Muslim Community
The Muslim community expanded significantly after World War I.
Large numbers of Muslim refugees from Central Asia and former territories of the Russian Empire—including Tatars, Uzbeks, Tajiks, Kazakhs, and Kyrgyz—arrived in Japan following the Bolshevik Revolution.
Many settled in Japan’s port cities, establishing Muslim communities that later became the foundation of modern Islam in the country.
Their presence also led to the construction of Japan’s first mosques.
Kobe Mosque was inaugurated in 1935, followed by Tokyo Mosque in 1938. Both remain important historical symbols of Islam in Japan today.
Islam in Postwar Japan
World War II brought another period of change.
Japan’s expansion into China and Southeast Asia exposed many Japanese citizens to Muslim communities for the first time.
These experiences gave rise to a new generation of Japanese Muslims who later played important roles in developing Islamic organizations in Japan.
Among the most prominent figures was Umar Mita, originally Ryoichi Mita.
He converted to Islam in Beijing in 1941, later became president of the Japan Muslim Association, established in 1953, and helped the organization receive official recognition from the Japanese government in 1968.
Umar Mita is also remembered as the first Japanese Muslim in the postwar era to perform the Hajj, as well as for translating the Qur’an into Japanese from the perspective of a Muslim scholar.
Islam in Modern Japan
Beginning in the 1980s, Japan’s Muslim population grew once again alongside the country’s rapid economic expansion.
Large numbers of migrant workers and international students from Muslim-majority countries—including Indonesia—moved to Japan.
At the same time, the number of Japanese converts to Islam also continued to increase.
Today, Japan’s Muslim population is estimated at between 350,000 and 420,000 people, representing less than 0.5 percent of the country’s total population, according to the 2025 census.
Although Muslims remain a minority, their presence has become increasingly visible through the growing number of mosques, Islamic centers, community organizations, and Muslim student associations across Japan.
Trump’s mistaken reference to the “Islamic Republic of Japan” inadvertently highlights the fact that Japan’s relationship with Islam is far from new.
Its roots stretch back centuries, developing through diplomacy, trade, migration, and cultural exchange, and today they form part of the diverse social fabric of the modern Land of the Rising Sun.***
