Japanophile
![Lafcadio Hearn, aka Koizumi Yakumo, a notable scholar and author well known for his strong interest in Japanese culture.](/Images/godic/202501/21/Lafcadio_Hearn_portrait0451.jpg")
Japanophilia refers to the appreciation and love of Japanese culture, people or history. In Japanese, the term for Japanophile is "shinnichi"(親日), with "親" "shin"(しん) equivalent to the English prefix 'pro-', and "日" "nichi"(にち), meaning "Japanese" (as in the word for Japan "Nihon"(日本)). The term was first used as early as the 18th century, switching in scope over time.