How much aristocracy still exists in Japan?

Many of the old family names in Japan were granted to the earliest samurai as a sort of recognition that the head of that (new) family was descended from the royal ... read more

The hereditary peerage system in Japan was abolished in 1947, so there are exactly zero members of the aristocracy today. The only institution that remains is the imperial family. read more

The last"aristocracy" in China, in the sense that they are hereditary armed nobility, was in the Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD). Han dynasty And just like in Europe, the early Han dynasties experienced weakened emperors, armed rebellions from the nobility, and civil wars. read more

However, many people believe that the ideals that underlie that form of government still exist in reality, if not by that name. A well cited example for a de facto aristocracy is Russia. In Russia, more that 80% of that countries wealth is in the hands of less than 20% of the population. read more