Why is the yen so high?

This question has appeared dozens of times on Quora in various guises, so I've just saved my answer and repeat it every time with a few variations. read more

See The Curious Case of the Yen as a Safe Haven Currency: A Forensic Analysis an IMF research paper: Summary: During risk-off episodes, the yen is a safe haven currency and on average appreciates against the U.S. dollar. We investigate the proximate causes of yen risk-off appreciations. read more

Eventually the value of silver dropped and the yen was tied to gold, leaving the value of the yen at about 1¥ to 50¢, in the end of 1931 Japan left the Gold standard and the yen dropped to about 1¥ to 30¢. After the second world war the value of the yen cratered. read more