YS Line

Company History: Yamashita-Shinnihon Steamship Co. (Y.S. Line) was created in 1964 through the merger of Yamashita Kisen and Shinnihon Kisen. A 1989 merger with Japan Line resulted in Navix Line which in turn merged with Mitsui-OSK Lines in 1999, with the latter name surviving.

Successor/Parent History: MOL (Mitsui O.S.K. Lines) was founded in 1964, following the merger of Osaka Shosen Kaisha (OSK) (大阪商船株式会社 Osaka Shōsen Kabushiki-gaisha) founded in 1878, and Mitsui Steamship Co., Ltd. founded in 1942, formerly Mitsui Line, under the Law Concerning the Reconstruction and Reorganization of the Shipping Industry.

Brief History: Japan is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean with dense cities, imperial palaces, mountainous national parks and thousands of shrines and temples. Shinkansen bullet trains connect the main islands of Kyushu (with Okinawa's subtropical beaches), Honshu (home to Tokyo and Hiroshima’s atomic-bomb memorial) and Hokkaido (famous for skiing). Tokyo, the capital, is known for skyscrapers, shopping and pop culture.

Although legend has it that Japan was founded in 660BC, archaeologists agree that settlement in the Japanese archpelago dates back as far as 100,000 years. The Jomon Period (8000-c.300BC) is the earliest that has been studied. It is named after the 'jomon' or cord-marked pattern style of pottery of the period.