Humans have been around for a long time.  In Japan specifically, humans have been traced all the way back to prehistoric times.
Wow, that's interesting! About how long have humans been around?
Well as far as Japan goes, the first written account of the Japanese goes, there is a "Book of Han" which dates back to the 1st Century.
What is the "Book of Han" about?
It refers to the Han Dynasty or the Han Empire.  That was the 2nd Imperial Dynasty of China.
What was the first Imperial Dynasty of China?
History of China
The earliest known written records of the history of China date from as early as 1250 BC, from the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BC), during the king Wu Ding's reign, who was mentioned as the twenty-first Shang king by the same. Ancient historical texts such as the "Records of the Grand Historian" (c. 100 BC) and the "Bamboo Annals" (296 BC) describe a Xia dynasty (c. 2070–1600 BC) before the Shang, but no writing is known
this type of research only requires access to private or institutional shell collections. There is some debate in the conchological community, with some people regarding all shell collectors (regardless of motivation) as conchologists.
History.
Molluscs have probably been used by primates as a food source long before humans evolved. Shell collecting, the precursor of conchology, probably goes back as far as there have been humans living near beaches.
Stone Age seashell necklaces have been found, sometimes in areas far from the ocean, indicating that they