How do you define "Japan"?
The nation state located on the islands of Japan populated with almost exclusively Japanese people.
they're islands mon ami, it's not hard to define them -- the borders are fairly straightforward
you can piddle around about a few tiny islands elsewhere, e.g. okinawa, but the main islands are undisputedly "japan"
The standard way. The same way you define “Thailand” or “Bangladesh” or “Vietnam?”