TOKYO, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Japan's government and people

cheered the record trophy haul for period drama "Shogun" at the

Emmy Awards as yet another win for their history and culture,

which are becoming increasingly popular with tourists and

international audiences alike.

The historical epic set in Imperial Japan claimed 19 awards,

the most ever for a single drama season, including best drama

and acting awards for leads Hiroyuki Sanada and Anna Sawai.

Another Japanese period piece, "Blue Eye Samurai", won an

Emmy for the best animated programme.

The government welcomed the achievement, and highlighted

that 70% of the dialogue in "Shogun" was in Japanese and that

Sanada, who played the lead warlord Yoshii Toranaga, was

involved in its production.

"We would like to further encourage Japanese creators to

take on the challenges of overseas productions," Deputy Chief

Cabinet Secretary Hiroshi Moriya told reporters.

The Japanese government also set up a committee this month

to support the entertainment and content industries, he said.

The accolades for "Shogun" are the latest showcase of

Japan's rising prominence on the global stage.

In March, the monster movie epic "Godzilla Minus One" nabbed

a visual effects Oscar after becoming a sleeper hit in U.S.

theatres, while HBO's critically acclaimed noir crime series

"Tokyo Vice" finished its second and last season in April.

In sports, Japanese baseball phenomenon Shohei Ohtani is in

second place for home runs in his first season with the Los

Angeles Dodgers, and Japan finished third in the gold medal

tally at the Paris Olympics that concluded last month.

Meanwhile, foreign tourists are flooding into Japan each

month, with total visitor numbers and spending poised to smash

records this year.

Many visitors are drawn to experience things as they were in

the Edo period of "Shogun", said Naomi Mano, president of

Tokyo-based travel agency Luxurique.

"We are an island country, and in the Edo period, everything

was secluded," Mano said. "Now we're in a phase where we're

actually trying to get people to understand why we do things or

the way we did our traditions."

"Shogun" is based on a 1975 historical novel by James

Clavell, later made into a mini-series in 1980 that focused more

on the shipwrecked English captain, played by Richard

Chamberlain, than the Japanese characters.

The latest version produced by Walt Disney's ( DIS ) FX

studio relied on Japanese actors and producers to create a

realistic portrayal of the nation's Warring States period in the

1600s.

"Tokyo Vice" executive producer Jake Adelstein said the

global appeal of dramas like "Shogun" that glorify values such

as honour likely stems from the disillusionment with politics.

"When we see, especially in America, a world of double

dealing politicians who lie out both sides of their mouth, a

culture that values honour, integrity and reciprocity, seems

foreign and exotic," Adelstein said.

The Emmys triumph on Sunday reached Japan on a holiday on

Monday, but that didn't stop "Shogun" from becoming a top

trending topic online.

"The Japanese heart, way of life, and soul crossed the seas

and touched the hearts of people all over the world. I'm so

happy," wrote a user named Shock Eye on X.

Sanada, a veteran actor who also picked up an Emmy as a

producer, was especially praised on social media, with videos of

his acceptance speech among the most watched online.

"The reason why Sanada is fighting alone so diligently is to

give back to Japan," a user named Rui wrote on X.