The European model and the archive in Japan

History of the Human Sciences 26 (4):107-127 (2013)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

The influence of European and especially German historiography on the formation of the modern academic discipline in Japan is undisputed, as is the importance of the German historian Ludwig Rieß. Undeniably, Rieß contributed to the organization of the academic discipline by teaching future historians and taking an active part in the establishment of the Historical Society, as well as by the example of his own research in the history of Japan. But how significant was his influence on the establishment and maintenance of archives in Japan? Japanese scholars had been collecting and working with primary documents long before Rieß arrived; indeed, the earliest efforts predate even the measures introduced under the Meiji government in the 1870s. This article outlines the beginnings of komonjogaku (the study of primary documents), giving particular attention to the work of its pioneer, Kume Kunitake. The author argues that while European methods based on archival research inspired and served to justify Japanese activities, indigenous traditions were at least equally important. Moreover, parallels with western countries are not merely a result of western imports but reflect the common responses to global processes in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Other Versions

No versions found

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 103,401

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

Historians in the archive.Pieter Huistra, Herman Paul & Jo Tollebeek - 2013 - History of the Human Sciences 26 (4):3-7.
Inventing the archive.Kasper Risbjerg Eskildsen - 2013 - History of the Human Sciences 26 (4):8-26.
The Fukurai affair.Miki Takasuna - 2012 - History of the Human Sciences 25 (2):149-164.
Zum Transfer von Psychiatrie: Narrative, Termini und transkulturelle Psychiatrie in Japan.Bernhard Leitner - 2014 - NTM Zeitschrift für Geschichte der Wissenschaften, Technik und Medizin 22 (3):163-180.

Analytics

Added to PP
2013-11-22

Downloads
27 (#864,536)

6 months
4 (#864,415)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Citations of this work

No citations found.

Add more citations

References found in this work

“the Influence Of Islamic Culture On Medieval Europe,”.Sir Hamilton Gibb - 1955 - Bulletin of the John Rylands Library 38 (1):82-98.

Add more references