Asia Library Travel Grant -- the Center for Japanese Studies offers grants to help defray the costs of travel, lodging, meals, and photo duplication for Japanese studies scholars at other institutions who wish to utilize the collection at the University of Michigan Asia Library. Contact Yuri Fukazawa, Programs and Initiatives Manager, Center for Japanese Studies. Phone: 734.936.7621 Email: yurif@umich.edu
Our Japanese Studies Collection at the Harlan H. Hatcher Graduate Library Asia Library is a Japanese language collection that supports research and education related to Japan in the humanities and social sciences. All areas in which teaching and research at the University of Michigan are well represented.
The collection’s strengths include religion, medieval, pre-modern, modern, and contemporary history, classic, modern, and contemporary literature, statistical data, political science, and screen art studies. In recent years we have increased our holdings of materials with the special attention to "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusive" issues in Japan. It covers the area of women, LGBTQ+, Ainu people, Korean-residents, foreign workers, survivors of disasters, working poor, physically challenged, Leprosy patients, and other underrepresented groups in Japan. We collect publications of contemporary literature, US-Japan relations, military history and Okinawa, popular culture, performing arts, visual art, photography, and screen art and cultures. We are committed to supporting Japanese language education with library materials that are the foundation of Japanese Studies.
Our Japanese collection is the fourth largest academic university collections in North America* and one of the largest outside of Japan. It consists of approximately 365,944 print volumes with 41 digital resources. 7,374 Japan-related media materials are housed in the Askwith Media Library. More than 2,000 rare print materials in Japanese or Chinese language published in Japan before 1900 are held at the U-M Library. Japanese language Open access books are available at U-M Library catalog from 560,351 (HathiTrust Library), 394,727 (the National Diet Library Digital Library), 12,287 (Aozora bunko), and 3,599 (J-stage). (As of June 30, 2023)
In addition to the Asia Library the Stephen S. Clark Map Library holds more than 660 Japanese maps from Edo period to contemporary, and 10,000 Japanese military strategic maps transferred from the Army Map Service (AMS) in addition to the maps from private collectors, such as Dr. Robert Hall who was the first director of the Center for Japanese Studies. Michigan holds the maps which are rare in Japan, such as a full set of maps of Ryojun 旅順 produced on the occasion of the Russo-Japan War. For details, please contact the Clark Library. (The Clark Library also holds numerous German maps transferred from AMS.)
Law library of the U-M Law School holds approximately Japanese legal materials such as Japanese laws, court cases and reports, research monographs and journals.
We will continue to emphasize the acquisition of materials in traditional formats while acquiring media materials and electronic resources and establish access to databases related to Japan in the spirit of Japanese Studies at Michigan, “Japan in the world, the world in Japan”**, as the library collection has grown with the development of the Center of Japanese Studies as well.
*Council on East Asia Libraries Statistics as 2021-2022.
** Japan in the world, the world in Japan: fifty years of Japanese studies at Michigan / edited by the Center for Japanese Studies, the University of Michigan. Ann Arbor: Center for Japanese Studies, The University of Michigan, c2001. (Open Access Fulcrum at U-M Press)
More readings about Michigan Japanese collection:
”ミシガン大学の日本語蔵書史”「書物の日米関係 リテラシー史に向けて」和田敦彦、新曜社、2007.
"ミシガン大学アジア図書館"「日米交流史の中の福田なをみー’外国研究’とライブラリアン」小出いずみ、勉誠社、2022.
Alfred Rodman Hussey 1902-1964) collected from his works with the Government Section, Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, during the Allied occupation of Japan following World War II and later in the Central Intelligence Agency. The most significant historical documents from this collection are the memos and the drafts of the Japanese Constitution.
Collection scope: Collection contains: correspondence, memoranda, orders, reports, official and unofficial policy papers, draft legislation, drafts of writings, clippings, and printed matter relating to Hussey's work with the Government Section, Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, during the Allied occupation of Japan following World War II and to the efforts of the Allies to reorganize Japanese government and society; personal papers and correspondence of Hussey relating to his interests in civil rights and in the Central Intelligence Agency, as well as his various writings; oversize maps and charts; and audiocassette and magnetic tapes.” Original are held at the Special Collection. Microfilm set is available at the Asia Library.
Related resource:
Alfred Hussey collection : Japan's constitution slides / Committee for the Popularization of the Constitution (Kenpō Fukyū Kai)
Alfred Hussey collection : Japan's constitution photo album / Society for the Popularization of the Constitution
Materials on the Allied Occupation of Japan at the National Diet Library of Japan including the Constitution files by Alfred Rodman Hussey.
Finding aid:
The Gordon W. Prange Collection During the early years of the Occupation of Japan, 1945-1949, subjected to censorship by the Allied Forces, these materials bear censorship markings ranging from check-in and examination dates to deletions, suppression and other changes. The Collection was named for the late Gordon W. Prange, who was instrumental in bringing the materials to the University of Maryland. See the videorecording below for an introduction to the collection.
Loication of the resource and facility
The Prange microfilms and microfiche are held in the cabinets in the basement of the Shapiro Undergraduate Library. Find the item number of the resources by the following finding aids. Microfilms and microfiche can be used in the Hatcher Graduate Library 2nd floor, Serials and Microforms - 203 N. Hatcher Library.
Finding Aids
Information
Gaihozu 外邦図 - maps of the area where Rikugun (Imperial Army) of Japan Empire investigated and produced during the era from 1868 to 1945. The Clark Map Library holds more than 10,000 maps transferred from the Army Map Service (AMS) in addition to the maps from private collectors, such as Dr. Robert Hall who was the first director of the Center for Japanese Studies. Michigan holds the maps which are rare in Japan, such as a full set of maps of Ryojun 旅順 produced on the occasion of the Russo-Japan War. For details, please contact the Clark Library. (the Clark Library also holds numerous German maps transferred from AMS.)
List of US institutions which received Japanese military maps from the Army Map Service. (US government document)
Digital Gaihozu map archives
Tohoku University Library Gaihozu digital archives
Gaihozu Collection, Ochanomizu University Library
Gaihozu Collection, Gifu Prefectural Library
Stanford University Libraries Gaihozu: Japanese Imperial Maps
Library of Congress : Early Japanese Imperial Maps of China and korea: A database
Japanese Imperial Maps and Charts, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Library, the USA
Maps Made During the Japanese Imperial Era, the University of Chicago Library, the USA
ーAbout resources ー
Gaihozu Research Project at the Institute of Human Geography, Graduate School of Letters, Osaka University (The website provides information about the Gaihozu Study Group including its newsletters.)
The University Museum, The University of Tokyo (The document provides a detailed account of the acquisition history and an overall description of the Gaihozu maps held.)
National Diet Library (Service Point: Tokyo Main Library: Professional Service Office, Information on Browsing: Map Library)
Articles
"Secret Japanese Military Maps could open a new window on Asia's past" - National Geographic blog (Japanese language version)
"Japanese Imperial Maps as soucces for East Asian History: the Past and futuer of the Gaihozu" Cross-Currents E-Jounal (No.2)
外邦図研究ニュースレター Gaihozu kenkyu project University of Osaka
Anderson, John M. "Forgotten Battles, Forgotten maps: resources for reconstructing historical topographical intelligence sing Army Map Service materials." Historical Geography 29 (2001): 79-91 (open access)
Shannon McCune, "Maps of Korea", The Far Eastern Quartterly, Vol.5, No.3 (May, 1946), pp. 326-329 (open access)
Fedman, David A. "Japanese colonical cartography: maps, mapmakiung, and the land survey in colonial Korea", The Asia-Pacific Journal, Vol. 10, Issue 52, N.4. (open access)
Major research books
「近代日本の地図作製とアジア太平洋地域ー’外邦図へのアプローチ’」 小林茂編
[外邦測量沿革史 : 草稿 / 參謀本部北支那方面軍司令部」 「草稿 解説」 includes bibiliography of major resource
Presentations about Gaihozu held in Japan and at Michigan
Shigeru Kobayashi, "Collections of Gaihozu in Japan and in the United States", Slide, 2016
Ryohei Sekine, "Gaihozu maps owned by universities in Japan", Abstract (Japanese), 2015
Kenta Yamamoto, "Establishment and the future of the Gaihozu Digital Archive in Japan", Abstract (Japanese), 2015.
Related resource
Historical atlas of northeast Asia, 1590 - 2010 korea, Manchuria, Mongolia, Eastern Siveria
The history of cartography - Vol.two Part two Cartography in Korea, Japan, Vietnam (open access book)
University of Chicago Gaihozu map collection
Asia Maps Digital Collection - Boston University Center for the Study of Asia Check under Japanese maps. These map databases would include Gaihozu as well.
National Diet Library - how to reseach Gaihozu collection at the NDL
The Central Intelligence Agency Cartography Center Collection
List of Historical Map collection