African Studies in Japan

Abstract

In Japan, as in the United States, African studies is relatively new, gaining respectability only after World War II. African studies in Japan is considerably less prominent than its counterpart in the US although Africanist scholars from Japan have nonetheless made notable contributions. The increasing importance of Japan in Africa, both as a source of investment and as a source of foreign aid, is leading to an increased importance cf Japanese knowledge of Africa. In the increasingly interdependent world of the 21st century the quality of African studies in Japan will have an impact not only on Africa itself but on Africanists in other non-African countries as well. The strengths and weaknesses of African studies in Japan are quite complementary to those of African Studies in the United States. Thus we as Africanists can learn important lessons from the Japanese experience in African Studies, and our Japanese counterparts can learn from us. This article is intended as an introduction to the nature of African studies in Japan for American (and other) Africanists in the hope that cooperation between American (and other) Africanists and their Japanese counterparts can be increased.