Handbook of Oriental Studies. Section 5 Japan – serie

The Japanese emperors, a peculiar and unique phenomenon in modern times, are the subject of this important handbook edited by Ben-Ami Shillony. An international team of leading scholars looks at these emperors - Meiji (Mutsuhito), Taishō (Yoshihito), Shōwa (Hirohito), and the present emperor Akihito – both as personalities, and as a constantly developing institution. It becomes clear that both the personalities, and the periods in which they reign(ed) have shaped Japanese monarchy, and our image of it. The essays thoroughly deal with topics such as the ideology behind the institution, the roles of the emperors and their wives, their visual representation, their links to Christianity, the antagonism they called forth in right-wing circles, Hirohito’s much-debated war responsibility, and the controversy over amending the succession rules.

The Japanese Translations of the Hebrew Bible: History, Inventory and Analysis, the first book of its kind in English, recounts the story of the translation of the Bible into Japanese, with particular focus on the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). It includes a detailed inventory of both full and partial OT translations into Japanese, describing the history of their making and the identity of the translators. Numerous quotations from the various translations are compared with the Hebrew original and with other versions, and analyzed linguistically and theologically. The analysis exposes the ways in which translators sought to bridge the wide linguistic and cultural gaps between the Hebrew Bible and Japan, and the ways in which their translations reflect certain aspects of Japanese society and the place of the Bible in it.

Exploring an array of captivating topics, from hybridized Buddhist music to AI singers, this book introduces Japanese music in the modern era. The twenty-five chapters show how cultural change from the late nineteenth century to the present day has had a profound impact on the Japanese musical landscape, including the recontextualization and transformation of traditional genres, and the widespread adoption of Western musical practices ranging from classical music to hip hop.The contributors offer representative case studies within the themes of Foundations, Heritage, Institutions, and Hybridities, examining both musical styles that originated in earlier times and distinctly localized or Japanized musical forms.