America is often thought of as a new country, a place where countless people traveled from distant lands in search of a new life. As...
The Jewish Woman Behind the “Curaçao Visa” During World War II, Chiune Sugihara saved many Jewish refugees with “Visas for Life.” This incredible feat is well-known....
The onnagata Iwai Hanshirō V as the grocer’s daughter Oshichi. Artist: Utagawa Kunisada I. c.1815. On stage, it is a cold, dark night towards the...
(First of two parts) In a calligraphy studio on the outskirts of Tokyo, Shoko Kanazawa—dressed in white tabi, black hakama, and a cornsilk-colored kimono...
More women are supporting developing countries through fashion. In these countries, poverty is often the backdrop to problems, such as environmental degradation, war, human trafficking,...
They’re called the tsumamizaiku, those cute, at times dainty, hairpins. But centuries before they became ubiquitous among young ladies today, they were the traditional...
It’s been happening since 2014: every last weekend of June, in the Republic of San Marino—a country of less than 34,000 people in southern Europe—Japanese...
East Asia is in the midst of tremendous geopolitical changes. Japanese politicians have preferred to play it safe, frustrating Japanese conservatives who see the...
Photo: The Ama-no-Saka-hoko standing at the peak of Mount Takachiho in Miyazaki prefecture, Kyushu These are an excerpts from the forthcoming book National Treasure Swords of Japan...
