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Yoshikazu Nakamura

なかむら よしかず

Nakamura Yoshikazu

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1932-01-16 （Habu Village (now Chikuma), Nagano Prefecture, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese, Russian
Residence History
Habu Village, Chikuma, Nagano, Japan → Tokyo, Japan → Moscow, Russia (study/research stay)

Career

Occupations
Literary scholar, Translator, University lecturer
Active Years
1962-
Affiliations
Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), University of Tokyo (part-time lecturer, etc.), Hitotsubashi University (Associate Professor, Professor, Professor Emeritus), Kyoritsu Women's University (Professor, Faculty of International Culture), Hokkaido University Slavic-Eurasian Research Center (researcher, committee member), National Museum of Ethnology (collaborative researcher)
Memberships
Russian Academy of Sciences (Foreign Member), Professor Emeritus, Hitotsubashi University
Influenced By
Yukihiko Kaneko
Influenced
Ryo Nemura, Shuichi Sugiura

Education

Hitotsubashi University
Faculty of Sociology / Department of Sociology
Degree: 学士
Period: 1953-1957
Year of Graduation: 1957
Country: Japan
Entered in 1953; transferred from Faculty of Economics to Faculty of Sociology.
Hitotsubashi University Graduate School
Graduate School of Sociology / Doctoral program
Degree: 博士課程修了
Period: 1957-1962
Year of Graduation: 1962
Country: Japan
Completed doctoral course.

Awards

Osaragi Jiro Prize
1990
Result: 受賞
Lomonosov Gold Medal
1998
Organization: Russian Academy of Sciences
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Oroshiya Bon Odori Song Study: Miscellanea of Japan–Russia Cultural Negotiations

1990 Scholarly study

A collection of essays using folk music and Bon Odori as entry points to examine Japan–Russia cultural interactions in a comparative historical perspective.

Japan–Russia cultural exchangeFolkloreMusic

In Search of Sacred Russia: Utopian Legends of the Old Believers

1990 Scholarly work

A study tracing the development of religious utopian legends among Old Believers in Russia through their beliefs and traditions.

ReligionUtopian legendRussian folklore

Distant Views of Russia: Journeys in History and Folklore

1996 Travelogue / Scholarly essays

Essays and studies based on fieldwork and sources, presenting Russian history and folklore from a traveler's perspective.

HistoryFolkloreTravel

Burn the Weapons: The Trajectories of Russian Pacifists

2002 Scholarly study

A historical study following the activities and development of pacifist movements and pacifists in Russia.

Peace movementsSocial historyRussia

Echoes of Russia

2006 Essays / Cultural studies

A collection of essays on the cultural and historical resonances of Russia.

Cultural studiesHistoryFolklore

Under the Russian Sky

2014 Essays / Research

A book of essays and studies reflecting on Russia's landscape, people, and history.

LandscapeHistoryCultural exchange

Medieval Russian Tales (compiled/translated)

1970 Edited translation

An edited translation introducing medieval Russian tales in Japanese, including folk tales and epic narratives.

MedievalFolktalesEpic

Russian Epic Poems: Byliny

1992 Research / Translation

A work compiling commentary and translations of the bylina (Russian epic poems).

Epic poetryOral literatureHeroic tales

The Man in a Box (Chekhov Collection)

2008 Translation (fiction)

A Japanese translation of a Chekhov short story, published as part of a Chekhov collection.

Russian literatureShort fictionCharacter study

Bibliography

  • Oroshiya Bon Odori Song Study: Miscellanea of Japan–Russia Cultural Negotiations (1990)
  • In Search of Sacred Russia: Utopian Legends of the Old Believers (1990)
  • Distant Views of Russia: Journeys in History and Folklore (1996)
  • Wanderings of Sacred Russia (1997)
  • Winds of Russia: A Journey through 200 Years of Japan–Russia Exchange (2001)
  • Burn the Weapons: The Trajectories of Russian Pacifists (2002)
  • Echoes of Russia (2006)
  • Under the Russian Sky (2014)
  • Medieval Russian Tales (1970; reprinted 1985; 2025 in Chikuma Library)
  • Modern Heroes (Mikhail Lermontov) (translation, 1971)
  • History of Russian and Soviet Literature (2 vols., co-translation, 1976)
  • Dikanka Tales (Gogol Collection 1) (1977)
  • Russian Humorous Tales (ed. Afanasyev) (1977)
  • Dead Souls (Nikolai Gogol) (translation, 1980)
  • Russian Folktales (Afanasyev, 1987)
  • Medieval Russian Laughter (Dmitry Likhachev, co-trans., 1989)
  • Russian Epic Poems: Byliny (1992; revised 1994)
  • Village Beings (Vasily Belov) (translation, 1997)
  • Selections from Missionary Nikolai's Diary (ed./trans., 2000)
  • Complete Russian Erotic Folktales (Afanasyev, 2006)
  • Chekhov Short Stories (Man in a Box, etc.; translations 2008–2011)
  • Enomoto Takeaki's Siberian Diary (modern translation / ed., 2010)
  • The Hairdresser Artist (Nikolai Leskov) Collected Works vol.2 (co-translation, 2020)

Translations by Author

  • Medieval Russian Tales (translated/edited, 1970)
  • Modern Heroes (M. Lermontov, trans., 1971)
  • History of Russian and Soviet Literature (co-translation, 1976)
  • Dikanka Tales (Gogol, trans., 1977)
  • Russian Folktales (ed./trans., 1987)
  • Dead Souls (Gogol, co-trans., 1980)
  • Chekhov short stories (various translations, 2008–2011)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
ScholarlySource-based narrativesFolkloristic perspective
Recurring Motifs
Russian folkloreReligion and utopiaJapan–Russia cultural exchange

Legacy

Yoshikazu Nakamura is among the leading generation of Japanese scholars of Russian literature and culture. He is known for translations of Chekhov, studies of Russian folklore and religion, and research on Japan–Russia cultural exchange. He is Professor Emeritus of Hitotsubashi University and a Foreign Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Academic Societies

  • Russian Academy of Sciences (Foreign Member)

Archives

  • Hitotsubashi University Repository (biographical note and selected bibliography of Professor Emeritus Yoshikazu Nakamura)

Trivia

  • One of the principal translators for the Chekhov Collection in Japanese.
  • Received the Osaragi Jiro Prize in 1990 and the Lomonosov Gold Medal in 1998.
  • Participated in international seminars in Moscow in the 1970s and carried out long-term field research and exchanges between Japan and Russia.