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Kenneth Scott Latourette (August 6, 1884 – December 26, 1968) was an American historian of China, Japan, and world Christianity."Dr. Kenneth Latourette Is Dead; Long a Church Historian at Yale; Professor at Divinity School Also Was an Authority on the World of the Orient,"
''The New York Times.'' January 1, 1969.
His formative experiences as Christian missionary and educator in early 20th century China shaped his life's work. Although he did not learn the Chinese language, he became known for his magisterial scholarly surveys of the history of world Christianity, the history of China, and of American relations with East Asia.


Early life

Latourette was born in
Oregon City ) , image_skyline = McLoughlin House.jpg , imagesize = , image_caption = The McLoughlin House, est. 1845 , image_flag = , image_seal = Oregon City seal.png , image_map ...
,
Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
, the son of DeWitt Clinton Latourette and Ella (Scott) Latourette. His mother and father both attended Pacific University in Forest Grove, Oregon, where they graduated in 1878. DeWitt Clinton Latourette was a lawyer in Oregon City. The Latourette family migrated to Oregon in the 1860s; the family's origins are from
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
where they fled religious persecution as
Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
s and migrated to
Staten Island, New York Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull and ...
in the 1600s. In 1904, Latourette was awarded a Bachelor of Science degree from
Linfield College Linfield University is a private university with campuses in McMinnville, and Portland, Oregon. Linfield Wildcats athletics participates in the NCAA Division III Northwest Conference. Linfield reported a combined 1,755 students after the fal ...
in Oregon. He continued his education in New Haven, Connecticut at
Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...
, earning a BA in 1906, an MA in 1907 and PhD in 1909.
Boston University School of Theology Boston University School of Theology (BUSTH) is the oldest theological seminary of American Methodism and the founding school of Boston University, the largest private research university in New England. It is one of thirteen theological sch ...
( BUSTH): Anderson, Gerald H. (1998)
"Latourette, Kenneth Scott,"
in ''Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions,'' pp. 384–85.


Career

From 1909 through 1910, Latourette served as a traveling secretary for the Student Volunteer Movement for Foreign Missions. In 1910, he joined the faculty of Yale-in China's Yali School at
Changsha Changsha (; ; ; Changshanese pronunciation: (), Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is the capital and the largest city of Hunan Province of China. Changsha is the 17th most populous city in China with a population of over 10 million, and ...
in
Hunan Province Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to ...
. He began to study the Chinese language, but in the summer of 1911 he contracted a severe case of amoebic dysentery and was forced to return to the United States. As he began his recovery, Latourette joined the faculty at Reed College in Portland, Oregon; and from 1914 through 1916, he was a professor of history at Reed. In 1916, he accepted a position at
Denison University Denison University is a private liberal arts college in Granville, Ohio. One of the earliest colleges established in the former Northwest Territory, Denison University was founded in 1831. The college was first called the Granville Literary and ...
, an institution with
Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul c ...
affiliations, in
Granville, Ohio Granville is a village in Licking County, Ohio, United States. The population was 5,646 at the 2010 census. The village is located in a rural area of rolling hills in central Ohio. It is east of Columbus, the state capital, and west of Newa ...
. His time at Denison lasted from 1916 through 1921. In 1918, while at Denison, Latourette was ordained as a Baptist minister. Latourette joined the faculty of the Yale University Divinity School in 1921. Latourette lived in a college dormitory suite during his time at Yale. He welcomed student groups to meet in the living room and was known as "Uncle Ken." He accepted appointment as the D. Willis James Professor of Missions and World Christianity (1921–1949), and he was later made the Sterling Professor of Missions and Oriental History (1949–1953). In 1938, he was named Chairman of the Department of Religion at Yale. He took on greater responsibilities in 1946 as Director of Graduate Studies at the Yale Divinity School. From his retirement in 1953 until his death in 1968, he was Sterling Professor Emeritus at the Divinity School. Latourette was killed at age 84 when an automobile accidentally hit him in front of his family home in Oregon City, Oregon.


Other achievements

Latourette served as president of the
American Historical Association The American Historical Association (AHA) is the oldest professional association of historians in the United States and the largest such organization in the world. Founded in 1884, the AHA works to protect academic freedom, develop professional s ...
, the Association for Asian Studies, the American Baptist Convention, the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society and the Japan
International Christian University is a non-denominational private university located in Mitaka, Tokyo, Japan, commonly known as ICU. With the efforts of Prince Takamatsu, General Douglas MacArthur, and BOJ President Hisato Ichimada, ICU was established in 1949 as the first ...
Foundation. He was a leader in the ecumenical movement, and he held leadership positions in the American Baptist Missionary Union, the International Board of the Y.M.C.A., the United Board for Christian Colleges in China and the
World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, most ju ...
. Throughout his life he remained active in the Yale-in-China Association. At the Yale Divinity School, the "Latourette Initiative" is a proactive program to preserve and provide access to the documentation of world Christianity. It provides funding for the microfilming of published and archival resources documenting the history of Christian missions and Christian life.


Honors

Latourette was awarded honorary doctorates from seventeen universities in five countries. In 1938 he received the
Order of Jade The Order of Brilliant Jade is a civilian order of the Republic of China that can be worn only by the head of a nation. According to regulations, the order can only be presented by the president of the country or an emissary expressly dispatched ...
from the Government of
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
. He is also honored at the campus of William Carey International University in
Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. ...
. The institution's main library was called the Latourette Library. (The WCIU campus was sold to
Education First EF Education First (abbreviated as EF) is an international education company that specializes in language training, educational travel, academic degree programs, and cultural exchange. The company was founded in 1965 by Bertil Hult in the Sw ...
and therefore no longer heralds Latourette's name). Linfield College named a residence hall in his honor in 1946.


Writings

Latourette was the author of over 80 books on Christianity, Oriental history and customs, and theological subjects. He also wrote and spoke out about issues of his time, as for example, when he warned his fellow Americans in 1943 about the unwanted consequences of revenge after Japan should eventually lose the war they started with the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. In addition, Latourette later wrote extensively on China. The single work for which Latourette is most remembered is the seven-volume ''"A History of the Expansion of Christianity".''Burger, Nash K
"In the Field of Religion,"
''The New York Times.'' August 2, 1953.
Latourette noted within Volume 4 that only 5% of Americans in 1790 had formal ties to churches or synagogues. Latourette's papers are archived in the Divinity Library Special Collections of the Yale University Library.


Selected works

* . *
– full text online
* . * . * . * . * . * , 7 vol. comprehensive history of all missions and expansions ** '' A history of the expansion of Christianity
1. The first five centuries
' (1937) ** ''A history of the expansion of Christianity
2. The thousand years of uncertainty. 500–1500
'' (1938) ** ''A history of expansion of christianity.
Three centuries of advance: A.D. 1500-A.D. 1800
' (1939) ** ''A history of expansion of Christianity. 4. The great century: in Europe and the United States of America; A.D. 1800-A.D. 1914'' (1941) ** ''A history of the expansion of Christianity. 5
The great century in the Americas, Australasia, and Africa. 1800–1914
' (1943
online review
** ''A history of the expansion of Christianity. 6
The great century in Northern Africa and Asia: A.D. 1800 - A.D. 1914
' (1944) ** ''A history of expansion of Christianity. 7. Advance through storm: AD 1914 and after, with concluding generalizations '' (1945) * . * . * . * . * . * . ** . ** . **
online
** . ** .


Notes


References

* . * . * * . * . * . * . {{DEFAULTSORT:Latourette, Kenneth Scott 20th-century American historians American male non-fiction writers Baptists from Oregon People from Oregon City, Oregon Presidents of the American Historical Association 1884 births 1968 deaths Linfield University alumni Yale Sterling Professors Historians of Christianity Reed College faculty Denison University faculty Presidents of the Association for Asian Studies Historians of Japan World Christianity scholars Yale University alumni American historians of religion Historians of China Presidents of the American Society of Church History 20th-century Baptists 20th-century American male writers