Jean-Jacques Origas (1937–2003) was a French

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

with expertise in Japanese literature and art. He was a

Japanologist , sometimes known as Japanology in Europe, is a sub-field of area studies or East Asian studies involved in social sciences and humanities research on Japan. It incorporates fields such as the study of Japanese language, History of Japan, history, ...

, best known more for giving his knowledge to his students rather than for publishing books.Keene, Donald. (2008)
''Chronicles of my Life,'' p. 20.
/ref>

Academic career

Origas studied Japanese the Sorbonne. He furthered his education at

Waseda University Waseda University (Japanese: ), abbreviated as or , is a private university, private research university in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Founded in 1882 as the Tōkyō Professional School by Ōkuma Shigenobu, the fifth Prime Minister of Japan, prime ministe ...

in Tokyo; and he taught at the

Tokyo University of Foreign Studies , often referred to as TUFS, is a specialist National university, national research university in Fuchū, Tokyo, Fuchū, Tokyo, Japan. TUFS is primarily devoted to foreign language, international relations, international affairs and area studies. ...

."Obituary: Jean-Jaques Origas,"
''Japan Times Online.'' January 29, 2003. Origas was a Professor of Japanese at the National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilizations (''

Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales (; ), abbreviated as INALCO, is a French Grand Etablissement with a specializing in the teaching of languages and cultures from the world. Its coverage spans languages of Central Europ ...

'' or

INALCO Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales (; ), abbreviated as INALCO, is a French Grand Etablissement with a specializing in the teaching of languages and cultures from the world. Its coverage spans languages of Central Europ ...

) in Paris. He became a visiting professor at the

International Research Center for Japanese Studies The , or Nichibunken (日文研), is an inter-university research institute in Kyoto. Along with the National Institute of Japanese Literature, the National Museum of Japanese History, and the National Museum of Ethnology (Japan), National Museum ...

in Kyoto, where he lectured on Haiku in contemporary French poetry (1992). His work on Meiji literature was the subject of a Nichibunken Mokuyo Seminar (1996). Origas was famed for his expertise in th
pedagogy
of Japanese language education. He influenced the way Japanese as a foreign language is taught in France. As a teacher, his intention was to impart not only the ability to write grammatically correct Japanese, but also to use the language in a way which is stylistically pleasing. He was also president of the ''Centre d'Etudes Japonaises d'Alsace'' (CEJA). and member of composers of Matsuyama Declaration.

Selected work

* Origas, Jean-Jacques. (2000). ''Dictionnaire de littérature japonaise.'' Paris: Presses Universitaires de France. (paper) * ____________
"Japanese-Language Education in France:Present and Future."
''Current report on Japanese-language education around the globe,'' Japan Foundation. Vol. 1, pp. 173–176. * Didier, Béatrice. (1994). ''Dictionnaire universel des littératures'' ("Notices sur la revue Hototogisu, les écrivains Nagatsuka Takashi 879-1915et Takahama Kyoshi 874-1959 --
section littérature japonaise sous la direction de Jean-Jacques Origas
. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France. * de Touchet, Elizabeth. (2003). ''Quand les Français armaient le Japon: la création de l'arsenal de Yokosuka, 1865-1882'' (Préface de Jean-Jacques Origas). Rennes: Presses universitaires de Rennes. * Jean-Jacques Origas, (2008). ''La Lampe d'Akutagawa. Essais sur la littérature japonaise moderne'', (présenté par Emmanuel Lozerand et Christophe Marquet), Paris, Les Belles Lettres, coll. "Japon" octobre 2008, , 35 €

Honors

Order of the Sacred Treasure The is a Japanese Order (distinction), order, established on 4 January 1888 by Emperor Meiji as the Order of Meiji. Originally awarded in eight classes (from 8th to 1st, in ascending order of importance), since 2003 it has been awarded in six c ...

with Gold Rays, 1998 . *

Japan Foundation The is a Japanese foundation that spreads Japanese culture around the world. Based in Tokyo, it was established in 1972 by an Act of the National Diet as a special legal entity to undertake international dissemination of Japanese culture. I ...

: Special Prize, 1988. Japan Foundation Special Prize, 1988

Notes

References

* Keene, Donald. (2008)
''Chronicles of my Life: an American in the Heart of Japan.''
New York:

Columbia University Press Columbia University Press is a university press based in New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's la ...

Academic career

Selected work

Honors

Notes

References

See also