ANN ARBOR—A collection of Japanese clan genealogies is just one of four sets of Japanese historical sources recently acquired by the University of Michigan’s Asia Library from funding received from the National Coordination Council on Japanese Library Resources. The documents, which are included on 126 reels of microfilm, will be cataloged and made available to the University community and other libraries through the University Library’s InterLibrary Loan program.

“The Asia Library is one of the most comprehensive research resources outside of Asia for Chinese and Japanese studies,” said William A. Gosling, director of the University Library. “The addition of these major historical resources greatly enriches the Japanese collections of the Library in support of Japanese studies.”

The acquisitions include:

•Shoke Keizu Shiryoshu, a comprehensive collection of clan genealogies of the 17th and 19th centuries.

•Gobangata Daidaiki, detailed records of the local governments during the Tokugawa period (1603-1867).

•Kyoto Bijitsu Kyokai Zasshi (the Journal of the Kyoto Art Association; important material for the study of the Kyoto style of art).

•Komin Kyoiku (the Citizen’s Education), a journal published between 1931 and 1942 that reflects the growing tendency of the militarism of that time.

The National Coordination Council on Japanese Library Resources finances (on a three-to-one basis) the purchase of major sets of source materials through an open competition each year. This year, the U-M’s Asia Library received four of the 16 titles approved by the Council.

“We are very pleased to receive funding for the acquisition of these important primary source materials,” said Kenji Niki, curator of Japanese Collection, Asia Library. “We will have these materials cataloged online and make them available to the scholarly community.”

Asia LibraryUniversity Library