Ōhara Magosaburō

Ōhara Magosaburō

Ōhara Magosaburō ( Japanese 大 原 孫三郎 ; born July 28, 1880 in Kurashiki ( Okayama Prefecture ); died January 18, 1943 ) was a Japanese entrepreneur, philanthropist, art collector and founder of the Ōhara Art Museum .

life and work

Ōhara Magosaburō studied at the "Tōkyō Semmon Gakkō" (東京 専 門 学校), the forerunner of the Waseda University . In 1906 he took over his father's company, the "Kurashiki Spinning Mill" (倉 敷 紡 績 株式会社, Kurashiki Bōseki kabushiki kaisha, abbreviated to "Kurabō") and built the "Kurashiki Seidenweberei AG" (倉 敷 絹 織 株式会社, Kurashiki kinu-ori) kabushiki kaisha, the "Kurashiki Wollweberei AG" (倉 敷 毛織 株式会社, Kurashiki ke-ori kabushiki kaisha), the Ōhara Art Museum and the Chūgoku Bank (中国 銀行).

Ōhara believed that good business operations needed to promote workers' welfare. Among his many contributions to this idea are the "Ōhara Institute for Social Problems Research" directed by the social scientist Takano Iwasaburō (高 野 岩 三郎; 1871-1949), the Ōhara art museum, a library and a hospital.

The Ohara Institute of Social Problems Research received the support of many scholars between 1920 and 1949, published regular publications, and made a significant contribution to the advancement of the social sciences in Japan. - The institute is now affiliated to Hōsei University (法政 大学) in Tokyo.

Remarks

1. ↑ As a producer of mainly synthetic fibers, the company is now called " Kuraray " (ク ラ レ)).
2. ↑ The "Ohara Institute of Social Problems Research" (大 原 社会 問題 研究所, Ōhara shakai mondai kenkyūjo) was a reaction to the "rice unrest" (米 騒 動; Kome sōdō) in July 1918, when the rice price was inflationary by 170% rise. The government tried to counter this, but the Terauchi cabinet eventually had to resign.

literature

• S. Noma (Ed.): Ōhara Magosaburō . In: Japan. An Illustrated Encyclopedia. Kodansha, 1993, ISBN 4-06-205938-X
• Hunter, Janet: Ōhara Magosaburō . In: Concise Dictionary of Modern Japanese History. Kodansha International, 1984. ISBN 4-7700-1193-8 .

Japanese name: As is common in Japan, the family name comes before the first name in this article . Thus Ōhara is the family name, Magosaburō the first name.