Oka Yoshitake

Oka Yoshitake ( Japanese 岡 義 武 ; born October 21, 1902 in Tōkyō ; died October 5, 1990 there) was a Japanese scholar specializing in political history.

Live and act

Oka Yoshitake graduated from Tōkyō University in 1926 with a degree in political science. Two years later he became an assistant professor in the law school of his alma mater. From 1936 to 1938 he continued his education in Europe and the USA. After his return he became a professor in 1939. When he left the teaching post in 1963, he was adopted by the university as "Meiyo Kyōju".

In connection with international political history, Oka developed a new perspective on the Japanese and published "New Age of Meiji Japan" (黎明 期 の 明治 日本, Reimiki no Meiji Nihon). During the Pacific War , too , he argued that liberalism should not be given up. In doing so, he was guided by the view of his teacher Yoshino and other personalities.

Immediately after the end of the war, Oka published the “Political History of Modern Europe” (近代 欧 州 政治 史, Kindai Ōshū seiji-shi) in 1945 and “Formation of Japan of the Modern Age” (近代 日本 の 形成, Kindai Nihon no keisei) in 1947 and the 1955 "History of international politics" (国際 政治 史, Kokusai seiji-shi), for which he received the Mainichi Culture Prize in 1956 . Since, in his opinion, politics is not basically made by offices but by people, he wrote in 1950 “The Strategy of Modern Politicians” (近代 政治家 の ス ト ラ テ ジ ー), in 1958 a book on Yamagata Aritomo (1838–1922), 1960 “ Politicians of Modern Japan - Their Fate and Character ”(近代 日本 の 政治家 ―― そ の 運 命 と 性格, Kindai Nihon no seijika - sono ummei to seikaku) and in 1972 a book on Konoe Fumimaro (1891–1945). At the end of his life, an overview of “Politicians of Modern Japan” (近代 日本 の 政治家, Kindai Nihon no seijika) followed in 1990.

1972 Oka became a member of the Academy of Sciences . In 1977 he was honored as a person with special cultural merits and was awarded the Cultural Order in 1986 .

Remarks

1. ↑ Meiyo Kyōju (名誉 教授) is occasionally rendered in German as "Professor emeritus". But in contrast to this title, which is automatically used on retirement, this is a special award only occasionally granted in Japan.
2. ↑ This book was published in 1986 in English under the title "Five Political Leaders of Modern Japan: Ito Hirobumi, Okuma Shigenobu, Hara Takashi, Inukai Tsuyoshi, and Saionji Kimmochi".

Web links

• Biographies of Oka Yoshitake in the Kotobank, Japanese

Japanese name: As is common in Japan, the family name comes before the first name in this article . So Oka is the family name, Yoshitake the first name.