Nihon Odai Ichiran facts for kids
Nihon Odai Ichiran (日本王代一覧, Nihon Ōdai Ichiran, "Table of the rulers of Japan") is a Japanese book. It is a 17th century chronicle (history) of the reigns of the Japanese emperors before the 19th century.
A French translation of Nihon Ōdai Ichiran (Annales des empereurs du Japon) was published in 1834. It was translated by a Dutchman Isaac Titsingh ; this translation was one of very few books about Japan of the time.
First book of its kind in the West
Dutch historian Isaac Titsingh brought the seven volumes of the book with him when he returned to Europe in 1797. He returned after twenty years in Asia. Titsingh's French translation was published in 1834. The Japanese originals were lost in the 19th century wars in Europe.
This was the first major history of Japan to be published in the West. It was also the first history book by a Japanese writer to be published in Europe.
Isaac Titsingh described Nihon odai ichiran as a very difficult book. He thought that the translation was "a most tedious task."
In the 1950s, Ōdai-ichiran was evaluated by Japanologist John Whitney Hall who confirmed Titsingh's work is a careful translation from Japanese sources.
Related pages
- Manuscript scans, Waseda University Library
Images for kids
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This illustrative page from the Waseda University's copy of Nihon Ōdai Ichiran shows part of a widely used Edo period reference book about Imperial Japanese history.
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This sample page from Nihon Ōdai Ichiran illustrates the book's section layout, merged composition of Japanese kanji and French type-face text, and rare pre-Hepburn transliterations in the context of the original published paragraphs.
See also
In Spanish: Nihon ōdai ichiran para niños
