Japanese Studies in Russia: From Its Classical Origins to the Winds of Changing Trends

The article deals with the analysis of Japanese studies evolution in Russia and its key milestones on the base of problem-oriented historical approach since the very start in the late 17th century. The development of area studies on Japan in Russia was determined by many factors, such as geopolitics, domestic and foreign policy, socio-economic changes in all public authorities. Russian Japanology is presented as a complex science that has incorporated a number of scientific areas (language, history and culture, literature and art, ethnography and ethno-psychology, geography, economics, and politics). The Japanology specificity in Russia is the preservation of the unity and integrity of Japanese studies as a sign of respect for the classical traditions of Oriental studies. Among the main stages of development, the author considers the origins of Japanese studies in Russia, starting from the 17th century, the formation in the classical form at the turn of the 19th-20th centuries, the crisis lines of 1905, 1917, 1937-1938. The next two stages, marking the completion of the review, can be considered as signs of certainly impressive results in scholarly publications for the Russian Japanese studies. The comprehensive analysis that had appeared in the scholarly works and literary translations of Russian Japanology scholars (from the mid-forties till perestroika-time, 1945-1985) was the result of a well-planned policy to promote Oriental studies based on a stable ideology and regular funding. The names of the most prominent scholars, twists and turns of their life activities and achievements are widely presented. The essay concludes with an overview of the situation at the turn of the XX-XXI centuries, touches on the pros and cons that emerged in Japanese studies at the post-Soviet stage.