ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Press
ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Press was established in November 1947 (Showa 22) as ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Correspondence Education Books Co., Ltd. Its purpose was to handle the practical operations of the ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ correspondence education courses to be opened the following year, and to publish textbooks and supplementary materials for that education. In 1952, the company name was changed to ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Tsushin Co., Ltd. Since then, it has also undertaken commissioned projects outside of correspondence education and the publication of academic books.
In 1995 (Heisei 7), the new headquarters building was completed. Then, in April 1996, the company name was changed to the current ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Press Co., Ltd. As a university press, it began to focus in earnest on publishing academic books, centered on disseminating the research results of ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ faculty and researchers nationwide.
Since then, in addition to publishing the "Collected Works of Yukichi Fukuzawa (12 volumes)" and the "Complete Works of Toshihiko Izutsu (12 volumes + supplementary volume)" and academic books reflecting the results of cutting-edge research, it has also taken over the editing and production of Mita-hyoron (official monthly journal published by ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Press), playing a major role in the accumulation and dissemination of ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ culture.
Publishing at ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ has its origins in the vigorous writing activities of Yukichi Fukuzawa. Fukuzawa, who developed numerous translations and writings including Things Western (Seiy¨ Jij¨), was dissatisfied with the Edo period practice of leaving all book publishing to booksellers (shorin). He set out to manage his own publishing business, and in 1869 (Meiji 2), he joined the booksellers' wholesaler association under the trade name "Fukuzawaya Yukichi." Subsequently, while changing names to ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Publishing Bureau and ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Publishing House (Shuppansha), it published Fukuzawa's works such as An Outline of a Theory of Civilization, as well as books and translations by ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ faculty (ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Publishing House later became the Jiji Shimpo-sha).
Furthermore, in 1937 (Showa 12), when then President Shinzo Koizumi was invited to the 300th anniversary celebration of the founding of Harvard University, he witnessed the active operations of university presses at various American universities. This led to the establishment of ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Publishing Co., Ltd., which existed until shortly after the end of the war.
Currently, ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Press carries out diversified business operations to manage itself as a corporation while fulfilling the important mission of disseminating research results through academic publishing. In addition to leasing the top three floors of the headquarters building to ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ as the ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ International Residence for visiting researchers and others, in recent years it has also focused on digital media businesses, including the production of media and broadcast classes for correspondence education courses.
In particular, ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ disseminates Japanese culture and other topics to the world through FutureLearn, an online education platform established in 2012 by the Open University in the UK, and the Press is responsible for the production of these popular courses.
ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Press is expected to support new research and educational activities while inheriting Yukichi Fukuzawa's philosophy of publishing and enlightenment.
(Yasuhiro Hirao, Chairman of the Board of Directors of ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ Press, Honorary Affiliate of ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡)
*Affiliations and titles are as of the time this magazine was published.