John Forman Howes (June 19, 1924 – February 4, 2017) was a Professor of Asian Studies at the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks among the top thre ...

(UBC) for over three decades.

Biography

Howes began his studies of the Japanese language in 1944 at the I.T.S. Naval School of Oriental Languages, and served as a translator in the general headquarters of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers Occupation of Japan. Returning to the United States, he obtained an undergraduate degree at Oberlin College, and then an MA from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

with a thesis entitled "Uchimura Kanzō; a biographical sketch", followed by a 1965 Ph.D for "Japan's enigma, the young Uchimura Kanzō". Even before completing his doctoral work, in 1961, he joined the Department of Asian Studies at the University of British Columbia, rising to the rank of Professor, and then Emeritus Professor. After retirement from UBC, he taught at

Obirin University ''Ōbirin daigaku'' -- note that "Ōbirin" is written in the kanji for "beautiful cherry orchard". is a private university in Machida, Tokyo, Japan. The university was founded by Yasuzo Shimizu. Its name is derived from that of pastor and phi ...

, near Tokyo.

Academic work

Howes was a specialist in modern Japanese intellectual history, concentrating on its Christian and pacifist thinkers, particularly

Uchimura Kanzō was a Japanese author, Christian evangelist, and the founder of the Nonchurch Movement (Mukyōkai) of Christianity in the Meiji and Taishō period Japan. He is often considered to be the most well-known Japanese pre-World War II pacifist. Ea ...

(1861-1930) and

Nitobe Inazō was a Japanese author, educator, agricultural economist, diplomat, politician, and Protestant Christian during the late Meiji era. Early life Nitobe was born in Morioka, Mutsu Province (present-day Iwate Prefecture). His father Nitobe J ...

(1862-1933). He published the following books: *''Japan's Modern Prophet: Uchimura Kanzō, 1861-1930.'' Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 2005. According to

WorldCat WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the O ...

, the book is held in 600 libraries. * (editor) ''Nitobe Inazô: Japan's Bridge Across the Pacific.'' Boulder: Westview Press, 1995. *(with Nobuya Bamba) ''Pacifism in Japan: The Christian and Socialist Tradition'' (Vancouver: UBC Press and Kyoto: Minerva Press, 1978). According to

, the book is held in 498 libraries *''Tradition in Transition, The Modernization of Japan'' (New York: Macmillan, 1975), *''Japanese Religion in the Meiji Era (Tokyo: Ministry of Education, 1956). He also edited two volumes for the Japan Foundation: the 1983 ''Directory of Japan Specialists in Canada'' and ''Japan Studies in Canada'', 1987.

Community work

In 2003, Howes was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun by the Emperor of Japan for his contributions to the Canada-Japan community.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Howes, John 1924 births 2017 deaths University of British Columbia faculty American emigrants to Canada Oberlin College alumni Columbia University alumni American expatriates in Japan