2026 USC Kambun Workshop
The Project for Premodern Japan Studies at the University of Southern California announces this summer’s Kambun Workshop, July 21 to August 14.
A page of Meigetsuki owned by the Nara National Museum.
The Workshop will focus on the journal Meigetsuki of Fujiwara no Teika (1162-1241), a famous poet of the Kamakura period. Teika’s mastery of waka continued to influence literature for centuries after his death, and his knowledge of poetry brought him great influence during his life. Teika worked to improve his family’s political fortunes at court, cultivating a relationship with Go Toba and competing fiercely with rivals for both royal and shogunal esteem. His journal gives us a valuable look at elite medieval life. Selections from the journal will focus on education, women, and dynamics at court in the age of dual aristocratic and warrior rule.
The primary language of the Workshop will be English. Applicants must be fluent in Japanese, however, and they must have completed basic coursework in classical Japanese and have experience with reading Kambun.
Sessions will be held on Zoom, Tuesday through Friday, 3:00-5:00 PDT.
Instructors: Dr. Sachiko Kawai and Dr. Emily Warren
Through the workshopping process, participants will learn about the core dictionaries and reference texts for the field as well as effective annotation and collaboration strategies. The workshop will produce English translations and kundoku readings. Participants will also create a communal glossary of translated terms.
Outside of Workshop hours, participants are expected to translate their entries, write annotations and glossary entries, and then revise their presented work. After editing their translations and annotations, the work will be published online through the USC Project for Premodern Japan Studies.
Contact: Dr. Emily Warren (ewarren at usc dot edu)