An Empirical and Fundamental Study on the Influence of Renaissance Humanism in the Kirishitan Era

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25770029
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: History of thought
• Research Institution: Keio University
• Principal Investigator: ORII Yoshimi 慶應義塾大学, 法学部(日吉), 准教授 (80453869)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: イエズス会 / 東西交渉史 / キリスト教史 / グローバル・ルネサンス / インテレクチュアル・ヒストリー / キリシタン / スペイン文学 / カトリック

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study traced the historical flow from the original European text to the books printed by the Jesuit mission press in Japan and their written manuscripts by Japanese believers, and analyzed some changes between texts due to some materials being sifted out or added. It showed that Renaissance humanism as a rhetorical tradition of the Jesuit missionaries in Japan has been passed down to later years. I examined the way people chose necessary religious components and discarded others when Christianity came to Japan in the early modern era; the Christian church was in a chaotic situation at the time. Specifically, I (1) translated and analyzed materials that have not been translated or reprinted and (2) traced the overseas movement of the Jesuit mission printings, which has not been comprehensively studied for more than half a century.

Free Research Field

思想史