Properties and influences of the northward advance theories in the Empire of Japan

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26370786
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Japanese history
• Research Institution: Hokkaido University
• Principal Investigator: ITANI Hiroshi 北海道大学, スラブ・ユーラシア研究センター, 境界研究共同研究員 (10419210)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 北進論 / 樺太 / 千島列島

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study collected hundreds of documents and articles about Karafuto and Chishima (Kuril) Islands, and revealed the properties of them. Concretely, these documents can be categorized three types below: (1) the 'northward advance’ theories for the defense of northern territories, (2) the 'northward advance’ theories to invade Manchuria, (3) the 'northward advance’ theories to invade Siberia and Far East Russia. As the typical example, the legend of the Nichiji, who was the first Japanese visited Karafuto. The legend about him was used to justify the conquest of Hokkaido by Japanese in the premodern time. And later, his legend was also reused to justify the conquest of the east Asia and Far East Russia.

Free Research Field

サハリン樺太史