Ōtani University

Ōtani University

Main Gate of Ōtani University
Former names
 Shinshū University
Established 1901
Affiliation Buddhist
Location Kyoto, Japan
Website http://www.otani.ac.jp/

Ōtani University (大谷大学 Ōtani Daigaku) is a private Buddhist university located in Kita-ku, Kyoto, Japan. Ōtani University is a coeducation institution with an emphasis on Buddhist studies. A two-year private junior college is associated with the university. The university is associated with the Ōtani School of Jōdo Shinshū, or Shin, school of Buddhism.[1][2][3]

History

Ōtani University traces its origin to the early Edo period (1603 – 1868). It was founded in 1655, and served as the seminary of Higashi Hongan-ji. The shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu founded Higashi Hongan-ji in 1602 by splitting it from Nishi Hongan-ji in order to diminish the power of the Shin sect of Buddhism. The seminary was strengthened and revived in 1755, and developed a broader curriculum throughout the 19th century.[3][4][4]

The modern university was founded in 1901 as Shinshū University in the Sugamo neighborhood of Tokyo. Shinshū University was closely associated with Kiyozawa Manshi (1863-1903), a Shin Buddhist reformer from a low-ranking samurai background who studied at the University of Tokyo under the American philosopher Ernest Fenollosa (1853 – 1908).[5] Kiyozawa also served as the first dean of the university.[1][2][6] In 1904 the university achieved the legal status of senmon gakko, or vocational school.

Shinshū University moved from Tokyo to Kyoto in 1911. It had a curriculum that consisted of three years of general study, two years of specialized study, and four years of graduate-level study. The university moved to newly constructed buildings in the Koyamahigashifusa-chō neighborhood of Kita-ku in 1913, remains at this location. Shinshū attained university status in 1922, and was renamed Ōtani University in the same year. Under the Education Law of 1947 Ōtani University transitioned to the post-World War II educational system, and was reclassified as a university.[2][4] Ōtani University Museum opened in 2003.[7]

Notable alumni and faculty

Notes

  1. 1 2 "Ōtani University". Encyclopedia of Japan. Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC 56431036. Retrieved 2012-09-04.
  2. 1 2 3 "大谷大学" [Ōtani University]. Dijitaru Daijisen (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC 56431036. Retrieved 2012-09-04.
  3. 1 2 "大谷大学" [Ōtani Daigaku]. Kokushi Daijiten (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC 683276033. Retrieved 2012-09-07.
  4. 1 2 3 "大谷大学" [Ōtani Daigaku]. Nihon Kokugo Daijiten (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC 56431036. Retrieved 2012-09-07.
  5. ↑ "Kiyozawa Manshi". Encyclopedia of Japan. Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC 56431036. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
  6. ↑ December Fan: The Buddhist Essays of Manshi Kiyozawa translated by Nobuo Haneda, pp. 86-87 (biography by Thomas Kirchner) / Kyoto: Higashi Honganji 1984, OCLC 20248970
  7. ↑ 大谷大学博物館 [Ōtani University Museum] (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
  8. ↑ "金子大栄" [Kaneko Daiei]. Nihon Daihyakka Zensho (Nipponika) (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC 153301537. Retrieved 2012-09-12.
  9. ↑ "曽我 量深" [Soga Ryōjin]. Nihon Daihyakka Zensho (Nipponika) (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC 153301537. Retrieved 2012-09-12.
  10. ↑ "鈴木大拙" [Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki]. Nihon Jinmei Daijiten (日本人名大辞典) (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. Retrieved 2012-09-05.

External links

Coordinates: 35°02′35″N 135°45′29″E / 35.042949°N 135.758124°E / 35.042949; 135.758124


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