Waseda CultureWaseda University

Since its founding, Waseda University has contributed to Japanese society and culture through its accumulated history and traditions. This accumulation is often referred to as “Waseda-ness” or “Waseda Culture” and has fostered pride among a wide range of people associated with Waseda, including current students, faculty, staff, and alumni.

The Cultural Affairs Division was established in 2007 to play a central role in disseminating the “Waseda Culture” and to contribute to society by co-creating and creating “knowledge” through open collaboration with students, alumni, and the community. The Tsubouchi Memorial Theatre Museum (opened in 1928), the Aizu Museum (opened in 1998), and the Waseda University Archives (reorganized in 1998), which have developed independently, were added to the Cultural Planning Section as an administrative organization directly under the Cultural Affairs Division. Each plays its own role, but they work in unison as a “bundle of culture” at Waseda University.

Bundle of Culture
Waseda University owns more than 5 million items, including 2 National Treasures, 7 Important Cultural Properties, and 8 Important Art Objects, as well as works of art, calligraphies, paintings, natural history materials, books, and video materials, which are valuable cultural assets that form the core of Waseda culture. The Cultural Affairs Division is actively working to make these resources available to the public and put them to good use.

In March 2018, we opened a third museum, the Waseda University History Museum, in addition to the existing Dr. Tsubouchi Memorial Theatre Museum and Aizu Museum. Materials and information related to the history of the University (past, present, and future) are presented from a variety of perspectives so that visitors can make new discoveries based on their own interests, rather than simply displaying a flat display of the general history of the University. Furthermore, in March 2019, a fourth museum, the Waseda Sports Museum, opened in the Waseda Arena, a new symbol of the University completed on the Toyama Campus. Through glorious scenes and symbolic episodes from its long history, visitors can experience the unparalleled individuality and appeal of Waseda Sports, which has always attracted great attention as a pioneer at the forefront of the times.

In addition, Honjo City, Saitama Prefecture, and Waseda University have designated the area surrounded by the blessed natural environment of the Okuboyama and Asamiyama Hills, as well as diverse ruins and cultural assets, as “Honjo Waseda Cultural Forest” and positioned it as a center of local culture.In October 2020, we will jointly open the “Honjo Waseda no Mori Museum,” which will utilize the wealth of materials owned by Honjo City and the University to present exhibits that capture the history of the region from a global perspective.

In October 2021, the Waseda International House of Literature (The Haruki Murakami Library) ” will open on the Waseda campus to conduct research on Haruki Murakami based on valuable materials deposited and donated by alumnus Haruki Murakami, while aiming to become an international research center for Japanese literature and literature in translation. Since its opening, the museum has hosted study groups and cultural exchange events with Murakami and numerous other writers and researchers.

In April 2022, the Waseda University History Museum and the Waseda University Archives will be reorganized and integrated into a new “Waseda University History Museum” that combines the functions of the two institutions, aiming to become a center for the dissemination of intellectual and cultural information.

Sachiko Shudo, Dean of Cultural Affairs Division (Professor, School of Law)