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Tag: History

Episode 377 – The Black Mist Scandal

February 12, 2021 Isaac Meyer 4 Comments

This week, we’re taking a look at one of the greatest scandals in the history of Japanese baseball, when the…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: Baseball, History, Japan, NPB, Postwar

Episode 376 – The Nectar of the Gods

February 5, 2021 Isaac Meyer 3 Comments

This week, we’re exploring the history of Japan’s most famous drink: sake, or Japanese rice wine (though it turns out,…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: History, Japan, sake

Episode 374 – The First Frontier, Part 5

January 29, 2021 Isaac Meyer 2 Comments

This week, we’re wrapping up our history of the colonization of Hokkaido with a look at the impact of the…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: Ainu, History, hokkaido, Japan, WWII

Episode 374 – The First Frontier, Part 4

January 22, 2021 Isaac Meyer 1 Comment

This week, we’re talking about Hokkaido in the early 20th century, and in particular the stark problems created by the…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: Ainu, Anarchism, History, hokkaido, Japan

Episode 373 – The First Frontier, Part 3

January 15, 2021 Isaac Meyer

This week, we’re looking at the early decades of Japan’s colonization of Hokkaido, and the means by which the island…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: Ainu, colonialism, History, hokkaido, Japan, Meiji

Episode 372 – The First Frontier, Part 2

January 8, 2021 Isaac Meyer

This week: how did the threat of Western imperialism change the relationship between mainland Japan and Hokkaido, and help set…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: Ainu, Edo, Ezo, History, hokkaido, Japan, Meiji, Tokugawa

Episode 371 – The First Frontier, Part 1

January 1, 2021 Isaac Meyer 1 Comment

This week, we’re starting a multi-part series on the history of one of Japan’s major islands, and its first colonial…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: Ainu, History, hokkaido, Japan, matsumae

Episode 370 – The Poetess

December 25, 2020 Isaac Meyer 2 Comments

This week, we’re covering the life and career of a poet often overlooked despite her fame in her own lifetime:…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: Edo, haiku, History, Japan, poetry, Women

Episode 369 – The Wandering Brush

December 18, 2020 Isaac Meyer 1 Comment

This week, we’re taking a deep dive into a distinctly Japanese literary genre (zuihitsu, or ‘wandering brush’) by looking at…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: Buddhism, History, hojoki, Japan, Kyoto, literature, Tsurezuregusa

Episode 368 – The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter

December 11, 2020 Isaac Meyer 1 Comment

This week, we’re talking about one of the most famous stories in Japanese history: the bamboo princess Naotake no Kaguyahime…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: Heian, History, Japan, Kaguyahime, literature, monogatari, taketori

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About Me

My name is Isaac Meyer, and I’m a  former PhD student at the University of Washington, specializing in modern Japan (with sub-specializations in modern China, modern Europe, and international relations). Today, I work as a teacher at an independent school in the Seattle area.

I also have a tendency to go off on random historical tangents. One day, I decided to combine these two traits in podcast form, and thus was born the History of Japan Podcast!

In 2018, I decided start the Criminal Records Podcast with my wife, Demetria Spinrad. This podcast gives me the chance to talk about world history–and the weird, wonderful world of historical crime and punishment.

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Support the Facing Backward network on Patreon to get access to our bonus features, including our bonus episodes about historical fiction.

The History of Japan Patreon is still live, and subscribers will be able to get the weekly newsletter there as well.

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