author

Asataro Miyamori

1869–1952

A Japanese scholar and translator who helped bring classic Japanese drama, samurai tales, and haiku to English-language readers in the early 20th century. His books opened a welcoming path into literary traditions that were still little known in the West.

1 Audiobook

Tales of the Samurai Stories Illustrating Bushido, the Moral Principles of the Japanese Knighthood

Tales of the Samurai Stories Illustrating Bushido, the Moral Principles of the Japanese Knighthood

by Asataro Miyamori

About the author

Born in 1869, Asatarō Miyamori was a Japanese writer, translator, and teacher of English who was associated with Keio University in Tokyo. He wrote and translated in English at a time when many readers outside Japan had very limited access to Japanese literature, and his work helped introduce them to its stories, stage traditions, and poetic forms.

His best-known books include A Life of Mr. Yukichi Fukuzawa (1902), Tales from Old Japanese Dramas (1915), Tales of the Samurai (1920), Masterpieces of Chikamatsu (1926), and An Anthology of Haiku, Ancient and Modern (1932). Across these works, he focused on making Japanese culture legible and inviting to English readers without losing its distinctive character.

Miyamori died in 1952. Today he is remembered as an early bridge between Japanese and English literary worlds, especially for readers interested in traditional drama, bushido stories, and haiku.