The Soft Power of the Information Sciences: Western Influences on the Development of Japan's Library and Archival Systems

The history of information practices in Japan runs parallel to its larger cultural influences — namely its long history of adaptation of the cultures of China and Korea, with a more recent turn towards the West. The soft power, the use of culture to extend influence over a foreign country, exerted by the US on Japanese libraries and archives can be felt in official policies and professional practices. In order to understand the variation and complicated nature of hegemonic influences the West has had on Japan's information culture, this paper will examine the history of librarianship and archival practices via the lens of practices imported to and/or avoided by the nation.