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Ken’ichi Sakamoto First Complete Japanese Quran Translation in 1920

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Japanese scholar Ken’ichi Sakamoto published the first complete Japanese Quran translation in 1920, an important milestone in Islamic history.

By News National Editorial Team

A remarkable chapter in the history of cultural and religious exchange between Japan and the Muslim world began in 1920, when Japanese scholar Ken’ichi Sakamoto published a complete Japanese translation of the Holy Quran.

His work, titled Kōran Kyō (コーラン經), is recognised as the first complete Japanese translation of the Quran. It represented an important milestone in introducing the Islamic holy book to Japanese readers at a time when public knowledge of Islam in Japan was still limited.

A Historic Translation

Sakamoto Ken’ichi, also known as Ken-ichi Sakamoto, published his translation in 1920 through the World Sacred Books publishing series in Japan. The publication appeared in two volumes.

According to historical research, Sakamoto used an English translation of the Quran by British scholar John Medows Rodwell as the basis for his Japanese version. Therefore, his work was not a direct translation from the original Arabic text.

Nevertheless, the publication marked a significant development in the history of Quran translations in Japan. It made the text accessible to Japanese-speaking readers and contributed to the country's early engagement with Islamic literature and religious thought.

A Milestone in Japanese Islamic Literature

Sakamoto's translation was followed by other Japanese-language editions. In 1938, another translation was published by a group that included translator Goro Takahashi and Japanese Muslim Bunpachiro Ariga.

Later, Japanese scholar Toshihiko Izutsu produced a translation directly from the Arabic Quran. His work became an important contribution to the academic study of the Quran in Japan.

Other translations followed, including one by Japanese Muslim Haji Umar Ryoichi Mita, published in 1972.

These successive works helped expand access to the Quran among Japanese readers and contributed to the development of Islamic scholarship in the country.

Beyond Language and Culture

The history of Quran translations into Japanese illustrates how religious texts can travel across linguistic and cultural boundaries. It also shows that the introduction of a religious text into a new language can involve several generations of translators, scholars and readers.

Sakamoto's 1920 publication remains an important historical reference in this journey. While his translation relied on an English intermediary rather than the original Arabic, its place in the history of Japanese Quran translations is significant.

His contribution reminds us that the exchange of knowledge between cultures can begin through the efforts of individuals who seek to make important works accessible to people beyond their original linguistic communities.

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