Cultural Footprint

Our cultural footprint is integrated into our identity. It is something we can all relate, learn and aspire to.

Japanese Diaspora Cultural Footprint

Venerable African Samurai Yasuke to Help the Great Unifier of Japan

Yasuke is a samurai anime series that has been available on Netflix since last month. The story takes place in the middle of the Warring States period (1467–1615), based on actual events of a man from Africa who plays an active role as a samurai. Yasuke trained and was under the command of Nobunaga Oda, who was the most powerful warlord of the day. The Yasuke story tells us something more important than history, which tells us about the importance of Bias-Free communication. In July 1581, the Italian missionary Gnecchi-Soldo Organtino visited Nobunaga in Kyoto, accompanied by an African man that one of them later named Yasuke. Luís Fróis(1532 – arrow_forward
Cultural Footprint

The Original Source Behind ‘Demon Slayer’ – The Unknown Life of A Charcoal Artisan

What is the original story behind the worldwide hit manga & animation, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba? The author makes no mention of what sources inspired her. According to one of our team members, who is an anime otaku, a graphic designer, and also an university educator, one of the inspirations of Demon Slayer is derived from an episode from the book, Yama No Jinsei, A Life in the Mountains by Kunio Yanagida. The author is one of Japan’s leading folklorists, and the book was published in 1926. The story is about a man of about fifty years old who was a Sumiyaki, which is a charcoal-burner/maker in the mountains of Nishi-mino, Gifu prefecture. Sumiyaki arrow_forward

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