The 2004 annual session of the Council on East Asian Libraries/Committee on Japanese Materials (CJM) was held on Thursday, March 4, from 1:40 to 3:30, in the Garden Salon I at the Town and Country Resort & Convention Center in San Diego, California.
The session began with Ms. Kuniko Yamada-McVey (Harvard University), chair of the Committee on Japanese Materials, introducing the committee members: Hitoshi KAMADA (University of Arizona), Alban M. KOJIMA (University of Pennsylvania), Toshie MARRA (University of California, Los Angeles), and Kenji NIKI (University of Michigan). Keiko HIGUCHI (International House of Japan) was absent from this annual session. Ms. McVey then announced the names of new Japanese librarians who were appointed last year, those who departed their previous positions in order to assume their new professional posts, as well as those who retired from the profession. The ten new appointees are:
| Ms. Saeko Sato | Japanese Rare Book Project Librarian, East Asia Library, Yale University | |
| Ms. Dawn Lawson | East Asian Studies Librarian, New York University Library (from OCLC) | |
| Ms. Sumie Ota | East Asia Section Head, The Asian and Middle Eastern Division, New York University Library (from OCLC) | |
| Ms. Beth Katzoff | Head of Public Services for Asian Collections at Kroch Library, Cornell University (from The Japanese Section, Asia Division, Library of Congress) | |
| Mr. Eiichi Ito | Reference Librarian, Japanese Section, Asian Division, Library of Congress (from the Los Angels office of the Japan Foundation) | |
| Mr. Koji Takeuchi | Cataloger, Japanese Team II, Regional and Cooperative Cataloging Division, Library of Congress (from The Asia Library, University of Michigan) | |
| Ms. Sayuri Umeda | Legal Specialist (Japan and Korea), Eastern Law Division, Law Library, Library of Congress | |
| Ms. Laura Wong | Japanese Acquisition Specialist, Japanese, Korean, South and Southeast Asian Acquisitions Section, African/Asian Acquisitions and Overseas Operations Division, Library of Congress (from Photo-duplication Service) | |
| Ms. Soon Yang | Japanese Serials Cataloger, Serial Record Division, Library of Congress (from AFAOVOP) | |
| Mr. Hiroyuki N. Good | Cataloger, University of Pittsburgh (from UCLA) |
Departing from her previous position as the Japanese Cataloger for the East Asian Library of the University of Pittsburgh, Ms. Keiko Okubara assumed the position of Cataloger at the University of Hawaii Law School Library. Ms. Izumi Koide, the former Program Director at the International House of Japan in Tokyo, accepted the position of Director at the Resource Center for the History of Entreprenership at the Sibusawa Eiichi Memorial Foundation. There are four retirees: Ms. Mihoko Miki, Japanese Studies Librarian, C. V. Starr East Asian Library, Columbia University; Ms. Mitsuko Ichinose, Japanese Selector, East Asia Library, Yale University; Ms. Midori Oyama, Japanese Cataloger, Harvard-Yenching Library, Harvard University; and Ms. Mariko Shotwell, AFAOVOP, Library of Congress.
Finally, Ms. McVey extended her sympathy at the passing of Ms. Yoko Akiba, the late Area Specialist of the Japanese Section in the Asia Division at the Library of Congress. Ms. McVey spoke of Ms.Yoko Akiba as a valued member of the Japanese library community in North America who contributed so much to the progress and advancement of this community. Ms. Akiba’s last major contribution was the introduction of a digital project for the Japanese print collection that was then in progress at the Library of Congress. Ms. Akiba presented this work at the CEAL/CJM session held in New York City in 2003.
The session consisted of four presentations: (1) The GeNii and New Services of NIIJ; (2) The Demonstration of the Historical Geographical Information System for Japan; (3) The Report on the Practical Workshop for Overseas Librarians on Early Japanese Books held at the National Institute of Japanese Literature in Tokyo; and (4) The Exploratory Approval Plan for Japanese Materials–A Case Study at the University of Arizona Library.
Dr. Akira Miyazawa (Professor, National Institute of Informatics), Dr. Yuan Sun (Associate Professor, National Institute of Informatics), and Ms. Sawako Kojin (Chief, Network Software Technology Section, Application Division, Development and Operations Department, National Institute of Informatics) were present at this year’s CEAL/CJM session representing the National Institute of Informatics (NII). Ms. Sawako Kojin gave a presentation on the NII’s primary project entitled “Global Environment for National Intellectual Information.”
Ms. Kojin began her presentation by providing a brief historical overview of the National Institute of Informatics. Founded in 2000 as a research institution specializing in information science, the National Institute of Informatics established the Graduate University for Advanced Studies in 2002. This academic unit instituted a Ph.D. program in the Department of Informatics which, during the same year, expanded to include international researchers. Additionally, the year 2002 saw the initiation of NII’s significant project “Global Environment for National Intellectual Information (GeNii).” Since then this project, with its primary aim to construct a one-portal database interface for various academic informational contents, has undergone a few evolutionary stages.
Tracing some aspects of these evolutionary stages, Ms. Kojin gave an illuminating comparison of the GeNii in its traditional service format and in its current framework. In its traditional service format, GeNii had a compartmentalized database structure in which databases such as WebCat (a bibliographic utility containing books and journal titles), NACSIS-IR (an information retrieval system for indexes and abstracts), and ELS (a bibliographic utility providing full-text academic journals published by Japanese academic societies) were accessible individually. In the new service model, an integrated structure replaced the old compartmentalized structure, allowing—through one portal—to access a set of interfaced databases of various types. This database set includes four components: Books and journal titles, Articles information, Research projects, and Institutional information. The development of the new GeNii service model will happen in four phases: Phase-1 develops the database components to be interfaced; Phase-2 will focus on the linkage among these database components; Phase-3 will zero in on the linkage among external sources; and Phase-4 will center on advanced portal interface. Ms.Kojin’s presentation highlighted Phase-1 of the GeNii new service model.
The purpose of Phase-1 is to develop a network environment that interfaces databases such as WebCat-Plus, Article Navigator, Research Project Database, and Institutional Information Database in order to provide users with an aggregate of information types in the most effective and efficient way. The WebCat-Plus database contains bibliographic data, amalgamating bibliographic records accompanied by holdings and contents page data, the Union Catalog of University Libraries, the NDL Japan MARC, and a wide variety of publishers’ bibliographic files. This database affords a powerful search capability that builds upon the synergy of its keyword and associative searches. The Article Navigator combines NACSIS-IR and ELS among others, integrating journal articles, academic bulletins, dissertations, NDL Japanese periodicals indexes, while also linking bibliographic records to their corresponding full-text files in PDF, to citations, and to various citation sources. The Research Project Database contains abstracts associated with a wide range of research projects that are supported by Japanese research funds, such as those provided by the Grant-in-Aid scientific research programs and other private research programs. The Institutional Information Database amalgamates metadata from a wide variety of institutional repositories in order to utilize these metadata for various interoperable purposes; and, additionally, this database includes relevant academic publications, research project websites, lecture syllabi, and so on. Ms. Kojin stated that the trial release of Phase-1 of the GeNii project would take place sometime this year (with its service release planned for April 2005). Ms. Kojin assured the immediacy of the implementation concerning new technologies that would be expected to evolve through the scheduled phases of this project.
Mr. Merrick Lex Berman (Project Manager, China Historical Geographical Information System, Harvard Yenching Institute) began his presentation of the Japan Historical Geographical Information System (GIS) by summarizing the architecture of the China Historical GIS from which Mr. Berman derived his demo version of the Japan Historical GIS. The purpose of this GIS project is twofold: (1) to create a database that provides information on hierarchically structured and geographically distributed administrative units (places) for various historical periods in China and Japan; and (2) to render through its GIS platform the necessary data for spatial analysis, temporal statistical construct, and digitalized cartographical illustration of administrative units by selected historical periods. Built upon the relational database architecture, this system contains a number of datasets that comprises various data units (such as prefecture level polygons, county and village level units, as well as historical rivers, coastlines, and elevation units among others). The system then amalgamates these units in order to render cartographical representations of certain administrative units that correspond to various historical periods queried by users. The immediacy of use, as Mr. Berman pointed out, characterizes this digitized cartographical information system: the relationship among data can be modified according to newly published documents and the improved version can be immediately uploaded to the Internet for user access.
Modeled after the China Geographical Information System, the Japan GIS comprises two types of datasets: one with contemporary place names and the other with historical place names as well as other related data. The former, the contemporary place names set, was drawn from Japan’s 1995 Census which lists administrative districts in an geographical arrangement and from data available from the National Imagery and Mapping Agency. Once all place name data has been entered, with its correct transliteration and possible variants, the containership table in GIS constructs a complete administrative hierarchy. For example: Shiroimachi--Inbagun--Chibaken--Nihon. On the other hand, the data set containing historical place names and other data elements was constructed on the basis of the reference source entitled Nihonshi Nenpyo Chizu, edited by Kota Kodama, published by Yoshikawa Kobunkan in 1991. The map that was used focuses on Tokugawa Japan in 1664, furnishing the information on more than 200 daimyo (feudal lords) of this period. Some of the representative data elements derived from this source include: the daimyo identity, the domain name, the “kokudaka” figure, and the “fudai/tozama” affiliation status with the Tokugawa shogunate. Additionally, for the plotting of feudal domains including the Kuni and Doo perimeters, the online version of the Japan Ministry of Land Infrastructure and Transport—originally mapped out in the late 18th century—was employed. Once all the place names are taken from these two sources and entered into the database, the containership table in the system builds a complete administrative hierarchy according to the geographical domain designation prevalent in Tokugawa Japan.
Mr. Berman expressed his gratitude to the Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies and to Professor Shigekazu Kondo of the Historiographical Institute at the University of Tokyo for contributing their expertise to the development of the demo version of the Japan Historical Geographical Information System. Mr. Berman then stated that the scholarly demand for the digitized cartographical representation of historical administrative districts and units for spatial analysis of historical statistical data has been on the rise, and that GIS offers a range of solutions to this newly emerging technology-based academic need.
Ms. Reiko Yoshimura (Librarian, Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian Institution) gave a report on the “Practical Workshop for Overseas Librarians on Early Japanese Books” which was held at the National Institute of Japanese Literature (NIJL) in Shinagawa, Tokyo, on February 2 through 6 , 2004. Founded in 1972, the National Institute of Japanese Literature has maintained its high academic profile as the leading research institution specializing in Japanese books written and produced before 1868. The mission of this institution is to collect Early Japanese books that are not yet recorded in Kokusho Somokuroku and Kotenseki Sogo Mokuroku, in order to investigate their contents, frame these contents in a prescribed descriptive bibliographical format, and disseminate electronically and/or in print the results of this bibliographical endeavor. A large number of Early Japanese books exist worldwide, yet they remain unvetted and undescribed. In recent years Japanese bibliographers have begun to make efforts toward bibliographical control, conservation, and preservation of some of the Early Japanese books; however, the current level of bibliographers’ expertise in this regard needs to be strengthened greatly. To address this issue, the “Practical Workshop” was first conceived; and its implementation took place in February of this year. Ms. Yoshimura began her report by providing an overall description of the workshop. With its core topic centered around Early Japanese books, the workshop had four primary sections: Fundamentals, Bibliographic Description, Conservation, and Cataloging. The Fundamentals section consisted of seven subdivisions: a history of publishing in the Edo Period and more generally of publication in Japan, a description of seal curving and ownership seals, how to read cursive scripts, how to work with calligraphic fragments and strips, historical documents, and illustrations. The section on Bibliographic Description was composed of two material types: manuscripts, and printed books. The Conservation section offered a variety of methods for repairing delicate Early Japanese books. The section on Cataloging presented two types of electronic databases for holding completed bibliographic records for dissemination: the Union Catalog database, and the database designed and constructed by the National Institute of Japanese Literature. Ms. Yoshimura then spoke of the NIJL’s Kotenseki Sogo Mokuroku DetaBesu. This database contains bibliographic records for Early Japanese books not listed in the 1989 edition of Kokusho Somokuroku Hoteiban but contained in the print form of Kotenseki Sogo Mokuroku published by Iwanami Shoten in 1990 and its supplements thereafter. This database offers a more detailed level of bibliographic description than any of the above mentioned printed titles—one significant functionality that is unique to the NIJL database. Following this discussion, Ms. Yoshimura talked briefly about a number of issues concerning Japanese transliteration systems used in various parts of the world as well as the publication of The Directory of North American Collections of Old and Rare Japanese books, Other Print Materials, and Manuscripts. After sharing a number of photographs taken during this five-day workshop, Ms. Yoshimura concluded her report by summarizing that the workshop, carried out by the concerted efforts of all involved, resulted in the successful dissemination of knowledge as well as in a meaningful acquisition of a unique experience.
To Ms. Yoshimura’s report, Ms. Toshie Marra provided an addendum concerning a first draft of the guidelines for cataloging old and rare Japanese materials which Mr. Isamu Tsuchitani (Library of Congress) had compiled. Ms. Marra stated further that, having received this document electronically from Mr. Tsuchitani on March 1, and upon Mr. Tsuchitani’s request, Ms. Marra herself would first review the draft; then the group review by the CJM Subcommittee on Japanese Rare Books would follow. Ms. Marra assured that the Subcommittee would inform the CEAL members of any further development on this matter.
Following Ms. Marra, Ms. Hisami Springer offered to establish a new email listserve for the discussion of various issues related to the cataloging of pre-1868 Japanese materials. Upon implementation of this idea, Ms. Tomoko Goto (University of British Columbia) will maintain the listserve. Ms. Springer’s proposal was well received, and a number of session attendees signed up for this listserve.
Unlike the previous three presentations that introduced various digital and print resources descriptively, Mr. Hitoshi Kamada (Assistant Librarian—Japanese Studies, University of Arizona Library and a member of the CEAL/CJM) offered a presentation of his study on an exploratory approval plan implemented at the University of Arizona Library, introducing a management-based approach to the handling of Japanese Studies resources. Mr. Kamada structured his presentation in light of three foci: (1) justification, (2) relevant issues, and (3) developmental features and functionality. The University of Arizona Library’s horizontalized organizational structure, as Mr. Kamada explained, requires its staff members to be cross-functional in their daily tasks and holistic in their professional relations with other parts and divisions of the Library. While this organizational characteristic greatly encourages the staff to gain a broad-based knowledge and experience in all phases of resource management, paving the way toward the organization’s future goals, it tends to limit the extent of highly focused collection development that is only possible when implemented in a concentrated mono-functional fashion. The Japanese Studies Collection is no exception. As such, in order to attain efficiency in Japanese Studies resource management and consistency in Japanese Studies resource selection at UAL, this newly devised exploratory approval plan was implemented.
Mr. Kamada pointed out a number of resource development/management issues that the implementation of the exploratory approval plan had highlighted. For example, despite the fact that the cost of Japanese resources published in Japan increased greatly and the rate of the Japanese Yen grew strong against the US dollar, the level of the Japanese resource budget at UAL remained stationary. This financial situation brought about the realization that a comprehensive collection method would no longer be an option. Similarly, while the organizational structure flattened, during which a reduction in staffing had taken place, and the Japanese resources budget remained unaltered, the demand for user-specific effectiveness both in resource development and in resource management escalated. This situation prompted a change from the old “just-in-case” approach to a new “just-in-time” approach which focuses on meeting users’ immediate academic needs requiring librarians to be in close communication with faculty members and researchers alike. In this changing environment, approval plans appeared to be an adept solution. Yet the reality of the publication arena in Japan had it otherwise: the type of approval plan specifically designed for academic institutions remained underdeveloped. The reason for this phenomenon is, in part, that book vendors are reluctant to establish academia-specific selection process deploying their own qualified professionals. Meanwhile, at UAL, the lack of a Japanese resources budget compounded by a lack of an academia-specific approval plan in the publishing industry in Japan prompted the Library to opt for the creation of a customized approval plan--altering any of the commercial means currently available for procuring works from book vendors in Japan. To create an approval plan with a narrowly focused Japanese Studies selection profile in order to meet highly specific user needs within the limits imposed by the current budget, the TRC Library Service was chosen.
As Mr. Kamada clarified, this TRC service is a MARC-based bibliographic database created and managed by TRC Toshokan Ryutsu Senta in Tokyo, not a full-fledged approval plan. The TRC provides a selection plan built on a simple slip-based procedure. The core aim of the UAL’s exploratory approval plan was to customize this TRC bibliographic database in such a way as to partly transform its originally intended mechanism into a derivative device that would function as a quasi-approval plan, serving the purpose set forth by the Japanese Collection at the University of Arizona Library (it must be noted, however, that this type of customization is not part of TRC’s official service activity). This transformation is accomplished by the creation of a profile per subject area built upon a set of parameters that are originally generated by the TRC bibliographic database. Some of these parameters include: NDC Call number, target audience types (such as “academic,” “general,” and “textbooks”), and material types (such as paperback, reference, and so on). For each subject area (relevant to the ongoing institutional research and pedagogical programs), one profile is created; and the profile is reviewed and adjusted by the librarian. One major disadvantage of this method is that, in some instances, unwanted popular titles cannot be excluded. Mr. Kamada provided four examples of profiles created for the subject areas: Japanese Language, Religion, Art, and Literature and History. Mr. Kamada remarked that this type of profile-based quasi-approval plan is not meant for comprehensive coverage. Rather, the plan’s advantage lies in its stability for resource selection aimed at meeting specific user needs.
Mr. Kamada concluded his presentation by observing that, although the University of Arizona Library has been successful with this exploratory approval plan, the effectiveness in implementing this methodology depends largely on the type of institutional environment and managerial direction in which resource development takes place. He noted that no approval plan can replace the quality-driven selection process in which librarians review a list of titles manually to select resources that meet immediate user demands within the limits of a given budget.
The 2004 CJM annual session concluded at 3:30 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Alban M. Kojima
April 20, 2004