Wolfgang Michel-Zaitsu


Wolfgang Michel/Michel-Zaitsu is a professor emeritus of Kyushu University in Fukuoka. He is a specialist in medicine and allied sciences in the history of east–west cultural exchange. In 1984 he was granted tenure as the first foreigner in a Japanese national university.

Research topics

By combining Japanese and Western manuscript sources, Michel shed new light on Western medicine and allied sciences in early modern Japan and the interdependence of Western studies on Eastern medicine and Japanese studies on Western medicine. His research clarified the mechanism of early medical interactions between Japan and Europe and induced a revision of the concept of ‘Dutch Studies’ in Edo period Japan. The beginning of Western medicine in Japan is shown as a result of structural conditions, political strategies, individual ambitions and occasional events. At the same time, the introduction of Western treatment methods strongly influenced Japanese research in related fields such as botany and pharmaceutical production techniques while stimulating language studies and the import of Western books. In contrast to previous research on these matters, Michel demonstrates that this change was supported by the Tokugawa shogunate and began soon after the ‘closure’ of Japan in mid-17th century.
The names of some of the Europeans who introduced Western medicine to Japan can also be found in publications on the history of traditional Chinese medicine in Europe. Michel demonstrated that considerable parts of their reports are actually reflecting genuine Japanese innovations that were not known in China. According to Michel, early modern traditional Japanese medicine is clearly distinguished from Traditional Chinese Medicine and deserves its own place in Far Eastern medical traditions.
Furthermore, Michel brought to light the biographical background and historical influence of numerous personalities involved in early modern exchange between Japan and the West. Especially his writings on Caspar Schamberger, father of the first Japanese school of Western-style surgery, and Engelbert Kaempfer, author of the famous “History of Japan”, are regarded as pioneering contributions. Michel's critical edition of Kaempfer's unpublished manuscripts provided a more solid foundation for studies on the history of Western observations on Edo-period Japan and the perception of Japan during the Age of Enlightenment. In acknowledgement of his research Michel was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit by the German president Johannes Rau.
From 2008 to 2021 Michel was a member of the permanent executive board of the Japanese Society for the History of Medicine.

Awards

  • Science Promotion Award
  • Federal Cross of Merit
  • Yakazu Medical History Award
  • Itan Award
  • 　Engelbert-Kaempfer-Medaille 2024 für Völkerverständigung, Menschenrechte und Wissenschaft

Published work (selection)

  • Michel, Wolfgang, Tennentō to no tatakai IV: Higashinihon no shutō. Tokyo: Iwata Shoin, 2023, 379pp. .
  • Michel, Wolfgang, Tennentō to no tatakai III: Chūbunihon no shutō. Tokyo: Iwata Shoin, 2022. .
  • Michel, Wolfgang, Rangoyakusen . Nakatsu History Museum, Medical Archive Series No. 21, 324pp.
  • Michel, Wolfgang, Tennentō to no tatakai II: Nishinihon no shutō. Tokyo: Iwata Shoin..
  • Engelbert Kaempfer, Der 5. Faszikel der „Amoenitates Exoticae“ – die japanische Pflanzenkunde. Herausgegeben und kommentiert von Brigitte Hoppe und Wolfgang Michel-Zaitsu. Hildesheim/Zürich/New York: Olms-Weidmann, 2019..
  • Michel, Wolfgang, Tennentō to no tatakai – Kyushu no shutō . Tokyo: Iwata Shoin
  • __________., Bastaardt Woordenboek . Nakatsu Municipal Museum for History and Folklore, Medical Archive Series No. 17, Nakatsu.
  • Michel-Zaitsu, Wolfgang, Traditionelle Medizin in Japan – Von der Frühzeit bis zur Gegenwart . Muenchen: Kiener Verlag.
  • Michel, Wolfgang, »Der Ost-Indischen und angrenzenden Königreiche, vornehmste Seltenheiten betreffende kurze Erläuterung« – Neue Funde zum Leben und Werk des Leipziger Chirurgen und Handelsmanns Caspar Schamberger . Fukuoka: Hana-Shoin.
  • __________., Kyūshū no rangaku – ekkyō to kōryū . Shibunkaku shuppan.
  • __________., On Caspar Schamberger's Activities in Japan and Early Caspar-Style Surgery. Languages and Cultures Series No 18. Kyushu University, 2008, 256 pp.
  • __________., Engelbert Kaempfer: Heutiges Japan. Iudicium.
  • __________., Von Leipzig nach Japan – Der Chirurg und Handelsmann Caspar Schamberger . Iudicium.
  • __________., Erste Abhandlung über die Moxibustion in Europa: das genau untersuchte und auserfundene Podagra, vermittelst selbst sicher-eigenen Genäsung und erlösenden Hülff-Mittels . Haug.