MODERNIZATION OF JAPAN IN THE MEIJI PERIOD IN THE SCHOLARLY HERITAGE OF THE CANADIAN HISTORIAN AND DIPLOMAT E. HERBERT NORMAN

Abstract. Canadian historian and diplomat Egerton Herbert Norman (1909–1957) occupies a significant place in the history of twentieth-century intellectual thought. His works have become fundamental to understanding the modernization of Japan during the Meiji era and the genesis of Japanese imperialism.

The purpose of the article is to examine Norman’s concept of the formation of the modern Japanese state in the Meiji period (the last third of the nineteenth – early twentieth centuries). It also traces the intellectual development and professional activity of Norman as a scholar and representative of Canada in diplomatic missions, primarily in Japan.

The research methodology is based on a combination of the principles of historicism with methods of historical analysis. In particular, problem-chronological, historical-comparative and analytical methods were employed to identify Norman’s key ideas, assess his interpretations, and evaluate the relevance and scholarly significance of his work in the context of the development of Japanese studies, as well as to outline the biography and scholarly contributions of Norman.

The scientific novelty lies in the fact that the contribution of Norman as a historian is little studied in Canadian, American and Japanese historiography and practically unstudied in Ukrainian American studies and Oriental studies. Western researchers consider him a diplomat who played an important role in shaping the policy of the United States and Canada towards Japan after World War II, and who became a victim of political persecution. At the same time, his substantial achievements in the history of Japan in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries often remain unnoticed. This article analyzes his interpretation of the restoration of imperial power in Japan and the Meiji reforms, which he set out in a number of specialized works, primarily in the fundamental study Japan’s Emergence as a Modern State (1940).

Conclusions. Norman interpreted the formation of the modern Japanese state in terms of its socio-economic and administrative modernization during the Meiji period, emphasizing Japan’s transition to capitalism. In his concept, modernization appears as the result of a specific alliance between lower-ranking samurai and the merchant bourgeoisie. He regarded the restoration of imperial power and the Meiji reforms as an incomplete bourgeois revolution, pointing to the significant role of post-feudal elements in shaping modern Japanese society and its militarization. According to Norman, the persistence of feudal remnants alongside rapid industrialization became one of the key factors behind Japanese imperialism and expansion.

Key words: E. Herbert Norman, Canada, Japan, Meiji, modernization, Meiji reforms, Japanese studies.

Submitted: 15.01.2026

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