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Edwin O. Reischauer

Edwin O. Reischauer
Born
Edwin Oldfather Reischauer

(1910-10-15)October 15, 1910
DiedSeptember 1, 1990(1990-09-01) (aged 79)
NationalityAmerican
Alma materOberlin College (AB)
Harvard University (PhD)
Spouse(s)Elinor Adrienne Danton (widowed in 1956)
Haru Matsukata
Children3, including Robert Reischauer
FatherAugust Karl Reischauer
Scientific career
FieldsJapanology
East Asian studies
InstitutionsUnited States Ambassador to Japan (1961–1966)
Harvard University
Thesis Nittō guhō junrei gyōki: Ennin's Diary of His Travels in T'ang China, 838–847  (1939)
Doctoral advisorSerge Elisséeff
Doctoral studentsGail Lee Bernstein
John W. Dower
John Curtis Perry
Other notable studentsSen. Jay Rockefeller

Edwin Oldfather Reischauer (/ˈrʃ.ər/ RYSHE-ow-ər; October 15, 1910 – September 1, 1990) was an American diplomat, educator, and professor at Harvard University. Born in Tokyo to American educational missionaries, he became a leading scholar of the history and culture of Japan and East Asia. Together with George M. McCune, a scholar of Korea, in 1939 he developed the McCune–Reischauer romanization of the Korean language.

Reischauer became involved in helping create US policy toward East Asia during and after World War II. President John F. Kennedy appointed Reischauer as the United States Ambassador to Japan, where he served from 1961 to 1966. Reischauer founded the Japan Institute at Harvard University in 1973 and was its founding director. It was later named in honor of him.


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