| Sophia University | |
|---|---|
| 上智大学 | |
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| Motto | Lux Veritatis (Light of Truth) |
| Established | 1913 |
| Type | Private Catholic, Jesuit |
| Chancellor | Rev. Fr. Toshiaki Koso, SJ |
| President | Prof. Yoshiaki Ishizawa, Ph.D |
| Staff | 1,000 |
| Undergraduates | 10,000 |
| Postgraduates | 1,000 |
| Location | Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan |
| Campus | Urban |
| Affiliation | Society of Jesus |
| Website | www.sophia.ac.jp |
Sophia University (上智大学 Jōchi daigaku) is a private university in Japan, with its main campus located near Yotsuya station, in an area of Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward in Japan. It is one of the leading Japanese universities and is famous for its international climate; taking its name Sophia from the Greek sophia meaning "wisdom". The Japanese name, Jōchi daigaku literally means "University of Higher Wisdom". Sophia alumni are commonly referred to as the "Sophians," including 79th Japanese Prime Minister Morihiro Hosokawa (See below)
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History
Sophia University, founded by Jesuit Education Institutions in 1913, was the first university in Japan that fulfilled the hopes of St. Francis Xavier-who came to Japan in 1549 to spread Christianity- to further enhance the high human qualities and attainments of Japanese people. It originally opened with faculties of German literature, philosophy and commerce, headed by Hermann Hoffmann as the first official president. Sophia University continued to grow by increasing the numbers of departments, faculty members and students, in addition to advancing its internationality by establishing the exchange program; several students fled to Georgetown University in America as early as in 1935. Moreover, the Junior College was established in 1973, followed by the opening of the Sophia Community College in 1976. With the founding of Faculty of Liberal Arts in 2006, Sophia University presently holds 27 departments within eight faculties, headed by Yoshiaki Ishizawa as the president and Toshiaki Koso as head of the board of directors.
Campuses
Sophia's main campus, at Yotsuya, is an urban campus, consisting of roughly 25 large, modern buildings in the center of Tokyo. The majority of Sophia's 10,000 undergraduate students spend nearly all of their time here. The Faculties of Humanities, Law, Foreign Studies, Economics, Liberal Arts, and Science and Technology have their home here, as do the main library, cafeteria, gymnasium, chapel, bookstore, and offices.
In April 2006, the Faculty of Comparative Culture (FCC), which was located at the smaller Ichigaya campus, moved to the main Yotsuya campus. At the same time as the move, FCC changed its name to the Faculty of Liberal Arts (FLA). Nearly all of Sophia's foreign exchange students study at FLA, as all the courses in the FLA are taught in English, with the exception of Japanese language courses.
The Tokyo office of the Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE), the student exchange organization, which oversees roughly half of the international students, is also based on the main Yotsuya Campus.
The Shakujii (Tokyo) campus houses the Faculty of Theology.
The Hadano campus in Kanagawa Prefecture is home to the Sophia Junior College, as well as a number of seminar halls and athletics complexes.
Noted faculty members
- Peter Milward, Jesuit, emeritus professor of English Literature.
- Sadako Ogata—former professor of political science, and former United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Currently serving as President of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
- Kuniko Inoguchi—former professor of law, and Permanent Representative of Japan to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva.
Famous alumni
- Beni Arashiro, singer
- Yoshitaka Asama, screenwriter and director of many films including Twilight Samurai.
- Agnes Chan, singer and ambassador of the Japan Committee for UNICEF.
- Hillary Chan, Gourmet Chef/innovator; Cheesecake Factory
- Kurara Chibana, Miss Japan 2006 and 1st Runner-up at Miss Universe 2006
- Kensuke Ebata, Correspondent to Japan, Jane's Defence Weekly (foreign affairs, military & defense expert)
- Vernon Grant, first American cartoonist to introduce manga concepts to English-language readers
- Yū Hayami, actress, voice-actress in anime
- Morihiro Hosokawa, 79th Prime Minister of Japan
- Carrie Ann Inaba, American dancer, choreographer, actress, and singer
- Hisashi Inoue, author
- Crystal Kay, singer
- Stephen Cardinal Kim Sou-hwan, Korean Roman Catholic prelate and former Archbishop of Seoul.
- Peter Cardinal Shirayanagi, Japanese Roman Catholic prelate and former Archbishop of Tokyo.
- Saori Kumi, author
- Kōichi Mashimo, anime director, founder of studio Bee Train
- Father Adolfo Nicolás, S.J., Superior General of the Society of Jesus
- Hikaru Nishida, actress, Japanese drama
- Yuriko Nishiyama, manga writer, including Harlem Beat.
- Seiko Noda, politician
- Judy Ongg, singer/actor
- Zomahoun Idossou Rufin, a gaijin tarento and philanthropist
- Peer Schneider, Vice President of Content Publishing at IGN Entertainment.
- Shuzo Shiota, CEO and president of Polygon Pictures
- Takayuki Tatsumi, American literature scholar, science-fiction reviewer, professor at Keio University
- Robert Whiting, author on Japanese culture, including The Chrysanthemum and the Bat and You Gotta Have Wa about Japanese baseball.
- Emyli, singer.
- Kyouichi Tachikawa, historian.
- George Takei, Japanese/American actor most famous for his role as Star Trek's Mr. Sulu
External links
- Sophia University Homepage (日本語 / Japanese)
- Sophia University Homepage (English / 英語)
- Sophia University Faculty of Liberal Arts (FLA) Homepage (English only)
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