About us
Recognising the importance of East Asia in the modern world in cultural as well as economic and political terms, the University has made major investments in Chinese Studies and in Japanese Studies and developed new courses and research programmes. Teaching focuses on the languages, and on studies of Chinese and Japanese culture, history and society.
Chinese at Manchester
The emergence of China as a major world power is, quite simply, inescapable and that fact will impact hugely on the UK for the foreseeable future. This impact will be also be felt in regions like the North West that have large Chinese communities, so understanding the issues surrounding the emergence of China will be important for economic, political, social and cultural development in the region and beyond. Manchester has the largest Chinese community outside London with more than 30,000 people of Chinese ethnicity living and working in the City. The University of Manchester itself attracts around 1,500 Chinese students each year.
Teaching programmes in Chinese Studies are co-ordinated through the Faculty's Centre for Chinese Studies (CCS), co-located in the School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures and draw on expertise from other schools in the Faculty of Humanities, including: the School of Social Sciences; Manchester Business School; the School of Environment and Development; and the School of Arts, Histories and Cultures.
Japanese at Manchester
The importance of Japan in the global economic and cultural context has long been recognized; besides being one of the world's most important economies and the source of major technological innovations, Japan is also a major influence in contemporary culture, especially in areas such as film, anime and manga. Yet its prominence in such areas is not just a modern phenomenon, for Japan has a long and complex history of innovative cultural and social development.
Japanese Studies is a new and exciting addition to Manchester's range of programmes and offers you the opportunity to examine and understand contemporary Japan through its language and culture while developing an understanding of the historical forces and the cultural and social dynamics that have shaped it. A small discipline area within a much larger institution, we offer the best of both worlds: small class size, individual attention from course tutors, and a supportive and close-knit student community within Japanese Studies, combined with the intellectual, cultural and social diversity of a large university located in a large, vibrant, cosmopolitan city. Manchester is developing substantial library holdings and has links to various universities in Japan.
Teaching Programmes in Japanese Studies are delivered by a team of experts wholly located in the School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures.