Dr. Emiko Ohnuki Tierney

Biography

Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney is the William F. Vilas Research Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her anthropological work began with the study of the Detroit Chinese community, which she explored in her publication 'Detroit Chinese: A Study of Socio-Cultural Changes in the Detroit Chinese Community, 1872-1963'. She later turned her focus to the Ainu people of Sakhalin and Hokkaido, resulting in numerous articles and books including 'Ainu of the Northwest Coast of Southern Sakhalin' and 'Sakhalin Ainu Folklore'. Ohnuki-Tierney's scholarship has addressed the concept of 'memory culture' and shifted towards understanding illness culture in contemporary Japan through her notable work 'Japanese Illness Culture'. Her extensive research has considered the historical manipulation of cultural symbols, such as the cherry blossom, by the Japanese state from the late nineteenth century through World War II. She has authored twenty single-authored books, translated into ten languages, and has received several prestigious awards including the John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship and the Order of the Sacred Treasure conferred by the Emperor of Japan.

Research Interests