by Yoko Nishimura, Retrieved from Discover Nikkei press release
Discover Nikkei, a web-based project of the Japanese American National Museum, has launched the seventh edition of its Nikkei Chronicles, an annual theme-driven online journal with an open call for writings. This year’s theme is Nikkei Roots: Digging into Our Cultural Heritage.
Nikkei (emigrants of Japanese descent) can be found all over the world, living diverse lives and adapting to a variety of environments. The one thing that binds Nikkei together is their common heritage as people of Japanese ancestry. Previous editions of Nikkei Chronicles have explored the ways Nikkei express their culture, whether through food, language, or tradition. This year, the focus goes deeper—all the way down to the roots.
Through its rich multimedia website, Discover Nikkei strives to promote a more profound understanding of the complex histories and insights of multicultural, multiracial, and multinational people of Japanese descent around the world. This edition of Nikkei Chronicles will publish a wide range of texts exploring the many questions and issues related to the theme of Nikkei Roots. What does being Nikkei mean to you? How does your Nikkei identity reveal itself in your day-to-day life? What activities do you engage in to maintain traditions from Japan? Most importantly, how do you stay connected to your roots, whether individually or collectively? When or how do you really feel like a Nikkei?
Subjects that may provide inspiration include genealogy, family trees, food, rituals/traditions, festivals, music, sports, religion, and travel. Writers may submit personal stories, essays, memoirs, academic papers, book reviews, or other prose works until September 30, 2018, at 6 p.m. PDT. Multiple entries are welcome. All submissions that meet the project guidelines and criteria will be published in the Discover Nikkei Journal on a rolling basis as part of Nikkei Chronicles 7: Nikkei Roots: Digging into Our Cultural Heritage.
For more information and to read already published Nikkei Roots stories, visit 5dn.org/roots.
