Russia and Japan in the Sea of Okhotsk: A Global History of Maritime Travel and Cultural Encounters, 1600-1900

by Scott C.M. Bailey

Overview

Bailey describes how the Sea of Okhotsk area became integrated into a world system of economic and cultural ties between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries. This happened primarily because of maritime explorations, travel, and trade, which led to increased connections with both Russia and Japan.

Individual chapters of the book provide analyses of historical sources which describe cross-cultural encounters and changes in the Sea of Okhotsk area. This includes analyses of explorers and travelers who traversed the region for commerce, exploration, diplomacy, and possible colonization. Historical sources are explored from the different perspectives of Russians, Japanese, Indigenous peoples, and international observers from Western countries. Cross-cultural encounters in the region among these groups led to collaboration, syncretism, and resistance, sometimes violent and sometimes peaceful. The last chapter discusses how some international travelers and foreign residents of Hokkaidō described the area at the end of the nineteenth century. Their perspectives confirm that Hokkaidō had become a fully colonized space.

An essential resource for students and scholars of cross-cultural studies, Russian history, Japanese history, and Ainu and Indigenous history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781032054032
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	05/06/2025
Series:	Routledge Studies in the Maritime History of Asia
Pages:	180
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.19(h) x (d)

About the Author

Scott C.M. Bailey is Associate Professor at Kansai Gaidai University. He researches the history of long-distance travel, history through film, and Asian history from a world history perspective. He recently published Approaching Recent World History Through Film: Context, Analysis, and Research (Routledge Press, 2021).

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Figures

Notes on Names, Dates, Locations, and Terminology

Acknowledgements

1. Introduction: The Sea of Okhotsk Area and World History
2. Romanov Russia, Tokugawa Japan, and Overlapping Interests in the Sea of Okhotsk Area from the Seventeenth Century to the Early Nineteenth Century
3. Indigenous Lifeways and Traditions in the Sea of Okhotsk Area
4. Russian-Sponsored Maritime Expeditions in the Sea of Okhotsk Area
5. The Matsumae Clan, Northern Trading Routes, and Tokugawa Maritime Expansion
6. Vasily Golovnin, Failed Exploration, and Developing Russian Perceptions of Japan
7. International Observers and Travelers in Hokkaido During the Late Nineteenth Century

Glossary

Bibliography

Index