Every year, on January 10, the Keio University community celebrates the birthday of Yukichi Fukuzawa, the founder of the university. (Fukuzawa was born on December 12 of the fifth year of the Tenpō era, which is January 10, 1835 in the solar calendar.)
This year, the celebrations of the 183rd anniversary of Yukichi Fukuzawa’s birthday were again held in the West School Building Hall on Mita Campus on Wednesday, January 10.
The proceedings began at 10:30 to a full venue. Following performances by choirs from Keio Yochisha Elementary School singing “Here Stands Yukichi Fukuzawa” and the Wagner Society singing “nihon no hokori (Japanese pride),” there was a new year’s greeting from President Haseyama.
Teruo Ariyama, former professor at Tokyo Keizai University, then delivered a commemorative lecture entitled “International news coverage and the ‘Jiji shinpo.’” His lecture touched on the emphasis on international news flashes of the “Jiji shinpo,” which was established by Fukuzawa, and the international news climate of the time, including divergences in the amount of information available with the countries of Europe and the United States.
After the lecture, Takeshi Fukuzawa greeted the audience on behalf of the Fukuzawa family. An awards ceremony for the Keio University sponsored national high school student essay contest established in honor of Shinzo Koizumi, a former president of the university, followed. The winner was given a certificate and commemorative gift from President Haseyama.
Following the celebrations, a New Year’s Name Card Exchange was held at the student cafeteria where new year’s greetings were exchanged in a friendly atmosphere.