Saad Abdul Radi (Abu Dhabi)
The cultural relations between the UAE and Japan are distinguished by their particularity and permanent positive interaction. From the source of culture is the General Assembly in the system of universal human values, such as the values of acquaintance, cooperation, moderation, tolerance, coexistence and peace. In the past two decades, these relations witnessed the organization of many cultural events and activities held in the UAE and Japan, It strongly expresses the richness of the culture of each of the two countries, and includes Emirati heritage art shows that express the local heritage, and traditional Japanese shows, such as flower arrangements or tea ceremonies, or those related to popular culture, such as Japanese “animation” or manga. Relations also witnessed a remarkable development in terms of learning the Arabic and Japanese languages in many schools and universities here and there, and this was accompanied by mutual visits by students of the two countries of all educational and age groups.
Notable stations
Among the most prominent stations and events in recent years, the “Japanese Arts Month” was organized by the “Abu Dhabi Hap Gallery” in the capital, Abu Dhabi, in December 2013. The art exhibition included works completed by four of the most prominent Japanese artists, and this exhibition revealed a wide diversity of schools and styles. The prevailing art of the artists of the country of the rising sun. In 2016, the NYU Abu Dhabi Art Gallery also organized the “East to East” exhibition, which revealed the inspiring methods used by some young talents in the Emirati art scene in order to enhance cultural channels of communication with Japanese arts, and the exhibition presented selected works by four distinguished Emirati artists.
In 2017, the students of Hiroshima Nagisa High School in the Japanese city of Hiroshima participated with the students of Umm Suqeim Model School for Girls in Dubai in their school day, as they were keen to attend classes in Arabic, mathematics and social studies. The Hiroshima students were briefed on the history of the UAE and its comprehensive renaissance. On the sidelines of the visit, a group of workshops were launched, which varied between the art of Arabic calligraphy, decoration and arts, handicrafts, arts and folk dishes, which are part of the folklore in the Emirates.
The Louvre Abu Dhabi Museum also opened the exhibition “Inspired by Japan: Pioneers of Modern Art”, which provided an opportunity to view the works of 12 artists, including the artists of the “Nabi” movement and the great teachers of the ukiyo-e art movement from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
In 2018, Japan was the guest of honor at the Sharjah International Book Fair, in celebration of its distinguished civilizational achievements in which the book was a major factor and engine in building culture and shaping social morals, as Japan has a history full of great literary and cultural achievements and names in terms of novels, cinema, music and others. The Japanese Club at Zayed University annually organizes “Days in Japan” activities; With the aim of introducing students to Japanese culture and exploring it closely.
Acculturation and coexistence
In December 2022, the Ministry of Education dispatched twenty male and female students, in addition to four supervisors, to Japan as part of the celebrations of the fiftieth anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. State institutions, to achieve the desired goals in this regard, in addition to activating everything that would support capabilities and stimulate energies eager to fly on the global horizon, from our sons and daughters in all schools of the country.
The eight-day participation in the Student Cultural Exchange Program, hosted by the Education Council in Tokyo, came to activate the frameworks of cooperation between the Ministry of Education in the United Arab Emirates and the Education Council in the Tokyo government.
The delegation included 20 male and female students, half of whom were students from public and private schools from all emirates of the country and the other half from ATHS High School, in addition to 4 supervisors. A unique experience of acquiring life skills through various activities with Japanese students and students from other countries, attending several lectures and visiting a number of institutions, as well as participating in cultural events, acquiring general information, and visiting tourist places. Part of the activities also related to getting to know Japanese culture.
Japan Festival
In the context of celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of the start of diplomatic relations between the United Arab Emirates and Japan, the Japanese Embassy in Abu Dhabi organized, in December 2022, at Manarat Al Saadiyat, the “Japan Festival.” The festival included a wide variety of cultural events that highlight the culture of Japan. Japanese drums, and performances of the famous Japanese animated films “Demon Slayer – The Mugen Train” and “Poppel the Chimney Town”, as well as the famous Emirati animated series “Freej” dubbed into Japanese.
The festival’s activities also included traditional Japanese dance performances, in addition to Japanese calligraphy, traditional Japanese tea presentation, flower arranging art, contemporary and traditional Japanese games, handicraft workshops, tastings of Japanese food and sweets, and many more. The highlight of the event was the Japanese drums concert “Wadaiko”, which was performed by the Japanese drum group “Sai” and the Emirati drum group “Kharshah”. And “Sai” is a young professional band, and one of its members spent his childhood in the Emirates, graduated from the Japanese School in Abu Dhabi, moved to Japan, and then completed his university journey at Zayed University. While studying, he formed with his Emirati friends the local Japanese drum group “Kharsha”, which performed at local and international events, including the “Expo 2020 Dubai” exhibition. The festival also included a presentation on how to prepare and serve Japanese tea in the traditional way, under the slogan “Calmness Through a Tea Pot”, presented by the Urasenki School Group – Abu Dhabi. Japan, which dates back to the fifth century, and was introduced by the “Uhara” school of flower arrangement.
Participatory workshops
The “Japan Festival” included a group of participatory games and interactive educational workshops. Among the games was the game of catching “yo-yo” water balloons, which is one of the popular attractions in Japanese festivals, where visitors participated in catching a “yo-yo” balloon, and keeping it as a souvenir. As for the workshops, one of them was the Japanese hand fan industry workshop. Among the other workshops is the Japanese-style keychain making workshop, where the participants made a Japanese-style keychain, under the guidance of the trainer and Japanese volunteers. Among the workshops, which were also well received by the attendees, was the “origami” paper folding workshop, where visitors enjoyed learning the art of paper folding with experienced members of the Emirati Nippon Keiken Association “ENKA”, as well as a chopsticks workshop with Tokyo Metropolitan High School students. In the workshop, participants learned how to make and color chopsticks with the help of students from the same school.
Japanese font
Emirati artist Abdullah Lutfi participated in the presentation of artworks that link the Emirati and Japanese cultures. Lutfi drew his artistic ideas from manga, and Shiro Okubo gave a lecture on traditional Japanese food that is served at the beginning of each new year. The famous Japanese calligrapher, Goichi Yoshikawa, participated in a special presentation of Japanese calligraphy on large papers, and Akayage Kichimitsumasa, a teacher of traditional Japanese dance, performed dances to the tunes of some Japanese music.
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