Seiji Noma | |
---|---|
Born | 1878 |
Died | 1938 (aged 59–60) |
Occupation | Journalist |
Known for | founder of Kodansha |
Seiji Noma (野間 清治, 1878–1938) was a Japanese writer and publisher who was the founder of Kodansha, a leading publishing company. He was the founder and publisher of many well-known newspapers and magazines.
Noma was born in 1878.[1][2] His father hailed from a samurai family and was himself a samurai.[3]
Noma was educated as a teacher.[1]
Following his graduation Noma worked as a teacher in the Luchu Islands.[1] Later he served as a schoolmaster.[3] Then he began to work as an administrative official at the Imperial University's law department in Tokyo.[3]
Noma established a publishing company, Dainihon Yūbenkai (Japanese: the Great Japanese Oratorical Society), in 1910.[1] The company would be later renamed as Kodansha.[4] The first publication of the company was Yūben, a monthly magazine on public speech.[3][4]
The nine magazines Noma started enjoyed high levels of circulations and were very influential on the popular culture of Japan.[5] His goal in starting these titles was to modernize, entertain and educate Japanese society.[3] On the other hand, they comprised the 75% of the total circulation of all Japanese publications.[6] These publications included Kodan Club, Shōnen Club, Omoshiro Club, Gendai (Japanese: Present Generation), Fujin Club, Shōjo Club and Kingu.[1] The latter was his flagship magazine which was identified with the company.[7] In 1930 he established Hochi Shimbun (Japanese: Intelligence Newspaper) which also became an influential publication.[1]
Noma's wife was a teacher.[2] He died of heart attack in Tokyo on 18 October 1938.[8]