Inazo Nitobe (1862-1933) was a famous educator, scholar, agriculturalist, philosopher and statesman. Early in his life, Nitobe moved to Tokyo to stay with his uncle, Tokitoshi Ohta. Later, he studied at the Tokyo Imperial University (1883) and Johns Hopkins University (1884) in the US. Nitobe was among the first Japanese students in the United States. Nitobe also studied in Germany and Sapporo Agricultural College, where he taught until he resigned in 1897 due to ill-health.
After retirement, he traveled to the United States where he wrote his famous book "Bushido: The Soul of Japan", which offered clear and accessible analysis of Japanese cultural practices.
In 1918, he helped to set up Tokyo Women's University and beamce its first president. In 1920, Doctor Nitobe was given the Assistant Director General's post in the League of Nations. He left this post in 1926 to become the Chief Director of Japan to the Institute of Pacific Relations. In 1933, while he was representing Japan at the Pacific Conference held in Banff, Canada, Nitobe became ill and died.  |