The Journal of Japanese Studies was established in 1974 as a multidisciplinary forum for communicating new information, new interpretations, and recent research results concerning Japan to the English-reading world. The Journal publishes broad, exploratory articles suggesting new analyses and interpretations, substantial book reviews, translations of Japanese articles of particular interest, and occasional symposia. It is published twice each year, winter and summer, with an annual total of well over 500 pages.  

The Journal is published by the Society for Japanese Studies and housed at the University of Washington. It is supported by an endowment and by generous grants from the Japan Foundation, Georgetown University, and the University of Washington.  Contents of the Journal of Japanese Studies are available online in the Project Muse and JSTOR databases.