Bodies and Structures 2.0: Deep-Mapping Modern East Asian History

The Library Goals

The Taiwan Government-General Library (Taiwan sōtokufu toshokan), just like its counterpart in Seoul, the Korea Government-General Library (Chōsen sōtokufu toshokan), had the following three goals:

1) to collect the information necessary for managing the colony;
2) to provide services to the Japanese settler community; and
3) to contribute to imperialization (kōminka) policies of "Japanizing" the colonized population (Katō et al, Nihon no shokuminchi toshokan, 14, 81. Kawata Ikohi, “Ajia shinryaku to Chōsen Sōtokufu Toshokan (3),” Jōkyō to shutai, no. 142 (1987): 130.).

The library was a useful tool for managing and collecting knowledge. Moreover, as an institution, it testified to the civilizatory and modernizing mission of the imperial state.

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