From Ambassador

   
  
Photo courtesy: University of Iceland, President's Office


Japanese study in Iceland started in earnest in autumn 2003 when the Japanese Language and Culture course was founded at the University of Iceland.
 
Although it started out as a minor subject with one year trial period, it turned out to be more popular than expected with numerous students registering for the course. Very soon, within the Faculty of Languages and Cultures, the number of students studying Japanese had become the second highest after English.
 
At the Japanese Language and Culture course – with 70 to 90 students enrolled in the program at any given moment – students study in Iceland the basics of the Japanese language and culture for 2 years, before moving on to study at a Japanese university for one year. It normally takes 3 years to obtain the bachelor degree in Japanese Studies.
 
The number of Japanese universities with an exchange agreement with the University of Iceland is 21 and the number of “Japan Study Alumni Association” member is reaching 300.
 
In absolute numbers it might not be that many, but considering the population size, the share of Icelandic people studying or having studied in Japan is enormous. In order to help promote this Japanese study craze, various funding and scholarship programs are available.
 
To name a few, there are “MEXT scholarship” and “MIRAI program” both offered by the Japanese Government, as well as the grants offered by the Scandinavia-Japan Sasakawa Foundation which is more focused on the 5 Nordic countries, etc.
 
Among all these programs, I would like to highlight in this column “the Watanabe Trust Fund” that was established with the aim of strengthening academic exchange between Iceland and Japan.
 
The Watanabe Trust Fund is a scholarship fund established in 2008 by the successful Japanese businessman Mr. Toshizo Watanabe, with a substantial founding contribution donated by himself. The Fund aims at providing scholarships to undergraduate and postgraduate students to study or conduct research in Japan or Iceland.
 
With an appreciation for his own experience of receiving a scholarship from the Wien International Scholarship Program during his university student days in the U.S. Mr. Watanabe has dedicated himself after his retirement to funding various educational programs that support young people to study abroad. 
 
The reason why Mr. Watanabe established the fund in Iceland – in addition to other scholarship programs established between the U.S. and Japan – stemmed largely from his friendship with a fellow student at Brandeis University, Mr. Geir H. Haarde who later became the Prime Minister of Iceland.
 
Since its inception, 73 scholarships have been granted to 47 Icelandic students and researchers as well as 26 Japanese students and researchers. Those grants have contributed greatly to the promotion of educational, cultural and academic collaborations between the two countries. In May 2019, his contribution was acknowledged by the President of Iceland Guðni Th. Jóhannesson who awarded Mr. Watanabe the Icelandic Order of the Falcon.
 
At the grant ceremony of the Watanabe Trust Fund this year, great news were announced by the Rector of the University of Iceland. The Japanese Language and Culture course that has long been quoted as “the second most popular foreign language course after English” has now become the most popular course – among 13 other language courses – with over 100 registered students.
 
I wish to extend my sincere gratitude to all those involved in this process, as well as my gratitude to the continued support from Mr. Watanabe.