38 moments

1. Birth in Tenma

   1899-06-14 · Tenma, Kita-ku, Osaka, Japan

   

   Kawabata was born in the Tenma area of Kita Ward, Osaka, to physician Eikichi Kawabata and Gen. This municipal chronology gives June 14; the canonical English Wikipedia article gives June 11 and notes the family-register discrepancy. Coordinates represent Tenma.

2. Grandparents' home after orphaning

   1902-01-01 · Shukunojo, Ibaraki, Osaka, Japan

   

   After his mother's death, Kawabata was taken to his grandparents' home in Shukunojo, now part of Ibaraki. Coordinates are a representative point for Shukunojo; the source gives the historical village and present-day locality.

3. Enrollment at Toyokawa Elementary School

   1906-01-01 · Toyokawa, Ibaraki, Osaka, Japan

   

   Kawabata entered Toyokawa Elementary School, now Ibaraki Municipal Toyokawa Elementary School. Coordinates represent the present-day school area.

4. Study at Ibaraki Middle School

   1912-01-01 · Osaka Prefectural Ibaraki High School, Ibaraki, Osaka, Japan

   

   He entered Osaka Prefectural Ibaraki Middle School, the predecessor of Ibaraki High School. Coordinates represent the present-day successor school.

5. Moved to his uncle's household

   1914-05-01 · Toyosato, Higashiyodogawa-ku, Osaka, Japan

   

   After his grandfather died, Kawabata was taken in by an uncle in Toyosato, now in Osaka's Higashiyodogawa Ward. Coordinates represent the former Toyosato village area.

6. Moved to Tokyo for First Higher School

   1917-09-01 · First Higher School (Komaba campus area), Meguro, Tokyo, Japan

   

   Kawabata moved to Tokyo for admission to the First Higher School, beginning his higher education there. Coordinates represent the former First Higher School's Komaba campus area.

7. First journey to Izu

   1918-10-01 · Izu Peninsula, Shizuoka, Japan

   

   While a First Higher School student, Kawabata made his first trip to Izu and traveled with a troupe of itinerant performers, an experience associated with The Izu Dancer. Coordinates are a representative point for the peninsula; the source does not identify a single stop.

8. Entered Tokyo Imperial University

   1920-09-01 · University of Tokyo, Hongo, Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan

   

   Kawabata entered the English-literature department of Tokyo Imperial University's Faculty of Letters. Coordinates represent the University's Hongo campus.

9. Relationship in Hongo

   1921-01-01 · Hongo, Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan

   

   Kawabata's relationship and brief engagement with Hatsuyo Ito unfolded at Café Elan in Hongo. The exact location of Café Elan is not specified; coordinates represent Hongo.

10. Writing in Yugashima

    1922-01-01 · Yugashima, Izu, Shizuoka, Japan

    

    During the summer, Kawabata wrote Reminiscences in Yugashima while in Yugashima.

11. Military examination in Ibaraki

    1924-05-01 · Ibaraki, Osaka, Japan

    

    Kawabata returned to Ibaraki for his military conscription examination shortly after graduating from university. Coordinates represent central Ibaraki; the examination venue is not identified.

12. Extended stay at Yugashima Honten

    1925-01-01 · Yugashima Honten, Yugashima, Izu, Shizuoka, Japan

    

    Kawabata spent most of 1925 at Yugashima Honten, where he also met Hideko Matsubayashi. Coordinates represent Yugashima Honten's locality; exact historic building coordinates are uncertain.

13. Residence in Mabashi

    1927-01-01 · Mabashi, Suginami, Tokyo, Japan

    

    Kawabata established a new home in Mabashi, Suginami, after coming to Tokyo for Riichi Yokomitsu's wedding celebration. Coordinates represent the former Mabashi area.

14. Moved to Atami

    1927-12-01 · Atami, Shizuoka, Japan

    

    Kawabata moved to Atami at the end of 1927. Coordinates represent central Atami.

15. Ueno residence and Asakusa visits

    1929-09-01 · Ueno Sakuragicho, Taito, Tokyo, Japan

    

    Kawabata moved to Ueno Sakuragicho and regularly went to Asakusa while serializing The Scarlet Gang of Asakusa. This card locates his documented residence; the quote also directly documents repeated physical visits to Asakusa.

16. Relocation to Jomyoji, Kamakura

    1935-12-01 · Jomyoji, Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan

    

    At Hayashi Fusao's invitation, Kawabata moved to Jomyoji in Kamakura, beginning his long association with the city. Coordinates represent the Jomyoji district.

17. First stay in Karuizawa

    1936-08-01 · Karuizawa, Nagano, Japan

    

    Kawabata stayed in Karuizawa for the first time from August into September. The stay spanned August and September; the date records its beginning month.

18. Travel through Shinshu

    1936-10-01 · Shinshu, Nagano, Japan

    

    After his Karuizawa stay, Kawabata traveled through Shinshu while writing manuscripts. Coordinates are a representative point for the broader Shinshu region.

19. Karuizawa summer residence

    1937-09-01 · Karuizawa, Nagano, Japan

    

    Kawabata bought a villa in Karuizawa and thereafter spent each summer there for roughly two decades. Coordinates represent Karuizawa; the exact villa site is not identified.

20. First Manchurian journey

    1941-04-01 · Manchukuo (representative point: Changchun), China

    

    Kawabata traveled to Manchuria at the invitation of the Manchuria Daily News and returned in May. The source supports presence in Manchuria but no specific city; coordinates are a representative point at Changchun, then the capital of Manchukuo.

21. Journey to Beijing from Manchuria

    1941-10-01 · Beijing, China

    

    During a second Manchurian trip, Kawabata traveled to Beijing at his own expense. The source places the Beijing trip after October began but does not give a day.

22. Return via Dalian

    1941-11-01 · Dalian, Liaoning, China

    

    Kawabata returned to Japan from Dalian near the end of November, shortly before the Pacific War began. The source supports late November, not an exact day.

23. Visit to Takatsuki over adoption

    1942-01-01 · Takatsuki, Osaka, Japan

    

    Kawabata visited Takatsuki concerning the prospective adoption of a daughter. Coordinates represent central Takatsuki.

24. Return to Takatsuki with Hideko

    1943-01-01 · Takatsuki, Osaka, Japan

    

    Kawabata and his wife Hideko visited Takatsuki and adopted his cousin's child. Coordinates represent central Takatsuki.

25. Naval reporting assignment at Kanoya

    1945-04-01 · Kanoya Naval Air Base area, Kanoya, Kagoshima, Japan

    

    Kawabata went to the naval base at Kanoya, Kagoshima, as a naval reporting corps member during the final months of the war. Coordinates represent the Kanoya base area.

26. Final Kamakura residence in Hase

    1946-10-01 · Hase, Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan

    

    Kawabata moved to Hase in Kamakura, where he would live for the rest of his life. Coordinates represent the Hase district; the exact house site is not specified.

27. PEN inspection of Hiroshima atomic-bomb site

    1950-04-01 · Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Japan

    

    As Japan P.E.N. Club president, Kawabata joined fellow representatives visiting the atomic-bomb sites and taking part in meetings and lectures. The source documents the group visit in April but not individual dates in each city.

28. PEN inspection of Nagasaki atomic-bomb site

    1950-04-01 · Nagasaki, Nagasaki, Japan

    

    Kawabata was among the Japan P.E.N. Club delegation that visited Nagasaki's atomic-bomb site and participated in the associated program. The source documents the group visit in April but not individual dates in each city.

29. International PEN Executive Committee in London

    1957-04-01 · London, England, United Kingdom

    

    Kawabata was dispatched to London for an International PEN executive committee meeting while preparing for the Tokyo congress. The source identifies London and April but not the venue.

30. Welcoming address at International PEN Congress

    1957-09-01 · Tokyo, Japan

    

    As president of Japan P.E.N., Kawabata welcomed writers at the 29th International PEN Congress in Tokyo. The congress ran during September; the source does not specify the date of Kawabata's address.

31. Kyoto residence while writing The Old Capital

    1961-01-01 · Kyoto, Kyoto, Japan

    

    Kawabata rented a house in Kyoto while writing The Old Capital and Beauty and Sadness. Coordinates represent central Kyoto; the rented house is not identified.

32. Lecture at Ibaraki High School anniversary

    1965-10-01 · Osaka Prefectural Ibaraki High School, Ibaraki, Osaka, Japan

    

    Kawabata was invited to lecture at the 70th-anniversary ceremony of Ibaraki High School. Coordinates represent the school campus.

33. Kōetsukai participation before Nobel trip

    1968-11-01 · Kōetsuji, Kyoto, Kyoto, Japan

    

    Before traveling to Sweden, Kawabata participated in the Kōetsukai tea event at Kōetsuji in Kyoto. The source establishes participation and venue but does not state the precise day of his 1968 attendance.

34. Meeting with Arakawa Toyozō

    1968-11-14 · Nagoya, Aichi, Japan

    

    Kawabata traveled to Nagoya to meet the potter Arakawa Toyozō shortly before departing for the Nobel events. Coordinates represent central Nagoya; the meeting venue is not specified.

35. Nobel Prize events in Stockholm

    1968-12-06 · Stockholm, Sweden

    

    Kawabata arrived in Stockholm on December 6 for Nobel-related events, attended the award ceremony in formal Japanese dress, and delivered his Nobel lecture at the Swedish Academy on December 12. Coordinates represent Stockholm Concert Hall, the award-ceremony venue; his lecture was held at the Swedish Academy elsewhere in Stockholm.

36. Special lectures at the University of Hawaiʻi

    1969-03-01 · University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, Honolulu, Hawaii, United States

    

    Kawabata went to the University of Hawaiʻi and gave special lectures on Japanese literature. Coordinates represent the Mānoa campus in Honolulu.

37. Ibaraki literary-monument ceremony and lecture

    1969-10-26 · Osaka Prefectural Ibaraki High School, Ibaraki, Osaka, Japan

    

    Kawabata attended the unveiling of a literary monument at Ibaraki High School, received Ibaraki honorary-citizen insignia at City Hall, and gave a commemorative lecture. The documented day included appearances at both the high school and Ibaraki City Hall; coordinates represent the first named venue.

38. Death at Zushi work apartment

    1972-04-16 · Zushi Marina, Zushi, Kanagawa, Japan

    

    Kawabata was found dead by gas in the Zushi apartment that he used as a workroom. The source identifies a Zushi apartment but not its address; coordinates represent Zushi Marina, identified in Wikidata as the location of death.