“Angela Hondru” Romanian-Japanese Studies Center

The Angela Hondru Center for Romanian-Japanese Studies (CSRJ-AH) was established in 2005 and is part of the Department of Asian Studies of the Romanian-American University.

Type of activities performed

• CSRJ-AH has aimed since the beginning to be the equivalent of a cultural center dedicated to Japan, in Bucharest.
• It offers Japanese language courses, culture courses (tea ceremony, ikebana, Japanese film history, taiko, origami, calligraphy, Japanese design and architecture, martial arts), but also Japanese economics and business courses. The courses are optional or extra-curricular, offered to students, but also open to the participation of the general public. These are non-profit or free.
• Summer schools with Romanian and Japanese students, with the theme of Japanese language and culture (previous editions were organized in: Bucharest – 3, Drobeta Turnu Severin, Curtea de Argeș, Bucovina, Brașov, Balchik, Budapest where a visit took place at the Japan Foundation headquarters, Timișoara, Cluj-Napoca).
•   Cultural programs in Japan, organized since 2010. Students in the Japanese language course, teachers and media representatives visit for two weeks cities, tourist, cultural and historical objectives, companies, universities, cultural centers. More than 200 people have participated in this program so far.
• Cultural events both in partnership with the Japanese Embassy in Romania and independently. Over time, we have organized exhibitions, demonstrations and workshops, concerts, film screenings, kimono presentations, dance and theater performances or floral arrangements, gaming and anime fan conventions, book launches, etc. CSRJ-AH is the organizer of the largest Japanese culture festival in Romania: Japanese Culture Days (It takes place annually, since 2012).
• Academic activities. CSRJ-AH is involved in exchanges of students, professors and academic staff, between the Romanian-American University and the partner universities in Japan.
• Activities related to the development of academic partnerships with Japanese partners.
• Offering prizes and scholarships for the best students of the Center (prizes consisting of trips to Japan, plane tickets, scholarships, etc.)
• Organizing scientific events: conferences, symposia
• Organizing conferences with specific topics in partnership with the Embassy of Japan in Romania.
• CSRJ-AH provides guidance to undergraduate / dissertation students related to Japan’s international relations or business environment and its economy.
• Making films to popularize Japanese culture (traditional dance, origami, kimono, tea ceremony, taiko).
• Training activities abroad for the CSRJ-AH team.
• Ensuring a close partnership with the representatives of the Japanese business environment in Romania and organizing events to present them to both our students and the public.
• Organizing presentations on economic topics with JETRO.

 CSRJ-AH was a beneficiary of the JCat government program 

Distinctions / Awards received so far:

2021 – Tokyo Ministry of Foreign Affairs Award for promoting Japanese culture in Romania

2015 – Diploma from the Embassy of Japan in Romania offered in appreciation for the contribution made by the “Angela Hondru” Romanian – Japanese Studies Center to the mutual understanding and friendship between Japan and Romania.

2015 – Diploma of Merit awarded by the management of the Romanian – American University for the special activity of the “Angela Hondru” Romanian – Japanese Studies Center in the 10 years of activity.