Summary
The Suntory Prize for Social Sciences and Humanities is awarded each year to individuals who have made original, distinguished contributions in research or criticism through publications that adopt a broad perspective on society and culture.
The Prize is awarded in four categories: Political Science and Economics, Literary and Art Criticism, Life and Society, and History and Civilization. Selection committees in each category recommend and select the winning individuals and works. Winners receive a plaque and three million yen.
Works selected for consideration will have been published in Japanese during the preceding calendar year. In particular, the selection committees seek individuals who are rising critics or researchers of considerable originality and future potential, and works that distinctively represent the author's views or emphasis. The candidate's other published works to date may also be taken into consideration in the selection process.
Since there are few prizes to honor achievements in criticism and research on a broad basis, an important role of the Suntory Prize for Social Sciences and Humanities is to showcase free-ranging criticism and research unconstrained by conventional categories.
A total of 387 people have been awarded the Prize from 1979, when it was established, through the 46th Prize in 2024. These individuals have won acclaim for innovative approaches to their subjects, for research at the boundaries of conventional scholarship, and for opening up new frontiers.
The 46th(2024) Prize Winners
- Political Science and Economics
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Name Makino Momoe Affiliation Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization Title in English "Gender gap: What does empirical economics tell us?" Original Title 『ジェンダー格差 ─ 実証経済学は何を語るか』 Name Mandai Yu Affiliation Hosei University Title in English "Mitsui Osaka Financial Merchants: Technology and Challenges of a Pioneer in Banking" Original Title 『三井大坂両替店 ─ 銀行業の先駆け、その技術と挑戦』
- Literary and Art Criticism
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Name Kataoka Mai Affiliation International Research Center for Japanese Studies Title in English "Unusual Problems Involved in Translating Japanese Shōsetsu(Novels)" Original Title 『日本の小説の翻訳にまつわる特異な問題 ─ 文化の架橋者たちがみた「あいだ」』 Name Kure Motoyuki Affiliation Kyoto University Title in English "Transitioning Avant-garde: The Influence of Japan on Modernist Painting from Republican China to Post-war Taiwan" Original Title 『移ろう前衛 ─ 中国から台湾への絵画のモダニズムと日本』
- Life and Society
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Name Shibata Kotaro Affiliation Waseda University Title in English "Cinema Soundscapes: Cultures of Film and Sound in Prewar Tokyo" Original Title 『映画館に鳴り響いた音 ─ 戦前東京の映画館と音文化の近代』 Name Watanabe Masahito Affiliation Keio University Title in English "Impacts on Taiwan's Democracy: The Media, Elections and the US" Original Title 『台湾のデモクラシー ─ メディア、選挙、アメリカ』
- History and Civilization
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Name Kobayashi Ryosuke Affiliation Kyushu University Title in English "The Political and Diplomatic History of Modern Tibet" Original Title 『近代チベット政治外交史 ─ 清朝崩壊にともなう政治的地位と境界』 Name Nakamura Tohru Affiliation Chiba Institute of Technology Title in English "I am the archipelago: Introduction to Caribbean Thought" Original Title 『私が諸島である ─ カリブ海思想入門』