page_title: Ireland–Japan relations
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Ireland–Japan relations / History
caption_attribution_description: Enda Kenny, Taoiseach, visited the Embassy of Japan in Dublin, to sign a book of condolence for the victims of the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami on March 22, 2011. Kenny met with Toshinao Urabe, Ambassador to Ireland.(c.f. "アイルランドからの緊急資金支援", 外務省: アイルランドからの緊急資金支援, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, March 23, 2011.)(c.f. "アイルランド", 外務省: 「がんばれ日本！　世界は日本と共にある」（世界各地でのエピソード集）: 欧州（西欧その1）, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan.)
context_page_description: Ireland–Japan relations refers to the diplomatic relations between the Republic of Ireland and the State of Japan. Both nations are members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
context_section_description: The oldest record of an Irish person visiting Japan dates back to July 1704, when an Irish sailor, Robert Jansen, was seized off the coast of Kyushu. Jansen and five companions had escaped from the Dutch East India Company in the Philippines and set sail in a small boat hoping to reach Canton (present day Guangzhou). Initially, Jansen and the others were suspected of being Portuguese missionaries and were held until November 1704 before they were finally released and allowed to join a Dutch ship bound for the city of Batavia (present day Jakarta) in the Dutch East Indies.
  The first contact between Ireland and Japan took place in December 1872 when members of the Iwakura Mission (while visiting England) traveled to Dublin which became a symbolically significant moment in the development of relations between the two countries. Following the Meiji Restoration (1868), Irish men and women emigrated to Japan, making their mark in a variety of fields. Irish writer Lafcadio Hearn (a.k.a. Koizumi Yakumo) immigrated to Japan and wrote several books about Japan. During the Meiji period, hundreds of Irish nuns and priests have lived, work and taught in Japan since they first arrived during that period. Many Irish nuns and priests also chose to remain in Japan during World War II.
  In March 1957, Ireland and Japan officially established diplomatic relations. Japan was the first east-Asian country with which Ireland established diplomatic links. That same year, both nations accredited ambassadors to each other capitals. In 1964, Japan upgraded its diplomatic legation in Dublin to an embassy. In 1973, Ireland opened a resident embassy in Tokyo. In September 1983, Irish President Patrick Hillery became the first Irish head of state to visit Japan. In 1985, Japanese Crown Prince Akihito and Crown Princess Michiko paid a visit to Ireland. The Royal couple would later return to Ireland as Emperor and Empress of Japan in 2005. In June 2013, Shinzō Abe became the first Japanese Prime Minister to visit Ireland.
  Both nations work closely together in the United Nations and have a shared commitment to democracy, human rights, freedom and justice, peace, the rule of law, and the eradication of poverty. In 2017, both nations celebrated 60 years of diplomatic relations.
caption: Taoiseach Enda Kenny signing a book of condolence for the victims of the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami at the Japanese Embassy in Dublin on 22 March 2011.
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