The Clash between Domestic and Western Traditions: Japanese Understanding of the Archival Principles

Abstract

Japanese archivists believe that they have incorporated the theory and practice of the West and that one of the most successful results is the method of Phased Archival Processing (PAP), invented for arrangement and description. The first phase of PAP records the existing order or chaos of archival materials. However, it is believed to be indispensable only in Japan. This article argues that this phenomenon occurs because the Japanese understanding of the principles of respect for provenance and the original order is different from that in the West. It traces the history of the development of Japanese archival science and sets it in the Western context.