Japanese Mythology: A Guide by Matthieu Felt

Japanese myths present a significant barrier to entry for the Western reader. The primary sources are arcane, and their translations are not accessible to the non-specialist. Japanese deities (kami) have multiple, long names, and the myths exist in different and conflicting versions. Finally, the sheer number of kami makes grasping the pantheon difficult.

Japanese Mythology: A Guide (Oxford University Press, 2026) presents key Japanese myths in a format that is both rigorous and readable. Matthieu Felt brings together Japanese myths as they appear in the oldest extant sources and the various methodologies that have been used to study these myths during the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Sources are indicated for readers wishing to do further research with original texts or to use Japanese myths in a comparative capacity.

Matthieu Felt is Associate Professor of Japanese at the University of Florida. He is the translator of The Chronicles of Japan (the Nihon Shoki), part of the Hsu-Tang Library of Classical Chinese Literature series.

Japanese Mythology: A Guide is part of the World Mythology in Theory and Everyday Life series published by Oxford University Press.