Two courses at the Kawasaki Municipal Archives: a history lecture on Nov 29 and an intro to old documents in December, both due Nov 17

History and old-document courses at the city archives

The Kawasaki Municipal Archives (川崎市公文書館) in Miyauchi, Nakahara Ward, has announced two courses that are now accepting applicants. Both take place at the Kawasaki Lifelong Learning Plaza (川崎市生涯学習プラザ) in Musashi-Kosugi, and both share the same deadline: applications must arrive by Tuesday, Nov 17. As of Oct 20, 2026, both are still open.

The first is a history lecture, "The Founding of the Takatsu Credit Union" (高津信用組合の設立). It will be held on Sunday, Nov 29, 2026, from 2 to 4 p.m. in Large Conference Room 401. It covers how a credit union was set up in modern Kawasaki and how credit unions differ from banks. The lecturer is Ko Ochiai (落合功), a professor in the School of Economics at Aoyama Gakuin University.

The second is the "Second Introductory Course on Old Documents" (第二回入門古文書講座). It is for people trying old documents and kuzushiji (cursive Japanese script) for the first time. It runs three times, on Saturdays, Dec 5, 12 and 19, from 2 to 4 p.m. in Conference Room 301. The lecturer is Kanta Fukawa (布川寛大), a member of the Archives staff. According to the flyer, the sessions are:

Session	Date	Topic
1	Sat, Dec 5, 2026	The basics of reading old documents
2	Sat, Dec 12, 2026	On to kuzushiji
3	Sat, Dec 19, 2026	Kawasaki as seen through old documents

Using historical materials kept in Kawasaki, participants learn from the beginning the basic knowledge needed to read old documents, their distinctive phrasing and the kuzushiji characters that appear most often.

80 and 40 places; lottery if full

The history lecture has 80 places. The introductory course on old documents is for people learning old documents for the first time who can attend all three sessions. It has 40 places.

For both, a lottery will be held if there are more applicants than places. In the lottery, the history lecture gives priority to city residents, and the introductory course gives priority to people who live in Kawasaki.

The fee is ¥500 for the history lecture and ¥2,000 for all three sessions of the introductory course (textbook included).

The venue, the Kawasaki Lifelong Learning Plaza, is at 28-41 Imaiminami-cho, Nakahara Ward. It is a 12-minute walk from the west exit of Musashi-Kosugi Sta. (JR Nambu Line) and a 10-minute walk from the south exit of Musashi-Kosugi Sta. (Tokyu Toyoko Line).

Applications must arrive by Nov 17

Applications are accepted from Tuesday, Oct 20, to Tuesday, Nov 17, 2026, and must arrive by the deadline. Both courses use the same three ways to apply:

Method	What to do
LoGo form	History lecture: https://logoform.jp/f/hx4fE ; introductory course: https://logoform.jp/f/s3KO5
Return postcard	Write your address, name (with furigana reading) and phone number, and mail it
In person	Apply at the 1st-floor reception desk of the Archives (bring a regular ¥85 postcard for the reply)

Send return postcards to Kawasaki Municipal Archives, 4-1-1 Miyauchi, Nakahara-ku, Kawasaki, 〒211-0051. Add "講座担当" (Courses) for the history lecture or "古文書講座担当" (Old Documents Course) for the introductory course.

Lottery results are scheduled to be sent by postcard or email on Wednesday, Nov 18, for the introductory course and on Thursday, Nov 19, for the history lecture. The history lecture flyer asks you to get in touch if you do not hear back.

Contacts

Contact the Kawasaki Municipal Archives (4-1-1 Miyauchi, Nakahara Ward; phone 044-733-3933; fax 044-733-2400; email 17koubun@city.kawasaki.jp). It is open from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and closed on Mondays and national holidays.