Lafcadio Hearn and his Tokyo grave
Lafcadio Hearn’s life was a blend of cultures, stories, and resilience. He was a one-eyed boy, bullied in Ireland and abandoned by his family. But he went on to become Japan’s most famous foreign storyteller. Let’s look at this global wanderer who introduced an unknown catalog of mysteries and ghost stories to the West. On top of that, we’ll check out his grave in Tokyo’s Zoshigaya Cemetery.
Hearn was Greek, Irish, and Japanese. Most people have only one nationality. A few have two. But he had three! How did that happen? He had many occupations, but his most successful were writer, reporter, and teacher. His resume was extensive. In his fifty-four years of life, he had his share of fame.
His writing got it for him. While he was in the United States and the French West Indies, he published books. His Japanese works made him famous.
He wrote at a time when the country was hardly known. It was an exotic place. His books entertained and thrilled people who would never travel.
Do you know any of them? If you are a Japanophile, you might have read Kokoro or Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan. These books and others contained his thoughts, insights, and experiences in the country. Some of his other material was quite different.
That other material was his collections and writings of Japanese ghost stories. Kwaidan and In Ghostly Japan are probably the most famous. Some are still on recommended reading lists in many Japanese schools.
A Brief Biography of Lafcadio Hearn
His early life was tumultuous. He was born in 1850 on the island of Lefkada in Greece. His father was a soldier of British or British-Irish origin, and his mother was Greek. That explains how he got two nationalities.
When he was young, his family moved to Dublin, Ireland. From there, his life took a downward turn. His parents had problems, and they broke up.
He found himself abandoned. His relatives took him in, but his situation worsened. The boy was small and didn’t look like a local. Bullies targeted him. During this time, he lost the sight of one eye in a playground accident.
To compound his problems, he feared the dark. His aunt cured it by locking him in windowless rooms. That was rough, but she did get him an education. He became fluent in French and gained excellent English skills.
It is said he had a nurse during these formative years. She told him stories about the supernatural. This probably paved the way for his interest in Japanese ghost stories when he landed there.
In school, Lafcadio went on to become the top student in English composition for three years. That proved most fortuitous. It would help him in later years.
Eventually, his guardians had financial difficulties. So they sent him to London to live with a former maid. Things must have looked grim him. But his life did turn around.
At 19, his guardian’s position recovered somewhat. They gave him a little money and suggested he go to the United States. He stayed for nearly twenty years.
He worked various jobs. But in Cincinnati, he became a journalist. Lafcadio was known for this crime reporting, especially murders. Remember those creative writing skills he learned when he was younger? He put them to good use when he wrote his stories.
After he had had enough of Cincinnati, he moved to New Orleans. His Louisana works included a creole dictionary and a cookbook. Harper’s Weekly and Scribner’s Magazine also published his articles about the city.
After that, Harper’s sent him as a correspondent to the French West Indies. He reported and published more during his two-year stay. By the time he left the Americas, he had established quite a reputation.
His last stop was Japan. He went there in 1890 as a newspaper correspondent. At age 40, he remained there for the rest of his life. This new country, with its history, culture, and supernatural stories, fascinated him. Hearn had found his home.
He married a Japanese woman, Setsuko (often shortened to Setsu). They had four children. He took a Japanese name, Yakumo Koizumi, and became a Buddhist.
Lafcadio became a teacher. In 1894, he got a job at the English-language newspaper Kobe Chronicle. He had friends like Basil Chamberlain. Through them, he worked at Tokyo Imperial University and Waseda University. He could support his family.
While he worked, he wrote books. They gave much insight into Japan, but eventually, Lafcadio was forgotten. Many people dismissed his work due to him not speaking fluent Japanese. Nor did his work have academic depth.
On 26 September 1904, Hearn died of heart failure in Tokyo. He was 54 years old. Today, he lies in Zoshigaya Cemetery with his wife, Setsu, and son Kazuo.
The Lafcadio grave
Lafcadio was naturalized, so his grave bears his Japanese name. He is known by his birthname in the West, so I use that here.
His grave is beautiful. Setsu and Kazuo are with him. They lie under trees. Peace and quiet surround. Zoshigaya Cemetery is that type of place.
The grave is in good condition. Someone is looking after it. He was an important person during his life and is still respected today. Whenever I visit it, there is always a gift on it, like a bottle of drink (water in these photos). Other times, I’ve seen oranges and cans of coffee.
Where is Lafcadio's grave?
It is in Zoshigaya Cemetery, near Ikebukuro. The three easiest ways to get there are:
- The walk from Ikebukuro takes about fifteen minutes.
- Take the Tokyo Sakura Line (also known as the Toden Arakawa (tram) Line) to Toden Zoshigaya Station. The cemetery is over the road.
- Take the Fukutoshin Metro Line to Zoshigaya Station (don’t confuse it with the tram line above).
There is a map with his grave
The administration office has a map with historically important graves on it. Be careful with it. Hearn’s is numbered twenty-five (25). But on the map, it is marked as twenty-four (24).
Conclusion
If you are interested in Lafcadio Hearn, visit his grave at Zoshigaya Cemetery. You will visit the man who gave the West its first glimpses into Japan. While there, see the graves of some other famous people:
Leave questions and comments below.
Rohan Gillett
Rohan has lived in Tokyo for 30+ years. He loves photography and plans to capture the entire city.
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External websites about Lafcadio Hearn