Tsutomu Mizukami
Japanese writer (1919-2004)
Tsutomu Mizukami (水上勉, Mizukami Tsutomu; 8 March 1919 – 8 September 2004), also known as Tsutomu Minakami, was a Japanese writer of novels, biographies, and plays. Mizukami's major works include The Temple of the Wild Geese, Kiga kaikyō and Bamboo Dolls of Echizen. His writings earned him, among other awards, the Tanizaki Prize and the Naoki Prize.
Biography
Mizukami was born in Wakasa, Fukui Prefecture, to a poor family. In 1929, he became a novice in a Zen temple in Kyoto, moving between the branch temples. Disillusioned by the conduct of the temple's head priest, he left the temple in 1936, the same year in which he finished Middle School.
Mizukami entered Ritsumeikan University in 1937, but unable to keep up with his schedule while working, he withdrew already half a year later. After World War II, during which he worked in a variety of jobs, he studied under writer Kōji Uno, and in 1948 published the autobiographical novel Furaipan no uta (lit. "Song of the frying pan"). The novel was a moderate success, but the attention received fell short of Mizukami's expectations.
The public source identifies “Tsutomu Mizukami” as japanese writer (1919-2004). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Tsutomu, Mizukami and Japanese.
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Chronology provides the most reliable spine for this subject; interpretation should follow only after identities and dates are secure. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 28, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q472921. VIAF identifies the subject as 108301736. The Library of Congress control number is n81019904. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1919, 2004, 1929 and 1936.
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This entry incorporates text from “Tsutomu Mizukami” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.