Japanese language education in Russia

Japanese language education in Russia formally dates back to December 1701 or January 1702, when Dembei

Dembei

Dembei was a Japanese castaway who, through Vladimir Atlasov, provided Russia with some of its first knowledge of Japan. He was a fisherman who, along with a number of others, had been caught in a storm; they found their way to Kamchatka, where Dembei was found by Atlasov in 1701 or 1702. Despite...

, a shipwrecked Japanese merchant, was taken to Moscow

Moscow

Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...

and ordered to begin teaching the language as soon as possible. A 2006 survey by the Japan Foundation

Japan Foundation

The was established in 1972 by an Act of the Japanese Diet as a special legal entity to undertake international dissemination of Japanese culture, and became an independent administrative institution under the jurisdiction of the Foreign Ministry of Japan on 1 October 2003 under the "Independent...

found 451 teachers teaching the language to 9,644 students at 143 institutions; the number of students had grown by 4.8% since the previous year. Aside from one Japanese-medium school

Nihonjin gakko

, also called Japanese School, is a full day school outside of Japan for native speakers of Japanese. It is an expatriate school, designed for children whose parents are working on diplomatic, business, or educational mission overseas and have plans to go back to Japan for good.The schools offer...

serving Japanese people in Russia

Japanese people in Russia

Japanese people in Russia form a small part of the worldwide community of Nikkeijin. They count various notable political figures among their number.-Early settlement:...

(the Japanese School in Moscow, founded in 1965), virtually all Japanese language education in Russia throughout history has been aimed at non-native speakers.
Russian interest in Japan dated back to the early 17th century, when Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator

Gerardus Mercator

thumb|right|200px|Gerardus MercatorGerardus Mercator was a cartographer, born in Rupelmonde in the Hapsburg County of Flanders, part of the Holy Roman Empire. He is remembered for the Mercator projection world map, which is named after him...

's descriptions of Japan were translated into Russian.