is a monthly Japanese literary magazine

Literary magazine

A literary magazine is a periodical devoted to literature in a broad sense. Literary magazines usually publish short stories, poetry and essays along with literary criticism, book reviews, biographical profiles of authors, interviews and letters...

 ' onMouseout='HidePop("20492")' href="/topics/Meiji_period">Meiji period

Meiji period

The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...

 and continuing to this day. It is published by Chūōkōron Shinsha.

The magazine was first published in January 1887 under the title in Kyoto

Kyoto

is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...

 by the , a literary group of professors and students of Ryukoku University

Ryukoku University

is a private university located in Kyoto, Japan.It was founded as a school for Buddhist monks of the Nishi Hongan-ji denomination in 1639, and became a secularized university in 1876. Professors and students of the university established the famed literary magazine Chūōkōron in 1887. It has three...

. In 1899, the magazine changed its name to Chūōkōron.

It soon became one of Japan's foremost general-interest magazines, and has been cited as having a profound influence on several Japanese intellectuals. The noted author Ryōtarō Shiba

Ryotaro Shiba

, born in Osaka, Japan, was a Japanese author best known for his novels about historical events in Japan and on the Northeast Asian sub-continent, as well as his historical and cultural essays pertaining to Japan and its relationship to the rest of the world....

 once stated that the magazine's history corresponded to the history of modern Japan itself.

The magazine publishes a wide variety of material, including novels, photographs and reports based on various philosophical, economic, political, cultural and social topics.

There have been numerous famous contributors to the magazine, including Princess Takamatsu

Princess Takamatsu

Princess Takamatsu of Japan, , known informally as Princess Kikuko, was a member of the Japanese imperial family. The Princess was the widow of Prince Takamatsu , the third son of the Emperor Taishō and the Empress Teimei...

, Tama Morita

Tama Morita

was a Japanese essayist whose books were quite popular in Japan around World War II. She later served as a member of the House of Councillors in 1962.- Early life :...

, Jun'ichirō Tanizaki, Tōson Shimazaki, Shōfu Muramatsu

Muramatsu Shofu

' was the pen-name of Muramatsu Giichi, a Japanese novelist active during the Showa period of Japan.-Early life:...

, his grandson Tomomi Muramatsu, Yaeko Nogami, Tomoyoshi Murayama

Tomoyoshi Murayama

was a Japanese artist, playwright and drama producer active during the Showa period of Japan.-Early life:Murayama was born in the Kanda Suehiro district of Tokyo. His father, who was a medic in the Imperial Japanese Navy, died when he was nine years old. His mother became a fervent Christian after...

, Motojirō Kajii

Motojiro Kajii

was a Japanese author in the early Shōwa period of Japan. He left masterpieces of poetic short stories such as "The Lemon", "Winter Days", and "Under the Cherry Trees"...

, Sakuzō Yoshino, Nanami Shiono, Shichirō Fukazawa

Shichiro Fukazawa

was a Japanese author and guitarist.- Biography :Fukazawa was born in Isawa, Yamanashi, Japan. His first novel, won the Chūōkōron Prize, and was twice made into a movie script: first by Keisuke Kinoshita in 1958, and again by Shōhei Imamura in 1983...

, and Masao Horino

Masao Horino

was one of the most prominent Japanese photographers in the first half of the 20th century in Japan.He was born in Tokyo and graduated from , now .He was a member of which was founded by in 1930....

.