Collections

Exploring Tairiku Nippō: A historical Japanese Canadian newspaper at UBC Library

Since its launch on UBC Open Collections, the digitized Tairiku Nippō has been viewed more than 2.5 million times by scholars from around the world.

Chinese New Year and “the Chinese Lily.”

Happy Lunar New Year! Read about the connections between this holiday and the role of the “Chinese Lily” in it’s celebration.

Stories of Chinese Sailors in Canada’s Maritime History

The history of Chinese sailors in Canada’s reveals a complex web of resilience, discrimination, and global interconnectedness. From the galleys of trans-Pacific steamships to the corridors of Ottawa, Chinese above and below deck were pivotal in the evolution of Canadian shipping, especially through 1880-1950. Often relegated to the most arduous and undervalued positions, they formed tight-knit communities, facilitated global trade, and faced systemic racism both onboard and ashore. This narrative ties their struggles and contributions to broader global trends, highlighting Vancouver as a critical hub in the network of Chinese seafarers across the British Empire and beyond.

New Years 1932 Menu, the Empress of Britain World Cruise

Journey with the opulent Empress of Britain in 1932, where New Year’s Day was celebrated with a lavish ten-course feast near the pyramids of Egypt. Explore this culinary journey through the Chung and Lind Collections at UBC’s Rare Books and Special Collections.

The S.S. Tartar and the Tale of “Soapy” Smith

This blog post is part of RBSC’s new series spotlighting items in the Phil Lind Klondike Gold Rush Collection and the Wallace B. and Madeline H. Chung Collection.

Part 2: A Tale of Seattle’s Chinatown 

This Part 2 blog continues the exploration of a single letter from the Chung Collection, from small-town Saskatchewan to transnational impact in Seattle, exploring how objects and spaces hold stories of resilience, migration, and history.

The Northland’s Greatest Disaster – The Sinking of the SS Princess Sophia

By 1918, the world had all but forgotten the Klondike, but on October 25th of that year the tragic sinking of the CPR steamer SS Princess Sophia in the Lynn Canal, causing the deaths of all 343 of her passengers, shocked the world and reminded BC residents of the shrinking mining communities across the Yukon and Alaska.

New Books at the Asian Library (September 2024)

South Asian
Japanese
Korean
Chinese

BF637 C5 G55 2024
ਰੂਹ ਦਾ ਸਾਲ਼ਣ : ਵਾਰਤਕ / ਮੋਹਨ ਗਿੱਲ / ਲੁਧਿਆਣਾ : ਚੇਤਨਾ ਪ੍ਰਕਾਸ਼ਨ ; Surrey B.C.: Gulati Publishers Ltd, 2024
LC32 G38 2023
ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦੇ ਬਾਕਮਾਲ ਰਹੱਸ : ਕਿਵੇਂ ਲੱਭੀਏ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦਾ ਸੰਤੁਲਨ ਅਤੇ ਮਕਸਦ / ਗੌਰ ਗੋਪਾਲ ਦਾ…

New Books at the Asian Library (August 2024)

Chinese
Korean
South Asian
Japanese

AZ791 W46 2023
知识分类与中国近代学术系统的重建 / 文韬 著 / 北京 : 北京大學出版社, 2023
BL1900 L36 P36 2023
翻译中的文化与文化中的翻译 : “道德经”英译个案研究 / 潘帅英著 / 天津市 : 南开大学出版社, 2023
DS774.5 Z44644 2024
解密 : 民國權貴的私密檔案 / 鄭會欣著 / 台北市 : 大旗出版社, 2024
D…

New Books at the Asian Library (July 2024)

Japanese
South Asian
Chinese
Korean

BL2225 A1 S544 2023
最強神社と太古の神々 / 島田裕巳 / 東京 : 祥伝社, 2023
DS856.3 S55 2023
平安時代の日本外交と東アジア / 篠崎敦史著 / 東京 : 吉川弘文館, 2023
DS889 S25 2023
戦後日本政治史 : 占領期から「ネオ 55年体制」まで / 境家史郎著 / 東京 : 中央公論新社, 2023
GR74 K83 2023
なぜ炭治郎は鬼の死を悼むの…