I visited the Embassy of Japan in Argentina this morning. Big thank you to my friend Jennifer for connecting me with her colleague Kiyoshi-san here in Buenos Aires.
I’m here to document Roma, but since my area of expertise focuses on the Nikkei experience, I wanted to look for any connections between Abasto — the neighborhood Roma is based in — and Japanese immigration, maybe even small business.
The embassy has a lovely library and a range of resources for those studying Japanese or interested in Japanese and Nikkei history.
Kiyoshi-san showed me a set of books, in Japanese and Spanish (no English), documenting the history of Japanese migration to Argentina.
Volume one focuses on migration before World War II, and volume two on postwar migration.
This tracks with most documented histories — migration during the war was nearly nonexistent, aside from limited repatriation or POW exchanges.
Would that even be considered migration? Wartime movement always sits in a different category, one that lacks the clarity of peacetime narratives.
What I found especially interesting is that many prewar immigrants were from Okinawa and Kyushu. There are still several Okinawan heritage groups active in Buenos Aires today.
Many of these early immigrants opened laundromats, and some cafés that primarily served local communities. By the end of World War II, many of those cafés were gone — and so were their owners.
There’s also a well-known porcelain company, Tsuji, that produces custom wares for some of the most famous bares notables in Buenos Aires, including the renowned Cafe Tortoni.
Cafe Tortoni is often recognized as the most famous of the bares notables, and their tea and coffee sets are Nikkei in origin.
On a previous trip, I bought a branded coffee set from Cafe Tortoni as a souvenir for my mom in Japan. In retrospect, I may have just been returning that porcelain to its country of origin.
Beyond laundromats and porcelain, other standout businesses included a chocolate company, a button factory, and of course, fishermen.
And the gift I brought from LA was a hit at the embassy.