Head of Department: Assoc. Prof. Gergana Petkova

Japanese Studies has been a regular university program since 1990. In 2000 it became a separate unit of “Japanese Studies” within the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures. The Department of Japanese Studies as an academic unit was established in March 2018.
In Bulgaria the Program is the only university level educational unit, which offers Japanese Studies (BA, MA and PhD degrees) as one of the fundamental fields of studies of the East. The Program includes compulsory, elective and optional courses in the theory and practice of Japanese language and literature, history of Japan from antiquity to the 21st century, Japanese art, religion, philosophy, traditional and contemporary culture.
The academic staff includes seven full-time positions (1 professor, 3 associate professors, 3 assistant professors), guest lecturers from Japan and many part-time specialists. The teaching staff and students are involved in many national and international research projects and events.