SHIBA RYOTARO

Shiba Ryotaro is the pen name of Fukuda Tei’ichi, a novelist and essayist from Osaka. He studied Mongolian at Osaka University of Foreign Studies. After graduating, he worked for a newspaper and published his novel Fukuro no shiro (Castle of the Owls, 1958), for which he was awarded the Naoki Prize. He published Hitobito no ashioto (People’s Footsteps, 1981) that won the Yomiuri Prize and also won the Kikuchi Kan Prize. In 1993, he was awarded the Order of Cultural Merit. He is best known for his historical novels and essays. He was one of the most widely read authors in Japan.