Photo of Norman with Japanese colleagueHerbert Norman was a scholar of Japan and a Canadian diplomat whose writings inspired many around the world.

This site houses background information, select documents written by Herbert Norman, as well as writings about Norman.

Norman committed suicide on April 4, 1957, while serving as Canadian ambassador to Egypt. The tragic circumstances of the persecution that led to his death are also documented here.

The website is a work in progress. We gratefully acknowledge the timely assistance and cooperation of the Rare Books and Special Collections Department of the University of British Columbia Library, UBC Press, Pacific Affairs, and Canada’s Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

The E. H. Norman Archive is a project of the University of Victoria's Department of History in partnership with the University's World History Caucus, Centre for Asia Pacific Initiatives, and Department of Pacific and Asian Studies.
Official UVic Website · Copyright © 2007, University of Victoria · Legal Notices
UVic logo
E. H. Norman Digital Archive
Commemorating Herbert Norman 50 years later
1909 - 1957
Welcome to the E. H. Norman Digital Archive

New Documentation:

Norman's assessment of Gen. Douglas MacArthur's address to the U.S. Congress on April 19, 1951

(Click here.)