The history of biology has a long history in Japan. The History of Biology Group was established in 1954, and the following year they began to publish the journal, Notes on the History of Biology (生物学史研究ノート). Since then, members of the group have actively published important works on the history of biology. 1 However, the subject seems to be less visible overseas. One of the reasons for this relative obscurity is that Japanese historians have published their works mainly in their own language, since they have been dealing with the agenda and needs of their own society. The history of science is also embedded in its social context.
