The setup of my Glenn Shaw exhibit in the Asia Collection, Fall 2005.
In the Fall of 2005 I began my first internship at the Asia Collection of Hamilton Library on the UH Manoa campus, under the supervision of Tokiko Bazzell (Japan Specialist) and Alice Mak (Internship Coordinator). My internship at the Asia Collection was the first experience I had working in a library as an intern, and though my work there was somewhat limited it was nonetheless an important experience. I appreciate everything I learned from the Asia Specialists and from Tokiko and am pleased to have been a part of that department for that time.
I worked a majority of my time each week at the reference desk in the Asia Collection and learned to field questions ranging from very basic (“where is this book?”) to very specific (area- or language-specific questions). During my observation time, I had the opportunity to meet with all of the area specialists (Japan, China, Korea, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Philippines) while they were at the reference desk and ask them not only about their reference techniques or tips, but about their jobs in general. This provided invaluable information about the department and the job of an Asia Librarian, and I was grateful for the opportunity to learn from them.
back to top ^ Romanization Project
Inspired by my interests in linguistics, my first independent project at the Asia Collection was a set of webpages dealing with Japanese Romanization. One, a “Voyager Japanese Language Search Guide”, teaches users about the Romanization system used to catalog Japanese-language books, and how to formulate correct search statements when searching for these books. The second, a “History of Japanese Romanization”, outlines the theories behind Romanization the timeline of development of Romanization in Japan, and its implications for libraries in the United States.
back to top ^ Glenn Shaw Exhibit
The second project I created at the Asia Collection was an exhibit of books and materials related to Glenn Shaw, a writer, professor and diplomat who in the mid-1960’s donated his sizable collection to the University of Hawaii. I created this exhibit in coordination with my paper "Midway between the Occident and the Orient": The Glenn W. Shaw Collection at the Asia Collection, University of Hawaii, Manoa (PDF here). I pulled books about him, by him, translated by him, and from his collection to create three cases of materials spanning 200 years of publications. I created the look and feel of the exhibit and wrote placards and a poster to go on the walls. I thought it was both beautiful and successful, and I am proud of the work to this day.
back to top ^ A Note from Tokiko Bazzell:
"During the fall of 2005, Caitlin Nelson did a fabulous job and made significant contributions while working on her LIS internship projects at the UHM Asia Collection Department.
The “Search Guide for Japanese” and the “Japanese Romanization History” were much needed guides for conducting research using the library databases in North America. The lack of fundamental knowledge about Japanese Romanization hinders many who try to find materials in Japanese scripts. Caitlin’s history of Romanization is a well-researched summary, which provides the historical development of transliteration in the Japanese language. As a double masters degree student (Japanese studies and Library & Information program), Caitlin harnessed her knowledge of Japanese and the North American library systems to create these two valuable web-based guides.
Another project of Caitlin’s reflected my own long-standing desires to spotlight the late Glenn Shaw and his collections. Shaw was one of the great Japanologists and he made major contributions to the UHM Japan Collection. Unraveling and documenting his life and contributions to the Japanese studies at UHM were long overdue. It took many hours and much energy to sort through the historical documents. Caitlin persevered and succeeded in this research, which was culminated in a wonderful exhibit at the Asia Collection Department on the life and passion of Glenn Shaw."