Jiajun Liang

Hi, I'm Jiajun Liang! 

I am an Assistant Professor of Media Studies in the Department of Global Arts, Media and Writing Studies at UC, Merced. I received my Ph.D. in Japanese literature and culture from UCLA (2021) and M.A. in Japanese Studies from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (2015). 

My research centers around modern Japanese literature, film, media, and popular culture, with a special focus on how memory and trauma, especially those rooted in colonial violence, are represented and reimagined across borders.

Currently, I'm developing a book project, tentatively titled Echoes of the Empire: Memory and Narrative in Postwar Japanese Literature. This project delves into the shifts in Japanese literature and culture that emerged in the early postwar era, examining how transnational movements such as repatriation and demobilization have profoundly altered the social milieu in postwar Japan.

My articles have appeared in The Journal of Japanese Studies, Japan Forum, and Language & Communication. His work has been recognized with numerous awards and grants, including the 2024 Ian Nish Prize for best research article (British Association for Japanese Studies), an Academic Senate Faculty Research Grant (UC Merced), an Individual Research Grant (UC Merced), a Yanai Initiative Research Fellowship (UCLA), a Japan Foundation Fellowship (University of Michigan), and the Mikiso Hane Prize (Midwest Conference on Asian Affairs).  

Please feel free to reach out or explore more of my work here!