Kiyomi Nakanishi Yamada

Born in Bebedouro, in São Paulo state, she has a  Nursing degree from the University of São Paulo (USP). She worked as a professor at the State University of Londrina (UEL) until her retirement in 2010. She currently belongs to the staff of UEL’s “TV Workshop for the Elderly,” which focuses on the production of videos for this age group. She is also active in the community, working as a volunteer in projects related to the field of aging. She is a staff member at the Hikari Group of Londrina, whose aim is to keep Japanese culture alive. She is responsible for both the production and the written content of their site.

Updated September 2016

community en ja es pt

Nikkei Chronicles #5: Nikkei-go: The Language of Family, Community, and Culture

The Japanese language in the daily lives of the members of the Hikari Group of Londrina

  • By Alba Shioco Hino,  Nilza Matiko Iwakura Okano,  Kiyomi Nakanishi Yamada
  • 19 Sep 2016

We belong to a generation of children, youths, adults, and seniors who are descendants of Japanese immigrants who came to Brazil in the years before World War II. Some are children, others are grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren of these immigrants. 

After leaving Japan, our ancestors gradually began to absorb Western culture, although the influence of Japanese culture has been preserved in many families, especially when the younger generations come in contact with older people who pass on to the younger ones the values, the customs, the cuisine, and the Japanese language. 

In Brazil, the largest Japanese colony is found in ...

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community en ja es pt

Nikkei Chronicles #4: Nikkei Family: Memories, Traditions, and Values

My Life, Our Life: The Present, The Past, and The Future

  • By Kiyomi Nakanishi Yamada
  • 22 Sep 2015

In this life we are the protagonists of a number of stories, but in many instances the actors remain unknown because their recollections have not been recorded.

My maternal and paternal grandparents were born and lived in Osaka and Tokyo until the 1930s, when they came to Brazil to work in the coffee plantations.

Sizuyo, my mother, currently at the age of 89, is the only “living memory” of her family as well as my father’s. When she turned 70, she expressed the desire to record her recollections about their migration to Brazil and the hard times they experienced ...

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food pt

Nikkei Chronicles #6: Itadakimasu 2!: Another Taste of Nikkei Culture

A influência da culinária japonesa no Brasil – ontem, hoje e amanhã

  • By Alba Shioco Hino,  Nilza Matiko Iwakura Okano,  Kiyomi Nakanishi Yamada
  • 26 Jun 2017

Os imigrantes japoneses vieram para o Brasil no século passado para trabalhar nas lavouras de café com o sonho de enriquecer e depois voltar para o Japão. Diante das dificuldades encontradas e, percebendo que não seria possível concretizar este sonho, iniciaram o processo de integração com os brasileiros (gaijin).

Aos poucos foram se adaptando aos costumes, culinária, crenças religiosas e estilo de vida do povo daqui. Mas no convívio familiar preservavam a sua cultura, principalmente quando as gerações mais novas conviviam com pessoas idosas preocupadas em repassar valores, costumes, idioma e ...

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