Maximiliano Shigeki Matsumura

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Born on July 16, 1942 in Makurazaki City, Kagoshima Prefecture. Spent time in various parts of Kagoshima Prefecture due to his father's job transfers. After graduating from the Department of Agriculture at Kagoshima University, he decided to move to Brazil, and moved there at the end of July 1966, overcoming the objections of his parents and siblings. Worked in the states of São Paulo and Rio Grande do Sul. Member of the Kagoshima Prefectural Association and the local cultural association. Obtained Brazilian citizenship.

Updated November 2024

Stories from This Author

Nikkei Chronicles #13—Nikkei Names 2: Grace, Graça, Graciela, Megumi?

My Name

Nov. 9, 2024 • Maximiliano Shigeki Matsumura

I was not good at writing, so I hated writing my name on exam papers or questionnaires at school. My name was always outside the lines, and I was always scolded by my teachers. Calligraphy classes were especially tough. When I was in my second year of high school, my homeroom teacher at Kagoshima Prefectural Sueyoshi High School, where I had transferred, introduced me as a new student. My name, Shigeki, means a big, lush tree. He asked me, "Did …

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Colonia

Oct. 18, 2021 • Maximiliano Shigeki Matsumura

On the night of September 11, 1966, the Sakura Maru that we were on dropped anchor in the port of Santos. The next morning, people began to bustle about and disembark. Unloading my luggage and immigration procedures were extremely slow, and my elderly "patron" (employer) husband and wife who came to pick me up had apparently been waiting since early morning, but it was dusk when the customs officials finished inspecting my luggage and we left Santos and headed into …

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Nikkei Chronicles #10—Nikkei Generations: Connecting Families & Communities

The first second generation Brazilian

Sept. 8, 2021 • Maximiliano Shigeki Matsumura

I woke up early, which was unusual for me, and was taking my blood pressure on the sofa when the phone rang. Since calls early in the morning are always announcements of funerals, I picked up the receiver with trepidation. "Oh my, were you still asleep?" The person in question was Michio Miki, a fellow passenger on the Sakura Maru who lives in Atibaia. "Don't be surprised when you hear that!" That unique intonation that shocks people. Who is the …

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