Nov. 8 （Sun）2026 Symposium "Rethinking Trans-Himalayan Ecology, Subsistence, and Mobility through Umami" / "Clarification of the Actual Situation of Agro-pastoral Complex Frontier in the Trans- Himalayan Region: From the approach of vocabulary study－", th
"Umami" is the savory taste we experience in kombu (kelp) and katsuobushi (bonito) dashi. But did you know that umami is cherished not only in Japan, but also across the Tibetan Plateau and in the Himalayan highlands? This symposium focuses on "milk-derived umami" in this region and on the movements of people and knowledge connected with it, and explores them from multiple perspectives: linguistics, dairy science, religious studies, and cultural anthropology.
Details
●Date: Sunday, November 8, 2026 10:00-15:30
●Venue: Online／Room 303, ILCAA
●Onsite/Online: Hybrid
●Language: Japanese
●Contact：hoshi[at]tufs.ac.jp（※Change [at]to @）
●Pre-registration: Whether participating in person or online, please register via this form
●Organized by: ILCAA; J-PEAKS Research Project "Interdisciplinary Research on Umami Components Derived from Milk"; ILCAA (Interdisciplinary Research Team); TUFS Field Science Commons
●Supported by: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)（25K00454）
Program
| 10:00-10:05 | Openinng Remarks |
| 10:05-10:45 | HOSHI Izumi（ILCAA） "Seeing through the Lens of Cheese: Toward a Trans-Himalayan Mapping of Umami" |
| 10:45-11:35 | HIRATA Masahiro(ILCAA Joint Researcher；Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary) "Why Has Matured Cheese Developed on the Southern Slopes of the Himalayas?: From the Perspectives of Ecological Environment and Subsistence Structure" |
| 11:35-12:15 | BESSHO Yusuke(ILCAA Joint Researcher；Komazawa University) "Boundaries of Tolerably Pungent Umami: Subsistence and East-West Divergence in the Trans-Himalayan Region" |
| 13:10-13:50 | ISHIUCHI Yoshiki(JSPS；Kyoto University) "What Have Mountain Villages Eaten? Food, Livelihoods, and Mobility in Eastern Bhutan" |
| 13:50-14:20 | NAGAOKA Kei(University of Tokyo) "Aged Cheese and Flavor Sensibility in the Arunachal Himalaya: The Umwelten of Fermentation, Rot, and Medicinal Herbs" |
| 14:20-15:00 | Panel discussion (All participants) |
| 15:00-15:25 | Q＆A (All participants) |
| 15:25 | Closing remarks |