It was during a trip to Japan at the age of 19 that Nathalie Kouamé, a lecturer at Paris Cité University, began her career as a historian. Her study of the Japanese language, numerous visits to the archipelago and extensive research into medieval and modern Japan – particularly the history of religion in Japan during the 16th and 17th centuries – have given her a deep familiarity with the country, which has inspired many of her publications. She has also devoted herself to comparative history and (co-)edits the Encyclopédie des historiographies: Afriques, Amériques, Asies. Since 2025, she has been co-editor of the ‘Nouvelle Clio’ series published by Presses universitaires de France.