Helen Craig McCullough

Helen Craig McCullough (February 17, 1918 – April 6, 1998) was an American academic, translator and Japanologist. She is best known for her 1988 translation of The Tale of the Heike.

Early life McCullough was born in California. She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 1939 with a degree in political science.

Career McCullough was a scholar of classical Japanese poetry and prose. She was a lecturer at Stanford, where her husband William was on the faculty (1964-1969). In 1969, she and William both joined the Department of Oriental Languages at Berkeley, her alma mater, where she began as lecturer and later received tenure as Professor of Oriental Languages in 1975.

Selected works McCullough’s scholarly publications included 11 volumes of studies and translations. Her publications included the study Brocade by Night: 'Kokin Wakashu' and the Court Style in Japanese Classical Poetry and translations of major works of Japanese literature: Taiheiki a Chronicle of Medieval Japan Yoshitsune A 15th Century Japanese Chronicle The Tale of the Heike Kokin Wakashu: The First Imperial Anthology of Japanese Poetry Tales of Ise: Lyrical Episodes from 10th Century Japan (Ariwara no Narihira) Okagami, the Great Mirror: Fujiwara Michinaga (966-1027 and His Times : a Study and Translation) (2 vols.) -- the Eiga Monogatari

Honors Her honors included several visiting professorships and a Medal of Honor from the Japanese government.