James Murdoch (27 September 1856 – 30 October 1921) was a Scottish Orientalist scholar and journalist, who worked as a teacher in the Empire of Japan and Australia. From 1903–1917, he wrote the three-volume A History of Japan, the first comprehensive history of Japan in the English language. The third volume was published posthumously in 1926. He was the foundation professor of the School of Oriental Studies at the University of Sydney.