Tuttle Publishing, which includes Tuttle, Periplus Editions, and, Journey Editions, was founded by Charles E. Tuttle (1915-1993) in Tokyo in 1948. His mission was to publish "books to span the East and West." In the early 1950s the company began publishing a large number of titles on Japanese language, arts and culture. Through a consistent emphasis on unsurpassed quality, Charles E. Tuttle was named "Publisher of the Year" by the American Publishers' Association in 1971. In 1983 he was awarded the Order of the Sacred Treasure by the Emperor of Japan for his services to Japanese-American understanding. Charles Tuttle understood that language studies would be the key to improving understanding between Japan and the West, and he was one of the earliest and most active publishers of books to teach Japanese to Western readers, and English to the Japanese. Many of the books published by him received awards from the Japanese government and recognition in the U.S. for their role in facilitating cross-cultural understanding. Charlies Tuttle died in 1993, but his spirit lives on in the companies that now comprise Tuttle Publishing. Tuttle continues to provide publisher services, distribution, and fulfillment to a select group of publishers.

Tuttle Publishing continues to grow and expand as demonstrated by a significant expansion of the Distribution Center in North Clarendon in 1999. The expansion included 3,000 square feet of office space and an additional 34,000 square feet of warehouse space. This brings the total Distribution Center square footage to over 70,000 square feet.

Eric Oey, a cousin of Charles E. Tuttle, founded Periplus Editons in 1988 in Berkeley, California and merged the two companies in 1996. With offices in Boston, North Clarendon, Vermont, Singapore, Tokyo and Jakarta, Tuttle Publishing has become the largest English-language book publishing and distribution company in Asia.