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Chūshingura
is the title given to fictionalized accounts in Japanese literature, theater, and film that relate to the historical incident involving the forty-seven ''rōnin'' and their mission to avenge the death of their master, Asano Naganori. Including the early , the story has been told in kabuki, bunraku, stage plays, films, novels, television shows and other media. With ten different television productions in the years 1997–2007 alone, ''Chūshingura'' ranks among the most familiar of all historical stories in Japan. Historical events The historical basis for the narrative begins in 1701. The ruling ''shōgun'' Tokugawa Tsunayoshi placed Asano Takumi-no-kami Naganori, the ''daimyō'' of Akō, in charge of a reception of envoys from the Imperial Court in Kyoto. He also appointed the protocol official (''kōke'') Kira Kōzuke-no-suke Yoshinaka to instruct Asano in the ceremonies. On the day of the reception, at Edo Castle, Asano drew his short sword and attempted to kill Kira. H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kanadehon Chūshingura
is an 11-act bunraku puppet play composed in 1748. It is one of the most popular Japanese plays, ranked with Zeami's '' Matsukaze'', although the vivid action of Chūshingura differs dramatically from ''Matsukaze''. Medium During this portion of the Edo period, the major dramatists preferred not to write for the kabuki theater since the kabuki actors frequently departed from the texts to invent parts and aggrandize their own roles; however, ''Chūshingura'' was so successful that it was almost immediately adapted for the kabuki theater as well. The general story has been depicted in many mediums such as ukiyo-e prints. Kabuki The kabuki adaptation appeared shortly after the puppet play did in Osaka and Kyoto, and soon was being performed by three companies in Edo. It is "only intermittently faithful" and frequently cuts entire acts. The saved time is available for a lengthier 11th act, with a sequence featuring a duel on a bridge; as well, the kabuki theater could use a revolvi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Forty-seven Rōnin
The revenge of the , also known as the or Akō vendetta, is a historical event in Japan in which a band of ''rōnin'' (lordless samurai) avenged the death of their master on 31 January 1703. The incident has since become legendary. It is one of the three major ''adauchi'' vendetta incidents in Japan, alongside the Revenge of the Soga Brothers and the Igagoe vendetta. The story tells of a group of samurai who were left leaderless after their ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) Asano Naganori was compelled to perform ''seppuku'' (ritual suicide) for assaulting a powerful court official named Kira Yoshinaka. After waiting and planning for a year, the ''rōnin'' avenged their master's honor by killing Kira, knowing full well that the authorities would likely not tolerate this vendetta's completion. They were then obliged to commit ''seppuku'' for the crime of murder. This true story was popularized in Japanese culture as emblematic of the loyalty, sacrifice, persistence, and honor that ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kabuki
is a classical form of Japanese dance- drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers. Kabuki is thought to have originated in the very early Edo period, when founder Izumo no Okuni formed a female dance troupe who performed dances and light sketches in Kyoto. The art form later developed into its present all-male theatrical form after women were banned from performing in kabuki theatre in 1629. Kabuki developed throughout the late 17th century and reached its zenith in the mid-18th century. In 2005, kabuki theatre was proclaimed by UNESCO as an intangible heritage possessing outstanding universal value. In 2008, it was inscribed in the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Etymology The individual kanji that make up the word ''kabuki'' can be read as , , and . ''Kabuki'' is therefore sometimes tra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tokugawa Tsunayoshi
was the fifth ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa dynasty of Japan. He was the younger brother of Tokugawa Ietsuna, as well as the son of Tokugawa Iemitsu, the grandson of Tokugawa Hidetada, and the great-grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Tokugawa, Tsunayoshi''" in ; n.b., Louis-Frédéric is pseudonym of Louis-Frédéric Nussbaum, ''see'Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Authority File. Tsunayoshi is known for instituting animal protection laws, particularly for dogs. This earned him the nickname of "the dog ''shōgun''". He had a dog named Takemaru. Early years (1646–1680) Tokugawa Tsunayoshi was born on February 23, 1646, in Edo. He was the son of Tokugawa Iemitsu by one of his concubines, named Otama, later known as Keishōin 桂昌院 (1627–1705). Tsunayoshi had an elder brother already five years old, who would become the next shogun after Iemitsu's death, Tokugawa Ietsuna. Tsunayoshi was born in Edo and after his birth moved in with his mother to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ōishi Yoshio
was the chamberlain ( karō) of the Akō Domain in Harima Province (now Hyōgo Prefecture), Japan (1679 - 1701). He is known as the leader of the Forty-seven Rōnin in their 1702 revenge vendetta and thus the hero of the '' Chūshingura''. He is often referred to by his title, . Biography He served Asano Naganori as the head chamberlain () for the Akō estate, supervising the daily running of the castle and the samurai. Due to the Tokugawa rules which required all the daimyō to spend every other year in Edo (now called Tokyo) the chamberlain was a very important man and the de facto ruler of the estate when the daimyō was away. Having attained this office at a rather young age, he is said to have had the implicit trust of his lord. When Asano committed seppuku as punishment for his failed attempt to kill Kira Yoshinaka in Edo castle and the Tokugawa shogunate abolished the house of Asano of Akō, Ōishi was in Akō and managed all its administrative issues. He persuade ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sengaku-ji
is a Buddhist temple belonging to the Sōtō school of Japanese Zen located in the Takanawa neighborhood of Minato-ku, near Sengakuji Station and Shinagawa Station, Tokyo, Japan. It was one of the three major Sōtō temples in Edo during the Tokugawa shogunate, and became famous through its connection with the Akō incident of the forty-seven Rōnin in the 18th century. History Sengaku-ji was founded as a small chapel by Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1612 and was initially located in Sotosakura, near modern Kasumigaseki. After it was destroyed in the ''Kan'ei'' Fire of 1641, Shōgun Tokugawa Iemitsu ordered the five ''daimyō'' clans of Mori, Asano, Kutsuki, Niwa and Mizutani to rebuild the temple at its present location in Takanawa, but on a much larger scale. As this temple became the Edo '' bodaiji'' for the Asano clan, after the '' seppuku'' Asano Takumi-no-Kami Naganori for having broken protocol and drawing a sword in the Edo Castle, his funeral and tomb were located ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Akō, Hyōgo
is a city located in southwestern Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 45,747 in 20563 households and a population density of 360 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Akō is located in far southwestern Hyōgo Prefecture. The city is on the border of the Hyōgo and Okayama prefectures, which also divides the Kinki and Chūgoku areas. On each side of the border, ancient Harima and Bizen provinces, which are now Akō and Bizen cities, respectively (except for the former village of Fukukawa, now part of Akō but formerly belonging to Bizen Province), have cultivated their own cultures. Therefore, even at the present days, dialects are vastly different on the sides of the border. A traveller from west to east on the JR San'yō Main Line will notice that the dialect of passengers suddenly changes between Kamigori station in Hyogo prefecture and Mitsuishi station in Okayama prefecture. In Akō, people speak a type of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Asano Naganori
was the '' daimyō'' of the Akō Domain in Japan (1675–1701). His title was ''Takumi no Kami'' (). He is known as the person who triggered a series of incidents retold in a story known as ''Chūshingura'' (involving the forty-seven rōnin), one of the favourite themes of kabuki, jōruri, and Japanese books and films. Biography He was born in Edo as the eldest son of Asano Nagatomo. His family was a branch of the Asano clan whose main lineage was in Hiroshima. His grandfather Naganao was appointed to the position of '' daimyō'' of Ako with 50 thousand ''koku''. After Naganao died in 1671, Nagatomo succeeded to the position, but died after three years in 1675. Naganori succeeded his father at the age of nine. In 1680, he was appointed to the office of ''Takumi no Kami'', the head of carpentry at the imperial court, but this office was nominal, as were other offices granted to samurai at that time, and only had an honorific meaning. As a ''daimyō'' with a small fief, he was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kana
The term may refer to a number of syllabaries used to write Japanese phonological units, morae. Such syllabaries include (1) the original kana, or , which were Chinese characters ( kanji) used phonetically to transcribe Japanese, the most prominent magana system being ; the two descendants of man'yōgana, (2) , and (3) . There are also , which are historical variants of the now-standard hiragana. In current usage, 'kana' can simply mean ''hiragana'' and ''katakana''. Katakana, with a few additions, are also used to write Ainu. A number of systems exist to write the Ryūkyūan languages, in particular Okinawan, in hiragana. Taiwanese kana were used in Taiwanese Hokkien as glosses ( ruby text or '' furigana'') for Chinese characters in Taiwan when it was under Japanese rule. Each kana character ( syllabogram) corresponds to one sound or whole syllable in the Japanese language, unlike kanji regular script, which corresponds to a meaning ( logogram). Apart from the five ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Osaka
is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2.7 million in the 2020 census, it is also the largest component of the Keihanshin Metropolitan Area, which is the second-largest metropolitan area in Japan and the 10th largest urban area in the world with more than 19 million inhabitants. Osaka was traditionally considered Japan's economic hub. By the Kofun period (300–538) it had developed into an important regional port, and in the 7th and 8th centuries, it served briefly as the imperial capital. Osaka continued to flourish during the Edo period (1603–1867) and became known as a center of Japanese culture. Following the Meiji Restoration, Osaka greatly expanded in size and underwent rapid industrialization. In 1889, Osaka was officially established as a municipality. The cons ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dōtonbori
is one of the principal tourist destinations in Osaka, Japan, running along the Dōtonbori canal from Dōtonboribashi Bridge to Nipponbashi Bridge in the Namba district of the city's Chuo ward. Historically a theater district, it is now a popular nightlife and entertainment area characterized by its eccentric atmosphere and large illuminated signboards. One of the area's most prominent features, a billboard for confectionery company Glico displaying the image of a runner crossing a finishing line, is seen as an icon of Osaka within Japan. History Origin Dōtonbori traces its history back to 1612, when the administrator of local canals, Nariyasu Dōton, began construction of the canal on the southern edge of Osaka. Nariyasu Dōton was joined by Yasui Jihē, Yasui Kuhē, and Hirano Tōjirō. Construction was interrupted: Yasui Jihē died after an illness and Nariyasu Dōton died during the Siege of Osaka in summer 1615, having fought on the losing side of Toyotomi Hideyori. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taiheiki
The (Chronicle of Great Peace) is a Japanese historical epic (see ''gunki monogatari'') written in the late 14th century and covers the period from 1319 to 1367. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Taiheiki''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', pp. 923–924. It deals primarily with the Nanboku-chō, the period of war between the Northern Court of Ashikaga Takauji in Kyoto, and the Southern Court of Emperor Go-Daigo in Yoshino. Original work The latest English translation consists of 12 chapters of the 40-chapter epic, and spans the period from Go-Daigo's accession in 1318 (when Takauji was still a minor vassal of the Kamakura shogunate's Hōjō clan), through Takauji's betrayal of the Hōjō, and Go-Daigo's fall and expulsion by Takauji in 1333, to his return to Kyoto in 1338. Go-Daigo, unlike many of the emperors before him, sought to supersede the power of the '' shōguns'', and to actually rule in addition to reigning in name. Thus began a series of battles, both military and po ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
