was an old province of

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

that is now the western half of

Kagoshima Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu and the Ryukyu Islands. Kagoshima Prefecture has a population of 1,599,779 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 9,187 km2 (3,547 sq mi). Kagoshima Prefecture borders Kumamoto P ...

on the island of

Kyūshū is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surround ...

. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Satsuma" in . Its abbreviation is .

History

Tea Storage Jar with Paulownia and Thunder Pattern LACMA M

Satsuma's provincial capital was

Satsumasendai is a city located in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The modern city of Satsumasendai was established on October 12, 2004, from the merger of the city of Sendai, the towns of Hiwaki, Iriki, Kedōin and Tōgō, and the Koshikijima Islands (whi ...

. During the

Sengoku period The was a period in History of Japan, Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615. The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the Feudalism, feudal system of Japan under the ...

, Satsuma was a

fief A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an Lord, overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a for ...

of the Shimazu ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and n ...

'', who ruled much of southern Kyūshū from their

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

Kagoshima , abbreviated to , is the capital city of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. Located at the southwestern tip of the island of Kyushu, Kagoshima is the largest city in the prefecture by some margin. It has been nicknamed the "Naples of the Eastern wor ...

city. They were the initial patrons of

Satsuma ware is a type of Japanese pottery originally from Satsuma Province, southern Kyūshū. Today, it can be divided into two distinct categories: the original plain dark clay made in Satsuma from around 1600, and the elaborately decorated ivory-bodie ...

, which was later widely exported to the West. In 1871, with the abolition of feudal domains and the establishment of

prefectures A prefecture (from the Latin ''Praefectura'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain international ...

after the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

, the provinces of Satsuma and Ōsumi were combined to eventually establish Kagoshima Prefecture. Satsuma was one of the main provinces that rose in opposition to the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

in the mid 19th century. Because of this, the

oligarchy Oligarchy (; ) is a conceptual form of power structure in which power rests with a small number of people. These people may or may not be distinguished by one or several characteristics, such as nobility, fame, wealth, education, or corporate, r ...

that came into power after the

of 1868 had a strong representation from the Satsuma province, with leaders such as

Ōkubo Toshimichi was a Japanese statesman and one of the Three Great Nobles regarded as the main founders of modern Japan. Ōkubo was a ''samurai'' of the Satsuma Domain and joined the movement to overthrow the ruling Tokugawa Shogunate during the ''Bak ...

and

Saigō Takamori was a Japanese samurai and nobleman. He was one of the most influential samurai in Japanese history and one of the three great nobles who led the Meiji Restoration. Living during the late Edo and early Meiji periods, he later led the Satsum ...

taking up key government positions. Satsuma is well known for its production of

sweet potato The sweet potato or sweetpotato (''Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the Convolvulus, bindweed or morning glory family (biology), family, Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a r ...

es, known in Japan as 薩摩芋 (satsuma-imo or "Satsuma potato"). Satsuma mandarins (known as ''mikan'' in Japan) do not specifically originate from Satsuma but were imported into the West through this province in the Meiji era.

Historical districts

** Ata District (阿多郡) - merged into Hioki District on March 29, 1896 ** Ei District (頴娃郡) - merged into Ibusuki District (along with parts of Kiire District) on March 29, 1896 ** Hioki District (日置郡) - absorbed Ata District on March 29, 1896; now dissolved ** Ibusuki District (揖宿郡) - absorbed Ei and parts of Kiire Districts on March 29, 1896; now dissolved ** Isa District (囎唹郡) *** Kitaisa District (北伊佐郡) - merged with Hishikari District (菱刈郡) of

Ōsumi Province was an old province of Japan in the area that is today the eastern part of Kagoshima Prefecture. It was sometimes called . Ōsumi bordered on Hyūga and Satsuma Provinces. Osumi's ancient capital was near modern Kokubu. During the Sengoku a ...

to become the 2nd incarnation of Isa District (伊佐郡) on March 29, 1896 *** Minamiisa District (東囎唹郡) - merged into Satsuma District (along with Koshikijima and Taki Districts) on March 29, 1896 ** Izaku District (伊作郡) - merged into Ata District prior the

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

Izumi District , meaning " spring" or "fountain", is a Japanese given name and surname. While a unisex name, it is more commonly used by women. It can alternately be written as , , , or . People with the name include: As given name * , actress * , stage name M ...

(出水郡) ** Kagoshima District (鹿児島郡) - absorbed Kitaōsumi District (北大隅郡) of Ōsumi Province and Taniyama District of Satsuma Province on March 29, 1896 ** Kawanabe District (川辺郡) - absorbed remaining parts of Kiire District (the village of Chiran) on March 29, 1896; now dissolved ** Koshikijima District (甑島郡) - merged into Satsuma District (along with Minamiisa and Taki Districts) on March 29, 1896 ** Kiire District (給黎郡) - split and merged into Kawanabe and Ibusuki Districts on March 29, 1896 ** Satsuma District (薩摩郡) - absorbed Koshikijima, Minamiisa and Taki Districts on March 29, 1896 ** Taki District (高城郡) - merged into Satsuma District (along with Koshikijima and Minamiisa Districts) on March 29, 1896 ** Taniyama District (谿山郡) - merged into Kagoshima District (along with Kitaōsumi District of Ōsumi Province) on March 29, 1896

Notes

References

* Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005)
''Japan encyclopedia.''
Cambridge:

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the retirem ...

. ;

External links

Murdoch's map of provinces, 1903
{{Authority control Former provinces of Japan

History

Historical districts

See also

Notes

References

External links