On'yado Kawasemi or On-yado Kawasemi () is a Japanese series of novels written by

Yumie Hiraiwa was a Japanese Naoki Award-winning author. Life The daughter of the chief priest of Yoyogi Hachiman shrine, Hiraiwa was born in Tokyo in 1932. After graduating from the Department of Japanese Literature at Japan Women's University is the ...

and dramas and a play based on it. It is set in "Kawasemi" ("

kingfisher Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly coloured birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species living in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...

" in Japanese), an

inn Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway. Before the advent of motorized transportation, they also provided accomm ...

in Ōkawabata,

Edo Edo (), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the '' de facto'' capital of Japan from 1603 as the seat of the Tokugawa shogu ...

(now

Sumida, Tokyo is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in the Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis in Japan. The English translation of its Japanese self-designation is Sumida City. As of 1 April 2025, the ward has an estimated population of 287,766 and a population dens ...

). It was serialised in a magazine ''Shosetsu Sunday Mainichi'' from 1973 but was interrupted because of the discontinuance of the magazine. Later, it was serialised in ''All Yomimono'' from 1982 to 2005.

Plot

At the end of

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

, Shoji Rui hands over her birthright to her relatives with the death of her father and begins running an inn "Kawasemi" in Ōkawabata. And she settles the matters in their daily lives with her lover Kamibayashi Tōgo, ''doshin'' (a sort of constable) Une Genzaburō,

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

Amanō Sotarō, and O-Kichi.

Characters

Main characters

;Kamibayashi Tōgo :Younger brother of Kamibayashi Michinoshin and instructor of

kendo is a modern Japanese martial art, descended from kenjutsu (one of the old Japanese martial arts, swordsmanship), that uses bamboo swords ( shinai) as well as protective armor ( bōgu). It began as samurai warriors' customary swordsmanship ex ...

. He helps Une Genzaburō cracking a case and pries into the affairs occur around him or among those who visit and lodge at Kawasemi. ;Shōji Rui :

Landlady A landlord is the owner of property such as a house, apartment, condominium, land, or real estate that is rented or leased to an individual or business, known as a tenant (also called a ''lessee'' or ''renter''). The term landlord appli ...

of Kawasemi who marries Tōgo later. ;Une Genzaburō :''Doshin'' for Minami-machi bugyō. A serious and sincere man and one of childhood friends of Tōgo.

People of Kawasemi

;Kasuke :

Manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

of Kawasemi. ;O-Kichi :Head maid of Kawasemi who is very curious and likes chatting but has a

phobia A phobia is an anxiety disorder, defined by an irrational, unrealistic, persistent and excessive fear of an object or situation. Phobias typically result in a rapid onset of fear and are usually present for more than six months. Those affected ...

for ghost.

The Kamibayashi family

;Kamibayashi Michinoshin :Elder brother of Tōgo who is

yoriki were members of the ''samurai'' class of feudal Japan. ''Yoriki'' literally means ''helper'' or ''assistant''. Description and history ''Yoriki'' assisted ''daimyō'' (feudal lords) or their designated commanders during military campaigns in the ...

for Minami-machi bugyō. ;Kanae :Wife of Michinoshin and the eldest daughter of Asō Genemon.

The Une family

;Chie :Wife of Genzaburō. ;Gentarō :Son of Genzabutō. ;Chiyo :Daughter of Genzaburō.

The Asō family

;Asō Genemon :

Hatamoto A was a high ranking samurai in the direct service of the Tokugawa shogunate of feudal Japan. While all three of the Shōgun, shogunates in History of Japan, Japanese history had official retainers, in the two preceding ones, they were referred ...

who is the father of Kanae and Nanae. ;Asō Sōtarō (Amano Sotaro) :

Physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

who is a son of goten-i, a doctor employed by the ''

shōgun , officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...

'' and a son-in-law of Genemon. One of best friends of Tōgo. ;Nanae :Wife of Sōtarō, daughter of Genemon and younger sister of Kanae.

Other characters

;Chōsuke :''Okappiki'' (a sort of private detective) for Une Genzaburō and owner of

soba Soba ( or , "buckwheat") are Japanese noodles made primarily from buckwheat flour, with a small amount of wheat flour mixed in. It has an ashen brown color, and a slightly grainy texture. The noodles are served either chilled with a dipping sau ...

restaurant ''Chojuan'' though he leaves managing it up to his wife and son. ;Sengorō :Another ''okappiki'' whose occupation is a

cooper Cooper, Cooper's, Coopers and similar may refer to: * Cooper (profession), a maker of wooden casks and other staved vessels Arts and entertainment * Cooper (producers), an alias of Dutch producers Klubbheads * "Cooper", a song by Roxette from ...

. ;Matsuura Hōsai :Owner of Hōgetsukan, a kendo

dojo A is a hall or place for immersive learning, experiential learning, or meditation. This is traditionally in the field of martial arts. The term literally means "place of the Tao, Way" in Japanese language, Japanese. History The word ''d� ...

in Mamiana where Tōgo instructs kendo. He has a profound knowledge of

sword A sword is an edged and bladed weapons, edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter ...

List of novels

Bunshun bunko (pocketbooks published by
Bungeishunjū is a Japanese publishing company known for its leading monthly magazine '' Bungeishunjū''. The company was founded by Kan Kikuchi in 1923. It grants the annual Akutagawa Prize, one of the most prestigious literary awards in Japan, as well a ...
)

# On'yado Kawasemi () # Edo no komoriuta () # Suigō kara kita onnna () # Sazanka wa mita () # Yūrei goroshi () # Kitsune no yomeiri () # Hōzuki wa koroshi no kuchibue () # Shirahagi yashiki no tsuki () # Ichiryō nibu no onnna () # Enma mairi () # Nijūrokuya machi no satsujin () # Yogarasu O-Kin () # Oni no men () # Kami kakushi () # Koibumi shinjū () # Hacchōbori no yuya () # Ugetsu () # Hikyoku () # Kakurenbo () # O-Kichi no chawan () # Inu hariko no nazo () # Kiyohime O-Ryō () # Gentarō no hatsukoi () # Haru no takasebune () # Takarabune matsuri () # Chōsuke no nyōbō () # Yokohama bojō () # Sasuke no botan () # Hatsuharu benzaisen () # Kijo no hanatsumi () # Edo no shōryō nagashi () # Jyūsann sai no nakōdo () # Koban shōnin () # Ukare kichō ()

Hardcovers

# Haru no kyaku () # Shūgen () # Senju kannon no nazo ()

Adaptations

TV Series

NHK , also known by its Romanization of Japanese, romanized initialism NHK, is a Japanese public broadcasting, public broadcaster. It is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television licence, television license fee. NHK ope ...

adapted the series to TV series in 1980, 1982, 2003, 2004 and 2005.NHKドラマ
/ref> Series 1 was broadcast from 8 October 1980 to 24 March 1981 and Series 2 was broadcast from 6 October 1982 and 13 April 1983 by NHK. And in 2013, both series and newly produced episodes starring Kyōko Maya and is set in

Meiji era The was an Japanese era name, era of History of Japan, 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 feu ...

were broadcast by Jidaigeki Senmon Channel, describing Kawasemi and those who are related to the inn twenty years later. It was produced by NHK Enterprize and Jidaigeki Senmon Channel with the intention to keep the tradition of jidaigeki and it is the first case in which NHK Enterprize did not produce a programme for NHK. In 1973, TBS adapted one of the novels "Aki no hotaru" ("

Firefly The Lampyridae are a family of elateroid beetles with more than 2,000 described species, many of which are light-emitting. They are soft-bodied beetles commonly called fireflies, lightning bugs, or glowworms for their conspicuous production ...

s in Autumn") to drama.

TV Asahi JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as , and better known as , is a Japanese television station serving the Kanto region as the flagship station of the All-Nippon News Network. It is owned-and-operated by the a subsidiary of , itself controlled by ...

also adapted it to two TV dramas and one TV series, starring

Yūko Kotegawa is a Japanese actress from the city of Ōita. Biography Yūko graduated from high school in the city of Ōita. She placed first in the 1976 Miss Salad Girl contest (the runner-up was Yūko Natori). She landed a part in a Kanebo cosmetics com ...

and

Yasuko Sawaguchi is a Japanese actress. Early life Sawaguchi was born in Sakai, Osaka on June 11, 1965. In early 1984, the Japanese movie studio Toho Company Ltd. held their first " Toho Cinderella Audition", and Yasuko, almost 19 at the time, was chosen as th ...

respectively. Cast
NHK Series 1 and 2 (1980–1983) *Shōji Rui:

Kyōko Maya is a very common feminine Japanese given name. Not to be confused with Kiyoko. Written forms The final syllable "ko" is typically written with the kanji character for child, 子. It is a common suffix to female names in Japan. The first syll ...

*Kamibayashi Tōgo:

Akira Onodera is a Japanese actor and narrator. He is well known for his role as Denka in '' Taiyō ni Hoero!''. He made his television debut in 1969 with ''Panto Akogare''. In 2015, Onodera won the award for best supporting actor of Tokyo Sports Film Award ...

*Une Genzaburō: Takashi Yamaguchi *Kamibayashi Michinoshin:

Takahiro Tamura was a Japanese film actor. He appeared in 100 films between 1954 and 2005. He and his younger brothers Masakazu and Ryō were known as the three Tamura brothers. They were sons of actor Tsumasaburo Bando. Biography Tamura graduated from Dosh ...

*Kanae:

Momoko Kōchi (7 March 1932 – 5 November 1998), born , was a Japanese film, stage and television actress. She is best known for her roles in the original ''Godzilla'', playing the character of Emiko Yamane (a role she reprised in '' Godzilla vs. Destor ...

*Kasuke: Tokue Hanazawa *O-Kichi: Mieko Yūki *Asō Genemon:

Masami Shimojō was a Japanese film and stage actor. He appeared in more than 100 films. Career Hoping to become a film director, Shimojō traveled to Tokyo in 1935 but ended up joining a theater troupe, debuting on stage in 1936. He made his film debut in 194 ...

*Nanae: Naomi Hase (Season 1), Yoshie Taira (Season 2) *Chōsuke: Kon Omura (Season 1) *Sengorō: Morihiko Uchiyama (Season 2) *Matsuura Hōsai:

Seiji Miyaguchi was a Japanese stage and film actor who appeared in films of Akira Kurosawa, Yasujirō Ozu, Mikio Naruse, Keisuke Kinoshita, Tadashi Imai and many others. Biography Born in Tokyo and a graduate of Tokyo Municipal Junior High School, Miyaguchi w ...

(Season 1),

Tōru Abe was a Japanese film actor. He appeared in more than 100 films from 1944 to 1985. Selected filmography Voice acting * ''The Bridge on the River Kwai'' – Major Warden (Jack Hawkins) References External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:A ...

(Season 2) NHK Series 3–5 (2003–2005) *Shōji Rui:

Reiko Takashima is a Japanese actress. Career Takashima starred in Shinji Aoyama's 1999 film '' EM Embalming''. She has also appeared in films such as '' K-20: Legend of the Mask'', ''Railways'' and ''Space Battleship Yamato''. Filmography Film * ''Like a Rol ...

*Kamihayashi Tōgo: Hashinosuke Nakamura *Une Genzaburō: Kai Shishido (Series 3 and 4), Kazuki Sawamura (Series 5) *Kasuke: Takehiko Ono *O-Kichi:

Machiko Washio is a Japanese actress who works in both live action as well as voice over work for anime. She is known as the voice of Sakura in ''Urusei Yatsura''. Filmography Live action films *'' The Red Spectacles'' (1987) (Midori Washio) *''The Black Hou ...

*Chosuke: Kimihiro Reizei (Series3), Jirō Keisetsu (Series 4 and 5) *Matsuurra Hōsai:

Yū Fujiki , born , was a Japanese film and television actor. He appeared in more than 100 films from 1954 to 2005. Career Born in Tokyo, Fujiki graduated from Doshisha University and joined the Toho studio in 1954. He began by playing straight male leads, ...

(Series 3), Gorō Ibuki (Series 4), Shigeru Koyama (Series 5) *Amano (Later Asō) Sōtarō: Kazumasa Suzuki (Series 4 and 5) *Amano Sōhaku:

Masane Tsukayama is a Japanese actor, Voice acting in Japan, voice actor, and Narration, narrator from Naha, Naha, Okinawa. His wife is opera singer . He is best known for dubbing over Kevin Costner, Robert De Niro, Richard Gere, Liam Neeson and Gabriel Byrne. I ...

(Series 5 only) *Asō Genemon:

Hisashi Igawa Hisashi Igawa (井川比佐志 born 17 November 1936) is a Japanese actor who has appeared in such films as Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker who List of works by Akira Kurosawa, directed 30 feature films in a career spanning six ...

*Nanae: Takami Yoshimoto *Kamihayashi Kanae:

Akiko Nishina Akiko Nishina (仁科亜希子) (born 3 April 1953 in Tokyo) is a Japanese actress. Once 仁科明子, her name is now 仁科亜季子, after divorcing from Hiroki Matsukata, a famous actor in Japan. Film *''Itsuka dokusho suruhi'' (2005) Telev ...

*Kamihayashi Michinoshin:

Masao Kusakari is a Japanese actor and model. Biography Masao Kusakari was born in Fukuoka Prefecture to a Japanese mother Sueko from Yukuhashi, and an American father Robert H. Tolar from Tar Heel, North Carolina, a USAF mailman who was deployed to Tsuiki ...

Shin On'yado Kawasemi (2013 version, broadcast by Jidaigeki Senmon Channel) *Shōji Rui:

*Kamibayashi Tōgo:

*Une Genzaburō: Takashi Yamaguchi *Kanae:

Keiko Kishi is a Japanese actress, writer, and UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador. Life and career She made her acting debut in 1951 in Noboru Nakamura's film '' Home Sweet Home''. In the 1950s, David Lean proposed her for the main role in '' The Wind Cannot Read ...

*Kasuke:

Takashi Sasano is a Japanese actor. Career Sasano has appeared in Kiyoshi Kurosawa's films '' Bright Future'' (2003) and '' Before We Vanish'' (2017). He also appeared in Amir Naderi's 2011 film ''Cut''. Filmography Film * '' Tora-san's Island Encounter'' ( ...

*O-Kichi: Mieko Yūki *Chōsuke: Mansaku Fuwa *Kamibayashi Asatarō:

Dai Watanabe Dai may refer to: Names * Dai (given name), a Welsh or Japanese masculine given name * Dai (surname) (戴), a Chinese surname * Bảo Đại (保大), Emperor of Vietnam from 1926 to 1945 Places and regimes * Dai Commandery, a commandery of the ...

*Une Gentarō:

Satoshi Matsuda is a Japanese actor who has appeared in a number of feature films and television series. He is affiliated with Sun Music Production. On December 9, 2016, he apprehended a voyeur criminal whose taking photographs of his wife's skirt using a smart ...

Aki no hotaru *Shoji Rui:

Ayako Wakao is a Japanese actress who was one of the country's biggest stars of the 20th century. Biography Wakao began her career contracted to Daiei Studios in 1951 as part of the fifth "New Face" group. She has gone on to appear in over 100 feature film ...

*Kamihayashi Tōgo: Noboru Nakaya *Une Genzaburo: Katsuhiko Kobayashi *O-Kichi: Tsugiyo Ōjika TV Asahi dramas (1988 and 1989) *Shōji Rui:

*Kamihayashi Tōgo: Jun Hashizume *Une Genzaburō: Kōichi Miura TV Asahi Series 1 (1997–1998) *Shōji Rui:

*Kamihayashi Tōgo: Hiroaki Murakami *Une Genzaburō: Mitsuru Hirata *Kasuke:

*O-Kichi: Yumiko Fujita *Chōsuke: Saburō Ishikura *Asō Genemon: Junkichi Orimoto *Nanae: Hijiri Kojima *Kanae: Haruka Sugata *Kamihayashi Michinoshin: Masahiko Tsugawa

Play

It was adapted to a play and Yuko Hama played the role of Rui at the Imperial Theatre (Japan), Imperial Theatre in 1984.

Comic

From 2012 to 2013, it was adapted to manga by Yuzuru Shimazaki and was published serially in a magazine "Comic Ran Twins". It was published as two volumes of books by Leed Publishing co, Ltd. in November 2012 and May 2013.

Episodes

NHK Series(1980-1981)

References

{{Reflist

External links

Shin on-yado Kawasemi (TV Series 1997– ) - IMDb
Japanese serial novels Novels set in hotels Jidaigeki television series 1970s Japanese television series 1980s Japanese television series 1990s Japanese television series 2000s Japanese television series NHK original programming TV Asahi original programming TBS Television (Japan) original programming Japanese plays