View source for Oyamise

*''Japanese/Okinawan'': 親見世 ''(oyamise / weemishi)''

The Oyamise was an office of the royal government of the [[Ryukyu Kingdom|Ryûkyû Kingdom]] which oversaw the government's trade efforts.

Established at least as early as the first half of the 15th century, the ''oyamise'' was located right between the Higashi and Nishi areas of [[Naha]] (today, Naha-shi Higashi 23-1), close to the ''[[ufumachi]]'' (great market), [[Tenshikan]] (guesthouse for [[Chinese investiture envoys]]), and ''[[zaiban bugyo|zaiban bugyôsho]]'' (office for the [[Satsuma han]] resident officials). A road extending from the gate of the ''oyamise'' down to the harbor served as the dividing line between the Nishi ("west") and Higashi ("east") neighborhoods.

The site was originally known as ''O-mise'' (御店), and only later became renamed ''oyamise''. In [[1609]], following Satsuma's [[invasion of Ryukyu|invasion of Ryûkyû]], the capitulation/surrender was formally conducted here. In addition to managing trade matters for the kingdom, the ''oyamise'' also prepared food to be provided to the ''zaiban bugyôsho''. It was headed by two ''oyamise ôyako'' (O: ''weemishi ufuyaku''), who served for single-year appointments, and was staffed by two secretaries (''hissha''), two temporary secretaries (''kari hissha''), and nine young secretaries (''waka hissha''), among others.

Following the [[Ryukyu shobun|abolition of the kingdom]] in the 1870s, the site of the ''oyamise'' was first taken over in [[1876]] by the [[Kumamoto garrison]]. From [[1884]] until 1915, the site then became a Naha city police station, and after 1915, home to the Yamagataya department store.

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==References==
*Plaques on-site at former site of the Oyamise.
*''Naha shizoku no isshô'' 那覇士族の一生 (Naha: Naha City Museum of History, 2010), 14. 

==External Links==
*[https://www.google.com/maps/place/23-1+Higashimachi,+Naha-shi,+Okinawa-ken+900-0034,+Japan/@26.212807,127.6729545,19z/data=!4m7!1m4!3m3!1s0x34e56999a647f1ab:0x38dd374a8ebd7bce!2s23-1+Higashimachi,+Naha-shi,+Okinawa-ken+900-0034,+Japan!3b1!3m1!1s0x34e56999a647f1ab:0x38dd374a8ebd7bce Former site of the Oyamise] on Google Maps

[[Category:Ryukyu]]
[[Category:Edo Period]]
[[Category:Political Institutions]]