Difference between revisions of "Ezo"
(Created page with "*''Japanese'': 蝦夷 ''(Ezo)'', 蝦夷地 ''(Ezochi)'' "Ezo" or "Ezochi" is an old name for the region historically beyond the northern edges of Japanese settlement and gove...") |
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| + | [[File:Ezo-map.jpg|right|thumb|400px|A map of Ezochi by [[Kondo Juzo|Kondô Jûzô]], dated [[1804]]. Hokkaido Museum.]] | ||
*''Japanese'': 蝦夷 ''(Ezo)'', 蝦夷地 ''(Ezochi)'' | *''Japanese'': 蝦夷 ''(Ezo)'', 蝦夷地 ''(Ezochi)'' | ||
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==History== | ==History== | ||
===Edo Period=== | ===Edo Period=== | ||
| + | During the Edo period, the Tokugawa shogunate charged Matsumae domain with overseeing matters pertaining to Ezochi, including trade, relations with the Ainu, and defending Japanese territory (''Wajinchi'') against either Ainu violence or foreign invasion. The [[Matsumae clan]] was officially granted no territory in fief,<ref>Howell, David. "Ainu Ethnicity and the Boundaries of the Early Modern Japanese State." ''Past & Present'', No. 142 (Feb., 1994), p78.</ref> but because of this jurisdiction and authority over such a large area were nevertheless sometimes referred to as ''Ezo Dai-Ô'' (蝦夷大王, Great Kings of Ezo) or by similar terms.<ref>Morris-Suzuki, Tessa. "Creating the Frontier: Border, Identity, and History in Japan's Far North." ''East Asian History'' 7 (June 1994). p5.</ref> | ||
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In [[1855]]/2, the shogunate reassigned jurisdiction and responsibility for Ezochi, dividing among [[Sendai han|Sendai]], [[Kubota han|Kubota]], [[Hirosaki han|Hirosaki]], [[Morioka han|Morioka]] and Matsumae domains what had previously been overseen by Matsumae alone.<ref>''Ishin Shiryo'', vol 2, pp19, 36.</ref> Later that same year, in 1855/10, the shogunate permitted shogunal vassals, retainers of the various domains, and commoners to relocate to Ezo, and granted loans to those who engaged in developing (''kaitaku'', 開拓) the land.<ref>''Ishin Shiryo'', vol 2, p133.</ref> | In [[1855]]/2, the shogunate reassigned jurisdiction and responsibility for Ezochi, dividing among [[Sendai han|Sendai]], [[Kubota han|Kubota]], [[Hirosaki han|Hirosaki]], [[Morioka han|Morioka]] and Matsumae domains what had previously been overseen by Matsumae alone.<ref>''Ishin Shiryo'', vol 2, pp19, 36.</ref> Later that same year, in 1855/10, the shogunate permitted shogunal vassals, retainers of the various domains, and commoners to relocate to Ezo, and granted loans to those who engaged in developing (''kaitaku'', 開拓) the land.<ref>''Ishin Shiryo'', vol 2, p133.</ref> | ||
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| + | ==Meiji Period== | ||
| + | For about six months in [[1868]]-[[1869]], a group of loyalists to the former shogunate attempted to establish an independent state, known as the [[Republic of Ezo]]. Led by [[Enomoto Takeaki]] and based at [[Goryokaku|Goryôkaku]] and [[Matsumae castle]], they fought a number of battles against the armies of the newly-established [[Meiji government|Japanese state]], which eventually defeated them and extended its rule over the region. | ||
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Revision as of 11:48, 22 February 2025
- Japanese: 蝦夷 (Ezo), 蝦夷地 (Ezochi)
"Ezo" or "Ezochi" is an old name for the region historically beyond the northern edges of Japanese settlement and governance, comprising Hokkaidô, Sakhalin, and the Kuril Islands, the homelands of indigenous peoples including the Ainu. The term Ezo uses the same characters as the term emishi, which is often translated as "barbarian."
Over the course of the Edo period, Matsumae han (and at times the Tokugawa shogunate directly) took over parts of the region, incorporating them into Wajinchi (lit. "the land of Japanese people") and thus shrinking the space the Japanese saw as "Ezochi" (i.e. "the land of 'barbarians'"). That remaining as "Ezochi" was consistently seen as iiki 異域, a "foreign region," outside of "Japan."[1]
History
Edo Period
During the Edo period, the Tokugawa shogunate charged Matsumae domain with overseeing matters pertaining to Ezochi, including trade, relations with the Ainu, and defending Japanese territory (Wajinchi) against either Ainu violence or foreign invasion. The Matsumae clan was officially granted no territory in fief,[2] but because of this jurisdiction and authority over such a large area were nevertheless sometimes referred to as Ezo Dai-Ô (蝦夷大王, Great Kings of Ezo) or by similar terms.[3]
In 1855/2, the shogunate reassigned jurisdiction and responsibility for Ezochi, dividing among Sendai, Kubota, Hirosaki, Morioka and Matsumae domains what had previously been overseen by Matsumae alone.[4] Later that same year, in 1855/10, the shogunate permitted shogunal vassals, retainers of the various domains, and commoners to relocate to Ezo, and granted loans to those who engaged in developing (kaitaku, 開拓) the land.[5]
Meiji Period
For about six months in 1868-1869, a group of loyalists to the former shogunate attempted to establish an independent state, known as the Republic of Ezo. Led by Enomoto Takeaki and based at Goryôkaku and Matsumae castle, they fought a number of battles against the armies of the newly-established Japanese state, which eventually defeated them and extended its rule over the region.
References
- ↑ By comparison, consider the terms takoku 他国 used to mean "another province" or "another domain" within Japan, and ikoku 異国 used to refer to "foreign countries" outside of Japan such as Ryûkyû or Korea. Luke Roberts, Mercantilism in a Japanese Domain: The Merchant Origins of Economic Nationalism in 18th-Century Tosa, Cambridge University Press, 1998., pp5-6.
- ↑ Howell, David. "Ainu Ethnicity and the Boundaries of the Early Modern Japanese State." Past & Present, No. 142 (Feb., 1994), p78.
- ↑ Morris-Suzuki, Tessa. "Creating the Frontier: Border, Identity, and History in Japan's Far North." East Asian History 7 (June 1994). p5.
- ↑ Ishin Shiryo, vol 2, pp19, 36.
- ↑ Ishin Shiryo, vol 2, p133.
