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Originally known as Naya Sukezaemon, he was the son of Sakai merchant [[Naya Saisuke]]<!--納屋才助-->. He changed his name in [[1593]] or [[1594]] after returning from a trip to Luzon in the Philippines. He became successful and wealthy in the South Seas trade, particularly from selling porcelains to [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]] and other powerful lords. It is said that even the great tea master [[Sen no Rikyu|Sen no Rikyû]] prized some of the tea wares brought back from Southeast Asia by Sukezaemon. Sukezaemon built himself a lavish Western-style house in Sakai and lived a rather luxurious lifestyle for several years before attracting the attention and the ire of Hideyoshi. In [[1598]], the warlord accused the merchant on bogus charges, and confiscated all his possessions; Sukezaemon entrusted his home to his family's temple, the [[Daian-ji]], and fled Japan for Cambodia.

Originally known as Naya Sukezaemon, he was the son of Sakai merchant [[Naya Saisuke]]<!--納屋才助-->. He changed his name in [[1593]] or [[1594]] after returning from a trip to Luzon in the Philippines. He became successful and wealthy in the South Seas trade, particularly from selling porcelains to [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]] and other powerful lords. It is said that even the great tea master [[Sen no Rikyu|Sen no Rikyû]] prized some of the tea wares brought back from Southeast Asia by Sukezaemon. Sukezaemon built himself a lavish Western-style house in Sakai and lived a rather luxurious lifestyle for several years before attracting the attention and the ire of Hideyoshi. In [[1598]], the warlord accused the merchant on bogus charges, and confiscated all his possessions; Sukezaemon entrusted his home to his family's temple, the [[Daian-ji]], and fled Japan for Cambodia.

Very little is known about Sukezaemon from original sources, but like many merchant sailors and maritime adventurers of the period, a number of legends have arisen about him. He has been conflated with the pirate [[Tai Fusa]] who attacked Manila some years earlier and was defeated; according to some tales, when Sukezaemon left Japan he took one hundred men with him and led a raid or assault on Manila, but was ultimately forced to flee to Cambodia. Other sources omit the piracy and violence and indicate simply that he remained in Manila until, around [[1607]], the Spanish began to interfere in the Philippines, and Sukezaemon fled to Cambodia, where he earned the trust of the local authorities and began to trade once more.

Very little is known about Sukezaemon from original sources, but like many merchant sailors and maritime adventurers of the period, a number of legends have arisen about him. He has been conflated with the pirate [[Tai Fusa]] who attacked Manila some years earlier and was defeated; according to some tales, when Sukezaemon left Japan he took one hundred men with him and led a raid or assault on Manila, but was ultimately forced to flee to Cambodia. Other sources omit the piracy and violence and indicate simply that he remained in Manila until, around [[1607]], when the Spanish began to impose stronger restrictions on Japanese in the Philippines, and Sukezaemon fled to Cambodia, where he earned the trust of the local authorities and began to trade once more.

He is buried at the Daian-ji in Sakai, and bronze statues of him can be seen in that city, and in Manila as well. He appeared in a novel by Shiroyama Saburô, and in a 1978 [[Taiga drama]] called ''[[Ogon no Hibi|Ôgon no Hibi]]''.

He is buried at the Daian-ji in Sakai, and bronze statues of him can be seen in that city, and in Manila as well. He appeared in a novel by Shiroyama Saburô, and in a 1978 [[Taiga drama]] called ''[[Ogon no Hibi|Ôgon no Hibi]]''.