Soda Rokurojiro

• Japanese: 宗田 六郎次郎 (Souda Rokuroujirou)

Sôda Rokurôjirô was a wakô leader and agent of the Sô clan of Tsushima in the early-to-mid 15th century. The son of Sôda Saemontarô, he is known chiefly for his travels between Korea and Ryûkyû repatriating castaways and facilitating informal diplomatic interactions between the two kingdoms.

In 1431, Rokurôjirô escorted a party of Ryukyuans to Korea and presented the court with a formal letter from King Shô Hashi of Ryûkyû expressing interest in formal relations and apologizing for the lengthy breaks in contact, due to the ongoing threat of piracy. The letter also indicated that some one hundred Koreans were temporarily living in Ryûkyû and that if Ryûkyû had access to some larger ships, these castaways could be repatriated.

Two years later, Rokurôjirô arrived in Ryûkyû once again, this time bringing Ryukyuan castaways home from Korea.

References

• Gregory Smits, Maritime Ryukyu, University of Hawaii Press (2019), 42.