| Jirôkichi was an [[Edo period]] sailor who became marooned, and traveled to Hawaii, Kamchatka, and Alaska before being returned to Japan. He recorded aspects of his journey in the book ''Bantan'' (蕃譚, "Barbarian Stories"). | | Jirôkichi was an [[Edo period]] sailor who became marooned, and traveled to Hawaii, Kamchatka, and Alaska before being returned to Japan. He recorded aspects of his journey in the book ''Bantan'' (蕃譚, "Barbarian Stories"). |
− | Jirôkichi was a crewman on the Chôjamaru of [[Etchu province|Etchû province]]. In 1838, he became shipwrecked off of [[Sendai]]; six months later, he was picked up by an American whaling ship, and brought to Hawaii. He and his compatriots may have been the first Japanese in Hawaii; they are, at least, the first of whom historians are aware. Jirôkichi later traveled through Alaska, Kamchatka, and [[Iturup]] (J: ''Etorofu'') before returning to Japan proper in [[1843]]. Detained in [[Edo]], he was eventually allowed to return to his village, where, with the help of [[Koga Kin'ichiro|Koga Kin'ichirô]], he wrote ''Bantan'', an account of his travels, complete with numerous color illustrations. It is the first Japanese account of the land and people of Hawaii. | + | Jirôkichi was a crewman on the Chôjamaru of [[Etchu province|Etchû province]]. In 1838, he became shipwrecked off of [[Sendai]]; six months later, he was picked up by an American whaling ship, and brought to Hawaii. He and his compatriots may have been the first Japanese in Hawaii; they are, at least, the first of whom historians are aware. Jirôkichi and two of his companions then lived with the family of Gerrit Judd in Honolulu until [[1840]]; the fates of the other four are unknown. Jirôkichi later traveled through Alaska, Kamchatka, and [[Iturup]] (J: ''Etorofu'') before returning to Japan proper in [[1843]]. Detained in [[Edo]], he was eventually allowed to return to his village, where, with the help of [[Koga Kin'ichiro|Koga Kin'ichirô]], he wrote ''Bantan'', an account of his travels, complete with numerous color illustrations. It is the first Japanese account of the land and people of Hawaii. |