Goze
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese historic
term referring to visually impaired Japanese women, of whom most worked as musicians.
(1600–1868) organized themselves in a number of ways. Few large-scale organizations have been found in urban areas, though during the nineteenth century some documents speak of a association in the city of Edo
. In Osaka
and some regional towns were sometimes informally linked to the pleasure quarters, where they were called to perform their songs at parties and the like.
organizations developed most in rural areas and continued to exist in Niigata
(once known as Echigo) and Nagano
prefectures well into the twentieth century (the last important active , , died in 2005, age 105).
From the Edo period onward, other groups were found from Kyushu in the south to approximately Yamagata
and Fukushima
prefectures in the north. Farther north blind women tended to become shamans (known as , , or the like) rather than . Large and important groups were especially active in the Kantō and surrounding areas, in what are today Gunma
, Saitama
, Chiba
, Shizuoka
, Yamanashi
, Tokyo-to
. Other groups were formed in Nagano and Gifu
prefectures, and somewhat farther south, in Aichi
prefecture. In addition to the well-known groups of Niigata prefecture, groups existed in other areas along the western seaboard, including Toyama
, Ishikawa
, and Fukui
prefectures.
Suzuki Shōei (1996 and elsewhere) divides the organizations of Echigo into three main types. organizations such as the one in Takada (today the city of Jōetsu
), in which a limited number of houses (in early twentieth-century Takada 17) were concentrated in the city and in which each house was led by a master teacher who passed on the rights to her position and property to her top (or favorite) student after her death. Girls who wished to become ' had to move to the city and enter the house (fictitious family) of the teacher. Sometimes they were adopted by the teacher as a daughter.
Rules were also necessary in part because many spent a good part of the year on the road, touring from village to village and depending on farmers to allow them to spend the night and use their houses as makeshift concert halls. Reputation and recognition as an officially sanctioned, upright occupation was thus of great importance in making the career of the possible. In addition, because Edo-period society was rife with discrimination against women, itinerants, musicians, and anyone with a visual disability, membership in an association that was recognized as legitimate and honorable was an important credential which allayed suspicions that the woman might be a wandering vagabond or prostitute.
The repertory of Niigata (Echigo) can be divided into several distinct categories:. Long strophic songs in a 7-5 syllable meter, often based on archaic tales, sometimes with a Buddhist message. The melody to which these texts are sung were probably a variant of the Echigo folk song . These songs were probably created during the eighteenth century, though elements of the texts are no doubt far older. They were usually only transmitted from one to another.. Long strophic songs in a 7-7- syllable meter. Texts usually feature double love-suicides or some other melodramatic and sometimes newsworthy theme. The melody to which these texts were sung is a variant of the Echigo folk song . did not appear until the mid-nineteenth century. Although they were a highly typical song, they were sometimes also sung by other types of performers.. A functional designation applying to any song used by as they made their way from door to door collecting donations. usually sang whatever inhabitants of a given area wished to hear, but in the Niigata repertory some unique songs were used exclusively for such purposes.. Rural songs, usually with no known composer, learned by the populace informally. Many types of folk songs constituted an important part of the repertory, and were especially useful in livening up parties when were summoned to perform.
History of Japan
The history of Japan encompasses the history of the islands of Japan and the Japanese people, spanning the ancient history of the region to the modern history of Japan as a nation state. Following the last ice age, around 12,000 BC, the rich ecosystem of the Japanese Archipelago fostered human...
term referring to visually impaired Japanese women, of whom most worked as musicians.
Etymology
The ideographs for mean "blind" and "woman." The ideographs are, however, read in this manner because the word already existed. In fact, it probably derived from the term , which also means blind woman ( is a formal second-person pronoun). Although the term can be found in medieval records, other terms such as , and the like were also in use (especially in written records) until the modern era. In the spoken language, the term was usually suffixed by an honorific: , , , and the like.Organizations
From the Edo periodEdo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
(1600–1868) organized themselves in a number of ways. Few large-scale organizations have been found in urban areas, though during the nineteenth century some documents speak of a association in the city of Edo
Edo
, also romanized as Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo, and was the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868...
. In Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
and some regional towns were sometimes informally linked to the pleasure quarters, where they were called to perform their songs at parties and the like.
organizations developed most in rural areas and continued to exist in Niigata
Niigata Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Honshū on the coast of the Sea of Japan. The capital is the city of Niigata. The name "Niigata" literally means "new lagoon".- History :...
(once known as Echigo) and Nagano
Nagano Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of the island of Honshū. The capital is the city of Nagano.- History :Nagano was formerly known as the province of Shinano...
prefectures well into the twentieth century (the last important active , , died in 2005, age 105).
From the Edo period onward, other groups were found from Kyushu in the south to approximately Yamagata
Yamagata
-Places in Japan:*Yamagata Prefecture**Yamagata City, the capital city of Yamagata Prefecture**Yamagata Airport , an airport located in Yamagata**Yamagata Shinkansen, one of Shinkansen lines running between Tokyo Station and Shinjo Station...
and Fukushima
Fukushima Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region on the island of Honshu. The capital is the city of Fukushima.-History:Until the Meiji Restoration, the area of Fukushima prefecture was known as Mutsu Province....
prefectures in the north. Farther north blind women tended to become shamans (known as , , or the like) rather than . Large and important groups were especially active in the Kantō and surrounding areas, in what are today Gunma
Gunma Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the northwest corner of the Kantō region on Honshu island. Its capital is Maebashi.- History :The remains of a Paleolithic man were found at Iwajuku, Gunma Prefecture, in the early 20th century and there is a public museum there.Japan was without horses until...
, Saitama
Saitama Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of the island of Honshu. The capital is the city of Saitama.This prefecture is part of the Greater Tokyo Area, and most of Saitama's cities can be described as suburbs of Tokyo, to which a large amount of residents commute each day.- History...
, Chiba
Chiba Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region and the Greater Tokyo Area. Its capital is Chiba City.- History :Chiba Prefecture was established on June 15, 1873 with the merger of Kisarazu Prefecture and Inba Prefecture...
, Shizuoka
Shizuoka Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Shizuoka.- History :Shizuoka prefecture was formed from the former Tōtōmi, Suruga and Izu provinces.The area was the home of the first Tokugawa Shogun...
, Yamanashi
Yamanashi Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of the island of Honshū. The capital is the city of Kōfu.-Pre-history to the 14th century:People have been living in the Yamanashi area for about 30,000 years...
, Tokyo-to
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
. Other groups were formed in Nagano and Gifu
Gifu Prefecture
is a prefecture located in the Chūbu region of central Japan. Its capital is the city of Gifu.Located in the center of Japan, it has long played an important part as the crossroads of Japan, connecting the east to the west through such routes as the Nakasendō...
prefectures, and somewhat farther south, in Aichi
Aichi Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region. The region of Aichi is also known as the Tōkai region. The capital is Nagoya. It is the focus of the Chūkyō Metropolitan Area.- History :...
prefecture. In addition to the well-known groups of Niigata prefecture, groups existed in other areas along the western seaboard, including Toyama
Toyama Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Hokuriku region on Honshū island. The capital is the city of Toyama.Toyama is the leading industrial prefecture on the Japan Sea coast, and has the industrial advantage of cheap electricity due to abundant water resources....
, Ishikawa
Ishikawa Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region on Honshū island. The capital is Kanazawa.- History :Ishikawa was formed from the merger of Kaga Province and the smaller Noto Province.- Geography :Ishikawa is on the Sea of Japan coast...
, and Fukui
Fukui Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region on Honshū island. The capital is the city of Fukui.- Prehistory :The Kitadani Dinosaur Quarry, on the Sugiyama River within the city limits of Katsuyama, has yielded the Fukuiraptor kitadaniensis and Fukuisaurus tetoriensis as well as an unnamed...
prefectures.
Suzuki Shōei (1996 and elsewhere) divides the organizations of Echigo into three main types. organizations such as the one in Takada (today the city of Jōetsu
Joetsu, Niigata
is a city located in Niigata Prefecture, Japan.As of June 1, 2011, the city has an estimated population of 205,521, with 72,982 households and a population density of 211.15 persons per km². The total area is 973.32 km²....
), in which a limited number of houses (in early twentieth-century Takada 17) were concentrated in the city and in which each house was led by a master teacher who passed on the rights to her position and property to her top (or favorite) student after her death. Girls who wished to become ' had to move to the city and enter the house (fictitious family) of the teacher. Sometimes they were adopted by the teacher as a daughter.
- Organizations such as the one centered on NagaokaNagaoka-Places:* Nagaoka, Niigata, Japan* Nagaoka-kyō, the capital of Japan from 784 to 794** Nagaokakyō, Kyoto, Japan, a city at the location of Nagaoka-kyō* Izunagaoka, Shizuoka, Japan, a former town in Izu Peninsula.-People:...
, in which remained in the countryside, often their own home, after completing their apprenticeship with a elsewhere. These teachers were loosely linked to one another by their relation to the head in Nagaoka (a position assumed by a who, after becoming the head, assumed the name Yamamoto Goi). Once each year the of the Nagaoka group assembled at their headquarters, the house of Yamamoto Goi, to celebrate a ceremony known as in which their history and the rules of their organization was read out loud. A this they deliberated on what to do about members who had broken rules, ate a celebratory meal, and performed for one another. - Organizations such as the one found in IidaIida, Naganois a city located in southern Nagano Prefecture, Japan.Located on the Iida Line, an old local train line that runs through the valley of the Tenryū River in the southern Japan Alps, Iida lies 90 minutes northeast of the major city of Nagoya by automobile via the Chūō Expressway...
(Nagano prefecture), in which the position of head rotated among members.
Rules
organizations existed to allow blind women a degree of independence in pursuing their careers as musicians (or in some cases massage). The rules that governed Echigo were said to have been decreed by ancient emperors, but no copy of these rules earlier than the late seventeenth century have been found. The central rules governing behavior was to obey teachers, to be humble towards donors, and not engage in activities that might contravene the morality of the feudal society in which operated. Although not stipulated in detail, perhaps the most important rule was, as was expected of nuns, not to have a lover, marry, or produce offspring. If such an offense was detected, it easily resulted in the expulsion of a from the group. These stipulations were made and enforced for several reasons: if a goze did have a lover or if she married, then she had financial support from an outside source, and it was assumed that she needed no further charity. Furthermore, the stipulations were developed to protect the image of the goze group as a legitimate non-profit charity organization and protect it from the improper appearance of, or devolving into, a prostitution ring.Rules were also necessary in part because many spent a good part of the year on the road, touring from village to village and depending on farmers to allow them to spend the night and use their houses as makeshift concert halls. Reputation and recognition as an officially sanctioned, upright occupation was thus of great importance in making the career of the possible. In addition, because Edo-period society was rife with discrimination against women, itinerants, musicians, and anyone with a visual disability, membership in an association that was recognized as legitimate and honorable was an important credential which allayed suspicions that the woman might be a wandering vagabond or prostitute.
Songs
The repertory of most has been lost, but songs of from Niigata, Nagano, Saitama, and Kagoshima prefectures have been recorded. The vast majority of these recordings are from what is today Niigata prefecture.The repertory of Niigata (Echigo) can be divided into several distinct categories:. Long strophic songs in a 7-5 syllable meter, often based on archaic tales, sometimes with a Buddhist message. The melody to which these texts are sung were probably a variant of the Echigo folk song . These songs were probably created during the eighteenth century, though elements of the texts are no doubt far older. They were usually only transmitted from one to another.. Long strophic songs in a 7-7- syllable meter. Texts usually feature double love-suicides or some other melodramatic and sometimes newsworthy theme. The melody to which these texts were sung is a variant of the Echigo folk song . did not appear until the mid-nineteenth century. Although they were a highly typical song, they were sometimes also sung by other types of performers.. A functional designation applying to any song used by as they made their way from door to door collecting donations. usually sang whatever inhabitants of a given area wished to hear, but in the Niigata repertory some unique songs were used exclusively for such purposes.. Rural songs, usually with no known composer, learned by the populace informally. Many types of folk songs constituted an important part of the repertory, and were especially useful in livening up parties when were summoned to perform.
- "Classical" or "semi-classical" songs. Besides the genres listed above, most also knew a songs belonging to genres such as , , , or . Such songs were often learned from professional musicians outside the community.
External links
- Musizierende Frauengemeinschaften in Japan - Beobachtungen von Studenten der musikwissenschaftlichen Genderforschung an der Universität Paderborn und der Hochschule für Musik DetmoldHochschule für Musik DetmoldThe University of Music Detmold is one of Germany's leading university-level schools of music, situated in Detmold, Germany.- Academics :...
- Two old photographs from the late Edo period of models posing as http://hikoma.lb.nagasaki-u.ac.jp/en/target.php?id=2541, http://hikoma.lb.nagasaki-u.ac.jp/en/target.php?id=4326