The Configuration of Landless Peasants along the Hokuriku Region in Early Modern Japan : "ATAMAFURI"

Abstract

This paper covers empirical studies done on the configurations those referred to as in the three districts of Kaga, Noto and Ecchu in the Hokuriku region during Japan's early modern period. ATAMAFURI generally indicates poor peasants in Kaga-han,who made their living by renting land or by day labour and odd-jobs. However, the author shows that this generalization has been made only from the ruling class' viewpoint. In the Kan-ei era (1624-1644), Kaga-han built a political strategy to divide peasants into two groups: those who held land, and ATAMAFURI who were landless tenant farmers or poor odd-jobs workers. Therefore, the post towns and mountain/fishing villages where ATAMAFURI resided were considered as impoverished villages without arable land. Detailed case studies on the involvement of ATAMAFURI and the social organization of the villages in the area of the inner Noto has uncovered the fact that the ruling class' viewpoint is quite different from reality. The inner Noto area containing seaside villages inhabited by ATAMAFURI were not impoverished communities, but rather had urbanized features. For instance, Kawai-machi, Fugeshi-machimura, Wajima, where 71 percent of the community people consisted of ATAMAFURI had developed as the center port of the sea area a-long the Japan Sea since the medieval period, and had influential shipping interests. Fortunes were accumulated through Various occupations such as fishing and salt making shipping, commerce and industry not only in Wajima but also in almost all the villages occupied by large ATAMAFURI populations. They as leaders of the non-agricultural sectors furthered the growth of the urban sector of society. This fact is confirmed empirically in the case of Tokikuni-mura. A shipping agent in Tokikuni-mura under the name of Shibakusa-ya had, in spite of being an ATAMAFURI, many servants to run his business operating large ships in a wide area. As the financier he was as wealthy as the key families of the region. Not only many shipping interests, but some financiers, malt makers, sake brewers and salt manufacturers were included among the atamafuri the inhabitants of Tokikuni-mura. ATAMAFURI is therefore only a local term to identify landless peasants in some districts, but such peasants wers also, categorized as mizunomi as is generally known. It will be possible to make major alterations to the existing historical understanding of this class as well if there can be found any MIZUNOMI who engaged in non-agriculture fields and became wealthy like the cases of ATAMAFURI.