nyoubouza　女房座

KEY WORD :　architecture / folk dwellings

Lit. wife's seat. Also frequently called kakaza 嬶座. One of the seats around the edge of the sunken hearth *irori 囲炉裏, in the main everyday living space of vernacular houses *minka 民家 of the Edo period, especially farmhouses, nouka 農家. It was the seat reserved for the master's wife. In a typical farmhouse with the entrance at right angles to the direction of the roof *hirairi 平入, the nyoubouza was toward the rear of the house, on the side of the hearth, usually north, away from the main entrance *oodoguchi 大戸口, that faced it. It was thus directly opposite the guest's seat *kyakuza 客座, and adjacent to the master's seat *yokoza 横座. It was also conveniently close to the cooking area *daidokoro 台所, which was generally located toward the rear of the building. The term has many regional variants, notably kakazashiki かか座敷, tanamoto 棚もと, nabeza 鍋座, nyoubouire 女房入れ, onnaza 女座, ubaza うば座, kamisanzashiki かみさん座敷.

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*kijiri 木尻

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