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Restoring revision 1230037567 by Thibaut120094: There is an active closure request pertaining to an RfC on this exact issue, therefore a change of this nature is in my view improper. I don not see how the cited talk section overrides the result of the/an RfC. In the event of an RfC closure in favour of calling Yasuke a samurai (or any overriding dispute resolution etc.) feel free to revert this edit. (RW 16.1)
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'''Yasuke''' ({{lang-ja|弥助}} / {{lang|ja|弥介}}, {{IPA-ja|jasɯ̥ke}}) was a man of African origin<ref name="ExcludedPresence" /><ref name="Hitotsubashi" /> who served as a [[samurai]] to the Japanese [[daimyō]] [[Oda Nobunaga]] for a period of 15 months between 1581 and 1582, during the [[Sengoku period]], until Nobunaga's death in the [[Honnō-ji Incident]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Munez |first=Everett |date=2024-06-26 |title=Yasuke |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Yasuke |access-date=2024-06-27 |website=[[Encyclopedia Britannica]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Germain |first=Jacquelyne |last2= |first2= |date=January 10, 2023 |title=Who Was Yasuke, Japan's First Black Samurai? |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/who-was-yasuke-japans-first-black-samurai-180981416/ |access-date=2024-06-27 |website=[[Smithsonian Magazine]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Moon |first=Kat |date=2021-04-30 |title=The True Story of Yasuke, the Legendary Black Samurai Behind Netflix’s New Anime Series |url=https://time.com/6039381/yasuke-black-samurai-true-story/ |access-date=2024-06-27 |website=TIME |language=en}}</ref>
'''Yasuke''' ({{lang-ja|弥助}} / {{lang|ja|弥介}}, {{IPA-ja|jasɯ̥ke}}) was a man of African origin<ref name="ExcludedPresence" /><ref name="Hitotsubashi" /> who served as a [[ Affinity (medieval)|retainer]] to the Japanese [[daimyō]] [[Oda Nobunaga]] for a period of 15 months between 1581 and 1582, during the [[Sengoku period]], until Nobunaga's death in the [[Honnō-ji Incident]].<ref name="ndl14-2">{{Cite web |title=第14回 アフリカの日本、日本のアフリカ 第2章 日本に渡ったアフリカ人 |trans-title=Part 14: Japan in Africa, Africa in Japan Chapter 2: Africans who came to Japan |url=https://www.ndl.go.jp/kaleido/entry/14/2.html |access-date=12 September 2023 |website=本の万華鏡 |publisher=[[National Diet Library]] |language=ja |archive-date=23 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231023031849/https://www.ndl.go.jp/kaleido/entry/14/2.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="huffingtonpostyasuke">{{Cite web |last=Ando |first=Kenji |date=6 May 2021 |title=織田信長に仕えた黒人武士「弥助」の生涯とは?ネトフリのアニメ『Yasuke -ヤスケ-』のモデルに |trans-title=What was the life of Yasuke, a black warrior who served Oda Nobunaga? The model for the Netflix anime Yasuke |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.jp/entry/yasuke_jp_609347f7e4b09cce6c26a9b2 |access-date=12 September 2023 |website=[[HuffPost]] |publisher=BuzzFeed Japan |language=ja |archive-date=19 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230919001439/https://www.huffingtonpost.jp/entry/yasuke_jp_609347f7e4b09cce6c26a9b2 |url-status=live }}</ref>


There are few historical documents on Yasuke. From the fragmentary accounts, Yasuke first arrived in Japan in the service of Jesuit [[Alessandro Valignano]].<ref name="JapanForum" /> He was summoned to Nobunaga after Nobunaga wished to see a black man.<ref name="JapanForum" /> Subsequently, Nobunaga took him into his service and gave him the name Yasuke. As a samurai, he was granted a servant, a house and [[stipend]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jozuka |first=Emiko |date=2019-05-20 |title=The legacy of feudal Japan’s African samurai |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/05/19/asia/black-samurai-yasuke-africa-japan-intl/index.html |access-date=2024-06-27 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref> Yasuke accompanied Nobunaga until his death and was present at the Honnō-ji Incident. Afterwards, Yasuke was sent back to the Jesuits. There are no records of him afterwards.
There are few historical documents on Yasuke. From the fragmentary accounts, Yasuke first arrived in Japan in the service of Jesuit [[Alessandro Valignano]].<ref name="JapanForum" /> He was summoned to Nobunaga after Nobunaga wished to see a black man.<ref name="JapanForum" /> Subsequently, Nobunaga took him into his service and gave him the name Yasuke. As a retainer, he was granted a [[stipend]], a house, and a ''[[tantō]]''.<ref name="huffingtonpostyasuke" /> Yasuke accompanied Nobunaga until his death and was present at the Honnō-ji Incident. Afterwards, Yasuke was sent back to the Jesuits. There are no records of him afterwards.


==Birth and early life==
==Birth and early life==
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Valignano's party spent the first two years of their stay in Japan, mainly in [[Kyushu]].<ref name="intojapanwaraku28746" />
Valignano's party spent the first two years of their stay in Japan, mainly in [[Kyushu]].<ref name="intojapanwaraku28746" />


Entering 1581, Valignano decided to visit the capital [[Kyoto]] as an envoy. He wanted to have an audience with Oda Nobunaga, the most powerful man in Japan, to ensure the Jesuits' missionary work before leaving Japan.<ref name="intojapanwaraku28746" /> These events are recorded in a 1581 letter Luís Fróis wrote to Lourenço Mexia, and in the ''1582 Annual Report of the Jesuit Mission in Japan'' also by Fróis. These were published in {{lang|pt|Cartas que os padres e irmãos da Companhia de Jesus escreverão dos reynos<!-- Not a typo. Apparently a pre-modern spelling, and the one used in the work itself. --> de<!-- Ditto. --> Japão e China II}} (1598), normally known simply as {{lang|pt|Cartas}}.<ref>1581 letters of the Jesuits Luís Fróis and Lorenço Mexia</ref><ref name="theycametojapan">{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/theycametojapan0000coop/page/70/mode/2up |title=They came to Japan : an anthology of European reports on Japan, 1543–1640 |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |others=Center for Japanese Studies, University of California, Berkeley |year=1965 |editor-last=Cooper |editor-first=Michael |location=Berkley and Los Angeles |pages=71 |isbn=978-0-520-04509-5 |oclc=500169}}</ref> On 27 March 1581, Valignano, together with Luís Fróis, who had arrived in Japan earlier, had an audience with Nobunaga, and Yasuke is said to have accompanied them as an attendant.<ref name="Japaaan128476" /><ref name="bushoojapan147722">{{cite web |last= |first= |author-link= |date=22 February 2023 |title=日本初の黒人武士・弥助〜信長に仕え本能寺で巻き込まれたその後は? |trans-title=Japan's first black warrior, Yasuke-What happened after he served Nobunaga and got caught up in Honnoji? |url=https://bushoojapan.com/bushoo/oda/2023/02/22/14969 |access-date=12 September 2023 |website=Busho Japan |publisher=Tokyosha |language=ja |archive-date=19 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230919001439/https://bushoojapan.com/bushoo/oda/2023/02/22/14969 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="huffingtonpostyasuke">{{Cite web |last=Ando |first=Kenji |date=6 May 2021 |title=織田信長に仕えた黒人武士「弥助」の生涯とは?ネトフリのアニメ『Yasuke -ヤスケ-』のモデルに |trans-title=What was the life of Yasuke, a black warrior who served Oda Nobunaga? The model for the Netflix anime Yasuke |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.jp/entry/yasuke_jp_609347f7e4b09cce6c26a9b2 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230919001439/https://www.huffingtonpost.jp/entry/yasuke_jp_609347f7e4b09cce6c26a9b2 |archive-date=19 September 2023 |access-date=12 September 2023 |website=[[HuffPost]] |publisher=BuzzFeed Japan |language=ja}}</ref>
Entering 1581, Valignano decided to visit the capital [[Kyoto]] as an envoy. He wanted to have an audience with Oda Nobunaga, the most powerful man in Japan, to ensure the Jesuits' missionary work before leaving Japan.<ref name="intojapanwaraku28746" /> These events are recorded in a 1581 letter Luís Fróis wrote to Lourenço Mexia, and in the ''1582 Annual Report of the Jesuit Mission in Japan'' also by Fróis. These were published in {{lang|pt|Cartas que os padres e irmãos da Companhia de Jesus escreverão dos reynos<!-- Not a typo. Apparently a pre-modern spelling, and the one used in the work itself. --> de<!-- Ditto. --> Japão e China II}} (1598), normally known simply as {{lang|pt|Cartas}}.<ref>1581 letters of the Jesuits Luís Fróis and Lorenço Mexia</ref><ref name="theycametojapan">{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/theycametojapan0000coop/page/70/mode/2up |title=They came to Japan : an anthology of European reports on Japan, 1543–1640 |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |others=Center for Japanese Studies, University of California, Berkeley |year=1965 |editor-last=Cooper |editor-first=Michael |location=Berkley and Los Angeles |pages=71 |isbn=978-0-520-04509-5 |oclc=500169}}</ref> On 27 March 1581, Valignano, together with Luís Fróis, who had arrived in Japan earlier, had an audience with Nobunaga, and Yasuke is said to have accompanied them as an attendant.<ref name="Japaaan128476" /><ref name="bushoojapan147722">{{cite web |last= |first= |author-link= |date=22 February 2023 |title=日本初の黒人武士・弥助〜信長に仕え本能寺で巻き込まれたその後は? |trans-title=Japan's first black warrior, Yasuke-What happened after he served Nobunaga and got caught up in Honnoji? |url=https://bushoojapan.com/bushoo/oda/2023/02/22/14969 |access-date=12 September 2023 |website=Busho Japan |publisher=Tokyosha |language=ja |archive-date=19 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230919001439/https://bushoojapan.com/bushoo/oda/2023/02/22/14969 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="huffingtonpostyasuke" />


The Jesuit Luís Fróis wrote that while in the capital, a melee broke out among the local townsfolk who fought amongst themselves to catch a glimpse of Yasuke, breaking down the door of a Jesuit residence in the process and ended in a number of deaths and injuries among the Japanese.<ref name="ExcludedPresence">{{Cite journal |last=Russell |first=John G. |date=1 January 2007 |title=Excluded Presence: Shoguns, Minstrels, Bodyguards, and Japan's Encounters with the Black Other |url=https://repository.kulib.kyoto-u.ac.jp/dspace/bitstream/2433/71097/1/40_15.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Zinbun 40, Kyoto University |volume=40 |pages=15–51 |doi=10.14989/71097 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240517061605/https://repository.kulib.kyoto-u.ac.jp/dspace/bitstream/2433/71097/1/40_15.pdf |archive-date=17 May 2024 |access-date=19 May 2024 |quote=The most well-documented case is that Yasuke, a Mozambican brought to Japan by the Italian Jesuit Alessandro Valignano}}</ref><ref name="JapanForum" /> Luís Fróis's ''Annual Report on Japan'' states that Nobunaga also longed to see a black man, and summoned him.<ref name="JapanForum">{{Cite journal |last=Leupp |first=Gary P. |date=March 1995 |title=Images of black people in late medieval and early modern Japan 1543–1900 |url=http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09555809508721524 |journal=Japan Forum |language=en |volume=7 |issue=1 |pages=1–13 |doi=10.1080/09555809508721524 |issn=0955-5803 |access-date=19 May 2024 |archive-date=1 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230201053947/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09555809508721524 |url-status=live }}</ref> Fr. [[Gnecchi-Soldo Organtino|Organtino]] took Yasuke to Nobunaga, who upon seeing a black man for the first time, refused to believe that his skin color was natural and not applied later, and made him remove his clothes from the belt upwards.<ref name="theycametojapan" /> Valignano describes how Nobunaga, thinking that he might have ink on his body, made him take off his clothes and wash his body, but the more he washed and scrubbed, the darker his skin became.<ref name="huffingtonpostyasuke" />{{sfn|Fujita|2005|pp=8–9}} The ''[[Shinchō Kōki]]'' manuscript of the {{nihongo|''Sonkeikaku Bunko''|尊経閣文庫}} archives describes him as follows:
The Jesuit Luís Fróis wrote that while in the capital, a melee broke out among the local townsfolk who fought amongst themselves to catch a glimpse of Yasuke, breaking down the door of a Jesuit residence in the process and ended in a number of deaths and injuries among the Japanese.<ref name="ExcludedPresence">{{Cite journal |last=Russell |first=John G. |date=1 January 2007 |title=Excluded Presence: Shoguns, Minstrels, Bodyguards, and Japan's Encounters with the Black Other |url=https://repository.kulib.kyoto-u.ac.jp/dspace/bitstream/2433/71097/1/40_15.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Zinbun 40, Kyoto University |volume=40 |pages=15–51 |doi=10.14989/71097 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240517061605/https://repository.kulib.kyoto-u.ac.jp/dspace/bitstream/2433/71097/1/40_15.pdf |archive-date=17 May 2024 |access-date=19 May 2024 |quote=The most well-documented case is that Yasuke, a Mozambican brought to Japan by the Italian Jesuit Alessandro Valignano}}</ref><ref name="JapanForum" /> Luís Fróis's ''Annual Report on Japan'' states that Nobunaga also longed to see a black man, and summoned him.<ref name="JapanForum">{{Cite journal |last=Leupp |first=Gary P. |date=March 1995 |title=Images of black people in late medieval and early modern Japan 1543–1900 |url=http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09555809508721524 |journal=Japan Forum |language=en |volume=7 |issue=1 |pages=1–13 |doi=10.1080/09555809508721524 |issn=0955-5803 |access-date=19 May 2024 |archive-date=1 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230201053947/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09555809508721524 |url-status=live }}</ref> Fr. [[Gnecchi-Soldo Organtino|Organtino]] took Yasuke to Nobunaga, who upon seeing a black man for the first time, refused to believe that his skin color was natural and not applied later, and made him remove his clothes from the belt upwards.<ref name="theycametojapan" /> Valignano describes how Nobunaga, thinking that he might have ink on his body, made him take off his clothes and wash his body, but the more he washed and scrubbed, the darker his skin became.<ref name="huffingtonpostyasuke" />{{sfn|Fujita|2005|pp=8–9}}
The ''[[Shinchō Kōki]]'' manuscript of the {{nihongo|''Sonkeikaku Bunko''|尊経閣文庫}} archives describes him as follows:


{{blockquote|A {{nihongo|black bōzu|{{noitalics|黒坊主}}|kuro-bōzu}}{{efn|"Bōzu" means a monk, a kid, or a shaved head.}} from the Christian country has arrived. He appears to be 26 or 27 years old. The blackness of his body is like that of a bull, and he is healthy and of fine physique. Moreover, he has the strength of more than ten men. The padres came with him and thanked Lord Nobunaga for his permission to proselytize.<ref name="ndl14-2" /><ref name="intojapanwaraku28746" /><ref name="ExcludedPresence" />}}
{{blockquote|A {{nihongo|black bōzu|{{noitalics|黒坊主}}|kuro-bōzu}}{{efn|"Bōzu" means a monk, a kid, or a shaved head.}} from the Christian country has arrived. He appears to be 26 or 27 years old. The blackness of his body is like that of a bull, and he is healthy and of fine physique. Moreover, he has the strength of more than ten men. The padres came with him and thanked Lord Nobunaga for his permission to proselytize.<ref name="ndl14-2" /><ref name="intojapanwaraku28746" /><ref name="ExcludedPresence" />}}


[[File:Alessandro Valignano 2.jpg|thumb|[[Alessandro Valignano]], late 16th-century depiction]]
[[File:Alessandro Valignano 2.jpg|thumb|[[Alessandro Valignano]], late 16th-century depiction]]
Nobunaga was impressed by him and asked Valignano to give him over.<ref name="JapanForum" /> He gave him the Japanese name ''Yasuke'',{{efn|The origin of his name is unknown.}} made him an attendant at his side and enlisted Yasuke into his army as a samurai.<ref name="ExcludedPresence" /><ref name="Hitotsubashi">{{Cite journal |last=Wright |first=David |date=1998 |title=The Use of Race and Racial Perceptions Among Asians and Blacks: The Case of the Japanese and African Americans |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/43294433 |url-status=live |journal=Hitotsubashi Journal of Social Studies |volume=30 |issue=2 |pages=135–152 |issn=0073-280X |jstor=43294433 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230313173327/https://www.jstor.org/stable/43294433 |archive-date=13 March 2023 |access-date=19 May 2024 |quote=In 1581, a Jesuit priest in the city of Kyoto had among his entourage an African}}</ref> Nobunaga's nephew gave him a sum of money at this first meeting.{{Sfn|Lockley|2017|p=65}}<ref name="theycametojapan" />
Nobunaga was impressed by him and asked Valignano to give him over.<ref name="JapanForum" /> He gave him the Japanese name ''Yasuke'',{{efn|The origin of his name is unknown.}} made him an attendant at his side and enlisted Yasuke into his army.<ref name="ExcludedPresence" /><ref name="Hitotsubashi">{{Cite journal |last=Wright |first=David |date=1998 |title=The Use of Race and Racial Perceptions Among Asians and Blacks: The Case of the Japanese and African Americans |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/43294433 |url-status=live |journal=Hitotsubashi Journal of Social Studies |volume=30 |issue=2 |pages=135–152 |issn=0073-280X |jstor=43294433 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230313173327/https://www.jstor.org/stable/43294433 |archive-date=13 March 2023 |access-date=19 May 2024 |quote=In 1581, a Jesuit priest in the city of Kyoto had among his entourage an African}}</ref> Nobunaga's nephew gave him a sum of money at this first meeting.{{Sfn|Lockley|2017|p=65}}<ref name="theycametojapan" />


The ''Shinchō Kōki'' states:
The ''Shinchō Kōki'' states:
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A {{Nihongo||南蛮屏風|Nanban [[byōbu]]|[[folding screen]] featuring scenes of Europeans}} painted by [[Kanō Naizen]], a painter active in the same period, depicts dark-skinned followers holding parasols over Europeans.<ref name="newsyahoo20210519"/>
A {{Nihongo||南蛮屏風|Nanban [[byōbu]]|[[folding screen]] featuring scenes of Europeans}} painted by [[Kanō Naizen]], a painter active in the same period, depicts dark-skinned followers holding parasols over Europeans.<ref name="newsyahoo20210519"/>


Other references to people who appear to be African can be found in various records from other parts of Japan relating to this period, such as [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]] rewarding the Cafre{{efn|name="Cafre"}} for their dancing.<ref name="ndl14-2">{{Cite web |title=第14回 アフリカの日本、日本のアフリカ 第2章 日本に渡ったアフリカ人 |trans-title=Part 14: Japan in Africa, Africa in Japan Chapter 2: Africans who came to Japan |url=https://www.ndl.go.jp/kaleido/entry/14/2.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231023031849/https://www.ndl.go.jp/kaleido/entry/14/2.html |archive-date=23 October 2023 |access-date=12 September 2023 |website=本の万華鏡 |publisher=[[National Diet Library]] |language=ja}}</ref><ref name="Japaaan128493"/>
Other references to people who appear to be African can be found in various records from other parts of Japan relating to this period, such as [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]] rewarding the Cafre{{efn|name="Cafre"}} for their dancing.<ref name="ndl14-2" /><ref name="Japaaan128493"/>


==In popular culture==
==In popular culture==
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[[Category:Year of birth unknown]]
[[Category:Year of birth unknown]]
[[Category:16th-century Japanese people]]
[[Category:16th-century Japanese people]]
[[Category:Foreign samurai in Japan]]

Revision as of 02:11, 29 June 2024

For the anime based on him, see Yasuke (TV series).

Yasuke
BornMozambique (most likely)
DiedAfter June 1582
AllegianceJesuits, Alessandro Valignano
Oda clan, Oda Nobunaga (1581–1582)
Battles / wars

Yasuke (Japanese: 弥助 / 弥介, Japanese pronunciation: [jasɯ̥ke]) was a man of African origin[2][3] who served as a retainer to the Japanese daimyō Oda Nobunaga for a period of 15 months between 1581 and 1582, during the Sengoku period, until Nobunaga's death in the Honnō-ji Incident.[4][5]

There are few historical documents on Yasuke. From the fragmentary accounts, Yasuke first arrived in Japan in the service of Jesuit Alessandro Valignano.[6] He was summoned to Nobunaga after Nobunaga wished to see a black man.[6] Subsequently, Nobunaga took him into his service and gave him the name Yasuke. As a retainer, he was granted a stipend, a house, and a tantō.[5] Yasuke accompanied Nobunaga until his death and was present at the Honnō-ji Incident. Afterwards, Yasuke was sent back to the Jesuits. There are no records of him afterwards.

Birth and early life

Yasuke is the earliest known African to appear in Japanese historical records, though few records exist. Much of what is known about Yasuke appears in fragmentary accounts in the letters of the Jesuit missionary Luís Fróis, Ōta Gyūichi's Shinchō Kōki (信長公記, Nobunaga Official Chronicle), Matsudaira Ietada's Matsudaira Ietada Nikki (松平家忠日記, Matsudaira Ietada Diary), Jean Crasset's Histoire de l'église du Japon and François Solier's Histoire Ecclesiastique Des Isles Et Royaumes Du Japon.[7] His confirmed period of stay in Japan was about three years, from 17 August 1579 to 21 June 1582.[8]

The name Yasuke was given to him by Nobunaga.[9] His real name,[a] date of birth, family structure, place of birth, ethnicity and native language are unknown.[8]

Yasuke had African roots, and Luís Fróis wrote of Yasuke as Cafre[b] in his letters.[7] Crasset states that Yasuke was a servant brought from India when Alessandro Valignano came to Japan, while Solier states that he was from Portuguese East Africa (now Mozambique).[12][13][14] It has been suggested that Yasuke was likely a Muslim.[15]

Documented life in Japan

Oda Nobunaga, late 16th-century depiction

In 1579, Yasuke arrived in Japan in the service of the Italian Jesuit missionary Alessandro Valignano, Visitor of Missions in the Indies, in India.[6][13] Valignano had been appointed the Visitor (inspector) of the Jesuit missions in the Indies (which at that time meant East Africa, South, Southeast, and East Asia). Valignano's party spent the first two years of their stay in Japan, mainly in Kyushu.[7]

Entering 1581, Valignano decided to visit the capital Kyoto as an envoy. He wanted to have an audience with Oda Nobunaga, the most powerful man in Japan, to ensure the Jesuits' missionary work before leaving Japan.[7] These events are recorded in a 1581 letter Luís Fróis wrote to Lourenço Mexia, and in the 1582 Annual Report of the Jesuit Mission in Japan also by Fróis. These were published in Cartas que os padres e irmãos da Companhia de Jesus escreverão dos reynos de Japão e China II (1598), normally known simply as Cartas.[16][17] On 27 March 1581, Valignano, together with Luís Fróis, who had arrived in Japan earlier, had an audience with Nobunaga, and Yasuke is said to have accompanied them as an attendant.[8][18][5]

The Jesuit Luís Fróis wrote that while in the capital, a melee broke out among the local townsfolk who fought amongst themselves to catch a glimpse of Yasuke, breaking down the door of a Jesuit residence in the process and ended in a number of deaths and injuries among the Japanese.[2][6] Luís Fróis's Annual Report on Japan states that Nobunaga also longed to see a black man, and summoned him.[6] Fr. Organtino took Yasuke to Nobunaga, who upon seeing a black man for the first time, refused to believe that his skin color was natural and not applied later, and made him remove his clothes from the belt upwards.[17] Valignano describes how Nobunaga, thinking that he might have ink on his body, made him take off his clothes and wash his body, but the more he washed and scrubbed, the darker his skin became.[5][19] The Shinchō Kōki manuscript of the Sonkeikaku Bunko (尊経閣文庫) archives describes him as follows:

A black bōzu (黒坊主, kuro-bōzu)[c] from the Christian country has arrived. He appears to be 26 or 27 years old. The blackness of his body is like that of a bull, and he is healthy and of fine physique. Moreover, he has the strength of more than ten men. The padres came with him and thanked Lord Nobunaga for his permission to proselytize.[4][7][2]

Alessandro Valignano, late 16th-century depiction

Nobunaga was impressed by him and asked Valignano to give him over.[6] He gave him the Japanese name Yasuke,[d] made him an attendant at his side and enlisted Yasuke into his army.[2][3] Nobunaga's nephew gave him a sum of money at this first meeting.[20][17]

The Shinchō Kōki states:

A black man was taken on as a vassal by Nobunaga-sama and received a stipend. His name was decided to be Yasuke. He was also given a short sword and a house. He was sometimes made to carry Nobunaga-sama's tools.[5]

Father Lourenço Mexía wrote in a letter to Father Pero da Fonseca dated 8 October 1581:[21]

The black man understood a little Japanese, and Nobunaga never tired of talking with him. And because he was strong and could do a few tricks, Nobunaga took great pleasure in protecting him and had him roam around the city of Kyoto with an attendant. Some people in the town thought that Nobunaga might make him as tono ("lord").

After entering into Nobunaga's service, Yasuke followed Nobunaga to Azuchi Castle in Omi Province.[22] Yasuke next appears in historical records on 11 May 1582. The Ietada Diary of Matsudaira Ietada, a vassal of Tokugawa Ieyasu, mentions that Yasuke accompanied Nobunaga on his inspection tour of the region after he destroyed his long-time arch-enemy, the Takeda clan of Kai.[5][7] The description of 11 May 1582 states:

Nobunaga-sama was accompanied by a black man who was presented to him by the missionaries and to whom he gave a stipend. His body was black like ink and he was 6 shaku 2 bu [182.4 cm or near 6 feet] tall. His name was said to be Yasuke.

On 14 May, Yasuke departed for Echizen Province with Fróis and the other Christians.[e][23] They returned to Kyoto on 30 May.[24]

The Honnō-ji Incident

On 21 June 1582, Oda Nobunaga was betrayed and attacked by his senior vassal Akechi Mitsuhide in the Honnō-ji Incident and Yasuke was serving near Nobunaga at this time.[25] After his lord was forced to commit suicide, Yasuke was captured and later released.[3] He later went to Nijō Shin-gosho, the residence of Nobunaga's heir, Nobutada, where he engaged the Akechi forces and eventually surrendered.[18][25] After being defeated, Nobutada also committed seppuku.[26]

A black man whom the visitor [Valignano] sent to Nobunaga went to the house of Nobunaga's son after his death and was fighting for quite a long time, when a vassal of Akechi approached him and said, "Do not be afraid, give me that sword", so he gave him the sword. The vassal asked Akechi what should be done with the black man, and he said, "A black slave is an animal (bestial) and knows nothing, nor is he Japanese, so do not kill him, and place him in the custody at the cathedral of Padre in India."[5][22]

There are no historical documents to show the true meaning of Mitsuhide's statement, and it is not known whether it was a sign of his discriminatory mindset or an expedient to save Yasuke's life.[5][27]

As a result, Yasuke was sent to the Nanban-ji and treated by Jesuit missionaries.[5][7] It is certain that Yasuke did not die, as Luís Fróis wrote five months after the Honnō-ji Incident, thanking God that he did not lose his life.[7] However, there are no historical sources about him since then and it is not clear what happened to him afterwards.[5][22]

Possible depictions of Yasuke

Sumō Yūrakuzu Byōbu, drawn in 1605

Sumō Yūrakuzu Byōbu (相撲遊楽図屏風, Sakai City Museum collection), drawn in 1605 by an anonymous artist, depicts a dark-skinned man wrestling a Japanese man in the presence of noble samurai. There are various theories regarding the work: some believe that this samurai is Oda Nobunaga or Toyotomi Hidetsugu, while others believe that the dark-skinned man wrestling in the center is Yasuke and the one to his right, playing the role of a gyōji, is Oda Nobunaga.[22][27][28]

Rimpa-style suzuri-bako, depicting a dark-skinned man in Portuguese clothing

An ink-stone box (suzuri-bako) made by a Rinpa artist in the 1590s, owned by Museu do Caramulo [pt], depicts a black man wearing Portuguese high-class clothing. Author Thomas Lockley argues that it could be Yasuke, as he does not appear to be subservient to the other Portuguese man in the work.[29]

However, none of these theories are supported by firm historical evidence. Therefore, it is not possible to determine with certainty whether any of these works depicts Yasuke.[22] Human trafficking was rampant in the world at the time, and it was not uncommon for individual Africans and other people from European colonial areas to come to Japan as followers and slaves of Jesuit missionaries and visitors.[5][8]

Nanban byōbu (painted by Kano Naizen), Europeans and their African followers

A Nanban byōbu (南蛮屏風, folding screen featuring scenes of Europeans) painted by Kanō Naizen, a painter active in the same period, depicts dark-skinned followers holding parasols over Europeans.[25]

Other references to people who appear to be African can be found in various records from other parts of Japan relating to this period, such as Toyotomi Hideyoshi rewarding the Cafre[b] for their dancing.[4][22]

  • In 1968, author Yoshio Kurusu and artist Genjirō Mita published a children's book about Yasuke titled Kurosuke (くろ助). The following year, the book won the Japanese Association of Writers for Children Prize (日本児童文学者協会賞, Nihon Jidō Bungakusha Kyōkai-shō).[30][31][32]
  • Yasuke inspired the 1971 satirical novel Kuronbō (黒ん坊) by Shūsaku Endō.[33][34]
  • Yasuke appears in the 2008 novel Momoyama Beat Tribe (桃山ビート・トライブ) as one of the main characters. This novel was later made into a play in 2017.[35]
  • Yasuke plays a minor role in the 2005 to 2017 manga series Hyouge Mono by Yoshihiro Yamada.[36]
  • Yasuke is featured in the 2016 to 2020 manga series Nobunaga o Koroshita Otoko (信長を殺した男, "The Man Who Killed Nobunaga") by Akechi Kenzaburō and Yutaka Tōdō.[36]
  • Yasuke appears as Alessandro Valignano's servant in volume 29 of the ongoing manga series Nobunaga no Shefu (信長のシェフ, "Nobunaga's Chef") by Takurō Kajikawa.[36]
  • The ongoing time-travel manga series Nobunaga Concerto by Ayumi Ishii portrays Yasuke as a Black baseball player from the present day.[36]
  • Yasuke was the inspiration for Takashi Okazaki's Afro Samurai franchise.[30]
  • The 2017 video game Nioh and its 2020 sequel feature a fictional portrayal of Yasuke, voiced by Richie Campbell.[34][37]
  • In March 2017, Lionsgate announced plans for a live-action film about Yasuke titled Black Samurai. Michael De Luca and Stephen L'Heureux would serve as producers in a co-production between De Luca Productions and Solipsist Films, with Gregory Widen as the screenwriter.[38] In May 2019, Deadline reported that the film, retitled Yasuke, had left Lionsgate for Picturestart, with Doug Miro replacing Widen as the screenwriter. Chadwick Boseman signed on to portray Yasuke in the film and to serve as a co-producer through his production company, Xception Content.[39][40] In August 2020, Boseman died of colon cancer.[41] As of September 2021, Picturestart's official website states that the film is "in development".[42]
  • In April 2019, MGM announced plans for their own live-action film about Yasuke, to be produced by Andrew Mittman and Lloyd Braun of Whalerock Industries, with a script written by Stuart C. Paul.[43]
  • Yasuke is the main protagonist in the 2021 Netflix anime series Yasuke, created by LeSean Thomas and animated by MAPPA. He is voiced by Jun Soejima in Japanese and LaKeith Stanfield in English.[44][45]
  • Koei Tecmo's 2021 video game Samurai Warriors 5 includes Yasuke as a playable character, voiced by Paddy Ryan.[46]
  • A black samurai inspired by Yasuke, named Nagoriyuki, appears in Arc System Works' 2021 fighting game Guilty Gear Strive.[47]
  • In February 2023, the Brazilian samba school Mocidade Alegre of the São Paulo city carnival performed a samba-song about Yasuke, winning that year's competition.[48]
  • In April 2024, a new feature film spec script titled Black Samurai written by Blitz Bazawule was acquired by Warner Bros. for Bazawule to direct.[49]
  • On 15 May 2024, Ubisoft announced that a fictionalized Yasuke would be a primary character in the upcoming video game Assassin's Creed Shadows.[50] This caused controversy, with some fans complaining that he was not a "real" samurai and criticizing Ubisoft for creating a game set in Japan with one of the leading characters not being Japanese.[51]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Thomas Lockley suggests that Nobunaga may have heard Valignano's group pronounce the name "Isake" (Jewish name "Isaac") and named him "Yasuke", or that Nobunaga may have learnt that Yasuke was from the Yao people of northern Mozambique and added suke, a common Japanese male name, to his name, making it "Yaosuke" (shortened then to "Yasuke"). In 2013, a Japanese TBS television program titled Sekai Fushigi Hakken! (世界ふしぎ発見!, "Discovery of the World's Mysteries!") suggested that Yasuke was a Makua named "Yasufe".[10] However, these are their speculations and have no basis.[11]
  2. ^ a b "Cafre" is a word of Arabic origin and referred to the inhabitants of the area around the east coast of Africa (Swahili Coast) at the time.
  3. ^ "Bōzu" means a monk, a kid, or a shaved head.
  4. ^ The origin of his name is unknown.
  5. ^ Midori Fujita says that during this trip they met local warlords such as Shibata Katsutoyo, Hashiba Hidekatsu, and Shibata Katsuie.

References

Citations

  1. ^ Murakami, Naojiro; Yanagitani, Takeo (2002). イエズス会日本年報 上 [Society of Jesus – Japan Annual Report, First Volume]. New Foreign Country (in Japanese). Maruzen-Yushodo. ISBN 978-4-8419-1000-1.
  2. ^ a b c d Russell, John G. (1 January 2007). "Excluded Presence: Shoguns, Minstrels, Bodyguards, and Japan's Encounters with the Black Other" (PDF). Zinbun 40, Kyoto University. 40: 15–51. doi:10.14989/71097. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 May 2024. Retrieved 19 May 2024. The most well-documented case is that Yasuke, a Mozambican brought to Japan by the Italian Jesuit Alessandro Valignano
  3. ^ a b c Wright, David (1998). "The Use of Race and Racial Perceptions Among Asians and Blacks: The Case of the Japanese and African Americans". Hitotsubashi Journal of Social Studies. 30 (2): 135–152. ISSN 0073-280X. JSTOR 43294433. Archived from the original on 13 March 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2024. In 1581, a Jesuit priest in the city of Kyoto had among his entourage an African
  4. ^ a b c "第14回 アフリカの日本、日本のアフリカ 第2章 日本に渡ったアフリカ人" [Part 14: Japan in Africa, Africa in Japan Chapter 2: Africans who came to Japan]. 本の万華鏡 (in Japanese). National Diet Library. Archived from the original on 23 October 2023. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Ando, Kenji (6 May 2021). "織田信長に仕えた黒人武士「弥助」の生涯とは?ネトフリのアニメ『Yasuke -ヤスケ-』のモデルに" [What was the life of Yasuke, a black warrior who served Oda Nobunaga? The model for the Netflix anime Yasuke]. HuffPost (in Japanese). BuzzFeed Japan. Archived from the original on 19 September 2023. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  6. ^ a b c d e f Leupp, Gary P. (March 1995). "Images of black people in late medieval and early modern Japan 1543–1900". Japan Forum. 7 (1): 1–13. doi:10.1080/09555809508721524. ISSN 0955-5803. Archived from the original on 1 February 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h "ハリウッドで映画化!信長に仕えた黒人、弥助とは何者だったのか?" [Movie made in Hollywood! Who was Yasuke, a black man who served Nobunaga?]. WARAKU web (in Japanese). Shogakukan. 30 August 2019. Archived from the original on 19 September 2023. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  8. ^ a b c d "戦国時代にアフリカから日本へ? 織田信長に仕えた黒人従者「弥助」とは【前編】" [Did he come to Japan from Africa during the Sengoku period? Who is Yasuke, a black servant who served Oda Nobunaga? [Part 1]]. excite news (in Japanese). Excite Japan. 27 September 2020. Archived from the original on 19 September 2023. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  9. ^ Tsujiuchi, Makoto (1998). "Historical Context of Black Studies in Japan". Hitotsubashi Journal of Social Studies. 30 (2): 95–100. ISSN 0073-280X. JSTOR 43294431. Archived from the original on 19 May 2024. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
  10. ^ 信長最期の刻 — 本能寺にいた「漆黒のサムライ」を追え！ (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 11 June 2013. Retrieved 6 September 2013.
  11. ^ Lockley 2017, pp. 200–202
  12. ^ "Yasuke: le premier samouraï étranger était africain". Rfi.fr (in French). 2 January 2015. Archived from the original on 14 January 2020.
  13. ^ a b Crasset 1925, p. 384 (number of frames 207)
  14. ^ Solier, François (9 May 2024). Histoire ecclésiastique des isles et royaumes du Japon [Ecclesiastical History of the Isles and Kingdoms of Japan] (in French). Vol. 1. p. 444. Archived from the original on 6 April 2023. Retrieved 6 April 2023.
  15. ^ Morris, James Harry (2 January 2018). "Christian–Muslim Relations in China and Japan in the Sixteenth and Early Seventeenth Centuries". Islam and Christian–Muslim Relations. 29 (1): 37–55. doi:10.1080/09596410.2017.1401797. ISSN 0959-6410. Archived from the original on 18 May 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  16. ^ 1581 letters of the Jesuits Luís Fróis and Lorenço Mexia
  17. ^ a b c Cooper, Michael, ed. (1965). They came to Japan : an anthology of European reports on Japan, 1543–1640. Center for Japanese Studies, University of California, Berkeley. Berkley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. p. 71. ISBN 978-0-520-04509-5. OCLC 500169.
  18. ^ a b "日本初の黒人武士・弥助〜信長に仕え本能寺で巻き込まれたその後は?" [Japan's first black warrior, Yasuke-What happened after he served Nobunaga and got caught up in Honnoji?]. Busho Japan (in Japanese). Tokyosha. 22 February 2023. Archived from the original on 19 September 2023. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  19. ^ Fujita 2005, pp. 8–9.
  20. ^ Lockley 2017, p. 65.
  21. ^ Mexía, Lourenço. "Carta que o padre Lourenço Mexía escreueo de Funày ao padre Pero da Fonseca a oito de Outubro de 1581". Biblioteca Geral Digital. UNIVERSIDADE DE COIMBRA. Archived from the original on 24 May 2024. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  22. ^ a b c d e f "戦国時代にアフリカから日本へ? 織田信長に仕えた黒人従者「弥助」とは【後編】" [Did he come to Japan from Africa during the Sengoku period? Who is Yasuke, a black servant who served Oda Nobunaga? [Part 2]]. excite news (in Japanese). Excite Japan. 29 September 2020. Archived from the original on 19 September 2023. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  23. ^ Fujita 2005, pp. 7–8.
  24. ^ Fujita 2005, p. 8.
  25. ^ a b c Watanabe, Daimon (19 May 2021). "織田信長が登用した黒人武将・弥助とは、いったい何者なのか" [Who was Yasuke, the black warlord promoted by Oda Nobunaga?]. Yahoo! News (in Japanese). Yahoo! Japan. Archived from the original on 19 September 2023. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  26. ^ Turnbull, Stephen (2000). The Samurai Sourcebook. London: Cassell & C0. p. 231. ISBN 1854095234.
  27. ^ a b Ayukawa, Tetsuya (4 October 2020). "信長に仕え本能寺の変を生き延びた"黒人侍"" [Black Samurai who served Nobunaga and survived the Honnoji Incident]. Aera (in Japanese). The Asahi Shimbun Company. Archived from the original on 19 September 2023. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  28. ^ 『第八回特別展 すもう 天下の力士』、葛城市博物館、2007年10p
  29. ^ Lockley 2017, pp. 147–148
  30. ^ a b Jozuka, Eimiko (19 May 2019). "African samurai: The enduring legacy of a black warrior in feudal Japan". CNN. Archived from the original on 6 April 2023. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  31. ^ "Kuro-suke [Black One]". International Institute for Children's Literature, Osaka. Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  32. ^ くろ助. Digital Daijisen Plus (in Japanese). Shogakukan. Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 13 May 2021 – via Kotobank.
  33. ^ Bridges, Will (2020). "Genre Trouble: Breaking the Law of Genre and Literary Blackness in the Long 1970s". Playing in the Shadows: Fictions of Race and Blackness in Postwar Japanese Literature. Michigan Monograph Series in Japanese Studies. Vol. 88. University of Michigan Press. p. 137. ISBN 978-0-472-07442-6. Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 13 May 2021. ... Kuronbō (Darkie), Endō Shūsaku's (1923–96) 1971 satirical more-fiction-than-history historical fiction of Yasuke and Nobunaga?
  34. ^ a b Berlatsky, Noah (2 May 2021). "The Real Yasuke Is Far More Interesting Than His Netflix Show". Foreign Policy. Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
  35. ^ 舞台「桃山ビート・トライブ Momoyama Beat Tribe」. Mottorekishi.com. Archived from the original on 14 May 2021. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
  36. ^ a b c d Kayama, Ryūji (29 April 2021). Netflixアニメ『Yasuke -ヤスケ-』の主人公・弥助、マンガの世界ではどう描かれてきた？. Yahoo! Japan (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 9 April 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
  37. ^ "Yasuke Voice – Nioh (Video Game)". behindthevoiceactors.com. Archived from the original on 8 April 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2022. Check mark indicates role has been confirmed using screenshots of closing credits and other reliable sources.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
  38. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (23 March 2017). "Lionsgate Taps 'Highlander' Creator Gregory Widen To Script Film On First Black Samurai". Deadline. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
  39. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (7 May 2019). "Chadwick Boseman To Play African Samurai 'Yasuke' In Deal With Picturestart, De Luca Productions, Solipsist & X●ception Content". Deadline. Archived from the original on 31 December 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  40. ^ Vlessing, Etan (7 May 2019). "Chadwick Boseman to Star in Samurai Drama 'Yasuke'". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
  41. ^ Yamato, Jen (28 August 2020). "'Black Panther' star Chadwick Boseman dies of cancer at 43". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 11 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
  42. ^ "Yasuke: Not just an action movie, a cultural event". Picturestart. Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 22 September 2021.
  43. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (18 April 2019). "MGM Sets Film On 'Yasuke', History's Sole African Samurai". Deadline. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
  44. ^ "Yasuke Anime Unveils Japanese Cast With New Teaser". Anime News Network. 13 April 2021. Archived from the original on 14 April 2021. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  45. ^ Armstrong, Vanessa (1 April 2021). "Netflix's epic Yasuke trailer finds LaKeith Stanfield as a reluctant ronin in magic & mech-filled Japan". Syfy Wire. Archived from the original on 2 April 2021. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  46. ^ Romano, Sal (23 April 2021). "Samurai Warriors 5 adds Nobunaga Oda (Mature), Mitsuhide Akechi (Mature), Hanzo Hattori, Sandayu Momochi, Magoichi Saika, and Yasuke". Gematsu. Archived from the original on 8 April 2023. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
  47. ^ Walker, Ian (26 June 2021). "Guilty Gear Strive's Vampire Samurai Says Black Lives Matter". Kotaku. Archived from the original on 22 July 2023. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
  48. ^ "Watch: Sao Paulo carnival champions tell the story of Mozambique's Yasuke, who was a samurai in Japan". Club of Mozambique. 23 February 2023. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
  49. ^ Jackson, Angelique (10 April 2024). "Warner Bros. Lands 'Black Samurai' Movie From 'The Color Purple' Director Blitz Bazawule (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 10 April 2024. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  50. ^ Assassin's Creed Shadows: Who Are Naoe and Yasuke?. Ubisoft. 15 May 2024. Archived from the original on 15 May 2024. Retrieved 15 May 2024 – via YouTube.
  51. ^ Lee, Chantelle (16 May 2024). "Assassin's Creed Fans Slam Decision to Include Black Samurai in Feudal Japan Story". Time. Archived from the original on 17 May 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.

Sources

Further reading

  • Matsuda, Kiichi, ed., Jūroku-jūnanaseiki Iezusukai Nihon Hōkokushuu, Hōdōsha, 1987–1998.
  • Ōta, Gyūichi, Shinchō Kōki, 1622.
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