Commercial Chigyo System - Akinai Bachigyosei

... In the early modern period, the Matsumae clan directly controlled the Wajin territories in the southern part of the Oshima Peninsula, and divided the rest of the coastal area of ​​Hokkaido into territories called "basho" corresponding to the territories controlled by each Ainu tribe, and distributed the exclusive right to trade with the Ainu in the basho as a fief to its higher-ranking vassals. This is considered to be a trading ground (aki-nai-ba) chigyo system in which the Matsumae clan itself distributed the exclusive right to trade in Ezochi, which it had been given by the Edo Shogunate, to its vassals. These vassals who held the basho dispatched trading ships to the basho every year, and sold the special products they obtained from the Ainu (dried salmon, dried herring, fried sea cucumber, kelp, bear skin, etc.) in Esashi, Matsumae (Fukuyama), and Hakodate to make money, and the Matsumae clan also used the import and export tax (Okinokuchi tax) imposed on merchant ships (Kitamae ships) that entered the three ports as a source of revenue. ...

*Some of the terminology used in reference to the "business domain chigyo system" is listed below.

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

…　近世初頭，松前藩は渡島（おしま）半島南部の和人地を直轄するとともに，それ以外の北海道の海岸部を，アイヌの各部族の支配領域に対応させて〈場所〉という領域に区分し，場所のアイヌとの交易独占権を上級家臣に知行として分与した。これは松前藩自体が江戸幕府から与えられた蝦夷地交易独占権を，家臣に分与した商場（あきないば）知行制とみられる。こうした場所持の家臣は毎年場所に交易船を派遣し，アイヌより得た特産物(干しザケ，干しニシン，煎海鼠（いりこ），コンブ，熊の皮など)を江差，松前(福山)，箱館で換金して収入源とし，松前藩は3港に入港する商船(北前船)に移出入税(沖ノ口口銭)を課して財源とした。…

※「商場知行制」について言及している用語解説の一部を掲載しています。

出典｜株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典 第２版について | 情報