"Otsue" - Otsue

Japanese: 《大津絵》 - おおつえ

...Initially, all paintings were Buddhist paintings such as "Tenjin," "Thirteen Buddhas," "Shomen Kongo," and "Raigo Amida," which were used in daily worship by common people, and were not simply for viewing, but around the Genroku period (1688-1704), paintings with secular themes also began to appear. The popularity of Otsu-e increased due to its humorous content, which contained allegorical satire of the social situation, and Buddhist paintings were suppressed, and eventually they disappeared. The themes of secular paintings, which had strengthened the caricature element, were gradually selected and limited to the following ten types, which were sung about in the popular song "Otsu-e-bushi." ...

From [Otsue-bushi]

...It was previously called "Otsu's famous Niagari" and is said to have first been sung by prostitutes in the pleasure district of Shibaya-cho when Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture, was still a post town. The original song was a compilation of the subject matter of a single painting of a ward off misfortune that was sold as a souvenir in the area. As it became popular, many alternative versions were written, and it is also called "Otsu-e" for short, and is widely known throughout the region. [Tateno Zenji]...

From [Otsu Emono]

...A general term for Shosagoto performances based on Otsu-e paintings. In many cases, the people and animals in the paintings appear and dance.

*Some of the terminology used in reference to "Otsu-e" is listed below.

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

Japanese:

…初めは〈天神〉や〈十三仏〉，〈青面金剛〉や〈来迎阿弥陀〉など，庶民日常の礼拝に供される仏画がすべてで，単なる鑑賞用のものではなかったが，元禄年間(1688‐1704)を前後するころから世俗的な画題のものも登場してくるようになる。その世相風刺の寓意を宿したユーモラスな内容に，大津絵の人気はますます高まり，仏画は圧迫されて，ついには姿を消すようになる。戯画的な要素を強めた世俗画の画題もしだいに淘汰されて，俗謡〈大津絵節〉にうたい込まれた，下記の10種類にまで限定されるようになる。…

【大津絵節】より

…以前は〈大津の名物二上り〉といわれ，現在の滋賀県大津市がまだ宿場町であったころ，遊里柴屋町の妓女たちが歌いだしたのが初めといわれている。同地の土産として売られていた，災厄よけの一枚絵の画題をつづり合わせた内容が元歌で，流行とともに多くの替歌が作られ，略して〈大津絵〉ともいい，各地方に広く伝えられている。【舘野善二】。…