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...The nakama of the samurai in the Kamakura and Muromachi periods were described as "bearing the lord's bow, arrows, sword, etc., and accompanying him, and also acting as guards, etc." ("Sokyo Shokusho"), or "wearing a folded eboshi hat and a small kimono, a large shawl over a naoshi garment, and a large hakama over a large kimono" ("Tamakima" and others), and they were called onakama and served as messengers for the lord's enforcement. While samurai (tonobara, wakato, kasemono, etc.) had surnames, nakama were described as "those without surnames" ("Kobayakawa Family Documents"). In the Sengoku period, in rural areas, it was considered an honor and reward for farmers to be promoted from Nakama to Sakemono to Samurai, as in "If you are a peasant, make you a kazmono; if you are a peasant, make you a Nakama" (Kino documents), and there were generally four ranks of servants for samurai families: Samurai, Nakama, Komono, and Arako, as in "All servants, not to mention samurai, from Nakama to Komono" (Omi Mizuguchi Kato family documents).

*Some of the terminology explanations that mention "Kasamono" are listed below.

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

…鎌倉･室町期の武家の中間は〈主人の弓･箭･剣等を持ちて御供に候し，また警護等のことをつとむ〉(《相京職鈔》)とか，〈折烏帽子に小結して，直衣に大帷をかさね，袴に大口をかさねて著るが中間〉とされ(《玉勝間》ほか)，御中間といわれて領主の強制執行などの使者もつとめた。侍(殿原（とのばら）･若党･かせ者など)が名字をもつのにたいして，中間は〈名字なき者〉とされた(《小早川家文書》)。戦国期の農村では，〈ちうげんならばかせものになし，百姓ならばちうげんになす〉(《児野文書》)というように，農民が中間からかせ者へと侍身分に取り立てられるのが名誉･恩賞とされ，〈諸奉公人，侍のことは申すに及ばず，中間･小者･あらし子に至るまで〉(《近江水口加藤家文書》)というように，武家の奉公人には侍，中間，小者，荒子の四つの身分序列が一般的に成立していた。…

※「かせ者」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