Storehouse - Shimotaya

Japanese: 仕舞屋 - しもたや

This word is derived from "shimo-utaya," which means a house that has closed down, and refers to a house that is not doing business. In Ihara Saikaku's "Sekenmunazanyo" (1692), it says, "The exterior is made of latticework, and looks like a shima-futaya," but it often refers to houses in commercial areas where shops are lined up, so it is strange to call a house in a residential area "shimo-taya." In addition, in "Kiyu Shoran," it says, "Although the old-fashioned goods shop is called a shima-mono shop, it is actually a shop that buys and sells the belongings of people who have changed their status," and old-fashioned goods were sometimes called "shimo-mono" in the sense of unnecessary items that come with closing down a store.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

店じまいをした家の意の〈仕舞（しも）うた屋〉から変わった言葉で，商売をしていない家をいう。井原西鶴の《世間胸算用（せけんむなざんよう）》(1692)に〈表面（おもてむき）は格子作りに，しまふた屋と見せて〉とあるが，商店などの立ち並ぶ商業地域内の住宅をさすことが多く，住宅地内の住宅を〈しもたや〉と呼ぶのはおかしい。なお，《嬉遊笑覧》には〈そのかみ古道具やを仕舞物（しまいもの）店といへるも身分をかへなどしたる者の家財をかひ取て売ものなり〉とあり，店じまいにともなう不用品の意味で，古道具類を〈仕舞物〉と呼ぶこともあった。

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

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