Tanikaze Kajinosuke - Tanikaze Kajinosuke

Japanese: 谷風梶之助 - たにかぜ・かじのすけ

Year of death: January 9, 1795 (February 27, 1795)
Year of birth: 1750
A sumo wrestler from the mid-Edo period. His name is still synonymous with excellent wrestlers today, 200 years later. Born a farmer in Kasuminome Village, Miyagi County, Mutsu Province (now Sendai City). His real name was Kaneko Yoshiro. He trained in sumo under the care of the Shiroishi Domain. In 1769, he was promoted to Ozeki (ranked Ozeki). Before him, there had been 12 wrestlers who bore the name Tanikaze, but after Tanikaze appeared, the name Tanikaze always referred to Tanikaze of Sendai. In the Meiji period, Ooba Man'emon, a large man from Oshu who became a Yokozuna, was asked to take on the name, but he did not accept, and Ozeki Komagatake also declined. Tanikaze received his Yokozuna license in 1789, along with Onogawa Kisaburo. He was the fourth Yokozuna in history. He was 189 cm tall and 169 kg, and overweight. He was spoken of by storytellers as a virtuous man, and all the bad rumors about him were pinned on his rival Onogawa. In 1899, he died of influenza while still in his prime as a Yokozuna. For this reason, influenza is called Tanikaze. He fought in 44 tournaments over 27 years, losing 14 times. He won 63 tournaments in a row (98 consecutive wins if you include the Kyoto and Osaka tournaments). At the time, there were many draws and no-contests, so this number is legendary. When Onogawa defeated Tanikaze, it became news in the contemporary era, and is written in the Tenmei Kyoka poems as follows: "Onogawa, whose skilled hands are like a mantis, cries of "Katsu and Kuruma-no-tsu" (Sugae) and "Tanikaze, Onogawa, who lost, lost, said, and the rumor was that Katsu was more precious than Oda's" (Akaryo).

(Tsurumi Shunsuke)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

没年：寛政7.1.9(1795.2.27)
生年：寛延3(1750)
江戸時代中期の力士。その名はすぐれた力士の代名詞として200年後の今日も通用している。陸奥国宮城郡霞目村(仙台市)の農夫出身。本名金子与四郎。白石藩にかかえられて相撲の修業をした。明和6(1769)年大関(看板大関)付け出し。この人の前に谷風を名のる力士が12人いたが,この谷風があらわれてからは,谷風といえば仙台の谷風をさす。明治に入っておなじ奥州出身の大男で横綱となった大砲万右衛門がこの名をつぐようにと声がかかったが受けず,大関駒ケ岳も断った。谷風は寛政1(1789)年,小野川喜三郎と共に横綱免許を受けた。史上第4代横綱。189cm,169kg,肥満型である。講談師に有徳の人として語りつたえられて,悪いうわさはすべて対立する小野川にかぶされた。寛政7年流行性感冒のため現役の横綱のまま死去。このためインフルエンザを谷風と呼ぶ。27年間44場所をつとめ負けは14回。連勝63(京坂場所をいれると98連勝)。当時は引き分けと無勝負あずかりが多かったので,伝説としての数字である。小野川が谷風に勝つとこれは同時代のニュースとなり,天明狂歌に「手練せし手を蟷螂がおの川やかつと車のわつといふ声」(菅江),「谷風はまけたまけたと小野川がかつをよりねの高いとり沙汰」(赤良)とよまれている。

(鶴見俊輔)

出典　朝日日本歴史人物事典：（株）朝日新聞出版朝日日本歴史人物事典について　情報

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