Tsukuda Island

The old name of a district on the left bank of the Sumida River in the southeast of Chuo Ward, Tokyo. It was an island formed by a delta at the mouth of the Sumida River where it splits into a tributary called the Harumi Canal, but later land reclamation made it connected to Ishikawajima to the north and Tsukishima to the south. It is currently Tsukuda 1-chome, and Ishikawajima corresponds to Tsukuda 1-2-chome. It was once a small nameless island, but in the early Edo period, Magoemon, the headman of Tsukuda village in Nishinari County, Settsu (Osaka Prefecture), who had a connection with Tokugawa Ieyasu, moved there with over 30 fishermen and named the island after his hometown. Tsukudani is made by boiling down the leftover small fish from icefish presented to the shogun and fish delivered to feudal lords, and has remained a specialty of Edo to this day. In 1646 (Shoho 3), Sumiyoshi Shrine was built to enshrine a branch of Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine in Osaka, and the Tsukuda bayashi music played during the festival was considered one of the three major Edo music festivals. The fishing town has escaped many disasters and continues to convey the atmosphere of Edo to this day. The Tsukuda ferry crossing between Akashicho on the opposite bank was the last ferry across the Sumida River and continued to operate until 1964 (Showa 39), but was abolished when the Tsukuda Ohashi Bridge was completed.

[Kiyoshi Sawada]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

東京都中央区南東部、隅田(すみだ)川左岸にある旧地区名。隅田川が晴海(はるみ)運河とよぶ支流と分かれる河口の三角州からなる島であったが、その後の埋立てで、北の石川島、南の月島と地続きになった。現在の佃1丁目にあたり、石川島は佃1～2丁目にあたる。かつて名もなき小島であったが、江戸初期、徳川家康との縁故によって、摂津（大阪府）西成郡佃村の名主孫右衛門(まごえもん)が漁夫30余名を連れて移住し、郷里の名を島名とした。将軍家献上のシラウオや諸侯に納めた魚類の残りの雑魚(ざこ)を味つけして煮つめたのが佃煮で、江戸名物として現在に至っている。1646年（正保3）大坂の住吉大社の分霊を祀(まつ)る住吉神社が建立され、祭りの際の佃囃子(ばやし)は江戸三大囃子の一つとされた。漁師町は幾多の災害を免れ、江戸の情緒を今日まで伝えている。対岸の明石町(あかしちょう)との間の佃の渡しは、最後の隅田川の渡しとして1964年（昭和39）まで続いたが、佃大橋の完成で廃止された。

［沢田　清］

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