Tegami (English spelling) letter English

Japanese: 手紙 - てがみ（英語表記）letter 英語

A letter is a means of communication using pen and paper. More specifically, it is an act of a specific first party (sender) conveying the first party's purpose, intention, and feelings to a specific second party (receiver) through a third party (delivery person) in writing, poetry, or objects in accordance with certain rituals and customs.

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name

From ancient times to the early modern period, letters for men were called orai and letters for women were called shosoko. Orai is based on the phrase "Lishou orai" (ritual values esteem communication) from the Book of Rites, and is synonymous with shosoko (disappearing, being born). Both terms include the social consciousness that a reply to a letter sent or received is a courtesy. The term tegami dates back to the Edo period and means paper on which characters are written. In China, there are names for letters such as shokan (kan is bamboo card), shokan (kan is bird quill), sekitoku (sekitoku is wooden board), sekiso (sekiso is white silk), suncho (sukiso is paper), ganshin (story of Su Wu), and riso (story of Lu Wang), which show the national character of valuing historical stories. It is interesting to see the difference in national character between Japanese people, who place great importance on social interaction, and those in the US.

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kinds

By content

There are three types of letters: ordinary letters, business letters, and official letters. These are letters used for daily correspondence, letters for commercial transactions, and notices from government agencies and public organizations.

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By type

There are letters, semi-letters, letters, and pseudo-letters. Letters are letters written in text, but in the Heian period, when the regent Fujiwara Norimichi wrote only "moon" to Koshikibu no Naishi, the reply was "wo." "Moon" means to sneak in when the moon rises, and "wo" is a reply of acceptance. Although it is not a text, it can be said to be a letter that has more meaning than a text. Semi-letters include those that only contain poetry and haiku, and those that mix text into them. Letters in the past included stone letters, bullet letters, flower letters, straw letters, cloth letters, signal letters, and picture letters, and were letters that used objects to communicate with each other. In modern times, there are those that use objects as a means of communication, such as photo telegrams, facsimile telegrams, and facsimiles. Mock letters are essays, impressions, travelogues, novels, commentaries, or promotional pieces written in letter form.

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By style

Styles such as shakuho style (pure Chinese), orai style (pseudo-Chinese), shosoku (Japanese style), mixed Japanese and Chinese, wajijyo, sorou style, literary style, and colloquial style all show changes that are based on the lifestyle and culture of each era.

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By application

Broadly speaking, letters can be divided into two types: social letters and announcement letters. Social letters include New Year's cards, congratulatory cards, get well cards, gift cards, announcement cards, invitation cards, wedding announcement cards, letters of critical illness, death notices, condolence cards, mourning greetings, travel news, and other random news. Business letters include letters of request, letters of inquiry, various notices, reminders, letters of thanks, and letters of apology.

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The History of Letters in Japan

Before the Nara period

Letters in Japan began with international official documents. The oldest is a sovereign letter (478) sent by Emperor Yuryaku to Emperor Shun of Song, written in pure Chinese on a tablet by a naturalized person. The next was a sovereign letter sent by Empress Suiko to Emperor Yang of Sui, entitled "The Son of Heaven where the sun rises sends a letter to the Son of Heaven where the sun sets, are you well?" (607), which was the first letter written in tablet form by a Japanese person (Prince Shotoku).

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Nara period

It was around this time that letters for personal use began to appear. Two Japanese letters written in Man'yōgana have been found among the documents in the Shoso-in Repository, but there are no precedents or successors. The Tokari Issei Zassho Yoryuaku, which Empress Kōmyo used as a model for her calligraphy, is also a model for letters for correspondence, and letters of invitation such as requests for employment as a sutra copyist, notices of absence, and requests for supplies are seen as a variation of the shakupō style, and influenced later generations. Additionally, the 17 shakupō-bun letters (728-749) written by Otomo no Tabito and seven other people, which appear in the kotobagaki (notes) of poems in the Man'yōshū, are the oldest known examples of practical and literary personal letters.

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Heian Period

Heian period letters are found in stories, diaries and essays. The oldest story, "The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter," contains five letters. The letters written by Princess Kaguya to the Emperor and the Bamboo Cutter are masterpieces of female communication. There are also two letters written by a Chinese merchant and one by a Japanese craftsman, all of which have the content of today's business letters. Reflecting the rise of Chinese poetry and prose, there is "Honcho Monzui," which contains some Tang-style shakufu writing, and then "Meigou Ourai" (Messages from Unshu), a collection of examples of writing in the pseudo-Chinese style for men's correspondence, which popularized this, and shows a glimpse of the writing of a shogun. On the other hand, with the rise of the popularity of kana characters, waka poetry, and Japanese literature, women who wrote in the Japanese style left behind beautiful writing in "The Tale of Genji" and other stories and diaries. In particular, "The Dragonfly Diary" from the mid-Heian period and "The Tale of Genji" from the later period are twin masterpieces of writing that make use of the characteristics of the Japanese language, which is a rough language. Their letters often use honorific language, are well-formed, and have the feel of a samurai style with a short and long-winded style.

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Kamakura and Muromachi Periods

Set against the backdrop of the decline of the aristocratic class and the rise of the samurai class, "Azuma Kagami" contains correspondence written in pseudo-Chinese, as well as Japanese letters written in a mixture of Japanese and Chinese between samurai and their wives and children, both of which became the basis for shobun. Dozens of correspondences, such as "Kirei Mondo," which further popularized the correspondence style, became common knowledge readers that listed the names of things. In the Muromachi period, the syntax, format, style, terminology, letter thank-you notes, delivery, calligraphy, and other aspects of letters showed a certain degree of perfection.

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Edo period

Letter writing styles also varied, from correspondence aimed at townspeople, to the formal Japanese-Chinese mixed style used by scholars and samurai, to Japanese-style letters used by ordinary women. Correspondence letters increasingly became popular, with each book likening its contents to one or several dozen letters, and came to be used to impart knowledge to children through letter-writing guidelines and lists of names of things. Most were created for calligraphy as well, but they served as textbooks for children in temple schools and among the townsfolk up until the early Meiji period. Advances in delivery methods, particularly through the courier system, made letter-writing in this period remarkable.

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Meiji and Taisho era

The Meiji era was the era of kobun. With the spread of the new education system, boys were taught kobun in a style that combined elegance and vulgarity, while girls were taught kobun in a style of beautiful writing, and many guidebooks on how to write letters and literary standards were published. Famous individual letter writers include Takayama Chogyu, Omachi Keigetsu, Takekoshi Yosaburo, Masaoka Shiki, Kunikida Doppo, Natsume Soseki, Higuchi Ichiyo, and Yosano Akiko. In the 1880s, letter paper imitating imported letter paper came to be used along with scroll paper. The Taisho era was an era of colloquial writing, in which the writing styles of men and women became closer, and stationery also shifted from scroll paper and calligraphy to letter paper and pen.

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Showa era

In the Showa era, there was a strong trend towards a decline in korobun and an increase in colloquial writing, but after the outbreak of the Manchurian Incident in 1931 (Showa 6), leading up to the Pacific War, Japanese things were revisited, and calligraphy, scroll paper, and korobun were revived for official, business, and personal use, and language became even more formal. However, after Japan's defeat in 1945, Japanese traditions were ignored, and the country was swept away by a number of trends, including incomplete kanji for daily use, the implementation of modern kana spelling, ambiguous rules for okurigana, and the careless adoption of colloquial writing styles pioneered by government agencies, resulting in unprecedented confusion in the national language. Korobun has disappeared, and letters have become colloquial, but a new style that reflects the sense of the times has not yet taken shape. Horizontal writing has become more prominent in the body of the letter, on the front of envelopes, and on postcards, but there is still no rule that seems to follow.

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History of Letters around the World

Ancient

Letters have existed since ancient Egypt and Babylonia, but most were for official use due to the inconvenience of inscribing them on clay tablets. In contrast, the discovery of papyrus in Egypt has highlighted the large number of everyday letters.

The number of letters increased with the development of the postal delivery system, but this system developed in powerful nations with vast territories and colonies. Thus, the postal delivery system (cursus publicus) was more developed in the ancient Roman Empire, where the communication between the colonies was a key part of the complex administrative and military system, than in ancient Greece, which was highly cultured but self-sufficient in small city-states. It was a truly excellent system, with mail being sent at a speed of 272 kilometers per day, and no other postal delivery system surpassed it in Europe until the 19th century. The style of Roman official mail, such as imperial decrees, is characterized by drawing general principles from individual cases and making decisions, and this style was passed down from the letters of the Apostle Paul to the bishop's notices of the Pope. The style of letters written by Cicero, Seneca, Pliny the Younger, and others, as well as the epistolary poetry of Ovid and Horace, became models for European writers in the future. In addition to parchment and papyrus, the Romans also used wax-coated boards on which they wrote letters with an iron stylus, which they also used as a knife for self-defense, and which later became the origin of the word style.

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middle ages

In the Middle Ages, commercial mail rapidly increased with the development of guilds, and each guild established a messenger system (for example, the Metzger Post of the butchers' guild). The internationalization of commerce penetrated religious barriers even in the Middle Ages, when Venice even obtained permission from the Persian king to pass through Persian territory on its communication route to Constantinople (1320). Furthermore, in the late Middle Ages, the demand for mail increased, and the postal system became independent of the guilds and became a self-sustaining business. In the 16th century, the Taxis family had 20,000 couriers and controlled the postal network throughout Europe. However, governments around the world took notice of this boom and gradually began to try to monopolize the postal network. This trend made it possible to introduce delivery mechanisms such as stagecoaches in the late 18th century, railways and steamships in the mid-19th century, and airplanes in the early 20th century. Then, in the first half of the 19th century, the Englishman Rowland Hill abolished the distance-based postal rate system, instead developing a system in which a flat rate was charged regardless of distance and a pre-adhesive stamp was affixed. As a result, the simplification and efficiency of postal work accelerated. The International Postal Union (UPU) was also formed in the second half of the 19th century, and the internationalization of the postal delivery network began.

Now, letters from famous writers and politicians tend to survive for posterity, but letters from ordinary people rarely do. In this respect, the Paston Letters (1422-1509) are valuable. These letters, exchanged between members of a middle-class family in late medieval England, contain entirely mundane matters and give us a detailed glimpse into their daily lives.

The Middle Ages was generally a time of business correspondence and little literary correspondence, but it was also a time of rich emotion. Perhaps the best examples of this other side of the Middle Ages are the Latin letters exchanged between the famous 12th-century French tragic couple Abelard and Heloise, who were separated from each other and lived in a monastery and nunnery.

The representative collections of letters during the Renaissance are said to be the Anonymous Letters (1360) and other collections of letters by Petrarch, the pioneer of Italian humanism. Letters from this period were modeled mainly on those of Cicero and Pliny the Younger.

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From the 17th century onwards

The tradition of epistolary poetry reached its apex with the 18th century English poet Alexander Pope. He left behind several works modelled on Ovid and Horace, but his greatest work was The Letters of Dr Arbuthnot (1735), which satirised contemporary writers in the form of correspondence with a doctor friend. Another famous epistolary prose work is Pamela (1740) by the English writer Samuel Richardson, who lived around the same time. The epistolary style became a literary style in the 18th century as the postal delivery system was improved, allowing people to write idle chatter unrelated to business, and making intimate correspondence possible even among ordinary people. One of the models for letter writing was the collection of letters by Madame de Sévigné, who lived in high society in 17th century France. The Earl of Chesterfield's Letters to his Son (1774), which he continued to write to his son over a period of about 30 years, is famous for providing a glimpse into the lives of British aristocrats.

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others

China had a postal system as early as the Zhou dynasty (11th century BC - 249 BC), and during the Han dynasty, the country came into contact with the Roman Empire. In the 13th century, Marco Polo described the development of the Yuan dynasty's postal system, stating that there was nothing in Europe at the time that could compare to it. In addition, the Pony Express, led by Buffalo Bill and others, is famous for being the fastest mail delivery network in the New World of America (it traveled 3,136 km in eight days), but with the completion of the transcontinental telegraph network, this mission ended after just one year (1860-1861).

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How to write a letter

Format

A letter contains written and non-written parts.

The 21 elements of a formal sentence may seem complicated, but the structure is simple: the main part is divided into three parts: the preface, the main text, and the sub-text. The main text is divided into five parts: the salutation, the preface, the main text, the closing text, and the conclusion. The most informal form of an irregular sentence can be made up of seven or six elements: the salutation, the main text, the closing text (or simply the main text and the closing text), the date, the signature, the addressee, and the honorific. Today, it is not acceptable to be too rough, except in close relationships or in very simple cases. The standard form is about nine elements: the salutation, the preface (items 2 and 3), the main text, the closing text (items 1 and 2), the closing text, the date, the signature, the addressee, and the honorific. If the preface is written after the main text, it becomes an afterthought. Principal, CEO, Managing Director, and Section Chief are all job titles, so they are honorifics. "Onchu" is an honorific of the same rank as Sama and Dono, so it is correct to write it in the same size as the addressee.

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term

The written portion begins with a salutation. Until the Meiji and Taisho eras, letters began with "Dear Sir/Madam," and in modern letters, greetings such as "Professor Yoshino" or "Father" are used, but even these can be omitted. During this time of year, it is better to use lively greetings appropriate to the occasion rather than using set phrases. Regarding the recipient's safety, it is polite to sincerely ask if they are safe. For your own part, simply say that everyone is safe. The main text is the main part of the letter, and should be written clearly, concisely, and without losing respect. The closing text is a concluding greeting that makes clear the purpose of the letter. It is customary for the secondary text to be written in a slightly smaller size than the main text. Be careful, as there are taboo words in letters about good and bad luck.

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Letter paper format

Front and rear

Blank letter paper is the same size from front to back, with 2 to 3 centimeters of space between the pages.

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Up and down

When writing on lined paper, leave about half a character space above and below the lines to make the shape of the letter easier to see. When writing on unlined paper, leave about 3 to 4 centimeters space at the top and about two-thirds of that space at the bottom.

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First trip

On the first line of the main text, leave the entire space below "Dear" or just one or two spaces.

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Closing Statement

When the main text ends at the top of the line, write "Sincerely yours" two or three characters apart.

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date

The date should be written on the second line, starting from the third line. However, if there is a side note, the date should be written from the third line.

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Addressee and signature

The addressee's name should be written on the first line, one character down from the main text and one or two characters up from the date, and the signature should be written below that or slightly below the middle of the next line, with the bottom of the signature one or two characters up from the main text. The front matter format is the most appropriate form.

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Envelope Format

Start the addressee's name in the center of the front, leaving about two characters blank at the top, and write "sama" so that there is roughly the same amount of blank space below. Write the address, leaving one character blank at the top, and start with the name of the prefecture. The honorific title should be the same as the contents of the letter. Write the side note slightly smaller than the honorific and to the left of it. If possible, use one stamp in the upper left corner. Write your signature from about the middle of the center down on the back, in smaller characters than the addressee's name. Write the address in smaller characters to the right of the signature. The date should be in the blank space in the upper right corner. For the seal, use "〆", "ﾌﾞ", "緘", etc.

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How to seal

To fold letter paper, fold the completed paper in half from bottom to top with the letters on the inside, then fold the first fold in half again. To fold in thirds, fold one third from bottom to top, then fold the top third over that. When placing the letter in an envelope, whether it is a long envelope or a wide envelope, place the folded edge of the paper facing out and with the addressee on top.

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Postcard format

There are two types of postcards: official and private. Official postcards are usually divided into three types: postcards, reply postcards, and simple letters.

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Regular postcard

The format for a regular postcard is (1) on the front, write the address in the center, about one character down from the top, and write the address to the right of that, with the prefecture and city name in large letters. (2) The sender's address and name can be written on either the front or back at will, but on the front, they should be written below the stamp column. (3) The date should be written in small letters above the signature. (4) It is permitted to write the message in the lower half, with a line drawn on it. (5) The message should be written on the back. Leaving some room on the top, bottom, left and right, the entire page should contain five or six lines of 10 characters each, or at most 10 lines of 20 characters each.

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Return postcard

Correspondence is usually written in the same style as a postcard.

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Simple letter

It is a postcard letter paper that also doubles as an envelope, and has five writing surfaces, but only four of them can be used to hide correspondence. It would be convenient for sending letters while traveling.

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"Encyclopedia of Letters - Home Consultant (Home Series 5)" edited by Masao Hirai (1985, Shogakukan)

[Reference] | International Mail | Mail

Letter paper format
©Shogakukan ">

Letter paper format

Letter composition table (21 elements)
©Shogakukan ">

Letter composition table (21 elements)

Envelope Format
©Shogakukan ">

Envelope Format

How to seal an envelope
©Shogakukan ">

How to seal an envelope

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

手紙は筆と紙による通信手段である。詳しくいえば、特定の第一者（発信者）が特定の第二者（受信者）に対し、第一者の用件・意思・感情を文章、詩歌、物件などで一定の儀礼ならびに慣習に従い、第三者（配達人）を介して通達する行為である。

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名称

古代から近世まで、男子の手紙は往来、女子のは消息(しょうそこ)とよばれてきた。往来は『礼記(らいき)』の「礼尚往来」（礼は、往来を尚(たっと)ぶ）に基づくもので、消息(しょうそこ)（消えゆき、生まれきたる）と同義。ともに手紙は往信に対して返信のあるを礼とする社交意識を含んでいる。手紙の称は江戸時代からのもので、文字を書いた紙の意。中国には書簡（簡は竹札）、書翰(しょかん)（翰は鳥の羽ペン）、尺牘(せきとく)（牘は木板）、尺素(せきそ)（素は白絹）、寸楮(すんちょ)（楮は紙）、雁信(がんしん)（蘇武(そぶ)の故事）、鯉素(りそ)（呂望(ろぼう)の故事）などの称があり、故事を重んじた国民性をみせている。社交をたいせつにする日本人と、国民性の相違が現れていておもしろい。

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種類

内容別

普通書簡文、商業文、公用文の3種がある。日常往返の手紙、商業上の取引販売に用いる手紙、そして官公庁・公共団体の通達文書類である。

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形態別

書簡文、準書簡文、書簡物、擬書簡がある。書簡文は文章で書いた手紙であるが、平安時代に関白藤原教通(のりみち)が小式部内侍(こしきぶのないし)へ「月」とだけ書いてやると、返事は「を」とあった例がある。「月」は月の出るころに忍んでこよの意で、「を」は応諾の返事である。文章ではないが、文章以上の含みをもつ書簡文といっていい。準書簡文は詩歌・俳句だけのもの、それらに文を交えたものなどがある。書簡物は古くは石手紙、つぶて手紙、花手紙、蒿(わら)手紙、布手紙、烽火(のろし)手紙、絵手紙などがあり、物件をもって意思互通の手紙としたものである。現代では写真電報、模写電報、ファクシミリなど通信手段に物件を用いたものがある。擬書簡は、手紙の形式に託した論文、感想文、紀行文、小説、解説文、宣伝文の類である。

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文体別

尺牘体（純漢文）、往来体（擬漢文）、消息（和文体）、和漢混交文、和字状、候(そうろう)文、文語体、口語体などが、それぞれの時代の生活文化を背景とする変遷をみせている。

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用途別

大別して、社交の手紙と達用の手紙の2種に分けられる。社交の手紙には、年賀状、祝賀状、見舞状、贈答状、案内状、招待状、結婚披露状、危篤状、死亡通知状、悔み状、忌明け挨拶(あいさつ)状、旅の便り、つれづれの便りなどがある。用件の手紙には依頼状、照会状、各種通知状、催促状、感謝状、陳謝状などがある。

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日本の手紙の歴史

奈良時代以前

わが国の手紙は、国際公文書から出発した。最古のものは雄略(ゆうりゃく)天皇から宋(そう)の順帝に送った国書（478）であるが、これは帰化人の草した純漢文の尺牘体。ついで推古(すいこ)天皇が隋(ずい)の煬帝(ようだい)に送った国書「日出処天子致書日没処天子無恙。」（日出(ひい)ずるところの天子、書を日没(ひぼっ)するところの天子に致(いた)す、恙(つつが)なきや）（607）が、日本人（聖徳太子）の手による最初の尺牘体書簡である。

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奈良時代

私用の手紙の出始めたのはこのころになってからである。万葉仮名で書かれた和文の手紙が2通、正倉院文書のなかに発見されているが、先行も後続もない。光明(こうみょう)皇后が習字手本とした「杜家立成雑書要略(とかりっせいざっしょようりゃく)」は往来体の手紙の手本ともなり、写経生の採用依頼書、欠席届、要品請求状などの啓状は尺牘体くずしの文体ともみられ、あとの時代に影響を与えている。また『万葉集』の歌の詞書(ことばがき)にある大伴旅人(おおとものたびと)ら7人の17通の尺牘文（728～749）が、実用的で文芸味豊かな私用の手紙としてもっとも古いものである。

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平安時代

平安書簡は物語と日記と随筆のなかにある。最古の物語『竹取物語』には手紙が5通ある。かぐや姫から帝(みかど)と竹取の翁(おきな)へ書き残した手紙は女消息として名文である。ほかに唐商のもの2通、日本の工匠のもの1通があり、いずれも今日の商業書簡文の内容を備えている。また漢詩文の隆盛を反映して唐風尺牘文を一部に収めた『本朝文粋(もんずい)』があり、これを通俗化した擬漢文体の男子往来体の文例集『明衡往来(めいごうおうらい)』（雲州消息）が次いで現れ、也(なり)文体、男性侍(はべ)り文体の範を示し、候文の片鱗(へんりん)をもみせている。一方、仮名文字、和歌、和文の普及興隆に伴い、和文体の女子消息が『源氏物語』その他の物語、日記類に雅文仕立ての名文を残している。とくに平安中期の『蜻蛉(かげろう)日記』と、後期の『源氏物語』は、漆着(しっちゃく)語である日本語の特徴を生かした名文の双璧(そうへき)で、彼女らの手紙は敬語も多く、形式も整い、侍り文体で筆短意長の趣(おもむき)がある。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

鎌倉・室町時代

貴族階級の没落と武士階級の台頭を背景として『吾妻鏡(あづまかがみ)』には擬漢文の往来体のほか、和漢混交文による武士とその妻子間の和字状があり、ともに候文の基礎となった。往来体をさらに通俗化した『貴嶺問答(きれいもんどう)』など数十種の往来物は、一面多くは物名列挙の常識読本と化した。室町時代に入ってからは、手紙の構文・形式・文体・用語・書札礼・配達・書道など、それぞれの面でいちおうの完成を示した。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

江戸時代

手紙の文体も、町人向きの往来物、学者・武士の用いる格式ある和漢混交文と、女子一般の用いる和字状が行われた。往来物はいよいよ通俗化し、1冊の全編を1通ないし数十通の手紙になぞらえ、書簡心得、物名列挙によって童幼に知識を授ける形のものとなった。だいたい習字兼用につくられたが、明治初期に至るまで、寺子屋や市井子女の教科書となった。とくに飛脚制度による配達方法の進歩はこの期の書簡生活を目覚ましいものにした。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

明治・大正時代

明治は候文の時代である。新教育の普及とともに、男子には雅俗折衷体の候文、女子には美文体の候文が行われ、文学者の作り方指導書、文範指導書が数多く出版された。個人の手紙名文家として、高山樗牛(ちょぎゅう)、大町桂月(けいげつ)、竹越与三郎、正岡子規(しき)、国木田独歩(どっぽ)、夏目漱石(そうせき)、樋口一葉(ひぐちいちよう)、与謝野晶子(よさのあきこ)らを数えることができる。明治20年代には外来のレターペーパーに模した便箋(びんせん)が巻紙とともに用いられるようになった。大正は口語文体の時代で、男女の文体は接近し、文房具も巻紙と毛筆から便箋とペンへ移行した。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

昭和時代

昭和に入り、候文減少、口語文増加の傾向が強まったが、1931年（昭和6）満州事変勃発(ぼっぱつ)以後、太平洋戦争にかけ、日本的なものが回顧され、公用、商用、私用に、ともに毛筆、巻紙、候文が復活し、ことば遣いも一段と堅くなったが、45年敗戦以降の、日本の意志伝統は無視され、不完全な当用漢字、現代仮名遣いの実施、法則のあいまいな送り仮名、官庁が先んじた口語文体の不用意な採用などの大勢に押し流されて、未曽有(みぞう)の国語混乱を繰り返しつつあるので、候文は消え、口語体手紙文一方になってはいるが、時代感覚を反映した新文体はまだ形を整えていない。本文、封筒表書き、葉書などに横書きが目だってきたが、まだ法則らしいものはない。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

世界の手紙の歴史

古代

手紙は古代エジプトやバビロニア時代から存在したが、粘土板に刻む不便さから大半は公用文書だった。その点エジプトではパピルスの発見で日常的な書簡が多いのが目だつ。

　手紙の数は郵便配達制度の整備によって増えるが、この制度は広大な領土や植民地をもつ強力な国家のなかで発達した。だから、文化度は高くても都市国家という小さな社会で自足していた古代ギリシアよりも、各植民地間の連絡が複雑な行政と軍事制度の枢要部分となった古代ローマ帝国のほうが、郵便配達制度（クルスス・プブリクス）が発達した。1日272キロメートルの速度で郵便を急送するなど、実に優れた制度で、19世紀になるまでこれをしのぐ郵便配達制度はヨーロッパでは出現しなかった。皇帝の勅命などローマ公用郵便の文体は、個々のケースから一般原則を引き出して断を下す点で、たとえば使徒パウロの書簡からローマ教皇の司教通達などに受け継がれていく。またキケロ、セネカ、小プリニウスなどの書簡の文体、そしてオウィディウス、ホラティウスらの書簡詩は以後のヨーロッパ文人の模範になっていった。ローマ人は羊皮紙やパピルスのほかに、板に蝋(ろう)を塗って、その上にスティルスという鉄筆で手紙を書くという方法も用いた。彼らはこの鉄筆を護身用のナイフとしても使ったが、のちにこれはスタイルという語の起源となった。

［越智道雄］

中世

中世はギルドの発達で商用郵便が急増し、各ギルドがメッセンジャー制度をつくった（たとえば肉屋ギルドのメッツガー・ポスト）。商業の国際化は宗教の時代中世においてすら宗教の壁を貫き、ベネチアは、コンスタンティノープルとの交信ルートがペルシア領内を通過する許可までペルシア王から獲得している（1320）。さらに中世後期には郵便への需要が高まり、郵便制度がギルドから独立して自前の事業になった。タキシスTaxis家は16世紀に2万人の飛脚を擁して全欧の郵便網を押さえていた。しかしこの盛況に目をつけた各国政府は、以後しだいに郵便網の国家独占を図り始めた。その傾向は18世紀後半の駅馬車、19世紀なかばの鉄道・汽船、20世紀前半の航空機などの配送機構の導入を可能にしていく。そして19世紀前半にイギリス人ローランド・ヒルが郵便料金の距離制を廃止し、距離にかかわらず一律料金とし、糊(のり)付き切手を貼付(ちょうふ)する制度を開発した結果、郵便実務の単純化・能率化が加速され、国際郵便連盟（UPU）も19世紀後半に結成され、郵便配達網の国際化が始まった。

　さて、著名な文人や政治家の書簡は後世に残りやすいが、ごく普通の人々の書簡はめったに残らない。その点で貴重なのは「パストン家書簡」（1422～1509）である。中世後期のイギリス中産階級の一族が家族間で取り交わしたこの手紙類は、まったくの俗事が内容になっていて、彼らの日常がつぶさにうかがえる。

　中世は一般に商用書簡が多く、文学的書簡の乏しい時代だった。しかし同時に感情豊かな時代でもあった。中世のこの別な側面を代表する手紙は、12世紀の有名なフランスの悲恋カップル、アベラールとエロイーズが、仲を裂かれて僧院と尼僧院からやりとりしたラテン語の書簡集だろう。

　ルネサンス期の代表的書簡集は、イタリア人文主義の先駆者ペトラルカの『無名書簡』（1360）ほかの書簡集だといわれる。この時期の書簡はおもにキケロや小プリニウスの書簡が模範になった。

［越智道雄］

17世紀以降

書簡詩の伝統は、18世紀イギリスの詩人アレグザンダー・ポープにおいて頂点に達する。彼はオウィディウスやホラティウスを手本としていくつかの作品を残したが、その最高傑作は『アーバスノット博士書簡集』（1735）で、友人の医師とのやりとりの形を借りて同時代の文人を揶揄(やゆ)したもの。また散文の書簡体作品としては、ほぼ同時代のイギリス作家サミュエル・リチャードソンの『パメラ』（1740）が有名である。書簡体が文学のスタイルになったのは、18世紀に郵便配達制度の整備が進み、用件以外のむだ話を書く余裕ができ、親密なやりとりが一般人の間でも可能になった結果だった。手紙の書き方の模範になったものに、17世紀フランスの社交界に生きたセビニェ夫人の書簡集がある。イギリス貴族の生活がうかがえる意味で有名なのが、息子にあてて約30年間書きつづけた、チェスターフィールド伯の『息子への手紙』（1774）である。

［越智道雄］

その他

中国では早くも周の時代（前11世紀～前249）から郵便制度が発達し、漢時代にはローマ帝国と接触していた。13世紀マルコ・ポーロは、元(げん)の郵便制度の整備ぶりを紹介、当時のヨーロッパにはこれをしのぐものがないとしている。また新大陸アメリカの郵便配達制度では、バファロー・ビルらの活躍したポニーエクスプレスがもっとも早い配達網として有名だが（3136キロを8日間で走った）、これは大陸横断電信網の完成でわずか1年（1860～1861）で使命を終えた。

［越智道雄］

手紙の書き方

書式

手紙には文章の部分と文章でない部分とがある。

　正格文の21要素は複雑なようであるが、骨子は前付(まえづけ)、本文、副文の3部、その本文は頭語、前文、主文、末文、結語の5部で組立ては簡単である。もっとも略式にした破格文は、頭語、主文、結語（もしくは単に主文と結語）、日付、署名、宛名(あてな)、敬称の7要素または6要素ですむ。今日では親しい間柄か、きわめて簡単な場合のほか、粗略にすぎてよくない。ひととおりの形としては、頭語、前文（の2、3項）、主文、末文（の1、2項）、結語、日付、署名、宛名、敬称の九要素ぐらいであろうか。前付の部分を本文のあとに書いた場合後付(あとづけ)となる。校長、社長、常務、課長などすべて職名であるから敬称である。「御中」は様、殿と同格の敬称だから宛名と同じ大きさに書くのが正しい。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

用語

文章である部分は、初めに頭語を置く。明治・大正のころまでは「拝啓」「謹啓」と書き出し、現代手紙では「吉野先生」「父上様」など呼びかけの挨拶(あいさつ)が書かれるが、それも省くことがある。時候は決まり文句よりも時に応じ事につけての生きた挨拶にしたい。安否は相手の無事か否かを心から尋ねるのが礼である。自分のほうは一同無事ぐらいにする。主文は1通の手紙の主体となるところ、はっきりと要領よく敬意を失しないように書く。末文はこの手紙の趣意は何かという点を明らかにする収結の挨拶である。副文は本文よりすこし小さめに書くのが慣習である。吉凶の手紙には忌みことばがあるので注意したい。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

便箋の書式

前後

無罫(むけい)便箋は前後同寸、2、3センチメートル空き。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

上下

有罫便箋は罫線内を上下とも半字ぐらい空けて書くと形がよく見える。無罫では上を3、4センチメートル、下はその3分の2ぐらい空ける。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

初行

本文の第1行は「拝啓」の下を全部空けるか、1、2字空きにする。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

末文

本文が行の上部で終わったときは、2、3字隔てて「敬具」と書く。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

日付

日付は第2行に3字下りから書く。ただし、脇付(わきづけ)のある場合は、第3行目から書く。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

宛名・署名

宛名は第1行目、本文より1字下がり、日付よりは1、2字上がりに書き、署名はその下または次行の中部やや下より書き始め、裾(すそ)は本文より1、2字上がりに収める。前付書式がもっとも妥当な形である。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

封筒の書式

宛名は表面の中央に上2字ばかり空けて書き出し、下もほぼ同寸の空きとなるように「様」を書く。住所は上1字空け、都道府県名から書く。敬称は中身と同じにする。脇付は敬称の左下にやや小さく書く。切手は左上すみになるべく1枚で。署名は裏面の中央中ほどから下に宛名より小さくして書く。住所は署名の右肩に字を小さくして書く。日付は右上部の余白にしたい。封は「〆」「封」「緘」など。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

封じ方

便箋の折り方は、書き上げた紙を下から上へ文字を内側にして正しく二つに折り、次にその折り目を上へ二つ折りにする。三つ折りは下から上へ3分の1その上へ上から3分の1を折りかぶせる。封筒に入れるときは長封筒、横封筒とも折り畳んだ端紙(はしがみ)のほうを表に向け宛名のあるほうを上にして入れる。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

葉書の書式

葉書には官製と私製の2種があり、官製は通常葉書、往復葉書、簡易書簡の3種に分けられる。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

通常葉書

通常葉書の書式は(1)表面には宛名を中央、上を1字下がりぐらいに書き、住所はその右肩、都道府県名や市名を大きく書く。(2)発信者の住所・氏名は表面・裏面いずれに書くも随意であるが、表面ならば切手欄の下。(3)日付はその署名の上に小さく入れる。(4)下半部は画線を引いて通信文を書くことが許されている。(5)裏面には通信文を書く。上下左右それぞれ多少の余裕を残し、全紙面に1行10字の5、6行、多くても1行20字10行ぐらいに書き収める。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

往復葉書

往信は通常葉書に準じて書く。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

簡易書簡

封筒を兼ねた葉書便箋で、記入面が5面あるが、通信文を隠すには、4面しか使えない。旅中の便りなどに使えば、便利であろう。

［服部嘉香・服部嘉修］

『平井昌夫監修『手紙の百科――ホーム・コンサルタント〈ホーム・シリーズ5〉』（1985・小学館）』

[参照項目] | 国際郵便 | 郵便

便箋の書式

書簡文組立表（21要素）

封筒の書式

封筒の封じ方

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例

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