Nagoya Sanzaburou - Nagoya Sanzaburou

Along with Okuni of Izumo, he is likened to the founder of Kabuki. He is also called Nagoya Sanza. In real life, he was Nagoe Sansaburo (later Kuemon). He was the son of Inaba no Kami, the ancestor of the Nagoe family of Kaga Domain, and his mother was Youn'in, the niece of Oda Nobunaga. In November 1590 (Tensho 18), he served as a page in the siege of Oshu Castle under Gamo Ujisato, and is said to have been the first to take the lead at the age of 15 (there are various theories about his age, but it is not certain). After Ujisato's death, he became a ronin, but around 1600 (Keicho 5), he served Mori Mimasaka no Kami Tadamasa through his sister's connection. He died on April 10th (or May 3rd) of the 8th year of the Keicho era after a sword fight with his colleague, Ido Uemon.

He was a dandy with a penchant for the elegant and elegant, and one of the Kabuki actors of his time. Old popular sources tell various stories about him as Okuni's husband, lover, or co-worker, linking him to the beginnings of Kabuki, but none of these stories can be confirmed by reliable historical sources, and they are probably all legends. Around the time Okuni dressed as a man and performed Kabuki actors on stage, news of Yamasaburo's death spread and became a hot topic on the streets, so one of the Kabuki actors on stage was likened to the ghost of Yamasaburo, which in turn led to stories being told of the relationship between Yamasaburo and Okuni when she was alive, as if it were fact.

[Yukio Hattori]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

出雲(いずも)の阿国(おくに)とともに歌舞伎(かぶき)の始祖になぞらえられている人物。名古屋山三(さんざ)ともよばれる。史実では名越(なごえ)山三郎（のちに九右衛門）。加賀藩名越家の祖因幡守(いなばのかみ)の子で、母は織田信長の姪(めい)にあたる養雲院。1590年（天正18）11月、蒲生氏郷(がもううじさと)の奥州城攻めに小姓として従い、15歳（年齢には諸説あって一定しない）で一番槍(やり)の手柄をたてたという。氏郷没後は浪人したが、1600年（慶長5）ころ、妹の縁で森美作守(みまさかのかみ)忠政に仕えた。同僚の井戸宇右衛門(うえもん)と刃傷(にんじょう)事件を起こし、慶長(けいちょう)8年4月10日（または5月3日）に没した。

　風流を好んだ伊達男(だておとこ)で、当時のかぶき者の1人だった。古い俗資料では、阿国の夫、愛人あるいは共働者など、歌舞伎の創始と関係づけてさまざまの挿話を伝えているが、信頼できる史料からはまったく確かめることができず、おそらくすべて伝説であったと考えられる。阿国が男装してかぶき者を舞台に登場させたころ、山三郎の死が伝えられて巷(ちまた)の話題になったため、舞台上のかぶき者の1人を山三郎の亡霊に見立てることが行われ、そこから逆に生前の山三と阿国との関係がまことしやかに語り伝えられる結果を招いたものであろう。

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