Machiza - Machiza

Japanese: 町座 - まちざ

Refers to permanent stores in medieval urban areas. "Machi" originally meant a division of rice fields, but it also referred to the grid-like divisions of capital cities and areas where many buildings were concentrated. The 10th century dictionary Wamyōshō explains machi as "a field district," but also describes shop houses (machiya), or "shops," as "colloquially called machi, this type." Areas where many shops were concentrated came to be called machi. In Kyoto, the word machi is used as the name of the streets. A commercial district (machi) was formed along the street leading south from Shurishoku-cho, and this was called Machi(shiri)koji (today's Shinmachi).

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

中世都市域における定住店舗をいう。〈町〉はもともと田の区画を意味するが，同時に都城の条坊の区画や建物の多く集まる所も町と称される。10世紀の辞書《和名抄》では町を〈田区也〉と説明するが，一方で店家（まちや）すなわち〈坐売舎〉について〈俗に町というはこの類〉としている。商店の多く集まる地域が町と称されるようになったのである。京都では町の語がそのまま街路名となっている。修理職町の南に続く街路に沿って商業区域＝町が形成されたため，これが町(尻)小路(今の新町)と呼ばれた。

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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