Unsun Karuta

Western karuta cards were brought to Japan by Nanban ships in the early Edo period. "Unsun" is originally Portuguese um sum, meaning the highest and best. In the "Yoshufusi" (published in 1686, by Kurokawa Doyu), it is said that they were made into toys by imitating the ones played with by the Dutch. They were originally called "Tensho Karuta" and had 48 cards in total, with 12 of each of 4 types. There are 4 sets of cards: Isu or Isuhata (sword pattern), Hau (blue sun), Kotsufu (sake cup), and Uru (ball). The first 9 cards in each set have the respective patterns written on them, the 10th card depicts a monk, the 11th a horse rider, and the 12th a person sitting on a chair. Three to five players cut and deal cards together, and the game was played in a similar way to playing cards. Later, during the Meiwa period (1764-72), it was adapted to Japan and the number of cards was increased to 75. It was popular during the An'ei period (1772-81), but was often banned because it was used for gambling. In the Hannichikanwa (Ota Nanpo), published in 1768 (Meiwa 5), ​​it is said that cards with pictures of Hotei, Fukurokuju, Ebisu, and Bodhidharma were called "un," and cards with pictures of Chinese people with black crowns were called "sun." Used for gambling, it developed into "hana karuta."

[Ryosuke Saito]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

江戸初期、南蛮船で日本に渡来した西洋かるた。「うんすん」は元来ポルトガル語um sumで、最高最上の意。1686年（貞享3）刊の『雍州府志(ようしゅうふし)』（黒川道祐(どうゆう)）には、オランダ人がもてあそんだものをまねて遊び道具にしたとある。最初「天正(てんしょう)かるた」といい、札数は4種各12枚で合計48枚。伊須(いす)または伊須波多(いすはた)（剣の紋様）・波宇(はう)（同青色の太陽）・古津布(こつふ)（同酒盃）・宇留(うる)（同玉）の4組で、各組とも1から9枚まではそれぞれの紋形が記され、10枚目は法師、11枚目は騎馬の人、12枚目は椅子(いす)にかけた人が描かれている。3人から5人で札を切って配り、トランプに似た遊び方をした。その後明和(めいわ)（1764～72）のころ日本化されて札が75枚に増加し、安永(あんえい)（1772～81）にかけて流行したが、賭博(とばく)に用いられたため、たびたび禁止された。1768年（明和5）印行の『半日閑話』（大田南畝(なんぽ)）には、布袋(ほてい)・福禄寿(ふくろくじゅ)・恵比寿(えびす)・達磨(だるま)図の札を「うん」、黒冠の唐人図の札を「すん」とよぶとある。賭け事(かけごと)遊びに用いられ、「花かるた」に発達した。

［斎藤良輔］

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