a group of close-knit and interrelated families

the establishment, retinue, and courtiers of a sovereign

one of the great lords who were vassals of the shogun

a Japanese poem of seventeen syllables, in three lines of five, seven, and five

a form of traditional Japanese drama with highly stylized song, mime, and dance, now performed only by male actors

a divine being or spiritual force in Shinto

traditional Japanese masked drama with dance and song

a person who rules during the minority, absence, or disability of the sovereign

“locked up country;” the foreign policy of Japan under which no foreigner could enter and no Japanese could leave the country

a trained warrior during feudal Japan; protector of a daimyo

the traditional religion of Japan; nature and ancestor worship

a hereditary commander-in chief and the actual ruler in feudal Japan

a holder of land by feudal tenure on conditions of homage and allegiance

a Japanese form of Buddhism, focusing on meditation, self-discipline, and simplicity