Japanese Burakumin
- Medieval Asia
- 1 min
By Crusader1307
A derogatory term used in 16th Century AD Japan (until the mid-19th Century AD) – ''Burakumin'' were the outcast of Feudal Society, or ''lowest of the low''. These People lived in the worst of dwellings, often crammed into what would later be known as Ghettos. Even those who thought of themselves as somewhat ''elevated'' due to occupation, and lived somewhat better that most – were still referred to as Burakumin. Examples of which were Butchers, Executioners, Undertakers, etc.
Typically, each Class of Burajumin lived in Hamlets or Villages which catered to just that one particular occupation. Even when needed by Nobility, they themselves sent Servants to handle their affairs. The mere association with Burakumin was offensive to Japanese Nobility.
By the 18th Century AD, Entertainers and even lower-classed Prostitutes (not Geisha), were included into Burakumin ''Districts''. When Shoguns or Samurai went to War, often Burakumin were drafted as ''Camp Followers'', and assigned to perform their various functions in near battlefields. And while much of the stigma vanished with modernistic reforms in the mid-19th Century, the term was still used to describe Japanese Poor (and still is to some degrees today).
