Edo post stations and journeys

The idea

宿場 was a post town on a 街道; a 旅籠 was an inn for travellers. A 本陣 lodged high-ranking travellers such as daimyo. People and horses also helped relay transport between stations. The examples use modern polite Japanese, not reconstructed historical speech.

Examples

• 江戸えど時代じだいの街道かいどうには、宿場しゅくばがありました。There were post towns along highways in the Edo period.
• 旅人たびびとは宿場しゅくばの旅籠はたごに泊とまりました。A traveller stayed at an inn in a post town.
• 宿場しゅくばで馬うまを替かえました。I changed horses at a post town.
• 旅人たびびとは次つぎの宿場しゅくばへ歩あるきました。The traveller walked to the next post town.
• 本陣ほんじんは大名だいみょうなどが泊とまる宿やどでした。A honjin was lodging for daimyo and other high-ranking travellers.
• 旅たびの前まえに、道みちを調しらべました。Before the journey, I checked the route.

Watch out

A post town is not one inn: it contained different facilities. Inns and services varied by place and period.

Try it yourself

1. Choose the Japanese term for “post town on a highway”: （宿場しゅくば／旅籠はたご）

   Show answer or example answer

   宿場

   宿場 means “post town on a highway”; 旅籠 means “travellers’ inn”.

2. Choose the Japanese term for “travellers’ inn”: （旅籠はたご／本陣ほんじん）

   Show answer or example answer

   旅籠

   旅籠 means “travellers’ inn”; 本陣 means “official lodging for high-ranking travellers”.

3. Choose the Japanese term for “official lodging for high-ranking travellers”: （本陣ほんじん／宿場しゅくば）

   Show answer or example answer

   本陣

   本陣 means “official lodging for high-ranking travellers”; 宿場 means “post town on a highway”.

Use it today

Describe a journey between two post towns in two Japanese sentences.