Noro Genjō

Portrait of Noro Genjō

Noro Genjō ( Japanese 野 呂 元 丈 , born January 15, 1694 in the village of Hatase ( province of Ise , Japan ), † August 6, 1761 in Edo) was an herbalist and pioneer of Japanese "Hollandkunde" ( Rangaku ) of the 18th century.

Life

Noro Genjō was born in Hatase (Taki District, Ise Province ) as the son of Takahashi Zentarō ( 高橋 善 太郎 ) and his wife Juchin ( 寿 椿 ). Nothing is known about his childhood or early education.

In 1712 he was adopted by the doctor Noro Sansei ( 野 呂 三省 ). In the same year he moved to Kyoto , where he studied medicine with Yamawaki Genshū ( 山 脇 玄 修 ), Confucianism with Namikawa Tenmin ( 並 河 天 民 ) and herbalism ( Honzōgaku ) with Inō Jakusui ( 稲 生 若水 ). When his adoptive father died in 1719, he returned home and took over his medical practice.

From 1720 began his activities as a government herb collector ( Saiyaku goyō 採 薬 御用 ). The 1716 Shogun ascended ruler of the province of Kii , Tokugawa Yoshimune had to the shattered finances to organize the kingdom and to reduce the high dependence on imports more expensive Chinese and Western remedies-company East India foreign seeds and seedlings ordered from the Netherlands, the planted in government herb gardens. If the cultivation was successful, seeds were passed on to fiefs in regions where the climate and soil seemed suitable. At the same time, Yoshimune promoted research and better use of indigenous resources. Already at the time of the Shogun Tokugawa Ietsuna , joint investigations with European herbalists had recognized that there were medicinal plants in the vicinity of Nagasaki that were not listed in Chinese herbal books. Yoshimune began a nationwide survey in which Noro played an important role in collaboration with other herbalists.

First, Noro went on a herbal excursion with Niwa Shōhaku ( 丹羽 正 伯 ) in the regions of Hakone, Nikkō and Fujisan . In 1721 he moved with Natsui Shōgen ( 夏 井 松 玄 ) and Honga Tokuun ( 本 賀 徳 運 ) through the regions of Ise, Yoshino-yama and Kumano. A year later he crossed over to the island of Sado in the Sea of ​​Japan with Namikawa . Another excursion took him with Soga Shōshuku ( 曽 我 紹 叔 ) and Nakano Michimasa ( 中 野 道 格 ) to the Izu Islands in the Pacific Ocean . In 1725 he moved his residence to Edo , where he could better arrange cooperation with the authorities and the evaluation of his investigations. In 1730 he went on another excursion to the island of Sado.

In 1736 he completed a book on "Treatment methods for bite wounds of rabid dogs" ( Kyōken kōshō chihō 狂犬 咬傷 治 方 ). In recognition of his achievements, he was awarded the rank of o-memie-ishi ( 御 目見 医師 ) in 1739 , which gave him a respectable annual income and at the same time access to the inner area of ​​the court.

In 1741 he was given a new assignment. Together with the doctor Aoki Konyō he was instructed to acquire the Dutch language. To date, only the Japanese interpreters at the Dutch Dejima branch in Nagasaki had sufficient language skills. Some of them had accumulated books, records, etc. on Western medicine in their families over generations and ran small private schools as a sideline. But now the aim was to have experts outside Nagasaki evaluate and disseminate Western books. After a comparatively short instruction in Nagasaki, Noro continued his language acquisition in self-study.

Once a year the head ( opperhoofd ) of the Dutch trading post Dejima came to Edo to discuss upcoming problems and in a solemn ceremony to convey the thanks of the East India Company for the permission to trade in Japan. Since 1641 a. a. the doctor of the branch. From 1742 to 1750 Noro visited these doctors during his stay in Edo and with their help made the contents of two books accessible.

Since 1663 a copy of John Johnston's natural history book Naeukeurige beschryving van de natuur der vier-voetige dieren, vissen en bloedlooze watering, birds, kronkel-dieren, slangen en draken was slumbering in the court library . After much consultation, Noro put his explanations on paper as "Japanese explanations of Dutch images of birds, quadrupeds, snakes and fish" ( Oranda kinjū chūgyōzu wage 阿蘭 陀 禽 獣 虫魚 図 和解 ). Another work, the Cruydt-Boek by Rembert Dodoens (Dodonaeus), had already been presented to the Shogun in 1659. Noro wrote the "Japanese Declarations on Dutch Herbs" ( Oranda honzō wage 阿蘭 陀 本草 和解 ). His comments on the text of the animal book had no effect, but the copied images introduced many Japanese artists to Western drawing techniques for the first time. The practical use of the herbal book by Dodonaeus, on the other hand, had been known since the middle of the 17th century and everyone who was concerned with herbs would have wished for better access to the extensive content. It didn't stop with Noro's attempt. After him, renowned scholars such as Hiraga Gennai and even Yoshimune's grandson Matsudaira Sadanobu ventured into this monumental, large-format work of almost 1500 pages.

After further botanical excursions through the provinces of Nagato and the Iwami , Noro rose to the group of consultation doctors ( yoriai-ishi 寄 合 医師 ) in 1747 . As he got older, other topics caught his interest. In 1752/3 he published “Inscriptions on Buddha Footstones ” ( Bussoku sekihimei 仏 足 石碑 銘 ). However, since 1755 he fell ill more often. Apparently he foresaw the imminent death, because in 1760 he had his tombstone erected in the Sengaku Temple ( Sengaku-ji 泉 岳 寺 ) in Edo. He passed away the following year.

In addition to his extensive herbal studies, Noro Genjō made a name for himself as a pioneer of "Hollandkunde" ( Rangaku ). Like Aoki Konyō, he did not get beyond basic knowledge and rough content information in his government-sponsored language studies. But it was about two Confucian scholars who devote themselves to foreign science with the support of the court. Both became models for other scholars and, as a catalyst, initiated the study of Western scriptures outside Nagasaki.

Fonts

• Kyōken kōshō chihō 狂犬 咬傷 治 方
• Oranda kinjū chūgyōzu dare 阿蘭 陀 禽 獣 虫魚 図 和解
• Jinjutsu Oranda honzō wage , 1742 壬戌 阿蘭 陀 本草 和解
• Bussoku sekihimei 『仏 足 石碑 銘』 宝 暦 2 [1752] 後 序

literature

• Ōnishi Genichi: Noro Genjō-den . 1915 ( 大西 源 一 『野 呂 元 丈 伝』 )
• Matsushima, Hiroshi: Noro Genjō sentaku "Oranda honzō dare" ni tsuite . Miekenritsu Daigaku Kyōyōbu, 1966 ( 松 島 博 『野 呂 元 丈 撰 択「 阿蘭 陀 本草 和解 和解 」に つ い て』 三重 県 立 大学 教養 部 )
• Seiwamura kyoikuiinkai (ed.): Noro Genjō kankei rekishishiryō mokuroku: Furoku Noro Genjō shokanshū . Seiwamura, 2001 ( 勢 和村 教育 委員会 『野 呂 元 丈 関係 歴 史 資料 目録: 付 録 野 呂 元 丈 書簡 集』 )
• Grant Goodman: Japan and the Dutch 1600-1853 . Richmond: Curzon, 2000, pp. 66-73.
• W. Vande Walle / K. Kasaya (ed.): Dodonaeus in Japan . Leuven University Press, 2001.
• Wolfgang Michel: Medicine, remedies and herbalism in the Euro-Japanese cultural exchange of the 17th century. In: Hōrin - Comparative Studies on Japanese Culture , No. 16, 2010, pp. 19–34.

Web links

• Evidence of the writings of Noro Genjō in the Database of Pre-Modern Japanese Works ( National Institute of Japanese Literature )
• Noro Genjō Museum in his birthplace Hatase (Japanese)
• Oranda honzō wage (handwritten copy in the National Diet Library)
• Bussoku sekihimei (Waseda University)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ In the Japanese calendar 20th day, 12th month, 6th year of the motto Genroku
2. ↑ In the Japanese calendar the 6th day of the 7th month in the 11th year of the motto Hōreki
3. ↑ 伊 勢 国 多 気 郡 波 多 瀬 村 . Today Mie Prefecture .
4. ↑ Other sources give the name Takahashi Shigehide ( 高橋 重 英 )
5. ↑ The most spectacular and economically significant success was achieved with ginseng seeds smuggled in from Korea .
6. ↑ Michel (2010)
7. ↑ During the period mentioned, Philip Pieter Musculus, Andreas Köehler from Stralsund and Doedo Evertszoon from Groningen were stationed in the trading office. See: Trading-post chiefs ( opperhoofden ), medical staff and other employees at the VOC factories Hirado and Dejima
8. ↑ More on this in Vande Walle (2001)

Japanese name: As is common in Japan, the family name comes before the first name in this article . Thus, Noro is the family name, Genjō the first name.