Wolf and Keeper

Glossary

Amanojaku - Small yokai often depicted as hairy creatures with red skin that stand roughly up to a person's shin who were believed to be the bearers of plagues and pestilence; they were often considered a sign of an area's spiritual decline or an incoming plague.

Amaterasu Omikami - the leading deity of the Shinto pantheon; she is known for being the Goddess of the Sun and elder sister to Susano-o, the God of Storms. Her messenger is said to be the Yatagarasu, a three-eyed crow with three legs.

Amitabha - A term of reverence used by Buddhists to refer to Buddha.

Ashigaru - The standard foot soldiers in a daimyo's army. Traditionally, these foot soldiers were trained minimally and were often seen as cannon fodder, but Oda Nobunaga changed this when he insisted on training and appropriately arming all of his Ashigaru, making them a force to be reckoned with.

Ashura - Powerful Buddhist entities believed to be souls who were not evil enough to go to hell but not pure enough to be sent to heaven, Ashura are one of the possible reincarnations for people who lived with too much passion in life. They are seen as powerful protectors and the slayers of evil spirits, often seen as one of the final "good" reincarnations that people can obtain before the "bad" ones begin.

Ayakashi - Another name for yokai; this term is older and considered an archaic way of referring to the demons.

Bushi - One of two halves of the samurai caste; Bushi were considered the warriors of the caste who did actual frontline fighting. The term itself literally means "warrior".

Daimyo - A term referring to the main provincial lords who ruled over provinces in feudal Japan. These warlords were beneath the Shogun and Emperor in power, serving as rulers of specific regions.

Daishou - The term used for the two blades carried exclusively by samurai. While regular people were allowed to wield swords, only samurai were allowed to carry a daishou set. The set consisted normally of a katana and a wakizashi.

Deishi - The word referring to a disciple or follower of a religious figure.

Funayurei - A type of vengeful ghost born from the spirits of dead sailors. They often appear from ghost ships, seeking out former shipmates or other unsuspecting sailors to drown them as well.

Gaikoku-jin - The term for someone who is not from Japan; a foreigner. This term is also often shortened to the more slang oriented gaijin.

Gasa - a word that applies to a wide variety of straw hats worn by all classes. Gasa tend to be wide-brimmed straw hats used to keep the sun off of the wearer's face and protect them from the elements.

Geta - Wooden sandals that came in a variety of shapes and sizes for varying environments.

-gimi - a suffix attached to a noblewoman's name to denote her status leaning something similar to "lady".

Guuji - The title of the head priest of a shrine; Guuji is a term used specifically to refer to Shinto head priests.

Gyoubu - A title used for judicial officials appointed by the shogun to oversee the enforcement of shogunal and Imperial laws. They were among the only people who had the power to directly challenge and charge daimyo.

Hachiman - The Shinto god who served as a patron to Warriors and the guardian of Japan; He began his life as Emperor Ojin, the son of the apocryphal Empress Jingu, and his reign was so prosperous that he was deified upon his death.

Hakama - The long pleated pants worn by predominantly men during this era. This garment would be worn over kosode and could be bound up around the shin for use under armor or ballooned at the ankle for use in ceremonial dress.