daimyo

American  

[dahy-myaw] / ˈdaɪ mjɔ /

Or daimio

noun

Japanese History.

• daimyo,
  plural
• daimyos
  plural

1. one of the great feudal lords who were vassals of the shogun.

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daimyo British  

/ ˈdaɪmjəʊ /

noun

1. (in Japan) one of the territorial magnates who dominated much of the country from about the 11th to the 19th century

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• daimyo
  plural
• daimyos
  plural

Etymology

Origin of daimyo

1830–40; < Japanese, equivalent to dai big, great (< Chinese ) + myō name (< Chin)

Explanation

In Japanese history, daimyo were feudal lords who controlled most of the country. The daimyo's power came from owning inherited land, which was often guarded by hired samurai. In the feudal hierarchy, the daimyo were under the control of the shogun, Japan's military ruler. Along with the bands of warriors they led, the daimyo held power over the country's provinces for about 700 years, until the 19th century. In Japanese, daimyo means "big name," from the Chinese words dai, "great," and myo, "name."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

daimyo daimyos

The government stipends given to daimyo and samurai were made subject to taxation in 1873, and beginning in 1876 they were distributed in the form of government bonds.

From Textbooks ● Dec. 14, 2022

His victory earned him the loyalty of daimyo throughout Japan.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2012

Below him were the daimyo, the powerful landholding samurai.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2012

Japan was unified, but the daimyo still governed at the local level.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2012

The rest of the daimyo, together with the bodyguard of the Shogun, the so-called "eighty thousand" with their habitual residence at Yedo, made up the hereditary retainers or fudai.

From An Introduction to the History of Japan by Katsuro Hara

In 1590, the Jesuits in Japan resolved instead to refrain from intervening in Japanese affairs, but they secretly continued to provide funds for Christian daimyos.

From Textbooks ● Dec. 14, 2022

The edict was not enforced, but the Jesuits, alarmed, asked Christian daimyos to help them attack the shogun, which they refused to do.

From Textbooks ● Dec. 14, 2022

By 1590, Hideyoshi had defeated all the daimyos in Japan and required that they declare their loyalty to him.

From Textbooks ● Dec. 14, 2022

Many daimyos became Christian or offered the missionaries support in an effort to obtain weapons and gunpowder to assist them in their battles with rival samurai.

From Textbooks ● Dec. 14, 2022

This magnificent avenue, twenty-five miles in length, consists of trees planted by daimyos, or small lords, as a memorial to the great Japanese warrior and statesman, Iyeyasu.

From Where Half The World Is Waking Up The Old and the New in Japan, China, the Philippines, and India, Reported With Especial Reference to American Conditions by Clarence Hamilton Poe