Life history of Naito Masu: a female pioneer of women’s education in Yamanashi Prefecture in the early Meiji Period

Abstract

Naito Masu (1823~1901) was the first woman who advocated publicly the necessity of education for women; she did so in early Meiji period (1870’s) in Yamanashi Prefecture. In the Edo period, it was said that women did not need to study for a long time; therefore her achievement of founding a women’s private school and publishing a textbook regarding moral education for women were epoch making activities in the women’s education in Japan. This paper presents Masu’s life history and the process of development, because she is considered a woman who was sensitive to the gap between the education for men and women in developing their own lives. Masu’s activities following the Meiji Restoration are well-known; however, it is unknown about how and where she had been educated prior to this time. There is a travel diary written by Masu, named as “Suruga-kiko” and owned by Yamanashi Prefectural Museum. It is the appropriate source to know the first half of Masu’s life because it is thought to be written before the Meiji Restoration. This paper looks to draw a clear picture of the unknown part of Masu’s life, including her friends and acquaintances before Meiji Restoration, by citing it. She had grown her circle of acquaintances in the area along Fujigawa Highway and Fuji River. This area is associated with Japanese classic literature, as well as with most pupils of Prof. Hirata, lived in Kai no kuni. The author made investigations in the area and interviewed some people who live there now about Masu and the region’s educational history. As the result of this original research, this paper presents that Masu must developed her culture and education there.