文献と埴輪・壁画資料から見た牛甘（飼）ー牽牛織女説話の伝来年代を含めてー

KIMINE Osamu, 基峰 修

doi:10.24517/00049494

Ushikai (written牛甘 or 牛飼) is an ancient name for either individual cowherds or a group. I introduced a series of bibliographic materials related to Ushikai in this paper, comprising: (1) A bovine-shaped Haniwa; (2) A drawing from ornamented tombs that is thought to be of a bovine, and (3) Bovine drawing on Goguryeo tomb murals. I identify the common features and differences amongst these materials, and discuss the arrival of cattle in Japan and the characteristics of Ushikai based on these findings. Cattle as well as raising and management technologies first arrived in Japan before the late 5th century from the Korean Peninsula, almost certainly at the same time and in the same context as horses. Evidence suggests, however, that only very limited cattle production was practiced in ancient Japan compared to horse production; it appears to have been little need for large numbers of cattle as their use at this time was limited to milk and dairy product production for use as medicines for the royal family and aristocrats. It is also highly likely that cattle were initially reared by Umakai alongside horses when first introduced to Japan, and that Umakai and their counterparts were not clearly distinct from one another. This is considered as one reason why the Ushikai of ancient Japan did not develop into a group devoted to entirely to cattle husbandry; rather, the absence of this developmental characteristic appears to define the group. Finally, it is also highly likely that the legend of the cowherd and the weaver girl was transmitted to Japan from the Korean Peninsula as a cultural complex related to the cattle rearing around the same time as the importation of these animals. This legend has become part of popular culture as a modern-day Tanabata (Star Festival) narrative.

文献と埴輪・壁画資料から見た牛甘（飼）ー牽牛織女説話の伝来年代を含めてー

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