Feeding the Japanese Wikipedia page on かかあ天下 (Kakaa Denka)
through
Google Translate
produced a remarkably readable translation, if you interpolate some of the
weirder translation artifacts. ("We", for some definition of "we", used to
talk about "translationisms", but that bit of coinage has been usurped by some
weirdness of its own, so I'll use the term "translation artifacts" here. It's
probably more technically accurate anyway.)
Note that the Japanese Wikipedia page is flagged as having problems due to lack of reference material and evidence of personal research, or whatever that is in English.
Note also that this is the translation of the page as I am reading it now, and
if the page itself is later edited, those edits will not be reflected
here.
(If someone else doesn't beat me to it, I guess I'll
clean the translation up eventually and eventually add an
English page for it myself. I wish I had more time to participate on
Wikipedia.) (Cleaned-up translation below the results of Google Translate.)
Again, the Wikipedia page in question: 嬶天下 (Kakaa Denka)
Original output:
Kakaa denka refers to a family where the wife's authority, power, and dignity exceed that of her husband.
It is said to be a specialty of Joshu, along with ``Karakkaze.'' This is because the area once known as Joshu (Gunma Prefecture) had a thriving sericulture industry, and there were many households where the wife had higher economic power than the husband. On April 24, 2015, the Agency for Cultural Affairs announced that ``Kakaa Tenka - Gunma's Silk Story'' was selected as one of the first 18 Japanese heritage sites.
overview
Originally, it meant ``a strong wife who protects the house (from winds, etc.) while her husband is away'' or ``My mother is the best in the world (hardworking)'', but it also means ``to protect my husband from the wind.'' It is most often used to mean ``strong wife'' and is sometimes used as an antonym for ``hushu kanpaku''.
Kakaa Tenka in Joshu
The reason Kakaa Tenka is considered a specialty of Joshu (Gunma Prefecture) is that women in Joshu were responsible for the silk industry, including sericulture, silk spinning, and weaving, and had higher economic power than men. The word is used to describe active and hard-working Joshu women, based on impressions of Joshu's harsh weather environment, such as thunder and wind, and Joshu's harsh temperament (specific examples of prefectural characteristics #prefectural characteristics). .
Kakaa Tenka as seen in ancient tales
In archeology, the wife of Kamitsuke no Kimi Kanojo Katana (Kamitsuke
no Kimi Kanojo Katana) is mentioned in relation to Kakaa Tenka.
Cornered by the Tohoku Ezo, Katana is now weak, so they give him a
drink and give him encouragement, while at the same time holding a bow
and making a sound on the string, they use their wit to give the
opponent the illusion that a large army has arrived.
I helped.
Judging from the custom of tooth extraction during the Kofun period, it
is thought that women could become the head of a household until the 5th
century, and the strong position of women is thought to be a vestige of
this.
First pass cleanup, with original Japanese for reference:
かかあ天下（嬶天下）（かかあでんか）とは、妻の権威・権力・威厳が夫を上回っている家庭を指す。
Kakaa denka (かかあ天下・嬶天下) is a term in para-colloquial Japanese for
family structure
in which the
wife's
authority,
power, and dignity exceed that of her
husband.
[I'll note here that, in my understanding, it's broader than just
family-specific structure, and should be legitimately considered a local
social structure in which the women's authority, power, and dignity exceed
that of the men.]
It is said to be a special characteristic of the Jōshū (上州) area, in association with karakkaze (からっ風 [extreme drying/freezing, downburst leeside winds from the nearby Jōetsu region mountains]). This is because the area once known as Jōshū (primarily Gunma Prefecture) had a thriving sericulture industry, and there were many households where the wife had greater economic power than the husband. On April 24, 2015 (Heisei 27), the Agency for Cultural Affairs announced that Kakaa Denka - Gunma's Silk Story was selected as one of the Eighteen Primary Cultural Properties of Japanese Heritage [English page here].
概要 Overview
本来は「夫が出かけている間の家を（からっ風などから）守る強い妻」や「うちのかかあは（働き者で）天下一」の意味であるが、「夫を尻に敷く強い妻」という意味で使われることがほとんどで、亭主関白の対義語として用いられることがある。
Basically, kakaa denka indicates "a strong wife who protects the
household (from the strong karakkaze downburst winds, etc.) while her
husband is away", or means "the lady of our house is
the best
(most hardworking)
in the world''. But it also generally carries the semantic of "a strong woman who takes
the lead"
[or, literally (but politely), "... who positions her husband behind her
backside", thus, taking the brunt of the wind], and is sometimes used as an
antonym
for
teishu kanpaku
[loosely, Japanese version patriarchy, or the tradition that "the lord of
our house is the emperor's representative"].
上州のかかあ天下 Kakaa Denka in Jōshū
かかあ天下が上州（群馬県）の名物とされる理由として、上州の女性は養蚕・製糸・織物といった絹産業の担い手であり、男性よりも高い経済力があったことがあげられる。雷や空っ風といった上州の厳しい気象環境や、気性の荒い上州人気質（県民性#県民性とされる具体的な例）に対する印象から、活発で働き者の上州女性を表す言葉として用いられる。
A
reason given for considering kakaa denka a special characteristic of
Jōshū
(Gunma Prefecture) culture is that the women in Jōshū took the lead in
the
silk
industry, from
sericulture
to
silk spinning
and
weaving, and had greater economic power than the men. From impressions of the
thunder
and
karakkaze winds typical of the harsh climate of the Jōshū area,
and from the rugged disposition of the people of Jōshū (see Specific Examples of Personality Characteristics Considered Typical of the
Various Prefectures -- 県民性#県民性とされる具体的な例), kakaa denka is used to describe the energetic and
hard-working women of Jōshū.
古代説話に見られるかかあ天下 Kakaa Denka as seen in tradition
考古学では、上毛野君形名（かみつけのきみ
かたな）の妻が、かかあ天下との関連で引きあいに出される。東北蝦夷に追い詰められ、弱腰になっている形名に対し、酒を飲ませ、叱咤激励すると共に自分達は弓を持ち、弦を鳴らすことで、相手に大軍が来たと錯覚させる機知を行い、手助けをした。古墳時代における抜歯の風習からも、女性が家長と成りえたのは、5世紀までと考えられており、女性の立場が強いのはその名残とも考えられる。
In
Japanese archeology, the wife of
Kamitsuke no Kimi Katana (上毛野君形名)
is brought up as an example of kakaa denka. When Katana is
weakened and cornered by the
Tohoku
Ezo
armies, she gives him sake for drink and a scolding for encouragment
[and gathers and arms the women]. Using their wits, they help
[turn the tide] by noisily lifting their bows and strumming the
bowstrings to give the enemy the illusion that a great army has arrived. Also,
based on customs of
tooth extraction [dental work]
during the
Kofun
period, it is thought that women could become
heads of families
through the 5th century [CE], and the tradition of strong women [in the Jōshū/Gunma area] is
thought to be [corroborating] evidence of this.
First clean-up pass complete.
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