The koban (小判) was a Japanese oval gold coin in Edo period feudal Japan, equal to one ryō, another early Japanese monetary unit. It was a central part of Tokugawa coinage.
The Japanese idiom neko ni koban (猫に小判 literally, "gold coins for cats") is an equivalent for casting pearls before swine.
The Maneki Neko is often depicted holding a koban, though the koban most Maneki Neko hold is indicated to be worth ten million ryō.
Showing posts with label koban. Show all posts
Showing posts with label koban. Show all posts
19.5.12
kōban
A kōban (交番 kōban)
is a small neighborhood police station found in Japan. Kōban also
refers to the smallest organizational unit in today's Japanese police
system.[2]
The name kōban derives from the name of the earliest structure built in 1874, which were indeed simple boxes meant for standing watch (立番 tachiban) in rotation (交替 kōtai), thus creating a compound word consisting of kō (交) and ban (番).[8] Soon after, in 1881, kōban were transformed into local community stations with as many as six officers and a new official name hashutsusho (派出所) was given to it — although its common name, "kōban" survived.
The name kōban derives from the name of the earliest structure built in 1874, which were indeed simple boxes meant for standing watch (立番 tachiban) in rotation (交替 kōtai), thus creating a compound word consisting of kō (交) and ban (番).[8] Soon after, in 1881, kōban were transformed into local community stations with as many as six officers and a new official name hashutsusho (派出所) was given to it — although its common name, "kōban" survived.
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