Nezumi Kozō

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Nezumi Kozō (鼠小僧) was the nickname of one Jirokichi (次郎吉 d. 1832), a Japanese thief who lived in Edo (present-day Tokyo) during the Edo period. In 1822, he was caught and branded, and banished from Edo. In 1832, he was captured again, and confessed to the burglary of over 100 samurai estates and the impressive theft of over 30,000 ryō throughout his 15-year career. He was tied to a horse and paraded in public before being beheaded at the Suzu-ga-mori execution grounds. His head was then publicly displayed on a stake. His grave is at Ekō-in in Tokyo.

At the time of the arrest, Jirokichi was found to have very little money. This, combined with the public humiliation he dealt out to the daimyos, resulted in the popular legend that he gave the money to the poor, turning the petty crook into a posthumous folk hero similar to Robin Hood. The fact that he died alone, serving his wives (he appears to have been guilty of bigamy, possibly polygamy, as well) with divorice papers just prior to arrest in order to protect them from sharing in the punishment as the law decreed, further enhanced his stature. His exploits have been commemorated in kabuki theatre, folk songs, jidaigeki, video games, and modern pop culture. Ryunosuke Akutagawa wrote a short story, Nezumi Kozō Jirokichi (translated into English as "Nezumi-Kozo (The Japanese Robin Hood)"); at least two films have had the same Japanese title.

Modern scholars are of the view that Jirokichi most likely spent his money on women and liquor.

[edit] Nezumi Kozō in modern popular culture

Nezumi Kozō is an inspiration for the video game character Ebisumaru, who commonly stars in a series from Konami entitled Ganbare Goemon. A descendant also appears in Lupin III.

[edit] The nickname

Jirokichi's nickname, Nezumi Kozō, is not a name; "Nezumi" is neither a surname nor a given name (nor is "Kozō"). Nezumi is the Japanese word for "rat"; a kozō was a young errand-boy who worked in a shop in the Edo period. The nickname can thus be roughly translated as "rat boy".