# Seishitsu

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{{Short description|Japanese historical term}}{{Unreferenced|date=October 2025}}{{Expand Japanese|date=January 2010|正室}}
{{Italic title|reason=[:Category:Japanese words and phrases](/source/%3ACategory%3AJapanese_words_and_phrases)}}
'''''Seishitsu''''' (正室) is the [Japanese](/source/Japanese_language) term of the [Edo period](/source/Edo_period) for the official [wife](/source/wife) of high-ranking persons. The [tennō](/source/Emperor_of_Japan), [kugyō](/source/kugy%C5%8D) (court officials), ''[shōgun](/source/sh%C5%8Dgun)'' and ''[daimyō](/source/daimy%C5%8D)s'' often had several wives to ensure the birth of an heir. The ''seishitsu'' had a status above other wives, called ''sokushitsu'' (側室, [concubine](/source/Concubinage)).

The system dates back to the [ritsuryō](/source/ritsury%C5%8D) system in the [Nara](/source/Nara_period) and [Heian period](/source/Heian_period)s. At the time, the main wife was called ''chakusai'' (嫡妻). The last Japanese emperor to have official concubines was [Emperor Meiji](/source/Emperor_Meiji).

Succession disputes between sons of the official wife and concubines were a constant source of internal, often armed conflict within houses ([O-Ie Sōdō](/source/O-Ie_S%C5%8Dd%C5%8D)).

== See also ==
* ''[midaidokoro](/source/midaidokoro)''
* [Dishu system](/source/Dishu_system)

Category:Wives
Category:Marriage, unions and partnerships in Japan
Category:Sexuality and society
Category:Social history of Japan
Category:Edo period

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Seishitsu](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seishitsu) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seishitsu?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.