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is an outcast group at the bottom of the Japanese social order that has historically been the victim of severe discrimination and ostracism. They were originally members of outcast communities in the Japanese feudal era, composed of those with occupations considered impure or tainted by death (such as executioners, undertakers, workers in slaughterhouses, butchers or tanners), which have severe social stigmas of ''kegare'' ( or "defilement") attached to them. Traditionally, the burakumin lived in their own hamlets or ghettos. ==Terminology== The term ''buraku'' literally refers to a small, generally rural, commune or a hamlet. People from regions of Japan where "discriminated communities" no longer exist (e.g. anywhere north of Tokyo) may refer to any hamlet as a ''buraku'', indicating the word's use is not necessarily pejorative. Historically the term was used for an outcaste community that was heavily discriminated against officially and formally. A widely used term for buraku settlements is dōwa chiku ( "assimilation districts"), an official term for districts designated for government and local authority assimilation projects. The social issue surrounding "discriminated communities" is usually referred to as dōwa mondai ( "assimilation issues") or less commonly, buraku mondai ("hamlet issues"). In the feudal era, the outcaste were called eta (, literally, "an abundance of defilement" or "an abundance of filth"), a term now considered derogatory. ''Eta'' towns were called ''etamura'' (穢多村). Some burakumin refer to their own communities as "mura" ( "villages") and themselves as "mura-no-mono" ( "village people"). Other outcaste groups from whom Buraku may have been descended included the ''hinin'' (非人—literally "non-human"). The definition of ''hinin'', as well as their social status and typical occupations varied over time, but typically included ex-convicts and vagrants who worked as town guards, street cleaners or entertainers. In the 19th century the umbrella term ''burakumin'' was coined to name the ''eta'' and ''hinin'' because both classes were forced to live in separate village neighborhoods. The term burakumin does not refer to any ethnic minorities in Japan. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Burakumin」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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