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, also known as John Manjirō (or John Mung).〔Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). ("Nakahama Manjirō" ) in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 688.〕 He was one of the first Japanese people to visit the United States and an important translator during the Opening of Japan.〔 *〕 ==Voyage to America== During his early life, he lived as a simple fisherman in the village of Naka-no-hama, Tosa Province (now Tosashimizu, Kōchi Prefecture). In 1841, 14-year-old Nakahama Manjirō and four friends (all brothers, named Goemon, Denzo, Toraemon, and Jusuke) were fishing when their boat was wrecked on the island of Torishima. The American whaler ship ''John Howland'' (with Captain William H. Whitfield in command) rescued them.〔Lade, Jennifer. ( "Manjiro Festival celebrates sister cities of Fairhaven, Tosashimizu," ) ''South Coast'' (Massachusetts). October 4, 2009; retrieved 2013-2-25.〕 At the end of the voyage, four of them were left in Honolulu; however Manjirō (nicknamed "John Mung") wanted to stay on the ship. Captain Whitfield took him back to the United States and entrusted him to James Akin, who enrolled Manjirō in the Oxford School in the town of Fairhaven, Massachusetts. The boy studied English and navigation for a year, apprenticed to a cooper, and then, with Whitfield's help, signed on to the whaler ''Franklin'' (Captain Ira Davis). After whaling in the South Seas, the ''Franklin'' put into Honolulu in October 1847, where Manjirō again met his four friends. None were able to return to Japan, for this was during Japan's period of isolation when leaving the country was an offense punishable by death. When Captain Davis became mentally ill and was left in Manila, the crew elected a new captain, and Manjirō was made Harpooner. The ''Franklin'' returned to New Bedford, Massachusetts in September 1849 and paid-off its crew; Manjirō was self-sufficient, with $350 in his pocket. Manjirō promptly set out by sea for the California Gold Rush. Arriving in San Francisco in May 1850, he took a steamboat up the Sacramento River, then went into the mountains. In a few months, he made about $600 and decided to find a way back to 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「Nakahama Manjirō」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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