ABSTRACT

Having summarized the general position of the Dutch in Japan during the Tokugawa Period, it is necessary to describe that group of Japanese who during the long years of the confinement of the Hollanders at Deshima had the most intimate contact with the foreigners. The hereditary Japanese interpreters of the Dutch language at Nagasaki not only had the responsibility for day-to-day dealings with the Europeans but also through their knowledge of Dutch provided a springboard for the development of Rangaku.