三さん行ぎょう半はん

noun

three and a half lines; letter of divorce (Edo period)

Refers to the brief, formulaic divorce letter a husband could give his wife during the Edo period, typically written on a half-sheet of paper. The term is now historical and often used in discussions of Edo-era customs.

• 江え戸ど時じ代だい、夫おっとが妻つまに三さん行ぎょう半はんを渡わたせば離り婚こんが成せい立りつした。

  In the Edo period, if a husband handed his wife a three-and-a-half-line letter, the divorce was finalized.