Historical term for a feudal lord, particularly in the Edo period. The kanji 侯 was sometimes used in formal titles for daimyo, but 大名 is the more common term.
The Lord of Aizu led his domain during the turmoil of the late Edo period.
His ancestor was the Marquis of Satsuma.
侯爵の略称として「侯」が使われた。
侯 was used as an abbreviation for 侯爵 (marquis).
In the Edo period, the Lord of Kaga ruled over one million koku.
大名 is the everyday term for a feudal lord of the Edo period, while 侯 is a more formal, historical title sometimes used in its place.
侯 (marquis, feudal lord) and 候 (sign, season, or classical auxiliary verb) look almost identical and share the reading こう, but are unrelated in meaning.
marquis; marquess
king and feudal lords; royalty and nobility
feudal lords; barons; princes
nobles; feudal lords
marquisate; principality
From Chinese 侯 (hóu), a feudal rank. Adopted into Japanese as a title for nobility and later applied to daimyo.
all daimyo; the feudal lords