was a province of Japan in the area of northwestern Shikoku.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Tosa" in . Iyo bordered on Sanuki Province to the northeast, Awa to the east, and Tosa to the south. Its abbreviated form name was . In terms of the Gokishichidō system, Iyo was one of the provinces of the Nankaidō circuit. Under the Engishiki classification system, Iyo was ranked as one of the "upper countries" (上国) in terms of importance, and one of the "far countries" (遠国) in terms of distance from the capital. The provincial capital was located in what is now the city of Imabari, but its exact location is still unknown. The ichinomiya of the province is the Ōyamazumi Shrine located on the island of Ōmishima in what is now part of Imabari."Nationwide List of Ichinomiya", p. 3.; retrieved 2011-08-09 The people spoke Iyo dialect.

History Iyo Province was formed by the Ritsuryo reforms by combining the territories of the , who ruled a territory centered on what is now the city of Iyo and town of Masaki with Kumi Province, Kazehaya Province, Touma Province, and Koichi Province each ruled by its own kuni no miyatsuko. The Geiyo Islands in the Seto Inland Sea were considered part of Aki Province into the Edo Period. During the Heian period, the coastal areas of the province were part of the stronghold of Fujiwara no Sumitomo, who led a rebellion against Imperial authority. During the Muromachi period, a branch of the Saionji family was appointed as shugo by the Ashikaga shogunate, but was constantly being invaded his more powerful and aggressive neighbors. The Saionji survived by the fluid loyalties and fierce resistance, but were eventually overcome by Chōsokabe Motochika, who was in turn overthrown by the forces of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Under the Tokugawa shogunate, the province was divided into several feudal domains.

+ Bakumatsu period domains Name Clan Type kokudaka Iyo-Matsuyama Domain Hisamatsu-Matsudaira clan Shinpan 150,000 koku Uwajima Domain Date clan Tozama 100,000 koku Iyo-Yoshida Domain Date clan Tozama 30,000 koku Ōzu Domain Katō clan Tozama 66,000 koku Niiya Domain Katō clan Tozama 10,000 koku Imabari Domain Hisamatsu-Matsudaira clan Fudai 35,000 koku Saijō Domain Matsudaira clan Shinpan 30,000 koku Komatsu Domain Hitotsuyanagi clan Tozama 10,000 koku

Per the early Meiji period , an official government assessment of the nation’s resources, the province had 964 villages with a total kokudaka of 434,408 koku. Iyo Province consisted of the following districts:

+ Districts of Iyo Province District kokudaka villages status Currently 22,364 koku 56 villages Tenryō (18); Imabari (18), Saijō (11), Tenryō/Saijō (4), Tenryō/Imabari (1) Dissolved, now Saijō, Shikoku-chūō 36,694 koku 53 villages Tenryō (6); Komatsu (4), Saijō (43), Dissolved; now Saijō, Niihama 23,142 koku 38 villages Iyo-Matsuyama (25), Komatsu (9), Saijō (2), Matsuyama/Komatsu (1), Komatsu/Saijō (1) Dissolved; now Saijō, Tōon 14,650 koku 29 villages Tenryō (4); Iyo-Matsuyama (23); Tenryō/Matsuyama (1) Dissolved; now Saijō 46,790 koku 106 villages Tenryō (8); Imabari (83); Iyo-Matsuyama (17) merged into Ōchi District on April 18, 1896, now Imabari, Kamijima 16,587 koku 29 villages Iyo-Matsuyama (29) merged into Ōchi District on April 18, 1896; now Imabari 18,351 koku 84 villages Tenryō (2); Iyo-Matsuyama (78); Ozu (4); Matsuyama/Ozu (1) Dissolved, now Matsuyama 16,345 koku 25 villages Iyo-Matsuyama (25) Dissolved, now Matsuyama 22,824 koku 36 villages Iyo-Matsuyama (36) Dissolved, now Matsuyama, Toon 17,554 koku 32 villages Iyo-Matsuyama (32) Dissolved, now Matsuyama, Toon 38,834 koku 102 villages Iyo-Matsuyama (48); Ozu (46), Niiya (7); Matsuyama/Ozu (1); Ozu/Niiya (1) Ozu, Seiyo, Uchiko, Iyo, Matsuyama, Toon, Tobe 27,949 koku 41 villages Iyo-Matsuyama (22); Ozu (18), Niiya (2); Matsuyama/Ozu (1); Ozu/Niiya (1) Masaki, Tobe, Iyo 33,491 koku 83 villages Ozu (82), Niiya (4); Ozu, Iyo, Seiyo, Naishi 98,828 koku 250 villages Uwajima (140), Iyo-Yoshida (72); Uwajima, Seiyo, Ozu, Naishi

Following the abolition of the han system in 1871, Iyo Province became Ehime Prefecture.

Gallery

Notes

References Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). Japan encyclopedia. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. ; OCLC 58053128

External links

Murdoch's map of provinces, 1903