Posted by Horst Graebner (90.230.84.11) on June 26, 2010 at 21:34:19:
In Reply to: Publisher names posted by Noel Chiappa on June 25, 2010 at 22:15:35:
Hi Noel,
Mr. Friedrich Schwan gives the following explanation (Handbuch japanischer Holzschnitt, München 2003, p.183f ):
The 'dogō' is the official, registered company name which is also used for the the official publisher seal, the hanmoto-in.
The 'yagō' is the inoffical commonly used company name.
Mr. Schwan shows the usage by the example of Tsutaya Jūzaburō:
family name: Kitagawa (normally not used in business live)
first name: Jūzaburō
dogō: Kōshodō (also used for the hanmoto-in)
yagō: Tsutaya
shortname: Tsuta-Jū (builded from the first kanji of the yagō and the first name)
hyō-in: a company logo used for sealing most of the prints (sometimes prints were sealed with the hanmoto-in or a combination of both). In the case of Tsutaya the hyō-in is an ivy leaf (Jap. 'tsuta' for ivy) under a double roof (Jap. 'ya' for house), so clearly indicating the yagō.
In some cases publishers also used an artist or poetry name: Tsutaya Jūzaburō signed some poems as Karamaro.
Horst