Tsunoya

What tsunoya means

A tsunoya is a wing projecting at right angles from the main block of a house. Its roof ridge runs in the other direction from the main ridge, so that seen from above the building forms an L or a T. The wing may contain reception rooms, a kitchen, storerooms or work space.

Adding a tsunoya enlarges a house or attaches space for a different use, and such wings appear in farmhouses in many regions. A wing projecting at the front with a reception room gives the house a more formal face; one projecting at the back with a kitchen or workroom extends everyday space.

Other terms describe parts attached to a main block. An Ochimune raises a lower ridge in line with the main building, and a Geya is a lean-to roof against the main wall; a tsunoya differs in projecting at right angles with its ridge turned. Usage in records varies from region to region.

Reading the records and the house

Records describe the direction of projection. The main house of the Okuno family in Hirakata, Osaka, is recorded with a Buddhist altar room and reception room projecting from the east side of its nine-by-five-bay core and a tsunoya projecting at the back, and is said to show the form of the upper farmhouses of northern Kawachi. For the detached reception house of the Okamoto family in Kaizuka, Osaka, the record says that the eastern half of the ground floor had a tsunoya to the south containing an earth-floored passage and, by tradition, a waiting room for the tea room.

On site, look at the directions of the roof ridges. A projecting part whose ridge meets the main ridge at right angles is a tsunoya. Such wings are often at the back, out of sight, so site plans and records help locate them.