OK, OK, just one more post...

[Kintamayama 47,178]

Tokitsukaze Oyakata has decided Shimotori will inherit the "Yutakayama" name. That was the former rijicho/ former Tokitsukaze Oyakata's shikona. "If he beats 2-3 of the Yokozuna/Ozeki and gets a KK in Haru, it will happen", he said. Talk about a tall order..

The names "Toyokuni" and "Kitabayama" were also mentioned as possibilities, but in the end, it was decided that the 190 centimeter Shimotori will be named after the 189 centimeter Yutakayama, who was Ozeki for 34 bashos in the early sixties. The name change idea came about after a lot of letters arrived at Tokitsukaze complaining that Shimotori(which is his real name) was "weak" and that he seemed too "gentle". About his opening day bout against Asashouryuu, he said, " I always try to forget the bad things (referring to his being sent into orbit twice by Asashouryuu a few days ago at keiko). I'll try once and even twice to go forward. I'd like to somehow get ahold of his mawashi", he said.

Still, it's a high hurdle, so we may not see that name change for a while yet..

Juumonji has announced his plans to marry on May 29th. She is 21. Engagement was yesterday.

Hakkaku Oyakata, former Yokozuna Hokutoumi, has announced that he got divorced.

Edited March 13, 2004 by Kintamayama

[aderechelsea 125]

.............i never liked the name changes...... >(Alien stuff...)

when i get to know a rikishi i want his name to stay as it is........

(but i don't have to worry about shimotori for now..........his task seems impossible)

[Yoavoshimaru 0]

Get used to it (Applauding...) Name changes are happen regularly in sumo, when changing divisions sometimes, when becoming oyakata sometimes, when taking a senior role in the NSK sometimes...

[Jesinofuji 11]

And think, someday shikona like Asashoryu, Akebono, and Musashimaru could all be adopted by rising young talent.

[Kashunowaka 300]

And think, someday shikona like Asashoryu, Akebono, and Musashimaru could all be adopted by rising young talent.

The mind boggles ... (Applauding...)

I wonder if Akebono's shikona will ever be used again. Wasn't his shikona rather special in that it didn't follow the usual conventions for shikona?

[Yubiquitoyama 4]

I wonder if Akebono's shikona will ever be used again. Wasn't his shikona rather special in that it didn't follow the usual conventions for shikona?

Would that be in just consisting of one kanji? Although that is unusual, it has happened quite a few times, although it seems it is inevitably kanji that (like Akebono) have readings "sounding" like a shikona in having several syllables. Some examples of one-kanji shikona would be Aratama, Ootori, Aragane, Todoroki, Itadaki. At least Todoroki and Itadaki I think are shikonas that have popped up many times (also in modern times), so I think Akebono could as well, if someone is deemed worthy of it in the future.

I don't think Akebono actually will be used again though. Most Yokozuna-names are not, and Akebono not being still in sumo makes it less likely he would pass it on himself.

Edited March 15, 2004 by Yubiquitoyama

[Yoavoshimaru 0]

I know there was an Asashio IV, but not a V, right? What other shikona have been used that much by successful (say, maegashira or higher) rikishi?

[Asashosakari 20,223]

I know there was an Asashio IV, but not a V, right?  What other shikona have been used that much by successful (say, maegashira or higher) rikishi?

Current Takasago Oyakata is moto-Ozeki Asashio V, so yep, there've been five of them. :-)

Other shikona used by 5 or more different Makuuchi rikishi while in Makuuchi (and I might have missed a few, I'm doing this by visually scanning Yubi's shikona lists):

Amatsukaze (5)

Arakuma (6)

Arauma (5)

Chitosegawa (6)

Fujinokawa (5)

Genjiyama (8)

Hiodoshi (5)

Hiraishi (5)

Inagawa (6)

Itadaki (5)

Kashiwado (10)

Kasugayama (6)

Kimenzan (5)

Komatsuyama (5)

Koshinoumi (6)

Koyanagi (6)

Mikuniyama (5)

Miyagino (6)

Nishikigi (5)

Onaruto (6)

Otowayama (6)

Ryogoku (6)

Sakahoko (5)

Sekinoto (7)

Sendagawa (7)

Shikainami (5)

Shiranui (5)

Sotogahama (5)

Takamiyama (5)

Tegarayama (5)

Todagawa (5)

Wakashima (5)

Washigahama (5)

Well, that ended up longer than I expected. (Applauding...) Note that not all of these rikishi actually finished their careers with those shikona (probably, most didn't)...indeed, not even all five Asashio did. The third Asashio went on to become Yokozuna as Minanogawa.

Incidentally, is it just me or were shikona changes much more common in times past? Looking at the banzuke annotations at banzuke.com, up to the early 20th century, there were shikona changes in Makuuchi almost every basho, and then again a hot phase in the late 1950s and early 60s but since then, it has become much more rare, it seems...

[Yoavoshimaru 0]

Wow, a much much longer list than I expected. Thanks :-)

[furanohana 3]

Kashiwado (10)

(Yikes...)

[Zenjimoto 40]

Wasn't there actually some talk about Asashoryu himself adopting the Asashio name, some time ago?

[Yubiquitoyama 4]

Kashiwado (10)

(Yikes...)

This was the house shikona of Isenoumi-beya for a couple of hundred years. The future stable owner got it and in some cases the heya was named Kashiwado instead. When the latest Kashiwado (the Yokozuna considered Taiho's greatest rival) retired in the 1960s, the sitting stable owner was not particularly old and still healthy, so Kashiwado opened up a heya of his own instead (which I believe was Kagamiyama, but I might be wrong). Therefore it seems the tradition is lost. I suspect it would take another Isenoumi Yokozuna (Oikari (I am not worthy...) ) to revive it since the latest holder was so succesful.

On another note, the shikona Kashiwado HAS been carried by very good rikishi before. The second best rikishi (and therefore completely forgotten (Sigh...)) during the Raiden-era, on the other side of the banzuke, was for a long time an early Kashiwado, who had a very good record, although constantly fighting Raiden meant he had only one tournament with best tournament record (compared to Raidens 27 :-P )

Later on in the 19th century another Kashiwado who could well be the second best Ozeki of all time, had 16 tournaments with best winning record, still during an era with only 2 basho a year.

B-)

Edited March 16, 2004 by Yubiquitoyama

[Yubiquitoyama 4]

Wasn't there actually some talk about Asashoryu himself adopting the Asashio name, some time ago?

Well, I think I brought the issue up a couple of times (I am not worthy...)

Seriously, if I remember correctly, Asashoryu was actually offered the Asashio-shikona before or on turning Yokozuna, but declined. I might have dreamed that though, so anyone feeling the urge to search the mailing list archives, be my guest (Sigh...)

Edited March 16, 2004 by Yubiquitoyama

[Yoavoshimaru 0]

When they had two basho a year, when were they held?

Why did they move to more basho per year?

[Asashosakari 20,223]

This was the house shikona of Isenoumi-beya for a couple of hundred years. The future stable owner got it and in some cases the heya was named Kashiwado instead. When the latest Kashiwado (the Yokozuna considered Taiho's greatest rival) retired in the 1960s, the sitting stable owner was not particularly old and still healthy, so Kashiwado opened up a heya of his own instead (which I believe was Kagamiyama, but I might be wrong). Therefore it seems the tradition is lost. I suspect it would take another Isenoumi Yokozuna (Oikari (I am not worthy...) ) to revive it since the latest holder was so succesful.

Very interesting...thank you!