Yamakawa Futaba

Who was Yamakawa Futaba?

Yamakawa Futaba was a Japanese educator of the early Meiji era. Born in Aizu, she was the sister of the karō, Yamakawa Hiroshi; her other siblings included physicist Yamakawa Kenjirō and Meiji-era social figure Ōyama Sutematsu. Futaba took part in the defense of Tsuruga Castle in the Boshin War. She was also briefly married to Kajiwara Heima, another Aizu karō.

In the Meiji era, Futaba worked at the Tokyo Women's Normal School, the forerunner of Ochanomizu University, during the tenure of fellow Aizu native Takamine Hideo as principal. For her work in education, she was awarded with junior 5th court rank.