# Honourable Grandmother — A Daughter of the Samurai character guide

> Honourable Grandmother in A Daughter of the Samurai by Etsu Inagaki Sugimoto.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Grandmother, Honourable Edo Grandmother

**First appearance:** 0003-a-daughter-of-the-samurai

## Snapshot

The Edo grandmother who drills samurai etiquette into a small girl, believing that how you fold a sleeve reveals who you are.

## Who they are

Grandmother belongs to the old capital and the old ways, and she supervises Etsu's training in posture, speech, and the thousand small ceremonies of a samurai daughter. She is strict to the point of coldness, yet her severity is a form of love — she is preparing the child for a world that will demand everything. Her lessons give Etsu the discipline she will need when that world dissolves and she must invent a new way of being.

## In the story

### [A Daughter of the Samurai](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/a-daughter-of-the-samurai)

Represents the old Edo-era values and strict samurai upbringing.

### [I: Winters in Echigo](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/i-winters-in-echigo)

Lived in the household and received rare imported gifts from Father's trips.

### [Days of Kan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/iii-days-of-kan)

She is a great reader who tells Etsu-bo stories about mythology, history, and classic dramas, and she supports Etsu-bo's education for a priestess.

### [The Old and the New](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/iv-the-old-and-the-new)

Saddened by the introduction of meat, seals the shrines, refuses to eat, and laments the loss of ancestral traditions.

### [A Sunny New Year](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/vi-a-sunny-new-year)

Spends time polishing the shrine and sits with Etsu by the firebox, teaching her to make a hemp-thread ball.

### [The Wedding That Never Was](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/vii-the-wedding-that-never-was)

Formally announces the brother's return and handles the family letter-box with ceremonial dignity.

### [Two Ventures](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/viii-two-ventures)

Sings the farewell part of the wedding-song as the procession departs.

### [The Story of a Marionette](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/ix-the-story-of-a-marionette)

The narrator's paternal grandmother, who lives in the household and helps prepare the Bon festival decorations.

### [X: The Day of the Bird](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/x-the-day-of-the-bird)

Grandmother explains the significance of the Day of the Bird and shares her own experience as a bride, offering advice about samurai loyalty in a foreign land.

### [XI: My First Journey](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/xi-my-first-journey)

Etsu-bo bids goodbye to Honourable Grandmother before departing.

### [Travel Education](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/xii-travel-education)

Mentioned in the context of her bridal journey from Komoro to Nagaoka, linking Etsu-bo's own anticipated path to ancestral tradition.

### [XIII: Foreigners](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/xiii-foreigners)

Remembered fondly for family shrine services at home.

### [Lessons](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/xiv-lessons)

Waited in her room for the master's return, as was her privilege.

### [How I Became a Christian](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/xv-how-i-became-a-christian)

Proud and loyal, she cannot understand Etsu's conversion and regards it as a lifelong sorrow; provides a quiet refuge during airing days.

### [Sailing Unknown Seas](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/xvi-sailing-unknown-seas)

Defends Japanese customs in the family council, arguing against Western dress as being like coolie clothing, and her opinion influences the decision to prepare only Japanese attire.

### [The Black Ships](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/chapters/xxxii-the-black-ships)

Appears in Etsu-bo's memory, explaining the black ships and the need for hearts to meet across cultures.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/characters/grandmother
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_the_samurai_se/characters