During the Edo period of Japanese history, villages (村, mura) were self-governing administrative units, led by the village headman (庄屋, shōya).
The development of mura reflected specific changes that show the transition of the Edo community from medieval agricultural to mature administrative unit.
[1] Before the Edo period, samurai administered the villages, but during the sword hunt they were put to a choice: give up their sword and status and remain on the land as a peasant, or live in a castle town (城下町, jōkamachi) as a paid retainer of the local daimyō (lord).
Prior to the emergence of religious authorities such as the Buddhist establishment, mura - along with the family (ie) - helped establish Japanese cultural practices such as ancestral veneration and funerary rites.
[2] Some of the villages served as enclaves or base-villages for the miko or female shamans.