[2] Although he was not able to ensure Japanese political or economic interests in Istanbul, his activity was the beginning of a period of intensification of contact between the two countries.

He acted as a Honorary Consul, helped introduce the Turks to Japanese culture and wrote many books about Turkey after returning to Japan.

Born in Edo in the residence of the Numata Domain (now Gunma Prefecture)'s daimyō, Yamada was the son of Nakamura Yūzaemon.

[5] In 1889, the Ottoman Empire sent the frigate Ertuğrul under the authority of Rear Admiral Ali Osman Pasha for a courtesy visit to Japan.

On April 16, at the suggestion of Foreign Minister Enomoto Takeaki, Yamada gave a lecture at the seminary of the Japanese Colonial Association (Shokuminkyōkai) on the Ottoman Empire and Egypt, reflecting Japan's new interest in expanding its trade network in the region.

Yamada formed good relations with the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (İstanbul Ticaret Odası) who authorized him to run his business as a "commercial museum" according to an Ottoman law promulgated in 1890.

He also became a friend of Spirakis Alexandritis, the General Secretary of the Chamber and publisher of the Bulletin of the Oriental Directory, with whom Yamada continued to communicate even after his return to Japan decades later.

Yamada obtained authorization to sell Japanese products such as silk, porcelain, tea, and wooden objects in a room in the Chamber of Commerce before renting a shop on Pera Street to set up Nakamura Shoten.

[9] The sultan and members of the Ottoman dynasty particularly valued Japanese-manufactured goods as well as Japanese household and decorative items, becoming important customers of the store.

At the time, the Turks began to take a great interest in Japan, a country that had modernized quickly to compete with major European powers.

He published the picture book Toruko Gakan (A Pictorial Reflection of Turkey; Japanese: 土耳古畫観) in 1911 in which he attempted to explain the city of Istanbul as well as Islam to his countrymen.