The word 'tacchu' originally referred to the 'to no hotori' (grave of a temple founder or high priest) erected by the disciples of a founding priest or Zen temple high priest following his death, or a small temple constructed in the grounds of a larger Zen temple.
塔頭（たっちゅう）とは、もともと禅寺において祖師や大寺・名刹の高僧の死後、その弟子が師の徳を慕って、塔（祖師や高僧の墓塔）の頭（ほとり）、または、その敷地内に建てた小院のことをいう。