Since the start of trade between Japan and Sung Dynasty during the Heian period, there had been a residential area called 'Tobo' or 'Daitogai,' residential areas in which merchants from Northern Sung Dynasty resided.
博多には平安時代の日宋貿易以来、北宋から渡来した商人が居を構える「唐房」あるいは「大唐街」と呼ばれる街域があった。