It must be noted that the term was not used for all the people classified in artisans and merchants classes but referred to the owners and the masters who made up the bourgeoisie and possessed their own estates.
しかしながら、単なる商工身分の者全般を町人と呼ぶわけではなく、特にブルジョワ階級である旦那衆のことを指し、家屋敷を所有する者のことを言う。