In the Muromachi period, these Kokujin-shu were separated into those who were hikan (low-level bureaucrat) of the Hatakeyama clan (such as Sumida, Ataka and Koyama clans) and the others who were independent from the Hatakeyama clan as hokoshu (the shogunal military guard) under the direct control of the bakufu (Japanese feudal government headed by a shogun) (such as Yukawa, Tamaki and Yamamoto clans).
室町時代、これらの国人衆は畠山氏の被官化したもの（隅田・安宅・小山氏など）、幕府直属の奉公衆として畠山氏から独立していたもの（湯河・玉置・山本氏）に分かれていた。