In the Meiji period, only a small number of persons in limited social classes, such as politicians and successful businessmen, lived in western style houses, and most people lived in traditional Japanese style houses.
明治時代に洋風の住宅（西洋館）に住むのは、政治家、実業家などごく限られた階層の一部の者であり、ほとんどは和風住宅であった。