# Sushi (寿司)
**Sushi** (寿司, すし) is a Japanese dish of vinegared rice, called *shari*, combined with a topping or filling, called *neta*, of seafood, egg, or vegetables, either raw or cooked[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/). The word joins *su* (vinegar) and *meshi* (rice), and the rice, not the raw fish, is the defining element: sashimi, which is sliced raw fish without rice, is not sushi[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/). Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries defines the best-known form, nigiri-zushi, as vinegared rice topped with prepared ingredients and served with wasabi or a dipping sauce[2](https://www.maff.go.jp/e/policies/market/k_ryouri/search_menu/1121/index.html).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Defining element | Vinegared rice (*shari*) paired with a *neta* of seafood, egg, or vegetables, raw or cooked; sashimi is not sushi[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/) |
| Two lineages | Fermented *nare-zushi* and vinegared, fast *haya-zushi*; almost all sushi today belongs to the *haya-zushi* lineage[3](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%99%E3%81%97-541612) |
| Nigiri's origin | Credited to Hanaya Yohei (華屋与兵衛, 1799–1858), who opened Yohei Sushi in Edo in 1824; probably not the first to use the format, but the first to make it a commercial success[4](https://www.jpf.go.jp/j/project/culture/exhibit/traveling/pdf/sushi.pdf) |
| Tuna's late arrival | Tuna was not used in sushi before the Tenpō era (1830–1844); after large catches near Edo around 1836–1837, the Ebisu Sushi shop adopted it[3](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%99%E3%81%97-541612) |
| Main types | Nigiri, maki, temaki, chirashi, oshi (pressed), inari, and the fermented funazushi[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/) |
| Market size | More than 20,000 sushi restaurants in Japan and a market of about 1.5 trillion yen (about $12.5 billion) in 2017[4](https://www.jpf.go.jp/j/project/culture/exhibit/traveling/pdf/sushi.pdf) |
| Kaiten pricing | Conveyor-belt plates can use different colors to indicate different prices[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/) |
## Definition and essential features
The Japanese reference encyclopedia *Nihon Daihyakka Zensho* divides sushi into two lineages: *nare-zushi*, in which the sourness comes from fermentation, and *haya-zushi*, in which vinegar supplies the sour taste directly; almost all sushi eaten today is in the *haya-zushi* lineage[3](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%99%E3%81%97-541612). This is why the rice matters more than the topping. A piece of raw fish on plain rice is not sushi; the seasoned, vinegared rice is what carries the name, and the topping may be cooked, marinated, or raw[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/).
Not every reference frames it this way. Oxford [Reference](https://www.edgepedia.org/reference) defines sushi around raw fish, as thin slices of fresh raw fish or seaweed wrapped around a cake of boiled rice, or raw fish placed on vinegar-flavored boiled rice[5](https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100544244). The Japanese official and native-language sources, which include cooked toppings such as simmered sea eel and fried egg in their definition, put the rice first[2](https://www.maff.go.jp/e/policies/market/k_ryouri/search_menu/1121/index.html) • [1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/).
## History from narezushi to Edomae
**Fermented origins.** Sushi likely emerged from southern China or Southeast Asia, where salted freshwater fish from rice paddies was packed in cooked rice and left to ferment for several months to half a year; the rice was discarded and only the fish eaten[6](https://www.kikkoman.com/en/culture/foodforum/digitalbook/pdf/foodforum38-1.pdf). The Japan National Tourism Organization traces the method to the [Mekong Delta](https://www.edgepedia.org/mekong-delta) rice paddies and its arrival in Japan with rice cultivation; until around the [Muromachi period](https://www.edgepedia.org/muromachi-period) the rice was still thrown away after fermentation[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/). MAFF records that in the [Heian period](https://www.edgepedia.org/heian-period) salted fish packed with rice fermented into a sour preserved food called *nare-zushi*[2](https://www.maff.go.jp/e/policies/market/k_ryouri/search_menu/1121/index.html), made by keeping fish stuffed with rice under a stone weight for a long time to allow lactic fermentation[7](https://www.maff.go.jp/e/policies/market/dento_syoku/bunrui/suisan-hakkou.html). The kanji for sushi appear in Japanese documents from around the mid-eighth century, and rice cultivation had spread in the Yayoi period (400 BCE–300 CE)[6](https://www.kikkoman.com/en/culture/foodforum/digitalbook/pdf/foodforum38-1.pdf).
**Eating the rice too.** In the Muromachi period a new style called *hannare-zushi* appeared, eaten after only a few days of fermentation while the rice had not yet turned mushy. This marked the first time fish and rice were eaten together as sushi[8](https://www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db/R1-01241.html). Fermentation accelerators such as koji, sake, and vinegar were added from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries; by the eighteenth century vinegar was the primary souring agent, and by the early nineteenth century non-fermented *haya-zushi* had emerged[6](https://www.kikkoman.com/en/culture/foodforum/digitalbook/pdf/foodforum38-1.pdf). During the [Edo period](https://www.edgepedia.org/edo-period) *nare-zushi* transformed into *haya-zushi*, *oshi-zushi*, and *nigiri-zushi*[2](https://www.maff.go.jp/e/policies/market/k_ryouri/search_menu/1121/index.html).
**Nigiri as Edo fast food.** The prototype of modern nigiri-zushi appeared in the 1820s, sold from Edo street stalls[6](https://www.kikkoman.com/en/culture/foodforum/digitalbook/pdf/foodforum38-1.pdf). Hanaya Yohei (1799–1858, also called Koizumi Yohei) is commonly credited as the creator, though he likely was not the first to employ this style; he was, however, the first to turn it into a profitable business.[4](https://www.jpf.go.jp/j/project/culture/exhibit/traveling/pdf/sushi.pdf) After selling from a stall, he opened a permanent shop, Yohei Sushi, in 1824, and the simple, inexpensive nigiri became popular with Edo laborers[4](https://www.jpf.go.jp/j/project/culture/exhibit/traveling/pdf/sushi.pdf). The *Nihon Daihyakka Zensho* dates the creation slightly differently, saying Edo-style nigiri was created a few years after 1810 (Bunka 7) by Hanaya Yohei, who opened a shop at Honjo Yokogawa[3](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%99%E3%81%97-541612). Nigiri-zushi spread as inexpensive stall food for common people[2](https://www.maff.go.jp/e/policies/market/k_ryouri/search_menu/1121/index.html), and MAFF names the "Edo Sanzushi" credited with spreading it: Kiemon Matsuzaki's kekkari sushi, Yohei Hanaya's Yohei sushi, and Sakaiya Matsugoro's matsuga-zushi[2](https://www.maff.go.jp/e/policies/market/k_ryouri/search_menu/1121/index.html).
**Tuna and postwar expansion.** Tuna was not used in sushi at all before the Tenpō era (1830–1844). Around 1836–1837 large catches near Edo left sellers with fish they could not dispose of; sushi shops were urged to use it and all refused until the Ebisu Sushi shop in Bakurocho tried it, after which tuna quickly became a representative nigiri topping. In the early Meiji period, tuna shipped from Sanriku packed in soy sauce gave rise to the marinated preparation called *zuke*[3](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%99%E3%81%97-541612). After World War II, raw shrimp, raw squid, sea urchin, salmon roe, and herring roe joined the ingredient list, while simmered toppings other than anago declined[3](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%99%E3%81%97-541612).
## Types and regional styles
The main types differ by construction[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/):
- **Nigirizushi**: hand-molded rice with the neta draped over it.
- **Makizushi**: rolled with a bamboo mat; **temakizushi** is the hand-rolled cone form.
- **Chirashizushi**: neta scattered over a bowl of rice.
- **Oshizushi**: pressed in a box; battera mackerel sushi is a famous example. Box sushi (箱ずし) is used mostly in Kansai[3](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%99%E3%81%97-541612).
- **Inarizushi**: rice in fried tofu pouches; **funazushi** is the oldest narezushi, still eaten in Shiga Prefecture[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/) • [2](https://www.maff.go.jp/e/policies/market/k_ryouri/search_menu/1121/index.html).
Hako-zushi (box-pressed), chirashi-zushi, and maki-zushi arose during the nineteenth century[6](https://www.kikkoman.com/en/culture/foodforum/digitalbook/pdf/foodforum38-1.pdf).
**Edomae versus Kansai versus the California roll.** Edomae-zushi, the Tokyo counter style, brushes the rice with red vinegar and prepares toppings by boiling, steaming, *zuke* (soy marinating), *kombu-jime* (curing in kelp), or vinegar washing; typical toppings include kohada, mackerel, cooked sea eel, steamed shrimp, and fried egg[2](https://www.maff.go.jp/e/policies/market/k_ryouri/search_menu/1121/index.html). Edomae sushi is counter service in which the chef forms each nigiri and slices the fish only after the customer orders[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/). Kansai-style oshizushi, by contrast, is rice and toppings pressed into a square wooden frame[3](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%99%E3%81%97-541612). The [California roll](https://www.edgepedia.org/california-roll), nearly unknown in Japan but popular abroad, is a reversed makizushi called *ura-makizushi*, with the rice on the outside and the seaweed on the inside[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/).
## Ingredients, condiments, and etiquette
Early nigiri toppings were not raw: the fish was marinated in salt, vinegar, or soy sauce, or boiled or grilled, to prevent spoiling; three pieces of nigiri made a filling meal[6](https://www.kikkoman.com/en/culture/foodforum/digitalbook/pdf/foodforum38-1.pdf). The shift to raw toppings came later, with the postwar ingredient expansion[3](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%99%E3%81%97-541612).
The condiments have defined roles. [Soy sauce](https://www.edgepedia.org/soy-sauce) is applied by dipping the neta side, not the shari: dipping the rice absorbs too much soy sauce, overwhelms the flavor, and can break apart the rice mound[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/). Gari, the pickled ginger, is a palate cleanser eaten between orders, not a topping[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/). Wasabi is served with the sushi or mixed by the diner[2](https://www.maff.go.jp/e/policies/market/k_ryouri/search_menu/1121/index.html). Other etiquette points from the official tourism guide: never pass food chopstick-to-chopstick or stand chopsticks upright in a bowl; eating with the hands is acceptable even at high-end restaurants; and at a kaitenzushi, never return a plate to the belt[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/).
## By the numbers
Japan had more than 20,000 sushi restaurants and a sushi market of about 1.5 trillion yen (about $12.5 billion) in 2017, according to Japan Foodservice Association sales statistics[4](https://www.jpf.go.jp/j/project/culture/exhibit/traveling/pdf/sushi.pdf). Nigiri-zushi prices did not fall until the 1970s, when takeout and kaiten-zushi (conveyor-belt sushi) made it affordable for families and children[6](https://www.kikkoman.com/en/culture/foodforum/digitalbook/pdf/foodforum38-1.pdf). Kaiten plates can use different colors to indicate different prices[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/).
A 2018 Rakuten Insight survey of 10,754 people aged 20 to 69 found that about 40% of recent sushi-restaurant users visited kaiten shops monthly or more often, while about 50% had not visited a traditional sushi shop in three years[4](https://www.jpf.go.jp/j/project/culture/exhibit/traveling/pdf/sushi.pdf). The price gap follows the format: kaiten shops are mostly cheap with some mid-range options[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/).
## Sushi, sashimi, and Westernized sushi
The category boundary is the rice. Sashimi, sliced raw fish served without rice, is not sushi[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/). Within sushi, the formats encode different service models: Edomae counter sushi is made to order in front of the customer[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/); Kansai oshizushi is pressed in advance in wooden boxes[3](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%99%E3%81%97-541612); kaiten-zushi delivers pre-made plates on a belt, with plate colors indicating different prices[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/); and the California roll reverses the roll's construction, rice outside and seaweed inside, a form nearly unknown in Japan but popular abroad[1](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/).
## References
1. [Sushi in Japan Guide, Japan National Tourism Organization](https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/sushi-in-japan/)
2. [Nigiri zushi, Our Regional Cuisines, MAFF](https://www.maff.go.jp/e/policies/market/k_ryouri/search_menu/1121/index.html)
3. [すし, 日本大百科全書, コトバンク](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%99%E3%81%97-541612)
4. [Sushi, Japan Foundation traveling exhibition catalog](https://www.jpf.go.jp/j/project/culture/exhibit/traveling/pdf/sushi.pdf)
5. [Sushi, Oxford Reference](https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100544244)
6. [Food Forum Vol. 38 No. 1: Sushi, Kikkoman](https://www.kikkoman.com/en/culture/foodforum/digitalbook/pdf/foodforum38-1.pdf)
7. [Fishery fermented food, Traditional Foods in Japan, MAFF](https://www.maff.go.jp/e/policies/market/dento_syoku/bunrui/suisan-hakkou.html)
8. [世界中で愛される日本食の代表「すし」, 地域観光資源の多言語解説文データベース, MLIT](https://www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db/R1-01241.html)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Food, customs, and everyday culture › Food, cooking and hospitality › Dishes, foods, and foodstuffs › Fish and seafood dishes*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license