jitō

were medieval territory stewards in Japan, especially in the Kamakura and Muromachi shogunates. Appointed by the shōgun, jitō managed manors, including national holdings governed by the kokushi or provincial governor. There were also deputy jitō called .

== History == The term jitō (literally meaning "land head") began to be used in the late Heian period as an adjectival word. For example, a jitō person (地頭人) meant an influential local. Later, the term was sometimes used for persons who managed each local manor. Modern historians cannot clarify the character of the early jitō appointed by Minamoto no Yoritomo, as the conditions of these precursors are not well known.