Ichikawa Danjūrō VII

Ichikawa Danjūrō VII 七代目市川團十郎
Ichikawa Ebizō V as the Benkei in the 1852 production of Kanjinchō
Born	1791 Edo, Japan
Died	23 March 1859 Edo, Japan
Other names	Ichikawa Hakuen II, Ichikawa Ebizō V, Ichikawa Shinnosuke I

Ichikawa Danjūrō VII (七代目 市川 團十郎, Shichidaime Ichikawa Danjūrō^?, 1791-23 March 1859) was a Japanese kabuki actor who specialized in male hero (tachiyaku) roles, said to be the greatest of the 19th century. He was responsible for the establishment of the Kabuki Jūhachiban, a collection of the eighteen greatest plays in the repertoire.

Like most kabuki actors, and many artists, of his time, Danjūrō VII had a number of names, including Ichikawa Ebizō V, Ichikawa Hakuen II and Ichikawa Shinnosuke I. In poetry circles, he often used the names Jukai (I), Sanshō, and Hakuen. Ebizō was also referred to in various circumstances as Ichikawa Jukai I, Matsumoto Kōshirō, Hatagaya Jūzō and Naritaya Shichizaemon II, though he did not formally use these names onstage. He was a member of the guild Naritaya, and could be referred to by this name (see yagō)

The son of Ichikawa Danjūrō V's daughter, he was formally adopted into the kabuki lineages by Ichikawa Danjūrō VI. Through these connections, he could trace his lineage back to the first Danjūrō.

Danjūrō VII had a number of sons who became actors, under the names Ichikawa Danjūrō VIII, Ichikawa Danjūrō IX, Ichikawa Ebizō VII, Ichikawa Ebizō VIII, Ichikawa Komazō VI, Ichikawa Saruzō I, and Ichikawa Kōzō. He also had a great many disciples.

He was born in Edo in 1791, to the daughter of the famous Ichikawa Danjūrō V; his father owned a shibai jaya (a teashop inside the theatre), and is said to have been a musician and low-ranking samurai. He appeared onstage for the first time at the age of 3, as Ichikawa Shinnosuke, and took the name Ebizō V at the age of six.