Portal:Ancient Japan
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The Ancient Japan Portal
The first human inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago have been traced to the Paleolithic, around 38–39,000 years ago. The Jōmon period, named after its cord-marked pottery, was followed by the Yayoi period in the first millennium BC when new inventions were introduced from Asia. During this period, the first known written reference to Japan was recorded in the Chinese Book of Han in the first century AD.
Around the 3rd century BC, the Yayoi people from the continent immigrated to the Japanese archipelago and introduced iron technology and agricultural civilization. Because they had an agricultural civilization, the population of the Yayoi began to grow rapidly and ultimately overwhelmed the Jōmon people, natives of the Japanese archipelago who were hunter-gatherers.
Between the fourth and ninth centuries, Japan's many kingdoms and tribes gradually came to be unified under a centralized government, nominally controlled by the Emperor of Japan. The imperial dynasty established at this time continues to this day, albeit in an almost entirely ceremonial role. In 794, a new imperial capital was established at Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto), marking the beginning of the Heian period, which lasted until 1185. The Heian period is considered a golden age of classical Japanese culture. Japanese religious life from this time and onwards was a mix of native Shinto practices and Buddhism. (Full article...)
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- Image 1Emperor Hanzei (反正天皇, Hanzei-tennō) aka Emperor Hansho was the 18th Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Both the Kojiki, and the Nihon Shoki (collectively known as the Kiki) recorded events that took place during Hanzei's alleged lifetime. No firm dates can be assigned to this Emperor's life or reign, but he is conventionally considered to have reigned from 406 CE to 410 CE. His family included an "Imperial Lady", and "Concubine" which bore him 4 children. Historians have stated that while nothing remarkable took place during Hanzei's brief reign, he did have ranked concubines which is an introduced Chinese custom.
Hanzei died sometime in 410 AD without naming an heir to the throne which caused Imperial ministers to name a successor. While the location of Hanzei's grave is unknown, he is traditionally venerated at a memorial Shinto tomb. Modern historians have come to the conclusion that the title of "Emperor" and the name "Hanzei" were used by later generations to describe him. There is also a general consensus regarding Hanzei's factual existence. (Full article...) - Image 2The Yamashita Cave People (山下洞人, Yamashita Dōjin) are the prehistoric humans known from many bones found in the Yamashita limestone cave located on the grounds of the Yamashita First Cave Site Park in Naha, Okinawa, Japan. The remains have been dated at 32,000±1000 years ago.
The most important bones found in the cave in Yamashita are those of an approximately 6 to 8-year-old girl. (Full article...) - Image 3Emperor Ingyō (允恭天皇, Ingyō-tennō) was the 19th Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Both the Kojiki, and the Nihon Shoki (collectively known as the Kiki) recorded events that took place during Ingyō's alleged lifetime. No firm dates can be assigned to this Emperor's life or reign, but he is conventionally considered to have reigned from 410 to 453.
While the location of Ingyō's grave (if any) is unknown, he is traditionally venerated at a memorial Shinto tomb. (Full article...) - Image 4Kabane (姓) were Japanese hereditary noble titles. Their use traces back to ancient times when they began to be used as titles signifying a family's political and social status. (Full article...)
- Image 5Kimi (君) was an ancient Japanese hereditary title denoting rank and political standing (a kabane) that was reserved for certain members of the Tomo no Miyatsuko clans, which were clans associated with particular occupations. They became a hereditary title passed down the generations. The kimi rank was lower than the muraji and omi ranks in political power and standing during much of the Kofun period and Asuka period which are collectively grouped as the Yamato period.
"Kimi" literally means "Lord" (of a local area). For example, in the name, Kamitsukeno no Kimi Wakako, "Kamitsukeno no kimi" means "Lord of Kamitsukeno" and Wakako is his personal name. Sometimes the character (公) is used in place of (君). (Full article...) - Image 6
The Isedōtai Ruins (伊勢堂岱遺跡, Isedōtai iseki) are a late Jōmon period archaeological site in the city of Kitaakita, Akita Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan. Discovered during the construction of a highway to nearby Odate–Noshiro Airport, the remains were designated a National Historic Site of Japan in 2001 by the Japanese government. The site is located approximately five minutes on foot from Ogata on the Akita Nairiku Railway. (Full article...) - Image 7
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In Japanese folklore, kitsune (狐, きつね, IPA: [kʲi̥t͡sɯne̞] ⓘ) are foxes that possess paranormal abilities that increase as they get older and wiser. According to folklore, the kitsune-foxes (or perhaps the "fox spirits") can bewitch people, just like the tanuki they have the ability to shapeshift into human or other forms, and to trick or fool human beings. While some folktales speak of kitsune employing this ability to trick others—as foxes in folklore often do—other stories portray them as faithful guardians, friends, and lovers.
Foxes and humans lived close together in ancient Japan; this companionship gave rise to legends about the creatures. Kitsune have become closely associated with Inari, a Shinto kami or spirit, and serve as its messengers. This role has reinforced the fox's supernatural significance. The more tails a kitsune has—they may have as many as nine—the older, wiser, and more powerful it is. Because of their potential power and influence, some people make sacrifices to them as to a deity. (Full article...) - Image 9Emperor Jimmu (神武天皇, Jinmu-tennō) was the legendary first emperor of Japan according to the Nihon Shoki and Kojiki. His ascension is traditionally dated as 660 BC. In Japanese mythology, he was a descendant of the sun goddess Amaterasu, through her grandson Ninigi, as well as a descendant of the storm god Susanoo. He launched a military expedition from Hyūga near the Seto Inland Sea, captured Yamato, and established this as his center of power. In modern Japan, Emperor Jimmu's legendary accession is marked as National Foundation Day on February 11. There is no evidence to suggest that Jimmu existed. However, there is a high probability that there was a powerful dynasty in the vicinity of Miyazaki Prefecture during the Kofun period. (Full article...)
- Image 10The Emishi (蝦夷) (also called Ebisu and Ezo), written with Kanji that literally mean "shrimp barbarians," constituted an ancient ethnic group of people who lived in parts of Honshū, especially in the Tōhoku region, referred to as michi no oku (道の奥, roughly "deepest part of the road") in contemporary sources.
The first mention of the Emishi in literature that can be corroborated with outside sources dates to the 5th century AD, in which they are referred to as máorén (毛人—"hairy people") in Chinese records. Some Emishi tribes resisted the rule of various Japanese emperors during the Asuka, Nara, and early Heian periods (7th–10th centuries AD). (Full article...) - Image 11
Kofun (古墳, from Sino-Japanese "ancient grave") are megalithic tombs or tumuli in Northeast Asia. Kofun were mainly constructed in the Japanese archipelago between the middle of the 3rd century to the early 7th century CE.
The term is the origin of the name of the Kofun period, which indicates the middle 3rd century to early–middle 6th century. Many kofun have distinctive keyhole-shaped mounds (zempō-kōen fun (前方後円墳)). The Mozu-Furuichi kofungun or tumulus clusters were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2019, while Ishibutai Kofun is one of a number in Asuka-Fujiwara residing on the Tentative List. (Full article...) - Image 12Agatanushi (県主) was the name of an ancient title of nobility in the kabane system of Yamato period Japan from the 4th through 6th century AD, before the introduction of the Ritsuryō system. The word is a combination of the kanji for nushi (主, chief) with Agata (県), a political unit smaller than a province, and the agatanushi ranked below the title of kuni no miyatsuko (国造). It is thought that the agatanushi were originally chieftains of small Kofun period tribal states which had been annexed by the Yamato state.
Per the Chinese “History of the Sui Dynasty”, (589-618), Yamato was divided into kuni (国 provinces), which were subdivided into agata (県), which were governed respectively by kuni no miyatsuko and agatanushi, who were responsible for collecting tribute. However, these offices seem to have been a confirmation of de facto local power, rather than a granting of office by the Yamato Court. (Full article...) - Image 13Emperor Chūai (仲哀天皇, Chūai-tennō), also known as Tarashinakatsuhiko no Sumeramikoto (足仲彦天皇) was the 14th legendary Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Both the Kojiki, and the Nihon Shoki (collectively known as the Kiki) record events that took place during Chūai's alleged lifetime. Chūai is the first monarch to ascend the throne who was not a son of the previous Emperor as the latter's only child died young. He is also noted for having his capital in Kyushu, rather than Yamato like his predecessors. The records state that Chūai had a wife named Okinagatarashihime-no-Mikoto (later Jingū), and 2 consorts that all bore him 4 children.
Chūai's reign is conventionally considered to have been from 192 to 200 AD. The events leading up to the Emperor's death have been subject to interpretation as they involve a vengeful Kami (spirit) indirectly killing Chūai. This event allegedly occurred after the Emperor disrespectfully scoffed at the Kami's request. His wife Jingū carried out the Kami's request which was to invade Korea, but this has since been considered legendary rather than factual. While the location of Chūai's grave (if any) is unknown, he is traditionally venerated at a memorial Shinto tomb, and at a Hachiman shrine. (Full article...) - Image 14
Japonic or Japanese–Ryukyuan (Japanese: 日琉語族, romanized: Nichiryū gozoku), sometimes also Japanic, is a language family comprising Japanese, spoken in the main islands of Japan, and the Ryukyuan languages, spoken in the Ryukyu Islands. The family is universally accepted by linguists, and significant progress has been made in reconstructing the proto-language, Proto-Japonic. The reconstruction implies a split between all dialects of Japanese and all Ryukyuan varieties, probably before the 7th century. The Hachijō language, spoken on the Izu Islands, is also included, but its position within the family is unclear.
Most scholars believe that Japonic was brought to the Japanese archipelago from the Korean peninsula with the Yayoi culture during the 1st millennium BC. There is some fragmentary evidence suggesting that Japonic languages may still have been spoken in central and southern parts of the Korean peninsula (see Peninsular Japonic) in the early centuries AD. (Full article...) - Image 15
The so-called "dogū with palms pressed together" (合掌土偶, gasshō dogū) is a Japanese dogū or clay figurine of the late Jōmon period (c. 2000–1000 BC). Excavated from the Kazahari I Site in Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture, it is exhibited at the nearby Korekawa Jōmon Kan. Alongside "Hollow Dogū" from Hokkaidō, "Jōmon Goddess [ja]" from Yamagata Prefecture, and "Jōmon Venus" and "Masked Goddess" from Nagano Prefecture, it is one of five dogū that have been designated National Treasures. (Full article...)
Topics
• Jōmon period · Japanese Prehistoric art · Jōmon Pottery
• Yayoi period
• Kofun period · Kofun · Five kings of Wa · Old Japanese language
• Emperors of Ancient Japan: Jimmu · Suizei · Annei · Itoku · Kōshō · Kōan · Kōrei · Kōgen · Kaika · Sujin · Suinin · Keikō · Seimu · Chūai · Jingū · Ōjin · Nintoku · Richū · Hanzei · Ingyō · Ankō · Yūryaku · Seinei · Kenzō · Ninken · Buretsu · Keitai · Ankan · Senka
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- Image 1Prince Shōtoku was a semi-legendary regent of the Asuka period, and considered to be the first major sponsor of Buddhism in Japan. (from History of Japan)
- Image 3Middle Jōmon vase (2000 BC) (from History of Japan)
- Image 4The word Nihon written in kanji (horizontal placement of characters). The text means "Japan" in Japanese. (from History of Japan)
- Image 7A handscroll painting dated c. 1130, illustrating a scene from the "Bamboo River" chapter of The Tale of Genji (from History of Japan)
- Image 8Buddhist temple of Hōryū-ji is the oldest wooden structure in the world. It was commissioned by Prince Shotoku and represents the beginning of Buddhism in Japan. (from History of Japan)
- Image 9The Daibutsu-den, within the complex of Tōdai-ji. This Buddhist temple was sponsored by the Imperial Court during the Nara period. (from History of Japan)
- Image 13Territorial extent of Yamato court during the Kofun period (from History of Japan)
Did you know...
- ..that the Japanese Law for the Conservation of Cultural Properties provides for the preservation of ancient sites such as shell mounds (pictured), tombs, sites of palaces, forts, or castles, monumental dwelling houses and other places of high historical value?
- ...that the introduction of Buddhism in 538 AD traditionally marks the end of Ancient Japan?
- ...that the history of sushi shows that although sushi is famous for its use in the Japanese cuisine, it was unknown in ancient Japan and actually originated in China in the 3rd or 4th century BC?
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