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Minamoto Clan
was one of the surnames bestowed by the Emperors of Japan upon members of the imperial family who were excluded from the line of succession and demoted into the ranks of the nobility from 1192 to 1333. The practice was most prevalent during the Heian period (794–1185 AD), although its last occurrence was during the Sengoku period. The Taira were another such offshoot of the imperial dynasty, making both clans distant relatives. The Minamoto clan is also called the , or less frequently, the , using the on'yomi reading for Minamoto. The Minamoto were one of four great clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian period—the other three were the Fujiwara, the Taira, and the Tachibana. History The first emperor to grant the surname Minamoto was Minamoto no Makoto, seventh son of Emperor Saga. The most prominent of the several Minamoto families, the Seiwa Genji, descended from Minamoto no Tsunemoto (897–961), a grandson of Emperor Seiwa. Tsunemoto went t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mon (emblem)
, also , , and , are Japanese emblems used to decorate and identify an individual, a family, or (more recently) an institution or business entity. While is an encompassing term that may refer to any such device, and refer specifically to emblems used to identify a family. An authoritative reference compiles Japan's 241 general categories of based on structural resemblance (a single may belong to multiple categories), with 5,116 distinct individual . However, it is well-acknowledged that there exist a number of lost or obscure . The devices are similar to the badges and Coat of arms, coats of arms in European Heraldry, heraldic tradition, which likewise are used to identify individuals and families. are often referred to as Crest (heraldry), crests in Western literature, the crest being a European heraldic device similar to the in function. History may have originated as fabric patterns to be used on clothes in order to distinguish individuals or signify membership o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Juntoku Genji
(October 22, 1197 – October 7, 1242) was the 84th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 1210 through 1221. Genealogy Before his ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne, his personal name (his ''imina'') was . He was the third son of Emperor Go-Toba. His mother was Shigeko (重子), the daughter of Fujiwara Hanki (藤原範季) *Empress (''chūgū''): Kujō Fujiwara no Ritsushi (?) (九条（藤原）立子) later Higashiichijō-in (東一条院), Kujo Yoshitsune’s daughter **Second daughter: Imperial Princess Taiko (諦子内親王; 1217-1243) later Gekgimon’in (明義門院) **Third son: Imperial Prince Kanenari (懐成親王) later Emperor Chūkyō *Lady-in-waiting: Toku-Naishi (督典侍), Fujiwara Norimitsu’s Daughter **Fourth son: Prince Hikonari (彦成王; 1219-1286) **Sixth son: Imperial Prince Yoshimune (善統親王; 1233-1317) *Consort: Fujiwara Noriko (藤原位子), Bomon Nobukiyo’s daughter ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tachibana Clan (kuge)
{{nihongo, Tachibana clan, 橘氏, Tachibana-uji, Tachibana-shi was one of the four most powerful ''kuge'' (court nobility) families in Japan's Nara and early Heian periods. Members of the Tachibana family often held high court posts within the Daijō-kan (Ministry of State), most frequently '' Sadaijin'' (Minister of the Left). Like the other major families at court, they also constantly sought to increase and secure their power by marrying into the imperial family. However, as the Fujiwara clan gained power over the course of the 9th and 10th centuries, the Tachibana were eclipsed and eventually became scattered across the country. Though serving in high government posts outside the capital, they were thus denied the degree of power and influence within the court at Kyoto (Heian-kyō) which they once enjoyed. The name of ''Tachibana'' was bestowed on Agata-no-Inukai no Michiyo by Empress Genmei in 708. She was the wife of Prince Minu, a descendant of Emperor Bidatsu a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fujiwara Clan
was a powerful family of imperial regents in Japan, descending from the Nakatomi clan and, as legend held, through them their ancestral god Ame-no-Koyane. The Fujiwara prospered since the ancient times and dominated the imperial court until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. They held the title of Ason. The abbreviated form is . The 8th century clan history ''Tōshi Kaden'' (藤氏家伝) states the following at the biography of the clan's patriarch, Fujiwara no Kamatari (614–669): "Kamatari, the Inner Palace Minister who was also called ‘Chūrō'',''’ was a man of the Takechi district of Yamato Province. His forebears descended from Ame no Koyane no Mikoto; for generations they had administered the rites for Heaven and Earth, harmonizing the space between men and the gods. Therefore, it was ordered their clan was to be called Ōnakatomi" The clan originated when the founder, Nakatomi no Kamatari (614–669) of the Nakatomi clan, was rewarded by Emperor Tenji with th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japanese Clans
This is a list of Japanese clans. The old clans ('' Gōzoku'') mentioned in the Nihon Shoki and Kojiki lost their political power before the Heian Period, during which new aristocracies and families, ''Kuge'', emerged in their place. After the Heian Period, the samurai warrior clans gradually increased in importance and power until they came to dominate the country after the founding of the first shogunate. Ancient clan names There are ancient-era clan names called or . Imperial Clan * The Imperial clan – descended from Amaterasu. Its emperors and clan members have no clan name but had been called "the royal clan" () if necessary. Four noble clans , 4 noble clans of Japan: * Minamoto clan ( 源氏) – also known as Genji (源氏) or Genke (源家); 21 cadet branches of Imperial House of Japan. ** Daigo Genji ( 醍醐源氏) – descended from 60th emperor Daigo. ** Go-Daigo Genji ( 後醍醐源氏) – descended from 96th emperor Go-Daigo. ** Go-Fukakusa Genji ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
On'yomi
are the logographic Chinese characters taken from the Chinese script and used in the writing of Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are still used, along with the subsequently-derived syllabic scripts of ''hiragana'' and '' katakana''. The characters have Japanese pronunciations; most have two, with one based on the Chinese sound. A few characters were invented in Japan by constructing character components derived from other Chinese characters. After World War II, Japan made its own efforts to simplify the characters, now known as shinjitai, by a process similar to China's simplification efforts, with the intention to increase literacy among the common folk. Since the 1920s, the Japanese government has published character lists periodically to help direct the education of its citizenry through the myriad Chinese characters that exist. There are nearly 3,000 kanji used in Japanese names and in common ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taira Clan
The Taira was one of the four most important clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian, Kamakura and Muromachi Periods of Japanese history – the others being the Fujiwara, the Tachibana, and the Minamoto. The clan is divided into four major groups, named after the emperor they descended from: Kanmu Heishi, Ninmyō Heishi, Montoku Heishi, and Kōkō Heishi. The clan is commonly referred to as or , using the character's On'yomi for ''Taira'', while means " clan", and is used as a suffix for " extended family". History Along with the Minamoto, Taira was one of the honorary surnames given by the emperors of the Heian Period (794–1185 CE) to their children and grandchildren who were not considered eligible for the throne. The clan was founded when the Imperial Court grew too large, and the emperor ordered that the descendants of previous emperors from several generations ago would no longer be princes, but would instead be given noble surnames a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sengoku Period
The was a period in Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615. The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the feudal system of Japan under the Ashikaga shogunate. Various samurai warlords and clans fought for control over Japan in the power vacuum, while the emerged to fight against samurai rule. The arrival of Europeans in 1543 introduced the arquebus into Japanese warfare, and Japan ended its status as a tributary state of China in 1549. Oda Nobunaga dissolved the Ashikaga shogunate in 1573 and launched a war of political unification by force, including the Ishiyama Hongan-ji War, until his death in the Honnō-ji Incident in 1582. Nobunaga's successor Toyotomi Hideyoshi completed his campaign to unify Japan and consolidated his rule with numerous influential reforms. Hideyoshi launched the Japanese invasions of Korea in 1592, but their eventual failure damaged his prestige before his death in 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heian Period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese. It is a period in Japanese history when the Chinese influences were in decline and the national culture matured. The Heian period is also considered the peak of the Japanese imperial court and noted for its art, especially poetry and literature. Two types of Japanese script emerged, including katakana, a phonetic script which was abbreviated into hiragana, a cursive alphabet with a unique writing method distinctive to Japan. This gave rise to Japan's famous vernacular literature, with many of its texts written by court women who were not as educated in Chinese compared to their male counterparts. Although the Imperial House of Japan had power on the surface, the real power was in the hands of the Fujiwara clan, a powerful aristocr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Emperors Of Japan
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother (empress dowager), or a woman who rules in her own right and name (empress regnant). Emperors are generally recognized to be of the highest monarchic honor and rank, surpassing kings. In Europe, the title of Emperor has been used since the Middle Ages, considered in those times equal or almost equal in dignity to that of Pope due to the latter's position as visible head of the Church and spiritual leader of the Catholic part of Western Europe. The Emperor of Japan is the only currently reigning monarch whose title is translated into English as "Emperor". Both emperors and kings are monarchs or sovereigns, but both emperor and empress are considered the higher monarchical titles. In as much as there is a strict definition of emperor, it is that ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
