, also known by his Chinese style name , was a prince of the

Ryukyu Kingdom The Ryukyu Kingdom, Middle Chinese: , , Classical Chinese: (), Historical English names: ''Lew Chew'', ''Lewchew'', ''Luchu'', and ''Loochoo'', Historical French name: ''Liou-tchou'', Historical Dutch name: ''Lioe-kioe'' was a kingdom in the ...

. Chatan Chōki was the second son of King

Shō Eki was a king the Ryukyu Kingdom, who ruled from 1710 to 1712. It was said that he was born with harelip, which made his grandfather Shō Tei worry. A Ryukyuan named Takamine Tokumei met a Chinese doctor Huang Huiyou in Fuzhou Fuzhou (; , F ...

, and was also a younger brother of King

Shō Kei was king of the Ryukyu Kingdom from 1713–1752. His reign, strongly guided by royal advisor Sai On, is regarded as a political and economic golden age and period of the flowering of Okinawan culture."Shō Kei." ''Okinawa rekishi jinmei jiten'' (� ...

. He became the adopted son of Chatan Chōai because Chōai had no heir. After Chōai died in 1719, he became the second head of a royal family called '' Ufumura Udun'' (). Rizō, Takeuchi. (1992). ''Okinawa-ken seishi kakei daijiten'' (). Tokyo: Kadokawa Shoten. Chōki was skilled at writing

Waka Waka may refer to: Culture and language * Waka (canoe), a Polynesian word for canoe; especially, canoes of the Māori of New Zealand ** Waka ama, a Polynesian outrigger canoe ** Waka hourua, a Polynesian ocean-going canoe ** Waka taua, a Māori w ...

and

Classical Chinese poetry Classical Chinese poetry is traditional Chinese poetry written in Classical Chinese and typified by certain traditional forms, or modes; traditional genres; and connections with particular historical periods, such as the poetry of the Tang dyn ...

. According to the '' Zhongshan Chuanxin lu'' (), Chinese envoys came to Ryukyu to install Shō Kei as the new king in 1720. Chōki wrote a Chinese poem to the Deputy Envoy () Xu Baoguang (). Xu also wrote a poem in response. Chōki served as ''

sessei was the highest government post of the Ryūkyū Kingdom below the king; the ''sessei'' served the function of royal or national advisor. In the Ryukyuan languages, Ryukyuan language at the time, the pronunciation was closer to ''shisshii'', and ha ...

'' from 1722 to 1739. During his term, he supported

Sai On (1682–1762), or Cai Wen in Chinese, also known as , was a scholar-bureaucrat official of the Ryūkyū Kingdom, serving as regent, instructor, and advisor to King Shō Kei. He is renowned for the many reforms he initiated and oversaw, and is amon ...

's reform, and signed many laws. Like his adopted father, he died without an heir. The name "Prince Chatan" appeared in an Okinawan folktale: . In this folktale, Prince Chatan was skilled at '' go''. He killed , a

Vajrayana Vajrayāna ( sa, वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle"), along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, are names referring t ...

Buddhist monk, and was cursed, all his sons died young. The prototype of "Prince Chatan" is unclear. Some scholars considered him to be Chatan Chōki. Sai On supported

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...

and suppressed

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

in his reform. Many Buddhists hated Sai On but dared not to satirize him, so they wove a tale to attack Chatan Chōki, who was an important supporter of Sai On. But others considered "Prince Chatan" to be Chatan Chōai, the adopted father of Chōki. 琉球における仏教説話の歴史地理学的研究－耳切り坊主を事例に－
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References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Chatan, Choki Princes of Ryūkyū Sessei 1703 births 1739 deaths People of the Ryukyu Kingdom Ryukyuan people 18th-century Ryukyuan people