Fujiwara no Otomaro (藤原乙麻呂, died August 2, 760) was a Japanese ''kugyō'' (court noble) of the

Nara period The of the history of Japan covers the years from CE 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the cap ...

. He was the son of

Fujiwara no Muchimaro was a Japanese courtier (''kuge'') and politician of the late Asuka and early Nara period. He founded the Nanke ("Southern") branch of the Fujiwara clan.'' MyPedia'' entry for "Fujiwara no Muchimaro His court rank is Senior First Rank. Life ...

, the founder of the Nanke house of the powerful

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 th ...

Life

Otomaro was born as the fourth son of

Minister of the Left The ''Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary'', Kenkyusha Limited, was a government position in Japan in the late Nara and Heian periods. The position was consolidated in the Taihō Code of 702. The Asuka Kiyomihara Code of 689 marks the ini ...

Fujiwara no Muchimaro. In 737, soon after the death of Muchimaro, the four Fujiwara brothers, together with their cousins, Nagate of the Hokke house and Hirotsugu of the Shikike house, were promoted from Junior Sixth Rank, Upper Grade to

Junior Fifth Rank, Lower Grade The court ranks of Japan, also known in Japanese as ''ikai'' (位階), are indications of an individual's court rank in Japan based on the system of the state. ''Ikai'' as a system was originally used in the Ritsuryo system, which was the polit ...

. After working in the

Ministry of War Ministry of War may refer to: * Ministry of War (imperial China) (c.600–1912) * Chinese Republic Ministry of War (1912–1946) * Ministry of War (Kingdom of Bavaria) (1808–1919) * Ministry of War (Brazil) (1815–1999) * Ministry of Defence (Est ...

as the First Assistant to the Minister, he was promoted to Junior Fifth Rank, Upper Grade in 747. During

Empress Kōken , also known as , was the 46th (with the name Empress Kōken) and the 48th monarch of Japan (with the name Empress Shōtoku), Emperor Kōnin, Takano Imperial Mausoleum, Imperial Household Agency according to the traditional order of succession. ...

's reign, Otomaro was promoted to Senior Fifth Rank, Upper Grade in 749 and became the Governor of

Echizen Province was a province of Japan in the area that is today the northern portion of Fukui Prefecture in the Hokuriku region of Japan. Echizen bordered on Kaga, Wakasa, Hida, and Ōmi Provinces. It was part of Hokurikudō Circuit. Its abbreviated form ...

. In 750, he was promoted to

Junior Third Rank The court ranks of Japan, also known in Japanese as ''ikai'' (位階), are indications of an individual's court rank in Japan based on the system of the state. ''Ikai'' as a system was originally used in the Ritsuryo system, which was the politi ...

, Director of the Dazaifu. In 752, Ki no Maro became Director of the Dazaifu, and in 757 Otomaro was moved to the position of Governor of

Mimasaka Province or was a province of Japan in the part of Honshū that is today northeastern Okayama Prefecture. Mimasaka bordered Bitchū, Bizen, Harima, Hōki, and Inaba Provinces. Mimasaka was landlocked, and was often ruled by the ''daimyō'' in Bizen. ...

, but it is not clear what happened in the five years in between these two events. It is possible that Otomaro's relationship with his brother Nakamaro, who later became the leading figure of the government, deteriorated after Otomaru's exceptional promotion in 750. Otomaro died on August 2, 760, as

, ''

Kei Kei may refer to: People * Kei (given name) * Kei, Cantonese for Ji (surname), Ji(姫) * Kei, Cantonese for Qi (surname), Qi(奇, 祁, 亓) * Shō Kei (1700–1752), king of the Ryūkyū Kingdom * Kei (singer) (born 1995), stage name of South Kor ...

'' in the Ministry of War.

Genealogy

* Father:

* Mother: Ki no Maro's daughter * Wife: Ishikawa no Takemaro's daughter ** Son:

Fujiwara no Korekimi was a Japanese aristocrat and statesman of the Nara period. He reached the court rank of Junior Second Rank and the position of Minister of the Right (''udaijin)'', and was posthumously promoted to Junior First Rank. He was also called . L ...

(727-789) * Wife: Tachibana no Matsuga,

Tachibana no Sai The term has at least two different meanings, and has been used in several contexts. People * – a clan of ''kuge'' (court nobles) prominent in the Nara and Heian periods (710–1185) * – a clan of ''daimyō'' (feudal lords) prominent in the Mu ...

's daughter ** Son: Fujiwara no Korehito * Unknown mother ** Daughter: Fujiwara no Imagawa's wife

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fujiwara, no Otomaro Fujiwara clan People of Nara-period Japan Japanese nobility 760 deaths Year of birth unknown