Inugami no Mitasuki (

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

: 犬上御田鍬) was a

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...

and Imperial court official in the

Asuka period The was a period in the history of Japan lasting from 538 to 710 (or 592 to 645), although its beginning could be said to overlap with the preceding Kofun period. The Yamato polity evolved greatly during the Asuka period, which is named after t ...

. He is best known for his role in the

Japanese missions to Sui China Japanese missions to Sui China represent a lens for examining and evaluating the relationship between the Sui dynasty and Japan in the 7th century. The nature of these bilateral contacts evolved gradually from political and ceremonial acknowledgme ...

. His ''

kabane 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. History As the national unification by the Yamato imperial court progressed ...

'' title is ''Kimi'' and ''kan'i'' rank is ''Dainin''.

Lineage

The Inukami no ''Kimi'' clan descended from Prince Inayoriwake, son of

Yamato Takeru , originally , was a Japanese semi-legendary prince of the Yamato dynasty, son of Emperor Keikō, who is traditionally counted as the 12th Emperor of Japan. His name written in kanji can vary, in the '' Nihon Shoki'' it is spelled 日本武尊 a ...

. The clan name comes from Inukami-gun in

Ōmi Province was a province of Japan, which today comprises Shiga Prefecture. It was one of the provinces that made up the Tōsandō circuit. Its nickname is . Under the ''Engishiki'' classification system, Ōmi was ranked as one of the 13 "great countrie ...

(currently Inukami-gun and

Hikone 280px, Hikone City Hall is a city located in Shiga Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 111,958 in 49066 households and a population density of 570 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Hikone i ...

Shiga Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Shiga Prefecture has a population of 1,412,916 (1 October 2015) and has a geographic area of . Shiga Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the north, Gifu Prefecture to the nort ...

Life

In 614, Inugami went to Sui as the last Japanese mission to Sui China with Yatabe Zo. The following year (615),

Empress Suiko (554 – 15 April 628) was the 33rd monarch of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 推古天皇 (33)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Suiko reigned from 593 until her death in 628. In the history of Japan ...

returned to Japan with a

Baekje Baekje or Paekche (, ) was a Korean kingdom located in southwestern Korea from 18 BC to 660 AD. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla. Baekje was founded by Onjo, the third son of Goguryeo's founder Jum ...

diplomat. In 630, Inugami was sent to

Tang Tang or TANG most often refers to: * Tang dynasty * Tang (drink mix) Tang or TANG may also refer to: Chinese states and dynasties * Jin (Chinese state) (11th century – 376 BC), a state during the Spring and Autumn period, called Tang (唐) b ...

along with Yakushi no Enihi as the ambassador of the first envoy to Tang (at the time, the two had the ''kan'i'' rank of ''Dainin''). In 631, the diplomats had an audience with the

Emperor Taizong of Tang Emperor Taizong of Tang (28January 59810July 649), previously Prince of Qin, personal name Li Shimin, was the second emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, ruling from 626 to 649. He is traditionally regarded as a co-founder of the dynasty ...

. Taizong pitied the long distance the diplomats had to travel, and he told the official in charge to stop the annual paying of tribute. In 632, the envoy arrived in Tsushima with the Tang ambassador, Ko Hyojin. At this time, Ryouun, Min, Suguri no Torikai, and a messenger from

Silla Silla or Shilla (57 BCE – 935 CE) ( , Old Korean: Syera, Old Japanese: Siraki2) was a Korean kingdom located on the southern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula. Silla, along with Baekje and Goguryeo, formed the Three Kingdoms of K ...

were also with them.Nihon Shoki, 4th year of Emperor Joei 8th month article

References

* Kojima, Noriyuki. (1996) Nihon Shoki 2 Shinpen Nihon Kotenbungaku Zenshu 3. Shogakkan. * Kojima, Noriyuki. (1998) Nihon Shoki 3 Shinpen Nihon Kotenbungaku Zenshu 4. Shogakkan. {{ISBN, 409658004X * Hoga, Toshio. (1986) Kodai Shizoku Keifu Shusei. Kodai Shizoku Kenkyu-kai. * Saeko, Arikiyo. (1994) Nihon Kodai Shizoku Jiten. Yuzankaku Shuppan. Japanese diplomats People of Asuka-period Japan