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''Shinkan'' (神官) were government
''Shinkan'' (神官) were government officials
An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority, (either their own or that of their ...
serving at ''shakaku''-ranked Shinto shrines
A is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more ''kami'', the deities of the Shinto religion.
Overview
Structurally, a Shinto shrine typically comprises several buildings.
The '' honden''Also called (本殿, meani ...
in Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. Commonly, ''shinkan'' were officially appointed ''kannushi
A , also called , is a person responsible for the maintenance of a as well as for leading worship of a given .* ''Kannushi'' (in Japanese), Iwanami Japanese dictionary, 6th Edition (2008), DVD version The characters for are sometimes also re ...
''.
Terminology
According to the 1884Daijō-kan
The , also known as the Great Council of State, was (i) (''Daijō-kan'') the highest organ of Japan's premodern Imperial government under the Ritsuryō legal system during and after the Nara period or (ii) (''Dajō-kan'') the highest organ of Jap ...
decree, ''shinkan'' is an official who has been given the status of a government official ('' kanri'') to serve at a ''shakaku''-ranked shrine. However, in 1887, at shrines ranking below '' kanpei-sha,'' with the exception of Ise Grand Shrine
The , located in Ise, Mie Prefecture of Japan, is a Shinto shrine dedicated to the sun goddess Amaterasu. Officially known simply as , Ise Jingū is a shrine complex composed of many Shinto shrines centered on two main shrines, and .
The Inner ...
, the position of ''shinkan'' was abolished and the position of ''shinshoku'' was introduced. In 1945, Ise Grand Shrine abolished the position of ''shinkan''.
Today, the position of ''shinkan'' does not exist, and the ''kannushi
A , also called , is a person responsible for the maintenance of a as well as for leading worship of a given .* ''Kannushi'' (in Japanese), Iwanami Japanese dictionary, 6th Edition (2008), DVD version The characters for are sometimes also re ...
'' of Shinto shrines are collectively referred to as ''shinshoku''.
See also
*Kannushi
A , also called , is a person responsible for the maintenance of a as well as for leading worship of a given .* ''Kannushi'' (in Japanese), Iwanami Japanese dictionary, 6th Edition (2008), DVD version The characters for are sometimes also re ...
* Modern system of ranked Shinto shrines
The was an organizational aspect of the establishment of Japanese State Shinto. This system classified Shinto shrines as either official government shrines or "other" shrines. The official shrines were divided into
#Imperial shrines (''kampeisha ...
* Clergy
Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...
References
Shinto shrines in Japan Japanese Shintoists {{Japan-bio-stub