was a

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 ...

nobleman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characteris ...

, bureaucrat, and chronicler. He may have been the son of , a participant in the

Jinshin War The was a war of succession in Japan during the Asuka period of the Yamato state. It broke out in 672 following the death of Emperor Tenji. The name refers to the ''jinshin'' (壬申) or ninth year of the sixty-year Jikkan Jūnishi calendrica ...

of 672.Philippi (1968:546) He is most famous for compiling and editing, with the assistance of

Hieda no Are is primarily known for being instrumental to the compilation of the Japanese text '' Kojiki'' in 712. While birth and date are unknown, Are was active during the late 7th and early 8th century. Background Very little is known about Are's backgro ...

, the '' Kojiki'', the oldest extant Japanese history.

Empress Genmei , also known as Empress Genmyō, was the 43rd monarch of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 元明天皇 (43) retrieved August 22, 2013. according to the traditional order of succession. Genmei's reign spanned the years 707 throu ...

(r. 707-721) charged Yasumaro with the duty of writing the ''Kojiki'' in 711 using the differing clan chronicles and native myths. It was finished the following year in 712.''Obunsha Japanese Encyclopedia 3rd Edition'' Yasumaro most probably also played an active role in compiling the '' Nihon Shoki'', which was finished in 720. Yasumaro became clan head in 716, and died in 723.

Ō no Yasumaro Epitaph

On January 20, 1979, the grave of Ō no Yasumaro was unearthed in a tea plantation in Konose Ward of Nara City. Its engraving reads: "Grave of Ancient Scholar Discovered"
''Japan Report'', April 1, 1979, p. 8

In fiction

Yasumaro appears in the video game '' Toukiden: The Age of Demons'' as a mitama (a soul of a hero from Japanese history). Yasumaro appears in the video game '' Sid Meier's Civilization VI'' as a Great Prophet.

Notes

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:O No Yasumaro People of Nara-period Japan 723 deaths Year of birth unknown Deified Japanese people