are the capitals of the historical
Provinces of Japan
were first-level administrative divisions of Japan from the 600s to 1868.
Provinces were established in Japan in the late 7th century under the Ritsuryō law system that formed the first central government. Each province was divided into an ...
.
History
As part of the
Taika Reform (645) which aimed at a centralization of the administration following the Chinese model (''
ritsuryō
, , is the historical law system based on the philosophies of Confucianism and Chinese Legalism in Japan. The political system in accord to Ritsuryō is called "Ritsuryō-sei" (律令制). ''Kyaku'' (格) are amendments of Ritsuryō, ''Shiki' ...
''), the kokufu and with it the office of the
kokushi, replacing the older ''
Kuni no miyatsuko'', developed in the 660s.
The ''
Wamyō Ruijushō'' (Collection of Japanese Names) from 935 contains the earliest listing of the capitals of the provinces and their location. The location of the original capitals of the 8th and 9th century are not passed down.
When during the
Muromachi Period
The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (''Muromachi bakufu'' or ''Ashikaga bakufu''), which was officially established in 1338 by ...
, starting in the 14th century, the functions of the kokushi were increasingly transferred to military governors (''
shugo
, commonly translated as “(military) governor,” “protector,” or “constable,” was a title given to certain officials in feudal Japan. They were each appointed by the ''shōgun'' to oversee one or more of the provinces of Japan. The pos ...
''), the provincial governments (''
kokuga'') lost their importance.
Organisation
In the center of the kokufu lay the provincial government (''kokuga'') with its offices (administration, farming, finance, police and military) and the official building of the kokushi, known as .
In the periphery there was the provincial school (''kokugaku''), the garrison and storehouses for taxes which were paid in kind.
When the shugo replaced the kokushi, their administration, the was occasionally found in or near the buildings of the kokuga. In these cases their administration was also referred to as .
With their square layout, the kokufu followed that of the
Capital of Japan, first
Fujiwara-kyō and then
Heijō-kyō, which in turn were modelled on the
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) ...
capital
Chang'an
Chang'an (; ) is the traditional name of Xi'an. The site had been settled since Neolithic times, during which the Yangshao culture was established in Banpo, in the city's suburbs. Furthermore, in the northern vicinity of modern Xi'an, Qin ...
. However, with exception of
Dazaifu, which held a special position, these capitals were relatively small. For instance, the capital of
Suō Province occupied an area of 1 km², that of
Bizen Province 850 m×850 m.
Inside or near the kokufu, there were also the most important religious sites of the province, the
Buddhist
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 ...
provincial temples, ''
kokubun-ji'', one each for monks and nuns as well as the highest ranked
Shinto
Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shint ...
shrine, ''
Ichinomiya
is a Japanese historical term referring to the Shinto shrines with the highest rank in a province. Shrines of lower rank were designated , , , and so forth. ''Encyclopedia of Shinto'' ''Ichi no miya'' retrieved 2013-5-14.
The term gave rise ...
''.
References
{{Authority control
Geographic history of Japan
Capitals in Asia