Portal:Ancient Japan
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The Ancient Japan Portal
The first human inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago have been traced to the Paleolithic, around 38–39,000 years ago. The Jōmon period, named after its cord-marked pottery, was followed by the Yayoi period in the first millennium BC when new inventions were introduced from Asia. During this period, the first known written reference to Japan was recorded in the Chinese Book of Han in the first century AD.
Around the 3rd century BC, the Yayoi people from the continent immigrated to the Japanese archipelago and introduced iron technology and agricultural civilization. Because they had an agricultural civilization, the population of the Yayoi began to grow rapidly and ultimately overwhelmed the Jōmon people, natives of the Japanese archipelago who were hunter-gatherers.
Between the fourth and ninth centuries, Japan's many kingdoms and tribes gradually came to be unified under a centralized government, nominally controlled by the Emperor of Japan. The imperial dynasty established at this time continues to this day, albeit in an almost entirely ceremonial role. In 794, a new imperial capital was established at Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto), marking the beginning of the Heian period, which lasted until 1185. The Heian period is considered a golden age of classical Japanese culture. Japanese religious life from this time and onwards was a mix of native Shinto practices and Buddhism. (Full article...)
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The Japanese Paleolithic period (旧石器時代, kyūsekki jidai) is the period of human inhabitation in Japan predating the development of pottery, generally before 10,000 BC. The starting dates commonly given to this period are from around 40,000 BC; although any date of human presence before 35,000 BC is controversial, with artifacts supporting a pre-35,000 BC human presence on the archipelago being of questionable authenticity. The period extended to the beginning of the Mesolithic Jōmon period, or around 14,000 BC.
The earliest human bones were discovered in the city of Hamamatsu in Shizuoka Prefecture, which were determined by radiocarbon dating to date to around 18,000–14,000 years ago. (Full article...) - Image 2Emperor Annei (安寧天皇, Annei-tennō), also known as Shikitsuhikotamatemi no Mikoto (師木津日子玉手見命) was the third legendary emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Very little is known about this Emperor due to a lack of material available for further verification and study. Annei is known as a "legendary emperor" among historians as his actual existence is disputed. Nothing exists in the Kojiki other than his name and genealogy. Annei's reign allegedly began in 549 BC, he had one wife and three sons. After his death in 511 BC, his second or third son supposedly became the next emperor. (Full article...)
- Image 3The Zoku-Jōmon period (続縄文時代) (c. 340 BC–700 AD), also referred to as the Epi-Jōmon period, is the time in Japanese prehistory that saw the flourishing of the Zoku-Jōmon culture, a continuation of Jōmon culture in northern Tōhoku and Hokkaidō that corresponds with the Yayoi period and Kofun period elsewhere. Zoku-Jōmon ("continuing cord-marking") in turn gave way to Satsumon ("brushed pattern" or "scraped design") around the seventh century or in the Nara period (710–794). The "Yayoinisation" of northeast Honshū took place in the mid-Yayoi period; use of the term Zoku-Jōmon is then confined to those, in Hokkaidō, who did not "become Yayoi". Despite the elements of continuity emphasised by the name, which include the continuing production of cord-marked ceramics, ongoing employment of stone technology, and non-transition to rice-based agriculture, all Jōmon hallmarks, the Zoku-Jōmon period nevertheless saw a "major break in mobility and subsistence patterns". (Full article...)
- Image 4Omi (Japanese: 臣) is a hereditary noble title (kabane) of ancient Japan. It was given to the descendants of the Imperial Family before Emperor Kōgen. Along with Muraji, Omi was reserved for the head of the most powerful clans during the Kofun period. When the Yamato court was established, the most influential families bearing these two titles were given the title Ōomi and Ōmuraji, respectively. (Full article...)
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The Sannō-Gakoi Site (山王囲遺跡, Sannō-Gakoi iseki) is an archaeological site located in the city of Kurihara, Miyagi Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan, containing the ruins of a late Jōmon period to Yayoi period (approximately 500 BC to 0 BC) settlement. The site was designated a National Historic Site in 1991 by the Japanese government. (Full article...) - Image 6Agatanushi (県主) was the name of an ancient title of nobility in the kabane system of Yamato period Japan from the 4th through 6th century AD, before the introduction of the Ritsuryō system. The word is a combination of the kanji for nushi (主, chief) with Agata (県), a political unit smaller than a province, and the agatanushi ranked below the title of kuni no miyatsuko (国造). It is thought that the agatanushi were originally chieftains of small Kofun period tribal states which had been annexed by the Yamato state.
Per the Chinese “History of the Sui Dynasty”, (589-618), Yamato was divided into kuni (国 provinces), which were subdivided into agata (県), which were governed respectively by kuni no miyatsuko and agatanushi, who were responsible for collecting tribute. However, these offices seem to have been a confirmation of de facto local power, rather than a granting of office by the Yamato Court. (Full article...) - Image 7The Civil War of Wa or Great Rebellion of Wa (倭国大乱, wakoku tairan) was a period of disturbances and warfare in ancient Japan (Wa) during the late Yayoi period (2nd century AD). It is the oldest war in Japan that has been documented in writing. Peace was restored around 180, when the shaman queen Himiko (Pimiko) of Yamatai-koku took control of the region. (Full article...)
- Image 8Emperor Yūryaku (雄略天皇, Yūryaku-tennō) (417/18 – 479) was the 21st Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. According to the Kojiki, this Emperor is said to have ruled from the Thirteenth Day of the Eleventh Month of 456 (Heishin) until his death on the Seventh Day of the Eight Month of 479 (Kibi). (Full article...)
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Kofun (古墳, from Sino-Japanese "ancient grave") are megalithic tombs or tumuli in Northeast Asia. Kofun were mainly constructed in the Japanese archipelago between the middle of the 3rd century to the early 7th century CE.
The term is the origin of the name of the Kofun period, which indicates the middle 3rd century to early–middle 6th century. Many kofun have distinctive keyhole-shaped mounds (zempō-kōen fun (前方後円墳)). The Mozu-Furuichi kofungun or tumulus clusters were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2019, while Ishibutai Kofun is one of a number in Asuka-Fujiwara residing on the Tentative List. (Full article...) - Image 10Wajin (倭人, Wajin, literally "Wa people") is
- in the narrow sense, the old name of the ethnic group of the Yayoi people who lived in the Japanese archipelago.
- In the wider sense, an ethnic group that was mainly active at sea between Mainland China, the Korean Peninsula and the Japanese archipelago.
In general the Wajin that established themselves on the Japanese archipelago became the Yayoi people, the ancestors of the Yamato people. The word "Wajin" also refers to related groups outside of Japan. (Full article...) - Image 11Kuni no miyatsuko (国造), also read as kokuzō or kunitsuko, were officials in ancient Japan during the Yamato period who governed provinces called kuni. (Full article...)
- Image 12Emperor Kōgen (孝元天皇, Kōgen-tennō), also known as Ōyamatonekohikokunikuru no Mikoto (大倭根子日子国玖琉命) was the eighth legendary emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Very little is known about this Emperor due to a lack of material available for further verification and study. Kōgen is known as a "legendary emperor" among historians as his actual existence is disputed. Nothing exists in the Kojiki other than his name and genealogy. Kōgen's reign allegedly began in 214 BC, he had one wife and two consorts whom he fathered six children with. After his death in 158 BC, one of his sons supposedly became Emperor Kaika. (Full article...)
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The Hinata Caves (日向洞窟, Hinata dōkutsu) is an archaeological site with a cave dwelling in use from the early through late Jōmon period, located in what is now part of the town of Takahata, Yamagata in the Tōhoku region of Japan. The site was designated a National Historic Site of Japan in 1977. (Full article...) - Image 14Sukune (宿禰) is one of the hereditary noble titles of ancient Japan. In the 3rd to 5th centuries, it was used as a title to represent military and administrative officers of the Yamato court.
In the 8th century, it became one of the eight kabane. It is the third highest after Mahito and Ason. It was given to the descendants of the kami (神別, shinbetsu), who held the Muraji title, such as Owari and Ōtomo clans. (Full article...) - Image 15Jōmon Prehistoric Sites in Northern Japan (北海道・北東北の縄文遺跡群) is a serial UNESCO World Heritage Site consisting of 17 Jōmon-period archaeological sites in Hokkaidō and northern Tōhoku, Japan. The Jōmon period lasted more than 10,000 years, representing "sedentary pre-agricultural lifeways and a complex spiritual culture of prehistoric people".
It was first placed on the World Heritage Tentative List in 2009. In 2021, ICOMOS recommended the inscription in July of the revised serial nomination of seventeen sites under criteria iii and v. It was then officially inscribed on the World Heritage List on 27 July 2021. (Full article...)
Topics
• Jōmon period · Japanese Prehistoric art · Jōmon Pottery
• Yayoi period
• Kofun period · Kofun · Five kings of Wa · Old Japanese language
• Emperors of Ancient Japan: Jimmu · Suizei · Annei · Itoku · Kōshō · Kōan · Kōrei · Kōgen · Kaika · Sujin · Suinin · Keikō · Seimu · Chūai · Jingū · Ōjin · Nintoku · Richū · Hanzei · Ingyō · Ankō · Yūryaku · Seinei · Kenzō · Ninken · Buretsu · Keitai · Ankan · Senka
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General images
- Image 1Middle Jōmon vase (2000 BC) (from History of Japan)
- Image 2A handscroll painting dated c. 1130, illustrating a scene from the "Bamboo River" chapter of The Tale of Genji (from History of Japan)
- Image 6Territorial extent of Yamato court during the Kofun period (from History of Japan)
- Image 7Prince Shōtoku was a semi-legendary regent of the Asuka period, and considered to be the first major sponsor of Buddhism in Japan. (from History of Japan)
- Image 8The Daibutsu-den, within the complex of Tōdai-ji. This Buddhist temple was sponsored by the Imperial Court during the Nara period. (from History of Japan)
- Image 12Buddhist temple of Hōryū-ji is the oldest wooden structure in the world. It was commissioned by Prince Shotoku and represents the beginning of Buddhism in Japan. (from History of Japan)
- Image 13The word Nihon written in kanji (horizontal placement of characters). The text means "Japan" in Japanese. (from History of Japan)
Did you know...
- ..that the Japanese Law for the Conservation of Cultural Properties provides for the preservation of ancient sites such as shell mounds (pictured), tombs, sites of palaces, forts, or castles, monumental dwelling houses and other places of high historical value?
- ...that the introduction of Buddhism in 538 AD traditionally marks the end of Ancient Japan?
- ...that the history of sushi shows that although sushi is famous for its use in the Japanese cuisine, it was unknown in ancient Japan and actually originated in China in the 3rd or 4th century BC?
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