Yamato period
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The Yamato period (大和時代, Yamato-jidai) is the period of Japanese history when the Imperial court ruled from modern-day Nara Prefecture, then known as Yamato Province.
While conventionally assigned to the period 250–710, including both the Kofun period (c. 250–538) and the Asuka period (538–710), the actual start of Yamato rule is disputed. The Yamato court's supremacy was challenged during the Kofun period by other polities centered in various parts of Japan. What is certain is that Yamato clans had major advantages over their neighbouring clans in the 6th century. This period is divided by the relocation of the capital to Asuka, in modern Nara Prefecture. However, the Kofun period is an archaeological period while the Asuka period is a historical period. Therefore, many think of this as an old division and this concept of period division is no longer applicable.
At the era of Prince Shōtoku in the early 7th century, a new constitution was prescribed for Japan based on the Chinese model. After the fall of Baekje (660 AD), the Yamato government sent envoys directly to the Chinese court, from which they obtained a great wealth of philosophical and social structure. In addition to ethics and government, they also adopted the Chinese calendar and many of its religious practices, including Confucianism and Taoism (Japanese: Onmyo).
Background of Yamato society and culture
A millennium earlier, the
The rice-growing, politically fragmented
By this time, Japonic had also spread to the Ryukyu Islands such as Okinawa. The Ryukyuan languages and Japanese most likely diverged during this period.[3]
Kofun period
The Kofun period (古墳時代, Kofun-jidai) is an era in the history of Japan from around 250 to 538. The word kofun is Japanese for the type of burial mounds dating from this era.
During the
Archaeological records and ancient Chinese sources
Japan of the Kofun age was positive in the introduction of Chinese culture. Several kinds of goods were imported. Books from China were one of the most important trade goods. Chinese philosophy that had been introduced in this era, had a big influence on the history of Japan. Decorated bronze mirrors (Shinju-kyo) were imported from China. Japan imported iron from Korean peninsula until the latter half of the 6th century.
In this period, Baekje received military support from Japan. According to the
Kofun tombs
Kofun (古墳, "old tomb") are burial mounds which were built for the people of the ruling class during the 3rd to 7th centuries. The Kofun period takes its name from these distinctive earthen mounds which are associated with the rich
Kofun came in many shapes, with round and square being the simplest. A distinct style is the keyhole kofun (
By the late Kofun period, the distinctive burial chambers, originally used by the ruling elite, were also built for commoners.
The biggest kofun are believed to be the tombs of emperors like Emperor Ōjin (応神天皇 Ōjin Tennō) and Emperor Nintoku (仁徳天皇 Nintoku Tennō). Kofun are also classified according to whether the entrance to the stone burial chamber is vertical (縦穴 tate-ana) or horizontal (横穴 yoko-ana).
Immigrants in early Japan
Japan of the Kofun period was very receptive to influence from China.[6] Chinese and Korean immigrants played an important role in introducing elements of Chinese culture to early Japan.[7]
Yamato links to the mainland and the
Many important figures were immigrants from
The Azumi people were a warrior tribe from northern Kyushu.[11] They were extremely skilled seafarers.[12] The Azumi gained early contact with the Yamato Court and provided maritime trade links and influenced the Yamato Court's military and diplomatic approach in the seas.[12] Thus the Japanese imperial government employed them as their naval force from the 3rd to 5th centuries.[13][14] Certain experts regard the Azumi as "the oldest known maritime force of [Japan's] emerging imperial state."[12] Some Japanese historians think they were of Austronesian origin and related to the Hayato people who lived in southern Kyushu.[15][12] The Yamato Court questioned their loyalty and banished them sometime before the 7th century.[16]
Kofun society
The Kofun period was a critical stage in Japan's evolution toward a more cohesive and recognized state. This society was most developed in the
Asuka period
The Asuka period (飛鳥時代, Asuka-jidai) is generally defined as from 538 to 710. The arrival of Buddhism marked a change in Japanese society and affected the Yamato government.
The
Artistically, the term Tori Style is often used for the Asuka period. This is from the sculptor
The arts during the Asuka and Nara periods are similar to contemporaneous art in China and Korea. One example of this is Tori Busshi's Shaka Triad which reflects the style of early to mid-sixth-century Chinese style.
Introduction of Buddhism
According to Nihon Shoki, Mahāyāna Buddhism (大乗仏教, Daijō Bukkyō) was officially introduced to the Yamato court through Baekje in 552, while it is widely recognized Buddhism was introduced in 538 based on the biography of Prince Shōtoku (Jōgū Shōtoku Hōō Teisetsu) and the record of Gangō-ji (Gangōji Garan Engi).
Initial uptake of Buddhism was slow. Nihon Shoki records that when Emperor Kinmei discussed about the acceptance of this new foreign religion, Soga no Iname expressed his support while Mononobe no Okoshi and Nakatomi no Kamako (later the Fujiwara clan) opposed not on religious grounds, but more so as the results of feelings of nationalism and a degree of xenophobia.
With the dawn of the Asuka period, the use of elaborate
Buddhism only started to spread after
Yamato Imperial Court
The Yamato Imperial Court (大和朝廷, Yamato-Chōtei) It was named because there were many palace capitals in the southern part of the Yamato Plain in Nara during the Kofun period and the Asuka period. The Asuka period is known for its significant artistic, social, and political transformations, which had their origins in the late Kofun period.
The second half of the Kofun period, exercised power over clans in
Events
- 538: The Korean kingdom of Baekje dispatches a delegation to introduce Buddhism to the Japanese emperor
- 593: Prince Shōtoku of the Soga clan rules Japan and promotes Buddhism
- 600: Prince Shōtoku sends the first official Japanese mission to China
- 604: Prince Shōtoku issues a Chinese-style constitution (Kenpo Jushichijo), based on Confucian principles, which de facto inaugurates the Japanese empire
- 605: Prince Shōtoku declares Buddhism and Confucianism the state religions of Japan
- 607: Prince Shōtoku builds the Buddhist temple Horyuji in the Asuka valley
- 645: Prince Shōtoku is succeeded by Kotoku Tenno, who strengthens imperial power over aristocratic clans (Taika Reform), turning their states into provinces
- 663: Yamato naval and allied Korean Baekje forces are defeated by the naval forces of China's Tang dynasty at the Battle of Baekgang
See also
- Kofun era
- Asuka
- Yayoi
- Nara period
- History of Japan
- Zenpokoenfun
References
Citations
- ^ Nihon Shoki, Vol.6 "天日槍對曰 僕新羅國主之子也 然聞日本國有聖皇 則以己國授弟知古而化歸(to serve)之"
- ^ Nihon Shoki, Vol.6 "故天日槍娶但馬出嶋人 太耳女麻多烏 生但馬諸助也 諸助生但馬日楢杵 日楢杵生清彦 清彦生田道間守也"
- Shiro Hattori. (1954) Gengo nendaigaku sunawachi goi tokeigaku no hoho ni tsuite ("Concerning the Method of Glottochronology and Lexicostatistics"), Gengo kenkyu (Journal of the Linguistic Society of Japan), Vols. 26/27.
- ^ Korean History Record Samguk Sagi : 三國史記 百済本紀 : 六年 夏五月 王與倭國結好 以太子腆支爲質 秋七月 大閱於漢水之南
- ^ Korean History Record Samguk Sagi : 三國史記 新羅本紀 : 元年 三月 與倭國通好 以奈勿王子未斯欣爲質
- ^ Imamura (1996)
- ^ Stearns (2001:56)
- ^ W.G. Beasley, The Japanese Experience: A Short History of Japan, University of California Press, 2000. [1]
- ^ "『新撰姓氏録』氏族一覧, transcribed by Kazuhide Kitagawa". Archived from the original on 2006-02-24. Retrieved 2006-02-24.
- ^ 『古代国家と天皇』創元社、1957年
- ^ Andriyenko, L (15 March 2011). "The Azumi Basin in Japan and Its Ancient People". Web Archive. Archived from the original on 2013-12-31. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
- ^ ISBN 978-1350062870.
- ISBN 9780520910362. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
- ISBN 978-9004269378.
- ^ "蝦夷とアテルイ". masakawai.suppa.jp. Retrieved 2019-03-26.
- ISBN 978-1477728062. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
Sources
- This article incorporates text from a free content work. Licensed under Public domain (license statement/permission). Text taken from Japan: a country study, Dolan, Ronald E. and Worden, Robert L., Federal Research Division, Library of Congress.
- Hong, Wontack (1994). Paekche of Korea and the Origin of Yamato Japan. Seoul: Kudara International. ISBN 978-89-85567-02-2. Archived from the originalon 2007-02-05. Includes bibliographical references and index. Sections of this book are available to download as PDF's.