Emperor Jimmu: Difference between revisions

{{Infobox royalty

<ref name= KodanshaJimmu>{{cite book |last1=Campbell |first1=Allen |last2=Nobel |first2=David S  |title=Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia |publisher=Kodansha |date=1993 |chapter=Jimmu Emperor|page=1186 |isbn=406205938X |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/japanillustrated0001unse/page/684}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.kunaicho.go.jp/e-about/genealogy/pdf/keizu-e.pdf |title=

Genealogy of the Emperors of Japan |author=  <!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |publisher= kunaicho.go.jp |access-date=October 25, 2025 |url-status=dead

|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110106213919/http://www.kunaicho.go.jp/e-about/genealogy/img/keizu-e.pdf |archive-date=January 6, 2011 }}</ref>

| birth_date  = 711 BC  

| death_date  = 585 BC (aged 126{{sfn|Chamberlain|1919|p=[https://www.sacred-texts.com/shi/kj/kj061.htm 188]}}{{sfn|Aston|1896|pp=109–137}})

| death_place  = [[Kashihara, Nara|Kashihara]], [[Nara Prefecture|Nara]]

 

{{Nihongo|'''Emperor Jimmu'''|神武天皇|Jinmu Tennō|{{IPA|ja|dʑiꜜm.mɯ (ten.noː), dʑim.mɯ ten.noꜜː}}<ref>{{cite book|script-title=ja:新明解日本語アクセント辞典|edition=2nd|editor-last=Kindaichi|editor-first=Haruhiko|editor-link=Haruhiko Kindaichi|editor-last2=Akinaga|editor-first2=Kazue|publisher=[[Sanseidō]]|date=10 March 2025|language=ja}}</ref>}} was the [[legend]]ary first [[emperor of Japan]] according to the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}} and {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Kojiki]]}}.<ref name="KodanshaJimmu"/> His ascension is traditionally dated as 660 BC.<ref name="kelly">Kelly, Charles F. [http://www.t-net.ne.jp/~keally/kofun.html "Kofun Culture"], [http://www.t-net.ne.jp/~keally/  Japanese Archaeology]. April 27, 2009.</ref><ref name="Understanding Japanese Religion p. 145">* Kitagawa, Joseph (1987). {{Google books|h1xcc4cGL5cC|On Understanding Japanese Religion|page=145}}: "emphasis on the undisrupted chronological continuity from myths to legends and from legends to history, it is difficult to determine where one ends and the next begins. At any rate, the first ten legendary emperors are clearly not reliable historical records."

There is little to no evidence to suggest that Jimmu existed; he is regarded by most modern scholars as a legendary figure.

Both the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Kojiki]]}} and the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}} give Jimmu's name as {{Nihongo||神倭伊波礼琵古命|'''Kamu-yamato Iware-biko no Mikoto'''}} or {{Nihongo||神日本磐余彦天皇|'''Kamu-yamato Iware-biko no Sumeramikoto'''}}.<ref>神倭伊波礼琵古命, [[Old Japanese|OJ]] pronunciation: ''Kamu-Yamatö-ipare-biko'' (''nö-mikötö'') Donald Philippi, tr. ''Kojiki'', University of Tokyo Press, 1969 p. 488</ref> ''Iware'' indicates a [[toponym]] (an old place name in the Nara region) whose precise purport is unclear.<ref>Japanese Wikipedia [[:ja:磐余|''Iware'']]</ref> '-no-Mikoto' is an honorific, indicating divinity, nobility, or royalty.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ashkenazi |first=Michael |title=Handbook of Japanese Mythology |date=2003 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-1576074671 |pages=222 |quote=The suffix -no-mikoto is a divine honorific usually translated as 'the August' or 'the Great God'. In the early Japanese chronicles, it is applied to the names of kami (deities) and members of the early imperial family to denote their sacred or noble status.}}</ref>

Among his other names were: {{Nihongo||若御毛沼命|Wakamikenu no Mikoto}}, {{Nihongo||神日本磐余彦火火出見尊|Kamu-yamato Iware-biko hohodemi no Mikoto}} and {{Nihongo||彦火火出見|Hikohohodemi}}.<ref>{{cite book |last=Chamberlain |first=Basil Hall |title=The Kojiki: Records of Ancient Matters |date=1919 |publisher=Charles E. Tuttle |pages=158–162 |quote=The Kojiki records his name as Waka-mike-nu-no-mikoto and Kamu-yamato-iware-biko-no-mikoto, tracing his lineage from the sun goddess Amaterasu.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Aston |first=William George |title=Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697 |date=1896 |publisher=Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co. |pages=110–115 |quote=The Nihon Shoki refers to the first emperor as Kamu-yamato-iware-biko-hohodemi-no-sumera-mikoto, often shortened to Iware-biko.}}</ref>

According to the chronicles {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Kojiki]]}} and {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}}, Jimmu's brothers [[Itsuse no Mikoto]], [[Inahi no Mikoto]], and [[Mikeiri no Mikoto]] were born in [[Takachiho, Miyazaki|Takachiho]], the southern part of [[Kyūshū]] in modern-day [[Miyazaki Prefecture]]. They moved eastward to find a location more appropriate for administering the entire country. Jimmu's older brother, Itsuse no Mikoto, originally led the migration, and led the clan eastward through the [[Seto Inland Sea]] with the assistance of local chieftain ''{{ill|Saonetsuhiko|lt=Sao Netsuhiko|ja|椎根津彦}}''. As they reached Naniwa (modern-day [[Osaka]]), they encountered another local chieftain, ''Nagasunehiko'' ("the long-legged man"), and Itsuse was killed in the ensuing battle. Jimmu realized that they had been defeated because they battled eastward against the sun, so he decided to land on the east side of [[Kii Peninsula]] and to battle westward. In Japanese legend, during battle with ''Nagasunehiko'' a ''kinki'' ("golden [[Kite (bird)|kite]]") landed on Jimmu's bow and emitted rays of dazzling light, helping Jimmu defeat his enemies.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Wang |first=Ziming |date=2022-12-22 |title=Hakkō Ichiu: Religious Rhetoric in Imperial Japan |journal=Religions |language=en |volume=14 |issue=1 |pages=21 |doi=10.3390/rel14010021 |doi-access=free |issn=2077-1444 }}</ref> They reached [[Kumano Region|Kumano]], and, with the guidance of a [[three-legged crow]] {{Nihongo|[[Yatagarasu]]|八咫烏|4={{lit|eight-span crow}}}}, they moved to [[Yamato Province|Yamato]]. There, they once again battled Nagasunehiko and were victorious. The record in the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}} of Emperor Jimmu states that his armed forces defeated a group of {{nihongo|''[[Emishi]]''|蝦夷|4={{lit|shrimp barbarians}}}} before his enthronement.<ref name="Iwate">{{cite web|url=http://www.iwate-np.co.jp/sekai/sekaiisan/sekaiisan6.htm|script-title=ja:朝廷軍の侵略に抵抗|language=ja|publisher=[[Iwate Nippo]]|date=September 24, 2004|access-date=March 1, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303180753/http://www.iwate-np.co.jp/sekai/sekaiisan/sekaiisan6.htm|archive-date=March 3, 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> The [[Emishi]] were an [[ethnic group]] who lived in [[Honshu]], particularly the [[Tōhoku]] region.

According to the {{Lang|ja-latn|Kojiki}}, Jimmu died when he was 137 years old. The Emperor's [[posthumous name]] literally means "divine might" or "god-warrior". It is generally thought that Jimmu's name and character evolved into their present shape just before<ref>Kennedy, Malcolm D. A History of Japan. London. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1963.</ref> the time in which legends about the origins of the [[Imperial House of Japan|imperial dynasty]] were chronicled in the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Kojiki]]}}.{{sfn|Aston|1896|pp=109–137}} There are accounts written earlier than either {{Lang|ja-latn|Kojiki}} and {{Lang|ja-latn|Nihon Shoki}} that present an alternative version of the story. According to these accounts, Jimmu's dynasty was supplanted by that of [[Emperor Ōjin|Ōjin]], whose dynasty was supplanted by that of [[Emperor Keitai|Keitai]].<ref>Ooms, Herman. ''Imperial Politics and Symbolics in Ancient Japan: the Tenmu Dynasty, 650–800''. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, 2009</ref> The {{Lang|ja-latn|Kojiki}} and the {{Lang|ja-latn|Nihon Shoki}} then combined these three legendary dynasties into one long and continuous genealogy.

[[File:251206 Kashihara Shrine Kashihara Nara pref Japan07s3.jpg|thumb|The inner prayer hall of [[Kashihara Shrine]] in [[Kashihara, Nara]], the principal shrine devoted to Jimmu]]

Veneration of Jimmu was a central component of the [[imperial cult]] that formed following the [[Meiji Restoration]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://apjjf.org/2016/20/Saaler.html |title=Nationalism and History in Contemporary Japan |date=October 15, 2016 |access-date=February 11, 2017}}</ref> In 1873, a holiday called ''[[Kigensetsu]]'' was established on February 11.<ref name=kodanshakigensetsu>"Kigensetsu Controversy", ''Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia'' (1993), Kodansha. {{ISBN|978-4069310980}}.</ref> The holiday commemorated the anniversary of Jimmu's ascension to the throne 2,532 years earlier.<ref>''Britannica Kokusai Dai-Hyakkajiten'' article on "Kigensetsu".</ref> After [[World War II]], the holiday was criticized as associated with the "emperor system." too closely<ref name="kodanshakigensetsu"/> It was suspended from 1948 to 1966, but later reinstated as [[National Foundation Day (Japan)|National Foundation Day]].<ref name="kodanshakigensetsu"/><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/1998/02/11/national/founding-day-rekindles-annual-debate/#.U4F2VihWrrB|title=Founding Day rekindles annual debate|newspaper=The Japan Times|date=February 11, 1998|access-date=May 24, 2014}}</ref>

Between 1873 and 1945, an imperial envoy sent offerings every year to the supposed site of Jimmu's tomb.<ref name="martin">Martin, Peter. (1997). ''The Chrysanthemum Throne: A History of the Emperors of Japan'', pp. 18–20.</ref> In 1890 [[Kashihara Shrine]] was established nearby, on the spot where Jimmu was said to have ascended to the throne.<ref>[http://www.city.kashihara.nara.jp/kankou/own_kankou/kankou/spot/kashihara_jinguu.html Kashihara City website] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209115031/https://www.city.kashihara.nara.jp/kankou/own_kankou/kankou/spot/kashihara_jinguu.html |date=February 9, 2023 }} tourism page on "Kashihara Jingū".</ref>

[[File:Celebrating_Gagaku_Music_in_Imperial_2600.JPG|thumb|124th Emperor [[Hirohito]] and [[Empress Nagako]] presiding the celebration of the [[2600th Anniversary Celebrations of the Japanese Empire|2600th anniversary of mythical foundation of the Empire]] in November 1940|left]]

In 1940, Japan celebrated the [[2600th Anniversary Celebrations of the Japanese Empire|2600th anniversary of Jimmu's ascension]] and built a monument to [[Hakkō ichiu]] despite the fact that all historians knew Jimmu was a mythical figure. In 1941, the Japanese government charged the one historian who dared to challenge Jimmu's existence publicly, [[Sōkichi Tsuda|Tsuda Sōkichi]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Sundberg |first1=Steve |date=October 22, 2018 |title=2600th Anniversary of the Founding of Japan, 1940. |url=http://www.oldtokyo.com/2600th-anniversary-of-the-founding-of-japan-1940/ |website=Old Tokyo}}</ref>

Since after [[World War II]], when the prohibition on questioning the Kojiki and the Nihongi was lifted, documentary research in China and archaeological research in Japan has undermined much of the information in both the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki.<ref name=":6">{{Cite book |last1=Ring |first1=Trudy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JqHPpNaZfNwC&dq=Jimmu+existed&pg=PA592 |title=International Dictionary of Historic Places: Asia and Oceania |last2=Salkin |first2=Robert M. |last3=Schellinger |first3=Paul E. |last4=Boda |first4=Sharon La |last5=Watson |first5=Noelle |last6=Hudson |first6=Christopher |last7=Hast |first7=Adele |date=1994 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-884964-04-6 |language=en}}</ref>{{Rp|page=460}} No evidence has been found for Jimmu's existence.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|last=Ruoff|first= Kenneth J.|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Mo8cEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA175 |title= Japan's Imperial House in the Postwar Era, 1945–2019|date= 2021|publisher=Brill|isbn=978-1-68417-616-8|page =171}}</ref><ref name= "KodanshaJimmu" /><ref name="Hoye 1999 78">{{Cite book |last=Hoye |first=Timothy |title=Japanese Politics: Fixed and Floating Worlds |year=1999 |page=78}}</ref> Today most modern scholars agree that the traditional founding of the [[Imperial House of Japan|imperial dynasty]] in 660 BC is a myth and that Jimmu is legendary.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Shillony |first=Ben-Ami |author-link=Ben-Ami Shillony |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FwztKKtQ_rAC&pg=PA15 |title=The Emperors of Modern Japan |date=2008 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-16822-0 |page=}}</ref>{{Rp|page=15}} [[Emperor Sujin|Emperor Sujin's]] historicity is considered possible by historians, while [[Emperor Kinmei]] is the first verifiable historical figure in the imperial lineage.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hoye |first=Timothy |title=Japanese politics : fixed and floating worlds |date=1999 |publisher=Prentice Hall |isbn=0-13-271289-X |edition=1st |location=Upper Saddle River, N.J. |pages=78 |oclc=38438419}}</ref><ref name="yoshida">{{cite web |last=Yoshida |first=Reiji |date=March 27, 2007 |title=Life in the Cloudy Imperial Fishbowl |url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2007/03/27/reference/life-in-the-cloudy-imperial-fishbowl/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220622020704/https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2007/03/27/reference/life-in-the-cloudy-imperial-fishbowl/ |archive-date=June 22, 2022 |access-date=22 August 2013 |work=The Japan Times |url-status=dead }}</ref>