Emperor Jimmu

Information about Emperor Jimmu

Enlarge picture
Meiji era print of Emperor Jimmu


Emperor Jimmu (神武天皇 Jinmu Tennō; also known as: Kamuyamato Iwarebiko; given name: Wakamikenu no Mikoto or Sano no Mikoto, born according to the legendary account in the Kojiki on January 1, 660 BC, and died, again according to legend, on March 11, 585 BC (both dates according to the lunisolar traditional Japanese calendar), was the mythical founder of Japan and is the first emperor named in the traditional lists of emperors. The Imperial house of Japan traditionally based its claim to the throne on its descent from Jimmu.

The name Jimmu, meaning "divine might" or "god-warrior", is the posthumous name of this mythical figure. In fact, being Chinese in form and Buddhist in implication, it must have been awarded centuries after the lifetime ascribed to him, as part of the compilation of legends about the origins of the Yamato dynasty known as the Kojiki.

According to Shinto belief, Jimmu is regarded as a direct descendant of the sun goddess, Amaterasu. Amaterasu had a son called Ame no Oshihomimi no Mikoto and through him a grandson named Ninigi-no-Mikoto. She sent her grandson to the Japanese islands where he eventually married Konohana-Sakuya-hime. Among their three sons was Hikohohodemi no Mikoto, also called Yamasachi-hiko, who married Toyotama-hime. She was the daughter of Ryūjin, the Japanese sea god. They had a single son called Hikonagisa Takeugaya Fukiaezu no Mikoto. The boy was abandoned by his parents at birth and consequently raised by Tamayori-hime, his mother's younger sister. They eventually married and had a total of four sons. The last of them became Emperor Jimmu.

New Year's Day in the Japanese lunisolar calendar was traditionally celebrated as the regnal day of Emperor Jimmu. In 1872, the Meiji government proclaimed February 11, 660 BC in the Gregorian calendar the foundation day of Japan. This mythical date was commemorated in the holiday Kigensetsu ("Era Day") from 1872 to 1948, which was resurrected in 1966 as the national holiday Kenkoku Kinen no hi ("National Foundation Day").

Jimmu's migration

Mythic records in the Kojiki and Nihonshoki tell us that Jimmu's brothers were originally born in Takachiho, the southern part of Kyūshū (in modern day Miyazaki prefecture), and decided to move eastward, as they found their location inappropriate for reigning over the entire country. Jimmu's older brother Itsuse no Mikoto originally led the migration, and they move eastward through the Seto Inland Sea with the assistance of local chieftain Sao Netsuhiko. As they reached Naniwa (modern day Ōsaka), they encountered another local chieftain Nagasunehiko (lit. 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 battle westward. They reached Kumano, and with the guidance of a three-legged bird, Yatagarasu (lit. eight-span crow), moved to Yamato. There they once again battled Nagasunehiko and were victorious. In Yamato, Nigihayahi no Mikoto, who also claims to be a descendant of the Takamagahara gods, was protected by Nagasunehiko. However, when Nigihayahi met Jimmu, he accepted Jimmu's legitimacy, and Jimmu ascended to the throne.

References

  • Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697, translated by W.G. Aston (Tuttle Co, 1998), Volume 1 pp. 109 - 137

External links

Preceded by
(none)		Legendary Emperor of Japan
660 BC-585 BC		Succeeded by
Emperor Suizei
Kojiki or Furukotofumi (古事記), also known in English as the Records of Ancient Matters, is the oldest surviving book in Japan.
..... Click the link for more information.
January 1 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining. The preceding day is December 31 of the previous year.
..... Click the link for more information.
7th century BC - 6th century BC

690s BC 680s BC 670s BC - 660s BC - 650s BC 640s BC 630s BC
669 BC 668 BC 667 BC 666 BC 665 BC
664 BC 663 BC 662 BC 661 BC 660 BC

- - State leaders - Sovereign states
-

Events and trends


..... Click the link for more information.
March 11 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.

Events


..... Click the link for more information.
6th century BC - 5th century BC

610s BC 600s BC 590s BC - 580s BC - 570s BC 560s BC 550s BC
589 BC 588 BC 587 BC 586 BC 585 BC
584 BC 583 BC 582 BC 581 BC 580 BC

- - State leaders - Sovereign states
-

Events and trends


..... Click the link for more information.
lunisolar calendar is a calendar in many cultures whose date indicates both the moon phase and the time of the solar year. If the solar year is defined as a tropical year then a lunisolar calendar will give an indication of the season; if it is taken as a sidereal year then the
..... Click the link for more information.
Editing of this page by unregistered or newly registered users is currently disabled due to vandalism.
If you are prevented from editing this page, and you wish to make a change, please discuss changes on the talk page, request unprotection, log in, or .
..... Click the link for more information.
Japan

This article is part of the series:
Politics of Japan

  • Politics of Japan
  • Constitution
  • Emperor (list)
  • Akihito
  • Imperial Household Agency
  • Government

..... Click the link for more information.
A posthumous name (諡號) is an honorary name given to royalty, nobles, and sometimes others, in some cultures after the person's death. The posthumous name is commonly used when naming royalty of China, Korea, Vietnam and Japan.
..... Click the link for more information.
Kojiki or Furukotofumi (古事記), also known in English as the Records of Ancient Matters, is the oldest surviving book in Japan.
..... Click the link for more information.
Shinto (神道 shintō
..... Click the link for more information.

..... Click the link for more information.
Ninigi no Mikoto (瓊瓊杵尊) is in Japanese mythology the son of Ame no Oshihomimi no Mikoto, and grandson of Amaterasu, who sent him down to earth to plant rice there. He was the great-grandfather of Emperor Jimmu.
..... Click the link for more information.

..... Click the link for more information.

..... Click the link for more information.

..... Click the link for more information.
The three-letter acronym SEA may refer to:
  • Scientists and Engineers for America, a pro-science political advocacy group.
  • Schoof-Elkies-Atkin algorithm
  • Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (IATA: SEA, ICAO: KSEA)
  • Sea Education Association

..... Click the link for more information.

..... Click the link for more information.
lunisolar calendar is a calendar in many cultures whose date indicates both the moon phase and the time of the solar year. If the solar year is defined as a tropical year then a lunisolar calendar will give an indication of the season; if it is taken as a sidereal year then the
..... Click the link for more information.

..... Click the link for more information.
Gregorian calendar is the most widely used calendar in the world. A modification of the Julian calendar, it was first proposed by the Calabrian doctor Aloysius Lilius, and was decreed by Pope Gregory XIII, for whom it was named, on 24 February 1582 via the papal bull
..... Click the link for more information.
18th century - 19th century - 20th century
1840s  1850s  1860s  - 1870s -  1880s  1890s  1900s
1869 1870 1871 - 1872 - 1873 1874 1875

:
Subjects:     Archaeology - Architecture -
..... Click the link for more information.
19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1910s  1920s  1930s  - 1940s -  1950s  1960s  1970s
1945 1946 1947 - 1948 - 1949 1950 1951

Year 1948 (MCMXLVIII
..... Click the link for more information.
19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1930s  1940s  1950s  - 1960s -  1970s  1980s  1990s
1963 1964 1965 - 1966 - 1967 1968 1969

Year 1966 (MCMLXVI
..... Click the link for more information.
National Foundation Day (建国記念日, kenkoku kinen-bi; also 建国記念の日, kenkoku kinen-no-hi) is a national holiday in Japan celebrated annually on February 11.
..... Click the link for more information.
Kojiki or Furukotofumi (古事記), also known in English as the Records of Ancient Matters, is the oldest surviving book in Japan.
..... Click the link for more information.
The Nihon Shoki (日本書紀
..... Click the link for more information.
Miyazaki Prefecture (宮崎県 Miyazaki-ken)

Capital Miyazaki
Region Kyūshū
Island Kyūshū
Governor Hideo Higashikokubaru (Sonomanma Higashi)

..... Click the link for more information.
For the sea in Japan, see Inland Sea


An inland sea is a shallow sea that covers central areas of continents during high stands of sea level that result in marine transgressions.
..... Click the link for more information.
three-legged bird is a creature found in various mythologies of Asia, Asia Minor, and North Africa. It is often thought to inhabit and represent the sun.

The creature has been featured in myths from Egypt, where it appears on wall murals,[1].
..... Click the link for more information.

This article is copied from an article on Wikipedia.org - the free encyclopedia created and edited by online user community. The text was not checked or edited by anyone on our staff. Although the vast majority of the wikipedia encyclopedia articles provide accurate and timely information please do not assume the accuracy of any particular article. This article is distributed under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License.