Kuni no miyatsuko

Kuni no miyatsuko (国造), also read as kokuzō or kunitsuko, were people in ancient Japan during the Yamato period who governed provinces called kuni.

Kuni no miyatsuko governed provinces called kuni (国). At first Kuni no miyatsuko were appointed by the Emperor, but later the position was passed down from father to son.[1][2] Kuni no miyatsuko had noble titles, usually kimi (君) or atae (直). But the important ones had the title omi (臣).[2]

The position was abolished in the Taika refoms and replaced with the position of Kokushi.[2] The old kuni no miyatsuko were given the position of gunji (郡司) instead.[1][3]


Gunji was a religious position responsible for Shinto in each province.[2] These religious officials became known as shin-kokuzō (新国造), or "new" kuni no miyatsuko.[2] The Gunji often supported the rights of peasants, so the position was abolished by the Emperor.[3] A few kuni no miyatsuko families stayed powerful such as the Izumo no Kuni no Miyatsuko [ja] (出雲国造) of Izumo Province in present-day eastern Shimane Prefecture.[4]

References

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  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "国造 (Kuni no miyatsuko)". Dijitaru daijisen (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. Archived from the original on 2007-08-25. Retrieved 2012-04-12. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "dijitaru" defined multiple times with different content
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 "Kuni no miyatsuko". Encyclopedia of Japan. Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. Archived from the original on 2007-08-25. Retrieved 2012-04-12. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "encyclopedia" defined multiple times with different content
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "郡司 (Gunji)". Dijitaru daijisen (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. Archived from the original on 2007-08-25. Retrieved 2012-04-12.
  4. ↑ "Izumo Kuni no miyatsuko (出雲国造)". Nihon Daihyakka Zensho (Nipponika) (日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ) (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. Archived from the original on 2007-08-25. Retrieved 2012-04-12.