The was one iteration of several codes or governing rules compiled in early

Nara period The of the history of Japan covers the years from CE 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the c ...

in Classical Japan. It was compiled in 718, the second year of the

Yōrō was a after ''Reiki'' and before '' Jinki.'' This period spanned the years from November 717 through February 724. The reigning empress was . Change of era * 717 : The new era name was created to mark an event or series of events. The previou ...

regnal era by Fujiwara no Fuhito et al., but not promulgated until 757 under the regime of Fujiwara no Nakamaro under

Empress Kōken , also known as , was the 46th (with the name Empress Kōken) and the 48th monarch of Japan (with the name Empress Shōtoku), Emperor Kōnin, Takano Imperial Mausoleum, Imperial Household Agency according to the traditional order of succession. ...

. The penal code portions (''ritsu'') were largely lost, although they have been reconstructed. The content of the civil code portions (''ryō'') are preserved nearly fully, copied out in later texts.

Overview

The Yōrō Code was a revision of the

Taihō Code The was an administrative reorganisation enacted in 703 in Japan, at the end of the Asuka period. It was historically one of the . It was compiled at the direction of Prince Osakabe, Fujiwara no Fuhito and Awata no Mahito. Nussbaum, Louis ...

of 701, and differences may have been limited. Still, when Nakamaro put the laws into effect in 757, it was unpopular among the nobility as it "slowed down the promotion schedule for officials."

State of preservation

While the precursor code (Taihō Code) does not survive, a substantial amount of Yōrō Code is preserved in the piece, (833), especially the civil codes. In English-language scholarly literature, some commentators merely state that the code is preserved in a fragmentary state, but other academics do note preservation is nearly complete for the civil code portion. The ''Ryō no gige'' contains the full text of the ''ryō'' (or civil/administrative code part) except for two chapters according to a

Kadokawa Kadokawa may refer to: *Kadokawa Corporation, the holding company of the Kadokawa Group **Kadokawa Content Gate and Kadokawa Mobile, both former names for BookWalker **Kadokawa Future Publishing, a subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation and the publi ...

publishing house history dictionary,out of 30 chapters, 10 fascicules the missing portions being the and the , and even this lacuna can be partly be filled from a collections of fragments of the codes. The ''ritsu'' or the penal code portion was largely lost, but a compilation of fragments from various codes, entitled the , in 8 volumes, was compiled by 1760–1821. The resulting text, including the fragments, are printed in the volume on

Ritsuryō , , is the historical law system based on the philosophies of Confucianism and Chinese Legalism in Japan. The political system in accord to Ritsuryō is called "Ritsuryō-sei" (律令制). ''Kyaku'' (格) are amendments of Ritsuryō, ''Shiki' ...

texts in the historical text series. Other sources agree, adding that for the civil code, almost all of the text that runs to Article 955 has been restored. Relying on the Tang dynasty penal code that survives, a complete reconstruction of the Yōrō penal code has also been undertaken., crediting Niida Noboru and Shiga Shūzō for the reconstruction from the T'ang.

Tang dynasty model

The

ritsuryō , , is the historical law system based on the philosophies of Confucianism and Chinese Legalism in Japan. The political system in accord to Ritsuryō is called "Ritsuryō-sei" (律令制). ''Kyaku'' (格) are amendments of Ritsuryō, ''Shiki' ...

codes were modeled after the civil and penal codes of the Tang dynasty, in particular, the code of the era passed in 651 which was then current is named by scholars as the basis of the two ritsuryō codes.

Period in force

The Code remained in effect until the early 10th century, after which it became an obsolete

dead letter Dead letter mail or undeliverable mail is mail that cannot be delivered to the addressee or returned to the sender. This is usually due to lack of compliance with postal regulations, an incomplete address and return address, or the inability t ...

law code, but not formally repealed and hence valid at least "in paper" until the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

. During the feudal age in Japan, various ministerial offices were awarded to as formality to

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They ...

(e.g.,

Ishida Mitsunari Ishida Mitsunari (, 1559 – November 6, 1600) was a Japanese samurai and military commander of the late Sengoku period of Japan. He is probably best remembered as the commander of the Western army in the Battle of Sekigahara following the ...

as ''jibu-no-shō''; Furuta Oribe, Ii kamon-no-kami, Sakai uta-no-kami etc.) without any responsibilities or authorities vested in the office under the code.

Explanatory notes

Citations

External links

* (.Lzh compressed file) by and , available at th

page, admin , Meiji University Research Institute for Japanese Ancient Studies site. {{DEFAULTSORT:Yoro Code Legal history of Japan 718 757 8th century in Japan Legal codes 8th century in law