, also known as was the 16th

Emperor of Japan The emperor of Japan is the hereditary monarch and head of state of Japan. The emperor is defined by the Constitution of Japan as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, his position deriving from "the will of ...

, according to the traditional

order of succession An order, line or right of succession is the line of individuals necessitated to hold a high office when it becomes vacated, such as head of state or an honour such as a title of nobility. Due to his reputation for goodness derived from depictions in the

Kojiki The , also sometimes read as or , is an early Japanese chronicle of myths, legends, hymns, genealogies, oral traditions, and semi-historical accounts down to 641 concerning the origin of the Japanese archipelago, the , and the Japanese imperia ...

and

Nihon Shoki The or , sometimes translated as ''The Chronicles of Japan'', is the second-oldest book of classical Japanese history. It is more elaborate and detailed than the , the oldest, and has proven to be an important tool for historians and archaeol ...

, he is sometimes referred to as the . While his existence is generally accepted as fact, no firm dates can be assigned to Nintoku's life or reign. He is traditionally considered to have reigned from 313 to 399, although these dates are doubted by scholars.

Legendary narrative

The Japanese have traditionally accepted Nintoku's historical existence, and a mausoleum (''misasagi'') for Nintoku is currently maintained. The following information available is taken from the pseudo-historical ''

'' and ''

'', which are collectively known as or ''Japanese chronicles''. These chronicles include legends and myths, as well as potential historical facts that have since been exaggerated and/or distorted over time. The ''Kiki'' states that Nintoku was born to Nakatsuhime no Mikoto (仲姫命) sometime in 290 AD, and was given the name . According to the ''

'', he was the fourth son of Emperor Ōjin.

Known information

Nintoku is regarded by historians as a ruler during the early 5th century whose existence is generally accepted as fact without attributing all of the things he allegedly accomplished. Nintoku's contemporary title would not have been ''tennō'', as most historians believe this title was not introduced until the reigns of

Emperor Tenmu was the 40th Emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 天武天皇 (40) retrieved 2013-8-22. according to the traditional order of succession. Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). ''The Imperial House of Japan'', p. 53. He ascended ...

and

Empress Jitō was the 41st emperor of Japan, monarch of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 持統天皇 (41)/ref> according to the traditional List of Emperors of Japan, order of succession. Jitō's reign spanned the years from Jitō period, 68 ...

. Rather, it was presumably , meaning "the great king who rules all under heaven". Alternatively, Nintoku might have been referred to as or the "Great King of Yamato". The name "Nintoku" also might have been regularized centuries after the lifetime ascribed to him, possibly during the time in which legends about the origins of the

imperial dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a monarchy, monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A dynasty may also be referred to as a "house", "family" or "clan", among others. H ...

were compiled as the chronicles known today as the ''

''. Although the ''Nihon Shoki'' states that Nintoku ruled from 313 to 399, research suggests those dates are likely inaccurate.Parry, Richard Lloyd
"Japan guards the Emperors' secrets; Ban on digs in ancient imperial tombs frustrates archaeologists"
''The Independent'' (London). 12 November 1995.

William George Aston William George Aston (9 April 1841 – 22 November 1911) was an Anglo-Irish diplomat, author, and scholar of the languages and histories of Korea and Japan. Early life Aston was born near Derry, Ireland.Ricorso Aston, bio notes/ref> He disti ...

notes that if they were factual, Nintoku would be 312 years old in his 78th year of reign assuming that the traditional accounts are correct. Outside of the ''Kiki'', the reign of

Emperor Kinmei was the 29th emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 欽明天皇 (29) retrieved 2013-8-22. according to the traditional order of succession. Titsingh, Isaac. (1834)pp. 34–36 Brown, Delmer. (1979) ''Gukanshō,'' pp. 261–2 ...

( – 571 AD) is the first for which contemporary historiography has been able to assign verifiable dates. The conventionally accepted names and dates of the early Emperors were not confirmed as "traditional" though, until the reign of Emperor Kanmu between 737 and 806 AD. Hidehiro Okada identifies him with Dei of Wa, a king who preceded the better known Five kings of Wa.

Consorts and children

According to the ''

'', he was the fourth son of Emperor Ōjin and his mother was Nakatsuhime no Mikoto (仲姫命), a great-granddaughter of Emperor Keikō. He was also the father of Emperors Richū, Hanzei, and Ingyō. His name was . Empress ('' Kōgō''): , poet and daughter of (first) *First Son: , later Emperor Richū * *Third Son: , later Emperor Hanzei *Fourth Son: , later Emperor Ingyō * Empress ('' Kōgō''): , Emperor Ōjin's daughter (second) Consort ('' Hi'') : , Morokata no Kimi Ushimoroi's daughter * *, married to Emperor Yūryaku Consort: , daughter of Emperor Ōjin Consort: , daughter of

Nintoku's tomb

Daisen Kofun The are a group of ''kofun'' ()—megalithic tombs—in Sakai, Osaka, Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, Japan. Originally consisting of more than 100 tombs, fewer than 50% of the key-hole, round, and rectangular tombs remain. The , the largest ''kofun' ...

(the largest

tomb A tomb ( ''tumbos'') or sepulchre () is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called '' immurement'', alth ...

in Japan) in

Sakai, Osaka is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. It has been one of the largest and most important seaports of Japan since the medieval era. Sakai is known for its ''kofun'', keyhole-shaped burial mounds dating from the fifth century. The ''kofun' ...

, is considered to be his final resting place. The actual site of Nintoku's

grave A grave is a location where a cadaver, dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is burial, buried or interred after a funeral. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of buria ...

is not known. The Nintoku-ryo tumulus is one of almost 50 tumuli collectively known as "Mozu Kofungun" clustered around the city, and covers the largest area of any tomb in the world. Built in the middle of the 5th century by an estimated 2,000 men working daily for almost 16 years, the Nintoku tumulus, at 486 meters long and with a mound 35 meters high, is twice as long as the base of the famous Great Pyramid of Pharaoh Khufu (Cheops) in Giza. The Imperial tomb of Nintoku's consort, Iwa-no hime no Mikoto, is said to be located in Saki-cho,

Nara City is the capital city of Nara Prefecture, Japan. , Nara has an estimated population of 367,353 according to World Population Review, making it the largest city in Nara Prefecture and sixth-largest in the Kansai region of Honshu. Nara is a Core ...

. Both ''

kofun are megalithic tombs or tumulus, tumuli in Northeast Asia. ''Kofun'' were mainly constructed in the Japanese archipelago between the middle of the 3rd century to the early 7th century AD.岡田裕之「前方後円墳」『日本古代史大辞 ...

''-type Imperial tombs are characterized by a keyhole-shaped island located within a wide, water-filled

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch dug around a castle, fortification, building, or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. Moats can be dry or filled with water. In some places, moats evolved into more extensive water d ...

. Imperial tombs and mausolea are cultural properties; but they are guarded and administered by the

Imperial Household Agency The (IHA) is an agency of the government of Japan in charge of state matters concerning the Imperial House of Japan, Imperial Family, and the keeping of the Privy Seal of Japan, Privy Seal and State Seal of Japan. From around the 8th century ...

( IHA), which is the government department responsible for all matters relating to the Emperor and his family. According to the IHA, the tombs are more than a mere repository for historical artifacts; they are sacred religious sites. IHA construes each of the Imperial grave sites as sanctuaries for the spirits of the ancestors of the Imperial House. Nintoku is traditionally venerated at a

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects such as home ...

Shinto , also called Shintoism, is a religion originating in Japan. Classified as an East Asian religions, East Asian religion by Religious studies, scholars of religion, it is often regarded by its practitioners as Japan's indigenous religion and as ...

shrine A shrine ( "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred space">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...: ''escri ...

(''misasagi'') at

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

. The

designates this location as his

mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type o ...

. It is formally named ''Mozu no Mimihara no naka no misasagi''.Ponsonby-Fane, p. 419.

Legendary narrative

Known information

Consorts and children

Nintoku's tomb

See also

Notes

References

Further reading