Japan's second state power--- the Yamato regime, gave birth to the Daisen Kofun Tomb, which is known as the three major tombs in the world today, along with the Pyramid of Khufu and the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor
倭 is pronounced the same as Yamato in Japanese, both pronounced "yamato", and the relationship between the Yamato regime and the Evil Horse Tai Kingdom is still inconclusive. So it is not clear whether they are related to each other, so this period, because many huge front and back round tombs appeared in places such as southern Honshu Island, Nara and Osaka, so this period is also called the Kofun period.
The Kofun period is divided into three periods: early, middle and late.
In the early to mid-period development process, these kofun mounds in Japan became larger and larger. An ancient mound found in the middle of the period, which is also the largest known kofun in the world, the Daisen Kofun in Osaka is also known as the three major tombs in the world today along with the Pyramid of Khufu and the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor because of its exaggerated construction area.
However, for the identity of the owner of this ancient tomb, according to the Imperial Household Agency, the owner of the tomb is the sixteenth emperor of Japan, Emperor Nintoku,
Speaking of the Japanese emperor, according to the book written in 720, the earliest official history of Japan "Nihon Shoki" is recorded
The Japanese emperor is known as "one family of ten thousand generations", and there has never been a change of dynasty since ancient times.
Of course, as for credibility, that's a matter of opinion.
The earliest known emperor is Emperor Judaime Sojin, who is also considered by some scholars to be the founder of the Yamato regime.
And the nine emperors before him, in addition to being known as the goddess of the sun in the Japanese goddess, the Shinmu descendants of Amaterasu, are basically mythological figures, the remaining 8 emperors, due to the lack of specific records and archaeological discoveries, are also known as "Queshi Hachidai", and it is worth mentioning that the "Nihon Shoki" just mentioned is written in Chinese chronicle.
Early Japan did not have its own writing system, until the 15th emperor, Emperor Yingjin, after the introduction of kanji from Baekje to Japan, Japan did not have written words, and about the writing of kana, due to limited space, it is not expressed here, and I will talk about it in detail later.
Returning to the previous Daisen Kofun, such a huge ancient site was obviously not completed by individuals and overnight. It is assumed that to complete such a kofun, at least 2,000 people would need to work continuously for 16 years. With this ability to organize and mobilize, the Yamato regime at that time must have already developed a political system with more effective management methods.
The Kofun period in the middle period was a confederation of nobles centered on the Great King, who was actually the Emperor. It's just that this ban has not been officially activated. The power of some clan groups during this period far exceeded the real power of the great king. The king is more like a titular chief. Then, in order to rule the region more effectively, the Yamato regime proposed a "surname system" and a "tribal system"
A political system characterized by the "county mastery system".
The "surname system", somewhat similar to the political rank system, was perfected by the Yamato regime by granting surnames. The nobility of the Yamato regime, usually took as their surname the place name of the area ruled by the clan group and the occupation of serving the royal family.
The former such as Katsuragi , Hei-kun, Sui, Izumo, etc.
The latter have clans such as the Ministry of Things, which is in charge of military power, and the Tushi who is responsible for the funeral of the royal family. The leaders of these clans are called "clanshang".
Members of the clan are called "clan people", and "clan superiors" participate in political activities on behalf of "clan people". Depending on the strength of the clan, the king will grant the leader of the clan a "surname". Powerful "clansmen" who were responsible for assisting the king in ruling the country, such as Gecheng and Suwei, would be given the surname "minister". And the "clan shang" who serves the royal family will be given the surname "Lian". At the same time, among the "minister" and "lian" clan, another supreme administrative official will be elected, and these two people will be called "minister" and "dalian" respectively. They have quite a wide range of power, so in addition to the surname given by the central government, at the local level, the stronger "clanshang" will be given the surname "Jun". Those with poor strength will be given a "straight" surname. Local magistrates and handicraft clans were given surnames such as "Zao" and "Shou".
Then there is the "ministry-citizen system", which is a system for dividing production relations in all walks of life. At that time, it had the role of solidifying class and stabilizing rule.
In terms of land, the land directly under the royal family of the Yamato regime is called "tuncang", and the cultivators of "tuncang" are called "tianbu".
At the local level, these cultivators were divided into two categories, one was the original aristocratic private people, and later the Yamato regime was classified as the "son" or "meidai" of the people. The other was the peasants who cultivated the private fields of the nobility, "farms", and they would be given the name "clan shang". For example, Gechengbu, Su I and so on.
In addition, all walks of life also have department names, such as forging and smelting department, cotton weaving department and so on. I won't say all of them here.
Finally, let's talk about the "county master state-made system", which is somewhat similar to a supplement to the "surname" system. In the early days of the Yamato regime, prefectures were set up in some localities, appointing powerful nobles as "prefectural lords" who were responsible for local rule. In the later period, these "counties" were changed to states. The "county owner" is also known as "national creation". They were still held by local nobles, and while the state-made people were in charge of local affairs, they also had to pay tribute to the central government and serve the obligation.
In the next issue, we will talk about the foreign relations of the Yamato regime... Stay tuned