Editing Emperor Yōzei (section)

==Traditional narrative==
Before his ascension to the [[Chrysanthemum Throne]], his personal name (his ''imina'')<ref>Brown, pp. 264; prior to [[Emperor Jomei]], the personal names of the emperors (their ''imina'') were very long and people did not generally use them.  The number of characters in each name diminished after Jomei's reign.</ref> was Sadaakira ''Shinnō'' (貞明親王).<ref>Titsingh, p. 121; Varley, p. 170.</ref>

Yōzei was the oldest son of [[Emperor Seiwa]].  His mother was the Empress Fujiwara no Takaiko, who was also known after Seiwa's abdication as the Nijō empress.<ref>Varley, p. 170.</ref>  Yōzei's mother was the sister of [[Fujiwara no Mototsune]], who would figure prominently in the young emperor's life.<ref name="t121">Titsingh, p. 121.</ref>

In ancient Japan, there were four noble clans, the ''Gempeitōkitsu'' (源平藤橘).  One of these clans, the Minamoto clan (源氏) are also known as Genji, and of these, the ''Yōzei Genji'' (陽成源氏) are descended from the 57th emperor Yōzei.

Yōzei had nine Imperial children, born after he had abdicated.<ref name="b288">Brown, p. 288.</ref>

He is said to have mental instability after acceding to his position at a tender young age. He concentrated on [[Waka (poetry)|waka]] during his later years. His famous waka expressed his growing love by superimposing the image of the flow of the river.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.samac.jp/search/poems_detail.php?id=13 | title=小倉百人一首の全首を見る }}</ref>