Editing Emperor Jimmu

{{Short description|Legendary 1st Emperor of Japan (r. 660–585 BC)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2020}}

{{Expand Japanese|date=October 2024|topic=bio}}{{Infobox royalty
| name         = Emperor Jimmu<br />{{nobold|{{lang|ja|神武天皇}}}}
| succession   = [[Emperor of Japan]]
| image        = Tennō Jimmu detail 01.jpg
| caption      = Emperor Jimmu with his emblematic [[self bow]], the {{Nihongo|kinshikyū|金鵄弓}},{{efn|So named after the incident in which a {{Nihongo|golden [[Kite (bird)|kite]]|金鵄|kinshi}} landed on the tip of the upright bow during the final [[rout]] of Nagasunehiko's army.}} by [[Adachi Ginkō]], 1891<ref>{{Cite book |last=Clements |first=Jonathan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TeXhDgAAQBAJ |title=A Brief History of Japan: Samurai, Shogun and Zen: The Extraordinary Story of the Land of the Rising Sun |publisher=Tuttle Publishing |year=2017
|isbn=978-1-4629-1934-5 |language=en |chapter=Chapter 5}}</ref>
| reign        = 660–585 BC (traditional)
<ref name= KodanshaJimmu>{{cite book |last1=Campbell |first1=Allen |last2=Nobel |first2=David S  |title=Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia |publisher=Kodansha |date=1993 |chapter=Jimmu Emperor|page=1186 |isbn=406205938X |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/japanillustrated0001unse/page/684}}</ref><ref>[http://www.kunaicho.go.jp/e-about/genealogy/img/keizu-e.pdf  "Genealogy of the Emperors of Japan"] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20110106213919/http://www.kunaicho.go.jp/e-about/genealogy/img/keizu-e.pdf Archive]), [[Imperial Household Agency]], 2011.</ref>
| successor    = [[Emperor Suizei|Suizei]]
| posthumous name = [[Posthumous name#Chinese-style (Han-style)|Chinese-style ''shigō'']]:<br/>Emperor Jimmu ({{lang|ja|神武天皇}})<br/>[[Posthumous name#Japanese-style|Japanese-style ''shigō'']]:<br/>Kamu-yamato Iware-biko no Sumeramikoto ({{lang|ja|神日本磐余彦天皇}})
| spouses      = {{Plainlist|
*[[Ahiratsu-hime]]
*[[Himetataraisuzu-hime]]}}
| issue        = {{Plainlist|
*[[Tagishimimi|Tagishimimi-no-Mikoto]]
*[[Kisumimi]]
*[[Hikoyai|Hikoyai-no-Mikoto]]
*[[Kamuyaimimi]]
*[[Emperor Suizei]]}}
| father       = [[Ugayafukiaezu]]
| mother       = [[Tamayori-hime (mother of Jimmu)|Tamayori-hime]]
| religion     = [[Shinto]]
| birth_name   = Hikohohodemi ({{lang|ja|彦火々出見}})
| birth_date   = 711 BC or 721 BC
| birth_place  = eastern [[Kyushu|Tsukushi-no-shima]] (now Kyushu)
| death_date   = 585 BC (aged 126{{sfn|Aston|1896|pp=109–137}}{{sfn|Chamberlain|1919|p=[https://www.sacred-texts.com/shi/kj/kj061.htm 188]}})
| death_place  = possibly [[Kashihara, Nara|Kashihara]], [[Nara Prefecture|Nara]]
| burial_place = {{Nihongo||畝傍山東北陵|''Unebi-yama no ushitora no sumi no misasagi''}} ([[Kashihara, Nara]])
}}
{{Infobox Chinese
| kanji = 神武天皇
| romaji = Jinmu-tennō
}}
{{Nihongo|'''Emperor Jimmu'''|神武天皇|Jinmu Tennō|{{IPA|ja|dʑiꜜm.mɯ (ten.noː), dʑim.mɯ ten.noꜜː}}<ref>{{cite book|script-title=ja:新明解日本語アクセント辞典|edition=2nd|editor-last=Kindaichi|editor-first=Haruhiko|editor-link=Haruhiko Kindaichi|editor-last2=Akinaga|editor-first2=Kazue|publisher=[[Sanseidō]]|date=10 March 2025|lang=ja}}</ref>}} was the [[legend]]ary first [[emperor of Japan]] according to the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}} and {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Kojiki]]}}.<ref name="KodanshaJimmu"/> His ascension is traditionally dated as 660 BC.<ref name="kelly">Kelly, Charles F. [http://www.t-net.ne.jp/~keally/kofun.html "Kofun Culture"], [http://www.t-net.ne.jp/~keally/  Japanese Archaeology]. April 27, 2009.</ref><ref name="Understanding Japanese Religion p. 145">* Kitagawa, Joseph (1987). {{Google books|h1xcc4cGL5cC|On Understanding Japanese Religion|page=145}}: "emphasis on the undisrupted chronological continuity from myths to legends and from legends to history, it is difficult to determine where one ends and the next begins. At any rate, the first ten legendary emperors are clearly not reliable historical records."
* Boleslaw Szczesniak, "The Sumu-Sanu Myth: Notes and Remarks on the Jimmu Tenno Myth", in ''[[Monumenta Nipponica]]'', Vol. 10, No. 1/2 (Winter 1954), pp. 107–26. {{doi|10.2307/2382794}}. {{JSTOR |2382794}}.</ref> In [[Japanese mythology]], he was a descendant of the sun goddess [[Amaterasu]], through her grandson [[Ninigi-no-Mikoto|Ninigi]], as well as a descendant of the storm god [[Susanoo-no-Mikoto|Susanoo]]. He launched a [[Jimmu's Eastern Expedition|military expedition]] from [[Hyūga Province|Hyūga]] near the [[Seto Inland Sea]], captured [[Yamato Province|Yamato]], and established this as his center of power. In modern Japan, Emperor Jimmu's legendary ascension is marked as [[National Foundation Day (Japan)|National Foundation Day]] on February 11.<ref>{{cite book|first=Malcolm|last=Trevor|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=PrAoHzoP1QkC&pg=PA79|title=Japan: Restless Competitor: The Pursuit of Economic Nationalism|date= 2001|publisher=Psychology Press|isbn=978-1-903350-02-7|page = 79}}</ref>

There is no evidence to suggest that Jimmu existed and is regarded by most modern scholars as a legendary figure.

==Name and title==
Jimmu is recorded as Japan's first ruler in two early chronicles, {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}} (721) and {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Kojiki]]}} (712).<ref name="KodanshaJimmu" /> {{Lang|ja-latn|Nihon Shoki}} gives the dates of his reign as 660–585 BC.<ref name="KodanshaJimmu" /> In the reign of [[Emperor Kanmu]] (737–806),{{sfn|Aston|1896|pp=109–137}} the eighth-century scholar [[Ōmi no Mifune]] retroactively designated rulers before [[Emperor Ōjin]] as {{nihongo||天皇|''tennō''|extra="heavenly sovereign"}}, a Japanese pendant to the Chinese imperial title ''Tiān-dì'' (天帝), and gave several of them including Jimmu their [[posthumous names]]. Prior to this time, these rulers had been known as ''Sumera no mikoto''/''Ōkimi''. This practice had begun under [[Empress Suiko]], and took root after the [[Taika Reforms]] with the ascendancy of the [[Nakatomi clan]].<ref>Jacques H. Kamstra [https://books.google.com/books?id=NRsVAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA66 ''Encounter Or Syncretism: The Initial Growth of Japanese Buddhism,''] Brill 1967 pp. 65–67.</ref>

Both the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Kojiki]]}} and the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}} give Jimmu's name as {{Nihongo||神倭伊波礼琵古命|'''Kamu-yamato Iware-biko no Mikoto'''}} or {{Nihongo||神日本磐余彦天皇|'''Kamu-yamato Iware-biko no Sumeramikoto'''}}.<ref>神倭伊波礼琵古命, [[Old Japanese|OJ]] pronunciation: ''Kamu-Yamatö-ipare-biko'' (''nö-mikötö'') Donald Philippi, tr. ''Kojiki'', University of Tokyo Press, 1969 p. 488</ref> ''Iware'' indicates a [[toponym]] (an old place name in the Nara region) whose precise purport is unclear.<ref>Japanese Wikipedia [[:ja:磐余|''Iware'']]</ref> '-no-Mikoto' is an honorific, indicating divinity, nobility, or royalty.

Among his other names were: {{Nihongo||若御毛沼命|Wakamikenu no Mikoto}}, {{Nihongo||神日本磐余彦火火出見尊|Kamu-yamato Iware-biko hohodemi no Mikoto}} and {{Nihongo||彦火火出見|Hikohohodemi}}.

The [[Imperial House of Japan]] traditionally based its claim to the throne on its putative descent from the sun-goddess [[Amaterasu]] via Jimmu's great-grandfather [[Ninigi-no-Mikoto|Ninigi]].<ref>Bob Tadashi Wakabayashi, [''Japanese Loyalism Reconstrued: Yamagata Daini's Ryūshi Shinron of 1759''], University of Hawai'i Press, 1995 pp. 106–107.</ref>

==Legendary narrative==
[[File:Portrait-Emperor-Jimmu-by-Tsukioka-Yoshitoshi-1880.png|thumb|left|350px|upright=2.5|''Emperor Jimmu'', [[ukiyo-e]] by [[Tsukioka Yoshitoshi]] (1880)]]
[[File:Emperor-Jinmu-from-series-Mirror-of-Famous-Generals-of-Great-Japan.png|thumb|Emperor Jimmu, from the first National Census book 1920 in Japan]]
In [[Japanese mythology]], the [[Age of the Gods]] is the period before Jimmu's accession.<ref>Nussbaum, "''Jindai''" at {{Google books|p2QnPijAEmEC| p. 421|page=421}}.</ref>

The story of Jimmu seems to rework legends associated with the {{Nihongo|[[Ōtomo clan]]|大伴氏}}, and its function was to establish that clan's links to the ruling family, just as those of [[Suijin]] arguably reflect [[Mononobe]] tales and the legends in Ōjin's chronicles seem to derive from [[Soga clan]] traditions.<ref>Jacques H. Kamstra, [https://books.google.com/books?id=NRsVAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA66 ''Encounter Or Syncretism: The Initial Growth of Japanese Buddhism,''] Brill 1967 pp. 69–70.</ref> Jimmu figures as a direct descendant of the sun goddess, [[Amaterasu]] via the side of his father, [[Ugayafukiaezu]]. Amaterasu had a son called [[Ame-no-oshihomimi|Ame no Oshihomimi no Mikoto]] and through him a grandson named [[Ninigi-no-Mikoto]]. She sent her grandson to the Japanese islands where he eventually married [[Konohanasakuya-hime|Konohana-Sakuya-hime]]. Among their three sons was [[Hikohohodemi no Mikoto]], also called [[Yamasachi-hiko]], who married [[Toyotama-hime]]. She was the daughter of [[Ryūjin]], the Japanese sea god. They had a single son called [[Hikonagisa Takeugaya Fukiaezu no Mikoto]]. The boy was abandoned by his parents at birth and consequently raised by [[Tamayori-hime (mother of Jimmu)|Tamayori-hime]], his mother's younger sister. They eventually married and had four sons. The last of these, Hikohohodemi, became Emperor Jimmu.<ref>Nussbaum, "''Chijin-godai''" at {{Google books|p2QnPijAEmEC| p. 111|page=111}}.</ref>

===Migration===
{{Main|Jimmu's Eastern Expedition}}
[[File:Emperor Jimmu.jpg|thumb|Depiction of a bearded Jimmu with his bow and the golden kite. This 19th-century artwork was painted by [[Tsukioka Yoshitoshi]].]]
[[File:Tennō Jimmu image 01.jpg|thumb|Painting of Jimmu by Renzō Kita in 1940]]

According to the chronicles {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Kojiki]]}} and {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}}, Jimmu's brothers [[Itsuse no Mikoto]], [[Inahi no Mikoto]], and [[Mikeiri no Mikoto]] were born in [[Takachiho, Miyazaki|Takachiho]], the southern part of [[Kyūshū]] in modern-day [[Miyazaki Prefecture]]. They moved eastward to find a location more appropriate for administering the entire country. Jimmu's older brother, Itsuse no Mikoto, originally led the migration, and led the clan eastward through the [[Seto Inland Sea]] with the assistance of local chieftain ''{{ill|Saonetsuhiko|lt=Sao Netsuhiko|ja|椎根津彦}}''. As they reached Naniwa (modern-day [[Osaka]]), they encountered another local chieftain, ''Nagasunehiko'' ("the long-legged man"), and Itsuse was killed in the ensuing battle. Jimmu realized that they had been defeated because they battled eastward against the sun, so he decided to land on the east side of [[Kii Peninsula]] and to battle westward. They reached [[Kumano Region|Kumano]], and, with the guidance of a [[three-legged crow]] {{Nihongo|[[Yatagarasu]]|八咫烏|4={{lit|eight-span crow}}}}, they moved to [[Yamato Province|Yamato]]. There, they once again battled Nagasunehiko and were victorious. The record in the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}} of Emperor Jimmu states that his armed forces defeated a group of {{nihongo|''[[Emishi]]''|蝦夷|4={{lit|shrimp barbarians}}}} before his enthronement.<ref name="Iwate">{{cite web|url=http://www.iwate-np.co.jp/sekai/sekaiisan/sekaiisan6.htm|script-title=ja:朝廷軍の侵略に抵抗|language=ja|publisher=[[Iwate Nippo]]|date=September 24, 2004|access-date=March 1, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303180753/http://www.iwate-np.co.jp/sekai/sekaiisan/sekaiisan6.htm|archive-date=March 3, 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> The [[Emishi]] were an [[ethnic group]] who lived in [[Honshu]], particularly the [[Tōhoku]] region.

In Yamato, [[Nigihayahi]], who also claimed descent from the Takamagahara gods, was protected by Nagasunehiko. However, when Nigihayahi met Jimmu, he accepted Jimmu's legitimacy. At this point, Jimmu is said to have ascended to the throne of Japan. Upon scaling a Nara mountain to survey the Seto Inland Sea he now controlled, Jimmu remarked that it was shaped like the "heart" rings made by mating [[dragonfly|dragonflies]], archaically {{Nihongo|2=秋津|3=akitsu}}.<ref>[https://www.kusuyama.jp/culture/tombo-dragonfly/ メンテナンス中<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> A mosquito then tried to steal Jimmu's royal blood but since Jimmu was a god incarnate Emperor, {{nihongo|''akitsumikami''|現御神}}, a dragonfly killed the mosquito. Japan thus received its [[Names of Japan|classical name]] the Dragonfly Islands, {{nihongo|''akitsushima''|秋津島}}.

[[File:Tomb of Emperor Jimmu, haisho.JPG|thumb|right|''Unebi Goryō'', the mausoleum of Emperor Jimmu in [[Kashihara, Nara|Kashihara City]], [[Nara Prefecture]]]]

According to the {{Lang|ja-latn|Kojiki}}, Jimmu died when he was 126 years old. The Emperor's [[posthumous name]] literally means "divine might" or "god-warrior". It is generally thought that Jimmu's name and character evolved into their present shape just before<ref>Kennedy, Malcolm D. A History of Japan. London. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1963.</ref> the time in which legends about the origins of the [[Imperial House of Japan|imperial dynasty]] were chronicled in the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Kojiki]]}}.{{sfn|Aston|1896|pp=109–137}} There are accounts written earlier than either {{Lang|ja-latn|Kojiki}} and {{Lang|ja-latn|Nihon Shoki}} that present an alternative version of the story. According to these accounts, Jimmu's dynasty was supplanted by that of [[Emperor Ōjin|Ōjin]], whose dynasty was supplanted by that of [[Emperor Keitai|Keitai]].<ref>Ooms, Herman. ''Imperial Politics and Symbolics in Ancient Japan: the Tenmu Dynasty, 650–800''. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, 2009</ref> The {{Lang|ja-latn|Kojiki}} and the {{Lang|ja-latn|Nihon Shoki}} then combined these three legendary dynasties into one long and continuous genealogy.

The traditional site of Jimmu's [[grave (burial)|grave]] is near [[Mount Unebi]] in [[Kashihara, Nara|Kashihara]], [[Nara Prefecture]].<ref name="kunaicho">[[Imperial Household Agency]] (''Kunaichō''): [http://www.kunaicho.go.jp/ryobo/guide/001/index.html 神武天皇 (1)]; retrieved August 22, 2013.</ref>

[[File:Kashihara M6522.jpg|thumb|The inner prayer hall of [[Kashihara Shrine]] in [[Kashihara, Nara]], the principal shrine devoted to Jimmu]]

==Imperial Era veneration==

Veneration of Jimmu was a central component of the [[imperial cult]] that formed following the [[Meiji Restoration]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://apjjf.org/2016/20/Saaler.html |title=Nationalism and History in Contemporary Japan |access-date=February 11, 2017}}</ref> In 1873, a holiday called ''[[Kigensetsu]]'' was established on February 11.<ref name=kodanshakigensetsu>"Kigensetsu Controversy", ''Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia'' (1993), Kodansha. {{ISBN|978-4069310980}}.</ref> The holiday commemorated the anniversary of Jimmu's ascension to the throne 2,532 years earlier.<ref>''Britannica Kokusai Dai-Hyakkajiten'' article on "Kigensetsu".</ref> After [[World War II]], the holiday was criticized as too closely associated with the "emperor system."<ref name="kodanshakigensetsu"/> It was suspended from 1948 to 1966, but later reinstated as [[National Foundation Day (Japan)|National Foundation Day]].<ref name="kodanshakigensetsu"/><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/1998/02/11/national/founding-day-rekindles-annual-debate/#.U4F2VihWrrB|title=Founding Day rekindles annual debate|newspaper=The Japan Times|date=February 11, 1998|access-date=May 24, 2014}}</ref>

Between 1873 and 1945, an imperial envoy sent offerings every year to the supposed site of Jimmu's tomb.<ref name="martin">Martin, Peter. (1997). ''The Chrysanthemum Throne: A History of the Emperors of Japan'', pp. 18–20.</ref> In 1890 [[Kashihara Shrine]] was established nearby, on the spot where Jimmu was said to have ascended to the throne.<ref>[http://www.city.kashihara.nara.jp/kankou/own_kankou/kankou/spot/kashihara_jinguu.html Kashihara City website] tourism page on "Kashihara Jingū".</ref>

Before and during [[World War II]], expansionist propaganda made frequent use of the phrase ''[[hakkō ichiu]]'', a term coined by [[Tanaka Chigaku]] based on a passage in the {{Lang|ja-latn|Nihon Shoki}} discussing Emperor Jimmu.<ref>''Britannica Kokusai Dai-Hyakkajiten'' article on "Hakkō ichiu".</ref> Some media incorrectly attributed the phrase to Emperor Jimmu.<ref>[[John W. Dower|Dower, John W.]], ''War Without Mercy: Race & Power in the Pacific War,'' faber and faber, 1993 p. 223.</ref> For the 1940 ''Kigensetsu'' celebration, marking the supposed 2,600th anniversary of Jimmu's enthronement, the [[Heiwadai Park#Peace Tower|Peace Tower]]<ref>{{nihongo|[[Heiwadai Park#Peace Tower|Peace Tower]]|平和の塔|Heiwa no Tō|extra=originally called the "Hakkō Ichiu Tower" 八紘一宇の塔 ''Hakkō Ichiu no Tō'' or the "Pillar of Heaven and Earth" 八紘之基柱 ''Ametsuchi no Motohashira''}}</ref> was constructed in [[Miyazaki Prefecture|Miyazaki]].<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/02/10/national/miyazakis-controversial-peace-tower-continues-to-cause-unease/ |title=Miyazaki's controversial Peace Tower continues to cause unease |last=Motomura |first=Hiroshi |date=February 10, 2015 |work=The Japan Times |access-date=February 9, 2018 |language=en-US |issn=0447-5763}}</ref>

That same year, numerous stone monuments relating to key events in Jimmu's life were erected around Japan. The sites at which these monuments were erected are known as Emperor Jimmu Sacred Historical Sites.<ref name="Ruoff2014">{{cite book|last=Ruoff|first=Kenneth J.|title=Imperial Japan at Its Zenith: The Wartime Celebration of the Empire's 2,600th Anniversary|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WY5HDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA41|access-date=February 10, 2018|date= 2014|publisher=Cornell University Press|isbn=978-0801471827|page=41}}</ref>
[[File:Celebrating_Gagaku_Music_in_Imperial_2600.JPG|thumb|124th Emperor [[Hirohito]] and [[Empress Nagako]] presiding the celebration of the 2600th anniversary of mythical foundation of the Empire in November 1940|left]]
In 1940, Japan [[:ja:紀元二千六百年記念行事|celebrated the 2600th anniversary of Jimmu's ascension]] and built a monument to [[Hakkō ichiu]] despite the fact that all historians knew Jimmu was a mythical figure. In 1941, the Japanese government charged the one historian who dared to challenge Jimmu's existence publicly, [[:ja:津田左右吉|Tsuda Sōkichi]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Sundberg |first1=Steve |date=October 22, 2018 |title=2600th Anniversary of the Founding of Japan, 1940. |url=http://www.oldtokyo.com/2600th-anniversary-of-the-founding-of-japan-1940/ |website=Old Tokyo}}</ref>

== Historicity ==
{{See also|Jimmu's Eastern Expedition#Various theories}}
Since after [[World War II]], when the prohibition on questioning the Kojiki and the Nihongi was lifted, documentary research in China and archaeological research in Japan has undermined much of the information in both the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki.<ref name=":6">{{Cite book |last1=Ring |first1=Trudy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JqHPpNaZfNwC&dq=Jimmu+existed&pg=PA592 |title=International Dictionary of Historic Places: Asia and Oceania |last2=Salkin |first2=Robert M. |last3=Schellinger |first3=Paul E. |last4=Boda |first4=Sharon La |last5=Watson |first5=Noelle |last6=Hudson |first6=Christopher |last7=Hast |first7=Adele |date=1994 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-884964-04-6 |language=en}}</ref>{{Rp|page=460}} No evidence has been found for Jimmu's existence, except the mention in the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}} and {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Kojiki]]}}.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|last=Ruoff|first= Kenneth J.|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Mo8cEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA175 |title= Japan's Imperial House in the Postwar Era, 1945–2019|date= 2021|publisher=Brill|isbn=978-1-68417-616-8|page =171}}</ref><ref name= "KodanshaJimmu" /><ref name="Hoye 1999 78">{{Cite book |last=Hoye |first=Timothy |title=Japanese Politics: Fixed and Floating Worlds |year=1999 |page=78}}</ref> Today most modern scholars agree that the traditional founding of the [[Imperial House of Japan|imperial dynasty]] in 660 BC is a myth and that Jimmu is legendary.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Shillony |first=Ben-Ami |author-link=Ben-Ami Shillony |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FwztKKtQ_rAC&pg=PA15 |title=The Emperors of Modern Japan |date=2008 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-16822-0 |page=}}</ref>{{Rp|page=15}}[[Emperor Sujin|Emperor Sujin's]] historicity is considered possible by historians, while [[Emperor Kinmei]] is the first verifiable historical figure in the imperial lineage.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hoye |first=Timothy |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/38438419 |title=Japanese politics : fixed and floating worlds |date=1999 |publisher=Prentice Hall |isbn=0-13-271289-X |edition=1st |location=Upper Saddle River, N.J. |pages=78 |oclc=38438419}}</ref><ref name="yoshida">{{cite web |last=Yoshida |first=Reiji |date=March 27, 2007 |title=Life in the Cloudy Imperial Fishbowl |url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2007/03/27/reference/life-in-the-cloudy-imperial-fishbowl/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200727134306if_/http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2007/03/27/reference/life-in-the-cloudy-imperial-fishbowl/ |archive-date=27 July 2020 |access-date=22 August 2013 |work=The Japan Times}}</ref>

The dates of Jimmu reigning from 660 BC to 585 BC are improbable.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Henshall |first=Kenneth |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tmYYAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA99 |title=Historical Dictionary of Japan to 1945 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-8108-7872-3 |page=99}}</ref> According to Dr. Lu, the year 660 BC was probably selected by the writers of {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}} to put the founding of Japan on a [[Sexagenary cycle|kanoto-tori]] year.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lu |first=David J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vgvrBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA9 |title=Japan: A Documentary History |date=2015 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-317-46712-0 |volume=1: The Dawn of History to the Late Eighteenth Century: A Documentary History |page=9}}</ref>

However, the stories of Jimmu may reflect real events of the mid to late Yayoi period.<ref name=":5">{{Cite book |last1=Brown |first1=Delmer M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=A3_6lp8IOK8C&pg=PA102 |title=The Cambridge History of Japan |last2=Hall |first2=John Whitney |last3=McCullough |first3=William H. |last4=Jansen |first4=Marius B. |last5=Shively |first5=Donald H. |last6=Yamamura |first6=Kozo |last7=Duus |first7=Peter |date=1988 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-22352-2 |page=102}}</ref> According to historian Peter Wetzler, Jimmu's conquest of [[Osaka]] and [[Nara Prefecture|Nara]] may reflect an actual event. Still, the dates and many of the details are fictitious.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book |last=Wetzler |first=Peter |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g58BEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA101 |title=Hirohito and War: Imperial Tradition and Military Decision Making in Prewar Japan |date=1998 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |isbn=978-0-8248-6285-5 |pages=101–102}}</ref> Historian [[Kenneth G. Henshall]] stated that Jimmu's conquest may also reflect a time when the [[Yayoi people]] from continental Asia immigrated in masses starting from [[Kyushu]] and moving eastward during the [[Yayoi period]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last=Henshall |first=Kenneth |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tmYYAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA487 |title=Historical Dictionary of Japan to 1945 |date=2013 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-0-8108-7872-3 |page=100}}</ref>

Some scholars suggest that there may have been a real person behind Jimmu. He could have been a local ruler who conquered the area near [[Kashihara, Nara|Kashihara]] after [[62 BC]].<ref name=":6" />{{Rp|page=460}} Some scholars believe he was present in [[Miyazaki Prefecture|Miyazaki]] during the first century&nbsp;BC while others say he was there during the third or fourth century&nbsp;AD. Nevertheless, there is a high probability that there was either a foreign or indigenous dynasty in the vicinity of [[Miyazaki Prefecture]] during the [[Kofun period]].<ref name=":6" />{{Rp|page=592}}

According to [[Louis Frédéric]], he may have been a fusion of emperors [[Emperor Sujin|Sujin]] and [[Emperor Keitai|Keitai]].<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p2QnPijAEmEC |title=Japan Encyclopedia |last=Louis-Frédéric |date=2002 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-01753-5 |pages=420–421 |language=en}}</ref> The Japanese historian Ino Okifu identifies Emperor Jimmu with the Chinese alchemist and explorer [[Xu Fu]], a hypothesis supported by certain traditions in Japan and regarded as possible by some modern scholars.<ref>Liu, Hong. The Chinese Overseas: Routledge Library of Modern China. Taylor & Francis (2006). {{ISBN|0-415-33859-X}}.</ref><ref name="Major">{{cite journal |last1=Major |first1=John S. |title=Christy G. Turner II, 'Dental Evidence on the Origins of the Ainu and Japanese.' Science 193 (3 091976):911–13. Marvin J. Allison, 'Paleopathology in Peru'. Natural History 88.2 (2, 1978):74–82. |journal=Early China |date=1978 |volume=4 |pages=78–79 |doi= 10.1017/S0362502800005988|s2cid=163764133}}</ref> The [[Yayoi period]], during which significant changes in Japanese metallurgy and pottery occurred, started around the time of his supposed arrival.<ref>Lee, Khoon Choy Lee. Choy, Lee K. (1995). Japan – between Myth and Reality: Between Myth and Reality. World Scientific publishing. {{ISBN|981-02-1865-6}}.</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Face to Face. The Transcendence of the Arts in China and Beyond – Historical Perspectives |date=2014 |publisher= Faculdade de Belas Artes |location=Lisbon, Portugal |isbn= 978-989830049-2 |pages=17–18 |edition= 1st}}</ref> However, the legend of Xu Fu's voyage also has numerous inconsistencies with the linguistic and [[anthropological]] history of Japan.<ref name="Major" />

== Consorts and children ==
{{Main|Family tree of Japanese monarchs}}

* Consort: {{Nihongo|[[Ahiratsu-hime]]|吾平津媛}}, Hosuseri's ([[Ninigi-no-Mikoto]]'s son) daughter
** First son: {{Nihongo|Prince [[Tagishimimi]]|手研耳命}}
** Son: {{Nihongo|Prince [[Kisumimi]]|岐須美美命}}
** Daughter: Princess Misaki (神武天皇)
* Empress: {{Nihongo|[[Himetataraisuzu-hime]]|媛蹈鞴五十鈴媛}}, [[Kotoshironushi]]'s daughter
** Son: {{Nihongo|Prince [[Hikoyai]] no mikoto|日子八井命}}
** Second son: {{Nihongo|Prince [[Kamuyaimimi]] no mikoto|神八井耳命|extra=d.577 BC}}
** Third son: {{Nihongo|Prince Kamununakawamimi|神渟名川耳尊}}, later [[Emperor Suizei]]

=== Family tree ===
{{See also|Family tree of Japanese deities|Family tree of Japanese monarchs}}
{{A genealogical tree based on the Kojiki}}
{{Generations of Jimmu}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Ancient Japan}}
* [[Emishi people]]
* [[Japanese imperial year]]
* [[Jōmon period]]
* [[King Arthur]], a legendary figure from [[United Kingdom|Britain]] who founded the country similar to Emperor Jimmu
* [[Modern system of ranked Shinto shrines]]
* [[National Foundation Day (Japan)|National Foundation Day]]
* [[Order of the Golden Kite]]
* [[Yayoi period]]

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Bibliography==
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book|last=Aston|first=William G.|author-link=William George Aston|date=1896|title=Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697|trans-title=[[Nihon Shoki]]|publisher=[[The Japan Society of the UK]]|location=London|isbn=978-0524053478|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1IJrNAKBpycC&pg=RA1-PA109}}
* [[Delmer Brown|Brown, Delmer M.]] and Ichirō Ishida, eds. (1979). [https://books.google.com/books?id=w4f5FrmIJKIC  ''Gukanshō: The Future and the Past''.] Berkeley: University of California Press. {{ISBN|978-0-520-03460-0}};  {{OCLC |251325323}}
* Brownlee, John S. (1997). ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=eatISvupicUC Japanese Historians and the National Myths, 1600–1945: The Age of the Gods]''. Vancouver: [[University of British Columbia Press]]. {{ISBN|0-7748-0645-1}}
* {{cite web|last=Chamberlain|first=Basil Hall|author-link=Basil Hall Chamberlain|date=1919|publisher=Evinity Publishing|title=The Kojiki|url=https://www.sacred-texts.com/shi/kj/|oclc=1882339}}
* Earhart, David C. (2007). [https://books.google.com/books?id=WffIAAAACAAJ  ''Certain Victory: Images of World War II in the Japanese Media''.]  Armonk, New York: M. E. Sharpe.  {{ISBN|978-0-7656-1776-7}}
* Kitagawa, Joseph Mitsuo (1987). ''On Understanding Japanese Religion''. Princeton: Princeton University Press. {{ISBN|978-0-69107313-2|978-0-69110229-0}};  {{OCLC|15630317}}
* {{cite book|last=Nussbaum|first=Louis Frédéric|author-link=Louis Frédéric|date=2002|title=Japan Encyclopedia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p2QnPijAEmEC|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=978-0674017535}}
* [[Richard Ponsonby-Fane|Ponsonby-Fane, Richard Arthur Brabazon]] (1959). [https://books.google.com/books?id=SLAeAAAAMAAJ  ''The Imperial House of Japan''.] Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society. {{OCLC|194887}}
* {{cite book|last=Titsingh|first=Isaac|author-link=Isaac Titsingh|date=1834|title=Annales des empereurs du Japon|publisher=[[Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland]]|trans-title=[[Nihon Ōdai Ichiran]]|location=Paris|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=18oNAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA1|oclc=5850691|language=French}}
* {{cite book|last=Varley|first=H. Paul|author-link=H. Paul Varley|date=1980|title=A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns: Jinnō Shōtōki of Kitabatake Chikafusa|trans-title=[[Jinnō Shōtōki]]|publisher=[[Columbia University Press]]|location=New York|isbn=978-0231049405|oclc=59145842|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bh-FQgAACAAJ}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110406121753/http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/ANCJAPAN/JIMMU.HTM A more detailed profile of Jimmu] (archived April 2011)
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20140725071801/http://www9.ocn.ne.jp/~aosima/english-yuisyo.html A detailed summary of Jimmu's descent legend] (archived July 2014)
*"[https://dnaproject.obunko.com/top.html (帝紀) Family tree of Japanese monarchs]"(2024)

{{s-start}}
{{s-hou|[[Imperial House of Japan]]}}
{{s-reg}}
{{s-new|creation}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[List of Emperors of Japan|Emperor of Japan]]|years=}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Emperor Suizei]]}}
{{s-end}}

{{Emperors of Japan|state=autocollapse}}
<!--Year of birth and death categories removed as the dates are not historical-->
{{Jmyth_navbox_long}}
{{Legendary progenitors}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jimmu}}
[[Category:Legendary emperors of Japan]]
[[Category:Longevity myths]]
[[Category:People of Jōmon-period Japan]]
[[Category:Founding monarchs]]
[[Category:Legendary progenitors]]
[[Category:Legendary monarchs]]