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Kōan (Kamakura period)

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Kōan
弘安
February 1278 – April 1288
Seated Jie Daishi, depicting Ryōgen (AD 912–985), sculpted in 1286
LocationJapan
Monarch(s)Emperor Go-Uda (to November 1287)
Emperor Fushimi (from November 1287)
Chronology
Kenji Shōō

Kōan (弘安) was a Japanese era name (年号, nengō, lit. "year name") after Kenji and before Shōō. This period spanned the years from February 1278 through April 1288.[1] The reigning emperors were Go-Uda-tennō (後宇多天皇) and Fushimi-tennō (伏見天皇).[2]

Change of era

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  • 1278 Kōan gannen (弘安元年): The new era name was created to mark an event or a number of events. The previous era ended and a new one commenced in Kenji 4. The era name comes from the Veritable Records of the Emperor Taizong of Tang and combines the characters ("broad") and ("peaceful"). It should not be confused with the later Kōan era of 1361–62, which used a different character for (, "peace").

Events of the Kōan era

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  • August 15, 1281 (Kōan 4, 7th day of the intercalary 7th month): Battle of Kōan -- The second Mongol invasion of Japan is foiled, as a large typhoon – famously called a kamikaze, or divine wind – destroys much of the combined Chinese and Korean fleet and forces, numbering over 140,000 men and 4,000 ships.
  • November 27, 1287 (Kōan 10, 21st day of the 10th month): In the 14th year of Go-Uda-tennō's reign (後宇多天皇14年), the emperor abdicated; and the succession (‘‘senso’’) was received by his cousin. Shortly thereafter, Emperor Fushimi is said to have acceded to the throne (‘‘sokui’’).[3]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Kōan" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 535, p. 535, at Google Books; n.b., Louis-Frédéric is pseudonym of Louis-Frédéric Nussbaum, see Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Authority File Archived 2012-05-24 at archive.today.
  2. ^ Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). Annales des empereurs du Japon, pp. 262-268; Varley, H. Paul. (1980). Jinnō Shōtōki. pp. 233-237.
  3. ^ Titsingh, p. 269; Varley, p. 44; a distinct act of senso is unrecognized prior to Emperor Tenji; and all sovereigns except Jitō, Yōzei, Go-Toba, and Fushimi have senso and sokui in the same year until the reign of Emperor Go-Murakami.

References

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  • Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). Japan encyclopedia. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-01753-5; OCLC 58053128
  • Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). Nihon Odai Ichiran; ou, Annales des empereurs du Japon. Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland. OCLC 5850691
  • Varley, H. Paul. (1980). A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns: Jinnō Shōtōki of Kitabatake Chikafusa. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-04940-5; OCLC 6042764
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Preceded by Era or nengō
Kōan

1278–1288
Succeeded by