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TheKanki famine (寛喜の飢饉,Kanki no kikin), also spelled asKangi famine, was afamine which affected Japan during theKamakura period. The famine is considered to have begun in 1229[1][2]/1230[3] and lasted until 1231[3]/1232.[1][2] It was named after theKangi era (1229–1232), during the reign ofEmperor Go-Horikawa. The shogun of Japan wasKujō Yoritsune. The famine was severe throughout Japan. It was caused by cold weather caused probably by volcanic eruptions, coupled later with a general breakdown of society.[1]
The early 1200s were a cold period in Japan, especially from 1225–1228. In 1229, it seems a failed harvest followed a drought, resulting in a shortage of food.[2] As the excessive rains,[3]cold spells and blizzards destroyed crops in July 1230, the shortage developed into famine, and people started to dieen masse in September 1230.[citation needed] The lack of sunlight caused cold so severe, winter clothing was necessary in spring and summer.[1] The relief efforts by Emperor and Shogunate were generally ineffective,[1]as no food was available at all. To ease population mobility in the worst stricken areas,[citation needed]human trafficking was legalized in 1231,[1]among other means - confiscations and forced food distribution.[citation needed] The social order broke down, and bands of marauding robbers (including former Buddhist monks) became common. The strife spilled even toGoryeo, as starving residents ofKyushu raided coastal towns for food.[1]The weather reversed to warm in winter of 1230-1231, again resulting in crop failure in 1231, this time due to lack of soil moisture and scarcity of seeds.[citation needed]
Overall,about one third of the population of Japan perished (dead numbering1,500,000–2,000,000),[citation needed] meaning the Kanki famine may be the worst in Japanese history.[1] In the same years, the great famine also struckKievan Rus' andNovgorod.[4][5]
This page is based on Japanese Wikipedia page寛喜の飢饉, accessed 16 July 2019.
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