| Yamato Province 大和国 | |
|---|---|
| Province of Japan | |
| 7th century–1871 | |
 Map of Japanese provinces (1868) with Yamato Province highlighted | |
| Capital | Takaichi District |
| History | |
• Established | 7th century |
• Disestablished | 1871 |
| Today part of | Nara Prefecture |
Yamato Province (大和国,Yamato no Kuni) was aprovince ofJapan, located inKinai, corresponding to present-dayNara Prefecture inHonshū.[1] It was also calledWashū (和州). Yamato consists of two characters, 大 "great", and 和 "Wa". At first, the name was written with one different character (大倭), but due to itsoffensive connotation, for about ten years after 737, this was revised to use more desirable characters (大養徳) (seeNames of Japan). The final revision was made in the second year of theTenpyō-hōji era (c. 758). It is classified as a great province in theEngishiki.
TheYamato Period in thehistory of Japan refers to the lateKofun Period (c. 250–538) andAsuka Period (538–710). Japanesearchaeologists and historians emphasize the fact that during the early Kofun Period theYamato Kingship was in close contention with other regional powers, such asKibi Province near present-dayOkayama Prefecture. Around the 6th century, the local chieftainship gained national control and established the Imperial court in Yamato Province.
ThebattleshipYamato, the flagship of theJapanese Combined Fleet duringWorld War II, was named after this province.
During theKofun period (300 to 538) and theAsuka period, many palace capitals were located inKashihara,Asuka, andSakurai. Yamato was the first central government of the unified country in theKofun period.[2]Heijō-kyō capital was placed inNara City during the Nara period.
In the 14th century, the capital of theSouthern Court was established inYoshino and Anou.
Theprovincial temple for monks is popularly thought to have beenTōdai-ji, but it may have in fact been a different one in Kashihara. The one for nuns wasHokke-ji.
The primary shinto shrine wasSakurai'sŌmiwa Shrine, but there have been no records stating as such found at the shrine itself. There were nosecondary shrines. Thesōja (or principal Shinto shrine in the province) wasKokufu Shrine (Takatori,Takaichi,Nara).
| Ancient | Medieval | 1 April 1896 | Modern | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sofu (曾布) | Sofu no Kami no Kōri | Soekami-gun | Soekami-gun | Nara-shi,Tenri-shi |
| Sofu no Shimo no Kōri | Soejimo-gun | Ikoma-gun | Yamatokōriyama-shi,Ikoma-shi, Ikoma-gun | |
| Heguri no Kōri | Heguri-gun | |||
| Hirose no Kōri | Hirose-gun | Kitakatsuragi-gun | Yamatotakada-shi,Kashiba-shi,Katsuragi-shi, Kitakatsuragi-gun | |
| Katsuragi (葛城) | Katsuragi no Shimo no Kōri | Katsuge-gun | ||
| Katsuragi no Kami no Kōri | Katsujō-gun | Minamikatsuragi-gun | Gose-shi | |
| Oshimi no Kōri | Oshimi-gun | |||
| Uchi no Kōri | Uchi-gun | Uchi-gun | Gojō-shi | |
| Yoshino no Kōri | Yoshino-gun | Yoshino-gun | Gojō-shi, Yoshino-gun | |
| Uda no Kōri | Uda-gun | Uda-gun | Uda-shi, Uda-gun | |
| Shiki (磯城) | Shiki no Kami no Kōri | Shikijō-gun | Shiki-gun | Tenri-shi,Kashihara-shi,Sakurai-shi, Shiki-gun |
| Shiki no Shimo no Kōri | Shikige-gun | |||
| Toichi no Kōri | Toichi-gun | |||
| Takaichi no Kōri | Takaichi-gun | Takaichi-gun | Kashihara-shi, Takaichi-gun | |
| Yamabe no Kōri | Yamabe-gun | Yamabe-gun | Tenri-shi,Nara-shi, Yamabe-gun | |
Media related toYamato Province at Wikimedia Commons