Shigure no Hyakunin Isshu

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Imperial Family Tree

The Hyakunin Isshu begins with a father and daughter, Emperor Tenji (Poem 1) and Empress Jitō (Poem 2), and ends with a father and son, Retired Emperor Go-Toba (Poem 99) and Retired Emperor Juntoku (Poem 100).
Besides emperors, it includes many members of the imperial family, such as Prince Motoyoshi and Princess Shikishi, and many poets descended from emperors, such as Ariwara no Narihira, Minamoto no Tōru, and Sei Shōnagon.
Many members of the imperial family received a clan name (uji) such as Minamoto, Taira, or Ariwara and became subjects of the emperor. This is called shinseki kōka (leaving the imperial family to become a subject). By following these poets' family lines, you can see which emperor they go back to.
Choose a line with the buttons below to show only the people of that line. Choose a period with the slider to show only the people who were alive during that period.

Alive during

For people whose year of birth is unknown, we assume they lived for at least 20 years, based on the years they appear in records or the year they died. People whose years of birth and death are both completely unknown are shown in pale colors only when they connect to descendants, when you filter by period.

Showing the emperors from Emperor Tenji (38th) and his younger brother Emperor Tenmu to Retired Emperor Juntoku (84th), the last poet of the Hyakunin Isshu, and the main people who connect them to the Hyakunin Isshu poets.

  • Brown textEmperor
  • Emperor's number in the line of succession
  • Hyakunin Isshu poem number (click to go to the poem page)
  • Lineage unclear / other theories
  • ＝Marriage
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AdoptedPossible fatherLineage unclearLineage unclearTenji138Kōbun39Prince ShikiKōnin49Kanmu50Heizei51Prince AboAriwara clanAriwara no Yukihira16Ariwara no Narihira17Saga52Ninmyō54Montoku55Seiwa56Yōzei1357Prince Motoyoshi20Prince SadazumiMinamoto no TsunemotoSeiwa GenjiMinamoto no MitsunakaMinamoto no YorimitsuMinamoto no YorikuniMinamoto no YoritsunaMinamoto no NakamasaMinamoto no YorimasaSanuki, attendant to retired Emperor Nijō92Sagami65Minamoto no YorinobuMinamoto no YoriyoshiMinamoto no YoshiieMinamoto no YoshichikaMinamoto no TameyoshiMinamoto no YoshitomoMinamoto no YoritomoMinamoto no Sanetomo93Prince SadamotoMinamoto no KanenobuSeiwa GenjiMinamoto no Shigeyuki48Kōkō1558Uda59Daigo60Suzaku61Prince ShigeakiraPrincess KishiMurakami62Reizei63Sanjō6867Prince AtsuakiraMinamoto no MotohiraSanjō GenjiGyōson66Kazan65En'yū64Ichijō66Fujiwara no TeishiFujiwara no AkikoPrincess ShūshiGo-Ichijō68Go-Suzaku69Go-Reizei70Princess YūshiGo-Sanjō71Shirakawa72Horikawa73Toba74Taikenmon-inBifukumon-inSutoku7775Kōkamon-inGo-Shirakawa77Nijō78Rokujō79Inpumon-inPrince MochihitoTakakura80Antoku81Go-Toba9982Tsuchimikado83Juntoku10084Princess Shikishi89Konoe76Prince TomohiraMinamoto no MorofusaMurakami GenjiMinamoto no AkifusaMinamoto no AkinakaHorikawa, attendant to Empress Taiken80Minamoto no MorotadaMinamoto no MorotakaMinamoto no ToshitakaAttendant to Empress Kōka88Prince AtsuyoshiIse19NakatsukasaPrince AtsumiMinamoto no MasanobuUda GenjiMinamoto no TokinakaMinamoto no AsatōAsatō's sonKanemasa's fatherMinamoto no Kanemasa78Minamoto no ShigenobuUda GenjiMinamoto no MichikataMinamoto no Tsunenobu71Minamoto no Toshiyori74Shun'e85Prince KoretadaMinamoto no Muneyuki28Kōkō GenjiPrince KogaPrince AtsuyukiTaira no Kanemori40Kōkō HeishiAkazome Emon59Minamoto no KuninoriKōkō GenjiMinamoto no KintadaMinamoto no SaneakiraMinamoto no Tōru14Saga GenjiMinamoto no HiromuSaga GenjiMinamoto no MareMinamoto no Hitoshi39Minamoto no SadamuSaga GenjiKozoru's fatherMinamoto no KozoruMinamoto no ShitagōJunna53Prince KazurawaraPrince TakamuneKanmu HeishiTaira no KorenoriTaira no TokimochiTokimochi's sonTaira no ChikanobuMunenaka's fatherTaira no MunenakaSuō no Naishi67Yoshimine no YasuyoYoshimine clanHenjō12Sosei21Genmei43Jitō241Tenmu40Prince KusakabeMonmu42Shōmu45Kōken / Shōtoku46·48Genshō44Prince ToneriJunnin47Ario's fatherKiyohara no ArioKiyohara clanArio's sonArio's grandsonFukayabu's fatherKiyohara no Fukayabu36Kiyohara no HarumitsuKiyohara no Motosuke42Sei Shōnagon62Prince NagaFun'ya no ŌchiFun'ya clanFun'ya no Yasuhide22Fun'ya no Asayasu37Prince TakechiPrince NagayaPrince KuwataKuwata's sonMineo's fatherTakashina no MineoTakashina clanMineo's sonTakashina no MoronaoTakashina no YoshiomiTakashina no NaritadaMother of the Honorary Grand Minister54Prince Ōtsu

* You can drag the tree to move it. Hover over a name to see information about that person.
* All the emperors from the 38th, Emperor Tenji, to the 84th, Emperor Juntoku, are included. The tag under a name shows the clan name (such as Genji or Heishi) that the person received on leaving the imperial family.

Trivia

Shinseki Kōka: Members of the Imperial Family Who Became Subjects

In the Heian period, emperors usually had several consorts (empresses, nyōgo, and kōi), so many princes and princesses were born. As the imperial family grew larger with each generation, the cost of supporting it also grew.
So some members of the imperial family were given a clan name (uji) such as "Minamoto," "Taira," or "Ariwara," left their status as members of the imperial family, and became subjects. This is called shinseki kōka. Some of them went on to serve the court as officials. Today, when someone leaves the imperial family it is called kōseki ridatsu, which is a different system and idea from shinseki kōka.

  • Genji (the Minamoto):
    This began when Emperor Saga gave his sons and daughters the clan name "Minamoto."
    They are told apart by the name of the emperor they came from: the Saga Genji, Seiwa Genji, Uda Genji, Murakami Genji, and so on.
  • Heishi (the Taira):
    This began when Prince Takamune, a grandson of Emperor Kanmu, received the clan name "Taira."
    Taira no Kiyomori was also of the Kanmu Heishi, but not of Prince Takamune's line: he came from the line of Prince Takamochi, who was also a grandson of Prince Kazurawara.
  • Ariwara clan:
    Yukihira, Narihira, and other sons of Prince Abo, a son of Emperor Heizei, received the clan name "Ariwara."

"Tennō" (Emperor) and "In" (Retired Emperor)

Among the poet names in the Hyakunin Isshu, Emperor Tenji, Empress Jitō, and Emperor Kōkō are called tennō (emperor), but Yōzei, Sanjō, Sutoku, Go-Toba, and Juntoku are called in. In English, this site calls them "Retired Emperor."
In was a name for the residence of an emperor who had given up the throne (a retired emperor), and for that person. In the Heian period, it was common to call a retired emperor "○○-in."