Abstract

In this thesis, "Queen's Country 「女王国」：Queen Himiko, Female Power, and the Japanese Court Histories," the ancient Japanese ruler Himiko, the Queen of Yamatai, is examined. Featured only by ancient Chinese sources, most research focuses on the political implications of Yamatai and the later Yamato dynasty, Himiko often only a footnote to be passed over. Using many modern scholars such as J. Edward Kidder Jr. and Gina Barnes, who focus on prehistoric Japan and Yamatai, as well as translated ancient sources such as the Chinese Wei zhi and the two Japanese court histories as well as the use of archaeological evidence, this research pieces together a probable picture of this queen. In forming this picture, a rich, but seemingly often unmentioned, past of strong female ruling powers in ancient Japan was discovered, of which only Himiko's account survived in an 'intact' way. In addition, it attempts to find a place for Himiko in the oldest Japanese historical accounts, eventually leading to an even more interesting understanding of the changes in Japanese cultural gender roles during the several centuries before Japan's first historical accounts. Himiko was found to be comparable to the lost tradition of sacral chieftains ruling in a male-female pair; a tradition lost at the highest level of hierarchy centuries ago and written out of Japan's oldest histories.