The Birth of Japanese History
Tags
Summary
Okada argues that for any civilization, the historical framework first written down constrains people's consciousness. The ideas in Japan's early texts, the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki, permanently determined the Japanese character and constitute the limitation of Japanese history.
Okada further points out that the Japanese history formed to date is merely the history of one country, Japan, severed from the nations beyond the Japanese archipelago; he therefore proposes that Japanese history should be written within world history.
In The Birth of Japanese History, Okada breaks with the long-standing views of Japanese historiography, steps beyond the chronological divisions of the Jōmon, Yayoi, and Kofun periods, and interprets ancient Japanese history as part of world history. He argues that Japan's formation was closely tied to political changes in seventh-century East Asia.
At the same time, he rejects 660 BCE as the year of Japan's founding, holding that the origins of the imperial house should not be equated with the founding of the nation, and that myth should not be treated as history. In sum, Okada's historiography is distinct and original, his analytical framework grand and ambitious, and his views on Japanese and world history deserve serious attention.
Editor's review
Who it's for
A good fit for
- History readers interested in the relation between ancient Japanese history and East Asian history
- Readers who want to understand how historical writing shapes national consciousness
- Students and researchers in history and East Asian studies
- Readers accustomed to reading grand historiographical claims with a critical eye
Not a good fit for
- Beginners seeking a systematic, general-history introduction
- Casual readers who prefer light narrative and dislike historiographical argument
- Readers sensitive to challenges to traditional founding narratives and myth-as-history views
Reading tips
- Read the introduction and conclusion first to grasp the author's core arguments and framework
- Consult basic background on the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki while reading
- Record the author's judgments alongside mainstream views to form your own analytical notes
- After finishing, read related reviews to test your understanding of the argument chain
Contents
- 版权信息
- 推荐序
- 序章 如何看待日本历史
- 日本史是世界历史的一部分
- 考古学、语言学和民族学无法替代历史学
- 第一章 邪马台国曾为中国的一部分
- 如何解读《魏书·倭人传》
- 不同文化的历史观
- 由两份资料合成的《倭人传》
- 《倭人传》的真正价值所在
- 国家为皇帝的私企
- 郡县制度的本质
- 日本建国者为华侨
- 第二章 邪马台国的位置
- 《魏书·倭人传》中的邪马台国
- 人为的《魏书·倭人传》
- 判断邪马台国位置的方法
- 邪马台国的消亡与痕迹
- 邪马台国变为华侨聚集部落
- 邪马台国在关门海峡附近
- 第三章 “亲魏倭王”卑弥呼与西域
- 带有政治意图的《魏书·倭人传》
- 邪马台国之争的误解
- 1世纪末—2世纪的西域
- “汉委奴国王”
- 3世纪的东北亚与中国
- “亲魏倭王”卑弥呼的诞生
- 晋朝的建立
- 《三国志》的成书原委
- 第四章 倭人与丝绸之路
- 中国的对外通道
- 中国王朝的建立
- 从韩半岛到日本列岛的贸易之路
- 连接丝绸之路的日本列岛
- 倭国与丝绸之路
- 第五章 日本建国前的亚洲局势
- 日本何时建国？
- 从倭到日本
- 日本建国之前的亚洲局势
- 不可凭信的《日本书纪》
- 曾经是中国史一部分的日本列岛
- 中国商人的贸易手段
- 汉朝的战乱与倭国
- 第六章 中国眼中的遣唐使
- 与东亚最强国间的关系
- 唐朝的建立
- 何谓“朝贡”
- 倭国的对外关系
- 日本国的诞生
- 第七章 《魏书·东夷传》的世界
- 3世纪的东北亚地区
- 汉朝人口锐减的影响
- 西汉初期的情况
- 中国与东夷诸国
- 张华
- 《三国志》的作者陈寿
- 为何只有《东夷传》而没有《西域传》
- 马韩、辰韩与弁辰
- 第八章 日本的诞生
- 从奴国到卑弥呼——从1世纪到4世纪初叶
- 河内、播磨、越前王朝——4世纪后半期至7世纪初期
- 7世纪后期日本诞生
- 第九章 神谕创造的“大和朝廷”
- 被发掘的太安万侣之墓
- 《古事记》是伪书
- 追溯传说时代的天皇
- 并非实际存在的天皇的真面目
- 神武以来16代是7世纪的投影
- 第十章 新神话——“骑马民族说”
- 拨动心弦的“骑马民族说”
- 不成熟的合理主义思想
- 第十一章 日本人是单一民族吗？
- 日本人的纯粹民族意识
- 始于历史创作的自我认同
- 东亚史的实情
- 日本列岛的城市化
- 汉朝的动乱与周边的异族
- 锁国是日本国的本质
- 第十二章 日语是人造语
- 7世纪的通用语言是中国语百济方言
- 从《万叶集》所见的日语开发
- 日语的发展
- 《日本书纪》的歌谣表记
- 韩文创造较晚的韩半岛
- 纪贯之的日语散文实验
- 第十三章 关于历史的看法
- 历史是事物的认识体系
- 地中海型与中国型的历史
- 日本式的历史
- 从国史到世界史
- 文库版后记
FAQ
Is this book a general history of Japan?
What is the author's view on the date of Japan's founding?
Can I read it without prior knowledge of Japanese history?
Related on WeRead
日本史的诞生
讲谈社·日本的历史01：王权的诞生 : 弥生时代-古坟时代
日本社会的诞生（岩波日本史第一卷）
中国文化在世界文丛 中国文化在日本
简读日本史
历史比小说还有趣：张宏杰 X 郭德纲等领衔主讲
中东研究（2020年第1期·总第11期）
Comments
Find this book
This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.
About the author
Okada Hidehiro is a Japanese author who writes on world history, though public information about him is limited. The library holds one work by him, The Birth of Japanese History. Judging from this title and from its usual classification, the author is concerned not with laying out isolated national events but with how the narrative of Japanese history itself took shape and how it can be understood within a broader regional context. Writing of this kind generally calls for both careful source criticism and a awareness of cross-cultural comparison, reexamining Japanese history within the framework of East Asian and even world history, and thus prompting readers to reconsider their assumptions about history. The available information is not enough to sketch his full life or academic background; readers may begin with The Birth of Japanese History to grasp his approach to sources, narrative organization, and reflection on national historiography, and from there form a judgment about his style and influence.
Wang Lan (English name, nationality, and dates of birth and death unknown) is a Chinese author with a notably diverse range of subjects; public information is limited and biographical details remain difficult to establish. Thirteen of the author's works are held in the collection, spanning popular science, history writing, world history, classic works, Eastern philosophy, and modern poetry. Representative titles include Interstellar, The Interstellar Navigation Manual, A Universe from Nothing, and Everything Makes Sense: Physics in Astronomy, indicating a sustained interest in the cosmos, astronomy, and physics; The Collected Works of Chen Zi'ang and Shuanghuai Suichao point toward the study and compilation of classical texts; and Emperor of the World: Rulers in World History and The Birth of Japanese History reflect a scope extending to world and Japanese history. Overall, Wang Lan's writing crosses science and the humanities, combining knowledge popularization with the reading of classics, and suits readers seeking multiple paths of knowledge from a single author.
Guo Ying is a Chinese author whose work spans several subject areas. Public information about her is limited, and details of her life remain unclear. Judging from the four titles held in the collection, her writing interests range across world history, health and wellness, and practical lifestyle books. In history, she is the author of The Birth of Japanese History, showing an attention to and study of Japan's historical development. Her health-related works include Health on the Tip of the Tongue: Buying, Washing and Cooking Correctly to Avoid Food Safety Risks, as well as Zero-Basics Massage: Accurate Acupoint Selection to Prevent and Treat Common Ailments and the two-volume set Accurate Acupoint Selection to Cure All Ailments. These books are aimed mainly at general readers, emphasizing practicality and ease of use, with plain language that turns specialized knowledge into methods usable in daily life. Overall, Guo Ying's writing combines popular knowledge with practical guidance, covers a wide range of topics, and is suitable for readers interested in history and family health.
