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Himiko (queen of Yamatai, 3rd century)
A shaman queen who ruled the land of 邪馬台国 in the third century. She is known only from a Chinese chronicle, which records that she governed through divination and sent envoys to the Chinese kingdom of Wei. The first ruler of Japan whose name appears in written history.
Cultural note
- Her story comes from the 魏志倭人伝, the section on Japan in a third-century Chinese history
- Whether Yamatai lay in northern Kyushu or in the Kinai region around Nara is a long-running debate, the 邪馬台国論争
- Every Japanese schoolchild meets her at the start of the history course