Oki Islands in Early Historical Records
The Kojiki and Nihon shoki
Evidence of human occupation of the Oki Islands can be seen in Japan’s earliest written records. The Kojiki, or “Record of Ancient Matters,” is a compilation of songs, creation myths, and legends about the descent of the Yamato imperial line. Completed in 712 but thought to preserve oral history from many centuries earlier, it is the country’s oldest record. The Nihon shoki, or “Chronicles of Japan,” was completed soon afterward in 720. It records in greater detail many of the same creation myths and early imperial histories. The Oki Islands feature prominently in both these texts.
According to the classic mythology, eight islands were created by the gods Izanagi and Izanami. The section titled “Birth of the Eight Islands” describes how the divine pair formed each land mass in turn. The “triple isles of Oki, also called the Grand-Shaped Lords of Heaven” are included in the description, indicating that the islands were viewed as significant even in ancient times. (It is unclear why the texts refer to “triple” islands, rather than four.) Though not explicitly named, the Oki Islands are believed to appear again in both texts as part of the famous myth of the “White Hare of Inaba.” Stranded on the islands with no way to get to the mainland, the white hare tricks sea monsters (thought to be sharks or crocodiles) into letting him hop across the sea on their backs.
Miketsu no Kuni: Supplier to the Imperial Table
The Oki Islands appear in the historical record again in 927, in a register of imperial laws and regulations called the Engishiki, or “Procedures of the Engi Era.” According to the text, Oki abalone were regularly sent to the court for religious or celebratory occasions. The Engishiki does not normally specify an origin for foods in such cases, so the fact that Oki is singled out as the shellfish’s source suggests that ancient imperial purveyors both knew of the islands and regarded them as a miketsu no kuni, a preferred supplier of foodstuffs to the imperial court.
While it cannot be counted among official records, written evidence from a few centuries earlier speaks to a link between Oki fishermen and the imperial court at Heijō-kyō during the Nara period (710–794). Wooden tablets called mokkan, which were used to record tallies, labels, and other unofficial notations, have been excavated at the ancient palace site. A number of them record the receipt of squid and abalone levied as taxes from households on the Oki Islands. Moreover, some of the recorded surnames are identical to those of families still residing on the islands today.
Deities and Grand Shrines
The Engishiki, or “Procedures of the Engi Era,” contains a complete record of the 3,131 recognized deities and 2,861 Shinto shrines that existed at the time it was compiled in 927. Of those deities, 492 of them—or approximately one sixth—were classified as “gods of the highest rank” (myōjintai), and their shrines were considered “grand shrines” (myōjin-taisha). The Engishiki lists a total of 16 deities on the Oki Islands, four of which were of myōjintai rank. This is an exceptional number, considering that the rest of what is now Shimane Prefecture and Tottori Prefecture had only three. These historical documents hint that the Oki Islands have played a prominent role in Japanese history and culture from the earliest times.
