History of Oka

660 BC - 57AD Seojin period 서진
The Seojin period is traditionally dated from 300 BC to 300 AD. The earliest archaeological evidence of the Seojin is found on northern Beito, but that is still debated. Seojin culture quickly spread to the rest of the island of Beito and Haito. A recent study that used accelerator mass spectrometry to analyze carbonized remains on pottery and wooden stakes, suggests that they dated back to 900–800 BC, 500 years earlier than previously believed. The Seojin arrived to Oka via japan, but their ethnic origin is unique, indeed they share more resemblances to the Ainu people than Japanese. Archaeological evidence supports the idea that during this time, an influx of farmers from the Asian continent to Oka absorbed or overwhelmed the native hunter-gatherer population.



The period's name means "First men". They were found in the Kowu suburb of Renagawa where archaeologists first uncovered artifacts and features from that era. Distinguishing characteristics of the Seojin period include the appearance of new Seojin pottery styles and the start of an intensive rice agriculture in paddy fields. A hierarchical social class structure dates from this period. Techniques in metallurgy based on the use of bronze and iron were also introduced to Oka in this period. Seojin Pottery was simply decorated and produced using the same coiling technique previously used in Jōmon pottery over in Teiko. Seojin craft specialists made bronze ceremonial bells (Jubon), mirrors, and weapons. By the 1st century AD, Seojin farmers began using iron agricultural tools and weapons.

As the Seojin population increased, the society became more stratified and complex. They wove textiles, lived in permanent farming villages, and constructed buildings with wood and stone. They also accumulated wealth through land ownership and the storage of grain. Such factors promoted the development of distinct social classes. Contemporary Chinese sources described the people as having tattoos and other bodily markings which indicated differences in social status. Seojin chiefs, in some parts of Beito, appear to have sponsored, and politically manipulated, trade in bronze and other prestige objects. That was possible by the introduction of an irrigated, wet-rice culture from the Yangtze estuary in southern China. Wet-rice agriculture led to the development and growth of a sedentary, agrarian society in Oka. Local political and social developments in Oka were more important than the activities of the central authority within a stratified society.

Okataian Austronesians
The Okataian Austronesians mainly lived in stationary village sites surrounded by defensive walls of bamboo. The village sites in southern Oka, near Maen were more populated than other locations. Some villages supported a population of more than 1,500 people, surrounded by smaller satellite villages. Villages were constructed of dwellings made of thatch and bamboo, raised 2 m (6.6 ft) from the ground on stilts, with each household having a barn for livestock. A watchtower was located in the village to look out for headhunting parties from the Highland peoples. The concept of property was often communal, with a series of conceptualized concentric rings around each village. The innermost ring was used for gardens and orchards that followed a fallowing cycle around the ring. The second ring was used to cultivate plants and natural fibers for the exclusive use of the community. The third ring was for exclusive hunting and deer fields for community use. The Plains Aborigines hunted herds of spotted Okataian sika deer, Sambar deer, and Reeves's muntjac as well as conducting light millet farming. Sugar and rice were grown as well, but mostly for use in preparing wine. In another site in Yujo, remains of a more developed aborigine society have been discovered. The city of Bowan, was the first ever site discovered, where remains of both Austronesian and Seojin were found, the remains are from a later period however, and seem to depict a commercial city.

Criticism
Critics do not agree on the terminology, as archaeological evidence shows that the Austronesians had become as advanced as the Seojin. Often they criticize that the history has been too focused on the north, therefor certain historians refer to the southern people as Namjin.

57 - 225 Taou period 따


Oka, as a vassal state of China, the King of Oka gold seal is issued by Emperor Guangwu of Han to the coalition of Okatian states on the northern Island (Beito) The earliest written records about people in Oka are from Chinese sources from this period. Tao, the Okataian pronunciation of an early Chinese name for Oka, was mentioned in 57 AD; the Bei state of Tao received a golden seal from the Emperor Guangwu of the Later Han dynasty. This event was recorded in the Hou Han Shu compiled by Fan Ye in the 5th century. The seal itself was discovered in southern Beito in the 18th century. Tao was also mentioned in 257 in the Wei Zhi, a section of the San Guo Zhi compiled by the 3rd century scholar Chen Shou.

Early Chinese historians described Taou as a land of hundreds of scattered tribal communities rather than the unified land with a 700-year tradition as laid out in the 8th-century work Ko Sanko, a partly mythical, partly historical account of Oka which dates the foundation of the country at 660 BC. Archaeological evidence also suggests that frequent conflicts between settlements or statelets broke out in the period. Many excavated settlements were moated or built at the tops of hills. Headless human skeletons discovered on the Mowan site are regarded as typical examples of finds from the period. In the coastal area of the Inland Sea, stone arrowheads are often found among funerary objects.

Third-century Chinese sources reported that the Tao people lived on raw fish, vegetables, and rice served on bamboo and wooden trays, clapped their hands in worship (something still done in Tansei shrines today), and built earthen-grave mounds. They also maintained vassal-master relations, collected taxes, had provincial granaries and markets, and observed mourning. Society was characterized by violent struggles.

the Tansei Mythology


During the Taou period the specifity of the Okataian climate became the foundation of their distinct philosophy and mythology. In Okataian mythology, the people of Oka settled on this islands by the command of the celestial king Ren (렌). In counterpart the Okataian people were cast a spell by the celestial king Jao (자오) for having built a castle on the remains of his dead dragon 'ryusei'. The king punished the people by sending earthquakes and typhoons. The mission of the Okataian people is to hold the Islands until Ren beats Jao and delivers the islands and returns to human form to deliver the people from the spell.

Only through dreaming can high priests contacts Jao's army and commands, founding the cornerstone of the Tansei religion (탄세이) That asserts that all of conditioned existence, without exception, is "transient, evanescent, inconstant". All temporal things, whether material or mental, are compounded objects in a continuous change of condition, subject to decline and destruction. Resarchers claim Tansei was an early interpretation of Buddhism, The Buddha taught that because no physical or mental object is permanent, desires for or attachments to either causes suffering (dukkha). Understanding Anicca and Anatta are steps in the Buddhist’s spiritual progress toward enlightenment.

Tansei priests were the first leaders of the nations under the Taou period (따) and eventually priest Kangan of Hsa became the first self king of Oka when he claimed the seal in 63 and Hsagu, nowadays Tengoku became capital. Consequently Hsa went in war with Ko and Wa. The Kangan war became one of the first wars to unify Oka, with most Beito under the control of Hsa

150 - 151 The Hanto campaign
Around 150AD Priest Meiju launched a campaign against the Austronesian through a series of wars. Due to a lack of political structure the campaign lasted only a year and subdued the settlements of Gaha, Musu, Woku and the largest one Kanpu. Historians describe how the propagation of Tansei doctrine became a large factor in this campaign, at the battle of Kanpu, Priest Meiju was almost killed by an arrow, he fled back to Hsa and ordered the city to be burned and all of it's inhabitants killed.

In 151AD the state Nam was born, it was the largest state, and was a direct vassal to Hsa. Subsequently genetic mixing in the Taou period assimilated the Austronesian population with the formerly Seojin.

178 - 221 the San'ō war


By 178 the Hsa dynasty had the seal, but fell into corruption, upon which the many states entered a long period of war to claim the seal, the Five Kingdoms (AD 178/200-280) was the Five part division of Oka between the states of Hsa (하사), Kou (코우), Chu (구), Nam (남) and Hei (헤) following the Taou period and preceding the Ran period. The term "Five Kingdoms" itself is something of a mistranslation, since each state was eventually headed not by a king, but by an emperor who claimed legitimate succession from the Taou period.

During the war Hsa was heavely weakened as it was attacked in the north by Chu at Sokun and Koun at Dushu. In the south Hei launched the Chiku campaign. The State of Kou was the only state led by King Taisiu who wasn't a priest but a military strategist, and quickly defeated the weaker state of Chu following Joozan Pass battle in 185. The unified north quickly attacked Hsa that were loosing Hei's Chiku Campaign.

Following the end of Chiku Campaign in 218 Hei continued to fight Kou, but were weakened and exhausted. Hei's strategist took the power by coup d'état and became King Subu of Jun, signing an alliance with Kou. During this period the state of Nam consolidated it's power, and repelled Hei at the Naval Battle of Musu on the Kiwa Pass. Nam's leader King Kohei made an own seal and claimed Nam as Oka entering the Ran period in 221.

The remaining officers and warlords Hsa exiled to the islands of Shiito proclaiming it a state, and the opponents of King Subu's coup d'état fled to Gaito.

225 - 463 Ran period 란
In 225 the emperor still resided in Hsagu, but Kou having become conquered Hsa the new capital was to be Rena, nowadays Renagawa. There are two main divisions in the history of the period. The Northern Ran (225–316) was established as a successor state Kou after and had its capital at Rena. The Northern Ran lasted until 286 where it fell into a succession crisis, civil war, and invasion by the "Five Barbarians." The rebels and invaders began to establish new self-proclaimed states on the Island of Beito and Kiwa Pass in 304, inaugurating the "Sixteen Kingdoms" era. These states immediately began fighting each other and the Kou Empire.

286 - 314 Red Rebellion & Sixteen Kingdoms
As Kou was a military state, and not religious, the dynasty had detached itself from the religious powers, and priests did not have so much power anymore. A prominent priest Yuche led the rebellion through radical Tansei teachings. The Red Rebellion, was a peasant revolt in Oka against the Northern Ran dynasty. The uprising broke out in 284 during the reign of Emperor Sowo. It took 28 years until the uprising was fully suppressed by 314. The rebellion, which got its name from the colour of the cloths that the rebels wore on their heads, marked an important point in the history of Tansei due to the rebels' association with secret Tansei societies led Yuche.

Yuche led a coalition against Kou at the battle of Seiyu Pass. In 300, Yuche entered Rena with several warlords and regional officials who formed a new coalition against Kou, with Yuche and Soo Tadun as their leader. The coalition first attacked Naiowa Pass, one of the mountain passes on the way to Rena. Kou's leader King Kowu after sent his best generals to defend the capital from rebellious coalition. Kou warlord Kyu Honto led the offensive beating the rebels who were higher in number but under-trained and weak. King Kowu called on all his warlord to halt the rebellion, giving the order to murder rebels and their family and rape their wives.

308 - 315 Kiwa Pass Campaign
The state of Nam attacked the Jun kingdom at the Kiwa pass and expanded quickly into Beito as Kou was defeating the rogue kingdoms. Nam's naval superiority prevailed as the complex geography of the South allowed it's fleet to easily capture key cities. In a bid to halt the war King Hanko of Jun proposed the marriage of his only daughter to the leader of Nam, which merged Jun into Nam

316 - 463 The Southern Ran








After the rebellion the capital was moved back to Hsagu and peace was agreed with both Kou and Nam, though both claimed to be Oka and detain the seal. Bowan was set as threshold city where both states could trade and discuss diplomacy. The peace period allowed both kingdoms to grow to stop the famines that have been plaguing the north.

Both kings send their 1st recorded tribute to the Jin in 422, causing a confusion and envoys from China refusing to recognize Oka. The northern state of Kou was in political by 429, Hoashi Taisiu was the leader of an aristocratic rebellion in early ninth-century Unified Kou. He was a seventh-generation descendant of King Suwu, and thus bore the "true bone" status in the Kou bone rank system. His activities are probably linked to strife between different lineages of the Kou royal house.

Tano Taisiu, was first in line to take the Kou throne after the death of King Teiji. However, Hoashi Taisiu seized power by military force and became King Hoashi. Tano fled to the island of Gaito. These events probably laid the foundation for his son's (and grandson's) rebellious activities.

Six years later King Hoashi was slain by Sugai Taisiu (son of Tano), who then became king, A few aristocrats then launched seperate rebellion, Ige Toka launched a rebellion which rapidly gained control over the modern-day areas of Koun, and Heishi, Oano Baiko controlled modern day Chuson. And Umon Isu controlled modern Day Koosei, The left territories were mainly rural areas that were self governed on a very local level with a very loose power, of which Sho Shinzo a warlord conquered a large part of the eastern coast, and Noro Kyoden declared the vicious Principality of Shimei.

During the rebellion Gima Seibei leader of Nam is said to have found the real imperial seal and proclaimed Oishi (modern Oka City) as capital and became sole emperor of Oka in 463. The authenticity of the seal is contested, as it isn't known whether he actually found it, or it was a political stunt to become Oka's only leader. The imperial seal paradox has been the origin of many independence claims by Koun (Formerly Kou) throughout Oka's history.

463 - 821 Nan Period 난
Gima Seibei became first emperor during the Nan Period, and the Seibei house became known for their efficient methods of governing based on Confucian principles, this was also the first time Tansei's ubiquity over the territory. Gima sent envois to assassinate the warlords on Beito, but failed to kill Endo Tetsui. Tetsui allied with Umon Isu and Ige Toka to form an alliance in the case Gima launches a military attack. Most Okataian regard the Nan period as the high point of Imperial Oka, both politically and culturally. Nan writers produce the finest poetry in Oka's great lyric tradition. In the south poets like Namba Natsu and Ganru Saiki wrote on Oka as a child seperated at birth and wrote poems on the mountains and mythical creatures in the Muya forest.

Underlying the prosperity of the early Nan period in the south Nan was a strong centralized bureaucracy with efficient policies. The government was organized as "Three Departments and Six Ministries" to separately draft, review, and implement policies. These departments were run by royal family members as well as scholar officials who were selected by imperial examinations. These practices, which matured in the Nan period, were continued by the later dynasties, with some modifications.

Under the Nan "equal-field system" all land was owned by the Emperor and granted to people according to household size. Men granted land were conscripted for military service for a fixed period each year, a military policy known as the "Kana system". These policies stimulated a rapid growth in productivity and a significant army without much burden on the state treasury. By the period's midpoint, however, standing armies had replaced conscription, and land was continuously falling into the hands of private owners.

In late Nan period, there were ineffective and corrupt rulers and officials in the imperial court allowing regional warlords to trigger widespread revolts. The most catastrophic was the Oba Koji Rebellion, from 740 to 745, which affected the entire empire for a decade. The sack of the southern port Maen in 780 was followed by the massacre of most of its inhabitants, along with the large foreign merchant enclaves. By 781, both capitals, Oishi and Rena, fell successively. The reliance on Local warlords in suppressing the rebellion increased their power and influence. Consequently, the fall of the Seibei dynasty following Go Kinji's usurpation led to an era of fragmentation.

781 - 821 Kumno War & unification


The period of political disunity between the Nan period and the Ka, is known as the Five Families period, lasted from 781 to 821. During these forty years, Oka was in all respects a multi-state system. Five regimes, namely, Genjo, Eishi, Kinji, Shino and Aoi, rapidly succeeded one another in control of the two Imperial heartland in Rena and Oishi.

Amidst political chaos in the north. The south was also divided. With wars dominated in the north, there were mass southward migrations of population, which further enhanced the southward shift of cultural and economic centers in Oka. Nan general Shime Aki, and the establishment the Ka dynasty in 821, which would eventually annihilate the remains of the five families and fully unify Oka for the first time.

821 - 1241 Ka Period 카
In 821, the Ka dynasty was founded by Emperor Shime Aki, with its capital established in Oishi. In 879, the Ka dynasty reunified most of the Oka proper, while small swaths of the outer territories were occupied by rebel states. Namely Ryukyu on the Island of Okinawa, Gaito, the Shimei Principality and religious priests on smaller groups of islands.

In 1005 Yudah Aki, increased militia activity, increased troop levels and war horses sent to the border Regions near Kyushu (modern day Teiko), and actively sought loyal supporters in border regions who could heighten the pace of extraction of local resources for the state's disposal. Officials at court debated the merits or faults of Aki's policies, yet criticism of his reforms even appeared in Kou and Hei, where the high officer Koga Jou publicly announced that Aki's policies were deliberate efforts to seize and control their border frontiers. Tensions between the capital officials in Oishi and Kou were critical, and in these conditions any sign of hostility had potential to ignite a war. Oishi rapidly sent troops and agreed to talks with Kou to give them more control of their territory, Yudah Aki was however seen as weak for granted Kou it's demands.

During the reign of Iseri Aki between 1085 and 1110 the state new a period of peace during which it focused on it's trade with neighboring nations, during this period foreign technologies arrived to Oka, and scholars visited Japan. The Ka emperors took over the provincial administration system of the Nan period, and the nineteen provinces are the precursors of the modern provinces.

The regime which Aki had established and which was kept in place by his successors was decentralized and almost feudalistic in structure. Aki selected the provincial governors, known under the titles of Daijin from among his close vassals. Aki allowed its vassals to maintain their own armies and to administer law and order in their provinces on their own terms. In these provinces political power became gradually held by the military who controlled the borders, opposed government and gained a high level of autonomy and came to be known as this new group of leader became known as Senden (War-lord).

1045 - 1048 Ueto Rebellion
The gradual shift of power to the military was unsupportable by the Emperor and his court. In 1045, the retired Emperor Toba Aki instigated what became known as the Ueto War, a rebellion against the Senden leaders, in an attempt to restore political power to the court. The rebellion was a failure, and led to Go-Toba himself being exiled to Gaito Island, along with his direct family, Ono Aki became emperor in 1048. The Senden further consolidated its political power.

1102 - 1184 Sho Rebellion & Ka Restoration
In 1102, Emperor Kuemon Aki launched a rebellion in the hope of restoring full power to the imperial court. The Senden sent General Oda Unkei to quell the revolt, but Oda and his men instead joined forces with Emperor Kuemon and overthrew the Senden.

Oka nevertheless entered a period of prosperity and population growth starting around 1120. In rural areas, the greater use of iron tools and fertilizer, improved irrigation techniques, and double-cropping increased productivity and rural villages grew. Fewer famines and epidemics allowed cities to grow and commerce to boom. Buddhism, which had been largely a religion of the elites, was brought to the masses by prominent monks, such as Botan (1114–1182), who established Pure Land Buddhism in Oka, and Iwai (1222–82), who founded Tansei Buddhism.

1184 - 1241 Saeki War


Sen Saeki and many other of the Senden class soon became dissatisfied with the Ka Restoration, an ambitious attempt to monopolize power in the imperial court. Sen Saeki rebelled in 1184 after Shoyo Aki refused to appoint him First Minister. In 1188, Saeki captured Oishi and installed a rival member of the imperial family to the throne, Emperor Suou Aki, who did appoint him First Minister. Shoyo Aki responded by fleeing to the northern city of Rena, where he set up a rival government. This ushered in a prolonged period of conflict between the Northern Court and the Southern Court

Sen Saeki set up his government in the city of Oishi. However, the government was faced with the twin challenges of fighting the Northern Court and of maintaining its authority over its own subordinate governors. In spite of the war, Oka's relative economic prosperity, which had begun prior to the Ka restoration, continued well into the Restoration period.

Seto Yoo was governor of Koo and a cousin of Shoyo Aki, and allied with Shoyo Aki's Northern court in 1212 to stop Sen Saeki's rule. Many states joined the coalition led by Yoo to stop Saeki. Before the end of the Ka period, the warlord Seto Shihi of Chuson joined the coalition and commanded a sizable army in the northwest of Oka that threatened central Oka controlled by Sen Saeki. In 1239 A siege began a Oishi confining Sen Saeki and emperor Suou Aki. The siege ended in 1241 with Sen Saeki killing emperor Suou Aki and his family, then burning himself.