Kōan (Kamakura period)

This article is about the Japanese era name Kōan occurring during the Kamakura period. For other uses, see Koan (disambiguation).

Kōan (弘安) was a Japanese era name (年号, nengō, lit. "year name") after Kenji and before Shōō. This period spanned the years from February 1278 through April 1288. The reigning emperors were Go-Uda-tennō (後宇多天皇) and Fushimi-tennō (伏見天皇).

Kōan 弘安
February 1278 – April 1288
Seated Jie Daishi, depicting Ryōgen (AD 912–985), sculpted in 1286
Location	Japan
Monarch(s)	Emperor Go-Uda (to November 1287) Emperor Fushimi (from November 1287)
Chronology Kenji Shōō

Change of era

• 1278 Kōan gannen (弘安元年): The new era name was created to mark an event or a number of events. The previous era ended and a new one commenced in Kenji 4. The era name comes from the Veritable Records of the Emperor Taizong of Tang and combines the characters 弘 ("broad") and 安 ("peaceful"). It should not be confused with the later Kōan era of 1361–62, which used a different character for kō (康, "peace").

Events of the Kōan era

• August 15, 1281 (Kōan 4, 7th day of the intercalary 7th month): Battle of Kōan -- The second Mongol invasion of Japan is foiled, as a large typhoon – famously called a kamikaze, or divine wind – destroys much of the combined Chinese and Korean fleet and forces, numbering over 140,000 men and 4,000 ships.
• November 27, 1287 (Kōan 10, 21st day of the 10th month): In the 14th year of Go-Uda-tennō's reign (後宇多天皇14年), the emperor abdicated; and the succession (‘‘senso’’) was received by his cousin. Shortly thereafter, Emperor Fushimi is said to have acceded to the throne (‘‘sokui’’).

See also

• Mongol invasions of Japan
• Battle of Bun'ei - the first invasion attempt by Kublai Khan, in 1274.

References

• Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). Japan encyclopedia. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-01753-5; OCLC 58053128
• Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). Nihon Odai Ichiran; ou, Annales des empereurs du Japon. Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland. OCLC 5850691
• Varley, H. Paul. (1980). A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns: Jinnō Shōtōki of Kitabatake Chikafusa. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-04940-5; OCLC 6042764

External links

• National Diet Library, "The Japanese Calendar" -- historical overview plus illustrative images from library's collection