originally known as , was a semi-legendary scholar who is said to have been sent to Japan by Paekche of southwestern Korea during the reign of Emperor Ōjin. He used to be associated with the introduction of the Chinese writing system to Japan.
He is considered one of the three most influential Toraijins alongside Yuzuki no Kimi and Achi no Omi during the Kofun period.
Original sources and analysis Wani is mentioned only in Japanese history books; he is not recorded in Korean or Chinese sources.Early Korean books referring to Wani were written more than a millennium later and were clearly based on Japanese sources, not on their own. See (Kim:2001). The main sources of Wani's biography are the Kojiki (712) and the Nihon Shoki (720).
These stories have long been questioned by scholars. Ten volumes are too much for the Analects, and more importantly, his alleged arrival predates the composition of the Thousand Character Classic (the early 6th century). Arai Hakuseki (1657–1725) considered that Wani had brought a certain book of Elementary Learning which the Kojiki had confused with the Thousand Character Classic. Motoori Norinaga (1730–1801) claimed that it was pointless to care about details because the Thousand Character Classic was mentioned just as a typical book of Elementary Learning. Some assume a different version of the Thousand Character Classic was brought but this theory has no clear basis. In short, it is not unnatural for people like Wani to have come to Japan around that time, but there is no strong evidence determining whether Wani really existed.Seki Akira 関晃: Kodai no kikajin 古代の帰化人, 1996.
Dating the alleged arrival of Wani is rather difficult since there are long-lasting disputes over the accuracy of these sources on early events. According to the traditional dating, it would be 285 though is considered too early by historians. Based on the reign of King Akue (阿花王; identified as King Asin 阿莘王) of Paekche, who, according to the Nihon Shoki, died in the 16th year of Emperor Ōjin's reign, it would be 405.Pan Jixing 潘吉星: 王仁事蹟與世系考, 國學研究, Vol. 8, pp. 5–31, 2001. However, this theory contradicts the description of the Kojiki, which says that Wani's arrival was during the reign of King Shōko (照古王; usually identified as King Geunchogo 近肖古王, r. 346-375) of Paekche. The Kojiki suggests that Wani arrived sometime after 372.
Origin Due to the peculiar nature of the records, the origins of Wani is often questioned, bringing up several theories in regards to his identity.
The most popular and widely accepted theory is that Wani (alongside many other clan founders) was a by product of a political move in Japan that provided clans of foreign origins their founders with legendary qualities in return for political stability and cooperation. Much like Yuzuki no Kimi and Achi no Omi, who also lack records of respective kingdoms they allegedly hail from (Silla and Paekche), Wani's origins are also considered more symbolic than historically accurate in recent times.
Another less popularized theory is that Wani was a Chinese individual who naturalized to Paekche after the fall of the Four Commanderies of Han.Inoue Mitsusada 井上光貞: Wani no kōei shizoku to sono Bukkyō 王仁の後裔氏族と其の仏教, Nihon kodai shisōshi no kenkyū 日本古代思想史の研究, pp. 412–467, 1986. According to this theory, Wani's surname was "王 (Ō)", a character that is widely used by Chinese individuals, which thus alludes to a Chinese origin. In 791 Wani's descendants including Fumi no Mooto (文最弟) and Takefu no Makata (武生真象) made a successful attempt to elevate their kabane or family rank. According to the Shoku Nihongi (797), their appeal was as follows: Luan (鸞) was a descendant of Emperor Gaozu of Han. Luan's descendant Wang Gou (王狗) moved to Paekche. During the reign of King Kuso of Paekche, the imperial court sent envoys to summon literati. King Kuso offered Gou's grandson Wang Ren (Wani) as a tribute. He was the founder of Fumi, Takefu and other clans.The article of the wuxu day, the 4th month, Enryaku 10 (791), from the Shoku Nihongi: 漢高帝之後曰鸞, 鸞之後王狗転至百済. 百済久素王時, 聖朝遣使徴召文人. 久素王即以狗孫王仁貢焉. 是文, 武生等之祖也. However, modern Japanese scholars have criticized the claim that he was the descendant of a famous Chinese emperor as the character only makes its first appearance in Nihon Shoki and an entirely separate character "和 (Wa)" is used to represent his name in the much older, Kojiki. Skeptics argue that the two characters were merely there for phonetic reasons (Kun'yomi) as the correct pronunciation of "王仁" in On'yomi is in fact, "Ō Jin" or "Ō Nin" not "Wani". To elaborate, Wanikishi, the original name Wani was first recorded under includes a suffix, "-kishi (吉師)" that is thought be of Paekche origin as found in titles found in Paekche royalty recorded as "-gilji (吉支)", pronounced "-kichi" in Old Korean.도수희, 백제어 연구 II (Study of Pakeje Language II, 백제문화개발연구원(1989) For further context, the alternate name for fellow Paekche immigrant Achi no Omi, "Achikishi (阿知吉師)" was also recorded with the suffix "-kishi", indicating a commonality between said individuals. In addition, the original characters "和邇" is indeed pronounced "Wani" as seen in Wani (dragon) therefore, it can be deduced that his name was pronounced "Wani", regardless of the Chinese characters. Many stress the change from "和邇" to "王仁" was due to many Chinese Confucianists having the surname "王 (Wang in Chinese)" at the timeUkeda Masayuki 請田正幸: Fuhito shūdan no ichi kōsatsu フヒト集団の一考察, Kodaishi ronshū (jō) 古代史論集 (上), pp. 179–202, 1988. and that his name was changed to fit more with the idea of him being a "Confucianist" rather than basing it on his ethnicity.
A similar story can be found in the description of the Fuminosukune (文宿禰) clan by the Shinsen Shōjiroku (815) which is thought to have been influenced by the aforementioned story.Shinsen Shōjiroku (新撰姓氏録): 諸蕃 However, much like the other founders of influential clans of foreign origin, the claim that Wani was from a Chinese imperial line is considered a fabricated story made by their descendants to elevate their ranks as similar attempts are found within Yuzuki no Kimi and Achi no Omi's stories (both allegedly descendants of Emperor Qin and Emperor Ling of Han, respectively). Modern Japanese historians deduced that archeological, genealogical and historical evidence showed that the individuals were in fact of Korean origin and that their stories (which were in truth added much later after their first mentions in older sources) created by their descendants were simply a means to an end for political dominance.『古代国家と天皇』創元社、1957年 +SourceYearClaimKojiki712Written under "Wanikishi", it states that he was sent to Japan from Paekche by the order of Emperor Ōjin to send any wise men as tribute from Geunchogo of Baekje.Nihon Shoki720Written under "Wani", it states that he was recommended by a fellow Paekche individual and immigrant, Achiki (Achi no Omi) where Emperor Ōjin sent two individuals to escort said individual from Paekche. It also states that he is the founder of the Fumi no Obito clan and Kawachi no Fumi clan.Shoku Nihongi797Adds the claim that he is a descendant of Emperor Gaozu of Han. According to Japanese historian (志田諄一), Wani being "a Han dynasty-era Chinese individual that naturalized to become Korean in Paekche who then immigrated to Japan to become Japanese" is unlikely and that in the best case scenario, was just a Korean individual with the surname "Wang".However, Shida's theory does not mention the fact that the surname "Wang" in Korean, though having no relations with China's surname of the same character, first emerged during the Goryeo dynasty, long after Wani's supposed arrival in Japan. However, Shida is also cautious in regards to this claim and is inclined to remain skeptical about Wani's existence.
Modern interpretations The article of the Nihon Shoki was traditionally interpreted as the introduction of Confucianism and/or Chinese literature although not clearly stated in the history book.
According to the preface to the Kokin Wakashū (905), a famous Waka poem starting with "Naniwa-zu" was traditionally attributed to Wani.To be precise, this speculation was given as an old commentary to an obscure passage in the Kokin Wakashū. Other interpretations are also possible, and the poem referred to as "Naniwa-zu" in the statement in question might be a different one. An important candidate is the first tanka by Emperor Nintoku since it was created at the palace of Naniwa. At that time, the imperial throne was vacant for three years because the future Emperor Nintoku (successor to Emperor Ōjin) and his brother Crown Prince Uji no Waki Iratsuko renounced succession to the throne to crown the other. Historians and philologists are skeptical about the attribution to Wani because it cannot be found in earlier sources. From the early 10th century on, this poem was regarded as a chorus that praises Emperor Nintoku. As a result, Wani was portrayed as a sage submitting to the emperor's virtue.
From the Heian period onward, references to Wani mostly involved the Naniwa-zu poem. Some commentaries to Waka poems describe Wani as a man from Silla in southeastern Korea. Although this error was corrected by Fujiwara no Norikane's Waka dōmōshō (1145–53) and Kenshō's Kokinshū jo chū (1183) with the reference to the Nihon Shoki, it survived for a long time. To solve the contradiction, Reizei Tamesuke even claimed in 1297 that Wani had been transferred from Paekche to Silla and then from Silla to Japan. A possible reason for this error is that Wani's arrival at Japan was interpreted as a result of Empress Jingū's conquest of Silla, which was recorded in the Nihon Shoki.Kim Kwang-chol 金光哲, Naniwa-zu no uta to Wani 難波津の歌と王仁, The Ôryô Shigaku 鷹陵史学, No. 22, pp. 33–60, 1996.
The general consensus is that Wani was an individual who was created to give political agency to Japanese clans of foreign origins at the time, which is why his existence is nowhere to be found outside of Japanese records. It is also the reason why he was recorded under multiple names across several sources (despite having the same pronunciation), many of them putting emphasis on the symbolism of his accomplishments.
Much like the other prominent immigrants such as Yuzuki no Kimi and Achi no Omi, modern historians consider Wani to be a fictional individual whose story was added later to help create origin stories for clans with foreign backgrounds.
Influence The descendants of Wani, or more precisely, those who claimed Wani to be their ancestor, were collectively called the Kawachi no Fumi clan and the Kawachi no Aya clan. They lived in Kisaichi of Kawachi Province together with their branch families. The head family had the uji "Fumi" [literature] after their duty as scribes, and similarly their branch families were given the kabane "Fuhito" [scribe].
Despite Wani's fame as a scholar, the Kawachi no Fumi clan was not so active as secretaries for administration. A rare exception was Fumi no Nemaro (文禰麻呂; ?–707). Instead of being active in civil administration, he rose to a rank unusually high for a mid-level bureaucrat for his military performances in the Jinshin War (672). Some historians consider that this was the reason why the legend of Wani was recorded in the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki. It is known that scribes of foreign origin had similar and mutually conflicting legends about their founders. Features common in their stories include the arrival during the reign of Emperor Ōjin, the introduction of Chinese literature and/or Confucianism, and the surname Wang. The legend of Wani was chosen with the rest of them ignored because the Kawachi no Fumi clan was relatively powerful at the time of the compilation of the history books.
Name As mentioned above, Wani was originally recorded under "Wanikishi (和邇吉師/わにきし)" and was later given new characters of "王仁" later on.