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{{Short description|3rd century Queen of Yamataikoku}}
{{Other uses|Himiko (disambiguation)}}
{{More footnotes|date=July 2018}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name         = Himiko
| succession   = Queen of [[Yamataikoku]]
| image        = 
| caption      = 
| image_size   = 
| reign        = {{circa|190}} - 247/248
| successor    = Unknown king
| spouse       = 
| father       = 
| mother       = 
| birth_date   = {{circa|169/170 AD}}
| birth_place  = [[Yamatai]], [[Japan]]
| death_date   = 247/248 AD<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iirrAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Himiko+died+in+AD+247+or+248.%22 |title=The Rise of a Great Tradition: Japanese Archaeological Ceramics from the Jōmon Through Heian Periods (10,500 BC-AD 1185). |date=1990 |publisher=Agency for Cultural Affairs, Government of Japan |isbn=978-0-913304-30-3 |language=en|pages=45|quote=According to the Chinese account, Himiko died in AD 247 or 248.}}</ref> (aged c. 78)
| place of burial = Thought to be [[Hashihaka Kofun]] near [[Nara, Nara|Nara]] ([[Japan]])|
}}
{{Nihongo|'''Himiko'''|卑弥呼||{{circa|170–247/248 AD}}}}, also known as the {{Nihongo|'''Shingi Waō'''|親魏倭王||"Ruler of Wa, Friend of Wei"}},<ref>{{cite book |title=研究社新和英大辞典 |trans-title=[[Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary]] |language=ja |publisher=[[Kenkyūsha]] }}</ref>{{efn|[[Middle Chinese]] pronunciation ([[Zhengzhang Shangfang|ZS]]): {{IPA|*''t͡sʰiɪn-ŋʉi{{sup|H}}-ʔuɑ-ɦʉɐŋ''|lang=ltc}}; [[Eastern Han Chinese]] {{IPA|*''tsʰin-ŋui{{sup|C}}-ʔuɑi-wɑŋ''|lang=ltc}}<ref>Schuessler, Axel. (2009). ''Minimal Old Chinese and Later Han Chinese''. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i (2009). p. 322, 291, 221, 80</ref><ref>Bentley, John. [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/272826563_The_Search_for_the_Language_of_Yamatai_Japanese_Language_and_Literature_421_pp_1-43 "The Search for the Language of Yamatai"] in ''Japanese Language and Literature'' (42.1), p. 10 of pp. 1-43.</ref>}}{{Efn|{{nihongo||親|Shin}}, as a prefix, means "friendly to" or "allied to", for example as in {{nihongo3|"pro-America"|親米|shinbei}}. {{nihongo3|"king"|王|Ō}}, as with other words for rulers in the [[East Asian cultural sphere]], is used gender-neutrally, so {{nihongo||倭王|Waō}} may be translated specifically as "Queen of Wa".}} was a [[shaman]]ess-queen of [[Yamatai|Yamatai-koku]] in {{nihongo|[[Wa (name of Japan)|Wakoku]]|倭国}}. Early [[Twenty-Four Histories|Chinese dynastic histories]] chronicle [[tribute|tributary]] relations between Queen Himiko and the [[Cao Wei]] Kingdom (220–265) and record that the [[Yayoi period]] people chose her as ruler following [[Civil War of Wa|decades of warfare among the kings of Wa]]. Early Japanese histories do not mention Himiko, but historians associate her with legendary figures such as Empress Consort [[Empress Jingū|Jingū]], who is said to have served as [[regent]] from 201 to 269.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brownlee |first=John S. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gLB7XUPTKlsC&pg=PA111 |title=Japanese Historians and the National Myths, 1600-1945: The Age of the Gods and Emperor Jinmu |date=2011 |publisher=UBC Press |isbn=9780774842549 |page=111}}</ref>

Scholarly debates over the identity of Himiko and the location of her domain, Yamatai, have raged since the late [[Edo period]], with opinions divided between northern [[Kyūshū]] or traditional [[Yamato Province]] in present-day [[Kansai region|Kinki]]. The "Yamatai controversy", writes Keiji Imamura, is "the greatest debate over the ancient history of Japan."{{sfn|Imamura|1996|p=188}} A prevailing view among scholars is that she may be buried at [[Hashihaka Kofun]] in [[Nara Prefecture]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Shillony|first=Ben-Ami|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OO55DwAAQBAJ&q=scholars+agree+jimmu&pg=PA15|title=The Emperors of Modern Japan|date=2008-10-15|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-474-4225-7|pages=15|language=en}}</ref> 

She came to power aged 20 in 190, and died in either 247 or 248.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Harding |first=Christopher |title=The Japanese, A History in Twenty Lives |publisher=[[Penguin Books]] |isbn=978-0-141-99228-0 |pages=13–20}}</ref>

==Historical references==
The shaman Queen Himiko is recorded in various ancient histories, dating back to 3rd-century China, 8th-century Japan, and 12th-century Korea.

[[File:Text of the Wei Zhi (魏志), 297.jpg|thumb|The "[[Book of Wei]]" ({{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}}, {{lang|lzh|魏志}}), part of the ''[[Records of the Three Kingdoms]],'' {{circa|297}}. A {{transliteration|zh|pinghua}} (vernacular) version of the {{transliteration|lzh|Sanguozhi}}, the history containing the first mention of Yamatai and Himiko.]]

===Chinese sources===
The first historical records of Himiko are found in the ''[[Records of the Three Kingdoms]]'' ({{transliteration|lzh|Sanguo Zhi}}, {{lang|lzh|三國志}}), a [[Chinese classic text]] dating to {{circa|297}}. However, rather than ''Records of the Three Kingdoms'', Japanese scholars use the term of {{nihongo3|"Records of [[Cao Wei|Wei]]: Account of [[Wajin (ancient people)|Wajin]]"|魏志倭人伝|[[Gishi Wajinden]]}}, a Japanese abbreviation for the account of Wajin in the "[[Biography|Biographies]] of the [[Wuhuan]], [[Xianbei]], and [[Dongyi]]" ({{lang|lzh|烏丸鮮卑東夷傳}}), Volume 30 of the [[Records of the Three Kingdoms#Book of Wei (魏書)|"Book of Wei"]] ({{lang|lzh|魏書}}) of the ''[[Records of the Three Kingdoms]]'' ({{lang|lzh|三国志}}).<ref>[[岩波文庫]]では書名の一部として「魏志倭人伝」の五文字を採用している。{{CN|date=June 2023}}</ref> This section is the first description of Himiko (Pimiko) and Yamatai:

{{quote|The Japanese people of Wa [{{lang|lzh|倭人}}] dwell in the middle of the ocean on the mountainous islands southeast of [the prefecture of] [[Daifang Commandery|Tai-fang]]. They formerly comprised more than one hundred communities. During the [[Han dynasty]], [Wa envoys] appeared at the Court; today, thirty of their communities maintain intercourse [with us] through envoys and scribes. {{sfn|Tsunoda|1951|p=8}}}}

This early history describes how Himiko came to the throne:

{{quote|The country formerly had a man as ruler. For some seventy or eighty years after that there were disturbances and warfare. Thereupon the people agreed upon a woman for their ruler. Her name was Himiko [{{lang|lzh|卑弥呼}}]. She occupied herself with magic and sorcery, bewitching the people. Though mature in age, she remained unmarried. She had a younger brother who assisted her in ruling the country. After she became the ruler, there were few who saw her. She had one thousand women as attendants, but only one man. He served her food and drink and acted as a medium of communication. She resided in a palace surrounded by towers and stockades, with armed guards in a state of constant vigilance.{{sfn|Tsunoda|1951|p=13}}}}

The "Records of Wei" also records envoys travelling between the Wa and Wei courts. Himiko's emissaries first visited the court of Wei emperor [[Cao Rui]] in 238, and he replied:

{{quote|Herein we address Himiko, Queen of Wa, whom we now officially call a friend of Wei. […Your envoys] have arrived here with your tribute, consisting of four male slaves and six female slaves, together with two pieces of cloth with designs, each twenty feet in length. You live very far away across the sea; yet you have sent an embassy with tribute. Your loyalty and [[filial piety]] we appreciate exceedingly. We confer upon you, therefore, the title "Queen of Wa Friendly to Wei," together with the decoration of the gold seal with purple ribbon. The latter, properly encased, is to be sent to you through the Governor. We expect you, O Queen, to rule your people in peace and to endeavor to be devoted and obedient.{{sfn|Tsunoda|1951|p=14}}}}

Finally, the "Records of Wei"{{sfn|Tsunoda|1951|p=15}} records that in 247 when a new governor arrived at [[Daifang Commandery]] in Korea, Queen Himiko officially complained of hostilities with {{nihongo|Himikuko|卑弥弓呼||or Pimikuko}}, the king of Kuna [[:ja:狗奴国|(ja)]] ({{lang|ojp|狗奴}}, literally "dog slave"), one of the other Wa states. The governor dispatched "Chang Chêng, acting Secretary of the Border Guard" with a "proclamation advising reconciliation", and subsequently:

{{quote|When Himiko passed away, a great mound was raised, more than a hundred paces in diameter. Over a hundred male and female attendants followed her to the grave. Then a king was placed on the throne, but the people would not obey him. Assassination and murder followed; more than one thousand were thus slain. A relative of Himiko named [[Toyo (queen)|Iyo]] [{{lang|ojp|壹與}}], a girl of thirteen, was [then] made queen and order was restored. Chêng issued a proclamation to the effect that Iyo was the ruler.{{sfn|Tsunoda|1951|p=16}}}}

Commentators take this 'Iyo' ({{lang|ojp|壹與}}, with {{lang|ojp|[[Wikt:壹|壹]]}}, "one", an old variant of {{lang|ja|[[Wikt:一|一]]}}) as a miscopy of Toyo ({{lang|ojp|臺與}}, with {{lang|ojp|[[Wikt:臺|臺]]}} "platform; terrace") paralleling the {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}} writing {{transliteration|lzh|Yamatai}} ({{lang|lzh|邪馬臺}}) as {{transliteration|lzh|Yamaichi}} ({{lang|lzh|邪馬壹}}).

Two other Chinese dynastic histories mentioned Himiko. While both clearly incorporated the {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}} reports, they made some changes, such as specifying the "some seventy or eighty years" of Wa wars occurred between 146 and 189, during the reigns of Han Emperors [[Emperor Huan of Han|Huan]] and [[Emperor Ling of Han|Ling]]. The {{circa|432}} ''[[Book of Later Han]]'' ({{transliteration|lzh|Hou Han Shu}} {{lang|lzh|後漢書}}) says "the King of Great Wa resides in the country of Yamadai", rather than the Queen:

{{quote|The Wa dwell on mountainous islands southeast of [[Samhan|Han]] [Korea] in the middle of the ocean, forming more than one hundred communities. From the time of the overthrow of [[Old Chosŏn|Chaoxian]] [northern Korea] by Emperor Wu (BC 140–87), nearly thirty of these communities have held intercourse with the Han [dynasty] court by envoys or scribes. Each community has its king, whose office is hereditary. The King of Great Wa [Yamato] resides in the country of Yamadai.{{sfn|Tsunoda|1951|p=1}}}}

{{quote|During the reigns of [[emperor Huan of Han|Huan-di]] (147–168) and [[emperor Ling of Han|Ling-di]] (168–189), the country of Wa was in a state of great confusion, war and conflict raging on all sides. For a number of years, there was no ruler. Then a woman named Himiko appeared. Remaining unmarried, she occupied herself with magic and sorcery and bewitched the populace. Thereupon they placed her on the throne. She kept one thousand female attendants, but few people saw her. There was only one man who was in charge of her wardrobe and meals and acted as the medium of communication. She resided in a palace surrounded by towers and stockades with the protection of armed guards. The laws and customs were strict and stern.{{sfn|Tsunoda|1951|pp=2-3}}}}

The 636 ''[[Book of Sui]]'' ({{transliteration|lzh|Sui Shu}}, {{lang|lzh|隋書}}) changes the number of Himiko's male attendants:

{{quote|During the reigns of the Emperors Huan and Ling, that country was in great disorder, and there was no ruler for a period of years. [Then] a woman named Himiko attracted the populace by means of the practice of magic. The country became unified and made her queen. A younger brother assisted Himiko in the administration of the country. Queen [Himiko] kept one thousands maids in attendance. Her person was seldom seen. She had only two men [attendants]. They served her food and drink and acted as intermediaries. The Queen lived in a palace, which was surrounded by walls and stockades protected by armed guards; their discipline was extremely strict.{{sfn|Tsunoda|1951|pp=28-29}}}}

===Japanese sources===
Neither of the two oldest Japanese histories – the {{circa|712}} {{transliteration|ja|[[Kojiki]]}}<ref>{{cite book |title=Kojiki ''古事記'' |trans-title=Records of Ancient Matters |translator-link=Basil Hall Chamberlain |translator-first=Basil Hall |translator-last=Chamberlain |year=1919}}</ref> nor {{circa|720}} {{transliteration|ja|[[Nihon Shoki]]}}{{sfn|Aston|1924}} – mentions Queen Himiko. The circumstances under which these books were written is a matter of unending debate, and even if Himiko were known to the authors, they may have purposefully decided not to include her.{{sfn|Miller|2014}}{{sfn|Hideyuki|2005}} However, they include three imperial-family shamans identified with her: [[Princess Yamato Totohi Momoso|Yamatototohimomosohime-no-Mikoto]] [[:ja:倭迹迹日百襲姫命|(ja)]], the aunt of [[Emperor Sujin]] (legendary 10th Japanese emperor, reigned 97–30 BC) and daughter of [[Emperor Kōrei]]; [[Yamatohime-no-mikoto]], the daughter of [[Emperor Suinin]] (legendary 11th, reigned 29 BC–70 AD); and [[Empress Jingū]] (reigned {{circa|209–269}} AD), the wife of [[Emperor Chūai]] (legendary 14th emperor, reigned 192–200 AD). These dates, however, are not historically verified.

One remarkable exception to early Japanese histories overlooking Himiko is the {{transliteration|ja|Nihon Shoki}}, quoting the {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}} three times. In 239, "the queen [{{lang|ojp|女王}}] of Wa" sent envoys to Wei; in 240, they returned "charged with an Imperial [[rescript]] and a seal and ribbon;" and in 243, "the ruler [{{lang|ojp|王}} "king"] of Wa again sent high officers as envoys with tribute".{{sfn|Aston|1924|pp=245–6}}

{{nihongo|Yamato Totohi Momoso himemiko|倭迹迹日百襲媛命}}, the shaman aunt of Emperor Sujin, supposedly committed suicide after learning her husband was a [[trickster]] snake-god. The {{transliteration|ja|Kojiki}} does not mention her, but the {{transliteration|ja|Nihon Shoki}} describes her as "the Emperor's aunt by the father's side, a shrewd and intelligent person, who could foresee the future".{{sfn|Aston|1924|p=156}} After a series of national calamities, the Emperor "assembled the 80 myriads of Deities" and inquired by [[divination]]. Yamato-totohi-momoso was inspired by Ōmononushi-nushi ("Great Deity of All Deities and Spirits"),{{sfn|Hori|1968|p=193}} to say: "Why is the Emperor grieved at the disordered state of the country? If he duly did us reverent worship it would assuredly become pacified of itself." The Emperor inquired, saying: "What God is it that thus instructs me?" The answer was: "I am the God who dwells within the borders of the land of Yamato, and my name is Oho-mono-nushi no Kami."{{sfn|Aston|1924|p=152}} While imperial worship of this god (from [[Mount Miwa]]) was "without effect", Yamato-totohi-momoso later married him.

{{quote|After this Yamato-toto-hi-momo-so-bime no Mikoto became the wife of Oho-mono-nushi no Kami. This God, however, was never seen in the day-time, but at night. Yamato-toto-hi-momo-so-bime no Mikoto said to her husband: "As my Lord is never seen in the day-time, I am unable to view his august countenance distinctly; I beseech him therefore to delay a while, that in the morning I may look upon the majesty of his beauty." The Great God answered and said: "What thou sayest is clearly right. To-morrow morning I will enter thy toilet-case and stay there. I [[pray thee]] be not alarmed at my form." Yamato-toto-hi-momo-so-bime no Mikoto wondered secretly in her heart at this. Waiting until daybreak, she looked into her toilet-case. There was there a beautiful little snake, of the length and thickness of the cord of a garment. Thereupon she was frightened, and uttered an exclamation. The Great God was ashamed, and changing suddenly into human form, spake to his wife, and said: "Thou didst not contain thyself, but hast caused me shame; I will in my turn put thee to shame." So treading the Great Void, he ascended to Mount Mimoro. Hereupon Yamato-toto-hi-momo-so-bime no Mikoto looked up and had remorse. She flopped down on a seat and with a chopstick stabbed herself in the pudenda so that she died. She was buried at Oho-chi. Therefore the men of that time called her tomb the Hashi no haka [Chopstick Tomb]. {{sfn|Aston|1924|pp=158-9}}}}

The {{nihongo|[[Hashihaka Kofun]]|箸墓|"Chopstick Tomb"}} [[Kofun]] in [[Sakurai, Nara]] is associated with this legend.{{sfn|Miller|2014}}

{{nihongo|[[Yamatohime-no-mikoto]]|倭姫命}}, the daughter of Emperor Suinin, supposedly founded the [[Ise Shrine]] to the sun-goddess [[Amaterasu]]. The {{transliteration|ja|Kojiki}} records her as the fourth of Suinin's five children, "Her Augustness Yamato-hime, (was the high-priestess of the temple of the Great Deity of Ise)".{{sfn|Chamberlain|1919|p=227}} The {{transliteration|ja|Nihon Shoki}} likewise records "Yamato-hime no Mikoto"{{sfn|Aston|1924|p=150}} and provides more details. The Emperor assigned Yamato-hime to find a permanent location for Amaterasu's shrine, and after wandering for years, the sun-goddess instructed her to build it at [[Ise, Mie|Ise]] "where she first descended from Heaven".{{sfn|Aston|1924|p=176}}

Empress Consort Jingū (or {{nihongo|Jingō|神功}}) supposedly served as [[regent]] after the death of her husband Emperor Chūai ({{c.|200}}) until the accession of her son [[Emperor Ōjin]] (legendary 15th emperor, {{reign|270|310}}). The {{transliteration|ja|Kojiki}}{{sfn|Chamberlain|1919|pp=283–332}} and {{transliteration|ja|Nihon Shoki}}{{sfn|Aston|1924|pp=217-271}} have similar accounts. Emperor Chūai wanted to invade [[Kumaso]], and while he was consulting with his ministers, Jingū conveyed a shamanistic message that he should invade [[Silla]] instead. Compare these:

{{quote|Her Augustness Princess Okinaga-tarashi, was at that time, divinely possessed{{efn|The 2008 reprint of Chamberlain{{sfn|Chamberlain|1919|p=284}} adds a footnote after "possessed": "Himeko [sic] in the Chinese historical notices of Japan was skilled in magic, with which she deluded the people."}}  […] charged him with this instruction and counsel: "There is a land to the Westward, and in that land is abundance of various treasures dazzling to the eye, from gold and silver downwards. I will now bestow this land upon thee."{{sfn|Chamberlain|1919|pp=284-5}}

At this time a certain God inspired the Empress and instructed her, saying: "Why should the Emperor be troubled because the Kumaso do not yield submission? It is a land wanting in backbone. Is it worth while raising an army to attack it? There is a better land than this, a land of treasure, which may be compared to the aspect of a beautiful woman – the land of Mukatsu [meaning 'opposite'; 'across'], dazzling to the eyes. In that land there are gold and silver and bright colours in plenty. It is called the Land of Silla of the coverlet of paper-mulberry. If thou worshippest me aright, the land will assuredly yield submission freely, and the edge of thy sword shall not be all stained with blood."{{sfn|Aston|1924|p=221}}}}

The Emperor thought the gods were lying, said he had only seen ocean to the West, and then died, either immediately ({{transliteration|ja|Kojiki}}) or after invading Kumaso ({{transliteration|ja|Nihon Shoki}}). Jingū allegedly discovered she was pregnant, personally planned and led a successful conquest of Silla, gave birth to the future emperor, and returned to rule Yamato. The {{transliteration|ja|Nihon Shoki}}{{sfn|Aston|1924|p=225}} adds that since Jingū wanted to learn which gods had cursed Chūai, she constructed a shamanic "palace of worship", "discharged in person the office of priest", and heard the gods reveal themselves as coming from Ise (Amaterasu) and Mukatsu (an unnamed Korean divinity). Although the {{transliteration|ja|Kojiki}} and {{transliteration|ja|Nihon Shoki}} myth-histories called Jingū first of the [[Japanese empresses]], [[Meiji period]] historians removed her from the [[List of Emperors of Japan]], leaving [[Empress Suiko]] ({{reign|593|628}}) as the first historically verifiable female Japanese ruler.

===Korean sources===
The oldest extant Korean history text, the {{transliteration|lzh|[[Samguk Sagi]]}} ({{lang|lzh|三國史記}}, "Chronicles of the [[Three Kingdoms of Korea|Three [Korean] Kingdoms]]", completed in 1145), records that Queen Himiko sent an [[Diplomat|emissary]] to King [[Adalla of Silla]] in May 173.{{sfn|Saeki|1988|pp=35, 113, 154}}

==Interpretations==
Researchers have struggled to reconcile Himiko/Pimiko between Chinese and Japanese historical sources. While the {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}} described her as an important ruler in 3rd-century Japan, early Japanese historians purposely avoided naming Himiko, even when the {{transliteration|ja|Nihon Shoki}} quoted the {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}} about envoys from Wa.

===Name===
The three [[Chinese characters]] {{lang|och|{{script|Hani|卑彌呼}}}} ([[shinjitai|simplified]]: {{lang|och|{{script|Hani|卑弥呼}}}}) transcribing the Wa regent's name are read {{transliteration|ja|himiko}} or {{transliteration|ja|hibiko}} in Modern [[Japanese language|Japanese]] and {{transliteration|zh|bēimíhū}} or {{transliteration|zh|bìmíhū}} in [[Modern Standard Chinese]].

However, these contemporary readings differ considerably from how 'Himiko' was pronounced in the 3rd century, both by speakers of the unknown Wa-language and by Chinese scribes who transcribed it. While [[transliteration into Chinese characters]] of foreign words is complex, the choice of these three particular characters is puzzling, with literal meanings {{lang|zh|[[Wikt:卑|卑]]}} "low; inferior; humble", {{lang|zh|[[Wikt:彌|彌]]}} ({{lang|zh|[[Wikt:弥|弥]]}}) "fill, cover; full; whole, complete", and {{lang|zh|[[Wikt:呼|呼]]}} "breathe out; exhale; cry out; call".{{citation needed|date=April 2012}}

In terms of [[historical Chinese phonology]], the modern {{transliteration|zh|bēimíhū}} ({{lang|zh|卑彌呼}}) is simpler than its presumed 3rd-century late [[Old Chinese]] or early [[Middle Chinese]] pronunciation. Compare the following reconstructions of the name in [[Archaic Chinese]] or [[Middle Chinese]] ([[Bernhard Karlgren]], [[Li Fanggui]], and William H. Baxter), [[Early Middle Chinese]] (Edwin G. Pulleyblank), and, historically closest, [[Eastern Han Chinese|Late Han Chinese]] (Axel Schuessler).
*{{transliteration|och|pjiḙ-mjiḙ-χuo}} (Karlgren)
*{{transliteration|och|pjie-mjie-χwo}} (Li)
*{{transliteration|och|pjie-mjie-xu}} (Baxter)
*{{transliteration|ltc|pji-mji-χɔ}} or {{transliteration|ltc|pjiə̌-mjiə̌-χɔ}} (Pulleyblank)
*{{transliteration|ltc|pie-mie-hɑ}} (Schuessler)

In terms of [[Japanese phonology]] (which historically did not have the consonant /h/ and whose modern /h/ evolves from historical /p/),<ref>Miyake, Marc Hideo (2003). Old Japanese: A Phonetic Reconstruction. London; New York: RoutledgeCurzon. p. 196</ref> the accepted modern reading of 'Himiko' would regularly correspond to [[Old Japanese]] {{transliteration|ojp|*Pimeko}}. However, [[Roy Andrew Miller]] says {{transliteration|ojp|*Pimeko}} is a [[lexicographic error]] deriving from the {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}} transcriptions.

{{quote|Most perplexing of the entire list is the name of the queen of the Yeh-ma-t'ai community, {{transliteration|lzh|Pi-mi-hu}}, Middle Chinese {{transliteration|ltc|pjiḙ-mjiḙ-χuo}}. This has traditionally been explained and understood in Japan as a transcription of a supposed Old Japanese form {{transliteration|ojp|*Pimeko}}, said to be an early term meaning "high born woman; princess," and to derive from Old Japanese {{transliteration|ojp|Pime}} [or {{transliteration|ojp|Pi{{sub|1}}me{{sub|1}}}}] (also sometimes {{transliteration|ojp|Pimë}} [{{transliteration|ojp|Fi{{sub|1}}me{{sub|2}}}}]), a laudatory title for women going with {{transliteration|ojp|Piko}} [{{transliteration|ojp|Fi{{sub|1}}ko{{sub|1}}}}] for men. Later {{transliteration|ojp|Fime}} comes to mean "princess," but this meaning is anachronistic for the earlier texts. […] The difficulty concerns the supposed Old Japanese word {{transliteration|ojp|*Fimeko}}. Even though such a form has found its way into a few modern Japanese dictionaries (for example even Kindaiichi's otherwise generally reliable {{transliteration|ja|Jikai}}), it is in fact simply one of the ghost words of Japanese lexicography; when it does appear in modern lexical sources, it is a "made-up" form listed there solely on the basis of the {{transliteration|zh|Wei chih}} account of early Japan. There never was an Old Japanese {{transliteration|ojp|*Pimeko}}; furthermore, the Middle Chinese spirant {{transliteration|ltc|χ}} of the transcription suggests that the final element of the unknown original term did not correspond to Old Japanese {{transliteration|ojp|-ko}} [{{transliteration|ojp|-ko{{sub|1}}}}], which is rendered elsewhere – in {{transliteration|ojp|Piko}} [{{transliteration|ojp|Fi{{sub|1}}ko{{sub|1}}}}], for example – with Middle Chinese {{transliteration|ltc|-k-}} as one would expect. The final element of this transcription, then, remains obscure, though there is certainly a good chance that the first portion does correspond to a form related to Old Japanese {{transliteration|ojp|Pime}}. Beyond that, it is at present impossible to go.|Roy Andrew Miller, 1967:22}}

{{transliteration|ja|Hime}} (Old Japanese {{transliteration|ojp|Pi{{sub|1}}me{{sub|1}}}}), ({{lang|ja|[[Wikt:姫|姫]]}}, "young noblewoman; princess"), explains Miller, etymologically derives from {{transliteration|ojp|hi}} ({{transliteration|ojp|Fi{{sub|1}}}}) ({{lang|ojp|[[Wikt:日|日]]}}, "sun") and {{transliteration|ojp|me}} ({{transliteration|ojp|me{{sub|1}}}}) ({{lang|ojp|[[Wikt:女|女]]}}, "woman").

Tsunoda{{sfn|Tsunoda|1951|p=5}} notes that "Pimiko is from an archaic Japanese title, {{transliteration|ojp|himeko}}, meaning 'princess'"; that is, {{transliteration|ojp|hime}} with the female name suffix {{transliteration|ojp|-ko}} ({{lang|ojp|子}}, "child"), viz. the uncommon [[given name]] Himeko. Other Amaterasu-related etymological proposals for the [[Japanese name]] Himiko involve {{transliteration|ojp|hi}} ({{lang|ojp|日}}, "sun") and {{transliteration|ojp|[[miko]]}} ({{lang|ojp|[[Wikt: 覡|覡]]}} or {{lang|ojp-Hani|巫女}}, "female shaman, shamaness; shrine maiden; priestess"); or their combination {{transliteration|ojp|hime-miko}}, "princess-priestess".{{citation needed|date=February 2020|reason=Himemiko was a real title for princesses, as opposed to plain Miko for princes. In this case, Miko may simply mean "noble person ('child')" rather specifically "priestess".}}

Bentley<ref>Bentley 2008:18–20</ref> considers the [[Baekje language|Baekje]] word {{transliteration|pkc|*pye}}, 'west', the [[honorific]] prefix {{transliteration|pkc|*me}} and {{transliteration|pkc|*hɔ}}, 'heir', and thus interprets {{lang|och|{{script|Hani|卑彌呼}}}} as 'the honorific heir of the west'.

===Identity and historicity===
Identifying Himiko/Pimiko of Wa is straightforward within the [[history of China]], but problematic within the [[history of Japan]]. The 3rd-century Chinese {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}} ("[[Records of the Three Kingdoms|Records of Wei]]") provides details about shaman Queen Himiko and her communications with Emperors [[Cao Rui]] and [[Cao Fang]]. The 8th-century Japanese {{transliteration|ja|[[Kojiki]]}} ("Records of Ancient Matters") and the {{transliteration|ja|[[Nihon Shoki]]}} ("Chronicles of Japan", which quotes the {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}}) disregard Himiko, unless she was the [[subtext]] behind their accounts of [[Empress Jingū]], [[Yamatohime-no-mikoto]], or Yamato-toto-hi-momo-so-hime-no-Mikoto.{{Citation needed|reason=This section is very detailed but has no sourced references. Please provide references|date=March 2024}}

None of these three legendary Japanese royal shamans adequately corresponds with the Chinese chronology and description of Himiko. Assuming the {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}} account that Himiko died around 248, if one accepts the dubious Japanese traditional dating, then she was closer to the 3rd-century AD Empress Jingū than to the 1st-century BC Yamato-hime-no-mikoto and Yamato-toto-hi-momo-so-hime. On the other hand, if one accepts the postdating adjustments prior to the 4th century, then Himiko was closer to these Yamato-named shamans. Neither the {{transliteration|ja|Kojiki}} nor the {{transliteration|ja|Nihon Shoki}} mentions Himiko or any of the salient topics that she was unmarried, was chosen as ruler by the people, had a younger brother who helped rule (unless this refers to Jingū's son), or had numerous (figuratively "1,000") female attendants.

William Wayne Farris{{sfn|Farris|1998|pp=15–54}} reviews the history of scholarly debates over Himiko and her domain Yamatai. The [[Edo period|Edo-period]] philosophers [[Arai Hakuseki]] and [[Motoori Norinaga]] began the controversies over whether Yamatai was located in Northern Kyushu or [[Yamato Province]] in the [[Kinki]] region of central [[Honshū]] and whether the {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}} or the {{transliteration|ja|Nihon Shoki}} was historically more trustworthy. The [[Confucianist]] Arai accepted the Chinese history as more reliable, and first equated Himiko with Jingū and Yamatai with Yamato. The {{transliteration|ja|[[kokugaku]]}} scholar Motoori accepted the traditional Japanese myth-history as more reliable, and dismissed its {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}} quotations as later accretions. He hypothesized that a king from [[Kumaso]] sent emissaries who masqueraded as Jingū's officials to the Wei court, thus leading Wei to mistake them for representatives of Himiko. Farris states that "Motoori's usurpation hypothesis ({{transliteration|ja|gisen setsu}}) carried great weight for the next century."{{sfn|Farris|1998|p=16}}

Rather than being linked with Yamataikoku (regardless of wherever Yamataikoku was), Himiko may have been instead linked with {{nihongo|[[Nakoku]]|奴國||extra="the Na state of Wa"}} (which Tsunoda{{sfn|Tsunoda|1951|p=5}} located in near present-day [[Hakata-ku, Fukuoka|Hakata]] in northern [[Kyūshū]]), whereto was sent a golden royal seal, by [[Emperor Guangwu]] of the [[Han dynasty]]. Nakoku is said to have existed from the 1st century to the early 3rd century, and seems to have been independent or even a rival of the current [[Imperial House of Japan]], supposedly in Yamato, Honshū. Even so, both the {{transliteration|ja|Kojiki}} and {{transliteration|ja|Nihon Shoki}} recorded that the current imperial dynasty, starting with [[Jimmu]], originated from the [[Kumaso]] territory of [[Takachiho]], [[Hyūga Province]] in present-day [[Kyushu]]'s southeastern section.<ref>{{cite book |title=Kojiku |url=https://www.sacred-texts.com/shi/kj/kj051.htm |volume=II |chapter=Sect. 44 |translator-first=Basil Hall |translator-last=Chamberlain}}</ref><ref>{{citation |title=Nihon Shoki |chapter-url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Nihongi:_Chronicles_of_Japan_from_the_Earliest_Times_to_A.D._697/Book_II |chapter=Book II |year=1896 |publisher=Pub. for the Society by K. Paul, Trench, Trübner |translator-first=William George |translator-last=Aston}}</ref><ref>{{citation |title=Nihon Shoki |chapter-url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Nihongi:_Chronicles_of_Japan_from_the_Earliest_Times_to_A.D._697/Book_III |chapter=Book III |year=1896 |publisher=Pub. for the Society by K. Paul, Trench, Trübner |translator-first=William George |translator-last=Aston}}</ref> The Kumaso were also associated with {{nihongo|Kunakoku|狗奴國}}, ruled by Himiko's rival, king Himikuko.

After the [[Meiji Restoration]] in 1868, Japanese historians adopted European historical scholarship, especially the source-based methodology of [[Leopold von Ranke]]. Naka Michiyo believed the {{transliteration|ja|Nihon Shoki}} chronology was inaccurate prior to the 4th century, and thus{{sfn|Farris|1998|p=17}} "Jingū became a fourth-century queen whose reign could not possibly have coincided with Himiko's." The [[sinologist]] [[Shiratori Kurakichi]] proposed the {{transliteration|ja|Nihon Shoki}} compilers were tempted to associate Jingū with the religious powers of Himiko. [[Naitō Torajirō]] argued that Himiko was the high priestess of the Ise shrine Yamato-hime-no-mikoto and that Wa armies obtained control of southern Korea:

{{quote|One scholar [Higo Kazuo] asserted that Himiko was really Yamato-toto-momo-so-hime-no-mikoto, aunt of the legendary Emperor Sūjin on his father's side, because her supposed tomb at Hashihaka in Nara measured about a hundred paces in diameter, the measurement given for Himiko's grave. This theory gained adherents in the postwar period. Another [Shida Fudomaru] saw in Himiko an expression of women's political authority in early Japan.{{sfn|Farris|1998|p=20}}}}

Some later Japanese historians reframed Himiko in terms of [[Marxist historiography]]. Masaaki Ueda argued that "Himiko's was a [[despotic]] state with a generalized slave system" ,{{sfn|Farris|1998|p=21}} while Mitsusada Inoue idealized Yamatai as a "balance of small states" with [[communal property]] and popular political expression. Following the late 1960s "Yamatai boom", when numerous Japanese historians, linguists, and archeologists published reevaluations of Himiko and Yamatai, the debate was joined by [[Japanese nationalists]], mystery writers, and amateur scholars.
[[File:Hashihaka kohun aerial.jpg|thumb|Aerial view of the Hasihaka Kofun. Made based on [https://mapps.gsi.go.jp/maplibSearch.do#1 National Land Image Information (Color Aerial Photographs)], Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism|alt=Photo of a keyhole-shaped bunch of trees measuring several tens of meters from the left-bottom corner to the right-top corner. A road curves around the right and bottom side of the mound. The roofs of more than 20 buildings are visible to the right of the picture.]]
In Japanese historical and archeological [[periodization]], the 2nd- and 3rd-century era of Queen Himiko was between late [[Yayoi period]] and early [[Kofun period]]. {{nihongo3|"old tumulus"|古墳|[[Kofun]]}} refers to characteristic keyhole-shaped burial mounds, and the {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}} noting "a great mound was raised, more than a hundred paces in diameter" for Pimiko's tomb, may well be the earliest written record of a {{transliteration|ja|kofun}}. Several archeological excavations of Yayoi and Kofun sites in kinki region, have revealed Chinese-style bronze mirrors, called {{nihongo3|"mirror decorated with gods and animals"|神獣鏡|[[shinju-kyo]]}}. Many scholars who support the Kinki theory associate these {{transliteration|ja|shinju-kyo}} with the "one hundred bronze mirrors" that the {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}}{{sfn|Tsunoda|1951|p=15}} records Emperor Cao Rui presented to Queen Himiko, while other scholars{{sfn|Edwards|1998}}{{sfn|Edwards|1999}} oppose it. The [[Hashihaka Kofun]] in [[Sakurai, Nara]] was given a recent boost by radio-carbon dating circa 240–60.{{sfn|Japan Times|2009}} The early Chinese records of Himiko/Pimiko and her Yamatai polity remain something of a [[Rorschach test]]. To different interpreters, this early Japanese shaman queen can appear as evidence of [[Communalism (Bookchin)|communalism]] (Marxists), [[Jōmon]] priestess rulers ([[Feminist history]]), the Japanese conquest of Korea,{{sfn|Akima|1993}} the [[Mongolia]]n conquest of Japan (Namio Egami's "horserider theory" [[:ja:騎馬民族征服王朝説|(ja)]]), the imperial system originating with tandem rule by a female shaman and male monarch,{{sfn|Mori|1979}} the "[[patriarchal]] revolution" replacing female deities and priestesses with male counterparts,{{sfn|Ellwood|1990}} or a shamanic advisor to the federation of Wa chieftains who "must have looked like a ruling queen to Chinese envoys".{{sfn|Matsumoto|1983}}

== Modern depictions ==
{{in popular culture|date=May 2021}}
Depictions of Himiko in Japanese popular media take one of three archetypes: Himiko as a wise, old ruler; Himiko the cute and energetic shaman; or Himiko as a seductive sorceress.{{sfn|Miller|2018}}{{sfn|Miller|2014}} She is associated with several ritual objects including the {{transliteration|ja|dotaku}} – two large bronze bells ritually used at the end of the Yayoi period – as well as the {{transliteration|ja|[[Cleyera japonica|sakaki]]}} branch and Chinese bronze mirrors. The {{transliteration|lzh|Wei Zhi}} described Himiko's shamanism as {{transliteration|lzh|guidao}}, or Japanese {{transliteration|ja|kido}}, a type of Daoist folk religion. As such, Himiko is sometimes negatively associated with black magic or demons. Ruling in the transitional period between the [[Yayoi period|Yayoi]] and [[Kofun period|Kofun]] eras, depictions of Himiko often display her wearing clothing originating from a variety of time periods, often embodied masculine elements. A queen during the late Yayoi, Himiko likely wore a one-piece, wide-sleeved {{transliteration|ja|[[kosode]]}} under a vest and sash. She is also often depicted wearing {{transliteration|ja|[[magatama]]}} beads and a diadem. However, no one can be certain what Himiko wore.{{sfn|Miller|2014}}

=== Town mascots ===
Himiko's legend has been used to market a variety of objects.{{sfn|Miller|2018}} Various small towns seek to use Himiko as their mascot, claiming their town as her birthplace, although the archaeological evidence supports regions in the Nara basin as her capital. Yoshinogari City and [[Sakurai, Nara|Sakurai]] City in [[Nara Prefecture|Nara prefecture]] both employ images of Himiko to attract tourists, using images such as chibi Himiko-chan welcoming travelers to the region.{{sfn|Miller|2014}}

=== Manga and graphic novels ===
Himiko has appeared in various [[manga]] issues and [[comics]].
* ''[[Lord (manga)|Lord]]''
* The first volume of [[Osamu Tezuka]]'s ''[[Phoenix (manga)|Phoenix]]''
* The cover of [[Kamui Fujiwara|Fujiwara Kamui's]] {{transliteration|ja|Himiko: Shūkan manga Nihonshi}}{{sfn|Miller|2014}}
* [[Gakken]]'s manga {{transliteration|ja|Nihon no Rekishi}} by Ōishi Manabu, Takano Kazuhiro, and Himekawa Akira{{sfn|Miller|2014}}
* ''[[Afterschool Charisma]]'' by Kumiko Suekane
* ''[[The War of Greedy Witches]]'' by [[Homura Kawamoto]], where she is revealed to actually be Yogi who killed and replaced the real Himiko
* [[Dark Horse Comics]]' [[Tomb Raider (comics)|2014 ''Tomb Raider'' comic series]] set after the events of the game, Himiko returns to the plot for a few issues

=== Anime and video games ===
Himiko is a character who appears occasionally in [[anime]] and [[video game]]s.

* Himiko appears in the anime ''[[Steel Jeeg]]'', a [[Go Nagai]] series from the 1970s.
* The anime series and [[PlayStation (console)|PlayStation]] game ''[[Legend of Himiko]]'' features time travel between ancient Yamatai and modern Japan, with Himiko eventually helping to save Yamatai.
* Himiko is one of the supporting characters in the video game {{transliteration|ja|[[Ōkami]]}}, a game which draws on many Japanese folktales and myths to tell the story of the white wolf Amaterasu and her quest to free Japan from darkness. 
* Himiko is in the [[Tomb Raider (2013 video game)|2013 ''Tomb Raider'' reboot]] as a [[plot device]].
* Himiko appears in the mobile game ''[[Fate/Grand Order]]'' as a limited 5-Star Ruler-class Servant. She debuted during the Super Ancient Shinsengumi History GUDAGUDA Yamatai-koku 2020 event.
* In the Heroes & Legends mode of ''[[Civilization VI|Sid Meier's Civilization VI]]'', Himiko is a recruitable Hero.
* In ''[[Warriors Orochi 2]]'', her character befriends [[Daji|Da Ji]]. She also appears in ''[[Musou Orochi Z]]'', ''[[Warriors Orochi 3]]'', and ''[[Warriors Orochi 4]]''.
* In the music/rhythm game ''[[Beatmania IIDX 16: Empress]]'', the "One More Extra Stage" final boss song of the Empress Place event is named after Himiko, in which an interpretation of her likeness is also displayed.
* In ''[[Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4]]'', she is [[List of Persona 4 characters#Rise Kujikawa|Rise Kujikawa]]'s persona.
* In ''[[Might & Magic Heroes VI]]'', Himiko is a corrupt [[Nāga|Naga]] priestess.
* In ''[[Meow Meow Japanese History]]'', Himiko is featured in the first episode.
* In ''[[Civilization VII|Sid Meier's Civilization VII]]'', Himiko is a playable leader.

=== Cinema ===
* In the [[Tomb Raider (film)|2018 ''Tomb Raider'' film]] directed by [[Roar Uthaug]] (which was adapted from the 2013 video game of the same name), Himiko is at the heart of the plot.
* Japanese film director [[Masahiro Shinoda]] directed a film about Himiko, called ''[[Himiko (film)|Himiko]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=ジョルダン |title=卑弥呼の上映スケジュール・映画情報 |url=https://movie.jorudan.co.jp/film/18203/ |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=映画の時間 |language=ja}}</ref>

=== Sales ===
[[Sanrio]] has created a Himiko-inspired [[keychain]].{{sfn|Miller|2014}}

Researcher Laura Miller recounts eating a dish named for Himiko at Shinobuan Cafe in [[Moriyama, Shiga|Moriyama]] City, where the name apparently gave rise to the popularity of the dish.{{sfn|Miller|2018}}

=== Himiko contests ===
Queen Himiko contests take place in small towns offering cash prizes to women over the age of eighteen on the basis of charm and appearance. One of the earliest of these contests began in Yamatokoriyama in Nara. One such contest, Himikon, takes place in Moriyama City. [[Asakura, Fukuoka|Asakura]] in Kyushu also holds a Himiko contest during its annual [[Yamataikoku]] Festival of Flowers.{{sfn|Miller|2014}}

== Namesake ==
The [[proper name]] Himiko has been diversely applied, not only in Japanese society but also in other realms such as [[astronomy]]. {{nihongo|Himiko|卑弥呼}} is a train on the [[Amagi Railway Amagi Line]] and a [[water bus]] of [[Tokyo Cruise Ship]] designed by [[Leiji Matsumoto]].{{sfn|Miller|2014}}

The name [[Himiko (Lyman-alpha blob)|Himiko]] was given to a [[Lyman-alpha blob]] (a massive concentration of hydrogen gas believed to be a [[protogalaxy]]) that was discovered in 2009. Massing close to 40 billion suns and located 12.9 billion [[light years]] from Earth in the constellation [[Cetus (constellation)|Cetus]], as of 2014 it is the largest and most distant known example of its kind.<ref>{{Cite web |author1=Jeremy Hsu |date=2009-04-22 |title=Giant Mystery Blob Discovered Near Dawn of Time |url=https://www.space.com/6609-giant-mystery-blob-discovered-dawn-time.html |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=Space |language=en}}</ref>

The one million dollar filly  of 2015 [[Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States)|American Triple Crown]] winner [[American Pharoah]] and Untouched Talent (mother of 2012 [[Kentucky Derby]] second [[Bodemeister]]) was named Himiko.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/thoroughbred/himiko/2017 |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=www.bloodhorse.com}}</ref>

<gallery widths="200px" heights="160px">
Image:Train_of_Amagi_Railway_stopping_at_Amagi_Station.JPG|An [[Amagi Railway]] train, ''Himiko'', at [[Kiyama Station (Saga)|Kiyama Station]]
Image:隅田川_ヒミコ_Water_Bus_-_panoramio.jpg|A water bus taxi in [[Tokyo Bay]] named ''Himiko''
</gallery>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Ancient Japan}}
* [[Empress Jingu]]
* [[List of female castellans in Japan]]
* {{transliteration|ja|[[Onna-musha]]}}

== Explanatory notes ==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

=== Citations ===
* {{Cite journal |last=Akima |first=Toshio |year=1993 |publisher=Nanzan University |title=The Myth of the Goddess of the Undersea World and the Tale of Empress Jingū's Subjugation of Silla |journal=Japanese Journal of Religious Studies |volume=20 |issue=2 |pages=95–185 |doi = 10.18874/jjrs.20.2-3.1993.95-185|doi-access=free }}
* {{Cite news |url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nn20090530a4.html |title=Himiko tomb in Nara: Group experts date site to reign of fabled queen |newspaper=[[The Japan Times]] |date=May 20, 2009 |agency=Kyodo News |ref={{Harvid|Japan Times|2009}}}}
* {{cite book |translator=William G. Aston |translator-link=William George Aston |year=1972 |orig-year=1924 |title=Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to AD 697 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1IJrNAKBpycC|volume=2 vols |publisher=Charles E Tuttle |edition=Reprint |isbn=9780524053478|ref={{sfnref|Aston|1924}}}}
* {{cite journal |last=Bentley |first=John R. |year = 2008 |title=The Search of the Language of Yamatai |journal=Japanese Language and Literature |volume=42 |issue=1 |pages=1–43 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/272826563}}
* {{cite book |ref={{harvid|Chamberlain|1919}} |translator=Basil Hall Chamberlain |orig-year=1919 |url=http://www.sacred-texts.com/shi/kj/ |title=The Kojiki, Records of Ancient Matters |publisher=Charles E Tuttle |year=2005}}
* {{cite journal |last=Edwards |first=Walter |year=1998 |url=http://www.archaeology.org/9805/newsbriefs/japan.html |title=Mirrors to Japanese History |journal=Archeology |volume=51 |issue=3}}
* {{cite journal |last=Edwards |first=Walter |year=1999 |author-mask=3 |title=Mirrors on Ancient Yamato: The Kurozuka Kofun Discovery and the Question of Yamatai |journal=Monumenta Nipponica |volume=54 |issue=1 |pages=75–110 |doi=10.2307/2668274 |jstor=2668274}}
* {{cite journal |last=Ellwood |first=Robert S |year=1990 |title=The Sujin Religious Revolution |journal= Japanese Journal of Religious Studies |publisher=Nanzan University |volume=17 |issue=3 |pages=199–217 |doi=10.18874/jjrs.17.2-3.1990.199-217 |doi-access=free }}
* {{cite news |last = Farris |first=William Wayne |year=1998 |title=Sacred Texts and Buried Treasures: Issues in the Historical Archaeology of Ancient Japan |newspaper=Monumenta Nipponica |volume=54 |issue=1 |pages=123–26}}.
* {{citation |last=Hideyuki |first=Shindoa |title=''「卑弥呼の殺人」角川春樹事務所'' |year=2005 |language=Japanese}}
* {{citation |last=Hong |first=Wontack |year=1994 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070601160409/http://gias.snu.ac.kr/wthong/publication/paekche/eng/paekch_e.html |archive-date=June 1, 2007 |url=http://gias.snu.ac.kr/wthong/publication/paekche/eng/paekch_e.html |title=Peakche of Korea and the Origin of Yamato Japan |publisher=Kudara International}}
* {{cite book |last=Hori |first=Ichiro |year=1968 |title=Folk Religion in Japan: Continuity and Change |publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]]}}
* {{cite book |last=Imamura |first=Keiji |year=1996 |title=Prehistoric Japan: New Perspectives on Insular East Asia |publisher=University of Hawai’i Press}}
* {{cite book |last=Kidder |first=Jonathan Edward |year=2007 |title=Himiko and Japan's Elusive Chiefdom of Yamatai |publisher=University of Hawai’i Press}}
* {{cite journal |last=Matsumoto |first=Seichō |year=1983 |title=Japan in the Third Century |journal=Japan Quarterly |volume=30 |issue=4 |pages = 377–82}}
* {{cite journal |last=Miller |first=Laura |year=2014 |title=Rebranding Himiko, the Shaman Queen of Ancient History |journal=Mechademia: An Annual Forum for Anime, Manga, and the Fan Arts |issue=#9: ''Origins'' |location=Minneapoolis, MN |publisher=University of Minnesota Press |pages=179–198 |url=https://www.academia.edu/11050788}}
* {{cite book |last=Miller |first=Laura |year=2018 |chapter=Searching for Charisma Queen Himiko |title=Diva Nation: Female Icons from Japanese Cultural History |editor1-first=Laura |editor1-last=Miller |editor2-first=Rebecca |editor2-last=Copeland |pages=51–79 |location=Berkeley |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=9780520297739 |url=https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520297739/diva-nation}}
* {{cite book |last=Miller |first=Roy Andrew |year=1967 |title=The Japanese Language |publisher=University of Chicago Press}}
* {{cite journal |last=Mori |first=Kōichi |year=1979 |url=https://nirc.nanzan-u.ac.jp/nfile/2197 |format=PDF |title=The Emperor of Japan: A Historical Study in Religious Symbolism |publisher=Nanzan University |journal=Japanese Journal of Religious Studies |volume=6 |issue=4 |pages=522–65|doi=10.18874/jjrs.6.4.1979.522-565 |doi-access=free }}
* {{cite book |last=Saeki |first=Arikiyo |title=Sangokushiki [[Wajinden]], Chōsen Seishi Nihonden |volume=1 |publisher=Iwanami Shoten |year=1988 |location=Tōkyō |language=ja |isbn = 4-00-334471-5}}
* {{Cite book |ref={{harvid|Tsunoda|1951}} |translator-last=Tsunoda |translator-first=Ryusaku |year=1951 |title=Japan in the Chinese Dynastic Histories: Later Han Through Ming Dynasties |editor-last=Goodrich |editor-first=Carrington C |place=South Pasadena |publisher = PD and Ione Perkins}}

==External links==
{{Commonscatinline}}
* [http://secure.britannica.com/eb/article-9040496/Himiko Himiko], Britannica Online Encyclopedia
* Miller, Laura. 2014. [https://www.academia.edu/11050788/Rebranding_Himiko "Rebranding Himiko, the Shaman Queen of Ancient History"]. In ''Mechademia: An Annual Forum for Anime, Manga, and the Fan Arts'': Issue #9: ''Origins''. Minneapoolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press, 179-198.
* [https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520297739/diva-nation Miller, Laura. 2018. "Searching for Charisma Queen Himiko." In ''Diva Nation: Female Icons from Japanese Cultural History'', edited by Laura Miller and Rebecca Copeland, 51-79. Berkeley: University of California Press.]
* [http://www.trussel.com/prehist/news186.htm Nara tomb discovery may stir debate over site of Queen Himiko's realm], ''The Japan Times'', March 29, 2000
* [http://www.guide2womenleaders.com/japan_heads.htm Japan Heads of State], Worldwide Guide to Women in Leadership
* [http://www.hgeo.h.kyoto-u.ac.jp/soramitsu/southeastKofun.html The Earliest Kofuns in the Southeastern Part of the Nara Basin] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170303081550/http://www.hgeo.h.kyoto-u.ac.jp/soramitsu/southeastKofun.html |date=2017-03-03 }}, Noboru Ogata
* [http://www.kanku-city.or.jp/yayoi/jousetsu/info_josetsu.html#root4 Model of Himiko's Palace], Osaka Prefectural Museum of Yayoi Culture {{in lang|ja}}
* ''[[Yomiuri Shimbun]]'': [http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20080628TDY01306.htm "Himikio -- 90% name recognition amongst primary school students in Japan"], 2008. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514045419/http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20080628TDY01306.htm |date=2013-05-14 }}

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[[Category:248 deaths]]
[[Category:Ancient Japanese priestesses]]
[[Category:Aristocracy of ancient Japan]]
[[Category:People of the Yayoi period]]
[[Category:3rd-century women monarchs]]
[[Category:175 births]]
[[Category:Shamanism in Japan]]
[[Category:Japanese women in warfare]]
[[Category:Women in ancient warfare]]
[[Category:Yamatai queens]]
[[Category:Wajinden]]
[[Category:Asian people whose existence is disputed]]