Posthumous title

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Posthumous title
Chinese name
Long characters 諡 號 / 謚 號
Abbreviation 谥 号
- Pinyin (Mandarin) shì hào
Vietnamese name
Quốc ngữ thụy hiệu
Hán tự 諡 號
Korean name
Hangeul 시호
Hanja 諡 號
- Revised
Romanization
siho
Japanese name
Kanji 諡 号
Kana し ご う / お く り な
- Rōmaji shigō / tsuigō

In some cultures, members of the ruling house are given a posthumous title after their death . Most of the monarchs of China , Korea and Vietnam and all Japanese emperors are commonly referred to by their posthumous title. Posthumous titles were also awarded in China and Vietnam to honor the life's work of non-noble people, for example that of successful statesmen or spiritual leaders.

Chinese emperors

The custom of conferring posthumous titles has its origins in the Chinese Zhou dynasty and is 800 years older than the use of temple names . The first person to receive a posthumous title was Ji Chang ( 姬昌 ), whom his son Ji Fa ( 姬发 ) of Zhou bestowed the title of "polite and decent king" ( Chinese  文王 ). The use of posthumous titles disappeared under the Qin Dynasty , because Emperor Shihuang proclaimed it disrespectful for "later emperors" ( 嗣 皇帝 ) to judge their ancestors ("former emperors"; 先帝 ). After the fall of the Qin Dynasty, the use of posthumous titles was resumed under the Han Dynasty .

The posthumous titles of all Chinese rulers begin with the character of the name of the respective dynasty and end with the two characters 皇帝 ( Huáng Dì ), which can be shortened to 帝 ( ). A few rulers also received posthumous titles without the addition 皇 ( Huáng ).

As of Emperor Xiaohui von Han , the titles of almost all emperors of China bore the sign 孝 ( Xiào ) after the dynasty sign . It denotes a child's devotion to a father, and the will and effort to continue the father's work in the best possible way. After the Han Dynasty , the Tang , Song , Ming and Qing Dynasties practiced this practice. The emperors of the Qing Dynasty also put the mark in other places in the posthumous title.

Over time, the number of signs in posthumous titles increased. For the emperors of the Tang Dynasty, the titles had seven to 18 characters, for the Qing emperors 21. For example, the full posthumous title of the emperor Shunzhi is “The emperor of order, who solemnly pursues the heavenly customs, who destroys it is to unite [the kingdom], established with highly gifted insights, admires the arts, fortifies power, [is] blessed with great virtue and mighty deeds, strives for humanity, [is] of pure childlike, fatherly mind ” (體 天 隆 運 定 統 建 極 英 睿 欽 文 顯 武大德 弘 功 至仁 純孝 章 皇帝, audio file for pronunciation ? / I : tǐ tiān lóng yùn dìng tǒng jiàn jí yīng ruì qīn wén xiǎn wì rà dōng zón xiào zhāng huáng dì). Audio file / audio sample

Among the women, the Empress Mother Cixi received the longest posthumous title: “The Empress, who is of admirable filial fidelity and fatherly love, proceeds from kindness, with blessed health, affirms satisfaction and worthy sincerity unparalleled, is long-lived, deserves growing and blossoming admiration, undisguised veneration, flourish under a blessed sky, as a holy apparition ”( Chinese  孝 欽 慈禧 端 佑康 頤 昭 豫 庄 誠 壽 恭 欽 獻 崇 熙 配 天 興 聖 聖 顯 皇后 , Pinyin xiào qīn cí xǐāuān yòu khéng yù zhò zhòng yù gōng qīn xiàn chóng xī pèi tiān xīng shèng xiǎn huáng hòu ).

Posthumous titles could be praise ( 褒 字 ) or devaluation ( 贬 字 ). Because there are more variants of praise than derogatory ones, the posthumous titles in Chinese also become “respectful names” ( Chinese  尊号 , pinyin zūn hào ). The rules for choosing a title are detailed in Sima Qian's Notes of the Great Historian . Some guidelines:

  • praise
    • Rulers with a stable and sensible government ( 刚强 理 直 ) are given the title “warlike” ( ). (This is one of the highest honors.)
    • Rulers who were very fond of the people and who paid attention to their needs ( 愍 民 惠 礼 ) are called "close to the people" ( wén ). (This is one of the highest honors.)
    • Rulers who promote the gifted and value righteousness ( 尊贤 贵 义 ) are called "reverent" ( gòng ).
    • Rulers of kind and benevolent nature ( 温柔 圣 善 ) are called "benign" ( ).
    • Rulers who stand by the people out of righteousness ( 由 义 而 济 ) are called "admirable" ( jǐng ).
    • Rulers who treat the people kindly out of compassion ( 柔 质 慈 民 ) are called "compassionate" ( huì ).
    • Rulers who remove threats and suppress cruelty ( 除 残 去 虐 ) are called "Tāng" ( ). (This title may come from the famous King Chengtang ( 成汤 ), the founder of the Shang Dynasty .)
    • Rulers under whose government the people are very satisfied ( 安民 立 政 ) are called "constructive" ( chéng ). (Presumably this title is also related to King Chengtang.)
    • Thoughtful and far-sighted rulers ( 思虑 果 远 ) are called "brilliant" ( míng ).
    • Rulers who proclaim their virtue and righteousness to the people ( 布德 执 义 ) are called "majestic" ( ).
    • Rulers who aggressively enlarge their empire ( 辟 土 服 远 ) are called “explorers” ( huán ).
    • The special title Gāo ( ) is reserved for the founders of dynasties .
  • devaluation
    • Short-lived rulers without great achievements (短 折 不成) receive the title "passed away at an immature age" ( shāng ).
    • Rulers with chronic depression (often in political distress) ( 在 国 连 忧 ) are called "pitiful" ( mǐn ).
    • Rulers who die early because of fragile health ( 蚤 孤 短 折 ) are called "deplorable" ( āi ).
    • Rulers who give themselves especially to the sacrifices for their ancestors ( 肆行 劳 祀 ) are called “mournful” ( dào ).

All in all, these titles have been given subjectively, repeatedly, and very stereotypically , especially since they are in some ways given arbitrarily. Usually they were awarded by court historians according to the pattern of good or bad deeds. In China, the process of conferring posthumous titles is referred to as "retrospective posthumous naming" ( Chinese  追 谥 ).

Japanese emperors

The posthumous titles of the Tennō (Japanese emperors) are called teigō ( Japanese 帝 号 , German "imperial title"). In addition to the salutation suffix -tennō ( 天皇 , English "heavenly ruler"), which is part of every posthumous title of the Tennō, they consist of two kanji , some of three. Some Tennō receive their title generations later - for example the Tennō Jimmu and Antoku . Others receive it immediately after their death, such as Mommu -tennō.

Some tennō have Chinese titles:

  • Jimmu ( 神 武天皇 , Jimmu-tennō , dt. "Divine power")
  • Nintoku ( 仁 徳 天皇 , Nintoku-tennō , dt. "Philanthropic virtue")
  • Ōjin ( 応 神 天皇 , Ōjin-tennō , dt. "Who answers the gods")

Some tennō have Japanese titles:

  • according to place of birth or residence:
    • Saga ( 嵯峨 天皇 , Saga-tennō ), named after a palace ( , in )
    • Ichijō ( 一条 天皇 , Ichijō-tennō ), named after an official residence ( , tei )
    • Komyo ( 光明天皇 , Komyo-tennō ), for a temple named
    • Higashiyama ( 東山天皇 , Higashiyama-tennō ), after a hill named
  • for admirable character traits that stem from a predecessor; to do this, Go ( , "the latter") is added as a prefix to the respective predecessor:
    • Go-Ichijō ( 後 一条 天皇 , Go-Ichijō-tennō )
    • Go-Daigo ( 後 醍醐 天皇 , Go-Daigo-tennō )
    • Go-Sakuramachi ( 後 桜 町 天皇 , Go-Sakuramachi-tennō )
  • after a combination of the posthumous titles of two previous Tennō:
    • Gem mei ( 元 明天 皇 , Gemmei-tennō ) + Gen shō ( 元 正 天皇 , Genshō-tennō ) = Meishō ( 明 正 天皇 , Meishō-tennō )
    • Shō toku (称 徳 天皇 , Shōtoku-tennō ) + nin (光 仁 天皇 , Kōnin-tennō ) = Shōkō (称 光 天皇 , Shōkō-tennō )

Korean kings and emperors

Although the kings and emperors of Korea had elaborate posthumous titles, they are best known today by their temple names .

Other posthumous titles

In China, Vietnam and Korea it was sometimes customary to give posthumous titles to outstanding personalities, even if they were not related to the ruling house.

Often times the direct ancestors of the first emperor of a dynasty also received posthumous titles, even if these ancestors were not crowned heads at the time.

  • Cao Cao , Prince of Wei and the last Chancellor of the Han Dynasty , established the power of the Wei Dynasty , which was founded by his son Cao Pi . By this Cao Cao was posthumously appointed Emperor Wu of Wei ( Chinese  魏武帝 ).
  • Sima Zhao , Prince of Jin and regent of the Wei Dynasty at the time of the Three Kingdoms , was the father of the first Jin Emperor Sima Yan ( Emperor Wu of Jin ). Although he was never emperor himself, Sima Zhao received the posthumous title of Emperor Wen from Jin . His father Sima Yi also received a posthumous title, Emperor Xuan of Jin , and Gaozu as the temple name.

An unusual case of this use of posthumous titles is Laozi. The Li family of the Tang Dynasty regarded him as their progenitor and bestowed him the posthumous title of Emperor of Xuanyuan .

See also

Sources and literature

  • Yizhoushu ( 逸 周 書 ), Chapter 54 (Meanings of Posthumous Titles)

Web links