Back تايرا (عشيرة) Arabic Klann Taira Breton Clan Taira Catalan Taira German Clan Taira Spanish Taira klana Basque خاندان تایرا Persian Taira-klaani Finnish Clan Taira French שבט טאירה HE
| Taira 平氏 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Home province | Hitachi Province, Ise Province |
| Parent house | Imperial House of Japan (Emperor Kanmu) |
| Titles | Various |
| Founder | Taira no Takamochi |
| Final ruler | Taira no Munemori |
| Founding year | c. 825 |
| Cadet branches | Hōjō Chiba Miura Nagao Uchima Tajiri Hatakeyama Oda Tanegashima others |
The Taira (平) was one of the four most important clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian period of Japanese history – the others being the Minamoto, the Fujiwara, and the Tachibana.[1] The clan is divided into four major groups, named after the emperors they descended from: Kanmu Heishi, Ninmyō Heishi, Montoku Heishi, and Kōkō Heishi,[2] the most influential of which was the Kanmu Heishi line.
In the twilight of the Heian period, the Taira controlled the boy emperor Antoku (himself the grandson of the powerful Kugyō Taira no Kiyomori) and had effectively dominated the Imperial capital of Heian. However, they were opposed by their rivals the Minamoto clan (the Genji), which culminated in the Genpei War (1180–1185 AD). The five-year-long war concluded with a decisive Taira defeat in the naval Battle of Dan-no-Ura, which resulted in the deaths of Antoku and Taira leaders. Following the war, the victorious Minamoto established Japan's first shogunate in Kamakura. The name "Genpei" comes from alternate readings of the kanji "Minamoto" (源 Gen) and "Taira" (平 Hei).
The clan is commonly referred to as Heishi (平氏, "Taira clan") or Heike (平家, "House of Taira"), using the character's On'yomi hei (平) for Taira, while shi (氏) means "clan", and ke (家) is used as a suffix for "extended family".[3] The clan is the namesake of The Tale of the Heike, an epic account of the Genpei War.
- ^ Gibney, Frank (1984). Britannica International Encyclopedia. TBS-Britannica. Shisei: "Heishi". OCLC 47462068.
- ^ Sekai Daihyakka Jiten. Japan: Heibonsha. 1972. Heishi. OCLC 38097358.
- ^ Lebra, Takie Sugiyama (1995). Above the Clouds: Status Culture of the Modern Japanese Nobility. University of California Press, p. 72. ISBN 9780520076020.