Emperor Seimu (成務天皇, Seimu-tennō); also known as Wakatarashihiko no Sumeramikoto; was the 13th emperor of Japan,[1] according to the traditional order of succession.[2]
No firm dates can be assigned to this emperor's life or reign, but he is conventionally considered to have reigned from 131 to 191 [3]
Legendary narrative
Seimu is regarded by historians as a "legendary emperor" because of the paucity of information about him, which does not necessarily imply that no such person ever existed. The name Seimu Tennō was assigned to him posthumously by later generations.
There is insufficient material available for further verification and study. If Seimu did exist, there is no evidence to suggest that the title tennō was used during the time period to which his reign has been assigned. It is much more likely that he was a chieftain, or local clan leader, and the polity he ruled would have only encompassed a small portion of modern day Japan.[4]
Memorial Shinto shrine and mausoleum honoring Emperor Seimu.
The actual site of Seimu's grave is not known.[1] This emperor is traditionally venerated at a memorialShintoshrine (misasagi) at Nara.
