What does the Mitsudomoe symbol mean?
The mitsudomoe (三つ巴) is a common design of three swirls or three magatama and is seen on Japanese family crests (see below) and on roof tiles on traditional Japanese homes, Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. The mitsudomoe became to be associated with Hachiman, the Shinto god of war and later with the samurai.
What does the three Tomoe mean?
Tomoe, (巴 or 鞆絵, とも) is a Japanese symbol that is widely accepted as the symbol of Shinto. ‘ Tomoe’ can roughly be translated as ‘comma’, with mitsu-tomoe meaning ‘three commas’. The mitsu-domoe is the version usually used as a symbol in Shinto, with three being a sacred number.
What magatama means?
The Magatama represents the overlapping shapes of the sun and the moon, symbolizing people’s worship of the great universe. There are also many other theories for the shape.
What is my Japanese family crest?
The term “Kamon” refers to a crest used in Japan to indicate one’s origins; that is, one’s family lineage, blood line, ancestry and status from ancient times. It is also referred to simply as “Mondokoro” or “Mon”. It is said that there are more than 20,000 distinct individual Kamon in Japan.
What was the origin of the mitsudomoe pattern?
N. Gordon Munro argued that the basis for the mitsudomoe pattern, a motif found also among the Ainu, was the eastern European and western Asian figure of the triskelion, which he believed lay behind the Chinese three-legged crow design, and, in his view, its reflex in the mythical Japanese crow, the Yatagarasu (八咫烏).
When was the mitsudomoe adopted as the royal crest?
American historian George H. Kerr claims that King Shō Toku adopted the mitsudomoe as the crest of the royal house after his successful invasion of Kikai Island in 1465. ( Kerr 2011, p. 101) The Second Shō dynasty, who ruled the Ryukyu Kingdom from 1470 to 1879, adopted the mitsudomoe as its family crest.
Is the mitsudomoe related to the god of war?
The mitsudomoe is closely associated with Shinto shrines, in particular those dedicated to Hachiman, the god of war and archery. Hachiman in Shinto cosmology and ritual, as for example at Hakozaki Shrine, is repeatedly connected with the number three.
Who was the first king to use the mitsudomoe?
Fragmentary sources suggest that the First Shō dynasty, who founded the Ryukyu Kingdom, used the symbol if not as their family crest. American historian George H. Kerr claims that King Shō Toku adopted the mitsudomoe as the crest of the royal house after his successful invasion of Kikai Island in 1465.