Sho Kei

Japanese: 尚敬 - しょう・けい

Year of death: 29 January 1751 (24 February 1751)
Year of birth: Naosada 32.6.19 (1700.8.3)
He was the 13th king of the Second Sho Dynasty of the Ryukyu Kingdom in the first half of the 18th century. He reigned for 39 years (1713-51). In the 7th year of Sho Kei (1719), he was officially confirmed as the king of the Ryukyu Kingdom by the investiture envoys (chief envoy Kaiho and vice envoy Xu Baoguang) sent by the Chinese (Qing Dynasty) emperor. He favored Saion and worked to promote the kingdom in politics, economy, and culture, and his reign was full of vitality. His reign was a period of cultural prosperity that has been described as the Ryukyu Renaissance, and talented people emerged in various fields, including history compilation projects (such as the Ryukyu Kingdom Origin Record), scholarship, literature, art, crafts, and performing arts. In particular, he was active in the performing arts, as represented by Tamagusuku Chokun, and the foundations of Ryukyu classical performing arts such as shamisen music, dance, and theater were established during this period. He loved scholarship and the arts, and was a man who acquired a foundation in Confucianism. Behind the prosperity of the culture were the reform of local administration and the promotion of industry, and he is highly regarded as one of the great kings of the country. The record of his experiences, "Chunzan Denshinroku," written by Jo Baoguang, was widely read in early modern Japan as an introductory book on the Ryukyu Islands.

(Takara Kurayoshi)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

没年：尚敬39.1.29(1751.2.24)
生年：尚貞32.6.19(1700.8.3)
18世紀前半,琉球王国の第二尚氏王朝13代の王。在位39年(1713～51)。尚敬7(1719)年,中国(清朝)皇帝の派遣した冊封使(正使海宝,副使徐葆光)により琉球国王としての地位を公式に安堵された。蔡温を重用し,政治,経済,文化の各面で王国の振興に努め,活気あふれる治世であった。その治世は琉球のルネサンスと形容されるほどに文運が隆盛した時期で,歴史編集事業(『琉球国由来記』など)をはじめ学問,文学,美術,工芸,芸能などの各分野に逸材が輩出した。特に,玉城朝薫に代表される芸能分野は活発で,三味線音楽,舞踊,演劇などの琉球古典芸能の基礎はこの時代に確立した。学問や芸術を愛し,儒教的な基礎を身につけた人物であった。これら文運隆盛の背景には地方行政の刷新や産業の振興があり,歴代国王のなかでも名君の誉れが高い。徐葆光が著した見聞記『中山伝信録』は,琉球に関する入門書として近世日本でも広く読まれた。<参考文献>田名真之『近世沖縄史の諸相』

(高良倉吉)

出典　朝日日本歴史人物事典：（株）朝日新聞出版朝日日本歴史人物事典について　情報

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