Heian period

Nippon Nippon (日本)
794–1185
Capital	Heian-kyō
Official languages	Japanese
Common languages	Early Middle Japanese
Religion	Buddhism Shinto
Government	Feudal monarchy
Emperor
• 781–806	Kanmu
• 1180-1185	Antoku
History
• Capital moved to Heian-kyō	794
• Fujiwara clan rule starts	858
• The Tale of Genji is written	1000-1008
• Fujiwara clan overthrown	1068
• Taira no Kiyomori seizes power	1156
• Minamoto clan wins Genpei War	1185
Preceded by Succeeded by Nara period Kamakura shogunate Kamakura period

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History of Japan
Prehistoric Paleolithic 35,000–14,000 BC Jōmon 14,000–1000 BC Yayoi 1000 BC–300 AD
Ancient Kofun 300–538 AD
Classical Asuka 538–710 Nara 710–794 Heian Former Nine Years' War Later Three-Year War Genpei War 794–1185
Feudal Kamakura Jōkyū War Mongol invasions Genkō War Kenmu Restoration 1185–1333 Muromachi Nanboku-chō period Sengoku period 1336–1573 Azuchi–Momoyama Nanban trade Imjin War Battle of Sekigahara 1573–1603
Early modern Edo (Tokugawa) Tokugawa shogunate Invasion of Ryukyu Siege of Osaka Sakoku Perry Expedition Convention of Kanagawa Bakumatsu Meiji Restoration Boshin War 1603–1868
Modern Meiji Ryūkyū Disposition Invasion of Taiwan (1874) Satsuma Rebellion First Sino-Japanese War Treaty of Shimonoseki Triple Intervention Invasion of Taiwan (1895) Colonization of Taiwan Boxer Rebellion Russo-Japanese War Treaty of Portsmouth Japan–Korea Treaty Colonization of Korea 1868–1912 Taishō World War I Intervention in Siberia Great Kantō earthquake 1912–1926 Shōwa Militarism Financial crisis Nanking incident Mukden Incident Invasion of Manchuria May 15 incident February 26 incident Anti-Comintern Pact Tripartite Pact Second Sino-Japanese War World War II Attack on Pearl Harbor Pacific War Atomic bombings Soviet–Japanese War Surrender of Japan Occupation of Japan Postwar Japan Anpo protests Economic miracle Asset price bubble 1926–1989 Heisei Lost Decades Great Hanshin earthquake Cool Japan Tōhoku earthquake Imperial transition 1989–2019 Reiwa COVID-19 pandemic Abe assassination Noto earthquake 2019–present
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The Heian period (平安時代, Heian jidai) is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185.^[1] It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). Heian (平安) means 'peace' in Japanese. It is a period in Japanese history when the Chinese influences were in decline and the national culture matured. The Heian period is also considered the peak of the Japanese imperial court, noted for its art, especially poetry and literature. Two syllabaries unique to Japan, katakana and hiragana, emerged during this time. This gave rise to Japan's famous vernacular literature, with many of its texts written by court ladies who were not as educated in Chinese as their male counterparts.

Although the Imperial House of Japan had power on the surface, the real power was in the hands of the Fujiwara clan, a powerful aristocratic family who had intermarried with the imperial family; most Emperors of the Heian era had mothers from the Fujiwara family.^[2] The economy mostly existed through barter and trade due to the lack of a national currency, while the shōen system encouraged the growth of aristocratic estates that began gradually asserting their independence from Imperial control. Despite a lack of serious warfare or domestic strife during the Heian era, crime and banditry were widespread as the Emperors failed to police the country effectively.