A Brief Genji Character List and Glossary
This list is designed to help readers keep track of the characters in
The Tale of Genji by Lady Murasaki Shikibu in the English
translations by Arthur Waley (1933), Edward G.
Seidensticker (1976), and Royall Tyler (2001).
There are frequent differences, since the author follows the custom of her
time in referring to individuals indirectly, by nicknames or titles.
For another net list, see
http://www.meijigakuin.ac.jp/~pmjs/resources/genji/genji-chart-names.html.
For a summary of all 54 chapters, see
http://www.taleofmurasaki.com/taleofgenjipage.htm. Also worth looking
at is http://www.taleofgenji.org/, a site
with many useful Genji resources. This list also
draws on material in Ivan Morris, The World of the Shining Prince
(1964), and William J. Puette, The Tale of Genji: A Reader's
Guide (1983). Lisa Dalby, the author of Geisha, has
written
a novel about the work's author, The Tale of Murasaki (2000),
weaving
together material from the novel, from Murasaki's diary (also available in
translation), and a more general imaginative recreation of the period.
Agemaki Name used in Waley translation for Oigimi, the eldest daughter of the Eighth
Prince (known in Waley as Prince Hachi).
Akashi (ah-kah-shee) A seaside village which
gives its title to chapter 13. It is about 5 miles from Suma where Genji begins his exile before moving to
Akashi.
Akashi, Lady of Daughter of a former provincial
governor turned priest, she becomes one of Genji's secondary wives. Her
daughter is adopted by Murasaki and eventually
becomes empress, giving birth to Prince Niou, one of
the chief figures in the last ten chapters.
Akikonomu
(ah-kee-koh-noh-moo) She is the daughter of Prince Zembo and the Lady of Rokujo.
She is entrusted to Genji by her dying mother, and he raises her as his
ward, though he is attracted to her himself. She serves as high priestess
of the Ise
shrine and later as the principal wife and empress of the Reizei emperor.
Aoi (ah-oy)Genji's first principal wife, married to him when
he is 12 and she is four years older. Not surprisingly, she finds him
childish, and their relations remain uncomfortable until her death. She
is the only daughter of the Minister of the
Left at the opening of the novel, and their marriage is meant to
cement her father's close relations with the imperial family. Like her
brother, Genji's friend To no Chujo, she is his child by his principal wife,
Princess Omiya. She
is the mother of Yugiri. Her death is attributed to the jealous
spirit of the Lady of Rokujo
Asagao, Princess (ah-sah-gah-oh) Named for a
flower ("morning glory" in Seidensticker, "bluebell" in Tyler). Daughter
of Prince Momozono, who was a brother of Genji's father. She is thus his
first cousin. He pursues her from time to time, but without success.
Chujo (choo-joh)The name means "captain."
Several female attendants bear this name, probably taken from their
fathers' rank.
-- One is the servant of the wife of the Governor of Iyo in chapter
2,
Utsemi.
-- In chapter 3,
another seems to be a lady-in-waiting of the Lady of
Rokujo; leaving her mistress, Genji makes advances toward her, which
she wards off gracefully.
Chunagon (choo-nah-gohn) A series of ladies
in waiting bear this name. In chapter 7, a Chunagon is mentioned as an
attendent of Lady Aoi, and he sleeps with her in Chapter 12. In
that chapter, the same or another Chunagon serves as Genji's intermediary
in a correspondence with Oborozukiyo.
Cicada Shell, Lady of the. In Tyler, the
usual name for Utsusemi
Eighth Prince. ["Prince Hachi" in Waley
translation.] A half-brother of Genji, son of the same Emperor by another
secondary wife. He is the father of Oigimi, Nakanokimi, and (by
a secondary wife) the unfortunate Ukifune. He
is less interested in his daughters than in the pursuit of salvation, and
eventually abandons them to become a monk, trusting that Kaoru) will take care of them.
Evening Faces, Lady of the.
Mistress of To no Chujo, by whom she has a
daughter, Tamakazura. After his coldness
makes her flee, she is briefly the mistress of Genji, till slain by the
jealous spirit of the Lady of Rokujo, a tale told
in Chapter 4. Her name comes from the white flowers on the eaves of the
building she is living in when Genji comes across her.
Falling Flowers. See Hanachiru
Sato.
Fujitsubo (foo-jee-tsoo-boh)
A secondary but favorite wife of Genji's father, though she is only five
years older than Genji himself. She is the
brother of Prince Hyobu, and thus the aunt of Murasaki. She is
the mother of the
Reizei emperor, who is actually Genji's child rather than his father's.
Hachi, Prince. Name used for Eighth
Prince in Waley translation and some critical sources.
Hanachirusato. Literally
"falling
flowers" or the "village of falling flowers," this is the title of chapter
11, which introduces the younger sister of Lady Reikeiden. She is thereafter known as "the lady of the
village of falling flowers" in Waley and Tyler and, since the flowers are
orange blossoms, as the "lady of the orange blossoms" in Seidensticker
Heian Kyo (hay-ahn kyo) Capital of Japan in
Genji's time. The modern Kyoto.
Hiei (hee-ay) Mountain north of the
capital..
Higekuro, Prince (hee-geh-koo-roh)
His father was a Minister of the Right. His
principal wife is a daughter of
Prince Hyobu.
His sister Shokyoden becomes the principal
wife and empress of the
Suzaku emperor, so he is
an uncle of the emperor reigning at the novel's end.
Makibashira is their daughter.
He marries Genji's ward
Tamakazura.
Higo. A southern province where Tamakazura is taken as a child by her nurse. She
leaves it when
she attracts the unwelcome attentions of local big shot.
Hotaru, Prince (hoh-tah-roo) A younger
brother of Genji. His first principal wife is a sister of his stepmother
Kokiden.
He later marries the daughter of Prince Higekuro.
In chapter 25, he is a suitor for Genji's ward
Tamakazura. Genji gives him a glimpse of
Tamakazura's beauty by releasing fireflies in her room at night, and this
gives him the name used for him in the novel, which means "firefly."
Hyobu, Prince (hyoh-boo)
Son of a former emperor and brother of Fujitsubo. Genji's love
Murasaki is his child by a concubine. A daughter of his
principal wife becomes the principal wife of Prince Higekuro.
Hyobukyo, Prince. Name of Prince
Hyobu in the Waley translation and secondary sources following it.
This longer form is a title (Minister of War) held by that prince and also
by Prince Hotaru.
Ise. The site of the chief shrine of the Shinto sun
goddess Amaterasu, from whom the imperial family claimed descent. Lady Akikonumu serves for a time as priestess at the
shrine.
Iyo. A province. Utsusemi is
the wife of a governor of Iyo, known in Tyler as the Iyo Deputy.
Jiju A maid who ghosts the letters of the lady of the Suetsumuhana chapter.
Kaoru (kah-oh-roo) A son of Genji's second
principal wife, the Third Princess,
he learns as an adult that his true father is not Genji but
Kashiwagi. His rivalries with his cousin
Prince Niou are the main topic of the last quarter of
the novel.
Kashiwagi (kah-shee-wa-gee) A son of
To no Chujo. His principal wife is the
Second Princess (aka Princess Ochiba), a daughter of the Suzaku Emperor.
He is
a suitor for Genji's ward
Tamakazura.
He seduces Genji's second principal wife,
the Third Princess and is the true father of
Genji's
son Kaoro. He dies young.
Kii. The governor of Kii hosts Genji and his
entourage in chapter 2. His father is a governor of Iyo, and he is
attracted to his pretty young stepmother, Utsusemi, with whom Genji spends the night in
Chapter 2. In the next chapter, Genji sleeps with the sister (Nokiba no
Ogi) of the governor of Kii by mistake, when her stepmother gives him
the
slip.
Kiritsubo, Lady Genji's
mother, a favorite wife of his Emperor father, but persecuted by her
rivals at court, who resented the favors granted someone of relatively
undistinguished birth. She dies when he is very young.
Kobai The eldest son of To No
Chujo. After the death of his first wife, he has an affair with Makibashira, the widow of Prince
Hotaru, and then takes her as his second principal wife.
In chapter 43, he tries to get Prince Niou for his
daughter.
Kogimi. The usual name (it means "little one") for Utsusemi's younger brother, whom Genji takes into his
service as a useful go-between with his sister, a role he takes to with
enthusiasm.
Kokiden (koh-kee-den)Genji's wicked stepmother, the jealous
and power-hungry principal wife and empress of his father. Under the reign of their son, the
Susaku Emperor,
she and her father, a Minister of the Right,
are very powerful.
A sister seems to be married to Prince Hotaru.
A younger sister, Oborozukiyo, is married to the Susaku emperor.
Koremitsu (koh-ray-mee-tsoo)
The son of Genji's old nurse, he is a faithful retainer of Genji and
employed on confidential missions. He becomes a provincial governor. One
of his daughters becomes a maid of honor in the Fujiwara household, where
she is seduced by Genji's son Yugiri, by whom she
eventually has six children.
Koto A Japanese stringed instrument, rather like a
zither. There are several varieties, with different numbers of strings.
The most common was the 13-string variety, but Genji himself was a master
of the 7-string. These are of Chinese origin. To no Chujo and his son
play the indigenous 6-string koto.
Kozeri. Name used in Waley translation for the Nakanokimi who marries Prince
Niou.
Kumoinokari, Lady. [In the Waley translation, just
"Kumoi" is used.] A daughter of To
No Chujo, she becomes the principal (and for many years the only) wife
of Genji's son Yugiri.
Locust Shell, Lady of the. In Seidensticker, the
usual name for Utsusemi
Makibashira The daughter of Prince
Higekuro and his principal wife. She is married to Prince Hotaru, by whom she had a daughter. When
widowed, she married Kobai, a son of To no Chujo. She and Kobai have a son.
Minister of the LeftThe chief minister in charge of
administrative departments, a post which dates back to the Taika Reforms
of 702 A.D. When the position of Minister of the Center (or chancellor)
was vacant, as it often was, the holder of this post is the prime
minister, though actual power was sometimes elsewhere. In the Heian
period, such posts were monopolized by the Fujiwara clan. The
friendly rivalry
between Genji and To No Chujo reflects some real
tensions between the Fujiwaras and the imperial family.
(1) The first of several occupants of this position during the novel is
the father of
To No Chujo and Princess Aoi. As the latter's father,
he is Genji's father-in-law. Both are children of his principal wife, Princess Omiya.
Minister of the Right The deputy to the Minister of the Left. (1) At the beginning of
the novel, the position is held by the father of Kokiden and Oborozukiyo.
Murasaki (moo-rah-sah-kee) Lady Murasaki first enters the
novel as a 10 year old child. She is the daughter of Prince Hyobu, but
Genji carries her off because she reminds him of Hyobu's sister Fujitsubo, whom he loves.
At 14, she becomes one of Genji's secondary wives and his favorite. Her name is from a
plant which produces a lavender dye. Her prominence in the novel probably accounts for its
author being known as Murasaki Shibiku.
Myobu. See Taifu.
Naishi In chapter 7, this court lady, though nearly
60, is involved with both Genji and To No Chujo
in a farcial triangle.
Nakanokimi. The name means "miss middle." (1). In
Seidensicker, it is used for the
younger of the two daughters of the
Eighth Prince by his principal wife. Introduced
into the house at Uji by Kaoru, Prince
Niou takes her as a secondary wife, and she bears him a son. When she
takes her half-sister Ukifune into her household,
Niou becomes infatuated with her. (2) Waley uses the name for the younger
daughter of Kobai dangled at Prince Niou.
Nakatsukasa. In chapter 2, one of the women who
attends Genji's wife.
Nijo. Genji's residence.
Niou, Prince. Son of the novel's last emperor and
his
empress, Genji's daughter by the Lady Akashi, he is
the likely heir to his father. His rivalry with his cousin Kaoru recalls that of Genji with To
No Chujo, but the tone is darker, and their mutual love of Ukifune ends up badly for all concerned.
Nokiba no Ogi. The traditional name of sister of the
Governor of Kii.
In chapter 3, Genji sleeps with her by mistake,
thinking he's managed to catch Utsusemi. In
chapter 4, he sends her a poem (from which her name derives) on hearing
that she has married a young lieutenant.
Nyosan, Princess Name used for Third Princess,
Genji's second principal wife, in Waley translation and elsewhere.
Oborozukiyo (oh-boh-roh-zoo-kee-yoh)
A younger sister of Kokiden, she seems to be a concubine of her
nephew, the Susaku Emperor, but has an affair with Genji, which
earns him exile.
Oigimi. ["Agemaki" in Waley translation] The elder
of two daughters of the Eighth Prince by his principal wife and a half sister of
Ukifune. Kaoru pursues her,
but she dies without having surrendered to him.
Omiya (oh-mee-yah)Genji's aunt and
mother-in-law. A sister of
Genji's father, married to a Minister of the
Left.
Mother of Genji's best friend,
To no Chujo, and his wife,
Aoi.
Omyobu (oh-myoh-boo)
One of the women who attend Fujitsubo.
Orange Blossoms, Lady of the. See Hanachirusato.
Reikeiden, Lady (ray-kay-den)
A one-time minor wife of Genji's father, fallen on hard times. Genji is
interested himself in her younger sister, the lady of the orange blossoms
Reizei (ray-zay) Emperor. Son of Fujitsubo. He abdicates early, partly as a result of discovering that he
is the child of Genji rather than of Genji's father. His principal wife and empress is
Akikonomu.
Rokujo (roh-koo-joh)The Sixth Ward of the capital city of
Heian Kyo.
Rokujo, Lady (In Tyler, "Rokujo Haven") Widow of the
crown prince Prince Zembo and a longtime mistress
of Genji. Eight years older than Genji Her jealousy is so strong that her
wandering spirit kills the lady of the evening
faces and Aoi and attacks others. Mother of Akikonomu.
Safflower Lady. See Suetsumuhana.
Saisho. In chapter 25, a cousin of Tamakazura brought in by Genji to attend her.
Sanjo (sahn-joh) Location of the
family home of Genji's friend, To no Chujo and
his sister Lady Aoi, Genji's first principal wife,
who remains in her family home till her death and is sometimes referred to
as "the lady at Sanjo."
The Secretary Captain. This is the translation of To no Chujo, the title born by Genji's friend when
we first meet him in Chapter 2. Used in that chapter by Tyler.
Shokyoden (sho-koh-den) Sister of
Prince Higekuro, principal wife of the
Susaku Emperor, and mother of the emperor reigning at the end of
the novel.
Shonagan (shoh-nah-gohn)
The nurse of Murasaki. Her name is the same as
that of a famous contemporary of the author's, Sei Shonagan, a
sharp-tongued woman who wrote the Pillow Book.
Suetsumuhana. The title of chapter 6, this is the name of a
kind of safflower or saffron flower. (In Waley, it is spelled Suetsumu (Hana)).
In the chapter, Genji tracks down a forgotten
princess in romantic straits, the daughter of Prince Hitachi, only to
discover that she has a large red
nose; in a poem, he alludes to this feature by citing the flower. This becomes her
name in Waley: Seidenstecker calls her the "Safflower Lady"; in Tyler, she remains
simply "Her Highness."
Genji treats her reasonably well, anyway, though he makes fun of her to
Murasaki.
Suma. Along the shore around the modern city of
Kobe. Genji presumably chooses this as a place of exile because it had
been the place of exile for Ariwara no Yukihara, a ninth century poet
whose poems he recalls. The place gives its title to chapter 12. After a
year, he leaves here for Akashi.
Sumiyoshi. A Shinto god with a shrine near Akashi
and Suma
Suzaku (soo-zah-koo) Emperor. Genji's
brother, the son of
their father and his principal wife, Kokiden. He succeeds his
father and is succeeded by the Reizei Emperor, who is succeeded in
turn by the Suzaku emperor's son (by the sister of
Prince Higekuro),
, who is reigning at the end of the novel.
His daughter the Third Princess (by Genji no Miya)
becomes
Genji's second principal wife.
Another daughter (by Lady Ichijo) is the principal wife of
To no Chujo's son,
Kashiwagi. m
Another wife is his maternal aunt,
Oborozukiyo, who deceives him with Genji.
Tamakazura (tah-mah-kah-zoo-rah) The daughter of
To no Chujo and a mistress,
the lady of the evening faces. Genji keeps her
existence secret from her father and brings her to his own home, but she rebuffs him. He
finally marries her to Prince Higekuro.
Her unsuccessful suitors include To no Chujo's son,
Kashiwagi and Genji's younger brother,
Prince Hotaru.
Third Princess [Princess
Nyosan
(nyoh-sahn) in Waley translation.] A daughter of the Suzaku Emperor who becomes Genji's second principal wife
after the death of Princess Aoi. This distresses Murasaki till she realizes that the girl is too
childish (at 13) to interest the mature Genji that much. She is, however,
the
mother of his son Kaoru, who is actually the fruit
of an illicit affair with Kashiwagi. She
becomes a nun after the birth.
Taifu. The title of a minor official, this is used in
Tyler's translation to refer
to a noblewoman (myobu) who is the daughter of such an official and helps
introduce Genji to the lady of the Suetsumuhana
chapter. In Seidensticker, the name is spelled "Tayu"; Waley uses "Myobu" for the
same character. She is the daughter of a former nurse of Genji.
To no Chujo (toh noh choo-joh)
Genji's best friend and frequent rival. Eldest son of a
Minister of the Left and Princess
Omiya. Genji makes his acquaintance because he
visits the house to see his principal wife, To No Chujo's sister Aoi. We first encounter him in chapter 2, when Genji is 17 and
To No Chujo about the same. He is the father of
Kashiwagi,
Kobai,
Kumoinakari, and (by the
lady of the evening faces)
Tamakazura. His principal wife is a daughter
of the Minister of the
Right. He succeeds his father as head of the all-powerful Fujiwara
clan and is succeeded in turn by his son Kobai.
Uji. A district only 10 miles south of the capital,
but our characters find it distant and gloomy and the journey there
hazardous. The last ten chapters are largely set here. In a house by the
Uji river lives the ultra religious Prince Hachi.
Ukifune. An unrecognized daughter of the Eighth
Prince
and the tragic heroine of the last part of the book. Her status is lower
than her birth might suggest because her mother later married a mere
provincial governor, the Governor of Hitachi. Kaoru thinks this would make
it impossible for him to take her openly as a secondary wife rather than a
mistress.
Involved
with both Kaoru and Prince Niou.
Ukon (oo-kohn) A title meaning "watchman,"
it is used for several characters, including several female
attendants. Of these, the most prominent are (1) one of the women of the
lady
of the evening faces in
chapter 4, later employed by Genji, and (2) the more sensible of the
ladies in waiting to Ukifune.
Utsusemi ("locust shell") The traditional name of the
woman also known as "the lady of the locust shell" (Seidensticker) or "the
lady of the cicada shell" (Tyler). Seduced (too forcefully) by Genji
while she is the wife of the governor of Iyo, beginning a long
relationship. In chapter 3, when she gives him the slip, he winds up
sleeping with her stepdaughter, the sister of the governor of Kii. Her
younger brother, Kogimi tries unsuccessfully to get
her to see Genji again.
Yugao (yoo-gah-oh)
Name given the lady of the evening faces in Waley
translation and critics who use it. The flower "evening faces" is the
yugao.
Yugiri (yoo-gee-ree) Son of Genji and Aoi.
He eventually becomes an important minister of state. His principal wife
is Lady Kumoinokari,
the daughter of To no Chujo, who initially opposes the match.
This is a love match, but he eventually becomes obsessed with the
Second Princess, the widow of
Kashiwagi, and makes her a secondary wife.
Zembo, Prince
(zem-boh) Son of an emperor (Ichi no In?), brother of Genji's
father and Princess Omiya. Married to the Lady of
Rokujo. Father of Akikonomu. A one time crown prince, he is evidently dead
before the novel begins.
[Last posted June 13, 2003 by canary@uwp.edu]