Ono no Imoko
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Ono no Imoko (小野妹子) was a Japanese clan leader during the late 6th and early 7th century. Imoko was appointed as an official envoy to the Sui court (Kenzuishi) in 607, and he delivered the infamous letter from Japan's Empress Suiko which began "The Child of Heaven (tenshi) in the land where the sun rises addresses the Child of Heaven (tenshi) in the land where the sun sets." Emperor Yang was angered at being addressed in this way, although it isn't clear whether he was angered more by the insult of Sui being referred to as the land of the setting sun, or by the use of tenshi to refer both to himself and to the empress of what China considered to be nothing more than a relatively insignificant barbarian state to the northeast.
Nevertheless, Emperor Yang was probably more interested in obtaining Japan's support in his campaigns against Koguryǒ than in matters of decorum, and despite the insult, he sent his own envoy, Péi Shìqīng (裴世清), back to Japan with Imoko to offer tribute to Empress Suiko. Imoko was then appointed envoy to Sui for a second time in the fall of 608 and accompanied Péi Shì Qīng on his return trip to China. Imoko returned to Japan from his second mission in 609 and then largely disappears from the historical record.
Imoko is often cited as an example of an official who achieved promotion under the new meritorious Twelve Level Cap and Rank System implemented by Prince Shōtoku in 603. When Imoko first appears in the historical record and is appointed envoy to Sui, his rank is listed as Greater Propriety (5th rank), but he was later promoted to the top rank of Greater Virtue, largely due to his successful missions to the Sui court.
Imoko's family was notable for linguistics and scholarship, and the descendants of the family include and Ono no Komachi, beautiful female poet, Ono no Takamura, poet and scholar, and Ono Michikaze, calligrapher.
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