# Utamakura > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Utamakura > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Utamakura.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utamakura > Source revision: 1294447946 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) This article is about the poetic concept. For the print set, see [Utamakura (Utamaro)](/source/Utamakura_(Utamaro)). ***Utamakura*** (歌枕, "poem pillow") is a [rhetorical](/source/Rhetoric) concept in [Japanese poetry](/source/Japanese_poetry). ## Definition *Utamakura* is a category of poetic words, often involving place names, that allow for greater [allusions](/source/Allusion) and [intertextuality](/source/Intertextuality) across Japanese poems. *Utamakura* enables poets to express ideas and themes concisely—thus allowing them to stay in the confines of strict *[waka](/source/Waka_(poetry))* structures. Some scholars[who?] see the use of geographical allusion as the evidence for a restricted scope of poetry writing. Although the poets' "true" meaning was true because the essence was initially pre-established, the poems were written within fixed topics (*dai*). The poet could inhabit a subjective position or persona and write about the topic, but not necessarily about their personal feelings; therefore, *utamakura* could have restrained the scope of topics a poet could write about. *Utamakura* include locations familiar to the court of ancient Japan, such as: - particularly sacred [Shinto](/source/Shinto) and [Buddhist](/source/Buddhism) sites, - places where historic events occurred, and - places that trigger a separate mental association through a pun. ## Aesthetic function *Utamakura* serve as a significant tool to achieve *[yugen](/source/Japanese_aesthetics#Yūgen)* (mystery and depth) in Japanese poetry by adding profound and indirect beauty in poems. It can be used as a source for identifying significant figures and places in ancient Japan. ## History The history of *utamakura* is found in documents on the study of poetry such as the *Utamakura* *of [Noin](/source/Noin)*, by the poet and monk of the late Heian period, and lists of places in the *Utamakura Nayose* (Utamakura reference book). *Utamakura* were first used by traveling priests.[citation needed] They collected stories from the towns they traveled to. Since they saw many places, it was easier to remember the details of a story by using a single, consistent reference point for each recurring event in their tales. Over time, the people across the Japan came to identify *utamakura* place names by the psychological feelings associated with the references made by the wandering priests. After *utamakura* place names and people had become well established, eager *waka* poets went sightseeing to the sites of *utamakura*. Beyond becoming familiar with the scenery of the poems, entering the locale of a poem or story deepened one's understanding of it. *Utamakura* was also used in *[renga](/source/Renga)*, a form of Japanese [collaborative poetry](/source/Collaborative_poetry) that is the ancestor of *[renku](/source/Renku)* and [haiku](/source/Haiku) poetry. ## Examples There are numerous instances of *utamakura* in Japanese literature, one of which is the *[Kokinshū](/source/Kokin_Wakash%C5%AB)*. The source of this particular *utamakura* example is poem #3 in the "Spring" section.[clarification needed][1] *harugasumi tateru ya izuko Miyoshino no Yoshino no yama ni yuki wa furitsutsu* In the poem above, [Yoshino](/source/Yoshino,_Nara) refers to a place in the [Yamato region](/source/Yamato_Province) in the nearby of the capital. Yoshino is known for having both heavy snowfall and an abundance of cherry blossoms. Poem #1 in "Spring 1" of *[Shin Kokin Wakashū](/source/Shin_Kokin_Wakash%C5%AB)* also uses *Yoshino* for depicting the beginning of spring.[2][3] *Miyoshino wa yama mo kasumite shirayuki no furinishi sato ni haru wa kinikeri* Another instance of poetic place name comes from *[Tales of Ise](/source/Tales_of_Ise)*, a piece titled "In the Provinces" (#15).[4][5] *Shinobuyama shinobite kayou michi mogana hito no kokoro no oku no miru beku* *Mount Shinobu* is a pun on the verb *shinobu,* meaning "to conceal," "endure," "long for," and "remember". ### Contemporary examples *Utamakura* are also used outside of poetry, for example menu items named after their visual appearance with a reference to a well-known Japanese scenic area. *Tatsuta age*, deep-fried fish or chicken that has a dark reddish-brown color as a result of being marinated in soy sauce, is named after the [Tatsuta River](/source/Tatsuta_River), known for its maple trees, the leaves of which turn a deep red color in autumn.[6] ## Notes 1. ["Spring. No. 3"](http://etext.virginia.edu/etcbin/ot2www-japanese?specfile=/web/data/japanese/search/japanese.o2w&act=surround&lang=en&offset=44095026&id=CookKok&query=Where+are+the+promised). *Kokin Wakashū*. University of Virginia Library. 2004. Retrieved 28 July 2013. – via [Japanese Text Initiative](/source/University_of_Virginia_Japanese_Text_Initiative) 1. ["Shinkokinshu"](http://etext.virginia.edu/japanese/shinkokinshu/index.html). *[Japanese Text Initiative](/source/University_of_Virginia_Japanese_Text_Initiative)*. University of Virginia Library. 1 August 1999. Retrieved 28 July 2013. 1. Carter, Steven D. (1993). [*Traditional Japanese Poetry: An Anthology*](https://books.google.com/books?id=dq7TOrkTCP0C&pg=PA510). Stanford University Press. p. 172. ISBN 978-0-8047-2212-4. 1. ["Ise Monogatari"](http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/japanese/ise/index.html). *Japanese Text Initiative*. University of Virginia Library. 11 November 1998. Retrieved 28 July 2013. 1. McCullough, Helen Craig (1968). [*Tales of Ise: Lyrical Episodes from Tenth - Century Japan*](https://books.google.com/books?id=6Ol_MOUZmpMC). Stanford University Press. p. 80. ISBN 978-0-8047-0653-7. 1. Andoh, Elizabeth (8 November 1997). ["Japanese Menu Names"](http://www.bento.com/ta-name.html). *Daily Yomiuri*. Retrieved 28 July 2013. ## References - Kamens, Edward. *Utamakura, Allusion, and Intertextuality in Traditional Japanese Poetry.* Yale University Press, [1997](/source/1997_in_literature). ISBN 0-300-06808-5 - Raud, Rein. "The Lover's Subject: Its Construction and Relativization in the Waka Poetry of the Heian Period". In *Proceedings of the Midwest Association for Japanese Literary Studies*, vol. 5, summer 1999, pp. 65–79. - Shirane, Haruo (editor). *Traditional Japanese Literature.* Columbia University Press: New York, 2007. - Wright, Ichabod C (Translator). *The Inferno of Dante.* Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, Green and Longman: London, 1833. --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Utamakura](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utamakura) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utamakura?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.