Ononomiya School (小野宮流)
The Ononomiya school was a school of Yusoku-kojitsu (knowledge of court rules, ceremony, decorum and records of the past), which dated back to the Heian period. The teachings of the school were passed down by the Ononomiya family that was founded by FUJIWARA no Saneyori.
FUJIWARA no Tadahira, the patriarch of the Northern House of Fujiwara clan, was also a connoisseur of court ceremony etiquette who performed ceremonies by respectfully following the precedents, as was described in detail by "Teishinko-ki" (Diary of FUJIWARA no Tadahira). The sons of Tadahira, FUJIWARA no Saneyori and FUJIWARA no Morosuke, followed in their father's footsteps and established their own ceremony etiquette styles independently. Afterwards, the ceremony etiquette style embraced by Saneyori was named the Ononomiya school after his Ononomiya residence while the style introduced by Morosuke was named the Kujo school. Saneyori's ceremony etiquette style, although his diary "Seishinko-ki" (Diary of FUJIRAWA no Saneyori) features a few descriptions of it, was finalized, in fact, by the publication of "Ononomiya Nenjugyoji" (Precedents for Annual Events of Ononomiya) authored by Saneyori's grandson (lately adopted by Saneyori as his son), FUJIWARA no Sanesuke.
Ononomiya Family
The Ononomiya family was one of branches of the Northern House of Fujiwara clan. The family was founded by Sessho Daijo-daijin (Regent and Grand Minister) FUJIWARA no Saneyori (aka. 'Seishinko'), the first son of FUJIWARA no Tadahira. The name Ononomiya has its origin in Saneyori's Ononomiya residence, the former palace of Imperial Prince Koretaka (the son of Emperor Montoku). Although the second son and the adopted son of Saneyori, Kanpaku Daijo-daijin (Chief Adviser to the Emperor and Grand Minister) FUJIWARA no Yoritada (aka. 'Rengiko') and Minister of Right FUJIWARA no Sanesuke (the son of FUJIWARA no Tadatoshi, the third son of Saneyori), respectively, became Daijin (ministers), the descendants of Saneyori were gradually sidelined because the Kujo line, descendants of Morosuke, was authorized as a legitimate line of Sekke (line of regents), and Saneyori's descendants, after the reign of FUJIWARA no Tsunehira and FUJIWARA no Michitoshi, who flourished as heavyweights of the Retired Emperor Shirakawa, faded into obscurity. The family is also known for having produced Yusoku-kojitusu practitioners such as FUJIWARA no Kinto and FUJIWARA no Sukenaka as well as Saneyori and Sanesuke. Since the era of Saneyori, the name 'Ononomiya' together with the Ononomiya residency, family's traditional domain, had been passed down to the matriarchal line.