Naga no Miko (長皇子)
Naga no miko (year of birth unknown - July 9, 715) was a member of the imperial family, who came to the fore from the late Asuka period to the early Nara period. His father was the fortieth Emperor Tenmu, and his mother was Oe no Himemiko (Princess Oe), the daughter of Emperor Tenchi. Yuge no Miko (Prince Yuge) was his brother (the same father and mother), and Prince Kurusu, FUNYA no Kiyomi, Prince Nagata, and FUNYA no Ochi numbered among his children.
The exploits of the first half of his life are unknown because his name first appears in documents when he was made Joko Second Grade in 693. He subsequently continued to advance his career, with his fuko (a vassal household allotted to courtier, shrines and temples) being increased by 200 households in 704 and 714. His age at the time of death is unclear, but it is estimated from details such as the year of the birth of his son Prince Chinu that he died in his mid-40's to early 50's. There is a theory that the person buried in Kitora-kofun Tumulus is Naga no Miko.
Genealogy
According to "Shoku Nihongi" (Chronicle of Japan Continued), Naga no Miko was the fourth son of Emperor Tenmu.
Among his children, FUNYA no Kiyomi and FUNYA no Ochi, after the death of Imperial Prince Toneri, became subjects of the state in 752 and were given the surname 'Funya' (As for the Prince Kurusu branch, it was not until the generation of his great grandson, Sukeo, that the surname 'Funya' was given to the branch.)
The members of the imperial household who were related to Emperor Tenmu were successively purged due to a power struggle, but Kiyomi and Ochi survived. Meanwhile, when Emperor Shotoku passed away in 770, they were recommended by KIBI no Makibi as a candidate for Crown Prince, although the plan did not come to fruition.
It is confirmed that even after the switch of the Imperial lineage from the branch of Emperor Temmu to the branch of Emperor Tenchi, the prosperity of the Funya family continued until the early Heian period, producing FUNYA no Watamaro (the grandson of Prince Chinu), who, together with SAKANOUE no Tamuramaro, played an important role in the subjugation of indigenous inhabitants in eastern Japan, and FUNYA no Yasuhide (the great-great-grandson of Prince Ochi), a poet.
Poetry
Naga no miko was also a poet, with five of his works surviving in "Manyoshu" (Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves). The above-mentioned FUNYA no Yasuhide and his son FUNYA no Asayasu are poets selected in Ogura Hyakunin Isshu (the Ogura Anthology of One Hundred Tanka-poems by One Hundred Poets), and they were the fifth and sixth descendants of Naga no Miko.
Slept together at night/ Said in the morning she was hiding ('nabaru') because she felt bashful/In Nabaru, does she sojourn at an inn?/ It's been long time since she started out
Covered in a blanket of fog/ Beauty of pine woodland in Sumiyoshi/ Like Courtesan Otohi of Sumiyoshi/ Its beauty never cease to catch my eye (The verses were created in 706 upon Emperor Monmu's visit to Naniwa [Osaka])
Want to see my wife soon ('hayami')/Listen, breeze in Hayami Beach/ Please blow toward pines ('matsu') and camellias ('tsubaki') in Yamato Province ('matsu' and 'tsubaki' are metaphor of 'waiting wife' [matsu tsuma])/ Never fail to reach there
In autumn/ Like the scenery we see now/ Stag cries for his lover in mountains/ This residence in Takanohara is a place like this
Please do not cross the River Nifu/ Instead, walk along the river/My dear younger brother in the pain of love/ Please come here