Soga no Shoshi (蘇我娼子)
SOGA no Shoshi, or SOGA no Masako (the date of birth and death unknown) was a woman of the Soga clan in the late Asuka period. Her name, Shoshi, appears in "Sonpibunmyaku" (Japanese genealogical text), while in "Kugyobunin" (directory of court nobles), her name was written as SOGA no Onshi, or SOGA no Ounako.
Brief Personal History
Shoshi married to FUJIWARA no Fuhito around the end of Emperor Tenmu's reign, and had three sons: FUJIWARA no Muchimaro, FUJIWARA no Fusasaki, and FUJIWARA no Umakai. However, there is a tenacious skepticism whether Umakai was truly her child as his birth was much later than Muchimaro's or Fusasaki's. There is a description in "Shoku Nihonshoki" (Continuation of Chronicles of Japan)of AGATAINUKAI no Michiyo, as "(Fuhito's) second wife" that Fuhito got emarried with around 701. Shoshi was the first lawful wife of Fuhito and died before 701. However, there are no descriptions of Shoshi in documents of the same period such as "Nihonshoki" (Chronicle of Japan), and much of Shoshi's deeds remain unknown.
The Soga clan significantly declined in strength after the Jinshin War. It is not hard to learn that she was given a harsh background that she had to marry FUJIWARA no Fuhito who was assumably a ruined Gozoku (local ruling family). However, when the Soga clan's blood related Emperor Jito (her grandfather, SOGANOKURA-YAMADA no Ishikawamaro, was Shoshi's granduncle) was enthroned, Fuhito was selected because of Shoshi' presence. Also, it is thought that the reason why FUJIWARA no Nakamaro promoted ISHIKAWA no Toshitari was because he was Shoshi's blood relative.
The Soga clan (the Ishikawa clan) eventually disappeared because of the extinction of Imperial line of Emperor Tenmu, who came from a long line of the Soga clan. Which resulted Shoshi to have maternally kept the bloodline of the Soga clan through the Fujiwara clan until now. Other than Shoshi, who left the SOGA clan's blood to the Imperial family was only SOGA no Kitashihime, SOGA no Inam's daughter, as tracking back the history. The family line is: SOGA no Kitashihime - Sakurai no Miko - Kibitsuhime Okimi - Empress Kogyoku - Emperor Tenchi - the present Emperor of Japan.