This page is a detailed summary of all Shinto-related major historical events until 1945. This does not cover events in the Kojiki/Nihon Shoki.
5000 BC - Early Jomon Period
While Jomon adjacent cultures existed prior, the Jomon traditions are the earliest substrata of Shinto's makeup. By the same token
used in the West for religions like Judaism, Vedic/Sanatana Dharma, and Jains, this could be an argument for Shinto having similar
"oldest still-practiced" claims, erspecially since Judaism and others have too significantly changed.
3000 BC - Magatama begin in the architectural records.
Magatama are curved, comma-shaped jewelry with a hole punched in one end. They still hold meaning in modern Shinto practices. Some
contend (e.g. in "Nihon Daihyakka Zensho") that the dating is closer to 1000 BC but provide no further substantiation on this argument.
600-300 BC - Yayoi People arrive in the Nihonic Archipelago
The identity of the Yayoi aren't known, but theories of their origins includ Southern Korea, the modern day Jiangsu/Zhejiang provinces of China
(but not a Han speaking culture), Baiyue people of modern Yunnan, and indigenous people from Vietnam or Hainan.
Similarly, we know little in absolutes of their language, only that it influenced Old Japanese extensively.
However, their greatest contributions to Shinto are in the gods they brought with them, which in
time would become part of the modern family of kami. Notably, many Kojiki and Nihon Shoki
kami are believed to be of Yayoi origin. The Yayoi also influeced modern Shinto iconography and architecture.
97 BC - First reliably dated Emperor, Sujin begins his reign.
Prior emperors are doubted for a variety of reasons, namely unreliable date ranges, lack of artifacts etc.
Suijin has a tomb that's dedicated to him, and other bits lead most secular historians to agree he may
have existed. Prior Emperors are regarded to be, much like Xia Dynasty of China a potential basis on legendary kings
or local chieftains -- this is of course the secular view.
57BC - ~300AD - Early Chinese-Japanese contact records early Japanese and Shinto customs
Early Chinese contact occurred in the Late Han and Warring States periods, as Emperors of China sent tribute to Japan.
3rd century texts indicate that the clapping during prayers, eating off wood trays and eating raw fish, all recognizable aspects
of traditional Japan in the modern age. Himiko is also mentioned during this era.
4BC - Ise Jingu Founded
The Ise Jingu claims its founding in 4BC -- there is some loss of precision due to a Gregorian calendar being in use however.
552AD - Buddhism arrives in the Asuka Period
The Buddhist invasion of Japan forever altered history. It is traditionally believed to have spread from the Nara Prefecture. One of the earliest clans
who advocated Buddhism was the Soga clan, who came into conflict with the Mononobe clan.
587 AD - The Mononobe clan is defeated, allowing the spread of Buddhism
The Mononobe clan fought a 35 year war which ended at the Battle of Mount Shigi. The Mononobe clan name was
rendered extinct, and Buddhism spread into Japan.
645 AD – Taika Reforms and the Centralization of Imperial Authority
Following the Isshi Incident, the
Taika Reforms restructured Japan’s governance, moving toward a centralized, Chinese-style imperial state. Shinto shrines became tied more directly
to the court’s ritual calendar, with kami veneration increasingly linked to imperial legitimacy.
701 AD – Taiho Code and State Regulation of Shrines
The Taihō Code (Taihō Ritsuryō) formalized a system for ranking and supporting shrines (*shakaku seido*).
The state began appointing priests to certain shrines and using them for state rites. This is one of the earliest examples of the Japanese state
administratively organizing Shinto for political purposes.
927 AD – Engishiki Codifies Rituals
The Engishiki, completed in the Heian period, provided a detailed list of 2,861 officially recognized
shrines and prescribed the rituals and offerings for each. This document remains one of the most important early records of Shinto liturgy.
1603 AD – Tokugawa Shogunate and Shrine Oversight
Under the Tokugawa bakufu, Shinto remained intertwined with Buddhism (shinbutsu shūgō), but the
state exercised greater oversight over religious institutions. Shrines often had Buddhist priests attached, and syncretic worship was the norm.
1868 AD – Meiji Restoration and the Separation of Kami and Buddhas (Shinbutsu Bunri)
The new Meiji government implemented policies separating Shinto from Buddhism. Shinto was rebased on Kokugaku and Ko-Shinto revivalism.
Buddhist imagery was removed from shrines, and the state elevated Shinto as a moral-ideological pillar for the new nation.
This triggered the haibutsu kishaku (“abolish Buddhism, destroy Shākyamuni”) movement, leading to widespread destruction of Buddhist property.
1871 AD – Creation of the Kanpei Taisha System
The state ranked shrines into an imperial hierarchy (*Kanpei* for government-supported, *Kokuhei* for national importance, and other local ranks).
High-ranking shrines performed state ceremonies reinforcing imperial authority.
1882 AD – Formal Division into State and Sect Shinto
The Meiji government created a distinction between:
- State Shinto (Kokka Shinto), which provided rites for the state and was presented as “non-religious” national morality.
- Sect Shinto (Kyoha Shinto), consisting of the 13 recognized religious movements (including Izumo Ōyashirokyō, Ontakekyō, etc.) that could operate as private faiths.
This division allowed the state to fund and control “non-religious” State Shinto while maintaining constitutional freedom of religion on paper.
1890 AD – Imperial Rescript on Education
This document, read in schools nationwide, reinforced loyalty to the emperor
and moral values tied to State Shinto ideology. Shrine visits, festival participation, and reverence for the imperial family became mandatory aspects of civic life.
1930s – State Shinto as Imperial Nationalism
In the lead-up to WWII, State Shinto expanded as a tool of ultranationalism.
Visiting shrines and revering the emperor were framed as patriotic duties. Schoolchildren, soldiers, and colonized peoples in Korea and
Taiwan were required to participate in shrine rites.
1945 AD – Allied Occupation Abolishes State Shinto
The Shinto Directive (December 15, 1945) issued by the Allied Occupation
ended government support for Shinto shrines, abolished the ranking system, and dissolved Kokka Shinto. Shrines became independent
religious institutions. The separation of religion and state became law under the 1947 Constitution.
Questions and comments regarding this website may be directed to
masuji@protonmail.com
This website is in the public domain and may be reproduced without consequence or in spite of authorial protest!