Fudoki

Fudoki (風土記^?) are ancient records of the culture and geography of provinces of Japan. They contain agricultural, geographical, historical and mythological records, as well as folklore.

Compilation of Fudoki began in 713 and was completed over a 20-year period.

Following the Taika Reform of 646, there was need to centralize and solidify the power of the imperial court. This included accounting for lands under its control. According to Shoku Nihongi, Empress Gemmei issued a decree in 713 requiring the following information from each province:

• Name
• Natural resources
• Land fertility
• Etymology of name for geographical regions
• Folklore

A requirement of the name was that it had to be written with two kanji (characters). This occasionally required name changes. For example, Hayatsuhime (速津媛^?) became Hayami (速見^?) and Ishinashi no Oki (無石堡^?) became Ishii (石井^?).
At least 48 provinces contributed to their records but only that of Izumo remains nearly complete. Partial records of Hizen, Bungo, Harima and Hitachi remain and a few passages from various volumes remain scattered throughout various books.

The Shoku Nihongi (続日本紀^?) is an imperially commissioned Japanese history text.