Utsuho Monogatari

Utsuho Monogatari (うつほ語物^?, "Tale of the Hollow Tree") is a late 10th century Japanese story.

It is Japan's oldest full-length narrative.^[1][2]

The author is unknown.

Minamoto no Shitagō is cited as a likely candidate^[1]; however, it may have had multiple authors spanning a number of years.^[2]


The title of the story, "Tale of the Hollow Tree", is taken from an incident early in the text. The protagonists Nakatada and his mother flee to the mountains and live in hollow cedar tree. ^[1][2]
 
The story is twenty volumes in length and revolves around a mystical harp that passes through four generations.