Isonokami no Otomaro


Isonokami no Otomaro was a Japanese noble and scholar of the Nara period. He was the son of sadaijin Isonokami no Maro. He reached the court rank of and the position of chūnagon.

Life

In 724, Otomaro was promoted from to. In 732 he was promoted again to and governor of Tanba province. Under the successive administrations of the four sons of Fujiwara no Fuhito and Tachibana no Moroe, Otomaro rose quickly, to in 736, in 737, and in 738 to and sadaiben in the Daijō-kan.
In 739 he was charged with an affair with Kume no Wakame, the wife of Fujiwara no Umakai, and exiled to Tosa Province.
He was soon pardoned, and in 743 rose again to. Passing through various ministerial positions, he joined the ranks of the kugyō in 748 with a promotion to and sangi. In 749, he was made chūnagon. He was also appointed in 746 as an envoy to Tang China, but the mission was cancelled. The planned objectives of the mission are supposed to have been to check Silla, with which Japan's relations were strained, and to import gold.
In 750, Otomaro died. His final rank was, and he held the positions of chūnagon and chief administrator of the Ministry of the Center.

Genealogy