In the
Muromachi Period (1336-1467), the Yamana clan (山名氏
Yamana-shi) was one of the most powerful
samurai families of Japan. The Yamana held the position of
shugo (military governors on behalf of the
shōgun) over eleven provinces. At the peak of their power in the early Muromachi Period, they were called
Rokubun-no-ichi-dono (六分一殿, the Lords of One-Sixth), as they ruled over 11 out of 66 provinces in Japan.
The Yamana traced their lineage back to the Seiwa Genji and Minamoto no Yoshishige (源義重, 1135-1202), the primogenitor of the Nitta branch of the Minamoto clan. They hailed from Kōzuke Province (上野国
Kōzuke-no kuni) in modern-day Gunma Prefecture and took their name from a local village. Later, they were vassals (御家人
gokenin) of Minamoto no Yoritomo (源 頼朝, 1147-1199), the...