Because the previous emperor had been far too promiscuous, he had too many children and the treasury could not afford to support them all. So he issued an edict demoting four princes and four princesses to commoner status and granting them the surname "Minamoto."
The Minamoto clan was one of the surnames bestowed upon members of the Imperial Clan when they were demoted to commoner status. It was usually granted to demoted princes and princesses, along with the title "Courtier."
The boy... Minamoto Hikari looked at Fu Hua before him. He wanted to say something, but did not know how to begin.
A Kendo Prodigy with the Right Aptitude
The Minamoto clan was a famous clan in Japan. It was not bestowed only once upon princes and princesses demoted to commoner status. Over Japan's two-thousand-year history, more than twenty emperors had granted the surname "Minamoto."
Because Japan's emperors deified and glorified themselves, they claimed to be descendants of the divine king of Takama-ga-hara, bearing the bloodline of the sun's chief deity. They had no surnames, only titles.
Only when members of the Imperial Clan were demoted to commoner status were they granted surnames.
The Minamoto clan... represented their former status as members of the Imperial Clan.
Minamoto Hikari's father had actually been a prince. But the previous emperor had too many descendants, and every prince and princess required a terrifying amount of expense...
At least, the expenses had been excessive for the Japanese Imperial Clan. Thus... the previous emperor directly turned eight of his less favored children from royalty into courtiers, granting them the surname Minamoto.
At this time, the power of Japan's Imperial Clan had not yet been weakened by the shoguns. It was still an era ruled by imperial nobles. After all, the first shogunate governed by