"An account on the new monkey music" ("Shinsarugakuki" ) as a source on social history of medieval Japan

Fujiwara no Akihira was a relatively low-ranking official, but at the same time, one of the prominent Confucian scholars and leading literati of the day, compiler of such a monumental anthology of poetry and prose as «Literary Essence of Our Country» (Honchō monzui), he also presided over the Bureau of Education Daigakuryo:. «An Account on the New Monkey Music», one of the later works of Akihira, is a kind of encyclopedia of social and everyday life, customs of the inhabitants of the contemporary capital Heian. «An Account on the New Monkey Music» starts with a detailed description of sarugaku performance, then Akihira introduces the readers to a family of fictional character, a Lieutenant of the Right Outer Palace Guards Uemon-no jo:, who, accompanied by his household, came to enjoy the theatrical performance of strolling memes. The author gives a detailed account of each family member: of three wives, sixteen daughters and (or) their husbands, and nine sons. This article presents an annotated translation of introduction and five episodes on daughters’ spouses and sons of the Lieutenant of the Right Outer Palace Guards.