About Sagami
Lived 998 – 1061 (aged 62–63). Sagami was a Japanese poet, writer and waka poet.
, also known as , was a Japanese waka poet of the mid-Heian period. One of her poems was included in the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu. She produced a private collection, the Sagami-shū.
Biography Sagami's dates are unknown, but she was probably born around 1000. Her real name was Oto-jijū.
Her paternal ancestry is unknown, but she was supposedly a daughter of Minamoto no Yorimitsu. The fourteenth-century work Chokusen Sakusha Burui (勅撰作者部類) claims Yorimitsu was her father, but the Kin'yōshū includes a renga by Yorimitsu and "Sagami's mother" (相模母), so it is also possible he was her adoptive father. Her mother was a daughter of Yoshishige no Yasuaki, governor of Noto (前能登守慶滋保章).
She was married to , during his tenure as the governor of Sagami Province, from which her nickname is derived. She served , one of the sons of Emperor Ichijō.
Poetry 109 of her poems were included in imperial anthologies starting with the Goshūi Wakashū. She was included in the Late Classical Thirty-Six Immortals of Poetry.
The following poem by her was included as No. 65 in Fujiwara no Teika's Ogura Hyakunin Isshu: Japanese textRomanized JapaneseEnglish translation恨みわび ほさぬ袖だに あるものを 恋に朽ちなむ 名こそ惜しけれUrami-wabi hosanu sode dani aru mono wo koi ni kuchinan na koso oshikereMy sleeves will never dry with all these bitter tears of unrequited love. But even worse, the regret of having lost my good name— tainted by this love.
She produced a private collection, the .
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Important facts
People in Sagami's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Sagami's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Sagami?
Japanese waka poet
When was Sagami born?
Sagami was born in 998 in Japan.
When did Sagami die?
Sagami died in 1061.
What was Sagami's occupation?
Sagami was a poet, writer and waka poet.
What nationality was Sagami?
Sagami was Japanese.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Sagami. https://biography.guide/sagami/
MLA: "Sagami." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/sagami/.
Chicago: "Sagami." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/sagami/.
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