Eiso (king)

Eiso
The stone sarcophagus of King Eiso
King of Ryūkyū
Reign1260–1299
PredecessorGihon
SuccessorTaisei
Born1229
DiedAugust 31, 1299(1299-08-31) (aged 69–70)
Burial
Issue
See list
  • Taisei
  • Prince Wakugawa
  • Prince Nakagusuku
  • Prince Chatan
  • Prince Ōzato
Divine nameWezo-no-tedako (英祖日子)
FatherEso Yononushi

Eiso (英祖; c. 1229 – 31 August 1299) was a semi-legendary ruler of Okinawa Island. He was the founding monarch of the Eiso dynasty.

The name Eiso superficially looks like a temple name but the scholarly consensus is that it represents Iso (伊祖), a settlement in modern-day Urasoe, Okinawa. Wezo no ikusamoi (good commander of Iso), who appears in the archaic poem collection Omoro Sōshi, is usually identified as Eiso.