[1] He was the second son of Nijō Tameyo,[1] and his mother was a daughter of Kamo Ujihisa (賀茂氏久),[1] Tameyo himself being a son of Nijō Tameuji,[2] a grandson of Fujiwara no Tameie,[2] and a great-grandson of Fujiwara no Teika.
He was initially raised by his uncle Nijō Tameo (二条為雄),[1] but following the death of his brother Tamemichi in the fifth month he returned to his father's household.
[1] When Emperor Go-Daigo, with whom he had worked closely, succeeded to the chrysanthemum throne, his position in poetic circles continued to grow in importance.
[1] On the second day of the seventh month of Genkō 3 (1323), he was selected as the compiler of the Shokugoshūi Wakashū.
[1] Five days later, he took part in the Kameyama-dono shichihyaku-shu (亀山殿七百首),[1] to which he contributed 68 poems (third after Retired Emperor Go-Uda and his father Tameyo).