Kokushi (official)

There were four classes of kokushi, from the highest to the lowest: Kami (守), Suke (介), Jō (掾), and Sakan (目).

[2] As part of the Taika Reform in 645, a new system of provincial government was established, marking the beginning of the kokushi.

[1] The kokushi were divided into four classes (四等官, sitōkan), from the highest to the lowest: Kami (守), Suke (介), Jō (掾), and Sakan (目).

[1] Following the establishment of local governments (rusudokoro) of the mokudai and the installation of provincial fiefdoms (chigyōkoku), the kokushi became a new category of manorial lords.

[1] As the Sesshō and Kampaku and Great Council Ministers were allowed to fill any vacant kami posts, and send their private deputies, the mokudai, to take care of the practical governing duties, the whole system of kokushi became increasingly corrupt.

[2] Even after the abolishment of medieval manors, politically, the kokushi remained as an honorific title until Meiji Restoration in 1868.