Modern system of ranked Shinto shrines
The modern system of ranked Shinto shrines was an organizational aspect of the establishment of Japanese State Shinto. This system classified Shinto shrines as either official government shrines or "other" shrines. The official shrines were divided into
- Imperial shrines, which are parsed into minor, medium, or major sub-categories; and
- National shrines, which are similarly categorized as minor, medium, or major.
The Ise Grand Shrine stood at the top of all shrines and thus was outside the classification.
All listed shrines on this page with the exception of Ise Grand Shrine are Beppyo shrines.
History
On the fourteenth day of the fifth month of 1871, by decree of the Dajō-kan, the fundamental elements of the modern shrine system were established: a hierarchic ranking of Shinto shrines, with specification of the grades of priest who could officiate at the various levels of shrine. These rankings were set aside in 1946, when such rankings were deemed "State Shinto" by the Occupation Shinto Directive. The Jinja Honcho currently has a slightly different List of Special Shrines.Ise Grand Shrine
and Katori Jingu were considered the two shrines directly below Ise Jingu.Kan-sha
The Kan-sha or "official government shrines" had two subdivisions, Kanpei-sha or "government shrines" and Kokuhei-sha or "national shrines".For future tables, red cells denote shrines in the Japanese colonial empire.
Kanpei-sha
In 1871, the Japanese government established the Kanpei-sha system to classify Shinto shrines based on their level of association with the imperial family. The highest category included shrines that venerated the imperial family members, emperors, or meritorious retainers of the Imperial family. These shrines were considered to be the most closely associated with the imperial family and received government support.Imperial shrines, 1st rank
The Kanpei-taisha were the most highly ranked shrines in Japan that were officially designated by the government. There were 67 shrines that held this status, which were closely associated with the imperial family. These shrines were considered to be of great historical and cultural significance, and were often visited by members of the imperial family as well as the general public.Imperial shrines, 2nd rank
The mid-range of ranked Imperial shrines or Kanpei Chūsha included 23 sanctuaries. These shrines were considered to be of intermediate rank among the government-supported shrines and were given lesser financial support compared to the Kanpei-taisha.Imperial shrines, 3rd rank
There were five shrines that were considered the lowest ranked among the Imperial shrines. They were called Kanpei-shōsha.| Name | Location | Category | Notes |
| Kamado Shrine. | Dazaifu, Fukuoka | Myojin Taisha | Tamayori-bime Emperor Ōjin Empress Jingū |
| Naminoue Shrine. | Naha, Okinawa | Izanami, Hayatama, Kotosaka; ichinomiya of Ryukyu Islands | |
| Ōkunitama Shrine. | Fuchū, Tokyo | Ōkuninushi Okunitama | |
| Shikaumi Shrine. | Higashi-ku, Fukuoka | Myojin Taisha | Uwatsutsunoo-no-mikoto, Kakatsutsunoo-no-mitoko, Sokotsutsunoo-no-mikoto, |
| Sumiyoshi Shrine. | Hakata-ku, Fukuoka | Myojin Taisha | Uwatsutsunoo-no-mikoto, Kakatsutsunoo-no-mitoko, Sokotsutsunoo-no-mikoto; ichinomiya of Chikuzen Province |
Other Imperial shrines
After the establishment of the officially ranked Imperial shrines, another group of special shrines known as Bekkaku kanpeisha was created. These shrines were not included in the ranking system of the Imperial shrines, but were still imperial.Kokuhei-sha
The Kokuhei-sha identified the hierarchy of government-supported shrines with national significance. The kokuheisha enshrined kami considered beneficial to more local areas.National shrines, 1st rank
The most highly ranked, nationally significant shrines or Kokuhei Taisha were six sanctuaries.| Name | Location | Category | Notes |
| Keta Taisha | Hakui, Ishikawa | Myojin Taisha | ichinomiya of Noto Province Ōkuninushi |
| Kōra taisha | Kurume, Fukuoka | Myojin Taisha | ichinomiya of Chikugo Province Hachiman |
| Kumano Taisha | Matsue, Shimane | Myojin Taisha | ichinomiya of Izumo Province Sumiyoshi sanjin |
| Nangū Taisha | Tarui, Gifu | Myojin Taisha | ichinomiya of Mino Province |
| Ōyamazumi Shrine | Imabari, Ehime | Myojin Taisha | ichinomiya of Iyo Province Ōyamatsumi |
| Tado Taisha | Kuwana, Mie | Myojin Taisha | Ninomiya, Amatsuhikone |
National shrines, 2nd rank
The mid-range of ranked, nationally significant shrines or Kokuhei Chūsha encompassed 47 sanctuaries.National shrines, 3rd rank
The lowest ranked, nationally significant shrines or Kokuhei Shōsha includes 50 sanctuaries.Gokoku shrines
were ranked separately. They were considered branches of Yasukuni Shrine.| name | Location | Beppyo | Notes |
| formerly | Traditional head shrine. Also ranked as a Bekkaku Kanpeisha | ||
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| Hamada Gokoku Shrine | yes | ||
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| Bingo Gokoku Shrine | yes | ||
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| Nagasaki Gokoku Shrine | yes | ||
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| yes | Not a proper Gokoku Shrine but listed as equivalent due to having been finished after the war | ||
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"Min-sha"
The Sho-sha or various smaller shrines ranking below these two levels of Kan-sha are commonly, though unofficially, referred to as "people's shrines" or Min-sha. These lower-ranking shrines were initially subdivided by the proclamation of the fourteenth day of the fifth month of 1871 into four main ranks, "Metropolitan", "Clan" or "Domain", "Prefectural", and "District" shrines. By far the largest number of shrines fell below the rank of District shrine. Their status was clarified by the District Shrine Law of the fourth day of the seventh month of 1871, in accordance with which "Village shrines" ranked below their respective "District shrines", while the smaller local shrines or Hokora ranked beneath the "Village shrines".Here is a non-exhaustive list of shrines under each categorization. This list only includes ones now listed as Beppyo shrines unless otherwise specified.
Metropolitan and Prefectural Shrines
"Metropolitan shrines" were known as Fu-sha. "Prefectural shrines" were known as Ken-sha. At a later date, the "Prefectural shrines" were classed together with the "Metropolitan shrines" as "Metropolitan and Prefectural Shrines" or Fuken-sha.Clan or Domain shrines
"Clan shrines" or "Domain shrines" were known as Han-sha. Due to the abolition of the han system, no shrines were ever placed in this category.District shrine
"District shrines" were known as Gō-sha.Village shrines
"Village shrines" were known as Son-sha and ranked below their respective "District shrines", in accordance with the District Shrine Law of 4 July 1871.Hokora or Ungraded shrines
Small local shrines known as Hokora are ranked beneath the village shrines, in accordance with the District Shrine Law of 4 July 1871. At a later date, shrines beneath the rank of "Village shrines" were classed as "Ungraded shrines" or Mukaku-sha.Statistics
New shrines were established and existing shrines promoted to higher ranks at various dates, but a 1903 snapshot of the 193,297 shrines in existence at that time saw the following:- Kan-sha
- *Imperial shrines: 95
- *National shrines: 75
- "Min-sha"
- *Metropolitan and prefectural shrines: 571
- *District shrines: 3,476
- *Village shrines: 52,133
- *Ungraded shrines: 136,947