Twelve level cap and rank system (冠位十二階 Kan'i Jūnikai). Established in 603, the Twelve Level Cap and Rank System was the first of what would be several similar cap and rank systems established during the Asuka period of Japanese history. It was adopted from similar systems that were already in place in Sui, Paekche and Koguryŏ. The officials wore silk caps that were decorated with gold and silver, and a feather that indicated the official's rank. The ranks in the twelve level cap and rank system consisted of the greater and the lesser of each of the six Confucian virtues: virtue (徳 toku), benevolence (仁 jin), propriety (礼 rai), sincerity (信 shin), justice (義 gi) and knowledge (智 chi). Events Battle of Degsastan: Aethelfrith of Northumbria defeats Aedan of Dalriada. ... The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Yamato period. ... History of Japan Paleolithic Jomon Yayoi Yamato period ---Kofun period ---Asuka period Nara period Heian period Kamakura period Muromachi period Azuchi-Momoyama period ---Nanban period Edo period Meiji period Taisho period Showa period ---Japanese expansionism ---Occupied Japan ---Post-Occupation Japan Heisei Pre-History/The Origin of History Jomon Period Main... The Sui Dynasty (Chinese: ; pinyin: suí cháo; 581-618) followed the Southern and Northern Dynasties and preceded the Tang Dynasty in China. ... Baekje (18 BC (legendary) – AD 660) was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla. ... Goguryeo (traditional dates 37 B.C. – A.D. 668) was a kingdom in northern Korea and a large part of Manchuria. ... Confucianist temple Thian Hock Keng in Singapore Confucianism (Traditional Chinese: , Simplified Chinese: , pinyin: Rúxué [   ], literally The School of the Scholars; or 孔教 Kŏng jiào, The Teachings of Confucius) is a Chinese ethical and philosophical system originally developed from the teachings of the early Chinese sage Confucius. ...

The primary distinction between this new system and the old kabane system by which a person's rank was determined based on heredity, was that the cap and rank system allowed for promotion based on merit and individual achievement. One of the more well known examples of promotion within the cap and rank system is that of Ono no Imoko. When Imoko was first sent as an envoy to the Sui court in 607, he was ranked Greater Propriety (5th rank), but he was eventually promoted to the top rank of Greater Virtue because of his achievements, particularly during his second trip to Sui in 608. Kabane (姓). Kabane were hereditary titles used in ancient Japan to denote rank and political standing. ... Ono no Imoko (Japanese: 小野 妹子; ? - ?) was a male Japanese politican in the reign of Empress Suiko. ... The Sui Dynasty (Chinese: ; pinyin: suí cháo; 581-618) followed the Southern and Northern Dynasties and preceded the Tang Dynasty in China. ... To suck the phallus or penis of another. ... Events September 15 - Boniface IV becomes pope. ...

The following table lists the various ranks and the colors that were believed to have been assigned to each one.