A 17th-century depiction of Murasaki

Murasaki Shikibu (c. 973 – c. 1014 or 1025) was a Japanese novelist, poet and lady-in-waiting at the Imperial court in the Heian period. She is best known as the author of The Tale of Genji, written in Japanese between about 1000 and 1012. She became a lady-in-waiting to Empress Shōshi at the Imperial court around 1005, and continued to write during her service, adding scenes from court life to her work, reflected in The Diary of Lady Murasaki. After several years, she left court and retired with Shōshi to the Lake Biwa region. Within a decade of its completion, Genji was distributed throughout the provinces; within a century it was recognized as a classic of Japanese literature and became the subject of scholarly criticism. The Tale of Genji was translated into English in the early 20th century; scholars continue to recognize the importance of her work, which reflects Heian court society at its peak. (Full article...)