Changes

*''Japanese:'' [[阿部 (Abe)|阿部]]氏 ''(Abe-shi)''

*''Japanese:'' [[阿部 (Abe)|阿部]]氏 ''(Abe-shi)''

The Abe clan was among the oldest in Japan, claiming [[Imperial family|Imperial]] descent and possibly originating as early as the [[Yamato period]]. The Abe were prominent during the [[Heian period]] and experienced a resurgence in the 18th century; during the [[Edo period]] the clan was based in [[Mikawa province]].

The Abe clan was among the oldest in Japan, claiming [[Imperial family|Imperial]] descent and possibly originating as early as the [[Yamato period]]. The Abe were prominent during the [[Heian period]] and experienced a resurgence in the 18th century; during the [[Edo period]] the clan was based in [[Mikawa province]], later becoming lords of [[Fukuyama han]] in [[Bingo province]]. Several lords of Fukuyama, [[Abe Masahiro]] most prominent among them, served as ''[[roju|rôjû]]'', or in other top-level positions in the [[Tokugawa shogunate]] government.

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