Fujiwara no Akinaka was born in
Kōhei 2 (1059 in the
Gregorian calendar). He was the third son of
Sukenaka (
ja), a member of the
Saneyori lineage (実頼流) of the
Northern Branch of the
Fujiwara clan. He was later adopted by , the
governor of
Mutsu Province. His mother was a daughter of . He is known as
Suke Akinaka (佐顕仲) to distinguish him from . He had various other names, such as
Katsumata no Hyōe no Suke (勝間田兵衛佐), by which name the ''
calls him. The latter name is a derived from a combination of his court position, Sahyōe-no-suke
, and a famous poem he composed at the Shirakawa-den Gyokai (白河殿御会) on Katsumata Pond (勝間田池 Katsumata-no-ike''): He was close friends with
Minamoto no Toshiyori and
Fujiwara no Mototoshi, and in addition to being a respected poet he was also known for his skill as a
calligrapher and
musician, but was unable to attain success due to his relatively low birth. By the end of his career, he had risen to the
Junior Fourth Rank, Lower Grade. He held the position of
Assistant Head of Left Military Guards (左兵衛佐
sahyōe-no-suke). According to the '''', Akinaka died on
the third day of the first month of
Daiji 4 (31 January 1129). He was 71 (by
Japanese reckoning). == Poetry ==