The materials of Nihonshoki are classified into historical materials which became the authority of contents and Chinese classic books (Sangokushi (Three Kingdom Saga), Kanjo, Gokanjo, Huainanzi (The Masters/Philosophers of Huainan) and so on) which became the authority on rhetoric.
日本書紀の資料は記事内容の典拠となった史料と修辞の典拠となった漢籍類（三国志、漢書、後漢書、淮南子等）に分けられる。