Norinaga interpreted "Gishi wajinden" (Records of the Wa people, Chronicle of Wei) based on "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," which supported the view of Sonno Joi, (a view that advocates reverence for the Emperor and the expulsion of foreigners), and came up with the theory that Himiko was the female head of the Yamataikoku kingdom and the kingdom was located in Kyushu.
邪馬台国論争に関しては、宣長は尊王攘夷の立場に立っていた『三国志演義』に基づき『魏志倭人伝』を解釈して、卑弥呼女酋説・邪馬台国九州説を提唱した。