Though his birth was in the the Shimotsuke-Utsunomiya clan, since Tomoyoshi SHIONOYA, the family head of the Shionoya clan which was in the line of Seiwa-Genji of the day, was childless, he became the adopted son of Tomoyoshi and succeeded to Shionoya clan's family name.
生まれは下野宇都宮氏だが、当代の清和源氏流塩谷氏当主塩谷朝義に子が無かったことから、朝義の養子となり塩谷氏の名跡を継ぐ。