735–737 Japanese smallpox epidemic

The 735–737 Japanese smallpox epidemic (天平の疫病大流行, Tenpyō no ekibyō dairyūkō; "Epidemic of the Tenpyō era") was a smallpox epidemic that afflicted much of Japan. Killing approximately one third (around 1 million individuals) of the entire Japanese population, the epidemic had significant social, economic, and religious repercussions throughout the country.