The answer to this question varies, depending on who you talk to and how “novel” is defined. If a novel is treated as a prose narrative of significant length, the oldest novel is probably The Tale of Genji, written by Murasaki Shikibu in 11th century Japan. The Tale of Genji is certainly recognizable as a novel to modern eyes; in fact, it continues to be widely read, and it has been translated into numerous languages. This book had a tremendous influence on Japanese literature, and it continues to be cited as a major source of inspiration by prominent Japanese novelists today.
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