Location: Arawa, Akita City Site(s) of performance: Various places in the community Date(s): 3rd Sunday of August Category: Bon Dance Daishōji Okesa is one of the variants of Haiya Music, which was born in Tasuke (in present-day Nagasaki Prefecture) and was propagated all over Japan. As to the route of transmission to Daishōji, one theory …
Location: Kami-Jinego, Chokai-machi, Yurihonjo City Site(s) of performance: Jionji Temple and other places in the community Date(s): August 13 and 1st Saturday of September Category: Bon Dance The Bon dance of this community is held in the premises of Jionji Temple, a temple of the Sōtō Zen school. It is danced for appeasement of the …
Location: Motoki, Nishimonai-Horimawari, Ugo Town Site(s) of performance: Shinmei Shrine and other places in the community Date(s): August 14 Category: Bon Dance As the name of the district, Motoki or ‘the ancient Location of a castle,’ suggests, this district is near the ancient castle of Nishimonai, which was the main castle of the Onodera Family. …
Location: Nishimonai, Ugo Town Site(s) of performance: Nishimonai-Honchō Street Date(s): August 16–18 Designation: State-Designated Important Intangible Folkloric Cultural Property Category: Bon Dance According to the oldest records available of dancing at Nishimonai, sometime during the Shōō period (1288–1292), when the priest Genshin established Zaō Gogen Temple (present-day Mitake Shrine), the dance was performed in the …
Location: Iwasaki, Yuzawa City Site(s) of performance: The open space in front of Yuzawa Community Center Date(s): August 16 Category: Bon Dance There used to be woodcutters from other areas visiting Mt. Yakichi near Iawasaki, who taught the villagers this Bon dance. It is a slow dance mostly with hand movements. It is a Bon …
Location: Araya, Kosaka Town Site(s) of performance: The open space in front of Nanataki Community Center Date(s): August 15 Category: Bon Dance The Kosaka Bon Dance is a Bon dance danced to appease the spirits of the ancestors. A big drum is used for music, as is often the case in the Kazuno area. The …
Location: Nangai, Daisen City Site(s) of performance: Arawa Shopping Street and the parking of the Japan Agricultural Cooperatives Daishōji Office Date(s): 3rd Sunday of August Category: Bon Dance Kamasaka is in the former Nangai Village in Daisen City, near Daishōji in Akita City. Aiya (or Haiya) music was born in Nagasaki, propagated northward along the …
Location: Chuo-machi, Yokote City Site(s) of performance: The festival space in front of the Yokote Regional Development Office Date(s): August 15 Designation: Prefecture-Designated Intangible Folkloric Cultural Property Category: Bon Dance The Yokote Citizens’ Bon Dance is a Bon dance for many citizens on August 15. It was started in the early part of the Showa …
Location: Ogida, Hinai-machi, Odate City Site(s) of performance: Ogida Elementary School Street Date(s): August 17 Category: Bon Dance The most characteristic of the dance numbers here is the Hatagi (grasshopper) dance. It is so called probably because the dancers jump up and down, or perhaps because they dance in a grasshopper-like waggling way. A legend …
Location: Hitoichi, Hachirogata Town Site(s) of performance: On the street in Kamicho, Hitoichi, Hachirogata Town Date(s): August 18–20 Designation: Prefecture-Designated Intangible Folkloric Cultural Property Category: Bon Dance The Hitoichi Bon Dance Festival is held on August 18–20 in the evenings on the street at the center of the Hitoichi District of former Hitoichi Town (now …