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Akita's " Namahage " and " Kamakura " are famous, but the " Namahage Sedo Festival " and " Yokote Snow Festival " were created by combining these with local Shinto rituals.
Furthermore, the " Kamihinokinai Paper Balloon Festival " is not a Shinto ritual, but is a folk religious event in which ordinary people write their wishes on balloons and send them to heaven.
Namahage Sedo Festival (Oga City)
Source: Akita Prefecture Official Tourism Site "Akita Fan"
a winter festival that combines the Saitosai , a festival that has been held at Shinzan Shrine in Oga city for over 900 years the Oga Namahage , a New Year's Eve folk event
Along with the Yokote Kamakura festival in Akita, Hirosaki Castle Snow Lantern Festival , the Hachinohe Enburi festival , and the Iwate Snow Festival , it is considered one of the five major snow festivals in Michinoku
Namahage Museum Source: Akita Prefecture Official Tourism Site "Akita Fan"
Just below Shinzan Shrine the Namahage Museum and the Oga Shinzan Folklore Museum , where you can view exhibits and videos about Namahage at any time.
In 2025, the event will be held from February 7th (Friday) to 9th (Sunday), but due to the small venue, advance registration (fees apply, up to 2,000 people per night) is required
Which is the correct spelling, "Namahage" or "Namahage"?
Namahage from various regions on display at the Namahage Museum. Source: Akita Prefecture official tourism website "Akita Fan"
Hiragana is often used locally, but when it was designated as an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan in 1978 (Showa 53), it was written in katakana as " Oga's Namahage ," and both spellings are correct.
In this article, apart from proper nouns, we have used the term Namahage
The main hall of Shinzan Shrine Source: Akita Prefecture official tourism site "Akitafan"
The events will proceed as follows from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM on all three days
Even if you can't enter the Kagura Hall, you can watch the performances on a large monitor set up in the plaza
Chinkamasai Festival and Yunomai (starting at 6:00 PM)
Chinkamatsuri Festival Source: Akita Prefecture Official Tourism Site "Akitafan"
This is a Shinto ritual in which a priest stirs boiling water in a large cauldron with a straw broom while chanting purification prayers, and it is said that this calms the raging seas
Namahage Spiritual Enthralling (18:20~)
Namahage wearing masks and returning to the mountains. Source: Akita Prefecture official tourism website "Akita Fan"
Young men playing the role of Namahage gather at the entrance to the shrine and are given masks imbued with divine powers. Putting on the masks, they transform into Namahage and climb the mountain shouting
Namahage event reenactment (from 18:35)
Namahage bursting into a house (Oga Shinzan Folklore Museum) Source: Akita Prefecture official tourism website "Akita Fan"
The traditional folk event "Oga Namahage," which takes place in Oga city on New Year's Eve, will be reenacted at the Kagura Hall
Namahage receiving entertainment from their master (Oga Shinzan Folklore Museum) Source: Akita Prefecture Official Tourism Site "Akita Fan"
The performance recreates scenes of the terrifying Namahage visiting homes and giving lectures to children and parents, as well as the Namahage returning home satisfied after being entertained by their hosts
Namahage Dance (from 18:55)
Namahage dance in the square (the large monitor can be seen in the background) Source: Akita Prefecture official tourism site "Akita Fan"
The dance was choreographed in 1961 by Akita-born contemporary dancer the music was composed by Ishii
This dance, in which two Namahage, one red and one blue, dance in front of a lantern, creates a unique atmosphere with its wild movements and modern music
Namahage Taiko (from 19:05)
Namahage Taiko Source: Akita Prefecture Official Tourism Site "Akita Fan"
This local performing art is dedicated at the Kagura Hall and is characterized by the powerful sound of the earth-shaking drums and the powerful use of drumsticks
Namahage descends the mountain and offers rice cakes (from 7:25 PM)
Namahage descending the mountain. Source: Akita Prefecture official tourism website "Akita Fan"
The highlight of the festival is when the Namahage, having received their masks and returned to the mountains, descend into the shrine grounds carrying torches as messengers of the gods and dance wildly
goma mochi roasted over a firelight and return to the mountain, but it is comically portrayed that they cannot touch the mochi, which contains the power of the gods.
Village Namahage Invasion (from 8:00 PM)
The Namahage, who have returned to the mountains, reappear on the shrine grounds screaming, frightening the children in the venue and causing them to cry. However, this time the Namahage have become friendly messengers of the gods, and seem to be enjoying interacting with the audience
Namahage Saito Festival＜Information＞
Name: Namahage Sedo Festival
Event period: February 7th (Fri) to February 9th (Sun), 2025, 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Venue: Shinzan Shrine
Address: 97 Kitaurayama Mizukuisawa, Oga City, Akita Prefecture
For inquiries, please contact the Namahage Sedo Festival Executive Committee (Oga City Tourism Division)
Yokote Castle and Kamakura. Image courtesy of Yokote City Tourism Association
Kamakura an event in which the water god is worshipped in a snow hut Bonden, a procession in which Bonden Bonten), a shrine where the god resides
Yokote Snow Festival was created by combining these two events as a tourist event , and has been held in its current form since 1954 (Showa 29), over three days every year starting on February 15th.
Kamakura: A snow house with 450 years of history
A warm snow hut inside. Source: Akita Prefecture official tourism site "Akita Fan"
This is a Little New Year's event that is representative of Yokote, and a water god is enshrined inside a house made of snow, and from inside he calls out to passersby, Come in, come in, bow
This is a winter event where people are served sweet sake (amaeko) and spend time relaxing and chatting inside the house
In the past, they were built all over the city, but in recent years, with the increase in cars, they are now built only in the road plaza in front of Yokote City Hall main building, Haguro-cho, Futaba-cho, Yokote Park, etc
How to make a snow hut
In the past, kamakura were made freely by each household, but in 1958 (Showa 33), Yokote City and the city's tourism association began to promote model kamakura
Recently, the most common way to make snow huts is to pile up snow and dig a hole in it, and Yokote City's official website also has instructions on how to make one
This event, which also has a history of around 300 years, involves offering a "bonden" (sticker) over 5m in height and weighing 30kg to Asahiokayama Shrine in prayer for bountiful harvests, safety for the family, and prosperity in business
The handle is a pole about 4.3 meters long, with a cylindrical bamboo basket about 90 cm in diameter attached to the end, from which hangs a "sagari" (a hanging string) made of colorful cloth and thread
In addition to sacred ropes, paper streamers, and headbands, the highlight is the elaborate head ornaments featuring zodiac animals and dolls
They carry this around the city, shouting " Joyasa, Joyasa, " singing Bonten songs and blowing conch shells, and parade to Asahiokayama Shrine.
At the shrine, each neighborhood competes to be the first to offer their offerings to the main hall, which leads to scuffles and the heat reaches a fever pitch
The "Bonten Competition" where participants compete for the best workmanship
A row of bonden poles. Image provided by Yokote City Tourism Association
On the first day of the Bonden festival, the 16th, a Bonten competition will be held in front of Yokote City Hall, with participants competing to see who is the best, including children's "Kowaka Bonten."
Yokote Snow Festival <Information>
Name: Yokote Snow Festival (Kamakura, Bonden)
Event period: Kamakura: February 15th (Sat) - 16th (Sun), 2025; Bonden: February 16th (Sun) - 17th (Mon)
Location (Kamakura): In front of Yokote City Hall, Yokote Park, Futabacho, and other areas throughout the city. 18:00-21:00
Venue (Bonden): February 16th, in front of Yokote City Hall main building, from 9:30 to around 12:00, February 17th, Asahiokayama Shrine
For inquiries, please contact Yokote City Tourism Association (inside the Kamakura Fureai Center)
Paper balloons at Kamihinokinai (Nishikicho, Semboku City)
The faintly bright paper balloons floating in the night sky are fantastical. Source: Akita Prefecture Official Tourism Site "Akita Fan"
the Kamihinokinai north of Lake Tazawa along National Route 105 , where large paper balloons decorated with pictures of warriors and beautiful women are lit and released into the night sky.
This Little New Year's event has been going on for over 100 years, but was temporarily suspended during the war, but was revived in 1974 (Showa 49) by local volunteers
Paper balloons with beautiful women painted on them. Source: Akita Prefecture official tourism website "Akita Fan"
Many people visit during the festival to see the fantastical sight of large balloons, lit by soft lights and displaying pictures and wishes, rising into the midwinter sky
Semboku City Paper Balloon Museum , located at the paper balloon venue, has paper balloons on display at all times, has restrooms available, and sells snacks and souvenirs.
Paper balloons use the same principle as hot air balloons
Paper balloons are getting bigger every year, with some reaching up to 12 meters in size. These days, they are made from sturdy glued-together washi paper rather than the traditional washi paper
To launch the balloon, first use a gas burner or similar to blow hot air into the balloon to inflate it, then light the cloth ball attached to the opening and it's ready to go
The fire sends even more heat into the paper balloon, and when you let go of it at the right time, the paper balloon, with the picture or lettering now floating on it, slowly rises into the sky
Numerous paper balloons launched into the night sky. Source: Akita Prefecture Official Tourism Site "Akita Fan"
It is said that the principle behind this was introduced by Hiraga Gennai, who visited the area during the Edo period, but the truth of this is uncertain. All of the 100 or so large and small balloons are handmade by local residents, and in addition to pictures, some have wishes written on them, filled with prayers to the heavens
Paper balloon launch in Kamihinokinai <Information>
Name: Kamihinokinai Paper Balloon Festival
Event period: Monday, February 10, 2025, 15:00-20:30 (final launch)
Location: Paper balloon event venue (3-1 Daichida, Kamihinokinai, Nishiki-cho, Senboku City, Akita Prefecture)
The three folk winter festival events we have introduced have declined over the years due to factors such as a decrease in the number of people who can carry out these events due to war and depopulation, and transportation issues caused by the development of a car-oriented society
However, local volunteers and local governments who wished for its survival revived it as a tourist event combined with a traditional winter religious ceremony in the region, thus preserving and promoting the event
Why not visit these winter festivals this season and experience the harshness of winter buried in snow and the atmosphere of simple folk events?
I am a former Edo guy who loves Morioka, loves the six prefectures of Tohoku, and loves history, gourmet food, travel, sports, alcohol, and singing. We'll introduce you to some interesting, delicious, and good things about Tohoku!
