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E-mail Newsletter "HIGHLIGHTING Japan"

https://www.gov-online.go.jp/hlj/en/


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VOL. 193 (JUNE. 2024)

◆SUMMER FUN IN JAPAN: SEASIDE FESTIVALS AND EVENTS◆

Japan is one of the world’s leading maritime nations, surrounded by the sea on all sides. Its summers are hot and humid, and many festivals and other events unique to its coastal areas are held to bring in the cool. The origins of these festivals and events can be traced back to the elegant pastimes of the aristocracy, to mikoshi (portable shrines) that are carried to pray for the end to an outbreak of disease or a good catch, or to events that send the souls of ancestors back to the sea in the summer during the Obon* period.

This issue of Highlighting Japan introduces the seaside festivals and events held across Japan, including the Itsukushima Shrine Kangen-sai, a festival with a history and tradition of more than 800 years, and the Miyazu Toro Nagashi Fireworks Festival, a lantern floating ceremony that has been held for about 400 years. We also highlight more recently conceived events, including the unique Amami Sea Kayak Marathon Race in Kakeroma, which is held on an island in southern Japan, and another event to pick up and reduce marine litter** wearing cosplay costumes.

* A Japanese custom that combines Japan’s ancient ancestral beliefs with the Buddhist event “Urabon-e.” A series of events in which the souls of deceased ancestors periodically return to this world and then are sent back toward their world. The timing of Obon festivals vary according to region, generally falling in mid-July or mid-August.
** Marine litter refers to the collective term for washed-up litter on coastlines, drifting litter on the sea surface and underwater, and litter accumulated on the seabed.

●Various Seaside Festivals Bring Vibrant Colors to the Japanese Summer: A Historical and Cultural Perspective
(Interview with ANAMI Toru, Specially Appointed Professor, College of Sociology, Edogawa University)

●Grand Summer Festival in a Northern Port Town
(Introducing the Muroran Port Festival, a big event held for three days at the end of July every year in Muroran City, a port town located in southwestern Hokkaido)

●Kashiwazaki’s Grand Fireworks Display Illuminates the Sea of Japan
(Introducing the renowned fireworks display at the finale of the Gion Kashiwazaki Festival held every summer in Kashiwazaki City, Niigata Prefecture.)

●Miyazu Toro Nagashi Fireworks Festival Lights Up Miyazu Bay
(Introducing the Miyazu Toro Nagashi Fireworks Festival held every August in Miyazu City, Kyoto Prefecture. It features about 400-year-old lantern floating ceremony and a grand fireworks display)

●Elegant Boat Ritual Featuring Traditional Music Performed on the Sea
(Introducing the Kangen-sai, a sacred ritual held at Itsukushima Shrine in Hatsukaichi City, Hiroshima Prefecture. It is modeled after the refined boating pastimes of the ancient nobility.)

●A Mikoshi Crosses the Sea with Prayers for A Good Catch and Safety at Sea
(Introducing a traditional festival held on Sukumo Island in Shunan City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, where a mikoshi portable shrine crosses the sea.)

●Sea Kayak Race Speeding Through Southern Island Seas
(Introducing the Amami Sea Kayak Marathon Race in Kakeroma, a sea kayaking event held from and to Amami Oshima Island in Kagoshima Prefecture every summer)

●Working Towards Zero Marine Litter While Enjoying Cosplay
(Introducing the Cosplay de UMI-GOMI ZERO, a unique event where participants enjoy wearing cosplay costumes as they clean up for reducing marine litter.)

■POLICY-RELATED NEWS
(New Japanese Regulations Start for Businesses Selling Overseas and Children’s Products: Aiming for Better Product Safety)

■SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(Transparent Screen Film Enables Image Projection with Simple Application to Glass Windows)

■DISCOVERING JAPAN THROUGH THE EYES OF JAPANESE INFLUENCERS
(Expert Tips for Enjoying Japan: The Gourmet Edition)

■TREASURES OF JAPANESE CULTURE
(What the Kimono and Japanese Accessories Mean to Me)

■BACK COVER
THE BEAUTY OF JAPANESE SWORDS
(The Long Sword (“Tachi”), Known as the “Uesugi Tachi” —Gunchomon Hyogo-gusari Tachi (Title: Uesugi Tachi) (Blade signature: Ichi)—)

https://www.gov-online.go.jp/hlj/en/june_2024/


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[E-mail Newsletter " HIGHLIGHTING Japan"]


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Published by:

Public Relations Office, Cabinet Office, Government of Japan

1-6-1 Nagata-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8914, Japan


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