This year, the support pouring in from all over the country to the Noto region, which was first affected by the earthquake and subsequent heavy rains, has led to the rediscovery of historical heritage associated with the north-central part of the Japanese peninsula.
Part of the support for the people of the coastal city of Wajima is a lasting reminder of a centuries-old legend that began in what is considered one of the birthplaces of the Ama divers in southwest Japan. There is.
Document photo taken on July 12, 2024, Ama divers catch this year’s first catch of mozuku at Wajima Port in Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture (Kyodo News)
Ama, literally “women of the sea,” are free divers who primarily catch seafood such as abalone and other shellfish, as well as various types of seaweed. The majority of them are women, and this method of fishing has a tradition dating back 2,000 years.
The history of Ama divers on the Sea of Japan side of the Japanese archipelago is thought to have begun in the Kanezaki area of present-day Munakata City, Fukuoka Prefecture.
According to historical records, about 450 years ago, a group of Kanesaki residents traveled about 700 kilometers along the coast to the Ama-cho district of Wajima City, near the northern tip of the Noto Peninsula (now part of Ishikawa Prefecture), in search of fishing grounds.
The ties between the two regions have grown stronger ever since due to similarities in dialect and customs.
Immediately after the strong earthquake on New Year’s Day, people involved in the fishing industry in Munakata City, which means the town of Ama divers, began searching for ways to provide support, believing that they were “fatefully connected to their ancestors.”
Tokio Yahiro of the Munakata Fisheries Cooperative, photographed in Munakata City, Fukuoka Prefecture in August 2024 (Kyodo News)
Seven people, led by Tokio Yahiro (72), head of the Munakata Fisheries Cooperative Association, visited the disaster-stricken area in Noto in April and donated approximately 5.6 million yen to the Ama Town Neighborhood Association.
In June, 50 donation boxes were made using cedar wood received from a local lumber store and placed at designated rest areas along roads and expressways in Munakata City.
Among the seven worshipers was Takayuki Ashitsu (61), chief priest of Munakata Taisha, which consists of three shrines. In 2017, it was registered as a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational Organization, UNESCO, as “Okinoshima Island in the Munakata Region and Related Sites, the Island of Gods.”
Ashizu said, “Mr. Umimachi and Mr. Kanezaki are connected by DNA, and it is precisely because of their long-standing relationship that we need to support them.”
Ama Town refers to the area near Wajima Port and Hegura Island, approximately 50 km from Wajima City.
A fishing boat departs from Wajima Port in Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture on October 1, 2024 (Kyodo News)
According to the “Ama Town 350th Anniversary Commemorative Book”, 12 people, including the fisherman Matabei, headed from Kanezaki to the Noto Peninsula in 1569 and settled there. They also went to Hegura Island to collect shellfish, seaweed, and other seafood to support their livelihood.
Natsuki Kadaki (43), chairman of the Wajima Ama Fishery Preservation and Promotion Association, said, “I heard that the original family was from Kanezaki.
Both Kanezaki and Ama Town use the same dialect for words such as fish bone and scrubbing brush.
Shimekazari, which are displayed at entrances during New Year’s, have a similar shape, and while in other regions it is customary to continue displaying them from January 7th to 15th, both types are displayed throughout the year.
The document photo shows Ama divers unloading mozuku at Wajima Port after fishing in Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture, in July 2024 (Kyodo News)
Okitsuhime Shrine in Ama Town is said to enshrine the same god as Munakata Taisha. It is believed that the Ama divers of Kanezaki spread to Shimane, Yamaguchi, and Nagasaki prefectures.
When the late Takeshi Yamanaka, a freestyle swimmer from Ama Town, participated in the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, the residents of Kanezaki collected donations to support Yamanaka’s success. Yamanaka won a total of four Olympic medals (all silver medals) at the 1956 and 1960 Olympics.
A seafood industry magazine published in Kanezaki states that until around 1991, the mayor of Genkai Town (a town that merged with Munakata City in 2003) frequently visited Ama Town, and that the fishing cooperative of Wajima City also visited Kanezaki. recorded.
In September, record heavy rains hit the Noto Peninsula, causing a second disaster. Many houses in Ama Town are still destroyed and roads are buried in mud. Restoration of the fishing port has been delayed, and the ama divers are unable to fish for many days. Yahiro hopes fishing there will resume soon.
Takuei Hashimoto, Chairman of Ama Town Neighborhood Association, Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture, photographed in Kanazawa on October 3, 2024 (Kyodo News)
Takuei Hashimoto (51), a fisherman and chairman of the Ama Town Neighborhood Association, where about 280 households live, lamented that his temporary housing had been flooded since the heavy rains.
“We don’t know what the future holds for us,” he says. Still, I am grateful for Munakata-san’s support. “We have a relationship that goes back hundreds of years, but they have not forgotten about us. I can only thank them for their warm support.”
