Johana Hikiyama Festival

What Is the Johana Hikiyama Festival?

The Johana Hikiyama Festival is the spring festival of Johana Shinmei-gū shrine in the Johana district of Nanto City, Toyama Prefecture, held each spring. It is known for the procession of six graceful floats adorned with intricate carvings and lacquerwork, along with iori-yatai—small floats modeled after tea rooms—and for the townspeople's performance of iori-uta, songs that sing of the refinement of Edo. Designated an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan and inscribed on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list as one of the "Yama, Hoko, Yatai float festivals," it is an elegant festival that colors the spring of Johana.

History and Origins

The Johana Hikiyama Festival is said to have a history of about 300 years as the spring festival of Johana Shinmei-gū. Johana was a town of merchant houses that prospered in the silk-weaving industry, and against this economic strength, a refined festival culture incorporating the cultures of Kyoto and Edo developed. The floats that each neighborhood takes pride in enshrine sacred images and are adorned with intricate carvings, metalwork, and lacquer craft. The iori-uta are hauta short songs of Edo that were transmitted to and handed down in Johana, and their graceful melodies, sung to flute and shamisen, convey to this day the refined character of a festival unique to Johana.

Highlights

The greatest attractions are the procession of six graceful floats and the iori-uta performed at the iori-yatai. The iori-yatai that process ahead of the floats are elegantly built in imitation of Kyoto sukiya-style tea rooms, and before them the townspeople perform the iori-uta, full of the flavor of Edo, in front of the houses that request them. When the sun sets, lanterns are lit on the floats, and the sight of them processing through the town as magical "lantern floats" is also a highlight. It is an elegant and dignified festival in which the refined aesthetic sense distinctive to the silk town of Johana can be felt everywhere.

When It Takes Place

The festival is typically held in spring (May) at Johana Shinmei-gū and throughout the townscape of Johana in the Johana district of Nanto City, Toyama Prefecture. As a spring festival, its season is spring. Because the dates and routes of the float procession and the iori-uta performances vary from year to year, visitors are advised to confirm details in advance through official announcements from Nanto City and the local tourism association.

Access

The Johana district is within walking distance of Johana Station on the JR Johana Line. It can be reached via the JR Johana Line from Takaoka Station. By car, the Nanto Smart IC on the Tōkai-Hokuriku Expressway and other routes are available, but because traffic restrictions are imposed in the town during the festival, public transport is recommended.

Around the Area

Johana in Nanto City is a historic town that prospered in silk weaving, with the charm of an evocative townscape where lattice-doored townhouses remain. At the "Johana Orikan," visitors can engage with the history of silk weaving, and ancient temples such as Johana Betsuin Zentoku-ji are also highlights. The World Heritage thatched-roof villages of Gokayama are also within Nanto City, making it an area where, together with the nature of Gokayama and the culture of the folk song "Kokiriko," one can savor the tradition and nature of western Toyama.

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