The or is a traditional Shinto shrine architectural style characterized by a very asymmetrical gable

Gable

A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...

d roof projecting outwards on one of the non-gabled sides, above the main entrance, to form a portico (see photo). This is the feature which gives it its name. It is the most common style among shrines all over the country. The fact that the building has its main entrance on the side which runs parallel to the roof's ridge (non gabled-side) makes it belong to the so-called style.

Design

Sometimes its basic layout, consisting of an elevated partially surrounded by a veranda called hisashi

Hisashi

Hisashi may refer to:* Hisashi * Hisashi...

(all under the same roof), is modified by the addition of a room in front of the entrance. A nagare-zukuri honden

Honden

The , is the most sacred building at a Shinto shrine, intended purely for the use of the enshrined kami, usually symbolized by a mirror or sometimes by a statue. The building is normally in the rear of the shrine and closed to the general public. In front of its usually stands the haiden, or...

(sactuary) varies in roof ridge length from 1 to 11 ken

Ken

Ken or KEN may refer to:*Ken meaning "prefecture" in Japanese - see Prefectures of Japan*Ken , 1964 Japanese film*Kèn from Vietnam*Komisja Edukacji Narodowej, Polish National Board of Education...

, but is never 6 or 8 ken. The most common sizes are 1 and 3 ken. The oldest shrine in Japan, Uji

Uji, Kyoto

is a city on the southern outskirts of the city of Kyoto, in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. Founded on March 1, 1951, Uji is located between the two ancient capitals of Nara and Kyoto. The city sits on the Uji River, which has its source in Lake Biwa. As of April 1, 2008, Uji has an estimated population...

's Ujigami Shrine

Ujigami Shrine

is a Shinto shrine in the city of Uji in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. In 1994, it was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as one of the "Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto"...

, has a honden of this type. Its external dimensions are 5x3 ken, but internally it is composed of three measuring 1 ken each.

Ryōnagare-zukuri

is an evolution of the nagare-zukuri in which the roof flows down to form a portico on both non-gabled sides. Examples are the honden at Itsukushima Shrine

Itsukushima Shrine

Itsukushima Shrine is a Shinto shrine on the island of Itsukushima in the city of Hatsukaichi in Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan...

 and that at Matsuo Taisha in Kyoto

Kyoto

is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...

.

Kasuga-zukuri and nagare-zukuri

While superficially completely different, the nagare-zukuri style actually shares an ancestry with the second most popular style in Japan, the kasuga-zukuri

Kasuga-zukuri

is a traditional Shinto shrine architectural style which takes its name from Kasuga Taisha's honden. It is characterized by the use of a building just 1x1 ken in size with the entrance on the gabled end covered by a veranda. In Kasuga Taisha's case, the honden is just 1.9 m x 2.6 m.Supporting...

.

The two for example share pillars set over a double-cross-shaped foundation and a roof which extends over the main entrance, covering a veranda. (The Kasuga-zukuri is the only tsumairi

Tsumairi

is a Japanese traditional architectural structure where the building has its main entrance on one or both of the . The shinmei-zukuri, nagare-zukuri, hachiman-zukuri, and hie-zukuri Shinto architectural styles all belong to this type....

style to possess this last feature.) The foundation's configuration is typical not of permanent, but of temporary shrines, built to be periodically moved. This shows that, for example, both the nagare-zukuri Kamo Shrine

Kamo Shrine

is a general term for an important Shinto sanctuary complex on both banks of the Kamo River in northeast Kyoto. It is centered on two shrines. The two shrines, an upper and a lower, lie in a corner of the old capital which was known as the due to traditional geomancy beliefs that the north-east...

 and Kasuga Taisha used to be dedicated to a mountain cult, and that they had to be moved to follow the movements of the kami

Kami

is the Japanese word for the spirits, natural forces, or essence in the Shinto faith. Although the word is sometimes translated as "god" or "deity", some Shinto scholars argue that such a translation can cause a misunderstanding of the term...

.

The styles also share a veranda in front of the main entrance, which makes it likely they both evolved from a simple gabled roof.