Sai, Aomori
Encyclopedia
Villages of Japan
A is a local administrative unit in Japan.It is a local public body along with , , and . Geographically, a village's extent is contained within a prefecture....
located in the Shimokita District
Shimokita District, Aomori
is a district located in Aomori Prefecture, Japan. It occupies most of the northern handle of Shimokita Peninsula with the exception of Mutsu City and contains the most northern point on the island of Honshū...
of northeastern Aomori Prefecture
Aomori Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku Region. The capital is the city of Aomori.- History :Until the Meiji Restoration, the area of Aomori prefecture was known as Mutsu Province....
in the Tōhoku region
Tohoku region
The is a geographical area of Japan. The region occupies the northeastern portion of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. The region consists of six prefectures : Akita, Aomori, Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi and Yamagata....
of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. As of 2009, the village had an estimated population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of 2,492 and a density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
of 18.5 persons per km². Its total area was 135.03 km².
Geography
Sai occupies the western coastline of Shimokita PeninsulaShimokita Peninsula
The Shimokita Peninsula is the remote northeastern cape of the Japanese island of Honshū, stretching out towards Hokkaidō. Administratively the area is a part of Aomori Prefecture....
, facing the inlet to Mutsu Bay
Mutsu Bay
is a bay inside Aomori Prefecture, Japan. It includes three bays; Aomori Bay, Noheji Bay and Ōminato Bay. Mutsu Bay covers about 1660 km². The culture of scallops is prosperous in the bay....
from the Tsugaru Strait
Tsugaru Strait
is a channel between Honshu and Hokkaido in northern Japan connecting the Sea of Japan with the Pacific Ocean. It was named after the western part of Aomori Prefecture...
. The village has a cold maritime climate characterized by cool short summers and long cold winters with heavy snowfall. Much of the village is within the limits of the Shimokita Hanto Quasi-National Park
Shimokita Hanto Quasi-National Park
is a quasi-national park in the far northern Tohoku region of Honshū in Japan. It is rated a protected landscape according to the IUCN. The park, which covers most of Shimokita Peninsula, includes the volcanic peaks and caldera lakes of the Osorezan Mountain Range, the coastal rock formations of...
. The mountainous area is home to many indigenous plant and animal species. Wildlife includes Japanese Macaque monkeys
Japanese Macaque
The Japanese macaque , historically known as saru , but now known as Nihonzaru to distinguish it from other primates, is a terrestrial Old World monkey species native to Japan....
, kamoshika
Kamoshika
The was a limited express train service in Japan operated by East Japan Railway Company which ran between and via the Ōu Main Line. The service was discontinued from December 2010.-Service pattern:...
, tanuki
Tanuki
is the common Japanese name for the Japanese raccoon dog . They have been part of Japanese folklore since ancient times...
and Asian black bear s.
History
The area around Sai was inhabited by the EmishiEmishi
The constituted a group of people who lived in northeastern Honshū in the Tōhoku region. They are referred to as in contemporary sources. Some Emishi tribes resisted the rule of the Japanese Emperors during the late Nara and early Heian periods...
people until the historical period. During the Edo period
Edo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
, it was controlled by the Nambu clan of Morioka Domain
Morioka Domain
The was a han or feudal domain that encompasses present-day the middle-northern part of Iwate Prefecture and eastern part of Aomori Prefecture. It is sometimes colloquially called . The domain was tozama daimyo and was governed by the Satake clan. Its income was 100,000...
and prospered due to its timber industry and as a ferry terminal to Ezo
Ezo
is a Japanese name which historically referred to the lands to the north of Japan. It was used in various senses, sometimes meaning the northern Japanese island of Hokkaidō, and sometimes meaning lands and waters further north in the Sea of Okhotsk, like Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands...
. During the cadastral reform of 1889, Sai Village was proclaimed from the merger of Sai hamlet with neighboring Chōgō hamlet.
Economy
The economy of Sai is heavily dependent on agriculture, forestry and fishing. Some of the locally caught seafood include sea urchin roe, sea pineappleSea pineapple
The sea pineapple is an edible ascidian consumed primarily in Korea, where it is known as meongge , and to a lesser extent in Japan, where it is known as or ....
, sea cucumber
Sea cucumber (food)
Sea cucumbers are marine animals of the class Holothuroidea used in fresh or dried form in various cuisines.The creature and the food product is commonly known as bêche-de-mer in French, trepang in Indonesian, namako in Japanese and in the Philippines it is called balatan...
, scallop
Scallop
A scallop is a marine bivalve mollusk of the family Pectinidae. Scallops are a cosmopolitan family, found in all of the world's oceans. Many scallops are highly prized as a food source...
s, abalone
Abalone
Abalone , from aulón, are small to very large-sized edible sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Haliotidae and the genus Haliotis...
and squid
Squid
Squid are cephalopods of the order Teuthida, which comprises around 300 species. Like all other cephalopods, squid have a distinct head, bilateral symmetry, a mantle, and arms. Squid, like cuttlefish, have eight arms arranged in pairs and two, usually longer, tentacles...
. Sai also has a shitake farm that sells to local markets.
Tourist attractions
- HotokegauraHotokegauraThe Hotokegaura are a series of rock formations naturally carved from the cliffs in village of Sai on the west coast of the Shimokita Peninsula in Aomori, Japan....
, a series of naturally-carved cliff rock formations - Yagen OnsenYagen ValleyYagen Onsen is a hot spring located in Ohata-machi, Mutsu city, Aomori Prefecture.This onsen and Oku-yagen Onsen are described in this article.-Access:...
, a hot spring resort - Gankake is a large boulder by the sea that attracts people in the summer due to the view from the top. It is a popular swimming spot and has cabins nearby.
Events
- September, Sai Matsuri with floats pulled by the locals, during which KaguraKagura- Fictional characters :*Kagura Tsuchimiya, the protagonist of Ga-rei*Kagura, an InuYasha character*Kagura Sohma , a Fruits Basket character*Kagura, an Azumanga Daioh character*Ten'nōzu Kagura, a Speed Grapher character...
is performed and ShintoShintoor Shintoism, also kami-no-michi, is the indigenous spirituality of Japan and the Japanese people. It is a set of practices, to be carried out diligently, to establish a connection between present day Japan and its ancient past. Shinto practices were first recorded and codified in the written...
priestsKannushiA , also called , is the person responsible for the maintenance of a Shinto shrine as well as for leading worship of a given kami. The characters for kannushi are sometimes also read jinshu with the same meaning....
bless the village houses - November, Sai Culture Festival, during which different variations of festival songs and kagura are performed at the community center.
- February, Fukuura village puts on a kabukiKabukiis classical Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for the stylization of its drama and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers.The individual kanji characters, from left to right, mean sing , dance , and skill...
show. It features northern styles of kabuki. - June, Sai has a sea urchin roe festival.
Noted people from Sai
- Gōtarō MikamiGōtarō Mikamiwas a Japanese doctor during the Russo-Japanese War noted for his work with the Red Cross.-Biography:Mikami was born in the village of Sai on the northern tip of Shimokita Peninsula in Aomori Prefecture. His family had been doctors to the Morioka Domain of the Nambu clan for eight generations in...
– physician and Japanese Red CrossJapanese Red CrossThe ' is the Japanese affiliate of the International Red Cross.The Imperial Family of Japan traditionally has supported the society, with Empress as Honorary President and other royal family members as vice-presidents. Its headquarters is located in Tokyo and local chapters are set up in all 47...
supporter during the Russo-Japanese WarRusso-Japanese WarThe Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...