is an active

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a typically conical volcano built up by many alternating layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with ...

located in Shikotsu-Toya National Park,

Hokkaidō is the second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by railway via the Seikan Tunnel. The ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. It is also called , "Ezo" being an old name for the island of Hokkaido, because it resembles

Mount Fuji is an active stratovolcano located on the Japanese island of Honshu, with a summit elevation of . It is the highest mountain in Japan, the second-highest volcano on any Asian island (after Mount Kerinci on the Indonesian island of Sumatra), a ...

. The mountain is also known as . It is one of the

100 famous mountains in Japan is a book written in 1964 by mountaineer and author Kyūya Fukada.Hyakumeizan, Hiking Japan!
. Japan ...

Geology

Mount Yōtei is mostly composed of andesite and dacite. The stratovolcano is symmetrical, adding to its resemblance to Mount Fuji.

Eruptive history

Tephrochronology 250px, Tephra horizons in south-central Iceland. The thick and light coloured layer at the height of the volcanologist's hands is rhyolitic tephra from Hekla. Tephrochronology is a Geochronology, geochronological technique for dating archaeolo ...

indicates two eruptions at Mount Yotei. The most recent circa 1050 BC from a cone emerging from the northwest flank of the mountain at . The earlier eruption is dated from circa 3550 BC.

Climate

Avalanches

On March 11, 2024, two backcountry skiers from New Zealand died after they were caught along with four others in an avalanche along the volcano's slopes. A third person from the group was injured.

Etymology

Mount Yōtei is also known as Ezo Fuji because of its almost perfectly conical shape resembling

, making it one of the "local Fujis" found in different regions of Japan. Through Japan's

Meiji Meiji, the romanization of the Japanese characters 明治, may refer to: Japanese history * Emperor Meiji, Emperor of Japan between 1867 and 1912 ** Meiji era, the name given to that period in Japanese history *** Meiji Restoration, the revolution ...

, Taishō and

Shōwa era The was a historical period of History of Japan, Japanese history corresponding to the reign of Emperor Shōwa (Hirohito) from December 25, 1926, until Death and state funeral of Hirohito, his death on January 7, 1989. It was preceded by the T ...

s it was known by multiple names: "Shiribeshi-yama/Kōhō-Yōtei-zan" (後方羊蹄山), "Makkarinupuri" (マッカヌプリ), and "Ezo Fuji" (蝦夷富士). On some maps it is also recorded as "Makkari-yama" (マッカリ山). In the 50,000:1 scale topographical map of the "Rusutsu" area published in 1920 by Japan's Land Surveying Department, the mountain is recorded as "Shiribeshi-yama (Ezo-Fuji)". However, since the name was difficult to read, the town of

Kutchan is a town located in Shiribeshi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. Kutchan lies slightly north of the volcano Mount Yōtei, and is approximately 50 kilometers west of Sapporo. The subprefecture government offices are located in this town, making it ...

asked for it to be changed to Yōtei-zan. The change took place in the November 1969 topographical map published by the

Geospatial Information Authority of Japan The , or GSI, is the national institution responsible for surveying and mapping the national land of Japan. The former name of the organization from 1949 until March 2010 was Geographical Survey Institute; despite the rename, it retains the same ...

. Since then, the current name of Yōtei-zan has become established. The mountain's former title of "Shiribeshi-yama" (後方羊蹄山) originates in the place-name of "Shiribeshi" (後方羊蹄), which was recorded in the ''

Nihon Shoki The or , sometimes translated as ''The Chronicles of Japan'', is the second-oldest book of classical Japanese history. It is more elaborate and detailed than the , the oldest, and has proven to be an important tool for historians and archaeol ...

'' as the place where

Abe no Hirafu was a Japanese military commander, strategist, and politician of the Asuka period. Some sources say he lived from c.575-664 Biography Events in his life are accounted in the Nihon Shoki and Kojiki, both written several decades after his dea ...

established a domain in the article of May 17 in the year 659 AD (Year 5 of the reign of

Empress Kōgyoku , also known as , was the 35th and 37th monarch of Japan,Kunaichō 斉明天皇 (37)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Both her reigns were within the Asuka period. Kōgyoku's reign spanned the years from 642 to 645. Her r ...

). (The domain was established because the Ezo family groups of Ikashima and Uhona wished to receive the territory.) It is unclear whether this record refers to the same location as the current Mt Yōtei. The characters for "shiribeshi" (後方羊蹄) are consist of "shiribe" ("the rear", 後方), and "shi" ("sheep's hooves" or "''

Rumex japonicus The docks and sorrels, genus ''Rumex'', are a genus of about 200 species of annual, biennial, and perennial herbs in the buckwheat family, Polygonaceae. Members of this genus are very common perennial herbs with a native almost worldwide distribu ...

''", 羊蹄).羊蹄山
/ref> The Ainu called the mountain Makkarinupuri or Machineshiri (雌山) "female mountain", and referred to the Shiribetsu-dake mountain to the southeast as Pinneshiri (雄山) "male mountain". Shiribetsu-dake is also referred to by some fans as Zenpō-Yōteizan (written with the characters "Mt. Yōtei in front"), in contrast to Mt. Yōtei's old name of Kōhō-Yōtei-zan (which is written with the characters for "Mt. Yotei behind").

References

External links

* * – Japan Meteorological Agency
Yotei Zan
– Geological Survey of Japan {{DEFAULTSORT:Yotei Active volcanoes Stratovolcanoes of Japan Volcanoes of Hokkaido Mountains of Hokkaido Shikotsu-Tōya National Park Highest points of Japanese national parks Holocene stratovolcanoes