
, as the name suggests, is a creature with both human and fish-like features, described in various pieces of
Japanese literature
Japanese literature throughout most of its history has been influenced by cultural contact with neighboring Asian literatures, most notably China and its literature. Early texts were often written in pure Classical Chinese or , a Chinese-Japa ...
.
Though often translated as "
mermaid
In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa.
Mermaids are ...
", the term is technically not gender-specific and may include the "
mermen Mermen may refer to:
* The Mermen, a music group
*Merman
A merman (: mermen; also merlad or merboy in youth), the male counterpart of the mythical female mermaid, is a legendary creature which is human from the waist up and fish-like from the w ...
". The literal translation "human-fish" has also been applied.
Overview
The earliest records of the ''ningyo'' attested in written Japanese sources are freshwater beings allegedly captured in the 7th century (
§Asuka period), documented later 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 ...
''. But subsequent examples are usually seawater beings.
In later medieval times (
§Kamakura and Muromachi periods)), it was held to be a sign of ill omen, and its beaching (
§Omens in Michinoku) was blamed for subsequent bloody battles or calamity.
The notion that eating its flesh imparts longevity is attached to the legend of the ('eight hundred
ear oldBuddhist priestess', cf.
§Yao Bikuni)
During the Edo period, the ''ningyo'' was made the subject of burlesque ''
gesaku
is an alternative style, genre, or school of Japanese literature. In the simplest contemporary sense, any literary work of a playful, mocking, joking, silly or frivolous nature may be called gesaku. Unlike predecessors in the literary field, gesa ...
'' novels (cf.
§Saikaku, 1687 and
Santō Kyōden
was a Japanese people, Japanese Poet, artist, writer, and the owner of a tobacco shop during the Edo period. His real name was , and he was also known popularly as . He began his professional career illustrating the works of others before writ ...
's
§''Hakoiri musume'', 1791). There were also preserved ''ningyo'' being manufactured using fish parts (
§Mummies or Feejee mermaids), and illustrated by some scholars of the period (e.g.
§Baien gyofu); some such mummies are held by certain temples that have ningyo legend attached to them (cf.
§Prince Shōtoku).
The description of the ningyo as having a red cockscomb (
§Shokoku rijindan, and Saikaku) or light red hair (
§Kasshi yawa) corroborates the hypothesis that
oarfish
Oarfish are large and extremely long pelagic lampriform fish belonging to the small family (biology), family Regalecidae. Found in areas spanning from Temperate climate, temperate ocean zones to tropical ones, yet rarely seen by humans, the oa ...
sightings led to ningyo lore.
One giant ''ningyo'' was allegedly shot in 1805, even though it was held to be lucky, according to the news circulated in ''
kawaraban
Japanese newspapers ( , or older spelling ), similar to their worldwide counterparts, run the gamut from general news-oriented papers to special-interest newspapers devoted to economics, sports, literature, industry, and trade. Newspapers are ci ...
'' pamphlet form (
§''Kairai'')
Terminology
The Japanese has been glossed in a noted dictionary (''
Kojien'') as a "fabulous creature" which is "half woman, half fish", later revised to "half human (usually woman) and half fish".
[ Hence the term ''ningyo'' includes not just the ]mermaid
In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa.
Mermaids are ...
but the merman
A merman (: mermen; also merlad or merboy in youth), the male counterpart of the mythical female mermaid, is a legendary creature which is human from the waist up and fish-like from the waist down, but may assume normal human shape. Sometimes mer ...
also.
Accordingly, the ''ningyo'' is sometimes referred to by the verbatim translation "human-fish" in English-language scholarship, thus allowing for the gender ambiguity.
The term ''ningyo'' was not explicitly used in the earliest accounts (cf. §Asuka period, year 619) 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 ...
'' (720 AD). A later embellished account in
involving Prince Shōtoku
, also known as or , was a semi-legendary regent and a politician of the Asuka period in Japan who served under Empress Suiko. He was the son of Emperor Yōmei and his consort, Princess Anahobe no Hashihito, who was also Yōmei's younger half ...
claims that the Prince Regent
In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...
knew the term ''ningyo'', though this is regarded with skepticism. The term ''ningyo'' was likely absent from any of the primary sources used in compiling the ''Shoki'', and nonexistent in the Japanese vocabulary during the Prince's time.
The term ''ningyo'' was also absent in medieval sources describing the Kamakura Period
The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...
strandings in northern Japan §Omens in Michinoku) considered ominous. For example, a "large fish" washed ashore in the Hōji 1 (1247) according to 13th and 14th century texts. But these were called ''ningyo'' in a 17th-century recompilation.
Zoological hypotheses
The earliest examples (cf. §Asuka period) were caught in fresh waters, and it has been hypothesized they must have actually been giant salamander
The Cryptobranchidae (commonly known as giant salamanders) are a family of large salamanders that are fully aquatic. The family includes some of the largest living amphibians. They are native to China, Japan, and the eastern United States. Giant ...
s.
Another prominent theory is that the misidentification of the ''dugong
The dugong (; ''Dugong dugon'') is a marine mammal. It is one of four living species of the order Sirenia, which also includes three species of manatees. It is the only living representative of the once-diverse family Dugongidae; its closest ...
'' led to mermaid lore, but detractors pointed out that the dugong's range reaches only as far north as Okinawa
most commonly refers to:
* Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture
* Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture
* Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself
* Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...
(formerly the Kingdom of Ryūkyū), and so was not likely to have been seen during premodern times in various locations in Japan where mermaid legend (priestess who ate the mermaid) is known to occur. However, this argument is flawed, since there were other sea mammals of the ''Sirenia
The Sirenia (), commonly referred to as sea cows or sirenians, are an order of fully aquatic, herbivorous mammals that inhabit swamps, rivers, estuaries, marine wetlands, and coastal marine waters. The extant Sirenia comprise two distinct famili ...
'' order, namely Steller's sea cow
Steller's sea cow (''Hydrodamalis gigas'') is an extinction, extinct sirenian described by Georg Wilhelm Steller in 1741. At that time, it was found only around the Commander Islands in the Bering Sea between Alaska and Russia; its range exte ...
s which were native to the Bering Sea
The Bering Sea ( , ; rus, Бе́рингово мо́ре, r=Béringovo móre, p=ˈbʲerʲɪnɡəvə ˈmorʲe) is a marginal sea of the Northern Pacific Ocean. It forms, along with the Bering Strait, the divide between the two largest landmasse ...
, and could have plausibly wandered into northern Japanese seas. Other sea mammals such as seals and dolphins are also candidates to have been mistaken for human-fish.
An inscribed wooden slat (''mokkan
are wooden tablets found at Japanese archaeological sites.
Most of the tablets date from the mid-7th to mid-8th century, but some are as late as the early modern period.
They have been found in sites across Japan, but mostly around the old capita ...
'') containing drawings of ningyo (13th century) suggest the actual animal captured may have been a pinniped
Pinnipeds (pronounced ), commonly known as seals, are a widely range (biology), distributed and diverse clade of carnivorous, fin-footed, semiaquatic, mostly marine mammals. They comprise the extant taxon, extant families Odobenidae (whose onl ...
, such as a seal (cf. §Ritual offering tablet).
The ichthyologist's hypothesis that the ningyo legend originated from sightings of the red-crested oarfish
Oarfish are large and extremely long pelagic lampriform fish belonging to the small family (biology), family Regalecidae. Found in areas spanning from Temperate climate, temperate ocean zones to tropical ones, yet rarely seen by humans, the oa ...
is bolstered by the lore or reports that the ningyo has red cockscomb ( §Shokoku rijindan) or light red hair ( §Kasshi yawa). This cockscomb also is mentioned in the novel by §Saikaku.
Iconography
Despite the ''ningyo'' being defined as half-woman, half-fish in some modern dictionaries,[ the ''ningyo'' has been also depicted as having a human female head resting on a fish-like body, as in the well known Japanese ]woodblock print
Woodblock printing or block printing is a technique for printing text, images or patterns used widely throughout East Asia and originating in China in antiquity as a method of printing on textiles and later on paper. Each page or image is creat ...
''kawaraban
Japanese newspapers ( , or older spelling ), similar to their worldwide counterparts, run the gamut from general news-oriented papers to special-interest newspapers devoted to economics, sports, literature, industry, and trade. Newspapers are ci ...
'' pamphlet example (shown right, q.v. §''Kairai'').
The ''ningyo'' reportedly caught in the 7th century became associated with then Prince Regent Shōtōku, and the creature has been depicted as a gift presented to him in picture scrolls entitled ''Shōtōku Taishi eden'', the oldest surviving copy of this (1069) being the earliest piece of ningyo art in Japan. There are multiple copies of the scrolls in existence. Also, much later in the 19th century. An example is the ningyo represented as a composite of the goddess Kannon
Guanyin () is a common Chinese name of the bodhisattva associated with Karuṇā, compassion known as Avalokiteśvara (). Guanyin is short for Guanshiyin, which means " he One WhoPerceives the Sounds of the World". Originally regarded as m ...
and a fish (cf. §Prince Shōtoku and fig.).
The ningyo was human-headed in the 11th century anecdote involving the head of the Taira clan
The was one of the four most important Japanese clans, clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian period, Heian period of History of Japan, Japanese history – the others being the Minamoto clan, Minamoto, the Fujiwara clan, Fuji ...
(cf. §Presented to Tadamori),[, quoting from the anthology '']Kokon Chomonjū
, lit. ''A Collection of Notable Tales Old and New'', is a Kamakura-period collection of ''setsuwa''. It was compiled by and completed in 1254. The twenty volumes are divided by subject into thirty chapters: chapter 16 concerns art and painting a ...
'' (1254), pp. 400–401 When the ex-magistrate Taira no Tadamori 平忠盛 (1096–1153) moved his residence to Beppo 別保 in the Ise 伊勢 domain..e caught
E, or e, is the fifth letter and the second vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''e'' (pronounced ); plur ...
a big fish with a head similar to a man, endowed with hands, thick teeth like a fish, and a prominent mouth, which resembled that of a monkey. The body was like that of a normal fish.. (abridged)
The stranded ningyo had "four limbs" like a human or had hands and feet but was scaly and fish-headed. which were reported in Northern Japan in the 12th and 13th centuries and interpreted as omens (cf. §Omens in Michinoku) There has also been unearthed a wooden tablet with an illustration of such an ill-omened ningyo date to this period (c. 1286) (cf. )
But during the Edo period, illustrations of ''ningyo'' were varied, and in popular literature for entertainment (such as the ''kibyōshi'' genre), both human-headed fish type (armless) and half-human type with arms were illustrated (cf. §Two archetypes). One theory is that the two types derive from Classical Chinese literature, in particular the limbed ("hill-fish") and the limbless ("red ru fish") passed down from the ancient ''Shan hai jing'' ("Classic of Mountains and Seas
The ''Classic of Mountains and Seas'', also known as ''Shanhai jing'' (), formerly romanized as the ''Shan-hai Ching'', is a Chinese classic text and a compilation of mythic geography and beasts. Early versions of the text may have existed si ...
") (cf. § Chinese ''lingyu'' and ''chiru'').
Chinese literature
However, this explanation is compromised by the fact that the Chinese "hill-fish" is considered four-limbed, and illustrated as such, whereas it was actually the Japanese work ''Wakan sansai zue
The is an illustrated Japanese ''leishu'' encyclopedia published in 1712 in the Edo period. It consists of 105 volumes in 81 books. Its compiler was Terashima or Terajima Ryōan, Terajima (), a doctor from Osaka. It describes and illustrates va ...
'' (1712) which transformed the image of the Chinese "hill-fish" to that of a two-armed legless one (cf. fig. right), while equating it with the Japanese ''ningyo''. And this illustration has struck commentators as closely resembling the Western mermaid. (cf. § Ningyo in ''Wakan sansai zue'') The ''Wakan sansai zue'' did also give notice and print the facsimile illustration of the merfolk pronounced Teijin in Japanese (''Diren'' or in Chinese) mentioned in the classic ''Shan hai jing'', which were indeed illustrated as two-armed merfolk in Chinese sources.
Also, what the yōkai
are a class of supernatural entities and Spirit (supernatural entity) , spirits in Japanese folklore. The kanji representation of the word comprises two characters that both mean "suspicious, doubtful", and while the Japanese name is simply ...
wood-block print illustrator Toriyama Sekien
200px, A , specifically a Miage-nyūdō, as portrayed by Toriyama
, real name Sano Toyofusa, was a scholar, '' kyōka'' poet, and ''ukiyo-e'' artist of Japanese folklore.
Early life
Born to a family of high-ranking servants to the Tokugawa sh ...
drew (1781, fig. left) was not a Japanese ''ningyo'' but one dwelling in the far reaches of China west of a World tree (''kenboku''; pinyin: ''jianmu'' ). The caption adds that such ''ningyo'' was also known as the people of the Di Nation.
Siren-mermaids recorded by Europeans
The Japanese Shogunate
, officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...
had acquired a copy of Johannes Jonston's ''Natural History'' in Dutch (1660) already by 1663, containing illustrations of the Western siren-mermaid. But it is not clear whether such "Dutch" (''Rangaku
''Rangaku'' (Kyūjitai: , ), and by extension , is a body of knowledge developed by Japan through its contacts with the Dutch enclave of Dejima, which allowed Japan to keep abreast of Western technology and medicine in the period when the countr ...
'', Western learning) images got widely disseminated in Japan before 's , which digested this and other works on the topic of mermaid, with reproduced illustrations.
By the late Edo Period (mid to late 19th century), the visual iconography of the ''ningyo'' came gradually to match the half-human half-fish of the European mermaid.
Yao Bikuni
One of the most famous folk stories involving ''ningyo'' (or rather the flesh of the human-fish), purports that a girl who ate it acquired everlasting youth and longevity, and became the nun also read Happyaku Bikuni, living to the age of 800 years.
Summary
In the typical version the girl who ate the ningyo was from Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. Ob ...
, Wakasa Province
was a province of Japan in the area that is today the southwestern portion of Fukui Prefecture in the Hokuriku region of Japan. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Wakasa''" in . Wakasa bordered on Echizen, Ōmi, Tanba, Tango, and Yamash ...
, and as a nun dwelled in a grass hut on the mountain at temple in the region. She traveled all over Japan in her life, but then she resolves to end her life in her home country, and sealed herself in a cave where she dwelled or has herself buried alive on the mountain at the temple, and requests a camellia
''Camellia'' (pronounced or ) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. They are found in tropical and subtropical areas in East Asia, eastern and South Asia, southern Asia, from the Himalayas east to Japan and Indonesia. There are ...
tree be planted at the site as indicator of whether she still remains alive.
In a version passed down at Obama, Wakasa, the sixteen-year-old girl eats the ningyo inadvertently, after her father receives the prepared dish as a guest, so that the family is not implicated in knowingly eating the ningyo or butchering it. The Kūin-ji temple history claims the father to have been a rich man named Takahashi, descended from the founder of the province, and when the daughter turned 16, the dragon king
The Dragon King, also known as the Dragon God, is a Chinese water and weather god. He is regarded as the dispenser of rain, commanding over all bodies of water. He is the collective personification of the ancient concept of the '' lóng'' in ...
appeared in the guise of a white-bearded man and gave her the flesh as a gift. But there are versions known all over Japan, and the father is often identified as a fisherman. A fisherman reeled in the ningyo but discarded it due to its strangeness, but the young daughter had picked it up and eaten it, according to one telling.
Time period
The oldest written sources of the legend date from the 15th century, and one of these sources relate that the appeared in Kyoto in the middle of that century (year 1449
Year 1449 ( MCDXLIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–March
* January 2 – King Henry VI of England summons the members of parliament, directing them to assemble on Februry 12 at We ...
) at age 800.
Assuming age 800 in keeping with her commonly used name, her birth can be back dated to around the mid-7th century, during the Asuka Period
The was a period in the history of Japan lasting from 538 to 710, although its beginning could be said to overlap with the preceding Kofun period. The Yamato period, Yamato polity evolved greatly during the Asuka period, which is named after the ...
.
Folklorist 's chronology makes her a survivor from an even older age. He dated Yao Bikuni eating ningyo flesh in the year 480 AD during the Kofun Period
The is an era in the history of Japan from about 300 to 538 AD (the date of the introduction of Buddhism), following the Yayoi period. The Kofun and the subsequent Asuka periods are sometimes collectively called the Yamato period. This period is ...
( Tumulus Period).[Fujisawa (1931, pub. Rokubunkan) (pub. Daitōkaku), pp. 40–42. ''apud'' ] However, no written source for this could be evinced, according to a recent researcher, and an oral tradition is presumed.
Asuka period
In the 27th year of Empress Suiko
(554 – 15 April 628) was the 33rd monarch of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō''):
She introduced Buddhism in Japan and built many Buddhist temples, but she held the balance between Buddhism and Shintoism. Under her rule, Japan ...
(619
__NOTOC__
Year 619 ( DCXIX) was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 619 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe f ...
, man-like fish were supposedly netted twice: on in Ōmi Province
was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan, which today comprises Shiga Prefecture. It was one of the provinces that made up the Tōsandō Circuit (subnational entity), circuit. Its nickname is . Under the ''Engishiki'' classification system, ...
during the 4th month, and in Horie, Settsu Province
was a province of Japan, which today comprises the southeastern part of Hyōgo Prefecture and the northern part of Osaka Prefecture. It was also referred to as or .
Osaka and Osaka Castle were the main center of the province. Most of Settsu's ...
(, an artificial canal no longer extant), according to the ''Nihon shoki''.
They were freshwater creatures, and the description of it being "childlike" suggested its true identity to be the Japanese giant salamander
The Japanese giant salamander (''Andrias japonicus'') is a species of fully aquatic giant salamander endemic to Japan, occurring across the western portion of the main island of Honshu, with smaller populations present on Shikoku and in northe ...
according to Minakata Kumagusu
was a Japanese author, biologist, naturalist and ethnologist.
Biography
Minakata was born in Wakayama, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan. In 1883, he moved to Tokyo, where he entered the preparatory school '' Kyōryū Gakkō''. The headmaster of ...
.
Prince Shōtoku
Crown Prince Shōtoku at age 48 was allegedly presented with a ningyo from Settsu Province
was a province of Japan, which today comprises the southeastern part of Hyōgo Prefecture and the northern part of Osaka Prefecture. It was also referred to as or .
Osaka and Osaka Castle were the main center of the province. Most of Settsu's ...
, but he abhorred the unlucky gift and ordered it to be discarded immediately. This account occurs in a picture scroll called ''Shōtoku Taishi eden''. There were some 40 copies of this made, of which the copy held by Hōryū-ji temple, dated to 1069 is the oldest known pictorial depiction of the Japanese ningyo.
While ''Shoki'' never used the term ''ningyo'' explicitly, Prince Shōtoku had been involved in the Gamō River incident and knew to use the term, according to the prince's abridged history or . Shōtoku also knew the ''ningyo'' to bring forth disaster according to the ''Denryaku'', and an annotation provides that it was customary for fishermen at the time to release a ''ningyo'' if ever caught in the net. When the prince was alarmed by the ill omen of a ningyo appearing in Ōmi Province, he had a statue of the Kannon
Guanyin () is a common Chinese name of the bodhisattva associated with Karuṇā, compassion known as Avalokiteśvara (). Guanyin is short for Guanshiyin, which means " he One WhoPerceives the Sounds of the World". Originally regarded as m ...
goddess placed in the vicinity, according to document preserved at temple.
According to the ''engi'' or foundation myth of , Prince Shōtoku met a ningyo in a pool near Lake Biwa who confessed to have been reborn in its shape due to poor deeds in past life, and the prince performed service to provide it salvation by building a temple to house a Kannon goddess statue, which was the origins of this temple.
Late Nara period
After the Asuka Period, the two oldest appearances of the ningyo are dated to the mid- to late Nara Period, and these were situated by the sea.
An ''ningyo'' beached on Yasui-no-ura in Izumo Province
was an Old provinces of Japan, old province of Japan which today consists of the eastern part of Shimane Prefecture. It was sometimes called . The province is in the Chūgoku region.
History
During the early Kofun period (3rd century) this reg ...
(a bay in present-day Yasugi, Shimane
is a city located in Shimane Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 35,965 in 14257 households and a population density of 85 persons per km2. The total area of the city is .
Geography
Yasugi is located in far eastern Sh ...
) in the Tenpyō-shōhō
was a after ''Tenpyō-kanpō'' and before '' Tenpyō-hōji.'' This period spanned the years from July 749 through August 757. The reigning empress was .
Change of era
* 749 : The new era name of Tenpyō-shōhō (meaning "Heavenly Peace and V ...
8 or the year 756
__NOTOC__
Year 756 ( DCCLVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar, the 756th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 756th year of the 1st millennium, the 56th year of the 8th century, and the ...
AD, and later, another one appeared in in Noto Province
was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan in the area that is today the northern part of Ishikawa Prefecture in Japan, including the Noto Peninsula (''Noto-hantō'') which is surrounded by the Sea of Japan. Noto bordered on Etchū Province, E ...
(a peninsula in present-day Suzu, Ishikawa
is a Cities of Japan, city located in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 13,531 in 6013 households, and a population density of 54.6 persons per km2. The total area of the city was .
Etymology
Suzu is thought ...
) in the year Hōki
was a after '' Jingo-keiun'' and before ''Ten'ō''. This period spanned the years from October 770 through January 781. The reigning emperor was .
Change of era
* 770 : The new era name was created to mark an event or series of events. The p ...
9/778
__NOTOC__
Year 778 ( DCCLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar, the 778th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 778th year of the 1st millennium, the 78th year of the 8th century, ...
. These reports are preserved in a , an old document concerning Hōryū-ji
is a Buddhist temple that was once one of the powerful Nanto Shichi Daiji, Seven Great Temples, located in Ikaruga, Nara, Ikaruga, Nara Prefecture, Japan. Built shortly after Buddhism was introduced to Japan, it is also one of the oldest Buddh ...
, the temple closely associated with Prince Shōtoku.
Heian period
Presented to Tadamori
;(Ise Province. c. 1140s. In ''Kokon Chomonjū'')
An anecdote of three presumed "ningyo" caught in a net in in Ise Province
was a province of Japan in the area of Japan that is today includes most of modern Mie Prefecture. Ise bordered on Iga, Kii, Mino, Ōmi, Owari, Shima, and Yamato Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was .
History
The name of Ise appears ...
, is found in the ''Kokon Chomonjū
, lit. ''A Collection of Notable Tales Old and New'', is a Kamakura-period collection of ''setsuwa''. It was compiled by and completed in 1254. The twenty volumes are divided by subject into thirty chapters: chapter 16 concerns art and painting a ...
'' ("Collection of Tales Heard, Present and Past", 1254
Year 1254 ( MCCLIV) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Byzantine Empire
* Battle of Adrianople: Byzantine forces under Emperor Theodore II Laskaris defeat the invading Bulgarians near Edirne ...
) from the mid-Kamakura Period
The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...
.
The event dates a century earlier than the anthology: when Taira no Tadamori
was the head of the Taira clan. He was son of Taira no Masamori, and father of Taira no Kiyomori. Tadamori was also governor of the provinces of Harima, Ise, Bizen, and Tajima.
He consolidated the influence of the Taira clan at the Imperial ...
(d. 1153; father of Kiyomori
was a military leader and ''kugyō'' of the late Heian period of Japan. He established the first samurai-dominated administrative government in the history of Japan.
Early life
Kiyomori was born in Japan, in 1118 as the first son of Taira no ...
) had moved his residence to this place, populated by "bayside villagers" (fishermen).
The big fish had human-like heads (but also sets of fine teeth like fish, and a protruding mouths like a monkey's), with fish-like bodies. When hauled to land and carried (by pairs of fishermen) with the tails dragging, the creatures screamed in high-pitched voice and shed tears like a human. The tale concludes with the presumption that creatures must have been ''ningyo'' (human-fish). The three ''ningyo'' were presented to Tadamori, but one was returned to the bay's villagers (fishermen), who carved it up and ate it. It was exquisitely delicious, and no special effects came of it.
Kamakura and Muromachi periods
Omens in Michinoku
;(Mutsu and Dewa Provinces . ''Hōjō kudai ki'', ''Azuma kagami'', etc.)
There had been frequent beachings of ''ningyo'' in Mutsu or Dewa Province
was a province of Japan comprising modern-day Yamagata Prefecture and Akita Prefecture, except for the city of Kazuno and the town of Kosaka. Dewa bordered on Mutsu and Echigō Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was .
History
Early per ...
(Michinoku region) according to the (printed 1641),, and each sighting is treated as an omen, associated with some armed conflict or ill fortune which struck afterwards:[, untitled list for the "summary of ningyo appearances (人魚の出現の概略)"; "Table 1 Records of Appearances of Ningyo 人魚の出現記録」"; ;. Note that Fujisawa inconveniently converts to the obsolete ]Japanese imperial year
The , colloquially known as the or "national calendar year" is a unique calendar system in Japan. It is based on the legendary foundation of Japan by Emperor Jimmu in 660 BC. emphasizes the long history of Japan and the Imperial dynasty.
The ...
system instead of the western calendar system.
* Bunji 5 (1189
Year 1189 (Roman numerals, MCLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. In English law, 1189 - specifically the beginning of the reign of Richard I of England, Richard I - is considered the end of time immemorial.
E ...
) summer. Beaching at (in Mutsu). Presaging extermination of Fujiwara no Hidehira
was the third ruler of Northern Fujiwara in Mutsu Province, Japan, the grandson of Fujiwara no Kiyohira. During the Genpei War, he controlled his territory independently of the central government; however, he was the official imperial governor f ...
's sons
* Kennin
was a after ''Shōji'' and before '' Genkyū.'' This period spanned the years from February 1201 through February 1204. The reigning emperor was .
Change of era
* 1201 ; 1201: The new era name was created to mark an event of shin'yū (辛酉) ...
3 (1203
Year 1203 ( MCCIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. It was also the first year to have all digits different from each other since 1098.
Events
By place Fourth Crusade
* April 20 – The Crusader arm ...
), 4th month. Tsugaru-no-ura. Minamoto no Sanetomo
was the third ''shōgun'' of the Kamakura shogunate. He was the second son of the Kamakura shogunate founder, Minamoto no Yoritomo. His mother was Hōjō Masako and his older brother was the second Kamakura shogun Minamoto no Yoriie.
His child ...
harmed by evil zen
Zen (; from Chinese: ''Chán''; in Korean: ''Sŏn'', and Vietnamese: ''Thiền'') is a Mahayana Buddhist tradition that developed in China during the Tang dynasty by blending Indian Mahayana Buddhism, particularly Yogacara and Madhyamaka phil ...
priest.
* Kenpo 1 ( 1213). Akita-no-ura, Dewa. Same year, .
* Hōji 1 (1247
Year 1247 ( MCCXLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* War of the Thuringian Succession: The claims on the Ludovingians' inheritance after the death of Henry Raspe, landgrave of T ...
). 11th day of 3rd month. A fish-headed but human cadaver like fish. Tsugaru-no-ura. Same year, 's uprising (i.e., the ) )
Actually all these cases, culminating in the Hōji 1 event, were recorded in much older ''Azuma kagami
is a Japanese historical chronicle.
The medieval text chronicles events of the Kamakura Shogunate from Minamoto no Yoritomo's rebellion against the Taira clan in Izokuni of 1180 to Munetaka Shinnō (the 6th shōgun) and his return to Kyoto in ...
'' (chronicle up to year 1266
Year 1266 ( MCCLXVI) was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Europe
* January 2 – Siege of Murcia: King James I of Aragon ("the Conqueror") marches with his army from Orihuela and lays sieg ...
) and the ''Hōjō kudai ki'' (aka , 1331) except that the creature is not called a "ningyo" but rather a "large fish" (which was human cadaver-like with "four limbs"), or a creature "having hands and feet, covered in overlapping scales, and a head no different than a fish's". And these near-contemporary sources also interpret the ningyo ("big fish") appearances as presaging major warfare occurring within that year.
In Hōji 1, on the very same day (11th of 3rd month) when "big fish" was beached up north in Tsugaru, Michinoku (or perhaps the day preceding) the ocean by the Yuigahama
is a beach near Kamakura, a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. The relation between the beach and its neighboring areas is complex. Although Yuigahama is legally the entire 3.2 km beach that goes from Inamuragasaki, which separates it from ...
(beach) was bright scarlet, and reported to have changed to blood. Yuigahama was the location of bloodshed on a number of occasion. The reason it may have indeed turned scarlet was possibly due to a red tide
A harmful algal bloom (HAB), or excessive algae growth, sometimes called a red tide in marine environments, is an algal bloom that causes negative impacts to other organisms by production of natural algae-produced toxins, water deoxygenation, ...
occurrence.)
The Hōji 1 event was discussed in one late source, called the (published Jōkyō
was a after ''Tenna'' and before ''Genroku.'' This period spanned the years from February 1684 through September 1688. The reigning emperors were and .Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). ''Annales des empereurs du japon'' p. 415./ref>
Change of era
* ...
1/1684
Events January–March
* January 5
** King Charles II of England gives the title Duke of St Albans to Charles Beauclerk, his illegitimate son by Nell Gwyn.
** The earliest form of what is now the University of Tokyo (formally chartere ...
), but this miscopies the day to the "20th of the 3rd month", which makes it the probably direct source of Ihara Saikaku
was a Japanese poet and creator of the " floating world" genre of Japanese prose (''ukiyo-zōshi'').
His born name may have been Hirayama Tōgo (平山藤五), the son of a wealthy merchant in Osaka, and he first studied haikai poetry under a ...
's fictional piece in which a ''ningyo'' appears.
There are two later sightings in the 14th century recorded in the aforementioned ''Kagenki''. The second sighting occurred after the fall of the Kamakura Shogunate, and belongs in the Muromachi Period
The , also known as the , is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate ( or ), which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi ...
.
* Enkyō 3 (1310), 11th of 4th month. In Obama-no-tsu Obama Bay
is a bay within Wakasa Bay in the Chūbu region of Japan, within the municipal boundaries of both Ōi and Obama. Its surface area is about , with a mean depth of . Due to its clear waters and large beaches, it is a popular beach destination in t ...
in Wakasa Province
was a province of Japan in the area that is today the southwestern portion of Fukui Prefecture in the Hokuriku region of Japan. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Wakasa''" in . Wakasa bordered on Echizen, Ōmi, Tanba, Tango, and Yamash ...
. It was considered to the land, and was named .
* Enbun2 (1357
Year 1357 ( MCCCLVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–December
* February 3 – The Estates General in France meets and passes Étienne Marcel's Great Ordinance in an attempt to impo ...
), 3rd of rabbit
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also includes the hares), which is in the order Lagomorpha (which also includes pikas). They are familiar throughout the world as a small herbivore, a prey animal, a domesticated ...
(2nd/4th) month. Appeared in Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.Futami-ura
Futami-ga-ura is a sub-bay or inlet of Ise Bay in Japan, where the Isuzu River enters the bay.