Shiretoko Love Song ({{Lang-ja, 知床旅情=Shiretoko Ryojō) is a

love song A love song is a song about romantic love, falling in love, heartbreak after a breakup, and the feelings that these experiences bring. A comprehensive list of even the best known performers and composers of love songs would be a large order. ...

whose words and music were made by

Hisaya Morishige was a Japanese actor and comedian. Born in Hirakata, Osaka, he graduated from Kitano Middle School (now Kitano High School), and attended Waseda University. He began his career as a stage actor, then became an announcer for NHK, working in Ma ...

, related to the

Shiretoko Peninsula is located on the easternmost portion of the Japanese island of Hokkaidō, protruding into the Sea of Okhotsk. It is separated from Kunashir Island, which is now occupied by Russia, by the Nemuro Strait. The name Shiretoko is derived from the ...

Hokkaido is Japan, Japan's Japanese archipelago, second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost Prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own List of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; th ...

, Japan.

In general

To shoot a film,

(1913-2009), a Japanese actor and

comedian A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolish (as in slapstick), or employing prop comedy. A comedian who addresses an audience dir ...

, stayed in Rausu Town in the Shiretoko Peninsula and wrote this song in 1960. It was first sung by Morishige himself before the town people of Rausu on his last day there. The words of the song were later changed with its new title, "

Okhotsk Okhotsk ( rus, Охотск, p=ɐˈxotsk) is an urban locality (a work settlement) and the administrative center of Okhotsky District of Khabarovsk Krai, Russia, located at the mouth of the Okhota River on the Sea of Okhotsk. Population: Hi ...

Boat Song". It was for the fishermen who could not return to Kunashiri Island because the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

moved and occupied this and other

Kuril Islands The Kuril Islands or Kurile Islands (; rus, Кури́льские острова́, r=Kuril'skiye ostrova, p=kʊˈrʲilʲskʲɪjə ɐstrɐˈva; Japanese: or ) are a volcanic archipelago currently administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast in the ...

in the Okhotsk Sea, two weeks after Japan's surrender of August 15, 1945. It was sung by Morishige himself and

Chieko Baisho is a Japanese actress and singer. In Japan, she is well known for her performance as Sakura in the ''Otoko wa Tsurai yo'' series from 1969 until 1995. In addition, she has acted in many films directed by Yōji Yamada since the 1960s. She won th ...

. The lyrics of the song were further changed with its newer title, "Shiretoko Love Song". This version sung by

Tokiko Kato is a Japanese singer, composer, lyricist, actress and activist. She was born in Harbin, Manchukuo Manchukuo, officially the State of Manchuria prior to 1934 and the Empire of (Great) Manchuria after 1934, was a puppet state of the Empi ...

became extremely popular, and

single record In music, a single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most cases, a single is a song that is released separate ...

was a million seller in Japan. She won the singer award of the

13th Japan Record Awards The 13th Annual Japan Record Awards took place at the Imperial Garden Theater in Chiyoda, Tokyo, on December 31, 1971, starting at 7:00PM JST. The primary ceremonies were televised in Japan on TBS. Award winners Japan Record Award * Kiyohiko O ...

of 1971.Shiretoko - Tokiko Kato - Learn Kanji
/ref> Shiretoko still continues to be one of the songs most often sung in Japan's

karaoke Karaoke (; ; , clipped compound of Japanese ''kara'' "empty" and ''ōkesutora'' "orchestra") is a type of interactive entertainment usually offered in clubs and bars, where people sing along to recorded music using a microphone. The music i ...

now.

Lyrics

The current version of the song is composed of three stanzas. The first stanza can be translated as: At Cape Shiretoko Where hamanasu roses bloomed by the sea, Please remember, dear, That we loved each other. We drank together, made merry, And, as we climbed the nearby hill, Saw the day break Over the island of Kunashiri. The second stanza, starting with "Tabi no nasake ni", translates: On this trip so far away from home, I drank too much till I swayed. As we together went out to the seashore, The moon was shining over the sea waves. Since tonight was the time to embrace you, We hid ourselves behind the rocks, While pirika puffins serenaded around us. The third stanza, starting with "Wakare no hi wa kita", can be translated: The day of our parting has come To the town of Ra-u-su. We are going away Over the mountain pass. I would hate to forget you, I, a frivolous crow. Pray, don't let me cry, You, a white seagull.

References

External links

Shiretoko Love Song in Japanese with Its English Translation
(Beware of music!)
Shiretoko Lyrics
(The third stanza shown here is rarely sung.) Japanese-language songs Japanese songs Culture in Hokkaido 1960 songs

In general

Lyrics

See also

References

External links