Kakeyo Festival
"It was the most delicious thing I had ever had in my entire life."
- Ryosuke Iguchi
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Historical and General Information
The Kakeyo festival is a traditional celebration with over 350 years of history, held annually on February 4th (the first day of spring) in the Kanoura district of Nikaho City, Akita Prefecture. It is also known as the Cod Festival, where people carry cod weighing over 10kg to Kanourayama Shrine as an offering, praying for maritime safety and an abundant catch. It is a ritual performed by dishermen to pray for safe seas and abundant fishing.
Activities
Pairs of men carry cold landed at Kanoura Fishing Port, suspended from poles, in a procession. The procession route is approximately 2km from Kanoura Fishing Port to Kanoura Shrine. After the ritual, visitors may be served cod soup or cod milt.
Mottainai Culture
Generally, Japan has a unique culture, particularly its food culture, which many people have never had the opportunity to experience. Famous examples include natto (Fermented soybeans), pufferfish, and sea urchin. Especially in Japan, there is a culture of eating organs. This idea originates from the Mottainai culture. Mottainai stands for "what a waste". Japanese people think that once we receive life from nature, we should appreciate everything. One way to show appreciation is to utilise all aspects of life. We eat meat, we use bones to make soup, we use leather for clothes, and we eat organs. That is why Japanese people say "itadakimasu" before they have a meal. Itadalimasu means to receive in Japanese; it means that we receive life. Milt is one of the body parts that we eat in several ways.
My father
Ryosuke Iguchi
Direct Voice from Ryosuke Iguchi
Is milt delicious? How to eat? (Interview with my father)
Organs must be fresh to remain delicious. My father used to live in Akita, he had milt from this festival. He said, "It was the most delicious thing I had ever had in my entire life." At the Kakeyo festival, everyone buys whole cod and enjoys preparing it themselves. Sometimes an entire lorry load of cod sells during the festival. While cod milt is usually boiled and eaten with ponzu sauce and spring onions, at this festival it seems to be served raw (called dadami) in a bowl, topped with garlic or ginger and soy sauce. The bones and flesh are used to make miso soup. The freshness makes dadami delicious; my father's impression is understandable.
Threat of extinction
Akita Prefecture is famous for significant depopulation. Due to the depopulation, Nikaho City is struggling to find successors. This festival is held annually, but due to the lack of people, it has been five years since the last one, in 2025. The depopulation is a threat to this tradition.
Akita Television Reporting (Japanese)
Akita Sakigake Newspaper Reporting (Japanese)
Asahi Newspaper Reporting (Japanese)
The attraction of Nikaho city by Akita Television (Japanese)
Location
Kanourayama Shrine: 18 Kinoura-yama, Kanoura, Nikaho City Postcode 018-0311
Kanoura Fishing Port: 116-1 Konoura, Nikaho, Akita 018-0311
References
Akita Sakigake. (2022, February 4). Ootara hounou! Kakeyo matsuri Nikaho, kaijyouanzen to houryou kigan [Big cod offering! Kakeyo Festival in Nikaho, praying for safety at sea and a good catch] [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEPCmJE8MtI
AKT. (2021, July 2). Cyoukaisan no megumi 「Nikahogurumeguri」 vol.② [Blessings of Mt. Chokai "Nikaho Gourmet Tour" Vol. 2] [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kwk3Z3YGsA8
AKT. (2025, February 4). Okina tara katsugi neriaruku 5nen burino nouhougyouretu de minatomachi nigiwau Nikahoshi Kanauraciku Kakeyo matsuri [Port town bustles with the first fish offering procession in 5 years, carrying big cod: Kakeyo Festival in Kanaura, Nikaho City] [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYmOe2jAV2o
BRUTUS. (2021, March 3). Nippon no kisai. Akita ken・Nikahosi de 350nen tsuzuku Kakeyo matsuri [Japan's unique festival: Kakeyo Festival, which has continued for 350 years in Nikaho, Akita]. https://brutus.jp/akita_kakeyomatsuri/
Inoue, A. (2017, March 26). Small fishing village celebrates Kakeyo Festival with over 300 years of history. SHUNGATE. https://shun-gate.com/en/roots/roots_58/
Traphagan, J. W. (2018). Population of Japan: Historic and projected [Figure]. ResearchGate. https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Population-of-Japan-Historic-and-Projected-Akita-1999-2001_fig2_326741085
By Kantaro Iguchi
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