Historical Background

In 1602, in the early Edo period, when Satake Yoshinobu was transferred from Hitachi (Ibaraki Prefecture) to Dewa (Akita Prefecture), his retainers began performing the dance to comfort the homesickness of their lord on the journey. Koma odori was passed down to male members of the family. However, it seems that this tradition is now rarely carried on.

A similar dance called Ishikawa Koma odori has been passed down in the area ruled by Satake Yoshinobu. Records and costumes for this dance were destroyed in the Ishikawa Great Fire in 1963. However, the following year, the Ishikawa Koma odori Preservation Society was formed and began working to revive the dance. Two years later, the revived Koma odori was able to be performed, and it is still being passed down today. Although it has a similar historical background, it is slightly different in that it is still being passed down today.

Characteristics

Koma odori is a performing art that is widespread in the Tohoku region, and can be seen in Aomori Prefecture (Hachinohe city, Towada city and Misawa city), Iwate Prefecture (Takizawa city), and Akita Prefecture (Happo town, Kitaakita city). The Ishikawa and Yakko odori in the Ishikawa region of Happo Town are the town's intangible folk cultural assets. They depict the beginning and end of a horse battle on the battlefield, wearing costumes that make it look like the performers are riding horses. Furthermore, the odori is performed in the order of Yakko odori and Koma odori. As can be seen from the fact that it is performed during the Obon period, it has a strong significance as a memorial for ancestors now.

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Direct Voice from Author

"What I found interesting through this project was that even if the same Koma Odori has the same origins, the appearance and frequency of activity that has been passed down varies depending on the region. The Nambu-style Koma Odori like Takizawa Koma Odori, which focuses on horses, and the Akita-style Koma Odori, which focuses on the battlefield, look different. There are probably other similar traditional performing arts and festivals all over Japan, but in this case, it's not a question of which came first and which came later, so it's good that both have survived as genuine Koma Odori. Also, since I'm from Iwate prefecture, I was surprised to see place names from Iwate prefecture pop up when I researched “Koma Odori”. When I started the project, I never imagined that Chagu Chagu Umakko was related to Koma Odori. Since Akita and Iwate prefectures are neighboring each other, it's exciting to think that there may be other performing arts that share the same origins."