You can enjoy authentic Eisa dance even on Ishigaki Island! "Akashi Eisa Festival"

While Okinawa is known for its Eisa dance during the Obon festival, Ishigaki Island is famous for its Angama (a traditional event in the Yaeyama region where masked grandparents visit the mortal world from the afterlife).

Even on Ishigaki Island, there is a place where you can enjoy authentic Eisa dance! That place is the Akashi district in the northern part of Ishigaki Island.

When you hear the sound of the Eisa drums, your heart gets all excited, doesn't it?

So, this time, I'd like to introduce the Akashi Eisa Festival, the only authentic Eisa dance festival you can enjoy on Ishigaki Island.

<Contents>
1. When and where can I see the Akashi Eisa Festival?
2. Highlights of the Akashi Eisa Festival
3. Eisa, a dance rarely seen on Ishigaki Island
4. Obon Festival in Ishigaki Island
5. Access to Akashi
Afterword

1. When and where can I see the Akashi Eisa Festival?

The Akashi Eisa Festival is held every year on the middle day (Nakanuhi) of the Obon festival.

In Ishigaki Island, the Obon festival (traditional Obon) is observed from the 13th to the 15th of the 7th month of the lunar calendar, so the Akashi Eisa Festival is held every year on the 14th of the 7th month of the lunar calendar.
(The lunar calendar varies from year to year, but it generally falls between mid-August and mid-September in the Gregorian calendar. In 2016, August 16th was the middle day of the Obon festival.)

Drinking beer while watching a magnificent Eisa dance performance under the light of a full moon is especially delicious!

The event will take place in the Akashi settlement in northern Ishigaki Island, in the open space next to the Akashi Community Center. It takes about 40 minutes by car to get to Akashi settlement from the city center.

(Aerial view of the Akashi area)
Photo by hubchin / Ishigaki Fantasy Travel Agency

There are large signs for the parking lot along the road leading to Akashi, so you shouldn't get lost. The parking lot is also spacious, so you won't have any trouble finding a parking space.

2. Highlights of the Akashi Eisa Festival

At the Akashi Eisa Festival, children's Eisa dances and adult Eisa dances are performed twice each, with live performances by musicians from Akashi in between.

There are also several food stalls set up, so it's an event where you can enjoy a festive atmosphere.

The live performances held between Eisa dances feature musicians from Akashi and singers with ties to Akashi.

Singers Kazuya Gibo and Tomokuni Tasato, both from Akashi, are "stars" of the Akashi area and return home every year for this festival, helping to liven up the festivities.

This is a festival that the local people have worked so hard to create, and it's a fun and heartwarming live performance where you can feel the support of everyone in the community!

The Eisa dance is performed twice, once in the first half and once in the second half of the festival. The first Eisa performance in the first half is a sacred dance performed only by dancers from the Akashi village.

In the second half, the second Eisa dance is an interactive one where the audience can all participate.

We all form a circle and dance together, imitating the movements of the dancers. It's a rare opportunity to dance Eisa with the locals, so it's really fun!

Akashi Eisa Festival
Date: 14th day of the 7th month of the lunar calendar, approximately 19:00-22:00
Location: Plaza next to Akashi Community Center

3. Eisa, a dance rarely seen on Ishigaki Island

While Eisa dance is famous as the traditional Obon festival on Okinawa Island, in Ishigaki Island, Angama is the traditional Obon festival that is famous for it, rather than Eisa.

At Angama, the farmer's (Hanako) dance
Photo by kmac / Ishigaki Fantasy Travel Agency

While the custom of dancing Eisa is not widespread on Ishigaki Island, the traditional Eisa dance still survives only in the Akashi district in the northern part of the island.

That's because the Akashi district is a settlement founded by settlers from Okinawa Island.

In the past, the dance was a mix of styles from the hometowns of the immigrants, but on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Akashi district's founding, they decided to unify the dance.

They invited instructors from the Sobe district of Yomitan Village on Okinawa Island to inherit the Sobe Eisa style, which became the basis for the current Akashi Eisa.

The Akashi district has a large population of immigrants from Yomitan Village on Okinawa Island, and when you hear the names of people in the Akashi district, you'll often find that many of them are surnames common in Yomitan Village.

The Eisa dance performances feature folk songs from Okinawa Main Island, not Yaeyama folk songs, making it one of the fun festivals where you can experience Okinawa Main Island while on Ishigaki Island.

4. Obon Festival in Ishigaki Island

While it may be unfamiliar to people from mainland Japan, Okinawa still retains many customs based on the lunar calendar, including the Obon festival.

In Okinawa, the Obon festival is observed from the 13th to the 15th of the 7th month of the lunar calendar, and the first day is called "Unkei," a day to welcome ancestors.

The second day is called "Nakanuhi," which is the middle day of the Obon festival, and the third day is called "Uukui," which is the day when ancestors return to the afterlife (Gusō).

Okinawan Obon customs vary from region to region, but in Ishigaki Island, "Angama" and "Shishimai" (lion dance) are performed in each area.

In Angama, an old man (Ushumai) and an old woman (Umi) who have come from the afterlife parade through the village with their grandchild (Fama), visiting each house.

It's a lively event with humorous exchanges between the grandparents (Ushumai and Umi) and the audience, as well as performances of dances by the grandchildren (Farmers).

Besides Angama, other famous lion dances include the Shiraho district's lion dance and the Mushama from Hateruma Island.

Each region has its own Obon customs, so visiting different areas and enjoying the traditional events is one of the pleasures of this time of year.

Why not visit Ishigaki Island to enjoy its unique Obon festival customs, which are unlike anything you'll find on the mainland?

5. Access to the Akashi area

The Akashi area is about a 40-minute drive from Ishigaki city center and about a 25-minute drive from New Ishigaki Airport. Heading north on National Route 390 will take you to the Akashi area.

The Akashi Community Center, where the Eisa dance performance will be held, is located a little way off the main road, but there are large signs along the road, so you should be able to find it without getting lost on the day of the festival.

Since the festival ends late at night, it would be better to rent a car rather than take the bus.

Akashi district is located near the northernmost part of Ishigaki Island, and it's a place where you can experience a truly local festival that you won't find anywhere else. So be sure to make the trip to Akashi and enjoy authentic Eisa dance on Ishigaki Island.