🏮 Uwazuhiko Jinja Aki Matsuri

宇和津彦神社秋祭

Uwajima, Ehime (Uwatsuhiko Shrine) · Every year on 29 October

Traditional performing arts

45 days to go
Rooms around Uwajima, Ehime fill up while the festival is on.

The Uwatsuhiko Shrine Autumn Festival is held every year on October 29 at Uwatsuhiko Shrine in Nogawa, Uwajima City, Ehime Prefecture. The shrine received deep reverence from the lords of the Uwajima domain and is known as the chief shrine of the southern Iyo region and the general guardian shrine of the Uwajima domain; the festival is cherished as its annual grand festival. The festival began in the second year of Keian (1649), and records remain that in the beginning the merchant districts such as Honmachi and Uramachi each put out their own devised procession pieces. From the Edo period to the early Showa era, each district sent out gorgeous floats (neriguruma) carrying figures, but these fell into disuse due to war damage and other causes. Today, ushi-oni, yatsuka odori, Sarutahiko, shishimai, and miko no mai parade through the city and enliven the festival. The yatsuka odori in particular was introduced to Uwajima through migrants from Sendai, and is characterized by dancers wearing deer masks on their heads, covering their upper bodies with hanging cloth, and singing and dancing while beating drums. It shares lyrics and rhythms with the deer dances of the Miyagi Prefecture area and is designated an intangible folk cultural property of Uwajima City.