National Intangible Folk Cultural Property "Chagu Chagu Umakko": About 60 Horses Parade in Colorful Attire

Explanation

The "Chagu Chagu Umakko" event, passed down in Iwate Prefecture, was held, with about 60 horses decorated in vividly colored attire parading through the streets. Designated as a national intangible folk cultural property, it is a seasonal tradition marking the arrival of early summer.

The name "Chagu Chagu" comes from the sound made by the bells attached to the horses as they walk. The event is said to originate from a practice of visiting shrines to give thanks to the horses that were once indispensable for farm work and to pray for their health, and it continues to convey the agricultural culture of the Tohoku region, where people and horses have lived side by side.

An intangible folk cultural property refers to "culture that leaves no physical form but has been passed down across generations," such as festivals, annual events, and performing arts. Even today, when mechanization has caused farm horses to disappear, such events are preserved by local people, carrying the region's history and the memory of daily life into the future. "Preserving" culture means passing on not just objects, but the very activities of human life.