Japan's Akita Puts the Ancient Hanawabayashi Festival on the Global Cultural Map
Akita’s UNESCO Hanawabayashi Festival is a celebration of heritage and tradition with music and float parades. The streets of Hanawa in Kazuno, a part of Akita Prefecture, come alive with the Hanawabayashi festival during the summer with one of Japan’s top cultural festivals. As a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage, the festival has beautiful traditional floats and energetic performances that have been preserved for centuries. The festival has been able to create a connection between the traditional floats and customary performances that were practiced centuries ago and the modern day audience.
Held over two days, the annual festival transformed the city into a vibrant stage where local residents carried forward a tradition that has survived for more than two centuries. As evening arrived, beautifully decorated floats from ten neighbourhoods began moving through the streets, creating a spectacular atmosphere filled with music, lights and the energetic voices of participants.
