Regions & prefectures
JapanRegions & prefectures
Akita
Rice, sake, deep snow and demons that go door to door at New Year.
- Capital
- Akita
- Status
- Prefecture
- Region
- Tōhoku
- Must-see
- The samurai houses of Kakunodate
- Local specialty
- Kiritanpo, sake, Akita dog
Akita stacks up agricultural superlatives: prized rice, abundant meltwater and one of the country’s highest densities of sake breweries. The prefecture is losing population faster than any other, which gives its festivals a particular weight: the Kantō matsuri, where twelve-metre poles of lanterns are balanced on foreheads, and the namahage of the Oga peninsula.
What to see there
Places, dishes and traditions tied to this territory.
In the magazine
Articles that cover this topic.