Minano Town

Home to the 100 Kannon's final temple.

Suisen-ji, Chichibu temple 34

Photo by Odyssey (CC BY-SA 2.0)

01 ／ Chichibu Ondo

A town doctor reworked a Bon song,and it became Chichibu Ondo.

From the early Shōwa era, the town doctor and haiku poet Kaneko Isekkō (金子伊昔紅), father of the poet Kaneko Tōta (金子兜太), reworked an old Bon dance song handed down in Chichibu, writing verses himself and inviting more from the public. Offered at Meiji Shrine in 1930 as the Chichibu Hōnen Odori (秩父豊年踊り), it became widely known, and in 1950 it took the name Chichibu Ondo (秩父音頭). The Chichibu Ondo Matsuri is held every 14 August.

Offered at Meiji Shrine, 1930
Named Chichibu Ondo, 1950
Chichibu Ondo Matsuri every 14 August

02 ／ Pilgrimage

Buddhas for Saigoku and Bandōflank its main Kannon.

The 34 temples of the Chichibu pilgrimage, together with the 33 each of Saigoku and Bandō, make up the Nihon Hyaku Kannon (日本百観音), the 100 Kannon of Japan. Suisen-ji (水潜寺), temple No. 34, in Minano, is said to be where the whole pilgrimage ends. Its thousand-armed Kannon is flanked by Amida, standing for Saigoku, and Yakushi, standing for Bandō, and before the hall lies sand from all 100 temples to step on. 2026 is the year of the grand unveiling held once every 12 years.

Chichibu pilgrimage temple No. 34
Final temple of the 100 Kannon
Grand unveiling once every 12 years, 2026

03 ／ Mount Minoyama

Apart from the Chichibu ranges,a lone peak stands.

Mount Minoyama (美の山, also written 蓑山, 581.5 m), in the middle of the town, is a free-standing peak, unusual among the Chichibu mountains. Its summit, shared with Chichibu City, is the 41 ha prefectural Minoyama Park (美の山公園), looking out over central Chichibu and the Oku-Chichibu ranges; its night view is the only one in Saitama chosen for the Yakei 100-sen (夜景100選). On the right mornings a sea of cloud forms, and the Chichibu Ondo Matsuri fireworks go up from this mountain.

581.5 m high
Park of 41 ha
Saitama's only Yakei 100-sen night view

Living here

A town strung along the Arakawa's river terrace.

about 9,000 people
Rural district town

The Arakawa River flows east through the middle of the town, and the town centre stretches in a band along the river terrace on its right bank. The town has two stations on the Chichibu Railway, Minano and Oyahana; Minano is just under an hour from Kumagaya Station by local train. From Seibu-Chichibu Station, change to the Chichibu Railway at Ohanabatake. The town also runs two bus routes.

People living here: 9,302people
Area: 63.74km²
Households: 3,584households
Rent (average for rentals): —
Healthcare: 2 hospitals ／ 6 clinics

Area and habitable land at the same scalee-Stat B1101 / B1103

Children waiting for childcare: —2 nurseries and similar
Home purchase subsidy: —
Average annual temperature: —

These 3 items are waiting on a nationwide data source. We do not fill them with estimates.

Shape

Borders 6 municipalities.

Minano Town in Japan36.071°N 139.099°E

Territory of Minano Town

Boundaries: National Land Numerical Information (N03)

North to south

11.0km

秩父市, 長瀞町, 東秩父村, 神川町, 本庄市, 寄居町

Travel times per leg are not published by the municipality, so they are not shown.

Minano Town isthis kind of town.

01Suisen-ji, Chichibu pilgrimage temple No. 34 and said to be the final temple of the 100 Kannon, lies in the hills of Hinozawa
02The home of Chichibu Ondo, born when the town doctor and haiku poet Kaneko Isekkō reworked an old Bon dance song
03Mount Minoyama, a free-standing peak unusual in Chichibu, rises in the middle of the town, its summit a prefectural park known for night views and seas of cloud

If something caught your eye, ask the town itself.

Minano Town official site ↗Wikipedia ↗