Yasugi City

Scooping loach for fun became a dance.

Yasugi-bushi, dojo-sukui dance

01 ／ Tsukinowa Rite

A shark took his daughter,so the father struck it down.

The Izumo no Kuni Fudoki records that in 674, the daughter of Katari no Omi Imaro was killed by a wani (shark). Villagers are said to have made a spear-shaped weapon called a tsukinowa ("ring of the moon") and danced for four days to console her spirit. It is said that during a later epidemic, people vowed to keep the rite forever in exchange for its end, and it still winds through Yasugi's streets every August 14-17.

674 (Tenmu 3), recorded in the Izumo no Kuni Fudoki
Four days, August 14-17
"Eidai-gan": an eternal vow made against an epidemic
Held again in 2025, uninterrupted even through the pandemic

02 ／ Mt. Gassan Toda Castle Ruins

The Amago, rulers of San'in,made this mountain their base.

On Mt. Gassan, once held by the Tomita, a branch of the Izumo Genji, the Amago clan based itself for six generations. It is a National Historic Site and one of Japan's Top 100 Castles. The Amago fell to the Mori in 1566, and the castle town flourished until Horio Yoshiharu moved his seat to Matsue Castle in 1611.

1934: designated a National Historic Site
Base of the Amago clan for six generations
1566: the Amago fell to the Mori
1611: Horio Yoshiharu moved his seat to Matsue Castle

03 ／ Kiyomizu-dera Temple

Built in 1393,and a pagoda took a carpenter 33 years.

The Konpondo, built in 1393 (Meitoku 4), was designated a National Important Cultural Property in 1904 (Meiji 37). In 1859, local carpenters spent 33 years building a three-story pagoda entirely of cypress. Temple tradition holds it was founded by imperial vow of Empress Suiko, carrying on 1,400-some years of devotion.

Konpondo: built 1393 (Meitoku 4)
1904 (Meiji 37): designated a National Important Cultural Property; added to in 1980
Pagoda: built 1859 (Ansei 6); designated a Prefectural property in 1966 (Showa 41)
Said to be the only all-cypress wooden pagoda of its kind in San'in (temple's own account)

Living here

From the shore of Lake Nakaumi to tatara-country hills.

about 40,000 people

The former town of Hirose keeps the ruins of the Amago's Mt. Gassan Toda Castle; the former town of Hakuta keeps the ruins of the Mori domain's residence. Kanayago Shrine, said to enshrine a god of tatara ironmaking, indigo-dyed Hirose-gasuri cloth, and Mt. Tokami, once an island in Lake Nakaumi, each carry a different history from the old towns that became Yasugi.

People living here: 37,062people
Area: 420.93km²
Households: 12,835households
Rent (average for rentals): 38,707yen
Healthcare: 2 hospitals ／ 32 clinics

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

Population from 2005 onward (municipal boundary changed).2004-10-01 に合併。2005年調査から市域が変わっている。

Children waiting for childcare: —19 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.

ACCESS

Where you can go from here.

Yasugi City in Japan35.431°N 133.251°E

to TokyoSleeper ltd. exp. Sunrise Izumo710min

Travel times follow JR西日本お出かけネットの『サンライズ瀬戸・サンライズ出雲』時刻表PDF（2026-03-14ダイヤ改正後・坂出の前例と同じ一次資料）で、下り（東京発・出雲市方面）が東京21:26発→安来9:16着であることを確かめた (checked 2026-09-26). They vary by time of day.

Shape

Borders 7 municipalities across 1 prefectures.

Territory of Yasugi City

Boundaries: National Land Numerical Information (N03)

North to south

30.2km

Shimane Prefecture: 松江市, 奥出雲町, 雲南市
Tottori Prefecture: 日南町, 米子市, 南部町, 境港市

Yasugi City isthis kind of town.

01Yasugi-bushi is a folk song of Yasugi City, Shimane, loved for its dojo-sukui (loach-scooping) dance. Sailors of the kitamae-bune trade are said to have brought tunes that shaped an early form around the Genroku era, and it is said to have grown into today's Yasugi-bushi by the late Edo period. It is kept alive by a preservation society with 59 chapters nationwide.
02The Tsukinowa Rite, rooted in a tale from the Izumo no Kuni Fudoki, keeps a vow against epidemics and still winds through Yasugi's streets every August 14-17.
03In the Sengoku period the Amago ruled San'in from Mt. Gassan Toda Castle, while Kiyomizu-dera Temple still holds a hall built in 1393 and a pagoda that took local carpenters 33 years to build.

See the town as it is now.

Facebookyasugicity ↗

Source: Wikidata (P2002, P2003, P2013, P2397)

If something caught your eye, ask the town itself.

Yasugi City official site ↗Wikipedia ↗