Back in 2018 the anime project was released ‘Umi no Minwa no Machi’, which sought to bring the classic stories of maritime folklore closer to children. And like a good old tale, each story also came with lessons for life, morals and a bit of wisdom.
The project has been growing little by little and already has 42 animated stories that can be seen on YouTube and on its website, but now ‘Umi no Minwa no Machi’ also makes the leap to anime.
pulling classics
The Japan Folklore Association has confirmed that the series is now underway and will premiere in December 2023 to promote the relationship between Japan and the sea and promote regional pride to children. In total ‘Umi no Minwa no Machi’ will consist of 25 chaptersand Shinnosuke Numata, the producer of ‘Kemono Friends 2’ is in charge of the project.
Previously, the episodes had been small 5-minute shorts with a somewhat limited narration, but now with a full anime, the chapters will surely have much more chicha.
Each of the stories that ‘Umi no Minwa no Machi’ will adapt belongs to a specific regionfrom Hokkaido, Fukushima or Nagano, to fully exploit the variety of folklore in the country.
- “Shima no Tengu-sama” from Habaorocho, Hokkaido
- “Kanda Kani” from Sotogahama, Aomori Prefecture
- “Kamiwari Iwa” of Minamisanriku, Miyagi Prefecture
- “Kurokami to Akagami no Tatakai” by Oga, Akita Prefecture
- “Todo no Angaeshi” from Sakata, Yamagata Prefecture
- “Karouzan no Tenaga Akitsukami” from Shinchicho, Fukushima Prefecture
- “Yukitogetsuka no Shirohebi” by Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture
- “Senjuoohashi to Ookame” from Adachi City, Tokyo
- “Kujira Mikoshi” from Imizu, Toyama Prefecture
- “Tako Kamisama” from Nanao, Ishikawa Prefecture
- Obama’s “Nishiogawa Juuichimenkannon Bosatsu”, Fukui Prefecture
- “Maritsuki Uta” from Fujikawacho, Yamanashi Prefecture
- “Utoutoge” of Shiojiri, Nagano Prefecture
- “Oku-hamanako no Nue-densetsu” from Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture
- “Ama no Tomokadzuki” from Toba, Mie Prefecture
- “Shikobuchi-san” from Takashima, Shiga Prefecture
- “Bettou no Shio” from Awaji, Hyogo Prefecture
- “Daisen no Amida-sama” from Ooyamachi, Tottori Prefecture
- “Kyuuri no Kami-sama to Yamabe Jinja” by Goutsu, Shimane Prefecture
- “Hyakkanjima Monogatari” from Fukuyama, Hiroshima
- “Naruto no Taiko” from Naruto, Tokushima Prefecture
- “Jizou ga Hama” from Saijou, Ehime Prefecture
- “Umi ni Shizunda Oni” from Nakatosacho, Kochi Prefecture
- “Kononoumi no Tennyo” by Higashisonogicho, Nagasaki Prefecture
- “Okanegahama to Okuragahama” from Hyuuga, Miyazaki Prefecture
For now it sounds like a very nice project, and even though it is a series designed for children, it can be very interesting to learn a little more about the Japanese mythology and culture. There isn’t much more data yet, but hopefully we’ll be able to stream it when it opens in Japan.
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