Awa Odori
Also written: 阿波おどり · 阿波舞
Held every August, Awa Odori is one of Japan’s largest Bon dance festivals and a hallmark of Tokushima’s traditional culture. The lively event draws visitors from around the world.
An Illustrated Japan / Tokushima / Culture & Tradition
About this place
Awa Odori is Tokushima's eponymous Bon Odori, counted among Japan's three major Bon dances and Shikoku's three major festivals, with roughly 400 years of history. The modern festival runs annually August 9th starting with Naruto, culminating August 12-15 in Tokushima City where six stages host over 1,000 ren, dancing troupes, and about 1.3 million visitors. Origin is debated with three theories: the castle-completion celebration in 1586 when Lord Hachisuka Iemasa allowed a free-for-all revelry, the Furyu Odori performed at Shozuo castle in 1578, and the Buddhist Bon Odori of the Kamakura period incorporating folk performance.
