Japan's 100 Famous Mountains 日本百名山
The beauty of Japanese landscape
The "100 famous mountains of Japan" are a list of mountains in the country established by the Japanese writer and mountaineer Kyuya Fukada in 1964 in a book, for which he obtained the Yomiuri Prize for biography. Although the author did not seek to prepare a list of the most significant mountains of the country, his repertory became essential in the following decades.
The fruit of a long experience
Japan's 100 Famous Mountains are the culmination of a lifetime of climbing experience. Indeed, Kyûya Fukada began in 1940, when he was only 37 years old, with a series of articles for the magazine Yamagoya, whose title was already "Hyaku meizan" ("the 100 famous mountains"). A total of twenty will be published before the Second World War interrupts the editions.
After the war, Kyûya Fukada continued his journeys in the mountains, and it was after already more than 200 ascents that he published 1959 the magazine Yama to Kôgen a new series of articles on the Japanese mountains, which culminated in his book 1964 bestseller.
Mount Fujishagadake which Kyûya Fukada climbed at the age of 12, at the base of his interest in mountaineering
Wikipedia
Mountains subject to several criteria
The mountains chose by Kyûya Fukuda, among which we find all the most famous mountains of Japan such as Mount Fuji, meet several criteria:
The first criterion is the dignity of the mountain. A mountain must, like a human being, have its character. Whoever looks at it must feel that it is a beautiful mountain.
The second criterion is the historical character of the mountain. The latter must since ancient times have a special connection with the inhabitants and be revered.
The third criterion is the individuality of the mountain. The mountain must have particularities (its shape, its legend, or the phenomena that take place there, for example).
The mountain must also rise to a height of more than 1,500 meters, a criterion which only Mount Tsukuba (Ibaraki), the mythical resort of the gods Izanagi and Izanami, escapes.
- Read also: 6 mountains under 1000 meters to climb
The Influence of Japan's 100 Famous Mountains
Very quickly, this list overtook its author to, with the boom in hiking activity in Japan, become a must for all hiking fans. Thus Crown Prince Naruhito, a mountaineering fan, would like to reach the top of each of the listed mountains.
Climbing all of these peaks as quickly as possible has even become the subject of records, the latest being 48 days.
- Read also: Hiking near Tokyo off the beaten track
Crown Prince Naruhito
Wikipedia
