[Japanese Folk and Regional Songs] A Collection of Beloved Masterpieces from Across Japan, Brimming with Local Pride
From north to south, the traditional singing voices passed down across Japan are treasures of each region.
Perhaps you, too, have a memorable song that your grandparents or parents sang to you when you were a child—or one you sang together.
Folk songs, woven with the lives, cultures, and sentiments of their native places, have been sung across generations.
In this article, we introduce a selection of Japanese folk songs that resonate with the heart.
As you listen to the nostalgic melodies of hometowns, let us touch the spirit and landscape of Japan.
- Ranking of Popular Folk Songs
- Folk songs you’ll want to sing at karaoke: classic and popular tunes everyone can enjoy
- Soran Bushi: Compare renditions of this classic folk song by various artists!
- Nostalgic Children’s Songs, Folk Songs, and Nursery Rhymes: The Heart of Japan Passed Down Through Song
- [Hometown Songs] A curated selection of popular Japanese tracks that fill your heart with nostalgia
- [Japanese Children's Songs] Carefully selected timeless masterpieces loved across generations!
- [Folk and Children's Songs of Hokkaido] Songs of Hokkaido that continue to be loved across generations
- Folk songs, children’s songs, and nursery rhymes of Osaka: the enduring spirit of our hometown carried on in song
- [2026] The Heart of Our Hometowns Carried Through Song: A Roundup of Japanese Folk Singers, Including Young Talents!
- Folksongs, children's songs, and nursery rhymes of Fukushima: the heart of our hometown passed down in song
- Folk Songs of the World | Hometown Songs Passed Down Abroad
- The Spirit of Japan: A Collection of Famous and Popular Shamisen Pieces
- Beautiful Folk Songs Passed Down in Miyagi Prefecture: A Collection of Masterpieces that Play the Heart of the Hometown
[Japanese Folk and Regional Songs] A Collection of Beloved Classics from Across Japan Brimming with Local Pride (41–50)
Tsuki nu Bishya (Yaeyama folk song)Masaya&Yuzo
It’s a famous Okinawan folk song, said to have originated in the Yaeyama region, including Ishigaki Island.
When people think of Okinawan folk music, many are reminded of BEGIN, and indeed the distinctive, unhurried melody and the way it’s sung are similar.
Although it’s a folk song, you could say it doesn’t quite feel like one.
Konpira FunefuneBikutā Shōnen Min’yō Kai
Konpira Funefune is an old folk song themed around Kotohira-gu Shrine in Kagawa Prefecture.
It is also known as a tune used for ozashiki-asobi and ochaya entertainment performed with maiko and geiko at Japanese-style hot spring inns, teahouses, banquets, and traditional restaurants.
In modern times, it is also often danced at festivals.
Kusatsu-bushi (Kusatsu folk song)Nanchi Kinryū
Kusatsu Bushi is a folk song that originated in Kusatsu Onsen, Gunma Prefecture.
It is one of the songs sung during yumomi, the practice of stirring the high-temperature hot spring water with wooden paddles to cool it to a comfortable temperature.
The song with the refrain choinachoi-na is generally known as Kusatsu Bushi but is called Yumomi-uta locally, while the song with the refrain yoh-hohoi is generally known as Kusatsu Yumomi-uta but is called Kusatsu Bushi locally.
Donpan-bushiHirano Shigematsu
“Donpan-bushi” is a folk song mainly sung in Daisen City (Nakasen area) in Akita Prefecture.
It is one of Akita’s representative folk songs and is known throughout Japan.
Every year in mid-August, the Donpan Festival is held in the plaza of the Nakasen Branch of the Daisen City Office in Akita Prefecture.
Soma Bon SongMisora Hibari
Soma Bon Uta is a folk song handed down in the Soma region of Fukushima Prefecture.
It is said that it was once sung as a harvest dance to give thanks to the rice-field deity for abundant crops.
After the war, an edited version by Masao Suzuki became popular, and later covers by major enka singers such as Michiya Mihashi and Hibari Misora helped it gain nationwide recognition and popularity.
Sansa ShigureSuzuki Mieko
Sansa Shigure is an old folk song handed down in Miyagi Prefecture.
It has been passed down to the present day as a celebratory song sung at festive occasions such as weddings and housewarmings.
The song is said to have been composed and sung by soldiers of the Date army after their great victory in the Battle of Suriagehara in 1589.
Kaeruda Onsen OndoSheikusupia Kanpanii
The folk song announced by the Sendai theater company “Shakespeare Company” is the Kaeruda Onsen Ondo.
Since it’s an original image song, it differs in some ways from traditional folk songs, but the composition is well done and the sound quality is high.
I felt that works like this are surprisingly important.