【Designated by the City：Tangible Folk】Yamasu Ugan

Yamasu Ugan, an annual celebration in Kurima, begins on the day of Kinoe-uma (the Monkey and the Horse) and is a major event involving the entire island.
There is a folktale on its origin: A goblin (a giant) appeared every night to kidnap residents on the island. Learning the story, three brothers in Yonaha came to Kurima Island. They heard the situation and determined that they should get rid of the monster to save the islanders. The three joined hands and slayed the giant. The local people heard about the story and said, “You are our lifesaving gods. We pledge to you that we will never forget your favor, and we will tell your story to our children and grandchildren as long as the island exists so that we will always remember you.” This is how the annual festival of appreciation began. The celebration goes as follows:

Day 1: The festival is held at the household of three families of Sumuriya, Upuya, and Yamasuya. The blood relatives of the families visit the homes of their own kin. Such relative groups are called Sumuriya-bunaka, Upuya-bunaka, and Yamasuya-bunaka. In the morning, relatives bring from each house incense sticks and cleansed rice that are called bunaha. The families who have any children born between the festival in the previous year and that day bring one sho of sake and delicacies to their bunakas, which is called Masumori.
In addition, families with any youngsters who have turned 21 that year also bring one sho of sake, which is called Masupiya.

On this day, old women who serve as priestesses offer prayers from early morning at the three Utaki sites in the east, the center and the west. After that, they serve one soup bowl of sacred sake to everyone present. In this way, almost all the participants spend all day in their own bunaka.

Day 2: Relatives come to their own bunaka, recite poems, and get treated to sacred sake. In the afternoon, they form a dancing procession to the square of Naka-utaki, where they hold a feast full of performances with everyone on the island present. At dusk, they head for their own bunaka and hold a final treat. That concludes the two-day Yamasu festival.