Merging Folklore and Archaeology: Publication of 'Life in the Millet-Growing Region (Northern Tohoku)', Culminating 50 Years of Research

Example of the paperback appearance and illustration pages

This book is a comprehensive research volume documenting the pre-mechanization lifestyle and culture in the mountainous, millet-growing regions of northern Tohoku through measured drawings of folk implements, photographs, and oral history interviews. Based on field research continuously conducted by authors Fumiaki Nakui and Yoshie Nakui from the 1980s to the 2000s, the book compiles 650 pages detailing the lifestyle techniques, subsistence activities, and tool culture that remained in the mountain villages of northern Tohoku.

Documenting Folk Implements Within "Daily Life"

Rather than being a mere catalog of folk implements, this book records "how they were used" within the overall flow of daily life.

In addition to interviews with community elders, the research involved creating measured drawings of actual artifacts whenever possible. This approach stereoscopically reconstructs the annual lifestyle culture interwoven with millet cultivation, slash-and-burn farming, hunting, charcoal making, firewood gathering, house building, clothing production, animal husbandry, and annual events.

Furthermore, the book records differences in local terminology and usage methods, anticipating its utilization as foundational data for the study of tangible folk materials.

The Perspective of "Folk Archaeology" Connecting Folklore and Archaeology

The end of the book includes six essays and reflections by both authors. It features problem-setting discussions on how to connect folk materials to archaeological research and how to record, preserve, and utilize tangible folk cultural properties. This book holds significant methodological value for cross-disciplinary research in folklore, archaeology, and museology.

Book Overview

Title: Life in the Millet-Growing Region (Northern Tohoku): The Origin of Folk Archaeology Authors: Fumiaki Nakui and Yoshie Nakui Publisher: Ichirosha Release Date: May 1, 2026 ISBN: 9784990598648 Format: A4 size Pages: 650 pages Specifications: Paperback or Kindle eBook Price: Paperback 8,800 JPY (tax included) / Kindle eBook version 7,700 JPY (tax included) Thickness: Approx. 3.5 cm Weight: Approx. 2 kg

Main Contents

Millet cultivation and slash-and-burn farming Gathering wild vegetables, nuts, and mushrooms Hunting and Matagi culture Charcoal making and mountain labor House building and roof thatching Breeding and transportation by cattle and horses Bark and straw processing techniques Work clothes, footwear, and textiles Rites of passage and annual events Communal work, bartering, and migrant labor

* Please see the publisher's detailed page for the full table of contents.

Planned Exhibition at the Japanese Archaeological Association Book Exchange

The book is scheduled to be exhibited at the book exchange event hosted by the Japanese Archaeological Association (Venue: Aoyama Gakuin University) on Sunday, May 24, 2026.

Author Profiles

Fumiaki Nakui

A folk archaeologist who has long researched mountain village culture, folk implements, and lifestyle techniques in northern Tohoku. Representative of the Material Culture Research Institute, Ichirosha. He has served as a curator at the Iwate Prefectural Museum, a part-time lecturer at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Iwate University, and the honorary director of the Oda Folk History Museum in Kuzumaki Town. Since the 1960s, he has engaged in Jomon culture research, and from the 1980s onward, he has continued oral history research and studies on folk implements, bark products, millet culture, and mountain village subsistence throughout northern Tohoku. He promotes research in "folk archaeology," merging archaeology and folklore, and works on the preservation and utilization of tangible folk materials. Achievement Introduction: Fumiaki Nakui Research Trends Page

Yoshie Nakui

Proponent of documentary preservation studies based on the research of lifestyle culture, folk implements, food, clothing, housing, and tangible folk cultural properties, primarily in northern Tohoku. Author of "Recommendation for Measured Drawings" (実測図のすすめ). Researcher at the Material Culture Research Institute, Ichirosha. She has served as a part-time lecturer at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Iwate University, and the honorary director of the Kitakami Mountainous Region Folk History Museum in Miyako City. Since the 1980s, she has been involved in research and educational activities centered on creating measured drawings of folk implements, working to record and preserve local lifestyle techniques and folk tool culture. She has also participated in research for national important tangible folk cultural properties such as "Nanbu Toji," "Mountain Village Production Tools Collection of Kawai Village in the Kitakami Mountainous Region," and "Ani Matagi Tools." Achievement Introduction: Yoshie Nakui Research Trends Page

Book Information

Paperback (Print on Demand) Amazon Sales Page Kindle eBook (Kindle Unlimited compatible) Amazon Sales Page * Orders can also be placed through bookstores.

Publisher Book List: Ichirosha Book List