Goryo Ukai (Imperial Cormorant Fishing)

Ukai has been practiced for over 1,300 years, using a special bird called a “cormorant” (u) to catch fish. Every year, from mid-May to mid-October, ukai is held on the Nagara River in Gifu Prefecture. This tradition of ukai is carefully looked after by the Imperial Family.

In the past, during the Ritsuryo period, people who practiced ukai were officials who worked for the Imperial Court. Later, ukai was practiced in many places, but the ukai on the Nagara River has been especially respected and continued.

During the Meiji era, ukai was once in danger of disappearing, but the Imperial Household Agency protected it by making the cormorant fishers staff members and giving them official status. Even today, Imperial Household Agency cormorant fishers conduct a special imperial ukai for the Emperor eight times a year in the Furutsu and Tachibana districts of the Nagara River. In particular, in the Furutsu district, ambassadors from abroad are invited to watch ukai as a part of Japanese traditional culture.

The cormorants used in ukai are birds who are cared for every day by the usho (fishers) and have developed a close bond with them. Ukai is not just a method of fishing, but an important Japanese tradition that builds a deep connection between people, nature, and animals.