In Fukuoka, where rich history and culture thrive, the moving strains of folk songs still flow.
From the current of the Ongagawa River and the canals of Yanagawa to the bustle of Nakasu, the stories woven in this land live on in folk songs passed down through generations.
In this article, we have gathered folk songs, children’s songs, and nursery rhymes born in Fukuoka.
From Tankō-bushi, the soul of coal miners, to Kuroda-bushi, which conveys the pride of samurai—timeless classics that many have heard, even if they weren’t born in Fukuoka.
Wrapped in warm, nostalgic melodies, why not experience the spirit of Fukuoka as painted through music?
- A famous song about Fukuoka. The heart of the hometown passed down through song.
- Fukuoka’s folk songs and children’s rhymes: History and sentiments conveyed by the nostalgic melodies of home
- Folk songs, children's songs, and nursery rhymes of Nagasaki: the heart of the hometown passed down through song
- Ranking of Popular Folk Songs
- Folk songs, children’s songs, and nursery rhymes of Osaka: the enduring spirit of our hometown carried on in song
- [Folk Songs of Yamagata] The Heart of Our Hometown Passed Down in Song: Feelings Woven into Nostalgic Melodies
- Kyoto’s folk songs, children’s songs, and nursery rhymes: the enduring spirit of our hometown passed down through song.
- Okinawan folk songs, children’s songs, and nursery rhymes: the heart of our hometown passed down through song.
- The World of Kagoshima Folk Songs: Traditional Melodies that Carry On the Spirit of the Hometown
- Folk songs, children’s songs, and nursery rhymes of Kumamoto: the enduring spirit of our hometown passed down through song.
- Folk songs, children's songs, and nursery rhymes of Hiroshima: the enduring heart of our hometown, passed down through song.
- Folksongs, children's songs, and nursery rhymes of Fukushima: the heart of our hometown passed down in song
- Folk songs, children's songs, and nursery rhymes of Toyama: the enduring heart of our hometown passed down through song
[Folk Songs and Children's Songs of Fukuoka] The History and Sentiments Conveyed by the Beloved Melodies of Hometown (1–10)
Iwai Medeta
It is a folk song that is still always sung in Hakata on festive occasions.
It is also known as the “Hakata Celebration Song.” At the end of a banquet, after singing the first verse of this song, the event is concluded with a unique handclap called “Hakata Te Ippon,” which is similar to a single-clap finale.
Tankō-bushi (Coal Miner's Song)
Tanko-bushi is now known nationwide as a Bon Odori song, but it is originally a folk song said to have originated in Tagawa City, Fukuoka Prefecture.
As its name suggests, it was sung by people working in coal mines.
A record released before the war became popular in Tokyo, and the melodic phrasing changed, turning it into a Bon Odori song.
Yame Tea Mountain Song
This is the Yame Tea Mountain Song, passed down in Kurogi, Yame City, Fukuoka Prefecture.
The All-Japan Yame Tea Mountain Song Contest, which features performances of this folk song, is held every year in Kurogi, the birthplace of Yame tea.
It is believed to have been sung around the late Edo period by people who came from various parts of Kyushu to the Yame region as seasonal workers during the peak tea-harvesting season.
Dontaku-bayashi
It’s a traditional musical accompaniment from Fukuoka’s Hakata that practically conjures up the sight of people parading while clacking rice paddles.
The lyrics, which wish for children’s healthy growth, convey the town’s warm-hearted blessing for the future.
Rather than existing as a single definitive work, this piece has been lovingly passed down through festival field recordings and the like.
Many of you may have heard its uplifting melody on TV programs covering the lively Hakata Dontaku Port Festival.
It’s a song to listen to when you want to feel the heat of your hometown’s festival and the sentiments woven across generations.
Tsun-nan-go
This is a heartwarming children’s folk song that has been passed down among children in Fukuoka since long ago.
Its origins are said to date back to the Kyōhō famine of 1732, and some say it embodies the spirit of mutual aid shown when children, seeking help, held hands and encouraged one another as they walked.
Knowing this episode makes us feel that we want today’s children to learn this song along with the importance of caring for others.
In childcare settings, it is also cherished at events such as sports days and the moon-viewing festival.
Some people may find that it brings back memories of singing it hand in hand with everyone when they were little.
Maganko
This is a children’s folk song from Fukuoka Prefecture that conveys the warm love of a parent, sung while rubbing a child’s cold fingers on a chilly winter day.
It features a dialect word meaning “icicle,” and the scene of warming fingers likened to icicles brings comfort to the heart.
The song is a traditional piece passed down orally and is sung in nurseries and kindergartens during recreation and bonding time.
It’s also perfect for moments when a family wants to share gentle feelings, or for spending cozy time together during the cold winter.
Peach shop, peach shop
This is a traditional children’s song, beloved in Fukuoka and many other places, that evokes old-fashioned scenes of doing laundry.
Treating a cloth as if it were real laundry, the song describes washing it without being outpaced by the river’s current—something that may stir a warm sense of nostalgia in some listeners.
In today’s world, actually “doing laundry in the river” is difficult due to environmental concerns and other issues.
However, by calling out together as a parent and child and reenacting the series of gestures at home—from washing to hanging the laundry—you might come to appreciate the importance of housework and feel grateful for what once seemed like routine laundry done for you.