Towns in Wakayama Prefecture - Taiji, Wakayama (Paperback)

Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: Taiji, Wakayama. Source: Wikipedia. Free updates online. Not illustrated. Excerpt: Taiji Taiji-ch) is a town located in Higashimuro District, Wakayama, Japan. As of 2007, the town has an estimated population of 3,444 and a density of 577.85 persons per km . The total area is 5.96 km . Taiji is the smallest local government by area in Wakayama Prefecture because, unlike others, it has not experienced a merger since 1889 when the village of Moriura merged into Taiji. Taiji shares its entire overland border with the town of Nachikatsuura and faces the Pacific Ocean. Taiji has been well-known as a whaling town and is considered as the birth place of Japan's traditional whaling method. Taiji's annual dolphin hunting attracts international criticism from many sectors. Taiji was primarily known as a whaling town. Japanese traditional whaling techniques were dramatically developed here in the 17th century, and the commercial hunting of dolphins remains a major source of income for its residents to this day. Wada Chbei organized the group hunting system () and introduced new handheld harpoon in 1606. Wada Kakuemon, later known as Taiji Kakuemon, invented the whaling net technique called Amitori h () to increase the safety and efficiency of whaling. This method lasted more than 200 years. The town was dealt a massive blow in 1878 when an accident during a hunt claimed more than 100 lives, which resulted in the collapse of the group hunting system. Taiji's whaling industry became buoyant again after the Russo-Japanese War as it became a base for modern whaling. When the Antarctic whaling started, Taiji provided crews for the whaling fleet. In 1988, Taiji suspended their commercial whaling as a result of an IWC ruling. The town continues the hunting of small whales as well as dolphins which ...More: http: //booksllc.net/?id=55610