Traditional craft
Etchu Fukuoka no Sugegasa
越中福岡の菅笠
Wide hats of sedge sewn over a bamboo frame in Toyama, worn in the fields against sun and rain and in festivals across Japan.
Key facts
- Officially recognised
- 30 November 2017
- Type
- Other crafts
- Region
- Chubu
- Official name in Japanese
- 越中福岡の菅笠
- Official area (in Japanese)
- 高岡市、砺波市、小矢部市、南砺市
A hat for sun, rain and dance
Sugegasa are hats of sedge sewn over a bamboo frame. Made with skill that brings out the quality of local sedge, they shade farmers from sun and rain and are used as props in traditional events and festivals all over Japan. It is made in the Fukuoka area of Takaoka and in Tonami, Oyabe and Nanto in Toyama.
Frame, then sedge
- An outer ring rib of madake or moso bamboo is jointed into a circle.
- Inner ribs of medake are shaved thin where they meet at the crown, heated and bent if needed, and set into the ring.
- Sedge is laid on, smoothed down and sewn on with thread.
- The crown is finished with a final binding.
Six centuries of hats
Sewn sedge hats here go back to the 1400s. In the Edo period the Kaga domain encouraged their production, and they spread throughout Japan.
Good to know
- Look at the underside of a hat to see how the frame and sewing are worked.
- Sugegasa are light, but their wide brim needs space; ask about packing for travel.
Questions travellers ask
What are sugegasa used for?
Shade and rain protection in farm work, and as props for festivals and traditional events.
How old is the craft?
It goes back to the 1400s.
Where it comes from
More crafts from the same area
Local foods from the same area
Heritage stories from the same area
Sources
We checked the facts on this page against these sources.