Construction of Living and Production Environment in Funakawashin Village in the Late Meiji Era Attempts of Agricultural and Rural Modernization Triggered by Farm Land Consolidation and Village Relocation by Resident Landlords

• Published in: Journal of Rural Planning Studies Vol. 4; no. 1; pp. 47 - 56
• Main Author: ARITA, Hiroyuki
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; Japanese
• Published: The Association of Rural Planning 2024
• Subjects: Landowners in Farm Village; Late Meiji Era; Physical Planning; Purchasing facility; Set up Communal Bathhouse and Village Convening Place; Social Improvement; Village Relocation
• ISSN: 2436-0775; 2436-0775
• DOI: 10.2750/jrps.4.1_47

In the latter half of the Meiji period, two young and ambitious wealthy farmers residing in Funakawashin, which is a rural village in Asahi-machi, Shimoshinkawa-gun, Toyama Prefecture, reorganized the land use of the village by relocating the village and consolidating the farm land ; additionally, they constructed various communal facilities necessary for production and living. In this study, we reproduce the actual conditions of land use and facility construction in Funakawashin based on field surveys and documents and then clarify their characteristics. In addition, we clarify the novelty and pioneering nature of the installed facility, as well as consider the factors that elicited such attempts. A comprehensive project such as that in Funakawashin is extremely rare and should be regarded as a pioneering example of Japanʼs physical planning in rural areas. The settlements in Funakawashin are relocated to reorganize the scattered settlements into rows along a new, straight main road. Dwellings are relocated from the road, thus creating an open road space and ordered land use. The joint use facilities include communal bathhouse, convening place, firefighting facility, purchasing facility, joint shipping facility, nunnery, and cemetery, which are established in the central region of the residential area to provide convenience to the residents. Funakawashin features modernized and rationalized customs in agriculture and life. Additionally, it is characterized by a comprehensive organization that includes not only physical planning, but also economic and social measures.