Yamaguchi Jinja
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In short
Begins in 1885 when migrants from Yamaguchi prefecture set up a place here for worshipping Ise from a distance; in 1902 it was permitted to be founded as Yamaguchi Jinja.
Quick facts
- Address
- 552-1 Teine-yamaguchi, Teine-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido
- Spiritual entities
- Amaterasu Ōmikami (天照大御神)
About this place
Yamaguchi Jinja stands at Teine-yamaguchi in Teine-ku, Sapporo. Its deities are Amaterasu and Toyouke. It begins in 1885, when migrants from Yamaguchi prefecture set up here a place for worshipping the Grand Shrine of Ise from a distance. On 17 September 1902 it was permitted to be founded as Yamaguchi Jinja. It was raised to village-shrine rank on 28 June 1943, and the former hall and shrine office were rebuilt in 1968. In 2013 an association was formed for the 110th year of enshrinement, with a ground-breaking rite on 30 April, a ridgepole rite on 15 June and the transfer rite for the main hall on 4 September. The annual festival is 19 September, with the eve festival on 18 September. No benefit that may be prayed for is stated.
Origin and history
It begins in 1885, when migrants from Yamaguchi prefecture set up here a place for worshipping the Grand Shrine of Ise from a distance.
On 17 September 1902 it was permitted to be founded as Yamaguchi Jinja. It was raised to village-shrine rank on 28 June 1943, and the former hall and shrine office were rebuilt in 1968.
In 2013 an association was formed for the 110th year of enshrinement, with a ground-breaking rite on 30 April, a ridgepole rite on 15 June and the transfer rite for the main hall on 4 September.
What it is locally associated with
A distant-worship site facing Ise
It begins in 1885, when migrants from Yamaguchi prefecture set up here a place for worshipping the Grand Shrine of Ise from a distance.
documented historyPermitted as Yamaguchi Jinja
On 17 September 1902 it was permitted to be founded as Yamaguchi Jinja.
documented historyWorks for the 110th year
In 2013 an association was formed for the 110th year of enshrinement, with rites in April, June and September.
documented history
This shrine, too, begins as a place for worshipping something far away — but what it faces is different. In 1885 migrants from Yamaguchi prefecture set up here a place for worshipping the Grand Shrine of Ise from a distance. This is the fourth such site on this list. Munakata Taisha’s Okitsu-gu Yohaisho in Fukuoka faces an island closed by rule; Soma Jinja and Teine Jinja, both in Sapporo, faced Sapporo Jinja across the city. This one faces Ise — across the sea and the length of Honshu. Of the four, the distance here is by far the greatest.
And like Teine Jinja, it turned from the thing that worships into the thing worshipped: on 17 September 1902 it was permitted to be founded as Yamaguchi Jinja. Two of Sapporo’s distant-worship sites outgrew the separation that made them.
The name is the settlers’ home province. People from Yamaguchi called it Yamaguchi Jinja, and the district is now called Teine-yamaguchi. Elsewhere in this city, Reppupu Jinja and Naebo Jinja took the name of their village; here it went the other way, and the ground took the name of the province the shrine was named for.
Its deities are Amaterasu and Toyouke. Having begun as a place for facing Ise, it holds the two deities of Ise.
Claims and evidence levels 2
- Migrants from Yamaguchi prefecture set up a place here in 1885 for worshipping the Grand Shrine of Ise from a distance. documented history
- It was permitted to be founded as Yamaguchi Jinja on 17 September 1902. documented history
Related guides
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Sources
- 山口神社 — 北海道神社庁札幌支部 (accessed 2026-08-16)
Last updated:
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