Shirakawa-gō and Gokayama

The Historic Villages of Shirakawa-gō and Gokayama are one of Japan's UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

The site is located in the Shogawa river valley stretching across the border of Gifu and Toyama Prefectures in northern Japan.

These villages are well known for their houses constructed in the architectural style known as gasshō-zukuri (合掌造り). The Gasshō-zukuri, "prayer-hands construction" style is characterized by a thatched and steeply slanting roof resembling two hands joined in prayer. The design is exceptionally strong and, in combination with the unique properties of the thatching, allow the houses to withstand and shed the weight of the region's heavy snowfalls in winter.

The houses are large, with three to four storeys encompassed between the low eaves, and historically intended to house large extended families and a highly-efficient space for a variety of industries.
The upper storeys of the gasshō houses were usually set aside for sericulture.
The densely-forested mountains of the region still occupy 96% of all land in the area.


Shirakawa-gō (白川郷, "White River Old-District") is located in the village of Shirakawa in Gifu Prefecture.

The Gokayama (五箇山, "Five Mountains") area is divided between the former villages of Kamitaira and Taira in Nanto, Toyama Prefecture.