Jōmō Karuta [上毛かるた] is a type of Iroha Karuta that consists of 88 cards (44 Yomi-fuda and 44 Tori-fuda) whose theme centers around Gunma Prefecture in Japan and its people, places, and history.
The name used for this karuta, Jōmō, is an old name for Gunma.
In 1946, Masahiko Urano, a native of Gunma, returned to his hometown from Manchukuo (present day Manchuria in China) to help the people there who were affected by World War II. Under orders of The Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers, schools had stopped teaching geography and history. Urano, who loved Gunma dearly, wanted the children to take pride in their local history and culture.
On July 15 of that year, Urano met Seiki Suda, a Christian evangelist from Annaka, at a repatriation convention in Maebashi City. Together, Urano and Suda came up with the idea of promoting Gunma’s history and culture through the game of karuta.
On January 11, 1947, The local newspaper, Jōmō Shimbun, ran an ad announcing the concept and asked for submissions for possible card ideas. 44 phrases were selected by an editorial committee consisting of 18 local historians and cultural figures. The illustrated cards were commissioned to the artist Tatsuo Omi, and the commentary on the back of the Yomi-fuda to the historical researcher Kiyoyasu Maruyama.
The first edition of Jōmō Karuta was released within the year, which sold 12,000 copies. Since then, the set was republished several times with updated information and new artwork.
The following year, in 1948, the first annual Jōmō Karuta competition was held.
An official English version was first released in 1994.
It was followed with a re-release in 1998. The complete gallery of cards from this version can be seen here.
It was followed with a re-release in 2020. The complete gallery of cards from this version can be seen here.
The complete gallery of cards can be seen here.
Note that among the 44 phrases, only the phrase on the “chi” Yomi-fuda changes slightly depending on the year of publication. That is because it is representative of the population of Gunma, so as the number of people living in the prefecture changes, so does the number shown on the card. Fans of Jōmō karuta are able to guess the age of a person from Gunma prefecture based on the version of the “chi” phrase one has memorized.
| Tori-fuda | Yomi-fuda 2015 version |
Yomi-fuda English version from 2020 |
|---|---|---|
| あ (a) | Asama no itazura Oni no oshidashi | Awesome power of Mt. Asama, magma stones at Onioshidashi. |
| い (i) | Ikaho onsen Nihon no meitō | One of the most famous hot springs in Japan, Ikaho Onsen. |
| う (u) | Usuitōge no sekisho ato | A checkpoint from long ago, Usui Pass. |
| え (e) | Engi daruma no Shōrinzan | Lucky Daruma dolls at Shorinzan. |
| お (o) | Ōta Kanayama kosodate Donryū | Wishing children happiness, Priest Donryu of Kanayama, Ota. |
| か (ka) | Kantō to Shin’etsu tsunagu Takasaki-shi | Joining Kanto and Shin-etsu, Takasaki City. |
| き (ki) | Kiryū wa Nihon no ki dokoro | The center of the weaving industry in Japan, Kiryu City. |
| く (ku) | Kusatsu yoi toko kusuri no ideyu | The curing waters of Kusatsu Onsen. |
| け (ke) | Ken-to Maebashi ito no machi | The capital of Gunma and city of silk, Maebashi. |
| こ (ko) | Kokoro no tōdai Uchimura Kanzō | A leading Christian thinker, Uchimura Kanzo. |
| さ (sa) | Sanbaishi to tomoni nadakai fuyusakura | Winter cherry blossoms and Sanba rocks, beautiful sights to see. |
| し (shi) | Shinobu ke no kuni Futagodzuka | Bringing back the days long past, the Futagozuka remains. |
| す (su) | Susono wa nagashi Akagiyama | Spreading widely, the gentle slopes of Mt. Akagi. |
| せ (se) | Senkyō Ozenuma hana no Hara | Treasure of natural beauty, Oze National Park. |
| そ (so) | Soroi no shitaku de Yagibushi ondo | Everyone dancing as one to the Yagibushi folk song. |
| た (ta) | Taki wa Fukiwari Katashina keikoku | Dynamic waterfalls, Fukiware in the Katashina Valley. |
| ち (chi) | Chikara awaseru ni hyaku man | Two million working together, Gunma’s people. |
| つ (tsu) | Tsuru mau katachi no Gunma ken | Shaped like a flying crane, Gunma Prefecture. |
| て (te) | Tenka no yoshito Mozaemon | A hero for poor people, Mozaemon. |
| と (to) | Tone wa bandō ichi no kawa | The longest river in Kanto, the Tone River. |
| な (na) | Nakasendō shinobu An’naka suginamiki | Lined cedar trees in Annaka remind us of Nakasendo. |
| に (ni) | Nihon de saisho no Tomioka seishi | Japan’s first silk factory, Tomioka Silk Mill. |
| ぬ (nu) | Numata Jōka no Shiobara Tasuke | A successful hard worker from Old Numata, Shiobara Tasuke. |
| ね (ne) | Negi to kon’nyaku Shimonita meisan | Leeks and konnyaku, local foods of Shimonita. |
| の (no) | Noboru Haruna no kyanpu-mura | A perfect place to hike and camp, Mt. Haruna. |
| は (ha) | Hanayama kōen tsutsuji no meisho | A beautiful spot for azaleas, Hanayama Park. |
| ひ (hi) | Byakui Kan’non jihi no mite | Giving comfort to the people, Kannon Statue. |
| ふ (fu) | Bunpukuchagama no Morinji | The raccoon dog brings good luck at Morinji Temple. |
| へ (he) | Heiwa no tsukai Nījima Jō | A wise Christian educator, Niijima Jo. |
| ほ (ho) | Hokoru bungō Tayama Katai | A great Japanese writer, Tayama Katai. |
| ま (ma) | Mayu to kiito wa nihon’ichi | The top producer of cocoons and silk in Japan. |
| み (mi) | Minakami, Tanigawa sukī to tozan | Wonderful places to ski and climb, Minakami and Tanigawa. |
| む (mu) | Mukashi o kataru Tago no ko ishibumi | Telling us about old times, Tago Stone Monument. |
| め (me) | Meisen o dasu Isesaki-shi | The home of Meisen Silk, Isesaki City. |
| も (mo) | Kōyō ni haeru Myōgi san | Glowing with autumn colors, Mt. Myogi. |
| や (ya) | Yabakei shinogu Agatsuma kyō | A scene of rare beauty, Agatsuma Canyon. |
| ゆ (yu) | Yukari wa furushi Nukisaki jinja | Respected since ancient times, Nukisaki Shrine. |
| よ (yo) | Yo no chiri arau Shima onsen | Healing mind and body, Shima Onsen. |
| ら (ra) | Kaminari to kūfū giri ninjō | Thunder and strong winds, duty and kindness in Gunma. |
| り (ri) | Risō no denka ni dengen Gunma | Energy from water, Gunma’s electricity. |
| る (ru) | Rūpu de nadakai Shimizu ton’neru | Well-known looping railway, Shimizu Tunnel. |
| れ (re) | Rekishi ni nadakai Nitta Yoshisada | A brave samurai leader in history, Nitta Yoshisada. |
| ろ (ro) | Rōnō Funatsu Denjibei | A pioneer in farming, Funatsu Denjibei. |
| わ (wa) | Wazan no ōya Seki Kōwa | The master of Japanese math, Seki Kowa. |
Jōmō Karuta Competition is a tournament held every year in Gunma prefecture since 1948, one year after Jōmō Karuta was published.
Preliminaries take place in January, encouraging local children to take advantage of winter vacation to practice. Then the final competition is held in February.
The game could be played by two players against each other, or two teams each having three players.
Players may touch the correct Tori-fuda whether it is on their own territory or their opponent’s.
“Touching” the Tori-fuda could mean: Simply touching it, swiping it, flipping it, or grabbing it. This does not include pushing the Tori-fuda away with a different Tori-fuda.
Unlike in Kyogi Karuta, you may not touch any Tori-fuda that isn’t the correct Tori-fuda. If you do, then it is counted as a fault. (If you commit a fault, then as a penalty, you must give 1 of your taken Tori-fuda to your opponent, who places it among their taken Tori-fuda.)
You may only touch Tori-fuda using one hand only, so it is preferable to use your dominant hand. The other hand that is not used cannot trespass the line 20 cm away from your territory.
As the reader reads a phrase for the second time (including the opening phrase), players must put their hands beside their kneecaps, and may not put any of their hand(s)/arm(s) on their lap.
The game is mostly the same as 1 versus 1, except for some additional rules:
| Name | Points | Composition |
|---|---|---|
| Oya-fuda | 10 | tsu, chi, ke (Gunma’s topography, population, and prefectural government building) |
| Goshi-fuda | 20 | o, ka, me, ki, ke (The five biggest cities of Gunma prefecture) |
| Sanyama-fuda | 10 | su, mo, no (The three famous mountains of Gunma prefecture) |