Forest culture embedded in satoyama landscapes: Citizen selection of outdoor heritage in the Hira Mountain foothills, Japan

Faculty of Sport Studies, Biwako Seikei Sport College, Otsu, Shiga, Japan

^* Corresponding author: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Abstract

Satoyama landscapes in Japan represent long-term interactions between human livelihoods, forest management, and cultural practices. This article examines how forest culture and related non-forest cultural elements are represented and communicated through administrative inventories and citizen-produced walking maps in the Hira Mountain foothills, northern Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture. Drawing on an ecomuseum framework, non-designated cultural resources documented in the Otsu City Historical and Cultural Master Plan were reorganized and compared with outdoor resources selected by local citizen groups in three walking maps. Spatial analysis using the Satoyama Index and field verification were conducted to contextualize forest composition and sacred woodland sites. The results indicate that while administrative datasets capture a broad range of tangible and intangible heritage—particularly shrine forests, sacred trees, and oral traditions— citizen maps selectively emphasize walkability, visibility, and narrative potential. Forest culture is therefore not confined to wooded areas alone but is embedded in stonework, agricultural landscapes, rituals, and local memories tied to forest use. Integrating administrative and citizen knowledge through participatory and digitally supported interpretation is essential for sustaining forest culture within an inclusive ecomuseum approach.