Boshu Uchiwa Decoration Uchiwa, Collection of Tateyama City Museum

In the old local fishing villages, while the fishermen were out to sea, the women looking after their homes took to manual work of fan-making as a source of income. The number of fan-makers grew to about 1000, and Boshu uchiwa soon became a favorite summer gift, selling as many as 8 million fans a year in the early Showa period. However, with changes in people’s lifestyles, uchiwa became less of a necessity, and the production today has decreased to one tenth. In 2003, Boshu uchiwa was officially designated as a Traditional Craft of Japan.