There are seven "nagare" (districts) that take part in Yamakasa: Nishi-nagare, Chiyo-nagare, Ebisu-nagare, Doi-nagare, Daikoku-nagare, Higashi-nagare and Nakasu-nagare. Originally, the term “nagare” was used in regards to the organizations that governed the neighborhoods. It is said that the term first came about in the Azuchi-momoyama period (1558-1600), when Toyotomi Hideyoshi devised the “Taikomachiwari” plan to construct the now Hakata and lead to the establishment of Yamakasa. Even since those days, the odd number “7” was considered to be a lucky number and as such the town was divided into seven “nagare.” Although there are still currently seven nagare that embody the town, two of the original districts disbanded and were replaced with two new districts after WWII.

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