''Mahoroba'' is an ancient
Japanese word describing a far-off land full of bliss and
peace. It is roughly comparable to the western concepts of
arcadia
Arcadia may refer to:
Places Australia
* Arcadia, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney
* Arcadia, Queensland
* Arcadia, Victoria
Greece
* Arcadia (region), a region in the central Peloponnese
* Arcadia (regional unit), a modern administrative un ...
, a place surrounded by mountains full of harmony and quiet.
''Mahoroba'' is now written only in
hiragana as まほろば. The origins of the word are not clear; it is described in a poem in the ancient ''
Kojiki
The , also sometimes read as or , is an early Japanese chronicle of myths, legends, hymns, genealogies, oral traditions, and semi-historical accounts down to 641 concerning the origin of the Japanese archipelago, the , and the Japanese imperia ...
'' (古事記) as being the perfect place in
Yamato
was originally the area around today's Sakurai City in Nara Prefecture of Japan, which became Yamato Province and by extension a name for the whole of Japan.
Yamato is also the dynastic name of the ruling Imperial House of Japan.
Japanese his ...
:
Note that the Kojiki itself did not use hiragana; the above is a modernized version.
Notes
* The
Space Battleship Yamato had a sister-ship that was named ''Chō Jikū Senkan Mahoroba'' (The Ultimate Time Sweeper Mahoroba)
*
Final Fantasy: Song Book - Mahoroba
* The anime/manga
Mahoraba
is a Japanese manga series by Akira Kojima. It was serialized in Square Enix' ''Monthly Gangan WING'' manga magazine between January 2000 and July 2006, spanning a total of 12 tankōbon volumes.
An anime television series adaptation, entit ...
.
* In the anime
Kannazuki no Miko
is a Japanese ''Yuri (genre), yuri'' manga series created by Kaishaku (manga group), Kaishaku. The series, centering on the relationship between main characters Himeko and Chikane, also has elements of mecha themes in its plot. The 14-chapter ...
, the story takes place in the village of Mahoroba.
* In the game
Boktai 3: Sabata's Counterattack, the final boss battle takes place on the moon's capital city of Mahoroba.
* In the game
Beatmania IIDX 16: Empress, there is a song called Mahoroba.
* In the game
Arcaea
''Arcaea'' is a rhythm video game developed and published by Lowiro (stylized as lowiro). The game was released on iOS and Android mobile platforms on 9 March 2017.
A single-player version of the game was released for the Nintendo Switch on ...
, there is also a song called Mahoroba. It is important to note that these are not the same song.
* "The Man-yō Mahoroba Line" became in use for the common name of the
West Japan Railway Company (JR West) Sakurai Line
The is a railway line operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West) in Nara Prefecture. It connects Nara on the Yamatoji Line to Takada on the Wakayama Line, with some services continuing on the Wakayama Line to Ōji Station, and then to JR ...
on March 13, 2010, the day of the diagram revision of JR Group.
*In the game
Toukiden 2
is a 2016 action role-playing game developed by Omega Force and published by Koei Tecmo for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation Vita. The game is the sequel to '' Toukiden: The Age of Demons''.
Gameplay
New to ...
, the village the player plays in is called Mahoroba Village
Japanese mythology
Mythical utopias
{{Japan-myth-stub