Nihon no Uta Hyakusen (日本の歌百選, "collection of 100 Japanese songs") is a selection of songs and nursery rhymes widely beloved in Japan, sponsored by the Agency for Cultural Affairs and the Parents-Teachers Association of Japan. A poll was held in 2006 choosing the songs from a list of 895. The results were announced in 2007. Although it is called a compilation of 100 songs, the list includes 101 songs.

The idea for the compilation came from famed psychologist and agency chief Hayao Kawai, to prevent juvenile delinquency and to combat the "weakening" of Japan's shared cultural heritage. The agency released a CD and a songbook with printed melodies for all 101 songs to be used in public schools.[1] The Asahi Shimbun used this list to compile a list of 15 most endangered children's songs.[2]

The composer and lyricist for several songs published by the Japanese Ministry of Education in the early 1900s are unknown.

The songs

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The songs are numbered by the Japanese syllabary in gojūon ordering.

No. Japanese title English title (rōmaji) Date Lyricist/translator Composer Notes
1 仰げば尊し Aogeba tōtoshi 1884 Fumihiko Ōtsuki, Satomi Tadashi, Kabe Iwao H.N.D.
2 赤い靴 Akai Kutsu 1922 Ujō Noguchi Nagayo Motoori
3 赤とんぼ Akatombo 1927 Rofū Miki Kōsaku Yamada
4 朝はどこから Asa wa doko kara 1946 Masaru Mori (森まさる) Kunihiko Hashimoto
5 あの町この町 Ano machi kono machi 1924 Ujō Noguchi Shinpei Nakayama
6 あめふり Amefuri 1925 Hakushū Kitahara Shinpei Nakayama
7 雨降りお月さん Amefuri otsukisan 1925 Ujō Noguchi Shinpei Nakayama
8 あめふりくまのこ Amefuri kuma no ko 1962 Masao Tsurumi (鶴見正夫) Akira Yuyama (湯山昭)
9 いい日旅立ち Ii Hi Tabidachi 1978 Shinji Tanimura Shinji Tanimura
10 いつでも夢を Itsudemo yume o 1962 Takao Saeki (佐伯孝夫) Tadashi Yoshida (吉田正)
11 犬のおまわりさん Inu no omawarisan 1960 Yoshimi Satō (佐藤義美) Megumi Ohnaka
12 上を向いて歩こう Ue o muite arukō 1961 Rokusuke Ei Hachidai Nakamura also known as "Sukiyaki" originally sung by Kyu Sakamoto
13 Umi 1941 Ryūha Hayashi (林柳波) Takeshi Inoue (井上武士)
14 うれしいひなまつり Ureshii hinamatsuri 1935 Hachirō Satō (サトウハチロー) Kōyō Kawamura (河村光陽)
15 江戸子守唄 Edo Lullaby Edo period traditional; lyricist and composer unknown
16 おうま Ouma 1941 Ryūha Hayashi (林柳波) Tsune Matsushima (松島つね)
17 大きな栗の木の下で Ōkina kurinoki no shita de melody "Under the Spreading Chestnut Tree", traditional English folk song
lyricist unknown
Jaromír Weinberger composed an orchestral work based on the tune in 1939.
18 大きな古時計 Ōkina furudokei 1940 Kōgo Hotomi (保富康午) after Henry Clay Work Henry Clay Work melody "My Grandfather's Clock" (1876), American popular song
19 おかあさん Okaasan 1954 Nana Tanaka (田中ナナ) Yoshinao Nakada
20 お正月 Oshōgatsu 1901 Kume Higashi (東くめ) Rentarō Taki
21 おはなしゆびさん Ohanashiyubisan 1962 Yoshiko Kōyama (香山美子) Akira Yuyama (湯山昭)
22 朧月夜 Oborozuki yo 1914 Tatsuyuki Takano (高野辰之 [ja]) Teiichi Okano
23 思い出のアルバム Omoide no album 1981 Masuko Toshi (増子とし) Tetsuma Honda (本多鉄麿)
24 おもちゃのチャチャチャ Omocha no chachacha 1962 Akiyuki Nosaka, Osamu Yoshioka Nobuyoshi Koshibe (越部信義)
25 かあさんの歌 Kaasan no uta 1954 Satoshi Kubota (窪田聡) Satoshi Kubota (窪田聡)
26 Kaze 1921 Yaso Saijō (西條八十) after Christina Rossetti Shin Kusakawa
27 肩たたき Kata tataki 1923 Yaso Saijō (西條八十) Shinpei Nakayama
28 かもめの水兵さん Kamome no Suihei-san 1937 Toshiko Takeuchi (武内俊子) Kōyō Kawamura (河村光陽)
29 からたちの花 Karatachi no hana 1925 Hakushū Kitahara Kōsaku Yamada
30 川の流れのように Kawa no Nagare no Yō ni 1989 Yasushi Akimoto Akira Mitake
31 汽車 Kisha 1912 Ministry of Education Aira Ōwada (大和田愛羅)
32 汽車ポッポ Kisha poppo 1938 Kaoru Fuhara (富原薫) Shin Kusakawa
33 今日の日はさようなら Kyō no hi wa sayōnara 1966 Shōichi Kaneko (金子詔一) Shōichi Kaneko (金子詔一)
34 靴が鳴る Kutsu ga naru 1919 Katsura Shimizu (清水かつら) Ryūtarō Hirota
35 こいのぼり Koinobori 1931 Miyako Kondō (近藤宮子) composer unknown
36 高校三年生 Koko sannensei 1963 Toshio Oka (丘灯至夫) Minoru Endo (遠藤実)
37 荒城の月 Kōjō no tsuki 1901 Bansui Doi (土井晩翠) Rentarō Taki
38 秋桜 Cosmos 1977 Masashi Sada Masashi Sada sung by Momoe Yamaguchi
39 この道 Kono michi 1927 Hakushū Kitahara Kōsaku Yamada
40 こんにちは赤ちゃん Konnichiwa akachan 1963 Rokusuke Ei Hachidai Nakamura
41 さくら貝の歌 Sakuragai no uta 1949 Kajō Tsuchiya (土屋花情) Hideaki Yashima (八洲秀章)
42 さくらさくら Sakura Sakura 1888 traditional; lyricist and composer unknown
43 サッちゃん Satchan 1959 Hiroo Sakata (阪田寛夫) Megumi Ohnaka
44 里の秋 Sato no aki 1945 Nomuo Saito (斎藤信夫) Minoru Kainuma (海沼實)
45 幸せなら手をたたこう Shiawase nara te o tatakō 1964 Rihito Kimura (木村利人) melody "If You're Happy and You Know It", traditional Spanish (or Latvian, or American) folk song
46 叱られて Shikararete 1972 Katsura Shimizu (清水かつら) Ryūtarō Hirota
47 四季の歌 Shiki no uta 1970? Toyohisa Araki (荒木とよひさ) Toyohisa Araki (荒木とよひさ)
48 時代 Jidai 1975 Miyuki Nakajima Miyuki Nakajima
49 シャボン玉 Shabondama 1922 Ujō Noguchi Shinpei Nakayama
50 ずいずいずっころばし Zuizui zukkorobashi Warabe uta; lyricist and composer unknown
51 スキー Sukī (Skiing) 1942 Otowa Shigure (時雨音羽) Kōzaburō Hirai
52 背くらべ Seikurabe 1923 Atsushi Unno (海野厚) Shinpei Nakayama
53 世界に一つだけの花 Sekai ni hitotsu dake no hana 2003 Noriyuki Makihara Noriyuki Makihara
54 ぞうさん Zō-san 1953 Michio Mado Ikuma Dan
55 早春賦 Sōshunfu 1913 Kazumasa Yoshimaru (吉丸一昌) Akira Nakada (中田章)
56 たきび Takibi 1941 Seika Tatsumi (巽聖歌) Shigeru Watanabe (渡辺茂)
57 ちいさい秋みつけた Chiisai Aki Mitsuketa 1955 Hachirō Satō (サトウハチロー) Yoshinao Nakada
58 茶摘み Chatsumi 1912 Ministry of Education Ministry of Education
59 チューリップ Chūrippu (Tulip) 1932 Miyako Kondō (近藤宮子) Takeshi Inoue (井上武士)
60 月の沙漠 Tsuki no sabaku 1923 Masao Katō (加藤まさを) Suguru Sasaki (佐々木すぐる)
61 翼をください Tsubasa o Kudasai 1971 Michio Yamagami (山上路夫) Kunihiko Murai (村井邦彦)
62 手のひらを太陽に Te no hira o taiyō ni 1961 Takashi Yanase (やなせたかし) Taku Izumi (いずみたく)
63 通りゃんせ Tōryanse Edo period Warabe uta; lyricist and composer unknown
64 どこかで春が Doko ka de haru ga 1923 Sōji Momota (百田宗治) Shin Kusakawa
65 ドレミのうた Do-Re-Mi 1959 Peggy Hayama after Oscar Hammerstein II Richard Rodgers from the musical The Sound of Music
66 どんぐりころころ Donguri korokoro Taishō period Nagayoshi Aoki (青木存義) Tadashi Yanada
67 とんぼのめがね Tonbo no megane 1949 Seishi Nukaga (額賀誠志) Kōzaburo Hirai
68 ないしょ話 Naisho banashi 1939 Yoshio Yūki (結城よしを) Yasuharu Yamaguchi (山口保治)
69 涙そうそう Nada Sōsō 1998 Ryōko Moriyama BEGIN original Okinawan language lyrics by BEGIN
70 夏の思い出 Natsu no omoide 1949 Shōko Ema (江間章子) Yoshinao Nakada
71 夏は来ぬ Natsu wa kinu 1896 Nobutsuna Sasaki Sakunosuke Koyama
72 七つの子 Nanatsu no Ko 1921 Ujō Noguchi Nagayo Motoori
73 花〜すべての人の心に花を〜 Hana: Subete no hito no kokoro ni hana o 1980 Shoukichi Kina Shoukichi Kina
74 Hana 1900 Hagoromo Takeshima (武島羽衣) Rentarō Taki
75 花の街 Hana no machi 1947 Shōko Ema (江間章子) Ikuma Dan
76 埴生の宿 Hanyū no yado 1889 Tadashi Satomi (里見義) after John Howard Payne Henry Bishop melody "Home! Sweet Home!" from the opera Clari, Maid of Milan (1823)
77 浜千鳥 Hamachidori 1919 Meishū Kashima (鹿島鳴秋) Ryūtarō Hirota
78 浜辺の歌 Hamabe no uta 1916 Kokei Hayashi (林古渓) Tamezō Narita
79 春が来た Haru ga kita 1910 Tatsuyuki Takano (高野辰之 [ja]) Teiichi Okano
80 春の小川 Haru no ogawa 1912 Tatsuyuki Takano (高野辰之 [ja]) Teiichi Okano
81 ふじの山 Fuji no yama 1911 Sazanami Iwaya (巌谷小波) Ministry of Education
82 冬景色 Fuyugeshiki 1913 Ministry of Education Ministry of Education
83 冬の星座 Fuyu no seiza 1947 Keizō Horiuchi (堀内敬三) William Shakespeare Hays melody "Mollie Darling" (1871), American popular song
84 故郷 Furusato 1914 Tatsuyuki Takano (高野辰之 [ja]) Teiichi Okano
85 蛍の光 Hotaru no Hikari 1881 Chikai Inagaki (稲垣千穎) melody "Auld Lang Syne", traditional Scottish song
86 牧場の朝 Makiba no asa 1932 Sojinkan Sugimura (杉村楚人冠) Eikichi Funabashi (船橋榮吉)
87 見上げてごらん夜の星を Miagete Goran Yoru no Hoshi o 1963 Rokusuke Ei Taku Izumi (いずみたく)
88 みかんの花咲く丘 Mikan no hana saku oka 1946 Shōgo Katō (加藤省吾) Minoru Kainuma (海沼實)
89 蟲のこゑ Mushi no koe 1910 Ministry of Education Ministry of Education
90 むすんでひらいて Musunde hiraite 1947 Ministry of Education Jean-Jacques Rousseau melody "Go Tell Aunt Rhody" from the opera Le devin du village (1752)
91 村祭 Muramatsuri 1942 Shigeru Kuzuhara Yoshie Minami (南能衛)
92 めだかの学校 Medaka no gakkō 1950 Shigeru Chaki (茶木滋) Yoshinao Nakada
93 もみじ Momiji 1911 Tatsuyuki Takano (高野辰之 [ja]) Teiichi Okano
94 椰子の実 Yashinomi 1936 Tōson Shimazaki Toraji Ōnaka (大中寅二)
95 夕日 Yūhi 1921 Shigeru Kuzuhara Kingetsu Murozaki (室崎琴月)
96 夕焼小焼 Yūyake koyake 1923 Ukō Nakamura (中村雨紅) Shin Kusakawa
97 Yuki 1911 Ministry of Education Ministry of Education
98 揺籃のうた Yurikago no uta 1921 Hakushū Kitahara Shin Kusakawa
99 旅愁 Ryoshū 1907 Kyūkei Indō (犬童球渓) after John P. Ordway John P. Ordway melody "Dreaming of Home and Mother" (1851), American popular song
100 リンゴの唄 Ringo no uta 1945 Hachirō Satō (サトウハチロー) Tadashi Manjōme (万城目正) from the 1945 film Soyokaze (そよかぜ) directed by Yasushi Sasaki
101 われは海の子 Ware wa umi no ko 1910 Kōichirō Miyahara (宮原晃一郎) Ministry of Education

References

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  1. ^ Yomiuri Shimbun, 「『荒城の月』から『涙そうそう』、日本の歌に101曲」 January 14, 2007.
  2. ^ Asahi Shimbun. 「歌い継いでいきたい童謡・唱歌ランキング」 March 20, 2010.
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