Cape Ashizuri

A cape at the western end of Tosa Bay in Kochi Prefecture, facing off against Cape Muroto to the east. Located in Tosashimizu City, it is the southernmost cape in Shikoku. In the past, it was also written as Cape Sada. There are many examples of place names with "Sada" in them in Kyushu, Shikoku, the Izu Seven Islands, and elsewhere, and one theory is that "sa" refers to the tip and "da" refers to the location. There was also a time when cape was commonly written as saki, but today it is commonly written as Cape Ashizuri. The surrounding area is a raised coastline with three terraces, and the tip of the cape is an 80-meter-high granite sea cliff, with many sea caves. The slopes above the terraces are a natural sea of ​​trees, mainly evergreen broad-leaved trees such as Quercus phillyraeoides, Pittosporum tobira, Cistanche nucifera, Machilus thunbergii, Camellia japonica, and Castanopsis sieboldii, while subtropical plants such as Livistos latipes, Acos and Alocasia japonica accentuate the tropical cape scenery. In the past, the area only contained a lighthouse and Kongofuku-ji Temple, the 38th temple of the Shikoku Pilgrimage, but after World War II, as it became a tourist destination, an observation deck and a camellia tunnel promenade were constructed, and inns and hotels began to gather.

The nearby terraces are used for farmland, and settlements with camellia windbreak fences stand here. There are many reefs in the nearby sea, and it has long been a good fishing ground for bonito and other fish. It is the core base of Ashizuri-Uwakai National Park, and the Ashizuri Skyline runs through it.

[Yasuhiko Owaki]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

高知県土佐湾西端の岬で、東の室戸(むろと)岬と対峙(たいじ)する。土佐清水(とさしみず)市にあり、四国最南端の岬。古くは蹉跎(さだ)岬とも書いた。「サダ」の地名は九州、四国、伊豆七島など各地にも多くの例がみられ、「サ」は先を、「ダ」は場所をさすとの説もある。また、岬を崎と慣用した時期もあったが、現在は足摺岬が慣用される。付近は3段の段丘面をもつ隆起海岸で、岬端は80メートルほどの花崗(かこう)岩海食断崖(だんがい)となり、海食洞(どう)も多くみられる。段丘上の傾斜面は、ウバメガシ、トベラ、ハマサカキ、タブノキ、ツバキ、スダジイなどの常緑照葉樹を主とした天然の樹海をなし、ビロウ、アコウ、クワズイモなどの亜熱帯植物が南国的な岬景観を強調している。かつては灯台と四国霊場38番札所の金剛福(こんごうふく)寺が所在するのみであったが、第二次世界大戦後、観光地化に応じて、展望台、ツバキのトンネルの遊歩道なども整備され、旅館、ホテルの集積もみた。

　付近の段丘面は畑地に利用され、ツバキの防風垣をもつ集落が立地している。付近の海中には碆(ばえ)（岩礁）も多く、古来カツオなどの好漁場。足摺宇和海国立公園の中核拠点で、足摺スカイラインが通じる。

［大脇保彦］

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