Ama, Japanese Freediving Women
Mie Prefecture, Japan
Other
Florian Guillaume: “Two thousand years of diving in rhythm with the sea, taking only enough to come back. They still teach us how to live with the ocean.”
The Ama are Japanese and Korean women who freedive without oxygen equipment to harvest abalone, sea urchin, oysters and seaweed from the ocean floor, a practice documented for over 2,000 years. Primarily located in Mie Prefecture (Ise-Shima) and Jeju Island (Korea). At peak in the 1960s, 17,000+ Ama dived commercially in Japan. Today fewer than 2,000 remain, mostly aged 60-90. UNESCO candidate for Intangible Cultural Heritage. The Ama embody an intimate, non-extractive relationship with the sea:
Living Legends · Co-Being · Climate Action
Website · Recommended by Florian Guillaume
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