Locat­ed in a moun­tain­ous region that was cut off from the rest of the world for a long peri­od of time, these vil­lages with their Gassho-style hous­es sub­sist­ed on the cul­ti­va­tion of mul­ber­ry trees and the rear­ing of silk­worms. The large hous­es with their steeply pitched thatched roofs are the only exam­ples of their kind in Japan. Despite eco­nom­ic upheavals, the vil­lages of Ogi­machi, Ain­oku­ra and Sug­anu­ma are out­stand­ing exam­ples of a tra­di­tion­al way of life per­fect­ly adapt­ed to the envi­ron­ment and people‘s social and eco­nom­ic cir­cum­stances.