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Kominka crazy and dreaming of a Kominka of your very own? Or just in love with these beautiful examples of Japanese architectural culture and aesthetics and want to learn as much as possible?

Or maybe you’re interested in projects and groups that focus in preserving Kominka and want to offer your support, either financially, with your own skillset or just with encouragement?

Whatever your Kominka desire this Site aims to educate, please and indulge your Kominka dreams!

Introduction

The soft, yellow glow from the shoji lantern-inspired lights that hang from the ceiling bring the massive ‘hari’ (wooden beams) to life. Strong, sturdy and with the natural curves of the trunks and branches from which they are hewn, they glow in the light and cast gentle shadows along the walls and the floor above where they have been meticulously assembled in the open roof space using centuries old craftmanship.

The warmth of charcoal embers in the irori (sunken hearth) silently breathing warmth into the autumn cooled air of the wooden floored hiroma, the main room for entertaining guests and for the family to gather, and the smell of broiled meat and vegetables and soup simmering near the coals, enticing one to feast on the smoky, flavoursome morsels.

Oh the romance of it all!

These are just some of the images that are conjured in my mind when I think of kominka and the romance of these images is what has drawn me into researching these marvellous old buildings and indeed pursuing the purchase of one of these for my very own.

Belying the traditional view that form follows function, kominka appear to have integrated both of these design aspects from the very beginning, and form is actually function.

Take for instance the beautiful beams that support the roofs of kominka. These retain the natural curves and twists of the trees from which they have been cut, retaining the inbuilt strength and structural integrity that arose during the growth of these trees that ensured they adapted to resist enormous forces and withstand extreme environmental stresses.

Cutting these to form processed pieces of timber would ultimately destroy the very qualities that are desired of them – strength and support. Why change something that is already perfectly formed to fulfil the task it has been assigned?

The same can be said of the actual roofs of kayabuki kominka (thatch-roofed kominka) prominent in many of the nōka (farmer) dwellings in certain regions of Japan. They are absolutely beautiful with layer upon layer upon layer of natural water-repelling reeds and grass totally covering the underlying framework of the roof and finished with trimming to remove excess material.

Just the layering of the water repelling reeds and grass to create the best form of protection against the sky’s elements automatically combines function and form, virtually without meaning to.

It is perhaps this virtually unplanned combination of form and function that makes kominka so attractive, inherently incorporating the qualities of wabi-sabi so indelible to Japanese aesthetics.

As an artist and practitioner of kintsugi (a process of repairing broken ceramics with Japanese lacquer and gold powder and even powder made with other material), a practitioner of budō (Japanese martial arts) and a speaker of Japanese, I have a deep appreciation of the essence of Japanese culture.

I can quite easily say that kominka incorporate a multitude of qualities of Japanese culture that I am familiar with – from the spiritual/philosophical/aesthetic qualities of wabi-sabi, to those of budō with economy of movement and method, and even the understanding and observance of mottainai (not wasting what is valuable).

There is so much more to Kominka than them just being beautiful buildings. They are part of a rich history and way of life that has contributed to not only Japan and its people but to the world and society at large. Join me as I delve deep and explore Kominka to reveal hidden treasures from the past, discover traditions that need safeguarding and learn precious lessons to take with us into the future.

Enjoy!

George T Brendecke

What are Kominka?

The term Kominka literally means ‘old private house’ and more generally ‘old folk house’. These houses have been built using traditional materials and methods of construction with the materials used typically being combinations and variations of wood, mud, bamboo and straw.

Written in Japanese the word kominka contains three individual kanji characters – 古民家.The kanji characters translate individually: as old (古/ko), people (民/min), house (家/ka). If you were to decipher the word reading its individual characters however, you would end up with the translation being ‘old people home’ which obviously is not what we are referring to!

The word is actually a combination of the terms ‘ko’ and ‘minka’ with the kanji for old being used in isolation and the kanji for ‘min’ and ‘ka’ being combined to form ‘minka’ which means ‘private house’. Hence ‘old private house’ which in the common context means ‘old folk house’.

With the term ‘old’ being subjective it can be difficult to determine exactly what can be classified as a kominka however it is generally accepted that any of these traditional buildings with an age of fifty years or more can be classed as such.

Even so, when it comes to perception it is probably more common to hear traditional buildings of around age fifty being referred to as ‘chūminka’ (中民家) or ‘middle-aged folk houses’ whilst anything considerably older, especially pre-WWII considered to be true kominka.

Perception can also blur one’s understanding of kominka when it comes to the style and construction of these buildings.

Many people have the image in mind of wooden farmhouses in the countryside with steep, thatched rooves covered in snow when it comes to describing what they think are kominka. This has probably come about due to the marketing of tourist destinations like Shirakawa Go and Hidetakayama that are famous for this style of kominka however, it would be wrong to think that all kominka are or should be like this.

Kominka come in many shapes and sizes and their construction may be determined by the region that they are located (or originated from seeing as many have been relocated) together with the class or status and occupation of the owner at the time of their construction and of course their income.

It is probably useful to reflect again on the kanji characters used to write the term kominka – ‘old private house’. Those who originally built these houses could have had any background but had the right and means to construct their own (private) houses. They were not necessarily farmers or people of meagre means as the English term ‘old folk house’ would have one imagine.

Indeed, many of the famous or well-known kominka existing today were owned by samurai, merchants and politicians as well as farmers and many of these bare very little semblance to the thatched farmhouse mentioned above. Some even resemble miniature castles and have grand rooves made of clay tiles. Some are also surrounded by impressive walls with massive and/or ornate gates.

To be continued……

Resources & Links

Below are links to various internal and external resources related to kominka, from their purchase, repairs and renovations, to their various uses (such as for cafes and residences etc.) and interior/exterior décor.

Kominka Open to the Public

Buying Property in Japan

Find a Kominka

Repairs and Renovations

Decorating Your Kominka

Glossary of Kominka Terms

My Kominka

Well, I’ve dug into my meagre life savings and have bought a traditional old Japanese Folk House, a Kominka – and I LOVE IT!

I went with my heart and not my head and I may have bitten off more than I can chew but hey, what can I say? I’m a hopeless romantic!

The building, encircled by an impressive stone and brick wall, is located on a hill in the quiet suburb of Funaki, Ube City in Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture, and has a precisely recorded date* of construction of 25th August, 1908 (the 41st Year of the Meiji Era) for the ‘Omoya’ or main building/house.

Other sections have been added at later stages and repairs and renovations have probably been carried out to certain areas over the years.

The original owner of the property and builder of the house is believed to have been the head of or an executive of a beer brewery, but no further details are known. There is also no record of how many times the property may have changed hands, so I will be doing a bit of research into this.

The father of the person who I purchased this property from used to be a politician (Yamaguchi Prefecture is famous for producing politicians) and he purchased the property in 1980 to use as his campaign headquarters and residence. Grand parties used to be held in the gardens and the Main Gate and the pathway leading up to it were apparently something to behold, impressing all the visitors to the property.

I will try to do ‘sympathetic’ renovations on the whole, leaving things as they are and just creating ‘layers’ to conceal deteriorating or damaged areas. (Stuff like applying an acrylic render over existing mud walls/render, that would look the same but could be easily removed to reveal original surfaces in the future if required.)

I am hoping to carry out most work following the aesthetics of around 100 years ago and anything not currently matching the period will be modified to look the part. Any modern aluminium sliding doors and windows will be replaced with wooden versions and modern glass will be replaced with antique rolled and/or decorative glass (sourced from other similar houses that are marked for demolition) or with paper Shoji if this suits better. Similar changes of the sort will be made elsewhere where feasible and required.

Please visit the Kominka Dreaming YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/@kominkadreaming) to view videos of this beautiful old house and follow the renovation progress. Don’t forget to hit the ‘Subscribe’ button so you’ll be informed whenever any new content has been added and also, please use the Comments section for each video to let me know what you think, ask me questions, and offer advice – all comments are welcome! (Well, at least those by nice people and not ‘bots’ and ‘trolls’ spewing rubbish and negativity.)

Click HERE to watch the very first Kominka Dreaming Video!

Lastly and VERY IMPORTANTLY, please support me in this project so that I can at least finish it and hopefully embark on similar projects in the future to save more of these wonderful properties!

I’ll be posting links to my ‘Donate & Support’ Pages on all Kominka Dreaming Web and Social Media Platforms in the near future so please keep checking back to see how you can support me.

*I got extremely lucky and discovered what’s called a ‘munefuda’ attached to the main beam of the house in the roof space. The munefuda are wooden (or sometimes copper) plaques that were commonly used in the past to commemorate the construction of buildings. Aside from the date of construction they also included architectural information like the purpose of construction (or repair), the style of construction and even the carpenter’s name, as does mine.

The Munefuda of my Kominka showing the date of 25th August 1908 – 明治４１年八月二十五日. The kanji used here is old and the number 25 in the date appears slightly different to today’s characters. (Full translation to be provided at a later date.)

More details coming soon!

Support Me!

If you’re passionate about Kominka and saving these beautiful, old, traditional Japanese houses then join me in my adventure!

Please support me and my Kominka – and more of these fantastic buildings – by donating or becoming a sponsor. You’ll feel great doing it and can get rid of some of that cash that you’ve got put away specifically for causes like this! (Go on, you know you want to!)

Click the buttons below to make a donation or sponsor me via my Buy me a coffee’ Page, my ‘GoFundMe‘ Page, or my ‘Patreon Site‘:

Support me by buying me a virtual coffee!

Help me out with a donation at GoFundMe

I want to secure as many of these rapidly disappearing properties as possible, restore them to their former glory then find them new owners who wish to treasure them and retain them for posterity.

The purchase of my own Kominka was made by dipping into my meagre life savings (read ‘I spent most of it’), and I may have bitten off more than I can chew. I went with my heart and not my head but hey, what can I say? I’m a hopeless romantic!

The cost of repairing this property and bringing it up to a liveable state while maintaining as many of it’s traditional features as possible will stretch way beyond my resources and I need your help.

Check back here occasionally (if I don’t reach out to you first) to discover other ways that you can offer your support. Even if its just words of encouragement I’ll be happy knowing that you’re onboard this project with me!

About

This Site was set up for lovers of Kominka by George T. Brendecke, a long-time Kominka enthusiast and Japanophile.

After living in Japan for nearly the whole of the 1990’s George returned to his country of birth, Australia, with his Japanese wife at the end of 1999. There he was to work for the next 17 odd years as an IT Specialist and Network Engineer.