A variety of traditional festivals have developed in local communities throughout Japan. These festivals originated in religious ceremonies performed at Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. Festivals such as the Gion Festival held by Kyoto's Yasaka Shrine, Gifu Prefecture's Takayama Festival, and Aomori Prefecture's Aomori Nebuta Festival attract large numbers of sightseers from throughout Japan and overseas.
  Traditional performing arts such as these festivals exist in great variety. They generally involve members of a community staging performances on fixed days inside the precincts of certain shrines, in keeping with traditional conventions. These events are known as folk performing arts and generally consist of performances infused with prayers for blessings such as national and individual prosperity, plentiful harvests of rice or other crops, favorable weather, and peace for the spirits of one's ancestors. Japan is said to be the home to approximately 30,000 distinct folk performing arts, and the traditions they represent have been continuously passed down in every region.
  In addition to giving expression to the hopes and wishes of local residents, folk performing arts create an appealing spectacle. In recent years they have attracted large numbers of tourists throughout Japan. Examples include Akita Prefecture's Nishimonai Bon Odori and Gifu Prefecture's Gujo Odori, both of which incorporate prayers for peace for the spirits of dancers' ancestors.
  In recent years, new forms of folk performing arts have emerged throughout Japan. For example, organizers of Tokushima Prefecture's famous Awa Odori construct temporary stands and have a series of dancing groups present performances for the assembled spectators. Because it's fun whether you participate or just watch, Awa Odori has become popular not only in Tokushima Prefecture, but also in communities across Japan such as Tokyo's Koenji.