Shichirigahama

Shichirigahama (七里ヶ浜^?) is a beach near Kamakura, Kanagawa prefecture, Japan, which goes from Koyurigimisaki Cape, near Fujisawa, to Inamuragasaki Cape, west of Kamakura. Since from it one could enjoy a clear view of both Mount Fuji and Enoshima at the same time, during the Edo period it was popular as a subject for ukiyo-e. For example, famous ukiyo-e artists Hiroshige and Hokusai both include it in their 36 Views of Mount Fuji. Its dark sands are rich in iron ore which allowed Kamakura to become a florid center for the production of swords and knives. Its name is usually translated into English as "Seven Ri Beach", the ri being a unit of measurement.

Unlike its easterly neighbor Yuigahama, its floor drops too quickly, so it is not very popular as a sea resort, but surfers are present in every season. Since 1939 it is administratively part of the City of Kamakura. The area is served by the Enoshima Electric Railway, or Enoden, which connects Kamakura Station in Kamakura with Fujisawa Station.

The beach's name means "Seven Ri Beach", where a ri is an old Japanese unit of measurement equivalent to 3.9 km, and therefore Shichirigahama should be about 27 km long. In fact, it is just over one tenth of that length. The origin of the name is unknown, and many hypothetical etymologies exist. According to a passage of the Shinpen Kamakurashi, it comes from the Shichiri Bikyaku (七里飛脚^?) (a term usually shortened into just Shichiri), which was an Edo period messenger service on the Kantōdō highway with a horseman change every seven "ri". However, since the expression shichiri also meant "a long ride", the name could also just mean that the beach is very long. Shichirigahama has also been called Shichirinada (七里灘^?), Shichibama (七里浜^?) and Shichiriura (七里浦^?).

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Wikipedia