Hachi Spirit Blog

The Meaning behind “Hachi” To this day, there are conflicting theories on just how the beloved Akita of Japan was named. In 1934, Kishi Kazutoshi gave credit to Yae, Dr. Ueno’s wife, in “The Tale of Loyal Dog Hachi-kō.” However, Kaneko Osamu released a study of local heritages in Japan. In 2006, he wrote that Dr. […]

What do we know about Professor Ueno? He was a dog lover, owning sixteen dogs in his lifetime, but his connection with Hachikō was exceptional. The young, sickly Akita had a rough beginning, but it only served to strengthen their bond. Ueno is immortalized alongside the loyal Akita with a statue at the University of Tokyo. […]

Feeling a Little Stuck Right Now? If you’re anything like me, you may be feeling a bit nostalgic. We’ve made it through two years of Covid – through masks, hand sanitizers, online shopping, toilet paper shortages, restaurant closures, testing, online schooling and working from home. (Whew!) We’ve endured quarantines, shutdowns, feelings of isolation, and more at-home time than we’ve […]

Hachi Arrived at Shibuya Station: Fact or Fiction? It was generally believed that Hachi arrived at Shibuya Station in Tokyo from his birth home in Ōdate. Based on this, the classic Japanese movie Hachi-kō monotagari (The Tale of Hachi-kō, 1987) has a scene in which characters for Ueno Hidesaburō’s gardener and his student-apprentice pick up Hachi at […]

Tragedy Greets Hachi Hachi was born in 1923, the same year that the Great Kantō Earthquake hit the Tokyo metropolitan region on September 1, 1923. This 7.9-magnitude earthquake, with the ensuring fire, caused unprecedented calamities and damage to Tokyo and the surrounding area. The tremors were followed by a 40-foot-high tsunami that swept away thousands […]

Hachi was born in the farmhouse barn of Saitō Giichi (1873–1928), the head of the Saitō clan in Ōdate, Akita prefecture, in the northeastern region of Japan. The actual residence address of Saitō was Ōshinai, Niida-mura, Kita-Akita-gun, Akita prefecture. Its current address is 61 Mitsunashi, Ōshinai, Ōdate, Akita prefecture. Saitō was the owner of Hachi’s […]