Nagato Province Ichinomiya
Sumiyoshi Jinja
住吉神社
Sumiyoshi Jinja is the ichinomiya — the leading shrine — of the former Nagato Province, in present-day Yamaguchi. It has a car park (free). Without a car, a local tourism body gives 1 route from a station (by bus); the station names are listed below. Its principal annual festival (reisai) falls on December 15 every year. We found 4 entries for the shrine in Japan’s national database of designated cultural properties. The nearest other ichinomiya is Tamanooya Jinja, 54 km to the east in a straight line.
Getting there
山口県下関市一の宮住吉 1-11-1
The address is given in Japanese on purpose. Show it to a taxi driver, or copy it into a car navigation system — an English transliteration will not be recognised.
For a car navigation system
- Phone
- Japanese car navigation searches by phone number. This is the fastest way to enter a destination.
- Coordinates
- Derived from the address down to the street number, via Japan's national mapping agency. Not a survey of the hall itself
- Address
How to rent and drive a car in Japan →
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By train and bus
- From 新下関駅
- By bus, 5 min.
The source, word for word (bus stop names included):
・JR新下関駅からバスで約5分「一の宮」下車、徒歩5分
Taken from a local tourism body (住吉神社｜おいでませ山口へ（山口県観光連盟）, checked 2026-10-08). Station and stop names stay in Japanese so you can match them to signs. Fares and timetables are not given — they change.
Parking
It has a car park (free).
The fee in the source’s own words: 「第一＆第二駐車場あり(無料)。」 (source, checked 2026-10-15).
This routes you to the car park, not to the hall. From this car park to the hall is about 90 m in a straight line (the walk is longer). The location is taken from OpenStreetMap and has not been checked on the ground.
第一・第二駐車場があり、無料（山口県観光連盟の2026年初詣特集）。台数の記載はない。例年、正月は住吉公園グラウンドも臨時駐車場になる（同）
The note above is in Japanese; it usually records dates when the car park is closed, and the fee.
Visiting the 2 ichinomiya in Yamaguchi in one day? Work out an order that reaches each office before it closes →
History in brief
- Founding
- According to tradition, the shrine began when Empress Jingu enshrined the rough spirit of the Sumiyoshi deities after returning victorious.
- Buildings
- The main sanctuary was built in 1370 by Ouchi Hiroyo.
- Buildings
- The cypress-bark-roofed hall of worship was donated by Mori Motonari in 1539.
Summarised from a local tourism body (住吉神社, checked 2026-10-08). Traditions are given as the shrine tells them, not as established history.
Enshrined deities
- Sumiyoshi-Okami 住吉大神 2 ichinomiya enshrine this deity →
- Ojin-Tenno 応神天皇 10 ichinomiya enshrine this deity →
- Takenochinosukune-no-Mikoto 武内宿祢命 4 ichinomiya enshrine this deity →
- Jingu-Kogo 神功皇后 10 ichinomiya enshrine this deity →
- Takeminakata-no-Mikoto 建御名方命 6 ichinomiya enshrine this deity →
Spelling as given by the prefectural shrine office or local authority.
Nationally designated cultural properties
- 住吉神社拝殿
-
Important Cultural Property
桁行三間、梁間一間、一重、切妻造、妻入、檜皮葺
designated 1954-09-17 · late Muromachi period - 住吉社法楽百首和歌短冊（明応四年十二月）
- Important Cultural Property
- 金銅牡丹唐草透唐鞍
- Important Cultural Property
- 銅鐘
- Important Cultural Property
Source: the national register. All of them together →
Festivals
- Principal annual festival
-
12月15日 例祭
source
Other festivals and rituals
- 夏越の大祓 茅の輪くぐり
- 6月30日
- お田植祭
- 2026年5月17日（日）
Nearest ichinomiya
The closest is Tamanooya Jinja, about 54 km to the east in a straight line, the ichinomiya of Suo Province. After that come Hakozakigu (65 km south-west) and Usa Jingu (65 km south-east).
Straight-line distances between the shrines, not road distances. Across mountains or water, the drive is much longer.
Why this shrine is called an ichinomiya
Listed by the pilgrimage association
It appears on the map published by the Ichinomiya Pilgrimage Association. We have not yet checked other primary sources.
- 全国一の宮巡拝会『全国一の宮神社所在地』（平成30年5月・改訂版 第4版） (checked 2026-09-09)
More on how the shrines of this province relate to one another is on the Nagato Province page.
Historical rank
- Province
- Nagato Province (San'yōdō)
- Prefecture
- Yamaguchi
- Engishiki (927)
- Myōjin Taisha
- Former state rank (1871–1946)
- Kanpei Taisha
Sources
- https://yamaguchi-tourism.jp/spot/detail_10469.html (checked 2026-09-09)
- https://yamaguchi-tourism.jp/blog/detail_185.html (checked 2026-09-10)
- https://yamaguchi-tourism.jp/feature/detail_113.html (checked 2026-10-15)
How we handle spellings, festival selection, former ranks and map accuracy is set out once on the About page.