The ama: a community of female divers in Mie. Sustainable significance of ama fishing.
For more than 2,000 years, they have been free diving for shellfish, sea cucumbers, seaweed and crustaceans. They are known as the ama, a community of women with an infectious laugh. Ama simply means woman of the sea and refers to these Japanese women, who practice free diving. A job traditionally reserved for women, as it did not require them to go to sea in a boat like the fishermen.
Today the average age of an ama is over 65. These proud women-divers have a quick wit and a sharp sense of humor. According to a survey conducted in 2010, the ama community is made up of around 2,000 women (and a few men!) throughout Japan, the most of whom work in Mie Prefecture. We have had the pleasure of discovering them during our trip there.
The daily life of a free-diving woman
©MIKIMOTO PEARL ISLAND
Not just anyone can become an ama diver. The smallcommunity has to abide by many rules specific to the area, where they practicetheir activities. For example, in the area of Mie I visited the women diversmeet for group dives between 9:00 and 10:30 am. An hour and a half of fishingis the maximum time allowed in order to preserve the marine fauna for thefuture generations.
So how deep do the ama descend? The beginners divedown to 4-5 meters, while the more experienced divers will dive up to 10meters. Some even reach to an astounding 20 meters. A feat for these women, whopractice this daily activity until they are over 80 years old!
The tools of the ama
To dive, the ama have all the necessary equipment: wetsuits, goggles, fins. They are far from the myth of the almost naked youngwoman! They also have a white traditional outfit in their wardrobe, sometimesdecorated with symbols such as the star that supposedly protects them duringtheir dive.
To help them, there is no usage of an oxygen tank.Their tools are simple: a buoy, a net to collect the treasures found duringtheir dive and a long hook allowing them to collect mollusks or to detachseashells.
Ama and Ecology
Continuing the ama tradition is not only a cultural issue, but it is also an ecological initiative. As mentioned above, their activities are monitored to preserve the marine life. Better still, the ama are involved (like many others in their region) in the preservation of Japan's natural heritage. By regularly scanning the seabed, these women have the ability to predict the dangers, capable of accurately reporting various upheavals that occur in the oceans as a result of global warming or pollution! The change in color of the algae, the temperature of the water, the periods when shellfish appear, all of this information is recorded and taken intoaccount.
It is quite possible to meet ama divers on a trip to Japan, especially in Mie Prefecture. An Ama Hut restaurant, for example,offers a tasting of freshly caught seafood cooked in front of you by some ama.This provides you an opportunity to talk about their passion and maybe even dance with them!