Abstract
Despite their recognition as invaluable cultural assets, many traditional performing arts are on the verge of cessation due to the social and demographic changes in the hosting communities. Akita Prefecture, which has the largest number of nationally designated important intangible folk cultural properties but also the fastest population decline in Japan, is no exception to this trend. This paper provides the first evidence of a statistical association between the cessation of traditional performing arts and the demographic structure of the hosting communities. Based on a survey of traditional performing arts covering two decades, we find a partial and positive association between the fraction of young community members and continuation probabilities, whereas it was not correlated with the fraction of elder community members. The results suggest the need for a further scheme of preservation in remote areas experiencing rapid population decline.
