Why Japan Made a 70-Year Pilgrimage to PEI Over a Red-Haired Girl

1. A Novel Rooted in Cavendish

Local PEI author Lucy Maud Montgomery published Anne of Green Gables in 1908, setting the story in her own home community of Cavendish on the Island's north shore.

2. A Translation Completed in Secret

Japan's relationship with the book runs deeper than almost anywhere else. Japanese translator Hanako Muraoka rendered it into Japanese in 1952 as "Akage no An" (Red-Haired Anne). She had actually completed the initial translation in secret during the Second World War, when translating English-language literature carried the risk of arrest. The original English copy had been a gift from a Canadian missionary friend in 1939.

3. From Textbook to National Icon

By the 1970s, the novel had entered Japanese school curricula, turning Anne into a shared childhood touchstone for generations of Japanese readers, overwhelmingly among women.

4. The Pilgrimage Continues Today

A theme park in Japan called Canadian World includes a full replica of the Green Gables farmhouse. Historically, around 3,500 Japanese visitors have made the trip to PEI each year specifically to see the real setting. That sustained cultural connection is a direct reason Japanese is one of the 8 languages CPEI supports. For a large share of Japanese readers, PEI isn't an obscure Canadian province, it's the real place behind a book they read as children.