is a selection of song

Song

In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...

s and nursery rhyme

Nursery rhyme

The term nursery rhyme is used for "traditional" poems for young children in Britain and many other countries, but usage only dates from the 19th century and in North America the older ‘Mother Goose Rhymes’ is still often used.-Lullabies:...

s widely beloved in Japan, sponsored by the Agency for Cultural Affairs

Agency for Cultural Affairs

The is a special body of the Japanese Ministry of Education . It was set up in 1968 to promote Japanese arts and culture. As of April 2007, it is led by the Commissioner for Cultural Affairs, Tamotsu Aoki....

 and Nippon PTA. A poll was held in 2006 choosing the songs from a list of 895. The results were announced in 2007.

Although it is called a compilation of 100 songs, it actually includes 101 songs.

The idea for the compilation came from famed psychologist and agency chief Hayao Kawai

Hayao Kawai

' was a Japanese Jungian psychologist who has been described as "the founder of Japanese Analytical and Clinical Psychology". He introduced the sandplay therapy concept to Japanese psychology. He participated in Eranos from 1982. Kawai was the director of the International Research Center for...

, with an aim to prevent juvenile delinquency

Juvenile delinquency

Juvenile delinquency is participation in illegal behavior by minors who fall under a statutory age limit. Most legal systems prescribe specific procedures for dealing with juveniles, such as juvenile detention centers. There are a multitude of different theories on the causes of crime, most if not...

 and to combat the "weakening" of Japan's shared cultural heritage. The agency released a CD and a songbook with printed melodies for all 101 songs to be used in public schools. The Asahi Shinbun used this list to compile a list of 15 most endangered children's songs.Asahi Shinbun. 「歌い継いでいきたい童謡・唱歌ランキング」 March 20, 2010.

No.	Name	Lyrics	Melody
1	Aogeba tōtoshi Aogeba tōtoshi is a song sung at graduation ceremonies in Japan. It is usually in the key of D or E-flat major, in 6/8 time.-History:The melody is often said to be based on a traditional Scottish folk song of uncertain provenance ; however, others insist that both lyrics and music were by Meiji-era educator Isawa...	Ōtsuki Fumihiko, Satomi Tadashi, Kabe Iwao	H.N.D.
2	Akai kutsu Akai Kutsu Akai Kutsu is a Japanese nursery rhyme written in December 1921, about a girl adopted by foreigners and taken to the United States....	Ujō Noguchi	本居長世
3	Akatonbo	三木露風	Kosaku Yamada Kosaku Yamada was a Japanese composer and conductor.In many Western reference books his name is given as Kósçak Yamada. During his music study in the Imperial German capital of Berlin from 1910-13 he hated the times when people laughed at him because his "normal" transliteration of his first name "Kosaku"...
4	Asa wa doko kara	Masaru Mori	Kunihiko Hashimoto Kunihiko Hashimoto was a Japanese composer, violinist, conductor, and musical educator. He was born in the Hongo district of Tokyo. In 1923, he entered the Tokyo Music School where he studied violin and conducting. In composition, he was largely self-taught, but later he would study that subject as a graduate...
5	Ano machi kono machi	Ujō Noguchi	Shinpei Nakayama Shinpei Nakayama was a Japanese songwriter, famous for his many children's songs and popular songs that have become deeply embedded in Japanese popular culture....
6	Amefuri	Hakushū Kitahara	Shinpei Nakayama
7	Amefuri otsukisan	Ujō Noguchi	Shinpei Nakayama
8	Amefuri kuma no ko	鶴見正夫	湯山昭
9	Ii hi tabedachi	Shinji Tanimura Shinji Tanimura is a Japanese singer and songwriter.- Biography :In 1971, Tanimura set up the musical group, Alice, along with Takao Horiuchi, and in 1972 produced his first extended play musical album. Two years later, they produced their first album from the musical group...	Shinji Tanimura
10	Itsudemo yume wo	佐伯孝夫	吉田正
11	Inu no omawarisan	Yoshimi Satou	大中恩
12	Ue o Muite Arukō Sukiyaki (song) The cover version by A Taste of Honey reached number three on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. It also went to number 1 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart and Soul chart)....	Rokusuke Ei Rokusuke Ei is a Japanese lyricist, composer, author, essayist and TV personality.Ei wrote the lyrics to the song "Sukiyaki", which has been used in several English language films. He has also written the lyrics to the song "Miagete goran yoru no hoshi wo" sung by Kyu Sakamoto in 1963...	Hachidai Nakamura Hachidai Nakamura was a China-born Japanese songwriter and jazz pianist.- Biography :Hachidai Nakamura was born in Qingdao, China to Japanese parents. He moved to Fukuoka at a young age, where he attended high school, and eventually graduated from Waseda University in Tokyo with a degree in literature...
13	Umi Umi Umi may refer to:*Umi, Fukuoka, a town in Japan *'Umi-a-Liloa, king of the island of Hawaii*Umi Ryuzaki, a character in the fictional manga series Magic Knight Rayearth*UMI, Universal Mobile Interface...	Ryũha Hayashi	井上武士
14	Ureshii hinamatsuri	Satou Hachirou	河村光陽
15	Edo Lullaby Edo Lullaby Edo Lullaby is a traditional Japanese cradle song. It originated in Edo, was propagated to other areas, and is said to be the roots of the Japanese lullabies.-General:The Edo Lullaby is a traditional Japanese cradle song...	Traditional	Traditional
16	Ouma	Ryũha Hayashi	Tsune Nakashima
17	Under the Spreading Chestnut Tree Under the Spreading Chestnut Tree Under the Spreading Chestnut Tree is a set of variations, with fugue, for orchestra composed in 1939 by Jaromír Weinberger. It premiered under the direction of Sir John Barbirolli in New York City on October 12, 1939...	Unknown translator	English traditional
18	My Grandfather's Clock My Grandfather's Clock "My Grandfather's Clock" is a song written in 1876 by Henry Clay Work, the author of "Marching Through Georgia". It is a standard of British brass bands and colliery bands, and is also popular in bluegrass music.-Origin of the song:...	保富庚午訳詞	Henry Clay Work Henry Clay Work Henry Clay Work was an American composer and songwriter.-Biography:He was born in Middletown, Connecticut, to Alanson and Amelia Work. His father opposed slavery, and Work was himself an active abolitionist and Union supporter...
19	Okaasan	Nana Tanaka	中田喜直
20	Oshougatsu	Kume Higashi	Rentarō Taki
21	Ohanashiyubisan	香山美子	湯山昭
22	Oborozuki yo	Tatsuyuki Takano	Teiichi Okano
23	Omoide no album	増子とし	本多鉄麿
24	Omocha no chachacha	Akiyuki Nosaka Akiyuki Nosaka is a Japanese novelist, singer, lyricist, and former member of the House of Councillors. As a broadcasting writer he uses the name Yukio Aki and his alias as a chanson singer is Claude Nosaka.- Biography :... , Osamu Yoshioka	越部信義
25	Kaasan no uta	Satoshi Kubota	Satoshi Kubota
26	Kaze Kaze Kaze is the Japanese word for wind.Kaze may also refer to:*Kaze Ghost Warrior, an independent, computer animated film*Kaze , hip hop artist from North Carolina, United States...	Yaso Saijō	Shin Kusakawa
27	Kata tataki	Yaso Saijō	Shinpei Nakayama
28	Kame no Suihei-san	Toshiko Takeuchi	河村光陽
29	Karatachi no hana	Hakushū Kitahara	Kosaku Yamada
30	Kawa no Nagare no Yō ni Kawa no nagare no yo ni is the last single recorded by Japanese enka singer Hibari Misora, as she died soon after its release. It was composed by Akira Mitake, with lyrics by Yasushi Akimoto. It was voted the greatest Japanese song of all time during a national poll in 1997 by NHK, with more than 10 million votes...	Yasushi Akimoto Yasushi Akimoto is a Japanese television writer, lyricist, record producer, professor and vice president at Kyoto University of Art and Design. He also created some of Japan's top idol groups, Onyanko Club and the AKB48 franchise.- Career :...	Akira Mitake
31	Kisha Kisha Kisha can refer to:*Kisha clubs, journalists' cartels in Japan*Kisha Ford, former WNBA player*Kisha Snow, U.S. boxer*Kisha River in Russia...	Ministry of Education	Ministry of Education
32	Kisha poppo	富原薫	Shin Kusakawa
33	Kyou no hi wa sayonara	金子詔一	金子詔一
34	Kutsu ga naru	清水かつら	弘田龍太郎
35	Koinobori Koinobori , meaning "carp streamer" in Japanese, are carp-shaped wind socks traditionally flown in Japan to celebrate , a traditional calendrical event which is now designated a national holiday; Children's Day. These wind socks are made by drawing carp patterns on paper, cloth or other nonwoven fabric. They...	近藤宮子	Unknown
36	Koko sannensei	丘灯至夫	遠藤実
37	Kōjō no Tsuki Kojo no tsuki is a Japanese song written in the Meiji period.Japanese pianist and composer Rentarō Taki composed the music as a music lesson song without instrumental accompaniment in 1901. The song was included in the songbook for Junior High School students. The music of the song was inspired by the ruins of...	土井晩翠	滝廉太郎
38	Cosmos Momoe Yamaguchi is a former Japanese singer, actress, and idol whose career lasted from 1972 to 1980. In that time, she became one of the most notable singers in Japanese music, and an acclaimed actress. She withdrew from the entertainment business at the peak of her career to marry her frequent costar, fellow...	Masashi Sada Masashi Sada is a Japanese singer, lyricist, composer, novelist, actor, and a film producer.Sada formed the folk duo Grape with Masami Yoshida in 1972, and made debut as a recording artist a year after. The pair rose to fame owing to a hit of a song "Shourou Nagashi" composed by Sada, which peaked at the...	Masashi Sada
39	Kono michi	Hakushū Kitahara	Kosaku Yamada
40	Konnichiwa akachan	永六輔	中村八大
41	Sakurakai no uta	土屋花情	八洲秀章
42	Sakura Sakura	Traditional	Traditional
43	Satchan Satchan ' is a Japanese children's song composed in 1959 and is well known there. Its lyrics were written by and the music was composed by .The name Satchan is a diminutive form of the name Sachiko and is used mostly for young girls as opposed to older ones...	Hiroo Sakata	Megumi Ōnaka
44	Sato no aki	斎藤信夫	海沼実
45	If You're Happy and You Know It If You're Happy and You Know It "If You're Happy and You Know It" is a popular repetitive children's song, stemming from an old Latvian folk song. The song is supposed to belong to the public domain, although many of the different versions of the song are still protected by copyright law...	木村利人訳詞	American traditional
46	Shikararete	清水かつら	弘田龍太郎
47	Shiki no uta	荒木とよひさ	荒木とよひさ
48	Jidai Jidai (Miyuki Nakajima song) Jidai is a 1975 song by Miyuki Nakajima. It was included in the Nihon no Uta Hyakusen....	Miyuki Nakajima Miyuki Nakajima is a Japanese vocalist, guitarist, lyricist, composer and radio personality. As a principal Japanese female veteran singer-songwriter she is often compared to Yumi Matsutoya, she has released 37 studio albums, 40 singles, 2 live albums and multiple compilations to date, and whose sales have been...	Miyuki Nakajima
49	Shabondama Shabondama is the nineteenth single of J-pop idol group Morning Musume. It was released July 30, 2003 and sold a total of 151,104 copies. It peaked at number two on the Oricon Charts....	Ujō Noguchi	Shinpei Nakayama
50	Zuizuizukkorobashi	Warabe uta Warabe uta are traditional Japanese songs, similar to nursery rhymes. They are often sung as part of traditional children's games. They are described as a form of min'yo: traditional Japanese songs, usually sung without accompanying instruments....	Warabe uta
51	Sukii	時雨音羽	平井康三郎
52	Seikurabe	海野厚	Shinpei Nakayama
53	Sekai ni hitotsu dake no hana	Noriyuki Makihara Noriyuki Makihara , nicknamed by his fans, is a Japanese pop singer-songwriter.- Biography :He was born on May 18, 1969 in Takatsuki, Osaka, Japan. He attended Aoyama Gakuin University to study English literature. In addition to creating songs for his own music career, he has written, produced and performed songs...	Noriyuki Makihara
54	Zousan	Michio Mado Michio Mado is a Japanese poet. He was awarded the Hans Christian Andersen Award in 1994.-Early life:Mado was born as Michio Ishida in Tokuyama, Yamaguchi prefecture. He spent his childhood with his grandfather because his parents went to work in Taiwan. Later he joined his family there...	Ikuma Dan Ikuma Dan was a Japanese composer.- Biography :Dan was born in Tokyo, the descendant of a prominent family, his grandfather Baron Dan Takuma having been President of Mitsui before being assassinated in 1932. He graduated from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music in 1946...
55	Soushunfu	吉丸一昌	中田章
56	Takibi	巽聖歌	渡辺茂
57	Chiisai aki wo tsuketa	Satou Hachirou	Yoshinao Nakada
58	Chatsumi	Ministry of Education	Ministry of Education
59	Chuurippu	近藤宮子	井上武士
60	Tsuki no sabaku	加藤まさを	佐々木すぐる
61	Tsubasa wo kudasai	山上路夫	村井邦彦
62	Te no hira wo taiyou ni	Takashi Yanase Takashi Yanase is the Japanese creator of the anime series Anpanman, illustrator, poet. This character, like many popular manga heroes, is extremely popular with young children and is found on numerous products in Japan....	Taku Izumi
63	Tōryanse Toryanse is the name of the traditional Japanese children's tune . It is a common choice for music played by traffic lights in Japan when it is safe to cross.The words to the song are:...	Warabe uta	Warabe uta
64	Doko ka de haru ka	百田宗治	Shin Kusakawa
65	Do-Re-Mi Do-Re-Mi "Do-Re-Mi" is a show tune from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The Sound of Music. Within the story, it is used by Maria to teach the notes of the major musical scale to the Von Trapp children who learn to sing for the first time, even though their father has disallowed frivolity after...	Becky Hayama	Rodgers and Hammerstein Rodgers and Hammerstein Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II were a well-known American songwriting duo, usually referred to as Rodgers and Hammerstein. They created a string of popular Broadway musicals in the 1940s and 1950s during what is considered the golden age of the medium...
66	Donguri korokoro	青木存義	梁田貞
67	Tonbo no megane	額賀誠志	平井康三郎
68	Naisho hanashi	結城よしを	山口保治
69	Nada Sōsō Nada Sōsō is a song written by Japanese band Begin and singer Ryoko Moriyama. It was first released by Moriyama in 1998, but achieved popularity through the cover version by Rimi Natsukawa in 2001.-Ryoko Moriyama version:...	Ryoko Moriyama Ryoko Moriyama , is a Japanese folk and jazz singer. Her father is Hisashi Moriyama, a pioneer of Japanese jazz. Her son Naotaro Moriyama is a singer. Her first cousin Hiroshi Kamayatsu is also a musician....	BEGIN Begin (band) is a Japanese pop group from Ishigaki Island in the Yaeyama Islands of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Their sound contains many elements of traditional Ryukyuan folk music, and prominently features the sanshin.-History:...
70	Natsu no omoide	江間章子	Yoshinao Nakada
71	Natsu wa kinu	佐々木信綱	小山作之助
72	Nanatsu no Ko Nanatsu no Ko , is a popular Japanese children's song written by Ujō Noguchi and published in Kin no fune magazine on July 1921...	Ujō Noguchi	本居長世
73	Hana	Shoukichi Kina Shoukichi Kina , born June 10, 1948 in Koza , Okinawa, is an Okinawan rock musician who, along with his band Champloose, played a large role in the Japanese home-grown "folk rock" scene in the 70s and 80s. His first big hit was "Haisai Ojisan" in 1972, which he wrote when he was in high school...	Shoukichi Kina
74	Hana	武島羽衣	Rentarō Taki
75	Hana no machi	江間章子	團伊玖磨
76	Home! Sweet Home! Home! Sweet Home! "Home! Sweet Home!" is a song that has remained well-known for over 150 years. Adapted from American actor and dramatist John Howard Payne's 1823 opera Clari, Maid of Milan, the song's melody was composed by Englishman Sir Henry Bishop with lyrics by Payne...	里見義訳詞	Henry Bishop
77	Hamachidori	鹿島鳴秋	弘田龍太郎
78	Hamabe no uta	林古渓	成田為三
79	Haru ga kita	Tatsuyuki Takano	Teiichi Okano
80	Haru no ogawa	Tatsuyuki Takano	Teiichi Okano
81	Fuji no yama	巌谷小波	Ministry of Education
82	Fuyugeshiki	Ministry of Education	Ministry of Education
83	Fuyu no seiza	堀内敬三訳詞	William Shakespeare Hays William Shakespeare Hays William Shakespeare Hays , was an American poet and lyricist. He wrote some 350 songs over his career and sold as many as 20 million copies of his works. These pieces varied in tone from low comedy to sentimental and pious; his material was sometimes confused with that of Stephen Foster as a result...
84	Furusato Furusato is the sixth single of the J-pop idol group Morning Musume, released on July 14, 1999 as an 8 cm CD. It has sold over 170,670 copies and reached number five on the Oricon Charts. In 2004 it was re-released as part of the Early Single Box and again in 2005 as a 12 cm CD...	Tatsuyuki Takano	Teiichi Okano
85	Auld Lang Syne	稲垣千穎	Scottish traditional
86	Masaba no asa	杉村楚人冠	船橋榮吉
87	Miagete Goran Yoru no Hoshi o	Rokusuke Ei Rokusuke Ei is a Japanese lyricist, composer, author, essayist and TV personality.Ei wrote the lyrics to the song "Sukiyaki", which has been used in several English language films. He has also written the lyrics to the song "Miagete goran yoru no hoshi wo" sung by Kyu Sakamoto in 1963...	Taku Izumi
88	Mikan no hana saku oka	加藤省吾	海沼実
89	Mushi no koe	Ministry of Education	Ministry of Education
90	Musunde hiraite	Ministry of Education	Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer of 18th-century Romanticism. His political philosophy influenced the French Revolution as well as the overall development of modern political, sociological and educational thought.His novel Émile: or, On Education is a treatise...
91	Muramatsuri	葛原しげる	南能衛
92	Medaka no gakkou	茶木滋	Yoshinao Nakada
93	Momiji Momiji (disambiguation) Momiji is the Japanese name for Acer palmatum, the Japanese maple tree.Momiji may also refer to:* Momiji Sohma, a character from the manga Fruits Basket* Momiji Inubashiri, a character from Touhou Project...	Tatsuyuki Takano	岡野貞一
94	Yashinomi	Tōson Shimazaki	大中寅二
95	Yũhi	葛原しげる	室崎琴月
96	Yũyake koyake	中村雨紅	Shin Kusakawa
97	Yuki	Ministry of Education	Ministry of Education
98	Yurikago no uta	Hakushū Kitahara	Shin Kusakawa
99	Rishũ	犬童球渓訳詞	John P. Ordway
100	Ringo no uta	Satou Hachirou	万城目正
101	Ware wa umi no ko	宮原晃一郎	Ministry of Education