nntsuzu/KFTT huggingface dataset:
English: Although the custom died out temporarily after the war, since 1973, posters created by Osaka Nori Wholesale Cooperative Association were jointly put up by sushi restaurants at their shops, spreading the campaign for sales promotion of maki-zushi which used nori.
Japanese: 戦後に一旦廃れたが、1973年から大阪海苔問屋協同組合が作製したポスターを寿司屋が共同で店頭に貼り出し、海苔を使用する巻き寿司販促キャンペーンとして広められた。
English: In 1974 the following year, owners of nori stores, etc. in Osaka City, aiming to expand the demand for nori after the oil crisis of 1973, held a speed-eating contest of norimaki (vinegared rice rolled in dried nori [laver]) at a Setsubun event.
Japanese: 翌1974年には大阪市で海苔店経営者等がオイルショック後の海苔の需要拡大を狙いとして節分のイベントで海苔巻きの早食い競争をはじめた。
English: In 1977, Osaka Nori Wholesale Cooperative Association organized a sales promotion event for nori in Dotonbori (a geographical name).
Japanese: 1977年に大阪海苔問屋協同組合が道頓堀で行った海苔の販売促進行事を行った。
English: Since the sales promotion event held in Dotonbori was picked up by the media, it spread to the Kansai region, and later ehomaki came to be sold at convenient stores; as such, the sales promotion campaign for ehomaki came to be held across the country.
Japanese: 道頓堀で行われた販売促進イベントがマスコミに取り上げられて関西に広がり、その後はコンビニで販売されるようになって全国で販売促進キャンペーンが行われている。
English: As a sales event from late January until early February, which is commercially a period of depressed sales, sale of ehomaki expanded with a central focus on mostly convenience stores.
Japanese: 商業的に売り上げの落ちる1月後半～2月初旬の販売イベントとして、主にコンビニエンスストアを中心として各地で展開。
English: As a pioneer, Family Mart started selling ehomaki in Osaka prefecture and Hyogo Prefecture in 1983.
Japanese: ファミリーマートが先駆けであり、1983年に大阪府と兵庫県で販売が開始された。
English: In 1989, 7-Eleven, Inc. in Hiroshima Prefecture started selling ehomaki, and later expanded its sales area; as the result of sales expansion to throughout Japan, ehomaki rapidly became popular.
Japanese: 1989年には広島県のセブン-イレブンも販売を開始し、その後販売エリアを拡大し、1998年に全国展開をしたことで急速に普及した。
English: From around 2007, there was even the case of selling a Swiss roll as 'ehomaki [eho roll],' by taking advantage of real ehomaki.
Japanese: 2007年頃からは便乗する形でロールケーキを「恵方巻き（恵方ロール）」として販売するケースまでも出てきている。
English: Furthermore, in January of 2007, 7-Eleven, Inc. sold a Swiss roll called "marukaburi Swiss roll."
Japanese: また、2007年1月にはセブン-イレブンから「丸かぶりロールケーキ」が発売されている。
English: Since the 1990's, from the beginning of January until the period of Setsubun every year, PR events, such as broadcast of TV commercial nationwide and sales promotion activities by supermarkets, are implemented.
Japanese: 1990年代以降、毎年1月初頭から節分期間まで、全国でテレビCMを放映したり、スーパーマーケットが販促活動を行うなどPRをおこなっている。
English: According to the survey conducted by Mizkan Group Corporation which has its head office in Aichi Prefecture, the national average of awareness of ehomaki was 53% in 2002, whereas it increased to 92.5% in 2006, and the national average of respondents who 'actually ate' ehomaki reached 54.9% in 2006.
Japanese: 愛知県を本社所在地とするミツカンが行った調査では、恵方巻の認知度の全国平均は2002年の時点で53%だったが、2006年には92.5%にまで上昇し、「実際に食べた」と答えた人の全国平均も2006年の時点で54.9%に達している。
English: The spread of this event nationwide in recent years has the tendency of aiming at sales promotion under the leadership of relevant industries such as nori industry and convenience store industry, as in the case of giving sweets on Valentine's Day, White Day, and Orange Day; as such, 'seafood sushi roll version' and 'Swiss roll version,' which are not the traditional thick sushi roll, are also being sold.
Japanese: 近年のこのイベントの全国への広まり方はバレンタインデー・ホワイトデー・オレンジデーの菓子贈答と同じく、海苔業界やコンビニ業界など関係業界の主導のもと販売促進を目的とした傾向があり、本来の太巻きではなく「海鮮巻き版」「ロールケーキ版」なども販売されている。
English: Although available throughout the year because of distribution in the form of dried noodle, somen is generally served cold, and it is common to eat somen as summer noodle for its pleasant coolness.
Japanese: 主に乾麺で流通するため市場では通年入手できるが、冷やして食することが多く、清涼感を求めて夏の麺料理として賞味するのが一般的である。
English: One process of making dried noodles is to mix flour with salt and water, knead it well, add cooking oil such as cotton oil, flour, or starch, stretch the mixture while twisting it, and dry it until mature.
Japanese: 乾麺については小麦粉に食塩と水を混ぜてよく練り、綿実油などの食用油、もしくは小麦粉やでん粉を塗ってから、よりをかけながら引き延ばして乾燥、熟成させる製法がある。
English: Somen made with this process and satisfying 'Japanese Agricultural Standards for dried noodle stretched by hand' is classified as 'tenobe somen' (literally meaning hand-stretched somen).
Japanese: この製法で『手延べ干しめんの日本農林規格』を満たしたものについては「手延素麺（てのべそうめん）」に分類される。
English: Somen made by shredding dough made by mixing flour with salt and water and kneading the mixture and drying the shredded dough using a machine is classified as 'machine-made somen.'
Japanese: 小麦粉に食塩と水を混ぜてよく練った生地を帯状に細く切って乾燥させる製法のもので機械にて製造しているものは「機械素麺（きかいそうめん）」に分類される。
English: According to "Quality Labeling Standards for instant noodles" by the Japan Agricultural Standards (JAS), thickness of the machine-made somen is defined to be no more than 1.3 mm in diameter.
Japanese: 日本農林規格（JAS規格）の『乾めん類品質表示基準』にて、機械麺の場合、素麺の麺の太さは直径1.3mm未満とされている。
English: For additional information, noodles with the diameter no less than 1.3 mm and no more than 1.7 mm is defined as cold noodles, and those with a diameter no less than 1.7 mm are classified as udon.
Japanese: ちなみに直径1.3mm以上1.7mm未満はひやむぎ、1.7mm以上はうどんと分類される。
English: In the case of hand-stretched noodles, the same standard is applied to both somen and cold noodles, and those formed in cylindrical shape with a diameter no more than 1.7 mm are classified as 'tenobe somen' or 'tenobe cold noodles.'
Japanese: 手延麺の場合、素麺もひやむぎも同基準であり、直径が1.7mm未満で丸棒状に成形したものが「手延べ素麺」もしくは「手延べひやむぎ」に分類される。
English: For additional information, those formed in a cylindrical shape with a diameter no less than 1.7 mm are classified as 'tenobe udon.'
Japanese: ちなみに直径が1.7mm以上で丸棒状に成形したものは「手延べうどん」に分類される。
English: Although dried noodles exhibit good storage quality, it easily attracts worms and attention needs to be paid to preserve the noodles.
Japanese: 乾麺のものは保存性は良いが、他の麺に比べて虫がつきやすく保存には注意が必要である。
English: Somen preserved as long until it loses oil and becomes smooth with increased eating quality, and it is often valued referred to as 'mushitsuki somen' (literally meaning somen with worms) meaning that the somen has been preserved so long it has worms.
Japanese: 長期間保存され油分が抜けるとサラサラとした口当たりになり食味が増すとして、虫がつくほど保存したとの意味で「虫つき素麺」と称し珍重される場合もある。
English: There is also objection that long-time preservation oxidizes oil in somen and rather causes a loss in eating quality.
Japanese: これについては、素麺の油分は長期保存によって酸化し、むしろ風味を損なうとする意見もある。
English: Namamen (fresh noodles) and yudemen (boiled noodles) are defined by "Fair Competition Codes concerning labeling on fresh noodles" as 'in this code, "udon" refers to any noodle produced by adding water to flour and kneading it or the noodles processed after production regardless of the name of the noodles such as hiramen (thin noodles), cold noodles, and somen.'
Japanese: 生麺・茹で麺等については『生めん類の表示に関する公正競争規約』にて、「この規約で『うどん』とはひらめん、ひやむぎ、そうめんその他名称のいかんを問わず小麦粉に水を加え練り上げた後製麺したもの、又は製麺した後加工したものをいう」となっている。
English: This code classifies 'somen' as 'udon,' and therefore the namamen and yudemen types of somen can be regarded as a kind of udon in a limited sense.
Japanese: この規約上「素麺」は「うどん」に分類されており、狭義では生麺・茹で麺タイプの素麺はうどんの一種とも解釈できる。
English: However, because another article says 'the name can be changed so as not to be misidentified by common consumers' thereby allowing the use of the name 'somen,' "Fair Competition Codes concerning labeling on fresh noodles" do not set standards for the thickness by specific values or specific regulations on the shape except for a few indigenous products.
Japanese: しかし別項にて「一般消費者に誤認されない名称に替えることができる」となっている為、それにより「素麺」の名を使用することも認められており、『生めん類の表示に関する公正競争規約』では一部特産品を除き太さに関する具体的な数値による基準や形状に関する具体的な規定を設けていない。
English: Therefore, 'somen,' 'cold noodles,' 'thin udon noodles,' and the like can be freely named by their manufacturers and distributors based on their determination by appearance or their intention as long as the common consumers do not misidentify them.
Japanese: この為、「素麺」、「ひやむぎ」、「細うどん」等は製造・販売業者にて見た目の形状による判断や意向等により、一般消費者に誤認されない範囲で自由に選択して名付けられる。
English: For this reason, namamen and yudemen types of somen according to the code are actually produced and sold.
Japanese: そのため、この規約に沿った生麺・茹で麺タイプの素麺が実際に製造・販売されている。
English: Ryusuimen' (Wash to Eat Somen Noodles) by Shimadaya Corporation and 'Chanpuru noodle' by Sun Foods are examples of such somen.
Japanese: シマダヤ「流水麺そうめん」、サン食品「チャンプルーの麺（そうめん）などがその例である。
English: Before machine-made noodles became popular, somen having a round cross section due to making the dough thinner through the hand-stretching process could be distinguished from cold noodles having a square cross section due to its process of drawing out the dough and shredding it.
Japanese: 機械麺が一般化する以前は、素麺は手延べ工程により生地を細くするため断面が丸く、ひやむぎは生地を薄く打ち延ばしてから細く切るため断面が四角になっている、という見分け方も出来た。
English: However, now that the machine-made noodles have become popular and both somen and cold noodles are produced with similar methods, it is difficult to distinguish one from another as described above.
Japanese: しかし現在では機械麺が一般的となり、それらは素麺も冷や麦もほぼ同じ製法で作られているためこの見分け方法は不適となっている。
English: It is common to eat somen dipped in mentsuyu (a Japanese soup base) after boiling it, cooling it in flowing water, washing it by hand to remove the sliminess.
Japanese: ゆでて氷水や流水で冷し、ぬめりを取るためもみ洗いをしたのち、めんつゆにつけて食べるのが一般的である。
English: Contrary to 'nyumen' served in hot soup as described later, it is sometimes called 'hiyashi somen' or 'hiya somen,' literally meaning cold somen.
Japanese: 後述の温かくして食べる「にゅうめん」に対して「冷やしそうめん」、「冷やそうめん（ひやそうめん）」と呼称されることもある。
English: There is a controversy over whether cold water called sashimizu (or bikkuri mizu) should be poured in when the water is about to boil over.
Japanese: 吹きこぼれそうになった際に差し水（あるいはびっくり水）と呼ばれる冷水を入れる動作をするかどうかは意見が分かれる。
English: Because the noodles are so thin they may absorb a foreign taste, it needs to be washed with the best water avoiding hand sebum when boiling is over.
Japanese: ゆで上がったら細い麺であり他の味が移りやすいため、出来るだけ良い水で洗い、手油を避ける必要がある。
English: Mentsuyu is salty-sweet soup base made from soy sauce, bonito broth, and mirin (sweet cooking rice wine) or sugar, which is said to be good when prepared on the day before eating.
Japanese: めんつゆは醤油、カツオ出汁、みりんあるいは砂糖などからなる甘辛いもので、食べる前日に作るのがよいとされる。
English: Condiments may be chopped leeks, grated ginger, sesame, Japanese ginger, and so on.
Japanese: 薬味としては、刻みネギ、おろしショウガ、ゴマ、ミョウガなどが用いられる。
English: Pour soy sauce and mirin into a pan, boil it to evaporate alcohol, and then add water and dried bonito.
Japanese: 醤油とみりんを加えひと煮立ちさせてアルコール分を蒸発させてから、水とかつお節を加える。
English: The ratio of soy sauce, mirin, and water being 1:1:4 realizes mentsuyu with the saltiness suitable for somen.
Japanese: 醤油みりん水の比率114に配合することで、一般的なそうめんつゆに向いた適度な辛さのつゆとなる。
English: Nyumen: Boiled somen noodles served hot without cooling, in hot tsuyu like udon, or stewed in tsuyu.
Japanese: にゅうめん：ゆでた麺を冷やさず温かいまま、あるいはうどん同様に温かいつゆをかけて、またはつゆで煮込んで食べるもの。
English: In regions where nyumen is frequently eaten, cold nyumen are sometimes called 'hiya somen,' literally meaning cold somen, for distinction.
Japanese: にゅうめんをよく食べる地域では、冷たいものを「冷や素麺」と区別して呼ぶ場合もある。
English: Somin chanpuru: Hard-boiled somen stir-fried like yaki udon noodles (stir-fried udon noodles) in Okinawa Prefecture.
Japanese: ソーミンチャンプルー：沖縄県の、固くゆでた素麺を焼きうどん風に炒めたもの。
English: By boiling somen after deep-frying it, you can enjoy the flavor like Yifu noodles (egg noodle, referred to as "yi mien" in Taiwan) in Guangzhou City, China.
Japanese: なお、揚げてから煮ると、中国広州市の伊府麺（全蛋麺、台湾では意麺とよぶ）のような風味を楽しむことが出来る。
English: Nagashi somen (flowing noodles, somen nagashi): Flow somen through a bamboo toi (a generic term for a gutter), catch it with chopsticks, and dip it in mentsuyu to eat.
Japanese: 流し素麺（そうめん流し）：竹製の樋(建築)を使って素麺を流し、箸で捕まえてめんつゆ等に付けて食べる。
English: Its birthplaces are the Takachiho Gorge in Miyazaki Prefecture and the Tosen Gorge in Ibusuki City, Kagoshima Prefecture, where a tourist facility is located.
Japanese: 宮崎県の高千穂峡ならびに鹿児島県指宿市にある唐船峡が発祥地で、観光施設がある。
English: There are several restaurants in many areas in Kagoshima Prefecture where you can eat somen flowing in a circular toi on a round table.
Japanese: また、円卓テーブル上で円環する樋に素麺を流して食べる形式の食事施設も鹿児島県内各地に複数存在する。
English: Once visitors brought the machine and somen to Kawasaki Stadium voluntarily to enjoy nagashi somen when it was the home grounds of the Chiba Lotte Marines.
Japanese: 千葉ロッテマリーンズ本拠地時代の川崎球場で観客が道具と素麺を自主的に持ち込み行ったことがある。
English: Somen salad: Serve salad on top of somen and pour salad dressing based on mayonnaise and mentsuyu over it to eat.
Japanese: サラダ素麺：素麺の上にサラダを盛り付け、マヨネーズと麺汁をベースにしたサラダドレッシングをかけて食べる
English: Somen represents a summer noodle dish, and many food manufacturers and soy sauce manufacturers release seasoned mentsuyu called 'somen tsuyu' in summer.
Japanese: 素麺は夏季の麺料理の代表格であり、夏季には各食品メーカーや醤油メーカーから、「そうめんつゆ」と呼ばれる調味済みのめんつゆが販売される。
English: Sakurai City, Nara Prefecture is believed to be the birthplace of somen in Japan, and the widespread theory is that somen derives from Sakubei (sometimes called muginawa (wheat rope) in Japanese), one of Chinese sweets originated from China during the Nara period.
Japanese: 素麺は日本国内では奈良県桜井市が発祥の地とされており、奈良時代に唐から伝来した唐菓子の一つ、索餅（和名で「麦縄」とも書く事もある）に由来するとする説が広まっている。
English: Originally, the term 'sakubei' often appeared in documents during The Later Han Dynasty and Tang Dynasty in ancient China, and the oldest record of the term is a mokkan (a narrow strip of wood on which an official message is written) excavated from the site of residence of Prince Nagaya, the grandson of Emperor Tenmu (Nara City).
Japanese: 元々「索餅」は古代中国の後漢や唐の文献に度々出てくる言葉であり、日本では天武天皇の孫、長屋王邸宅跡（奈良市）から出土した木簡が最も古い記録となっている。
English: The original form was two thin long strips of dough made from glutinous rice and flour twisted together deep-fried in oil, which is believed to have been similar to present Sweetened Fried Bread Twists.
Japanese: 原形はもち米と小麦粉を細長く練り2本を索状によりあわせて油で揚げたもので、現在の油条に似たものと考えられる。
English: Sakubei as Chinese sweets is still used as a food offering to the gods at the present time, which is a clue to know about the prototype of somen.
Japanese: 唐菓子の索餅は神饌として現在でも用いられており、素麺の原形を知る手がかりとなる。
English: The ingredients, amounts, and tools used to make sakubei are described in "the Engishiki" (an ancient book for codes and procedures on national rites and prayers) in the middle of the Heian period, from which it is clear that sakubei was a noodle made from flour, rice flour, and salt (one opinion says the rice flour is not used).
Japanese: 索餅の材料・分量・道具については平安時代中期の『延喜式』に書かれており、小麦粉と米粉に塩を加えて作る麺（米粉は混ぜないという説もある）という事は分かっている。
English: However, the shape is unclear, and the most widely-accepted theory is that sakubei was thicker than the present somen and udon, that was broken with the hands to eat.
Japanese: しかし、形状については不明であり現在の素麺や饂飩よりもかなり太く、ちぎって食べたのではないかとする説が有力的である。
English: In an article of July 7, 1343 (old calendar) in 'Gion Shigyonikki' which is a record of Gion-sha Shrine during the period of the Northern and Southern Courts (Japan), there are three words indicative of noodles including 'sakubei,' 'sakumen,' and 'somen,' and it is believed to be the first appearance of the word 'somen' in writings (there is another theory that the first appearance of 'somen' was 'Iseiteikinourai' during the period of the Northern and Southern Courts).
Japanese: 祇園社の南北朝時代(日本)の記録である『祇園執行日記』の康永2年（1343年）7月7日(旧暦)の条に、麺類を指す言葉として索餅（さくべい）、索麺・素麺（そうめん）と三つの表記があり、これが「そうめん」という言葉の文献上の初出とされている（南北朝時代の「異制定訓往来」が「素麺」の初出という説もある）。
English: After the Chinese tradition that diseases (malaria fever) can be avoided by eating sakubei on the day of the Tanabata festival, sakubei was taken to Tanabata events in the court during the Heian period.
Japanese: 平安時代には七夕に索餅を食べると病（マラリア性の熱病）に罹らないという中国の故事に倣って宮廷での七夕行事に索餅が取り入れられていた。
English: It is believed that the shape in the present day was completed and the names of 'sakubei,' 'sakumen,' and 'somen' were still used in Muromachi period, but the name was later fixed to 'somen.'
Japanese: 室町時代には現在の形になったとされ「索餅」「索麺」「素麺」の名称が混じって用いられたが、やがて「素麺」が定着したといわれている。
English: There are other theories that somen was transferred from the Yuan Dynasty through exchanges of zen monks and trading in the period of the Northern and Southern Courts.
Japanese: その他の説として、南北朝時代に元(王朝)から禅僧の往来や貿易によって伝えられたもの、という説がある。
English: In China, there is a description of 'sakumen' in the Northern Song Dynasty period much earlier compared to Japan.
Japanese: 中国では日本よりもはるかに早く、北宋時代に「索麺」の表記が出ている。
English: The recipe of sakumen described in an encyclopedia called "The Guide to Running a Household" from the end of the Southern Sung period to the beginning of the Yuan period includes one closely resembling the recipe of Japanese hand-stretched somen such as 'making the dough thinner by stretching it with oil applied to its surface and finally making it still thinner by hooking it on rods.'
Japanese: 南宋時代末期から元初期頃の『居家必要事類全集』という百科全書に出ている索麺の作り方には「表面に油を塗りながら延ばしていくことで、最後に棒に掛けてさらに細くする」等といった日本の手延素麺の製法と酷似した特徴が書いてある。
English: The shape of sakubei, which had been unknown from the Nara period to the period of the Northern and Southern Courts, became clear during that time.
Japanese: 奈良時代から南北朝時代には形状が不明であった索餅がこの時代を境に形状が解明されてきている。
English: It is conceivable that confusing the terms occurred because sakumen had the name and shape both similar to those of sakubei.
Japanese: 索麺はそれまでの索餅と形状も名称も似ているため、言葉の混用が起きたと考えられている。
English: During the Muromachi period, it was mainly boiled, washed, and then steamed to eat, which was also referred to as "mushimugi" (literally meaning steamed noodles) and "atsumushi" (literally meaning hot-steamed).
Japanese: 室町時代は、茄でて洗ってから蒸して温める食べ方が主流で、蒸麦や熱蒸とも呼ばれた。
English: There is also a description left in some documents from this period that sakumen served on a leaf of Broussonetia papyrifera was a feature of Tanabata.
Japanese: また、この時代の文献には梶の葉に盛った索麺は七夕の風流という文章も残されている。
English: One of the reasons is that the production areas of the ingredients including wheat, water (soft water), and salt (seawater salt) were in the close locally.
Japanese: これは原料となる小麦、水（軟水）、食塩（海水塩）の産地が近かったことが一つの理由である。
English: It is believed that somen production became active because the area was blessed with good ingredients such as high-quality wheat from Harima, clear flow of the Ibo River, and salt from Ako.
Japanese: 播磨地方の良質の小麦、揖保川の清流、赤穂の塩など原料に恵まれていたことから素麺作りが盛んになったと云われる。
English: Accordingly, it is said that skilled workers migrated from Nada to Banshu and transferred their techniques, thereby improving the quality (refer to Ibonoito for details of brand names).
Japanese: それに伴って灘の職人が播州に出稼ぎに出て技術を伝えたことで、品質が向上したともいわれる（ブランドの詳細などは揖保乃糸を参照せよ）。
English: Most production areas of somen all over the country have originated from Miwa having the longest history of producing somen.
Japanese: 最も素麺作りの歴史が長く、全国に分布する素麺産地の源流は殆どが三輪からであった。
English: (This tendency continued until around 2000 when the problem of fraudulently claiming the origin arose, and seventy percent of Miwa somen was actually produced in Shimabara at the time.)
Japanese: （この傾向は産地偽装問題が発覚する2000年頃まで続き、その当時では三輪素麺の7割は島原産であった）。
English: Some is still produced by OEM in Shimabara and other prefectures, but such somen does not use the name of "Miwa some" in the present days (for details, refer to Miwa somen).
Japanese: 現在も島原など他県からのOEMによる場合があるが、その場合は『三輪素麺』の名を冠しなくなっている（詳細は三輪素麺を参照）。
English: Miwa somen is characterized by stretching it using cotton oil because Miwa was located close to the production area of cotton flowers.
Japanese: かつては綿花の産地に近かったため、綿実油を使って延ばすのが特徴である。
English: There are many opinions about its origin, and the dominant theory is that a boatman in the Yoshino-gawa River started producing it to feed his own family and as a side business in Tenpo era.
Japanese: 起源は諸説があるが、天保時代に吉野川の船頭が、家族の自給用や副業として始めた説が有力である。
English: A description about this somen is included in 'nihon-sangai-meibutsu-zue' (a guidebook for special products, consisting of pictures and explanations about them) written in 1754.
Japanese: 1754年に書かれた「日本山海名物図会」にはこの素麺に関する記述がある。
English: It is characterized in its thickness compared with somen from other areas, and therefore it was about to have a name other than somen in the past (by the revising the "Quality Labeling Standard for instant noodles," it is officially called 'hand-stretched somen' now).
Japanese: 他の素麺より太いのが特徴で、それにより過去には素麺とは別の名を付けられそうになった時期がある（現在は『乾めん類品質表示基準』が改定された事により基準上も正式に「手延べ素麺」となった）。
English: Produced in cold seasons taking two days based upon an ancient production method without using mass production.
Japanese: 寒冷な季節に、昔ながらの製法で大量生産せず、二日行程で生産している。
English: Characterized in stretching without oil, and wound in a ball-like shape unlike the common somen shape of a straight bundle.
Japanese: 延ばす際に油を用いないのが特徴で、一般的なまっすぐの束ではなくワイヤー状になっている。
English: It has been called "Bicchu somen" since ancient times, and a kind of noodles called "mugikiri" was historically offered to the court.
Japanese: 古くから備中素麺と呼ばれ、”麦切り”という麺類の一種が朝廷に献上された歴史を持つ。
English: Production of the presently-called somen started during the late Edo period by inviting veteran workmen from Banshu to learn their techniques.
Japanese: 現在で言う素麺の生産は江戸時代後期から始まったもので、播州から手練れの職人を招いて技術を学んだものである。
English: This area grew to become one of the major production areas blessed with high-quality ingredients including salt, water, and wheat like Banshu.
Japanese: そして播州と同様に、良質の塩と水、小麦などの原料が揃っていたことから一大産地に成長した。
English: This is the birthplace of machine production, where Terusato MASAKI established an iron shop in 1874 conceiving the mechanization of noodles from the hand-stretching method and invented a noodle making machine in 1883 (another theory says 1880).
Japanese: 機械製麺の発祥地で、真崎照郷が1874年（明治7年）素麺の製麺を手延べから機械化する事を思い立ち鉄工場を始め、1883年（明治16年）に製麺機を発明（1880年（明治13年）発明との話もある）した。
English: The machine-production of noodles developed accordingly, and quite a few workmen stick to it.
Japanese: それに伴いそれ以降は機械製麺が発展し、それにこだわりを持つ職人も少なくない。
English: Known for its tough body, Kanzaki somen is famous for 'nyumen' served in hot soup as well as served cold.
Japanese: 独特のコシの強さで知られ、冷して食するほか、温めて食べる「にゅうめん」でも有名。
English: There are five colors including white, red (plum), green (green tea), yellow (egg yolk), and brown (buckwheat powder).
Japanese: 白に加え、赤（梅肉）、緑（抹茶）、黄（鶏卵）、茶色（そば粉）の五色が彩りを添える。
English: Oyachi hand-stretched somen: Oyachi district in Yokkaichi City, Mie Prefecture, which is known as a production area of cold noodles, has been also the production area of somen since the Edo period.
Japanese: 大矢知手延べ素麺…三重県四日市市大矢知地区で冷や麦の産地として知られるが、江戸時代から続く素麺産地でもある。
English: The climate is suitable for producing noodles with the water of Asake River rich in minerals and cold winds blowing down from Suzuka mountain range.
Japanese: ミネラルに富む朝明川の水と鈴鹿山脈の颪によって麺作りに適した気候となっている。
English: Short noodles with the length of ten centimeters or so, which does not use oil like Inaniwa somen.
Japanese: 長さ10センチメートル程度の短い麺で、稲庭素麺と同じく製造に油は用いない。
English: Once died out in early Meiji period, but revived in late Showa period, and the shape of the noodles produced after the revival is flat.
Japanese: 明治初期に一度廃れたが昭和後期に復活し、それ以降に作られている麺の形状は平麺となっている。
English: Known for its unique production method of returning the noodles to rows by hand-stretching the noodle before it dries called "hannama modoshi" (rather commonly used for other noodles) with strong body.
Japanese: 麺が乾燥する前に手で伸ばして生麺状態に戻す"半生もどし"という独特の製法（素麺以外では割と用いられる）で知られ、腰が強い。
English: While somen is dried by cold winds in winter in other production areas, the hannama modoshi noodles are mainly produced in summer using wet winds blowing from Mikawa Bay.
Japanese: また、他産地の素麺はだいたい冬場の寒風に晒して干すのだが、この半生もどし麺は主に夏場に作られ、三河湾から吹き付ける湿った風を利用する。
English: Areas which flourished during the Edo period having a history of presenting its somen to bakufu (Japanese feudal government headed by a shogun) but lost its somen industry later due to the urbanization, lack of successors, degradation of water quality, rise of machine-production of noodles, and so on.
Japanese: 江戸時代には隆盛を極め、幕府などにも献上された歴史を持っていたが、都市化、後継者不足、水質悪化、機械製麺の興盛などの影響により産地が消滅した地域。
English: Ogawa somen (Saitama Prefecture): It was such a famous production area that 'Shinpen Musashi Fudo Kiko' (a topography of Musashi Province from 1804 to 1829) wrote its specialty was somen, but manufacturers of somen converted to producing washi paper as Ogawamachi washi became popular.
Japanese: 小川素麺（埼玉県）…「新編武蔵風土記稿」に名物との記述がある程の産地であったが、小川町和紙が隆盛した事に伴い、素麺生産していた家々が徐々に和紙生産へと転換し衰退。