The ways are various in Japan for having one's sense of local pride bolstered by recognition on some official list.
Japan has its three most famous scenic spots, its three most celebrated gardens and, more prosaically, UNESCO's growing roster of World Heritage Sites. But none of these honored listings comes anywhere near the venerable clout bestowed on somewhere that is name-checked in the "Man'yoshu."
Japan's oldest — many would say its greatest — collection of poetry, the "Man'yoshu" was completed in 759, with the earliest poems included in it probably dating from the previous century. And in this superb tome, which embodies what renowned U.S. poet Gary Snyder has called an "in the morning of the world" feeling, Ikaho figures in no fewer than three poems.