Asahigaoka

Asahigaoka is the fictional village which is the setting of Non Non Biyori. The location is not specified. It is just indicated that it is far enough from Tokyo to require an airplane flight, or several hours on the Shinkansen. The village as a whole does not exist in real life.

"Asahigaoka" can be found as a Japanese place name. It is the name of a subdivision of Sapporo, Hokkaido Prefecture. It is also the name of a street intersection in Yamanakako, Yamanashi Prefecture.

For the anime, various locations around Japan were used as models. Asahigaoka Branch School is based on the real life Shimozata Branch School (下里分校, Shimozato bunkō) in Ogawa, Saitama Prefecture. This school was closed in 2011, but has since then been maintained by the city as a community center. A substantial portion of the landscapes of Asahigaoka is based on the hamlets of Kami-Amano (上天野, lit. "Upper-Amano") and Shimo-Amano (下天野, lit. "Lower-Amano"), Katsuragi, Wakayama Prefecture (Street View, Street View, Street View, Street View).

Etymology

 * Asahigaoka (旭丘) means "the hill of the morning sun."
 * Asahi (旭): Morning sun. Though "朝日" is the common kanji notation for "asahi," "旭" sometimes is used in place names.
 * Ga (が, abbreviated in this notation): "Of." An archaic genitive (modifier/possessor) marker particle. Though the use of "ga" as a genitive marker is almost obsolete today, it still can be found in many place names.
 * Oka (丘): Hill, hillock.

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