What inuyarai means
An inuyarai is a fence leaned against the foot of a townhouse wall or boundary wall, curving gently out toward the street. It is usually made of split or slender bamboo bent into shape, sometimes of wood. It is said to protect the base of the wall from rain splash and mud and to keep people and animals from damaging it; the name, literally dog-arrow fence, is explained as keeping dogs away from the wall.
It is common in Kyoto and other towns of traditional townhouses, where the row of curves along the base of the walls gives the street shadow and rhythm. The related Komayose usually denotes a low fence of upright posts or lattice standing in front of a projecting lattice or wall; the inuyarai differs in curving along the wall itself.
Reading the records and the street
Records mention it as part of the base of a wall or building. The earthen boundary wall of the Tanaka family house, the Sukematsu honjin, in Izumiotsu, Osaka, runs 51 metres from the gate along the old Kishu highway, and its record notes that an inuyarai along its whole street frontage completes the streetscape. The fence at its foot is valued as part of the highway scene along with the wall itself.
Inuyarai wear quickly and are often replaced. On site, look for a curved fence of bamboo or wood following the base of the wall. Even where the material is new, the preserved form carries on the design of the frontage.
References
- 田中家住宅築地塀｜国指定文化財等データベース（文化庁）
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00006688
Last verified: 2026.09.27