Kochi (Tosa) Local Quiz Practice: Questions and Explanations
15QEasyIntermediateAdvanced
Review questions from the real quiz with answers, explanations and sources. Think it through first, then reveal the correct answer.
This is a selection from the question pool — the real quiz also draws questions you won’t find here.
Last updated: 2026-09-14
EasyTier 1 — 5 questions
In Kochi (Tosa), 城下町と龍馬 begins with three local clues: the castle standing on a hill in central Kochi. the southern Kochi shore overlooking the Pacific. a Tosa-born figure active at the end of the shogunate. Use those details to place each name, role, and season on a mental map. After choosing an answer, follow the cited source and turn a guess into a grounded picture of the area.
Q1.Which Kochi castle is nicknamed "Taka-jo" (Hawk Castle) because its tile and wall coloring resembles a hawk's feathers?
Kochi Castle
Kobe Naval Training Center
Kurogane-mon Gate
Ryugado Cave
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Correct answerKochi Castle
Kochi Castle is nicknamed "Taka-jo" (Hawk Castle) because the color of its tiles and walls resembles a hawk's feathers. Yamauchi Kazutoyo began building it in 1601. Fifteen of its structures, including the tower and Honmaru Palace, are designated Important Cultural Properties, prized for the quality of their castle architecture.
Q2.Which beach, cradled between the headlands Ryuzu-misaki and Ryuo-misaki, is locally nicknamed "Honhama"?
Tosa buntan citrus
Katsurahama
Hotsumisaki-ji
Obiyamachi Shopping Arcade
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Correct answerKatsurahama
Katsurahama is a crescent beach cradled by two capes, Ryuzu-misaki and Ryuo-misaki, and is known locally as "Honhama." It has long been celebrated as a spot for moon-viewing, and a bronze statue of Sakamoto Ryoma stands on the hill above the beach.
Q3.Who lost his mother young and was reportedly raised by his older sister Otome in the late Edo period?
Yoshida Toyo
Yamauchi Yodo
Sakamoto Ryoma
Mile rice crackers
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Correct answerSakamoto Ryoma
Sakamoto Ryoma lost his mother young and is said to have been raised in her place by his elder sister, Otome. Otome was known for her strong build and is said to have taught Ryoma swimming and horsemanship; she appears often in his later letters.
Q4.At which Kochi festival had a dance reportedly already been performed at the 1950 Nangoku Kochi Industrial Exposition, ahead of the festival's own founding?
Otesuji Street
Castle town
Naruko clappers
Yosakoi Festival
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Correct answerYosakoi Festival
Before the Yosakoi Festival itself began, "yosakoi dancing" was reportedly already performed at the 1950 Nankoku Kochi Industrial Exposition. The festival proper started the following year, 1954, to lift the spirits of Kochi's shopping districts during a slump, built around free-style choreography danced with naruko clappers.
Q5.Which transport operator traces its tram service back to the Tosa Electric Railway, opened in 1904?
Tosaden Transportation
Otepia
Shikoku Karst
Sawachi cuisine
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Correct answerTosaden Transportation
Tosaden Kotsu's tram line traces back to the Tosa Electric Railway, which opened in 1904. The track dating from that opening ranks among the oldest tram routes still running in Japan, and the line remains a key mode of transport within Kochi City today.
In Kochi (Tosa), 日曜市と街路市 begins with three local clues: the central castle structure remaining at the castle. the palace building remaining in the castle’s honmaru. the main gate of the castle. Use those details to place each name, role, and season on a mental map. After choosing an answer, follow the cited source and turn a guess into a grounded picture of the area.
Q6.Kochi Castle's central honmaru building is said to have been modeled on Kakegawa Castle, where Yamauchi Kazutoyo had previously served as lord. What is it?
Dosan Line
East Tamon
Castle Tower
Yanase Takashi
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Correct answerCastle Tower
Castle Tower stands 18.5 meters tall. It is said to have been modeled on Kakegawa Castle in Shizuoka, where first lord Yamauchi Kazutoyo had previously served.
Q7.Which building at Kochi Castle stands right next to the Castle Tower and originally served as the residence of first lord Yamauchi Kazutoyo and his wife Chiyo?
Tosa Akaushi beef
Tosa Buntan pomelo
Sakamoto Ryoma Memorial Museum
Honmaru Palace
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Correct answerHonmaru Palace
Honmaru Palace (Kaitokukan) stands right beside the castle tower and originally served as the residence of the first lord, Yamauchi Katsutoyo, and his wife Lady Chiyo. Kochi Castle is the only castle in Japan where both the tower and this palace survive together.
Q8.Which gate at Kochi Castle has an entrance enclosed by a massive stone wall, letting defenders attack invaders from three directions?
Otemon Gate
Imo-kenpi (sweet potato snack)
Katsurahama
Tosa dialect
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Correct answerOtemon Gate
Otemon Gate is enclosed by a massive masugata (box-shaped) stone wall at its entrance, built so that any attacker breaking through could be struck from three directions. It survives in its original Edo-period form alongside the castle tower, serving as the first checkpoint guarding the castle's main approach.
Q9.Which traditional street market in Kochi is said to have started in 1690?
Obiyamachi Shopping Arcade
Sunday Market
Harimayabashi Bridge
Tatsukushi Coast
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Correct answerSunday Market
The Sunday Market is said to have been established in 1690, giving it a history of more than 330 years. Stalls line roughly a kilometer of Otesuji every Sunday, selling everything from vegetables and fruit to garden plants.
Q10.Which street runs about a kilometer from between Kochi Station and Harimayabashi Bridge toward the JR line, all the way to Kochi Castle's Otemon Gate?
Taimo no korobashi
Yokoyama Ryuichi
Otesuji
Tosa tea
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Correct answerOtesuji
Otesuji runs about a kilometer from between Kochi Station and Harimayabashi toward the JR line, ending at Kochi Castle's Otemon Gate. It is the street where the Sunday Market is held, and it also serves as one of the performance venues for the Yosakoi Festival.
In Kochi (Tosa), 海辺と山の景観 begins with three local clues: the historical figure statue looking over the Pacific from the coast. the museum near the coast devoted to the historical figure and the late shogunate. a bridge landmark at a central Kochi intersection. Use those details to place each name, role, and season on a mental map. After choosing an answer, follow the cited source and turn a guess into a grounded picture of the area.
Q11.Which bronze statue in Katsurahama Park was funded by a donation drive among young volunteers, who raised 25,000 yen at the time?
Ryoma Statue
Kochi Prefectural Museum of Literature
Itagaki Taisuke Birthplace Monument
Niyodo River
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Correct answerRyoma Statue
The Ryoma Statue was funded by a donation drive among young volunteers across Kochi Prefecture, who raised 25,000 yen at the time to have it built in Katsurahama Park. Some 5,000 people are said to have attended its unveiling ceremony, and it has remained a symbol of Katsurahama ever since.
Q12.Which Katsurahama landmark stands 5.3 meters tall, or 13.5 meters including its pedestal?
Yakko-so (Mitrastemon)
Ryoma Statue
Tosa cutlery
Cape Muroto
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Correct answerRyoma Statue
The Ryoma Statue stands 5.3 meters tall, or 13.5 meters including its pedestal, set on a hill at Katsurahama looking out over the Pacific. It was erected in 1928 through donations raised by local supporters and survived the wartime metal collection drives that melted down many other bronze statues.
Q13.Which museum near Katsurahama opened on November 15, 1991, a date that is both Ryoma's birthday and the anniversary of his death?
Kochi Prefectural Museum of Art
Mount Yokogura
Sakamoto Ryoma Memorial Museum
Nakae Chomin
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Correct answerSakamoto Ryoma Memorial Museum
The Sakamoto Ryoma Memorial Museum opened on November 15, 1991 — a date chosen because it is both Ryoma's birthday and the anniversary of his death. Built on a hill overlooking Katsurahama, it holds a substantial collection of Ryoma's own letters and other historical documents.
Q14.Which museum near Katsurahama reopened in April 2018 with a new wing, timed to the 150th anniversary of the Meiji Restoration?
Odo Coast
Hamaguchi Osachi
Takechi Hanpeita
Sakamoto Ryoma Memorial Museum
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Correct answerSakamoto Ryoma Memorial Museum
The Sakamoto Ryoma Memorial Museum underwent a new-wing construction and renovation starting in autumn 2016, reopening in April 2018 to mark the 150th anniversary of the Meiji Restoration.
Q15.Which central Kochi City bridge is said to have begun as a private, makeshift crossing built by merchants Harimaya Sotoku and Hitsuya Dosei in the early Edo period?
Harimayabashi Bridge
Mount Yokogura
Central Kochi City shopping arcade
Takechi Hanpeita
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Correct answerHarimayabashi Bridge
Harimayabashi Bridge is said to have begun as a private, makeshift bridge built in the early Edo period by two merchants serving the Tosa domain, Harimaya Sotoku and Hitsuya Dosei.
