March 8, 1766 Earthquake: Hirosaki, Japan
A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck Hirosaki, Japan on March 8, 1766. It killed 1,700 people, counting the tsunami it caused.
Map
Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Date
- March 8, 1766
- Place
- Hirosaki, Japan
- Magnitude
- 6.9 (Ms)
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 40.900° N, 140.700° E
- Country
- Japan
- Region
- East Asia
The toll
- Deaths
- 1,700
- Damage
- Severe (about $5 to $25 million)
- Houses destroyed
- 8,200
- Houses damaged
- 8,200
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
1766, March 8, 41 N, 141 E, Hirosaki, 1335 deaths, 7192 houses destroyed. (reference #1068)
Sources NCEI cites
The publications NCEI lists for this record. The numbers match the “reference #” notes in its account above.
- #1068 Heck, N.H. (1944). Japanese Earthquakes. Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, vol. 34, no. 3, July 1944, p. 117-136.
- #150 Iida, Kumizi (1984). Catalog of tsunamis in Japan and its neighboring countries. Aichi Institute of Technology, Yachigusa, Yakusa-cho, Toyota-shi, 470-03, Japan, 52 p.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- October 31, 1341, Jusanko, Japan
- July 31, 1640, Uchiura Bay, Japan
- June 19, 1694, Ugo, Japan
- August 31, 1896, Senhoku, Ugo, Japan
- October 18, 1644, NW. Honshu Island, Japan
- March 21, 1982, Hokkaido, Urakawa, Hiroo, Japan
- May 26, 1983, Akita, Honshu, Japan
- September 25, 1810, Oga, Japan
- May 27, 1704, N of Nosiro, Japan
- May 1, 1939, NW, Honshu, Japan
- August 9, 1901, Off Northeast Coast Honshu, Japan
- February 8, 1793, Aomori, Japan
- July 23, 2008, N, Honshu, Japan
- March 15, 1763, Hachinohe, Sanriku, Japan
- February 7, 1897, Japan
More
Significant earthquakes of 1766The 1700sRecent earthquakes near hereThis day in weather history
Sources
Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-10-01. NCEI earthquake 1378.