September 21, 1931 Earthquake: Honshu, Japan
A magnitude 7 earthquake struck Honshu, Japan on September 21, 1931 at 02:20:00 UTC, 20 km below the surface. It killed 16 people.
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
- September 21, 1931
- Time
- 02:20:00 UTC
- Place
- Honshu, Japan
- Magnitude
- 7
- Focal depth
- 20 km (12 mi)
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 36.100° N, 139.200° E
- Country
- Japan
The toll
- Deaths
- 16
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 million)
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.
Reference #1152 lists 16 deaths.
Reference #1068 lists 13 deaths.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- September 1, 1923, Tokyo, Yokohama, Japan
- May 27, 1293, Kamakura, Japan
- May 8, 1847, Zenkoji, Nagano, Japan
- November 11, 1855, Tokyo, Japan
- December 30, 1703, Off SW Boso Peninsula, Japan
- September 27, 1611, Aidu, Japan
- May 20, 1751, NW, Honshu, Japan
- August 2, 887, Niigata, Honshu, Japan
- February 1, 1666, Takata, Japan
- December 18, 1828, Sandyo IN Etigo, Japan
- November 25, 1930, Idu, Honshu, Japan
- April 9, 1858, N, Hida, Japan
- July 29, 1649, Tokyo, Japan
- September 12, 1495, Kamakura, Japan
- March 1, 1633, Odawara, Japan
More
Significant earthquakes of 1931The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1931Recent 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 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 3475.