August 14, 1909 Tsunami: Anegawa, Japan
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 6.9 earthquake began at Anegawa, Japan on August 14, 1909 at 06:30:00 UTC. The water rose as high as 1.8 meters. Its effects were recorded at 1 place. It killed 41 people, counting the earthquake or eruption that caused it.
Where the waves reached
The source (white) and every runup with a place, colored by the water height recorded there. A ring is a runup NCEI marks doubtful.
- Under 1 m
- 1 to 3 m
- 3 to 10 m
- 10 to 30 m
- 30 m and more
- Height not recorded
The tsunami
- Date
- August 14, 1909, 06:30:00 UTC
- Source
- Anegawa, Japan
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 6.9, 33 km deep
- Maximum water height
- 1.8 m (5.9 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Tsunami magnitude (Iida)
- 1
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Definite tsunami
- Source location
- 35.400° N, 136.300° E
The toll
- Deaths
- 41 with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
- Damage
- Severe (about $5 to $25 million) with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
- Houses destroyed
- 976 with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
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.
Aug 14, 1909, 06:30 UTC, 35.4 N, 136.3 E, shallow depth, magnitude 6.9, 41 deaths, 976 houses destroyed. Tsunami height 1.8 m generated by subsidence of Biwa Lake side. (reference #150)
Every runup
Nearest the source first. Heights are above sea level at the time; a tide gauge reads half the wave’s full height.
| Where | Country | Km from source | Water height, m | Inland, m | Measured by | First wave, UTC | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Biwa | Japan | 56 | 1.8 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1909The 1900sTsunamis of JapanThe earthquakeThis day in weather historyAlerts in force
Sources
Tsunami events and runups 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 tsunami event 1384.