休耕田(きゅうこうでん)

きゅうこうでん
noun
fallow rice field; idle paddy
naturesociety
1. fallow rice field; idle paddy; uncultivated rice paddy
A rice paddy that has been temporarily or permanently taken out of cultivation. A significant issue in rural Japan as the agricultural population declines.
村(むら)には休耕田(きゅうこうでん)が増(ふ)えている。
Fallow rice fields are increasing in the village.
休耕田(きゅうこうでん)を活用(かつよう)して太陽光(たいようこう)パネルを設置(せっち)した。
Solar panels were installed to make use of fallow fields.
高齢化(こうれいか)で農家(のうか)が減(へ)り、休耕田(きゅうこうでん)の面積(めんせき)は年々(ねんねん)拡大(かくだい)しているが、再利用(さいりよう)の取(と)り組(く)みも始(はじ)まっている。
As farmers decrease due to aging, the area of fallow fields expands year by year, but efforts to reuse them are also beginning.

Composed of 休耕(きゅうこう) (fallow, lying idle) + 田(でん) (rice paddy). A term frequently seen in discussions of Japan's agricultural policy, rural depopulation, and land use. The Japanese government has historically paid subsidies for 減反(げんたん) (rice acreage reduction), leading many farmers to leave paddies fallow.

Some 休耕田(きゅうこうでん) are repurposed for solar power generation, flower fields for tourism, or converted to other crops.

Common collocations

Similar words

  • 耕作放棄地(こうさくほうきち): abandoned farmland — land that has been left uncultivated for a longer period with no plan to resume
  • 休耕地(きゅうこうち): fallow land — a more general term not limited to rice paddies
  • 田(た)んぼ: rice paddy — the general colloquial word for a rice field, whether active or not

Related Words

Compare: 田(た)んぼ (rice paddy)
Compare: 休耕期 (fallow period)
general
Added 2026.4.27 20:23 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:02
25500/25754_kyuukouden