Qibla · Japan
Qibla direction in Yamagata
To face the Kaaba in Yamagata, turn to 293.2° measured clockwise from true north, which is north-west (23.2° north of west). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 9,419 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Yamagata should follow.
On the compass the green needle points to 293.2°. If your phone shows true north, rotate until the heading reads 293°; with a classic magnetic compass, first correct for the local magnetic declination, which can shift the needle by several degrees.
Find the Qibla with your phone
How to face the Qibla in Yamagata
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards west and move a further 23.2° towards north: the result is the bearing of 293.2°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at west would leave you about 23° off.
Scholars agree that someone who can see the Kaaba must face it exactly, while someone far away faces its direction (jihat al-Ka‘bah) as precisely as reasonably possible. If a mosque is nearby, its mihrab and prayer lines are the easiest reference, since they were set when the building was laid out. At home, mark the direction once with tape or a small arrow so the whole family prays the same way.
Why a flat map shows a different direction
This is a place where maps mislead badly: a straight line on a flat map from Yamagata to Mecca points to 259.0° (west), a full 34.2° away from the true Qibla of 293.2° (north-west). The map line keeps one compass heading and is 401 km longer than the great-circle route. Because the Earth is a sphere, the shortest way to Mecca from Yamagata first heads north-west, and that is the direction to face.
The angle on this page is the initial bearing of the great circle from 38.2333° N, 140.3667° E to the Kaaba (21.4225° N, 39.8262° E). It is the method used by mosque architects and by every serious Qibla calculator, and it gives one exact answer for each point on Earth.
Distance from Yamagata to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 9,419 km from Yamagata as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 9,223 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 11 h 35 min, although most pilgrims from Yamagata connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.
Clocks in Yamagata run 6 hours ahead of Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Yamagata rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Yamagata
On 61 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Yamagata while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in June (30 days); for example, on 1 June 2027 it happens at 18:15 local time.
On 270 days the sun stands exactly opposite the Qibla: then the shadow of any vertical object, a pole, a door frame or a plumb line, points straight towards Mecca. This is most frequent in March (31 days), for instance on 15 February 2027 at 07:16.
| Date | Sun in the Qibla direction (face the sun) | Sun opposite (shadows point to the Qibla) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2027 | — | — |
| 15 January 2027 | — | — |
| 1 February 2027 | — | — |
| 15 February 2027 | — | 07:16 |
| 1 March 2027 | — | 07:37 |
| 15 March 2027 | — | 07:57 |
| 1 April 2027 | — | 08:20 |
| 15 April 2027 | — | 08:38 |
| 1 May 2027 | — | 08:59 |
| 15 May 2027 | — | 09:17 |
| 1 June 2027 | 18:15 | 09:35 |
| 15 June 2027 | 18:11 | 09:44 |
| 1 July 2027 | 18:15 | 09:47 |
| 15 July 2027 | 18:26 | 09:41 |
| 1 August 2027 | — | 09:24 |
| 15 August 2027 | — | 09:03 |
| 1 September 2027 | — | 08:33 |
| 15 September 2027 | — | 08:06 |
| 1 October 2027 | — | 07:35 |
| 15 October 2027 | — | 07:08 |
| 1 November 2027 | — | 06:40 |
| 15 November 2027 | — | — |
| 1 December 2027 | — | — |
| 15 December 2027 | — | — |
Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Yamagata: at 18:18 and 18:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Yamagata compared with other cities
The Qibla here is practically the same as in Tokyo (293.0°), and Mecca is 56 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Sendai (44 km), prays towards 293.5°, a difference of 0.3°.
Across the 154 cities in Japan on this site, the Qibla ranges from 288.1° in Sasebo to 295.3° in Kushiro, a spread of 7.2°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.
See all cities on the Qibla page for Japan.
Qibla in cities near Yamagata
Qibla in Yamagata: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Yamagata?
It is 293.2° from true north, which is north-west: 23.2° north of west.
How far is Yamagata from Mecca?
9,419 km in a straight line over the globe, and 9,223 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Yamagata?
On 61 days of 2027 the sun stands in the Qibla direction; the table on this page gives the exact time for the 1st and 15th of each month.
Why is the Qibla in Yamagata not the direction shown on a map?
Flat maps distort directions. The line on a map points to 259.0°, but the shortest route on the globe leaves Yamagata at 293.2°, and that is the Qibla.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 293.2° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.