Abstract
Lake Biwa is the largest lake in the Japanese Archipelago (surface area 670.3 km2; volume 27.62 km3). An ancient lake, it originated about 4 MY-ago, and has become deeper and larger at the present site during the past 0.4 MY-ago. It was never glaciated. Some endemic species of fish, e.g. Silurus biwaensis, pre-date 0.4 MY; many others have evolved in the lake, such as Gnathopogon caerulescens, Sarcocheilichthys biwaensis, Carassius buerugeri granoculis, C. cuvieri, Oncorhyuncus masou subsp. and even the Lake Biwa form of Plecoglossus altivelis. Human beings have lived around the lake for over 20000 years, and more than 200 ruins have been found on the lake bottom. The most comprehensive evidence of relationships between people and the lake is Awadu Lake Bottom Ruins, the largest shell mound in the world. Written records on human/lake relationships have been kept since the 8th century. So, Lake Biwa may be called an ancient lake from cultural as well as physical and biological aspects (Kawanabe, H., 1999)
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