is a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

located in

Fukushima Prefecture Fukushima Prefecture (; ja, 福島県, Fukushima-ken, ) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Fukushima Prefecture has a population of 1,810,286 () and has a geographic area of . Fukushima Prefecture borders Miya ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. , the village had an estimated

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...

of 8,781, and a

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

of 110 persons per km² in 2896 households. The total area of the village was . In 2016, Ōtama was selected as one of

The Most Beautiful Villages in Japan is a Japanese nonprofit organization of listing some of the most beautiful villages and towns in Japan. The association is active on enhancement and protection of Japanese rural heritage, cultural fairs & branding and promotion of regional, nat ...

Geography

Ōtama is located in north-central Fukushima prefecture, sandwiched between the cities of Kōriyama and Nihonmatsu. *Lakes:

Miharu Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Ōtakine River, a branch of the Abukuma River in the town of Miharu, Fukushima in the Tōhoku region of Japan. The dam was completed in 1997. Geography The Miharu Dam is a multipurpose dam directly controlled ...

*Mountains:

Mount Adatara is a stratovolcano in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. It is located about 15 kilometres southwest of the city of Fukushima and east of Mount Bandai. Its last known eruption was in 1996. An eruption in 1900 killed 72 workers at a sulfur mine locate ...

(1728m) *Rivers: Abukuma River

Neighboring municipalities

* Fukushima Prefecture **

Kōriyama is a city in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 322,996 people in 141760 households, and a population density of 430 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Kōriyama is designated as a core city and ...

Nihonmatsu is a city in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 54,013 in 20,179 households, and a population density of 160 persons per km2. The total area of the city was . The Adachi neighborhood of Nihonmatsu was the bir ...

Motomiya is a city located in north-central Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 30,401 in 10,680 households and a population density of 350 persons per km2. The total area of the city was . It is the smallest city in Fu ...

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Ōtama peaked around the year 1950 but has remained relatively steady over the past 50 years.

Climate

Ōtama has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

(Köppen ''Cfa'') characterized by mild summers and cold winters with heavy snowfall. The average annual temperature in Ōtama is 10.8 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1288 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 24.0 °C, and lowest in January, at around -1.2 °C.Ōtama climate data
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History

The area of present-day Ōtama was part of ancient

Mutsu Province was an old province of Japan in the area of Fukushima, Miyagi, Iwate and Aomori Prefectures and the municipalities of Kazuno and Kosaka in Akita Prefecture. Mutsu Province is also known as or . The term is often used to refer to the comb ...

and the area has many

burial mounds A tumulus (plural tumuli) is a mound of Soil, earth and Rock (geology), stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds or ''kurgans'', and may be found throughout much of the world. A cairn, which is a ...

from the

Kofun period The is an era in the history of Japan from about 300 to 538 AD (the date of the introduction of Buddhism), following the Yayoi period. The Kofun and the subsequent Asuka periods are sometimes collectively called the Yamato period. This period is ...

. The area formed part of the holdings of

Nihonmatsu Domain was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, located in southern Mutsu Province. It was centered on Nihonmatsu Castle in what is now the city of Nihonmatsu, Fukushima, and its territory included all of Nihonmatsu, Motomi ...

during the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...

. After the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

, it was organized as part of

Nakadōri is a region comprising the middle third of Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. It is sandwiched between the regions of Aizu to the west and Hamadōri to the east. The principal cities of the area are Kōriyama and the prefecture's capital, Fukushima ...

region of Iwaki Province, administratively within Adachi District. The villages of Oyama and Tamanoi were established on April 1, 1899 with the creation of the modern municipalities system. Ōtama Village was formed on March 31, 1955 with the merger of the two villages.

Economy

The economy of Ōtama is primarily agricultural.

Education

Ōtama has two public elementary schools and one public junior high school operated by the village government. The village does not have a high school. * Ōtama Middle School * Ōtama Oyama Elementary School * Ōtama Tamanoi Elementary School

Transportation

Railway

Ōtama is not served by any passenger railway service, although the Tohoku Main Line passes through the village.

Highway

International relations

* -

Machu Picchu Machu Picchu is a 15th-century Inca citadel located in the Eastern Cordillera of southern Peru on a mountain range.UNESCO World Heritage Centre. It is located in the Machupicchu District within Urubamba Province above the Sacred Valley, which ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

, friendship city since December 26, 2015

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Otama, Fukushima Villages in Fukushima Prefecture Otama, Fukushima