Eryū-ji temple in Aizubange is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

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 town 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 15,159 in 5487 households, 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 170 persons per km². The total area of the town was .

Geography

Aizubange is located in the northern portion of the

Aizu is the westernmost of the three regions of Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, the other two regions being Nakadōri in the central area of the prefecture and Hamadōri in the east. As of October 1, 2010, it had a population of 291,838. The princip ...

region of Fukushima Prefecture in the western part of Aizu Basin. The basin extends from the center of the town to the east and is relatively flat, with many paddy fields. On the other hand, the western part of the town has many forests. The Aga River flows from the east to the north of the town, and the

Tadami River The is a major tributary of the Agano River in Japan. Its basin covers and its main stem is extensively regulated and developed for hydroelectric power. The river is located within Niigata, Gunma and Fukushima Prefectures. Dams Starting from ...

flows to the west. *Mountains : Mount Takadera *Rivers :

, Agakawa

Neighboring municipalities

Fukushima Prefecture *

Aizuwakamatsu is a city in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 118,159 in 50,365 households, and a population density of 310 persons per km2. The total area of the city was . Geography Aizuwakamatsu is located in the west ...

* Kitakata * Yanaizu * Yugawa *

Aizumisato is a town located in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 20,092 in 7306 households and a population density of 73 persons per km2. The total area of the town was . Geography Aizumisato is located in the easte ...

* Nishiaizu

Climate

Aizubange 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 ''Dfb'') characterized by warm summers and cold winters with heavy snowfall. The average annual temperature in Aizubange is 11.6 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1399 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.2 °C, and lowest in January, at around -1.2 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Aizubange population statistics
/ref> the population of Aizubange has declined steadily over the past 60 years.

History

The area of present-day Aizubange 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 ...

. The area formed part of the holdings of

Aizu Domain was a domain of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1601 to 1871.Ravina, Mark. (1998) ''Land and Lordship in Early Modern Japan,'' p. 222 The Aizu Domain was based at Tsuruga Castle in Mutsu Province, the core of the ...

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 ...

, the area was organized as part of Kawanuma District. Fukushima Prefecture. The town of Bange was established on April 1, 1889 with the creation of the modern municipalities system. The town of Aizubange was founded on April 1, 1955, by the merger of the town of Bange with the Wakamiya, Kanagami, Hirose, Kawanishi and Yawata.

Economy

The economy of Aizubange is centered on the production of rice, with much of the town area under paddy fields.

Education

Aizubange has two public elementary schools and one public junior high school operated by the town government. The town has two public high schools operated by the Fukushima Prefectural Board of Education.

Transportation

Railway

JR East The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and is the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are ...

–

Tadami Line The is a scenic railway line in Japan operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Aizu-Wakamatsu Station at Aizuwakamatsu in Fukushima Prefecture with Koide Station at Uonuma in Niigata Prefecture. The line opened in discont ...

* – – –

Highway

* – Aizubange IC * *

Local attractions

Kamegamori-Chinjumori Kofun The are a pair of early Kofun period (late 4th century AD) kofun, megalithic tumuli located in what is now part of the town of Aizubange, Fukushima in the southern Tōhoku region of Japan. The site was designated a Monuments of Japan, National Hi ...

(National Historic Site) * site of

Jingamine Castle was a Heian period Japanese castle located in what is now the town of Aizubange, Fukushima, Aizubange, Fukushima Prefecture, in the southern Tōhoku region of Japan. The site has been protected by the central government as a Historic Sites of Jap ...

(National Historic Site) * Eryū-ji – Buddhist temple with Important Cultural Property

Kannon Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She ...

-dō.

Noted people from Aizubange

* Kiyoshi Saitō, artist *

Takeda Sōkaku was known as the founder of a school of jujutsu known as Daitō-ryū Aiki-jūjutsu. Life Born in the Aizu domain ( Fukushima Prefecture), Sōkaku grew up in the time of the Boshin War. The second son of Takeda Sōkichi, a samurai of the Ta ...

, martial artist *

Hachiro Kasuga , born Minoru Watabe, was a Japanese enka singer. He has been dubbed "the first enka singer". Having seen Ichiro Fujiyama on stage, he attempted to become a popular singer. After he graduated from the Toyo Music School, he joined the Imperial ...

, singer * Hiroshi Takahashi, manga artist

References

External links

*
Official Website
{{Authority control Towns in Fukushima Prefecture Aizubange, Fukushima