is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

Aichi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,552,873 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the west, Gifu Prefectur ...

, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 60,206 in 22,576 households, and a population density of 315 persons per km². The total area of the city is .

Geography

Tahara is situated in southern

, and occupies most of the hilly Atsumi Peninsula. The peninsula is bounded on the north by

Mikawa Bay Mikawa Bay (Landsat photo) Mikawa Bay (三河湾 ''Mikawa-wan'') is a bay to the south of Aichi Prefecture, Japan, surrounded by Chita Peninsula to the west and Atsumi Peninsula to the east and south. Its area is approximately 604 km2. Pollu ...

and to the south lies the

Philippine Sea The Philippine Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean east of the Philippine archipelago (hence the name), the largest in the world, occupying an estimated surface area of . The Philippine Sea Plate forms the floor of the sea. Its ...

. Situated as it is between those two bodies of water, Tahara has a warm maritime climate.

Climate

The city has a climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and relatively mild winters ( Köppen climate classification ''Cfa''). The average annual temperature in Tahara is . The average annual rainfall is with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around .

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Tahara has been relatively steady over the past 60 years.

Neighboring municipalities

;

* Toyohashi

History

Origin

The area of present-day Tahara has been continuously occupied since prehistoric times. Archaeologists have found numerous remains from the

Jōmon period The is the time in Japanese history, traditionally dated between 6,000–300 BCE, during which Japan was inhabited by a diverse hunter-gatherer and early agriculturalist population united through a common Jōmon culture, which reached a c ...

and burial mounds 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 ...

Ancient history

During the Nara period, the area was assigned to ancient Atsumi County, and was divided into several ''

shōen A was a field or manor in Japan. The Japanese term comes from the Tang dynasty Chinese term "莊園" (Mandarin: ''zhuāngyuán'', Cantonese: ''zong1 jyun4''). Shōen, from about the 8th to the late 15th century, describes any of the private, ...

'' during the Heian period.

Middle Ages

During the

Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the Genpei War, which saw the struggle betwee ...

, the area was noted for production of a certain type of pottery. During the Sengoku period, the area was under the control of the Toda clan, who constructed

Tahara Castle is a Japanese castle located in Tahara, southern Aichi Prefecture, Japan. At the end of the Edo period, Tahara Castle was home to the Miyake clan, ''daimyō'' of the 12,000 ''koku'' Tahara Domain. History Tahara Castle is located on a small h ...

Early modern period

The Toda, who were allied with Tokugawa Ieyasu were dispossessed by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, but returned as '' daimyō'' of

Tahara Domain was a minor '' fudai'' Japanese domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, located in southern Mikawa Province (modern-day southeastern Aichi Prefecture), Japan. It was centered on Tahara Castle in what is now the city of Tahara. ...

at the start of the Edo period. The Toda were later replaced by the

Miyake clan were a ''samurai'' kin group which rose to prominence in the Sengoku period and the Edo period. Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie du Japon''; Papinot, (2003).html" ;"title="DF 39 of 80">"Miyake ...

, who ruled until the end of the Tokugawa shogunate. The noted scholar Watanabe Kazan was from Tahara.

Late modern period

At the start of the Meiji period, on October 1, 1889, Tahara was organized into a number of villages within Atsumi District,

with the establishment of the modern municipalities system. Tahara Village was elevated to town status on October 3, 1892, and Fukue village became Fukue Town on February 22, 1897.

Contemporary history

Fukue later changed its name to Atsumi Town on April 15, 1955. On November 11, 1958, the village of was raised to town status. The city of Tahara was established on August 20, 2003, from the merger the former town of Tahara, absorbing the town of Akabane (both from Atsumi District) to elevate city status. On October 1, 2005, the town of Atsumi (also from Atsumi District) was merged into Tahara. Therefore, Atsumi District was dissolved as a result of this merger.

Government

Tahara has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city legislature of 18 members. The city contributes one member to the Aichi Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Aichi District 15 of the

lower house A lower house is one of two Debate chamber, chambers of a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house. Despite its official position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has co ...

of the

Diet of Japan The is the national legislature of Japan. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives (, ''Shūgiin''), and an upper house, the House of Councillors (, '' Sangiin''). Both houses are directly elected under a paralle ...

External relations

Twin towns – Sister cities

International

;Sister city * Georgetown（ Kentucky, United States of America） **since April 20, 1990 * Princeton（ Indiana, United States of America） **since August 8, 2002 ;Friendship city * Kunshan（ Jiangsu, China） **since May 14, 1993 * Dongjak-gu（ Seoul, Korea） **since December 2006

National

Friendship city * Shitara（

Chūbu region The , Central region, or is a region in the middle of Honshu, Honshū, Japan, Japan's main island. In a wide, classical definition, it encompasses nine prefectures (''ken''): Aichi Prefecture, Aichi, Fukui Prefecture, Fukui, Gifu Prefecture ...

） **since

Marchi Moscow Architectural Institute (State Academy) - MArchI (russian: Московский Архитектурный Институт (Государственная Академия) - МАрхИ) is a famous architecture school located in Moscow, ...

24, 1999 *

Miyata Miyata is a Japanese manufacturer of bicycles, The company has been in operation since 1890. Miyata was also one of the first producers of motorcycles in Japan under the name Asahi. The Asahi AA was the first mass-produced motorcycle in Japa ...

（

Nagano Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Nagano Prefecture has a population of 2,052,493 () and has a geographic area of . Nagano Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture to the north, Gunma Prefecture to the ...

） **since November 9, 1999

Economy

Tahara is a regional commercial center with a mixed economy of manufacturing and agriculture. Due to its long coastline, Tahara has many ports for commercial fishing.

Secondary sector of the economy

Manufacturing

The main industrial employer is Toyota Motor Corporation, which has its award-winning Tahara plant in Tahara which makes many Lexus-brand cars and some Toyota models. The Toyota Celica was manufactured in Tahara from 1979 to 1999. Many Lexus models are manufactured within this plant, as are many Toyota models for domestic and international markets.

Lifeline

Energy

Tahara has a

consortium A consortium (plural: consortia) is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments (or any combination of these entities) with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for ...

of companies investing in

renewable energy Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. It includes sources such as sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy ...

needs. , a new

solar energy Solar energy is radiant light and heat from the Sun that is harnessed using a range of technologies such as solar power to generate electricity, solar thermal energy (including solar water heating), and solar architecture. It is an essenti ...

and wind energy

power generation Electricity generation is the process of generating electric power from sources of primary energy. For utilities in the electric power industry, it is the stage prior to its delivery ( transmission, distribution, etc.) to end users or its stor ...

facility will provide 19,000 households with electricity on an infrequent basis that is dependent upon the weather. JERA operates the

Atsumi Thermal Power Station is an oil-fired thermal power station operated by JERA in the city of Tahara, Aichi, Japan. The facility is located on reclaimed land at the tip of the Atsumi Peninsula at the entrance to Mikawa Bay. History The Atsumi Thermal Power Station was ...

, an oil-fired power plant with capacity of 1400 MW in Tahara.JERA official home page
/ref>

Education

Schools

Tahara has 18 public elementary schools, five public middle schools operated by the city government and three public high schools operated by the Aichi Prefectural Board of Education.

Transportation

Railways

Conventional lines

;

Toyohashi Railroad * Atsumi Line：- – – –

Bus

Bus services

Toyotetsu buses and city-operated environmentally friendly public transport facilitate access throughout Tahara, even to the westernmost point at Cape Irago.

Roads

Japan National Route

* is the main highway that runs the length of Atsumi Peninsula. An alternate reading of the kanji in this highway numeral designation is ''ji-go-ku''. In Japanese, the word '' jigoku'' means

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...

, and thus some locals refer to it as ''ji-go-ku-douro'', or the "Highway to Hell". This term was encouraged by the perception of a higher fatality rate along the road, especially before it was widened and improved. *

Seaways

Seaports

From the Port of Irago, the

Ise-wan Ferry The , or Ise Bay Ferry is a ferry that runs between the Port of Toba in Toba, Mie Prefecture and the Port of Irago in Tahara, Aichi Prefecture, Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East As ...

connects Tahara with the town of Toba, Mie prefecture. The ferry can accommodate motor vehicles. The ferry also docks at the

Central Japan International Airport is an international airport on an artificial island in Ise Bay, Tokoname City in Aichi Prefecture, south of Nagoya in central Japan. Centrair is classified as a first class airport and is the main international gateway for the Chubu ("ce ...

, built on an artificial island in Ise Bay, south of Nagoya.

Local attractions

Yoshigo Shell Midden 250px, Yoshigo Shell Midden Museum The is an archaeological site containing a Jōmon period shell midden located in the Yoshigo neighborhood of the city of Tahara, Aichi on the Atsumi Peninsula in the Tōkai region of Japan. The site was designa ...

, a

shell midden and National Historic Site *

Irago Tōdai-ji Tile Kiln ruins The is an archaeological site containing the remnants of a number of Anagama kilns, from which the roof tiles for the Kamakura period reconstruction of the temple of Tōdai-ji in Nara were made. The site is located in the Irago neighborhood ...

, Kamakura-period kiln ruins, a National Historic Site *

Ōarako Old Kiln ruins The is an archaeological site containing the ruins of five ''noborigama''-style kilns located in the Ashimura neighborhood of the city of Tahara, Aichi in the Tōkai region of Japan. The kilns were built in the late Heian period and were in us ...

, a National Historic Site *Site of

*Kojigahama Beach, Cape Irago, the wave sounds of which were listed as one of the

100 Soundscapes of Japan In 1996, as part of its efforts to combat noise pollution and to protect and promote protection of the environment, the Ministry of the Environment designated the . There were 738 submissions received from all over the country and the 100 "best" we ...

by the Ministry of the Environment * Kazan Jinja * Akabane Long Beach, also known as "Akabane Beach" or "Long Beach", is a very scenic area for locals and tourists. The Akabane Beach hosted the 2018 World Surfing Games, among other international surfing competitions over the years. Iragomisaki5.jpg, Cape Irago Irago view hotel.jpg, View of Cape Irago from Irako View Hotel Taiheiyou long beach.jpg, Akabane Long Beach Tahana nanohana.jpg, Rape Blossoms Taharajou.JPG, Tahara Castle Atsumi Peninsula3.JPG, Nishinohama Wind Farm Yoshigo kaizuka.JPG, Yoshigo Kaizuka

Notable people

* Watanabe Kazan, Edo period samurai and artist * Noboru Ueda, motorcycle racer

References

External links

* * * * (with link to English pages) {{Authority control Cities in Aichi Prefecture Port settlements in Japan Populated coastal places in Japan Populated places established in 1955