270px, ruins of Yoshida Koriyama Castle 270px, Aerial view of Yoshida urban center 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 ...

located in north-central

Hiroshima Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Hiroshima Prefecture has a population of 2,811,410 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 8,479 km² (3,274 sq mi). Hiroshima Prefecture borders Okayama ...

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 city 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 26,810 in 13,319 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 50 persons per km². The total area of the city is .The city lays claim to be the birthplace and hometown of

Mōri Motonari was a prominent ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) in the western Chūgoku region of Japan during the Sengoku period of the 16th century. The Mōri clan claimed descent from Ōe no Hiromoto (大江広元), an adviser to Minamoto no Yoritomo. Motonari w ...

, the

Sengoku period The was a period in History of Japan, Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615. The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the Feudalism, feudal system of Japan under the ...

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and n ...

'' of the 16th century.

Geography

Akitakata is located in north-central Hiroshima Prefecture, and is surrounded by the Chugoku Mountains. The Midori and Takamiya neighborhoods of the city are designated as heavy snowfall areas.

Adjoining municipalities

* Hiroshima *

Higashihiroshima is a city located in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. As of July 31. 2016 the city has an estimated population of 185,418 and a population density of 291.85 persons per km2. The total area is 635.32 km2. Higashihiroshima is a university town of ...

* Kitahiroshima

Shimane Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Shimane Prefecture is the second-least populous prefecture of Japan at 665,205 (February 1, 2021) and has a geographic area of 6,708.26 km2. Shimane Prefecture borders Yamaguc ...

* Ōnan

Climate

Akitakata has a

Humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

(Köppen ''Cfa'') characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Akitakata is 13.0 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1581 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 24.8 °C, and lowest in January, at around 1.6 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Izumi has risen steadily over the past century.

History

The area of Akitakata is part of ancient

Aki Province or Geishū () was a province in the Chūgoku Region of western Honshū, comprising the western part of what is today Hiroshima Prefecture. History When Emperor Shōmu ordered two official temples for each province (one for male Buddhist prie ...

. During the

, the

Mōri clan The Mōri clan (毛利氏 ''Mōri-shi'') was a Japanese samurai clan descended from Ōe no Hiromoto. Ōe no Hiromoto was descended from the Fujiwara clan. The family's most illustrious member, Mōri Motonari, greatly expanded the clan's power ...

, once minor local warlords, rose under the leadership of

to dominate the

Chūgoku region The , also known as the region, is the westernmost region of Honshū, the largest island of Japan. It consists of the prefectures of Hiroshima, Okayama, Shimane, Tottori, and Yamaguchi. In 2010, it had a population of 7,563,428. History '' ...

of western Japan. The 1540-1541

Siege of Koriyama took place from September, 1540 until January, 1541 in Yoshida, Aki Province, Japan during the Sengoku period. Amago Haruhisa, with 30,000 men, attacked Kōriyama Castle, which belonged to Mōri Motonari and was defended by 8,000 men. When the ...

between the Mōri clan and the rival

Amago clan Amago (尼子) is a Japanese word meaning "child of a nun", and has various other uses: People * Amago clan, a Japanese daimyō clan * Amago Haruhisa (1514–1561), Japanese daimyō * Amago Katsuhisa (1553–1578), Japanese daimyō * Amago Kunih ...

occurred in what is now the Yoshida neighborhood of Akitakata.Akitakata City Promotion Department, Commerce, Industry, and Tourism Division Historical Guide 2004 After the establishment of the

Tokugawa Shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

, the area was part of the holdings of Hiroshima Domain. Following 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 into villages within Takata District, including the village of Yoshida, with the creation of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. Yoshida was raised to town status on January 1, 1896. The city of Akitakata was established on March 1, 2004, from the merger

Yoshida Yoshida (written: 吉田 lit. "lucky ricefield") is the 11th most common Japanese surname. A less common variant is 芳田 (lit. "fragrant ricefield"). Notable people with the surname include: *Ai Yoshida, Japanese sailor *, Japanese idol, singer ...

with the towns of Kōda,

Midori Midori (みどり, ミドリ, , , ) is the Japanese word for "green" and may refer to: Places * Midori, Gunma * Midori-ku, Chiba * Midori-ku, Nagoya * Midori-ku, Sagamihara * Midori-ku, Saitama * Midori-ku, Yokohama People Given name * Mi ...

, Mukaihara, Takamiya, Yachiyo (all from Takata District). Therefore, Takata District was dissolved as a result of this merger.

Government

Akitakata has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a

unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one. Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multic ...

city council of 16 members. Akitakata contributes one member to the Hiroshima Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of the Hiroshima 3rd district 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 ...

Hiroshima vote-buying scandal

The mayor of Akitakata, Hiroshi Kodama, admitted receiving 600,000 yen from former Minister of Justice

Katsuyuki Kawai is a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party, a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature). A native of Hiroshima, Hiroshima and graduate of Keio University, he ran unsuccessfully for the House of Rep ...

and appeared at a news conference on 26 June 2020 with a shaved head to express his remorse. He resigned a week later, having stayed in office for only two and a half months. Other recipients of the cash gifts included several elected representatives in the city, amongst them the Speaker and the vice-Speaker of the Municipal Assembly.

Economy

The economy of Akitaka is based on agriculture and food processing.

Education

Akitakata has nine public elementary schools and six public junior high schools operated by the city government, and two public high schools operated by the Hiroshima prefectural Board of Education.

Transportation

Railway

JR West , also referred to as , is one of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group) companies and operates in western Honshu. It has its headquarters in Kita-ku, Osaka. It is listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange, is a constituent of the TOPIX Large70 index, and ...

(JR West) -

San'yō Main Line The is a major railway line owned by JR Group companies in western Japan, connecting Kōbe Station and Moji Station, largely paralleling the coast of the Seto Inland Sea, Inland Sea, in other words, the southern coast of western Honshu. The Sa ...

* - -

Highways

Chūgoku Expressway The (part of Asian Highway Network ) is an expressway in Japan, which extends from Suita, Osaka to Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi. It connects Kansai and Chūgoku regions in western Honshu, Japan's main island. Other major cities along the expressway ...

* *

Sister city relations

* - Selwyn District, New Zealand, since September 9, 1992.

Local attractions

Akitakata is a mountainous farming area known for many traditional events as well as certain food products. One such food product is Ebisu tea, a sweet fragrant tea, that comes from Mukaihara Town. Another is

yuzu Yuzu (''Citrus junos'', from Japanese or ) is a citrus fruit and plant in the family Rutaceae of East Asian origin. Yuzu has been cultivated mainly in East Asia, though recently also in New Zealand, Australia, Spain, Italy, and France. I ...

juice (柚子ジュース), a product of the Kawane area of Takamiya town in the northeastern part of the city.

Notable places

* Yoshida-Kōriyama Castle ruins, Main stronghold of the Mōri clan, National Historic Site * Tajihi-Sarugake Castle ruins. Mōri Motonari spent 23 years at this location. National Historic Site *

Akitakata City Historical Museum 270px, ruins of Yoshida Koriyama Castle 270px, Aerial view of Yoshida urban center is a city located in north-central Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 26,810 in 13,319 households and a population density o ...

* TS-Takata Circuit

Culture

Kagura is a type of Shinto ritual ceremonial dance. The term is a contraction of the phrase , indicating the presence of gods () in the practice. One major function of is , involving a procession-trance process. Usually a female shaman will perfor ...

, an ancient traditional form of Shinto dance and music, is still alive there today. The towns of Midori and Takamiya practice the "new dance" style, which is not actually new at all, just a later emergent performance style compared to the "old style". (There is a Kagura village in Midori town called Kaguramonzentojimura where various Kagura performances and competitions begin in August and last until December.) Akitakata City is in the countryside, and still maintains many traditional local festivals. One such is ''Hanadaue'', or rice-planting festival where men play flutes and ''

taiko are a broad range of Japanese percussion instruments. In Japanese, the term refers to any kind of drum, but outside Japan, it is used specifically to refer to any of the various Japanese drums called and to the form of ensemble drumming m ...

'' while women sing and plant rice.

References

External links

*
Akitakata City official website

Kagura Village in Midori
{{Authority control Cities in Hiroshima Prefecture Akitakata, Hiroshima