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

Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture to ...

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 ...

. As of March 31, 2017, Amakusa has an estimated population of 83,082 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 120 persons per km². The total area is . Amakusa has the distinction of being the fastest depopulating city in Japan since the last census (2005). File:Ushibukahaiya.bridge.jpg, A night view of Ushibuka Haiya Bridge File:崎津教会堂 - panoramio.jpg, Sakitsu Catholic Church Amakusa covers the majority of two main islands, Kamishima (上島, "Upper Island") and Shimoshima (下島, "Lower Island") (天草諸島), and six smaller islands and

islet An islet is a very small, often unnamed island. Most definitions are not precise, but some suggest that an islet has little or no vegetation and cannot support human habitation. It may be made of rock, sand and/or hard coral; may be permanent ...

s. The modern city of Amakusa was established on March 27, 2006, from a merger between the former cities of

Hondo Hondo may refer to: Places * Rio Hondo (disambiguation), the name of several locations, derived from the Spanish word for "deep" Canada * Hondo, Alberta, an unincorporated community United States * Hondo, New Mexico, an unincorporated co ...

and Ushibuka, and the towns of

Amakusa , which means "Heaven's Grass," is a series of islands off the west coast of Kyushu, the southernmost of the four main islands of Japan. Geography The largest island of the Amakusa group is Shimoshima, which is 26.5 miles long and 13.5 mi ...

Ariake Ariake (有明: "daybreak") may refer to: Places in Japan *Ariake, Kagoshima, a former town in Kagoshima Prefecture *Ariake, Kumamoto, a former town in Kumamoto Prefecture *Ariake, Saga, a former town in Saga Prefecture *Ariake, Tokyo, a district w ...

, Goshoura, Itsuwa, Kawaura, Kuratake, Shinwa and Sumoto from Amakusa District.

Amakusa Airlines is an airline based in Amakusa, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It operates regional services from and to Amakusa. Its main base is Amakusa Airfield, with a focus city in Kumamoto Airport. History The airline was established on 12 October 1998 a ...

is headquartered in Amakusa.

Geography

Climate

Amakusa 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 climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

''Cfa'') with hot summers and cool winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year, and is heaviest from May to August. The average annual temperature in Amakusa is . The average annual rainfall is with June as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around . The highest temperature ever recorded in Amakusa was on 20 August 2013; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 25 January 2016.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Amakusa in 2020 is 75,783 people. Amakusa has been conducting censuses since 1920.

Tourism

Sightseeing Spots

*Alegria Gardens *Amakusa Christian Museum *Amakusa Dolphin Marine Land *Ōe Catholic Church * Sakitsu Church *Shimoda Onsen hot springs File:Amakusa Christian Museum.jpg, Amakusa Christian Museum File:OeCatholicChurch.jpg, Ōe Catholic Church File:SakitsuCatholicChurch.jpg, Sakitsu Catholic Church File:下田温泉街 20140901.jpg, Shimoda Onsen hot springs

Notable people

Sunao Sonoda was Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) who served as minister for foreign affairs and minister of health and welfare. He was called "flying foreign minister" due to his active diplomacy in increasing the role of Japan whe ...

, statesman *

Hiroyuki Sonoda was a Japanese politician serving in the Diet (national legislature) as a member of the House of Representatives for Kumamoto 4th district; following the 2017 general election when Kumamoto lost one seat due to reapportionment, he moved to the ...

, statesman *

Kundō Koyama (born 1964) is a Japanese writer. He is best known for scripting the television series ''Iron Chef'' and the 2009 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film recipient '' Departures''. Koyama has also worked under the pen name Udon Kumayakko, ...

, film writer *

Michiko Ishimure was a Japanese writer and activist. She won the 1973 Ramon Magsaysay Award, among the most prestigious awards in Asia, for publicizing writings about Minamata disease Minamata disease is a neurological disease caused by severe mercury poison ...

, writer *

Tochihikari Masayuki Tochihikari Masayuki (29 August 1933 – 28 March 1977) was a sumo wrestler from Kumamoto Prefecture in Japan who reached the second highest rank of ''Makuuchi#Ōzeki, ōzeki'' in 1962. He joined Kasugano stable in 1952 and reached the top ''maku ...

, sumo wrestler *

Yoshiki Tanaka is a Japanese novelist. Early life and education He was born in Hondo, Kumamoto Prefecture and took his doctorate degree in Japanese Language and Literature in the Graduate School of Gakushūin University in Tokyo. Work His major works in ...

, novelist *Kenta Matsumoto, vocalist and bassist of WANIMA *Koushin Nishida, guitarist of WANIMA

Sister Cities

Encinitas, California Encinitas (Spanish language, Spanish for "Small Oaks") is a beach city in the North County (San Diego area), North County area of San Diego County, California. Located within Southern California, it is approximately north of San Diego, between ...

, United States

References

External links

* * * {{Authority control Cities in Kumamoto Prefecture