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 ...

in Ishikari Subprefecture,

Hokkaido is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...

, Japan.

History

Ebetsu was settled originally by Japanese people in 1871, who came from the

Miyagi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Miyagi Prefecture has a population of 2,305,596 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Miyagi Prefecture borders Iwate Prefecture to the north, Akita Prefecture to the nort ...

Honshu , historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island separ ...

. In 1878,

tondenhei The were military settler colonists recruited after the Meiji Restoration to develop and defend Japan's northern frontier in Hokkaidō and Karafuto against foreign nations, particularly Imperial Russia. (The term tonden comes from ancient China, ...

began moving into the area. When the

Meiji Government The was the government that was formed by politicians of the Satsuma Domain and Chōshū Domain in the 1860s. The Meiji government was the early government of the Empire of Japan. Politicians of the Meiji government were known as the Meiji o ...

, in 1878, designated Hokkaido as part of Japan, settlers began to flood the area. Ebetsu earned township status in 1916 and city status in 1954. During the 1960s and 1970s, a burgeoning population in

Sapporo ( ain, サッ・ポロ・ペッ, Satporopet, lit=Dry, Great River) is a city in Japan. It is the largest city north of Tokyo and the largest city on Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of the country. It ranks as the fifth most populous city ...

caused the population in Ebetsu to concurrently boom. In 1991, the city reached 100,000 people. The name Ebetsu is derived from the Ainu name of the Chitose River which flows into the Ishikari River in the city. According to John Batchelor in his "An Ainu-English Dictionary" (chapter 1, section V: Place Names Considered) the

Ainu language Ainu (, ), or more precisely Hokkaido Ainu, is a language spoken by a few elderly members of the Ainu people on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. It is a member of the Ainu language family, itself considered a language family isolate ...

name was E-pet or "

humour Humour (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) or humor (American English) is the tendency of experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement. The term derives from the humorism, humoral medicine of the ancient Gre ...

river" based on its murky colour.

Demographics

As of May 1, 2017, the city has 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 119,086, with 56,325

household A household consists of two or more persons who live in the same dwelling. It may be of a single family or another type of person group. The household is the basic unit of analysis in many social, microeconomic and government models, and is im ...

s, 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 630 persons per km². The total area is 187.57 km².

Geography and transportation

The majority of commercial Ebetsu is on or immediately surrounding Route 12 (runs north-south through town). The northern limits of town are delineated by the

Ishikari River The , at long, is the third longest in Japan and the longest in Hokkaidō. The river drains an area of , making it the second largest in Japan, with a total discharge of around per year. It originates from Mount Ishikari in the Daisetsuzan V ...

, the southern sub-city of Oasa by Ebetsu's boundary with Sapporo. It bounds the city limits of Kitahiroshima, Iwamizawa, Nanporo, Tōbetsu, and Shinshinotsu. Ebetsu is about 16 km from downtown

. It is accessed by the Hokkaido Expressway, by Chūō or JR Hokkaidō bus lines, or by the Asahikawa-Hakodate train line that approximately follows Route 12 through town (at Oasa, Nopporo, Takasago, and Ebetsu stations), joining with the northwest-southeast running main line that extends from

Chitose Airport , is a Japan Air Self-Defense Force base located in Chitose, Hokkaidō, adjacent to New Chitose Airport. It is the JASDF's primary base in northern Japan and tasked with monitoring Japan's maritime borders with Russia. It was also Hokkaidō' ...

Sapporo Station is a railway station in Chūō-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan. It is served by Hakodate Main Line and other lines of Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido), and is also connected to the Subway Sapporo Station. Sapporo Station is the starting p ...

in Shinsapporo (New Sapporo, a district of larger metropolitan Sapporo). The extensive Nopporo Forest State Park (the world's largest park of virgin forest on level ground) is behind Ebetsu's Rakunō Gakuen University (the first university in Ebetsu, founded in 1949), encompassing 2015 hectares of preserved forest. Because of Ebetsu's location approximately in the middle of the Ishikari Plain (Sapporo city is the southwestern extent), it is known for having wind year-round.

Climate

The 10-year average temperature for Ebetsu is 7.1 degrees Celsius. The hottest and coldest temperatures, respectively, ever recorded are 34.5 °C and -27.7 °C.

Sister city and friendship city

Sister city

Gresham, Oregon Gresham ( ) is a city located in Multnomah County, Oregon, in the United States of America, immediately east of Portland, Oregon. It is considered a suburb within the Greater Portland Metropolitan area. Though it began as a settlement in the mid- ...

, United States (since 1977)

Friendship city

Tosa, Kōchi 270px, Niyodo River in Tosa 270px, Aerial view of Tosa city center is a city located in Kōchi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 26,427 in 12671 households and a population density of 290 persons per km2. The tota ...

, Japan (since 1978)

Education

Universities

* Hokkaido Information University * Rakunō Gakuen University * Sapporo Gakuin University * Hokushō University

High schools

Public

* Hokkaido Ebetsu High School * Hokkaido Nopporo High School * Hokkaido Ooasa High School

Private

* Ritsumeikan keisho High School * Towanomori San-ai High School

Mascot

Ebetsu's mascot is . He is a yellow flightless bird that resembled a young rooster who loves to be petted. His head is unusually square. Because of this, he is nicknamed . He may looked sad because of his tears (which is his charm point), he is actually happy. Whenever something wonderful happens (e.g. farmers working hard, witnessing children, falling leaves, etc.), he will shed tears for joy. He is known for carrying a grain ear. He likes locally grown wheat. When he was first revealed back in 2011, he was genderless. He is originally an unofficial mascot until it is chosen by the local tourism association to represent the city.

References

External links

Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ebetsu, Hokkaido Cities in Hokkaido