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 lar ...
,
Japan. It is on the Ishikari plain, 8 km north of
Chitose, and 26 km south of the prefectural capital
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 cit ...
. It is reached through
route 36 and the
Chitose Railway Line. The town is separated into three major areas: Eniwa in the south, Megumino in the center, and Shimamatsu in the north.
Many farms are located around Eniwa, and the town has many manufacturing businesses, including the
Sapporo Brewery
is a Japanese beer brewing company founded in 1876. Sapporo is the oldest brand of beer in Japan. It was first brewed in Sapporo, Japan, in 1876 by brewer Seibei Nakagawa. The world headquarters of Sapporo Breweries is in Ebisu, Shibuya, Toky ...
Hokkaido factory. There are three
Japan Ground Self-Defense Force
The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force ( ja, 陸上自衛隊, Rikujō Jieitai), , also referred to as the Japanese Army, is the land warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Created on July 1, 1954, it is the largest of the three service b ...
camps in the city.
Eniwa's 2012 population of 68,883 makes it the fourth largest city in the
Ishikari Subprefecture, and the 13th largest in Hokkaido.
Etymology
The town's name is taken from the nearby
Mount Eniwa
is an active volcano located in Shikotsu-Toya National Park in Hokkaidō, Japan. It sits opposite Mount Tarumae and Mount Fuppushi on the shores of Lake Shikotsu, the caldera lake that spawned the volcanoes. Mount Eniwa is the tallest of t ...
, in the
Shikotsu-Tōya National Park
is a national park in the western part of the island of Hokkaidō, Japan. Named after the volcanic caldera lakes of Lake Shikotsu and Lake Tōya, it has a total area of 993.02 square kilometers. The popular hot spring resort of Noboribetsu is al ...
. The name in
Ainu, ''e-en-iwa'' (), means "sharp mountain." The name was transliterated into Japanese
ateji
In modern Japanese, principally refers to kanji used to phonetically represent native or borrowed words with less regard to the underlying meaning of the characters. This is similar to in Old Japanese. Conversely, also refers to kanji use ...
to mean ''blessed garden''. The Japanese transliteration was chosen because of the homonyms and , the later referring to the two rivers that pass through the city, the Shimamatsu River and the Izari River, as well as the between the two rivers.
History
The first known settlement of Eniwa was in the Initial
Jōmon period in 7000 BC, at the .
The settlement received a surge of people in 2000 B,
and continued being settled for many years. Many artifacts have been found, including lacquered combs, beads, earthenware and stone accessories.
Historical
Satsumon culture
The is a partially agricultural, archeological culture of northern Honshu and southern Hokkaido (700–1200 CE) that has been identified as Emishi, as a Japanese-Emishi mixed culture, as the incipient modern Ainu, or with all three synonymously. ...
(700–1200
CE) graves dating have been found around Eniwa, at the . The style is similar to those at the
Ebetsu Kofun Site and northern
Tōhoku historic graves. During the
Ainu settlement period (1200 CE until the Meiji era), there is historical evidence for settlements in the villages and further away on the plains.
After the
Matsumae clan
The was a Japanese clan that was confirmed in the possession of the area around Matsumae, Hokkaidō as a march fief in 1590 by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and charged with defending it, and by extension the whole of Japan, from the Ainu "barbarians" ...
settled on the southern tip of Hokkaido in 1590, they traded goods with the Ainu who lived in the area. In 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 characte ...
, one of the 13 trading locations across the Ishikari plain was (
Ainu: Shuma-o-mappu ()), which corresponds to the modern-day Shimamatsu River basin. The trading area was active until the end of the Edo era. Early Japanese contact with the area included in 1755, when
jezo spruce
''Picea jezoensis'' (sometimes misspelled ''Picea yezoensis''), the dark-bark spruce, Ezo spruce, Yezo spruce, or Jezo spruce, is a large evergreen tree growing to 30–50 m tall and with a trunk diameter of up to 2 m. It is native to northeast ...
trees were harvested along the Izari river, and in 1805, when the river was farmed for salmon and trout.
In 1857, the
Hakodate
is a city and port located in Oshima Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the capital city of Oshima Subprefecture. As of July 31, 2011, the city has an estimated population of 279,851 with 143,221 households, and a population density of 412.8 ...
magistrate
The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judic ...
decreed that a road between
Otaru
is a city and port in Shiribeshi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan, northwest of Sapporo. The city faces Ishikari Bay and the Sea of Japan, and has long served as the main port of the bay. With its many historical buildings, Otaru is a popular to ...
and
Chitose be developed, leading to the development of the Ishikari Plain.
When Hokkaido became a part of Japan in the early
Meiji period
The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912.
The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...
, the area around Eniwa was incorporated into
Iburi Province
, also called Ifuri, was a short-lived province located in Hokkaidō. It corresponds to modern-day Iburi Subprefecture, Yamakoshi District of Oshima, Abuta District in Shiribeshi Subprefecture, the cities of Chitose and Eniwa in Ishikari S ...
in 1869.
Settlers from
Kōchi Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Kōchi Prefecture has a population of 757,914 (1 December 2011) and has a geographic area of 7,103 km2 (2,742 sq mi). Kōchi Prefecture borders Ehime Prefecture to the northwest and ...
initially settled in Eniwa in 1870 in two villages: in the south and in the north.
In 1873, the , the a road linking Hakodate with
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 cit ...
was completed, and it was built through both villages. In 1873, rice farming started in Shimamatsu, as well as the first postal service.
In 1880, the Chitose town hall began administering five surrounding villages to Chitose, including Izari and Shimamatsu.
In 1886, 65 families from
Waki, Yamaguchi and
Iwakuni, Yamaguchi
is a city located in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan.
History
Iwakuni was formerly the castle town of the Iwakuni han, which was formed by Lord Hiroie Kikkawa after he was banished there for supporting the defeated shōgun. The Kikkawa clan rule ...
moved to the shores of the Izari river, which greatly increased the size of Izari.
A year later, the Izari town hall was built, meaning Chitose no longer administered Izari or Shimamatsu.
At this point, Eniwa had grown to 572 residents, and the first elementary school was opened.
Shinto shrines were constructed in 1901: Toyosaka Shrine in Izari and Shimamatsu Shrine. The Buddhist temple
Ten'yū-ji's main building was constructed in 1904.
In 1906, Izari and Shimamatsu were merged to form , a second class municipality.
The village also administered
Hiroshima Village; in 1943 the village seceded. In 1922, the village received electricity, after the Izari River was used for
hydroelectric power
Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...
.
By 1923, the town had grown enough to become a first class municipality. Eniwa was first connected to by rail in 1926, after the
Sapporo Line (now known as the Chitose Line) was completed, and
Eniwa Station and
Shimamatsu Station
is a railway station of the Chitose Line located in Eniwa, Hokkaidō
is a city in Ishikari Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is on the Ishikari plain, 8 km north of Chitose, and 26 km south of the prefectural capital Sapporo. ...
were opened.
In the 1930s, Eniwa became a site for mining gold and silver. In 1935, a small-scale private mine called the was opened in 1935 and run by the
Fujita Fujita (written: , or ) is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include:
*, Japanese handball player
*, Japanese long-distance runner
*Aya Fujita (born 1987), Japanese shogi player
*Emi Fujita (born 1963), Japanese singer
*, Japanes ...
company.
In 1939, the nationally run opened. A mining town to the north-northwest of
Mount Eniwa
is an active volcano located in Shikotsu-Toya National Park in Hokkaidō, Japan. It sits opposite Mount Tarumae and Mount Fuppushi on the shores of Lake Shikotsu, the caldera lake that spawned the volcanoes. Mount Eniwa is the tallest of t ...
was constructed, and Kōryū Mine was expanded. The town featured around 40 five-family apartments and additional buildings for administration and amenities, however, no restaurants or entertainment areas were constructed. Two elementary schools were operated for the area. Both mines were closed in 1943, due to the
Order for Gold Mine Consolidation. By the end of the Eniwa Mine's operations, a total of 700 kg of gold and 3,500 kg of silver had been mined. The mines and buildings were dismantled, though the Kōryū Mine was reopened in 1949 by Yutani Mining.
After the
Occupation of Japan beginning in 1945, many agricultural reforms were undertaken that made the farms around Eniwa more prosperous.
In September 1950, a military camp for training police personnel was built in Kashiwagi.
In 1951,
Company C, 52d Infantry Regiment (Anti-Tank)
The 52nd Infantry Regiment ("Ready Rifles") is an infantry regiment of the United States Army.
The charges on the canton of the regiment's coat of arms represent the 11th Infantry from which this regiment was formed in 1917. Its first combat ...
of the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...
held military practices at the camp.
When the
Japan Ground Self-Defense Force
The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force ( ja, 陸上自衛隊, Rikujō Jieitai), , also referred to as the Japanese Army, is the land warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Created on July 1, 1954, it is the largest of the three service b ...
's
Northern Army was established in 1952, they took over running the camp and established the South Eniwa Camp in 1952.
By 1951, the village's population was significant enough to be upgraded to a town.
In 1970 after the town had 34,500 residents, it was upgraded to Eniwa City, after a piece of regional legislation allowed Eniwa,
Noboribetsu
is a city in Iburi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. Part of Shikotsu-Toya National Park, it is southwest of 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 later
Date
Date or dates may refer to:
*Date (fruit), the fruit of the date palm (''Phoenix dactylifera'')
Social activity
*Dating, a form of courtship involving social activity, with the aim of assessing a potential partner
** Group dating
*Play date, a ...
to become cities.
In 1979, part of the farmland between Eniwa and Shimamatsu was developed into Megumino, a new suburb of the city. By 1982, the
Megumino Station
is a railway station on the Chitose Line in Eniwa, Hokkaido, Japan, operated by Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido).
Lines
Megumino Station is served by the Chitose Line.
Station layout
The station has two side platforms serving two track ...
was built, along with the
Ito-Yokado
is a Japanese general merchandise and department store, originally founded in 1920. In 2005, it was reorganized, as part of a corporate restructuring, as a subsidiary of the Seven & I Holdings Co.
As of March 2013, there are 178 Ito-Yokado ...
shopping center and the Megumino Elementary School.
In 1987, residents exceeded 50,000.
The
Sapporo Brewery
is a Japanese beer brewing company founded in 1876. Sapporo is the oldest brand of beer in Japan. It was first brewed in Sapporo, Japan, in 1876 by brewer Seibei Nakagawa. The world headquarters of Sapporo Breweries is in Ebisu, Shibuya, Toky ...
Hokkaido factory was built in the south of Eniwa in 1989,
and a dedicated train station, the
Sapporo Beer Teien Station was built in 1990. In 1993, residents in Eniwa exceeded 60,000.
In 2006, Eniwa's first community radio station began broadcast. It was originally called , but the name was changed to ''
E-Niwa'' in 2010.
In April 2013, construction began on , a housing development in east Megumino. The first houses were completed in May 2013, with the entire area expected to be completed in 2015. The development of 25 hectares west of Megumino Station is being planned. Development consent was given in July 2011.
Demographics
As of October 2013, 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 68,883 residents, with 31,005
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 i ...
s and the
density
Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the substance's mass per unit of volume. The symbol most often used for density is ''ρ'' (the lower case Greek letter rho), although the Latin letter ''D'' can also be used. Mathematical ...
of 233.60 persons per km². 51% of the population is female.
Eniwa's population is 99.7% Japanese, with the remaining 0.3% being foreign residents.
13.8% of residents are under 15 years of age, and the workforce comprises 64.4% of residents. 21.8% of people are over age 65. In the 2012 population records, 22 residents are listed as
centenarian
A centenarian is a person who has reached the age of 100 years. Because life expectancies worldwide are below 100 years, the term is invariably associated with longevity. In 2012, the United Nations estimated that there were 316,600 living centen ...
s.
The bulk of the population, 68%, lives in central Eniwa, while 17.5% live in Megumino and 13.2% live in Shimamatsu. The remainder 1.3% of Eniwa residents live in the surrounding farmland.
Geography and climate
Eniwa is on the
Ishikari Plain
Ishikari Plain () is a plain in western Hokkaido. The area of the plain is approximately 3800km. The central city is Sapporo. Rice cultivation
The history of rice cultivation is an interdisciplinary subject that studies archaeological and docume ...
, amongst farmland. The town is 8 km from
Chitose (and the
New Chitose Airport
is an international airport located south-southeast of Chitose and Tomakomai, Hokkaidō, Japan, serving the Sapporo metropolitan area. By both traffic and land area, it is the largest airport in Hokkaidō.
It is adjacent to Chitose Air Ba ...
), and to the north is
Kitahiroshima City. 26 km north of Eniwa is Sapporo, the largest city and prefectural capital of Hokkaido. All of these cities are connected by the
Chitose Line
The is a railway line in Hokkaido operated by Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido), connecting Numanohata, Tomakomai and Shiroishi Station in Shiroishi-ku, Sapporo, linking the Muroran Main Line and Hakodate Main Line. There also is a branch ...
railway and by the
Japan National Route 36
is a national highway connecting Sapporo and Muroran in Hokkaidō, Japan.
Route data
*Length: 133.0 km (82.7 mi)
*Origin: Chuo-ku, Sapporo, Sapporo (originates at the origins of Routes 12 and 230)
*Terminus: Muroran, Hokkaido
*M ...
. The town is on the Izari River and the Shimamatsu River.
The area administered to by Eniwa extends north to the Shimamatsu river and stops at the border to
Naganuma township in
Sorachi Subprefecture
is a subprefecture of Hokkaido Prefecture, 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 J ...
. Eniwa borders Chitose city along its south border, with the cities being separated by as little as 750 m in some places. To the west of Eniwa is the
Shikotsu-Tōya National Park
is a national park in the western part of the island of Hokkaidō, Japan. Named after the volcanic caldera lakes of Lake Shikotsu and Lake Tōya, it has a total area of 993.02 square kilometers. The popular hot spring resort of Noboribetsu is al ...
. Eight mountains in the park are considered a part of Eniwa, including
Mount Izari and Mount Soranuma. In the area is the hydroelectric
Izarigawa Dam that dams the Izari river.
The city of Eniwa is separated into three major areas: Eniwa in the south, in the center and Shimamatsu in the north. Shimamatsu is separated from Eniwa and Megumino by approximately 300 meters.
Winters in Eniwa are colder than the surrounding areas, due to the town being inland. The average daily low temperature is between 5-6 degrees lower than
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 cit ...
, 26 km to the north near the
Sea of Japan
The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, i ...
, and 4-5 degrees lower than in
Tomakomai
is a city and port in Iburi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the largest city in the Iburi Subprefecture, and the fourth largest city in Hokkaido. As of 29 February 2012, it had an estimated population of 174,216, with 83,836 households ...
, 28 km to the south on the coast of the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...
. Summers are slightly milder than in Sapporo.
Economy
Traditionally, Eniwa's economy was based around farming, with the first major rice farms created in 1873.
Eniwa has two main crops: flowers and rice.
3,800ha of land are dedicated to flowers, most of which are
cut flowers
Cut flowers are flowers or flower buds (often with some stem and leaf) that have been cut from the plant bearing it. It is usually removed from the plant for decorative use. Typical uses are in vase displays, wreaths and garlands. Many garde ...
. 2,700 ha of land are dedicated to rice farming, mostly
ley farming
Convertible husbandry, also known as alternate husbandry or up-and-down husbandry, is a method of farming whereby strips of arable farmland were temporarily converted into grass pasture, known as leys. These remained under grass for up to 10 years ...
, though
paddy field rice exists.
Rice in Eniwa is generally made up of the ''
Yume Pirika'', ''
Nanatsu Boshi'', ''
Oborozuki'' and ''
Fukkurinko''.
Eniwa also grows many vegetables. Vegetables with 100 ha or more dedicated space include
wheat
Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...
,
soybean
The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses.
Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu a ...
s,
sugar beet,
potato
The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae.
Wild potato species can be found from the southern Unit ...
es and
daikon
Daikon or mooli, ''Raphanus sativus'' var. ''longipinnatus,'' is a mild-flavored winter radish usually characterized by fast-growing leaves and a long, white, root. Originally native to continental East Asia, daikon is harvested and consumed ...
(Japanese radish). Other farmed vegetables include
ebisu kabocha pumpkins, carrots,
adzuki beans and cabbages.
The ebisu kabocha is the city vegetable. Pumpkin-flavored
soft serve
Soft serve, also known as soft ice, is a frozen dessert, similar to ice cream but softer and less dense due to air being introduced during freezing. Soft serve has been sold commercially since the late 1930s in the US.
In the US, soft serve is ...
,
manjū
is a traditional Japanese confection. Of the many varieties of manjū, most have an outside made from flour, rice powder, kudzu, and buckwheat, and a filling of ''anko'' (red bean paste), usually made from boiled adzuki beans and sugar. ''Man ...
and soup can be bought at the
Flower Road Eniwa roadside station.
In the
Heisei era
The is the period of Japanese history corresponding to the reign of Emperor Emeritus Akihito from 8 January 1989 until his abdication on 30 April 2019. The Heisei era started on 8 January 1989, the day after the death of the Emperor Hirohito, ...
, manufacturing has increasingly become an important industry. In 1989, an area in southern Eniwa became dedicated to manufacture, called the .
In the same year, the
Sapporo Brewery
is a Japanese beer brewing company founded in 1876. Sapporo is the oldest brand of beer in Japan. It was first brewed in Sapporo, Japan, in 1876 by brewer Seibei Nakagawa. The world headquarters of Sapporo Breweries is in Ebisu, Shibuya, Toky ...
Hokkaido factory was built. It deals with 120 million liters of beer per year.
There are many food production factories are in Eniwa, including ones for Sanmaruko, the restaurant chain Tonden,
oden
is a type of nabemono (Japanese one-pot dishes), consisting of several ingredients such as boiled eggs, daikon, konjac, and processed fishcakes stewed in a light, soy-flavored dashi broth.
Oden was originally what is now commonly ca ...
producer Horikawa, Hoshio Milk,
Yamazaki Baking
is a Japanese food company and the world's largest bread-baking corporation, that makes bread, bakery products and confectionery. It was established by Tojuro Iijima in Japan on 9 March 1948 and started mass production of bread in 1955, and is s ...
, Kibun Foods and Robapan.
Morinaga Milk Industry
is a milk products and sweets company based in Tokyo, Japan, in operation since September 1, 1917. Their products include milk products, drinks, candy, confectioneries, and infant formula. Morinaga has distribution agreements with Mondelez Int ...
built its Sapporo Factory in Eniwa in 1961; in April 2013 it halted all manufacturing there, leaving the site as a delivery depot.
There are mechanical factories for Sanwa Holdings, MSK Farm Machinery,
Mitsubishi's customized machinery division and
Oji Paper
is a Japanese manufacturer of paper products. In 2012 the company was the third largest company in the global forest, paper and packaging industry.
The company's stock is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and the stock is constituent of the N ...
.
Three camps for the
Japan Ground Self-Defense Force
The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force ( ja, 陸上自衛隊, Rikujō Jieitai), , also referred to as the Japanese Army, is the land warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Created on July 1, 1954, it is the largest of the three service b ...
's
Northern Army are in Eniwa — Camp Shimamatsu, Camp Kita Eniwa, and Camp Minami Eniwa — where the Northern Army performs military exercises, including the 1st Tank Group's tank practice.
Religion
There are a variety of
Buddhist temples,
Shinto shrines and Christian churches in Eniwa. Most of the institutions were established in the
Meiji period
The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912.
The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...
. The most recent Shinto shrine was built in 1908.
There are seven Buddhist temples in Eniwa. The largest is
Ten'yū-ji, an
Otani-ha temple established in 1886. Daian-ji was initially established as a
terakoya
were private educational institutions that taught reading and writing to the children of Japanese commoners during the Edo period.
History
The first ''terakoya'' made their appearance at the beginning of the 17th century, as a development from ...
school for the children of Eniwa in 1887, but grew to be a temple in 1911.
The Eniwa Buddhist temples follow a variety of schools. Two of the temples are
Otani-ha, two are
Hongan-ji
, also archaically romanized as Hongwanji, is the collective name of the largest school of Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism (which further sub-divides into the Nishi and Higashi branches). 'Hongan-ji' may also refer to any one of several actual temple bu ...
, Kōryū-ji is a
Kompira worshiping
Kōyasan Shingon-shū temple, Daian-ji is
Sōtō
Sōtō Zen or is the largest of the three traditional sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (the others being Rinzai and Ōbaku). It is the Japanese line of the Chinese Cáodòng school, which was founded during the Tang dynasty by Dòngsh ...
and Myōshō-ji is
Nichiren Shū.
There are four Shinto shrines around Eniwa.
Toyosaka Shrine was first established in 1874 as an area dedicated to
Inari Ōkami, with a small shrine for
Ōkuninushi
Ōkuninushi ( historical orthography: ''Ohokuninushi''), also known as Ō(a)namuchi (''Oho(a)namuchi'') or Ō(a)namochi (''Oho(a)namochi'') among other variants, is a ''kami'' in Japanese mythology. He is one of the central deities in the cycle ...
built at the site in 1891. A second shrine, built to accommodate settlers from
Toyama
Toyama may refer to:
Places and organizations
* Toyama Prefecture, a prefecture of Japan located in the Hokuriku region on the main Honshu island
* Toyama, Toyama, the capital city of Toyama Prefecture
* Toyama Station, the main station of Toyama, ...
and
Ishikawa.
Shimamatsu Shrine was established in 1901 from donations from the people who lived in Shimamatsu. The fourth, Kashiwagi Shrine, was established in 1908. Much of the shrine was demolished in 1982 due to dilapidation. In Eniwa, there are six Shinto gods who have been enshrined:
Toyouke-Ōmikami
Toyouke-Ōmikami is the goddess of agriculture and industry in the Shinto religion. Originally enshrined in the Tanba region of Japan, she was called to reside at Gekū, Ise Shrine, about 1,500 years ago at the age of Emperor Yūryaku to offer sa ...
(at Toyosaka and Shimamatsu),
Ōkuninushi
Ōkuninushi ( historical orthography: ''Ohokuninushi''), also known as Ō(a)namuchi (''Oho(a)namuchi'') or Ō(a)namochi (''Oho(a)namochi'') among other variants, is a ''kami'' in Japanese mythology. He is one of the central deities in the cycle ...
(at Toyosaka),
Amenominakanushi
Ame-no-Minakanushi (アメノミナカヌシ, lit. "Lord of the August Center of Heaven") is a deity (''kami'') in Japanese mythology, portrayed in the ''Kojiki'' and the '' Nihon Shoki'' as the very first or one of the first deities who manifes ...
(at Kashiwagi) and
Amaterasu,
Inari Ōkami and
Kasuga Ōkami at Eniwa Shrine.
There are three
Christian churches in Eniwa, the Catholic Eniwa Parish, Eniwa Evangelical Christian Church and the Eniwa
Evangelical Lutheran
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...
church. In addition, there is a
Jehovah's Witness
Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...
church, as well as a church for the Chitose and Eniwa
ward
Ward may refer to:
Division or unit
* Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward
* Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...
of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ch ...
.
Parks and recreation
![Ecorin-mura](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/Ecorin-mura.jpg)
Eniwa has five public parks:
Eniwa Park, Nakajima Park, Furusato Park, Megumino Central Park and Technopark Central Park. The parks are mostly around central and southern Eniwa. The largest, Eniwa Park, is 411,000m². In addition, the land around the banks of the Izari River is considered
urban open space
In land-use planning, urban green space is open-space areas reserved for parks and other "green spaces", including plant life, water features -also referred to as blue spaces- and other kinds of natural environment. Most urban open spaces are ...
. Parks in Eniwa mostly consist of open spaces and woodland, though several feature sporting facilities, such as Nakajima Park's jogging track.
In 2006, an agricultural theme park called
Ecorin Village was built in Eniwa. At the gardening center of the theme park is a greenhouse housing , which in November 2013 was awarded the ''
Guinness World Records
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
'' award for the largest tomato plant in the world, measuring 85.46m
2 at the time.
Within the urban borders of Eniwa are several
park golf
is a form of golf played in a park that was invented in Makubetsu, Hokkaido, Japan in 1983. Aesthetically, it resembles a sport somewhere between golf and croquet. The competitive object of the game is to hit the ball into a hole with a club in ...
grounds, a sport created in Hokkaido. Outside of the city, the Eniwa Country Club features three nine-hole
golf course
A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". ...
s.
In the
Shikotsu-Tōya National Park
is a national park in the western part of the island of Hokkaidō, Japan. Named after the volcanic caldera lakes of Lake Shikotsu and Lake Tōya, it has a total area of 993.02 square kilometers. The popular hot spring resort of Noboribetsu is al ...
to the west, many of the mountains such as Mount Izari and Mount Soranuma feature walking trails to their summits. The man-made lake is behind the Izari Dam in the national park,.
Education
Eniwa has two public high schools, five junior high schools, and eight elementary schools. In 2012, the city had 3,935 students enrolled at elementary schools and 2,079 at junior high schools. In 2008, 300 students were enrolled at Eniwa North High School and 200 at Eniwa South High School.
Eniwa's first school was opened in 1887, when Buddhist priest Kyūzō Nakayama established a
terakoya
were private educational institutions that taught reading and writing to the children of Japanese commoners during the Edo period.
History
The first ''terakoya'' made their appearance at the beginning of the 17th century, as a development from ...
for the children of Eniwa.
In 1897, the temple school was moved and became a public school, Eniwa Elementary School. Three more elementary schools were opened in the
Meiji period
The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912.
The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...
. By the early 1940s, Eniwa had eight elementary schools. In 1947, four new junior high schools were created, later amalgamating into two by 1964. The two high schools were opened in 1951. In the 1960s and 1970s, five elementary schools and one junior high school were closed or merged. With the building of Megumino in the late 1970s and increasing growth in the city, three new junior high schools and six new elementary schools were built between 1970 and 1991.
Eniwa has one university and three
vocational school
A vocational school is a type of educational institution, which, depending on the country, may refer to either secondary or post-secondary education designed to provide vocational education or technical skills required to complete the task ...
s.
Hokkaido Bunkyo University's main campus is in Eniwa. The university has two departments, foreign languages and
health sciences. The three vocational schools are in Megumino. The largest, the
Hokkaido High-Technology College, is a multi-discipline school, with four faculties: technology, medicine, education and recovery/sports science. The
Hokkaido Eco Communication College is a
veterinary
Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in animals. Along with this, it deals with animal rearing, husbandry, breeding, research on nutri ...
school, and the
Nihon Fukushi Rehabilitation Gakuin is a
physical medicine and rehabilitation
Physical medicine and rehabilitation, also known as physiatry, is a branch of medicine that aims to enhance and restore functional ability and quality of life to people with physical impairments or disabilities. This can include conditions su ...
school. In addition to these,
Kinki University
is a private non-sectarian and coeducational university based in Higashiosaka, Osaka, Japan with campuses in five other locations: Nara, Nara; Ōsakasayama, Osaka; Uchita, Wakayama; Higashihiroshima, Hiroshima; and Iizuka, Fukuoka.
The En ...
has its Hokkaido seminar house for natural resource research in Eniwa.
Transportation
Eniwa is connected to the
Hokkaido Railway network on the
Chitose Line
The is a railway line in Hokkaido operated by Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido), connecting Numanohata, Tomakomai and Shiroishi Station in Shiroishi-ku, Sapporo, linking the Muroran Main Line and Hakodate Main Line. There also is a branch ...
. There are four train stations (from north to south):
Shimamatsu Station
is a railway station of the Chitose Line located in Eniwa, Hokkaidō
is a city in Ishikari Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is on the Ishikari plain, 8 km north of Chitose, and 26 km south of the prefectural capital Sapporo. ...
,
Megumino Station
is a railway station on the Chitose Line in Eniwa, Hokkaido, Japan, operated by Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido).
Lines
Megumino Station is served by the Chitose Line.
Station layout
The station has two side platforms serving two track ...
and
Eniwa Station, as well as the electronically manned
Sapporo Beer Teien Station. The Eniwa Station is a designated stop for
Rapid Airport trains, though not a stop for
limited express trains such as the
Super Ōzora
Super may refer to:
Computing
* SUPER (computer program), or Simplified Universal Player Encoder & Renderer, a video converter / player
* Super (computer science), a keyword in object-oriented programming languages
* Super key (keyboard butto ...
or the
Super Tokachi
The is a limited express train service between and via the Hakodate and Nemuro Main Lines in Hokkaido, Japan, operated by Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido). As of November 2013, there are five trains per day running in both directions, wi ...
.
Japan National Route 36
is a national highway connecting Sapporo and Muroran in Hokkaidō, Japan.
Route data
*Length: 133.0 km (82.7 mi)
*Origin: Chuo-ku, Sapporo, Sapporo (originates at the origins of Routes 12 and 230)
*Terminus: Muroran, Hokkaido
*M ...
and
Japan National Route 453 run through Eniwa. There are two
toll express roads through Eniwa, the
Hokkaidō Expressway
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 lar ...
and the
Dōtō Expressway which begins at the Chitose-Eniwa junction. There are two bus services in Eniwa. The Hokkaido Chuo Bus transports passengers around Hokkaido and passes through Eniwa. The Eniwa Community Bus was established in 2004 and circuits around Eniwa.
Eniwa is serviced by the
New Chitose Airport
is an international airport located south-southeast of Chitose and Tomakomai, Hokkaidō, Japan, serving the Sapporo metropolitan area. By both traffic and land area, it is the largest airport in Hokkaidō.
It is adjacent to Chitose Air Ba ...
for air travel, 15 km away. It is an international airport, with destinations mainly in Asia such as
Seoul
Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...
,
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...
and
Taipei
Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...
. However, the bulk of its traffic is Japanese domestic travelers.
Community work
In the spring and summer, community organisations plant flowers around the city's public gardens, leading to the moniker .
Mascots
Eniwa's mascots are , and .
*Ebisu-kun is an oni that is born from a Kabocha pumpkin. He promotes and protects products from the city. He works as a mascot for the Eniwa Chamber of Commerce and lives in a room of the local conference hall.
*Karin-chan is a yōsei born from a lily of the valley. She protects nature.
*Eniwan is a dog who is a flower enthusiast (as such, she wears a flower as a hat). She helps people who migrate to the city like (who moved from the Southern Hemisphere in September 2013), , and (the latter three are a family who moved from the Western world). Not only her name comes from "anyone" but is also a rhyme of the city's name. Her name fits because she welcomes every being around the world to Eniwa.
Sister cities
Eniwa has two
sister cities
A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties.
While there are early examples of inter ...
:
*
Waki, Yamaguchi (established 1979)
*
Timaru, New Zealand (established 2008)
References
External links
*
Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eniwa, Hokkaido
1906 establishments in Japan