Gujō City Hall 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 Gifu,

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 41,858, 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 41 persons per km², in 15,341 households. The total area of the city was . Gujo Hachiman, a part of the city that was an independent town until 2004, is well known for its large summer bon odori festival, Gujo Odori.

Geography

Gujō is located in west-central Gifu Prefecture. The headwaters of the

Nagara River The has its source in the city of Gujō, Gifu Prefecture, and its mouth in the city of Kuwana, Mie Prefecture, Japan. Along with the Kiso River and Ibi River, the Nagara River is one of the Kiso Three Rivers of the Nōbi Plain. Previously, ...

are in the city.

Waterways

Gujō's waterways operate the same way as they did in the 17th century. The canals and fountains are still used for washing rice, vegetables, and laundry. Townspeople cooperate to keep the canals clean and the water fresh. As a result of their efforts, Gujō's drinking water is a source of local pride. Gujō Hachiman is in a valley where three major fast-running rivers meet: the Yoshida, the Nagara and the Kodara. Pure mineral water flows from every tap in the town. The local ayu, soba, and sake all depend on the water for their flavors.http://www.gujohachiman.com/kanko/index_e.htm Gujo Hachiman Water Some residents still use the town's unique system of small waterways to wash laundry and dishes, following a set of very strict rules that describe what may be washed where. This practice has survived for centuries and ensures that all households have access to clean water.

Climate

The city has a climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and mild winters (

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''). The average annual temperature in Gujō is . The average annual rainfall is with July as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around .

Neighbouring municipalities

*Gifu Prefecture ** Takayama ** Seki **

Mino Mino may refer to: Places in Japan * Mino, Gifu, a city in Gifu Prefecture * Mino, Kagawa, a former town in Kagawa Prefecture * Mino, Tokushima, a town in Tokushima Prefecture * Mino, an alternate spelling of Minoh, a city in Osaka Prefecture * Mi ...

Gero Gero I ( – 20 May 965), sometimes called the Great ( la, magnus),Thompson, 486. Also se was a German nobleman who ruled an initially modest march centred on Merseburg in the south of the present German state of Saxony-Anhalt, which he expande ...

Fukui Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Fukui Prefecture has a population of 778,943 (1 June 2017) and has a geographic area of 4,190 km2 (1,617 sq mi). Fukui Prefecture borders Ishikawa Prefecture to the north, Gi ...

Ōno ONO, Ono or Ōno may refer to: Places Fiji * Ono Island (Fiji) Israel * Kiryat Ono * Ono, Benjamin, ancient site Italy * Ono San Pietro Ivory Coast * Ono, Ivory Coast, a village in Comoé District Japan * Ōno Castle, Fukuoka * ...

Demographics

According to Japanese census data,Gujō population statistics
/ref> the population of Gujō has declined steadily over the past 50 years.

History

Historically, the area around Gujō was part of the former

Mino Province was a province of Japan in the area of Japan that is today southern Gifu Prefecture. Mino was bordered by Ōmi to the west, Echizen and Hida to the north, and Shinano to the east, and Ise, Mikawa, and Owari to the south. Its abbreviat ...

. During 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 characteriz ...

, most of the area was under the control of Gujō Domain under 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 ...

. During the post-

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 ...

cadastral reforms, the area was organised into

Gujō District, Gifu was a district located in Gifu Prefecture, Japan. It was dissolved on March 1, 2004 when all seven towns and villages in the district merged, effectively turning the district into the city of Gujō. As of 2000, the district had an estimated popul ...

. The town of Hachiman was created on July 1, 1889 with the establishment of the modern municipalities system. The modern city of Gujō was established on March 1, 2004, from the merger of the towns of

Hachiman In Japanese religion, ''Yahata'' (八幡神, ancient Shinto pronunciation) formerly in Shinto and later commonly known as Hachiman (八幡神, Japanese Buddhist pronunciation) is the syncretic divinity of archery and war, incorporating elements f ...

, Shirotori and

Yamato was originally the area around today's Sakurai City in Nara Prefecture of Japan, which became Yamato Province and by extension a name for the whole of Japan. Yamato is also the dynastic name of the ruling Imperial House of Japan. Japanese his ...

, and the villages of Meihō, Minami, Takasu and Wara (all from Gujō District).

Government

Gujō 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 assembly of 18 members.

Economy

Food replicas

Gujō is a leading producer of food replicas in Japan. Many of the food replicas, used by restaurants to decorate their windows and inform patrons of their dishes, are produced here.

Education

Gujō has 22 public elementary schools and eight public middle schools operated by the city government, and two public high school operated by the Gifu Prefectural Board of Education.

Transportation

Railway

Nagaragawa Railway Etsumi-Nan Line The is a railway line in Gifu Prefecture, Japan, operated by the third-sector operator . The line connects Mino-Ōta Station in Minokamo with Hokunō Station in Gujō. It is the only railway line operated by the Nagaragawa Railway. The li ...

** - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Highway

* 35px

Tōkai-Hokuriku Expressway The is a national expressway in the Chūbu region on the island of Honshū in Japan. It is managed by Central Nippon Expressway Company. The route is signed E41 under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism's "2016 Proposal f ...

* * * *

Local attractions

* Hirugano Botanical Garden *

Gujō Hachiman Castle is a ''Japanese castle#Architecture and defenses, yamashiro'', or "mountain castle", located on Hachiman Mountain in the city of Gujō, Gifu, Gujō, Gifu Prefecture, Japan. Its ruins were designated a Gifu Prefecture Historic Site in 1955. Backgr ...

Gujō Odori

The dance festival — Gujō Odori — started over 400 years ago and continues today. During the four days of

Obon or just is fusion of the ancient Japanese belief in ancestral spirits and a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the spirits of one's ancestors. This Buddhist– Confucian custom has evolved into a family reunion holiday during which people ret ...

in mid-August, dances continue all night. The dances begin on the same night as Kyoto's

Gion Festival The is one of the largest and most famous festivals in Japan, taking place annually during the month of July in Kyoto. Many events take place in central Kyoto and at the Yasaka Shrine, the festival's patron shrine, located in Kyoto's famous Gion ...

and continue for 30 nights. They begin at the Yasaka Shrine and move to another shrine each night. The Gujō Odori Preservation Society tell musical stories through an ''o-hayashi'', which consists of a soloist, a

shamisen The , also known as the or (all meaning "three strings"), is a three-stringed traditional Japanese musical instrument derived from the Chinese instrument . It is played with a plectrum called a bachi. The Japanese pronunciation is usual ...

, a

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 ...

, and a

shakuhachi A is a Japanese and ancient Chinese longitudinal, end-blown flute that is made of bamboo. The bamboo end-blown flute now known as the was developed in Japan in the 16th century and is called the .

.http://www.city.gujo.gifu.jp/english/tourism_and_amusement/ Gujō City tourism and amusement guide Listeners participate by dancing around the stage. During Urabon (August 13 to 16) the dancing continues until 5 a.m. More than 20,000 visitors come to town for the odori.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gujo, Gifu Cities in Gifu Prefecture