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 ...

and

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

located in

Oshima Subprefecture is a subprefecture of Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan. As of 2004 it had a population of 456,621 and an area of 3,715.38 km2. Hakodate Airport is located in the City of Hakodate. Geography The subprefecture is located on the Oshima Penins ...

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 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 ...

. It is the capital city of Oshima Subprefecture. As of July 31, 2011, 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 279,851 with 143,221

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 412.83 persons per km² (1,069.2 persons per sq. mi.). The total area is . The city is the third biggest in Hokkaido after

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 ...

and

Asahikawa is a city in Kamikawa Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the capital of the subprefecture, and the second-largest city in Hokkaido, after Sapporo. It has been a core city since April 1, 2000. The city is currently well known for the Asahiy ...

History

Hakodate was Japan's first city whose port was opened to foreign trade in 1854, as a result of

Convention of Kanagawa The Convention of Kanagawa, also known as the Kanagawa Treaty (, ''Kanagawa Jōyaku'') or the Japan–US Treaty of Peace and Amity (, ''Nichibei Washin Jōyaku''), was a treaty signed between the United States and the Tokugawa Shogunate on March ...

, and used to be the most important port in northern Japan. Also, the city had been the biggest city in Hokkaido before the Great Hakodate Fire of 1934.

Pre-Meiji restoration

Hakodate (like much of other parts of Hokkaido), was originally populated by the Ainu. They lived in the

Oshima Peninsula The Oshima Peninsula (渡島半島 ''Oshima-hantō'') is the southernmost part of Hokkaidō, the northernmost of the Japanese islands. Where the peninsula starts is open to interpretation. A more generous interpretation is to draw a line southe ...

. The name "Hakodate" may have originated from an Ainu word, "hak-casi" ("shallow fort"). Another possibility is that it means "box" or "building" in Japanese which refers to the castle built by the Kono (Kano) clan in the fifteenth century. Hakodate was founded in 1454, when Kono Kaganokami Masamichi constructed a large manor house in the Ainu fishing village of Usukeshi (the word for bay in Ainu). After his death, Masamichi's son, Kono Suemichi, and family were driven out of Hakodate into nearby Kameda during the Ainu rebellion in 1512 and little history was recorded for the area during the next 100 years. There was constant low-level conflict in the Oshima peninsula at the time with the Ainu, as armed merchants like the Kono family, established bases to control trade in the region. This conflict culminated in an uprising from 1669 to 1672, led by Ainu warrior Shakushain after which the Ainu in the region were suppressed. Hakodate flourished during the Hoei period (1704–11), and many new temples were founded in the area. The town's fortunes received a further boost in 1741 when 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" ...

, which had been granted nearby areas on the

as a march fief, moved its Kameda magistracy to Masamichi's house in Hakodate. In 1779, 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 ...

took direct control over Hakodate, which triggered rapid development in the area. Merchant

Takadaya Kahei was a Japanese merchant credited with transforming the trading outpost of Hakodate in Japan's northern island of Hokkaidō into a thriving city. He is also recognised for opening the northern Etorofu sea route to the Kuril island fisheries and hel ...

, who is honoured as the founder of Hakodate port, set up trading operations, which included opening the northern

Etorofu , other_names = russian: Итуру́п; ja, 択捉島 , location = Sea of Okhotsk , coordinates = , archipelago = Kuril Islands , total_islands = , major_islands = , area_km2 = 3139 , length_km = 200 , width_km = 27 , coastline = , highest_moun ...

sea route to the

Kuril The Kuril Islands or Kurile Islands (; rus, Кури́льские острова́, r=Kuril'skiye ostrova, p=kʊˈrʲilʲskʲɪjə ɐstrɐˈva; Japanese: or ) are a volcanic archipelago currently administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast in the ...

island fisheries. He is credited with turning Hakodate from a trading outpost into a thriving city. A Hakodate magistracy was established in 1802. By 1807, the power of the Tokugawa government extended to the entire region. However, in 1821, the central government relaxed their control of the area and restored the Matsumae clan to the full powers they had before. File:Hakodate 1856.jpg, Lithograph entitled "View of Hakodate from Snow Peak" looking towards the sea—artist,

Wilhelm Heine Peter Bernhard Wilhelm Heine, better known as Wilhelm (or William) Heine (January 30, 1827 in Dresden – October 5, 1885 in Lößnitz near Dresden) was a German-American artist, world traveller and writer as well as an officer during the Amer ...

(1856) File:Port-of-Hakodate-Map-1863.png, Port of Hakodate map circa 1863

Meiji restoration

The port of Hakodate was surveyed by a fleet of five U.S. ships in 1854 under the conditions of the

, as negotiated by Commodore

Matthew Perry Matthew Langford Perry (born August 19, 1969) is an American-Canadian actor. He is best known for his role as Chandler Bing on the NBC television sitcom ''Friends'' (1994–2004). As well as starring in the short-lived television series ''Stud ...

. Hakodate port partially opened to foreign ships for provisioning in the following year and then completely to foreign trade on 2 June 1859 as one of five Japanese open ports designated in the 1858 Treaty of Amity and Commerce signed with the U.S. The

Hakodate foreign settlement The Hakodate foreign settlement (函館外国人居留地, ''Hako-kan gaikokujin kyoryūchi'') were a collection of foreign settlement sites scattered across Hakodate. A warehouse, Catholic church, and Orthodox church remain from the settlement era ...

is one of the legacies of foreign influence in Hakodate. A mariner in Perry's fleet died during a visit to the area and became the first U.S. citizen to be buried in Japan when he was interred in Hakodate's cemetery for foreigners. File:Naval Battle of Hakodate.jpg,

Naval Battle of Hakodate The was fought from 4 to 10 May 1869, between the remnants of the Tokugawa shogunate navy, consolidated into the armed forces of the rebel Ezo Republic, and the newly formed Imperial Japanese Navy. It was one of the last stages of Battle of H ...

(1869) File:A view of the Hakodate Foreign Settlement, c. 1880.jpg, Omachi, one of the neighborhoods in the

(1880) File:Port of Hakodate, 1897.jpg, Port of Hakodate in 1897, by

Ogawa Kazumasa , also known as Ogawa Kazuma or Ogawa Isshin, was a Japanese photographer, printer and publisher who was a pioneer in photomechanical printing and photography in the Meiji era. Life Ogawa was born in Saitama to the Matsudaira samurai clan. H ...

File:Hakodate Goryokaku Panorama 1.JPG,

Goryōkaku (literally, "five-point fort") is a star fort in the Japanese city of Hakodate on the island of Hokkaido. The fortress was completed in 1866. It was the main fortress of the short-lived Republic of Ezo. History ''Goryōkaku'' was designed in ...

fortress (1866) File:Kanemori Red Brick Warehouse Hakodate Hokkaido pref Japan01n.jpg, Kanemori Red Brick Warehouse (1869) British merchant, naturalist and spy,

Thomas Blakiston Thomas Wright Blakiston (27 December 1832 – 15 October 1891) was an English explorer and naturalist. Early life and career Born in Lymington, Hampshire, Blakiston was the son of Major John Blakiston. His grandfather was Sir Matthew Blakisto ...

, took up residence in Hakodate in the summer of 1861 to establish a saw milling business. He stayed in Hakodate until 1884, during which time he documented the local natural environment, equipped the local meteorological station and ran guns to the

Boshin War The , sometimes known as the Japanese Revolution or Japanese Civil War, was a civil war in Japan fought from 1868 to 1869 between forces of the ruling Tokugawa shogunate and a clique seeking to seize political power in the name of the Imperi ...

rebels. As one of few points of Japanese contact with the outside world, Hakodate was soon host to several overseas consulates. The Russian consulate included a chapel from where

Nicholas of Japan Saint Nicholas (Kasatkin), Equal-to-the-Apostles, Archbishop of Japan, born Ivan Dmitrovich Kasatkin (russian: Иван Дмитриевич Касаткин; – 16 February 1912) was a Russian Orthodox Russian Orthodoxy (russian: Р� ...

is credited with introducing

Eastern Orthodox Christianity Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or "canonical") ...

to Japan in 1861 (now the

Japanese Orthodox Church The is an autonomous Eastern Orthodox church within the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate. History Early Orthodox Christianity The first purpose-built Orthodox Christian church to open in Japan was the wooden Russian Consulate chapel of th ...

). The Orthodox church is neighbored by several other historical missionary churches, including

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

and

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. Hakodate also played a central role in the

between the

and the

Meiji Emperor , also called or , was the 122nd emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession. Reigning from 13 February 1867 to his death, he was the first monarch of the Empire of Japan and presided over the Meiji era. He was the figure ...

which followed Perry's opening of Japan. Shogunate rebel

Enomoto Takeaki Viscount was a Japanese samurai and admiral of the Tokugawa navy of Bakumatsu period Japan, who remained faithful to the Tokugawa shogunate and fought against the new Meiji government until the end of the Boshin War. He later served in the Mei ...

fled to Hakodate with the remnants of his navy and his handful of French advisers in winter 1868, including

Jules Brunet Jules Brunet (2 January 1838 – 12 August 1911) was a French military officer who served the Tokugawa shogunate during the Boshin War in Japan. Originally sent to Japan as an artillery instructor with the French military mission of 1867, he ref ...

. They formally established the

Republic of Ezo The was a short-lived separatist state established in 1869 on the island of Ezo, now Hokkaido, by a part of the former military of the Tokugawa shogunate at the end of the ''Bakumatsu'' period in Japan. It was the first government to attempt t ...

on December 25. The republic tried unsuccessfully to gather international recognition to foreign legations in Hakodate, including the Americans, French, and Russians. The

was fought from 4 to 10 May 1869, between the remnants of the

navy and the newly formed

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...

. It was a decisive victory for the Imperial Japanese Navy. On 14 June 1868, Hakodate was designated as an urban prefecture (府 fu), one of the first two, the other being

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...

. On February 8, 1882, it was enlarged into Hakodate-ken, and then became part of

on January 26, 1886. The rebels occupied Hakodate's famous European-style

fort A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

and used it as the centre of their defences in southern Hokkaido. Government forces defeated the secessionists in the

Battle of Hakodate The was fought in Japan from December 4, 1868 to June 27, 1869, between the remnants of the Tokugawa shogunate army, consolidated into the armed forces of the rebel Ezo Republic, and the armies of the newly formed Imperial government (composed ...

in 1869 and the city and fort were surrendered to emperor. Military leader,

Hijikata Toshizō was a Japanese warrior. As of the ''Shinsengumi'', he resisted the Meiji Restoration and fought to his end. Background was born on May 31, 1835, in the Ishida village, Tama region of Musashi Province (present day Ishida, Hino, Tokyo), Jap ...

, was one of those slain in the fighting. In 1878,

Isabella Bird Isabella Lucy Bird, married name Bishop (15 October 1831 – 7 October 1904), was a nineteenth-century British explorer, writer, photographer, and naturalist. With Fanny Jane Butler she founded the John Bishop Memorial Hospital in Srinagar ...

reported of the city in her travelogue:

The streets are very wide and clean, but the houses are mean and low. The city looks as if it had just recovered from a conflagration. The houses are nothing but tinder… Stones, however, are its prominent feature. Looking down upon it from above you see miles of grey boulders, and realise that every roof in the windy capital is "hodden doun" by a weight of paving stones.

20th century to present day

Hakodate was awarded

status on August 1, 1922. On March 21, 1934, a serious fire had destroyed around two-thirds of all the buildings in Hakodate. This event also led to many residents leaving and subsequently depopulating the city. The city escaped most of the ravages of World War II. Areas around Hakodate-yama were fortified and access restricted to the public. Many prisoners of war were interned in Hakodate and historians record a total of 10 camps. The city was subjected to two Allied bombing raids on 14 and 15 July 1945. Around 400 homes were destroyed on the western side of Hakodate-yama and an Aomori-Hakodate ferry was attacked with 400 passengers killed. In 1976, a defecting

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

pilot named

Viktor Belenko , birth_date = , birth_place = Nalchik, Kabardino-Balkaria, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union , death_date = , death_place = , nationality = AmericanRussian , other_names = , occupation = ...

flew his plane into the civilian airport in Hakodate. Hakodate's size nearly doubled on December 1, 2004, when the town of Minamikayabe (from Kayabe District), and the towns of Esan and Toi, and the village of Todohokke (all from Kameda District), were merged into it. The

Hokkaido Shinkansen The is a Japanese high-speed Shinkansen rail line that links up with the Tōhoku Shinkansen in northern Aomori Prefecture in Honshu and continues on into the interior of Hokkaido through the undersea Seikan Tunnel. Construction started in May ...

line opened on 26 March 2016. The undersea

Seikan Tunnel The Seikan Tunnel ( ja, 青函トンネル, or , ), is a dual-gauge railway tunnel in Japan, with a portion under the seabed of the Tsugaru Strait, which separates Aomori Prefecture on the main Japanese island of Honshu from the northern isla ...

with the

Shinkansen The , colloquially known in English as the bullet train, is a network of high-speed railway lines in Japan. Initially, it was built to connect distant Japanese regions with Tokyo, the capital, to aid economic growth and development. Beyond l ...

rail line greatly reduced the travel time from

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 ...

to Hakodate. File:Hakodate circa 1930.JPG, Hakodate Port circa 1930 File:TBMs and SB2Cs dropping bombs.jpg, alt=Photograph of a large number of propeller-driven monoplanes dropping bombs, US Navy

Grumman TBF Avenger The Grumman TBF Avenger (designated TBM for aircraft manufactured by General Motors) is an American World War II-era torpedo bomber developed initially for the United States Navy and Marine Corps, and eventually used by several air and naval av ...

aircraft dropping bombs on Hakodate during July 1945

Geography

Evening view of Hakodate city from Mount Hakodate

Mount Hakodate was originally an island that was formed by volcanic eruptions millions of years ago. During the course of history a sand bar formed between Mount Hakodate and the peninsula. This landform, which is an example of a

tombolo A tombolo is a sandy or shingle isthmus. A tombolo, from the Italian ', meaning 'pillow' or 'cushion', and sometimes translated incorrectly as ''ayre'' (an ayre is a shingle beach of any kind), is a deposition landform by which an island become ...

, finished forming in circa 1000 BCE. The tombolo connects the former Hakodate island with the main island

to the north. The main central area of Hakodate city is located on the sandbar. Hakodate is located at the center of Kameda Peninsula. The city is overlooked by Mount Hakodate. The summit can be reached by hiking trail,

cable car Cable car most commonly refers to the following cable transportation systems: * Aerial lift, such as aerial tramways and gondola lifts, in which the vehicle is suspended in the air from a cable ** Aerial tramway ** Chairlift ** Gondola lift *** Bi ...

, or by car. Visitors can also reach the peak of Mount Hakodate by taking tour bus and/or direct bus. that departs from JR Hakodate Station. An obscure local nickname of the bumpy mountain is ''Gagyūzan'' (Mount Cow's Back), alluding to the way the mountain resembles a resting cow. The former

fort is now used in as a public park and is popular in Hokkaido for ''

hanami is the Japanese traditional custom of enjoying the transient beauty of flowers; in this case almost always refer to those of the or, less frequently, trees. From the end of March to early May, cherry trees bloom all over Japan, and around ...

'' (cherry blossom viewing). Since April 2006, the park has also featured the tall, white Goryōkaku Tower. Resembling an air traffic control tower, the structure offers a panoramic view of the park, including mainland Japan across the

Tsugaru Strait The is a strait between Honshu and Hokkaido in northern Japan connecting the Sea of Japan with the Pacific Ocean. It was named after the western part of Aomori Prefecture. The Seikan Tunnel passes under it at its narrowest point 12.1 miles (1 ...

on clear days.

Nearby cities and towns

* Hokuto to the west * Nanae to the north * Shikabe to the north east

Mountains

Mount E is an active stratovolcano of the Kameda peninsula, which is itself part of the larger Oshima Peninsula. It is in the rural, eastern region of Hakodate, Hokkaidō, Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan. Mount E is part of Esan Prefectural Natural Park. Ge ...

(): Hokkaido's southernmost volcano * Mount Hakodate ()

Rivers

* * *

Cityscape

Hakodate has a cityscape that covers the center of the Kameda peninsula. A narrow land area separates Hakodate Bay to the west from

in the south-east side. It is best viewed from the top of Mount Hakodate.

Demographics

The population of Hakodate increased by 402% from 28,825 to 144,749 between 1873 till 1920. Hakodate's population peaked in 1980 at 320,154, but has been gradually in decline due to aging since then.

Climate

According to the

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 ...

, Hakodate's climate is

humid continental A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

(''Dfb'') of warm summer and winters with regular intense

blizzard A blizzard is a severe snowstorm characterized by strong sustained winds and low visibility, lasting for a prolonged period of time—typically at least three or four hours. A ground blizzard is a weather condition where snow is not falling b ...

s. With an alternate definition, using the isotherm, Hakodate falls in the rare

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...

(''Cfb'') of the east coast of the continents due to the warm current of Tsushima. The warmest month has an average temperature of . And so the city is the limit of hot summer climates for a city on the immediate coast in

(''Cfa''/''Dfa''), although appearing in other interior regions of the province. Hakodate has snowy winters and warm, humid summers. Winters are cold for the latitude but milder than much of Hokkaido. Hakodate features four distinct seasons. The city sees a substantial amount of snowfall during the course of the year, averaging roughly of snow annually. Spring typically begins with some snowfall, but sees a gradual warming trend as the season progress. Summers are generally warm but not hot, with average high temperatures in the warmest month (August) hovering around . Fall initially is warm but becomes increasingly colder as the season progress. It is not uncommon to see snowfall in the latter parts of the fall season.

Economy

Prior to its dissolution,

Air Hokkaido was an airline based in Hakodate, Hokkaidō, Japan.会社案内
" ''Air Hokkaido''. ...

was headquartered in Hakodate. In January 2006, the regional airline

Airtransse was an airline headquartered in the Shinjuku, Tokyo, Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan.会社概要
" ''Airtransse''. Retrieved on M ...

was headquartered in Hakodate.

Culture and landmarks

In Funami-cho stands the Koryu-ji temple. It's the oldest Buddhist temple (affiliated with the Soto school) in the region which was built in 1633. It was badly damaged during the

and moved to its current location in 1879. The existing main building was built in 1900. The city is well known for seafood and

sushi is a Japanese cuisine, Japanese dish of prepared , usually with some sugar and salt, accompanied by a variety of , such as seafood, often raw, and vegetables. Styles of sushi and its presentation vary widely, but the one key ingredient is " ...

. Hakodate shio

ramen is a Japanese dish, Japanese noodle dish. It consists of served in a broth; common flavors are soy sauce and miso, with typical toppings including , nori (dried seaweed), menma (bamboo shoots), and scallions. Ramen has its roots in Chinese ...

is also a famous speciality of the city. Shio (salt) ramen has a pale, clear, broth made with plenty of salt and any combination of chicken, pork bone, vegetables, fish, and

seaweed Seaweed, or macroalgae, refers to thousands of species of macroscopic, multicellular, marine algae. The term includes some types of '' Rhodophyta'' (red), ''Phaeophyta'' (brown) and ''Chlorophyta'' (green) macroalgae. Seaweed species such as ...

. On a similar note, Hakodate's city fish is the squid. Hakodate is famous for the restaurant Ikkatei Tabiji, which serves a dish called "dancing squid": - a recently deceased squid is served with soy sauce, the sodium of which causes a

cadaveric spasm Cadaveric spasm, also known as postmortem spasm, instantaneous rigor mortis, cataleptic rigidity, or instantaneous rigidity, is a rare form of muscular stiffening that occurs at the moment of death and persists into the period of rigor mortis. Cad ...

when poured over the squid. Every year (August) the city gets together for the Hakodate Port Festival. Hordes of citizens gather in the streets to dance a wiggly dance known as the ''Ika-odori'' (Squid Dance), the name of which describes the dance appropriately. The glowing lights of squid-catching boats can be seen in the waters surrounding the city. The bell of Haristos Orthodox Church is one of the

100 Soundscapes of Japan In 1996, as part of its efforts to combat noise pollution and to protect and promote protection of the environment, the Ministry of the Environment designated the . There were 738 submissions received from all over the country and the 100 "best" we ...

. The Hakodate Fish Market (otherwise known as the Ashaichi or Morning Market) is a 10-minute walk from the JR Hakodate Station. It is open daily and boasts hundreds of fish and sea food stands in addition to restaurants. Popular fares include sea urchin and calamari, the famous Japanese snow crab from the famous Hokkaido waters. * Hakodate Hachiman Shrine * Mt. Hakodate Ropeway *

Hakodate City Museum is a museum of history and natural history in Hakodate Park, Hakodate, Hokkaidō, Japan. The forerunner of the current museum, the Hakodate Provisional Museum, building one, opened in May 1879, the second building in 1884, and the third buildi ...

Hakodate City Museum of Literature The opened in Hakodate, Hokkaidō, Japan in 1993. It exhibits materials relating to Ishikawa Takuboku and other contributors to the Hakodate literary scene. The building in which the museum is housed was constructed in 1921 as the Hakodate Bra ...

Hakodate City Museum of Northern Peoples first opened as the in Hakodate, Hokkaidō, Japan in 1989. Located in the former Bank of Japan Hakodate Branch building of 1926, after the transfer out of materials relating to the poet to the , the museum reopened in its current guise in Ap ...

Hakodate Museum of Art, Hokkaido opened in Hakodate, Hokkaidō, Japan in 1986. The collection focuses on works from southern Hokkaidō, including paintings by Kakizaki Hakyō and calligraphy by , and special exhibitions are also mounted. See also * Hakodate City Museum * Ha ...

Hakodate Jōmon Culture Center opened in Hakodate, Hokkaidō, Japan in 2011. It has four exhibition rooms dedicated to the Jōmon period, displaying some 1,200 pieces of earthenware and stoneware excavated in Hakodate as well as the only National Treasure in Hokkaidō, the ...

* Hakodate Park * Shinori-date *

Shiryōkaku (literally, "four-point fort") is a fort in the city of Hakodate in southern Hokkaidō, Japan. It was constructed in April 1869, during the Battle of Hakodate, three kilometres to the northeast of Goryōkaku by two hundred soldiers of the former T ...

* Virgin of the Angel Trappistine Monastery

Transportation

Hakodate Transportation Bureau type 9600 tramcar

Hakodate Transportation Bureau The is a public transport authority in Hakodate, Japan. The bureau currently operates only trams, although until 2003 it also ran a number of bus routes. The , a private horsecar operating company, opened Hakodate's first tramway line in 1897. ...

operates

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...

( Light rail) lines. The

opened in March 2016. It currently runs to

Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station is a railway station on the Hakodate Main Line in Hokuto, Hokkaido, Japan, operated by the Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido). The station – rebuilt and very extensively enlarged to serve from March 2016 as the northern terminal of the new ...

through the

from

Shin-Aomori Station is a railway station in the city of Aomori, Aomori Prefecture, Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) and the Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido). Lines Shin-Aomori Station is the northern terminus of the Ōu Main Line ...

. The new terminal is away from Hakodate Station. There are plans to extend the Hokkaido Shinkansen north to

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 ...

by 2030. *

JR Hokkaido The is one of the constituent companies of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group), and is often referred to using its official abbreviation of . It operates intercity and local rail services in Hokkaido, Japan. The company introduced Kitaca, a sm ...

station **

Hakodate Main Line The is a railway line connecting the cities of Hakodate and Asahikawa via Sapporo in Hokkaido, Japan. It is one of the trunk lines operated by the Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido). The Sawara Line, a 35 km loop line from Ōnuma to Mo ...

Hakodate Station is a railway station on the Hakodate Main Line in Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan, operated by the Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido). Lines *South Hokkaido Railway Company Dōnan Isaribi Tetsudō Line (Normally ends at Goryōkaku, but trains g ...

Goryōkaku Station is a railway station on the Hakodate Main Line and South Hokkaido Railway Line in Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan, operated by Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido) and South Hokkaido Railway Company. The station is named after Goryōkaku fort, locat ...

- Kikyō Station **

South Hokkaido Railway Company The is a third-sector railway company based in Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan. Ownership of the stock is shared in the following proportions: *Hokkaido Prefecture 80%; * Hokuto City 11.2%; *Hakodate City 4.4%; * Kikonai Town 4.4%. Dōnan Isarib ...

: Goryōkaku Station *

Hakodate Airport is an airport located eastAIS Japan
of

Port of Hakodate The is one of the main ports in northern Japan, located in Hakodate, on the northern island of Hokkaido. References External links Hakodate Port Authority Hakodate is a city and port located in Oshima Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It ...

Hokkaido Expressway is Japan, Japan's Japanese archipelago, second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost Prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own List of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; th ...

Education

Universities

National *

Hokkaido University , or , is a Japanese national university in Sapporo, Hokkaido. It was the fifth Imperial University in Japan, which were established to be the nation's finest institutions of higher education or research. Hokkaido University is considered ...

, Hakodate Campus *

Hokkaido University of Education is a national public university administered by the government of Japan. It has five campuses in Hokkaido, Japan. The main campus is on the outskirts of Sapporo, the capital of Hokkaido. Hokkaido University of Education, Sapporo (HUES) is the la ...

, Hakodate Campus Public * Future University Hakodate Private *

Hakodate University is a private university in Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan, established in 1965. The predecessor of the school was founded in 1938. The Faculty of Commerce is the university's only faculty, and consists of three courses: Business Management, Market Cre ...

Hakodate Junior College is a private junior college in the city of Hakodate, Hokkaidō, Japan. It was established in 1953. It currently consists of two departments. The campus is across the street from Hakodate University is a private university in Hakodate, Hokka ...

Hakodate Otani College is a private junior college in Hakodate, Hokkaido, 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 ...

* Russia Kyokutou University Hakodate school

Colleges

National * Hakodate National College of Technology

High schools

Public

Hokkaido Hakodate Chubu High School Hokkaido Hakodate Chubu High School (北海道函館中部高等学校, ''Hokkaidō Hakodate Chūbu Kōtō Gakkō'') is a high school in Hakodate, Hokkaidō, Japan, founded in 1895. Hokkaido Hakodate Chubu High School is one of the high schools a ...

* Hokkaido Hakodate Nishi High School * Hokkaido Hakodate Ryohoku High School * Hokkaido Hakodate Technical High School * Hokkaido Hakodate Commercial High School * Hokkaido Minamikayabe High School * Hokkaido Toi High School * Hakodate City High School

Private

Hakodate La Salle Junior High School & Senior High School is a combined junior and senior high school in Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan. History Hakodate La Salle Senior High School was established in Hakodate in 1960. Hakodate La Salle Junior High School was established in 1999. Notable alumni *Masanori ...

* Hakodate Shirayuri Gakuen Junior High School & Senior High School * Hakodate Otani High School * Iai Joshi Women's Academy * Otsuma High School * Seisho Gakuin High School * Hakuryo High School affiliated with Hakodate University * Yuto High School affiliated with Hakodate University

Sister cities

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348,634 people in its urban area. The ...

, Canada (since 1982) *

Vladivostok Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Zolotoy Rog, Golden Horn Bay on the Sea ...

Primorsky Krai Primorsky Krai (russian: Приморский край, r=Primorsky kray, p=prʲɪˈmorskʲɪj kraj), informally known as Primorye (, ), is a federal subject (a krai) of Russia, located in the Far East region of the country and is a part of the ...

, Russia (since 1992) *

City of Lake Macquarie The City of Lake Macquarie is a local government area in Greater Newcastle and part of the Hunter Region in New South Wales, Australia. It was proclaimed a city from 7 September 1984. The area is situated adjacent to the city of Newcastle and is ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, Australia (since 1992) *

Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk ( rus, Ю́жно-Сахали́нск, a=Ru-Южно-Сахалинск.ogg, p=ˈjuʐnə səxɐˈlʲinsk, literally "South Sakhalin City") is a city on Sakhalin island, and the administrative center of Sakhalin Oblast, Russia. I ...

Sakhalin Oblast Sakhalin Oblast ( rus, Сахали́нская о́бласть, r=Sakhalínskaya óblast', p=səxɐˈlʲinskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast) comprising the island of Sakhalin and the K ...

, Russia (since 1997) *

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

, since 1992 (Treaty of Friendship) *

Tianjin Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popul ...

, China (since 2001) *

Goyang Goyang (''Goyang-si''; ) is a city in Gyeonggi Province in the north of South Korea. It is part of the Seoul Capital Area, making Goyang one of Seoul's satellite cities. It is one of the largest cities in the Seoul Capital Area, with a populatio ...

Gyeonggi-do Gyeonggi-do (, ) is the most populous province in South Korea. Its name, ''Gyeonggi'', means "京 (the capital) and 畿 (the surrounding area)". Thus, ''Gyeonggi-do'' can be translated as "Seoul and the surrounding areas of Seoul". Seoul, the na ...

, South Korea (since 2011)

Notable people

Kazuo Ohno was a Japanese dancer who became a guru and inspirational figure in the dance form known as Butoh. He is the author of several books on Butoh, including ''The Palace Soars through the Sky'', ''Dessin'', ''Words of Workshop'', and ''Food for the ...

, Butoh dancer *

Saburō Kitajima is a Japanese enka singer, lyricist, actor and composer. Background He was born Minoru Ōno (大野穣), in Shiriuchi, Hokkaidō, to a fisherman. He was very poor due to the effects of World War II, and was forced to work while he studied. ...

, singer *

Glay Glay (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese rock band, formed in Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan, in 1988. Glay primarily composes songs in the rock and pop genres, but they have also arranged songs using elements from a wide variety of genres, includi ...

, rock/pop band *

Juran Hisao was the pen-name of a Japanese author of popular fiction in Shōwa period Japan. Hisao Jūran was a pioneer in the use of black humor in Japanese literature. His works reflect his extensive knowledge of a wide range of subjects, and displayed ext ...

, mystery writer *

Kōhan Kawauchi (February 26, 1920 – April 6, 2008), also known as Yasunori Kawauchi, was a Japanese screenwriter who created various tokusatsu series, including the first, ''Moonlight Mask'', in 1958. He was originally from Hakodate, Hokkaido. His series ''W ...

, screenwriter *

Hidemi Kon was a literary critic and essayist active in Japan during the Shōwa period. Early life Born in Hakodate, Hokkaidō, Kon Hidemi was the younger brother of writer, politician and Buddhist priest Kon Tōkō. His father was a captain of a steamer o ...

, literary critic *

Naoko Matsui is a Japanese voice actress and narrator from Hakodate, Hokkaido. Matsui was a member of Production Baobab for 20 years before becoming a freelancer. Matsui is most notable for the roles of Uru Chie in ''High School! Kimengumi'', Rem Ayanokōji ...

, voice actress *

Kogo Noda was a Japanese screenwriter most famous for collaborating with Yasujirō Ozu on many of the director's films. Born in Hakodate, Noda was the son of the head of the local tax bureau and younger brother to Kyūho, a Nihonga painter. He moved to Na ...

, screenwriter *

Hideko Takamine was a Japanese actress who began as a child actress and maintained her fame in a career that spanned 50 years. She is particularly known for her collaborations with directors Mikio Naruse and Keisuke Kinoshita, with ''Twenty-Four Eyes'' (1954) ...

, actress * Yuki, musician (Real Name: Yuki Kuramochi,

Nihongo is spoken natively by about 128 million people, primarily by Japanese people and primarily in Japan, the only country where it is the national language. Japanese belongs to the Japonic languages, Japonic or Japanese-Ryukyuan languages, Ryukyu ...

: 倉持有希, ''Kuramochi Yuki'') *

Great Kojika , known by his ring name , is a Japanese professional wrestler. He co-founded the promotion Big Japan Pro Wrestling (BJW). Kojika is the oldest active Japanese wrestler as well as the one with the longest career, having debuted in 1963. He is als ...

, Japanese professional wrestler, founder and chairman of

Big Japan Pro Wrestling (BJW) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established in 1995. It is most famous for its deathmatch style contests. History Big Japan Pro Wrestling was founded in March 1995 by former AJPW wrestlers Shinya Kojika and Kendo Nagasak ...

(Real Name: Shinya Koshika,

: 小鹿信也, ''Koshika Shinya'') *

Menso-re Oyaji , is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working under the name for All Japan Pro Wrestling where he is a former four-time Gaora TV Champion. He was previously known as the similar masked character , under which he performed for several ...

, Japanese professional wrestler (Real Name: Yohei Nakajima,

: 中島洋平, ''Nakajima Yōhei'')

References

External links

Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hakodate, Hokkaido Populated places established in the 1450s Cities in Hokkaido Port settlements in Japan Populated coastal places in Japan Capitals of former nations 1454 establishments in Asia 1450s establishments in Japan