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 Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Gifu Prefecture has a population of 1,991,390 () and has a geographic area of . Gifu Prefecture borders Toyama Prefecture to the north; Ishikawa Prefecture to the northwest, F ...

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 88,473 in 35,644 households, 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. The total area of the city was making it the largest city by area in Japan. The high altitude and separation from other areas of Japan kept the area fairly isolated, allowing Takayama to develop its own culture over about a 300-year period.

Etymology

The city is popularly known as in reference to the old

Hida Province was a province of Japan in the area that is today the northern portion of Gifu Prefecture in the Chūbu region of Japan. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Wakasa''" in . Hida bordered on Echizen, Mino, Shinano, Etchū, and Kaga Provinc ...

to differentiate it from other places named Takayama. The name 'Takayama' means 'tall mountain'.

Geography

Takayama is located in northern Gifu Prefecture, in the heart of the

Japanese Alps The is a series of mountain ranges in Japan which bisect the main island of Honshu. The peaks that tower over central Honshu have long been the object of veneration and pilgrimage. These mountains had long been exploited by local people for raw m ...

Mount Hotakadake , also known as Mount Hotakadake, is one of the 100 Famous Japanese Mountains as coined by the media, reaching a height of . Mount Hotaka is situated in Japan's Hida Mountains and all its major peaks except Mount Maehotaka, lie on the border b ...

is the highest point in the city at . The city has the largest geographic area of any municipality in Japan.

Neighbouring municipalities

*Gifu Prefecture ** Hida ** Gujō **

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 ...

** Shirakawa *

Nagano Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Nagano Prefecture has a population of 2,052,493 () and has a geographic area of . Nagano Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture to the north, Gunma Prefecture to the ...

** Ōmachi **

Matsumoto Matsumoto (松本 or 松元, "base of the pine tree") may refer to: Places * Matsumoto, Nagano (松本市), a city ** Matsumoto Airport, an airport southwest of Matsumoto, Nagano * Matsumoto, Kagoshima (松元町), a former town now part of the c ...

** Kiso *

Toyama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Toyama Prefecture has a population of 1,044,588 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,247.61 km2 (1,640.01 sq mi). Toyama Prefecture borders Ishikawa Prefecture to the ...

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, ...

Ishikawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu island. Ishikawa Prefecture has a population of 1,140,573 (31 October 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,186 km2 (1,616 sq mi). Ishikawa Prefecture borders Toyama Prefecture to ...

** Hakusan *

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 * ...

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 ...

''Dfa''). The average annual temperature in Takayama 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 . It features four distinct seasons with a wide range of temperatures between the summer and winter, somewhat resembling parts of northern Japan and

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 ...

. Takayama is part of the with snowfall most days throughout the winter season. Takayama and many other places exposed to 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, it h ...

experience

lake-effect snow Lake-effect snow is produced during cooler atmospheric conditions when a cold air mass moves across long expanses of warmer lake water. The lower layer of air, heated up by the lake water, picks up water vapor from the lake and rises up through ...

, generating some of the highest, most consistent snowfall in the world. Spring is short-lived, usually dry with mild temperatures and plenty of sunshine.

Cherry blossom A cherry blossom, also known as Japanese cherry or sakura, is a flower of many trees of genus ''Prunus'' or ''Prunus'' subg. ''Cerasus''. They are common species in East Asia, including China, Korea and especially in Japan. They generally ...

s can be seen in Takayama from the middle to the end of April, around three weeks later than Nagoya. Summer begins around the end of May to the beginning of June. It is humid and wet with the arrival of the , receiving high rainfall amounts. It then yields to a hotter and generally less humid end to the summer with daytime temperatures usually higher than and occasionally higher than coupled with strong sunshine. Autumn approaches during the middle of October and is short and dry. and cool with diminishing sunlight. Colorful can be seen in the Takayama area from the end of October to the first week of November. Winter arrives around the beginning of December and is moderately long, cold, and icy with high amounts of snowfall annually amounting to an average of commonly leading to the development of snowbanks in the outer areas of the city. The first snowfall usually arrives at the end of November and lasts until the beginning of April. Yearly low temperatures in the city center drop as low as and occasionally fail to reach above freezing point during the day.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Takayama population statistics
/ref> the population of Takayama peaked around the year 2000 and has declined since.

History

The area around Takayama was part of traditional

and was settled as far back as the

Jōmon period The is the time in Japanese history, traditionally dated between 6,000–300 BCE, during which Japan was inhabited by a diverse hunter-gatherer and early agriculturalist population united through a common Jōmon culture, which reached a c ...

. During the

Sengoku period The was a period in History of Japan, Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615. The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the Feudalism, feudal system of Japan under the ...

Kanamori Nagachika was a Japanese samurai who lived from the Sengoku period into the early Edo period. He was the first ruler of the Kanamori clan and served as a retainer of the Oda, Toyotomi, and Tokugawa clans. Later in his life, he also became a ''daimyō'' ...

ruled the area from

Takayama Castle was a Japanese castle located in the city of Takayama, Gifu, Takayama, Gifu Prefecture, Japan. The castle was built on a mountain nearly in height and had many typical castle features, including a stone base, earthen walls and a surrounding moat ...

and the town of Takayama developed as a

castle town A castle town is a settlement built adjacent to or surrounding a castle. Castle towns were common in Medieval Europe. Some examples include small towns like Alnwick and Arundel, which are still dominated by their castles. In Western Europe, ...

. 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 ...

, the area was ''

tenryō 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 ...

'' under the direct control of 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 ...

. In 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,

Ōno District 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 * � ...

in Gifu prefecture was created, and the town of Takayama was established in 1889 with the creation of the modern municipalities system. At the time, it was the most populous municipality in Gifu Prefecture. On November 1, 1936, Takayama merged with the town of Onada, forming the city of Takayama. Takayama annexed the village of Josue in 1943 and the village of Ohachiga in 1955. On February 1, 2005, the town of Kuguno and the villages of

Asahi Asahi (朝日, 旭, or あさひ) means "morning sun" in Japanese and may refer to: Cities * Asahi, Chiba (旭市; ''Asahi-shi'') Wards * Asahi-ku, Osaka (旭区; ''Asahi-ku'') * Asahi-ku, Yokohama (旭; ''Asahi-ku'') Towns * Asahi, Aichi (旭� ...

Kiyomi (''Citrus unshiu'' × '' sinensis'') is a Japanese citrus fruit that is a hybrid of a ''Miyagawa Wase'' mikan and an orange. The new breed was the first tangor created in Japan in 1949. It was named Kiyomi after the temple and the lagoon near ...

, Miya, Nyūkawa, Shōkawa, and Takane (all from

), the town of

Kokufu are the capitals of the historical Provinces of Japan. History As part of the Taika Reform (645) which aimed at a centralization of the administration following the Chinese model (''ritsuryō''), the kokufu and with it the office of the kokush ...

, and the village of Kamitakara (both from Yoshiki District) were created to merge and expanded city of Takayama. This made Takayama both the largest city and largest municipality in Japan by area.

Government

Takayama 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 legislature of 24 members.

Economy

The economy of Takayama is strongly based on tourism, agriculture, and woodworking.

Education

Colleges and universities

Gifu University is a national university in the city of Gifu, Gifu Prefecture, Japan. It is sometimes abbreviated as Gidai (岐大) or Gifudai (岐阜大). National University Corporation The Tokai National Higher Education and Research System establishe ...

– Takayama Watershed Area Science Research Centre *

Kyoto University , mottoeng = Freedom of academic culture , established = , type = National university, Public (National) , endowment = ¥ 316 billion (2.4 1000000000 (number), billion USD) , faculty = 3,480 (Teaching Staff) , administrative_staff ...

– Hida Observatory *

Nagoya University , abbreviated to or NU, is a Japanese national research university located in Chikusa-ku, Nagoya. It was the seventh Imperial University in Japan, one of the first five Designated National University and selected as a Top Type university of T ...

– Takayama Earthquake Observatory

Primary and secondary education

Takayama has 19 public elementary schools and 12 public middle schools operated by the city government. The city has three public high schools operated by the Gifu Prefectural Board of Education, and one private high school.

Transportation

Railway

JR Tōkai –

Takayama Main Line The is a Japanese railway line between Gifu Station in Gifu and Toyama Station in Toyama, operated by Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) and West Japan Railway Company (JR West). The line directly links the Chūkyō Metropolitan Area (m ...

* – – – – – –

Highway

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 ...

* Chūbu-Jūkan Expressway * * * * * * *

Sister city relations

In Japan

(est. November 1, 1971) *

Hiratsuka 260px, Hiratsuka City Hall is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 257,316 and a population density of 3800 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Hiratsuka is located in ...

Kanagawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-densest at . Its geographic area of makes it fifth-smallest. Kana ...

(est. October 22, 1982) * Echizen,

(est. October 22, 1982) *

Kaminoyama 250px, Hayama neighborhood in Kaminoyama is a city located in Yamagata Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 29,617 in 11278 households, and a population density of 120 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . G ...

Yamagata Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Yamagata Prefecture has a population of 1,079,950 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 9,325 km² (3,600 sq mi). Yamagata Prefecture borders Akita Prefecture to the north, ...

(est. October 13, 1988)

Overseas

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

, United States (est. June 27, 1960) *

Lijiang Lijiang (), also known as Likiang, is a prefecture-level city in the northwest of Yunnan Province, China. It has an area of and had a population of 1,253,878 at the 2020 census whom 288,787 lived in the built-up area (metro) made of Gucheng ...

Yunnan Yunnan , () is a landlocked Provinces of China, province in Southwest China, the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is ...

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

friendship city (est. March 21, 2002) *

Kunming Kunming (; ), also known as Yunnan-Fu, is the capital and largest city of Yunnan province, China. It is the political, economic, communications and cultural centre of the province as well as the seat of the provincial government. The headquar ...

friendship city (est. April 23, 2012) *

Sibiu Sibiu ( , , german: link=no, Hermannstadt , la, Cibinium, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Härmeschtat'', hu, Nagyszeben ) is a city in Romania, in the historical region of Transylvania. Located some north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles the Ci ...

, Romania, friendship city (est. September 4, 2012) * Urubamba,

Cusco Cusco, often spelled Cuzco (; qu, Qusqu ()), is a city in Southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the list of cities in Peru, seventh m ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

friendship city (est. August 22, 2013)

Local attractions

This city was selected as one of the top ten travel destinations in Asia by Lonely Planet Magazine in the year 2017. *Mount Norikura, a dormant volcano that is tall is east of Takayama. A bus takes visitors to a point near the summit. *Shin-Hotaka Ropeway and Okuhida Spa Resort: There is a 3,200-meter ropeway offering great views of the Northern Alps. *There are old homes in the heart of Takayama that are cultural artifacts. *Takayama has multiple morning markets near the river in the center of town. *The

Hida Minzoku Mura Folk Village is an open-air museum of close to 30 old farmhouses illustrating the traditional architectural styles of the mountainous regions of Japan. Of particular interest are the thatched and shingled roofs, such as the ''gasshō-zukuri''-styled building ...

is nearby. *Takayama is the home of one of the three largest Shinto festivals in Japan. The

Takayama Festival The in Takayama in Japan started in the 16th to 17th century.Lo, P. (n.d.) Japan guide: Takayama and Gero onsen. Retrieved on August 06, 2009. From http://www.yamasa.org/japan/english/destinations/gifu/takayama.html The festivals are believed to ...

s are two distinctive festivals. The yatai (floats) used can be found in the Takayama Yatai Kaikan (Takayama Festival Float Exhibition Hall). Nearby is the Sakurayama Nikkō Kan, an exhibit of 1/10 scale replicas of Nikkō's famous Tōshō-gū shrine. *Takayama-shi Kyodo-kan is a local history museum with handicrafts and traditional items. *

Takayama Jin'ya The is a surviving Edo period ''jin'ya'' which served as the Daikansho for Hida Province under the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan from 1692 to 1871. It is located in what is now Hachiken-machi of the city of Takayama in Gifu Prefecture. It has been ...

is a historical government house and National Historic Site *Kusakabe Folk Museum is a local museum in an old merchant's home. *

Hida Kokubun-ji is a Shingon-sect Buddhist temple in the Sowamachi neighborhood of the city of Takayama, Gifu, Japan. It is one of the few surviving provincial temples established by Emperor Shōmu during the Nara period (710 – 794). Due to this connectio ...

, founded in the

Nara period The of the history of Japan covers the years from CE 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the cap ...

as the

provincial temple were Buddhist temples established in each of the provinces of Japan by Emperor Shōmu during the Nara period (710 – 794). History Shōmu (701 – 756?) decreed both a ''kokubun-ji'' for monks and a for nuns to be established in each ...

of Hida, it is the oldest structure in Takayama. It has a three-level pagoda and stands beside a

ginkgo ''Ginkgo'' is a genus of non-flowering seed plants. The scientific name is also used as the English name. The order to which it belongs, Ginkgoales, first appeared in the Permian, 270 million years ago, and is now the only living genus within ...

tree that is over 1,200 years old. *Ankokuji Temple and Storehouse is an ancient structure from 1408 that is recognized as a national treasure. *Hida Takayama Kur Alp (Hida Takayama Spa Land) is a large public bath and swimming area. *World shrine to ''Su-God'', the worldwide headquarters of

Sukyo Mahikari Sukyo Mahikari ("Sukyo" means universal principles and "Mahikari" means True Light) is an organization with centers in more than 100 countries. The stated aim of the organization is to help people improve the quality of their lives and attain ha ...

organization * Hida Tōshō-gū shrine * Akahogi Tile Kiln Site, a National Historic Site *

Dōnosora Site The is an archaeological site and the ruins of an early to middle Jōmon period settlement in the Kugono neighborhood of the city of Takayama, Gifu in the Chūbu region of Japan. The ruins were designated a National Historic Site of Japan in ...

, ruins of a

village, a National Historic Site Hotakadake Takayama01j3872.jpg, Hida Mountains Takayama-02.jpg, Miyagawa River Takaantiqueshop.jpg, A crafts shop Hommachi Street Shopping Area in Takayama at dusk 20150123-2.JPG, Hommachi shopping street Takamarket.jpg, A traditional shopping street Nakabashi's Snowy Autumn.JPG, Nakabashi's early season snowfall Hida Takayama folk village.JPG, Hida-no-Sato folk village in autumn Takayama Jinya.jpg, Takayama Jinya Maison Kusakabe.jpg, Kusakabe House Quartier Higashiyama, Takayama.jpg, Higashiyama temple area Takayamarik.jpg, A rickshaw in Takayama Sushi, Hida Beef.jpg, A beef sushi, one of popular foods for tourists Hirayu onsen05s3872.jpg, Hirayu onsen

Onsen tamago ''Onsen tamago'' ( ja, 温泉卵 or , lit. 'hot spring egg') is a traditional Japanese low temperature egg which is slow cooked in the hot waters of ''onsen'' in Japan. The egg has a unique texture in that the white tastes like a delicate custar ...

Hirayu onsen04s3200.jpg, Hirayu onsen Hirayu onsen03s3872.jpg, Hirayu onsen Takayama Matsuri-2017-2.jpg, Presentation of floats during Sannō Matsuri World Shrine of Sukyo Mahikari.jpg, World Shrine of Sukyo Mahikari

Culture

*Takayama is known for its local foods, including sansai (mountain vegetables), wasakana (river fish), beef, soba, ramen, and sake. *In addition to its fame for its carpentry, Takayama is well known for its lacquerware, pottery, and furniture. *The mountain city of Takayama is associated with

charms Charm may refer to: Social science * Charisma, a person or thing's pronounced ability to attract others * Superficial charm, flattery, telling people what they want to hear Science and technology * Charm quark, a type of elementary particle * Cha ...

known as " sarubobos", which are traditionally passed from grandmothers to grandchildren and mothers to daughters, though are now often sold as souvenirs. The city and the Hida area are also known for carpentry, and its carpenters are called ''Hida no takumi''. *Around the east of the city is a tour, called the , which goes past many shrines and temples to . *Takayama holds two festivals every year, in spring and in autumn. These festivals are among the most popular in Japan. *Takayama was the basis for the settings in the anime series ''

Hyōka is a 2001 Japanese mystery novel written by Honobu Yonezawa. It is the first volume of the series. Five additional volumes have been published between 2002 and 2016. A manga adaptation drawn by Taskohna began serialization in the March 2 ...

'', adapted from

Honobu Yonezawa is a Japanese writer, best known for his young adult mystery series '' Kotenbu'', also known as the ''Classic Literature Club'' series. Biography Honobu Yonezawa was born in 1978 in the Gifu Prefecture. From as young as he could remember, Y ...

's ''Classic Literature Club'' series. Designs of the fictional city of Kamiyama are based on Takayama.

References

External links

Takayama City official website

Hida official website
(Japanese, English, Italian, Russian, Thai, Portuguese, Chinese, Korean, Spanish, French and German)
Gifu crossroads (official blog about tourism in Gifu)
(English)
hirayuonsen
{{Authority control Cities in Gifu Prefecture