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

Yamaguchi Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Yamaguchi Prefecture has a population of 1,377,631 (1 February 2018) and has a geographic area of 6,112 Square kilometre, km2 (2,359 Square mile, sq mi). Y ...

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 ...

. As of September 30, 2016, 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 117,387 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 622.44 people per km². The total area is 188.59 km².

History

Hōfu (防府) means "the capital (国府) of

Suō Province was a province of Japan in the area that is today the eastern part of Yamaguchi Prefecture. It was sometimes called . Suō bordered on Aki, Iwami, and Nagato Provinces. The ancient provincial capital was in Hōfu. Suō was ruled for much o ...

(周防国)". The eastern part of Yamaguchi Prefecture was formerly called Suō Province. The city was founded on August 25, 1936. The city's change over the past fifty years is shown in the animated film

Mai Mai Miracle is a Japanese animated film based on Nobuko Takagi's novelization of her autobiography, ''Maimai Shinko''. It was produced by the animation studio Madhouse, distributed by Shochiku, and directed by Sunao Katabuchi. The film debuted at the Locar ...

, with its story taking place in the year of 1955 (with flashbacks going 1,000 years further back).

Mazda , commonly referred to as simply Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Fuchū, Hiroshima, Japan. In 2015, Mazda produced 1.5 million vehicles for global sales, the majority of which (nearly one m ...

maintains a large automobile factory in Hōfu.

Geography

Climate

Hōfu has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

(

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'') with hot summers and cool winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year, but is much higher in summer than in winter. The average annual temperature in Hōfu 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 . The highest temperature ever recorded in Hōfu was on 11 August 2013; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 22 January 2004.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Hōfu in 2020 is 113,979 people. Hōfu has been conducting censuses since 1920.

Education

Yamaguchi Junior College is a private junior college in Hōfu, Yamaguchi, 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 ...

(private junior college)

Main sightseeing spots

Hōfu Tenman-gū is a city located in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. As of September 30, 2016, the city has an estimated population of 117,387 and a population density of 622.44 people per km2. The total area is 188.59 km2. History Hōfu (防府) means "the c ...

Sports

*Hofu Keirin venue

Sister Cities

* Akitakata,

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui h ...

since July 16, 1971 *

Chuncheon Chuncheon (; ; formerly romanized as Chunchŏn; literally ''spring river'') is the capital of Gangwon Province in South Korea. The city lies in the north of the county, located in a basin formed by the Soyang River and Han River. There are some ...

, Gangwon-do,

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

since October 29, 1991 * Monroe,

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, since May 29, 1993 Twin towning with Monroe, Michigan

Notable people

Taneda Santōka Taneda (written: 種田) is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include: * (born 1986), Japanese swimmer * (born 1988), Japanese voice actress *, Japanese musician * (1882–1940), pen-name of Taneda Shōichi, Japanese writer and p ...

References

External links

Hōfu City official website

*
Oidemase Hōfu website
* Cities in Yamaguchi Prefecture Port settlements in Japan Populated coastal places in Japan {{Yamaguchi-geo-stub