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

Niigata Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture in the Chūbu region of Honshu of Japan. Niigata Prefecture has a population of 2,227,496 (1 July 2019) and is the List of Japanese prefectures by area, fifth-largest prefecture of Japan by geographic area ...

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 25,971 in 10,270 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 194 persons per km². The total area of the city was .

Geography

Kamo is located in an inland region of north-central Niigata Prefecture. As the city name implies, the Kamo River flows through the city. The highest elevation is the summit of Mount Awagatake at 1292 meters. The city is located roughly halfway between the two larger cities of Nagaoka and Niigata.

Surrounding municipalities

Minami-ku, Niigata is one of the eight wards of Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture, in the Hokuriku region of Japan. , the ward had an estimated population of 44,522 in 15,980 households and a population density of 440 persons per km2. The total area of the ward was ...

** Sanjō **

Gosen Gosen may refer to: *Gosen, Niigata, Japan *Gosen-Neu Zittau, Brandenburg, Germany * Gosen (Company), a Japanese manufacturer of sporting equipment *Gosen Wakashū, an ancient Japanese poetry anthology *Land of Goshen, an area in Biblical Egypt Se ...

** Tagami

Climate

Kamo has a Humid climate (Köppen ''Cfa'') characterized by warm, wet summers and cold winters with heavy snowfall. The average annual temperature in Kamo is 12.6 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1978 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.9 °C, and lowest in January, at around 0.6 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Kamo population statistics
/ref> the population of Kamo has declined steadily over the past 50 years.

History

The area of present-day Kamo was part of ancient

Echigo Province was an old province in north-central Japan, on the shores of the Sea of Japan. It bordered on Uzen, Iwashiro, Kōzuke, Shinano, and Etchū Provinces. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Echigo''" in . It corresponds today to Niigata ...

, and developed from the early

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese. ...

as settlement associated with a branch of the Kamo Shrine in Kyoto from 794 AD. The town of Kamo was established within

Kitakanbara District, Niigata is a district located in Niigata Prefecture, Japan. As of July 1, 2019, the district has an estimated population of 14,025 with a density of 373 persons per km2. The total area is 37.58 km2. Municipalities The district consists of only o ...

with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. It was elevated to city status on March 10, 1954.

Government

Kano 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 18 members.

Economy

Kamo is traditionally associated with its production of ''kiri-tansu'', a type of ''

tansu are traditional Japanese mobile storage cabinets. are commonly used for the storage of clothing, particularly kimono. were first recorded in the Genroku era (1688–1704) of the Edo period (1603–1867). The two characters, and , appear to h ...

'' chest-of-drawers made from

paulownia ''Paulownia'' ( ) is a genus of seven to 17 species of hardwood tree (depending on taxonomic authority) in the family Paulowniaceae, the order Lamiales. They are present in much of China, south to northern Laos and Vietnam and are long cultivat ...

wood. The city is also a centre for the manufacturing of electrical appliances and furniture,

Education

Colleges and universities

Niigata University of Management is a private university in Kamo, Niigata, 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, ...

Niigata Chuoh Junior College is a private junior college in Kamo, Niigata, 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 Ja ...

Primary and secondary education

Kamo has seven public elementary schools and five public middle schools operated by the city government. The city has three public high schools operated by the Niigata Prefectural Board of Education..

Transportation

Railway

JR East The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and is the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are ...

Shin'etsu Main Line The Shinetsu Main Line ( ja, 信越本線, ) is a railway line, consisting of three geographically separated sections, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) in Japan. It was originally one continuous line connecting and via . S ...

Highway

* *

Sister cities

Kamo maintains

sister city 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 ...

ties with three cities: * Ōshima,

(1968) *

Zibo Zibo (, ) is a prefecture-level city in central Shandong province, China. It borders the provincial capital Jinan to the west, Tai'an to the southwest, Linyi to the south, Weifang to the east, Dongying to the northeast, and Binzhou to the nor ...

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 since October 21, 1993 *

Komsomolsk-on-Amur Komsomolsk-on-Amur ( rus, Комсомольск-на-Амуре, r=Komsomolsk-na-Amure, p=kəmsɐˈmolʲsk nɐɐˈmurʲə) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Khabarovsk Krai, Russia, located on the west bank of the Amur Rive ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

Local attractions

Kamo is a popular place for small tour groups, especially for children in elementary school. It is advertised as a "traditional town" and sometimes referred to as the Little

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 ...

of the

Hokuetsu The was a limited express train service in Japan formerly operated by Japanese National Railways (JNR) and later by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) between and from 1970 until March 2015. Rolling stock ''Hokuetsu'' services were normall ...

region. This is because it shares certain structural features with

, being surrounded on three sides by mountains and intersected by a river. Kamo's most famous attraction is Kamoyama Park, which is home to the Aomi Jinja (Shrine) and many other sights, including a petting area for small squirrels which the town has regularly imported. The Kamo River is also the site of many city events, including the

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 retu ...

Festival in August and the Snow Camelia Festival in April. The snow camelia is a symbol of Kamo and can be seen growing in many locations around the city.

Notable people from Kamo

Hirohiko Izumida is a Japanese politician who was the Governor of Niigata Prefecture between 2004 and 2016. Personal history * September 15, 1962: Born in Kamo in Niigata Prefecture. * 1981: Graduated from Sanjo High School. * 1987: Graduated from Kyoto Univ ...

(governor of

) *

Makiko Kikuta is a Japanese politician and a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature). A native of Kamo, Niigata, she graduated from a high school in Kamo and studied in Heilongjiang University in China. After having served i ...

(politician) *

Kanako Higuchi (born December 13, 1958) is a Japanese actress. Her credits include film, television, and radio dramas, stage, commercials, and voice roles. Born in Kamo, Niigata, she played her first lead at age 20 in the television drama ''Kōrogi-bashi.'' ...

(actress) *

Shigeo Gochō Shigeo (written: 茂雄, 茂生, 茂男, 茂夫, 成雄, 成男, 重雄, 重男, 重夫, 繁雄, 繁男, 晟郎, 殖生 or 滋雄) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese photographer *, Japanese swimm ...

(Photographer) * Nobuo Kawaguchi (football player)

References

External links

Official Website
{{Authority control Cities in Niigata Prefecture