260px, Katano 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

Osaka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Osaka Prefecture has a population of 8,778,035 () and has a geographic area of . Osaka Prefecture borders Hyōgo Prefecture to the northwest, Kyoto Prefecture ...

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 77,401 in 33417 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 3000 persons per km². The total area of the city is .

Geography

Katano is located in the northeast of Osaka prefecture. Forests occupy half of the city's area, and the Amano River runs north–south in the center.

Neighboring municipalities

Osaka Prefecture * Hirakata *

Neyagawa 270px, Neyagawa Green City is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 228,802 in 111,545 households and a population density of 9,300 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Neyagaw ...

Shijōnawate 270px, Shijōnawate City Hall is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 54,969 in 246822 households and a population density of 2900 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Shi ...

Nara Prefecture * Ikoma

Climate

Katano 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 ''Cfa'') characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Katano is 13.9 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1456 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.6 °C, and lowest in January, at around 3.9 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Katano population statistics
/ref> the population of Katano has risen steadily over the past century.

History

The area of the modern city of Katano was within ancient

Kawachi Province was a province of Japan in the eastern part of modern Osaka Prefecture. It originally held the southwestern area that was split off into Izumi Province. It was also known as . Geography The area was radically different in the past, with Kawachi ...

During the

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. ...

, the hills from Katano to part of Hirakata were called "Katano ga Hara" and were a hunting ground for the imperial family and were famous for cherry blossoms. The villages of Katano and Iwafune were established within Katano District with the creation of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. On April 1, 1896, the area became part of Kitakawachi District, Osaka. The villages merged July 1, 1939 to form the town of Katano. Katano absorbed the neighboring village of Hoshida on April 1, 1955, and was elevated to city status on November 3, 1971.

Government

Katano 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 council of 15 members. Katano contributes one member to the Osaka Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Osaka 11th district of the

lower house A lower house is one of two Debate chamber, chambers of a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house. Despite its official position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has co ...

of the

Diet of Japan The is the national legislature of Japan. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives (, ''Shūgiin''), and an upper house, the House of Councillors (, '' Sangiin''). Both houses are directly elected under a paralle ...

Economy

Katano is a regional commercial center, and its economy is centered on agriculture.

Education

Katano has ten public elementary schools and four public middle schools operated by the city government and one public high school operated by the Osaka Prefectural Department of Education. There is also one private middle school and one private high school. The prefecture also operates one special education school for the handicapped.

Transportation

Railway

JR West , also referred to as , is one of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group) companies and operates in western Honshu. It has its headquarters in Kita-ku, Osaka. It is listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange, is a constituent of the TOPIX Large70 index, and ...

– Katamachi Line (Gakkentoshi Line) * - Keihan railway logo

Keihan Electric Railway -

Katano Line } The is a 6.9 km railway line in northern Osaka Prefecture, Japan, operated by the private railway company Keihan Electric Railway. It connects Hirakatashi Station on the Keihan Main Line with Kisaichi Station. Operation All trains stop ...

* - - -

Highway

Sister city relations

* Collingwood,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada - Sister city agreement concluded in 1981

Local attractions

Botanical Gardens Faculty of Science Osaka City University The are botanical gardens operated by Osaka City University. They are near the Keihan- Kisaichi Station, Katano, Osaka, Japan and open to the public. The gardens were established in 1950 and contain about 4500 species from around the world, inc ...

Notable people from Katano

Ikioi Shōta is a Japanese former professional sumo wrestler from Katano, Osaka. He began his career in March 2005. He won the ''jūryō'' championship in November 2011 in his very first tournament in the division and just two tournaments later made his ''m ...

, sumo wrestler * Erika Matsuo, violinist * Kaichi Uchida, tennis player

References

External links

*
I Love Katano
Cities in Osaka Prefecture Katano, Osaka {{Osaka-geo-stub