250px, Izura coast of Kitaibaraki
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 ...
in
Ibaraki Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Ibaraki Prefecture has a population of 2,871,199 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Ibaraki Prefecture borders Fukushima Prefecture to the north, ...
,
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 41,750 in 17,034 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 220 persons per km². The percentage of the population aged over 65 was 34.6%.
The total area of the city is .
Geography
Kitaibaraki is in northern Ibaraki Prefecture, bounded by
Fukushima Prefecture
Fukushima Prefecture (; ja, 福島県, Fukushima-ken, ) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Fukushima Prefecture has a population of 1,810,286 () and has a geographic area of . Fukushima Prefecture borders Miya ...
to the north and the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
to the east. As its name implies, it is the northernmost city within Ibaraki. Approximately 80% of the total area is mountainous forest. The eastern region is low ground facing the ocean with spacious open flatland along the Okita and Satone Rivers. It is approximately 57 kilometers to the northeast of
Mito
Mito may refer to:
Places
*Mito, Ibaraki, capital city of Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan
*Mito, Aichi, a Japanese town
*Mito, Shimane, a Japanese town
* Mitō, Yamaguchi, a Japanese town
* Mito District, a district in the province of Concepción, Per ...
, the prefectural capital.
Surrounding municipalities
Ibaraki Prefecture
*
Takahagi
Fukushima Prefecture
Fukushima Prefecture (; ja, 福島県, Fukushima-ken, ) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Fukushima Prefecture has a population of 1,810,286 () and has a geographic area of . Fukushima Prefecture borders Miya ...
*
Iwaki
*
Samegawa
*
Hanawa
is a Japanese singer and comedian raised in Saga City. He plays the bass guitar. He rose to fame in Japan for a comical song about Saga Prefecture and its oddities.
TV commercials
* Yukiguni Maitake bean sprouts
Sprouting is the natural ...
Climate
Kitaibaraki has a
Humid continental climate
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 ...
(Köppen ''Cfa'') characterized by warm summers and cold winters with heavy snowfall. The average annual temperature in Kitaibaraki is 13.0 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1435 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 24.2 °C, and lowest in January, at around 2.9 °C.
Demographics
Per Japanese census data, the population of Kitaibaraki has fluctuated somewhat over the past 70 years.
History
Under the ''
ritsuryō
, , is the historical law system based on the philosophies of Confucianism and Chinese Legalism in Japan. The political system in accord to Ritsuryō is called "Ritsuryō-sei" (律令制). ''Kyaku'' (格) are amendments of Ritsuryō, ''Shiki'' ( ...
'' system, the area of Kitaibaraki was the northern tip of the
Tōkaidō region, and was part of
Hitachi Province
was an old provinces of Japan, old province of Japan in the area of Ibaraki Prefecture.Louis Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Hitachi fudoki''" in . It was sometimes called . Hitachi Province bordered on Shimōsa Province, S ...
. The towns of Otsu and Hirakata and the village of Kitanakago were created with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. The area was part of the Jōban coal fields and coal mines were developed in the early twentieth century. Kitanakago became the town of Isohara on January 1, 1925. On March 31, 1956 the towns of Otsu, Hirakata, Isohara and the villages of Sekinan, Sekimonto and Minaminakago merged to form the city of Kitaibaraki. The city suffered from serious damage caused by the
tsunami
A tsunami ( ; from ja, 津波, lit=harbour wave, ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other underwater explo ...
from the
2011 Tōhoku earthquake.
Government
Kitaibaraki 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 19 members. Kitaibaraki, together with neighboring Takahagi, contributes two members to the Ibaraki Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of
Ibaraki 5th 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
Commerce developed 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 ...
along the Tanagura highway, which was also called the 'Road of Salt'. The area flourished with ports for water transportation and coal mining began at the end of the Edo period. Kitaibaraki is now a regional commercial center with some light manufacturing. JX Nippon Mining & Metals Corporation, Nichia Steel Works, NOK Corporation and Fuso Pharmaceutical Industries have major factories in the city. The Jōban Coal Field, which was the mainstay of the economy from the
Meiji period
The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912.
The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...
to the mid-
Shōwa period
Shōwa may refer to:
* Hirohito (1901–1989), the 124th Emperor of Japan, known posthumously as Emperor Shōwa
* Showa Corporation, a Japanese suspension and shock manufacturer, affiliated with the Honda keiretsu
Japanese eras
* Jōwa (Heian ...
, closed in 1976.
Commercial fishing
Commercial fishing is the activity of catching fish and other seafood for commercial profit, mostly from wild fisheries. It provides a large quantity of food to many countries around the world, but those who practice it as an industry must often ...
from Otsu fishing port, notably for
angler fish
The anglerfish are fish of the teleost order (biology), order Lophiiformes (). They are Osteichthyes, bony fish named for their characteristic mode of predation, in which a modified luminescent Fish_fin#Ray-fins, fin ray (the esca or illicium) a ...
, is also a factor in the local economy.
Education
Kitaibaraki has 12 public elementary schools and five public middle schools operated by the city government, and one public high school operated by the Ibaraki 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 ...
–
Jōban Line
The Jōban Line ( ja, 常磐線, ) is a railway line in Japan operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The line officially begins at Nippori Station in Arakawa, Tokyo before the line officially ends at Iwanuma Station in Iwanuma, ...
* - - .
Highway
* – Kitaibaraki Interchange, Nakago Service Area, Sekimoto Parking Area
*
Sister city relations
* –
Wairoa District
Wairoa District is a Territorial authority district in the North Island of New Zealand. The Wairoa District Council is headquartered in the largest town, Wairoa. The district falls within the Hawke's Bay Region.
The district has an area of 4, ...
,
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
Local attractions
* The scenic Izura coastline is near Otsu fishing port. This area was famous for
Rokkaku-do, a six sided red house built by
Tenshin Okakura. The Tenshin Memorial Museum, with regularly updated exhibits, offers visitors a glance at various schools of Japanese art. The sound of the waves of the Izura coast are listed as 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 ...
by the Japanese
Ministry of the Environment
* Ujō Noguchi Memorial Museum
Festivals
*The ''Sasara'' of Hanazono Shrine is a ''
Shishi Mai'' (ritual dance with a lion's mask) with a 900 year-tradition. This dance can be seen yearly on May 5 at the Hanazono Shrine.
*The Ofuna-Matsuri, the seafarer's festival, is held only once every five years. The first weekend in May, the festival is a prayer for large fish catches and protection from the clutches of the sea. A decorated ship is pulled by the seamen through the town toward a Shinto shrine. It was last held in 2014.
*August 16 is the last day of
''Obon'' (festival of the dead). On this day around 6 AM, families celebrating ''Obon'' gather at Otsu Port for ''Bonbune Nagashi''. Miniature fishing boats laden with vegetables are paraded in the port, and afterwards lanterns are let out to see in order to guide home the spirits of the dead.
*The Kitaibaraki Citizen's Festival is held yearly on the last Saturday of August. There is a dance contest and fireworks.
*The 'Ujo no Sato Minato Matsuri' (port festival) is held in the beginning of November at Otsu Port. There are various cultural exhibits along with food and game stalls. There is also a demonstration of how to carve an
angler fish
The anglerfish are fish of the teleost order (biology), order Lophiiformes (). They are Osteichthyes, bony fish named for their characteristic mode of predation, in which a modified luminescent Fish_fin#Ray-fins, fin ray (the esca or illicium) a ...
.
Notable people from Kitaibaraki
*
Ujō Noguchi
was a Japanese poet and lyricist of children's songs and traditional Min'yō folk music. He wrote some of the most beloved and familiar pieces for children and youth choirs, such as "Akai Kutsu (Red Shoes)". He, along with Hakushū Kitahara, an ...
, poet, songwriter
*
Atsuko Kurusu
is a Japanese actress. She graduated from Private Tokiwa Girls High School.
Filmography
TV series
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kurusu, Atsuko
Japanese actresses
1978 births
Living people
Actors from Ibaraki Prefecture , actress
*
Takehito Kanazawa, professional baseball player
References
External links
Official Website
{{Authority control
Cities in Ibaraki Prefecture
Kitaibaraki, Ibaraki
Populated coastal places in Japan