The has its source in the city of Gujō,

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 ...

, and its mouth in the city of

Kuwana is a city located in Mie Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 141,045 in 60,301 households and a population density of 1000 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Kuwana is located in northern Mie Pr ...

Mie Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Mie Prefecture has a population of 1,781,948 () and has a geographic area of . Mie Prefecture is bordered by Gifu Prefecture to the north, Shiga Prefecture and Kyoto Prefecture to ...

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 ...

. Along with the

Kiso River The is a river in the Chubu region of Japan roughly long, flowing through the prefectures of Nagano, Gifu, Aichi, and Mie before emptying into Ise Bay a short distance away from the city of Nagoya.Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric ''et al.'' (2005) ...

and

Ibi River The is a tributary of the Kiso River located in Gifu and Mie Prefectures in Japan. Along with the Nagara and Kiso rivers, the Ibi is the third of the Kiso Three Rivers of the Nōbi Plain. It is one of Japan's first-class rivers. The former T ...

, the Nagara River is one of the

Kiso Three Rivers The refers to the three major rivers that make up the alluvial plain area of the Nōbi Plain of Japan. The three rivers are the Kiso River, the Ibi River and the Nagara River. Given their location, they are sometimes referred to as the Nōbi Th ...

of the Nōbi Plain. Previously, the river was named Sunomata River (墨俣川 ''Sunomata-gawa''). With a length of , it drains an area of in the

Chūbu region The , Central region, or is a region in the middle of Honshu, Honshū, Japan, Japan's main island. In a wide, classical definition, it encompasses nine prefectures (''ken''): Aichi Prefecture, Aichi, Fukui Prefecture, Fukui, Gifu Prefecture ...

and empties into

Ise Bay is a bay located at the mouth of the Kiso Three Rivers between Mie and Aichi Prefectures in Japan. Ise Bay has an average depth of and a maximum depth of . The mouth of the bay is and is connected to the smaller Mikawa Bay by two channels: th ...

. The government of Japan classifies it as a Class 1 river.

Outline

Also, famous for being a clear-flowing river, it has been named one of the "Three Clear-Flowing Rivers in Japan," along with the

Kakita River The is a river flowing through the town of Shimizu in the Suntō District, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. The Kakita River is a tributary of the Kano River. At only , it is the shortest Class 1 River in Japan.

Shizuoka Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Shizuoka Prefecture has a population of 3,637,998 and has a geographic area of . Shizuoka Prefecture borders Kanagawa Prefecture to the east, Yamanashi Prefecture to the northea ...

and the

Shimanto River The is a river in western Kōchi Prefecture, Japan. 196 km in length, it has a watershed of 2,270 km². Its name is written with kanji meaning "forty thousand and ten". Since the river is remote from major cities and does not have an ...

Kōchi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Kōchi Prefecture has a population of 757,914 (1 December 2011) and has a geographic area of 7,103 km2 (2,742 sq mi). Kōchi Prefecture borders Ehime Prefecture to the northwest and ...

. In 1985, the middle section of the Nagara River was named to "Japan's 100 Famous Waters." Also, it was included among Japan's top bathing areas in both 1988 and 2001. The river is also a popular tourist destination because of

Nagaragawa Onsen The are a group of onsen located along the banks of the Nagara River in Gifu, Gifu Prefecture, Japan. The source of the onsen are in the northern part of the city near the Mitabora Shinbutsu Onsen (三田洞神仏温泉). The group was includ ...

, a collection of natural hot springs (mostly in the city of

Gifu is a city located in the south-central portion of Gifu Prefecture, Japan, and serves as the prefectural capital. The city has played an important role in Japan's history because of its location in the middle of the country. During the Sengoku ...

) that are known for their high iron content.Gifu Nagaragawa Onsen
Gifu Nagaragawa Onsen and Ryokan Cooperative. Accessed June 6, 2007. Downstream, the Nagara River converges and diverges with the Kiso and Ibi rivers at multiple times. Though the Nagara River is considered part of the Kiso River system, various construction projects over the years have kept the two rivers separate all the way to the mouth of the river. Other construction projects had previously changed the flow of the river, too. Up until the

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 ...

, two minor rivers diverged from the Nagara River in the heart of the city of Gifu, but construction in 1939 created the current path of the river through the system. As a result of this construction, about of land was recovered, upon which the Gifu Memorial Center, schools, and other buildings were built.

Cormorant fishing

Cormorant fishing is an ancient tradition in which

cormorant Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the IOC adopted a consensus taxonomy of seven ge ...

s are used to catch various fish in lakes and rivers. Cormorant fishing takes place in two cities: Gifu, where it is called " Cormorant Fishing on the Nagara River,"Cormorant Fishing on the Nagara River
, Gifu City Hall. Accessed June 8, 2007. and Seki, where it is called "Oze Cormorant Fishing" (小瀬鵜飼 ''Oze Ukai''). Though eleven other places in Japan also host cormorant fishing, only the fishing masters on the Nagara River are Imperial Fishermen of the Household Agency.

River communities

The river passes through or forms the boundary of the following communities: ;Gifu Prefecture: :Gujō, Mino, Seki,

Mizuho Mizuho () literally means "abundant rice" in Japanese and "harvest" in the figurative sense. It was also an ancient name of Japan. It might refer to: Places * Mizuho, Gifu, a city in Gifu * Mizuho, Tokyo, a town in Tokyo * Mizuho Plateau in Ant ...

, Ōgaki, Anpachi, Wanouchi,

Kaizu Kiso Sansen Park Center is a city located in Gifu, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 34,960, and a population density of 310 persons per km2, in 12,167 households. The total area of the city was . Most of the city is located at sea ...

;

Aichi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,552,873 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the west, Gifu Prefectur ...

: : Aisai ;Mie Prefecture: :Kuwana

References

External links

(confluence with Ibi River) {{Authority control Rivers of Aichi Prefecture Rivers of Gifu Prefecture Rivers of Mie Prefecture Rivers of Japan

Outline

Cormorant fishing

River communities

See also

References

External links