Noheji town center area Aerial photograph

is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

located in

Aomori Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku region. The prefecture's capital, largest city, and namesake is the city of Aomori. Aomori is the northernmost prefecture on Japan's main island, Honshu, and is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the east, ...

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 town 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 12,956, 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 168 persons per km² in 6,466 households. The total area of the town is .

Geography

Noheji occupies the southeastern coastline of

Mutsu Bay is a bay located within Aomori Prefecture, in the northern Tōhoku region of northern Japan. It has an east-west distance of approximately and a north-south distance of approximately at its eastern end, with a total area of approximately . ...

at the base of the

Shimokita Peninsula is the remote northeastern cape of the Japanese island of Honshū, stretching out towards Hokkaidō. Overview It is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the east, Tsugaru Strait to the north and Mutsu Bay to the west and south. Shaped like an axe ...

Neighboring municipalities

Aomori Prefecture *

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...

* Tōhoku *

Rokkasho is a village in Aomori Prefecture, Japan. , the village had an estimated population of 10,200, and a population density of 40 persons per km², in 4,855 households. The total area of the village is . Geography Rokkasho occupies the eastern coa ...

Hiranai ( ain, ピラナィ, piranay) is a town located in Aomori Prefecture, Japan and a part of the Aomori metropolitan area. , the town had an estimated population of 10,460 in 4,860 households, and a population density of 48 persons per km². It i ...

Climate

The town has a cold

maritime climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ...

characterized by cool short summers and long cold winters with heavy snowfall (

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''). The average annual temperature in Noheji is 10.1 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1243 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 22.7 °C, and lowest in January, at around -2.1 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Noheji peaked in around the year 1970 and has declined over the past 50 years.

History

The area around Noheji was inhabited by the ''

Emishi The (also called Ebisu and Ezo), written with Chinese characters that literally mean "shrimp barbarians," constituted an ancient ethnic group of people who lived in parts of Honshū, especially in the Tōhoku region, referred to as in contemp ...

'' people until the historical period, and the name "Noheji" is derived from "Nosobechi", or "place where a pure river flows through a field" in the

Ainu language Ainu (, ), or more precisely Hokkaido Ainu, is a language spoken by a few elderly members of the Ainu people on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. It is a member of the Ainu language family, itself considered a language family isolate ...

. 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 ...

, the area was controlled by the

Nanbu clan The was a Japanese samurai clan who ruled most of northeastern Honshū in the Tōhoku region of Japan for over 700 years, from the Kamakura period through the Meiji Restoration of 1868. The Nanbu claimed descent from the Seiwa Genji of Kai Pr ...

Morioka Domain 300px, Ruins of Morioka Castle was a '' tozama'' feudal domain of Edo period Japan. It was ruled throughout its history by the Nanbu clan. It was called during the early part of its history. It was located in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, ...

and prospered due to its fishing industry and location on the road connecting Morioka Domain with the

Hirosaki Domain Hirosaki Castle, the seat of the Hirosaki Domain , also known as , was a '' tozama'' feudal domain of Edo period JapanRavina, Mark. (1998) ''Land and Lordship in Early Modern Japan,'' p. 222 It is located in Mutsu Province, in northern Honshū ...

. During the

Boshin War The , sometimes known as the Japanese Revolution or Japanese Civil War, was a civil war in Japan fought from 1868 to 1869 between forces of the ruling Tokugawa shogunate and a clique seeking to seize political power in the name of the Imperi ...

of the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

, the

Battle of Noheji The was a minor battle of the Boshin War of the Meiji Restoration in Japan on November 7, 1868. It is considered a part of the larger Aizu campaign. Background On September 20, 1868 the pro-Shōgunate Ōuetsu Reppan Dōmei was proclaimed at ...

occurred between the Tokugawa loyalist forces of Morioka Domain and pro-imperial forces of Hirosaki Domain on 11 November 1868, resulting in a victory for the Imperial faction. During the post-

Meiji restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

creation of the modern municipalities system on 1 April 1889, the village of Noheiji was established. Noheji was elevated to town status on 28 August 1898.

Government

Noheji 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 ...

town council of 12 members. Noheji is part of Shimokita District which contributes four members to the Aomori Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the town is part of Aomori 1st 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

The economy of Noheji is heavily dependent on

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 ...

, especially for

scallop Scallop () is a common name that encompasses various species of marine bivalve mollusks in the taxonomic family Pectinidae, the scallops. However, the common name "scallop" is also sometimes applied to species in other closely related families ...

s, and on agriculture with the raising of mountain yams predominating. The town also serves as a commercial and transportation center for the surrounding rural areas.

Education

Noheji has three public elementary schools and one public middle school operated by the town government, and one public high school operated by the Aomori Prefectural Board of Education. The town also has one private high school.

Transportation

Railway

Aoimori Railway Company The is a public-private transport company that operates the Aoimori Railway Line in Aomori Prefecture, Japan. Its headquarters are located in the city of Aomori. The government of Aomori Prefecture and the city of Aomori are the primary shareh ...

Aoimori Railway Line The is a regional rail line in Aomori Prefecture, Japan that is operated by the Aoimori Railway Company. It connects the terminal station of the Iwate Galaxy Railway Line, Metoki Station, in the town of Sannohe to Aomori Station, the termi ...

East Japan Railway Company 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 ...

(JR East) -

Ōminato Line The is a railway line operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Noheji Station and Ōminato Station on the Shimokita Peninsula in eastern Aomori Prefecture. Station list :●: All rapid service trains stop, ○: Some ra ...

* , ,

Highway

Shimokita Expressway The is a two-lane national expressway in Aomori Prefecture, Japan. The expressway connects Noheji to the municipalities of Rokkasho, and Yokohama. It is owned and operated by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), and is ...

* * (unsigned) *

Local attractions

*Makado Onsen, a hot spring and ski resort

Noted people from Noheji

Tsuyoshi Ichinohe is a Japanese ski jumper. In the World Cup his highest place in an individual event was number 14 from January 2006 in Sapporo. He participated in the 2006 Winter Olympics held in Pragelato near Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Pi ...

, skier *Takaya Eguchi, modern dancer *

Gaku Shibasaki is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Spanish club Leganés and the Japanese national team. Club career Early career Born in Noheji, Aomori, Japan, Shibasaki began playing in his first year at elementary school. O ...

, footballer

References

External links

Official Website
{{Authority control Towns in Aomori Prefecture Populated coastal places in Japan Noheji, Aomori