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

Saitama Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Saitama Prefecture has a population of 7,338,536 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 3,797 km2 (1,466 sq mi). Saitama Prefecture borders Tochigi 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 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 11,192 in 4657 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 65 persons per km². The total area of the town is . Parts of the town are within the borders of the

Chichibu-Tama-Kai National Park is a national park in Japan at the intersection of Saitama, Yamanashi, Nagano and Tokyo Prefectures. With eight peaks over 2000 m scattered over 1250 km², there are numerous hiking trails and ancient shrines. The best known landmarks ar ...

Geography

Ogano is located in the mountainous far western Saitama Prefecture, surrounded by the city of Chichibu on the north, east and south and by Gunma Prefecture to the west.

Surrounding municipalities

Chichibu is a city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 61,159 in 26,380 households and a population density of . The total area of the city is . Geography Chichibu is in the westernmost part of Saitama. Unli ...

Gunma Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Gunma Prefecture has a population of 1,937,626 (1 October 2019) and has a geographic area of 6,362 km2 (2,456 sq mi). Gunma Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture and Fukushima ...

* Kanna *

Ueno is a district in Tokyo's Taitō Ward, best known as the home of Ueno Park. Ueno is also home to some of Tokyo's finest cultural sites, including the Tokyo National Museum, the National Museum of Western Art, and the National Museum of Na ...

Climate

Ogano has an

oceanic 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 ( ...

(Köppen ''Cfb'') characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light snowfall. The average annual temperature in Ogano is 10.4 °C. The average annual rainfall is 2222 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 21.9 °C, and lowest in January, at around minus 1.2 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Ogano population statistics
/ref> the population of Ogose has declined at an accelerating rate in recent decades.

History

The town of Ogano was created within Chichibu District, Saitama with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889, and annexed the neighboring village of Nagawaka on April 1, 1955, followed by the villages of Mitagawa and Kurao on March 31, 1956. On October 1, 2005 the village of Ryōkami was merged into Ogano.

Government

Ogano 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. Ogano, together with the towns of Higashichichibu, Minano, Nagatoro and Yokoze, contributes one member to the Saitama Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the town is part of

Saitama 11th district , the House of Representatives of Japan is elected from a combination of multi-member districts and single-member districts, a method called Parallel voting. Currently, 176 members are elected from 11 multi-member districts (called proportional r ...

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

Ogano is largely a

bedroom community A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...

due to its proximity to the city of Chichibu.

Education

Ogano has four public elementary schools and one public middle school operated by the town government, and one public high school operated by the Saitama Prefectural Board of Education..

Transportation

Railway

Ogano has no passenger rail service. The nearest station is

Chichibu Station is a passenger railway station located in the city of Chichibu, Saitama, Japan, operated by the private railway operator Chichibu Railway. Lines Chichibu Station is served by the Chichibu Main Line from to , and is located 59.0 km from ...

, in the neighboring city of Chichibu.

Highway

Local attractions

Mount Ryōkami is a mountain located in the Saitama Prefecture ( Chichibu District), at the northern end of the Okuchichibu Mountains. References {{DEFAULTSORT:Ryokami Mountains of Saitama Prefecture ...

(one of the

100 Famous Japanese Mountains is a book written in 1964 by mountaineer and author Kyūya Fukada.Hyakumeizan, Hiking Japan!
. Japan ...

) *

Chichibu 34 Kannon Sanctuary The is a group of Japanese Buddhist temples linked on a pilgrimage route. The Chichibu Pilgrimage Chichibu City in the province of Saitama is the centre of a virtually self-contained valley, a mountain-ringed basin about 80 km north-west ...

*Chichibu Muse Park

References

External links

Official Website
{{Authority control Towns in Saitama Prefecture Chichibu District, Saitama Ogano, Saitama