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 ...

in Nishimuro District,

Wakayama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Wakayama Prefecture has a population of 944,320 () and has a geographic area of . Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Prefecture to the north, and Mie Prefecture and Nara 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 3,709 in 2041 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 21 persons per km². The total area of the town is .

Geography

Susami is located in the southern portion of

Kii Peninsula The is the largest peninsula on the island of Honshū in Japan. It is named after the ancient Kii Province. Overview The area south of the “ Central Tectonic Line” is called , and is home to reef-like coral communities which are amongst ...

, and faces 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 west. The coastline is a rocky

ria A ria (; gl, ría) is a coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley. It is a drowned river valley that remains open to the sea. Definitions Typically rias have a dendritic, treelike outline although they ca ...

coast, with a moderate clime due to the

Kuroshio Current The , also known as the Black or or the is a north-flowing, warm ocean current on the west side of the North Pacific Ocean basin. It was named for the deep blue appearance of its waters. Similar to the Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic, the Ku ...

just offshore. More than 90% of the town area is occupied by forests, and there is little flat land. The central urban area is at the mouth of the Susami River. Parts of the town are within the limits of the

Yoshino-Kumano National Park is a national park comprising several non-contiguous areas of Mie, Nara, and Wakayama Prefectures, Japan. Established in 1936, the park includes Mount Yoshino, celebrated for its cherry blossoms, as well as elements of the UNESCO World Heritag ...

Neighboring municipalities

Wakayama Prefecture *

Kushimoto 270px, Shionomisaki Southernmost Point Park is a coastal town located in Higashimuro District, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 15,192 in 8354 households and a population density of 110 persons per km2. The ...

* Kozagawa *

Shirahama Shirahama (written: 白濱 or 白浜) may refer to: Places *Shirahama, Chiba, a town in Chiba Prefecture, Japan *Shirahama, Wakayama is a town in Nishimuro District, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 20,704 ...

Climate

Susami 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 Susami is 16.5 °C. The average annual rainfall is 2395 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.2 °C, and lowest in January, at around 6.9 °C. The area is subject to

typhoon A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere. This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, and is the most active tropical cyclone basin on Earth, accounting for a ...

s in summer.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, Susami has suffered greatly from rural depopulation, and its current population is less than a quarter of its population in 1950.

History

The area of the modern town of Susami was within ancient

Kii Province , or , was a province of Japan in the part of Honshū that is today Wakayama Prefecture, as well as the southern part of Mie Prefecture. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Kii''" in . Kii bordered Ise, Izumi, Kawachi, Shima, and Yamato Pro ...

. 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 ...

, it was part of the holdings of the Kii Tokugawa clan, who ruled

Kishū Domain , or , was a province of Japan in the part of Honshū that is today Wakayama Prefecture, as well as the southern part of Mie Prefecture. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Kii''" in . Kii bordered Ise, Izumi, Kawachi, Shima, and Yamato Prov ...

. After 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 area became part of

Nishimuro District, Wakayama is a district located in Wakayama 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 J ...

, and the village of Sasami (周参見) was established with the creation of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889.Susami was raised to town status on February 11, 1924. On March 31, 1955, Susami annexed the neighboring villages of Samoto and Otsugawa and changed the spelling of its name from ''

kanji are the logographic Chinese characters taken from the Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script and used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese ...

'' to ''

hiragana is a Japanese syllabary, part of the Japanese writing system, along with ''katakana'' as well as ''kanji''. It is a phonetic lettering system. The word ''hiragana'' literally means "flowing" or "simple" kana ("simple" originally as contrast ...

''. The village of Esumi was annexed on March 25, 1959.

Government

Susami 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 10 members. Susami, together with the other municipalities in Nishimuro District, contributes three members to the Wakayama Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the town is part of

Wakayama 3rd district Wakayama 3rd district is a constituency of the House of Representatives in the Diet of Japan (national legislature). It is located in Wakayama Prefecture and consists of Arida, Gobo, Shingu, and Tanabe cities and the Arida, Hidaka, Higashimu ...

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

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 ...

, forestry, agriculture and tourism are the core industries of Susami Town. The fishing industry is particularly active due to the effects of the Kuroshio Current and the ria coastline.

Bonito Bonitos are a tribe of medium-sized, ray-finned predatory fish in the family Scombridae – a family it shares with the mackerel, tuna, and Spanish mackerel tribes, and also the butterfly kingfish. Also called the tribe Sardini, it consists of ...

, yellowtail, and

spiny lobster Spiny lobsters, also known as langustas, langouste, or rock lobsters, are a family (Palinuridae) of about 60 species of achelate crustaceans, in the Decapoda Reptantia. Spiny lobsters are also, especially in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, So ...

s are the main catch. being landed. Forestry such as

cedar Cedar may refer to: Trees and plants *''Cedrus'', common English name cedar, an Old-World genus of coniferous trees in the plant family Pinaceae *Cedar (plant), a list of trees and plants known as cedar Places United States * Cedar, Arizona * ...

and

cypress Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs of northern temperate regions that belong to the family Cupressaceae. The word ''cypress'' is derived from Old French ''cipres'', which was imported from Latin ''cypressus'', the ...

is traditionally practiced in inland areas, but has stagnated since the mid-1960s due to high costs and low domestic demand. Lettuce cultivation is flourishing in the Ezumi area of the town.

Education

Susami has two public elementary schools and one public middle school operated by the town government. The town does not have a high school.

Sister relationships

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 ...

,Japan * Jezero,Bosnia and Herzegovina

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 ...

–

Kisei Main Line The is a railway line that parallels the coastline of the Kii Peninsula in Japan between Mie Prefecture and Wakayama Prefecture. The name takes the ''kanji'' characters from the names of the old provinces of and . The line is operated by Ce ...

* - -

Highway

Kisei Expressway The is a national expressway in Japan. It is owned and operated by Central Nippon Expressway Company. Naming The name is a kanji acronym consisting of characters found in the former names of the provinces linked by the expressway. consists ...

Local attractions

Underwater mailbox

Off of the coast of Susami there is an underwater mailbox, which is an officially recognised mail collection point of Susami's postal system. It held the

Guinness World Record ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

for the deepest underwater post box, at 10 metres. It is used by divers who write water-resistant messages. It is said that during the busiest times it contains up to 200 pieces of mail a day.

References

External links

*
Town of Susami
{{Authority control Towns in Wakayama Prefecture Populated coastal places in Japan Susami, Wakayama