250px, Naka River 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 o ...

located in

Ibaraki Prefecture is a 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, 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 n ...

. , 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 usi ...

of 18,128 in 7214 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 RosenberPopu ...

of 112 persons per km². The percentage of the population aged over 65 was 37.6%. The total area of the town is .

Geography

Located in central-west Ibaraki Prefecture, Shinsato is bordered by Tochigi Prefecture to the west. The Naka River passes through the town.

Surrounding municipalities

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 ...

* Kasama * Hitachiōmiya * Naka Tochigi Prefecture * Motegi

Climate

Shirosato 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 freez ...

(Köppen ''Cfa'') characterized by warm summers and cold winters with heavy snowfall. The average annual temperature in Shirosato is 13.6 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1390 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.2 °C, and lowest in January, at around 2.8 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Shirosato population statistics
/ref> the population of Shirosato has declined in recent decades.

History

Shirosato was formed on February 1, 2005, from the merger of the town of Jōhoku, the village of Katsura, both from Higashiibaraki District, and the village of Nanakai, from Nishiibaraki District.

Government

Shirosato 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 multi ...

town council of 14 members. Shirosato, together with city of Mito, contributes seven members to the Ibaraki Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Ibaraki 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 paral ...

Economy

The economy of Shirosato is primarily agricultural.

Education

Shirosato has five public elementary schools and two public middle schools operated by the town government, and one public high school operated by the Ibaraki Prefectural Board of Education.

Transportation

Railway

*Shirosato does not have any passenger train service.

Highway

Noted people from Shirosato

Akihiro Ohata is a Japanese politician of the Democratic Party of Japan, a member of the House of Representatives of Japan, House of Representatives in the Diet of Japan, Diet (national legislature). A native of Higashiibaraki District, Ibaraki, he attended ...

, politician

References

External links

Official Website
{{Authority control Towns in Ibaraki Prefecture Shirosato, Ibaraki