is a city in

Hyōgo Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Hyōgo Prefecture has a population of 5,469,762 () and has a geographic area of . Hyōgo Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the east, Osaka Prefecture to the southeast, an ...

, Japan. , the city 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 74,414 in 31119 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 6200 persons per km². The total area of the city is . The city's name is spelled "たつの," using

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 ...

, but the name of Tatsuno Station uses the kanji characters "竜野," while the historic name for the place uses the characters "龍野." According to the ''Harima no Kuni Fudoki'', the origin of the name "Tatsuno" was that upon the death of

Nomi no Sukune was a legendary figure in Japanese history, regarded as the founder of sumo wrestling. He was the founder of the Haji no Muraji clan. Life Sukune is said to have lived during the reign of Emperor Suinin (29 BC – 70). Allegedly, in 23 B.C., ...

Ibo District Ibo District is a small district of Cabo Delgado Province in northern Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeast ...

(now in the city of Tatsuno), many came from

Izumo Izumo (出雲) may refer to: Locations * Izumo Province, an old province of Japan * Izumo, Shimane, a city located in Shimane Prefecture ** Izumo Airport * Izumo-taisha, one of Japan's most ancient and important Shinto shrines Ships * ''Izumo ...

and used rock from the

Ibo River The Ibo River (揖保川) is a river in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. The Ibo, Kako, Ichi, Yumesaki, and Chikusa rivers are collectively referred to as the Harima Gokawa, the five major rivers that flow into the Harima Sea. The basin area is the se ...

to make a grave, standing stones in a row on the plain. Thus, it was called "立野," with characters meaning "stand" and "plain," from which it is thought to have changed to "龍野". Nomi no Sukune Shrine is located at the place said to be his grave.

Geography

Tatsuno city center area Aerial photograph

Tatsuno is located in southwestern Hyōgo Prefecture extending largely south to north. The city's northern region is mountainous, the southern region faces the

Seto Inland Sea The , sometimes shortened to the Inland Sea, is the body of water separating Honshū, Shikoku, and Kyūshū, three of the four main islands of Japan. It serves as a waterway connecting the Pacific Ocean to the Sea of Japan. It connects to Osaka ...

, and the Ibo River runs through from north to south. *Mountains: Mt. Ayabe (in Mitsu-chō) *Rivers:

, Kurisu River *Passes and Hills: Aisaka Pass ( Japan National Route 179), Futagi Pass (

Prefectural Route 5 A prefecture (from the Latin ''Praefectura'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain international ...

), Azawara Pass, Iwami Pass M.t Ayabe.JPG, Mt. Ayabe Shingutown Hashizaki Tatusnocity Hyogopref Ibo river.JPG, Ibo River
Taken at Hashisaki, Shingū-chō Ibogawatown Umaba Tatsunocitoy Hyogopref Hyogoprefectural road 442 Iwami Ibogawa line No,3.JPG, Iwami Hill

Neighboring Municipalities

*North: Shisō; Sayō, Sayō District *West: Aioi; Kamigōri, Akō District *East:

Himeji 260px, Himeji City Hall is a city located in Hyōgo Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 525,682 in 227,099 households and a population density of 980 persons per km². The total area of the city is ...

;

Taishi Taishi may refer to: Names *Taishi (surname), Chinese family name *Taishi (given name), Japanese given name Ranks * Grand Preceptor, ancient Chinese top civilian position: ''taishi'' () in Chinese *Taishi, an alternate name of the Japanese Daij� ...

*South:

( Ieshima Islands)

Climate

Tatsuno 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 Tatsuno is 14.4 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1519 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.7 °C, and lowest in January, at around 3.7 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Hyōgo population statistics
/ref> the population of Tatsuno has remained relatively constant over the past 40 years.

History

The Tatsuno area was part of ancient Harima Province and was an important location for traffic on the

Izumo Kaidō Izumo (出雲) may refer to: Locations * Izumo Province, an old province of Japan * Izumo, Shimane, a city located in Shimane Prefecture ** Izumo Airport * Izumo-taisha, one of Japan's most ancient and important Shinto shrines Ships * Izumo-clas ...

highway running along the Ibo River, and was the location of Kinoyama Castle, a stronghold of the

Akamatsu clan is a Japanese samurai family of direct descent from Minamoto no Morifusa of the Murakami-Genji. Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon''; Papinot, (2003)"Akamatsu" at ''Nobiliare du Japon ...

in the

Muromachi period The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (''Muromachi bakufu'' or ''Ashikaga bakufu''), which was officially established in 1338 by t ...

. After

Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period. He is regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. Nobunaga was head of the very powerful Oda clan, and launched a war against other ''daimyō'' to unify ...

gained supremacy during the

Sengoku period The was a period in History of Japan, Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615. The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the Feudalism, feudal system of Japan under the ...

, the area became the territory of the

Ikeda clan was a Japanese clan that claimed descent from Minamoto no Yorimitsu (948-1021) of the Seiwa Genji. Minamoto no Yasumasa, the fourth generation descending from Yorimitsu, and younger brother of Minamoto no Yorimasa (1104-1180), was the first t ...

, who ruled

Himeji Domain was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, located in Harima Province in what is now the southern portion of modern-day Hyōgo Prefecture. It was centered around Himeji Castle, which is located in what is now the ...

in the early

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 ...

. Following

Ikeda Toshitaka Ikeda may refer to: * Ikeda (surname), a Japanese surname * Ikeda (comics), a character in ''Usagi Yojimbo'' * Ikeda clan, a Japanese clan * Ikeda map, chaotic attractor * ''Ikeda'' (annelid) a genus of the family Ikedidae Places * Ikeda, Osaka i ...

's death, his lands were divided by the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

and

Honda Masatomo is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a producti ...

, was installed as ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and n ...

'' of the newly-created

Tatsuno Domain 250px, Tatsuno Castle 250px, Wakisaka Yasuaya, final ''daimyō'' of Tatsuno Domain was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, in Harima Province in what is now the southwestern portion of modern-day Hyōgo Prefec ...

. The town prospered as a

castle town A castle town is a settlement built adjacent to or surrounding a castle. Castle towns were common in Medieval Europe. Some examples include small towns like Alnwick and Arundel, which are still dominated by their castles. In Western Europe, ...

and the domain passed through various rulers, ultimately coming under the rule of the

Wakisaka clan Wakisaka (written: 脇阪) is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include: *, Japanese racing driver *, Japanese racing driver *, Japanese singer-songwriter based in the United States *, Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' *, Japanese ...

beginning in 1672, lasting 200 years and 10 generations, after which came 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 castle town's area from the early modern period is extant today in what is now the "old Tatsuno-chō area,” which still contains samurai residences and white-plastered earthen storehouses, giving the city the moniker of"Little Kyoto of Harima".地名歴史 p. 238 The town of Tatsuno was established with the creation of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. On October 1, 2005, the towns of Ibogawa,

Mitsu Mitsu may refer to: * Mitsubishi Motors, a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer Places * Mitsu, Hyōgo, former town in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan * Mitsu, Okayama, former town in Okayama Prefecture, Japan People * Okita Mitsu (1833 � ...

and Shingū (all from

) were merged into Tatsuno. To reflect the new character of the city, the ''

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 ...

'' characters in the city's name were changed from to .

Government

Tatsuno 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 ...

city council of 22 members. Tatsuno, together with the town of Taishi, contributes one member to the

Hyogo Prefectural Assembly The is the prefectural parliament of Hyogo Prefecture. The assembly's 87 members are elected every four years in 40 districts by single non-transferable vote. Nine of the electoral districts correspond with the wards of Kobe city and the rema ...

. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Hyōgo 12th 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

Tatsuno has traditionally been famous for production of

sōmen , ''somyeon'' ( ko, 소면; 素麵), or ''sùmiàn'' () is a very thin noodle made of wheat flour, less than 1.3 mm in diameter. The noodles are used extensively in East Asian cuisines. Japanese ''sōmen'' is made by stretching the dough ...

and

soy sauce Soy sauce (also called simply soy in American English and soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and '' Aspergillus oryzae'' or ''Asp ...

in Japan. However, much of the city is rural, with rice farming and

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 ...

playing roles in the economy. The city is increasing becoming 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 ...

, with 25.0% of those commuting to work go to

(2010 National Census).

Education

Tatsuno has 16 public elementary schools and five public middle schools operated by the city government and two public high schools operated by the Hyōgo Prefectural Department of Education. There is also one private elementary school and one private middle school. The prefecture also operates two special education schools for the handicapped.

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 ...

– San'yō Main Line * JR_logo_(west)

– Kishin Line * - - - -

Highways

San'yō Expressway The (Asian Highway Network ) is an expressway in Japan, running from Kobe through Hiroshima along the Inland Sea and terminating in Yamaguchi Prefecture. The entire length of the expressway was opened in 1997. The main line has a total length of ...

Harima Expressway The is a national Expressways of Japan, expressway in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. It is owned and operated by West Nippon Expressway Company. It is signed as E29 under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism's "2016 Proposal f ...

* * * *

Sister city relations

* -

Covington, Washington Covington is a city in King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The population was 20,777 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Prior to the 2010 census, Covington was counted as pa ...

, sister city since 2015

Local attractions

* Tatsuno Castle and surrounding Important Preservation District for Traditional Buildings * Yoshima Kofun, National Historic Site * Shingū Miyauchi Site, National Historic Site

Notable people from Tatsuno

Akira Hori Akira Hori (堀晃, born 1944 in Tatsuno, Hyogo) is a Japanese science fiction writer. He has been involved in science fiction since high school and has a degree from Osaka University in engineering. He won the first Nihon SF Taisho Award in 1980 ...

, author *

Kazuya Maruyama Kazuya Maruyama may refer to: * Kazuya Maruyama (politician) * Kazuya Maruyama (baseball) {{hndis, Maruyama, Kazuya ...

, politician * Rofū Miki, composer of the folk melody " Akatombo" (The red dragonfly) *

Shizuichi Tanaka was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army and Japanese Military Governor of the Philippines during World War II. Biography Early life and military service Tanaka was born in Issai village, Hyōgo prefecture (now part of the city of Tatsun ...

, Imperial Japanese Army general and Japanese Military Governor of the Philippines during World War II *

Fumito Ueda is a Japanese video game designer. Ueda is best known as the director and lead designer of '' Ico'' (2001) and ''Shadow of the Colossus'' (2005) while leading Team Ico at Japan Studio, and ''The Last Guardian'' (2016) through his own development ...

, director of

Ico is an action-adventure game developed by Japan Studio and Team Ico, and published by Sony Computer Entertainment, released for the PlayStation 2 video game console in 2001 and 2002 in various regions. It was designed and directed by Fumito U ...

and

Shadow of the Colossus ''Shadow of the Colossus'' is a 2005 action-adventure game developed by Japan Studio and Team Ico, and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 2. It takes place in a fantasy setting and follows Wander, a young man who ...

References

External links

*
Tatsuno City official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tatsuno, Hyogo Cities in Hyōgo Prefecture Populated coastal places in Japan Tatsuno, Hyōgo