is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

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 eas ...

, 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 60,697, and a

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), 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 ...

of 84 persons per km² in 27,677 households. The total area of the city is .

Geography

Towada is in the foothills of the Hakkōda Mountains and encompasses the Aomori portion of

Lake Towada is the largest crater lake in Honshū island, Japan. Located on the border between Aomori and Akita prefectures, it lies 400 meters (1,800 ft) above sea level and is 327 m (1,073 ft) deep, drained by the Oirase river. With ...

. The

Oirase River The is a river located in eastern Aomori Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan. __NOTOC__ The Oirase River is the only river that drains Lake Towada, a large caldera lake that lies on the border of Aomori and Akita Prefectures. The ...

passes through the town. Towada is an area rich in nature. To the west are

Towada-Hachimantai National Park is a national park comprising two separate areas of Aomori Prefecture, Aomori, Iwate Prefecture, Iwate, and Akita Prefecture, Akita Prefectures of Japan, Prefectures, Japan. The Towada-Hakkōda area encompasses Lake Towada, Hakkōda Mountains, ...

. In particular, Lake Towada and the Oirase River are famous tourist spots. As for industry, agriculture is thriving, and the city produces the largest amount of garlic in Japan. Oirase (奧入瀨) (3800529489)

The central part of the city is characterized by its orderly grid-like streets. In particular, "Government Office Street" is a popular place for citizens to enjoy the Someiyoshino (Japanese cherry) trees planted along the street. In recent years, the city has been promoting its urban policy as a "Arts Towada," with the

Towada Art Center The is an art museum in Towada, Aomori Prefecture, Japan. The museum was opened in 2008 as part of the Arts Towada Project, in an effort to revitalize the city. It features works from artists both inside and outside of Japan, including Yoko On ...

(Art museum) as its centerpiece. Towada is home to the national and prefectural agencies that administer the Kamikita region, and is the central city of the region. In October 2012, the city signed an agreement with nine surrounding municipalities to improve the living environment, and has a cooperative relationship with Misawa City, which has an airport and a

U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...

base.

Neighboring municipalities

Aomori Prefecture * Aomori * Hirakawa *

Rokunohe is a town located in Aomori Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 10,994, and a population density of 130 persons per km², in 4,419 households. The total area of the town is Geography Rokunohe is in east-central Aomori P ...

Shichinohe is a town located in Aomori Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 15,286, and a population density of 45 persons per km2, in 6,797 households. The total area of the town is . Geography Shichinohe is in central Aomori Pref ...

* Tōhoku *

Gonohe is a town located in Aomori Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 16,880, and a population density of 95 persons per km2 in 7,006 households. The total area of the town is . Geography Gonohe is located in the north-east ...

* Shingō Akita Prefecture *

Kazuno is a city located in Akita Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 30.715, and a population density of 43 persons per km² in 12.970 households. The total area of the city is . Geography Kazuno is located in a valley in t ...

* Kosaka

Climate

The city has a cold humid climate characterized by cool summers and 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 Towada is 9.8 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1233 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 22.8 °C, and lowest in January, at around -2.3 °C. Part of the city is within the limits of the

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Towada peaked at around the year 2000, and has been in decline since.

History

The area around present-day Towada was formerly a wasteland known as , which became the location of a colonization and land reclamation project initiated by the

Nambu 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, ...

from 1855. The project was headed by Nitobe Tsutō, the grandfather of Inazō Nitobe. The project was continued by the

Meiji government The was the government that was formed by politicians of the Satsuma Domain and Chōshū Domain in the 1860s. The Meiji government was the early government of the Empire of Japan. Politicians of the Meiji government were known as the Meiji o ...

, and the area was designated a ranch area for breeding cavalry horses by the

Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...

in 1885. The inclement climate of the area was considered ideal for breeding horses that would be suitable for use in the cold climate areas of

Manchuria Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer M ...

and

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive region, geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a ...

. The village of Sanbongi was established with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. On September 1, 1910, Sanbongi was designated a town. It was elevated to the status of a city on February 1, 1955. In October 1956, it changed its name to “Towada”. On January 1, 2005, the town of Towadako (from Kamikita District) was merged into Towada.

Government

Towada 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 ...

city legislature of 22 members. Towada contributes two members to the Aomori Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the town is part of

Aomori 2nd district Aomori 2nd district (青森県第2区, ''Aomori-ken dai-niku'' or simply 青森2区, ''Aomori-niku'') is a single-member constituency of the House of Representatives of Japan, House of Representatives in the national Diet of Japan. It is located ...

of the lower house of the Diet of Japan. Towada city hall

Economy

The economy of Towada is based largely on agriculture.

Education

Colleges and universities

Kitasato University is a private medical university headquartered in Shirokane, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The head of the university is on the Shirokane campus, neighboring the original Kitasato Institute, the first private medical research facility in Japan which was ...

- Towada Campus (School of Veterinary Medicine)

High schools

Towada has four public high schools operated by the Aomori Prefectural Board of Education *Sanbongi High School *Sanbongi Agriculture High School *Towada Technical High School *Towada Nishi High School

Elementary schools and middle schools

There are 17 public elementary schools and 9 public middle schools in Towada operated by the municipal government, and one middle school operated by the prefectural government.

Transportation

Railway

Towada currently has no passenger railway service. The

Towada Kankō Electric Railway Line The was a railway route operated by Towada Kankō Electric Railway (Totetsu). It ran between Misawa Station and Towadashi Station in eastern Aomori Prefecture, Japan. History On September 5, 1922, the began operating a 762mm gauge line betwe ...

connecting Towada with Misawa had five stations within the city. It was discontinued in 2012 and replaced by a bus service. * < '', , , , '' >

Highway

* * * * * *

Local attractions

- listed as one of the 100 Soundscapes of Japan by the Japanese Ministry of the Environment * Matsumi Falls - one of "

Japan’s Top 100 Waterfalls is a list of waterfalls in Japan compiled by the Japanese Ministry of the Environment in 1990. Background According to the Japanese government, there are 517 named waterfalls in Japan. Many of these waterfalls are located in remote mountain lo ...

" *

International relations

* -

Lethbridge, Alberta Lethbridge ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. With a population of 101,482 in its 2019 municipal census, Lethbridge became the fourth Alberta city to surpass 100,000 people. The nearby Canadian Rocky Mountains contribute to ...

, Canada, sister city since 2002 Lethbridge Twinning Society homepage
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Notable people from Towada

* Junji Ishiwatari, musician, and former guitarist and songwriter for the Japanese rock band

Supercar A supercar – also called exotic car – is a loosely defined description of street-legal, high-performance sports cars. Since the 2010s, the term hypercar has come into use for the highest performing supercars. Supercars commonly serve as t ...

Koji Kumagai is a former Japanese Association football, football player. Club career Kumagai was born in Towada, Aomori, Towada on October 23, 1975. After graduating from high school, he joined Kashima Antlers in 1994. Although he could hardly play in the m ...

, soccer player *

Koji Nakamura is a Japanese musician who is most famous for being the lead singer/songwriter in the Japanese band Supercar.
...

, musician, and former guitarist and lead singer for the Japanese rock band

References

External links

Official Website

Chamber of Commerce Website
{{Authority control Towada, Aomori, Cities in Aomori Prefecture