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 ...
located in north-central
Hiroshima Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Hiroshima Prefecture has a population of 2,811,410 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 8,479 km² (3,274 sq mi). Hiroshima Prefecture borders Okayama ...
,
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 ...
.
As of April 1, 2011, the city has a population of 31,565, with 13,223
household
A household consists of two or more persons who live in the same dwelling. It may be of a single family or another type of person group. The household is the basic unit of analysis in many social, microeconomic and government models, and is im ...
s 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 59 persons per km². of The total area is 538.17 km².
The modern city of Akitakata was established on March 1, 2004, from the merger of the towns of
Kōda,
Midori
Midori (みどり, ミドリ, , , ) is the Japanese word for "green" and may refer to:
Places
* Midori, Gunma
* Midori-ku, Chiba
* Midori-ku, Nagoya
* Midori-ku, Sagamihara
* Midori-ku, Saitama
* Midori-ku, Yokohama
People Given name
* M ...
,
Mukaihara,
Takamiya,
Yachiyo and
Yoshida (all from
Takata District). Therefore, Takata District was dissolved as a result of this merger.
It is a mountainous farming area known for many traditional events as well as certain food products.
One such food product is Ebisu tea, a sweet fragrant tea, that comes from Mukaihara Town. Another is
yuzu
Yuzu (''Citrus junos'', from Japanese or ) is a citrus fruit and plant in the family Rutaceae of East Asian origin. Yuzu has been cultivated mainly in East Asia, though recently also in New Zealand, Australia, Spain, Italy, and France.
I ...
juice (柚子ジュース), a product of the Kawane area of Takamiya town in the northeastern part of the city.
The city also lays claim to be the birthplace and hometown of
Mōri Motonari, the
Warring States
The Warring States period () was an era in ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded with the Qin wars of conquest ...
-era ''
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 16th century.
History
The area of Akitakata City was originally known as
Takata District (高田郡), which combined 26 villages into a single administrative unit on April 1, 1889.
The area now known as Akitakata was the site of a number of fortifications during the period when Mori Motonari fought against the
Amago clan
Amago (尼子) is a Japanese word meaning "child of a nun", and has various other uses:
People
* Amago clan, a Japanese daimyō clan
* Amago Haruhisa (1514–1561), Japanese daimyō
* Amago Katsuhisa (1553–1578), Japanese daimyō
* Amago Kun ...
. Mori Motonari himself was born in Suzuo Castle (鈴尾城) in 1497,
[Akitakata City Promotion Department, Commerce, Industry, and Tourism Division Historical Guide 2004] the remains of which are in the town of Yoshida. In 1500, Motonari's father,
Mōri Hiromoto
was a local warlord (jizamurai) of Aki Province in the west Chūgoku region of Japan during the Muromachi period and Sengoku period of the 16th century. The Mōri clan claimed descent from Ōe no Hiromoto, an adviser to Minamoto no Yoritomo. ...
(毛利弘元) retired to
Tajihi-Sarugake Castle
was a Japanese castle located in Akitakata, Hiroshima Prefecture. Its ruins have been protected by the central government as a National Historic Site together with Yoshida-Kōriyama Castle since 1940.
Overview
The year of construction of Ta ...
(多治比猿掛城), about 4 kilometers north of the family's base in
Yoshida-Kōriyama Castle
was a Japanese castle located in Akitakata, Hiroshima Prefecture.
History
Yoshida-Kōriyama Castle was initially built as a small castle in Aki Province in the 14th century, but was later expanded into a large castle by Mōri Motonari, a famou ...
(郡山城), both of whose remains are also in Yoshida town. Motonari would remain based here until the age of 27 when he would return to the family base in
Yoshida-Kōriyama Castle
was a Japanese castle located in Akitakata, Hiroshima Prefecture.
History
Yoshida-Kōriyama Castle was initially built as a small castle in Aki Province in the 14th century, but was later expanded into a large castle by Mōri Motonari, a famou ...
.
Ikenouchi (池の内) in Koda was the site of a battle against the Amago clan on September 26, 1540. The Amago clan was defeated, and it is said that the leader, Yubara Yajirō (湯原弥二郎) committed
seppuku there. A monument commemorates the occasion. Koda is also the site of the remains of Goryū
castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
(五龍城), of the Shishido clan (宍戸氏).The family would become tied to the Mori clan with the marriage of Motonari's eldest daughter to Shishido Takaie (宍戸隆家).
Culture
Kagura
is a type of Shinto ritual ceremonial dance. The term is a contraction of the phrase , indicating the presence of gods () in the practice.
One major function of is , involving a procession-trance process. Usually a female shaman will perfor ...
, an ancient traditional form of Shinto dance and music, is still alive there today. The towns of Midori and Takamiya practice the "new dance" style, which is not actually new at all, just a later emergent performance style compared to the "old style". (There is a Kagura village in Midori town called Kaguramonzentojimura where various Kagura performances and competitions begin in August and last until December.)
Akitakata City is in the countryside, and still maintains many traditional local
festival
A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival c ...
s. One such is Hanadaue, or rice-planting festival where men play flutes and
taiko
are a broad range of Japanese percussion instruments. In Japanese, the term refers to any kind of drum, but outside Japan, it is used specifically to refer to any of the various Japanese drums called and to the form of ensemble drumming m ...
while women sing and plant
rice
Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima
''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...
.
Notable places
*
Yoshida-Kōriyama Castle
was a Japanese castle located in Akitakata, Hiroshima Prefecture.
History
Yoshida-Kōriyama Castle was initially built as a small castle in Aki Province in the 14th century, but was later expanded into a large castle by Mōri Motonari, a famou ...
: Prime castle of the
Mōri clan
The Mōri clan (毛利氏 ''Mōri-shi'') was a Japanese samurai clan descended from Ōe no Hiromoto. Ōe no Hiromoto was descended from the Fujiwara clan. The family's most illustrious member, Mōri Motonari, greatly expanded the clan's power ...
*
Tajihi-Sarugake Castle
was a Japanese castle located in Akitakata, Hiroshima Prefecture. Its ruins have been protected by the central government as a National Historic Site together with Yoshida-Kōriyama Castle since 1940.
Overview
The year of construction of Ta ...
: A castle ruin,
Mōri Motonari spent 23 years in the castle.
*
Akitakata City Historical Museum
270px, ruins of Yoshida Koriyama Castle
270px, Aerial view of Yoshida urban center
is a city located in north-central Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 26,810 in 13,319 households and a population density o ...
*
TS-Takata Circuit
Hiroshima vote-buying scandal
The mayor of Akitakata, Hiroshi Kodama, admitted receiving 600,000 yen from former
Minister of Justice
A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
Katsuyuki Kawai and appeared at a news conference on 26 June 2020 with a shaved head to express his remorse. He resigned a week later, having stayed in office for only two and a half months. Other recipients of the cash gifts included several elected representatives in the city, amongst them the Speaker and the vice-Speaker of the Municipal Assembly.
References
External links
*
Akitakata City official website
Kagura Village in Midori
{{Authority control
Cities in Hiroshima Prefecture