is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than city, cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares ...

located in

Saitama Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Saitama Prefecture has a population of 7,338,536 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 3,797 km2 (1,466 sq mi). Saitama Prefecture borders Tochigi Prefectur ...

, Japan. , 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 ...

of 18,594 in 7800 households 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 480 persons per km². The total area of the town is .

Geography

Located in central Saitama Prefecture on the lowlands of the upper Arakawa River, Yoshimi is noted for its strawberry production. Parts of the town are within the borders of the Saitama Prefectural Hiki Hills Nature Park.

Surrounding municipalities

Kumagaya is a city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 195,277 in 87,827 households and a population density of 1200 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Kumagaya is one of the largest ...

* Kōnosu * Higashimatsuyama * Kitamoto * Kawajima

Climate

Yoshimi has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen ''Cfa'') characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Yoshimi is 14.2 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1448 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.0 °C, and lowest in January, at around 2.0 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Yoshimi population statistics
/ref> the population of Yoshimi peaked around the year 2000 and has declined since.

History

Archaeologists have discovered numerous Kofun period remains from the third through sixth centuries AD within the borders of Yoshimi. The villages of Higashi-Yoshimi, Minami-Yoshimi, Nishi-Yoshimi and Kita-Yoshimi were created within Yokomi District with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. Yokomi District was abolished in 1896, becoming part of Hiki District. On July 1, 1954, the four villages merged to become the village of Yoshimi, which was elevated to town status on November 3, 1972. Attempts to merge Yoshimi with neighboring Higashimatsuyama were rejected by referendum in 2004.

Government

Yoshimi 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. Yoshimi, together with the city of Higashimatsuyama and town of Kawashima, contributes two members to the Saitama Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the town is part of Saitama 10th district of the lower house 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 ...

Education

Yoshimi has six public elementary schools and one public middle school operated by the town government. The town does not have a high school; however, the Musashigaoka College, a junior college, is located in Yoshimi.

Transportation

Railway

* Yoshimi has no passenger rail service.

Highway

* Yoshimi is not located on any national highways.

Local attractions

The Hundred Caves of Yoshimi The is a cluster of tombs dug in artificial caves in a tuff cliff of located in the town of Yoshimi, Saitama, in the Kantō region of Japan. It was designated as a Monuments of Japan, National Historic Site on March 7, 1923. The Schistostega ...

, National Historic Site * Anraku-ji * Iwamuro Kannon Hall * site of Matsuyama Castle * Kuroiwa Kofun * Yoshimi Onsen

Notable people from Yoshimi

* Tomoyuki Kubota, professional baseball player * Momosuke Fukuzawa, Meiji period entrepreneur

References

External links

*
Official Website
{{Authority control Hiki District, Saitama Towns in Saitama Prefecture Yoshimi, Saitama