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 ori ...

located in Arida District,

Wakayama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Wakayama Prefecture has a population of 944,320 () and has a geographic area of . Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Prefecture to the north, and Mie Prefecture and Nara 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 north ...

. , 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 a ...

of 11,413 in 5338 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 550 persons per km². The total area of the town is . Yuasa claims to be the birthplace of

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 ...

Geography

Yuasa is located on the coast in north-central Wakayama Prefecture, facing the Kii Channel. The coastline is a

ria A ria (; gl, ría) is a coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley. It is a drowned river valley that remains open to the sea. Definitions Typically rias have a Drainage system (geomorphology)#Dendritic dr ...

coast and the climate is mild due to the effects of the offshore

Kuroshio Current The , also known as the Black or or the is a north-flowing, warm ocean current on the west side of the North Pacific Ocean basin. It was named for the deep blue appearance of its waters. Similar to the Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic, the Ku ...

Neighboring municipalities

Wakayama Prefecture * Arida *

Hirogawa 270px, Inamura no hi no yakata is a town in Arida District, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 6,778 in 2833 households and a population density of 100 persons per km². The total area of the town is . Geogr ...

* Aridagawa

Climate

Yuasa 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 Yuasa is 15.7 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1878 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 5.8 °C. The area is subject to

typhoon A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere. This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, and is the most active tropical cyclone basin on Earth, accounting for a ...

s in summer.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Yuasa population statistics
/ref> the population of Yuasa has been slowly declining over the past 40 years.

History

The area of the modern town of Yuasa was within ancient

Kii Province , or , was a province of Japan in the part of Honshū that is today Wakayama Prefecture, as well as the southern part of Mie Prefecture. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Kii''" in . Kii bordered Ise, Izumi, Kawachi, Shima, and Yamato Pro ...

. The name "Yuasa" appears in

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese. ...

documents in conjunction with Yuasa ''Shōen'', a landed estate in the area which existed into the

Nanboku-chō period The Nanboku-chō period (南北朝時代, ''Nanboku-chō jidai'', "North and South court period", also known as the Northern and Southern Courts period), spanning from 1336 to 1392, was a period that occurred during the formative years of the Mur ...

. During the

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 ...

, it was the location of a ''

daikansho A was the office of a ''daikan'' (magistrate) during the Edo period (18th & 19th century) of Japanese history. External links Edo period Legal history of Japan {{japan-gov-stub ...

'' which administered the surrounding area for

Kishū Domain , or , was a province of Japan in the part of Honshū that is today Wakayama Prefecture, as well as the southern part of Mie Prefecture. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Kii''" in . Kii bordered Ise, Izumi, Kawachi, Shima, and Yamato Prov ...

. The village of Yuasa was established with the creation of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. It was elevated to town status on June 22, 1896. The neighboring village of Tasukawa was annexed on March 31, 1956.

Government

Yuasa 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 10 members. Yuasa collectively with the other municipalities of Arida District, contributes three members to the

Wakayama Prefectural Assembly The is the prefectural parliament of Wakayama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Wakayama Prefecture has a population of 944,320 () and has a geographic area of . Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Pref ...

. In terms of national politics, the town is part of

Wakayama 3rd district Wakayama 3rd district is a constituency of the House of Representatives in the Diet of Japan (national legislature). It is located in Wakayama Prefecture and consists of Arida, Gobo, Shingu, and Tanabe cities and the Arida, Hidaka, Higashimu ...

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

Yuasa is famous for its

industry, which has flourished since the

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 ...

, especially for

whitebait Whitebait is a collective term for the immature fry of fish, typically between long. Such young fish often travel together in schools along coasts, and move into estuaries and sometimes up rivers where they can be easily caught using fine-m ...

, agriculture and tourism are all-important contributors to the local economy.

Education

Yuasa has four public elementary schools and one public middle schools operated by the town government, and one public high school operated by the Wakayama Prefectural Board of Education.

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 ...

–

Kisei Main Line The is a railway line that parallels the coastline of the Kii Peninsula in Japan between Mie Prefecture and Wakayama Prefecture. The name takes the ''kanji'' characters from the names of the old provinces of and . The line is operated by Ce ...

Highways

Yuasa-Gobo Road *

Sister city relations

* -

Cambridge, Minnesota Cambridge is a city in Isanti County, Minnesota, United States, located at the junction of Minnesota State Highways 65 and 95. The population was 9,611 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Isanti County. It is located along the Rum Riv ...

, USA, sister cities since March 15, 1986 * -

Braham, Minnesota Braham is a city in Isanti and Kanabec counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 1,769 at the 2020 census. Braham is 12 miles north of Cambridge, 15 miles southwest of Pine City, 16 miles south-southeast of Mora, and 12 mile ...

, USA, sister cities since March 15, 1986 * -

Kerikeri Kerikeri () is the largest town in Northland, New Zealand. It is a tourist destination north of Auckland and north of the northern region's largest city, Whangarei. It is sometimes called the Cradle of the Nation, as it was the site of th ...

, New Zealand, sister cities since May 13, 1993

Local attractions

*Yuasa old town, designated an Important Preservation District for Traditional Buildings *Mukai-ji, National Historic Site

References

External links

*
Yuasa official website

CNN Travel Yuasa: Birthplace of Japanese soy sauce and Edo-era treasures.
{{Wakayama Towns in Wakayama Prefecture Yuasa, Wakayama Populated coastal places in Japan