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

Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture to ...

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 modern city of Aso was established on February 11, 2005, from the merger of the former town of Aso, absorbing the town of

Ichinomiya is a Japanese historical term referring to the Shinto shrines with the highest rank in a province. Shrines of lower rank were designated , , , and so forth. ''Encyclopedia of Shinto'' ''Ichi no miya'' retrieved 2013-5-14. The term gave rise t ...

, and the village of Namino (all from Aso District). As of March 31, 2017, the city has 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 27,039, with 11,355

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 72 persons per km². The total area is 376.25 km². The city is situated within

Aso Caldera Aso caldera (also known as Asosan, the Aso Volcano or Mount Aso, although the later term usually is used related to its currently active vents) is a geographical feature of Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. It stretches 25 kilometers north to south ...

. The source of the

Kikuchi River The Kikuchi River (菊池川, ''Kikuchi-gawa'') flows through the northern part of Kumamoto Prefecture, Kyūshū, Japan. The source of the river is Fukaba, Aso city near Mt. Aso at the height of 1041 metres and flows west through the Kikuchi Vall ...

is located in the city.Okamura, Maya; Minagawa, Tomoko (2016).
Historical and Physical Evaluation of Floodplain Habitats in The River Channel of the Kikuchi River
" (PDF). 11th International Symposium on Ecohydraulics (ISE 2016). Engineers Australia: 91–98. .

Geography

Climate

Aso 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 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'') with hot, humid summers and cool winters. There is significant precipitation throughout the year, especially during June and July. The average annual temperature in Aso is . The average annual rainfall is with June as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around . The highest temperature ever recorded in Aso was on 11 August 2016; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 25 January 1998.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Aso in 2020 is 24,930 people. Aso has been conducting censuses since 1920.

Tourism

Places of interest

* Aso Geopark *

Aso Kujū National Park is a national park in Kumamoto and Ōita Prefectures, Japan. The park derives its name from Mount Aso, the largest active volcano in Japan, and the Kujū mountains. History Established as Aso National Park in 1934, in 1986 after extensio ...

Mount Aso Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

** Mount Aso Ropeway **

Aso Volcano Museum The is a museum that explains volcanoes. It is near Mount Aso, the largest active volcano in Japan. The Museum is in Kusasenri, Aso City, Kumamoto Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefectur ...

*Aso Uchinomaki Spa *Aso Akamizu Spa *Sensuikyo *Sensuikyo Ropeway (cable car) *

Aso Shrine is a Shinto Shrine in Aso, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1962). ''Studies in Shinto and Shrines,'' p. 477; Kotodamaya.com"Aso Jinja" retrieved 2012-10-29. Aso is one of the oldest shrines in Japan. This shrine holds sever ...

Notable people

Fictional characters born in Aso

Misae Nohara (born in Aso, Kumamoto, née Koyama). Tomohiko Amada (from

Killing Commendatore is a 2017 novel written by Japanese writer Haruki Murakami. It was first published in two volumes– and , respectively–by Shinchosha in Japan on 24 February 2017. An English translation by Philip Gabriel and Ted Goossen was released as a sing ...

by Haruki Murakami)

References

External links

Aso City official website
Cities in Kumamoto Prefecture {{Kumamoto-geo-stub