is a city located in

Iwate Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. It is the second-largest Japanese prefecture at , with a population of 1,210,534 (as of October 1, 2020). Iwate Prefecture borders Aomori Prefecture to the north, Akita Prefectu ...

, in the

Tōhoku region The , Northeast region, or consists of the northeastern portion of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. This traditional region consists of six prefectures (''ken''): Akita, Aomori, Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi, and Yamagata. Tōhoku reta ...

of northern

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 n ...

. , the city had a population of 114,476 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 RosenberPopu ...

of 91 persons per km² in 46,375 households. It is currently the second largest city by population in the prefecture, after

Morioka is the capital city of Iwate Prefecture located in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan. On 1 February 2021, the city had an estimated population of 290,700 in 132,719 households, and a population density of . The total area of the city is . ...

. The total area of the city was .

Geography

Ichinoseki is located inland in the south of Iwate Prefecture, a little over two hours north of Tokyo by the Tōhoku Shinkansen. A large volume of extremely stable granite rock runs beneath the city, and is the center of the site is being promoted as a suitable location for construction of the

International Linear Collider The International Linear Collider (ILC) is a proposed linear particle accelerator. It is planned to have a collision energy of 500 GeV initially, with the possibility for a later upgrade to 1000 GeV (1 TeV). Although early propose ...

(ILC).

Neighboring municipalities

Iwate Prefecture * Ōshū *

Rikuzentakata is a city located in Iwate Prefecture, Japan. In the census of 2010, the city had a population of 23,302 (2005: 24,709), and a population density of 100 persons per km². The 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami caused extensive damage to th ...

* Sumita * Hiraizumi Miyagi Prefecture *

Kesennuma is a city in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 59,803 and a population density of in 26,390 households. The total area of the city is . Large sections of the city were destroyed by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake a ...

* Kurihara * Tome Akita Prefecture *

Higashinaruse 270px, Lake Suwaka is a village located in Akita Prefecture, Japan. , the village had an estimated population of 2,512 in 902 households, and a population density of 12 persons per km2. The total area is of the village is . In 1999, Higashin ...

Climate

Ichinoseki has a humid climate (

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, nota ...

''Cfa'') with warm summers and cold winters. The average annual temperature in Ichinoseki is 10.9 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1248 mm with September as the wettest month and January as the driest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 24.3 °C, and lowest in January, at around -1.5 °C.

Demographics

The agricultural makeup of the city outside the centre is mostly composed of farmers, leading to an influx of Chinese and Filipino immigrants due to marriage. As a result, Ichinoseki has a varied ethnic makeup, although the newcomers still remain a small minority. Per Japanese census data, the population of Ichinoseki peaked in the 1950s and has declined over the past 70 years. Ichinoseki has been recognized by Japan's Office for the Promotion of Regional Revitalization ( Kishida Cabinet Secretariat), which promotes the development of new technologies to combat depopulation, for meeting a "high standard" of

digital transformation Digital transformation is the adoption of digital technology by an organization to digitize non-digital products, services or operations. The goal for its implementation is to increase value through innovation, invention, customer experience or e ...

/ telework infrastructure. Related projects have been awarded over ¥80M in government grants.

History

The area of present-day Ichinoseki was part of ancient

Mutsu Province was an old province of Japan in the area of Fukushima, Miyagi, Iwate and Aomori Prefectures and the municipalities of Kazuno and Kosaka in Akita Prefecture. Mutsu Province is also known as or . The term is often used to refer to the co ...

, and has been settled since at least the

Japanese Paleolithic The is the period of human inhabitation in Japan predating the development of pottery, generally before 10,000 BC. The starting dates commonly given to this period are from around 40,000 BC; although any date of human presence before 35,000 BC ...

period. The area was inhabited by the

Emishi The (also called Ebisu and Ezo), written with Chinese characters that literally mean " shrimp barbarians," constituted an ancient ethnic group of people who lived in parts of Honshū, especially in the Tōhoku region, referred to as in contem ...

people, and came under the control of the Yamato dynasty during the early

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 Japan ...

. During the

, it was controlled by the

Abe clan The was one of the oldest of the major Japanese clans (''uji''); and the clan retained its prominence during the Sengoku period and the Edo period.Meyer, Eva-Maria"Gouverneure von Kyôto in der Edo-Zeit." Universität Tübingen (in German). The ...

, followed by the

Northern Fujiwara The Northern Fujiwara (奥州藤原氏 ''Ōshū Fujiwara-shi'') were a Japanese kuge, noble Japanese clans, family that ruled the Tōhoku region (the northeast of Honshū) of Japan during the 12th century as their own realm.Hiraizumi. During the

Sengoku period The was a period in History of Japan, Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615. The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the Feudalism, feudal system of Japan under the ...

, the area was dominated by various

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They ...

clans before coming under the control of the

Date clan The is a Japanese samurai kin group. Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon''; Papinot, (2003)"Date", ''Nobiliare du Japon'', p. 5 retrieved 2013-5-5. History The Date family was founded ...

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 character ...

, who ruled Sendai Domain under the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

. A portion of the present city was part of Ichinoseki Domain, a sub-domain of Sendai Domain. The town of Ichinoseki was established within Nishiiwai District, Iwate on April 1, 1889 with the establishment of the modern municipality system. It was raised to city status on April 1, 1948 by the merger of the towns of Ichinoseki and Yamame with the villages of Mataki and Nakasato. *January 1, 1955 - Ichinoseki absorbed the villages of Genbi, Hagisho, Maikawa, and Yasakae *September 1, 1956 - Due to a boundary adjustment, the city absorbed parts of the town of Hiraizumi. *May 1, 1964 - Due to a boundary adjustment, the city absorbed more of the town of Hiraizumi. *September 20, 2005 - the towns of Daitō, Higashiyama and Senmaya, the villages of Kawasaki and Murone (all from Higashiiwai District), and the town of Hanaizumi (from Nishiiwai District) were merged with the city of Ichinoseki, which approximately doubled the old city's population and nearly tripled its size. *September 26, 2011 - the town of Fujisawa (also from Higashiiwai District) was merged into Ichinoseki. Higashiiwai District was dissolved as a result of this merger.

Government

Ichinoseki 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 council of 25 members. Ichinoseki and the town of Hiraizumi collectively contribute five seats to the Iwate Prefectural legislature. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Iwate 3rd district 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 paral ...

Education

Ichinoseki has 29 public elementary schools and 16 public junior high schools operated by the city government and one junior high school and eight public elementary schools operated by the Iwate Prefectural Board of Education. There is also one private high school and one private junior college. The Prefecture also operates one special education school for the handicapped.

Special school

岩手県立一関清明支援学校

Elementary schools

Junior high schools

High schools

*Ichinoseki Gakuin High School (一関学院高等学校) *Ichinoseki Shuko High School (一関修紅高等学校) (also has a preschool and a university) *Ichinoseki No. 1 High School (岩手県立一関第一高等学校) *Ichinoseki No. 2 High School (岩手県立一関第二高等学校) *Hanaizumi High School (岩手県立花泉高等学校) *Daito High School (岩手県立大東高等学校) *Senmaya High School (岩手県立千厩高等学校) *Ichinoseki Tech High School (岩手県立一関工業高等学校)

Kosen

* Ichinoseki National College of Technology (一関工業高等専門学校)

Junior college

* Shuko Junior College

Transportation

Railway

East Japan Railway Company The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and is the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters ar ...

(JR East) - Tōhoku Shinkansen * JR logo (east)

(JR East) -

Tōhoku Main Line The Tōhoku Main Line ( ja, 東北本線, ) is a long railway line in Japan operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The line starts from Tokyo Station in Chiyoda, Tokyo and passes through such cities as Saitama, Utsunomiya, Fuku ...

* - - - - - JR logo (east)

(JR East) - Ōfunato Line * - - - - - - - Surisawa - - - - -

Highway

* * * * * * * *

Local attractions

*Ichinoseki is in close proximity to the historically significant site of Hiraizumi, which lies adjacent to the mid-northern border of the city. Ichinoseki station is a convenient transit hub for excursions to Hiraizumi, with access to Tōhoku Shinkansen and local rail lines. * Geibikei is a dramatic river gorge which offers rides in traditional flat-bottomed boats, navigated by singing "gondoliers". * Genbikei is another popular river area with naturally carved cliffs. * Honederamura Shōen ruins has been designated an Important Cultural Landscape and a National Historic Site. A brochure can be seen here. http://www.ichitabi.jp/guidebook/pdf/guidebook_04_03_en.pdf

Sister Cities/Friendship Cities

International relations

* -

Central Highlands Regional Council Central Highlands Region is a local government area in Queensland, Australia. History '' Wadja'' (also known as ''Wadjigu'', ''Wadya'', ''Wadjainngo'', ''Mandalgu'', and ''Wadjigun)'' is an Australian Aboriginal language in Central Queensla ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

Friendship Cities

* Miharu ( Tamura District,

Fukushima Prefecture Fukushima Prefecture (; ja, 福島県, Fukushima-ken, ) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Fukushima Prefecture has a population of 1,810,286 () and has a geographic area of . Fukushima Prefecture borders Miyagi ...

) **Signed between the former city of Ichinoseki on August 8, 1987 *

(

Miyagi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Miyagi Prefecture has a population of 2,305,596 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Miyagi Prefecture borders Iwate Prefecture to the north, Akita Prefecture to the no ...

) **Signed between the former cities of Ichinoseki and Kesennuma on May 1, 1997 **Signed between the former city of Kesennuma and former town of Murone on May 8, 2003 * Tanabe ( Wakayama Prefecture) **Signed between the former village of Murone and the town of Hongu on August 8, 1987 *

Yoshikawa is a city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 73,262 in 31,031 households and a population density of 2300 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Located in far southeastern Sait ...

(

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 Prefecture ...

) **Signed by the former village of Murone on April 15, 1997

Noted people from Ichinoseki

* Ayaka Komatsu, model/actress *

Keiko Fuji (5 July 1951 – 22 August 2013), known primarily by the stage name was a Japanese singer and actress. She had success in Japan in the 1960s and 1970s with her ballad-type songs. She was married on-and-off with Utada Teruzane, and was the ...

, singer/actress * Shota Kimura, baseball player * Miyagiyama Fukumatsu, sumo wrestler * Masato Onodera, professional wrestler * Shota Onodera, basketball player * Takahira Kogorō, diplomat * Yuumi Shida, model/actress

References

External links

*
Ichinoseki tourist information
{{Authority control Cities in Iwate Prefecture