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

Chiba Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Chiba Prefecture has a population of 6,278,060 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Chiba Prefecture borders Ibaraki Prefecture to the north, Saitama Prefecture to the ...

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 city 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 74,469 in 31,113 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 280 persons per km². The total area of the city is .

Katori Shrine The is a Shintō shrine in the city of Katori in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. It is the ''ichinomiya'' of former Shimōsa Province, and is the head shrine of the approximately 400 Katori shrines around the country (located primarily in the Kantō re ...

is in the city of Katori, as is the old merchant town and canal of Sawara.

Geography

Katori is located in far northeastern Chiba Prefecture, along the lower reaches of the

Tone River The is a river in the Kantō region of Japan. It is in length (the second longest in Japan after the Shinano) and has a drainage area of (the largest in Japan). It is nicknamed Bandō Tarō (); ''Bandō'' is an obsolete alias of the Kantō ...

. It is about 45 kilometers from the prefectural capital at

Chiba Chiba may refer to: Places China * (), town in Jianli County, Jingzhou, Hubei Japan * Chiba (city), capital of Chiba Prefecture ** Chiba Station, a train station * Chiba Prefecture, a sub-national jurisdiction in the Greater Tokyo Area on ...

and 70 to 80 kilometers from central Tokyo. It is included in the Narita metropolitan area (Narita city) in the urban employment area, and the commuting rate to Narita city is 12.7% (2010 census). It borders Ibaraki prefecture on the opposite bank across the Tone River. The city is in the Kanto Plain, and although there are places along the Tone River that exceed 50 meters, the average elevation of the city is approximately 20 to 40 meters. Parts of the city are located within the borders of the

Suigō-Tsukuba Quasi-National Park is a quasi-national park in the Kantō region of Honshū in Japan. It is rated a protected landscape (category V) according to the IUCN. Geography Suigō-Tsukuba Quasi-National Park covers an area in southeast Ibaraki Prefecture and north ...

Surrounding municipalities

Chiba Prefecture * Narita *

Sōsa is a city located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 35,674 in 14,688 households and a population density of 350 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Sōsa is located in far northeaste ...

Asahi Asahi (朝日, 旭, or あさひ) means "morning sun" in Japanese and may refer to: Cities * Asahi, Chiba (旭市; ''Asahi-shi'') Wards * Asahi-ku, Osaka (旭区; ''Asahi-ku'') * Asahi-ku, Yokohama (旭; ''Asahi-ku'') Towns * Asahi, Aichi (旭� ...

Kōzaki 260px, Kozaki Shrine is a town located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan., the town had an estimated population of 5,884 in 2471 households and a population density of 300 persons per km². The total area of the town is . Etymology The name of the to ...

* Tako * Tōnoshō

Ibaraki Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Ibaraki Prefecture has a population of 2,871,199 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Ibaraki Prefecture borders Fukushima Prefecture to the north, ...

* Inashiki, Ibaraki *

Itako , also known as or , are blind women who train to become spiritual mediums in Japan. Training involves severe ascetic practices, after which the woman is said to be able to communicate with Japanese Shinto spirits, ''kami'', and the spirits o ...

* Kamisu

Climate

Katori 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 Katori is . The average annual rainfall is with October as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around .

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Katori population statistics
/ref> the population of Katori has declined over the past 30 years.

History

After the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

, the area consisted of the towns of Sawara and Omigawa, and the villages of Katori, Kanishi and Higashi-Daito (founded within Katori District on May 23, 1890). Katori was raised to town status on May 5, 1897. On March 15, 1951, the city of Sawara was formed by the merger of Katori, Sawara, Omigawa and Higashi-Daito. Sawara expanded on February 11, 1955, by annexing the neighboring villages of Niijima, Okura, Mizuho and Tsunomiya. On March 27, 2006, the modern city of Katori was created when Sawara was merged with the towns of Kurimoto, Omigawa and

Yamada Yamada (山田, ) is the 12th most common Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include: *, Japanese model, actress and idol *, Japanese field hockey player *, Japanese illustrator and manga artist *, Japanese rugby union player *, Ja ...

(all from Katori District).

Government

Katori 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 22 members. Katori, together with the neighboring towns of Kōzaki and Tako, contributes two members to the Chiba Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of

Chiba 10th district , the House of Representatives of Japan is elected from a combination of multi-member districts and single-member districts, a method called Parallel voting. Currently, 176 members are elected from 11 multi-member districts (called proportional r ...

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

Katori is a regional commercial center. The economy is primarily agricultural, with rice, chives, onions, and greater burdock as major crops.

Education

Katori has 16 public elementary schools and seven public middle schools operated by the city government, and three public high schools operated by the Chiba Prefectural Board of Education. There is also one private high school.

Transportation

Railways

JR East 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 are ...

– Narita Line * - - - - JR logo (east)

– Kashima Line *( Sawara -) Katori - Jūnikyō

Highways

* * *

Local attractions

* Kanpuku-ji * Yamakurayama Kanpuku-ji * Katori Jingu *

Kurobe River The is a river in Toyama Prefecture, Japan. in length, it has a watershed of 689 km². The river rises from Mount Washiba in the Hida Mountains and carves the deep valley known as the Kurobe Gorge. It comes out of the mountains at Un ...

* Suigō Sawara Aquatic Botanical Garden

Noted people from Katori

* Takao Sakurai, professional boxer *

Kazuo Misaki Kazuo Misaki (born April 25, 1976) is a retired Japanese professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 2001 until 2013, he was the 2006 PRIDE Welterweight (183 lbs) Grand Prix Champion, and also competed in Sengoku, Pancrase ...

, mixed martial artist *

Kento Masuda is a Japanese composer and recording artist. He is a voting member of The Recording Academy, and his work has been described as "one of this world's artistic treasures." As an exclusive player for KAWAI pianos, Masuda is the sole player of the on ...

, composer and recording artist * Yamamura Shinjiro, Minister of Transport, involved in

Japan Airlines Flight 351 Japan Air Lines Flight 351 was a scheduled passenger flight from Tokyo Haneda Airport to Fukuoka that was hijacked by members of the Red Army Faction of the Japan Communist League on March 31, 1970, in an incident usually referred to in Japanese ...

hijacking

References

External links

Official Website
{{Authority control Cities in Chiba Prefecture 2006 establishments in Japan Populated places established in 2006