was a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

located in Aida District,

Okayama Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Okayama Prefecture has a population of 1,826,059 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 7,114 Square kilometre, km2 (2,746 sq mi). Okayama Prefecture ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. As of 2003, the town had an estimated

population Population is a set of humans or other organisms in a given region or area. Governments conduct a census to quantify the resident population size within a given jurisdiction. The term is also applied to non-human animals, microorganisms, and pl ...

of 4,630 and a

density Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the ratio of a substance's mass to its volume. The symbol most often used for density is ''ρ'' (the lower case Greek letter rho), although the Latin letter ''D'' (or ''d'') can also be u ...

of 84.99 persons per km². The total area was 54.48 km². On March 31, 2005, Ōhara, along with the towns of Mimasaka,

Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is a tragic opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 De ...

and Sakutō, the village of Higashiawakura (all from Aida District), and the town of Katsuta (from Katsuta District), was merged to create the city of Mimasaka.

Geography

Adjoining municipalities

** Sakutō ** Nishiawakura ** Higashiawakura ** Katsuta *

Hyōgo Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Hyōgo Prefecture has a population of 5,469,762 () and a geographic area of . Hyōgo Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the east, Osaka Prefecture to th ...

** Sayō

Education

*Ōhara Elementary School *Ōhara Junior High School *Okayama Prefectural Ōhara High School (Closure in 2006)

Transportation

Railways

Chizu Express The is a Japanese third-sector railway that connects Hyōgo Prefecture, Hyōgo, Okayama prefecture, Okayama and Tottori prefectures. The Chizu Line is not electrified, but is a high-grade railroad, and extends a total of . The limited expresses ' ...

** Chizu Line *** Miyamoto Musashi Station - Ōhara Station

Road

National highways National Highways (NH), formerly Highways England and before that the Highways Agency, is a State-owned enterprise, government-owned company charged with operating, maintaining and improving Roads in England, motorways and major A roads in Eng ...

: ** Route 373 ** Route 429 * Prefectural roads: **Okayama Prefectural Route 5 (Sakutō-Ōhara) **Okayama Prefectural Route 240 (Shimoshō- Sayō) **Okayama Prefectural Route 357 (Kajinami-Tateishi)

Notable places and events

*Village of

Miyamoto Musashi , was a Japanese swordsman, strategist, artist, and writer who became renowned through stories of his unique double-bladed swordsmanship and undefeated record in his 62 duels. Miyamoto is considered a ''Kensei (honorary title), kensei'' (swo ...

*Main stone of

Temple *

's grave next to that of his parents *Ōhara-shuku (

Shukuba were Stage station, staging post stations during the Edo period in Japan, generally located on one of the Edo Five Routes or one of its sub-routes. They were also called ''shuku-eki'' (宿駅). These stage stations, or "" developed around them, ...

) File:Gorinbo07bs3200.jpg, Village of Miyamoto Musashi File:Tombe de Miyamoto Musashi à Ōhara, province de Mimasaka.jpg, alt=Miyamoto Musashi's grave in Ōhara-, Statue of Miyamoto Musashi File:Ohara-juku01s3200.jpg, Ōhara-shuku

References

External links

Official website of Mimasaka
in Japanese Dissolved municipalities of Okayama Prefecture Mimasaka, Okayama {{Okayama-geo-stub