Ōshū, Iwate
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is a
city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
located in
Iwate Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. It is the second-largest Japanese prefecture (behind Hokkaido) at , with a population of 1,165,886 (as of July 1, 2023). Iwate Prefecture borders Aomori Pre ...
,
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 ...
. , the city 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 114,620 and a
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...
of 120 persons per km2 in 45,728 households. The total area of the city is . Ōshū is famous for its Maesawa Beef, numerous festivals, historic temples and shrines and Fujiwara no Sato, a theme park and movie lot based on the exploits of the
Northern Fujiwara The Northern Fujiwara (奥州藤原氏 ''Ōshū Fujiwara-shi'') were a Japanese noble family that ruled the Tōhoku region (the northeast of Honshū) of Japan during the 12th century as their own realm.
s in the 12th century. Many famous people claim Ōshū as their home, including
Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
player Shohei Ohtani and Ichiro Ozawa, the long-time leader of the
Democratic Party of Japan The was a Centrism, centristThe Democratic Party of Japan was widely described as centrist: * * * * * * * to Centre-left politics, centre-left, Liberalism, liberal or Social liberalism, social-liberal List of political parties in Japan, ...
.


Geography

Ōshū is located in the south-central portion of Iwate Prefecture, bordered by the
Akita Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Provinces and prefectures" in ; "Tōhoku" in . Its population is estimated 915,691 as of 1 August 2023 and its geographi ...
to the west. At 993.35 square kilometers, Ōshū is the second largest municipality in
Iwate Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. It is the second-largest Japanese prefecture (behind Hokkaido) at , with a population of 1,165,886 (as of July 1, 2023). Iwate Prefecture borders Aomori Pre ...
in terms of land area. The city lies in a fertile plain straddling the Kitakami River and rises to the
Ōu Mountains The are a mountain range in the Tōhoku region of Honshū, Japan. It is the longest range in Japan and stretches south from the Natsudomari Peninsula of Aomori Prefecture to the Nasu volcanoes at the northern boundary of the Kantō region. T ...
in the west and the Kitakami Mountains to the east. The city's highest point is Mt. Yakeishi-dake at 1,548 meters in the Ōu Mountains. The northern boundary is marked by the Isawa River while the Koromogawa River marks the southern border. Ishibuchi Dam creates a reservoir on the upper reaches of the Isawa River near Mt. Yakeishi-dake.


Neighboring municipalities

Akita Prefecture * Higashinaruse Iwate Prefecture * Hanamaki * Hiraizumi * Ichinoseki * Kanegasaki * Kitakami * Nishiwaga * Sumita * Tōno


Climate

Ōshū has a
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...
(
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
''Cfa'') or
humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...
(
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
''Dfa'') depending on the isotherm used with warm summers and cold winters. The average annual temperature in Ōshū is 10.4 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1278 mm with September as the wettest month and January as the driest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 24.2 °C, and lowest in January, at around -2.5 °C.


Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Ōshū peaked at around the year 2000, and has been in decline since.


History

The area of present-day Ōshū was part of ancient Mutsu Province, and has been settled since at least the Japanese Paleolithic period. Isawa is especially rich in
Kofun Period The is an era in the history of Japan from about 300 to 538 AD (the date of the introduction of Buddhism), following the Yayoi period. The Kofun and the subsequent Asuka periods are sometimes collectively called the Yamato period. This period is ...
remains from the 5th century. By the
Nara period The of the history of Japan covers the years from 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the capita ...
, Japanese hunters, trappers, settlers and itinerant missionaries were visiting and settling in this area, and coming into contact with the native Emishi people. In 729, Kokuseki-ji temple claims to have been established by the Buddhist priest Gyōki in a mountainous area to the east of the Kitakami River in what is now Mizusawa. In 776, two separate attacks were launched by the
imperial dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a monarchy, monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A dynasty may also be referred to as a "house", "family" or "clan", among others. H ...
against the Emishi with little success. In June 787 Emishi cavalry led by Aterui and More surprised and routed a larger force of Japanese infantry in the Battle of Subuse (located in what is now part of Mizusawa). Despite these successes the Emishi could not hold out against the Japanese and in 802 Aterui and More surrendered and were beheaded. That same year Sakanoue no Tamuramaro, established Isawa Castle. Despite the victory the Japanese found if difficult to rule the territory directly. Six semi-autonomous districts were established along the Kitakami River. Eventually these came under the control of a powerful Emishi clan from Appi, the Abe clan. Early in the 11th century Abe no Yoritoki refused to pay taxes to the central government, led raiding parties south of the Koromo River, and generally ruled as an independent monarch. This led to the or Early Nine-Years War (1050 - 1062), in which Minamoto no Yoriyoshi reinforced by Kiyohara no Takenori from Dewa Province defeated the Abe clan. The area later came under the rule of the Kiyohara clan. Corrupt administration by the Kiyohara led to the Gosannen War (後三年合戦) or Latter Three Years' War (1083 - 1087) in which Minamoto no Yoshiie subdued the Kiyohara. Fujiwara no Kiyohira, the founder of the Ōshū Fujiwara dynasty, was born in Fort Toyota which is now in the Iwayado area of Esashi. Around 1100, he relocated to Hiraizumi where he and his descendants ruled for nearly a hundred years. In 1348, a Zen Buddhist priest named Mutei Ryōshō founded the temple of Shōbō-ji near Kokuseki-ji temple in Mizusawa. It is the third head temple of the Sōtō sect of Zen Buddhism and boasts the largest thatched roof in Japan. During the
Sengoku period The was the period in History of Japan, Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as th ...
, the area came under control of the powerful
Date clan The is a Japanese samurai kin group.Edmond Papinot, 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 fam ...
. During this period, Italian
Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
missionaries regarded it as a kingdom. which they called "Voxu". Following the
Battle of Sekigahara The Battle of Sekigahara (Shinjitai: ; Kyūjitai: , Hepburn romanization: ''Sekigahara no Tatakai'') was an important battle in Japan which occurred on October 21, 1600 (Keichō 5, 15th day of the 9th month) in what is now Gifu Prefecture, ...
, the
Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...
confirmed the area was part of Sendai Domain under Date Masamune. One of his retainers was a certain Juan Gotō who commanded Date Masamune's gun regiment at Osaka in 1614 and 1615. He was also a Kirishitan and established a church in the Fukuwara area of Mizusawa. After Christianity was outlawed in 1623 he went into hiding to escape capture. Foreign missionaries continued to visit the area in secret until December 1623 when the Jesuit Padre Diogo de Carvalho from Portugal was captured on the upper reaches of the Isawa River, sent to Sendai and forced to stand in the frozen Hirose River until he died in the early hours of what was then New Year's Day, namely February 19, 1624. There is a memorial to Juan Gotō in the Fukuwara area and many crypto-Christian remains can still be seen in that neighborhood. Following 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 Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...
, the area was assigned to
Iwate Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. It is the second-largest Japanese prefecture (behind Hokkaido) at , with a population of 1,165,886 (as of July 1, 2023). Iwate Prefecture borders Aomori Pre ...
rather than
Miyagi Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Miyagi Prefecture has a population of 2,265,724 (1 August 2023) and has a geographic area of . Miyagi Prefecture borders Iwate Prefecture to the north, Akit ...
as part of the governments efforts to break up former Sendai Domain, partly due to its role in opposing the
Meiji government The was the government that was formed by politicians of the Satsuma Domain and Chōshū Domain in the 1860s. The Meiji government was the early government of the Empire of Japan. Politicians of the Meiji government were known as the Meiji ...
during the Boshin War. The town of Mizusawa was created within Isawa District on April 1, 1889, with the establishment of the modern municipalities system. It was raised to city status on April 1, 1954. The village of Esashi was likewise created on April 1, 1889, raised to town status on February 10, 1955, and to city status on November 3, 1958. The city of Ōshū was established on February 20, 2006, from the merger of the cities Esashi and Mizusawa with the towns of Isawa and Maesawa, and the village of Koromogawa.


Government

Ōshū 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 consisting of one house or assembly that legislates and votes as one. Unicameralism has become an increasingly common type of legislature, making up nearly ...
city legislature of 28 members. Ōshū, together with the city of Kanegasaki contributes 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 the lower chamber of a bicameral legislature, where the other chamber is the upper house. Although styled as "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has come to wield more power or otherwise e ...
of the
Diet of Japan , transcription_name = ''Kokkai'' , legislature = 215th Session of the National Diet , coa_pic = Flag of Japan.svg , house_type = Bicameral , houses = , foundation=29 November 1890(), leader1_type ...
.


Education

* Graduate University for Advanced Studies – Iwate campus * Iwate University – Ōshū campus * Ōshū has 27 public elementary schools and 12 public middle schools operated by the city government and eight public high schools operated by the Iwate Prefectural Board of Education. The prefecture also operates one special education school.


Transportation


Railway

East Japan Railway Company (JR East) - Tōhoku Shinkansen * East Japan Railway Company (JR East) -
Tōhoku Main Line The Tōhoku Main Line () is a 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, Saitama, Saitama, Utsunomiya, Tochigi, Uts ...
* - -


Highway

* – Maesawa SA, Mizusawa IC * * * * *


Sister cities

* Breitenwang, Tirol, Austria, since June 2011 * Greater Shepparton, Victoria,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, since March 1979 * Reutte, Tirol,
Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
, since June 2011


Local attractions

* Isawa Castle, ruins of a Heian-period fortification, a National Historic Site *The sound of the ''Nambu Fūrin'' (wind chimes) at Mizusawa Station in Ōshū is designated as one of the 100 Soundscapes of Japan by the Ministry of the Environment * Ōsuzukami Site,
Jōmon period In Japanese history, the is the time between , during which Japan was inhabited by the Jōmon people, a diverse hunter-gatherer and early agriculturalist population united by a common culture, which reached a considerable degree of sedentism an ...
ruins, a National Historic Site * Shirotoridate ruins, Heian period settlement ruins, a National Historic Site * Tsunozuka Kofun, the northernmost keyhole-shaped '' kofun'' in Japan, a National Historic Site


Notable people

* Shiina Etsusaburo, diplomat, foreign minister * Maedagawa Katsu, sumo wrestler * Keiji Kokuta, politician * Akiko Kuji, announcer, actress, and model * Saito Makoto, IJN admiral, politician and prime minister of Japan * Eiichi Ohtaki, musician, singer-songwriter * Shohei Ohtani, professional baseball player * Gotō Shinpei, politician * Oikawa Teruhisa, sumo wrestler * Tatsuya Yoshida, musician


References


External links


Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oshu Cities in Iwate Prefecture