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 Kishima District,

Saga Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. Saga Prefecture has a population of roughly 780,000 and has a geographic area of . Saga Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northeast and Nagasaki Prefect ...

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 ...

. On January 1, 2005, Ariake, along with the town of Fukudomi (also from Kishima District), was merged into the expanded town of Shiroishi. The former Ariake Town Hall is now actually the site of the main Shiroishi Town Hall. Ariake borders the

Ariake Sea The is a body of salt water surrounded by Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, and Kumamoto Prefectures, all of which lie on the island of Kyūshū in Japan. It is the largest bay in Kyūshū. Its deepest point is only about 50 meters (165 ft) deep, and ext ...

, and from the

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

through the

Shōwa period Shōwa most commonly refers to: * Hirohito (1901–1989), the 124th Emperor of Japan, known posthumously as Emperor Shōwa ** Shōwa era (昭和), the era of Hirohito from 1926 to 1989 * Showa Corporation, a Japanese suspension and shock manufactu ...

land was

reclaimed Land reclamation, often known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a waste landfill), is the process of creating new land from oceans, seas, riverbeds or lake beds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamation ...

from this sea.

Geography

Ariake is long east to west. In the west it borders Shiota at Kishima Mountain, and in the east it borders the

and is an area of lowland rice paddies. To the north it becomes Shiroishi, and to the south it borders Kashima along the Shiota River. The eastern third of the town is

reclaimed land Land reclamation, often known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a waste landfill), is the process of creating new land from oceans, seas, riverbeds or lake beds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamatio ...

. The town proper is northeast of the train station, Hizen-Ryūō, and near Megurie River. * Mountains: Shiraiwa Mountain (340.3m, 1116.5 ft), Īmori Mountain (317.8m, 1042.7 ft) * Rivers: Shiota River, Megurie River, Tadae River

Adjoining Municipalities

* Kashima * Shiroishi * Ureshino

History

* April 1, 1889 - ** Fukaura (深浦村) and Sakata (坂田村) were merged to become Ryūō (竜王村). ** Heta (辺田村), Tanoue (田野上村) and Togari (戸ケ里村) were merged to become Kinkō (錦江村). ** Ushiya (牛屋村) and Yokote (横手村) were merged to create Minami-Ariake (南有明村). * April 1, 1955 - Kinkō (錦江村) and Ryūō (竜王村) were merged to create Ariake Village (有明村). * September 30, 1955 - Minami-Ariake (南有明村) was incorporated into Ariake Village (有明村). * October 1, 1962 - Ariake Village (有明村) became Ariake Town (有明町). * January 1, 2005 - Ariake Town was incorporated into Shiroishi.

Transportation

Air

The closest airport is

Saga Airport is an airport in the Kawasoe, Saga, Kawasoe area of Saga, Saga, Saga, Saga Prefecture, Japan. It also uses the unofficial name . Saga Airport is located on the edge of the Ariake Sea, in what is effectively a polder, 35 minutes from JR Saga Sta ...

Rail

JR Kyushu The , also referred to as , is one of the seven constituent companies of Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It operates intercity rail services within Kyushu, Japan. It formerly operated the Beetle hydrofoil service across the Tsushima Strait be ...

Nagasaki Main Line The , or simply known as the Nagasaki Line, is a railway line owned by the Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu) connecting Tosu Station in Saga Prefecture to Nagasaki Station in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. There is a separate branch of this line ...

*** Hizen-Ryūō

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 207, Route 34 {{Authority control Dissolved municipalities of Saga Prefecture Shiroishi, Saga