270px, Awa-no-dochu earthen pillars Natural Monument 270px, Kumadani-ji Sanmon 270px, Yoshino River 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

Tokushima Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Tokushima Prefecture has a population of 682,439 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,146 Square kilometre, km2 (1,601 sq mi). Tokushima Prefecture b ...

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 35,631 in 15432 households 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 190 persons per km². The total area of the city is .

Geography

Awa is located in the northeastern part of Tokushima Prefecture, between the northern bank of the Yoshino River and

Kagawa Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Kagawa Prefecture has a population of 949,358 (as of 2020) and is the List of Japanese prefectures by area, smallest prefecture by geographic area at . Kagawa Pr ...

. Parts of the city are within the borders of the Okumiyagawa-Uchidani Prefectural Natural Park.

Neighbouring municipalities

Kagawa Prefecture * Higashikagawa * Sanuki Tokushima Prefecture * Kamiita * Mima * Yoshinogawa

Climate

Awa 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 ''Cfa'') characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Awa is 14.9 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1,335 mm with September as the wettest month.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Awa population statistics
/ref> the population of Awa has slowly declined over the past 60 years.

History

As with all of Tokushima Prefecture, the area of Awa was part of ancient Awa Province. The Yoshino River valley was settled since at least the

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 ...

, and archaeologists have found many

kofun are megalithic tombs or tumulus, tumuli in Northeast Asia. ''Kofun'' were mainly constructed in the Japanese archipelago between the middle of the 3rd century to the early 7th century AD.岡田裕之「前方後円墳」『日本古代史大辞 ...

burial mound Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

s. During 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 ...

, the area was part of the holdings of

Tokushima Domain was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, controlling all of Awa Province and Awaji Province in what is now Tokushima Prefecture and Awaji Island of modern-day Hyōgo Prefecture. It was centered around Tokushima ...

ruled by the Hachisuka clan from their seat at Tokushima Castle. 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 ...

, it was organized into villages within Awa District and

Itano District, Tokushima is a Districts of Japan, district located in Tokushima Prefecture, Japan. As of June 1, 2019, the district has an estimated population of 97,263 and a population density of . The total area is . Matsushige, Tokushima, Matsushige is home to Toku ...

with the creation of the modern municipalities system on October 1, 1889. The villages of Hisakatsu, Isawa and Hayashi were founded within Awa District on October 1, 1889. Hayashi was raised to town status on November 1, 1928, and Hisakatsu on November 3, 1951. Hayashi, Hisakatsu and Isawa merged to form the town of Awa on March 31, 1955. The city of Awa was established on April 1, 2005, from the merger of the former town of Awa, absorbing the town of Ichiba from Awa District, and the towns of Donari and Yoshino (from Itano District).

Government

Awa 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 council of 20 members. Awa contributes two members to the Tokushima Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Tokushima 2nd 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 ...

Economy

The economy of Awa is primarily agricultural.

Education

Awa has ten public elementary schools and four public middle schools operated by the city government and two public middle school and four public high schools operated by the Tokushima Prefectural Department of Education.

Transportation

Railway

Awa has no passenger railway service. Awa-Kawashima Station is closest to the city hall, Awa-Yamakawa Station is close to center of former Awa town, and Kamojima Station is closest to the center of both former Donari and Yoshino towns.

Highways

Tokushima Expressway *

Local attractions

* Awa-no-dochū. Natural Monument * Hōrin-ji, 9th temple on the Shikoku Pilgrimage * Jūraku-ji, 7th temple on the Shikoku Pilgrimage * Kirihata-ji, 10th temple on the Shikoku Pilgrimage * Kumadani-ji, 8th temple on the Shikoku Pilgrimage * Okumiyagawa-Uchidani Prefectural Natural Park

Noted people from Awa

Takeo Miki was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan, Prime Minister of Japan from 1974 to 1976. A native of Tokushima Prefecture, Miki was educated at Meiji University and the University of Southern California. He was first elected ...

, Prime Minister of Japan *

Kazuo Sakamaki was a Japanese naval officer who became the first prisoner of war of World War II to be captured by U.S. forces. Early life and education Sakamaki was born in what is now part of the city of Awa, Tokushima Prefecture, the second-oldest of e ...

, Imperial Japanese Navy officer

References

External links

Awa City official website

Awa Town website
{{Tokushima Cities in Tokushima Prefecture