Omagari district Daisen city center area Aerial photograph

270px, Ikeda family gardens 270px, IHotta-no-saku ruins 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 ...

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 ...

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 76,277 in 31,544 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 88 persons per km². The total area of the city is . The city was created in 2005 by the merger of eight municipalities in the Omagari Semboku region. It is the venue for the National Fireworks Competition (Omagari Fireworks) and is known as the city of fireworks.

Geography

Daisen is located in the flatlands of central Akita Prefecture. The area of the city is greater than the total metropolitan area of Tokyo. Daisen is bounded by 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 east, the

Dewa Mountains Dewa Mountains () is a mountain range that runs north and south on the west side of the Tohoku region of Japan. The mountain range spans Aomori, Akita, and Yamagata prefectures. The Dewa Mountains are split into several sub-ranges by the Yones ...

in the center of the prefecture in the west, the former town of Kakumagawa between the

Omono River The is located in Akita Prefecture, Japan. The river flows from Mount Daisen on the border of Akita Prefecture with Miyagi and Yamagata Prefectures in the city of Yuzawa and drains into the Sea of Japan at the city of Akita. The river's draina ...

and the

Yokote River is a city located in Akita Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 81,617 in 33,876 households, and a population density of 120 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Yokote is located in southeast corn ...

in the south, and the area slightly south of the summit of Mount Oishi in the north. The mountains of the Dewa Mountain Range in the western part of the city and the Ōu Mountains in the eastern part of the city surround the Senboku Plain in the northern part of the Yokote Basin.The Omono River, a first-class river, flows from the south to the northwest of the city. The highest peak in Daisen is Mount Kosugi (1,229 meters) in eastern Daisen.

Neighboring municipalities

Akita Prefecture * Akita * Misato * Semboku * Yokote *

Yurihonjō is a Cities of Japan, city located in Akita Prefecture, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 72,550 in 30,750 households, and a population density of . The total area of the city is . Geography Yurihonjō is located in southwest ...

Iwate Prefecture * Nishiwaga

Climate

Daisen has a

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 / Cfa'') with large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year but is heaviest from August to October. The average annual temperature in Daisen is . The average annual rainfall is with August as the wettest month. The temperature is highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around .

Demographics

In Akita Prefecture, it has the third largest population after Akita City and Yokote City. Per Japanese census data, the population of Daisen peaked at around the year 1960 and has been in steady decline since then.

History

The area of present-day Daisen was part of ancient

Dewa Province was a province of Japan comprising modern-day Yamagata Prefecture and Akita Prefecture, except for the city of Kazuno and the town of Kosaka. Dewa bordered on Mutsu and Echigō Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was . History Early per ...

. 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 came under the control of the

Satake clan The was a Japanese clan, Japanese samurai clan that claimed descent from the Minamoto clan. Its first power base was in Hitachi Province. The clan was subdued by Minamoto no Yoritomo in the late 12th century, but later entered Yoritomo's serv ...

, who had been relocated to

Kubota Domain was a Han (Japan), feudal domain in Edo period Japan, located in Dewa Province (modern-day Akita Prefecture), Japan. It was centered on Kubota Castle in what is now the city of Akita, Akita, Akita and was thus also known as the . It was governe ...

from their former holdings in

Hitachi Province was an old provinces of Japan, old province of Japan in the area of Ibaraki Prefecture.Louis Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Hitachi fudoki''" in . It was sometimes called . Hitachi Province bordered on Shimōsa Province, S ...

. After the start of the

Meiji period The was an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonizatio ...

, and the establishment of the modern municipalities system, the area became part of Semboku District, Akita Prefecture in 1878.大曲市史〈第1巻〉資料編. publisher:大曲市史頒布会 date:May 1984 ASIN B000J733MG The city of Daisen was established on March 22, 2005, from the merger of the city of Ōmagari, the towns of Kamioka,

Kyōwa was a after ''Kansei'' and before ''Bunka.'' This period spanned the years from February 1801 through February 1804.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Kyōwa''" ; n.b., Louis-Frédéric is pseudonym of Louis-Frédéric Nussbaum, ''see'Deut ...

, Nakasen, Nishisenboku, Ōta and Semboku, and the village of Nangai (all from Semboku District).

Government

After the merger, Daisen had the distinction of having the largest city assembly in all of Japan, 145 members. The city now 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. The city contributes five members to the Akita Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Akita 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 ...

Economy

The economy of Daisen is based on agriculture and the area is noted for its rice production. Numerous ''

sake Sake, , or saki, also referred to as Japanese rice wine, is an alcoholic beverage of Japanese origin made by fermenting rice that has been polished to remove the bran. Despite the name ''Japanese rice wine'', sake, and indeed any East Asi ...

'' brewers are located in Daisen.

Education

Daisen has 20 public elementary schools and 13 public middle schools operated by the city government and five public high schools operated by the Akita Prefectural Board of Education. There is also one private high school. The prefecture also operates one special education school for the handicapped.

Transportation

Railways

East Japan Railway Company The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and 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 in ...

Akita Shinkansen The is a Mini-shinkansen rail line in Japan. Serving the Kantō and Tōhoku Regions of the country, it links Tokyo and Akita in Akita prefecture. From Tokyo to Morioka in Iwate prefecture, it operates on the Tōhoku Shinkansen tracks. From ...

Ōu Main Line The is a railway line in Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Fukushima Station (Fukushima), Fukushima Station through Akita Station to Aomori Station. Since the opening of the Yamagata Shinkansen on July 1, 1 ...

* - - - -

- Tazawako Line * - - - - -

Highways

* * * * *

Sister cities

Tettnang Tettnang () is a town in the Bodensee district in southern Baden-Württemberg in Swabia region of Germany. It lies 7 kilometres from Lake Constance. The region produces significant quantities of Tettnang hop, an ingredient of beer, and ships t ...

, Germany *

Dangjin Dangjin (; ) is a city in South Chungcheong Province, South Korea. It stands on the south shore of the Bay of Asan. Dangjin borders Incheon, Pyeongtaek, and Hwaseong by sea, and Seosan, Yesan, and Asan by land. Its name means " Tang ferry," a ...

Chungcheongnam-do South Chungcheong Province (), informally called Chungnam, is a province of South Korea in the Hoseo region in the southwest of the Korean Peninsula. South Chungcheong borders the provinces of Gyeonggi to the north, North Chungcheong, Sejong ...

, Korea * Temecula, California, United States

Media

* FM Hanabi

Local attractions

* Former Ikeda Family Gardens, National Place of Scentic Beauty * Hotta-no-saku, National Historic Site

Notable people from Daisen

* Gotō Chūgai, writer *

Eiji Gotō , was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. Biography Gotō was a native of Takanashi Village in Senboku District, Akita (what is now the city of Daisen, Akita), and a graduate of the 37th class of the Imperial Japanese Na ...

, admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy *

Kazuo Koike was a prolific Japanese manga writer ( gensakusha), novelist, screenwriter, lyricist and entrepreneur. He is best known for his violent, artful ''seinen'' manga, notably ''Lone Wolf and Cub'' (with Goseki Kojima, 1970–6), '' Lady Snowblood'' ...

, manga writer * Nobuhide Minorikawa, politician *

Kazuo Oga is an art director and background artist for many Madhouse Studio and Studio Ghibli anime films. Oga has worked with major directors Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, Yoshiaki Kawajiri, Osamu Dezaki. He also published two artbooks and direct ...

Hitoshi Okuda is a Japanese manga artist, most famous for his characterizations and stories set in the world of ''Tenchi Muyo!''. Okuda got his start as a ''doujinshi'' artist before debuting professionally, studying under Nobuteru Yūki and Yutaka Izubuch ...

, Manga artist *

Sukeshiro Terata is a retired Japanese politician who served as the governor of Akita Prefecture from 1997 to 2009. Early life Terata is a native of Ōmagari, Akita and graduate of Waseda University. Political career Terata was first elected to the post of ...

, politicianOfficial Profile
*

Toshirō Yanagiba is a Japanese actor. Career Yanagiba has appeared in films such as the ''Bayside Shakedown'' series, ''Chinese Dinner'', and ''Space Battleship Yamato (2010 film), Space Battleship Yamato''. Filmography Film * ''Minami e Hashire, Umi no Michi ...

, actor * Ryōgoku Yūjirō, sumo wrestler

References

External links

Official Website
{{Authority control Cities in Akita Prefecture