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

Niigata Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture in the Chūbu region of Honshu of Japan. Niigata Prefecture has a population of 2,131,009 (1 July 2023) and is the List of Japanese prefectures by area, fifth-largest prefecture of Japan by geographic area ...

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 of 45,916 in 19,086 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 138 persons per km². The total area of the city is .

Geography

Gosen is located in an inland region of north-central Niigata Prefecture. The

Agano River The is a river system in the Hokuriku region of Honshu, Japan. It is also called the Aga River or the Ōkawa River in Fukushima. It is designated as a Class A river. The source of the river is Mount Arakai on the border of Fukushima and Toc ...

flows through the city.

Surrounding municipalities

** Aga **

Akiha-ku, Niigata is one of the eight wards of Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture, in the Hokuriku region of Japan. , the ward had an estimated population of 76,086 in 29,843 households and a population density of 800 persons per km². The total area of the wa ...

** Agano ** Kamo ** Sanjō ** Tagami

History

The area of present-day Gosen was part of ancient

Echigo Province was an old provinces of Japan, old province in north-central Japan, on the shores of the Sea of Japan. It bordered on Uzen Province, Uzen, Iwashiro Province, Iwashiro, Kōzuke Province, Kōzuke, Shinano Province, Shinano, and Etchū Province, ...

. Under 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 ...

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 ...

Japan, parts of what is now Gosen were under the control of Muramatsu Domain, a minor feudal domain ruled by a junior branch of the

Hori clan Hori may refer to: People in Ancient Egypt *Sewadjkare Hori, late 13th dynasty Pharaoh, also known as Hori II * Hori (High Priest of Osiris) Son of Wennenufer and High Priest of Osiris during the reign of Ramesses II (19th dynasty) * Hori I (High ...

Municipal timeline

* On April 1, 1889 - the town of Gosen was created within

Kitakanbara District, Niigata is a district located in Niigata Prefecture, Japan. As of July 1, 2019, the district has an estimated population of 14,025 with a density Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the ratio of a substance's mass to its volum ...

with the establishment of the modern municipalities system. * On November 3, 1954 - the modern city of Gosen was established from the merger of the town of Gosen with the villages of Sumoto, Kawahigashi and Hashida (all from Kitakanbara District). * On January 1, 2006 - the town of Muramatsu (from Nakakanbara District) was merged into Gosen.

Climate

Gosen has a humid climate (Köppen ''Cfa'') characterized by warm, wet summers and cold winters with heavy snowfall. The average annual temperature in Gosen is 13.1 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1886 mm with September as the wettest month.The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.2 °C, and lowest in January, at around1.3 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Gosen has declined steadily over the past 40 years.

Government

Gosen 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 20 members.

Economy

The economy of Gosen is primarily agricultural, with production of

cut flowers Cut flowers are flowers and flower buds (often with some Plant stem, stem and leaf) that have been cut from the plant bearing it. It is removed from the plant for decorative use. Cut greens are leaves with or without stems added to the cut flow ...

, peonies, ''satoimo'' and kiwi fruit as important crops.

Education

Gosen has eleven public elementary schools and four public junior high schools operated by the city government. There are two public high schools operated by the Niigata Prefectural Board of Education in the city. The prefecture also operates one special education school. Niigata University's Department of Agriculture has a field test farm in Gosen.

Transportation

Railway

JR East 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 ...

Banetsu West Line The is a railway line in Japan operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Kōriyama Station in Kōriyama, Fukushima Prefecture, and Niitsu Station in Akiha Ward, Niigata, Niigata Prefecture. The name "Banetsu" is taken f ...

* - - - -

Highway

* – Gosen PA *

Local attractions

* * Sakihana_Onsen_and_Agano_River_Isabella_Bird_Sep2021.jpg,

and Sakihana onsen Muramatsu park Sakura.JPG, Sakura in Muramatsu Park

Notable people from Gosen

Yoshifumi Kondō was a Japanese animator who worked for Studio Ghibli in his last years. He was born in Gosen, Niigata, Gosen, Niigata Prefecture, Japan. He worked as an animation director on ''Anne of Green Gables (1979 TV series), Anne of Green Gables'', ''She ...

(anime director, character designer) *

Kazuya Tsurumaki Kazuya Tsurumaki (鶴巻和哉 ''Tsurumaki Kazuya'') is a Japanese anime director. He was born on February 2, 1966, in the city of Gosen, located in Niigata Prefecture. He is the protégé of Hideaki Anno, and a longtime animator at Gainax. T ...

(anime director) * Kimio Yanagisawa (

manga artist A manga artist, also known as a mangaka (), is a Cartoonist, comic artist who writes and/or illustrates manga. Most manga artists study at an art college or manga school or take on an apprenticeship with another artist before entering the indus ...

)

References

External links

Official Website

English page
{{Authority control Cities in Niigata Prefecture