290px, Hamatonbetsu town center area Aerial photograph.1977 290px, Lake Kutcharo is 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

Sōya Subprefecture is a subprefecture of Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan. Its population is estimated to be 77,500 as of July 31, 2004 and its area is . It is the northernmost subprefecture of Japan. Wakkanai Airport is located in Wakkanai. Rishiri Airport is locat ...

Hokkaido is the list of islands of Japan by area, second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own list of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō fr ...

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 town 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 3,263 in 1841 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 8.1 people per km². The total area of the town is .

Geography

Hamatonbetsu is located in northeast Hokkaido; it faces the

Sea of Okhotsk The Sea of Okhotsk; Historically also known as , or as ; ) is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean. It is located between Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula on the east, the Kuril Islands on the southeast, Japan's island of Hokkaido on the sou ...

to the east where, during the winter, there is

drift ice Drift or Drifts may refer to: Geography * Drift or ford (crossing) of a river * Drift (navigation), difference between heading and course of a vessel * Drift, Kentucky, unincorporated community in the United States * In Cornwall, England: ** D ...

. Coastal areas of the town are marshy, and mountains spread out in the western and southern parts of the town. Lake Kutcharo designated a

Ramsar site A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention,8 ha (O) *** Permanent 8 ha (P) *** Seasonal Intermittent < 8 ha(Ts) **

Parts of the town are within the borders of the

North Okhotsk Prefectural Natural Park is a Prefectural Natural Park in northern Hokkaidō, Japan. Established in 1968, the park spans the municipalities of Esashi, Hamatonbetsu, and Sarufutsu. See also * National Parks of Japan National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or ...

. *

Mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

s: Mount Jumon (761m) *

River A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

s: Tonbetsu River, Toyosambe River *

Lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...

s: Lake Kutcharo

Neighbouring municipalities

** Esashi ** Horonobe ** Nakatonbetsu ** Sarufutsu

Climate

Hamatonbetsu has cold and temperate climate considered to be Dfb according to the Köppen-Geiger climate classification. There is a considerable amount of rainfall even during months that typically experience dry weather. The average annual temperature in Hamatonbetsu is 5.9 °C. Each year, there is an approximate 1112 mm of precipitation. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 19.1 °C, and lowest in January, at around -6.6 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Hamatonbetsu is as shown below. The town is in a long period of sustained population loss.

History

The name of "Tonbetsu" derives from the

Ainu language Ainu (, ), or more precisely Hokkaido Ainu (), is a language spoken by a few elderly members of the Ainu people on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. It is a member of the Ainu language family, itself considered a language family isola ...

word ''to-un-pet'', which translates "river entering lake", and which referred to the Tonbetsu River which enters Lake Kutcharo. In 1878, the villages of Esashi, Tonbetsu, Utanobetsu, and Rebun were established in Esashi District,

Kitami Province was a short-lived Provinces of Japan, province located in Hokkaido. It corresponded to modern-day Sōya Subprefecture and Okhotsk Subprefecture minus part of Abashiri District, Hokkaido, Abashiri District. History After 1869, the northern Japan ...

. In 1909 the four villages merged to form the village of Esashi; however, Tonbetsu was separated out in April 1916. In April 1921, Tonbestu was divided into Tonbetsu and Nakatonbetsu villages. Tonbetsu was raised to town status on November 1, 1951 and was renamed Hamatonbetsu due to its coastal location.

Government

Hamatonbetsu 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 ...

town council of ten members. Hamatonbetsu, as part of Soya sub-prefecture, contributes one member to the Hokkaido Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the town is part of the

Hokkaido 12th district Hokkaidō 12th District (北海道第12区) is an electoral district for the House of Representatives, the lower house of the national Diet of Japan. The district was established in 1994 and had major boundary changes in 2002 and 2017. Area The ...

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 local economy of Hamatonbetsu is centered on

commercial fishing Commercial fishing is the activity of catching fish and other seafood for Commerce, commercial Profit (economics), profit, mostly from wild fisheries. It provides a large quantity of food to many countries around the world, but those who practice ...

and

dairy farming Dairy farming is a class of agriculture for the long-term production of milk, which is processed (either on the farm or at a dairy plant, either of which may be called a dairy) for the eventual sale of a dairy product. Dairy farming has a h ...

. In particular, Hamatonbetsu is noted for its

scallops Scallop () is a common name that encompasses various species of marine bivalve molluscs in the taxonomic family Pectinidae, the scallops. However, the common name "scallop" is also sometimes applied to species in other closely related famili ...

salmon Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...

and

crab Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura (meaning "short tailed" in Greek language, Greek), which typically have a very short projecting tail-like abdomen#Arthropoda, abdomen, usually hidden entirely under the Thorax (arthropo ...

Education

Hamatonbetsu has four public elementary schools and one public junior high school operated by the town government. The town has one public high school operated by the Hokkaido Board of Education.

Transportation

Railways

Hamatonbetsu has not had any passenger railway services since the closing of the

JR Hokkaido The is one of the constituent companies of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group), and is often referred to by its official abbreviation: . It operates intercity and local rail services in Hokkaido, Japan. The company introduced Kitaca, a smart c ...

Tempoku Line The was a railway line most recently operated by Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido) in Hokkaidō, Japan. The 148.9 kilometres line connected from Otoineppu to Minami-Wakkanai via Nakatonbetsu, Hamatonbetsu and Sarufutsu until its closur ...

in 1989. The nearest railway station is

Minami-Wakkanai Station is a railway station located in the city of Wakkanai, Hokkaidō, Japan. It is operated by JR Hokkaido. The station is numbered "W79". Lines Minami-Wakkanai Station is served by the Sōya Main Line from to , and lies 256.7 km from the sta ...

Otoineppu Station is a railway station located in the village of Otoineppu, Nakagawa District (Teshio), Hokkaidō, Japan. It is operated by JR Hokkaido. Lines The station is served by the Soya Main Line from to and is located 129.3 km from the start ...

on the

Sōya Main Line The is a Japanese railway line operated by Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido) in Hokkaido. The line connects Asahikawa Station in Asahikawa and Wakkanai Station in Wakkanai, and is the northernmost railway line in Japan. The name c ...

, a 1.5 hour bus ride away.

Highways

* *

Local attractions

*Hamatonbetsu onsen *Kitami Kamuimisaki * Lake Kutcharo

Notable people from Hamatonbetsu

* Masato Hatanaka, musician

Mascot

Hamatonbetsu's mascot is who is a gentle yet clumsy pig dressed as a tundra swan. He lives in areas surrounding Lake Kutcharo. His birthday is August 21. According to Ainu legend, he first appeared during the Jomon period to bring food and medical needs for good health and protection from crimes and natural disasters. Nowadays, he is no longer a god anymore. Instead, he is now a ballet dancer (who is auditioning for

Swan Lake ''Swan Lake'' ( rus, Лебеди́ное о́зеро, r=Lebedínoje ózero, p=lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə, links=no ), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failu ...

) and the assistant to the mayor. He still helps the town to children and adults around the world and brings happiness during difficult times by his dance moves while promoting the town. He knows laughter is the best medicine.

References

External links

*
Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamatonbetsu, Hokkaido Towns in Hokkaido Populated coastal places in Japan Sōya Subprefecture