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 western

Aomori Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku region. The prefecture's capital, largest city, and namesake is the city of Aomori (city), Aomori. Aomori is the northernmost prefecture on Japan's main island, Honshu, and is border ...

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 163,639 in 71,044 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 . The total area of the city is . Hirosaki developed as a

castle town A castle town is a settlement built adjacent to or surrounding a castle. Castle towns were common in Medieval Europe. Some examples include small towns like Alnwick and Arundel, which are still dominated by their castles. In Western Europe, ...

for the 100,000 ''

koku The is a Chinese-based Japanese unit of volume. One koku is equivalent to 10 or approximately , or about of rice. It converts, in turn, to 100 shō and 1,000 gō. One ''gō'' is the traditional volume of a single serving of rice (before co ...

Hirosaki Domain file:Hirosakijo.jpg, Hirosaki Castle, the seat of the Hirosaki Domain , also known as , was a ''tozama'' Han (Japan), feudal domain of Edo period JapanRavina, Mark. (1998) ''Land and Lordship in Early Modern Japan,'' p. 222 It is located in Muts ...

ruled by the

Tsugaru clan The was a Japanese samurai clan who ruled the northwestern half of what is now Aomori Prefecture in the Tōhoku region of Japan under the Edo period Tokugawa shogunate. The Tsugaru were ''daimyō'' of Hirosaki Domain and its semi-subsidiary, ...

. The city is currently a regional commercial center, and the largest producer of

apple An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...

s in Japan. The city government has been promoting the slogans "Apple Colored Town Hirosaki" and "Castle and Cherry Blossom and Apple Town" to promote the city image. The town is also noted for many western-style buildings dating from 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 ...

Geography

Hirosaki is located in western Aomori Prefecture, at the southern end of the Tsugaru plains of the Tsugaru Peninsula, southeast of Mount Iwaki and bordering on

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 ...

. The eastern and southern flanks of Mount Iwaki and its peak are within the city's borders. The Iwaki River flows from the west to the northeast through the city.

Neighboring municipalities

* Ōdate Aomori Prefecture * Ajigasawa * Fujisaki * Hirakawa * Inakadate * Itayanagi * Nishimeya * Ōwani * Tsugaru * Tsuruta

Climate

Hirosaki 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 Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''Dfa'') characterized by hot summers and cold winters with heavy snowfall. The average annual temperature in Hirosaki is 10.5 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1357 mm with August as the wettest month and April as the driest. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 23.5 °C, and lowest in January, at around -1.5 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Hirosaki peaked at around the year 2000 and has declined since then.

City emblem

Hirosaki uses a Buddhist ''manji'' as its official emblem. This came from the flag emblem of

, the ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and no ...

'' of

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 ...

History

Many human-shaped clay figures have been unearthed around the region which date as far back as 12,000 years. More of these figures date from the Jomon and

Yayoi The Yayoi period (弥生時代, ''Yayoi jidai'') (c. 300 BC – 300 AD) is one of the major historical periods of the Japanese archipelago. It is generally defined as the era between the beginning of food production in Japan and the emergence o ...

period. The area around Hirosaki formed part of the domains of the

Northern Fujiwara The Northern Fujiwara (奥州藤原氏 ''Ōshū Fujiwara-shi'') were a Japanese noble family that ruled the Tōhoku region (the northeast of Honshū) of Japan during the 12th century as their own realm.

in the

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a ...

;

Minamoto no Yoritomo was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate, ruling from 1192 until 1199, also the first ruling shogun in the history of Japan.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Minamoto no Yoriie" in . He was the husband of Hōjō Masako ...

awarded it to the

Nanbu clan The was a Japanese clan, Japanese samurai clan who ruled most of northeastern Honshū in the Tōhoku region of Japan for over 700 years, from the Kamakura period through the Meiji Restoration of 1868. The Nanbu claimed descent from the Seiwa Ge ...

in the early

Kamakura period The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...

after the defeat of the Northern Fujiwara (1189). During the

Sengoku period The was the period in History of Japan, Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as th ...

a local retainer of the Nambu, Ōura Tamenobu, declared his independence (1571) and seized local castles. He pledged fealty to

Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods and regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: ...

at the Battle of Odawara in 1590, and was confirmed in his holdings with revenues of 45,000 ''koku''. He also changed his name to "Tsugaru". After siding with

Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...

at the

Battle of Sekigahara The Battle of Sekigahara (Shinjitai: ; Kyūjitai: , Hepburn romanization: ''Sekigahara no Tatakai'') was an important battle in Japan which occurred on October 21, 1600 (Keichō 5, 15th day of the 9th month) in what is now Gifu Prefecture, ...

, he was re-confirmed in his holdings with a nominal '' kokudaka'' of 47,000 ''

'' and he began construction of a castle in Takaoka (present-day Hirosaki). This marked the start of

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 ...

. His successor, Tsugaru Nobuhira, completed the castle in 1611, but its massive 5-story ''

tenshu is an architectural typology found in Japanese castle, Japanese castle complexes. They are easily identifiable as the highest tower within the castle. Common translations of ''tenshu'' include keep, main keep, or ''donjon''. ''Tenshu'' are cha ...

'' was lost to lightning in 1627. The domain's ''kokudaka'' increased to 100,000 ''koku'' in 1628. The Tsugaru clan sided with the Satchō Alliance in the Boshin War of 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 ...

, and was rewarded by the new

Meiji government The was the government that was formed by politicians of the Satsuma Domain and Chōshū Domain in the 1860s. The Meiji government was the early government of the Empire of Japan. Politicians of the Meiji government were known as the Meiji ...

with an additional 10,000 ''koku''. However, with the abolition of the han system on August 29, 1871, Hirosaki Domain was abolished, and replaced by Hirosaki Prefecture. The prefecture was renamed Aomori Prefecture in October of the same year, and the prefectural capital was relocated to the more centrally located Aomori. Chōyō Elementary School was established on October 1, 1873. Apple

horticulture Horticulture (from ) is the art and science of growing fruits, vegetables, flowers, trees, shrubs and ornamental plants. Horticulture is commonly associated with the more professional and technical aspects of plant cultivation on a smaller and mo ...

was introduced to Hirosaki from 1877 and the 59th National Bank, the predecessor of Aomori Bank opened in March 1878. Hirosaki was proclaimed a city on April 1, 1889 with the establishment of the modern municipalities system and was thus one of the first 30 cities in Japan. It was also the third largest city in the

Tōhoku region The , Northeast region, , or consists of the northeastern portion of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. This traditional region consists of six prefectures (): Akita, Aomori, Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi, and Yamagata. Tōhoku retains ...

after

Sendai is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Miyagi Prefecture and the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,098,335 in 539,698 households, making it the List of cities in Japan, twelfth most populated city in Japan. ...

and Morioka at the time. The

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 ...

connected Hirosaki with Aomori on December 1, 1894. Hirosaki became the home garrison town for the

Imperial Japanese Army The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA; , ''Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun'', "Army of the Greater Japanese Empire") was the principal ground force of the Empire of Japan from 1871 to 1945. It played a central role in Japan’s rapid modernization during th ...

IJA 8th Division The was an infantry division in the Imperial Japanese Army. It was formed 1 October 1898 in Hirosaki, Aomori, as one of the six new reserve divisions created after the First Sino-Japanese War and was annihilated in the Philippines during the ...

from October, 1898. The division was prominently active in the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War (8 February 1904 – 5 September 1905) was fought between the Russian Empire and the Empire of Japan over rival imperial ambitions in Manchuria and the Korean Empire. The major land battles of the war were fought on the ...

. Hirosaki City Hospital was established in 1901, and Hirosaki City Library in 1906. The first telephone service in the city started in 1909. The first Cherry Blossom Festival was held in 1918. In 1927, the Kōnan Railway connected Hirosaki with Onoe. Hirosaki University was established in 1949. On March 1, 1955, Hirosaki expanded through annexation of neighboring villages of Shimizu, Wattoku, Toyoda, Horikoshi, Chitose, Fujishiro, Niina, Funazawa, Takasugi, Susono and Higashimeya. Nishimeya became an

enclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is so ...

. The city further expanded on September 1, 1957, through annexation of neighboring Ishikawa Village. In 1979, the city was connected to the Tōhoku Expressway by a spur road named "Apple Road". On February 27, 2006, old Hirosaki city, the town of Iwaki, and the village of Sōma were merged into an expanded city of Hirosaki. In 2012, the city began partnering with the French commune of Beuvron-en-Auge in the

Pays d'Auge The Pays d'Auge (, literally ''Land of Auge'') is an area in Normandy, straddling the '' départements'' of Calvados and Orne (plus a small part of the territory of Eure). The chief town is Lisieux. Geography Generally it consists of the basin ...

region of Normandy, which has been granted '' appellation contrôlée'' status for its

cider Cider ( ) is an alcoholic beverage made from the Fermented drink, fermented Apple juice, juice of apples. Cider is widely available in the United Kingdom (particularly in the West Country) and Ireland. The United Kingdom has the world's highest ...

and calvados brandy made from cider. The partnership aims to promote economic and touristic development by creating opportunities related to apples.

Government

Hirosaki 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, together with the neighbouring village of Nishimeya, contributes six members to the Aomori Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Aomori 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

Hirosaki is the regional commercial center for southwest Aomori Prefecture. The main agricultural crops include apples and rice, with Hirosaki accounting for 20% of the total production of apples in Japan.

Education

Colleges and universities

* Hirosaki University ** Hirosaki Gakuin University ** Hirosaki University of Health and Welfare ** Hirosaki University of Heath and Welfare Junior College ** School of Allied Medical Sciences, Hirosaki University * Tohoku Women's College ** Tohoku Women's Junior College

Primary and secondary education

Hirosaki has 29 public elementary schools and 15 public junior high schools operated by the city government. There is one national public elementary school and public junior high school, and one private combined elementary/junior high school and one private junior high school. The city also has five public high schools operated by the Aomori prefectural Board of Education and four private high schools. Public high schools * Hirosaki Chūō High School *Hirosaki High School *Hirosaki Minami High School *Hirosaki Vocational High School *Hirosaki Technical High School Private high schools *Hirosaki Gakuin Seiai Middle and High School *Hirosaki Higashi High School *Shibata Girls' High School *Tōōgijuku High School

Other schools

Hirosaki has four special education schools for the handicapped, three of which are operated by Aomori Prefecture, and one by the national government.

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 ...

(JR East) –

* – –

Kōnan Railway Company – Kōnan Line * Hirosaki – – – , Konan Testudo logo

Kōnan Railway Company – Ōwani Line * – – – – – – – – – –

Highways

* * * * *

Sports and culture

* ''Tsugaru-jamisen'', a virtuosic style of '' Tsugaru-jamisen'' playing.

Sports teams

* Blancdieu Hirosaki FC, football team

Festivals

* Hirosaki Neputa Festival, held during the first week of August and was named one of the 100 Soundscapes of Japan by the Ministry of the Environment * Hirosaki Cherry Blossom Festival held in the park surrounding Hirosaki Castle. About 2,600 Sakura (Japanese cherry) blossom during the Japanese Golden Week vacation period. * Hirosaki Castle Chrysanthemum and Autumn Leaves Festival held every autumn since 1962. Celebration for the passing summer and upcoming winter season. * Hirosaki Castle Snow Lantern Festival, first celebrated in 1977. The festival had attracted 310,000 visitors in 1999 and included 165 standing snow lanterns and 300 mini kamakura snow caves.

Local attractions

* Chosho-ji * Fujita Memorial Japanese Garden * Hirosaki Castle * Hirosaki Tōshō-gū * Iwaki Kōgen Prefectural Natural Park * Nakamachi Samurai Houses * Narita Family Gardens, National Place of Scenic Beauty * Seishō-in * Ōmori Katsuyama Site, National Historic Site * Tsushima Family Gardens, National Place of Scenic Beauty * Zuiraku-en, National Place of Scenic Beauty

Notable people from Hirosaki

* Daigo Umehara, professional fighting game player and author * Hirofumi Arai,

Zainichi Korean () are ethnic Koreans who immigrated to Japan before 1945 and are citizens or permanent residents of Japan, or who are descendants of those immigrants. They are a group distinct from South Korean nationals who have immigrated to Japan since t ...

actor (Real Name: ''Park Kyung-sik'',

Hangul The Korean alphabet is the modern writing system for the Korean language. In North Korea, the alphabet is known as (), and in South Korea, it is known as (). The letters for the five basic consonants reflect the shape of the speech organs ...

: 박경식) * Tomoko Aran, pop singer and lyricist *

Masakatsu Funaki is a Japanese actor, mixed martial artist and professional wrestler known professionally as , who has previously wrestled in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi (PWFG), Newborn UWF (UWF) ...

, actor, mixed martial artist and professional wrestler * Yōjirō Ishizaka, writer * Ningen Isu 人間椅子(バンド), music band * Wakanohana Kanji I, sumo wrestler * Takanohana Kenshi, sumo wrestler *

Shunsuke Kikuchi was a Japanese composer who was active from the early 1960s until 2017. He specialized in incidental music for media such as television and film. Kikuchi was regarded as one of Japan's most highly demanded film and TV composers, working princi ...

, musician * Norio Kudo, professional go player * Mitsuyo Maeda, judo wrestler * Goro Kumagai, printmaker, educator * Juji Nakada, evangelist * Yoshitomo Nara, modern artist * Iwakiyama Ryūta, sumo wrestler * Nui Sano, painter * Takahiro Shimoyama, basketball player * Wakanosato Shinobu, sumo wrestler * Shūji Terayama, modern artist * Hisashi Tonomura, musician

References

External links

* {{Authority control Cities in Aomori Prefecture 1889 establishments in Japan