290px, Koriyama Hachiman Shrine 290px, Kiso Falls in Isa 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

Kagoshima Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu and the Ryukyu Islands. Kagoshima Prefecture has a population of 1,527,019 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 9,187 Square kilometre, km2 (3,547 Square m ...

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 22,998 in 12567 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 59 persons per km². The total area of the city is .

Geography

Isa is located in the northernmost inland area of Kagoshima Prefecture, about 75 kilometers north of the prefectural capital, Kagoshima City. The Kawauchi River runs through the city, which is surrounded by the

Kyushu Mountains Kyushu Mountains () is a mountain range that runs from northeast to southwest in central Kyushu. The highest peak of the mountain range is Mount Sobo is one of the 100 Famous Japanese Mountains. The mountain lies on the border of Taketa, � ...

, and the urban center is part of the Oguchi Basin, with an elevation of about 180 meters.

Neighboring municipalities

Kagoshima Prefecture * Izumi * Satsuma * Yūsui Kumamoto Prefecture * Hitoyoshi * Kuma * Minamata Miyazaki Prefecture * Ebino

Climate

Isa 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 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 ...

''Cfa'') with hot summers and mild winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year, and is heavier in summer, especially the months of June and July. The average annual temperature in Isa is . The average annual rainfall is with June as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around . The city recorded on January 25, 2016 which is the lowest temperature ever recorded of Lowlands in Kyushu, while the extreme maximum temperature was on August 18, 2020.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Isa in 2020 is 24,453 people.Isa population statistics
/ref> Isa's population peaked in the 1950s and has been steadily declining since then until 2020.

History

Isa is part of ancient

Satsuma Province was an old province of Japan that is now the western half of Kagoshima Prefecture on the island of Kyūshū. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Satsuma" in . Its abbreviation was . History Satsuma's provincial capital was Satsumasendai. Dur ...

and was part of the holdings of

Satsuma Domain The , briefly known as the , was a Han system, domain (''han'') of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1600 to 1871. The Satsuma Domain was based at Kagoshima Castle in Satsuma Province, the core of the modern city of ...

in 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 ...

. On April 1, 1889, the villages of Oguchi, Yamano, and Hazuki were established with the creation of the modern municipalities system. Oguchi was raised to town status in 1918, followed by Yamano in 1940. In 1954, Oguchi, Yamano, Hazuki, and Nishitara village in Isa District were merged to form the city of Oguchi. Likewise, the villages of Hishikari and Tara were established on April 1, 1889 with the creation of the modern municipalities system. In 1891, Tara was divided into Higashitara and Nishitara, and in 1925 Higashitara was renamed Honjo. In 1940, Hishikari was raised to town status, and in 1954, Hishikari annexed Honjo. The city of Isa was created on November 1, 2008, from the merger of the city of Ōkuchi, and the town of Hishikari (from Isa District). Isa District was dissolved as a result of this merger.

Government

Isa 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 16 members. Isa contributes one member to the Kagoshima Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of the

Kagoshima 3rd district , is the capital city of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 583,966 in 285,992 households, and a population density of 1100 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Etymology While the kanji used to sp ...

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 main economy activity of Isa is agriculture. Notable local products include rice, sweet potatoes and the production ''

shōchū is a Japanese distilled beverage. It is typically distilled from rice, barley, sweet potatoes, buckwheat, or brown sugar, though it is sometimes produced from other ingredients such as chestnut, sesame seeds, potatoes, or even carrots. Typ ...

.'' The

Hishikari mine The Hishikari mine (Japanese: ) is the largest gold mine in Isa, Kagoshima, Japan. The mine has estimated reserves of 8 million oz of gold and is being developed by Sumitomo Metal Mining. References External links Core Facilities:Hishika ...

is one of the few operational mines in Japan, and produces gold.

Education

Izumi has 13 public elementary schools, six public junior high schools and one public high school by the city government, and three public high schools operated by the Kagoshima Prefectural Board of Education. There is also one private high school ( Izumi Chuo High School). The prefecture also operates a special education school for the handicapped.

Transportation

Railways

Isa has no passenger railway service. The nearest stations are Kurino Station in Yusui or

Shin-Minamata Station is a junction passenger railway station located in the city of Minamata, Kumamoto, Japan. It is operated by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu) and by the third-sector railway company Hisatsu Orange Railway. Lines The station is served by the K ...

in Minamata.

Highways

* * * *

Sister cities

Namhae County Namhae County (''Namhae-gun'') is a Administrative divisions of South Korea, county in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. Demographics As of 2005, Namhae had a population of 54,392. However, Namhae has witnessed an aging and decreasing po ...

South Gyeongsang South Gyeongsang Province (, ) is a Administrative divisions of South Korea, province in the southeast of South Korea. The provincial capital is at Changwon. It is adjacent to the major metropolitan center and port of Busan. The UNESCO World Heri ...

, South Korea, since 1991

Noted people from Isa

Takaaki Enoki is a Japanese actor and artist from Isa District, Kagoshima. He is known for his role as private detective Mitsuhiko Asami in the ''Asami Mitsuhiko Series''. He attended Musashino Art University but left before graduating and joined the Shiki Th ...

, actor *

Takehiko Inoue is a Japanese manga artist. He is best known for the basketball series ''Slam Dunk'' (1990–1996), and the ''jidaigeki'' manga '' Vagabond'', which are two of the best-selling manga series in history. Many of his works are about basketball, I ...

, manga artist

References

External links

Isa City official website

Isa City merger
{{Authority control Cities in Kagoshima Prefecture