260px, Ishioka City Hall
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
Ibaraki Prefecture,
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 70,124 in 28,892 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 325 persons per km
2. The percentage of the population aged over 65 was 33.5%.
The total area of the city is .
Geography
Ishioka is located in central Ibaraki Prefecture, approximately 70 kilometers north of central Tokyo. It is bordered by Lake
Kasumigaura to the south and by mountains on all other sides. The urban area of the city is in the east.
Surrounding municipalities
Ibaraki Prefecture
*
Kasama
*
Kasumigaura
*
Omitama
*
Sakuragawa
*
Tsuchiura
*
Tsukuba
Climate
Ishioka has a
Humid continental climate (Köppen ''Cfa'') characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light snowfall. The average annual temperature in Ishioka is 13.8 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1331 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.8 °C, and lowest in January, at around 2.8 °C.
Demographics
Per Japanese census data,
Ishioka population statistics
/ref> the population of Ishioka peaked around the year 2000 and has declined since.
History
During the Nara period, the provincial capital of Hitachi Province was located in what is now part of the city of Ishioka. The area was known as , or simply as “Fuchū” for most of history and developed as a castle town 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 ...
for Hitachi-Fuchū Domain. The domain was renamed “Ishioka Domain” in 1869. With the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889 after 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 ...
, the town of Ishioka was created. Much of the town was destroyed in a fire on March 14, 1929.
Ishioka was raised to city status on February 11, 1954. The new city annexed the neighboring villages of Mi and Sekigawa on December 1, 1954. On October 1, 2005, the town of Yasato (from Niihari District) was merged into Ishioka.
Government
Ishioka has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 22 members. Ishioka contributes two members to the Ibaraki Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Ibaraki 1st district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.
Economy
Ishioka has a diverse economy. Agriculture includes lotus roots, which are cultivated around Lake Kasumigaura, tobacco
Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
, and horticulture, such as persimmons, mandarin oranges, and strawberries cultivated at the foot of Mount Tsukuba. In addition, the countryside is one of the leading rice areas in Ibaraki prefecture. Pig farming, chicken farming, and dairy farming are also major agricultural contributors. The city has an industrial park, with factories owned by Panasonic and Toyo Seikan, among others. '' Sake'' brewing is a traditional local industry, as is the manufacturing of incense sticks.
Education
Ishioka has 17 public elementary schools, eight public middle schools operated by the city government, and three public high schools operated by the Ibaraki Prefectural Board of Education. There is also one private middle school and one private high school.
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 ...
– Jōban Line
* –
Highway
* – Ishioka-Omitama Smart Interchange
*
*
Local attractions
* Hitachinokuni Sōshagū Shinto shrine
National Historic Monuments
*site of Hitachi Kokubun-ji
*site of Hitachi Kokufu ruins
* Funazukayama Kofun
* Kawaratsuka kiln ruins
* Sakura Azumao Former Residence
Notable people from Ishioka
* Inio Asano, manga artist
* Miya, musician and guitarist of Mucc
References
External links
Official Website
{{Authority control
Cities in Ibaraki Prefecture