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

Ishikawa Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu island. Ishikawa Prefecture has a population of 1,096,721 (1 January 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,186 Square kilometre, km2 (1,616 sq mi). Ishikawa Pr ...

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 35,188 in 12787 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 550 persons per km². The total area of the city was .

Geography

Kahoku is located in central Ishikawa Prefecture. It is approximately 20 km north of the capital of,

Kanazawa is the capital of Ishikawa Prefecture in central Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 466,029 in 203,271 households, and a population density of 990 persons per km2. The total area of the city was . Etymology The name "Kanazaw ...

, or thirty minutes by train. Kahoku lies between the

Sea of Japan The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it ...

to the west, the town of Hōdatsushimizu to the north, the town of

Tsubata is a town located in Kahoku District, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 37,694 in 13,873 households, and a population density of 430 persons per km2. The total area of the town was . Geography Tsubata is locat ...

to the east and the town of Uchinada to the south. Geographically from the east to west, Kahoku is composed of a mountainous region, a hilly region, a terrace region, a lowland region and then a coastal region. In the northern part of town the Ōmi River flows into the Sea of Japan and in the southern area, the Unoke River flows into the Kahoku Lagoon which marks the southernmost part of Kahoku.

Neighbouring municipalities

*Ishikawa Prefecture ** Hōdatsushimizu **

** Uchinada

Climate

Kahoku 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 ''Cfa'') characterized by mild summers and cold winters with heavy snowfall. The average annual temperature in Kahoku is 14.1 °C. The average annual rainfall is 2500 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.6 °C, and lowest in January, at around 2.9 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Kahoku has remained steady over the past 40 years.

History

The area around Kahoku was mostly part of ancient

Kaga Province was a province of Japan in the area that is today the south and western portion of Ishikawa Prefecture in the Hokuriku region of Japan. Kaga bordered on Echizen, Etchū, Hida, and Noto Provinces. It was part of Hokurikudō Circuit. Its ...

, with a small portion of its northern area in

Noto Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan in the area that is today the northern part of Ishikawa Prefecture in Japan, including the Noto Peninsula (''Noto-hantō'') which is surrounded by the Sea of Japan. Noto bordered on Etchū Province, E ...

. The area became part

Kaga Domain The , also known as the , was a domain of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1583 to 1871.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 ...

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 ...

. Following 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 area was organised into

Kahoku District, Ishikawa is a Districts of Japan, district located in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2003, the district has an estimated population of 62,374 with a population density, density of 476.79 persons per km2. The total area is 130.82 km2. Municipali ...

. The villages of Takamatsu, Nanatsuka and Unoke were established with the creation of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. Takamatsu was raised to town status on August 1, 1922, Nanatsuka on February 11, 1940, and Unoke on February 11, 1948. The three towns merged on March 1, 2004, to form the city of Kahoku.

Government

Kahoku 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 18 members.

Economy

The local economy of Kahoku is dominated by agriculture.

Education

Kahoku has six public elementary schools and three middle schools operated by the city government; however, the city does not have a high school. The

Ishikawa Prefectural Nursing University Ishikawa Prefectural Nursing University is a public university at Kahoku, Ishikawa, 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 wes ...

is also located in Kahoku.

Junior high schools

*Kahokudai Junior High School *Takamatsu Junior High School *Unoke Junior High School

Elementary schools

*Kanazu Elementary School *Nanatsuka Elementary school *Ōmi Elementary school *Sotohisumi Elementary school *Takamatsu Elementary School *Unoke Elementary School

Transportation

Railway

West Japan Railway Company , also referred to as , is one of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group) companies and operates in western Honshu. It has its headquarters in Kita-ku, Osaka. It is listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange, is a constituent of the TOPIX Large70 index, ...

Nanao Line The is a railway line in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West) and the Noto Railway. It runs between Tsubata Station in Tsubata, Ishikawa, Tsubata and Anamizu Station in Anamizu, Ishikawa, Anamizu. JR Wes ...

* - -

Highway

: :

Sister cities

Kahoku is twinned with: *

Meßkirch Meßkirch (; Swabian: ''Mässkirch'') is a town in the district of Sigmaringen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. The town was the residence of the counts of Zimmern, widely known through Count Froben Christoph's '' Zimmern Chronicle'' (1559� ...

, Germany, since 1985

Local attractions

* Kamiyamada Shell Mound, a National Historic Site

Mascot

Kahoku's mascot is , a 5-year-old cat. His birthday is 28 May. He ends his sentences with the Japanese onomatopoeia for "meow".

Notable people from Kahoku

* Kitaro Nishida, philosopher

References

External links

*
Kahoku City official website

{{Authority control Cities in Ishikawa Prefecture Populated coastal places in Japan