270px, Katsuura Town Hall 270px, Hinamatsuri Festival 270px, Kakurin-ji 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 Katsuura District,

Tokushima Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Tokushima Prefecture has a population of 682,439 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,146 Square kilometre, km2 (1,601 sq mi). Tokushima Prefecture b ...

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 4,884 in 2159 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 70 persons per km². The total area of the town is .

Geography

Katsuura is located in the eastern part of Tokushima Prefecture on the island of

Shikoku is the smallest of the List of islands of Japan#Main islands, four main islands of Japan. It is long and between at its widest. It has a population of 3.8 million, the least populated of Japan's four main islands. It is south of Honshu ...

. Most of the town is in the basin of the Katsuura River, which runs from west to north in the center of the town. It is surrounded by mountains, such as Mt. Nakatsumine on the border with Tokushima City in the north. The highest altitude is 972.1 meters at the summit of Mt. Rokuro, and the lowest altitude is 20 meters above sea level. Parts of the town are within the borders of the

Higashi Sankei Prefectural Natural Park is a Prefectural Natural Park in Tokushima Prefecture, Japan. Established in 2005, the park spans the borders of the municipalities of Kamiyama, Katsuura, Naka, Sanagōchi, and Tokushima. The park encompasses and the as well as the temples ...

Neighbouring municipalities

Tokushima Prefecture * Anan *

Kamikatsu file:棚田 - Tanada - Tokushima Kamikatsu, may 2011 (5767092654).jpg, 270px, Rice Terraces in Kamikatsu file:Kanjogataki.jpg, 270px, Kanjo Waterfall at Jigen-ji temple is a List of towns in Japan, town located in Katsuura District, Tokushima, ...

* Komatsushima * Naka * Sanagōchi *

Tokushima is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Tokushima Prefecture has a population of 682,439 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,146 Square kilometre, km2 (1,601 sq mi). Tokushima Prefecture b ...

Climate

Katsuura 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 ''Cfa'') characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light snowfall. The average annual temperature in Katsuura is 14.9 °C. The average annual rainfall is 2128 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.2 °C, and lowest in January, at around 4.8 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Katsuura population statistics
/ref> the population of Katsuura has been declining for the past 70 years.

History

As with all of Tokushima Prefecture, the area of Katsuura was part of ancient Awa Province. 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 ...

, the area was part of the holdings of

Tokushima Domain was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, controlling all of Awa Province and Awaji Province in what is now Tokushima Prefecture and Awaji Island of modern-day Hyōgo Prefecture. It was centered around Tokushima ...

ruled by the

Hachisuka clan The are descendants of Emperor Seiwa (850-880) of Japan and are a branch of the Ashikaga clan through the Shiba clan (Seiwa Genji) of the Minamoto clan. History Ashikaga Ieuji (13th century), son of Ashikaga Yasuuji, was the first to adopt the ...

from their seat at

Tokushima Castle was an Edo period Japanese castle located in the city of Tokushima, Tokushima Prefecture, Japan. Its ruins have been protected as a National Historic Site since 1957. Its Omotegoten Gardens are designated a national Place of Scenic Beauty. Hi ...

. The village of Tanano (棚野村) was established within

Katsuura District, Tokushima is a Districts of Japan, district located in Tokushima Prefecture, Japan. As of June 1, 2019, the district has an estimated population of 6,326 and a population density, density of 35.3 persons per km2. The total area is 179.46 km2. Towns a ...

with the creation of the modern municipalities system on October 1, 1889. It was raised to town status on February 11, 1926 and changed its name to Yokose (横瀬町).On March 1, 1955 Yokose merged with the village of Ikuhina to form the town of Katsuura.

Government

Katsuura 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 10 members. Katsuura, together the city of Komatsushima and town of Kamikatsu, contributes three members to the

Tokushima Prefectural Assembly is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Tokushima Prefecture has a population of 682,439 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,146 km2 (1,601 sq mi). Tokushima Prefecture borders Kagawa Prefecture to the north, ...

. In terms of national politics, the town is part of

Tokushima 1st district Tokushima 1st district (徳島県第1区) is a constituency of the House of Representatives in the Diet of Japan, located in Tokushima Prefecture on the island of Shikoku. The district was created in the electoral reform of 1994. Previously, all ...

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 economy of Katsuura is agricultural, and the town is one of the prefecture's leading

mandarin orange A mandarin orange (''Citrus reticulata''), often simply called mandarin, is a small, rounded citrus tree fruit. Treated as a distinct species of orange, it is usually eaten plain or in fruit salads. The mandarin is small and oblate, unlike the ...

producing areas,

Education

Katsuura has two public elementary schools and one public middle school operated by the town government and one public high school operated by the Tokushima Prefectural Department of Education.

Transportation

Railway

Katsuura does not have any passenger rail service. The closest station is

Minami-Komatsushima Station is a passenger railway station located in the city of Komatsushima, Tokushima Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by JR Shikoku and has the station number "M06". Lines Minami-Komatsushima is served by the Mugi Line and is located 10.9 km fr ...

on the

JR Shikoku The , commonly known as , is the smallest of the seven constituent companies of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It operates of intercity and local rail services in the four Prefectures of Japan, prefectures on the island of Shikoku in Jap ...

Mugi Line The is a railway line in southeastern Tokushima Prefecture, Japan, owned and operated by Shikoku Railway Company (JR Shikoku). It connects the prefectural capital of Tokushima with the town of Kaiyō in Kaifu District. The line's official ni ...

Highways

Katsuura is not on any national highway or expressway.

Local attractions

* Kakurin-ji, 20th temple on the

Shikoku Pilgrimage The or is a multi-site pilgrimage of 88 temples associated with the Buddhist monk Kūkai (''Kōbō Daishi'') on the island of Shikoku, Japan. A popular and distinctive feature of the island's cultural landscape, and with a long history, ...

References

External links

*
Katsuura official website
Towns in Tokushima Prefecture Katsuura, Tokushima {{Tokushima-geo-stub