was 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 Maniwa District,

Okayama Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Okayama Prefecture has a population of 1,826,059 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 7,114 Square kilometre, km2 (2,746 sq mi). Okayama 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 ...

. As of 2003, the town had an estimated population of 9,027 and a

density Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the ratio of a substance's mass to its volume. The symbol most often used for density is ''ρ'' (the lower case Greek letter rho), although the Latin letter ''D'' (or ''d'') can also be u ...

of 65.04 persons per km². The total area was 138.79 km². On March 31, 2005, Katsuyama, along with the town of Hokubō (from Jōbō District), and towns of Kuse, Ochiai and Yubara, and the villages of

Chūka Japanese Chinese cuisine, also known as ''chūka'', represents a unique fusion of Japanese and Chinese culinary traditions that have evolved over the late 19th century and more recent times. This style, served predominantly by Chinese rest ...

, Kawakami, Mikamo and Yatsuka (all from Maniwa District) were merged to create the city of Maniwa. To coincide with the 2005 merger, Katsuyama residents were given a book commemorating the last 50 years of Katsuyama's existence as a town and a special purple cloth with the town logo imprinted on it. Local to Katsuyama is the , the only Okayama waterfall on the list of Japan's Top 100 Waterfalls and home to

Japanese macaque The Japanese macaque (''Macaca fuscata''), also known as the snow monkey, is a terrestrial Old World monkey species that is native to Japan. Colloquially, they are referred to as "snow monkeys" because some live in areas where snow covers the g ...

monkeys. Recently, Katsuyama has also become known for its noren adorning the shops and houses along a 1 km stretch of the Katsuyama Historical Preservation District, wherein the Edo Period landscape of the town remains. The noren are all made by one craftswoman, Yoko Kano, who has her own workshop along the street.

Traditional products

Katsuyama is famous for its bamboo basketry, originating from the town's Tsukida district, and four types of baskets produced there are designated as "Traditional Japanese Crafts". Also famous is Gozenshu sake made by Katsuyama's Tsuji Honten brewery which has been in the town since the early 1800s, having relocated from nearby Ochiai.

Geography

Rivers: Asahi River (The big-3 river through Okayama Prefecture). Adjoining municipalities in

: Kuse, Ochiai, Yubara, Mikamo, Hokubō, and Ōsa.

Education

*Katsuyama Elementary School *Tsukida Elementary School *Tomihara Elementary School *Katsuyama Junior High School *Okayama Prefectural Katsuyama High School

Transportation

Railways

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, ...

Kishin Line is a railway line operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West) between Himeji, Hyōgo and Niimi, Okayama, Japan. The name of the line comes from the first kanji of Himeji () and Niimi () which the line connects. Stations *S: Trains stop *s: ...

*** Chūgoku-Katsuyama Station – Tsukida Station – Tomihara Station

Road

National highways National Highways (NH), formerly Highways England and before that the Highways Agency, is a State-owned enterprise, government-owned company charged with operating, maintaining and improving Roads in England, motorways and major A roads in Eng ...

: ** Route 181 ** Route 313 * Prefectural roads: **Okayama Prefectural Route 32 ( Niimi-Katsuyama) **Okayama Prefectural Route 84 (Katsuyama-Kurihara) **Okayama Prefectural Route 201 (Kanba waterfall) **Okayama Prefectural Route 311 (Akuchi-Kami) **Okayama Prefectural Route 320 (Wakashiro- Hōkoku Station) **Okayama Prefectural Route 321 (Kōjiro-Katsuyama) **Okayama Prefectural Route 390 (Komi- Tsukida Station) **Okayama Prefectural Route 459 (Wakashiro-Kōjiro)

Notable places and events

*Katsuyama

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, ...

* Katsuyama Historical Preservation District *Kanba waterfall *Katsuyama

Festival A festival is an event celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, Melā, mela, or Muslim holidays, eid. A ...

(October 19–20) File:Mimasaka Katsuyama -01.jpg, Katsuyama castle town File:Kanba Falls.JPG, Kanba waterfall

References

External links

Official website of Maniwa
in Japanese

* ttp://www.gozenshu.co.jp/ Tsuji brewery webpages(in Japanese)
https://www.flickr.com/groups/1133664@N25/pool/with/4298539887/
Katsuyama photo group on Flickr {{Authority control Dissolved municipalities of Okayama Prefecture Maniwa