Kizugawa city center area Aerial photograph 2021

270px, Joruri-ji 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 southern

Kyoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Kyoto Prefecture has a population of 2,561,358 () and has a geographic area of . Kyoto Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the northeast, Shiga Prefecture ...

, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 79,866 in 33183 households and a population density of 940 persons per km². The total area of the city is .

Geography

Kizugawa City is located on the southern border of

. The city consists of a plain area formed along the curving Kizugawa River in the western part of the city area, gentle hills that form the edge of the plain, and mountains to the north and southeast. In addition, the eastern part of the Kamo district is dotted with enclaves of Kasagi town. It is located approximately 30 to 40 km from the centers of Kyoto City and Osaka City, and approximately 8 km from the center of Nara City.

Neighboring municipalities

;

* Kyōtanabe * Sōraku District (

Wazuka file:Wazuka,KyotoIMG 1428.jpg, 270px, Tea plantations in Wazuka is a List of towns in Japan, town located in Sōraku District, Kyoto, Sōraku District, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. , the town has an estimated population of 3,571. and a population de ...

, Kasagi, Ide) ;

Nara Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Nara Prefecture has a population of 1,321,805 and has a geographic area of . Nara Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Osaka Prefecture to the ...

Nara The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an independent agency of the United States government within the executive branch, charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It is also task ...

Climate

Kizugawa 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 to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Kizugawa is 14.3 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1356 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.3 °C, and lowest in January, at around 32.8 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Kizugawa population statistics
/ref> the population of Kizugawa has grown in recent decades. In a population estimate released by the Japan Policy Council, Kizugawa City is the only

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

predicted to have a positive population growth rate by 2040.

History

The area of Kizukawa was part of ancient

Yamashiro Province was a province of Japan, located in Kinai. It overlaps the southern part of modern Kyoto Prefecture on Honshū. Aliases include , the rare , and . It is classified as an upper province in the '' Engishiki''. Yamashiro Province included Kyoto it ...

. During the

Nara period The of the history of Japan covers the years from 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the capita ...

, it prospered as a port for transporting lumber as part of the construction of capital cities such as

Heijō-kyō was the Capital of Japan during most of the Nara period, from 710 to 740 and again from 745 to 784. The imperial palace is a listed UNESCO World Heritage together with other places in the city of Nara (cf. Historic Monuments of Ancient ...

Kuni-kyō , was the capital of Japan between 740 and 744, whose imperial palace (恭仁宮 ''Kuni-kyū'' or ''Kuni no miya'') was built what is now the Kamo neighborhood of the city of Kizugawa in Kyoto Prefecture. The ruins of the palace overlap with th ...

, was the capital city of Japan between 740 and 744 under

Emperor Shōmu was the 45th Emperor of Japan, emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 聖武天皇 (45)/ref> according to the traditional List of Emperors of Japan, order of succession. Shōmu's reign spanned the years 724 through 749, duri ...

was located in what is now the Kamo neighborhood of Kizukawa. The village of Kizukawa in

Sōraku District, Kyoto is a district in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. As of 2007, the district had an estimated population of 44,982 and a density Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the ratio of a substance's mass to its volume. The symbol most of ...

, was established on April 1, 1889 with the creation of the modern municipalities system. It was raised to town status on November 22, 1893, and was elevated to city status on March 12, 2007, after merging with the towns of Kamo, Kizu and Yamashiro (all from Sōraku District).

Government

Kizugawa 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 20 members. Kizugawa, collectively with the municipalities of Sōraku District contributes two members to the Kyoto Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of the

Kyoto 6th district Kyoto 6th district (京都府第6区, ''Kyoto-fu dai-rokku '' or simply 京都6区, ''Kyoto-rokku '') is a single-member constituency of the House of Representatives in the national Diet of Japan located in Kyoto Prefecture. Areas covered 2013� ...

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

Kizugawa is a part of the

Kansai Science City is an unincorporated city located in the , a border region between Kyoto, Osaka, and Nara Prefectures in Kansai region, Japan. The name is commonly shortened to or . The name Keihanna is constructed by extracting a representative kanji from Kyot ...

project and houses research facilities of over 20 enterprises and research facilities including: *Ataka Daiki Engineering (アタカ大機) *Fukujyuen (福寿園) *Kyoto Press Industrial Co. (京都プレス工業) *M-system (エム・システム) *Manyo Tools (マンヨーツール) *Mizuho Co. (株式会社ミズホ) *

Omron , styled as OMRON, is a Japanese electronics company based in Kyoto, Japan. Omron was established by in 1933 (as the ''Tateisi Electric Manufacturing Company'') and incorporated in 1948. The company originated in an area of Kyoto called ""( ja) ...

(オムロン) *

Rohto Pharmaceutical is a multinational corporation specializing in fast-moving consumer goods and pharmaceuticals, headquartered in Ikuno-ku, Osaka, Japan. The company primary focuses on skin and eye care products. They also produce cosmetics, supplements, and ov ...

(ロート製薬) *

Sekisui House is one of Japan's largest homebuilders. It was founded on August 1, 1960 and is headquartered in Osaka. In 2009, Sekisui House expanded into Australia. The company has origins in and is affiliated with Sekisui Chemical, which once was a major ...

(積水ハウス) *Solno Leaves Co. (ソルノリーブス) *Tatsuta Electric Wire Cable Co. (タツタ電線) Other public and private research organizations in Kizugawa City include: * International Institute for Advanced Studies (IIAS, 国際高等研究所) *

Japan Atomic Energy Agency The Japan Atomic Energy Agency is a Japanese atomic energy company. While it inherited the activities of both Japan Nuclear Cycle Development Institute, JNC and Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute, JAERI, it also inherited the nickname of J ...

Kansai Photochemistry Research Center (日本原子力研究開発機構関西光化学研究所) * Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth (RITE, 地球環境産業技術研究機構)

Local attractions

Kizugawa City is the home of several famous temples including: * Gansen-ji (): 3-story pagoda listed as an Important Cultural Property *

Jōruri-ji is a Buddhist temples in Japan, Buddhist temple located in the Nishio Futaba, Kamo-cho neighborhood of the city of Kizugawa, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. It belongs to the Shingon Ritsu school and has both Amida Nyorai and Yakushi Nyorai as its ''ho ...

(): Main Hall, main Buddha image, and 3-story

pagoda A pagoda is a tiered tower with multiple eaves common to Thailand, Cambodia, Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most often Buddhist, but some ...

listed as

National Treasures A national treasure is a structure, artifact, object or cultural work that is officially or popularly recognized as having particular value to the nation, or representing the ideals of the nation. The term has also been applied to individuals or ...

*Kaijyusen-ji (): 5-story pagoda listed as a National Treasure *Kaniman-ji (): main Buddha image listed as a , National Treasure Other attractions include: *The Kids' Science Museum of Photons () *

Ruins *Tono Stone Buddha Path () * Yamashiro Kokubun-ji ruins *Yamashiro Local History Museum ()

Education

Kizugawa has 13 public elementary schools and five public junior high schools operated by city government and two public high schools operated by the Kyoto Prefectural Board of Education. There is also one private elementary school and one private junior high school.

Doshisha University , also referred to as , is a private university in Kyoto, Japan. Established in 1875, it is one of Japan's oldest private institutions of higher learning, and has approximately 30,000 students enrolled on four campuses in Kyoto. It is one of Japa ...

's Gakkentoshi Campus, which focuses on graduate studies in biomedicine, and Doshisha International School, Kyoto (DISK) are also located in Kizugawa.

High schools

*Kizu High School *Nanyō High School

Junior high schools

*Izumigawa Junior High School *Kizu Junior High School *Kizu Daini Junior High School *Kizu Minami Junior High School *Yamashiro Junior High School

Elementary schools

*Doshisha International Academy Elementary School *Kamikoma Elementary School *Kamo Elementary School *Kuni Elementary School *Kunimidai Elementary School *Kizu Elementary School *Kizugawadai Elementary School *Minami Kamodai Elementary School *Saganaka Elementary School *Saganakadai Elementary School *Shiroyamadai Elementary School *Takanohara Elementary School *Tanakura Elementary School *Umemidai Elementary School

Transportation

Railways

JR West , 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, ...

Kansai Main Line The is a railway line in Japan, which connects Nagoya Station with JR Namba Station in Osaka. It is jointly run by the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) and West Japan Railway Company (JR West), with the boundary between both compan ...

(

Yamatoji Line The is the common name of the western portion of the Kansai Main Line in Japan. The line is owned and operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West). It starts at Kamo Station (Kyoto), Kamo Station in Kyoto Prefecture and ends at JR Namba Stat ...

) * -

- Katamachi Line (Gakkentoshi Line) * -

Nara Line The is a commuter rail line in the Osaka–Kobe–Kyoto metropolitan area, operated by the West Japan Railway Company (JR West). Its official termini are Kizu Station in Kizugawa and Kyōto Station in Kyoto, within Kyoto Prefecture; however ...

* - - 20px -

Kintetsu Railway , referred to as and officially Kinki-Nippon Railway, is a Japanese passenger railway company, managing infrastructure and operating passenger train service. Its railway system is the largest in Japan, excluding Japan Railways Group. The railw ...

Kyoto Line *

Highways

Keinawa Expressway * *

Notable people from Kizugawa

Hiroyasu Tanaka Hiroyasu Tanaka (Japanese:田中浩康, born May 24, 1982) is a Japanese former professional baseballer. He was the number 1 draft pick for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, Yakult Swallows in . External links

1982 births Living people Base ...

Central League The or , also known as the for sponsorship reasons, is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League i ...

baseball player *

Yui Yokoyama is a Japanese actress, YouTuber and former singer. She is a former member of the idol group AKB48. She was the second General Manager of the AKB48 Group. She had served as the captain of AKB48 Team A, and was a former member of AKB48 sister grou ...

, ex-member of

AKB48 AKB48 (pronounced ''A.K.B. Forty-Eight'') is a Japanese idol musical girl group named after the Akihabara area in Tokyo, where the group's theater is located. AKB48 has sold more records than any other female musical act in Japanese history. AK ...

Sister cities

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

, United States, friendship city since 2017

References

External links

Kizugawa City official website

Kizugawa City official website

Kizugawa City Living Guide
* {{Authority control Cities in Kyoto Prefecture